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Trujillo-Llano C, Sainz-Ballesteros A, Suarez-Ardila F, Gonzalez-Gadea ML, Ibáñez A, Herrera E, Baez S. Neuroanatomical markers of social cognition in neglected adolescents. Neurobiol Stress 2024; 31:100642. [PMID: 38800539 PMCID: PMC11127280 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2024.100642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2024] [Revised: 05/07/2024] [Accepted: 05/12/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Growing up in neglectful households can impact multiple aspects of social cognition. However, research on neglect's effects on social cognition processes and their neuroanatomical correlates during adolescence is scarce. Here, we aimed to comprehensively assess social cognition processes (recognition of basic and contextual emotions, theory of mind, the experience of envy and Schadenfreude and empathy for pain) and their structural brain correlates in adolescents with legal neglect records within family-based care. First, we compared neglected adolescents (n = 27) with control participants (n = 25) on context-sensitive social cognition tasks while controlling for physical and emotional abuse and executive and intellectual functioning. Additionally, we explored the grey matter correlates of these domains through voxel-based morphometry. Compared to controls, neglected adolescents exhibited lower performance in contextual emotional recognition and theory of mind, higher levels of envy and Schadenfreude and diminished empathy. Physical and emotional abuse and executive or intellectual functioning did not explain these effects. Moreover, social cognition scores correlated with brain volumes in regions subserving social cognition and emotional processing. Our results underscore the potential impact of neglect on different aspects of social cognition during adolescence, emphasizing the necessity for preventive and intervention strategies to address these deficits in this population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catalina Trujillo-Llano
- Department of Neurology, Universitätsmedizin Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Del Valle, Cali, Colombia
| | - Agustín Sainz-Ballesteros
- Department of Psychology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, Tübingen, Germany
- Department for High-Field Magnetic Resonance, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany
| | | | - María Luz Gonzalez-Gadea
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center, Universidad de San Andres, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustín Ibáñez
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center, Universidad de San Andres, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Latin American Brain Health (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile
- Global Brain Health Institute, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
- Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Eduar Herrera
- Universidad Icesi, Departamento de Estudios Psicológicos, Cali, Colombia
| | - Sandra Baez
- Global Brain Health Institute, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
- Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
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2
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Santaguida E, Bergamasco M. A perspective-based analysis of attachment from prenatal period to second year postnatal life. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1296242. [PMID: 38840732 PMCID: PMC11150629 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1296242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Attachment is one of the foundational themes in the history of the psychological development of human beings. For this reason, we assume that it must be approached by taking into account multiple scientific perspectives. The present review aims at analyzing the state of the art regarding the genetic, neurobiological and cognitive mechanisms underlying the development of attachment bonding, considering the child as the frame of reference. We hypothesize that attachment may be present in prototypical forms even in the prenatal period, thus our analysis has a temporal origin in the intrauterine period preceding birth. The intrauterine period is assumed to be a period of maximum sensitivity to stimuli and in particular to those coming from a potential primary caregiver: the biological mother. We conclude with a reframing of the state of the art and propose that future research work would benefit from a superordinate model of attachment, capable of containing and regulating all its components and variables.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica Santaguida
- Institute of Mechanical Intelligence, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy
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3
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Gilbert P. Threat, safety, safeness and social safeness 30 years on: Fundamental dimensions and distinctions for mental health and well-being. BRITISH JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2024. [PMID: 38698734 DOI: 10.1111/bjc.12466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/05/2024]
Abstract
In 1993, the British Journal of Clinical Psychology published my paper titled 'Defence and safety: Their function in social behaviour and psychopathology'. The paper highlights that to understand people's sensitivity to threat, we also need to understand their ability to identify what is safe. This paper offers an update on these concepts, highlighting distinctions that were implicit but not clearly defined at the time. Hence, the paper seeks to clarify distinctions between: (i) threat detection and response, (ii) safety and safety seeking, (iii) safeness and (iv) their social and non-social functions and forms. Threat detection and response are to prevent or minimize harm (e.g., run from a predator or fire). Safety checking relates to monitoring for the absence and avoidance of threat, while safety seeking links to the destination of the defensive behaviour (e.g., running home). Safety seeking also relates to maintaining vigilance to the appearance of potential harms and doing things believed to avoid harm. Threat-defending and safety checking and seeking are regulated primarily through evolved threat processing systems that monitor the nature, presence, controllability and/or absence of threat (e.g., amygdala and sympathetic nervous system). Safeness uses different monitoring systems via different psychophysiological systems (e.g., prefrontal cortex, parasympathetic system) for the presence of internal and external resources that support threat-coping, risk-taking, resource exploration. Creating brain states that recruit safeness processing can impact how standard evidence-based therapies (e.g., exposure, distress tolerance and reappraisal) are experienced and produce long-term change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Gilbert
- Centre of Compassion Research and Training, College of Health and Social Care Research Centre, University of Derby, Derby, UK
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4
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Hackel LM, Kalkstein DA, Mende-Siedlecki P. Simplifying social learning. Trends Cogn Sci 2024; 28:428-440. [PMID: 38331595 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2024.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 01/16/2024] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024]
Abstract
Social learning is complex, but people often seem to navigate social environments with ease. This ability creates a puzzle for traditional accounts of reinforcement learning (RL) that assume people negotiate a tradeoff between easy-but-simple behavior (model-free learning) and complex-but-difficult behavior (e.g., model-based learning). We offer a theoretical framework for resolving this puzzle: although social environments are complex, people have social expertise that helps them behave flexibly with low cognitive cost. Specifically, by using familiar concepts instead of focusing on novel details, people can turn hard learning problems into simpler ones. This ability highlights social learning as a prototype for studying cognitive simplicity in the face of environmental complexity and identifies a role for conceptual knowledge in everyday reward learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leor M Hackel
- University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA.
