ORCID Profile
0000-0001-5400-462X
Current Organisations
Griffith University
,
University of Queensland
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Psychology | Sport And Exercise Psychology | Biological Psychology (Neuropsychology, Psychopharmacology, | Sensory Processes, Perception And Performance | Sensory Processes, Perception and Performance | Sport and Exercise Psychology | Social and Community Psychology
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Education and training not elsewhere classified | Organised sports | Behaviour and Health | Preventive Medicine | Ethnicity, Multiculturalism and Migrant Development and Welfare | Health Education and Promotion | Expanding Knowledge in Psychology and Cognitive Sciences | Behaviour and health |
Related Links
Publications
Eliciting and attenuating reinstatement of fear: Effects of an unextinguished CS
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2020
Cross-cultural validation of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale–21 in China.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 05-2016
DOI: 10.1037/PAS0000207
Abstract: The gap between the demand and delivery of mental health services in mainland China can be reduced by validating freely available and psychometrically sound psychological instruments. The present research examined the Chinese version of the 21-item Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21). Study 1 administered the DASS-21 to 1,815 Chinese college students and found internal consistency indices (Cronbach's alpha) of .83, .80, and .82 for the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress subscales, respectively, and .92 for the total DASS total. Test-retest reliability over a 6-month interval was .39 to .46 for each of the 3 subscales and .46 for the total DASS. Moderate convergent validity of the Depression and Anxiety subscales was demonstrated via significant correlations with the Chinese Beck Depression Inventory (r = .51 at Time 1 and r = .64 at Time 2) and the Chinese State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (r = .41), respectively. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the original 3-factor model with 1 minor change (nonnormed fit index [NNFI] = .964, comparative fit index [CFI] = .968, and root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = .079). Study 2 examined the clinical utility of the Chinese DASS-21 in 166 patients with schizophrenia and 90 matched healthy controls. Patients had higher Depression and Anxiety but not Stress subscale scores than healthy controls. A discriminant function composed of the linear combination of 3 subscale scores correctly discriminated 69.92% of participants, which again supported the potential clinical utility of the DASS in mainland China. Taken together, findings in these studies support the cross-cultural validity of the DASS-21 in China. (PsycINFO Database Record
Post-event processing in social anxiety: Investigation using Attentional Control Theory
Publisher: Babes-Bolyai University
Date: 17-12-2018
Switching attentional focus across internal and external cues improves performance in a rowing task in novices
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2022
The heartbreak of depression: ‘Psycho-cardiac’ coupling in myocardial infarction
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2017
DOI: 10.1016/J.YJMCC.2017.03.007
Abstract: Ample evidence identifies strong links between major depressive disorder (MDD) and both risk of ischemic or coronary heart disease (CHD) and resultant morbidity and mortality. The molecular mechanistic bases of these linkages are poorly defined. Systemic factors linked to MDD, including vascular dysfunction, atherosclerosis, obesity and diabetes, together with associated behavioral changes, all elevate CHD risk. Nonetheless, experimental evidence indicates the myocardium is also directly modified in depression, independently of these factors, impairing infarct tolerance and cardioprotection. It may be that MDD effectively breaks the heart's intrinsic defense mechanisms. Four extrinsic processes are implicated in this psycho-cardiac coupling, presenting potential targets for therapeutic intervention if causally involved: sympathetic over-activity vs. vagal under-activity, together with hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and immuno-inflammatory dysfunctions. However, direct evidence of their involvement remains limited, and whether targeting these upstream mediators is effective (or practical) in limiting the cardiac consequences of MDD is unknown. Detailing myocardial phenotype in MDD can also inform approaches to cardioprotection, yet cardiac molecular changes are similarly ill defined. Studies support myocardial sensitization to ischemic insult in models of MDD, including worsened oxidative and nitrosative damage, apoptosis (with altered Bcl-2 family expression) and infarction. Moreover, depression may de-sensitize hearts to protective conditioning stimuli. The mechanistic underpinnings of these changes await delineation. Such information not only advances our fundamental understanding of psychological determinants of health, but also better informs management of the cardiac consequences of MDD and implementing cardioprotection in this cohort.
Lead stimulus modality change and the attentional modulation of the acoustic and electrical blink reflex
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2003
DOI: 10.1016/S0301-0511(02)00087-X
Abstract: Two experiments investigated the effects of the sensory modality of the lead and of the blink-eliciting stimulus during lead stimulus modality change on blink modulation at lead intervals of 2500 and 3500 ms. Participants were presented with acoustic, visual, or tactile change stimuli after habituation training with lead stimuli from the same or a different sensory modality. In Experiment 1, latency and magnitude of the acoustic blink were facilitated during a change to acoustic or visual lead stimuli, but not during a change to tactile lead stimuli. After habituation to acoustic lead stimuli, blink magnitude was smaller during tactile change stimuli than during habituation stimuli. The latter finding was replicated in Experiment 2 in which blink was elicited by electrical stimulation of the trigeminal nerve. The consistency of the findings across different combinations of lead stimulus and blink-eliciting stimulus modalities does not support a modality-specific account of attentional blink modulation. Rather, blink modulation during generalized orienting reflects modality non-specific processes, although modulation may not always be found during tactile lead stimuli.
The effects of physical context changes and multiple extinction contexts on two forms of renewal in a conditioned suppression task with humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2006
The use of lecture recordings in higher education: A review of institutional, student, and lecturer issues
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-12-2017
Spontaneous and reflexive eye activity measures of mental workload
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 2002
The use of an unpleasant sound as an unconditional stimulus in a human aversive Pavlovian conditioning procedure
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2006
DOI: 10.1016/J.BIOPSYCHO.2006.03.004
Abstract: Ethical considerations can limit the use of traditional unconditional stimuli (US), such as electric shock and loud tones, when used in a human aversive Pavlovian conditioning procedure. The risk of the US causing pain or excessive anxiety is a particular concern when testing sensitive populations such as children, the elderly, and those with psychological or neurodevelopmental disorders. Two experiments used a differential conditioning procedure to determine whether an unpleasant sound (metal scraping on slate) could support the acquisition and extinction of conditioned responses to the same extent as either electric shock or a 100 dB(A) tone US. Experiment 1 (N=48) demonstrated equivalent or superior conditioning effects for the signal-based learning measures of US expectancy, skin conductance responses, and heart rate. Experiment 2 (N=57) yielded similar outcomes in the affective-based learning measures of startle blink modulation and pleasantness ratings. The results support the use of an unpleasant sound as a US in human Pavlovian conditioning experiments.
Cardiac and respiratory activity and golf putting performance under attentional focus instructions
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2011
The Role of Idiomorphs in Emergent Literacy
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 10-01-2012
Psychophysiological Measurement of Personality
Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd
Date: 2008
Mind and heart: Heart rate variability in major depressive disorder and coronary heart disease - A review and recommendations
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 23-04-2012
Abstract: There is a reciprocal association between major depressive disorder (MDD) and coronary heart disease (CHD). These conditions are linked by a causal network of mechanisms. This causal network should be quantitatively studied and it is hypothesised that the investigation of vagal function represents a promising starting point. Heart rate variability (HRV) has been used to investigate cardiac vagal control in the context of MDD and CHD. This review aims to examine the relationship of HRV to both MDD and CHD in the context of vagal function and to make recommendations for clinical practice and research. The search terms ‘heart rate variability’, ‘depression’ and ‘heart disease’ were entered into an electronic multiple database search engine. Abstracts were screened for their relevance and articles were in idually selected and collated. Decreased HRV is found in both MDD and CHD. Both diseases are theorised to disrupt autonomic control feedback loops on the heart and are linked to vagal function. Existing theories link vagal function to both mood and emotion as well as cardiac function. However, several factors can potentially confound HRV measures and would thus impact on a complete understanding of vagal mechanisms in the link between MDD and CHD. The quantitative investigation of vagal function using HRV represents a reasonable starting point in the study of the relationship between MDD and CHD. Many psychotropic and cardiac medications have effects on HRV, which may have clinical importance. Future studies of HRV in MDD and CHD should consider antidepressant medication, as well as anxiety, as potential confounders.
A systematic review of the application of interactive virtual reality to sport
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-07-2018
Investigating Gender Differences in Mathematics and Science: Results from the 2011 Trends in Mathematics and Science Survey
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-06-2019
Exposure to a novel context after extinction causes a renewal of extinguished conditioned responses: Implications for the treatment of fear
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2010
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRAT.2010.03.002
Abstract: Renewal gives an experimental model for the relapse of fear symptoms following exposure therapy. While renewal of extinguished fear in humans has been observed following a return to the original context in which fear was acquired (ABA design), it has been more difficult to show upon presentation of a novel context (ABC design). The present experiment used a particularly strong context manipulation in a fear conditioning procedure. Context was manipulated by using large photographs of real environments taken from various angles and was present throughout the entire experiment. A renewal of cognitive expectancy was found in both ABA and ABC renewal designs, although it was larger in the former than in the latter. Response times in making the expectancy judgments increased when there was a change to a new context. The results demonstrate consistency in fear renewal effects between human and animal studies and suggest that relapse following exposure therapy via renewal remains a danger when people encounter a previously feared object in a novel context.
Predictors of Student Satisfaction with University Psychology Courses: A Review
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 06-07-2015
Abstract: Student satisfaction at university is receiving increasing attention. While academic discipline has been associated with student satisfaction in many studies, we found no previous reviews of student satisfaction within psychology, a discipline with among the largest undergraduate enrolments. In this paper, we review the student satisfaction literature, with a focus on undergraduate psychology. Searches of relevant databases and reference lists were used to source articles for this narrative review. Evidence regarding institutional, teaching, and student variables associated with student satisfaction is discussed. Teaching variables, particularly teaching quality and expertise, tend to show the strongest relationships with student satisfaction. Institutional variables, such as services, facilities, image, and research activity, are also important. In idual student characteristics including achievement and attitudes have been associated with psychology students' satisfaction. Recommendations to improve satisfaction include helping psychology students to develop accurate expectations of courses, facilitating teaching quality and style that matches psychology students' preferred thinking styles, and assisting students to develop self-efficacy and other positive attitudes. Further research to understand and improve psychology students' satisfaction would be beneficial.
Exposure treatment in multiple contexts attenuates return of fear via renewal in high spider fearful individuals
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.JBTEP.2014.12.006
Abstract: Research has demonstrated that after exposure treatment, re-exposure to a previously feared stimulus outside of the treatment context can result in renewal of fear. The current study investigated whether conducting exposure treatment in multiple real-life contexts can attenuate renewal of fear. Forty-six moderate to high spider fearful in iduals were randomly allocated to groups that received exposure treatment in either one context or three contexts. Follow-up testing was conducted one week and four weeks after exposure in the treatment context or a novel context. Renewal of fear was found for the single extinction context group when exposed to the feared object in a novel context with self-report of fear, heart rate, and behavioural avoidance. However, renewal of fear was attenuated for the multiple extinction context group. The s le included moderate to high spider fearful participants rather than clients with spider phobia, potentially limiting the generalisability of the findings to clinical populations. Using multiple extinction contexts in combination with other methods of attenuating renewal (e.g., context similarity) may provide a means to reduce the risk of renewal of fear.
