On the relative preponderance of empathic sorrow and its relation to commonsense morality. Edward B. Royzman, Rahul Kumar. New Ideas in Psychology, Volume 19, Issue 2, August 2001, Pages 131-144. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0732-118X(00)00020-9
Abstract: Empathy is a nominally neutral term: in principle, the affective tone of empathic concern may be either negative (insofar as the relevant experience is that of apprehending and sharing in another's aversive state) or positive (i.e., apprehending and sharing in another's joy). Yet, we propose (Section 1) that, contrary to this standard conception of empathy as a potentially bivalent, generalized disposition towards emotional perspective-taking, in actuality, negative empathic responses, as a rule, (a) are more common, (b) are more differentiated, and (c) span a broader range of human relationships than their positive counterparts. Furthermore, we suggest that, barring certain types of privileged relationships, a failure to be empathetically aroused by another's good fortune is subject to far less severe (if any) social disapproval than the failure to share in another's aversive state. In Section 2, we posit that the negativity bias evident in the nature of our empathic concern may well be at the base of the negative–positive asymmetry found in the structure of commonsense morality, particularly as it expresses itself in the view that the furtherance of another's good has a greater moral claim on us in its negative form (e.g., the relief of suffering) than in its positive form (the promotion of “enjoyment”). We conclude by asking whether this moral (and the underlying empathic) asymmetry warrants our normative concern and we suggest that there are at least two reasons to think otherwise.
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Large teams develop and small teams disrupt science and technology: Study of more than 65 million papers, patents and software products that span the period 1954–2014
Large teams develop and small teams disrupt science and technology. Lingfei Wu, Dashun Wang & James A. Evans. Nature (2019), https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-0941-9
Abstract: One of the most universal trends in science and technology today is the growth of large teams in all areas, as solitary researchers and small teams diminish in prevalence1,2,3. Increases in team size have been attributed to the specialization of scientific activities3, improvements in communication technology4,5, or the complexity of modern problems that require interdisciplinary solutions6,7,8. This shift in team size raises the question of whether and how the character of the science and technology produced by large teams differs from that of small teams. Here we analyse more than 65 million papers, patents and software products that span the period 1954–2014, and demonstrate that across this period smaller teams have tended to disrupt science and technology with new ideas and opportunities, whereas larger teams have tended to develop existing ones. Work from larger teams builds on more-recent and popular developments, and attention to their work comes immediately. By contrast, contributions by smaller teams search more deeply into the past, are viewed as disruptive to science and technology and succeed further into the future—if at all. Observed differences between small and large teams are magnified for higher-impact work, with small teams known for disruptive work and large teams for developing work. Differences in topic and research design account for a small part of the relationship between team size and disruption; most of the effect occurs at the level of the individual, as people move between smaller and larger teams. These results demonstrate that both small and large teams are essential to a flourishing ecology of science and technology, and suggest that, to achieve this, science policies should aim to support a diversity of team sizes.
Abstract: One of the most universal trends in science and technology today is the growth of large teams in all areas, as solitary researchers and small teams diminish in prevalence1,2,3. Increases in team size have been attributed to the specialization of scientific activities3, improvements in communication technology4,5, or the complexity of modern problems that require interdisciplinary solutions6,7,8. This shift in team size raises the question of whether and how the character of the science and technology produced by large teams differs from that of small teams. Here we analyse more than 65 million papers, patents and software products that span the period 1954–2014, and demonstrate that across this period smaller teams have tended to disrupt science and technology with new ideas and opportunities, whereas larger teams have tended to develop existing ones. Work from larger teams builds on more-recent and popular developments, and attention to their work comes immediately. By contrast, contributions by smaller teams search more deeply into the past, are viewed as disruptive to science and technology and succeed further into the future—if at all. Observed differences between small and large teams are magnified for higher-impact work, with small teams known for disruptive work and large teams for developing work. Differences in topic and research design account for a small part of the relationship between team size and disruption; most of the effect occurs at the level of the individual, as people move between smaller and larger teams. These results demonstrate that both small and large teams are essential to a flourishing ecology of science and technology, and suggest that, to achieve this, science policies should aim to support a diversity of team sizes.
Refugees in Denmark between 1986-1998: Evidence for steeper returns to experience in big cities; an individual’s lifetime wage path depends strongly on placement in the country’s capital, Copenhagen
Fabian Eckert & Conor Walsh & Mads Hejlesen, 2018. "The Return to Big City Experience: Evidence from Danish Refugees," 2018 Meeting Papers 1214, Society for Economic Dynamics. https://ideas.repec.org/p/red/sed018/1214.html
Abstract: Using a random settlement policy for refugees in Denmark between 1986-1998, we provide evidence for steeper returns to experience in big cities. Exploiting exogenous variation in initial placement, we show that the slope of an individual’s lifetime wage path depends strongly on placement in the country’s capital, Copenhagen. Conditional on observables, settled refugees initially earn similar hourly wages across regions, but those placed in Copenhagen see their wages grow 0.63% faster than others with each year of experience they accumulate. We further show that this premium is driven by greater acquisition of experience at high-wage establishments, and differential sorting across occupations. Finally, to account for dynamic selection within the city, we develop and estimate a structural model of earnings dynamics.
Abstract: Using a random settlement policy for refugees in Denmark between 1986-1998, we provide evidence for steeper returns to experience in big cities. Exploiting exogenous variation in initial placement, we show that the slope of an individual’s lifetime wage path depends strongly on placement in the country’s capital, Copenhagen. Conditional on observables, settled refugees initially earn similar hourly wages across regions, but those placed in Copenhagen see their wages grow 0.63% faster than others with each year of experience they accumulate. We further show that this premium is driven by greater acquisition of experience at high-wage establishments, and differential sorting across occupations. Finally, to account for dynamic selection within the city, we develop and estimate a structural model of earnings dynamics.
When Evolution Works Against the Future: Disgust's Contributions to the Acceptance of New Food Technologies
When Evolution Works Against the Future: Disgust's Contributions to the Acceptance of New Food Technologies. Aisha Egolf, Christina Hartmann, Michael Siegrist. Risk Analysis, Feb 13 2019. https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.13279
Abstract: New food technologies have a high potential to transform the current resource‐consuming food system to a more efficient and sustainable one, but public acceptance of new food technologies is rather low. Such an avoidance might be maintained by a deeply preserved risk avoidance system called disgust. In an online survey, participants (N = 313) received information about a variety of new food technology applications (i.e., genetically modified meat/fish, edible nanotechnology coating film, nanotechnology food box, artificial meat/milk, and a synthetic food additive). Every new food technology application was rated according to the respondent's willingness to eat (WTE) it (i.e., acceptance), risk, benefit, and disgust perceptions. Furthermore, food disgust sensitivity was measured using the Food Disgust Scale. Overall, the WTE both gene‐technology applications and meat coated with an edible nanotechnology film were low and disgust responses toward all three applications were high. In full mediation models, food disgust sensitivity predicted the disgust response toward each new food technology application, which in turn influenced WTE them. Effects of disgust responses on the WTE a synthetic food additive were highest for and lowest for the edible nanotechnology coating film compared to the other technologies. Results indicate that direct disgust responses influence acceptance and risk and benefit perceptions of new food technologies. Beyond the discussion of this study, implications for future research and strategies to increase acceptance of new food technologies are discussed.
Abstract: New food technologies have a high potential to transform the current resource‐consuming food system to a more efficient and sustainable one, but public acceptance of new food technologies is rather low. Such an avoidance might be maintained by a deeply preserved risk avoidance system called disgust. In an online survey, participants (N = 313) received information about a variety of new food technology applications (i.e., genetically modified meat/fish, edible nanotechnology coating film, nanotechnology food box, artificial meat/milk, and a synthetic food additive). Every new food technology application was rated according to the respondent's willingness to eat (WTE) it (i.e., acceptance), risk, benefit, and disgust perceptions. Furthermore, food disgust sensitivity was measured using the Food Disgust Scale. Overall, the WTE both gene‐technology applications and meat coated with an edible nanotechnology film were low and disgust responses toward all three applications were high. In full mediation models, food disgust sensitivity predicted the disgust response toward each new food technology application, which in turn influenced WTE them. Effects of disgust responses on the WTE a synthetic food additive were highest for and lowest for the edible nanotechnology coating film compared to the other technologies. Results indicate that direct disgust responses influence acceptance and risk and benefit perceptions of new food technologies. Beyond the discussion of this study, implications for future research and strategies to increase acceptance of new food technologies are discussed.
Asexual women were less likely to report masturbating for sexual pleasure or fun than their sexual counterparts, & asexual men were less likely to report masturbating for sexual pleasure than sexual men
Sexual Fantasy and Masturbation Among Asexual Individuals: An In-Depth Exploration. Morag A. Yule, Lori A. Brotto, Boris B. Gorzalka. Archives of Sexual Behavior, January 2017, Volume 46, Issue 1, pp 311–328. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10508-016-0870-8
Abstract: Human asexuality is generally defined as a lack of sexual attraction. We used online questionnaires to investigate reasons for masturbation, and explored and compared the contents of sexual fantasies of asexual individuals (identified using the Asexual Identification Scale) with those of sexual individuals. A total of 351 asexual participants (292 women, 59 men) and 388 sexual participants (221 women, 167 men) participated. Asexual women were significantly less likely to masturbate than sexual women, sexual men, and asexual men. Asexual women were less likely to report masturbating for sexual pleasure or fun than their sexual counterparts, and asexual men were less likely to report masturbating for sexual pleasure than sexual men. Both asexual women and men were significantly more likely than sexual women and men to report that they had never had a sexual fantasy. Of those who have had a sexual fantasy, asexual women and men were significantly more likely to endorse the response “my fantasies do not involve other people” compared to sexual participants, and consistently scored each sexual fantasy on a questionnaire as being less sexually exciting than did sexual participants. When using an open-ended format, asexual participants were more likely to report having fantasies about sexual activities that did not involve themselves, and were less likely to fantasize about topics such as group sex, public sex, and having an affair. Interestingly, there was a large amount of overlap between sexual fantasies of asexual and sexual participants. Notably, both asexual and sexual participants (both men and women) were equally likely to fantasize about topics such as fetishes and BDSM.
h/t: Usman Muhammad
Abstract: Human asexuality is generally defined as a lack of sexual attraction. We used online questionnaires to investigate reasons for masturbation, and explored and compared the contents of sexual fantasies of asexual individuals (identified using the Asexual Identification Scale) with those of sexual individuals. A total of 351 asexual participants (292 women, 59 men) and 388 sexual participants (221 women, 167 men) participated. Asexual women were significantly less likely to masturbate than sexual women, sexual men, and asexual men. Asexual women were less likely to report masturbating for sexual pleasure or fun than their sexual counterparts, and asexual men were less likely to report masturbating for sexual pleasure than sexual men. Both asexual women and men were significantly more likely than sexual women and men to report that they had never had a sexual fantasy. Of those who have had a sexual fantasy, asexual women and men were significantly more likely to endorse the response “my fantasies do not involve other people” compared to sexual participants, and consistently scored each sexual fantasy on a questionnaire as being less sexually exciting than did sexual participants. When using an open-ended format, asexual participants were more likely to report having fantasies about sexual activities that did not involve themselves, and were less likely to fantasize about topics such as group sex, public sex, and having an affair. Interestingly, there was a large amount of overlap between sexual fantasies of asexual and sexual participants. Notably, both asexual and sexual participants (both men and women) were equally likely to fantasize about topics such as fetishes and BDSM.
h/t: Usman Muhammad
People use algorithmic advice more than human advice; appreciate algorithmic advice despite blindness to algorithm’s process; that appreciation holds even as people underweight advice more generally
Algorithm appreciation: People prefer algorithmic to human judgment. Jennifer M.Logg, Julia A. Minson, Don A. Moore. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Volume 151, March 2019, Pages 90-103, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.12.005
Highlights
• We challenge prevailing idea that people prefer human to algorithmic judgment.
• In head-to-head comparisons, people use algorithmic advice more than human advice.
• We compare usage of advice using the continuous weighting of advice (WOA) measure.
• People appreciate algorithmic advice despite blindness to algorithm’s process.
• Algorithm appreciation holds even as people underweight advice more generally.
Abstract: Even though computational algorithms often outperform human judgment, received wisdom suggests that people may be skeptical of relying on them (Dawes, 1979). Counter to this notion, results from six experiments show that lay people adhere more to advice when they think it comes from an algorithm than from a person. People showed this effect, what we call algorithm appreciation, when making numeric estimates about a visual stimulus (Experiment 1A) and forecasts about the popularity of songs and romantic attraction (Experiments 1B and 1C). Yet, researchers predicted the opposite result (Experiment 1D). Algorithm appreciation persisted when advice appeared jointly or separately (Experiment 2). However, algorithm appreciation waned when: people chose between an algorithm’s estimate and their own (versus an external advisor’s; Experiment 3) and they had expertise in forecasting (Experiment 4). Paradoxically, experienced professionals, who make forecasts on a regular basis, relied less on algorithmic advice than lay people did, which hurt their accuracy. These results shed light on the important question of when people rely on algorithmic advice over advice from people and have implications for the use of “big data” and algorithmic advice it generates.
Highlights
• We challenge prevailing idea that people prefer human to algorithmic judgment.
• In head-to-head comparisons, people use algorithmic advice more than human advice.
• We compare usage of advice using the continuous weighting of advice (WOA) measure.
• People appreciate algorithmic advice despite blindness to algorithm’s process.
• Algorithm appreciation holds even as people underweight advice more generally.
Abstract: Even though computational algorithms often outperform human judgment, received wisdom suggests that people may be skeptical of relying on them (Dawes, 1979). Counter to this notion, results from six experiments show that lay people adhere more to advice when they think it comes from an algorithm than from a person. People showed this effect, what we call algorithm appreciation, when making numeric estimates about a visual stimulus (Experiment 1A) and forecasts about the popularity of songs and romantic attraction (Experiments 1B and 1C). Yet, researchers predicted the opposite result (Experiment 1D). Algorithm appreciation persisted when advice appeared jointly or separately (Experiment 2). However, algorithm appreciation waned when: people chose between an algorithm’s estimate and their own (versus an external advisor’s; Experiment 3) and they had expertise in forecasting (Experiment 4). Paradoxically, experienced professionals, who make forecasts on a regular basis, relied less on algorithmic advice than lay people did, which hurt their accuracy. These results shed light on the important question of when people rely on algorithmic advice over advice from people and have implications for the use of “big data” and algorithmic advice it generates.
Extramarital guys classified in four classes: Loyal, confiding, deceptive, & unfaithful; individuals differed significantly in ways that are consistent with the investment model and attachment theory
Rodriguez, L., DiBello, A., Øverup, C., & Lin, H. (2018). A Latent Class Analysis Approach to Extradyadic Involvement. Journal of Relationships Research, 9, E7. doi:10.1017/jrr.2018.6
Abstract: Extradyadic involvement — emotional, romantic, or sexual involvement with another person outside of one's romantic relationship — may have serious personal and relational consequences. The current research examines extradyadic involvement in two samples of individuals in relationships and identifies subgroups of people based on their engagement in different types of extradyadic behaviour. To assess involvement in such behaviour, we created a new behavioural inventory intended to broaden the conceptualisation of types of extradyadic behaviours. Subgroups of individuals who engage in these behaviours were extracted using latent class analysis. Study 1 assessed undergraduate students in relationships (N = 339), and results revealed four classes of individuals: loyal, confiding, deceptive, and unfaithful. Follow-up tests demonstrated that these classes of individuals differed significantly in ways that are consistent with the investment model and attachment theory. Study 2 (N = 202) replicated the four-class solution, as well as the group differences in relationship functioning and attachment orientations. Results suggest theoretically consistent typologies of extradyadic behaviour that may be useful in differentiating deceptive behaviour in close relationships in a more precise way.
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In contrast, a series of eight studies by DeWall and colleagues (2011) found no association between attachment anxiety and infidelity.Infidelitywasoperationalised in a variety of ways (e.g., attitudes toward infidelity, engagement in overt or physical extradyadic behaviours, interest in meeting alternative partners, a validated selfreport wherein participants rated how emotionally and physically intimate they had been with an alternative partner). This final method of operationalising infidelity most closely resembles the way the current study wished to define levels of extradyadic behaviour, but in DeWall et al. (2011), the ratings were summed to create a composite infidelity index after items showed high reliability. Considering the desire of anxiously attached individuals to feel close and connected to important others (e.g., DeWall et al., 2011), measuring a range of emotional extradyadic behaviours, and not just interest in or physical attraction to alternatives, may be more important for linking anxious attachment to infidelity. This may be why a robust set of studies supporting associations between avoidant attachment and infidelity (described below) did not find significant associations between anxious attachment and infidelity.
Research on attachment avoidance paints a clearerpicture, likely driven by avoidant individuals’ fear of intimacy and desire for more independence (Brennan et al., 1998). Avoidant individuals showed greater interest in alternatives and a greater propensity for infidelity — associations that were mediated by lower levels of relationship commitment (DeWall et al., 2011). Additional work has found associations between attachment avoidance and infidelity (Fish et al., 2012) and that avoidant individuals reported the highest number of extradyadic partners compared with both anxious and secure individuals (Allen & Baucom, 2004). Thus, greater attachment avoidance may be associated with a higher likelihood of engaging in behaviours of sexual infidelity, such as kissing, heavy petting and sexual intercourse, particularly in more casual situations (Feeney, Noller, & Patty, 1993; Fraley, Davis, & Shaver, 1998). Moreover, attachment avoidance might also be associated with the greater use of deceptive extradyadic behaviours, as avoidantly attached individualstendtodislikeconflict(Domingue&Mollen, 2009). Using deception may be a way to avoid potential conflict situations with partners and maintain emotional and general independence. In contrast, Russell et al.’s (2013) longitudinal studies on newlywed couples found no association between one’s own attachment avoidance and infidelity; however, in one of the two studies, a partner effect of attachment avoidance on infidelity emerged, where one was less likely to cheat if his or her partner was higher in avoidance. These studies, which ran for three to four years, asked both spouses to report on their own perpetrated infidelity or discovery of their partner’s infidelity at each time point, with the definition of infidelity being left open to each participant.
Abstract: Extradyadic involvement — emotional, romantic, or sexual involvement with another person outside of one's romantic relationship — may have serious personal and relational consequences. The current research examines extradyadic involvement in two samples of individuals in relationships and identifies subgroups of people based on their engagement in different types of extradyadic behaviour. To assess involvement in such behaviour, we created a new behavioural inventory intended to broaden the conceptualisation of types of extradyadic behaviours. Subgroups of individuals who engage in these behaviours were extracted using latent class analysis. Study 1 assessed undergraduate students in relationships (N = 339), and results revealed four classes of individuals: loyal, confiding, deceptive, and unfaithful. Follow-up tests demonstrated that these classes of individuals differed significantly in ways that are consistent with the investment model and attachment theory. Study 2 (N = 202) replicated the four-class solution, as well as the group differences in relationship functioning and attachment orientations. Results suggest theoretically consistent typologies of extradyadic behaviour that may be useful in differentiating deceptive behaviour in close relationships in a more precise way.
---
In contrast, a series of eight studies by DeWall and colleagues (2011) found no association between attachment anxiety and infidelity.Infidelitywasoperationalised in a variety of ways (e.g., attitudes toward infidelity, engagement in overt or physical extradyadic behaviours, interest in meeting alternative partners, a validated selfreport wherein participants rated how emotionally and physically intimate they had been with an alternative partner). This final method of operationalising infidelity most closely resembles the way the current study wished to define levels of extradyadic behaviour, but in DeWall et al. (2011), the ratings were summed to create a composite infidelity index after items showed high reliability. Considering the desire of anxiously attached individuals to feel close and connected to important others (e.g., DeWall et al., 2011), measuring a range of emotional extradyadic behaviours, and not just interest in or physical attraction to alternatives, may be more important for linking anxious attachment to infidelity. This may be why a robust set of studies supporting associations between avoidant attachment and infidelity (described below) did not find significant associations between anxious attachment and infidelity.
