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Aborted Fetus↗
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Intentional false responding shares neural substrates with response conflict and cognitive control.
The ability to deceive others is a high-level social and cognitive function. It has been suggested that response conflict and cognitive control increase during deceptive acts but this hypothesis has not been evaluated directly. Using fMRI, we tested this prediction for the execution of an intentional false response. Subjects were instructed to respond truthfully or falsely to a series of yes/no questions that were also varied in autobiographical and nonautobiographical content to further examine the influence of personal relevance when lying. We observed an interference effect (longer reaction times for false versus true responses) that was accompanied by increased activation within the anterior cingulate, caudate and thalamic nuclei, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), a circuit that has been implicated in response conflict and cognitive control. Behavioral and neural effects were more robust when falsifying autobiographical responses relative to nonautobiographical responses. Furthermore, a correlation between reaction time and left caudate activity supported the presence of increased response inhibition when falsifying responses. When presented with self-relevant (autobiographical) stimuli regardless of response condition, the mesial prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortices were recruited. Neural activity within these two regions and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) also showed correlations with self-report personality measures from the Psychopathic Personality Inventory (PPI). Overall, we conclude that the process of interference is inherent to the act of falsifying information and that the amount of conflict induced and cognitive control needed to successfully execute false responses is greater when dealing with personal information.
Adult↗
[The relationships among self-identity, self-esteem and attitude towards sexual behavior in university students].
PURPOSE: It has been reported that the young people of today tend to engage in sexual behavior at an early age and the abortion rate is high. The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes of post-adolescents with regard to sexual behaviors and the relationship to self-identity and self-esteem. METHODS: The subjects were 234 males (mean +/- SD 20.2 +/- 1.1 years) and 460 females (mean +/- SD 19.5 +/- 1.1 years) 4-year university students aged 18 to 23 years in Aichi Prefecture. An anonymous, self-report questionnaire was used to survey the subjects with regard to self-identity ("Establishment of Self" scale), self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale), and sexual attitude and behavior. The scores on both scales and subscales of the "Establishment of Self" scale, "Foundation of Identity (Foundation)" and "Establishment of Identity (Establishment)", were calculated and intercompared, along with sexual attitude and behavior, controlled for age and school type. RESULTS: The mean total score of the "Establishment of Self" scale for males was 55.3 (SD9.2) and for females 52.2 (SD9.3), while those for the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale were 27.2 (SD5.5) and 25.7 (SD5.2), respectively. There was significant positive correlation all scales in both sexes. Both male and female students had positive attitude towards sex and a negative view of "traditional gender roles" particularly females. Of the subjects, 82.4% of males and 69.5% of females were thinking of accepting a request for sexual intercourse from their partners. Many students understood the "need for contraception", that is a component of contraceptive behavior. Most of them, however, didn't acquire the other components. A total of 68.3% of males and 48.2% of females had experienced sexual intercourse during the last year. Of these, 50.6% of males and 58.2% of females consistently used contraception. The score on the "Establishment of Self" scale was higher among both the male and female students who responded positively to having "communication ability," "learning ability," and "acquisition ability." Significant differences were found in total and "Establishment" scales among males, and all scales among females. The score on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was significantly higher with "learning ability" among males, and with "communication ability" and "learning ability" among females. However, no significant relationship was found between actual contraceptive behavior and any of the scales. CONCLUSION: In dealing with contraception, a gap exists between university students' attitudes and actual behavior. The scores on the "Establishment of Self" scale and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale were found to be significantly higher for those who exhibited higher values for components of contraceptive behavior.
Adolescent↗
Geometry of respiratory phase switching.
A second-order ordinary differential equation is outlined for the temporal dynamics of the respiratory central pattern generator (RCPG). Recurrent interactions between central excitation and inhibition confine the breathing cycle to the interior of a heteroclinic orbit between switching points (saddle equilibria) located at end expiration (E-I) and end inspiration (I-E). Dynamics depend on four eigenvalues that control inspiratory drive (lambda), excitability of inspiratory off switch (omega 1; stage 1 expiration), rate of central excitation disinhibition (omega 2; stage 2 expiration), and damping of the oscillator (epsilon). Ratios omega 2/lambda and omega 1/lambda determine local E-I and I-E phase switching, whereas inspiratory-to-expiratory balance varies as omega 2/(lambda omega 1). Stable apnea is seen when (lambda omega 2)/epsilon is near zero; inspiratory apneusis is seen when (lambda omega 1)/epsilon is low. The equations provide formalisms for discussing phase switching, apneas, apneuses, phase resetting and singularities, rapid shallow breathing, postinhibitory rebound excitation, redundancy, gating within the RCPG, and behavioral control of breathing. The model is offered as an explicit alternative to the harmonic oscillator models that have been used in the past to describe RCPG function.
