Horizontal eye movements foster approach to negative pictures but do not change emotional valence: A dopaminergic regulation hypothesis

A new dopaminergic regulation hypothesis is proposed based on two experiments exploring eye-movement effects. In the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Saccade-Induced Retrieval Enhancement (SIRE) domains, eye-movement mechanisms are mainly studied with explicit measures. Here implicit and explicit measures of emotion and memory for positive and negative pictures were investigated after eye movements or fixation in extreme right-handers. Eye movements enhanced explicit recognition predominantly for negative pictures. The absence of implicit repetition priming in both experiments supported a dissociation between implicit and explicit memory. Motivational eye-movement effects emerged but implicit and explicit affect remained unchanged. Experiment 2 revealed, after initial freezing to negative pictures, an acceleration, particularly of approach responses. Eye movements are postulated to foster approach towards negative memories, and promote, though dopaminergic pathways from the Superior Colliculus, enhanced explicit memory and active emotion regulation, primarily in persons with a collateralization of eye and dopamine dominance.     

Sitting with it: An investigation of the relationship between trait mindfulness and sustained attention

BackgroundSustaining attention for extended periods of time is associated with negative affect and this increase in negative affect is related to poorer task performance. Trait mindfulness has been shown to be associated with better sustained attention performance. This may be because trait mindfulness is associated with better attention ability or better emotion regulation ability.AimsThe present research aims to replicate previous findings and better understand why trait mindfulness is associated with better sustained attention performance.MethodParticipants responded to self-report questionnaires assessing their trait mindfulness, attentional control, and experiential avoidance. Next, participants performed a sustained attention task, during which they also reported their subjective feelings of discomfort and boredom. Finally, participants reported their retrospective discomfort and boredom after the task.ResultsWe replicated and extended previous findings by showing that the relationship between trait mindfulness and sustained attention performance was mediated by negative affect experienced during the task. Moreover, the correlation between trait mindfulness and sustained attention disappeared when controlling for experiential avoidance, but remined when controlling for attention control.ConclusionOur results suggest that trait mindfulness is associated with sustained attention because of enhanced emotion regulation and that enhancing affective regulation would be an effective strategy for improving sustained attention performance.     

社交焦虑大学生情绪调节灵活性：情绪内容对策略选择和使用的影响

尽管社交焦虑个体被认为存在情绪调节灵活性的不足,但至今尚不清楚这种不足究竟在于难以灵活选择策略,还是难以灵活使用策略,抑或二者兼有？对此,本研究采用情绪调节策略选择任务考察了37名高社交焦虑大学生和29名低社交焦虑大学生在面对社交-非社交情绪图片时对认知重评-回避策略的选择模式和使用效果。结果发现：在面对社交情绪图片时,高社交焦虑被试比低社交焦虑被试更少选择认知重评,而更多选择回避;在面对非社交情绪图片时,两组被试对两种策略的选择模式无显著差异。同时,无论面对社交还是非社交情绪图片,两组被试对两种策略的使用效果也无显著差异。以上结果表明,相比低社交焦虑个体,高社交焦虑个体只有在面对社交情绪刺激时才存在情绪调节灵活性的不足,且这种不足主要在于难以灵活选择策略,而非难以灵活使用策略。     

Coping strategies in obsessive-compulsive patients during Covid-19 lockdown

Background/ObjectiveThe main aim of this study was to compare coping strategies in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients and a healthy control group during COVID-19 lockdown and to analyze the relationship with some variables which may influence results (depression, anxiety, comorbidity, subtype of obsession-compulsion). Method: There were 237 participants, 122 OCD and 115 healthy controls, aged 17-61 years old (M = 33.48, SD = 11.13). Results: Groups showed differences in the use of some adaptive strategies (positive reinterpretation, acceptance, humor) and maladaptive (denial, self-blame). Within obsessive-compulsive group, comorbidity affected the greater use of inappropriate strategies (denial, substance abuse and self-blame) while type of obsession-compulsion did not influence use. Anxiety and depression levels were related to the use of less adaptive strategies. Conclusions: These findings strengthen the need for training in the use of effective and adaptive coping strategies, making it necessary to improve clinical follow-up of these patients. It is relevant to be in contact with healthcare professionals, review medication and observe the anxiety and depression levels.     

Individual and Dyadic Coping and Fear of Progression in Mothers and Fathers of Children with Hematologic Cancer

This study investigated the association of individual and dyadic coping strategies with fear of progression (FoP) in mothers and fathers of children with hematologic cancer. Parental couples (N = 44) whose children had been diagnosed with hematologic cancer were recruited at a university hospital and a rehabilitation clinic in Germany between 03/2017 and 08/2017. Data included parents' self-report on FoP (Fear of Progression Questionnaire—parent version, FoP-Q-SF/PR), individual coping (Coping Health Inventory for Parents, CHIP-D), and dyadic coping (Dyadic Coping Inventory, DCI). Statistical analyses were carried out for mothers and fathers individually as well as for parental couples using dyadic data analyses (e.g., actor-partner interdependence model, APIM). Individual and dyadic coping strategies were significantly correlated with FoP in mothers, but not in fathers. Fathers' evaluation of the couple's dyadic coping significantly predicted mothers' FoP. The more frequent use of familial integration (CHIP-D FAM) and maintaining social support (CHIP-D SUP) as well as a better evaluation of their partners' dyadic coping was significantly associated with lower FoP in mothers. Differences in individual and dyadic coping in parental couples were not associated with FoP. Individual and dyadic coping strategies should be addressed in the psychosocial care of mothers and fathers of children with hematologic cancer. Study results support the benefits of involving fathers in psychosocial interventions, for example, in couple-based interventions that acknowledge interpersonal effects of coping on FoP. Future research should further explore coping strategies applied by fathers of children with hematologic cancer for the regulation of FoP.     

