High intelligence: A risk factor for psychological and physiological overexcitabilities

High intelligence: A risk factor for psychological and physiological overexcitabilities. Ruth I. Karpinski et al. Intelligence, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2017.09.001

Highlights
•    A potential association between a hyperbrain (high IQ) and a hyperbody was examined.
•    Those with high IQ had higher risk for psychological disorders (RR 1.20 - 223.08).
•    High IQ was associated with higher risk for physiological diseases (RR 1.84 - 4.33).
•    Findings lend substantial support to a hyper brain/hyper body theory.

Abstract: High intelligence is touted as being predictive of positive outcomes including educational success and income level. However, little is known about the difficulties experienced among this population. Specifically, those with a high intellectual capacity (hyper brain) possess overexcitabilities in various domains that may predispose them to certain psychological disorders as well as physiological conditions involving elevated sensory, and altered immune and inflammatory responses (hyper body). The present study surveyed members of American Mensa, Ltd. (n = 3715) in order to explore psychoneuroimmunological (PNI) processes among those at or above the 98th percentile of intelligence. Participants were asked to self-report prevalence of both diagnosed and/or suspected mood and anxiety disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and physiological diseases that include environmental and food allergies, asthma, and autoimmune disease. High statistical significance and a remarkably high relative risk ratio of diagnoses for all examined conditions were confirmed among the Mensa group 2015 data when compared to the national average statistics. This implicates high IQ as being a potential risk factor for affective disorders, ADHD, ASD, and for increased incidence of disease related to immune dysregulation. Preliminary findings strongly support a hyper brain/hyper body association which may have substantial individual and societal implications and warrants further investigation to best identify and serve this at-risk population.

The Impact of Physical Dominance on Male Customers’ Status-Signaling Consumption

The Abercrombie & Fitch Effect: The Impact of Physical Dominance on Male Customers’ Status-Signaling Consumption. Tobias Otterbring et al. Journal of Marketing Research. In-Press, https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.15.0247

Abstract: Consumer lay theory suggests that women will spend more money than men in the presence of a physically dominant male employee, while theories of intrasexual competition from evolutionary psychology predict the opposite outcome. A retail field study demonstrates that male customers spend more money and purchase more expensive products than their female counterparts in the presence (vs. absence) of a physically dominant male employee. This effect has a more powerful impact on male customers who lack bodily markers of dominance (shorter stature or measures linked to lower levels of testosterone). When confronted with other physically dominant (vs. non-dominant) men, these male customers are particularly prone to signal status through price or logo size. Their elevated feelings of intrasexual (male-to-male) competitiveness drive them to spend more money on status-signaling, but not functional products, and to prefer and draw larger brand logos. As pictorial exposure is sufficient for the effect to occur, these findings are not limited to in-store interactions with dominant male employees, but have broad implications for marketing and advertising.

Origins of sinister rumors: A preference for threat-related material in the supply and demand of information

Origins of sinister rumors: A preference for threat-related material in the supply and demand of information. Timothy Blaine, Pascal Boyer. Evolution and Human Behavior, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2017.10.001

Highlights
•    Risk-related rumors are more common than benefit-related rumors.
•    Threat information is more often transmitted than non-threatening negative information.
•    Also, people seek additional information about threats more than about other topics.
•    This could explain why so many rumors are about potential danger.

Abstract: Many rumors convey information about potential danger, even when these dangers are very unlikely. In four studies, we examine whether micro-processes of cultural transmission explain the spread of threat-related information. Three studies using transmission chain protocols suggest a) that there is indeed a preference for the deliberate transmission of threat-related information over other material, b) that it is not caused by a general negativity or emotionality bias, and c) that it is not eliminated when threats are presented as very unlikely. A forced-choice study on similar material shows the same preference when participants have to select information to acquire rather than transmit. So the cultural success of threat-related material may be explained by transmission biases, rooted in evolved threat-detection and error-management systems, that affect both supply and demand of information.

Keywords: Cultural transmission; Rumors; Threat detection; Error management; Cultural beliefs; Negativity bias

Death as a metaphor for ostracism: social invincibility, autopsy, necromancy, and resurrection

Death as a metaphor for ostracism: social invincibility, autopsy, necromancy, and resurrection. Andrew Hales. Mortality, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13576275.2017.1382462

Abstract: Metaphors can be powerful tools for theory building in psychological sciences. I entertain death as a theoretical metaphor for ostracism and explore the degree to which they share key properties. Death is universal (we all die), caused (by some things and not others), totally non-functional (the dead cannot do or experience anything) and irreversible (death is permanent). Ostracism, in some of its forms, shares these key properties. If ostracism is social death then it follows that: (1) never being ostracised constitutes social invincibility, (2) pondering the reasons why one was ostracised constitutes a social autopsy, (3) receiving even trace amounts of acknowledgement, while being otherwise totally ostracised constitutes social necromancy and (4) being reincluded constitutes social resurrection. These four constructs are discussed along with new research questions and predictions that arise from them.

