Masculinity and dating confidence. Ro Cunningham, Cassidy Best, Yasmin Akbari, David Frederick. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: Physical features shape perceptions of a man’s masculinity. Many of the traits socially perceived as “masculine” are associated with testosterone level and/or are sexual dimorphic. Men with relatively high levels of these traits are represented as prestigious in the popular media, which reinforces the message that these traits are desirable, that men should strive to embody these traits, and that women find thest raits attractive. These social expectations increase pressure on men to display these traits, and can lead to body dissatisfaction and lower confidence seeking mates when they do not. Heterosexual adult men (N = 441) recruited through Mechanical Turk selfreported their satisfaction with masculine traits (height, strength, athleticism, muscularity, erect penis size, flaccid penis size, face, hair, weight) and also how they felt they compared to the average man. These were used as predictors of comfort with engaging in romantic and sexual activities (e.g., asking a woman on a date). After controlling for the other predictors, perceptions of relative strength and erect penis size were the only significant predictors of dating confidence. The same was true for satisfaction with these traits. The findings suggest these two factors are particularly important in men’s mating strategies and behaviors.
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Aberrant brain gray matter in murderers
Aberrant brain gray matter in murderers. Ashly Sajous-Turner et al. Brain Imaging and Behavior, July 5 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11682-019-00155-y
Abstract: Homicide is a significant societal problem with economic costs in the billions of dollars annually and incalculable emotional impact on victims and society. Despite this high burden, we know very little about the neuroscience of individuals who commit homicide. Here we examine brain gray matter differences in incarcerated adult males who have committed homicide (n = 203) compared to other non-homicide offenders (n = 605; total n = 808). Homicide offenders’ show reduced gray matter in brain areas critical for behavioral control and social cognition compared with subsets of other violent and non-violent offenders. This demonstrates, for the first time, that unique brain abnormalities may distinguish offenders who kill from other serious violent offenders and non-violent antisocial individuals.
Keywords: Brain imaging Homicide Voxel-based morphometry Violence Antisocial behavior
Abstract: Homicide is a significant societal problem with economic costs in the billions of dollars annually and incalculable emotional impact on victims and society. Despite this high burden, we know very little about the neuroscience of individuals who commit homicide. Here we examine brain gray matter differences in incarcerated adult males who have committed homicide (n = 203) compared to other non-homicide offenders (n = 605; total n = 808). Homicide offenders’ show reduced gray matter in brain areas critical for behavioral control and social cognition compared with subsets of other violent and non-violent offenders. This demonstrates, for the first time, that unique brain abnormalities may distinguish offenders who kill from other serious violent offenders and non-violent antisocial individuals.
Keywords: Brain imaging Homicide Voxel-based morphometry Violence Antisocial behavior
Poor test-retest reliability of task-fMRI: New empirical evidence and a meta-analysis
Poor test-retest reliability of task-fMRI: New empirical evidence and a meta-analysis. Maxwell L. Elliott, Annchen R. Knodt, David Ireland, Meriwether L. Morris, Richie Poulton, Sandhya Ramrakha, Maria L. Sison, Terrie E. Moffitt, Avshalom Caspi, Ahmad R. Hariri. bioRxiv preprints, Jun 24 2019. https://doi.org/10.1101/681700
Abstract: Identifying brain biomarkers of disease risk and treatment response is a growing priority in neuroscience. The ability to identify meaningful biomarkers is fundamentally limited by measurement reliability; measures that do not yield reliable values are unsuitable as biomarkers to predict clinical outcomes. Measuring brain activity using task-fMRI is a major focus of biomarker development; however, the reliability of task-fMRI has not been systematically evaluated. We present converging evidence demonstrating poor reliability of task-fMRI measures. First, a meta-analysis of 90 experiments with 1,088 participants reporting 1,146 ICCs for task-fMRI revealed poor overall reliability (mean ICC = .397). Second, the test-retest reliabilities of activity in a priori regions of interest across 11 commonly used fMRI tasks collected in the Human Connectome Project and the Dunedin Longitudinal Study were poor (ICCs = .067 - .485). Collectively, these findings demonstrate that commonly used task-fMRI measures are not currently suitable for brain biomarker discovery or individual differences research in cognitive neuroscience (i.e., brain-behavior mapping). We review how this state of affairs came to be and consider several avenues for improving the reliability of task-fMRI.
Significance Statement A biomarker with the potential to be useful in predicting clinical outcomes must yield values that are repeatable. We performed a comprehensive meta-analysis of the test-retest reliability of task-fMRI measures, which are widely adopted for biomarker discovery in neuroscience. We found that the meta-analytic reliability of task-fMRI was poor. We also investigated the reliability of many of the most commonly used task-fMRI measures in two datasets recently collected with cutting-edge scanners and methods. We found generally poor reliability for these task-fMRI measures. These findings indicate that many task-fMRI measures are not currently suitable for biomarker discovery or individual differences research in cognitive neuroscience.