Research on attachment avoidance paints a clearerpicture, likely driven by avoidant individuals’ fear of intimacy and desire for more independence (Brennan et al., 1998). Avoidant individuals showed greater interest in alternatives and a greater propensity for infidelity — associations that were mediated by lower levels of relationship commitment (DeWall et al., 2011). Additional work has found associations between attachment avoidance and infidelity (Fish et al., 2012) and that avoidant individuals reported the highest number of extradyadic partners compared with both anxious and secure individuals (Allen & Baucom, 2004). Thus, greater attachment avoidance may be associated with a higher likelihood of engaging in behaviours of sexual infidelity, such as kissing, heavy petting and sexual intercourse, particularly in more casual situations (Feeney, Noller, & Patty, 1993; Fraley, Davis, & Shaver, 1998). Moreover, attachment avoidance might also be associated with the greater use of deceptive extradyadic behaviours, as avoidantly attached individualstendtodislikeconflict(Domingue&Mollen, 2009). Using deception may be a way to avoid potential conflict situations with partners and maintain emotional and general independence. In contrast, Russell et al.’s (2013) longitudinal studies on newlywed couples found no association between one’s own attachment avoidance and infidelity; however, in one of the two studies, a partner effect of attachment avoidance on infidelity emerged, where one was less likely to cheat if his or her partner was higher in avoidance. These studies, which ran for three to four years, asked both spouses to report on their own perpetrated infidelity or discovery of their partner’s infidelity at each time point, with the definition of infidelity being left open to each participant.
Men's relationship satisfaction, passionate love, & liking were more driven by touch, whereas those of women's were more driven by hearing; higher differential valuing predicted higher passionate love for both
Miron, A., Jiang, L., Weisensel, K., Patterson, M., & Rizo, F. (2018). Testing a Transactional Model of Romantic Sensory Interactions in Male and Female Romantic Intimates. Journal of Relationships Research 2018, 9, e2. doi:10.1017/jrr.2018.2
Abstract: We propose a transactional model of romantic sensory interactions, according to which male and female intimates adapt to the specific context of their romantic relationships by adopting different sensory domains of interactions with their partners. To test this model, we measured romantic couples’ orientations toward using sensory modalities of romantic relating, and the importance of these modalities (N = 137 couples). Although not all hypotheses were supported, the findings suggest that men's relationship satisfaction, passionate love, and liking were driven by a stronger orientation toward touch, whereas women's relationship satisfaction, passionate love, liking, and commitment were predicted by a stronger preference for hearing. Higher differential valuing of touch and bodily sensations predicted higher passionate love for both men and women, suggesting that these sensory modalities have similar functions for both genders — to maintain sexual desire and passionate love for the partner. These findings underscore the importance of romantic couples’ differential sensory orientations in maintaining satisfying relationships.
Abstract: We propose a transactional model of romantic sensory interactions, according to which male and female intimates adapt to the specific context of their romantic relationships by adopting different sensory domains of interactions with their partners. To test this model, we measured romantic couples’ orientations toward using sensory modalities of romantic relating, and the importance of these modalities (N = 137 couples). Although not all hypotheses were supported, the findings suggest that men's relationship satisfaction, passionate love, and liking were driven by a stronger orientation toward touch, whereas women's relationship satisfaction, passionate love, liking, and commitment were predicted by a stronger preference for hearing. Higher differential valuing of touch and bodily sensations predicted higher passionate love for both men and women, suggesting that these sensory modalities have similar functions for both genders — to maintain sexual desire and passionate love for the partner. These findings underscore the importance of romantic couples’ differential sensory orientations in maintaining satisfying relationships.
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Ratcliffe: Europe "has green taxes that, at best, can be described as foolish as they are having the opposite effect to how they were intended"
INEOS's Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Open Letter to the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. Feb 2019, https://www.ineos.com/news/ineos-group/letter-to-the-european-commission-president-jean-claude-juncker
Dear President Juncker,
“Are you quite mad?” was the reaction of one well known CEO of a European chemicals company when INEOS publicly announced recently its huge €3 billion petrochemicals expansion in Antwerp in January of this year. The first of its kind for a generation.
Nobody but nobody in my business seriously invests in Europe. They haven’t for a generation. Everyone in my business does however invest in the USA, Middle East or China, or indeed, all three. The USA is in the middle of a $200 billion spending spree on 333 new chemical plants. China has spent that sum annually for many years, constructing its own chemical building blocks.
Europe, not so long ago the world leader in chemicals, has seen its market share in the last decade alone collapse from 30% world market share to 15%. This is an industry that employs over 1 million people in high quality jobs in Europe and five times that in indirect jobs. Worldwide, chemicals is an immense industry, considerably bigger than the automotive sector with revenues approaching $4 trillion.
Europe is no longer competitive. It has the worlds most expensive energy and labour laws that are uninviting for employers. Worst of all, it has green taxes that, at best, can be described as foolish as they are having the opposite effect to how they were intended.
Europe going it alone with green taxes prevents renewal as it frightens away investment into the open arms of the USA and China. It also pushes manufacturing to other parts of the world that care less for the environment. To get a sense of the importance of renewal a 70s car will emit 50 times the pollution of a modern day car. Chemical plants are not so different.
The USA is fully in the process of renewal. Immense building programmes are installing the world’s finest chemical technology which has a fraction of the emissions we saw a generation ago. Old units are being shut down. The USA doesn’t have green taxes but it does insist on the very highest environmental standards before it issues permits for new builds.So let’s step back. Europe remains with an industry built one or two generations ago with old environmental standards and has frightened away new investment for a generation with heavy green taxes. America has welcomed new investment but on condition that it has the highest possible environmental standards. It has created investment, new jobs and improved environmental emissions. Europe has done the opposite on all fronts. I know who looks smarter.
I have an intense interest in preserving the environment. I see wildlife being slaughtered in Africa, forests burning all over the world, fish stocks being decimated and I fully believe that we must arrest global warming.
But Europe ‘going it alone’ with green taxes as its main strategy has got it wrong.
As for the question posed to me at the outset, “Are we mad?”, the answer is no. INEOS is uniquely able to import huge quantities of cheap energy and feedstocks from the USA and we have no ‘market risk’ as all the product that we will produce will be consumed by our own INEOS businesses in Europe.
But don’t expect others to follow. They will be welcomed by the USA and China with a warm smile and a good strategy.
Europe, reminds me somewhat of the Charge of the Light Brigade, immortalised in Tennyson’s wonderful poem, full of valour and good intention but the outcome will not be pretty.
Yours Sincerely
Dear President Juncker,
“Are you quite mad?” was the reaction of one well known CEO of a European chemicals company when INEOS publicly announced recently its huge €3 billion petrochemicals expansion in Antwerp in January of this year. The first of its kind for a generation.
Nobody but nobody in my business seriously invests in Europe. They haven’t for a generation. Everyone in my business does however invest in the USA, Middle East or China, or indeed, all three. The USA is in the middle of a $200 billion spending spree on 333 new chemical plants. China has spent that sum annually for many years, constructing its own chemical building blocks.
Europe, not so long ago the world leader in chemicals, has seen its market share in the last decade alone collapse from 30% world market share to 15%. This is an industry that employs over 1 million people in high quality jobs in Europe and five times that in indirect jobs. Worldwide, chemicals is an immense industry, considerably bigger than the automotive sector with revenues approaching $4 trillion.
Europe is no longer competitive. It has the worlds most expensive energy and labour laws that are uninviting for employers. Worst of all, it has green taxes that, at best, can be described as foolish as they are having the opposite effect to how they were intended.
Europe going it alone with green taxes prevents renewal as it frightens away investment into the open arms of the USA and China. It also pushes manufacturing to other parts of the world that care less for the environment. To get a sense of the importance of renewal a 70s car will emit 50 times the pollution of a modern day car. Chemical plants are not so different.
The USA is fully in the process of renewal. Immense building programmes are installing the world’s finest chemical technology which has a fraction of the emissions we saw a generation ago. Old units are being shut down. The USA doesn’t have green taxes but it does insist on the very highest environmental standards before it issues permits for new builds.So let’s step back. Europe remains with an industry built one or two generations ago with old environmental standards and has frightened away new investment for a generation with heavy green taxes. America has welcomed new investment but on condition that it has the highest possible environmental standards. It has created investment, new jobs and improved environmental emissions. Europe has done the opposite on all fronts. I know who looks smarter.
I have an intense interest in preserving the environment. I see wildlife being slaughtered in Africa, forests burning all over the world, fish stocks being decimated and I fully believe that we must arrest global warming.
But Europe ‘going it alone’ with green taxes as its main strategy has got it wrong.
As for the question posed to me at the outset, “Are we mad?”, the answer is no. INEOS is uniquely able to import huge quantities of cheap energy and feedstocks from the USA and we have no ‘market risk’ as all the product that we will produce will be consumed by our own INEOS businesses in Europe.
But don’t expect others to follow. They will be welcomed by the USA and China with a warm smile and a good strategy.
Europe, reminds me somewhat of the Charge of the Light Brigade, immortalised in Tennyson’s wonderful poem, full of valour and good intention but the outcome will not be pretty.
Yours Sincerely
Violent video game engagement is not associated with adolescents' aggressive behaviour: No evidence for a critical tipping point relating violent game engagement to aggressive behaviour
Violent video game engagement is not associated with adolescents' aggressive behaviour: evidence from a registered report. Andrew K. Przybylski and Netta Weinstein. Royal Society Open Science, Volume 6, Issue 2. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.171474
Abstract: In this study, we investigated the extent to which adolescents who spend time playing violent video games exhibit higher levels of aggressive behaviour when compared with those who do not. A large sample of British adolescent participants (n = 1004) aged 14 and 15 years and an equal number of their carers were interviewed. Young people provided reports of their recent gaming experiences. Further, the violent contents of these games were coded using official EU and US ratings, and carers provided evaluations of their adolescents' aggressive behaviours in the past month. Following a preregistered analysis plan, multiple regression analyses tested the hypothesis that recent violent game play is linearly and positively related to carer assessments of aggressive behaviour. Results did not support this prediction, nor did they support the idea that the relationship between these factors follows a nonlinear parabolic function. There was no evidence for a critical tipping point relating violent game engagement to aggressive behaviour. Sensitivity and exploratory analyses indicated these null effects extended across multiple operationalizations of violent game engagement and when the focus was on another behavioural outcome, namely, prosocial behaviour. The discussion presents an interpretation of this pattern of effects in terms of both the ongoing scientific and policy debates around violent video games, and emerging standards for robust evidence-based policy concerning young people's technology use.
Abstract: In this study, we investigated the extent to which adolescents who spend time playing violent video games exhibit higher levels of aggressive behaviour when compared with those who do not. A large sample of British adolescent participants (n = 1004) aged 14 and 15 years and an equal number of their carers were interviewed. Young people provided reports of their recent gaming experiences. Further, the violent contents of these games were coded using official EU and US ratings, and carers provided evaluations of their adolescents' aggressive behaviours in the past month. Following a preregistered analysis plan, multiple regression analyses tested the hypothesis that recent violent game play is linearly and positively related to carer assessments of aggressive behaviour. Results did not support this prediction, nor did they support the idea that the relationship between these factors follows a nonlinear parabolic function. There was no evidence for a critical tipping point relating violent game engagement to aggressive behaviour. Sensitivity and exploratory analyses indicated these null effects extended across multiple operationalizations of violent game engagement and when the focus was on another behavioural outcome, namely, prosocial behaviour. The discussion presents an interpretation of this pattern of effects in terms of both the ongoing scientific and policy debates around violent video games, and emerging standards for robust evidence-based policy concerning young people's technology use.
Do Americans consider polling results an objective source of information? They view polls as more credible when majority opinion matched their opinion
All the Best Polls Agree with Me: Bias in Evaluations of Political Polling. Gabriel J. Madson. D. Sunshine Hillygus. Political Behavior, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-019-09532-1
Abstract: Do Americans consider polling results an objective source of information? Experts tend to evaluate the credibility of polls based on the survey methods used, vendor track record, and data transparency, but it is unclear if the public does the same. In two different experimental studies—one focusing on candidate evaluations in the 2016 U.S. election and one on a policy issue—we find a significant factor in respondent assessments of polling credibility to be the poll results themselves. Respondents viewed polls as more credible when majority opinion matched their opinion. Moreover, we find evidence of attitude polarization after viewing polling results, suggesting motivated reasoning in the evaluations of political polls. These findings indicate that evaluations of polls are biased by motivated reasoning and suggest that such biases could constrain the possible impact of polls on political decision making.
Keywords: Polling Poll evaluation Public opinion Motivated reasoning Cognitive bias
Abstract: Do Americans consider polling results an objective source of information? Experts tend to evaluate the credibility of polls based on the survey methods used, vendor track record, and data transparency, but it is unclear if the public does the same. In two different experimental studies—one focusing on candidate evaluations in the 2016 U.S. election and one on a policy issue—we find a significant factor in respondent assessments of polling credibility to be the poll results themselves. Respondents viewed polls as more credible when majority opinion matched their opinion. Moreover, we find evidence of attitude polarization after viewing polling results, suggesting motivated reasoning in the evaluations of political polls. These findings indicate that evaluations of polls are biased by motivated reasoning and suggest that such biases could constrain the possible impact of polls on political decision making.
Keywords: Polling Poll evaluation Public opinion Motivated reasoning Cognitive bias
Sex Differences in Human Olfaction: A Meta-Analysis
Sex Differences in Human Olfaction: A Meta-Analysis. Piotr Sorokowski, Maciej Karwowski, Michał Misiak, Michalina Konstancja Marczak, Martyna Dziekan, Thomas Hummel and Agnieszka Sorokowska. Front. Psychol., 13 February 2019. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00242
Although the view that women's olfactory abilities outperform men's is taken for granted, some studies involving large samples suggested that male and female olfactory abilities are actually similar. To address this discrepancy, we conducted a meta-analysis of existing studies on olfaction, targeting possible sex differences. The analyzed sample comprised n = 8 848 (5 065 women and 3 783 men) for olfactory threshold (as measured with the Sniffin Sticks Test; SST), n = 8 067 (4 496 women and 3 571 men) for discrimination (SST), n = 13 670 (7 501 women and 6 169 men) for identification (SST), and a total sample of n = 7 154 (3 866 women and 3 288 men) for works using University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). We conducted separate meta-analyses for each aspect of olfaction: identification, discrimination and threshold. The results of our meta-analysis indicate that women generally outperform men in olfactory abilities. What is more, they do so in every aspect of olfaction analyzed in the current study. However, the effect sizes were weak and ranged between g = 0.08 and g = 0.30. We discuss our findings in the context of factors that potentially shape sex differences in olfaction. Nevertheless, although our findings seem to confirm the “common knowledge” on female olfactory superiority, it needs to be emphasized that the effect sizes we observed were notably small.
Although the view that women's olfactory abilities outperform men's is taken for granted, some studies involving large samples suggested that male and female olfactory abilities are actually similar. To address this discrepancy, we conducted a meta-analysis of existing studies on olfaction, targeting possible sex differences. The analyzed sample comprised n = 8 848 (5 065 women and 3 783 men) for olfactory threshold (as measured with the Sniffin Sticks Test; SST), n = 8 067 (4 496 women and 3 571 men) for discrimination (SST), n = 13 670 (7 501 women and 6 169 men) for identification (SST), and a total sample of n = 7 154 (3 866 women and 3 288 men) for works using University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). We conducted separate meta-analyses for each aspect of olfaction: identification, discrimination and threshold. The results of our meta-analysis indicate that women generally outperform men in olfactory abilities. What is more, they do so in every aspect of olfaction analyzed in the current study. However, the effect sizes were weak and ranged between g = 0.08 and g = 0.30. We discuss our findings in the context of factors that potentially shape sex differences in olfaction. Nevertheless, although our findings seem to confirm the “common knowledge” on female olfactory superiority, it needs to be emphasized that the effect sizes we observed were notably small.
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
High occupational level is associated with poor response to the treatment of depression
High occupational level is associated with poor response to the treatment of depression: A replication study. Laura Mandelli et al. European Neuropsychopharmacology, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroneuro.2019.01.107
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability and inability to work. There is evidence that occupational factors may precipitate a MDD episode and interfere with the recovery process. In a previous investigation, we found that those employed in high occupational levels had a worse outcome after treatment for depression (Mandelli et al., 2016). The aim of the present study was to further investigate response to treatments for depression according to occupational status on an independent sample of MDD patients.
Six hundred and forty-seven (647) subjects with a stable working occupation were taken from a larger independent sample of MDD patients evaluated for response and resistance to treatment for depression, after at least one adequate treatment trial. Three broad occupational categories were considered: ‘manager’, ‘white-collar’, ‘blue-collar’ and ‘self-employed’.
Managers had the highest rate of non-response and resistance to treatments. White-collar workers also had high non-response and resistance rates. At the opposite, Blue-collar workers had significantly lower rates of non-response and resistance. Self-employed were in between White- and Blue-collar workers and did not significantly differ from the other occupational categories.
The findings of this replication study substantially support our previous observations. MDD patients employed in high-middle occupations may have a less favorable outcome after standard treatments of depression. Working stressful condition and other psychosocial factors at work should be investigated more closely in relation to treatment outcomes in MDD.
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability and inability to work. There is evidence that occupational factors may precipitate a MDD episode and interfere with the recovery process. In a previous investigation, we found that those employed in high occupational levels had a worse outcome after treatment for depression (Mandelli et al., 2016). The aim of the present study was to further investigate response to treatments for depression according to occupational status on an independent sample of MDD patients.
Six hundred and forty-seven (647) subjects with a stable working occupation were taken from a larger independent sample of MDD patients evaluated for response and resistance to treatment for depression, after at least one adequate treatment trial. Three broad occupational categories were considered: ‘manager’, ‘white-collar’, ‘blue-collar’ and ‘self-employed’.
Managers had the highest rate of non-response and resistance to treatments. White-collar workers also had high non-response and resistance rates. At the opposite, Blue-collar workers had significantly lower rates of non-response and resistance. Self-employed were in between White- and Blue-collar workers and did not significantly differ from the other occupational categories.
The findings of this replication study substantially support our previous observations. MDD patients employed in high-middle occupations may have a less favorable outcome after standard treatments of depression. Working stressful condition and other psychosocial factors at work should be investigated more closely in relation to treatment outcomes in MDD.
Consumers tend to consume too rapidly, growing tired of initially well-liked stimuli such as a favorite snack/an enjoyable video game more quickly than they would if they slowed consumption
Galak, Jeffrey; Kruger, Justin; Loewenstein, George (2018): Too Much of a Good Thing: Insensitivity to Rate of Consumption Leads to Unforeseen Satiation. https://kilthub.cmu.edu/articles/Too_Much_of_a_Good_Thing_Insensitivity_to_Rate_of_Consumption_Leads_to_Unforeseen_Satiation/6708902/1
Abstract: Consumers are often able to choose how often to consume the things they enjoy. The research presented here suggests that consumers tend to consume too rapidly, growing tired of initially well-liked stimuli such as a favorite snack (Experiments 1 and 4) or an enjoyable video game (Experiments 2 and 3) more quickly than they would if they slowed consumption. The results also suggest that this because of an underestimation of the extent to which breaks reset adaptation. The results present a paradox: Participants who chose their own rate of consumption enjoyed the stimulus less than participants who had a slower rate of consumption chosen for them.
Abstract: Consumers are often able to choose how often to consume the things they enjoy. The research presented here suggests that consumers tend to consume too rapidly, growing tired of initially well-liked stimuli such as a favorite snack (Experiments 1 and 4) or an enjoyable video game (Experiments 2 and 3) more quickly than they would if they slowed consumption. The results also suggest that this because of an underestimation of the extent to which breaks reset adaptation. The results present a paradox: Participants who chose their own rate of consumption enjoyed the stimulus less than participants who had a slower rate of consumption chosen for them.
Sovereign Bonds since Waterloo: The returns on external sovereign bonds have been sufficiently high to compensate for risk; & full repudiation is rare, the median haircut is below 50%
Sovereign Bonds since Waterloo. Josefin Meyer, Carmen M. Reinhart, Christoph TrebeschNBER Working Paper No. 25543, February 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25543
Abstract: This paper studies external sovereign bonds as an asset class. We compile a new database of 220,000 monthly prices of foreign-currency government bonds traded in London and New York between 1815 (the Battle of Waterloo) and 2016, covering 91 countries. Our main insight is that, as in equity markets, the returns on external sovereign bonds have been sufficiently high to compensate for risk. Real ex-post returns averaged 7% annually across two centuries, including default episodes, major wars, and global crises. This represents an excess return of around 4% above US or UK government bonds, which is comparable to stocks and outperforms corporate bonds. The observed returns are hard to reconcile with canonical theoretical models and with the degree of credit risk in this market, as measured by historical default and recovery rates. Based on our archive of more than 300 sovereign debt restructurings since 1815, we show that full repudiation is rare; the median haircut is below 50%.