Keywords: Death, ostracism, metaphor, social invincibility, reinclusion

Region-Specific Association of Subjective Cognitive Decline With Tauopathy Independent of Global β-Amyloid Burden

Region-Specific Association of Subjective Cognitive Decline With Tauopathy Independent of Global β-Amyloid Burden. Rachel F. Buckley et al. JAMA Neurol. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2017.2216

IMPORTANCE The ability to explore associations between reports of subjective cognitive decline (SCD) and biomarkers of early Alzheimer disease (AD) pathophysiologic processes (accumulation of neocortical β-amyloid [Aβ] and tau) provides an important opportunity to understand the basis of SCD and AD risk.

OBJECTIVE To examine associations between SCD and global Aβ and tau burdens in regions of interest in clinically healthy older adults.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This imaging substudy of the Harvard Aging Brain Study included 133 clinically healthy older participants (Clinical Dementia Rating Scale global scores of 0) participating in the Harvard Aging Brain Study who underwent cross-sectional flortaucipir F 18 (previously known as AV 1451, T807) positron emission tomography (FTP-PET) imaging for tau and Pittsburgh compound B carbon 11–labeled PET (PiB-PET) imaging for Aβ. The following 2 regions for tau burden were identified: the entorhinal cortex, which exhibits early signs of tauopathy, and the inferior temporal region, which is more closely associated with AD-related pathologic mechanisms. Data were collected from June 11, 2012, through April 7, 2016.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Subjective cognitive declinewas measured using a previously published method of z-transforming subscales from the Memory Functioning Questionnaire, the Everyday Cognition battery, and a 7-item questionnaire. The Aβ level was measured according to a summary distribution volume ratio of frontal, lateral temporal and parietal, and retrosplenial PiB-PET tracer uptake. The FTP-PET measures were computed as standardized uptake value ratios. Linear regression models focused on main and interactive effects of Aβ, entorhinal cortical, and inferior temporal tau on SCD, controlling for age, sex, educational attainment, and Geriatric Depression Scale score.

RESULTS Of the 133 participants, 75 (56.3%) were women and 58 (43.6%) were men; mean (SD) age was 76 (6.9) years (range, 55-90 years). Thirty-nine participants (29.3%) exhibited a high Aβ burden. Greater SCD was associated with increasing entorhinal cortical tau burden (β = 0.35; 95%CI, 0.19-.52; P < .001) and Aβ burden (β = 0.24; 95%CI, 0.08-.40; P = .005), but not inferior temporal tau burden (β = 0.10; 95%CI, −0.08 to 0.28; P = .27). This association between entorhinal cortical tau burden and SCD was largely unchanged after accounting for Aβ burden (β = 0.36; 95%CI, 0.15-.58; P = .001), and no interaction influenced SCD (β = −0.36; 95%CI, −0.34 to 0.09; P = .25). An exploratory post hoc whole-brain analysis also indicated that SCD was predominantly associated with greater tau burden in the entorhinal cortex.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Subjective cognitive decline is indicative of accumulation of early tauopathy in the medial temporal lobe, specifically in the entorhinal cortex, and to a lesser extent, elevated global levels of Aβ. Our findings suggest multiple underlying pathways that motivate SCD that do not necessarily interact to influence SCD endorsement. As such, multiple biological factors must be considered when assessing SCD in clinically healthy older adults.

Consumption of fake news is a consequence, not a cause of their readers’ voting preferences

Kahan, Dan M., Misinformation and Identity-Protective Cognition (October 2, 2017). SSRN, https://ssrn.com/abstract=3046603

Abstract: This paper synthesizes existing work on misinformation relating to policy-relevant facts. It argues that misinformation has the greatest power to mislead when it interacts with identity-protective cognition.

Keywords: Identity Protective Reading, Misinform

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Reasoning axiomatically from general dynamics of belief formation, commentators have tended to identify public consumption of “fake news” as an important part of Donald Trump’s victory [...] Allcott and Gentzkow (2017) report that individuals were much more likely to represent that they had read, agreed with, and shared articles that were favorable toward their preferred political candidate or unfavorable toward that candidate’s opponent. This is evidence, then, that consumption of the stories (or story: the average number of fake news articles read by a voter, A&G calculated, was 1) were a consequence, not a cause of their readers’ voting preferences.

Check also: Polarized Mass or Polarized Few? Assessing the Parallel Rise of Survey Nonresponse and Measures of Polarization. Amnon Cavari and Guy Freedman. The Journal of Politics, https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2018/03/polarized-mass-or-polarized-few.html

Gender differences in environmental concern are smaller in societies with higher levels of gender inequality, economic scarcity, power distance, and collectivism

Cross-National Variation of Gender Differences in Environmental Concern: Testing the Sociocultural Hindrance Hypothesis. Hoi-Wing Chan, Vivien Pong, Kim-Pong Tam. Environment and Behavior, https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916517735149

Abstract: Although it is widely accepted that women are more pro-environmental than men, findings regarding gender differences in environmental concern have actually been mixed. In this study, we attempt to reconcile these mixed findings by considering the influence of sociocultural contexts. Specifically, we propose that some sociocultural contexts tend to hinder the psychological process that underlies gender differences in environmental concern. We tested this sociocultural hindrance hypothesis with an international survey data set (International Social Survey Programme) that involved respondents from 32 countries. We found that gender differences in environmental concern were smaller in societies with higher levels of gender inequality, economic scarcity, power distance, and collectivism. These results highlight the need to examine both the “why” and “when” questions for gender differences in environmental concern. They also indicate the importance of considering not only individual-level variables but also societal-level factors in the study of environmental concern.

