The AHA! experience: creativity through emergent binding in neural networks

Many kinds of creativity result from combination of mental representations. This paper provides a computational account of how creative thinking can arise from combining neural patterns into ones that are potentially novel and useful. We defend the hypothesis that such combinations arise from mechanisms that bind together neural activity by a process of convolution, a mathematical operation that interweaves structures. We describe computer simulations that show the feasibility of using convolution to produce emergent patterns of neural activity that can support cognitive and emotional processes underlying human creativity.     

工作记忆中注意焦点转换的代偿机制—— 来自聋生和发音抑制的证据

注意焦点转换是工作记忆中一项重要的执行功能。前人的研究提示视空间画板可能参与言语工作记忆中的注意转换。通过聋生和发音抑制方式探索语音回路子系统受损或受阻后, 视空间画板子系统完成注意转换任务的反应模式。采用“三计数”任务, 实验一比较了极重度耳聋学生和健听学生在工作记忆中的注意焦点转换效应。结果表明聋生与健听被试在不同记忆子项中转换的反应时间均长于不转换时间。但与健听被试相比, 聋生完成注意转换任务的正确率降低, 在转换和不转换之间的反应时差别减小, 且转换方向对反应时无影响, 转换方向和转换距离表现出显著的交互作用。下行转换时近转换快于远转换, 上行转换时近转换慢于远转换。实验二比较了发音抑制和无抑制条件下的注意转换效应, 发音抑制组在注意焦点转换中表现出与聋生组既类似又存在区别的反应模式。这些结果提示工作记忆的中枢执行系统具有高度的灵活性。当语音回路功能受阻后, 注意转换仍能借助视空间画板子系统得以完成。与暂时性抑制相比, 语音回路功能长期受损后表现出一定的功能代偿。     

焦虑调节：接受策略与表达抑制、认知重评策略之比较

情绪调节策略研究已经成为近年来心理学研究的热点课题。回顾近十年来关于焦虑的情绪调节策略研究,重点介绍了其中有着新理念、新视角的情绪调节策略——接受策略,并将其与表达抑制和认知重评两种情绪调节策略进行对比,发现接受策略对于焦虑而言是一种有效的调节策略,而且初步得出其作用效果优于表达抑制策略,但可能不及认知重评策略。最后从情绪调节策略的研究趋势、情绪调节策略对心理治疗和心理健康教育等的潜在价值三个方面进行了探讨。     

Dream rebound of suppressed emotional thoughts: the influence of cognitive load

Initial evidence suggests that suppressing a thought prior to sleep results in subsequent dreaming of that thought. The present research examined the influence of cognitive load on dreaming following suppression. In Experiment 1, 100 participants received either a suppression instruction or no instruction for an intrusive thought prior to sleep, and subsequently completed a dream diary. Participants instructed to suppress reported dreaming about the target thought more than controls; dream rebound was predicted by poorer performance on a working memory task. In Experiment 2, 126 participants received either a suppression instruction or no instruction for an intrusive thought prior to sleep, and half of participants also had cognitive load of learning a 9-digit number. Participants receiving the suppression instruction under cognitive load reported greater dream rebound than other participants. These findings indicate that thought suppression prior to sleep leads to dream rebound, and this effect is enhanced by cognitive load.     

对恐怖情绪的调节:认知重评和表达抑制的差异——一项ERP研究

本研究采用事件相关电位(ERP)技术,通过测量由视觉诱发的脑电成分晚正波(LPP)来比较情绪调节策略在生理电特征上的差异,探讨认知重评和表达抑制的优劣。实验结果表明:(1)从波幅的角度来比较:在400—600ms时间窗口内,认知重评条件下恐怖图片诱发的LPP波幅显著小于在自由观看条件下的波幅,而表达抑制和自由观看组所诱发的LPP波幅差异较小。(2)从时间进程的角度来比较:认知重评与自由观看组的差异发生在400ms并持续到600ms;而表达抑制和自由观看之间的差异发生在450ms但是只持续到550ms。这表明认知重评相较于表达抑制,对负性情绪起调节作用开始较早,并且持续时间较长。这为认知重评优于表达抑制策略提供了神经生理学上的证据。     

