Interactions between brain and spinal cord mediate value effects in nocebo hyperalgesia. A. Tinnermann et al. Science Oct 06 2017, Vol. 358, Issue 6359, pp. 105-108. DOI: 10.1126/science.aan1221
Abstract: Value information about a drug, such as the price tag, can strongly affect its therapeutic effect. We discovered that value information influences adverse treatment outcomes in humans even in the absence of an active substance. Labeling an inert treatment as expensive medication led to stronger nocebo hyperalgesia than labeling it as cheap medication. This effect was mediated by neural interactions between cortex, brainstem, and spinal cord. In particular, activity in the prefrontal cortex mediated the effect of value on nocebo hyperalgesia. Value furthermore modulated coupling between prefrontal areas, brainstem, and spinal cord, which might represent a flexible mechanism through which higher-cognitive representations, such as value, can modulate early pain processing.
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From the editors:
Patients in randomized clinical trials frequently stop taking their drug, complaining of side effects. However, it turns out that some of these subjects are part of the placebo group and thus never received any active medication. This is a case of the nocebo effect seriously interfering with medical treatment. Tinnermann et al. investigated whether value information such as the price of a medication can further modulate behavioral nocebo effects and the underlying neural network dynamics. They used brain imaging to characterize the circuits involved in nocebo hyperalgesia within the descending pain pathway from the prefrontal cortex to the spinal cord. Their findings revealed how value information increased the nocebo effect.
Friday, October 6, 2017
Polity or Policy? Explaining Ordinary Muslims’ Support for Suicide Bombing
Polity or Policy? Explaining Ordinary Muslims’ Support for Suicide Bombing. Christine Fair & Junjie Chen. Georgetown University Working Paper, August 2017. https://georgetown.academia.edu/ChristineFair/Drafts
Abstract: Public opinion research shows there is considerable, albeit varied, support for terrorist tactics among the world’s varied Muslim populations. Data from the Pew Research Center demonstrated that in 2014, 47 and 46 percent of Bangladeshis and Lebanese respondents, respectively, approved of suicide bombing, compared to only 5 and 3 percent of Tunisian and Pakistani respondents (Pew 2014). Scholars have sought to identify respondent-level determinants of support for suicide bombings (and other forms of political violence) perpetrated by Islamist militant groups by using a variety of country-specific and multi-national survey samples as well as novel survey techniques (reviewed in Bullock, Imai and Shapiro 2011). None of the extant literature has focused on aspects of the polity in which these Muslims respondents live, namely whether or not the person lives in a Muslim-majority country and/or whether that person lives in a country which has adopted Islam as the state’s formal religion. We posit that these two considerations are likely important in explaining why some Muslims support suicide bombing while others do not. To test the salience of these variables, we employ 2011-2-12 data from Pew Research Center’s World’s Muslim Survey, to model support for suicide bombing using Ordinary Least Squares regression. We find that the share of Muslims in the state’s population is generally negatively associated with the support of terrorist attacks while the codification of Islam as a state religion positively correlates with support for suicide bombing.
Abstract: Public opinion research shows there is considerable, albeit varied, support for terrorist tactics among the world’s varied Muslim populations. Data from the Pew Research Center demonstrated that in 2014, 47 and 46 percent of Bangladeshis and Lebanese respondents, respectively, approved of suicide bombing, compared to only 5 and 3 percent of Tunisian and Pakistani respondents (Pew 2014). Scholars have sought to identify respondent-level determinants of support for suicide bombings (and other forms of political violence) perpetrated by Islamist militant groups by using a variety of country-specific and multi-national survey samples as well as novel survey techniques (reviewed in Bullock, Imai and Shapiro 2011). None of the extant literature has focused on aspects of the polity in which these Muslims respondents live, namely whether or not the person lives in a Muslim-majority country and/or whether that person lives in a country which has adopted Islam as the state’s formal religion. We posit that these two considerations are likely important in explaining why some Muslims support suicide bombing while others do not. To test the salience of these variables, we employ 2011-2-12 data from Pew Research Center’s World’s Muslim Survey, to model support for suicide bombing using Ordinary Least Squares regression. We find that the share of Muslims in the state’s population is generally negatively associated with the support of terrorist attacks while the codification of Islam as a state religion positively correlates with support for suicide bombing.