Sleep and the gut microbiome: antibiotic-induced depletion of the gut microbiota reduces nocturnal sleep in mice

Sleep and the gut microbiome: antibiotic-induced depletion of the gut microbiota reduces nocturnal sleep in mice. Jonathan Elliott Lendrum, Bradley Seebach, Barrett Klein, Sumei Liu. doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/199075

Abstract: Several bacterial cell wall components such as peptidoglycan and muramyl peptide are potent inducers of mammalian slow-wave sleep when exogenously administered to freely behaving animals. It has been proposed that the native gut microflora may serve as a quasi-endogenous pool of somnogenic bacterial cell wall products given their quantity and close proximity to the intestinal portal. This proposal suggests that deliberate manipulation of the host's intestinal flora may elicit changes in host sleep behavior. To test this possibility, we evaluated 24 h of sleep-wake behavior after depleting the gut microbiota with a 14 d broad-spectrum antibiotic regimen containing high doses of ampicillin, metronidazole, neomycin, and vancomycin. High-throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S rDNA gene was used to confirm depletion of fecal bacteria and sleep-wake vigilance states were determined using videosomnography techniques based on previously established behavioral criteria shown to highly correlate with standard polysomnography-based methods. Additionally, considering that germ-free and antibiotic-treated mice have been earlier shown to display increased locomotor activity, and since locomotor activity has been used as a reliable proxy of sleep, we suspected that the elevated locomotor activity previously reported in these animals may reflect an unreported reduction in sleep behavior. To examine this potential relationship, we also quantified locomotor activity on a representative subsample of the same 24 h of video recordings using the automated video-tracking software ANY-maze. We found that antibiotic-induced depletion of the gut microbiota reduced nocturnal sleep, but not diurnal sleep. Likewise, antibiotic-treated mice showed increased nocturnal locomotor activity, but not diurnal locomotor activity. Taken together, these results support a link between the gut microbiome and nocturnal sleep and locomotor physiology in adult mice. Additionally, our findings indicate that antibiotics may be insomnogenic via their ability to diminish gut-derived bacterial somnogens. Given that antibiotics are among the most commonly prescribed drugs in human medicine, these findings have important implications for clinical practice with respect to prolonged antibiotic therapy, insomnia, and other idiopathic sleep-wake and circadian-rhythm disorders affecting an estimated 50-70 million people in the United States alone.

Value information about a drug, such as the price tag, can strongly affect its therapeutic (and antitherapeutic) effect

Interactions between brain and spinal cord mediate value effects in nocebo hyperalgesia. A. Tinnermann et al. Science  Oct 06 2017, Vol. 358, Issue 6359, pp. 105-108. DOI: 10.1126/science.aan1221

Abstract: Value information about a drug, such as the price tag, can strongly affect its therapeutic effect. We discovered that value information influences adverse treatment outcomes in humans even in the absence of an active substance. Labeling an inert treatment as expensive medication led to stronger nocebo hyperalgesia than labeling it as cheap medication. This effect was mediated by neural interactions between cortex, brainstem, and spinal cord. In particular, activity in the prefrontal cortex mediated the effect of value on nocebo hyperalgesia. Value furthermore modulated coupling between prefrontal areas, brainstem, and spinal cord, which might represent a flexible mechanism through which higher-cognitive representations, such as value, can modulate early pain processing.

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From the editors:

Patients in randomized clinical trials frequently stop taking their drug, complaining of side effects. However, it turns out that some of these subjects are part of the placebo group and thus never received any active medication. This is a case of the nocebo effect seriously interfering with medical treatment. Tinnermann et al. investigated whether value information such as the price of a medication can further modulate behavioral nocebo effects and the underlying neural network dynamics. They used brain imaging to characterize the circuits involved in nocebo hyperalgesia within the descending pain pathway from the prefrontal cortex to the spinal cord. Their findings revealed how value information increased the nocebo effect.