Thought dismissability in obsessive-compulsive disorder versus panic disorder

This study sought to better understand the persistence of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) by studying the dismissability of obsessional thoughts in individuals with OCD relative to the dismissability of panic-relevant thoughts in individuals with panic disorder with or without agoraphobia (PD/A). Individuals with a principal diagnosis of OCD (n = 25) or PD/A (n = 25) completed a thought replacement task in which they replaced a primary obsession (target thought for the OCD group) or a primary panic-relevant thought (target thought for the PD/A group), with a neutral thought, signaling when the target thought occurred and when the neutral thought was in mind. The OCD group had more target thoughts and appraised the recurrence of the target thought more negatively. Whereas mood state did not change in the PD/A group, it declined in the OCD group, and this change was predicted by negative appraisal of target thought recurrences, but not amount of time thinking the target thought. These findings suggest that in vivo appraisal of the recurrence of obsessions may be a unique, key mechanism in the persistence of OCD and that the identification and exploration of appraisal of thought recurrences may be an especially important target in its treatment.     

Culturally adapted CBT (CA-CBT) for Latino women with treatment-resistant PTSD: a pilot study comparing CA-CBT to applied muscle relaxation

We examined the therapeutic efficacy of a culturally adapted form of CBT (CA-CBT) for PTSD as compared to applied muscle relaxation (AMR) for female Latino patients with treatment-resistant PTSD. Participants were randomized to receive either CA-CBT (n = 12) or AMR (n = 12), and were assessed before treatment, after treatment, and at a 12-week follow-up. The treatments were manualized and delivered in the form of group therapy across 14 weekly sessions. Assessments included a measure of PTSD, anxiety, culturally relevant idioms of distress (nervios and ataque de nervios), and emotion regulation ability. Patients receiving CA-CBT improved significantly more than in the AMR condition. Effect size estimates showed very large reductions in PTSD symptoms from pretreatment to posttreatment in the CA-CBT group (Cohen’s d = 2.6) but only modest improvements in the AMR group (0.8). These results suggest that CA-CBT can be beneficial for previously treatment-resistant PTSD in Latino women.     

Emotion dysregulation and adolescent psychopathology: a prospective study

Background

Emotion regulation deficits have been consistently linked to psychopathology in cross-sectional studies. However, the direction of the relationship between emotion regulation and psychopathology is unclear. This study examined the longitudinal and reciprocal relationships between emotion regulation deficits and psychopathology in adolescents.

Methods

Emotion dysregulation and symptomatology (depression, anxiety, aggressive behavior, and eating pathology) were assessed in a large, diverse sample of adolescents (N = 1065) at two time points separated by seven months. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the longitudinal and reciprocal relationships between emotion dysregulation and symptoms of psychopathology.

Results

The three distinct emotion processes examined here (emotional understanding, dysregulated expression of sadness and anger, and ruminative responses to distress) formed a unitary latent emotion dysregulation factor. Emotion dysregulation predicted increases in anxiety symptoms, aggressive behavior, and eating pathology after controlling for baseline symptoms but did not predict depressive symptoms. In contrast, none of the four types of psychopathology predicted increases in emotion dysregulation after controlling for baseline emotion dysregulation.

Conclusions

Emotion dysregulation appears to be an important transdiagnostic factor that increases risk for a wide range of psychopathology outcomes in adolescence. These results suggest targets for preventive interventions during this developmental period of risk.     

Eye contact facilitates awareness of faces during interocular suppression

Eye contact captures attention and receives prioritized visual processing. Here we asked whether eye contact might be processed outside conscious awareness. Faces with direct and averted gaze were rendered invisible using interocular suppression. In two experiments we found that faces with direct gaze overcame such suppression more rapidly than faces with averted gaze. Control experiments ruled out the influence of low-level stimulus differences and differential response criteria. These results indicate an enhanced unconscious representation of direct gaze, enabling the automatic and rapid detection of other individuals making eye contact with the observer.     

The influence of presession factors in the assessment of deviant arousal

Three adult male sex offenders with developmental disabilities participated in an evaluation of presession factors that may influence levels of sexual arousal measured with a penile plethysmograph. We evaluated the effects of presession masturbation (1 participant) and arousal-suppression strategies (2 participants). Results showed that presession masturbation lowered arousal levels and both participants suppressed arousal to varying degrees. These outcomes suggest the potential for consideration and manipulation of presession factors as treatment components for sex offenders with developmental disabilities.