Animals↗
Breastfeeding intention and outcome: a test of the theory of planned behavior.
Causal modeling was used to test the hypotheses of the theory of planned behavior for the prediction of prenatal breastfeeding intentions and postpartum breastfeeding outcomes with 135 childbearing women. In support of the theory, prenatal breastfeeding attitudes and perceived behavioral control predicted breastfeeding intentions (R2 = 23); however, the subjective norm variable failed to meet statistical criteria for model entry. Breastfeeding intentions weakly predicted duration of breastfeeding up to 6 weeks postpartum (R2 = .04). No additional empirically suggested prenatal and postpartum variables increased the explanatory power of the model in predicting breastfeeding intentions and duration. Implications for practice and research are discussed.
Adolescent↗
Executive functioning in children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure.
BACKGROUND: Children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure have well documented deficits in overall cognitive ability. Recently, attention has turned to the executive function (EF) domain in this population. Until recently, comprehensive measures of EF have not been available within one test battery. This study used a battery of tests to assess four domains of EF in alcohol-exposed children. METHODS: The Delis-Kaplan Executive Function Scale was used to evaluate EF in 18 children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure, with and without a diagnosis of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), and 10 nonexposed controls. Children ranged in age from 8 to 15 years. Measures from four domains of executive functioning were analyzed: planning ability, cognitive flexibility, selective inhibition, and concept formation and reasoning. Tasks consisted of primary EF measures as well as measures of secondary component skills. RESULTS: Alcohol-exposed children were deficient on EF measures compared with nonexposed controls. Furthermore, in most cases, children with and without the FAS diagnosis did not differ from one another. These deficits were not entirely explainable by concomitant deficits on component skills. Specific impairments were identified within the domains of planning and response inhibition, with additional deficits in abstract thinking and flexibility. CONCLUSIONS: Deficits in executive functioning were observed in alcohol-exposed children with or without the diagnosis of FAS and in the absence of mental retardation. Performance on these EF tasks provides insight into the cognitive processes driving overall performance and has implications for adaptive and daily functions. These results are consistent with anecdotal and empirical reports of deficits in behavioral control and with neuroanatomical evidence of volumetric reductions in structures within the frontal-subcortical system in children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure.
Adolescent↗
Opposite responses of mesolimbic dopamine system to controllable and uncontrollable aversive experiences.
It has been previously shown that rodents exposed to stressful experiences show a biphasic response of the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system, that is, initial increase of DA release followed by a decrease below control levels (Puglisi-Allegra et al., 1991). Evidence is now presented showing that mice exposed to a series of foot shocks show an increase of DA release in the nucleus accumbens septi (NAS) if they are allowed to control the shock experience (shocked condition) and a decrease of DA release in this brain area if they are not allowed to exert any control (yoked condition). These results indicate that escapable/controllable and inescapable/uncontrollable aversive experiences elicit opposite responses from the mesolimbic DA system. Mice exposed to the apparatus without receiving shock (sham condition) show a time-dependent biphasic evolution mesolimbic DA release in line with previous reports indicating that confinement in an unknown environment represents a stressful experience for mice. Moreover, exposure to the sham condition for a time comparable to the duration of shock and yoked exposure induces a mesolimbic DA response only quantitatively different from the response of the yoked group but qualitatively different from the response of the shocked mice. These results suggest that in environmental conditions that allow behavioral control, enhanced mesolimbic DA release is maintained regardless of the intensity of the aversive stimuli. On the other hand, evaluation of changes in acid DA metabolites levels in the frontal cortex (FC) of mice exposed to the shocked, yoked, and sham conditions suggests that stressful experiences characterized by a different intensity of the aversive stimuli could elicit graded responses in the FC DA system.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acid↗
Investigations of fetal development models for prenatal drug exposure and schizophrenia. Prenatal d-amphetamine effects upon early and late juvenile behavior in the rat.