Polity or Policy? Explaining Ordinary Muslims’ Support for Suicide Bombing

Polity or Policy? Explaining Ordinary Muslims’ Support for Suicide Bombing. Christine Fair & Junjie Chen. Georgetown University Working Paper, August 2017. https://georgetown.academia.edu/ChristineFair/Drafts

Abstract: Public opinion research shows there is considerable, albeit varied, support for terrorist tactics among the world’s varied Muslim populations. Data from the Pew Research Center demonstrated that in 2014, 47 and 46 percent of Bangladeshis and Lebanese respondents, respectively, approved of suicide bombing, compared to only 5 and 3 percent of Tunisian and Pakistani respondents (Pew 2014). Scholars have sought to identify respondent-level determinants of support for suicide bombings (and other forms of political violence) perpetrated by Islamist militant groups by using a variety of country-specific and multi-national survey samples as well as novel survey techniques (reviewed in Bullock, Imai and Shapiro 2011). None of the extant literature has focused on aspects of the polity in which these Muslims respondents live, namely whether or not the person lives in a Muslim-majority country and/or whether that person lives in a country which has adopted Islam as the state’s formal religion. We posit that these two considerations are likely important in explaining why some Muslims support suicide bombing while others do not. To test the salience of these variables, we employ 2011-2-12 data from Pew Research Center’s World’s Muslim Survey, to model support for suicide bombing using Ordinary Least Squares regression. We find that the share of Muslims in the state’s population is generally negatively associated with the support of terrorist attacks while the codification of Islam as a state religion positively correlates with support for suicide bombing.

Types of intelligence predict likelihood to get married and stay married

Types of intelligence predict likelihood to get married and stay married: Large-scale empirical evidence for evolutionary theory. Jaakko Aspara, Kristina Wittkowski, and Xueming Luo. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 122, February 1 2018, Pages 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.09.028

Highlights
•    Intelligence scores of male individuals are studied as predictors of marriage.
•    Two samples are examined: initially non-married males and already-married males.
•    Intelligence predicts both likelihood to get married and likelihood to stay married.
•    Verbal, numeric, and spatial logic intelligence differently predict the two.
•    The results suggest intelligence to be an evolutionary fitness indicator in mating.

Abstract: Decisions related to marriage and divorce are key life events for individuals. In the present research, we provide large-scale evidence of the role of individual intelligence in marriage and divorce behavior, controlling for tangible resources such as income and social status symbols. We find that male individuals' intelligence score at early adulthood has a positive relationship with their subsequent likelihood to get married, in a sample of 120,290 males. Intelligence also predicts continued marriage (non-divorce) in a separate sample of 68,150 married males. The relatively easier-to-perceive verbal intelligence predicts the likelihood of getting married (bivariate correlation r = 0.07) slightly better than the harder-to-observe numeric (r = 0.06) and logical intelligence (r = 0.05). The likelihood to stay married is predicted to an equal extent by verbal, numeric, and logical intelligence (r ≈ 0.05). A series of regression models confirms the direct effect of residualized intelligence on marriage behavior over and above its indirect effect through income, social status, and other control variables. These findings provide empirical evidence for the notion of evolutionary psychology that human intelligence, as an intangible fitness indicator, directly influences mating prospects, rather than merely exerting its influence through the tangible resources of income and social status.

Keywords: Evolution; Intelligence; Marriage; Divorce; Fitness indicators; Verbal intelligence; Numeric ability; Spatial logic

My comment: Marriage should be understood as something temporary... CheckThe Future of Everything. 50 Experts Explain Where We’re Heading– and How We’ll Get There. The Wall Street Journal, Dec 2014. >>> The Future of Love Will Play Out by Prehistoric Rules. By Helen Fisher:

"Third, we will see more divorce. Today, almost 50% of American men and women are projected to divorce. However, in huntinggathering societies, men and women regularly have two or three marriages. Across prehistory, serial pairing was probably the norm—as it is becoming once again.

In fact, I believe we are shedding some 10,000 years of agrarian traditions and returning to our prehistoric roots. Our farming forebears were obliged to marry someone with the “right” kin, social and religious connections. Arranged marriages were the norm."

Male brain type women and female brain type men are more similar to the opposite sex than to their own in a range of social, cognitive and personality variables

Male brain type women and female brain type men: Gender atypical cognitive profiles and their correlates. Annika M., Svedholm-Häkkinen, Sini J. Ojala, & Marjaana Lindeman. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 122, February 1 2018, Pages 7–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.09.041

Highlights
•    Sex differences have been documented in occupations, interests, and abilities
•    Empathizing-Systemizing theory attempts to explain cognitive sex differences
•    Women on average empathize more, men on average systemize more
•    We studied men and women with gender atypical cognitive profiles
•    Gender atypical profiles predicted qualities commonly linked with the opposite sex

Abstract: Gender differences exist in abilities, interests, and occupations. According to the Empathizing-Systemizing theory, the reason for all gender differences lies in the relative weights of two cognitive processes: women empathize more, which is useful in understanding people, while men systemize more, which means interpreting phenomena as rule-based systems. The terms “male and female brain type” refer to a heightened preference for one process over the other. We aimed to find out whether the gender atypical groups of male brain type women and female brain type men are more similar to the opposite sex than to their own in terms of a range of social, cognitive and personality variables. Female and male brain type groups were identified and compared within both genders in an online study (N = 2983). The results show there are female brain type men and male brain type women, who are characterized by qualities more often associated with the opposite sex, and who have not been reached by prior research. Thus, these findings demonstrate that cognitive type is a more powerful predictor of certain characteristics than is biological sex.