Dimensional schizotypy and social cognition: an fMRI imaging study
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 27-05-2015
The relationship between cognitive ability and motivation during cognitive tasks of varying complexity
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2022
Affective and Attentional States When Running in a Virtual Reality Environment
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 27-07-2018
Abstract: Engaging in physical exercise in a virtual reality (VR) environment has been reported to improve physical effort and affective states. However, these conclusions might be influenced by experimental design factors, such as comparing VR environments against a non-VR environment without actively controlling for the presence of visual input in non-VR conditions. The present study addressed this issue to examine affective and attentional states in a virtual running task. Participants (n = 40), completed a 21 min run on a treadmill at 70% of Vmax. One group of participants ran in a computer-generated VR environment that included other virtual runners while another group ran while viewing neutral images. Participants in both conditions showed a pattern of reduced positive affect and increased tension during the run with a return to high positive affect after the run. In the VR condition, higher levels of immersive tendencies and attention/absorption in the virtual environment were associated with more positive affect after the run. In addition, participants in the VR condition focused attention more on external task-relevant stimuli and less to internal states than participants in the neutral images condition. However, the neutral images condition produced less negative affect and more enjoyment after the run than the VR condition. The finding suggest that the effects of exercising in a VR environment will depend on in idual difference factors (e.g., attention/absorption in the virtual world) but it may not always be better than distracting attention away from exercise-related cues.
Implementation intention training for prospective memory in schizophrenia: A 3-month follow-up study
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCHRES.2018.10.015
Abstract: The beneficial effect of implementation intentions (II) on prospective memory (PM) deficits in patients with schizophrenia has been reported. However, these studies were limited to brief interventions such that the transfer and long-term effects of II training remains unclear. This study examined whether a 10-session II programme could improve PM performance, social functioning and functional capacity in patients with schizophrenia immediately after training and at 3-month follow-up. Patients with schizophrenia (n = 42) recruited from the community were randomly assigned to II training (n = 21) or treatment as usual (TAU) (n = 21). Participants in the II group learned the verbal and imagery component of II and were encouraged to apply these strategies in their daily lives. We found that the II group performed better than the TAU group on computer-based PM tasks and a daily life PM task (telephone call at specified date and time) at post-treatment and at 3-month follow-up. The II group also exhibited better working ability than the TAU group at post-treatment. Our results suggest that the II intervention programme may have lasting beneficial effects in PM performance and significant transfer effects to functional capacity in schizophrenia patients.
Effects of nicotine administration via a sublingual tablet on arousal and verbal ability in non-smokers
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 19-05-2010
Empathy-related ratings to still images of human and nonhuman animal groups in negative contexts graded for phylogenetic similarity
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2015
A preprocessing tool for removing artifact from cardiac RR interval recordings using three-dimensional spatial distribution mapping
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-01-2016
DOI: 10.1111/PSYP.12598
Abstract: Artifact is common in cardiac RR interval data that is recorded for heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. A novel algorithm for artifact detection and interpolation in RR interval data is described. It is based on spatial distribution mapping of RR interval magnitude and relationships to adjacent values in three dimensions. The characteristics of normal physiological RR intervals and artifact intervals were established using 24-h recordings from 20 technician-assessed human cardiac recordings. The algorithm was incorporated into a preprocessing tool and validated using 30 artificial RR (ARR) interval data files, to which known quantities of artifact (0.5%, 1%, 2%, 3%, 5%, 7%, 10%) were added. The impact of preprocessing ARR files with 1% added artifact was also assessed using 10 time domain and frequency domain HRV metrics. The preprocessing tool was also used to preprocess 69 24-h human cardiac recordings. The tool was able to remove artifact from technician-assessed human cardiac recordings (sensitivity 0.84, SD = 0.09, specificity of 1.00, SD = 0.01) and artificial data files. The removal of artifact had a low impact on time domain and frequency domain HRV metrics (ranging from 0% to 2.5% change in values). This novel preprocessing tool can be used with human 24-h cardiac recordings to remove artifact while minimally affecting physiological data and therefore having a low impact on HRV measures of that data.
Theory of mind correlates with clinical insight but not cognitive insight in patients with schizophrenia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2016
DOI: 10.1016/J.PSYCHRES.2016.01.044
Abstract: Research on the relationship between insight and social cognition, in particular Theory of Mind (ToM), in schizophrenia has yielded mixed findings to date. Very few studies, however, have assessed both clinical insight and cognitive insight when examining their relationships with ToM in schizophrenia. The current study thus investigated the relationship between clinical insight, cognitive insight, and ToM in a s le of 56 patients with schizophrenia and 30 healthy controls. Twenty-seven patients were classified as low in clinical insight according to their scores on the 'insight' item (G12) of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Moreover, cognitive insight and ToM were assessed with the Beck Cognitive Insight Scale (BCIS) and the Yoni task, respectively. The results indicated that patients with poor clinical insight performed worse on tasks of second-order cognitive and affective ToM, while the ToM performance of patients with high clinical insight was equivalent to that of healthy controls. Furthermore, while clinical insight was correlated with ToM and clinical symptoms, cognitive insight did not correlate with clinical insight, ToM, or clinical symptoms. Clinical insight thus appears to be an important factor related to ToM in schizophrenia.
Relapse of Successfully Treated Anxiety and Fear: Theoretical Issues and Recommendations for Clinical Practice
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 2009
DOI: 10.1080/00048670802607154
Abstract: Despite the existence of effective interventions for anxiety disorders, relapse – or the return of fear – presents a significant problem for patients and clinicians in the longer term. The present paper draws on the experimental and clinical behavioural literature, reviewing the mechanisms by which the return of fear can occur. The aim of the paper was to generate a list of treatment recommendations for clinicians aimed at reducing relapse in successfully treated anxiety disorders. Clinical and experimental literature on the mechanisms of renewal, reinstatement, spontaneous recovery and reacquisition are reviewed. These are linked with the clinical and experimental literature on the return of fear in successfully treated anxiety. A list of recommendations to assist in reducing the probability of relapse in successfully treated anxiety is presented. This list includes methods for use in behavioural (exposure) treatment of anxiety disorders that aim to enhance clinical outcomes. Despite the significant problem of relapse in successfully treated anxiety, there are methods available to reduce the probability of relapse through return of fear. Clinicians engaging in treatment of anxiety disorders should be mindful of these methods to ensure optimal patient outcome.
For Parents Particularly: More than Just Storybooks: Promoting Emergent Literacy Skills in the Home
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 06-2009
The effect of stimulus modality and task difficulty on attentional modulation of blink startle
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-04-2004
Life review therapy enhances mental time travel in patients with schizophrenia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2017
DOI: 10.1016/J.PSYCHRES.2017.10.002
Abstract: Mental Time Travel (MTT) is the ability of in iduals to project themselves to the past or to the future. Studies have shown that schizophrenia (SZ) patients are impaired in MTT. The present study aimed to examine whether MTT in patients with SZ can be improved through Life Review Therapy. Fifty patients with SZ were randomly assigned to the training (SZ-training) or control (SZ-control) group. Whereas the SZ-training group received four-week Life Review Therapy in addition to conventional treatment, the SZ-control group only received conventional treatment. MTT, emotional status, life satisfaction and cognitive functions were assessed before and after the training. We also recruited 25 matched healthy controls to complete all the assessments at baseline. After training, the SZ-training group showed higher specificity and more field perspective than the SZ-control group. No significant difference was found between the SZ-training group post-training assessment and the healthy controls. The SZ-training group also showed significant improvements in emotional expression, semantic memory and verbal fluency, but the SZ-control group did not show such improvements. These results indicated that Life Review Therapy is effective in improving MTT of SZ patients.
Conditioned inhibition of autonomic Pavlovian conditioning in humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-1997
DOI: 10.1016/S0301-0511(97)05248-4
Abstract: The present study aimed to demonstrate conditioned inhibition of Pavlovian conditioning of autonomic responses in humans. Subjects (N = 21) were presented initially with four geometric shapes (A, B, C and D). An electric shock served as the unconditioned stimulus (US) during acquisition. Conditional stimuli lasted for 8 s and US onset coincided with CS offset. Subjects were trained with A-US, C-US, and AC-US pairings and AB alone and B alone presentations. The subsequent summation test consisted of C-US pairings and CB alone and CD alone presentations. Conditioning was evident in self-reported US expectancy and first and second interval electrodermal responses. Evidence for conditioned inhibition during the summation test was found in US expectancy and second interval electrodermal responses.
Devaluation of Rewards for the Future Is Associated With Schizotypal Personality Features
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 12-2016
DOI: 10.1111/AP.12141
Effective behavioural strategies for reducing disgust in contamination-related OCD: A review
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.CPR.2015.07.001
Abstract: Disgust is an understudied but important emotion in various psychological disorders. Over the last decade, increasing evidence suggests that disgust is also present in various subtypes of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), especially in contamination-related OCD (C-OCD). The treatment of choice for C-OCD is exposure with response prevention, originally designed to reduce fear-associated emotions thought to be acquired through Pavlovian conditioning (PC). However, disgust has been proposed to be acquired through evaluative conditioning (EC) and according to the referential model of this form of learning, there are functional differences between PC and EC that need to be considered in the treatment of disgust-related responses. Alternative strategies suggested by EC-based models include counterconditioning (contingent presentation of the CS with a US of opposite valence) and US revaluation (contingent presentation of the US with US of opposite valence). Drawing on the referential model, this paper reviews evidence for the effectiveness of each strategy to identify the most theoretically sound and empirically valid intervention to reduce disgust in C-OCD.
Implicit Approach Biases for Physically Active Lifestyle Cues
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 26-02-2020
Moderating effect of age on the association between future time perspective and preventive coping
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-07-2017
DOI: 10.1002/PCHJ.172
Abstract: The present study aimed to investigate the moderating effect of age on the relationship between future time perspective (FTP) and future-oriented coping. A total of 1,915 participants aged 9-84 years completed measures of FTP and future-oriented coping. Moderation analyses were conducted to examine whether age played a role in the association between FTP and future-oriented coping (proactive and preventive). Results showed that proactive and preventive coping were negatively correlated with age, and age moderated the association between FTP and preventive coping but not proactive coping. Furthermore, the strength of the positive association between FTP and preventive coping was strongest among the older participants, moderate among the middle-aged participants, and weakest among the younger participants. These results suggest that the association between FTP and preventive coping varies across the lifespan.