Recent evidence suggests that mid-pregnancy is a critical period for production of fetal abnormalities that cause behavioral and neuropathological changes in adult offspring. The present experiments provide an animal model of these effects by treating pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats during gestational days 11-14 with d-amphetamine (AM). Offspring were tested for neurological signs, foraging activity, reversal learning, and sensitivity to amphetamine challenge. In the Early Juvenile period, postnatal days (PND) 20-30, female AM offspring initially showed reductions in rearing, holepoking, and midfield activity. On later trials, and as young adults, AM females showed signs of locomotor hyperactivity despite continued poor foraging efficiency, and were also more sensitive to a 1.0 mg/kg d-amphetamine challenge. AM males showed initially slower and more perseverative responding than controls, but then developed excessive response switching. These changes continued during tests for Retention, Reversal, and Extinction in the Late Juvenile/Early Adult stage (PND 50-90), when both AM-exposed sexes showed increased eating time, significantly more perseverative lateral turning preference (right or left), and slower reversal learning than controls. Behavioral data were consistent with aberrations in thalamo-frontal and mesolimbic/nigrostriatal projection systems that have been reported in AM animals and which are also affected by maternal drug abuse and schizophrenia.
Animals↗
N400 abnormalities in unmedicated patients with schizophrenia during a lexical decision task.
A lexical decision task was used to investigate semantic processing in schizophrenia. Eighteen unmedicated schizophrenics and 18 gender/age-matched controls were tested. Subjects were visually presented with pairs of words. The target word (S2) was either a non-word, semantically related, or unrelated to preceding word (S1). Subjects decided whether the S2 was a word or non-word. Event related potentials (ERPs) elicited by the S2, including N350, and the late positive component (LPC) were measured. The latency of the N350 was prolonged in schizophrenia. The N400 effect, measured by the mean amplitude (300-500 ms) from difference waves (unrelated word-related word, non-word-related word), was smaller in patients. Peak amplitude of the LPC was reduced and latency of the LPC was delayed in the schizophrenics. Behaviorally, control subjects responded much faster to related words compared to unrelated or non-words, while patients showed little difference in processing speed between word categories. A reduced N400 effect suggested inefficient utilization of the context, while prolonged latency of the ERP components suggested a general delay of semantic information processing in schizophrenia.
Adult↗
Predicting children's reported eating disturbances at 8 years of age.
OBJECTIVES: To examine differential parental influences on eating attitudes and behaviors of 8-year-old children with a specific focus on gender effects and to assess the specificity of this relationship. METHOD: One hundred eight infants were monitored from birth and interviewed at age 8 for eating disturbances and negative affect with an adaptation of the McKnight Risk Factor Survey. Parental measures included the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire subscales Disinhibition and Restraint as well as body mass index, assessed at study entry. RESULTS: No gender differences were found for frequencies of children's self-reported eating disturbances. Higher maternal restraint scores predicted worries about being too fat in girls but not in boys. Higher maternal disinhibition scores also differentially predicted weight control behaviors in their daughters. Negative affect in the child was (weakly) predicted by higher maternal body mass index. No association between paternal predictors of disturbed eating and the child's eating disturbances and negative emotionality was found. CONCLUSIONS: The impact of maternal eating disorders and disturbances is much stronger than that of fathers and is specifically directed at their daughters. The clinical importance of these disturbances in terms of precursors of adolescent eating disorders has to be determined by monitoring the sample through puberty.
Adult↗
Temptation, restriction, and the regulation of alcohol intake: validity and utility of the temptation and restraint inventory.
