Behavioral inhibition and triallelic genotyping of the serotonin transporter promoter (5-HTTLPR) polymorphism

To examine the genetic bases of the behavioral inhibition system (BIS) and the behavioral approach system (BAS), we evaluated the association between the BIS, the BAS, and a functional length polymorphism in the promoter of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) in an unscreened sample of undergraduates (N = 211); analyses were conducted using a two-variant (i.e., biallelic) genotyping and three-variant (i.e., triallelic) genotyping of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism. People with one or two copies of the low-expressing alleles reported stronger endorsement of the BIS than people who were homozygous for the high-expressing alleles; this association was found for triallelic but not biallelic genotyping of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism. There was no association between the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism and the BAS scales.     

Temporal preparation and inhibitory deficit in fibromyalgia syndrome

Cognitive deficits in fibromyalgia may be specifically related to controlled processes, such as those measured by working memory or executive function tasks. This hypothesis was tested here by measuring controlled temporal preparation (temporal orienting) during a response inhibition (go no-go) task. Temporal orienting effects (faster reaction times for targets appearing at temporally attended vs. unattended moments) and response inhibition were impaired in fibromyalgia compared to the control group. It is concluded that frontal networks underlying attentional control (temporal orienting and response inhibition) can be a dysfunctional neurocognitive mechanism in fibromyalgia.     

Search asymmetry, sustained attention, and response inhibition

In the present experiment, we used search asymmetry to test whether the sustained attention to response task is a better measure of response inhibition or sustained attention. Participants performed feature present and feature absent target detection tasks using either a sustained attention to response task (SART; high Go low No-Go) or a traditionally formatted task (TFT; high No-Go low Go) response format. In addition to performance, we employed functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure lateral cerebral oxygenation levels and self-reports of Tense Arousal, Energetic Arousal, task related and unrelated thoughts occurring during the tasks. Detections were lower and reaction times longer in the feature absent search than the feature present search regardless of response format. Detections were lower, but reaction times shorter in the SART than the TFT regardless of feature search. Greater right than left frontal hemisphere activation occurred in the SART than the TFT. In addition, the SART was more fatiguing based on self-reports than the TFT, but there were no differences in Task-Unrelated Thoughts across task conditions. Overall, the results suggest the SART places high response inhibition, not necessarily sustained attention, demands on participants.     

Positive affect increases cognitive control in the antisaccade task

To delineate the modulatory effects of induced positive affect on cognitive control, the current study investigated whether positive affect increases the ability to suppress a reflexive saccade in the antisaccade task. Results of the antisaccade task showed that participants made fewer erroneous prosaccades in the condition in which a positive mood was induced compared to the neutral condition (i.e. in which no emotional mood was induced). This improvement of oculomotor inhibition was restricted to saccades with an express latency. These results are in line with the idea that enhanced performance in the positive affect condition could be caused by increased dopaminergic neurotransmission the brain.     

Attachment‐style differences in the appraisal of the attachment figure

The present study investigated the distinctive effects of global and specific attachment styles on the processing of attachment‐figure cues, focusing specifically on the role of cognitive inhibition. We manipulated the temporal accessibility of specific attachment styles and measured automatic inhibitory processes using a negative affective priming (NAP) task presenting positive and negative words. We also measured one's explicit attitude towards the attachment figure. Results showed that specific, but not global, attachment styles influenced the processing of attachment‐figure cues. We also found that participants primed with a secure attachment style showed a better inhibition of negative traits than those primed with an insecure style. At the explicit level, the anxious attachment types showed a more negative evaluation of their attachment figure than primed secures. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Latent inhibition is affected by phase of estrous cycle in female rats

Estrogen has been shown to have a strong modulatory influence on several types of cognition in both women and female rodents. Latent inhibition is a task in which pre-exposure to a neutral stimulus, such as a tone, later impedes the association of that stimulus with a particular consequence, such as a shock. Previous work from our lab demonstrates that high levels of estradiol (E2) administered to ovariectomized (OVX) female rats abolishes latent inhibition when compared to female rats with low levels of E2 or male rats. To determine if this E2-induced impairment also occurs with the natural variations of ovarian hormones during the estrous cycle, this behavior was investigated in cycling female rats. In addition, pre-pubertal male and female rats were also tested in this paradigm to determine if the previously described sex differences are activational or organizational in nature. In a latent inhibition paradigm using a tone and a shock, adult rats were conditioned during different points of the estrous cycle. Rats conditioned during proestrus, a period of high E2 levels, exhibited attenuated latent inhibition when compared to rats conditioned during estrus or metestrus, periods associated with low levels of E2. Moreover, this effect is not seen until puberty indicating it is dependent on the surge of hormones at puberty. This study confirms recent findings that high E2 interferes with latent inhibition and is the first to show this is based in the activational actions of hormones.     

Is flanker-based inhibition related to age? Identifying specific influences of individual differences on neurocognitive variables

Researchers frequently attempt to identify the specific neurocognitive processes that might be responsible for differences in performance associated with neurological status or other individual difference characteristics by administering two or more conditions of an experimental task to different groups of participants, and focusing on the group-by-condition interaction as the primary outcome of interest. Three limitations of this approach are discussed, and an alternative analytical method is proposed to overcome the limitations. The method is demonstrated in analyses of data from 10 cognitive tasks in two independent studies, including two flanker tasks which are often used to assess aspects of inhibition.     

时间情景模型提取过程的实质初探:激活与抑制

采用扇效应技术和负启动实验范式探讨时间情景模型提取过程的实质。实验材料为18个"某人在某时间做某事"的句子,结果发现,实验条件下目标句的反应时显著长于控制条件下目标句的反应时,而两种条件下启动句的反应时无显著差异,出现了显著的负启动效应。这表明,在时间情景模型提取过程中,不仅激活了目标情景模型和与之相关的情景模型,而且对同时激活的相关的情景模型进行了抑制,支持长时记忆提取的抑制观。     

认知老化中有意控制对自动抑制的调节作用

结合比例控制范式与基于空间位置的返回抑制范式, 探讨了认知老化过程中自上而下的有意认知控制对自动抑制的调节作用。结果表明, 当线索有效率由50%提升至80%时, 两组被试的返回抑制量均下降, 老年组表现为返回抑制消失, 但年轻组出现返回抑制的反转, 表明有意认知控制对自动抑制的调节作用受认知老化的影响而发生衰减。同时文章还就认知老化机制的新兴理论—— 执行衰退假说进行了讨论。     

外框数目、线索数目和线索类型对返回抑制的影响

采用被试内重复测量设计和经典的线索—靶子实验范式,考查了外框数目（4和8）、线索数目（1和3）、不同线索类型（on-off线索（即线索出现后消失）、onset线索（即线索持续呈现））对返回抑制的影响,发现靶子潜在位置数目越多反应时越长,返回抑制量越小;线索数目越少反应时越长,返回抑制量越大;onset线索反应时长于on-off线索,onset线索产生的返回抑制量大于on-off线索。这表明空间工作记忆负载和记忆痕迹会影响返回抑制。