Comparing the efficacy of a brief self-esteem and self-compassion intervention for state body dissatisfaction and self-improvement motivation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.BODYIM.2018.08.008
Abstract: This study explored the efficacy of reflective writing tasks for reducing state body dissatisfaction and improving self-improvement motivation. Participants (N = 153) were exposed to a threatening body image scenario, after which they reported their state body dissatisfaction. Following randomisation to one of three interventions (self-esteem, self-compassion, or positive distraction control), participants completed the state body dissatisfaction measures again along with a measure of self-improvement motivation. At post-intervention, state weight dissatisfaction and appearance dissatisfaction were significantly lower and self-improvement motivation was significantly higher in the self-compassion group than in both the self-esteem and control groups. Trait body dissatisfaction moderated the efficacy of the intervention whereby the benefit of the self-compassion intervention became evident at moderate levels of trait body dissatisfaction, and was most apparent at high levels of body dissatisfaction. Self-compassion was a robust and efficacious method through which to promote immediate improvements to bodily feelings and desire to self-improve.
Measures of Empathy
Publisher: Elsevier
Date: 2015
The general facilitation effect of implementation intentions on prospective memory performance in patients with schizophrenia
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 30-09-2018
DOI: 10.1080/13546805.2018.1528143
Abstract: Prospective memory (PM) refers to remembering to execute a planned intention in the future. It can be ided into event- and time-based, according to the nature of the PM cue. Event-based PM cues can be classified as focal or non-focal. Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) have been found to be impaired in both event- and time-based PM. PM has been found to be improved by implementation intentions, which is an encoding strategy in the format of "if X then Y". This study examined the effect of implementation intentions on a non-focal event-based and a time-based PM task in patients with SCZ. Forty-two patients with SCZ and 42 healthy controls were allocated to either an implementation intention or a control PM instruction condition and were asked to complete two PM tasks. Implementation intentions was found to improve performance in both the non-focal event-based and time-based PM tasks in patients with SCZ and healthy controls, with no costs to the ongoing task. The improvement in time-based PM performance in the implementation intentions condition was partially mediated by the frequency of clock checking behaviour. Implementation intentions can facilitate PM performance in patients with SCZ and has the potential to be used as a clinical intervention tool.
Exploring teachers’ perspectives on the benefits and barriers of using social robots in early childhood education
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 12-09-2023
Implicit approach–avoidance associations predict leisure-time exercise independently of explicit exercise motivation.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 05-2019
DOI: 10.1037/SPY0000145
Learning to fear outgroups: An associative learning explanation for the development and reduction of intergroup anxiety
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-02-2019
DOI: 10.1111/SPC3.12442
The effect of associative and dissociative attentional focus strategies on muscle activity and heart rate during a weight training exercise
Publisher: Hogrefe Publishing Group
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1027/0269-8803/A000011
Abstract: Performance outcomes, such as the distance rowed or run, can be influenced by the type of attentional focus an in idual adopts. The present study tested how attentional focus during a weight training exercise influenced a direct measure of performance production (muscle activity) and heart rate. Participants (27 men, 3 women age range 18–37 years) executed bicep curls while adopting an associative, dissociative, or no specific attentional focus. Muscle activity, as measured by electromyographic recordings, and heart rate were lower in the associative condition than in the dissociative and control conditions (all p values .01). The participant’s level of experience in weight training and the amount of weight lifted had no influence on this pattern of results. The results highlight that attentional focus is an important variable that can influence muscle activity, and ultimately training outcomes, during exercise.
The use of an unpleasant sound unconditional stimulus in an aversive conditioning procedure with 8- to 11-year-old children
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2008
DOI: 10.1016/J.BIOPSYCHO.2008.08.005
Abstract: The study of aversive Pavlovian conditioning in children can contribute to our understanding of how fears are acquired and extinguished during development. However, methodological issues h er further research because of ethical and procedural concerns regarding the use of traditional aversive unconditional stimuli (USs) and no established method to measure trial-by-trial changes in the child's expectancy of the US. The present experiment used geometric shape conditional stimuli (CSs) and an unpleasant sound US with 8- to 11-year-old children. Reliable acquisition and extinction were observed with first, second, and third interval skin conductance responses, on-line expectancy judgments, and post-conditioning subjective ratings of pleasantness and arousal. The experiment confirms the novel use of an unpleasant sound of metal scraping on slate as a US in aversive conditioning with children. The methods have the potential to facilitate the ethical conduct of aversive conditioning research in children using psychophysiological, affective, and self-report expectancy measures.
Touch Screen Tablets and Emergent Literacy
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-09-2014
Sex and sex-role differences in specific cognitive abilities
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2016
Validation of the griffith empathy measure in the Chinese context
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 10-04-2014
DOI: 10.1017/BRIMP.2014.1
Abstract: Objectives: The Griffith Empathy Measure (GEM) is a self-report measure of empathy. The current study aimed to explore the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the GEM. It also aimed to compare in iduals with and without schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) features on various components of empathy. Methods: 420 college students from Beijing and 526 college students from Guangzhou completed a set of questionnaires that measured empathy and schizotypal personality disorder traits. Cronbach's coefficient alpha was used to evaluate the internal consistency of the GEM. Construct validity was evaluated using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses (EFA and CFA). Construct validity was also examined by looking at the relationship between the GEM and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Finally, the sensitivity of the GEM was evaluated by comparing the total and factor GEM scores between in iduals with and without SPD traits. Results: The Chinese GEM showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.83). Results of an exploratory factor analysis suggested a three-factor model consisting of cognitive, affective and behavioural empathy components. Results of a confirmatory factor analysis showed that the three-factor model, as well as the two-factor model found in the English version, were both acceptable. Construct validity (specifically convergent validity) was also corroborated by significant correlations between the IRI subscales and GEM (personal distress: r = .09, p .05 perspective taking: r = .34, p .01 fantasy: r = .44, p .01 empathic concern: r = .51, p .01). In iduals with SPD traits showed lower scores on the GEM than in iduals without SPD traits ( t (1,250) = −1.99, p = .05), thus confirming discriminative validity. Conclusions: These preliminary findings suggest that the Chinese version of the GEM demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency and construct validity. In addition, the findings suggest that the GEM is culturally appropriate and researchers can use it to study empathy in healthy and clinical Chinese participants.
Central cholinergic pathway involvement in the regulation of pupil diameter, blink rate and cognitive function
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2016
DOI: 10.1016/J.NEUROSCIENCE.2016.08.009
Abstract: Anticholinergic medications can exert their effects by acting on muscarinic receptors, which mediates the function of acetylcholine in the central nervous system. Acetylcholine plays a number of roles, particularly in regard to the control of muscle activity and normal cognitive functioning. Eighteen subjects were recruited into the human, double-blind, placebo-controlled, four-way crossover study. Pupil diameter and blink rate were assessed at rest while eye tracking technology recorded eye characteristics. Thereafter a cognitive task was performed, where pupil size and blink rate were once again measured. Assessments were performed pre-ingestion, 0.5h and 2h following the ingestion of a strong centrally acting anticholinergic (promethazine hydrochloride), a moderate centrally acting anticholinergic (hyoscine hydrobromide), an anticholinergic devoid of central effects (hyoscine butylbromide) and placebo. At rest, hyoscine hydrobromide was the only medication to increase pupil diameter and no drug intervention influenced blink rate. During performance of the cognitive task, hyoscine hydrobromide increased pupil diameter and promethazine increased blink rate. Promethazine was the only medication to influence the modified attention network test (ANT) by increasing the conflict effect and grand mean reaction time (RT). Pupil diameter and blink rate were both influenced by the central anticholinergics during performance of the cognitive test, thus highlighting the importance of central cholinergic pathways in the control of pupil diameter and blink rate. The collective effects of central anticholinergics on the modified ANT and on pupil diameter and blink rate during its performance, conveys the importance of central cholinergic pathways in cognitive function.
Cognitive and affective components of empathy and their relationship with personality dimensions in a Chinese sample
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-05-2016
DOI: 10.1111/AJSP.12138
Conducting extinction in multiple contexts does not necessarily attenuate the renewal of shock expectancy in a fear-conditioning procedure with humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2007
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRAT.2006.02.001
Abstract: The renewal of Pavlovian-conditioned responses may provide a model for the relapse of fear following extinction-based treatments for anxiety disorders. Renewal can be observed if conditional stimulus (CS) and unconditional stimulus (US) pairings are given in one context, extinction trials of CS presentations in a second context, prior to test trials of CS presentations in the original acquisition context (ABA renewal). We examined ABA renewal in humans by using a fear-conditioning procedure with an unpleasant shock US. A renewal of rated shock expectancy was demonstrated with this procedure. Conducting extinction treatment in multiple contexts was expected to attenuate the renewal effect. However, the renewal of shock expectancy persisted when extinction treatment was given across three or five different contexts. With the current renewal design, learning task, and measure of conditioned behaviour, extinction treatment does not appear to readily generalise to the test context. The use of multiple extinction treatments in a clinical setting may not necessarily reduce the likelihood of relapse via a renewal effect.
Baseline and affective startle modulation by angry and neutral faces in 4-8-year-old anxious and non-anxious children
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2008
DOI: 10.1016/J.BIOPSYCHO.2007.12.005
Abstract: The present study examined the magnitudes of startle blink reflexes and electrodermal responses in 4-8-year-old high anxious children (N=14) and non-anxious controls (N=11). Responses were elicited by 16 auditory startle trials during a baseline phase prior to an affective modulation phase involving 12 startle trials presented during angry and neutral faces. Results showed significant response habituation across baseline trials and equivalent response magnitudes between groups during the baseline phase. The modulation of response magnitudes during angry and neutral faces did not differ significantly in either group. However, high anxious children showed larger responses overall compared with non-anxious control children during the affective modulation phase. Moreover, greater anxiety severity and larger startle reflexes were associated with poorer accuracy in rating neutral faces as neutral in high anxious children. Results may reflect elevated reactivity to threat contexts in 4-8-year-old high anxious versus non-anxious children.
Gender Differences in Self-Estimated Intelligence: Exploring the Male Hubris, Female Humility Problem
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 07-02-2022
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYG.2022.812483
Abstract: Despite evidence from cognitive psychology that men and women are equal in measured intelligence, gender differences in self-estimated intelligence (SEI) are widely reported with males providing systematically higher estimates than females. This has been termed the male hubris, female humility effect. The present study explored personality factors that might explain this. Participants ( N = 228 103 male, 125 female) provided self-estimates of their general IQ and for Gardner’s multiple intelligences, before completing the Cattell Culture Fair IQ test as an objective measure of intelligence. They also completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) as a measure of sex-role identification, and measures of general and academic self-esteem. Both gender and sex-role differences were observed for SEI, with males and participants of both genders who scored high in masculinity offering higher self-estimates. By comparing estimated and observed IQ, we were able to rule out gender differences in overall accuracy but observed a pattern of systematic underestimation in females. An hierarchical multiple regression showed significant independent effects of gender, masculinity, and self-esteem. Mixed evidence was observed for gender differences in the estimation of multiple intelligences, though moderately sized sex-role differences were observed. The results offer a far more nuanced explanation for the male hubris, female humility effect that includes the contribution of sex role identification to in idual and group differences.