Abstract: Identifying brain biomarkers of disease risk and treatment response is a growing priority in neuroscience. The ability to identify meaningful biomarkers is fundamentally limited by measurement reliability; measures that do not yield reliable values are unsuitable as biomarkers to predict clinical outcomes. Measuring brain activity using task-fMRI is a major focus of biomarker development; however, the reliability of task-fMRI has not been systematically evaluated. We present converging evidence demonstrating poor reliability of task-fMRI measures. First, a meta-analysis of 90 experiments with 1,088 participants reporting 1,146 ICCs for task-fMRI revealed poor overall reliability (mean ICC = .397). Second, the test-retest reliabilities of activity in a priori regions of interest across 11 commonly used fMRI tasks collected in the Human Connectome Project and the Dunedin Longitudinal Study were poor (ICCs = .067 - .485). Collectively, these findings demonstrate that commonly used task-fMRI measures are not currently suitable for brain biomarker discovery or individual differences research in cognitive neuroscience (i.e., brain-behavior mapping). We review how this state of affairs came to be and consider several avenues for improving the reliability of task-fMRI.
Significance Statement A biomarker with the potential to be useful in predicting clinical outcomes must yield values that are repeatable. We performed a comprehensive meta-analysis of the test-retest reliability of task-fMRI measures, which are widely adopted for biomarker discovery in neuroscience. We found that the meta-analytic reliability of task-fMRI was poor. We also investigated the reliability of many of the most commonly used task-fMRI measures in two datasets recently collected with cutting-edge scanners and methods. We found generally poor reliability for these task-fMRI measures. These findings indicate that many task-fMRI measures are not currently suitable for biomarker discovery or individual differences research in cognitive neuroscience.
Antisocial behaviour was consistently rated as less genetically influenced than prosocial behaviour; this was true regardless of whether genetic explanations were explicitly provided or refuted
Asymmetrical genetic attributions for prosocial versus antisocial behaviour. Matthew S. Lebowitz, Kathryn Tabb & Paul S. Appelbaum. Nature Human Behaviour (2019). July 29 2019. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-019-0651-1
Abstract: Genetic explanations of human behaviour are increasingly common. While genetic attributions for behaviour are often considered relevant for assessing blameworthiness, it has not yet been established whether judgements about blameworthiness can themselves impact genetic attributions. Across six studies, participants read about individuals engaging in prosocial or antisocial behaviour, and rated the extent to which they believed that genetics played a role in causing the behaviour. Antisocial behaviour was consistently rated as less genetically influenced than prosocial behaviour. This was true regardless of whether genetic explanations were explicitly provided or refuted. Mediation analyses suggested that this asymmetry may stem from people’s motivating desire to hold wrongdoers responsible for their actions. These findings suggest that those who seek to study or make use of genetic explanations’ influence on evaluations of, for example, antisocial behaviour should consider whether such explanations are accepted in the first place, given the possibility of motivated causal reasoning.
Abstract: Genetic explanations of human behaviour are increasingly common. While genetic attributions for behaviour are often considered relevant for assessing blameworthiness, it has not yet been established whether judgements about blameworthiness can themselves impact genetic attributions. Across six studies, participants read about individuals engaging in prosocial or antisocial behaviour, and rated the extent to which they believed that genetics played a role in causing the behaviour. Antisocial behaviour was consistently rated as less genetically influenced than prosocial behaviour. This was true regardless of whether genetic explanations were explicitly provided or refuted. Mediation analyses suggested that this asymmetry may stem from people’s motivating desire to hold wrongdoers responsible for their actions. These findings suggest that those who seek to study or make use of genetic explanations’ influence on evaluations of, for example, antisocial behaviour should consider whether such explanations are accepted in the first place, given the possibility of motivated causal reasoning.
Strong evidence of profound gender-specific differences between men and women in terms of dietary habits, the taste of food and in the relationship with meal; women have greater nutritional knowledge
Lombardo, M., Aulisa, G., Padua, E., Annino, G., Iellamo, F., Pratesi, A., Caprio, M. and Bellia, A. (2019), "Gender differences in taste and foods habits", Nutrition & Food Science , Vol. ahead-of-print, Jil 18 2019. https://doi.org/10.1108/NFS-04-2019-0132
Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine gender differences in food habits and food choices, including decisions in healthy eating, to personalize diet therapies to be as effective possible for long-term weight loss.
Design/methodology/approach: In this cross-sectional study, eating behaviours were assessed using a questionnaire composed of 12 questions concerning food habits, 17 concerning food taste, and four about healthy eating. There were 2,021 (1,276 women) Caucasian adults enrolled in the study.