Abstract: This paper studies external sovereign bonds as an asset class. We compile a new database of 220,000 monthly prices of foreign-currency government bonds traded in London and New York between 1815 (the Battle of Waterloo) and 2016, covering 91 countries. Our main insight is that, as in equity markets, the returns on external sovereign bonds have been sufficiently high to compensate for risk. Real ex-post returns averaged 7% annually across two centuries, including default episodes, major wars, and global crises. This represents an excess return of around 4% above US or UK government bonds, which is comparable to stocks and outperforms corporate bonds. The observed returns are hard to reconcile with canonical theoretical models and with the degree of credit risk in this market, as measured by historical default and recovery rates. Based on our archive of more than 300 sovereign debt restructurings since 1815, we show that full repudiation is rare; the median haircut is below 50%.
Given the inherent complexity & ambiguity of the political realm, ideological uncertainty undermines political efficacy & interest, motivating individuals to disengage from participating in electoral politics
Ideological uncertainty and investment of the self in politics. Joseph A.Vitriola et al. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, Volume 82, May 2019, Pages 85-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2019.01.005
Abstract: Ideological orientation may provide some citizens with an efficient heuristic for guiding their political judgment. Accordingly, one might expect that ideological uncertainty would lead individuals to engage more deeply with the political domain in order to acquire a sufficient level of subjective certainty that the ideological orientation they have adopted is the “right” one. Given the inherent complexity and ambiguity of the political realm, however, we propose that ideological uncertainty should instead undermine political efficacy and interest, thereby motivating individuals to disengage and withdrawal from participating in electoral politics. Using both correlational and experimental methods, we conduct four studies on both convenience and representative samples in the context of two electoral contexts to test this hypothesis. Study 1 (N = 343) and Study 2 (N = 1054) demonstrate that ideological uncertainty covaries with reduced levels of political engagement and participation in the 2012 and 2016 U.S. Presidential Election, respectively. Study 3 (N = 170) and Study 4 (N = 798) replicate and extend the results of Study 1 and 2 by experimentally manipulating ideological uncertainty using an original and innovative false-feedback paradigm. We demonstrate the causal effect of ideological uncertainty on political engagement (independent of demographic variables, political knowledge, and ideological extremity and conviction), and find that it is particularly pronounced among individuals who reflect on the meaning of their political judgment and behaviors for their political orientation. Implications for political choice and behavior are considered.
Abstract: Ideological orientation may provide some citizens with an efficient heuristic for guiding their political judgment. Accordingly, one might expect that ideological uncertainty would lead individuals to engage more deeply with the political domain in order to acquire a sufficient level of subjective certainty that the ideological orientation they have adopted is the “right” one. Given the inherent complexity and ambiguity of the political realm, however, we propose that ideological uncertainty should instead undermine political efficacy and interest, thereby motivating individuals to disengage and withdrawal from participating in electoral politics. Using both correlational and experimental methods, we conduct four studies on both convenience and representative samples in the context of two electoral contexts to test this hypothesis. Study 1 (N = 343) and Study 2 (N = 1054) demonstrate that ideological uncertainty covaries with reduced levels of political engagement and participation in the 2012 and 2016 U.S. Presidential Election, respectively. Study 3 (N = 170) and Study 4 (N = 798) replicate and extend the results of Study 1 and 2 by experimentally manipulating ideological uncertainty using an original and innovative false-feedback paradigm. We demonstrate the causal effect of ideological uncertainty on political engagement (independent of demographic variables, political knowledge, and ideological extremity and conviction), and find that it is particularly pronounced among individuals who reflect on the meaning of their political judgment and behaviors for their political orientation. Implications for political choice and behavior are considered.
From 2015... Past research suggests moral behavior is highly inconsistent, which leaves little room for a personological approach to morality; authors reveal a surprisingly large degree of moral consistency
From 2015... A foundation beam for studying morality from a personological point of view: Are individual differences in moral behaviors and thoughts consistent? Peter Meindl et al. Journal of Research in Personality, Volume 59, December 2015, Pages 81-92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2015.09.005
Highlights
• Past research suggests moral behavior is highly inconsistent.
• This leaves little room for a personological approach to morality.
• We tested the consistency of real world morality via two experience sampling studies.
• Results reveal a surprisingly large degree of moral consistency.
• Personality appears to have the potential to profoundly impact moral life.
Abstract: Morality is a topic of burgeoning scientific interest, and the relevance of personological factors to moral behavior has interdisciplinary implications for the social sciences, public policy, and philosophy. However, relatively little research has investigated the role of personological factors in moral life, perhaps because of lingering skepticism about the robustness of moral traits. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether morality is consistent across many occasions of everyday life, implying that personological factors play an important role in moral behavior. A novel method of assessing moral behaviors was developed and employed in two experience sampling studies (4075 total observations). Results showed that moral behavior is consistent in many different ways, suggesting that personological factors substantially impact moral life.
Highlights
• Past research suggests moral behavior is highly inconsistent.
• This leaves little room for a personological approach to morality.
• We tested the consistency of real world morality via two experience sampling studies.
• Results reveal a surprisingly large degree of moral consistency.
• Personality appears to have the potential to profoundly impact moral life.
Abstract: Morality is a topic of burgeoning scientific interest, and the relevance of personological factors to moral behavior has interdisciplinary implications for the social sciences, public policy, and philosophy. However, relatively little research has investigated the role of personological factors in moral life, perhaps because of lingering skepticism about the robustness of moral traits. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether morality is consistent across many occasions of everyday life, implying that personological factors play an important role in moral behavior. A novel method of assessing moral behaviors was developed and employed in two experience sampling studies (4075 total observations). Results showed that moral behavior is consistent in many different ways, suggesting that personological factors substantially impact moral life.
Why would people vote to ban a product they regularly consume? This question is at the crux of the controversies over a variety of ballot initiatives restricting certain agricultural production practices
An Experiment on the Vote-Buy Gap with Application to Cage-Free Eggs. Andrew Paul, Jayson Lusk. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2019.02.005
Highlights
• The vote-buy gap can be replicated in the lab.
• Many people vote to ban a product they purchase.
• The behavior is not driven by a sample selection effect.
• Information asymmetry may be one driver of the effect.
Abstract: Why would people vote to ban a product they regularly consume? This question is at the crux of the controversies over a variety of ballot initiatives restricting certain agricultural production practices. This research moves the question to a controlled laboratory setting with real food and real money to explore the underlying causes of the so-called vote-buy gap. Respondents first made a shopping choice between snack options, some of which included eggs from caged hens as an ingredient. After selecting a snack, participants then voted on a proposition to ban snack options that utilized eggs from caged hens. We show that the vote-buy gap can be replicated in the lab: in the control condition, approximately 80% of the individuals who chose snacks with caged eggs when shopping subsequently voted to ban snacks with caged eggs. The finding rules out the suggestion that the vote-buy gap is an illusion or statistical artifact, as it can be re-created in an experimental lab setting at an individual level. A number of experimental treatments were conducted to test hypotheses related to the underlying causes of the vote-buy gap. We found qualified support for the hypothesis that the vote-buy gap is a result of information asymmetries, but little evidence that it results from public good or expressive voting phenomena.
Highlights
• The vote-buy gap can be replicated in the lab.
• Many people vote to ban a product they purchase.
• The behavior is not driven by a sample selection effect.
• Information asymmetry may be one driver of the effect.
Abstract: Why would people vote to ban a product they regularly consume? This question is at the crux of the controversies over a variety of ballot initiatives restricting certain agricultural production practices. This research moves the question to a controlled laboratory setting with real food and real money to explore the underlying causes of the so-called vote-buy gap. Respondents first made a shopping choice between snack options, some of which included eggs from caged hens as an ingredient. After selecting a snack, participants then voted on a proposition to ban snack options that utilized eggs from caged hens. We show that the vote-buy gap can be replicated in the lab: in the control condition, approximately 80% of the individuals who chose snacks with caged eggs when shopping subsequently voted to ban snacks with caged eggs. The finding rules out the suggestion that the vote-buy gap is an illusion or statistical artifact, as it can be re-created in an experimental lab setting at an individual level. A number of experimental treatments were conducted to test hypotheses related to the underlying causes of the vote-buy gap. We found qualified support for the hypothesis that the vote-buy gap is a result of information asymmetries, but little evidence that it results from public good or expressive voting phenomena.
Rolf Degen summarizing: 38% of subjects derived pleasure from purportedly grinding live bugs, some demanded even more than they had been granted
Psychopathy subfactors distinctively predispose to dispositional and state-level of sadistic pleasure.. Jill Lobbestael, Martijn van Teffelen, Roy F. Baumeister. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2019.02.003
Highlights
• Sadistic pleasure has devastating interpersonal and societal consequences.
• The current knowledge on non-sexual, subclinical forms of sadistic pleasure is poor.
• Coldheartedness showed the strongest relationship to sadistic pleasure.
• Increased Coldheartedness related to more pleasure and less guilt after bug grinding.
Abstract
Background and objectives: Sadistic pleasure — the enjoyment of harm-infliction to others — can have devastating interpersonal and societal consequences. The current knowledge on non-sexual, subclinical forms of sadistic pleasure is poor. The present study therefore focussed on the personality correlates of sadistic pleasure and investigated the relationship between the different subcomponents of psychopathy and both dispositional and state-level sadistic pleasure.
Method: N = 120 males drawn from a community sample filled out questionnaires to assess their level of psychopathy and dispositional sadism. Then, participants engaged in a bug-grinder procedure in which they were led to believe that they were killing pill bugs. The positive affect they reported after ostensibly killing the bugs served as measures of sadistic pleasure. The bug-grinding task was repeated a second time after installing either a positive victim attitude combined with giving human names to the bugs, or a negative victim attitude combined with labeling the bugs with numbers.
Results: Although the Self-centred Impulsivity component of psychopathy had some relevance to sadism, it was the Coldheartedness subscale that showed the strongest relationship to sadistic pleasure. Specifically, increased Coldheartedness was uniquely related to more positive affect, along with less guilt after bug grinding.
Limitations: Drawbacks of the study include the unique reliance on a male, community sample, and the potential impact of demand characteristics, including a suggestion that the participant put at least some bugs into the grinder.
Conclusions: Our findings underscore the differential predictive value of psychopathy components for sadistic pleasure. Coldheartedness can be considered especially disturbing because of its unique relationship to harm-infliction of the most irreversible nature (i.e. killing), and gaining pleasure out of it.
Highlights
• Sadistic pleasure has devastating interpersonal and societal consequences.
• The current knowledge on non-sexual, subclinical forms of sadistic pleasure is poor.
• Coldheartedness showed the strongest relationship to sadistic pleasure.
• Increased Coldheartedness related to more pleasure and less guilt after bug grinding.
Abstract
Background and objectives: Sadistic pleasure — the enjoyment of harm-infliction to others — can have devastating interpersonal and societal consequences. The current knowledge on non-sexual, subclinical forms of sadistic pleasure is poor. The present study therefore focussed on the personality correlates of sadistic pleasure and investigated the relationship between the different subcomponents of psychopathy and both dispositional and state-level sadistic pleasure.
Method: N = 120 males drawn from a community sample filled out questionnaires to assess their level of psychopathy and dispositional sadism. Then, participants engaged in a bug-grinder procedure in which they were led to believe that they were killing pill bugs. The positive affect they reported after ostensibly killing the bugs served as measures of sadistic pleasure. The bug-grinding task was repeated a second time after installing either a positive victim attitude combined with giving human names to the bugs, or a negative victim attitude combined with labeling the bugs with numbers.
Results: Although the Self-centred Impulsivity component of psychopathy had some relevance to sadism, it was the Coldheartedness subscale that showed the strongest relationship to sadistic pleasure. Specifically, increased Coldheartedness was uniquely related to more positive affect, along with less guilt after bug grinding.
Limitations: Drawbacks of the study include the unique reliance on a male, community sample, and the potential impact of demand characteristics, including a suggestion that the participant put at least some bugs into the grinder.
Conclusions: Our findings underscore the differential predictive value of psychopathy components for sadistic pleasure. Coldheartedness can be considered especially disturbing because of its unique relationship to harm-infliction of the most irreversible nature (i.e. killing), and gaining pleasure out of it.
Monday, February 11, 2019
Universal Basic Income: Would direct much larger shares of transfers to childless, non-elderly, non-disabled households than existing programs, and much more to middle-income rather than poor households
Universal Basic Income in the US and Advanced Countries. Hilary W. Hoynes, Jesse Rothstein. NBER Working Paper No. 25538, February 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25538
Abstract: We discuss the potential role of Universal Basic Incomes (UBIs) in advanced countries. A feature of advanced economies that distinguishes them from developing countries is the existence of well developed, if often incomplete, safety nets. We develop a framework for describing transfer programs, flexible enough to encompass most existing programs as well as UBIs, and use this framework to compare various UBIs to the existing constellation of programs in the United States. A UBI would direct much larger shares of transfers to childless, non-elderly, non-disabled households than existing programs, and much more to middle-income rather than poor households. A UBI large enough to increase transfers to low-income families would be enormously expensive. We review the labor supply literature for evidence on the likely impacts of a UBI. We argue that the ongoing UBI pilot studies will do little to resolve the major outstanding questions.
Abstract: We discuss the potential role of Universal Basic Incomes (UBIs) in advanced countries. A feature of advanced economies that distinguishes them from developing countries is the existence of well developed, if often incomplete, safety nets. We develop a framework for describing transfer programs, flexible enough to encompass most existing programs as well as UBIs, and use this framework to compare various UBIs to the existing constellation of programs in the United States. A UBI would direct much larger shares of transfers to childless, non-elderly, non-disabled households than existing programs, and much more to middle-income rather than poor households. A UBI large enough to increase transfers to low-income families would be enormously expensive. We review the labor supply literature for evidence on the likely impacts of a UBI. We argue that the ongoing UBI pilot studies will do little to resolve the major outstanding questions.
Intergenerational Mobility in Africa: Upward mobility is higher & downward mobility is lower in regions that were more developed at independence (higher urbanization & employment in services & manufacturing)
Intergenerational Mobility in Africa. Alberto Alesina, Sebastian Hohmann, Stelios Michalopoulos, Elias Papaioannou. NBER Working Paper No. 25534. February 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25534
We examine intergenerational mobility (IM) in educational attainment in Africa since independence, using census data from 26 countries. First, we map and characterize the geography of IM. There is substantial variation both across and within countries with differences in literacy of the old generation being the strongest correlate of IM. Inertia is stronger for rural, as compared to urban, households and present for both boys and girls. Second, we explore the correlates of mobility across more than 2,800 regions. Colonial investments in the transportation network and missionary activity are associated with upward mobility. IM is also higher in regions close to the coast and national capitals as well as in rugged areas without malaria. Upward mobility is higher and downward mobility is lower in regions that were more developed at independence, with higher urbanization and employment in services and manufacturing. Third, we identify the effects of regions on educational mobility by exploiting within-family variation from children whose families moved during primary school age. While sorting is sizable, there are considerable regional exposure effects.
We examine intergenerational mobility (IM) in educational attainment in Africa since independence, using census data from 26 countries. First, we map and characterize the geography of IM. There is substantial variation both across and within countries with differences in literacy of the old generation being the strongest correlate of IM. Inertia is stronger for rural, as compared to urban, households and present for both boys and girls. Second, we explore the correlates of mobility across more than 2,800 regions. Colonial investments in the transportation network and missionary activity are associated with upward mobility. IM is also higher in regions close to the coast and national capitals as well as in rugged areas without malaria. Upward mobility is higher and downward mobility is lower in regions that were more developed at independence, with higher urbanization and employment in services and manufacturing. Third, we identify the effects of regions on educational mobility by exploiting within-family variation from children whose families moved during primary school age. While sorting is sizable, there are considerable regional exposure effects.
Genetic predisposition for Alzheimer's Disease correlates with, but is not causally related to older individuals’ wealth holdings
Understanding the Correlation between Alzheimer's Disease Polygenic Risk, Wealth, and the Composition of Wealth Holdings. Su H. Shin, Dean R. Lillard, Jay Bhattacharya.
NBER Working Paper No. 25526. February 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25526
Abstract: We investigate how the genetic risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease (AD) relates to saving behavior. Using nationally representative data from the 1992-2014 Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we find that genetic predisposition for AD correlates with, but is not causally related to older individuals’ wealth holdings. People with higher Alzheimer’s Disease polygenic risk score (PGS) hold roughly 9 percent more wealth in CDs (hands-off assets) and around 11 percent, 15 percent, and 7 percent less wealth in stocks, IRAs, and other financial assets (hands-on assets) respectively. We explore three hypotheses that could explain these correlations. We hypothesize that people with high risk of AD choose different portfolios because: (i) they know their polygenic risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementia, (ii) they have lower cognitive capacity, and (iii) the genome-wide association studies (GWAS) process that generated the Alzheimer’s Disease PGS failed to fully account for the aging process. Our extended model results do not support the first two hypotheses. Consistent with the third hypothesis, the interaction between age and the Alzheimer’s Disease PGS explains the correlation between genetic traits and asset holdings
NBER Working Paper No. 25526. February 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25526
Abstract: We investigate how the genetic risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease (AD) relates to saving behavior. Using nationally representative data from the 1992-2014 Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we find that genetic predisposition for AD correlates with, but is not causally related to older individuals’ wealth holdings. People with higher Alzheimer’s Disease polygenic risk score (PGS) hold roughly 9 percent more wealth in CDs (hands-off assets) and around 11 percent, 15 percent, and 7 percent less wealth in stocks, IRAs, and other financial assets (hands-on assets) respectively. We explore three hypotheses that could explain these correlations. We hypothesize that people with high risk of AD choose different portfolios because: (i) they know their polygenic risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementia, (ii) they have lower cognitive capacity, and (iii) the genome-wide association studies (GWAS) process that generated the Alzheimer’s Disease PGS failed to fully account for the aging process. Our extended model results do not support the first two hypotheses. Consistent with the third hypothesis, the interaction between age and the Alzheimer’s Disease PGS explains the correlation between genetic traits and asset holdings
Arbitrary clock conventions – by generating large differences in when the sun sets across locations – help determine the geographic distribution of educational attainment levels; greater effect is among the poor
Poor Sleep: Sunset Time and Human Capital Production. Maulik Jagnani. Jan 15 2019. https://www.dropbox.com/s/5ojttz8d9leco4n/jagnani_jmp.pdf
Abstract: This paper provides evidence that arbitrary clock conventions – by generating large differences in when the sun sets across locations – help determine the geographic distribution of educational attainment levels. I show later sunset reduces children’s sleep: when the sun sets later, children go to bed later; by contrast, wake-up times do not respond to solar cues. Sleep-deprived students decrease study effort, consistent with a model where sleep is productivity-enhancing and increases the marginal returns of effort. Overall, school-age children exposed to later sunsets attain fewer years of education and are less likely to complete primary and middle school. Later sunsets are also associated with fewer hours of sleep and lower wages among adults. The non-poor adjust their sleep schedules when the sun sets later; sunset-induced sleep deficits are most pronounced among the poor, especially in periods when households face severe financial constraints.
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I find that later sunset causes school-age children to begin sleep later, but does not affect wake-up times. An hour (approximately two standard deviation) delay in sunset time reduces children’s sleep by 30 minutes. I also show that later sunset reduces students’ time spent on homework or studying, and time spent on formal and informal work by child laborers,while increasing time spent on indoor leisure for all children. This result is consistent with a model where sleep is productivity-enhancing and increases the marginal returns of study effort for students and work effort for child laborers.
The second part of the paper examines the consequent lifetime impacts of later sunset on stock indicators of children’s academic outcomes. I use nationally-representative data from the 2015 India Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) to estimate how children’s education outcomes co-vary with annual average sunset time across eastern and western locations within a district. I find that an hour (approximately two standard deviation) delay in annual average sunset time reduces years of education by 0.8 years, and children in geographic locations with later sunset are less likely to complete primary and middle school.
Abstract: This paper provides evidence that arbitrary clock conventions – by generating large differences in when the sun sets across locations – help determine the geographic distribution of educational attainment levels. I show later sunset reduces children’s sleep: when the sun sets later, children go to bed later; by contrast, wake-up times do not respond to solar cues. Sleep-deprived students decrease study effort, consistent with a model where sleep is productivity-enhancing and increases the marginal returns of effort. Overall, school-age children exposed to later sunsets attain fewer years of education and are less likely to complete primary and middle school. Later sunsets are also associated with fewer hours of sleep and lower wages among adults. The non-poor adjust their sleep schedules when the sun sets later; sunset-induced sleep deficits are most pronounced among the poor, especially in periods when households face severe financial constraints.