Types of intelligence predict likelihood to get married and stay married
Types of intelligence predict likelihood to get married and stay married: Large-scale empirical evidence for evolutionary theory. Jaakko Aspara, Kristina Wittkowski, and Xueming Luo. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 122, February 1 2018, Pages 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.09.028
Highlights
• Intelligence scores of male individuals are studied as predictors of marriage.
• Two samples are examined: initially non-married males and already-married males.
• Intelligence predicts both likelihood to get married and likelihood to stay married.
• Verbal, numeric, and spatial logic intelligence differently predict the two.
• The results suggest intelligence to be an evolutionary fitness indicator in mating.
Abstract: Decisions related to marriage and divorce are key life events for individuals. In the present research, we provide large-scale evidence of the role of individual intelligence in marriage and divorce behavior, controlling for tangible resources such as income and social status symbols. We find that male individuals' intelligence score at early adulthood has a positive relationship with their subsequent likelihood to get married, in a sample of 120,290 males. Intelligence also predicts continued marriage (non-divorce) in a separate sample of 68,150 married males. The relatively easier-to-perceive verbal intelligence predicts the likelihood of getting married (bivariate correlation r = 0.07) slightly better than the harder-to-observe numeric (r = 0.06) and logical intelligence (r = 0.05). The likelihood to stay married is predicted to an equal extent by verbal, numeric, and logical intelligence (r ≈ 0.05). A series of regression models confirms the direct effect of residualized intelligence on marriage behavior over and above its indirect effect through income, social status, and other control variables. These findings provide empirical evidence for the notion of evolutionary psychology that human intelligence, as an intangible fitness indicator, directly influences mating prospects, rather than merely exerting its influence through the tangible resources of income and social status.
Keywords: Evolution; Intelligence; Marriage; Divorce; Fitness indicators; Verbal intelligence; Numeric ability; Spatial logic
My comment: Marriage should be understood as something temporary... CheckThe Future of Everything. 50 Experts Explain Where We’re Heading– and How We’ll Get There. The Wall Street Journal, Dec 2014. >>> The Future of Love Will Play Out by Prehistoric Rules. By Helen Fisher:
Highlights
• Intelligence scores of male individuals are studied as predictors of marriage.
• Two samples are examined: initially non-married males and already-married males.
• Intelligence predicts both likelihood to get married and likelihood to stay married.
• Verbal, numeric, and spatial logic intelligence differently predict the two.
• The results suggest intelligence to be an evolutionary fitness indicator in mating.
Abstract: Decisions related to marriage and divorce are key life events for individuals. In the present research, we provide large-scale evidence of the role of individual intelligence in marriage and divorce behavior, controlling for tangible resources such as income and social status symbols. We find that male individuals' intelligence score at early adulthood has a positive relationship with their subsequent likelihood to get married, in a sample of 120,290 males. Intelligence also predicts continued marriage (non-divorce) in a separate sample of 68,150 married males. The relatively easier-to-perceive verbal intelligence predicts the likelihood of getting married (bivariate correlation r = 0.07) slightly better than the harder-to-observe numeric (r = 0.06) and logical intelligence (r = 0.05). The likelihood to stay married is predicted to an equal extent by verbal, numeric, and logical intelligence (r ≈ 0.05). A series of regression models confirms the direct effect of residualized intelligence on marriage behavior over and above its indirect effect through income, social status, and other control variables. These findings provide empirical evidence for the notion of evolutionary psychology that human intelligence, as an intangible fitness indicator, directly influences mating prospects, rather than merely exerting its influence through the tangible resources of income and social status.