OBJECTIVE: The Temptation and Restraint Inventory (TRI) is a measure of drinking restraint, the preoccupation with controlling alcohol intake. It contains two higher order factors pertaining to the temptation to drink and the restriction of alcohol intake. We tested the convergent and discriminant validity of the TRI in comparison to the Preoccupation with Alcohol Scale (PAS), the Reasons for Limiting Drinking Scale (RLD) and the Drinking-Related Locus of Control Scale (DRIE), each of which measures constructs analogous to the components of the TRI. We also tested the utility of the TRI, as compared to these related measures, for predicting typical drinking and alcohol problems. METHOD: A sample of 296 (50% male) moderate to heavy drinking adults completed the TRI, the PAS, the RLD, the DRIE and measures of typical (weekly) drinking and alcohol problems (SMAST). RESULTS: Correlations indicated that the TRI had excellent convergent and discriminant validity. The TRI's temptation factor (Cognitive and Emotional Preoccupation) was strongly and positively correlated with the PAS and the DRIE, and was weakly and positively correlated with the RLD. The TRI's restriction factor (Cognitive and Behavioral Control) was positively and moderately correlated with the DRIE and moderately to weakly correlated with the PAS and the RLD. In regressions predicting weekly drinking and SMAST scores, the TRI was particularly effective in accounting for the variance in SMAST scores. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison to measures of conceptually related constructs, the components of the TRI showed excellent convergent and discriminant validity. The TRI accounted for large portions of the variance in alcohol-related outcomes, using fewer items than measures of similar constructs.
Adult↗
Area postrema and adjacent solitary nucleus in water and energy balance.
Lesions of the area postrema (AP) and immediately adjacent nucleus tractus solitarii cause a syndrome of permanent weight loss with little disruption to behavioral controls of body weight regulation. There is also a permanent polydipsia and elevated salt appetite, which appear to be secondary to deficits in renal conservation of water and sodium. Neuroanatomical studies indicate that the immediately adjacent solitary nucleus and AP are sites of termination of visceral afferents from abdominal organs and the destination and origin of distant central afferent and efferent connections.
Animals↗
Medical care use by Mexican-Americans: evidence from the human population laboratory studies.
Data are presented from sample surveys conducted in 1974 (N = 3,119) and 1975 (N = 657) in Alameda County, California, by the Human Population Laboratory. Mexican-Americans are compared to Anglos and blacks in terms of physician visits, dental examinations, general physical examinations, and eye examinations. Comparison of crude percentages indicates that there is very little ethnic variation in either sample regarding regular source of medical care or health insurance coverage, although the trend is for fewer Chicanos to have such coverage. In terms of physician visits, there is little difference between Anglos and Chicanos. By contrast, fewer Chicanos and blacks report dental examinations in the past year (Chicanos have the lowest rate). Fewer Chicanos report a general medical examination in the past year and more report never having had a medical checkup. Likewise, more Chicanos report never having an eye examination while relatively fewer report such an exam in the past year. Controlling for the effects of age, sex, education, family income, health insurance, regular source of care, physical health status and perceived health reduces differences in rate of physician visits among the ethnic groups, primarily by reducing the rate for blacks and increasing the rate for Chicanos. Likewise, adjustment for all 8 factors reduces ethnic differences in general medical examination rates, in this case by increasing the rates for the minority groups. Adjustment reduces the ethnic differences in dental examination rates by increasing the minority group rates, but large differences still remain. For eye examinations, adjustment has little effect on the rates for Anglos and blacks, but substantially increases the rate for Chicanos. For all 4 types of medical care behavior, controlling for the effects of education and family income (so-called inequitable reasons for lower access to care) consistently produces the greatest effect, particularly for Chicanos. In each case, the effect is to create greater parity between Chicanos and Anglos by increasing the utilization rate for Chicanos. However, even after adjustment, the rate for Chicanos remains lower.
Adult↗
Nonimpact brain injury: neuropsychological and behavioral correlates with consideration of physiological findings.
This retrospective clinical study investigated the neuropsychological, physiological, and behavioral functioning of 32 adult outpatients up to 65 months following nonimpact brain injury (i.e., whiplash). All participants were administered a flexible battery of cognitive tests, and some underwent neurodiagnostic procedures and sleep studies. Compared with published norms, neuropsychological data revealed significant and persistent age-adjusted cognitive deficits, primarily in the area of executive functioning. Participants frequently complained of problems with behavioral control, sleep, and sexuality. Although structural neuroimaging was not sensitive in detecting brain pathology, quantitative electroencephalography was abnormal in all the participants evaluated, showing frontocentral slowing and increased spike wave activity. We propose that whiplash injury can produce wide-ranging circuitry dysfunction and that test selection is critical in identifying cognitive deficits.