A topographical map of the causal network of mechanisms underlying the relationship between major depressive disorder and coronary heart disease
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 05-2011
DOI: 10.3109/00048674.2011.570427
Abstract: Objective: Major depressive disorder (MDD) and coronary heart disease (CHD) are both clinically important public health problems. Depression is linked with a higher incidence of ischaemic cardiac events and MDD is more prevalent in patients with CHD. No single comprehensive model has yet described the causal mechanisms linking MDD to CHD. Several key mechanisms have been put forward, comprising behavioural mechanisms, genetic mechanisms, dysregulation of immune mechanisms, coagulation abnormalities and vascular endothelial dysfunction, polyunsaturated omega-3 free fatty acid deficiency, and autonomic mechanisms. It has been suggested that these mechanisms form a network, which links MDD and CHD. The aim of this review is to examine the causal mechanisms underlying the relationship between MDD and CHD, with the aim of constructing a topological map of the causal network which describes the relationship between MDD and CHD. Methods: The search term ‘depression and heart disease’ was entered into an electronic multiple database search engine. Abstracts were screened for relevance and in idually selected articles were collated. Results: This review introduces the first topological map of the causal network which describes the relationship between MDD and CHD. Conclusions: Viewing the causal pathways as an interdependent network presents a new paradigm in this field and provides fertile ground for further research. The causal network can be studied using the methodology of systems biology, which is briefly introduced. Future research should focus on the creation of a more comprehensive topological map of the causal network and the quantification of the activity between each node of the causal network.
Evaluation of a workshop to reduce negative perceptions of statistics in undergraduate psychology students
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.2304/PLAT.2013.12.2.115
Abstract: The authors evaluated whether a brief group workshop that combined psycho-education and learning strategies improved self-efficacy, attitudes, and anxiety regarding statistics in psychology students. The workshop was completed in Week 1 of a compulsory 1st-year psychology statistics course. Prior to the workshop, the attendees ( n = 10) did not differ from the non-attending control group ( n = 17) on statistics self-efficacy, attitudes, or anxiety. These measures were re-assessed after the workshop near the end of semester (Week 10). Workshop attendance resulted in significantly higher self-efficacy, computational self-concept, and attitudes regarding the worth of statistics, and less fear of statistics teachers. It did not change statistics anxiety. Participants evaluated the workshop as useful, especially the information on effective learning strategies. The results demonstrate that a brief and cost-effective group intervention can improve self-efficacy and attitudes regarding statistics. Improvements to better target anxiety are discussed.
Validation of a touch screen tablet assessment of early literacy skills and a comparison with a traditional paper-based assessment
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 19-07-2019
The effect of implementation intentions on prospective memory performance in patients with schizophrenia: A multinomial modeling approach
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCHRES.2019.11.003
Abstract: Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) consistently show prospective memory (PM) impairments, and the technique of implementation intentions has been shown to improve PM performance in these patients. PM is considered to have prospective and retrospective components. However, it remains unclear which component of PM is impaired in patients with SCZ and which component(s) is facilitated by implementation intentions (II). The present study aimed to examine these two issues. Forty-two patients with SCZ and 42 matched healthy controls were randomly assigned to an II group or a typical instruction group. All participants were administered a color-matching PM task. Results showed that, using a multinomial-modeling approach, patients with SCZ exhibited impairment in the retrospective component of PM. In addition, while II improved the prospective PM component in healthy controls, both prospective and retrospective PM components in patients with SCZ were improved. Together, our results shed light on the mechanism of PM impairment in SCZ patients and the mechanism of II in improving PM performance.
Aversive Pavlovian Conditioning in Childhood Anxiety Disorders: Impaired Response Inhibition and Resistance to Extinction
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 05-2009
DOI: 10.1037/A0015635
Abstract: Learning-based models of anxiety disorders emphasize the role of aversive conditioning and retarded extinction in the etiology and maintenance of anxiety disorders. Yet few studies have examined these underlying processes in children, despite that some anxiety disorders typically onset during childhood. The authors examined the acquisition and extinction of conditioned responses in 17 anxious children and 18 nonanxious control children between 8 and 12 years old using a discriminative Pavlovian conditioning procedure. One geometric shape conditional stimulus was paired with an unpleasant loud tone unconditional stimulus (CS+) whereas another geometric shape was presented alone (CS-). In the context of similar levels of discriminative conditioning in both groups, anxious children showed larger skin conductance responses to the CS+ and the CS- during acquisition and evaluated the CS+ as more arousing than the CS- compared with control children. They also showed greater resistance to extinction in skin conductance responses but not in arousal ratings to the CS+ vs. the CS- relative to control children. Results suggest that deficits in response inhibition to safety cues and retarded extinction may underlie learning processes involved in the pathogenesis of childhood anxiety disorders.
Effects of reflex stimulus intensity and stimulus onset asynchrony on prepulse inhibition and perceived intensity of the blink-eliciting stimulus
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 09-2006
Effect of varying levels of mental workload on startle eyeblink modulation
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 06-2002
DOI: 10.1080/00140130210148546
Abstract: Previous research using punctuate reaction time and counting tasks has found that the startle eyeblink reflex is sensitive to attentional demands. The present experiment explored whether startle eyeblink is also modulated during a complex continuous task and is sensitive to different levels of mental workload. Participants (N = 14) performed a visual horizontal tracking task either alone (single-task condition) or in combination with a visual gauge monitoring task (multiple-task condition) for three minutes. On some task trials, the startle eyeblink reflex was elicited by a noise burst. Results showed that startle eyeblink was attenuated during both tasks and that the attenuation was greater during the multiple-task condition than during the single-task condition. Subjective ratings, endogenous eyeblink rate, heart period, and heart period variability provided convergent validity of the workload manipulations. The findings suggest that the startle eyeblink is sensitive to the workload demands associated with a continuous visual task. The application of startle eyeblink modulation as a workload metric and the possibility that it may be diagnostic of workload demands in different stimulus modalities is discussed.
The effects of the presence of others during a rowing exercise in a virtual reality environment
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2016
Applying the Theory of Planned Behavior to Physical Activity: The Moderating Role of Mental Toughness
Publisher: Human Kinetics
Date: 10-2015
Abstract: This study explored whether mental toughness, the capacity to maintain performance under pressure, moderated the relation between physical activity intentions and subsequent behavior. Participants ( N = 117) completed the Mental Toughness Index and a theory of planned behavior questionnaire. Seven days later, physical activity was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control explained substantial variance (63.1%) in physical activity intentions. Intentions also significantly predicted physical activity behavior. The simple slopes analyses for the moderation effect revealed a nonsignificant intention–behavior relation at low levels of mental toughness. However, intentions were significantly and positively related to physical activity when mental toughness was moderate or high, suggesting that the development of a mentally tough mindset may reduce the gap between behavior and physical activity intention. Future research is needed to confirm these findings and apply them in the design of mental toughness interventions to facilitate physical activity engagement.
Effect of probe stimulus intensity on the dissociation between autonomic orienting and secondary probe reaction time
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 08-2001
The renewal of extinguished conditioned fear with fear-relevant and fear-irrelevant stimuli by a context change after extinction
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2008
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRAT.2007.12.004
Abstract: The acquisition, extinction, and subsequent recovery of conditioned fear can be influenced by the nature of the conditional stimulus (CS) and the context in which the CS is presented. The combined effects of these factors were examined in a differential fear-conditioning procedure with humans. Fear-relevant or fear-irrelevant CSs were followed by a shock unconditional stimulus (US) during acquisition and presented alone during extinction. The CSs were images presented upon different background contexts. Half the participants received the same context during acquisition and extinction and the remaining received different contexts. All participants received test trials in the same context as acquisition. In Experiment 1 (N=64), a renewal of shock expectancy and skin conductance responses was found during test for fear-relevant and fear-irrelevant CSs when extinction was given in a different context. In Experiment 2 (N=72), renewal for fear-relevant stimuli was enhanced when acquisition and test was given in an indoor office context and extinction in an outdoor bush context. The opposite context configuration produced the strongest renewal for fear-irrelevant stimuli. The return of extinguished conditioned fear can occur to fear-relevant stimuli that are commonly associated with clinical fears and its strength may be enhanced when the stimuli are encountered in certain contexts after extinction.
The effect and mechanisms of implementation intention in improving prospective memory performance in schizophrenia patients
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2016
DOI: 10.1016/J.PSYCHRES.2016.07.035
Abstract: People with schizophrenia (SCZ) have been shown to have prospective memory (PM) deficits. PM refers to the ability to remember to perform delayed intentions in the future and plays an important role in everyday independent functioning in SCZ. To date, few studies have investigated methods to improve PM in SCZ. This study aimed to examine whether implementation intention can improve PM performance and to explore its underlying mechanisms. Fifty people with SCZ and 50 demographically matched healthy controls (HC) participated in this study. Participants were randomly assigned to an implementation intention condition or a control instruction condition. Participants were required to make PM responses when PM cue words appeared while they were undertaking an ongoing task with two levels of cognitive load (1-back or 2-back). Results showed that people with SCZ were impaired in PM, and implementation intention improved PM performances for both SCZ and HC. Implementation intention improved PM performance in SCZ in both the low and the high cognitive load conditions without ongoing task cost, suggesting that implementation intention improved PM remembering in an automatic way. These results indicate that implementation intention may be a beneficial technique for improving PM performances in people with SCZ.
Age differences in delay discounting in Chinese adults
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2016
The relationship between skill level and patterns in cardiac and respiratory activity during golf putting
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2009
DOI: 10.1016/J.IJPSYCHO.2009.01.001
Abstract: In idual differences in skill level during sport-related motor tasks, such as golf putting, can be related to not only performance, but also patterns in psychophysiological activity. The present study examined the similarities and differences in cardiac and respiratory activity among elite, experienced, and novice golfers. Participants attempted flat putts 2.4 m from the hole. Performance was better in elite and experienced golfers than in novice golfers. Compared to novice golfers, the experienced and elite golfers showed a pronounced phasic deceleration in heart rate immediately prior to the putt, greater heart rate variability in the very low frequency band, and a greater tendency to show a respiratory pattern of exhaling immediately prior to the putt. The psychophysiological patterns may be related to differences in attentional processes or task familiarity between the groups. The implications of the results for the assessment and training of athletes in precision sports are discussed.