Risk perception of a chronic threat of terrorism: Differences based on coping types,gender and exposure

High levels of risk perception of terrorism (RPT) may impair an individual's quality of life and welfare. To understand the mechanisms responsible for RPT, this study investigated the association of gender and coping styles with individual differences in two key elements of RPT: perceived control and perceived vulnerability. A convenience sample of 400 Israelis (181 men and 219 women) filled out questionnaires on sociodemographic background, RPT and coping. Employing a multidimensional approach for coping, we divided participants into four coping types: problem-focused (n = 65), emotion-focused (n = 70), mixed (n = 122) and minimal (n = 142). The results indicate that problem-focused coping is associated with higher levels of perceived control than other types of coping and mixed coping is associated with higher levels of perceived vulnerability than other coping strategies. Also, interactions between gender and exposure to terrorism contributed to understanding the differences in perceived control. The discussion addresses gender differences in RPT and coping in the context of traditional gender roles. The study concludes with implications for risk management and therapeutic interventions regarding high levels of fear of terrorism.     

Reaching Up,Down, In,and Around: Couple and Family Coping During the Coronavirus Pandemic

The worldwide coronavirus (COVID-19) has had profound effects on all aspects of life: physical health, the ability to travel locally or to more distant destinations, material and financial resources, and psychosocial wellbeing. Couples, families, and communities and individual persons in those relationships have struggled to cope with emerging depression, anxiety, and trauma, and the rise of relational conflict. In this article, we suggest that the existential nature of the pandemic’s challenges requires more than just the usual psychosocial interventions. We propose a taxonomy of responses to foster coping and resilience—“Reaching Up, Down, In, and Around.” “Reaching Up” includes accessing spiritual, religious, and ethical values. “Reaching Down” includes ideas and practices that foster a revised relationship with the Earth and its resources, and that engage families to participate in activities that aid the Earth’s recovery from decades of human-caused damage. “Reaching In” represents a turn towards experiences available in the mind and in shared minds in relationships that provide pleasure, excitement, joy, and peace, given that external sources of these emotions are of limited availability due to quarantine. “Reaching Around” involves reframing the mandate for “social distancing” as fostering social connection and support while maintaining physical distancing. The challenges for family therapists, whose practices are confined largely to online therapy, and who are struggling with the same fears and constraints as those persons they are attempting to help, are also discussed.     

Murray Sidman: A life of giving

Murray Sidman's contributions to the science of behavior span many areas including avoidance behavior, coercion and its effects, stimulus control, errorless learning, programmed learning, stimulus equivalence, and single-subject methodology. He was also a great mentor to many and helped shape the discipline we now call behavior analysis. In this memoriam, we briefly highlight his scholarly legacy and share some personal anecdotes.     

Support for the Populist Radical Right: Between Uncertainty Avoidance and Risky Choice

The last several decades have witnessed a structural change in politics toward cultural and identity conflicts, accompanied by the rise of populist radical right (PRR) parties. However, we know surprisingly little about the psychological or cognitive-motivational factors underlying PRR support. We claim that uncertainty avoidance (UA)—an epistemic avoidance motivation—represents a central motive because UA resonates with the PRR platform and precedes common predictors of PRR voting. Using data from the 2017 Austrian National Election Study, we found that UA was indeed indirectly associated with a higher likelihood of PRR voting. This association is because greater UA fostered right-wing sociocultural views, whereas associations with populist attitudes or expected government competence were more ambiguous. PRR parties appear to offer “certainty,” but as extreme parties, they also remain a “risky choice.” We conclude by discussing the contribution of a cognitive-motivational account to explain PRR voting.     

The influence of biased exposure to forgone outcomes

After making decisions, we often get feedback concerning forgone outcomes (what would have happened had we chosen differently). Yet, many times, our exposure to such feedback is systematically biased. For example, your friends are more likely to tell you about a party you missed if it was fun than if it was boring. Despite its prevalence, the effects of biased exposure to forgone outcomes on future choice have not been directly studied. In three studies (five experiments) using a simplified learning task, we study the basic influence of biased exposure to forgone outcomes in the extreme case in which decision makers can easily infer the missing information such that the biased exposure carries almost no informational value. The results in all studies suggest that nevertheless, the biased exposure to forgone outcomes affected choice. Exposure to forgone outcomes only when they were better than the obtained outcomes (Only-Better-Forgone) increased selections of the forgone option compared with exposure to forgone outcomes only when they were worse than the obtained outcome (Only-Worse-Forgone). Moreover, relative to an unbiased exposure to all forgone outcomes, the effect of exposure to Only-Worse-Forgone was larger than the effect of exposure to Only-Better-Forgone feedback. However, these effects were not universal: In environments that include rare negative events (“disasters”), biased exposure to forgone outcomes had very little effect. We raise potential explanations and further discuss implications for marketing and risk awareness.