Analyzing temporal patterns of infant sleep and negative affective behavior: a comparison between different statistical models

Objective

Variability in infant sleep and negative affective behavior (NAB) is a developmental phenomenon that has long been of interest to researchers and clinicians. However, analyses and delineation of such temporal patterns were often limited to basic statistical approaches, which may prevent adequate identification of meaningful variation within these patterns. Modern statistical procedures such as additive models may detect specific patterns of temporal variation in infant behavior more effectively.

Method

Hundred and twenty-one mothers were asked to record different behaviors of their 4–44 weeks old healthy infants by diaries for three days consecutively. Circadian patterns as well as individual trajectories and day-to-day variability of infant sleep and NAB were modeled with generalized linear models (GLMs) including a linear and quadratic polynomial for time, a GLM with a polynomial of the 8th order, a GLM with a harmonic function, a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) with a polynomial of the 8th order, a generalized additive model, and a generalized additive mixed model (GAMM).

Results

The semi-parametric model GAMM was found to fit the data of infant sleep better than any other parametric model used. GLMM with a polynomial of the 8th order and GAMM modeled temporal patterns of infant NAB equally well, although the GLMM exhibited a slightly better model fit while GAMM was easier to interpret. Besides the well-known evening clustering in infant NAB we found a significant second peak in NAB around midday that was not affected by the constant decline in the amounts of NAB across the 3-day study period.

Conclusion

Using advanced statistical procedures (GAMM and GLMM) even small variations and phenomena in infant behavior can be reliably detected. Future studies investigating variability and temporal patterns in infant variables may benefit from these statistical approaches.     

情绪通路异常与认知情绪偏差:慢性痛与抑郁症共病的神经心理机制

慢性疼痛与抑郁症具有高度共病性,但迄今尚无成熟理论能够阐释二者共病的神经心理机制。对慢性痛与抑郁的脑机制研究提示,慢性痛和抑郁常常涉及到相似的情绪脑区活动的异常改变;与此相对应的是,行为学研究发现,疼痛患者与抑郁患者在加工疼痛或抑郁相关信息时表现出了模式相似的认知情绪偏差(CAB)。近年来,越来越多证据趋于一致,指出慢性痛和抑郁共有的情绪通路异常变化可能导致了相似的信息加工异常,是二者共病的神经心理基础,而认知情绪偏差则在行为上反映了这种变化,并且很可能是共病发生、发展及维持的重要因素。     

Diagnostic accuracy of the Millon test computer reports for bipolar affective disorder

The diagnostic accuracy of the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) computer reports was assessed for the sample of 48 patients reliably identified as having bipolar affective disorder. Only 13 of the 48 reports were accurate in classifying the patients as having bipolar affective disorder, and this was significantly (p < .01) less than 50% of the cases. The diagnostic accuracy clearly left much to be desired. Additional research is needed to assess the validity of MCMI diagnostic suggestions for other patient groups.     

Party Identification in Emotional and Political Context: A Replication

While testing an affective measure of party identification Burden and Klofstad (2005 ) found that using the phrase, "feel that you are," in place of, "think of yourself as," significantly shifted PID in a Republican direction. I adopt the theoretical framework of Affective Intelligence ( Marcus, Neuman, & MacKuen, 2000 ) to specify how the timing of their question-wording experiment may have influenced the results. I suggest that the outcome was a function of (a) anxiety present during the survey, which ran just after 9/11 of 2001, coupled with (b) a political environment that favored Republicans. In a 2005 survey I replicate the experiment and collect new measures with which to test expectations. I find no significant shift in PID, and provisional support for the Affective Intelligence explanation. The results validate Burden and Klofstad's measure, qualify their findings, and test the application of the theory of Affective Intelligence to party dispositions. Alternative explanations and directions for further research are discussed.     

Nervous Instability and Genius: Military and Political Leaders

Participants (N = 106) performed an affective priming task with facial primes that varied in their skin tone and facial physiognomy, and, which were presented either in color or in gray-scale. Participants' racial evaluations were more positive for Eurocentric than for Afrocentric physiognomy faces. Light skin tone faces were evaluated more positively than dark skin tone faces, but the magnitude of this effect depended on the mode of color presentation. The results suggest that in affective priming tasks, faces might not be processed holistically, and instead, visual features of facial priming stimuli independently affect implicit evaluations.     