---
I find that later sunset causes school-age children to begin sleep later, but does not affect wake-up times. An hour (approximately two standard deviation) delay in sunset time reduces children’s sleep by 30 minutes. I also show that later sunset reduces students’ time spent on homework or studying, and time spent on formal and informal work by child laborers,while increasing time spent on indoor leisure for all children. This result is consistent with a model where sleep is productivity-enhancing and increases the marginal returns of study effort for students and work effort for child laborers.
The second part of the paper examines the consequent lifetime impacts of later sunset on stock indicators of children’s academic outcomes. I use nationally-representative data from the 2015 India Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) to estimate how children’s education outcomes co-vary with annual average sunset time across eastern and western locations within a district. I find that an hour (approximately two standard deviation) delay in annual average sunset time reduces years of education by 0.8 years, and children in geographic locations with later sunset are less likely to complete primary and middle school.
Strict ID Laws Don't Stop Voters; ID requirements have no effect on fraud either – actual or perceived; overall, efforts to reform voter ID laws may not have much impact on elections
Strict ID Laws Don't Stop Voters: Evidence from a U.S. Nationwide Panel, 2008-2016. Enrico Cantoni, Vincent Pons. NBER Working Paper No. 25522. February 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25522
Abstract: U.S. states increasingly require identification to vote – an ostensive attempt to deter fraud that prompts complaints of selective disenfranchisement. Using a difference-in-differences design on a 1.3-billion-observations panel, we find the laws have no negative effect on registration or turnout, overall or for any group defined by race, gender, age, or party affiliation. These results hold through a large number of specifications and cannot be attributed to mobilization against the laws, measured by campaign contributions and self-reported political engagement. ID requirements have no effect on fraud either – actual or perceived. Overall, our results suggest that efforts to reform voter ID laws may not have much impact on elections.
Abstract: U.S. states increasingly require identification to vote – an ostensive attempt to deter fraud that prompts complaints of selective disenfranchisement. Using a difference-in-differences design on a 1.3-billion-observations panel, we find the laws have no negative effect on registration or turnout, overall or for any group defined by race, gender, age, or party affiliation. These results hold through a large number of specifications and cannot be attributed to mobilization against the laws, measured by campaign contributions and self-reported political engagement. ID requirements have no effect on fraud either – actual or perceived. Overall, our results suggest that efforts to reform voter ID laws may not have much impact on elections.
Psychological Explanations of How Gender Relates to Perceptions and Outcomes at Trial: Verdicts tend to be harsher for male than female defendants
Psychological Explanations of How Gender Relates to Perceptions and Outcomes at Trial. Tyler N. Livingston, Peter O. Rerick, Monica K. Miller. Advances in Psychology and Law pp 137-173. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-11042-0_5
Abstract: Although the American legal system does not statutorily permit differential civil and criminal trial outcomes on the basis of gender, empirical observations of the effects of gender on trial outcomes are ample yet mixed. For several decades, legal actors have attempted to diminish the effects of gender in the courtroom through Supreme Court rulings, presidential policies, legislation, and modification of language in legal documents. Social scientific research suggests that implicit and explicit processes likely affect how the gender of legal actors (e.g., defendants, victims) relates to trial outcomes. This chapter first discusses a variety of laws and policies designed to curtail gender bias generally (e.g., in employment settings) and in the trial process specifically. Next, the chapter synthesizes empirical research that demonstrates the relationship between gender and trial process and outcomes. This synthesis of the psychological research includes specific emphasis on the gender of five primary legal actors: victims, defendants, attorneys, experts, and legal decision-makers. Then, the chapter offers psychological mechanisms that explain why the gender of legal actors (e.g., jurors, witnesses) might relate to trial outcomes. We include overarching theoretical psychological explanations for the observed effects of gender using the symbolic interaction framework and the influence of gender roles and stereotypes. Finally, we identify deficits in the existing research on the relationship between gender and the trial process, suggesting topics for future empirical examination.
Abstract: Although the American legal system does not statutorily permit differential civil and criminal trial outcomes on the basis of gender, empirical observations of the effects of gender on trial outcomes are ample yet mixed. For several decades, legal actors have attempted to diminish the effects of gender in the courtroom through Supreme Court rulings, presidential policies, legislation, and modification of language in legal documents. Social scientific research suggests that implicit and explicit processes likely affect how the gender of legal actors (e.g., defendants, victims) relates to trial outcomes. This chapter first discusses a variety of laws and policies designed to curtail gender bias generally (e.g., in employment settings) and in the trial process specifically. Next, the chapter synthesizes empirical research that demonstrates the relationship between gender and trial process and outcomes. This synthesis of the psychological research includes specific emphasis on the gender of five primary legal actors: victims, defendants, attorneys, experts, and legal decision-makers. Then, the chapter offers psychological mechanisms that explain why the gender of legal actors (e.g., jurors, witnesses) might relate to trial outcomes. We include overarching theoretical psychological explanations for the observed effects of gender using the symbolic interaction framework and the influence of gender roles and stereotypes. Finally, we identify deficits in the existing research on the relationship between gender and the trial process, suggesting topics for future empirical examination.
About 40% of adults experienced poor performance in either starting or keeping an intimate relationship; higher emotional intelligence helped, but little
Mating Performance: Exploring Emotional Intelligence, the Dark Triad, Jealousy and Attachment Effects. Menelaos Apostolou et al. Journal of Relationships Research, Volume 10, 019, e1, https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-relationships-research/article/mating-performance-exploring-emotional-intelligence-the-dark-triad-jealousy-and-attachment-effects/F5103416EF564E2CB3C83C91BA5CFA6B
Abstract: A considerable proportion of the population in post-industrial societies experiences substantial difficulties in the domain of mating. The current research attempted to estimate the prevalence rate of poor mating performance and to identify some of its predictors. Two independent studies, which employed a total of 1,358 Greek-speaking men and women, found that about 40% of the participants experienced poor performance in either starting or keeping an intimate relationship, or in both areas. Furthermore, emotional intelligence, Dark Triad traits, jealousy, and attachment style were found to be significant predictors of mating performance. In particular, higher emotional intelligence and narcissism were associated with higher performance in mating, while higher psychopathy, jealousy and an avoidant attachment style were associated with lower mating performance.
Abstract: A considerable proportion of the population in post-industrial societies experiences substantial difficulties in the domain of mating. The current research attempted to estimate the prevalence rate of poor mating performance and to identify some of its predictors. Two independent studies, which employed a total of 1,358 Greek-speaking men and women, found that about 40% of the participants experienced poor performance in either starting or keeping an intimate relationship, or in both areas. Furthermore, emotional intelligence, Dark Triad traits, jealousy, and attachment style were found to be significant predictors of mating performance. In particular, higher emotional intelligence and narcissism were associated with higher performance in mating, while higher psychopathy, jealousy and an avoidant attachment style were associated with lower mating performance.
In old age, people from higher classes commit more crimes (tax & insurance fraud, theft at work, &c) than those of lower ones; not by need, but to maintain/expand the status already achieved
Alter(n) und Straffälligkeit: Handbuch für Wissenschaft und Praxis. Franziska Kunz, Thomas Görgen. January 2019, DOI: 10.5771/9783845276687-491
And a different world: The Crimes That Old Persons Commit. Oliver J. Keller, Jr., Clyde B. Vedder. The Gerontologist, Volume 8, Issue 1, Part 1, March 01 1968, Pages 43–50, https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/8.1_Part_1.43
Check also Old Age and Crime. David O Moberg. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, vol 43, issue 3, 1953. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4086&context=jclc
And a different world: The Crimes That Old Persons Commit. Oliver J. Keller, Jr., Clyde B. Vedder. The Gerontologist, Volume 8, Issue 1, Part 1, March 01 1968, Pages 43–50, https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/8.1_Part_1.43
Check also Old Age and Crime. David O Moberg. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, vol 43, issue 3, 1953. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4086&context=jclc
Detecting a Decline in Serial Homicide: The past decade had almost half the cases (13%) that existed at the 1980s peak of serial homicide (27%)
Yaksic, Enzo, Clare Allely, Raneesha De Silva, Melissa Smith-Inglis, Daniel Konikoff, Kori Ryan, Dan Gordon, et al. 2019. “Detecting a Decline in Serial Homicide: Have We Banished the Devil from the Details?.” SocArXiv. February 11. doi:10.31235/osf.io/esyvg
Abstract
Objectives: The likelihood that serial murderers are responsible for most unresolved homicides and missing persons was examined by investigating the accounting of the phenomenon in the context of a declining prevalence.
Methods: A mixed methods approach was used, consisting of a review of a sample of unresolved homicides, a comparative analysis of the frequency of known serial homicide series and unresolved serial homicide series, and semi-structured interviews of experts.
Results: The past decade contained almost half the cases (13%) that existed at the 1980s peak of serial homicide (27%). Only 282 (1.3%) strangled females made up the 22,444 unresolved homicides reviewed. Most expert respondents thought it unreasonable that any meaningful proportion of missing persons cases are victims of serial homicide.
Conclusions: Technology, shifts in offending behavior, proactive law enforcement action, and vigilance of society have transformed serial killing and aids in viewing offenders as people impacted by societal shifts and cultural norms. The absence of narrative details inhibited some aspects of the review. An exhaustive list of known unresolved serial homicide series remained elusive as some missing persons are never reported. Future research should incorporate those intending to murder serially, but whose efforts were stalled by arrest, imprisonment, or death.
Abstract
Objectives: The likelihood that serial murderers are responsible for most unresolved homicides and missing persons was examined by investigating the accounting of the phenomenon in the context of a declining prevalence.
Methods: A mixed methods approach was used, consisting of a review of a sample of unresolved homicides, a comparative analysis of the frequency of known serial homicide series and unresolved serial homicide series, and semi-structured interviews of experts.
Results: The past decade contained almost half the cases (13%) that existed at the 1980s peak of serial homicide (27%). Only 282 (1.3%) strangled females made up the 22,444 unresolved homicides reviewed. Most expert respondents thought it unreasonable that any meaningful proportion of missing persons cases are victims of serial homicide.
Conclusions: Technology, shifts in offending behavior, proactive law enforcement action, and vigilance of society have transformed serial killing and aids in viewing offenders as people impacted by societal shifts and cultural norms. The absence of narrative details inhibited some aspects of the review. An exhaustive list of known unresolved serial homicide series remained elusive as some missing persons are never reported. Future research should incorporate those intending to murder serially, but whose efforts were stalled by arrest, imprisonment, or death.
Sunday, February 10, 2019
Conspiracy Beliefs and Personaliy Traits: Agreeableness, openness to experience, & the remaining Big Five personality factors were not significantly associated with conspiracy beliefs
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Psychological Research on Conspiracy Beliefs: Field Characteristics, Measurement Instruments, and Associations With Personality Traits. Andreas Goreis, and Martin Voracek. Front. Psychol., February 11 2019. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00205
Abstract: In the last decade, the number of investigations of the beliefs in conspiracy theories has begun to increase in the fields of social, differential, and experimental psychology. A considerable number of variables have been suggested as predictors of conspiracy beliefs, amongst them personality factors such as low agreeableness (as disagreeableness is associated with suspicion and antagonism) and high openness to experience (due to its positive association to seek out unusual and novel ideas). The association between agreeableness, openness to experience and conspiracy beliefs remains unclear in the literature. The present study reviews the literature of psychological studies investigating conspiracy beliefs. Additionally, the association between Big Five personality factors and conspiracy beliefs is analyzed meta-analytically using random-effects models. Ninety-six studies were identified for the systematic review. A comprehensive account of predictors, consequences, operationalization, questionnaires, and most prominent conspiracy theories is presented. For meta-analysis, 74 effect sizes from 13 studies were extracted. The psychological literature on predictors of conspiracy beliefs can be divided in approaches either with a pathological (e.g., paranoia) or socio-political focus (e.g., perceived powerlessness). Generally, there is a lack of theoretical frameworks in this young area of research. Meta-analysis revealed that agreeableness, openness to experience, and the remaining Big Five personality factors were not significantly associated with conspiracy beliefs if effect sizes are aggregated. Considerable heterogeneity in designs and operationalization characterizes the field. This article provides an overview of instrumentation, study designs, and current state of knowledge in an effort toward advancement and consensus in the study of conspiracy beliefs.
Abstract: In the last decade, the number of investigations of the beliefs in conspiracy theories has begun to increase in the fields of social, differential, and experimental psychology. A considerable number of variables have been suggested as predictors of conspiracy beliefs, amongst them personality factors such as low agreeableness (as disagreeableness is associated with suspicion and antagonism) and high openness to experience (due to its positive association to seek out unusual and novel ideas). The association between agreeableness, openness to experience and conspiracy beliefs remains unclear in the literature. The present study reviews the literature of psychological studies investigating conspiracy beliefs. Additionally, the association between Big Five personality factors and conspiracy beliefs is analyzed meta-analytically using random-effects models. Ninety-six studies were identified for the systematic review. A comprehensive account of predictors, consequences, operationalization, questionnaires, and most prominent conspiracy theories is presented. For meta-analysis, 74 effect sizes from 13 studies were extracted. The psychological literature on predictors of conspiracy beliefs can be divided in approaches either with a pathological (e.g., paranoia) or socio-political focus (e.g., perceived powerlessness). Generally, there is a lack of theoretical frameworks in this young area of research. Meta-analysis revealed that agreeableness, openness to experience, and the remaining Big Five personality factors were not significantly associated with conspiracy beliefs if effect sizes are aggregated. Considerable heterogeneity in designs and operationalization characterizes the field. This article provides an overview of instrumentation, study designs, and current state of knowledge in an effort toward advancement and consensus in the study of conspiracy beliefs.
British colonial rule correlates positively with democracy levels at independence; changes in the international system during the Cold War eliminated the British advantage
British colonialism and democracy: Divergent inheritances and diminishing legacies. Alexander Lee, Jack Paine. Journal of Comparative Economics, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jce.2019.02.001
Highlights
• British colonial rule correlates positively with democracy levels at independence.
• British colonial rule is not strongly associated with democracy levels thirty years after independence.
• Britain tailored decolonization policies to individual colonies’ democratic development.
• Changes in the international system during the Cold War eliminated the British advantage.
Abstract: Did British colonial rule promote post-independence democracy? We provide evidence that the relationship follows a strong temporal pattern. Former British colonies were considerably more democratic than other countries immediately following independence, but subsequent democratic convergence has largely eliminated these differences in the post-Cold War period. Existing theories expounding superior British culture or alternative colonial institutions cannot account for divergent inheritances and diminishing legacies. To explain the time-varying pattern, we analyze European powers’ varying policy approaches to decolonization as well as changes in the international system. Britain more consistently treated competitive democratic elections as a prerequisite for gaining independence, leading to higher initial democracy levels. However, nascent democracies that lacked deep-rooted societal transformation faced challenges to democratic consolidation because of Cold War superpower competition. Later shifts in the international system toward promoting democracy further contributed to convergence by destabilizing colonially rooted dictatorships.
Highlights
• British colonial rule correlates positively with democracy levels at independence.
• British colonial rule is not strongly associated with democracy levels thirty years after independence.
• Britain tailored decolonization policies to individual colonies’ democratic development.
• Changes in the international system during the Cold War eliminated the British advantage.
Abstract: Did British colonial rule promote post-independence democracy? We provide evidence that the relationship follows a strong temporal pattern. Former British colonies were considerably more democratic than other countries immediately following independence, but subsequent democratic convergence has largely eliminated these differences in the post-Cold War period. Existing theories expounding superior British culture or alternative colonial institutions cannot account for divergent inheritances and diminishing legacies. To explain the time-varying pattern, we analyze European powers’ varying policy approaches to decolonization as well as changes in the international system. Britain more consistently treated competitive democratic elections as a prerequisite for gaining independence, leading to higher initial democracy levels. However, nascent democracies that lacked deep-rooted societal transformation faced challenges to democratic consolidation because of Cold War superpower competition. Later shifts in the international system toward promoting democracy further contributed to convergence by destabilizing colonially rooted dictatorships.
Everyone should feel entitled to more: This privatized approach taken by the US Gov't and employers exacerbates inequalities among workers
The Real Mommy War Is Against the State. Caitlyn Collins. The New York Times. Feb 10, 2019, Page SR7, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/09/opinion/sunday/the-real-mommy-war-is-against-the-state.html
Stop blaming yourselves. Blame the total lack of social supports.
A lawyer and I stepped into a windowless conference room in her office building in Washington, D.C., and she reflexively closed the door. I had forgotten to restock my tissues and would soon regret that. By then, I had been interviewing American mothers about their work-family conflict for several weeks. I asked women I had just met what their bosses said to them when they announced a pregnancy, what their parental leave was like, if they could ever work remotely when a child was sick.
This time, I didn’t get even 20 minutes into the conversation before the woman I was interviewing dissolved in tears.
She recalled scrambling after her son was born to accomplish two tasks: “knitting back together” from her C-section and assembling a patchwork of enough disability leave, vacation and sick days, and unpaid time off, to rest briefly and care for her infant son before returning to work. In the United States — the only country in the industrialized world without federally mandated paid maternity leave — this do-it-yourself approach is often the only option.
“You could have children, but the general expectation was, if you made that choice, you needed to have a plan for someone else to care for them,” the lawyer in Washington told me.
Since 2011, I’ve interviewed 135 middle-class employed mothers in Sweden, Germany, Italy and the United States to understand their work-family conflict. (I spoke to mothers specifically because in wealthy nations, mothers have historically been the focus of work-family policies and they’re still responsible for most housework and child care. They report greater work-family conflict and they use work-family policies more often than men.) And I had a personal interest: I’d watched my own mother struggle to navigate her work and family obligations — a decade-long juggling act that involved occasionally toting my sister and me to boardroom meetings to nap in sleeping bags when babysitters fell ill or schools closed. Years later, it seemed as though the conflict hadn’t eased for many of my peers.
In the United States, almost every woman I interviewed had reached the same conclusion: It was her — or her and her partner’s — responsibility to figure out child care, cobble together a leave of absence (often unpaid), get on a preschool waiting list, find a babysitter, seek advice from friends and acquaintances, and engineer any number of other highly improvised coping techniques. In the lawyer’s case, this meant, among other things, joining a less-prestigious firm that demanded fewer hours and finding the right hands-free breast pump to multitask in her cubicle. The common thread in every conversation was that the parents had to solve their problem themselves, no matter how piecemeal the solutions.
That all makes perfect (if outrageous) sense: The United States has the least generous benefits, the lowest public commitment to caregiving, one of the highest wage gaps between employed men and women, and among the highest maternal and child poverty rates of any Western industrialized nation.
In the course of my interviews, I discovered that American working mothers generally blame themselves for how hard their lives are. They take personal responsibility for problems that European mothers recognize as having external causes. The lesson here isn’t for overwhelmed American parents to look longingly across the Atlantic; it’s to emulate the Swedes, Germans and Italians by harboring the reasonable expectation that the state will help.
All the American mothers I interviewed said they felt enormous guilt and tension between their work and family commitments. So did the Italians. But Italian women tended to blame the government for their problems: “Social benefits? Zero. Less than zero. Nobody helps me,” laughed one woman I met, a single mother working at a hospital in Rome. “Does the government help me? No,” she said, “but they should think about helping you a little bit.”
In Sweden, working mothers I spoke with wanted full gender equality and expected to seamlessly combine paid work and child rearing. Mothers there also anticipated that the government would support them in these endeavors — and that’s exactly what the Swedish state, its work-family policy, and the country’s cultural ideals about work and motherhood do. When Swedish mothers feel stressed, they tend to blame the country’s lofty expectations of what parenting should be. German mothers ascribed their work-family juggling act, with its emphasis on traditional home life, to outdated cultural ideals.
American women who worked for companies that provided flexible schedules and paid maternity leave described themselves as “being very lucky” or “feeling privileged.” This privatized approach taken by the United States government and employers exacerbates inequalities among workers. Some elite employers elect to offer helpful work-family policies, meaning only certain workers — typically highly educated, salaried employees — receive these supports. The employees most in need of support, however — vulnerable hourly-wage workers — are the ones least likely to enjoy any work-family benefits. The highest-income earners in the United States are 3.5 times as likely to have access to paid family leave as those at the bottom of the pay scale.
After three months of interviews with mothers in Sweden, I was heartened to discover that the country in many ways lives up to its image as the place where women come closest to having successful careers and fulfilling family lives. But consider the national policy focus responsible for that lifestyle: Sweden prizes gender equality, universal child care and a “dual earner-carer” model that features women and men sharing breadwinning and child-rearing roles.