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5
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Chang O, Huh K, Savoy CD, Krzeczkowski JE, Van Lieshout RJ. Associations between maternal postpartum depression and infant temperament in treatment-seeking mothers prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dev Psychopathol 2024; 36:495-503. [PMID: 36700350 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579422001353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
It remains unclear how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the mother-infant relationship and associations between maternal postpartum depression (PPD) and offspring temperament. This study examined the impact of the pandemic on these links and how maternal ratings of the mother-infant relationship mediated associations between PPD and infant temperament in a sample of treatment-seeking mothers in Ontario, Canada before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mothers with infants <12 months of age and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale scores ≥10 enrolled in two separate randomized controlled trials of 1-day cognitive behavioral therapy-based workshops for PPD conducted before COVID-19 (n = 392) and during the pandemic (n = 403). Mothers reported on depressive symptomatology, infant temperament, and the mother-infant relationship. Maternal PPD was associated with more infant negative affectivity and mother-infant relationship difficulties. While associations between PPD and infant-focused anxiety were stronger during COVID-19, the pandemic did not otherwise affect associations between PPD and infant temperament. Mediation analyses suggested that aspects of the mother-infant relationship mediated associations between PPD and infant negative affectivity. Findings highlight the importance of detecting PPD and intervening to potentially improve outcomes for mothers and their children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oswin Chang
- Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main St W, Hamilton, ONL8S 4L8, Canada
| | - Kathryn Huh
- Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main St W, Hamilton, ONL8S 4L8, Canada
| | - Calan D Savoy
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main St W, Hamilton, ONL8S 4L8, Canada
| | - John E Krzeczkowski
- Department of Psychology, York University, 4700 Keele St, Toronto, ONM3J 1P3, Canada
| | - Ryan J Van Lieshout
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, 1280 Main St W, Hamilton, ONL8S 4L8, Canada
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6
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Sadato N. [The neural basis of face-to-face communication: exploring transmission and sharing through neuroimaging]. Rinsho Shinkeigaku 2024; 64:247-251. [PMID: 38508731 DOI: 10.5692/clinicalneurol.cn-001944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Effective human communication is a complex process that involves transmitting and sharing information, ideas, and attitudes between two or more individuals. Researchers need to explore both transmission and sharing concepts to understand the neural basis of communication. Face-to-face communication refers to changing someone's mental state by sharing information, ideas, or attitudes. This type of communication is characterized by "mutual predictability." Scientists are working to clarify the neural basis of communication by studying how inter-individual synchronization of behavior and neural activity occurs during face-to-face communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Norihiro Sadato
- Research Organization of Science and Technology, Ritsumeikan University
- Division of Cerebral Integration, Department of Cerebral Research, National Institute for Physiological Sciences
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7
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Jiang S, Sun F, Yuan P, Jiang Y, Wan X. Distinct genetic and environmental origins of hierarchical cognitive abilities in adult humans. Cell Rep 2024; 43:114060. [PMID: 38568809 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2023] [Revised: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 03/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Human cognitive abilities ranging from basic perceptions to complex social behaviors exhibit substantial variation in individual differences. These cognitive functions can be categorized into a two-order hierarchy based on the levels of cognitive processes. Second-order cognition including metacognition and mentalizing monitors and regulates first-order cognitive processes. These two-order hierarchical cognitive functions exhibit distinct abilities. However, it remains unclear whether individual differences in these cognitive abilities have distinct origins. We employ the classical twin paradigm to compare the genetic and environmental contributions to the two-order cognitive abilities in the same tasks from the same population. The results reveal that individual differences in first-order cognitive abilities were primarily influenced by genetic factors. Conversely, the second-order cognitive abilities have a stronger influence from shared environmental factors. These findings suggest that the abilities of metacognition and mentalizing in adults are profoundly shaped by their environmental experiences and less determined by their biological nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shaohan Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Huangshan University, Huangshan 245041 China
| | - Fanru Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Peijun Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science and CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 16 Lincui Road, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yi Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science and CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 16 Lincui Road, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiaohong Wan
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
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8