Findings: Statistically significant differences in women compared to men occurred for the following questionnaire entries reading eating habits: whole grain food (10.0 per cent higher in women; p < 0.001); cereals such as barley (8.3 per cent higher in women, p < 0.001); cooked vegetables (6.6 per cent higher in women, p < 0.001); eggs (5.0 per cent lower in women, p = 0.03); meat (9.3 per cent lower in women, p < 0.001); and processed meat (7.1 per cent lower in women, p < 0.001). Women consume more water, sugar-sweetened beverages and alcoholic drinks than males, and liked salty foods more than sweet foods. Men ate faster, ate more during the night and slept worse than women. Men ate meals out more often and tended to be hungrier later in the day. Women missed more meals and ate more times during the day and were also more likely to eat uncontrollably.
Research limitations/implications: The authors observed strong evidence of profound gender-specific differences between men and women in terms of dietary habits, the taste of food and in the relationship with meals.
Practical implications: The findings suggest a need for the creation of gender-specific programs for promoting a healthy lifestyle.
Social implications: A need for the creation of gender-related programs for promoting healthy lifestyle has been demonstrated.
Originality/value: Reasons for the different eating behaviours among men and women have been found. Western society’s perception of the ideal body weight is much lower for women than for men. In general, social perceptions influence nutritional behaviour to a great extent. Women’s greater nutritional knowledge and sex-specific taste preferences also account for the differences in eating behaviour.
Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine gender differences in food habits and food choices, including decisions in healthy eating, to personalize diet therapies to be as effective possible for long-term weight loss.
Design/methodology/approach: In this cross-sectional study, eating behaviours were assessed using a questionnaire composed of 12 questions concerning food habits, 17 concerning food taste, and four about healthy eating. There were 2,021 (1,276 women) Caucasian adults enrolled in the study.
Findings: Statistically significant differences in women compared to men occurred for the following questionnaire entries reading eating habits: whole grain food (10.0 per cent higher in women; p < 0.001); cereals such as barley (8.3 per cent higher in women, p < 0.001); cooked vegetables (6.6 per cent higher in women, p < 0.001); eggs (5.0 per cent lower in women, p = 0.03); meat (9.3 per cent lower in women, p < 0.001); and processed meat (7.1 per cent lower in women, p < 0.001). Women consume more water, sugar-sweetened beverages and alcoholic drinks than males, and liked salty foods more than sweet foods. Men ate faster, ate more during the night and slept worse than women. Men ate meals out more often and tended to be hungrier later in the day. Women missed more meals and ate more times during the day and were also more likely to eat uncontrollably.
Research limitations/implications: The authors observed strong evidence of profound gender-specific differences between men and women in terms of dietary habits, the taste of food and in the relationship with meals.
Practical implications: The findings suggest a need for the creation of gender-specific programs for promoting a healthy lifestyle.
Social implications: A need for the creation of gender-related programs for promoting healthy lifestyle has been demonstrated.
Originality/value: Reasons for the different eating behaviours among men and women have been found. Western society’s perception of the ideal body weight is much lower for women than for men. In general, social perceptions influence nutritional behaviour to a great extent. Women’s greater nutritional knowledge and sex-specific taste preferences also account for the differences in eating behaviour.
Women are less likely than men to comment online, particularly on state, national, or international topics, more likely to comment on local news
The Gender Gap in Online News Comment Sections. Emily Van Duyn, Cynthia Peacock, Natalie Jomini Stroud. Social Science Computer Review, July 26, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439319864876
Abstract: Women are less likely than men to discuss or engage in politics. This study extends research on the gender gap in politics to an online context by exploring whether women are less likely to engage in political discussion online, whether this follows socialization theories of a private versus public sphere distinction, and whether perceptions of incivility help to explain these gender differences. Through a survey of commenters and comment readers based on a probability sample in the United States (n = 965) and a survey of actual commenters and comment readers across 20 news sites (n = 12,110), we find that women are less likely than men to comment online, particularly on state, national, or international topics. However, women are more likely than men to comment on local news. We also find that perceptions of incivility are related to commenting, although they do little to explain gender differences in commenting. Our results suggest that the gender gap in online political discussion is the product of women’s political socialization more so than the civility of the site.
Keywords: comment sections, deliberative democracy, gender, political discussion
Abstract: Women are less likely than men to discuss or engage in politics. This study extends research on the gender gap in politics to an online context by exploring whether women are less likely to engage in political discussion online, whether this follows socialization theories of a private versus public sphere distinction, and whether perceptions of incivility help to explain these gender differences. Through a survey of commenters and comment readers based on a probability sample in the United States (n = 965) and a survey of actual commenters and comment readers across 20 news sites (n = 12,110), we find that women are less likely than men to comment online, particularly on state, national, or international topics. However, women are more likely than men to comment on local news. We also find that perceptions of incivility are related to commenting, although they do little to explain gender differences in commenting. Our results suggest that the gender gap in online political discussion is the product of women’s political socialization more so than the civility of the site.
Keywords: comment sections, deliberative democracy, gender, political discussion
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