Keywords: Brain type; Empathizing; Systemizing; Cognitive style; Gender differences

Participants who read about an underdog had higher creativity scores and produced a wider range of ideas

The Underdog Advantage in Creativity. Abby Boytos, Kerry Smith, and JongHan Kim. Thinking Skills and Creativity, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2017.10.003

Highlights
•    The study examines how thinking about underdogs can enhance creativity.
•    Underdogs often achieve success by finding creative solutions.
•    For underdogs, their approach motivation and lack of resources give underdogs a creative advantage.
•    Reading an underdog story may predispose the individual to finding creative solutions.

Abstract: Underdogs are expected to lose. Yet, many underdogs—from the Biblical David to today’s Harry Potter—emerge victorious. What do underdogs who win against seemingly impossible odds have in common? One answer may be creativity: they find creative ways to reach their goals. To determine how creativity figures into the success of underdogs, we randomly assigned participants in this study to either of two groups: one that reads a story about an underdog and one that reads a story about a top dog. After reading their respective stories, the participants completed the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. As we predicted, participants who had read about an underdog had higher creativity scores and produced a wider range of ideas than those who had read about a top dog. Those results suggested that their contemplation of successful underdogs had stimulated the participants’ creativity. The implication is that the underdog experience may itself predispose individuals to finding creative solutions.

Keywords: creativity; underdog; top dog; inspiration; carryover effect

Educational differences in the chances and timing of grandparenthood

Who becomes a grandparent – and when? Educational differences in the chances and timing of grandparenthood. Jan Skopek and Thomas Leopold. Demographic Research, Vol 37, article 29, pages 917-928. http://www.demographic-research.org/Volumes/Vol37/29/

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Despite  recent  advances,  the  demographic  understanding  of  grandparenthood  remains limited.

OBJECTIVE: Our  study  examines  educational  differences  in  the  transition  to  grandparenthood. Comparing  East  and  West  Germany,  we  analyze  educational  differences  in  a)  the chance  of  becoming  a  grandparent,  and  b)  the  timing  of  grandparenthood  for  both  men and women.

METHODS: We   used   fertility   data   across   three   family   generations   (German   Ageing   Survey, N= 2,434 men and women born 1933‒1948) and methods of survival time analysis to study educational gradients in the transition to grandparenthood.

RESULTS: We found a strong educational gradient in the chances of grandparenthood among West German  women:  Lower-educated  women’s  chances  of  becoming  a  grandmother  were similar to higher-educated women’s chances of becoming a mother.

CONCLUSIONS: Our  findings  have  implications  for  research  on  multi-generational  social  mobility  and on the consequences of grandparenthood.

CONTRIBUTION: Our  study  is  the  first  to  analyze  how  the  transition  to  grandparenthood  is  socially stratified.

The most common word during sleep is "No," 10pct of speech are profanities and 26pct are interrogations

What does the sleeping brain say? Syntax and semantics of sleep talking in healthy subjects and in parasomnia patients. Isabelle Arnulf et al. Sleep, zsx159, https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsx159

Abstract

Objectives: Speech is a complex function in humans, but the linguistic characteristics of sleep talking are unknown. We analyzed sleep-associated speech in adults, mostly (92%) during parasomnias.

Methods: The utterances recorded during night-time video-polysomnography were analyzed for number of words, propositions and speech episodes, frequency, gaps and pauses (denoting turn-taking in the conversation), lemmatization, verbosity, negative/imperative/interrogative tone, first/second person, politeness and abuse.

Results: The 232 subjects (aged 49.5 ± 20 y old; 41% women; 129 with rapid eye movement [REM] sleep behavior disorder and 87 with sleepwalking/sleep terrors, 15 healthy subjects and 1 patient with sleep apnea speaking in non-REM sleep) uttered 882 speech episodes, containing 59% non-verbal utterance (mumbles, shouts, whispers, laughs) and 3349 understandable words. The most frequent word was “No”: negations represented 21.4% of clauses (more in non-REM sleep). Interrogations were found in 26% of speech episodes (more in non-REM sleep), and subordinate clauses were found in 12.9% of speech episode. As many as 9.7% of clauses contained profanities (more in non-REM sleep). Verbal abuse lasted longer in REM sleep and was mostly directed towards insulting or condemning someone, whereas swearing predominated in non-REM sleep. Men sleep-talked more than women and used a higher proportion of profanities. Apparent turn-taking in the conversation respected the usual language gaps.

Conclusions: Sleep talking parallels awake talking for syntax, semantics and turn- taking in conversation, suggesting that the sleeping brain can function at a high level. Language during sleep is mostly a familiar, tensed conversation with inaudible others, suggestive of conflicts.

Keywords: sleep talking, language, syntax, linguistics, semantics, verbal abuse, REM sleep behavior disorder, sleepwalking


My comment: The most common word during sleep is "No," and 10pct of speech are profanities and 26pct are interrogations.