Women in Stockholm seemed confused or laughed out loud when I used the term “working mother.” “I don’t think that expression exists in Swedish,” an urban planner and mother of two told me. “It’s not like there’s a ‘nonworking mother,’” she said. “I mean, what else would she do?”
But we can’t simply import social policies and hope they’ll have the same effect in a different context. For instance, American parents tend to marvel at Germany’s comparatively luxurious-sounding three-year parental leave, which was available to new parents for decades. So I was taken aback when many working mothers in Germany told me they despised the policy because of the cultural stigma it heaped on their shoulders to not return to work until they absolutely had to. A teacher who went back to work before the end of the allowable parental leave described people telling her: “You cannot do this. You are selfish, you’re a career whore.”
“Balance” is a term that came up relentlessly in my conversations with women in the United States. But framing work-family conflict as a problem of imbalance is merely an individualized way to justify a nation of mothers engulfed in stress. It fails to recognize how institutions contribute to this anxiety.
The stress that American parents feel is an urgent political issue, so the solution must be political as well. We have a social responsibility to solve work-family conflict. Let’s start with paid parental leave and high-quality, affordable child care as national priorities.
Women — again, on this side of the Atlantic — routinely assume it’s their duty to stitch together time off after childbirth. Those fortunate to qualify for parental-leave benefits — even two months at full pay, or six weeks at partial pay — feel real gratitude for such slim provisions. And in a country where most women (too often the poor and racial-ethnic minorities) receive no paid leave at all, that gratitude makes sense. But being able to work and raise the next generation of taxpayers and employees should never be deemed a matter of mere “luck.”
Everyone should feel entitled to more.
Caitlyn Collins is an assistant professor of sociology at Washington University in St. Louis and the author of “Making Motherhood Work: How Women Manage Careers and Caregiving,” from which this essay is adapted.
Check also The Perpetual Panic of American Parenthood. Pamela Druckerman. TNYT, Oct 13 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/14/opinion/the-perpetual-panic-of-american-parenthood.html:
"make America great, by making it a bit more like the rest of the world"
Stop blaming yourselves. Blame the total lack of social supports.
A lawyer and I stepped into a windowless conference room in her office building in Washington, D.C., and she reflexively closed the door. I had forgotten to restock my tissues and would soon regret that. By then, I had been interviewing American mothers about their work-family conflict for several weeks. I asked women I had just met what their bosses said to them when they announced a pregnancy, what their parental leave was like, if they could ever work remotely when a child was sick.
This time, I didn’t get even 20 minutes into the conversation before the woman I was interviewing dissolved in tears.
She recalled scrambling after her son was born to accomplish two tasks: “knitting back together” from her C-section and assembling a patchwork of enough disability leave, vacation and sick days, and unpaid time off, to rest briefly and care for her infant son before returning to work. In the United States — the only country in the industrialized world without federally mandated paid maternity leave — this do-it-yourself approach is often the only option.
“You could have children, but the general expectation was, if you made that choice, you needed to have a plan for someone else to care for them,” the lawyer in Washington told me.
Since 2011, I’ve interviewed 135 middle-class employed mothers in Sweden, Germany, Italy and the United States to understand their work-family conflict. (I spoke to mothers specifically because in wealthy nations, mothers have historically been the focus of work-family policies and they’re still responsible for most housework and child care. They report greater work-family conflict and they use work-family policies more often than men.) And I had a personal interest: I’d watched my own mother struggle to navigate her work and family obligations — a decade-long juggling act that involved occasionally toting my sister and me to boardroom meetings to nap in sleeping bags when babysitters fell ill or schools closed. Years later, it seemed as though the conflict hadn’t eased for many of my peers.
In the United States, almost every woman I interviewed had reached the same conclusion: It was her — or her and her partner’s — responsibility to figure out child care, cobble together a leave of absence (often unpaid), get on a preschool waiting list, find a babysitter, seek advice from friends and acquaintances, and engineer any number of other highly improvised coping techniques. In the lawyer’s case, this meant, among other things, joining a less-prestigious firm that demanded fewer hours and finding the right hands-free breast pump to multitask in her cubicle. The common thread in every conversation was that the parents had to solve their problem themselves, no matter how piecemeal the solutions.
That all makes perfect (if outrageous) sense: The United States has the least generous benefits, the lowest public commitment to caregiving, one of the highest wage gaps between employed men and women, and among the highest maternal and child poverty rates of any Western industrialized nation.
In the course of my interviews, I discovered that American working mothers generally blame themselves for how hard their lives are. They take personal responsibility for problems that European mothers recognize as having external causes. The lesson here isn’t for overwhelmed American parents to look longingly across the Atlantic; it’s to emulate the Swedes, Germans and Italians by harboring the reasonable expectation that the state will help.
All the American mothers I interviewed said they felt enormous guilt and tension between their work and family commitments. So did the Italians. But Italian women tended to blame the government for their problems: “Social benefits? Zero. Less than zero. Nobody helps me,” laughed one woman I met, a single mother working at a hospital in Rome. “Does the government help me? No,” she said, “but they should think about helping you a little bit.”
In Sweden, working mothers I spoke with wanted full gender equality and expected to seamlessly combine paid work and child rearing. Mothers there also anticipated that the government would support them in these endeavors — and that’s exactly what the Swedish state, its work-family policy, and the country’s cultural ideals about work and motherhood do. When Swedish mothers feel stressed, they tend to blame the country’s lofty expectations of what parenting should be. German mothers ascribed their work-family juggling act, with its emphasis on traditional home life, to outdated cultural ideals.
American women who worked for companies that provided flexible schedules and paid maternity leave described themselves as “being very lucky” or “feeling privileged.” This privatized approach taken by the United States government and employers exacerbates inequalities among workers. Some elite employers elect to offer helpful work-family policies, meaning only certain workers — typically highly educated, salaried employees — receive these supports. The employees most in need of support, however — vulnerable hourly-wage workers — are the ones least likely to enjoy any work-family benefits. The highest-income earners in the United States are 3.5 times as likely to have access to paid family leave as those at the bottom of the pay scale.
After three months of interviews with mothers in Sweden, I was heartened to discover that the country in many ways lives up to its image as the place where women come closest to having successful careers and fulfilling family lives. But consider the national policy focus responsible for that lifestyle: Sweden prizes gender equality, universal child care and a “dual earner-carer” model that features women and men sharing breadwinning and child-rearing roles.
Women in Stockholm seemed confused or laughed out loud when I used the term “working mother.” “I don’t think that expression exists in Swedish,” an urban planner and mother of two told me. “It’s not like there’s a ‘nonworking mother,’” she said. “I mean, what else would she do?”
But we can’t simply import social policies and hope they’ll have the same effect in a different context. For instance, American parents tend to marvel at Germany’s comparatively luxurious-sounding three-year parental leave, which was available to new parents for decades. So I was taken aback when many working mothers in Germany told me they despised the policy because of the cultural stigma it heaped on their shoulders to not return to work until they absolutely had to. A teacher who went back to work before the end of the allowable parental leave described people telling her: “You cannot do this. You are selfish, you’re a career whore.”
“Balance” is a term that came up relentlessly in my conversations with women in the United States. But framing work-family conflict as a problem of imbalance is merely an individualized way to justify a nation of mothers engulfed in stress. It fails to recognize how institutions contribute to this anxiety.
The stress that American parents feel is an urgent political issue, so the solution must be political as well. We have a social responsibility to solve work-family conflict. Let’s start with paid parental leave and high-quality, affordable child care as national priorities.
Women — again, on this side of the Atlantic — routinely assume it’s their duty to stitch together time off after childbirth. Those fortunate to qualify for parental-leave benefits — even two months at full pay, or six weeks at partial pay — feel real gratitude for such slim provisions. And in a country where most women (too often the poor and racial-ethnic minorities) receive no paid leave at all, that gratitude makes sense. But being able to work and raise the next generation of taxpayers and employees should never be deemed a matter of mere “luck.”
Everyone should feel entitled to more.
Caitlyn Collins is an assistant professor of sociology at Washington University in St. Louis and the author of “Making Motherhood Work: How Women Manage Careers and Caregiving,” from which this essay is adapted.
Check also The Perpetual Panic of American Parenthood. Pamela Druckerman. TNYT, Oct 13 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/14/opinion/the-perpetual-panic-of-american-parenthood.html:
"make America great, by making it a bit more like the rest of the world"
Why do people love to share their running routes on social media? When people sense their own mate value to be low, or when there is a mating motive, they want to ensure workout posts are noticed
If you work it, flaunt it: Conspicuous displays of exercise efforts increase mate value. Jolien Vandenbroele, Anneleen Van Kerckhove, Maggie Geuens. Journal of Business Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.01.030
Abstract: Why do people love to share their running routes on social media? From an evolutionary perspective, the conspicuous display of exercise efforts provides an indicator of health. These displays benefit the sender, given that health establishes a human mate preference. Hence, potential mates attribute higher mate value to individuals posting about workouts because of greater inferred healthiness. In line with this theorizing, activating a mating motive increases online sharing intentions for workouts (vs. activities that require less energy) when people sense their own mate value to be low. Moreover, a mating motive increases senders' desire to ensure workout posts are noticed by attractive potential partners. Along with some boundary conditions of the costly signal, this article details the implications of these findings for theory, public policy, and online community marketers.
Abstract: Why do people love to share their running routes on social media? From an evolutionary perspective, the conspicuous display of exercise efforts provides an indicator of health. These displays benefit the sender, given that health establishes a human mate preference. Hence, potential mates attribute higher mate value to individuals posting about workouts because of greater inferred healthiness. In line with this theorizing, activating a mating motive increases online sharing intentions for workouts (vs. activities that require less energy) when people sense their own mate value to be low. Moreover, a mating motive increases senders' desire to ensure workout posts are noticed by attractive potential partners. Along with some boundary conditions of the costly signal, this article details the implications of these findings for theory, public policy, and online community marketers.
Saturday, February 9, 2019
Interplay Between Genetic and Environmental Contributions in the Unfolding of Personality Differences from Early Adolescence to Young Adulthood
Unravelling the Interplay Between Genetic and Environmental Contributions in the Unfolding of Personality Differences from Early Adolescence to Young Adulthood. Christian Kandler et al. European Journal of Personality, https://doi.org/10.1002/per.2189
Abstract: In two studies, we examined the genetic and environmental sources of the unfolding of personality trait differences from childhood to emerging adulthood. Using self‐reports from over 3000 representative German twin pairs of three birth cohorts, we could replicate previous findings on the primary role of genetic sources accounting for the unfolding of inter‐individual differences in personality traits and stabilizing trait differences during adolescence. More specifically, the genetic variance increased between early (ages 10–12 years) and late (ages 16–18 years) adolescence and stabilized between late adolescence and young adulthood (ages 21–25 years). This trend could be confirmed in a second three‐wave longitudinal study of adolescents' personality self‐reports and parent ratings from about 1400 Norwegian twin families (average ages between 15 and 20 years). Moreover, the longitudinal study provided evidence for increasing genetic differences being primarily due to accumulation of novel genetic influences instead of an amplification of initial genetic variation. This is in line with cumulative interaction effects between twins' correlated genetic makeups and environmental circumstances shared by adolescent twins reared together. In other words, nature × nurture interactions rather than transactions can account for increases in genetic variance and thus personality variance during adolescence.
Abstract: In two studies, we examined the genetic and environmental sources of the unfolding of personality trait differences from childhood to emerging adulthood. Using self‐reports from over 3000 representative German twin pairs of three birth cohorts, we could replicate previous findings on the primary role of genetic sources accounting for the unfolding of inter‐individual differences in personality traits and stabilizing trait differences during adolescence. More specifically, the genetic variance increased between early (ages 10–12 years) and late (ages 16–18 years) adolescence and stabilized between late adolescence and young adulthood (ages 21–25 years). This trend could be confirmed in a second three‐wave longitudinal study of adolescents' personality self‐reports and parent ratings from about 1400 Norwegian twin families (average ages between 15 and 20 years). Moreover, the longitudinal study provided evidence for increasing genetic differences being primarily due to accumulation of novel genetic influences instead of an amplification of initial genetic variation. This is in line with cumulative interaction effects between twins' correlated genetic makeups and environmental circumstances shared by adolescent twins reared together. In other words, nature × nurture interactions rather than transactions can account for increases in genetic variance and thus personality variance during adolescence.
Is the Capacity for Vocal Learning in Vertebrates Rooted in Fish Schooling Behavior?
Is the Capacity for Vocal Learning in Vertebrates Rooted in Fish Schooling Behavior? Matz Larsson, Benjamin W. Abbott. Evolutionary Biology, December 2018, Volume 45, Issue 4, pp 359–373. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11692-018-9457-8
Abstract: The capacity to learn and reproduce vocal sounds has evolved in phylogenetically distant tetrapod lineages. Vocal learners in all these lineages express similar neural circuitry and genetic factors when perceiving, processing, and reproducing vocalization, suggesting that brain pathways for vocal learning evolved within strong constraints from a common ancestor, potentially fish. We hypothesize that the auditory-motor circuits and genes involved in entrainment have their origins in fish schooling behavior and respiratory-motor coupling. In this acoustic advantages hypothesis, aural costs and benefits played a key role in shaping a wide variety of traits, which could readily be exapted for entrainment and vocal learning, including social grouping, group movement, and respiratory-motor coupling. Specifically, incidental sounds of locomotion and respiration (ISLR) may have reinforced synchronization by communicating important spatial and temporal information between school-members and extending windows of silence to improve situational awareness. This process would be mutually reinforcing. Neurons in the telencephalon, which were initially involved in linking ISLR with forelimbs, could have switched functions to serve vocal machinery (e.g. mouth, beak, tongue, larynx, syrinx). While previous vocal learning hypotheses invoke transmission of neurons from visual tasks (gestures) to the auditory channel, this hypothesis involves the auditory channel from the onset. Acoustic benefits of locomotor-respiratory coordination in fish may have selected for genetic factors and brain circuitry capable of synchronizing respiratory and limb movements, predisposing tetrapod lines to synchronized movement, vocalization, and vocal learning. We discuss how the capacity to entrain is manifest in fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals, and propose predictions to test our acoustic advantages hypothesis.
Abstract: The capacity to learn and reproduce vocal sounds has evolved in phylogenetically distant tetrapod lineages. Vocal learners in all these lineages express similar neural circuitry and genetic factors when perceiving, processing, and reproducing vocalization, suggesting that brain pathways for vocal learning evolved within strong constraints from a common ancestor, potentially fish. We hypothesize that the auditory-motor circuits and genes involved in entrainment have their origins in fish schooling behavior and respiratory-motor coupling. In this acoustic advantages hypothesis, aural costs and benefits played a key role in shaping a wide variety of traits, which could readily be exapted for entrainment and vocal learning, including social grouping, group movement, and respiratory-motor coupling. Specifically, incidental sounds of locomotion and respiration (ISLR) may have reinforced synchronization by communicating important spatial and temporal information between school-members and extending windows of silence to improve situational awareness. This process would be mutually reinforcing. Neurons in the telencephalon, which were initially involved in linking ISLR with forelimbs, could have switched functions to serve vocal machinery (e.g. mouth, beak, tongue, larynx, syrinx). While previous vocal learning hypotheses invoke transmission of neurons from visual tasks (gestures) to the auditory channel, this hypothesis involves the auditory channel from the onset. Acoustic benefits of locomotor-respiratory coordination in fish may have selected for genetic factors and brain circuitry capable of synchronizing respiratory and limb movements, predisposing tetrapod lines to synchronized movement, vocalization, and vocal learning. We discuss how the capacity to entrain is manifest in fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals, and propose predictions to test our acoustic advantages hypothesis.
Monozygotic Twins Seem To Have Higher Genetic Quality (significantly more physically attractive & healthier) than DZ Twins and Singletons; MZ twins may be a quality-maximizing feature of sexual reproduction
Do Monozygotic Twins Have Higher Genetic Quality than Dizygotic Twins and Singletons? Hints from Attractiveness Ratings and Self-Reported Health. Satoshi Kanazawa, Nancy L. Segal. Evolutionary Biology, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11692-019-09470-0
Abstract: Evolutionary theories generally concur that sexual reproduction and genetic recombination evolved to maximize genetic variability. Thus, the existence of monozygotic (MZ) twins, which do not take advantage of genetic recombination for each offspring, poses a puzzle. Evolutionary logic of inclusive fitness suggests that parents with high-quality genes may be more likely to produce MZ twins. Analyses of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health show that MZ twins were significantly more physically attractive and healthier than dizygotic (DZ) twins and singletons. These results suggest that MZ twins may possess higher-quality genes than DZ twins and singletons, and support one of the first evolutionary theories of MZ twinning that specifies its ultimate functions.
Keywords: Twin research Monozygotic twin conception Add Health
Abstract: Evolutionary theories generally concur that sexual reproduction and genetic recombination evolved to maximize genetic variability. Thus, the existence of monozygotic (MZ) twins, which do not take advantage of genetic recombination for each offspring, poses a puzzle. Evolutionary logic of inclusive fitness suggests that parents with high-quality genes may be more likely to produce MZ twins. Analyses of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health show that MZ twins were significantly more physically attractive and healthier than dizygotic (DZ) twins and singletons. These results suggest that MZ twins may possess higher-quality genes than DZ twins and singletons, and support one of the first evolutionary theories of MZ twinning that specifies its ultimate functions.
Keywords: Twin research Monozygotic twin conception Add Health
Little is known about the operation of male mate choice in systems with perceived high costs to male choosiness, like Rana sylvatica; matings with preferred females produced fewer and lower-quality offspring
Fitness costs of mating with preferred females in a scramble mating system. Lindsey Swierk, Tracy Langkilde. Behavioral Ecology, arz001, https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arz001
Abstract: Little is known about the operation of male mate choice in systems with perceived high costs to male choosiness. Scramble mating systems are one type of system in which male choice is often considered too costly to be selected. However, in many scramble mating systems, there are also potentially high rewards of male choosiness, as females vary dramatically in reproductive output and males typically mate once per season and/or per lifetime. Using scramble mating wood frogs (Rana sylvatica), we tested whether males gain fitness benefits by mating with preferred females. We conducted choice trials (1 male presented simultaneously with 2 females) and permitted males to mate with their preferred or nonpreferred female. Offspring of preferred and nonpreferred females were reared in the laboratory and field, and we quantified various fitness-relevant parameters, including survivorship and growth rates. Across multiple parameters measured, matings with preferred females produced fewer and lower-quality offspring than did those with nonpreferred females. Our results are inconsistent with the idea that mate choice confers benefits on the choosing sex. We instead propose that, in scramble systems, males will be more likely to amplex females that are easier to capture, which may correlate with lower quality but increases male likelihood of successfully mating. Such male choice may not favor increased fitness when the operational sex ratio is less biased toward males in scramble mating systems but is, instead, a bet-hedging tactic benefitting males when available females are limited.
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Our data suggest that an untested parameter of male wood frog mate choice may also play a role in determining its rela-tive costs and benefits. In recent decades, mate choice based on genetic compatibility has been demonstrated to be an important and widely observed component of mate choice (see Brown 1997; Tregenza and Wedell 2000; Mays and Hill 2004). In particular, mate choice based on dissimilarity of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes has been observed in humans (Wedekind et al. 1995) and other species (e.g., Gowaty et al. 2003; Agbali et al. 2010; Rymešová et al. 2017; for review see Kamiya et al. 2014); benefits of choosing a mate with dissimilar MHC genes include provisioning offspring with a greater variety of cell-surface proteins that enable the immune system to identify and fight pathogens and parasites (Bernatchez and Landry 2003; Piertney and Oliver 2006; Ruff et al. 2012). If male mate choice in wood frogs also has an MHC-compatibility component (or similar), then it could be pre-dicted that, when faced with challenges to the immune system, offspring of preferred females would have a fitness advantage over the offspring of nonpreferred females. When taken as a whole, our data support this idea. In the lab, in the absence of immune chal-lenges, offspring of preferred females had lower survivorship than the offspring of nonpreferred females (Figure 3a), possibly due to reasons associated with female catchability, as proposed above. However, in the presence of numerous immune challenges in the field, this difference in offspring survivorship disappears (Figure 4a). A MHC-related fitness cost to mating with nonpreferred mates could be responsible for closing the gap between preferred and nonpreferred offspring field survivorship. While admittedly far from conclusive, these results imply that multiple types of mate choice may exist in this scramble system and could warrant future study.
