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PubMed1991

The role of cognition in understanding gender effects.

Cognitive approaches, such as schematic processing theory, have been heuristic in a number of ways for bettering our understanding of how and why gender effects are so apparent in childhood. First, they provide a new and different perspective. Rather than concentrating on discovering all the instances of gendered information in our worlds and then assuming that this overwhelming amount of information accounts for children's behavior and thinking, cognitive theorists studying gender have reversed the emphasis. That is, we assume that thinking processes influence the world of information that is available to children. Furthermore, the nature of that world of information is then seen to influence behavioral choices. Second, cognitive approaches have been heuristic in providing some understanding of the mismatches that occur between available information and children's gender cognitions. More broadly stated, such approaches have been useful for discovering the reasons that gender cognitions are inaccurate--why some information is misperceived, misremembered, and selectively learned. Third, cognitive approaches have been useful for elaborating the development of children's gender knowledge. Finally, cognitive approaches have been useful for illustrating how cognition may influence behavior. If we go beyond gender for a moment, we see that cognitive approaches can also be useful for our understanding of the broader realm of all types of stereotypes. For instance, they are helpful in understanding the early origins of stereotypes. Why do children and adults develop stereotypes? Given the overwhelming amount of information we must deal with every day, how do we ever notice real but usually minor co-occurrences of group membership and attributes? Furthermore, why do stereotypes contain information that is not grounded in reality? To begin to answer these questions, we need to move cognitive approaches to a higher order of generality, that is, away from the specifics of gender and on to the broader case of concept formation about social groups. When cognitive notions are used in this way, children and adults appear to form higher order schemas concerning the nature of social groups. One such schema is the "if they differ in one way, they differ in other ways" schema. Another such schema represents the flip side: "If they are in the same group, they are the same in many other ways." Exposure to information about groups surely must lead to the formation of these higher order schemas. Once formed, they surely must influence how new information about specific groups is acquired by increasing perceivers' vigilance in noticing and creating supportive information.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Child↗

PubMed2005

Physicians' decision process for drug prescription and the impact of pharmaceutical marketing mix instruments.

This paper provides an in-depth, qualitative analysis of the physicians' decision process for drug prescription. Drugs in the considered therapeutic classes are mainly prescribed by specialists, treating patients with obligatory medical insurance, for a prolonged period of time. The research approach is specifically designed to capture the full complexity and sensitive nature of the physician's choice behavior, which appears to be more hybrid and less rational in nature than is often assumed in quantitative, model-based analyses of prescription behavior. Several interesting findings emerge from the analysis: (i) non-compensatory decision rules seem to dominate the decision process, (ii) consideration sets are typically small and change-resistant, (iii) drug cost is not a major issue for most physicians, (iv) detailing remains one of the most powerful pharmaceutical marketing instruments and is highly appreciated as a valuable and quick source of information, and (v) certain types of non-medical marketing incentives (such as free conference participation) may in some situations also influence drug choices.

Belgium↗

PubMed2004

A conceptual review of decision making in social dilemmas: applying a logic of appropriateness.

Despite decades of experimental social dilemma research, "theoretical integration has proven elusive" (Smithson & Foddy, 1999, p. 14). To advance a theory of decision making in social dilemmas, this article provides a conceptual review of the literature that applies a "logic of appropriateness" (March, 1994) framework. The appropriateness framework suggests that people making decisions ask themselves (explicitly or implicitly), "What does a person like me do in a situation like this? " This question identifies 3 significant factors: recognition and classification of the kind of situation encountered, the identity of the individual making the decision, and the application of rules or heuristics in guiding behavioral choice. In contrast with dominant rational choice models, the appropriateness framework proposed accommodates the inherently social nature of social dilemmas, and the role of rule and heuristic based processing. Implications for the interpretation of past findings and the direction of future research are discussed.

Communication↗

PubMed1973

Choice between concurrent schedules.