Present-fatalistic time perspective and life satisfaction: The moderating role of age
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2016
Validation of an Expressive and Receptive Tablet Assessment of Early Literacy
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 23-07-2019
The scaffolding of emergent literacy skills in the home environment: A case study
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-11-2009
Attentional focus strategies used by regular exercisers and their relationship with perceived exertion, enjoyment, and satisfaction
Publisher: Universidad de Alicante Servicio de Publicaciones
Date: 2017
The effect of attentional focus strategy on physiological and motor performance during a sit-up exercise
Publisher: Hogrefe Publishing Group
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.1027/0269-8803/A000081
Abstract: The attentional focus of an in idual can influence performance and physiological outcomes during strength training exercises. However, prior research has largely investigated this issue with male participants performing a biceps curl exercise and has not investigated the full range of attentional focus strategies. In the present experiment, 24 females did a sit-up exercise while adopting an associative or dissociative strategy of attending to cues that were external or internal to result in four conditions: external association, internal association, external dissociation, and internal dissociation. The external association condition produced the lowest electromyographic activity of the abdominal muscles, the lowest heart rate, and the greatest range of movement. The internal dissociation condition produced the lowest level of exercise satisfaction. The results suggest that a focus on the effects of muscle action is the most economical and least strenuous way to exercise with sit-ups and similar forms of exercise.
Stimulus competition in affective and relational learning
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2001
The sensitivity of 38 heart rate variability measures to the addition of artifact in human and artificial 24‐hr cardiac recordings
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-07-2018
DOI: 10.1111/ANEC.12483
Attentional blink reflex modulation in a continuous performance task is modality specific
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-02-2004
Visual attention to print-salient and picture-salient environmental print in young children
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-11-2015
A cross-validation study of clustering of schizotypy using a non-clinical Chinese sample
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2012
DOI: 10.1016/J.PSYCHRES.2012.03.026
Abstract: This study aimed to examine whether the same clusters of in iduals with schizotypy as reported in Western s les are present in a Chinese s le. Cluster analysis was conducted on the responses of 418 in iduals to the Chapman Psychosis-Proneness Scales. Results revealed that similar clusters of schizotypy exist in Chinese and Western s les, and that the emotional and neuropsychological symptoms they manifest are consistent with their cluster type.
Assessment and Technology: Mapping Future Directions in the Early Childhood Classroom
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 18-10-2019
Seeking and avoiding intergroup contact: Future frontiers of research on building social integration
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-11-2018
DOI: 10.1111/SPC3.12422
Effect of affective feedback and competitiveness on performance and the psychological experience of exercise within a virtual reality environment
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 08-06-2022
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0268460
Abstract: Exercise is beneficial for physical and psychological health, yet the majority of Australian adults are not sufficiently active to gain health benefits. Novel methods are needed to enhance the experience of exercise and ultimately exercise participation. The present study examined performance and psychological experiences during a (non-immersive) virtual reality cycling task that incorporated affective feedback. Female participants ( N = 137, university students) received either positive, negative, or neutral virtual feedback while cycling on a stationary bicycle in a virtual reality laboratory environment under the instruction to maintain at least 70% of their maximal heart rate for as long as possible (or up to 30 minutes). Participants also responded to measures of affect, motivation, enjoyment, and competitiveness. Data were analysed with ANOVA’s performed with feedback groups and trait competitiveness for the psychological and performance dependent measures. Results showed that positive feedback elicited greater interest and enjoyment during the task than neutral and negative feedback. In addition, perceived competence was greater with positive feedback than for neutral and negative feedback in low competitive participants. The type of feedback did not affect performance (cycling persistence, perceived exertion, and effort). The findings indicate the potential importance of providing positive virtual feedback and considering the interaction of in idual difference factors, specifically competitiveness, to enhance virtual exercise experiences.
Empathy-related responses to moving film stimuli depicting human and non-human animal targets in negative circumstances
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2008
DOI: 10.1016/J.BIOPSYCHO.2007.12.009
Abstract: Research supports an "ingroup empathy hypothesis" of higher empathy-related psychophysiological responses towards in iduals of the same ethnicity. However, little research has investigated empathy-related responses to non-human targets graded for phylogenetic relatedness. Participants (N=73) were presented with film stimuli depicting humans, primates, quadruped mammals and birds in victimized circumstances. Phasic skin conductance responses (SCR) and subjective empathy-related ratings to the film clips increased as phylogenetic similarity to humans increased across animal groups, revealing an empathic bias towards human stimuli. Participants also completed a trait empathy scale. High trait empathy participants gave higher subjective empathy ratings than moderate and low trait empathy participants. Low trait empathy participants showed less corrugator electromyographic activity than moderate and high empathy participants. The moderate trait empathy participants showed higher SCR than the high group. The results confirm an effect of phylogenetic similarity in subjective self-report and psychophysiological measures of empathy-related responses. Additionally, convergence between subjective and objective measures of empathy-related responses was observed.
Health, pre-disease and critical transition to disease in the psycho-immune-neuroendocrine network: Are there distinct states in the progression from health to major depressive disorder?
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.PHYSBEH.2018.10.014
Abstract: The psycho-immune-neuroendocrine (PINE) network is a regulatory network of interrelated physiological pathways that have been implicated in major depressive disorder (MDD). A model of disease progression for MDD is presented where the stable, healthy state of the PINE network (PINE physiome) undergoes progressive pathophysiological changes to an unstable but reversible pre-disease state (PINE pre-diseasome) with chronic stress. The PINE network may then undergo critical transition to a stable, possibly irreversible disease state of MDD (PINE pathome). Critical transition to disease is heralded by early warning signs which are detectible by biomarkers specific to the PINE network and may be used as a screening test for MDD. Critical transition to MDD may be different for each in idual, as it is reliant on diathesis, which comprises genetic predisposition, intrauterine and developmental factors. Finally, we propose the PINE pre-disease state may form a "universal pre-disease state" for several non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and critical transition of the PINE network may lead to one of several frequently associated disease states (influenced by diathesis), supporting the existence of a common Chronic Illness Risk Network (CIRN). This may provide insight into both the puzzle of multifinality and the growing clinical challenge of multimorbidity.
Working memory dysfunctions predict social problem solving skills in schizophrenia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2014
DOI: 10.1016/J.PSYCHRES.2014.07.043
Abstract: The current study aimed to examine the contribution of neurocognition and social cognition to components of social problem solving. Sixty-seven inpatients with schizophrenia and 31 healthy controls were administrated batteries of neurocognitive tests, emotion perception tests, and the Chinese Assessment of Interpersonal Problem Solving Skills (CAIPSS). MANOVAs were conducted to investigate the domains in which patients with schizophrenia showed impairments. Correlations were used to determine which impaired domains were associated with social problem solving, and multiple regression analyses were conducted to compare the relative contribution of neurocognitive and social cognitive functioning to components of social problem solving. Compared with healthy controls, patients with schizophrenia performed significantly worse in sustained attention, working memory, negative emotion, intention identification and all components of the CAIPSS. Specifically, sustained attention, working memory and negative emotion identification were found to correlate with social problem solving and 1-back accuracy significantly predicted the poor performance in social problem solving. Among the dysfunctions in schizophrenia, working memory contributed most to deficits in social problem solving in patients with schizophrenia. This finding provides support for targeting working memory in the development of future social problem solving rehabilitation interventions.
The functional significance of cognitive empathy and theory of mind in early and chronic schizophrenia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2021
Culture, Sex, and Group-Bias in Trait and State Empathy
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 28-04-2021
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYG.2021.561930
Abstract: Empathy is sharing and understanding others’ emotions. Recently, researchers identified a culture–sex interaction effect in empathy. This phenomenon has been largely ignored by previous researchers. In this study, the culture–sex interaction effect was explored with a cohort of 129 participants (61 Australian Caucasians and 68 Chinese Hans) using both self-report questionnaires (i.e., Empathy Quotient and Interpersonal Reactivity Index) and computer-based empathy tasks. In line with the previous findings, the culture–sex interaction effect was observed for both trait empathy (i.e., the generalized characteristics of empathy, as examined by the self-report questionnaires) and state empathy (i.e., the on-spot reaction of empathy for a specific stimulus, as evaluated by the computer-based tasks). Moreover, in terms of state empathy, the culture–sex interaction effect further interacted with stimulus traits (i.e., stimulus ethnicity, stimulus sex, or stimulus emotion) and resulted in three- and four-way interactions. Follow-up analyses of these higher-order interactions suggested that the phenomena of ethnic group bias and sex group favor in empathy varied among the four culture–sex participant groups (i.e., Australian female, Australian male, Chinese female, and Chinese male). The current findings highlighted the dynamic nature of empathy (i.e., its sensitivity toward both participant traits and stimulus features). Furthermore, the newly identified interaction effects in empathy deserve more investigation and need to be verified with other Western and Asian populations.
Letter and numeral identification: Their relationship with early literacy and numeracy skills
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 12-2013
Revisiting the Age-Prospective Memory Paradox Using Laboratory and Ecological Tasks
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 17-06-2021
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYG.2021.691752
Abstract: Prospective memory (PM) is the ability to perform a planned action at a future time. Older adults have shown moderate declines in PM, which are thought to be driven by age-related changes in the prefrontal cortex. However, an age-PM paradox is often reported, whereby deficits are evident in laboratory-based PM tasks, but not naturalistic PM tasks. The key aims of this study were to: (1) examine the age-PM paradox using the same s le across laboratory and ecological settings and (2) determine whether self-reported PM and cognitive factors such as working memory and IQ are associated PM performance. Two PM tasks were administered (ecological vs. laboratory) to a s le of 23 community-dwelling older adults ( M age = 72.30, SD age = 5.62) and 28 young adults ( M age = 20.18, SD age = 3.30). Participants also completed measures of general cognitive function, working memory, IQ, and self-reported memory. Our results did not support the existence of the age-PM paradox. Strong age effects across both laboratory and ecological PM tasks were observed in which older adults consistently performed worse on the PM tasks than young adults. In addition, PM performance was significantly associated with self-reported PM measures in young adults. For older adults, IQ was associated with time-based PM. These findings suggest that the age-PM paradox is more complex than first thought and there are differential predictors of PM performance for younger and older adults.