Abstract: Little is known about the operation of male mate choice in systems with perceived high costs to male choosiness. Scramble mating systems are one type of system in which male choice is often considered too costly to be selected. However, in many scramble mating systems, there are also potentially high rewards of male choosiness, as females vary dramatically in reproductive output and males typically mate once per season and/or per lifetime. Using scramble mating wood frogs (Rana sylvatica), we tested whether males gain fitness benefits by mating with preferred females. We conducted choice trials (1 male presented simultaneously with 2 females) and permitted males to mate with their preferred or nonpreferred female. Offspring of preferred and nonpreferred females were reared in the laboratory and field, and we quantified various fitness-relevant parameters, including survivorship and growth rates. Across multiple parameters measured, matings with preferred females produced fewer and lower-quality offspring than did those with nonpreferred females. Our results are inconsistent with the idea that mate choice confers benefits on the choosing sex. We instead propose that, in scramble systems, males will be more likely to amplex females that are easier to capture, which may correlate with lower quality but increases male likelihood of successfully mating. Such male choice may not favor increased fitness when the operational sex ratio is less biased toward males in scramble mating systems but is, instead, a bet-hedging tactic benefitting males when available females are limited.
---
Our data suggest that an untested parameter of male wood frog mate choice may also play a role in determining its rela-tive costs and benefits. In recent decades, mate choice based on genetic compatibility has been demonstrated to be an important and widely observed component of mate choice (see Brown 1997; Tregenza and Wedell 2000; Mays and Hill 2004). In particular, mate choice based on dissimilarity of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes has been observed in humans (Wedekind et al. 1995) and other species (e.g., Gowaty et al. 2003; Agbali et al. 2010; Rymešová et al. 2017; for review see Kamiya et al. 2014); benefits of choosing a mate with dissimilar MHC genes include provisioning offspring with a greater variety of cell-surface proteins that enable the immune system to identify and fight pathogens and parasites (Bernatchez and Landry 2003; Piertney and Oliver 2006; Ruff et al. 2012). If male mate choice in wood frogs also has an MHC-compatibility component (or similar), then it could be pre-dicted that, when faced with challenges to the immune system, offspring of preferred females would have a fitness advantage over the offspring of nonpreferred females. When taken as a whole, our data support this idea. In the lab, in the absence of immune chal-lenges, offspring of preferred females had lower survivorship than the offspring of nonpreferred females (Figure 3a), possibly due to reasons associated with female catchability, as proposed above. However, in the presence of numerous immune challenges in the field, this difference in offspring survivorship disappears (Figure 4a). A MHC-related fitness cost to mating with nonpreferred mates could be responsible for closing the gap between preferred and nonpreferred offspring field survivorship. While admittedly far from conclusive, these results imply that multiple types of mate choice may exist in this scramble system and could warrant future study.
Friday, February 8, 2019
Alext Tabarrok: First in-depth, independent evaluation of one MVP project & it doesn't look great: The project did some good but the big push failed & the good could have been done at lower cost
Barnett, C., Masset, E. Dogbe, T., Jupp, D., Korboe, D., Acharya, A., Nelson, K., Eager, R. and Hilton, T. (2018) 'Impact Evaluation of the SADA Millennium Villages Project in Northern Ghana: Endline Summary Report', Brighton: Itad in association with IDS, LSHTM and PDA Ghana. http://opendocs.ids.ac.uk/opendocs/handle/123456789/14060
Abstract: The Millennium Villages Project (MVP) aims to demonstrate how the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) could be achieved locally through an integrated approach to development. While the MDGs have now been superseded by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, 2016–30), there remains a consistent thread to the MDGs around issues such as eradicating poverty, preventing avoidable deaths and improving education. Furthermore, the interconnected nature of the SDGs means the MVP model also has relevance for those seeking to address extreme poverty by taking an integrated approach to sustainable development. This report summarises the findings from what we believe to be the first independent impact evaluation of the MVP approach. It is hoped that the evidence and analysis will be of relevance to a wide range of actors in international development.
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Comments by A Tabarrok at The Big Push Failed, Oct 16 2018, https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2018/10/big-push-failed.html
"The initial MVP evaluation claimed great success but simply compared some development indicators before and after in the treated villages without comparing to trends elsewhere. In 2010 such a study was completely out of step with contemporary practices in impact evaluation. Red flag! Clemens and Demombynes showed that comparing to trends elsewhere significantly moderated the impact. A second MVP paper was published in the Lancet but then was quickly retracted when Bump, Clemens, Demombynes and Haddad demonstrated that it had significant errors. Clemens and Demombynes wrote a summary piece on the controversy then in an astounding and under-reported scandal the MVP tried to stifle Clemens and Demombynes. The MVP, with Jeff Sachs at the head, also sicced their lawyers on Nina Munk and her book, The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End Poverty. More red flags.
Yet, despite all of this controversy and bad behavior, the MVP project continued to move ahead and in 2012, the UK Department for International Development (DFID) funded US $11 million into an MVP in Northern Ghana that ran until December 2016. Under the auspices of the DFID, we now finally have the first in-depth, independent evaluation of one MVP project and it doesn’t look great. The project did some good but the big push failed and the good that was done could have been done at lower cost."
Check the post, it has lots of links.
Abstract: The Millennium Villages Project (MVP) aims to demonstrate how the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) could be achieved locally through an integrated approach to development. While the MDGs have now been superseded by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, 2016–30), there remains a consistent thread to the MDGs around issues such as eradicating poverty, preventing avoidable deaths and improving education. Furthermore, the interconnected nature of the SDGs means the MVP model also has relevance for those seeking to address extreme poverty by taking an integrated approach to sustainable development. This report summarises the findings from what we believe to be the first independent impact evaluation of the MVP approach. It is hoped that the evidence and analysis will be of relevance to a wide range of actors in international development.
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Comments by A Tabarrok at The Big Push Failed, Oct 16 2018, https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2018/10/big-push-failed.html
"The initial MVP evaluation claimed great success but simply compared some development indicators before and after in the treated villages without comparing to trends elsewhere. In 2010 such a study was completely out of step with contemporary practices in impact evaluation. Red flag! Clemens and Demombynes showed that comparing to trends elsewhere significantly moderated the impact. A second MVP paper was published in the Lancet but then was quickly retracted when Bump, Clemens, Demombynes and Haddad demonstrated that it had significant errors. Clemens and Demombynes wrote a summary piece on the controversy then in an astounding and under-reported scandal the MVP tried to stifle Clemens and Demombynes. The MVP, with Jeff Sachs at the head, also sicced their lawyers on Nina Munk and her book, The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End Poverty. More red flags.
Yet, despite all of this controversy and bad behavior, the MVP project continued to move ahead and in 2012, the UK Department for International Development (DFID) funded US $11 million into an MVP in Northern Ghana that ran until December 2016. Under the auspices of the DFID, we now finally have the first in-depth, independent evaluation of one MVP project and it doesn’t look great. The project did some good but the big push failed and the good that was done could have been done at lower cost."
Check the post, it has lots of links.
Conservatives seem more fear-motivated, disgust-sensitive, & happy; liberals might have greater overall negative emotional biases towards politicians who are ideologically dissimilar
Contempt of Congress: Do Liberals and Conservatives Harbor Equivalent Negative Emotional Biases Towards Ideologically Congruent vs. Incongruent Politicians at the Level of Individual Emotions? Russell L. Steiger, Christine Reyna, Geoffrey Wetherell, Gabrielle Iverson. Journal of Social and Political Psychology, Vol 7, No 1 (2019). https://jspp.psychopen.eu/article/view/822
Abstract: Prior research suggests that conservatives are more fear-motivated, disgust-sensitive, and happy than liberals. Yet when it comes to political targets (e.g., politicians), both liberals and conservatives can get very emotional. We examined whether the ideological differences in emotion seen in past research apply to emotions towards specific ideologically similar vs. dissimilar targets, or whether these emotions are instead equivalent between liberals and conservatives. Across two studies, liberals and conservatives rated their anger, contempt, disgust, fear, and happiness towards Democratic and Republican congresspersons. We compared participants’ levels of each emotion towards their respective ideologically dissimilar and ideologically similar congresspersons. Liberals and conservatives both experienced stronger negative emotions towards ideologically dissimilar congresspersons than they did towards ideologically similar ones. Neither liberals nor conservatives differed in negative emotions towards politicians overall (i.e., on average). However, there were ideological differences in emotional bias. In Study 1, liberals exhibited a greater contempt bias (i.e., a larger gap in contempt ratings between ideologically similar and ideologically dissimilar politicians) than conservatives did. In Study 2, liberals exhibited greater contempt, anger, disgust, and happiness biases than conservatives did. The need to consider context in the study of ideological differences in emotion is discussed.
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Although there are well-documented findings suggesting that conservatives are more prone to experiencing fear, disgust, and happiness than liberals are, these ideological differences in emotion did not come into play in the context of emotions towards ideologically dissimilar versus ideologically similar politicians. These findings suggest that emotions towards politicians may represent a special case that overrides these general ideological differences in emotion. Surprisingly however, our findings also indicated that liberals might have greater overall negative emotional biases towards politicians who are ideologically dissimilar, and that this difference may be especially pronounced regarding contempt. This finding may be a function of political power dynamics (greater emotional bias towards those who controlled congress at the time), or may reflect an ideological difference in emotion that has yet to be revealed—a liberal orientation towards contempt.
Abstract: Prior research suggests that conservatives are more fear-motivated, disgust-sensitive, and happy than liberals. Yet when it comes to political targets (e.g., politicians), both liberals and conservatives can get very emotional. We examined whether the ideological differences in emotion seen in past research apply to emotions towards specific ideologically similar vs. dissimilar targets, or whether these emotions are instead equivalent between liberals and conservatives. Across two studies, liberals and conservatives rated their anger, contempt, disgust, fear, and happiness towards Democratic and Republican congresspersons. We compared participants’ levels of each emotion towards their respective ideologically dissimilar and ideologically similar congresspersons. Liberals and conservatives both experienced stronger negative emotions towards ideologically dissimilar congresspersons than they did towards ideologically similar ones. Neither liberals nor conservatives differed in negative emotions towards politicians overall (i.e., on average). However, there were ideological differences in emotional bias. In Study 1, liberals exhibited a greater contempt bias (i.e., a larger gap in contempt ratings between ideologically similar and ideologically dissimilar politicians) than conservatives did. In Study 2, liberals exhibited greater contempt, anger, disgust, and happiness biases than conservatives did. The need to consider context in the study of ideological differences in emotion is discussed.
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Although there are well-documented findings suggesting that conservatives are more prone to experiencing fear, disgust, and happiness than liberals are, these ideological differences in emotion did not come into play in the context of emotions towards ideologically dissimilar versus ideologically similar politicians. These findings suggest that emotions towards politicians may represent a special case that overrides these general ideological differences in emotion. Surprisingly however, our findings also indicated that liberals might have greater overall negative emotional biases towards politicians who are ideologically dissimilar, and that this difference may be especially pronounced regarding contempt. This finding may be a function of political power dynamics (greater emotional bias towards those who controlled congress at the time), or may reflect an ideological difference in emotion that has yet to be revealed—a liberal orientation towards contempt.
Mice use olfaction to asses risk in the environment from predators & food; ethanol elicited clear avoidance in laboratory mice, as fox faeces did; ethanol could be a cue for fruit ripening (over-ripe, unhealthy fruits)
Ethanol and a chemical from fox faeces modulate exploratory behaviour in laboratory mice. Carlos Grau et al. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2019.02.003
Highlights
• Mice use olfaction to asses risk in the environment from predators and food
• Ethanol, a plant-based chemical cue elicited clear avoidance in laboratory mice
• Fox faeces and TMT (predator stimuli) elicited avoidance with some differences to ethanol
Abstract: Mice are macrosmatic animals that use olfaction as their main source of information to increase fitness; they process predator cues to assess risk, and plants and fruit cues to find nutritional resources and assess their quality or toxicity. In this study, we examined the effects of ethanol as an olfactory stimulus related to fruit rotting, against 2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT, a fox faeces compound), its native origin, the fox faeces and a negative control on avoidance, locomotor activity, and stress related behaviour, measured by the production of faecal boli. Our results showed that mice clearly avoided ethanol (P=<0.0001) and decreased their locomotor activity (P = 0.0076) when ethanol was present. The molecule 2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT), was the most avoided (P=<0.0001) and showed the lowest locomotor activity (P = 0.0004). Both treatments, ethanol (P = 0.0348) and TMT (P = 0.0084) increased the number of faecal boli.
The clear avoidance and behavioural effects of ethanol in mice have direct implications in laboratory animal research, where it is used widely. This avoidance effect could elicit stressful situations and modify behavioural and physiological responses in mice housed in research facilities. In addition, this avoidance could be used as a non-lethal, inexpensive and non-toxic tool in rodent pest management. To explain these results, we suggest ethanol as a probable cue for fruit ripening, in the wild, this chemical cue could convey primordial information about the ripening state of fruits, allowing animals to avoid over-ripe, unhealthy fruits.
But check, from 2012: Sexual Deprivation Increases Ethanol Intake in Drosophila. G. Shohat-Ophir et al. Science Mar 16 2012: Vol. 335, Issue 6074, pp. 1351-1355. https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2019/02/sexual-deprivation-increases-ethanol.html
In this, we are closer to a fly than to a mouse...
Highlights
• Mice use olfaction to asses risk in the environment from predators and food
• Ethanol, a plant-based chemical cue elicited clear avoidance in laboratory mice
• Fox faeces and TMT (predator stimuli) elicited avoidance with some differences to ethanol
Abstract: Mice are macrosmatic animals that use olfaction as their main source of information to increase fitness; they process predator cues to assess risk, and plants and fruit cues to find nutritional resources and assess their quality or toxicity. In this study, we examined the effects of ethanol as an olfactory stimulus related to fruit rotting, against 2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT, a fox faeces compound), its native origin, the fox faeces and a negative control on avoidance, locomotor activity, and stress related behaviour, measured by the production of faecal boli. Our results showed that mice clearly avoided ethanol (P=<0.0001) and decreased their locomotor activity (P = 0.0076) when ethanol was present. The molecule 2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT), was the most avoided (P=<0.0001) and showed the lowest locomotor activity (P = 0.0004). Both treatments, ethanol (P = 0.0348) and TMT (P = 0.0084) increased the number of faecal boli.
The clear avoidance and behavioural effects of ethanol in mice have direct implications in laboratory animal research, where it is used widely. This avoidance effect could elicit stressful situations and modify behavioural and physiological responses in mice housed in research facilities. In addition, this avoidance could be used as a non-lethal, inexpensive and non-toxic tool in rodent pest management. To explain these results, we suggest ethanol as a probable cue for fruit ripening, in the wild, this chemical cue could convey primordial information about the ripening state of fruits, allowing animals to avoid over-ripe, unhealthy fruits.
But check, from 2012: Sexual Deprivation Increases Ethanol Intake in Drosophila. G. Shohat-Ophir et al. Science Mar 16 2012: Vol. 335, Issue 6074, pp. 1351-1355. https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2019/02/sexual-deprivation-increases-ethanol.html
In this, we are closer to a fly than to a mouse...
Anxious attachment (hypervigilant detection of and reactivity to social inconsistency and unreliability) heightens pattern deviancy (distortions of repeated forms or models) aversion, contributing to prejudice
Anxious Attachment as an Antecedent of People's Aversion Towards Pattern Deviancy. Anton Gollwitzer, Margaret S. Clark. European Journal of Social Psychology, Dec 2018, https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.2565
Abstract: Research suggests that people's aversion towards pattern deviancy – distortions of repeated forms or models – contributes to social phenomena, such as prejudice. Yet, the factors motivating pattern deviancy aversion remain unclear. Potentially, anxious attachment, as it entails hypervigilant detection of and reactivity to social inconsistency and unreliability, heightens pattern deviancy aversion. In Studies 1 (N = 137) and 2 (N = 102), anxious but not avoidant attachment predicted aversion towards broken patterns of geometric shapes. In Studies 3 (N = 310) and 4 (N = 470), experimentally inducing anxious versus avoidant and secure attachment (Study 3), and versus a neutral prime (Study 4), heightened pattern deviancy aversion. Controlling for participants’ aversion towards unbroken patterns, novel objects, and negative stimuli did not change these results. Our findings demonstrate that anxious attachment is one antecedent of pattern deviancy aversion, and suggest that pattern deviancy aversion may underlie links between anxious attachment and certain social phenomena.
Anxious Attachment as an Antecedent of Pattern Deviancy Aversion
We hypothesize that anxious attachment may activatea domain-general response towards patterns in a per-son’s environment, specifically, in the form of an aversion towards broken patterns. In other words, wepropose that the fear of social unreliability and inconsistency entailed in anxious attachment (e.g., Bartz &Lydon, 2008) extends to a domain-general aversion towards inconsistencies. In support of this possibility, anxiously attached individuals lack a secure base from which to explore irregularities in their environment (Ainsworth et al., 1978; Bowlby, 1973). And further, some evidence suggests that anxiously attached indi-viduals seek out consistency in their surroundings outside of the social domain. For instance, anxious attachment is related to engaging in compulsive ritualsto reduce stress (American Psychiatric Association,2000; Doron, Sar-El, Mikulincer, & Talmor, 2012).In addition, shared correlates of anxious attachment and pattern deviancy aversion support our hypothesis.For instance, anxious attachment has been linked to heightened prejudice (e.g., Di Pentima & Toni, 2009; Mikulincer, 1997; Mikulincer & Shaver, 2001), andaversion towards pattern deviancy also relates to prejudice (Gollwitzer et al., 2017). Further, anxious attachment (compared to secure attachment) relatesto increased seeking of meaning in life (Bodner, Berg-man, & Cohen-Fridel, 2014), and Heintzelman et al.(2013) found participants to report a higher meaningin life after viewing patterned as opposed to random non-social stimuli. Researchers have also found participants from Asian cultures and with Asian backgrounds to exhibit higher levels of anxious attachment than those from Western cultures (e.g., Wang & Mallinckrodt, 2006; Wei, Russell, Mallinckrodt, & Zakalik, 2004), and members of East Asian cultures exhibit a greater dislike of non-social pattern deviancy than do European Americans (Gollwitzer et al., 2017; Kim & Markus, 1999). Additionally, anxious attachment is associated with neuroticism (Shaver & Brennan, 1992), a construct that is related to pattern deviancy aversion as well (Gollwitzer et al., 2017).
Finally, anxious attachment and aversion towards broken patterns both relate to heightened moral concern with regard to harm and purity violations (Gollwitzer,Martel, Bargh, & Chang, 2019; Koleva, Selterman, Iyer, Ditto, & Graham, 2014). Aside from these overlapping relationships, anxiously attached individuals fear inconsistencies and unreliability in the social domain, and these are exactly the qualities that pattern deviancy aversion captures more generally.
Whereas we expected anxious attachment to predict pattern deviancy aversion, we did not expect avoidant attachment to predict such aversion. Avoidant individuals have models of other people as unworthy of trust (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2003) and consistently act in accord with this conclusion—they simply avoid intimate social relationships (e.g., Beck & Clark, 2009). Unlike anxious attachment, avoidant attachment is neither associated with seeking reliability and consistency in close relationships, nor with fearing unreliability and inconsistency, and thus should not relate to pattern deviancy aversion.
A general aversion towards novel stimuli could potentially account for an effect of anxious attachmenton pattern deviancy aversion. Bowlby (1973) theoretically conceptualized anxious people as averse to novel stimuli, and some researchers have linked anxious attachment to an aversion towards novel, unfamiliar stimuli (Ainsworth et al., 1978; Arend, Gove, &Sroufe, 1979). Importantly, however, novel stimuli do not always break the surrounding consistencies. For instance, when novel stimuli (e.g., exotic fruits) are categorized into their own category (e.g., the category, exotic fruit; Murphy, 2004), rather than compared top revious examples, they should not be evaluated as pattern deviant. To account for novelty aversion, we included a measure of aversion towards novel stimuli that are not necessarily pattern deviant in Studies 1 through 4.
Aside from novelty aversion, we also controlled for participants’ aversion towards negative stimuli. We did so to control for the possibility that anxious attachment predicts pattern deviancy aversion simply because anxious attachment induces a general aversion towards negative stimuli (pattern deviant stimuli are generally evaluated negatively; Gollwitzer et al., 2017). Though we are unaware of any research linking anxious attachment to such negativity aversion, we wished to control for this possibility nonetheless. To do so, we included a measure of aversion towards negative but not necessarily pattern deviant stimuli in Studies 3 and 4 (aversion towards bad weather).