Six pigeons pecked for food in a three-key experiment. A subject at any time could choose the left or right key and receive reinforcement according to one two-key concurrent variable-interval variable-interval schedule of reinforcement, or it could peck the center key. A peck on the center key arranged the complementary two-key concurrent variable-interval variable-interval schedule on the left and right keys. The two different two-key concurrent schedules arranged reinforcements concurrently and were signalled by two different colors of key lights. Choice behavior in the presence of a given color conformed to the usual relationship in two-key concurrent schedules: the relative frequency of responding on a key approximately equalled the relative frequency of reinforcement on that key. Preference for a two-key concurrent schedule, which was equivalent to preference for a color, was measured by the percentage of all responses on the left and right keys in the presence of that color: this percentage approximately equalled the percentage of all reinforcements that were delivered in the presence of that color. Thus, choice between concurrent schedules conforms approximately to the same relationship as does choice between alternatives in a single concurrent schedule.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2005

Enrichment strategies for laboratory animals from the viewpoint of clinical veterinary behavioral medicine: emphasis on cats on dogs.

Behavioral wellness has become a recent focus for the care of laboratory animals, farm and zoo animals, and pets. Behavioral enrichment issues for these groups are more similar than dissimilar, and each group can learn from the other. The emphasis on overall enhancement for laboratory dogs and cats in this review includes an emphasis on behavioral enrichment. Understanding the range of behaviors, behavioral choices, and cognitive stimulation that cats and dogs exhibit under non-laboratory conditions can increase the ability of investigators to predict which enrichments are likely to be the most successful in the laboratory. Many of the enrichment strategies described are surprisingly straightforward and inexpensive to implement.

Animal Husbandry↗

PubMed1983

Changes in appetitive behavior in weanling-age rats: transitions from suckling to feeding behavior.

To help identify determinants of rat appetitive behavior during the weanling period, rat pups 17-32 days of age were studied in a Y-maze. One arm of the maze provided pups with the opportunity to suckle a lactating or nonlactating anesthetized female. The other arm always contained a familiar food, either liquid diet or ground laboratory chow. In some experiments the dam was separated from the food compartment by a thin gauze screen. In other tests maternal contact could be maintained in the feeding goal but suckling in that compartment was prevented by nipple involution. Age was the major determinant of choice, with more older animals choosing the food arm. Availability of maternal contact in the feeding compartment increased the percentage of rats that chose to feed by about 20% at all ages studied. Food quality, but not quantity, affected choice at each age, as did lactational status. Prior food, water, and maternal deprivation (2 or 24 hr) did not affect choice behavior at any age but did influence behavior in the goal box. These findings are discussed within the context of the changing demands faced by the rats during the weaning period.

Aging↗

PubMed2006

The role of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in abstract state-based inference during decision making in humans.

Many real-life decision-making problems incorporate higher-order structure, involving interdependencies between different stimuli, actions, and subsequent rewards. It is not known whether brain regions implicated in decision making, such as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), use a stored model of the task structure to guide choice (model-based decision making) or merely learn action or state values without assuming higher-order structure as in standard reinforcement learning. To discriminate between these possibilities, we scanned human subjects with functional magnetic resonance imaging while they performed a simple decision-making task with higher-order structure, probabilistic reversal learning. We found that neural activity in a key decision-making region, the vmPFC, was more consistent with a computational model that exploits higher-order structure than with simple reinforcement learning. These results suggest that brain regions, such as the vmPFC, use an abstract model of task structure to guide behavioral choice, computations that may underlie the human capacity for complex social interactions and abstract strategizing.

Action Potentials↗

PubMed2001

A multi-dimensional analysis of cue-elicited craving in heavy smokers and tobacco chippers.