Keywords: Evolution; Intelligence; Marriage; Divorce; Fitness indicators; Verbal intelligence; Numeric ability; Spatial logic
My comment: Marriage should be understood as something temporary... CheckThe Future of Everything. 50 Experts Explain Where We’re Heading– and How We’ll Get There. The Wall Street Journal, Dec 2014. >>> The Future of Love Will Play Out by Prehistoric Rules. By Helen Fisher:
"Third, we will see more divorce. Today, almost 50% of American men and women are projected to divorce. However, in huntinggathering societies, men and women regularly have two or three marriages. Across prehistory, serial pairing was probably the norm—as it is becoming once again.
In fact, I believe we are shedding some 10,000 years of agrarian traditions and returning to our prehistoric roots. Our farming forebears were obliged to marry someone with the “right” kin, social and religious connections. Arranged marriages were the norm."
Male brain type women and female brain type men are more similar to the opposite sex than to their own in a range of social, cognitive and personality variables
Male brain type women and female brain type men: Gender atypical cognitive profiles and their correlates. Annika M., Svedholm-Häkkinen, Sini J. Ojala, & Marjaana Lindeman. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 122, February 1 2018, Pages 7–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.09.041
Highlights
• Sex differences have been documented in occupations, interests, and abilities
• Empathizing-Systemizing theory attempts to explain cognitive sex differences
• Women on average empathize more, men on average systemize more
• We studied men and women with gender atypical cognitive profiles
• Gender atypical profiles predicted qualities commonly linked with the opposite sex
Abstract: Gender differences exist in abilities, interests, and occupations. According to the Empathizing-Systemizing theory, the reason for all gender differences lies in the relative weights of two cognitive processes: women empathize more, which is useful in understanding people, while men systemize more, which means interpreting phenomena as rule-based systems. The terms “male and female brain type” refer to a heightened preference for one process over the other. We aimed to find out whether the gender atypical groups of male brain type women and female brain type men are more similar to the opposite sex than to their own in terms of a range of social, cognitive and personality variables. Female and male brain type groups were identified and compared within both genders in an online study (N = 2983). The results show there are female brain type men and male brain type women, who are characterized by qualities more often associated with the opposite sex, and who have not been reached by prior research. Thus, these findings demonstrate that cognitive type is a more powerful predictor of certain characteristics than is biological sex.
Keywords: Brain type; Empathizing; Systemizing; Cognitive style; Gender differences
Highlights
• Sex differences have been documented in occupations, interests, and abilities
• Empathizing-Systemizing theory attempts to explain cognitive sex differences
• Women on average empathize more, men on average systemize more
• We studied men and women with gender atypical cognitive profiles
• Gender atypical profiles predicted qualities commonly linked with the opposite sex
Abstract: Gender differences exist in abilities, interests, and occupations. According to the Empathizing-Systemizing theory, the reason for all gender differences lies in the relative weights of two cognitive processes: women empathize more, which is useful in understanding people, while men systemize more, which means interpreting phenomena as rule-based systems. The terms “male and female brain type” refer to a heightened preference for one process over the other. We aimed to find out whether the gender atypical groups of male brain type women and female brain type men are more similar to the opposite sex than to their own in terms of a range of social, cognitive and personality variables. Female and male brain type groups were identified and compared within both genders in an online study (N = 2983). The results show there are female brain type men and male brain type women, who are characterized by qualities more often associated with the opposite sex, and who have not been reached by prior research. Thus, these findings demonstrate that cognitive type is a more powerful predictor of certain characteristics than is biological sex.
Keywords: Brain type; Empathizing; Systemizing; Cognitive style; Gender differences
Participants who read about an underdog had higher creativity scores and produced a wider range of ideas
The Underdog Advantage in Creativity. Abby Boytos, Kerry Smith, and JongHan Kim. Thinking Skills and Creativity, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2017.10.003
Highlights
• The study examines how thinking about underdogs can enhance creativity.
• Underdogs often achieve success by finding creative solutions.