From feedback loop transitions to biomarkers in the psycho-immune-neuroendocrine network: Detecting the critical transition from health to major depression
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.NEUBIOREV.2018.03.005
Abstract: Biological pathways underlying major depressive disorder (MDD) can be viewed as systems biology networks. The psycho-immune-neuroendocrine (PINE) network comprises central nervous, immune, endocrine and autonomic systems, integrating biological mechanisms of MDD. Such networks exhibit recurrent motifs with specific functions, including positive and negative feedback loops, and are subject to critical transitions, influenced by feedback loop transitions (FLTs). We aim to identify critical feedback loops and their FLTs, as well sentinel network nodes (SNNs), key network nodes that drive FLTs, within the PINE network. Ex les of biomarkers are provided which may reflect early warning signs of impending critical transition to MDD. Disruption of homeostatic feedback loops reflects the physiological transition to MDD. Putative FLTs are identified within hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) and sympathetic-parasympathetic axes, the kynurenine pathway, gut function and dysbiosis. Progression from health to disease is driven by FLTs in the PINE network, which is likely to undergo changes characteristic of system instability. Biomarkers of system instability may effectively predict the critical transition to MDD.
Repetitive Negative Thinking in Social Anxiety Disorder 2: Post-Event Processing
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 09-2016
DOI: 10.5127/JEP.045616
Problems in remembering to carry out future actions in first-episode schizophrenia: Primary or secondary impairment?
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.JPSYCHIRES.2014.11.007
Abstract: Prospective memory (PM) is the ability to remember to carry out intended actions in the future. Empirical evidence suggests that PM deficits exist in in iduals with chronic schizophrenia. However, it is unclear whether PM deficits in first-episode schizophrenia exist independently from other neuropsychological deficits. Moreover, prior research using patients with first-episode has been limited to small inpatient s les. We aimed to clarify the nature and extent of PM deficits in in iduals with first-episode schizophrenia, using a large outpatient s le. Participants were 91 clinically stable outpatients with first-episode schizophrenia and 83 healthy controls. PM was assessed using both a subjective self-reported checklist and a laboratory-based task capturing time- and event-based PM. A battery assessing verbal and visuo-spatial working memory, as well as executive functions was also administered. ANOVA analyses showed that patients with first-episode schizophrenia performed significantly poorer than healthy controls in time- and event-based PM. Stepwise linear regression analyses suggested that cognitive flexibility predicted time- and event-based PM and working memory predicted event-based PM. Subgroup analyses showed that "cognitive-preserved" patients with first-episode schizophrenia tended to perform poorer in time-based PM deficit than healthy controls who were matched in IQ and other neuropsychological functions. Overall, our results provide substantial evidence to support that time-based PM deficits in first-episode schizophrenia are apparent and not entirely attributable to other neuropsychological deficits. PM may constitute a neuropsychological marker for schizophrenia.
Sex differences in mathematics and science achievement: A meta-analysis of National Assessment of Educational Progress assessments.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 08-2015
DOI: 10.1037/EDU0000012
Evaluating computer-based simulations, multimedia and animations that help integrate blended learning with lectures in first year statistics
Publisher: Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education
Date: 24-04-2011
DOI: 10.14742/AJET.970
Abstract: span The discipline of statistics seems well suited to the integration of technology in a lecture as a means to enhance student learning and engagement. Technology can be used to simulate statistical concepts, create interactive learning exercises, and illustrate real world applications of statistics. The present study aimed to better understand the use of such applications during lectures from the student's perspective. The technology used included multimedia, computer-based simulations, animations, and statistical software. Interviews were conducted on a stratified random s le of 38 students in a first year statistics course. The results showed three global effects on student learning and engagement: showed the practical application of statistics, helped with understanding statistics, and addressed negative attitudes towards statistics. The results are examined from within a blended learning framework and the benefits and drawbacks to the integration of technology during lectures are discussed. /span
Using virtual reality to assess theory of mind subprocesses and error types in early and chronic schizophrenia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2017
‘My mind pretty much went to mush’: A qualitative exploration of trenbolone in the performance and image enhancing drug community
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-03-2023
DOI: 10.1111/DAR.13656
Abstract: There are a variety of harms associated with anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), with some AAS associated with an increased risk profile for users. Despite potentially different risk profiles, these harms are seldom discussed with respect to specific compounds although recent ethnographic research has identified a need to do so. Specifically, myth has developed among users with trenbolone reportedly having more dramatic effects on in iduals, with reports of aggression, violent behaviour and extreme mood disturbances, and this is reflected in extant literature. This paper aims to report on the narrative surrounding the use of trenbolone among AAS users. As part of a larger qualitative study, a number of AAS users were interviewed regarding their usage practices. A narrative emerged regarding the physical and psychological harms which accompanied their AAS use of which trenbolone played a central role ( N = 16). Of all the AAS, trenbolone was viewed as having the most deleterious consequences for those who used it. Users reported an extreme shift in risk profile for psychosocial harms, particularly increased aggression and violent behaviour, as well as impulsivity regulation issues. AAS‐using peers and family members of users reported the readily observable effect of trenbolone. Users should be cognisant of the potential for significant harms and health‐care providers working with this group may consider more focused screening strategies. Future policy decisions regarding AAS may wish to consider the pivotal role trenbolone plays in adverse outcomes for this unique group of substance users.
Perceived benefits and receptivity to sport psychology consulting services of elite athletes in developing nations of the Oceania region
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 16-07-2023
DOI: 10.1177/17479541231188455
Abstract: Sport psychology consulting services are commonly used by elite athletes in developed countries, but little is known about the athlete's perceptions of such services in developing countries. The present study examined the accessibility, receptivity, and perceived benefit of sport psychology services (via a sport psychology services questionnaire) through a cross-sectional survey of elite athletes ( N = 32 M age = 23.06 years, SD = 5.81) from 12 nations of the Oceania region who participated in the Gather, Adjust, Prepare, Sustain programme. These nations were Vanuatu, Fiji, Tuvalu, Tonga, Solomon Islands, Cook Islands, Norfolk Island, Niue, Nauru, Kiribati, Samoa, and Papua New Guinea. The results revealed that only a quarter of the athletes had ongoing access to sport psychology consulting services. Over half reported that they were receptive to sport psychology services and perceived that these types of services would be beneficial. The most desired services related to performance enhancement (e.g. performance under pressure). The athletes reported mixed levels of knowledge regarding mental skills, and most knowledge concerned the use of mental skills in competition. Specifically, most athletes rated their knowledge of mental skills at either the low (e.g. imagery) or high (e.g. goal setting, focus, and self-talk) range, and relatively fewer athletes rated their knowledge in the mid-range. The athletes demonstrated interest in learning more mental skills to enhance their performance. These findings indicate that a need exists for sport psychology service providers among athletes in the Oceania region. Existing non-local providers may also consider supplying services through digital modalities.
The nature and extent of working memory dysfunction in schizophrenia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-07-2013
DOI: 10.1002/PCHJ.30
Abstract: This study aimed to examine verbal and visual-spatial working memory (WM) dysfunction in patients with schizophrenia. We compared 60 patients with schizophrenia with 57 healthy controls (matched for age, educational level, and IQ) on three WM tasks. Patients with schizophrenia performed significantly more poorly than healthy controls on verbal, visual, and spatial WM tests. Moreover, WM deficits were inversely associated with both the positive and negative symptoms of the patients. Taken together, these findings suggest that there are pervasive WM impairments in patients with schizophrenia. In addition, clinical features may play a significant role in the expression of WM deficits.
Inter-human and animal-directed empathy: A test for evolutionary biases in empathetic responding
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2014
DOI: 10.1016/J.BEPROC.2014.09.012
Abstract: Empathy is facilitated by the perceived similarity between the object and subject. Conversely, nurturance has been suggested to influence empathy, in that humans have an ability to empathise with non-kin in a similar way as with their own offspring when certain characteristics (e.g., childlikeness) are present. To examine the combined effects of similarity and nurturance, participants (n=69) were presented with images of infant and adult human and wild non-human animals (non-human primates, quadruped wild mammals, and wild birds) depicted in negative, victimising situations. Stronger phasic skin conductance responses and subjective ratings of empathy and arousal were observed for phylogenetically similar species. Subjective empathy and arousal ratings were greater for human infants but this did not extend to the non-human infants. Heart rate was lower during infant than adult stimuli presentations, however, the magnitude of change resembled that previously reported for neutral stimuli presentations. Although a similarity effect is widely acknowledged in the literature, the present findings point to the importance of taking into account both the age and the level of similarity with the target to gain a fuller understanding of empathy towards others of our own and different species.
Prepulse inhibition of the startle blink reflex is modulated during a memory task requiring prepulses to be encoded for later report
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2007
DOI: 10.1016/J.IJPSYCHO.2006.08.003
Abstract: Prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the startle blink reflex in humans can be modulated by selective attention to the prepulse. The present experiment used a memory task to determine whether the encoding of information for later report can modulate PPI. Participants were briefly presented with a display of one or three letters followed by a pattern mask and asked to make a delayed report of the letter(s) shown. Memory recall was better in the 1-letter condition than in the 3-letter condition. Prepulse inhibition was greater in the 3-letter condition than in the 1-letter condition at lead intervals of 120 and 240 ms following the onset of the letter display. Blink modulation did not differ between the letter conditions at lead intervals of 120, 240, 360, or 2600 ms following the mask, ruling out other explanations (e.g., rehearsal) for the earlier difference in PPI. The results suggest that the short-term consolidation of memory, and possibly any cognitive process that requires access to a theoretical limited capacity central processing mechanism modulates PPI.
Does the assessment of different combinations of within-phase subjective measures influence electrodermal responding and between-phase subjective ratings during fear conditioning and extinction experiments?
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2021
Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality: Benefits and Barriers for Early Childhood Education
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 04-07-2022
The mental health of elite athletes in developing nations of the greater Oceania region
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 20-10-2023
Gender-Role Differences in Spatial Ability: A Meta-Analytic Review
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-04-2013
Validation of the Empathy Quotient in Mainland China
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 24-05-2018
DOI: 10.1080/00223891.2017.1324458
Abstract: This research aimed to validate a simplified Chinese version of the Empathy Quotient (EQ 60 items) for use with Mainland Chinese people. The original English version of the EQ was translated into simplified Chinese. Through an online survey, 588 Mainland Chinese participants completed the EQ and 3 other questionnaires: the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), and the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Thirty-five participants completed retesting of the EQ 3 to 4 weeks later. Sex differences on the EQ scores and psychometric properties of the EQ items were examined. Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that an EQ 15-item structural model fitted the data quite well. Self-report empathy, as assessed by the current simplified Chinese version of the EQ, appeared to relate to participants' autistic and alexithymic traits but not sex.