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Chiappini E, Massaccesi C, Korb S, Steyrl D, Willeit M, Silani G. Neural Hyperresponsivity During the Anticipation of Tangible Social and Nonsocial Rewards in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Concurrent Neuroimaging and Facial Electromyography Study. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY. COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2024:S2451-9022(24)00108-3. [PMID: 38642898 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2024.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2024] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/22/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Atypical anticipation of social reward has been shown to lie at the core of the social challenges faced by individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, previous research has yielded inconsistent results and has often overlooked crucial characteristics of stimuli. Here, we investigated ASD reward processing using social and nonsocial tangible stimuli, carefully matched on several key dimensions. METHODS We examined the anticipation and consumption of social (interpersonal touch) and nonsocial (flavored milk) rewards in 25 high-functioning individuals with ASD and 25 neurotypical adult individuals. In addition to subjective ratings of wanting and liking, we measured physical energetic expenditure to obtain the rewards, brain activity with neuroimaging, and facial reactions through electromyography on a trial-by-trial basis. RESULTS Participants with ASD did not exhibit reduced motivation for social or nonsocial rewards; their subjective ratings, motivated efforts, and facial reactions were comparable to those of neurotypical participants. However, anticipation of higher-value rewards increased neural activation in lateral parietal cortices, sensorimotor regions, and the orbitofrontal cortex. Moreover, participants with ASD exhibited hyperconnectivity between frontal medial regions and occipital regions and the thalamus. CONCLUSIONS Individuals with ASD who experienced rewards with tangible characteristics, whether social or nonsocial, displayed typical subjective and objective motivational and hedonic responses. Notably, the observed hyperactivations in sensory and attentional nodes during anticipation suggest atypical sensory overprocessing of forthcoming rewards rather than decreased reward value. While these atypicalities may not have manifested in observable behavior here, they could impact real-life social interactions that require nuanced predictions, potentially leading to the misperception of reduced interest in rewarding social stimuli in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilio Chiappini
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Psychology and Neurosciences, Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Claudia Massaccesi
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sebastian Korb
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Centre for Brain Science, Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester, United Kingdom
| | - David Steyrl
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Matthäus Willeit
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Division of General Psychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Giorgia Silani
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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9
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Wass S, Greenwood E, Esposito G, Smith C, Necef I, Phillips E. Annual Research Review: 'There, the dance is - at the still point of the turning world' - dynamic systems perspectives on coregulation and dysregulation during early development. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2024; 65:481-507. [PMID: 38390803 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
During development we transition from coregulation (where regulatory processes are shared between child and caregiver) to self-regulation. Most early coregulatory interactions aim to manage fluctuations in the infant's arousal and alertness; but over time, coregulatory processes become progressively elaborated to encompass other functions such as sociocommunicative development, attention and executive control. The fundamental aim of coregulation is to help maintain an optimal 'critical state' between hypo- and hyperactivity. Here, we present a dynamic framework for understanding child-caregiver coregulatory interactions in the context of psychopathology. Early coregulatory processes involve both passive entrainment, through which a child's state entrains to the caregiver's, and active contingent responsiveness, through which the caregiver changes their behaviour in response to behaviours from the child. Similar principles, of interactive but asymmetric contingency, drive joint attention and the maintenance of epistemic states as well as arousal/alertness, emotion regulation and sociocommunicative development. We describe three ways in which active child-caregiver regulation can develop atypically, in conditions such as Autism, ADHD, anxiety and depression. The most well-known of these is insufficient contingent responsiveness, leading to reduced synchrony, which has been shown across a range of modalities in different disorders, and which is the target of most current interventions. We also present evidence that excessive contingent responsiveness and excessive synchrony can develop in some circumstances. And we show that positive feedback interactions can develop, which are contingent but mutually amplificatory child-caregiver interactions that drive the child further from their critical state. We discuss implications of these findings for future intervention research, and directions for future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sam Wass
- UEL BabyDevLab, Department of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK
| | - Emily Greenwood
- UEL BabyDevLab, Department of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK
| | - Giovanni Esposito
- UEL BabyDevLab, Department of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK
| | - Celia Smith
- Institute of Psychology Psychiatry and Neuroscience, King's College, London, UK
| | - Isil Necef
- UEL BabyDevLab, Department of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK
| | - Emily Phillips
- UEL BabyDevLab, Department of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK
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10
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Lucherini Angeletti L, Cassioli E, Tarchi L, Dani C, Faldi M, Martini R, Ricca V, Castellini G, Rossi E. From early relational experiences to non-suicidal self-injury in anorexia and bulimia nervosa: a structural equation model unraveling the role of impairments in interoception. Eat Weight Disord 2024; 29:22. [PMID: 38528258 DOI: 10.1007/s40519-024-01651-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2024] [Accepted: 03/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE Individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) frequently exhibit Non-Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI), yet their co-occurrence is still unclear. To address this issue, the aim of this study was to elucidate the role of impairments in interoception in explaining the NSSI phenomenon in AN and BN, providing an explanatory model that considers distal (insecure attachment/IA and traumatic childhood experiences/TCEs) and proximal (dissociation and emotional dysregulation) risk factors for NSSI. METHOD 130 patients with AN and BN were enrolled and administered self-report questionnaires to assess the intensity of NSSI behaviors, interoceptive deficits, IA, TCEs, emotional dysregulation and dissociative symptoms. RESULTS Results from structural equation modeling revealed that impairments in interoception acted as crucial mediators between early negative relational experiences and factors that contribute to NSSI in AN and BN, particularly emotional dysregulation and dissociation. Precisely, both aspects of IA (anxiety and avoidance) and various forms of TCEs significantly exacerbated interoceptive deficits, which in turn are associated to the emergence of NSSI behaviors through the increase in levels of dissociation and emotional dysregulation. CONCLUSIONS The proposed model provided a novel explanation of the occurrence of NSSIs in patients with AN and BN by accounting for the significance of interoception. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Level V-Cross-sectional observational study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Lucherini Angeletti
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy.
- The Royal's Institute of Mental Health Research & University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
| | - Emanuele Cassioli
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
| | - Livio Tarchi
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
| | - Cristiano Dani
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
| | - Marco Faldi
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
| | - Rachele Martini
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
| | - Valdo Ricca
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
| | - Giovanni Castellini
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy.
| | - Eleonora Rossi
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla, 3, 50134, Florence, Italy
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11
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Mariani Wigley ILC, Mascheroni E, Pastore M, Bonichini S, Montirosso R. Stroking in early mother-infant exchanges: The role of maternal tactile biography and interoceptive sensibility. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0298733. [PMID: 38451923 PMCID: PMC10919687 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Caress-like is a crucial component of caregiving and a key factor in mother-infant interactions. Mother's experience of touch during her own childhood (i.e., tactile biography) has been found to be related to maternal actual use of caress-like touch (i.e., stroking) during mother-infant exchanges. Evidence also suggests that maternal interoceptive sensibility (i.e., self-perceived sensitivity to inner-body sensations) might be related to sensitive caregiving abilities. However, further empirical investigation is needed to understand to what extent tactile biography and interoceptive sensibility have an impact on mothers' stroking when interacting with their infants. Using an online survey, this cross-sectional study explored the potential association between maternal tactile biography, interoceptive sensibility and use of touch for interaction with their own infants in a group of 377 Italian mothers (mean age = 33.29; SD = 4.79). We tested and compared a series of multivariate linear mediation models using maternal tactile biography as predictor, maternal use of affective touch as outcome variable and Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) subscale scores as mediators. We found that, if a mother had positive touch experiences in her own childhood, she may be more likely to use touch in a positive and nurturing way with her own infant (i.e., stroking). Furthermore, mothers' interoceptive sensibility in the form of attention regulation, self-regulation and body listening mediates the association between their past experiences of positive touch and their use of caress-like touch in mother-infant exchanges. This study highlights that maternal tactile biography is directly associated with mothers' use of caress-like touch and indirectly linked to it through the mediating role of interoceptive sensibility.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Eleonora Mascheroni
- 0-3 Center for the at-Risk Infant, Scientific Institute IRCCS E. Medea, Bosisio Parini, Italy
| | - Massimiliano Pastore
- Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
| | - Sabrina Bonichini
- Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
| | - Rosario Montirosso
- 0-3 Center for the at-Risk Infant, Scientific Institute IRCCS E. Medea, Bosisio Parini, Italy
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12
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Hutton JS, Piotrowski JT, Bagot K, Blumberg F, Canli T, Chein J, Christakis DA, Grafman J, Griffin JA, Hummer T, Kuss DJ, Lerner M, Marcovitch S, Paulus MP, Perlman G, Romeo R, Thomason ME, Turel O, Weinstein A, West G, Pietra PHD, Potenza MN. Digital Media and Developing Brains: Concerns and Opportunities. CURRENT ADDICTION REPORTS 2024; 11:287-298. [PMID: 38606363 PMCID: PMC11003891 DOI: 10.1007/s40429-024-00545-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/13/2024]