The End of Free College in England: Implications for Quality, Enrolments, and Equity

The End of Free College in England: Implications for Quality, Enrolments, and Equity. Richard Murphy, Judith Scott-Clayton, Gillian Wyness. NBER Working Paper No. 23888. www.nber.org/papers/w23888

Abstract: Despite increasing financial pressures on higher education systems throughout the world, many governments remain resolutely opposed to the introduction of tuition fees, and some countries and states where tuition fees have been long established are now reconsidering free higher education. This paper examines the consequences of charging tuition fees on university quality, enrolments, and equity. To do so, we study the English higher education system which has, in just two decades, moved from a free college system to one in which tuition fees are among the highest in the world. Our findings suggest that England’s shift has resulted in increased funding per head, rising enrolments, and a narrowing of the participation gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students. In contrast to other systems with high tuition fees, the English system is distinct in that its income-contingent loan system keeps university free at the point of entry, and provides students with comparatively generous assistance for living expenses. We conclude that tuition fees, at least in the English case supported their goals of increasing quality, quantity, and equity in higher education.

Individual Difference Correlates of Self-Perceptions of Creativity

Individual Difference Correlates of Self-Perceptions of Creativity. Mark Batey and David J. Hughes. In book: The Creative Self, pp.185-218. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-809790-8.00011-X

Abstract: The current chapter reports a systematic review of the relationship between self-perceptions of creativity and the individual difference traits of cognitive ability and personality. To structure our review, we separate out self-perceptions of creative traits, creative processes, and creative products. Our findings reveal that cognitive ability measures rarely relate to creative self-perceptions, but there are consistent positive associations with Openness to Experience and Extraversion. The relationships with Neuroticism, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness are more nuanced and vary relative to the type of self-perception (trait, process, product), the domain of the self-perception (e.g., arts vs. science), or culture. We explore some of the likely theoretical rationales for the findings and identify areas in need of further research. Lastly, we present a series of hypothetical models outlining nuanced relations between self-perceptions and individual differences and we present an exploratory but explanatory model that situates individual differences, self-perceptions of creativity, and actual creative achievement.

We feel with more intensity when observed

Janina Steinmetz and Stefan Pfattheicher (2017). Beyond Social Facilitation: A Review of the Far-Reaching Effects of Social Attention. Social Cognition: Vol. 35, No. 5, pp. 585-599. https://doi.org/10.1521/soco.2017.35.5.585

Abstract: Social psychology has demonstrated that people behave differently in social attention, compared to when alone. First and foremost, being in social attention affects people's performance and their interpersonal behavior by increasing arousal and reputational concerns, respectively. However, newer work demonstrates more fundamental intra-psychological effects of social attention. As mere reminders of social attention can activate reputational concerns, people's thoughts and behavior are affected by such reminders even when people's reputation is not at stake. These findings provide a deeper look at more intra-personal effects of social attention. As a result, recent research focuses on how social attention fundamentally influences people's subjective perceptions and experiences. In this review, we provide an overview of the far-reaching effects of social attention, identify relevant moderators and mediators, discuss socio-motivational and cognitive processes underlying these effects, and highlight avenues for future research.

KEYWORDS: social attention, social facilitation, shared reality, social presence

Macaques conceal food from alpha males by inhibiting interest in it, refraining from approaching it or looking at it

Factors influencing deceptive behaviours in Tonkean macaques (Macaca tonkeana). Charlotte Canteloup et al. https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539X-00003443

Abstract: The complex social environments of primates create opportunities for engaging in tactical deception, especially for subordinate individuals. We analysed the behaviour of subordinate Tonkean macaques with dominant conspecifics in an experimental food competition context. The subordinate macaque could see two pieces of food in a test area, but only one piece was visible to the dominant. Both individuals were released into the test area at the same time or with the subordinate given a short head start on the dominant. Here, based on video analysis of the subordinates’ behaviours, we describe and classify functionally deceptive behaviours displayed by subordinates, and report factors that influenced these behaviours. Subordinates used several types of tactical deception, including concealment and distraction, especially when paired with competitors of much higher social rank, and they obtained the hidden food more frequently when they used a combination of tactics rather than only one.

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The most frequently used tactic was concealment by inhibiting interest in object, either by refraining from approaching the food, or ‘freezing’ (see Video 1 in the online edition of this journal, which can be accessed via http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/1568539x), sometimes avoiding looking at the food. In this kind of concealment, subordinates acted as if they were unaware of the presence of food, for example by not entering the test area, or entering and then stopping or sitting down. The most parsimonious interpretation of this tactic is that the subordinate was simply inhibited by the dominant’s presence and/or gaze (behaviour reading hypothesis; e.g., Povinelli & Vonk, 2003), rather than actively refraining from approaching despite knowing that the dominant was unaware of the food (mindreading hypothesis; e.g., Call & Tomasello, 2008). It is conceivable that most cases of simple concealment by inhibiting interest reflect simple behavioural inhibition induced by the presence of a dominant competitor.