Cognitive empathy partially mediates the association between negative schizotypy traits and social functioning
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.PSYCHRES.2013.03.015
Abstract: The present study aimed to examine empathy in in iduals with schizotypy and to explore whether empathy mediates the associations between schizotypy traits and social functioning in college students. 1083 (376 males, mean age 18.78 ± 0.86 years) Chinese university students completed questionnaires measuring empathy, social functioning, and schizotypy. Participants were categorized into four groups based on their scores on the Chapman Psychosis Proneness scales: mixed schizotypy, positive schizotypy, negative schizotypy, and healthy controls. Participants in the negative schizotypy group reported significantly poorer scores on both affective and cognitive empathy than those in the positive schizotypy and healthy control groups. The mixed schizotypy group showed lower affective empathy than the healthy control group. Scores on both cognitive and affective empathy in the positive schizotypy group were similar to those in the healthy control group. In addition, cognitive empathy was found to be a partial mediator of the association between negative schizotypy traits and social functioning. Results suggest that while in iduals with negative schizotypy have deficits in empathy, in iduals with positive schizotypy show empathy abilities comparable to that of healthy controls. Moreover, only cognitive empathy partially mediated the relationship between negative schizotypy and social functioning.
The effects of context changes on the reinstatement of extinguished conditioned behavior in a conditioned suppression task with humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2008
The effect of different attentional strategies on physiological and psychological states during running
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 10-2013
DOI: 10.1111/AP.12015
A Conceptual Framework for Emergent Digital Literacy
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-05-2016
Effects of multiple contexts and context similarity on the renewal of extinguished conditioned behaviour in an ABA design with humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2011
Changes in implicit associations do not occur simultaneously to Pavlovian conditioning of physiological anxiety responses
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2007
DOI: 10.1016/J.JANXDIS.2006.11.007
Abstract: Previous research shows that an 'angry face' conditioned stimulus will elicit conditioned skin conductance responses (SCR) after a small number of trials pairing it with a mild electric shock. Such conditioning occurs even with masked presentations of the facial stimulus. Furthermore, the Implicit Association Test (IAT) has been demonstrated to be sensitive to the presence of information processing biases seen in specific phobias. We examined the ability of the IAT to detect changes in implicit associations that arise from pairing one facial image (CS+) with a mild electro-tactile stimulation whereas a second facial image (CS-) was presented alone. Participants (N=117) were assigned to one of four groups: a group that received no shocks with unmasked presentation of the facial images a group that received no shocks with masked presentation a group with shocks delivered simultaneously to the masked presentation of the CS+ and a group that received shocks simultaneous to unmasked CS+ presentation. Learning was assessed through both SCR and the IAT. Results showed that while it was possible to condition a SCR to the CS+, this learning was not detectable using the IAT. Implications of the discrepancies in the outcome measures are discussed.
The effects of competitiveness and challenge level on virtual reality rowing performance
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2019
Practice using performance goals enhances basketball free throw accuracy when tested under competition in elite players
Publisher: Universidad de Alicante Servicio de Publicaciones
Date: 2018
Culture–Sex Interaction and the Self-Report Empathy in Australians and Mainland Chinese
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 12-03-2019
Revisiting anticipatory hedonic processing in patients with schizophrenia: An examination between representation activation and maintenance
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2020
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCHRES.2019.12.013
Abstract: Anticipatory anhedonia is one of the key deficits found in patients with schizophrenia (SCZ). However, the underlying mechanism of this deficit remains unclear. The present study examined whether representation activation and maintenance capacity influenced anticipatory experiences in SCZ patients. We recruited 46 SCZ patients (26 males) and 45 matched healthy controls (24 males). The Reward Representation Activation and Maintenance (RRAM) Task was administrated to assess anticipatory experience and representation activation and maintenance capacity. SCZ patients exhibited lower subjective arousal than controls in anticipation of rewards with high probability when representation activation and maintenance were difficult to accomplish. SCZ patients also tended to reduce their button presses more than HC when they were required to maintain reward representation. Our findings suggest that representation activation and maintenance may partially account for anticipatory anhedonia observed in SCZ patients.
The resistance of renewal to instructions that devalue the role of contextual cues in a conditioned suppression task with humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2007
Extinction treatment in multiple contexts attenuates ABC renewal in humans
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2012
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRAT.2012.06.003
Abstract: Renewal has been implicated as one of the underlying mechanisms in return of fear following exposure therapy. ABC renewal is clinically more relevant than ABA renewal and yet it is a weaker form of renewal, suggesting that conducting extinction treatment in multiple contexts may be sufficient to attenuate ABC renewal. Using self-reported expectancy of shock and startle blink responses the current study examined the effects of conducting extinction treatment in multiple contexts on ABC fear renewal. Participants (N = 68) received conditional stimulus (CS) and unconditional stimulus (US) pairings in one context (A) followed by extinction treatment (CS presentations alone) in either one other context (B) or three other contexts (BCD). Non-reinforced test trials in a novel context (E) resulted in renewal of extinguished conditioned behaviour for those who received extinction in only one context. However, renewal was attenuated for those who received extinction treatment in three contexts. No renewal was found for the control group that received the test trial in the same context as during extinction. Suggestions are provided for clinicians seeking to prevent or attenuate return of fear following exposure therapy.
Anhedonia is associated with blunted reward sensitivity in first-degree relatives of patients with major depression
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2016
Gender differences in reading and writing achievement: Evidence from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 05-2019
DOI: 10.1037/AMP0000356
Abstract: A frequently observed research finding is that females outperform males on tasks of verbal and language abilities, but there is considerable variability in effect sizes from s le to s le. The gold standard for evaluating gender differences in cognitive ability is to recruit a large, demographically representative s le. We examined 3 decades of U.S. student achievement in reading and writing from the National Assessment of Educational Progress to determine the magnitude of gender differences (N = 3.9 million), and whether these were declining over time as claimed by Feingold (1988). Examination of effect sizes found a developmental progression from initially small gender differences in Grade 4 toward larger effects as students progress through schooling. Differences for reading were small-to-medium (d = -.32 by Grade 12), and medium-sized for writing (d = -.55 by Grade 12) and were stable over the historical time. Additionally, there were pronounced imbalances in gender ratios at the lower left and upper right tails of the ability spectrum. These results are interpreted in the context of Hyde's (2005) gender similarities hypothesis, which holds that most psychological gender differences are only small or trivial in size. Language and verbal abilities represent one exception to the general rule of gender similarities, and we discuss the educational implications of these findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
Parental strategies to scaffold emergent writing skills in the pre-school child within the home environment
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2010
Dissociation Between Skin Conductance Orienting and Secondary Task Reaction Time: Time Course With a Visual Discrimination Task
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 04-1998
The development of an attentional bias for angry faces following Pavlovian fear conditioning
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2009
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRAT.2009.01.007
Abstract: Although it is well documented that fear responses develop following aversive Pavlovian conditioning, it is unclear whether fear learning also manifests in the form of attentional biases for fear-related stimuli. Boschen, Parker, and Neumann (Boschen, M. J., Parker, I., & Neumann, D. L. (2007). Changes in implicit associations do not occur simultaneously to Pavlovian conditioning of physiological anxiety responses. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 21, 788-803.) showed that despite the acquisition of differential skin conductance conditioned responses to angry faces paired (CS+) and unpaired (CS-) with an aversive shock, development of implicit associations was not subsequently observed on the Implicit Association Test. In the present study, participants (N=76) were assigned either to a Shock or NoShock group and completed a similar aversive Pavlovian conditioning procedure with angry face CS+ and CS- stimuli. Participants next completed a visual probe task in which the angry face CS+ and CS- stimuli were paired with angry face control stimuli and neutral faces. Results confirmed that differential fear conditioning was observed in the Shock group but not in the NoShock group, and that the Shock group subsequently showed a selective attentional bias for the angry face CS+ compared with the CS- and control stimuli during the visual probe task. The findings confirm the interplay between learning-based mechanisms and cognitive processes, such as attentional biases, in models of fear acquisition and have implications for treatment of the anxiety disorders.
Decoding dyadic interactive nonverbal behaviour in Chinese and Australian cohorts: A novel dyadic puzzle-solving task
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-2017
DOI: 10.1111/AJSP.12179
A measure of emerging print knowledge in young children
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 28-10-2014
The role of environmental print in emergent literacy
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 11-11-2012
Abstract: Young children are surrounded by environmental print on a daily basis. Through their visual exploration of environmental print, coupled with sociocultural experiences, children gain valuable semantic and symbolic knowledge as they make sense of their world. The aim of this review is to examine the question of whether environmental print has value as a literacy learning resource, and if so, the mechanisms by which it promotes literacy development. It is shown that interactions with environmental print in the child's sociocultural context can develop their logographic reading skills. These skills, in turn, promote the development of emergent literacy skills that are the precursors to conventional reading skills. Environmental print may also be used more directly when parents and childhood educators use it to scaffold the learning of emergent literacy skills. It is recommended that parents and early childhood educators capitalize on children's natural attraction to environmental print by using it to promote their literacy development.
A camera-based scoring system for evaluating performance accuracy during a golf putting task
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-2008
DOI: 10.3758/BRM.40.3.892
Abstract: Golf putting accuracy is often evaluated by measuring the distance that the ball finishes from the hole. However, accuracy is a function of line and length, and distance-from-hole measures confound these two factors. A scoring system for evaluating putting accuracy is described that enables the efficient measurement of errors in line and length. A camera placed above the hole takes digital photographs of the final position of the ball. A custom-developed program written in the National Instruments LabVIEW graphical programming language derives a variety of accuracy measures from these photographs, including distance from the hole, angle of error, distance short or long from the hole, and distance left or right from the hole. Evaluation of the system indicated that the measures were as accurate as manual measurements and were reliable when rescored on separate occasions. The camera-based scoring system presents a number of advantages in the evaluation of putting accuracy and may be extended to examine performance in other sports. The ScorePutting program may be downloaded from the Psychonomic Society's Archive of Norms, Stimuli, and Data, rchive.
Attentional blink modulation during sustained and after discrete lead stimuli presented in three sensory modalities
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-02-2003
Abstract: Previous studies found larger attentional modulation of acoustic blinks during task-relevant than during task-irrelevant acoustic or visual, but not tactile, lead stimuli. Moreover, blink modulation was larger overall during acoustic lead stimuli. The present experiment investigated whether these results reflect modality specificity of attentional blink modulation or effects of continuous stimulation. Participants performed a discrimination and counting task with acoustic, visual, or tactile lead stimuli. Stimuli were presented sustained or consisted of two short discrete stimuli. The sustained condition replicated previous results. In the discrete condition, blinks were larger during task-relevant than during task-irrelevant stimuli in all groups regardless of lead stimulus modality. Thus, previous results that seemed consistent with modality-specific accounts of attentional blink modulation reflect effects of continuous stimulus input.