AIMS: This research examined the performance of a broad range of measures posited to relate to smoking craving. DESIGN: Heavy smokers and tobacco chippers, who were either deprived of smoking or not for 7 hours, were exposed to both smoking (a lit cigarette) and control cues. PARTICIPANTS: Smokers not currently interested in trying to quit smoking (n = 127) were recruited. Heavy smokers (n = 67) averaged smoking at least 21 cigarettes/day and tobacco chippers (n = 60) averaged 1-5 cigarettes on at least 2 days/week. MEASUREMENTS: Measures included urge rating scales and magnitude estimations, a rating of affective valence, a behavioral choice task that assessed perceived reinforcement value of smoking, several smoking-related judgement tasks and a measure of cognitive resource allocation. FINDINGS: Results indicated that both deprivation state and smoker type tended to affect responses across these measurement domains. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support the use of several novel measures of craving-related processes in smokers.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Development of error-monitoring event-related potentials in adolescents.

In order to study the maturation of neurobehavioral systems involved in affect regulation and behavioral choices during adolescence, we examined brain activity associated with response monitoring and error detection using event-related potentials (ERPs). In a visual flanker test, trials with incorrect responses elicit ERP components including an error-related negativity (ERN) and a later error-positivity (Pe). We examined the amplitude and latency of the ERN and Pe of incorrect responses in 124 children from 7 to 18 years of age. The ERN amplitude in error trials increased with age although this was qualified by a nonlinear change. The quadratic distribution of the ERN indicated an initial drop in amplitude (lowest at age 10 for girls; age 13 for boys) with a subsequent rise through adolescence. The Pe amplitude did not change with age. Results are discussed with respect to continued maturation of the anterior cingulate cortex and possible influences on adolescent behaviors.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Long-term treatment with the antioxidant drug EGb 761 at senescence restored some neurobehavioral effects of chronic ultramild stress exposure seen in young mice.

In this study, we compared the effects of chronic ultramild stress (CUMS) exposure on decision-making behavior in a validated test, and on the stress responsive serotoninergic and dopaminergic systems in four age groups of B6D2F1 female mice (5-6, 11-12, 17-18 and 23-24 months old). The levels of serotonin (5-HT) and its metabolite 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid (5-HIAA) were measured in the brain stem, the cortex, the striatum and the hippocampus; the levels of dopamine (DA) and its metabolite dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) were measured in the brain stem and the striatum. The influence of a long-term treatment with the extract of Ginkgo biloba leaves EGb 761 (Tanakan) on age- and stress-related changes was also investigated in the two oldest age groups. In the absence of drug treatment, middle-age mice were the least efficient in making a decision, and senescent mice exhibited reduced levels of both 5-HT and DA and their metabolites in all the brain areas examined. CUMS facilitated evaluation and choice behavior in all age groups, but induced age-dependent reduction of hesitation, acceleration of information processing and reduction in serotoninergic neurotransmission. In senescent mice, EGb 761 reduced the impact of stress on evaluation and hesitation, and restored some stress-related neurobehavioral changes that were only seen in young mice, i.e. acceleration of information processing and reduction in brain 5-HIAA levels. Restoration of some plasticity of the serotoninergic systems might contribute to the stress alleviating influence of EGb 761 in old age.

3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid↗

PubMed2000

Effect of an amino acid on feeding preferences and learning behavior in the honey bee, Apis mellifera.

Amino acids are common constituents of floral nectars and can be critical components in the diets of insect pollinators. Yet the means through which insects detect amino acids can be complex and arise from pre- and post-ingestive mechanisms. Furthermore, the response to an amino acid can change depending on an insect's nutritional status. Here we use a sensitive feeding assay and Proboscis Extension Response (PER) conditioning in the honey bee to assay the effect of glycine, which is a common constituent of nectars and pollens. Subjects preferred to feed on a sucrose stimulus that contained glycine, and the highest relative preference was recorded for the highest concentration of glycine. However, the highest response rate occurred at lower than maximal concentrations and differed depending on the physiological status of the subjects. These results are consistent with a model in which subjects attempt to maintain a physiological target amount of glycine/amino acid relative to other nutrients. All concentrations of glycine enhanced the rate and magnitude of a conditioned response to an odor in the PER assay, which demonstrates that animals can learn to modify their responses to an odor conditioned stimulus based on the presence of amino acid. This capability would enhance a honey bee's ability to evaluate the quality of floral nectars, which are associated with, among other things, odor cues given off by flowers. In future studies these techniques will allow us to evaluate the physiological roles that amino acids play in honey bee diet and choice behavior.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1989

Psychological distance to reward: A human replication.

