“They've Put Nothing in the Pot!”: Brexit and the Key Psychological Motivations Behind Voting 'Remain' and 'Leave'

In June 2016, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Voting followed a general trend: disadvantaged areas of the United Kingdom tended to vote “leave,” and more affluent areas tended to vote “remain.” This project investigates the psychological variables underlying this overall trend by distinguishing four psychological motivations: the need for justice, threat reduction needs, need to belong, and the need for control. Participants were recruited from different areas across Greater Manchester (N = 158). A survey assessed voting preference, socioeconomic status, collective relative deprivation (CRD), perceptions of threat from immigration, European and British identification, sense of control in life, and relative gratification. Discriminant function analysis showed that leave voting was characterized by greater realistic threat, symbolic threat, CRD, and British identification. Remain voting was characterized by strong European identification. Findings highlight that a need for justice, threat-reduction needs, and identity needs were key predictors of voting behavior.     

Dormio: A targeted dream incubation device

Information processing during sleep is active, ongoing and accessible to engineering. Protocols such as targeted memory reactivation use sensory stimuli during sleep to reactivate memories and demonstrate subsequent, specific enhancement of their consolidation. These protocols rely on physiological, as opposed to phenomenological, evidence of their reactivation. While dream content can predict post-sleep memory enhancement, dreaming itself remains a black box. Here, we present a novel protocol using a new wearable electronic device, Dormio, to automatically generate serial auditory dream incubations at sleep onset, wherein targeted information is repeatedly presented during the hypnagogic period, enabling direct incorporation of this information into dream content, a process we call targeted dream incubation (TDI). Along with validation data, we discuss how Dormio and TDI protocols can serve as tools for controlled experimentation on dream content, shedding light on the role of dreams in the overnight transformation of experiences into memories.     

The effect of sleep-need and time-on-task on driver fatigue

Both sleep- and task-related factors are thought to contribute to driver fatigue, with each factor individually associated with deteriorated driving performance. However, the relative and combined effects of these factors in the context of monotonous driving have not been well studied. This study (N = 60) investigated lateral and longitudinal vehicle control, subjective fatigue and physiological response (EEG) during three 10-minute periods of time-on-task spread across a monotonous, 2-hour simulator drive. Level of physiological sleep-need was manipulated between participants by varying the instructed time spent in bed on the night before testing (≤5h or ≥ 8 h). In addition, half of the participants in each sleep group read the applicable speed limit from periodic roadside signs whereas the others performed an arithmetic calculation, displayed on the signs, to determine the speed limit. This task manipulation has been demonstrated to reduce performance decrements over time. Results demonstrated effects of time-on-task and sleep need on self-report ratings, an effect of time-on-task on EEG indices, and an interaction of sleep-need and time-on-task on an EEG index of mental workload and on the lateral control measure of driving performance. There were no significant effects on the measure of speed variability. These results confirm that both sleep-need and time-on-task negatively affect driver state, and that time-on-task decrements in driver performance can occur in the absence of heightened sleep-need. Results also suggest that drivers with heightened sleep-need could protect their performance for a short time, perhaps by exerting effort to compensate for reduced capacity. The secondary task did not counteract declining performance.     

睡眠剥夺对风险决策的影响机制探讨

许多行业的决策者必须在睡眠不足的状态下做出选择与判断。睡眠剥夺是睡眠不足的实验室模型, 被证明能显著影响风险决策, 但内在机制不明。基于前人研究基础提出假设模型, 即睡眠剥夺通过影响个体的反馈加工、风险感知、抑制控制、决策理性, 进而影响风险决策。拟通过实验室研究与现场研究, 采用简单赌博任务、概率折扣任务、双选择Oddball任务等研究范式, 对比睡眠剥夺前后被试在执行上述实验任务时的行为差异, 同时比较执行控制网络、奖赏网络等脑功能网络连接强度, 以及任务诱发的FRN等脑电成分在睡眠剥夺前后的变化, 进而论证上述反应被试反馈加工等心理过程的行为-脑电-脑成像指标的变化与睡眠剥夺后被试风险决策变化的关系。研究结果将科学地解释睡眠剥夺影响风险决策的内在机制, 为进一步探讨如何规避睡眠不足导致的决策失误提供理论与实证依据。     