Concealment by inhibiting interest was used on its own or combined with other tactics such as concealment by hiding. In concealment by hiding, subordinates behaved so as not to be seen by the dominant. For example, they refrained from immediately entering the test area, or headed for the hidden food when the dominant’s back was turned (see Video 2 in the online edition of this journal, which can be accessed via http://booksandjournals. brillonline.com/content/journals/1568539x) or after the dominant left the test area. Similar behaviour has been described in the context of sneaky matings in long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis: Overduin-de Vries et al., 2015), and geladas (Theropithecus gelada: le Roux et al., 2013), done out of view of the alpha male. We previously reported that subordinate Tonkean macaques moved preferentially for hidden food when released simultaneously or slightly before the dominant, and proposed that they are capable of visual perspective-taking (Canteloup et al., 2016). In this context, concealment by hiding could reflect an active attempt by subordinates to be out of view of the dominant. However, we cannot exclude the lower-level explanation that subordinates merely reacted to the dominant’s gaze, without perspective-taking (Canteloup et al., 2016).

Most cancer drugs entered the market without evidence of benefit on survival or quality of life

Availability of evidence of benefits on overall survival and quality of life of cancer drugs approved by European Medicines Agency: retrospective cohort study of drug approvals 2009-13. BMJ 2017; 359 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j4530

Abstract

Objective: To determine the availability of data on overall survival and quality of life benefits of cancer drugs approved in Europe.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Publicly accessible regulatory and scientific reports on cancer approvals by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) from 2009 to 2013.

Main outcome measures: Pivotal and postmarketing trials of cancer drugs according to their design features (randomisation, crossover, blinding), comparators, and endpoints. Availability and magnitude of benefit on overall survival or quality of life determined at time of approval and after market entry. Validated European Society for Medical Oncology Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale (ESMO-MCBS) used to assess the clinical value of the reported gains in published studies of cancer drugs.

Results: From 2009 to 2013, the EMA approved the use of 48 cancer drugs for 68 indications. Of these, eight indications (12%) were approved on the basis of a single arm study. At the time of market approval, there was significant prolongation of survival in 24 of the 68 (35%). The magnitude of the benefit on overall survival ranged from 1.0 to 5.8 months (median 2.7 months). At the time of market approval, there was an improvement in quality of life in seven of 68 indications (10%). Out of 44 indications for which there was no evidence of a survival gain at the time of market authorisation, in the subsequent postmarketing period there was evidence for extension of life in three (7%) and reported benefit on quality of life in five (11%). Of the 68 cancer indications with EMA approval, and with a median of 5.4 years’ follow-up (minimum 3.3 years, maximum 8.1 years), only 35 (51%) had shown a significant improvement in survival or quality of life, while 33 (49%) remained uncertain. Of 23 indications associated with a survival benefit that could be scored with the ESMO-MCBS tool, the benefit was judged to be clinically meaningful in less than half (11/23, 48%).

Conclusions: This systematic evaluation of oncology approvals by the EMA in 2009-13 shows that most drugs entered the market without evidence of benefit on survival or quality of life. At a minimum of 3.3 years after market entry, there was still no conclusive evidence that these drugs either extended or improved life for most cancer indications. When there were survival gains over existing treatment options or placebo, they were often marginal.

My commentary: My thesis of why this came to pass is that our desperation for cancer death is so great that a few months of life and the hope of maybe, perhaps, having the cure in your hands, are enough to make us suffer those treatments and for doctors to try them

Democrat veterans suffer more PTSD than Republicans -- Political Affiliation, Probable PTSD, and Symptoms of Depression in Veterans

Political Affiliation, Probable PTSD, and Symptoms of Depression in Iraq and Afghanistan Combat Veterans: A Pilot Study. Lating, Jeffrey M. et al. Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease: October 2017 - Volume 205 - Issue 10 - p 809–811. doi: 10.1097/NMD.0000000000000715

Abstract: Ideological commitment of military personnel has been associated with mitigating trauma and protecting mental health. This pilot study assessed whether Democratic and Republican political affiliation differentially predicted probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and symptoms of depression in 62 male Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans. The Liberalism-Conservatism Scale, the PTSD Checklist-Military Version (PCL-M), and the Patient Health Questionnaire–9 (PHQ-9) were assessment measures. Results revealed that Democratic combat veterans had stronger liberal attitudes than Republican combat veterans (r = 0.95). Moreover, of the 50% of the entire sample higher than the cutoff score of 50 on the PCL-M, 84.8% were Democrats compared with 10.3% of Republicans. On the PHQ-9, 46.9% of Democrats compared with 3.7% of Republicans were higher than the cutoff score of 20. These initial results suggest possible mechanisms of action, including differences in shattered world view assumptions, willingness to disclose emotional concerns, and physiological reactions between Democratic and Republican combat veterans.

My commentary: It is just a pilot study, so we don't know how representative is. They say that Democrat veterans suffer more PTSD than Republicans. Explanations are: "The large effects sizes found in these data suggest the possibility worth exploring further that identified political affiliation might capture a shattered world view occurring more in Democrat than Republican combat veterans. Moreover, because Republicans are more likely than Democrats to report being in better mental health (Newport, 2007), it is possible that Democrats are more likely than Republicans to disclose emotional concerns, and thus more likely to complete these types of studies. In addition, there are data to suggest that there might be basic structural differences in the brains of those who identify as conservative or liberal (Oxley et al., 2008). Therefore, it might be worth investigating if these possible differences are related to the physiological diatheses associated with PTSD and depression (Elbejjani et al., 2015; Pitman et al., 2012)."