Choice behavior in college students was examined in two experiments using the concurrent-chains procedure. In both experiments, the concurrent chains were presented on a microcomputer in the form of an air-defense game in which subjects used two radar systems to detect and subsequently destroy enemy aircraft. Access to one of two radar systems was controlled by a pair of independent concurrent variable-interval 60-s schedules with a 4-s changeover delay always in effect. In the terminal link, the appearance of an enemy aircraft was determined by a pair of differentially segmented fixed-time schedules (Experiment 1) or fixed-interval schedules (Experiment 2) of equal overall duration. In Experiment 1, the terminal-link duration was either 20 s or 40 s, and subjects preferred the unsegmented to the segmented intervals. In Experiment 2, the duration was either 10 s or 60 s, and the reinforcement contingencies required responding during the terminal link. Prior to the reinstatement of the initial link, subjects estimated the duration of the terminal-link schedule. Segmentation affected choice in the 60-s conditions but not in the 10-s ones. Preference for the unsegmented schedule was correlated with an overestimation of the durations for the segmented schedules. These results replicated those found in animal experiments and support the notion of increasing the psychological distance to reward by segmenting a time-based schedule of reinforcement.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1992

HIV education for gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth: personal risk, personal power, and the community of conscience.

Adolescent gay and bisexual males face a higher risk of infection with HIV than most other young people because of their behaviors and because HIV prevention programs have failed to address their unique concerns. Ironically, current efforts to heighten public awareness about the AIDS pandemic may be nullifying the potential for gay, lesbian, and bisexual young persons at high risk to form the support networks needed to modify their behavior. The personal and group empowerment of gay, lesbian, and bisexual young people is a necessary prerequisite to their ability to make healthy behavioral choices around HIV and other health issues. This paper proposes a comprehensive health education model for HIV prevention for gay, lesbian, and bisexual adolescents. Current health education efforts would be augmented by broader self and group empowerment training that would develop self-esteem, social skills, support networks, and access to risk reduction materials. An integrated system of care involving school-based programs, multi-service youth agencies, and self-help groups would be in a position to deliver appropriate educational, mental health, medical, and social support services. Such a system of care presents gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth with their best chance to reduce their risk of infection with HIV and develop into emotionally healthy individuals.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2000

Family practice career attrition, 1969 to 1993: a comparison of 336 civilian and military graduates of one medical school.

Instability of specialty choice and career after initial residency entry will affect health personnel projections. Military physicians may differ from civilian physicians in their specialty choice behaviors during their careers. A cohort of 336 graduates who chose family medicine residency training was identified from the graduating classes of 1969 through 1993 at a large private medical school. Current specialty identification was determined, and attrition from family medicine was computed. As of 1997, 275 graduates (82%) were still in family medicine careers, defined by American Academy of Family Physicians membership or current American Board of Family Practice certification. Of graduates who entered military programs, 22 of 77 (28%) had left family medicine careers; 39 of 259 (15%) of the graduates who entered civilian programs had left. This difference was statistically significant (p = 0.007). Family medicine career retention is lower for males in military programs compared with males in civilian programs or females in military programs.

Career Choice↗

PubMed2003

Dynamics of the caring family.

When several individuals simultaneously provide for offspring, as in families, the effort of any one individual will depend on the efforts of the other family members. This conflict of interest among family members is made more complicated by their relatedness because relatives share genetic interest to some degree. The conflict resolution will also be influenced by the differences in reproductive value between breeders and helpers. Here, we calculate evolutionarily stable provisioning efforts in families with up to two helpers. We explicitly consider that the behavioral choices are made in a life-history context, and we also consider how group sizes change dynamically; this affects, for example, average relatedness among group members. We assume two different scenarios: intact families in which the breeder is 100% monogamous and stepfamilies in which the breeder shifts mate between breeding events. The average relatedness among family members is allowed to evolve in concert with changes in provisioning effort. Our model shows that an individual's provisioning effort is not easy to predict from either its relatedness to the offspring or its reproductive value. Instead, it is necessary to consider the inclusive fitness effect of provisioning, which is determined by a combination of relatedness, reproductive value, and the reproductive value of the offspring.