信任的认知神经网络模型

信任是指一方在基于对另一方行为期望的基础上愿意冒一定的风险, 以期在将来得到积极结果的心理过程。近年, 认知神经取向的研究对信任行为引起的特定脑区激活进行了考察, 却忽略了大规模脑网络在信任过程中的整体作用。在总结前人研究的基础上提出信任的认知神经网络模型, 并从认知神经网络视角对信任行为进行解释和整合。在模型中, 信任行为是动力系统、情感系统和认知系统相互作用的结果, 并分别与奖励网络、显著网络、中央执行网络和默认网络等神经网络激活有关。此外, 模型还强调信任行为的反馈机制, 以此构成完整的建构模型。模型阐明了心理系统与中枢神经网络之间的对应关系, 从认知神经角度解释了信任行为发生的心理机制和神经基础。     

医疗情感计算应用的多维困境及其法治实现

情感计算技术依托算法的数据处理能力和自主学习能力已经在医疗健康领域有所实践。但由于医疗领域的特殊性,情感计算技术医疗应用过程中存在着道德合理性风险、规制盲区以及技术羁绊等多重隐患,亟须法律规制。首先,应当坚守“拟主体”身份的道德底线,追求伦理与法治的最佳耦合;其次,应构建权责明晰的算法责任嵌入机制,建立多元协同的算法权力治理机制;最后,应建立健全医疗情感计算技术审查机制,完善情感计算算法风险等级治理体系。

     

积极情绪提高背景线索学习的适应性

背景线索的学习缺乏适应性,这种缺乏表现在两个方面：其一是难以在已习得的场景表征上捆绑一个新目标位置(Re-learning),也就是场景表征的更新受阻;其二是在习得一组场景表征后,难以学习另一组全新场景(New-learning)。研究表明,在旧场景表征上捆绑一个新目标位置的能力可能与注意范围大小有关,而学习全新场景则需要重置学习功能。积极情绪可以有效扩大注意范围,并改善对旧有认知模式的固着,因此积极情绪启动将有可能提升背景线索学习的适应性。本研究采用效价为中性和积极的情绪性图片来启动对应的情绪,探索旧场景捆绑新目标位置时和学习全新场景时,背景线索的学习情况,验证积极情绪是否可以提高背景线索学习中的适应性。实验发现,积极情绪无法促进旧场景上捆绑新目标位置的背景线索学习(Re-learning),但是可以促进全新场景的学习(New-learning)。该结果说明,积极情绪可以提高被试的场景学习能力进而促进对全新场景的学习,却无法减少由表征相似性引起的旧表征的自动检索,进而无法改善旧表征的更新过程。     

海洛因戒断者的阈下情绪启动研究

研究表明海洛因戒断者的情绪加工异常,但其阈下情绪加工是否异常尚无定论。本研究采用阈下情绪启动范式,考察其阈下情绪加工能力。结果：戒断组的反应时显著高于控制组;两组中,相比不一致、控制状态,一致状态反应时均显著最短;在戒断组中,不一致状态的反应时显著大于控制状态,负性图片的反应时显著大于正性图片,而在控制组中差异不显著。结论：戒断者存在阈下情绪启动效应,阈下情绪加工存在正性偏向,且能力弱于正常人。     

初中生的社会比较对认知与情感信任的影响

本研究旨在探讨不同友谊状态下,初中生的社会比较对认知与情感信任的影响,及两种信任在社会比较与亲密度变化关系中的中介作用。有效被试为522名(M=12.87岁, SD=0.67),开学初让被试提名一位最亲密朋友,期中考试后让其比较与该好友的成绩排名并评价对好友的认知与情感信任水平,随后重新评价该好友的亲密度。结果表明:在亲密朋友(第二次依旧为最亲密的朋友)中,向下比较的情感信任高于向上比较,社会比较不影响认知信任;在普通朋友(第二次亲密度降低的朋友)中,向上比较的认知和情感信任均高于向下比较;社会比较只通过认知信任影响亲密度变化(完全中介),即相比于向下比较,向上比较时的认知信任水平较高,从而更有利于维持友谊的亲密性。