Adolescent↗
The relationship between radon knowledge, concern and behavior, and health values, health locus of control and preventive health behaviors.
Understanding similarities between health-related and radon-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors may suggest application of effective strategies of radon-related education in targeted populations. A mail survey was returned by 300 randomly selected homeowners in a community at risk for high home radon concentrations (50% response). While 64% were concerned, only 7% tested their homes. The expected association between radon knowledge, radon concern, and information-seeking was identified. In addition, those who tested their homes had greater knowledge and did more information seeking. Health values and radon concern were only weakly related. Environmental concern explained the greatest variance in radon concern (10%). Internal health locus of controls were more likely to have high radon concern. Of the preventive health behaviors, not smoking and seat belt use were the best predictors of variance in radon concern (5%). Segmenting the population is suggested for best educational outcome. Relating information to environmental issues may be helpful. Health-conscious people may need awareness of risks. Issues of self-control and radon testing and reduction may be helpful for some. Synergy between smoke and radon, compounded by smokers lack of concern suggests targeting smokers for education efforts.
Environmental Exposure↗
Physical activity correlates in adolescent girls who differ by weight status.
OBJECTIVE: This study compared correlates of physical activity (PA) among African-American and white girls of different weight groups to guide future interventions. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Participants were 1015 girls (mean age, 14.6 years; 45% African-American) from 12 high schools in South Carolina who served as control subjects for a school-based intervention. Post-intervention measures obtained at the end of ninth grade were used. PA was measured using the Three-Day PA Recall, and a questionnaire measured social-cognitive and environmental variables thought to mediate PA. Height and weight were measured, and BMI was calculated. Girls were stratified by race and categorized into three groups, based on BMI percentiles for girls from CDC growth charts: normal (BMI < 85th percentile), at risk (BMI, 85th to 94th percentile), and overweight (BMI > or = 95th percentile). Girls were further divided into active and low-active groups, based on a vigorous PA standard (average of one or more 30-minute blocks per day per 3-day period). Mixed-model ANOVA was used to compare factors among groups, treating school as a random effect RESULTS: None of the social-cognitive or environmental variables differed by weight status for African-American or white girls. Perceived behavioral control and sports team participation were significantly higher in girls who were more active, regardless of weight or race group. In general, social-cognitive variables seem to be more related to activity in white girls, whereas environmental factors seem more related to activity in African-American girls. DISCUSSION: PA interventions should be tailored to the unique needs of girls based on PA levels and race, rather than on weight status alone.
Adolescent↗
Youth exercise intention and past exercise behavior: examining the moderating influences of sex and meeting exercise recommendations.
The study purposes were to examine: (a) the determinants of exercise intention and past exercise behavior (PEB) using the theories of reasoned action and planned behavior, and (b) the moderating influences of sex and exercise group (meeting or not meeting exercise guidelines). Participants (n = 676 adolescents) completed self-reported measures of their exercise attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control (PBC), intention, and PEB. We found that attitude, subjective norm, and PBC explained 55% of the variance in intention, and intention and PBC explained 51% of the variance in PEB. While we found sex and exercise group differences across the study measures, we did not find evidence of significant moderation. Thus, the theory constructs predicted intention and PEB similarly across sex and exercise groups.
Adolescent↗
Psychosocial determinants of alcohol use among minority youth living in public housing developments.
Youth residing in low income, inner city, public housing developments might be extremely vulnerable to psychosocial risk factors associated with alcohol use. In this study, we developed and tested a model of alcohol etiology with 624 African-American and Hispanic 7th graders residing in public housing developments. The students completed questionnaires concerning their alcohol use, social influences on their drinking, their drinking attitudes and knowledge, their psychosocial skills, and demographic and behavioral control information. Logistic regression analyses indicated that social influences from adults, friends, and family members predicted alcohol use. Individual psychosocial characteristics, e.g., drinking refusal, lowered the odds of drinking. These findings imply that effective prevention approaches targeting minority urban youths residing in public housing developments should provide them with an awareness of social influences to drink, correct misperceptions concerning the prevalence of drinking, and train them in relevant psychosocial skills.
Adolescent↗