Early Development of Head Movements Between Birth and 4 Months of Age: A Longitudinal Study

The control of head posture and movement play a significant role in the early development of motor skills. However, a detailed kinematic study charting this development is currently lacking. Hence, the authors performed a longitudinal study of 18 infants between birth and 4 months charting changes in head posture and movements when tracking a visual object. The results showed that beyond 2 months, the head was more often held at the body midline and this was accompanied by an increase in the number, extent, and speed of head movement. Further, it was found that head movements were organized into movement units. Movement units initially increased in number, but after 3 months decreased in number and increased in duration, especially after peak velocity. This more symmetrical profile velocity points to more controlled head movements after 3 months of age.     

头部朝向在社会性注意转移中的作用

注视指向是非常重要的社会性注意线索,但是在日常情境中,注视指向往往伴随着头部朝向信息,而且两者都包含空间指向信息.已有研究发现头部朝向会影响注视指向知觉的速度和准确性,为注视指向提供参照系,进而会影响注视指向诱发的社会性注意.头部朝向和注视指向加工的神经机制也存在着广泛的重合.因此,除眼睛注视以外,头部朝向也是建构和完善基于心理模型的社会性注意机制的一个关键因素.未来的研究应关注头部朝向与眼睛注视指向共同影响注意转移的作用机制,并且从功能整合的角度开展神经机制研究.     

视觉搜索任务中直视探测优势的眼动研究

已有研究发现在视觉搜索任务中对直视的探测比斜视更快且更准确, 该现象被命名为“人群中的凝视效应”。大多数研究者将该效应的产生归因于直视会捕获更多的注意。然而, 直视条件下对搜索项的匹配加工更容易也有可能导致对直视的探测比斜视快。此外,已有研究还发现头的朝向会影响对注视方向的探测, 但对于其产生原因缺乏实验验证。本研究采用视觉搜索范式, 运用眼动技术, 把注视探测的视觉搜索过程分为准备阶段、搜索阶段和反应阶段, 对这两个问题进行了探讨。结果显示：对直视的探测优势主要表现在搜索阶段和反应阶段; 在搜索阶段直视的探测优势获益于搜索路径的变短和分心项数量的变少以及分心项平均注视时间的变短; 头的朝向仅在搜索阶段对注视探测产生影响。该结果表明, 在直视探测中对搜索项的匹配加工比在斜视探测中更容易也是导致“人群中的凝视效应”的原因之一; 头的朝向仅仅影响了对注视方向的搜索并没有影响对其的确认加工。     

Behavioural responses to facial and postural expressions of emotion: An interpersonal circumplex approach

While the recognition of emotional expressions has been extensively studied, the behavioural response to these expressions has not. In the interpersonal circumplex, behaviour is defined in terms of communion and agency. In this study, we examined behavioural responses to both facial and postural expressions of emotion. We presented 101 Romanian students with facial and postural stimuli involving individuals (‘targets’) expressing happiness, sadness, anger, or fear. Using an interpersonal grid, participants simultaneously indicated how communal (i.e., quarrelsome or agreeable) and agentic (i.e., dominant or submissive) they would be towards people displaying these expressions. Participants were agreeable‐dominant towards targets showing happy facial expressions and primarily quarrelsome towards targets with angry or fearful facial expressions. Responses to targets showing sad facial expressions were neutral on both dimensions of interpersonal behaviour. Postural versus facial expressions of happiness and anger elicited similar behavioural responses. Participants responded in a quarrelsome‐submissive way to fearful postural expressions and in an agreeable way to sad postural expressions. Behavioural responses to the various facial expressions were largely comparable to those previously observed in Dutch students. Observed differences may be explained from participants’ cultural background. Responses to the postural expressions largely matched responses to the facial expressions.     

左前额叶与趋近动机加工的关系

在加工正性情绪时, 前额叶左侧激活水平大于右侧。而正性情绪往往伴随着趋近动机。因此为了探索这种现象反映的究竟是正性情绪加工还是趋近动机加工, 文章总结了两个研究领域中的有关证据：来自特质或状态愤怒情绪与左前额叶相对激活关系领域的研究证据和来自身体姿势变化(包括整体姿势变化和单侧肌肉紧缩)对左前额叶相对激活的影响领域的研究证据。前者的一致发现是：左前额叶参与加工由愤怒情绪引发的趋近动机。后者的一致发现是：不同的身体姿势能够改变左前额叶的相对激活水平。两种领域的研究证据汇聚起来证明左前额叶参与加工趋近动机。文章还指出了将来研究的注意事项和可能方向：精确定义回避型愤怒; 探索愤怒情绪是否在加工晚期诱发趋近或回避动机; 探索不同方式诱发的趋近动机是否在脑机制上存在差异。     