Developmental trajectories of schizotypal personality disorder-like behavioural manifestations: A two-year longitudinal prospective study of college students
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-11-2013
Abstract: Previous evidence has shown that schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) is part of the schizophrenia spectrum. Few studies have examined latent classes in the developmental trajectories of SPD features over time in in iduals with SPD features. We adopted a longitudinal prospective study design to follow up a cohort of 660 college students during a two-year period. Participants’ SPD-like symptoms and psychosocial function were measured by a comprehensive set of questionnaires that covered SPD features and cognitive, emotional, and psychosocial functions. Latent class growth analysis was used to examine the trajectory classes. Three trajectory classes were identified: a low, a medium, and a high SPD features group. Participants in the low group reported few SPD features and their symptoms declined over time. The medium group students had more SPD features than the low group and these symptoms stabilized during the follow up period. Participants in the high group reported the most SPD features and their symptoms increased over time. The three groups differed in paranoid thoughts, psychological distress, neurocognition function, and emotional expression over time. Results of multivariate regression analysis suggested that paranoid thoughts, emotional experience and prospective memory were predictors of social functioning in the high SPD feature group. Our findings suggest that in iduals with SPD features may be delineated into different developmental subgroups and these subgroups differ significantly in psychosocial function. Delusions, emotion, and prospective memory may be important features to consider in early diagnosis and interventions for in iduals predisposed to SPD and schizophrenia.
Eye-gaze behaviour of expert and novice surfers in a simulated surf environment
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2022
The use of an unpleasant sound as the unconditional stimulus in aversive Pavlovian conditioning experiments that involve children and adolescent participants
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-2008
DOI: 10.3758/BRM.40.2.622
Abstract: Ethical considerations can prohibit the use of traditional unconditional stimuli (USs), such as electric shocks or loud tones, when children or adolescents participate in aversive Pavlovian conditioning experiments. The present study evaluated whether an unpleasant sound provides a viable alternative. Fifteen boys and girls aged 13 to 17 years completed a differential Pavlovian conditioning procedure in which a conditional stimulus (CS) was followed by the sound of metal scraping on slate. Acquisition of conditioned responses was found in startle blink magnitude, expectancy judgments of the sound, and skin conductance responses. Extinction of conditioned responses was found in all measures when the CS was no longer followed by the unpleasant sound. Subjective ratings and skin conductance responses indicated that the sound was unpleasant because of its qualitative features, rather than its intensity. The results support the use of an unpleasant sound as a low-risk alternative to traditional USs in aversive Pavlovian conditioning experiments with children and adolescents.
How the physical appearance of companions affects females with high or low social physique anxiety: a virtual reality exercise study
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-07-2023
DOI: 10.1007/S10055-022-00676-W
Abstract: Technologies such as virtual reality (VR), an immersive computer-based environment that induces a feeling of mental and physical presence, are becoming increasingly popular for promoting participation in exercise. The purpose of this study was to explore changes in motivation and other psychological states when the physique of an exercise companion was altered during a VR-based exercise task, and whether trait social physique anxiety (SPA) altered these effects. Using a mixed experimental design, female participants ( N = 43) categorised as high or low in SPA participated in two counterbalanced 10-min running tasks within a VR environment where the exercise companion was either overweight or in-shape. Across both running tasks, in iduals with high SPA reported higher negative affect, pressure and tension, and lower perceived competencies, than those with low SPA. Pressure and tension were also higher when exercising with an in-shape companion than with an overweight companion for all participants. In addition, participants with high SPA reported a stronger preference to exercise with an overweight companion than those with low SPA in a real exercise setting, but not in a VR setting. The findings suggest that the physique of an exercise companion and the SPA of an exerciser have important, but independent, psychosocial effects during exercise. That an in-shape physique of a virtual exercise companion was not a deterrent among those with high SPA has provided preliminary evidence that VR-based exercise may be helpful among females who worry about their appearance or feel self-conscious while exercising.
Young children’s interactions with a social robot during a drawing task
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 29-08-2023
Associative Learning Processes in the Formation of Intergroup Anxiety and Avoidance in Society
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 20-10-2021
Abstract: Laboratory-based aversive conditioning studies have reliably induced fear toward an image of an outgroup member by pairing the image with a fear-inducing, aversive stimulus. However, laboratory-based studies have been criticized for being simplistic in comparison to the complexities of the real world. The current study is the first to apply an aversive conditioning framework to explain the formation of intergroup fear and subsequent anxiety toward, and avoidance of, the outgroup outside the laboratory. Two s les recalled details of their first negative encounter with an African American ( N = 554) or Muslim ( N = 613) in idual, respectively. Congruent with learning theory, participants who reported an unpleasant event with an outgroup member reported more fear during the encounter than did those who did not report experiencing an unpleasant event. Additionally, the intensity of unpleasantness during the first encounter indirectly predicted outgroup avoidance, via retrospectively recalled fear and current levels of intergroup anxiety.
External shame and its association with depression and anxiety: the moderating role of self-compassion
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 02-01-2021
Sexually dimorphic effects of acute nicotine administration on arousal and visual-spatial ability in non-smoking human volunteers
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2007
DOI: 10.1016/J.PBB.2007.03.001
Abstract: The effect of an acute administration of nicotine on arousal and visual-spatial ability in healthy non-smoking participants was investigated. Healthy adult volunteers with a mean age of 19.98 years received a transdermal nicotine or placebo patch prior to completing a water-level task and two mental rotation tasks while concurrent psychophysiological recordings were taken. Nicotine administration showed a sexually dimorphic effect on arousal (skin conductance level and heart rate). Evidence of superior performance in males compared to females was found in reaction time and accuracy measures for the visual-spatial tasks. However, performance reflected the interaction between sex and nicotine. Nicotine slowed reaction times in the mental rotation tasks more extensively in females than males. Nicotine also reduced confidence in performance during the water-level task in males, but not in females. The effects of nicotine on visual-spatial ability may reflect the interactive effects of sex and changes in arousal levels induced by nicotine administration.
Specific internal and external attentional focus instructions have differential effects on rowing performance
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2020
The peak performance experience in professional screen acting
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-03-2021
The Psychophysiology of Sport and Exercise
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 2015
Empathy towards individuals of the same and different ethnicity when depicted in negative and positive contexts
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2013
Social Functioning in Chinese College Students with and without Schizotypal Personality Traits: An Exploratory Study of the Chinese Version of the First Episode Social Functioning Scale
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 14-05-2013
A brief self-compassionate reflective writing task can manage negative reactions following an eating transgression
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 27-02-2023
A Cross-Cultural Study of Theory of Mind Using Strange Stories in School-Aged Children from Australia and Mainland China
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 09-09-2022
A Systematic Review of Attentional Focus Strategies in Weightlifting
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 09-08-2019
A systematic review of studies that used NIRS to measure neural activation during emotion processing in healthy individuals
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 02-02-2021
DOI: 10.1093/SCAN/NSAB017
Abstract: Functional neuroimaging provides an avenue for earlier diagnosis and tailored treatment of psychological disorders characterised by emotional impairment. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) offers ecological advantages compared to other neuroimaging techniques and suitability of measuring regions involved in emotion functions. A systematic review was conducted to evaluate the capacity of NIRS to detect activation during emotion processing and to provide recommendations for future research. Following a comprehensive literature search, we reviewed 85 journal articles, which compared activation during emotional experience, regulation or perception with either a neutral condition or baseline period among healthy participants. The quantitative synthesis of outcomes was limited to thematical analysis, owing to the lack of standardisation between studies. Although most studies found increased prefrontal activity during emotional experience and regulation, the findings were more inconsistent for emotion perception. Some researchers reported increased activity during the task, some reported decreases, some no significant changes, and some reported mixed findings depending on the valence and region. We propose that variations in the cognitive task and stimuli, recruited s le, and measurement and analysis of data are the primary causes of inconsistency. Recommendations to improve consistency in future research by carefully considering the choice of population, cognitive task and analysis approach are provided.
The need for standards in the design of differential fear conditioning and extinction experiments in youth: A systematic review and recommendations for research on anxiety
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.BRAT.2018.11.009
Abstract: Fear extinction studies in youth have yielded mixed results due to developmental processes and variations in design, methodology and dependent measures. This systematic review focused on studies with healthy youth between 2 and 17 years of age to identify experimental parameters of studies documenting extinction effects. Thirty-five studies met inclusion criteria and the following themes emerged (a) some studies employed parameters and task demands that are complex and require active participant involvement whereas others involved simple stimulus configurations and passive participant involvement, and (b) variation exists among dependent measures in units of measurement, timing and type of measurement. The review identified that studies using geometric shape conditioned stimuli (CS) paired with a tone unconditioned stimulus (US) (e.g., metal scraping on slate), as well as face CSs with a scream US produced the most reliable extinction effects, although the latter combination may be associated with higher drop-out than shape CSs and a tone US. The most commonly used and effective dependent measures for revealing extinction effects were skin conductance responses (SCR) and subjective ratings (SR) of CS valence, fearfulness and arousal. Fear potentiated startle (FPS) blink reflexes were also an effective but less commonly used measure. It is recommended that future studies use shape CSs and the metal scraping on slate US in studies involving children and either shape CSs and the metal scraping on slate US or face CSs paired with a scream US with adolescents. It is also recommended that US expectancy ratings and CS evaluations are assessed trial-by-trial and between-phase, and that startle-eliciting stimuli to measure startle blink reflexes are delivered on every second trial per CS so that SCR and FPS can be examined. However, further research is required to determine whether increased participant involvement due to providing trial-by-trial and between-phase ratings of the CSs and US differentially influences responding, particularly in children relative to adolescents and adults.
Young children ' s visual attention to environmental print as measured by eye tracker analysis
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-12-2014
DOI: 10.1002/RRQ.66
Evaluation of a newly developed measure of theory of mind: The virtual assessment of mentalising ability
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 22-06-2017
DOI: 10.1080/09602011.2015.1052820
Abstract: This study examined the reliability and validity of the Virtual Assessment of Mentalising Ability (VAMA). The VAMA consists of 12 video clips depicting a social drama imposed within an interactive virtual environment with questions assessing the mental states of virtual friends. Response options capture the continuum of ability (i.e., impaired, reduced, accurate, and hypermentalising) within first- and second-order cognitive and affective theory of mind (ToM). Sixty-two healthy participants were administered the VAMA, three other ToM measures, and additional measures of neurocognitive abilities and social functioning. The VAMA had sound internal consistency and high test-retest reliability. Significant correlations between performance on the VAMA and other ToM measures provided preliminary evidence of convergent validity. Small to moderate correlations were observed between performance on the VAMA and neurocognitive tasks. Further, the VAMA was found to correlate significantly with indices of social functioning and was rated as more immersive, more reflective of everyday ToM processes, and was afforded a higher recommendation than an existing computer-based ToM task. These results provide potential evidence that the VAMA is an ecologically valid tool that is sensitive to the spread of ability that can occur in ToM subprocesses and may be a valuable addition to existing ToM measures. Future research should explore the validity and utility of the VAMA in larger, more erse s les of healthy adult and clinical populations.
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