Searching for Moral Dumbfounding: Identifying Measurable Indicators

McHugh, C., McGann, M., Igou, E. R., & Kinsella, E. L. (2017). Searching for Moral Dumbfounding: Identifying Measurable Indicators of Moral Dumbfounding. Collabra: Psychology, 3(1), 23. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1525/collabra.79

Abstract: Moral dumbfounding is defined as maintaining a moral judgement, without supporting reasons. The most cited demonstration of dumbfounding does not identify a specific measure of dumbfounding and has not been published in peer-review form, or directly replicated. Despite limited empirical examination, dumbfounding has been widely discussed in moral psychology. The present research examines the reliability with which dumbfounding can be elicited, and aims to identify measureable indicators of dumbfounding. Study 1 aimed at establishing the effect that is reported in the literature. Participants read four scenarios and judged the actions described. An Interviewer challenged participants’ stated reasons for judgements. Dumbfounding was evoked, as measured by two indicators, admissions of not having reasons (17%), unsupported declarations (9%) with differences between scenarios. Study 2 measured dumbfounding as the selecting of an unsupported declaration as part of a computerised task. We observed high rates of dumbfounding across all scenarios. Studies 3a (college sample) and 3b (MTurk sample), addressing limitations in Study 2, replaced the unsupported declaration with an admission of having no reason, and included open-ended responses that were coded for unsupported declarations. As predicted, lower rates of dumbfounding were observed (3a 20%; 3b 16%; or 3a 32%; 3b 24% including unsupported declarations in open-ended responses). Two measures provided evidence for dumbfounding across three studies; rates varied with task type (interview/computer task), and with the particular measure being employed (admissions of not having reasons/unsupported declarations). Possible cognitive processes underlying dumbfounding and limitations of methodologies used are discussed as a means to account for this variability.

Keywords: Morality,  Dumbfounding,  Judgement,  Intuitions,  Reasoning

Are the Neural Correlates of Consciousness in the Front or in the Back of the Cerebral Cortex? Clinical and Neuroimaging Evidence

Are the Neural Correlates of Consciousness in the Front or in the Back of the Cerebral Cortex? Clinical and Neuroimaging Evidence. Melanie Boly, Marcello Massimini, Naotsugu Tsuchiya, Bradley R. Postle, Christof Koch and Giulio Tononi. Journal of Neuroscience Oct 04 2017, 37 (40) 9603-9613; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3218-16.2017

Abstract: The role of the frontal cortex in consciousness remains a matter of debate. In this Perspective, we will critically review the clinical and neuroimaging evidence for the involvement of the front versus the back of the cortex in specifying conscious contents and discuss promising research avenues.

My commentary: Seems to be in the back.

The Effect of an Interruption on Risk Decisions -- Interruptions decrease the novelty of the risk decision and increases its taking

The Effect of an Interruption on Risk Decisions. Daniella Kupor, Wendy Liu and On Amir. Journal of Consumer Research,  ucx092, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucx092

Abstract: Interruptions during consumer decision making are ubiquitous. In seven studies, we examine the consequences of a brief interruption during a financial risk decision. We identify a fundamental feature inherent in an interruption's temporal structure - a repeat exposure to the decision stimuli - and find that this re-exposure reduces decision stimuli's subjective novelty. This reduced novelty in turn reduces decision makers' apprehension and increases the amount of risk that they take in a wide range of financial risky decision contexts. Consistent with our theoretical framework, this interruption effect disappears when a stimulus's subjective novelty is restored after an interruption. We further find that these consequences are unique to interruptions and do not result from other interventions (e.g., time pressure and elongated thinking); this is because an interruption's unique temporal structure (which results in a repeat exposure to the decision stimuli) underlies its consequences. Our findings shed light on how and when interruptions during decision making can influence risk taking.

Keywords: risk taking, decision making, interruption

Delegating Decisions: Recruiting Others to Make Choices We Might Regret

Delegating Decisions: Recruiting Others to Make Choices We Might Regret. Mary Steffel and Elanor Williams. Journal of Consumer Research, ucx080. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucx080

Abstract: Consumers typically prefer freedom of choice, but when faced with a choice they might regret, they may prefer freedom from choice. Eight experiments show that people delegate difficult decisions, regardless of the decision's importance, and regardless of their potential surrogate's expertise. Delegation stems from a desire to avoid responsibility for potentially making the wrong choice rather than simply the desire to avoid the possibility of a poor outcome: although anticipated disappointment with the outcome and anticipated regret about one's decision both contribute to the decision to delegate, only anticipated regret directly leads people to delegate choices to others. Consequently, delegation is an appealing method for coping with difficult choices while allowing consumers to retain the benefits of choosing that they would forgo by opting out of the choice. Moreover, giving people the option to delegate makes them less prone to walk away from difficult choices empty-handed.

Keywords: choice delegation, choice deferral, responsibility, regret