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Income maximizing on concurrent ratio-interval schedules of reinforcement.

Three experiments examined the effect of food availability on pigeons' choice behavior under concurrent schedules of reinforcement. In Experiment 1, 3 pigeons earned their daily food ration by choosing, in 30-min sessions, between concurrent variable-ratio 30 variable-interval 40-s schedules. Food presentations during both schedules lasted 2 or 12 s, depending upon the condition. Relative variable-ratio response rate was inversely related to hopper duration. In Experiment 2, 4 pigeons received their daily feeding by responding on the same schedule pair as in Experiment 1 (with 4-s food presentations) in sessions that varied in length from 10 to 30 min, depending on the condition. The length of a vertical slit projected on a response key increased with time so that "passage of time" might be more easily discriminable. As session duration decreased, relative variable-ratio response rate increased. In Experiment 3, 4 pigeons chose between two variable-interval 40-s schedules. One schedule operated without regard to the schedule selected, whereas the other operated only when the subject responded in its presence (dependent). Although these schedules had the same feedback function, preference for the dependent variable interval increased as session duration decreased from 30 to 10 min. The preference changes in these studies reveal the operation of an income-maximizing process in choice.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1993

Beyond personality impressions: effects of physical and vocal attractiveness on false consensus, social comparison, affiliation, and assumed and perceived similarity.

We examined the effects of target persons' physical and vocal attractiveness on judges' responses to five measures: false consensus (the belief that the target shares one's behavior), choice of targets as comparison others, affiliation with targets, assumed similarity (similarity between self-ratings and ratings assigned to targets), and perceived similarity (direct questions about similarity). Higher physical attractiveness and higher vocal attractiveness were both related to higher scores on all variables. The effect of one type of attractiveness was more pronounced for higher levels of the other type of attractiveness. The joint effect of the two types of attractiveness was best described as synergistic, i.e., only targets high on both types of attractiveness elicited higher scores on the dependent variables. The effect of physical attractiveness on most dependent variables was more pronounced for subjects who were themselves physically attractive. The synergistic effect (the advantage of targets high on both types of attractiveness) was more pronounced for judges high in self-monitoring. The contribution of the study to the literature on attractiveness stereotypes is discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Amelioration by aniracetam of abnormalities as revealed in choice reaction performance and shuttle behavior.

To delineate the possible effects of aniracetam PO on abnormal behaviors, we analyzed disrupted shuttle behavior and choice reaction (CR) performance in both aged and juvenile animals subjected to an ischemic (permanent occlusion of both carotid arteries)-hypoxic (17-min exposure to 93% N2 and 7% O2 mixture gas) or ischemic (20-min occlusion of both carotid arteries) insult and/or treated with methamphetamine given IP. Aniracetam at single PO doses of 10 and 30 mg/kg significantly decreased the number of incorrect lever pressings induced by IP methamphetamine in young adult rats subjected to the CR test battery. A 21-day PO regimen with aniracetam (30 mg/kg/day) resulted in an increase in the number of correct responses and a decrease in the CR latency as detected in the CR task with young adult rats inflicted with an ischemic-hypoxic insult. Aniracetam (1-100 mg/kg PO) was also evaluated in the electrostimulation-induced hyperreactivity assay (an increase in the number of shuttle responses) in both juvenile and aged mice subjected to a 20-min ischemic insult; there again a significant improvement of performance was clearly observed. The outcomes of these behavioral pharmacological analyses suggest that aniracetam has the ability to normalize the disrupted behavior, cognition, and self-regulation or decision-making process in a comprehensive way.

Animals↗