Abstract: Research suggests that people's aversion towards pattern deviancy – distortions of repeated forms or models – contributes to social phenomena, such as prejudice. Yet, the factors motivating pattern deviancy aversion remain unclear. Potentially, anxious attachment, as it entails hypervigilant detection of and reactivity to social inconsistency and unreliability, heightens pattern deviancy aversion. In Studies 1 (N = 137) and 2 (N = 102), anxious but not avoidant attachment predicted aversion towards broken patterns of geometric shapes. In Studies 3 (N = 310) and 4 (N = 470), experimentally inducing anxious versus avoidant and secure attachment (Study 3), and versus a neutral prime (Study 4), heightened pattern deviancy aversion. Controlling for participants’ aversion towards unbroken patterns, novel objects, and negative stimuli did not change these results. Our findings demonstrate that anxious attachment is one antecedent of pattern deviancy aversion, and suggest that pattern deviancy aversion may underlie links between anxious attachment and certain social phenomena.
Anxious Attachment as an Antecedent of Pattern Deviancy Aversion
We hypothesize that anxious attachment may activatea domain-general response towards patterns in a per-son’s environment, specifically, in the form of an aversion towards broken patterns. In other words, wepropose that the fear of social unreliability and inconsistency entailed in anxious attachment (e.g., Bartz &Lydon, 2008) extends to a domain-general aversion towards inconsistencies. In support of this possibility, anxiously attached individuals lack a secure base from which to explore irregularities in their environment (Ainsworth et al., 1978; Bowlby, 1973). And further, some evidence suggests that anxiously attached indi-viduals seek out consistency in their surroundings outside of the social domain. For instance, anxious attachment is related to engaging in compulsive ritualsto reduce stress (American Psychiatric Association,2000; Doron, Sar-El, Mikulincer, & Talmor, 2012).In addition, shared correlates of anxious attachment and pattern deviancy aversion support our hypothesis.For instance, anxious attachment has been linked to heightened prejudice (e.g., Di Pentima & Toni, 2009; Mikulincer, 1997; Mikulincer & Shaver, 2001), andaversion towards pattern deviancy also relates to prejudice (Gollwitzer et al., 2017). Further, anxious attachment (compared to secure attachment) relatesto increased seeking of meaning in life (Bodner, Berg-man, & Cohen-Fridel, 2014), and Heintzelman et al.(2013) found participants to report a higher meaningin life after viewing patterned as opposed to random non-social stimuli. Researchers have also found participants from Asian cultures and with Asian backgrounds to exhibit higher levels of anxious attachment than those from Western cultures (e.g., Wang & Mallinckrodt, 2006; Wei, Russell, Mallinckrodt, & Zakalik, 2004), and members of East Asian cultures exhibit a greater dislike of non-social pattern deviancy than do European Americans (Gollwitzer et al., 2017; Kim & Markus, 1999). Additionally, anxious attachment is associated with neuroticism (Shaver & Brennan, 1992), a construct that is related to pattern deviancy aversion as well (Gollwitzer et al., 2017).
Finally, anxious attachment and aversion towards broken patterns both relate to heightened moral concern with regard to harm and purity violations (Gollwitzer,Martel, Bargh, & Chang, 2019; Koleva, Selterman, Iyer, Ditto, & Graham, 2014). Aside from these overlapping relationships, anxiously attached individuals fear inconsistencies and unreliability in the social domain, and these are exactly the qualities that pattern deviancy aversion captures more generally.
Whereas we expected anxious attachment to predict pattern deviancy aversion, we did not expect avoidant attachment to predict such aversion. Avoidant individuals have models of other people as unworthy of trust (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2003) and consistently act in accord with this conclusion—they simply avoid intimate social relationships (e.g., Beck & Clark, 2009). Unlike anxious attachment, avoidant attachment is neither associated with seeking reliability and consistency in close relationships, nor with fearing unreliability and inconsistency, and thus should not relate to pattern deviancy aversion.
A general aversion towards novel stimuli could potentially account for an effect of anxious attachmenton pattern deviancy aversion. Bowlby (1973) theoretically conceptualized anxious people as averse to novel stimuli, and some researchers have linked anxious attachment to an aversion towards novel, unfamiliar stimuli (Ainsworth et al., 1978; Arend, Gove, &Sroufe, 1979). Importantly, however, novel stimuli do not always break the surrounding consistencies. For instance, when novel stimuli (e.g., exotic fruits) are categorized into their own category (e.g., the category, exotic fruit; Murphy, 2004), rather than compared top revious examples, they should not be evaluated as pattern deviant. To account for novelty aversion, we included a measure of aversion towards novel stimuli that are not necessarily pattern deviant in Studies 1 through 4.
Aside from novelty aversion, we also controlled for participants’ aversion towards negative stimuli. We did so to control for the possibility that anxious attachment predicts pattern deviancy aversion simply because anxious attachment induces a general aversion towards negative stimuli (pattern deviant stimuli are generally evaluated negatively; Gollwitzer et al., 2017). Though we are unaware of any research linking anxious attachment to such negativity aversion, we wished to control for this possibility nonetheless. To do so, we included a measure of aversion towards negative but not necessarily pattern deviant stimuli in Studies 3 and 4 (aversion towards bad weather).
People tend to derogate their ideological opponents. But how does social status affect this tendency?
Taking the High Ground: The Impact of Social Status on the Derogation of Ideological Opponents. Aiden Gregg, Nikhila Mahadevan, Constantine Sedikides. Social Cognition 36(1), November 2017, DOI: 10.1521/soco.2018.36.1.43
Abstract: People tend to derogate their ideological opponents. But how does social status affect this tendency? We tested a prediction derived from hierometer theory that people with higher status would derogate ideological opponents less (i.e., evaluate them more charitably). We further predicted that greater rhetoric handling prowess (RHP: feeling more confident and less intimidated while arguing) would mediate the effect. Study 1 established a link between higher status and lesser opponent derogation correlationally. Study 2 did so experimentally. Using a scale to assess RHP developed and validated in Study 3, Study 4 established that RHP statistically mediated the correlational link between status and derogation. In Study 5, experimentally manipulating status affected RHP as predicted. However, in Study 6, experimentally manipulating RHP did not affect opponent derogation as predicted. Thus, our findings were substantially, but not entirely, consistent with our theoretically-derived predictions. Implications for hierometer theory, and related theoretical approaches, are considered.
Abstract: People tend to derogate their ideological opponents. But how does social status affect this tendency? We tested a prediction derived from hierometer theory that people with higher status would derogate ideological opponents less (i.e., evaluate them more charitably). We further predicted that greater rhetoric handling prowess (RHP: feeling more confident and less intimidated while arguing) would mediate the effect. Study 1 established a link between higher status and lesser opponent derogation correlationally. Study 2 did so experimentally. Using a scale to assess RHP developed and validated in Study 3, Study 4 established that RHP statistically mediated the correlational link between status and derogation. In Study 5, experimentally manipulating status affected RHP as predicted. However, in Study 6, experimentally manipulating RHP did not affect opponent derogation as predicted. Thus, our findings were substantially, but not entirely, consistent with our theoretically-derived predictions. Implications for hierometer theory, and related theoretical approaches, are considered.
People primarily justify eating meat using one of four rationalizations: they believe it is natural, necessary, normal, and/or nice; each of these is associated with a specific psychological profile
Psychological profiles of people who justify eating meat as natural, necessary, normal, or nice. Christopher J. Hopwood, Wiebke Bleidorn. Food Quality and Preference, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2019.02.004
Highlights
• People primarily justify eating meat using one of four rationalizations: they believe it is natural, necessary, normal, and/or nice.
• Each of these rationalizations is associated with a specific psychological profile of personality traits and values.
• These profiles provide information about individual differences in food choice and may be used to promote behavior change.
Abstract: Research suggests that people tend to use one of four rationalizations to justify eating meat despite its empirically established negative consequences for both personal and societal well-being: the beliefs that meat is natural, necessary, normal, or nice. The goal of this study was to better understand what kind of people would tend to use these different rationalizations in terms of their personality traits, values, and motivations for plant-based eating. Results suggest specific psychological profiles for each of the four meat-eating rationalizations. These profiles may be useful for behavior change advocacy and for furthering the basic science of individual differences underlying food preferences and choices. Suggestions for future research that builds upon these initial findings are highlighted.
Check also Eating meat does not make you mean: Why vegetarians don't have the moral high ground. Rolf Degen, 2014 https://plus.google.com/101046916407340625977/posts/gaNZUm9rGW5
Highlights
• People primarily justify eating meat using one of four rationalizations: they believe it is natural, necessary, normal, and/or nice.
• Each of these rationalizations is associated with a specific psychological profile of personality traits and values.
• These profiles provide information about individual differences in food choice and may be used to promote behavior change.
Abstract: Research suggests that people tend to use one of four rationalizations to justify eating meat despite its empirically established negative consequences for both personal and societal well-being: the beliefs that meat is natural, necessary, normal, or nice. The goal of this study was to better understand what kind of people would tend to use these different rationalizations in terms of their personality traits, values, and motivations for plant-based eating. Results suggest specific psychological profiles for each of the four meat-eating rationalizations. These profiles may be useful for behavior change advocacy and for furthering the basic science of individual differences underlying food preferences and choices. Suggestions for future research that builds upon these initial findings are highlighted.
Check also Eating meat does not make you mean: Why vegetarians don't have the moral high ground. Rolf Degen, 2014 https://plus.google.com/101046916407340625977/posts/gaNZUm9rGW5
Thursday, February 7, 2019
Limits to Fitness Benefits of Prolonged Post-reproductive Lifespan in Women: Having a maternal grandmother improves grandchild survival, co-residence with old paternal grandmothers decreases grandchild survival
Limits to Fitness Benefits of Prolonged Post-reproductive Lifespan in Women. Simon N. Chapman et al. Current Biology, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2018.12.052
Highlights
• Women’s hazard of death increases when grandmothering opportunities decline
• Having a maternal grandmother improves grandchild survival
• Co-residence with old paternal grandmothers decreases grandchild survival
• Grandmothering favors post-reproductive longevity only up to a point
Summary: Recent advances in medicine and life-expectancy gains have fueled multidisciplinary research into the limits of human lifespan [1, 2, 3]. Ultimately, how long humans can live for may depend on selection favoring extended longevity in our evolutionary past [4]. Human females have an unusually extended post-reproductive lifespan, which has been explained by the fitness benefits provided from helping to raise grandchildren following menopause [5, 6]. However, formal tests of whether such grandmothering benefits wane with grandmother age and explain the observed length of post-reproductive lifespan are missing. This is critical for understanding prevailing selection pressures on longevity but to date has been overlooked as a possible mechanism driving the evolution of lifespan. Here, we use extensive data from pre-industrial humans to show that fitness gains from grandmothering are dependent on grandmother age, affecting selection on the length of post-reproductive lifespan. We find both opportunities and ability to help grandchildren declined with age, while the hazard of death of women increased greatly in their late 60s and 70s compared to menopausal ages, together implying waning selection on subsequent longevity. The presence of maternal grandmothers aged 50–75 increased grandchild survival after weaning, confirming the fitness advantage of post-reproductive lifespan. However, co-residence with paternal grandmothers aged 75+ was detrimental to grandchild survival, with those grandmothers close to death and presumably in poorer health particularly associated with lower grandchild survival. The age limitations of gaining inclusive fitness from grandmothering suggests that grandmothering can select for post-reproductive longevity only up to a certain point.
Highlights
• Women’s hazard of death increases when grandmothering opportunities decline
• Having a maternal grandmother improves grandchild survival
• Co-residence with old paternal grandmothers decreases grandchild survival
• Grandmothering favors post-reproductive longevity only up to a point
Summary: Recent advances in medicine and life-expectancy gains have fueled multidisciplinary research into the limits of human lifespan [1, 2, 3]. Ultimately, how long humans can live for may depend on selection favoring extended longevity in our evolutionary past [4]. Human females have an unusually extended post-reproductive lifespan, which has been explained by the fitness benefits provided from helping to raise grandchildren following menopause [5, 6]. However, formal tests of whether such grandmothering benefits wane with grandmother age and explain the observed length of post-reproductive lifespan are missing. This is critical for understanding prevailing selection pressures on longevity but to date has been overlooked as a possible mechanism driving the evolution of lifespan. Here, we use extensive data from pre-industrial humans to show that fitness gains from grandmothering are dependent on grandmother age, affecting selection on the length of post-reproductive lifespan. We find both opportunities and ability to help grandchildren declined with age, while the hazard of death of women increased greatly in their late 60s and 70s compared to menopausal ages, together implying waning selection on subsequent longevity. The presence of maternal grandmothers aged 50–75 increased grandchild survival after weaning, confirming the fitness advantage of post-reproductive lifespan. However, co-residence with paternal grandmothers aged 75+ was detrimental to grandchild survival, with those grandmothers close to death and presumably in poorer health particularly associated with lower grandchild survival. The age limitations of gaining inclusive fitness from grandmothering suggests that grandmothering can select for post-reproductive longevity only up to a certain point.
Preliminary support for the cuckoldry-risk hypothesis: Men pursuing a relatively slow life history strategy produced higher quality ejaculates, implying resource allocation decisions for greater parenting effort
Barbaro, N., Shackelford, T. K., Holub, A. M., Jeffery, A. J., Lopes, G. S., & Zeigler-Hill, V. (2018). Life history correlates of human (Homo sapiens) ejaculate quality. Journal of Comparative Psychology, http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/com0000161
Abstract: Life history strategies reflect resource allocation decisions, which manifest as physiological, psychological, and behavioral traits. We investigated whether human ejaculate quality is associated with indicators of relatively fast (greater resource allocation to mating effort) or slow (greater resource allocation to parenting effort) life history strategies in a test of two competing hypotheses: (a) The phenotype-linked fertility hypothesis, which predicts that men pursuing a relatively fast life history strategy will produce higher quality ejaculates, and (b) the cuckoldry-risk hypothesis, which predicts that men pursuing a relatively slow life history strategy will produce higher quality ejaculates. Men (n = 41) completed a self-report measure assessing life history strategy and provided two masturbatory ejaculate samples. Results provide preliminary support for the cuckoldry-risk hypothesis: Men pursuing a relatively slow life history strategy produced higher quality ejaculates. Ejaculate quality may therefore reflect resource allocation decisions for greater parenting effort, as opposed to greater mating effort. The findings contribute informative data on correlations between physiological and phenotypic indicators of human life history strategies.
Abstract: Life history strategies reflect resource allocation decisions, which manifest as physiological, psychological, and behavioral traits. We investigated whether human ejaculate quality is associated with indicators of relatively fast (greater resource allocation to mating effort) or slow (greater resource allocation to parenting effort) life history strategies in a test of two competing hypotheses: (a) The phenotype-linked fertility hypothesis, which predicts that men pursuing a relatively fast life history strategy will produce higher quality ejaculates, and (b) the cuckoldry-risk hypothesis, which predicts that men pursuing a relatively slow life history strategy will produce higher quality ejaculates. Men (n = 41) completed a self-report measure assessing life history strategy and provided two masturbatory ejaculate samples. Results provide preliminary support for the cuckoldry-risk hypothesis: Men pursuing a relatively slow life history strategy produced higher quality ejaculates. Ejaculate quality may therefore reflect resource allocation decisions for greater parenting effort, as opposed to greater mating effort. The findings contribute informative data on correlations between physiological and phenotypic indicators of human life history strategies.
Consciousness rests on the brain’s ability to sustain rich brain dynamics (including signal coordination) & pave the way for determining specific & generalizable fingerprints of conscious & unconscious states
Human consciousness is supported by dynamic complex patterns of brain signal coordination. A. Demertzi et al. Science Advances Feb 06 2019: Vol. 5, no. 2, eaat7603
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aat7603
Abstract: Adopting the framework of brain dynamics as a cornerstone of human consciousness, we determined whether dynamic signal coordination provides specific and generalizable patterns pertaining to conscious and unconscious states after brain damage. A dynamic pattern of coordinated and anticoordinated functional magnetic resonance imaging signals characterized healthy individuals and minimally conscious patients. The brains of unresponsive patients showed primarily a pattern of low interareal phase coherence mainly mediated by structural connectivity, and had smaller chances to transition between patterns. The complex pattern was further corroborated in patients with covert cognition, who could perform neuroimaging mental imagery tasks, validating this pattern’s implication in consciousness. Anesthesia increased the probability of the less complex pattern to equal levels, validating its implication in unconsciousness. Our results establish that consciousness rests on the brain’s ability to sustain rich brain dynamics and pave the way for determining specific and generalizable fingerprints of conscious and unconscious states.
Check also Chasing the Rainbow: The Non-conscious Nature of Being. David A. Oakley and Peter W. Halligan. Front. Psychol., November 14 2017. https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2018/01/despite-compelling-subjective.html
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INTRODUCTION
Consciousness is seemingly lost and recovered every day, from themoment we fall asleep until we wake up. Consciousness can also betransiently abolished by pharmacological agents or, more permanently,by brain injury. Each of these departures from conscious wakefulnessbrings about different changes in brain function, behavior, and neuro-chemistry. Yet, they all share a common feature: lack of reported sub-jectiveexperience(1).Finding reliable markers indicating the presence or absence of con-sciousness represents an outstanding open problem for science (2).We postulate that consciousness has specific characteristics that arebased on the temporal dynamics of ongoing brain activity and its co-ordination over distant cortical regions. Our hypothesis stems fromthe common stance of various contemporary theories which proposethat consciousness relates to a dynamic process of self-sustained,coordinated brain-scale activity assisting the tuning to a constantlyevolving environment, rather than in static descriptions of brainfunction (3–5). In that respect, neural signals combine, dissolve, re-configure, and recombine over time, allowing perception, emotion,and cognition to happen (6).The first biological evidence for a constantly active brain camefrom electroencephalographic recordings showing electrical oscilla-tions even when the participant was not performing any particulartask. More recently, brain dynamics have been characterized by thepresence of complex activity patterns, which cannot be completelyattributed to background noise (7). Experiments with functional mag-netic resonance imaging (fMRI) during normal wakefulness haveshown that the brain spontaneouslygenerates a dynamic series of con-stantly changing activity and connectivity between brain regions (8–10).This activity presents long-range temporal correlations in the sensethat signal changes exert long-term influence on future dynamics (11).This translates to a complex temporal organization of the long-rangecoupling between brain regions, with temporally correlated series oftransitions between discrete functional connectivity patterns (6). Thespatiotemporal complexity of brain dynamics contributes toward ef-ficient exchanges between neuronal populations (8), suggesting thatthe neural correlates of consciousness could be found in temporallyevolving dynamic processes, as postulated by influential theoreticalaccounts (3–5).In terms of states of consciousness, spontaneous fMRI dynamicconnectivity has been investigated in different sleep stages (11,12)and pharmacologically induced anesthesia in humans (13,14)andanimals (15,16). These studies indicate that, during physiologicallyreversible unconscious states, cortical long-range correlations are
disrupted in both space and time, anticorrelated cortical statesdisappear, and the dynamic explorations are limited to specific patternsthat are dominated by rigid functional configurations tied to the anatom-ical connectivity. Conversely, conscious wakefulness is characterizednot only by global integration, evidenced by strong long-distance inter-actions between brain regions, butalso by a dynamic exploration of arich and flexible repertoire of functional brain configurations departingfrom the anatomical constraints (15). Another important characteristicobserved predominantly during conscious wakefulness is the appear-ance of anticorrelations between the activity of different brain regions.This observation is in line with the prediction of the Global NeuronalWorkspace theory stating that different streams of information in thebrain compete for the global percolation (“ignition”) of a widespreadnetwork of regions, a phenomenon associated with conscious access.In terms of the fMRI blood oxygen level–dependent (BOLD) signal,this could manifest in the mutual inhibition of activity at different cor-tical regions, leading to anticorrelated dynamics (5).Although dynamic connectivity has been investigated in physio-logical and pharmacological unresponsiveness, currently, the altera-tions in brain connectivity dynamics associated with pathologicalunconsciousness after severe brain injury remain unknown. The studyof unresponsive brain-lesioned patients with preserved levels of vig-ilance offers unique insights into the necessary and potentially suf-ficient conditions for the capacity of sustaining conscious content. Sofar, the inference of consciousness in patients has rested on the use ofactive mental imagery neuroimaging paradigms (17) and by assess-ing the complexity of evoked (18) and spontaneous brain activity(19). Patients who successfully perform these active paradigms canno longer be considered unconscious and are thought to suffer fromcognitive-motor dissociation (20). Given that nonresponsiveness canbe associated with a variety of brain lesions, varying levels of vigilance,and covert cognition, we highlight the need to determine a commonset of features capable of accounting for the capacity to sustain con-scious experience. Given the above theoretical considerations, whichagree in the characterization of consciousness as a global, temporallyevolving process, we aimed at determining whether the dynamics ofbrain-wide coordination could provide such a set of common featuresin the form of transient patterns of connectivity that successfully gen-eralize between different forms of nonresponsiveness in patients withbrain injury.