Behavioral treatment of insomnia in older adults: an open clinical trial comparing two interventions

Fifty-five insomniacs, 60 years or above, participated in a behavioral treatment program, comparing two interventions (sleep hygiene+stimulus control vs sleep hygiene+relaxation tape). Half of the subjects were randomized to a waiting-list condition prior to treatment. No significant changes were observed during the waiting-list period. During the treatment period however, the subjects improved on several sleep parameters, and treatment gains were maintained at a 6-month follow-up. The effects of treatment were greater for nocturnal measures (e.g. sleep onset latency and total sleep time) as compared to daytime measures (e.g. life satisfaction, daytime alertness) and not-targeted behavior (medication use). There were no differences in treatment effects for the two interventions.     

影响控制感剥夺的因素及其后果

控制感是指人们相信自己的选择和行为与相应的结果存在一致性的一种认知状态,对人的身心健康都有重要影响。控制感剥夺之后,人会产生不适症状（如习得性无助和抑郁）。例如,长期剥夺控制感会引起习得性无助,甚至导致抑郁。影响控制感的因素包括社会环境、个性气质、生理基础,甚至可能受到基因的调控作用。深入理解控制感剥夺背后的心理机制能增进对人们自身心理特点的了解,有助于预防或干预一些心理疾病的产生。     

不稳定控制感剥夺损害工作记忆刷新功能

控制感剥夺会阻碍工作记忆中的转换功能,但对工作记忆中刷新功能的影响机制尚不清楚。据此,本文通过两个实验来探究控制感剥夺对工作记忆刷新功能的影响。结果发现,相较于基线水平,无论是通过行为无助任务（实验1）还是通过信息无助任务（实验2）操纵的稳定控制感剥夺均未阻碍随后的刷新任务;但在不稳定控制感剥夺的条件下（实验2）,刷新任务的成绩显著降低。这表明,控制感剥夺对工作记忆刷新功能的影响依赖于对其操纵的稳定性。     

How professional pilots perceive interactions of working conditions,rosters, stress,sleep problems,fatigue and mental health. A qualitative content analysis

IntroductionSo far, no qualitative content analysis (QCA) has analysed pilots’ experiences and perceptions regarding weaknesses of fatigue risk management (FRM), flight time limitations (FTL), rosters, fatigue-severity, sleep problems, and how they relate to pilots’ mental health and well-being.ObjectiveThis research analyses pilots’ described perceptions of stress, fatigue, aviation safety and how regulations like FTL can affect their health and well-being.MethodIn total, 119 international pilots described their perceptions of FTL, rosters, aviation safety, and how they relate to fatigue and health. The QCA was conducted to analyse interactions of working conditions, stressors, fatigue, sleep problems and mental health of EASA-based and Australian pilots.ResultsAlthough pilots were rostered for only 60.8% to 62.5% of the legally allowed duty and flight hours/month, 78.6% reported severe or very high fatigue, 22.8% significant depression, 12.3% significant anxiety symptoms, 10.5% reported significant depression and anxiety symptoms. Pilots uttered severe concerns about FTL, sleep restrictions associated with early starts, minimum rest, etc. Pilots also expressed distinct fears regarding more fatigue-related crashes, and how adverse working conditions, work-related and psychosocial stress could impair their health.ConclusionsThis QCA provided valuable insights into interactions of working conditions, fatigue, sleep restrictions, physical and mental health. Progressive health impairment due to lack of sleep and accumulated fatigue promote burnout, mental and physical health problems, which not only threaten flight safety, but also sustainability of aviation.