赢分与输分运动员面孔表情和身体姿势情绪的加工机制*

本研究采用中国运动员赢分和输分后的表情, 通过行为学和脑电技术比较面孔表情和身体姿势的加工机制。实验1探讨了赢分与输分面孔和身体的效价和强度, 实验2考察了图片的情绪类型(中性、快乐、悲伤、愤怒、恐惧、厌恶), 实验3采用脑电技术比较了赢分和输分情绪的神经机制。3个实验的行为结果表明, 相比面孔, 身体信息更能区分赢分和输分的效价, 而且身体姿势传递的情绪内容相对单一, 面孔表情传递的情绪内容相对复杂和多样化。脑电实验的结果表明, 身体的情绪信息能更早地被大脑识别, 表现在N170成分上, 面孔表情的情绪效应, 反映在EPN成分上。在加工的晚期, 面孔和身体条件下, 均观测到胜利比失败表情诱发了更大的LPP成分。结果表明, 大脑在多个阶段对身体姿势进行情绪评估与分类, 为行为上身体对效价的高区分性提供了证据。     

The Effect of Vision and Surface Compliance on Balance in Untrained and Strength Athletes

The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the effect of the removal of vision and/or surface compliance on postural stability in strength athletes who habitually use free-weights and compound movements in their training (i.e., powerlifters, Olympic weightlifters), and untrained individuals. Static and dynamic balance testing was performed with eyes open or closed on stable and memory foam surfaces. Both groups had similar increases in postural sway area and velocity during quiet standing testing; whereas group main effects and interactions for dynamic testing revealed that untrained participants experienced greater relative declines in postural performance when voluntary limits of stability are stressed, especially when both vision and surface compliance were deterred. These results demonstrate that in comparison to untrained young adults, postural control variables may be reduced to a lesser extent in strength athletes when sensory constraints are altered; however this appears to be specific to the type of postural task performed.     

The Neuropsychology of Heading and Head Trauma in Association Football (Soccer): A Review

Association Football (soccer) is the most popular and widespread sport in the world. A significant proportion of the injuries suffered in football are head injuries involving trauma to the brain. In normal play, head trauma frequently arises from collisions, but some researchers have claimed that it also may arise as a consequence of heading the ball. Although assessments based on biomechanical analyses are equivocal on the potential for brain injury due to football heading, a growing literature seems to support the claim that neuropsychological impairment results from general football play and football heading in particular. However, this review suggests a distinction is required between the neuropsychological effects of concussive and subconcussive head trauma and that all of the neuropsychological studies conducted so far suffer from methodological problems. At best, a few of these studies may be regarded as exploratory. The review concludes that presently, although there is exploratory evidence of subclinical neuropsychological impairment as a consequence of football-related concussions, there is no reliable and certainly no definitive evidence that such impairment occurs as a result of general football play or normal football heading. The neuropsychological consequences of football-related subconcussive effects await confirmatory investigation.     

A LONGITUDINAL,PERSON‐CENTERED ANALYSIS OF EARLY HEAD START MOTHERS’ PARENTING

This study used a person‐centered approach to examine stability and change in parenting typologies across early childhood. Profiles were associated within and across time with contextual covariates, including demographic characteristics, risk factors, and Early Head Start participation. Participants were drawn from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project (N = 2, 876). Parenting profiles were identified based on observed parenting dimensions at 14, 24, and 36 months, and pre‐Kindergarten (pre‐K). Results suggested a four‐profile solution at each time point: Supportive, Lukewarm (14 & 24 months)/Sufficient (36 months and pre‐K), Harsh, and Detached. Supportive was the largest, most stable, and most likely transitioned into profile while Harsh and Detached represented rare profiles with moderate to low membership stability across time. Depression and family conflict emerged as important correlates of unsupportive parenting profiles both within and across time. Findings are discussed in terms of their relevance for both policy and implementation practices for low‐income mothers with young children.     

身体姿势识别倒置效应量的连续性变化

以生理机制上整体可能身体姿势、整体不可能身体姿势和碎片身体姿势作为材料,系统操纵两个角度差为零的身体姿势偏离其竖直状态的角度,对错误率和反应时进行线性拟合。结果发现:(1)整体可能身体姿势、整体不可能身体姿势的识别错误率和反应时与其偏离直立状态角度之间可以拟合显著的线性关系,而碎片身体姿势的识别错误率和反应时与其偏离直立状态角度之间无法拟合显著的线性关系;(2)整体身体姿势(可能身体姿势和不可能的身体姿势)识别均出现了显著的倒置效应,而碎片身体姿势识别未出现倒置效应。这些结果表明身体姿势识别倒置效应量的延续性依赖于整体布局加工。