DISCUSSION
We studied the brain’s dynamic organization during consciouswakefulness and after severe brain injury leading to disorders of con-sciousness, with the aim of determining patterns of signal coordinationspecifically associated with conscious and unconscious states. Weidentified a pattern of positive and negative long-distance coordination,high modularity, with low similarity to the anatomical connectivity,
potentially relevant for the support of conscious cognition (pattern 1).We also identified a pattern of low interregional dynamic coordina-tion, low efficiency, with high similarity to anatomical connectivity,potentially specific to reduced or absent conscious processing (pattern4). With respect to pattern 1, momentary neural coalitions have beenpreviously shown to constitute a basis for complex cognitive function,with signals fluctuating between states of high and low connectivityand with more integrated states enabling faster and more accurate
performance during cognitive tasks (23). With respect to pattern 4,studies in physiological and pharmacological unconsciousnessshowed a breakdown of long-range interareal positive and negativeconnections. For example, during sleep, the presence of negative dy-namic connections disappear (11). Our results are in line with previ-ous findings in animals. As in the present study, the brain activity ofanesthetized nonhuman primates resided most frequently in a patternof low connectivity resembling the anatomy, which was sustained forlonger periods of time in comparison to more complex patterns (15).In addition, we demonstrated that network properties, such as mod-ularity, integration, distance relationship, and efficiency, increasedwith the participants’conscious state. The latter result is in line withthe hypothesis that high-efficiency patterns carry higher metaboliccosts (24), which are restricted underpathologicalunconsciousconditions (25).Our findings also align with theoretical considerations on dynamicconnectivity, suggesting that alternating patterns of correlations andanticorrelations may constitute a fundamental property of informationprocessing in the brain (26). Differentmodels of consciousness proposethat intermittent epochs of global synchronization grant segregated
and parallel network elements access to a global workspace, integratingthem serially and allowing effortful conscious cognition (27). There-fore, the transient exploration of this global workspace could permitthe brain to efficiently balance both segregated and integrated neuraldynamics and to encode globally broadcasted and therefore reportableconscious contents (3). In the absence of transient epochs of global syn-chronization, the transmission of information is expected to be rela-tively ineffective (6).With respect to patterns 2 and 3, these were not predominantlypreferred by any group in terms of occurrence probabilities and dura-tion and hence could represent transitional states (28). Pattern 3 showedthe overall positive interareal coherence. For pattern 2, the significanceof the overall negative coherence with regions of the visual networkcan only be speculated. For the moment, we suggest that it indicatesthe presence of a local coordination pattern reflecting the anatomicalorganization of the visual cortex (29).Whether the identified dynamic coordination patterns entail thepresence/absence of mental contents or cognitive function is difficultto assume without probing moment-to-moment changes in thecontents of conscious experience. Although a link has been shownbetween intrinsic connectivity networks and various behavioral tasks(30), it has been suggested that BOLD correlations need not necessar-ily reflect moment-to-moment changes in cognitive content. Instead,they may predominantly reflect processes necessary for maintainingthe stability of the brain’s functional organization (31). Also, the BOLDsignal is nonstationary (32), and some of its spontaneous fluctuationsmay not be a faithful reflection of functionally relevant brain dynamicsor the underlying nonstationarities of neural activity and coordination(10). We also acknowledge that the identification of these dynamicconfigurations required time-resolved analyses of fMRI time seriesin the scale of few seconds. It can be argued that conscious cognitionand the relevant features of our environment develop on a faster timescale of hundreds of milliseconds (3). However, the BOLD signal hasbeen shown to correlate with infraslow neurophysiological oscilla-tions, i.e., the slow cortical potential (33). The slow cortical potentialis important for large-scale information integration, hence suggest-ing that the flow of the conscious experience could be supported byprocesses at slower time scales (34). Future experiments should ad-dress a potential relationship between conscious experience, the slowcortical potential, and functional network reconfigurations measuredas with fMRI.Regardless of the implicated time scales, our analyses did not aim attracking the moment-to-moment contents of conscious experience,but at identifying brain-wide dynamic networks supporting differentglobal states of consciousness. We consider that the four-pattern modelcan account for modes of conscious and unconscious informationprocessing. Our interpretation is sustained by the additional testsfor the validity and replicability of the main results. We found thatthe complex dynamic pattern 1 presented low probabilities of appear-ing in patients under propofol anesthesia (whether they were commu-nicating or not at baseline) and that it was most likely to appear inpatients with covert cognition (i.e., patients in UWS who successfullyperformed mental imagery neuroimaging tasks). Both findings sug-gest its implication in conscious states. We also found that the pat-tern of low interareal coordination (pattern 4) uniformly presentedhigher probabilities of appearing in all anesthetized patients, regardlessof clinical diagnosis, and it was most likely to manifest in unresponsivepatients who did not perform the mental imagery neuroimaging task,supporting its relationship to absent or reduced conscious cognition.Pattern 4 remained visited by healthy controls even under typicalwakeful conditions. In the absence of experience sampling duringdata acquisition, the interpretation of this finding can only be specu-lative. On the one hand, it could be that healthy controls entered tran-sient microsleep states as a result of fluctuating levels of vigilance, afrequently observed phenomenon during resting-state experiments(35). Our experimental setup did not include simultaneous poly-somnography recordings to directly test this hypothesis. However,we derived different fMRI-based proxies to assess the presence ofmicrosleeps. First, we examined head movements time locked to theoccurrence of all coordination patterns and found no substantial as-sociations between the two variables, as could be expected if pattern 4was related to lapses in vigilance. Second, we performed a whole-braingeneral linear model (GLM) analysis, with the coordination patterntime series as regressors. We did not observe significant positive/negative BOLD signal changes associated with the onset of the differentcoordination patterns; in particular, the presence of coordination pat-tern 4 did not result in BOLD signal changes typical of microsleeps.Last, the likelihood of pattern 4 occurring over time did not positivelycorrelate with the elapsed scan time, as has been shown to occur forpatterns associated with lapses in vigilance (35,36). Once we rule outtransient loss of vigilance as the cause of the intrusion of pattern 4 inconscious wakefulness, we can speculate that the flow of consciouscognition may be separated by periods of absent or reduced effortfulinformation processing, as recently it was hypothesized that betweentwo successive self-reports, a subject may present states of reducedawareness (37). Behaviorally, this could take the form of“mindblanks”during which participants are not engaged in cognitivedemanding processes, although they remain vigilant (38). This inter-pretation is parsimonious with the observation that participantswere instructed to rest inside the scanner, without engaging in anyeffortful cognitive task. The potential role of transient lapses of aware-ness in the stream of conscious contents during healthy wakefulnessshould be addressed by future experiments.Together, our results suggest that, following loss of consciousness,coordinated brain activity is largely restricted to a positive pattern ofinterareal coherence dominated by the anatomical connections be-tween brain regions. In contrast, conscious states are characterizedby a higher prevalence of a complex configuration of interareal coor-dination that, while still constrained by brain anatomy, also deviatesfrom it and presents both positive and negative long-distance inter-actions. It did not escape us that such a complex interareal coor-dination pattern sporadically appeared in the group of unresponsivepatients. The real-time detection of this pattern and its reinforcementthough externally induced manipulations could represent a promis-ing avenue for the noninvasive restoration of consciousness. We con-clude that these patterns of transient brain signal coordination arecharacteristic of conscious and unconscious brain states, warrantingfuture research concerning their relationship to ongoing consciouscontent, and the possibility of modifying their prevalence by externalperturbations, both in healthy and pathological individuals, as well asacross species.
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aat7603
Abstract: Adopting the framework of brain dynamics as a cornerstone of human consciousness, we determined whether dynamic signal coordination provides specific and generalizable patterns pertaining to conscious and unconscious states after brain damage. A dynamic pattern of coordinated and anticoordinated functional magnetic resonance imaging signals characterized healthy individuals and minimally conscious patients. The brains of unresponsive patients showed primarily a pattern of low interareal phase coherence mainly mediated by structural connectivity, and had smaller chances to transition between patterns. The complex pattern was further corroborated in patients with covert cognition, who could perform neuroimaging mental imagery tasks, validating this pattern’s implication in consciousness. Anesthesia increased the probability of the less complex pattern to equal levels, validating its implication in unconsciousness. Our results establish that consciousness rests on the brain’s ability to sustain rich brain dynamics and pave the way for determining specific and generalizable fingerprints of conscious and unconscious states.
Check also Chasing the Rainbow: The Non-conscious Nature of Being. David A. Oakley and Peter W. Halligan. Front. Psychol., November 14 2017. https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2018/01/despite-compelling-subjective.html
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INTRODUCTION
Consciousness is seemingly lost and recovered every day, from themoment we fall asleep until we wake up. Consciousness can also betransiently abolished by pharmacological agents or, more permanently,by brain injury. Each of these departures from conscious wakefulnessbrings about different changes in brain function, behavior, and neuro-chemistry. Yet, they all share a common feature: lack of reported sub-jectiveexperience(1).Finding reliable markers indicating the presence or absence of con-sciousness represents an outstanding open problem for science (2).We postulate that consciousness has specific characteristics that arebased on the temporal dynamics of ongoing brain activity and its co-ordination over distant cortical regions. Our hypothesis stems fromthe common stance of various contemporary theories which proposethat consciousness relates to a dynamic process of self-sustained,coordinated brain-scale activity assisting the tuning to a constantlyevolving environment, rather than in static descriptions of brainfunction (3–5). In that respect, neural signals combine, dissolve, re-configure, and recombine over time, allowing perception, emotion,and cognition to happen (6).The first biological evidence for a constantly active brain camefrom electroencephalographic recordings showing electrical oscilla-tions even when the participant was not performing any particulartask. More recently, brain dynamics have been characterized by thepresence of complex activity patterns, which cannot be completelyattributed to background noise (7). Experiments with functional mag-netic resonance imaging (fMRI) during normal wakefulness haveshown that the brain spontaneouslygenerates a dynamic series of con-stantly changing activity and connectivity between brain regions (8–10).This activity presents long-range temporal correlations in the sensethat signal changes exert long-term influence on future dynamics (11).This translates to a complex temporal organization of the long-rangecoupling between brain regions, with temporally correlated series oftransitions between discrete functional connectivity patterns (6). Thespatiotemporal complexity of brain dynamics contributes toward ef-ficient exchanges between neuronal populations (8), suggesting thatthe neural correlates of consciousness could be found in temporallyevolving dynamic processes, as postulated by influential theoreticalaccounts (3–5).In terms of states of consciousness, spontaneous fMRI dynamicconnectivity has been investigated in different sleep stages (11,12)and pharmacologically induced anesthesia in humans (13,14)andanimals (15,16). These studies indicate that, during physiologicallyreversible unconscious states, cortical long-range correlations are
disrupted in both space and time, anticorrelated cortical statesdisappear, and the dynamic explorations are limited to specific patternsthat are dominated by rigid functional configurations tied to the anatom-ical connectivity. Conversely, conscious wakefulness is characterizednot only by global integration, evidenced by strong long-distance inter-actions between brain regions, butalso by a dynamic exploration of arich and flexible repertoire of functional brain configurations departingfrom the anatomical constraints (15). Another important characteristicobserved predominantly during conscious wakefulness is the appear-ance of anticorrelations between the activity of different brain regions.This observation is in line with the prediction of the Global NeuronalWorkspace theory stating that different streams of information in thebrain compete for the global percolation (“ignition”) of a widespreadnetwork of regions, a phenomenon associated with conscious access.In terms of the fMRI blood oxygen level–dependent (BOLD) signal,this could manifest in the mutual inhibition of activity at different cor-tical regions, leading to anticorrelated dynamics (5).Although dynamic connectivity has been investigated in physio-logical and pharmacological unresponsiveness, currently, the altera-tions in brain connectivity dynamics associated with pathologicalunconsciousness after severe brain injury remain unknown. The studyof unresponsive brain-lesioned patients with preserved levels of vig-ilance offers unique insights into the necessary and potentially suf-ficient conditions for the capacity of sustaining conscious content. Sofar, the inference of consciousness in patients has rested on the use ofactive mental imagery neuroimaging paradigms (17) and by assess-ing the complexity of evoked (18) and spontaneous brain activity(19). Patients who successfully perform these active paradigms canno longer be considered unconscious and are thought to suffer fromcognitive-motor dissociation (20). Given that nonresponsiveness canbe associated with a variety of brain lesions, varying levels of vigilance,and covert cognition, we highlight the need to determine a commonset of features capable of accounting for the capacity to sustain con-scious experience. Given the above theoretical considerations, whichagree in the characterization of consciousness as a global, temporallyevolving process, we aimed at determining whether the dynamics ofbrain-wide coordination could provide such a set of common featuresin the form of transient patterns of connectivity that successfully gen-eralize between different forms of nonresponsiveness in patients withbrain injury.
DISCUSSION
We studied the brain’s dynamic organization during consciouswakefulness and after severe brain injury leading to disorders of con-sciousness, with the aim of determining patterns of signal coordinationspecifically associated with conscious and unconscious states. Weidentified a pattern of positive and negative long-distance coordination,high modularity, with low similarity to the anatomical connectivity,
potentially relevant for the support of conscious cognition (pattern 1).We also identified a pattern of low interregional dynamic coordina-tion, low efficiency, with high similarity to anatomical connectivity,potentially specific to reduced or absent conscious processing (pattern4). With respect to pattern 1, momentary neural coalitions have beenpreviously shown to constitute a basis for complex cognitive function,with signals fluctuating between states of high and low connectivityand with more integrated states enabling faster and more accurate
performance during cognitive tasks (23). With respect to pattern 4,studies in physiological and pharmacological unconsciousnessshowed a breakdown of long-range interareal positive and negativeconnections. For example, during sleep, the presence of negative dy-namic connections disappear (11). Our results are in line with previ-ous findings in animals. As in the present study, the brain activity ofanesthetized nonhuman primates resided most frequently in a patternof low connectivity resembling the anatomy, which was sustained forlonger periods of time in comparison to more complex patterns (15).In addition, we demonstrated that network properties, such as mod-ularity, integration, distance relationship, and efficiency, increasedwith the participants’conscious state. The latter result is in line withthe hypothesis that high-efficiency patterns carry higher metaboliccosts (24), which are restricted underpathologicalunconsciousconditions (25).Our findings also align with theoretical considerations on dynamicconnectivity, suggesting that alternating patterns of correlations andanticorrelations may constitute a fundamental property of informationprocessing in the brain (26). Differentmodels of consciousness proposethat intermittent epochs of global synchronization grant segregated
and parallel network elements access to a global workspace, integratingthem serially and allowing effortful conscious cognition (27). There-fore, the transient exploration of this global workspace could permitthe brain to efficiently balance both segregated and integrated neuraldynamics and to encode globally broadcasted and therefore reportableconscious contents (3). In the absence of transient epochs of global syn-chronization, the transmission of information is expected to be rela-tively ineffective (6).With respect to patterns 2 and 3, these were not predominantlypreferred by any group in terms of occurrence probabilities and dura-tion and hence could represent transitional states (28). Pattern 3 showedthe overall positive interareal coherence. For pattern 2, the significanceof the overall negative coherence with regions of the visual networkcan only be speculated. For the moment, we suggest that it indicatesthe presence of a local coordination pattern reflecting the anatomicalorganization of the visual cortex (29).Whether the identified dynamic coordination patterns entail thepresence/absence of mental contents or cognitive function is difficultto assume without probing moment-to-moment changes in thecontents of conscious experience. Although a link has been shownbetween intrinsic connectivity networks and various behavioral tasks(30), it has been suggested that BOLD correlations need not necessar-ily reflect moment-to-moment changes in cognitive content. Instead,they may predominantly reflect processes necessary for maintainingthe stability of the brain’s functional organization (31). Also, the BOLDsignal is nonstationary (32), and some of its spontaneous fluctuationsmay not be a faithful reflection of functionally relevant brain dynamicsor the underlying nonstationarities of neural activity and coordination(10). We also acknowledge that the identification of these dynamicconfigurations required time-resolved analyses of fMRI time seriesin the scale of few seconds. It can be argued that conscious cognitionand the relevant features of our environment develop on a faster timescale of hundreds of milliseconds (3). However, the BOLD signal hasbeen shown to correlate with infraslow neurophysiological oscilla-tions, i.e., the slow cortical potential (33). The slow cortical potentialis important for large-scale information integration, hence suggest-ing that the flow of the conscious experience could be supported byprocesses at slower time scales (34). Future experiments should ad-dress a potential relationship between conscious experience, the slowcortical potential, and functional network reconfigurations measuredas with fMRI.Regardless of the implicated time scales, our analyses did not aim attracking the moment-to-moment contents of conscious experience,but at identifying brain-wide dynamic networks supporting differentglobal states of consciousness. We consider that the four-pattern modelcan account for modes of conscious and unconscious informationprocessing. Our interpretation is sustained by the additional testsfor the validity and replicability of the main results. We found thatthe complex dynamic pattern 1 presented low probabilities of appear-ing in patients under propofol anesthesia (whether they were commu-nicating or not at baseline) and that it was most likely to appear inpatients with covert cognition (i.e., patients in UWS who successfullyperformed mental imagery neuroimaging tasks). Both findings sug-gest its implication in conscious states. We also found that the pat-tern of low interareal coordination (pattern 4) uniformly presentedhigher probabilities of appearing in all anesthetized patients, regardlessof clinical diagnosis, and it was most likely to manifest in unresponsivepatients who did not perform the mental imagery neuroimaging task,supporting its relationship to absent or reduced conscious cognition.Pattern 4 remained visited by healthy controls even under typicalwakeful conditions. In the absence of experience sampling duringdata acquisition, the interpretation of this finding can only be specu-lative. On the one hand, it could be that healthy controls entered tran-sient microsleep states as a result of fluctuating levels of vigilance, afrequently observed phenomenon during resting-state experiments(35). Our experimental setup did not include simultaneous poly-somnography recordings to directly test this hypothesis. However,we derived different fMRI-based proxies to assess the presence ofmicrosleeps. First, we examined head movements time locked to theoccurrence of all coordination patterns and found no substantial as-sociations between the two variables, as could be expected if pattern 4was related to lapses in vigilance. Second, we performed a whole-braingeneral linear model (GLM) analysis, with the coordination patterntime series as regressors. We did not observe significant positive/negative BOLD signal changes associated with the onset of the differentcoordination patterns; in particular, the presence of coordination pat-tern 4 did not result in BOLD signal changes typical of microsleeps.Last, the likelihood of pattern 4 occurring over time did not positivelycorrelate with the elapsed scan time, as has been shown to occur forpatterns associated with lapses in vigilance (35,36). Once we rule outtransient loss of vigilance as the cause of the intrusion of pattern 4 inconscious wakefulness, we can speculate that the flow of consciouscognition may be separated by periods of absent or reduced effortfulinformation processing, as recently it was hypothesized that betweentwo successive self-reports, a subject may present states of reducedawareness (37). Behaviorally, this could take the form of“mindblanks”during which participants are not engaged in cognitivedemanding processes, although they remain vigilant (38). This inter-pretation is parsimonious with the observation that participantswere instructed to rest inside the scanner, without engaging in anyeffortful cognitive task. The potential role of transient lapses of aware-ness in the stream of conscious contents during healthy wakefulnessshould be addressed by future experiments.Together, our results suggest that, following loss of consciousness,coordinated brain activity is largely restricted to a positive pattern ofinterareal coherence dominated by the anatomical connections be-tween brain regions. In contrast, conscious states are characterizedby a higher prevalence of a complex configuration of interareal coor-dination that, while still constrained by brain anatomy, also deviatesfrom it and presents both positive and negative long-distance inter-actions. It did not escape us that such a complex interareal coor-dination pattern sporadically appeared in the group of unresponsivepatients. The real-time detection of this pattern and its reinforcementthough externally induced manipulations could represent a promis-ing avenue for the noninvasive restoration of consciousness. We con-clude that these patterns of transient brain signal coordination arecharacteristic of conscious and unconscious brain states, warrantingfuture research concerning their relationship to ongoing consciouscontent, and the possibility of modifying their prevalence by externalperturbations, both in healthy and pathological individuals, as well asacross species.
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