• For underdogs, their approach motivation and lack of resources give underdogs a creative advantage.
• Reading an underdog story may predispose the individual to finding creative solutions.
Abstract: Underdogs are expected to lose. Yet, many underdogs—from the Biblical David to today’s Harry Potter—emerge victorious. What do underdogs who win against seemingly impossible odds have in common? One answer may be creativity: they find creative ways to reach their goals. To determine how creativity figures into the success of underdogs, we randomly assigned participants in this study to either of two groups: one that reads a story about an underdog and one that reads a story about a top dog. After reading their respective stories, the participants completed the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. As we predicted, participants who had read about an underdog had higher creativity scores and produced a wider range of ideas than those who had read about a top dog. Those results suggested that their contemplation of successful underdogs had stimulated the participants’ creativity. The implication is that the underdog experience may itself predispose individuals to finding creative solutions.
Keywords: creativity; underdog; top dog; inspiration; carryover effect
Highlights
• The study examines how thinking about underdogs can enhance creativity.
• Underdogs often achieve success by finding creative solutions.
• For underdogs, their approach motivation and lack of resources give underdogs a creative advantage.
• Reading an underdog story may predispose the individual to finding creative solutions.
Abstract: Underdogs are expected to lose. Yet, many underdogs—from the Biblical David to today’s Harry Potter—emerge victorious. What do underdogs who win against seemingly impossible odds have in common? One answer may be creativity: they find creative ways to reach their goals. To determine how creativity figures into the success of underdogs, we randomly assigned participants in this study to either of two groups: one that reads a story about an underdog and one that reads a story about a top dog. After reading their respective stories, the participants completed the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. As we predicted, participants who had read about an underdog had higher creativity scores and produced a wider range of ideas than those who had read about a top dog. Those results suggested that their contemplation of successful underdogs had stimulated the participants’ creativity. The implication is that the underdog experience may itself predispose individuals to finding creative solutions.
Keywords: creativity; underdog; top dog; inspiration; carryover effect
Educational differences in the chances and timing of grandparenthood
Who becomes a grandparent – and when? Educational differences in the chances and timing of grandparenthood. Jan Skopek and Thomas Leopold. Demographic Research, Vol 37, article 29, pages 917-928. http://www.demographic-research.org/Volumes/Vol37/29/
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Despite recent advances, the demographic understanding of grandparenthood remains limited.
OBJECTIVE: Our study examines educational differences in the transition to grandparenthood. Comparing East and West Germany, we analyze educational differences in a) the chance of becoming a grandparent, and b) the timing of grandparenthood for both men and women.
METHODS: We used fertility data across three family generations (German Ageing Survey, N= 2,434 men and women born 1933‒1948) and methods of survival time analysis to study educational gradients in the transition to grandparenthood.
RESULTS: We found a strong educational gradient in the chances of grandparenthood among West German women: Lower-educated women’s chances of becoming a grandmother were similar to higher-educated women’s chances of becoming a mother.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings have implications for research on multi-generational social mobility and on the consequences of grandparenthood.
CONTRIBUTION: Our study is the first to analyze how the transition to grandparenthood is socially stratified.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Despite recent advances, the demographic understanding of grandparenthood remains limited.
OBJECTIVE: Our study examines educational differences in the transition to grandparenthood. Comparing East and West Germany, we analyze educational differences in a) the chance of becoming a grandparent, and b) the timing of grandparenthood for both men and women.
METHODS: We used fertility data across three family generations (German Ageing Survey, N= 2,434 men and women born 1933‒1948) and methods of survival time analysis to study educational gradients in the transition to grandparenthood.
RESULTS: We found a strong educational gradient in the chances of grandparenthood among West German women: Lower-educated women’s chances of becoming a grandmother were similar to higher-educated women’s chances of becoming a mother.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings have implications for research on multi-generational social mobility and on the consequences of grandparenthood.
CONTRIBUTION: Our study is the first to analyze how the transition to grandparenthood is socially stratified.
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