Abstract
Purpose of Review The incorporation of digital technologies and their use in youth's everyday lives has been increasing rapidly over the past several decades with possible impacts on youth development and mental health. This narrative review aimed to consider how the use of digital technologies may be influencing brain development underlying adaptive and maladaptive screen-related behaviors. Recent Findings To explore and provide direction for further scientific inquiry, an international group of experts considered what is known, important gaps in knowledge, and how a research agenda might be pursued regarding relationships between screen media activity and neurodevelopment from infancy through childhood and adolescence. While an understanding of brain-behavior relationships involving screen media activity has been emerging, significant gaps exist that have important implications for the health of developing youth. Summary Specific considerations regarding brain-behavior relationships involving screen media activity exist for infancy, toddlerhood, and early childhood; middle childhood; and adolescence. Transdiagnostic frameworks may provide a foundation for guiding future research efforts. Translating knowledge gained into better interventions and policy to promote healthy development is important in a rapidly changing digital technology environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- John S. Hutton
- Division of General and Community Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA and Division of General and Community Pediatrics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX USA
| | | | - Kara Bagot
- Departments of Psychiatry & Pediatrics, Addiction Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY USA
| | - Fran Blumberg
- Division of Psychological and Educational Services, Fordham University, New York, NY USA
| | - Turhan Canli
- Departments of Psychology and Psychiatry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Jason Chein
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Dimitri A. Christakis
- Center for Child Health Behaviour and Development, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Departments of Pediatrics, Psychiatry, and Health Services, University of Washington, Seattle, WA USA
| | - Jordan Grafman
- The Shirley Ryan AbilityLab & Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL USA
| | - James A. Griffin
- The National Institutes of Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, USA
| | - Tom Hummer
- Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN USA
| | - Daria J. Kuss
- International Gaming Research Unit and Cyberpsychology Group, NTU Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | - Matthew Lerner
- Departments of Psychology, Psychiatry & Pediatrics, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA and AJ Drexel Autism Institute, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Stuart Marcovitch
- Department Of Psychology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC USA
| | | | - Greg Perlman
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony, Brook University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Rachel Romeo
- Departments of Human Development & Quantitative Methodology, Hearing & Speech Sciences, and Neuroscience & Cognitive Sciences, University of Maryland College Park, College Park, MD USA
| | - Moriah E. Thomason
- Departments of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Population Health, New York University, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY USA
| | - Ofir Turel
- College of Business and Economics, California State University, Fullerton, CA USA
- Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Aviv Weinstein
- The Isadore and Ruth Kastin Chair for Brain Research, Department of Psychology and Behavioral Science, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
| | - Gregory West
- Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada
| | - Pamela Hurst-Della Pietra
- Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development, Jericho, NY USA
- Department of Family, Population and Preventive Medicine, Stony Brook Medicine, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Marc N. Potenza
- Departments of Psychiatry, Child Study and Neuroscience, Connecticut Mental Health Center, Yale School of Medicine, Wu Tsai Institute, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06517 USA
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13
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Melnikoff DE, Strohminger N. Bayesianism and wishful thinking are compatible. Nat Hum Behav 2024:10.1038/s41562-024-01819-6. [PMID: 38396212 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-024-01819-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024]
Abstract
Bayesian principles show up across many domains of human cognition, but wishful thinking-where beliefs are updated in the direction of desired outcomes rather than what the evidence implies-seems to threaten the universality of Bayesian approaches to the mind. In this Article, we show that Bayesian optimality and wishful thinking are, despite first appearances, compatible. The setting of opposing goals can cause two groups of people with identical prior beliefs to reach opposite conclusions about the same evidence through fully Bayesian calculations. We show that this is possible because, when people set goals, they receive privileged information in the form of affective experiences, and this information systematically supports goal-consistent conclusions. We ground this idea in a formal, Bayesian model in which affective prediction errors drive wishful thinking. We obtain empirical support for our model across five studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- David E Melnikoff
- Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
| | - Nina Strohminger
- Department of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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14
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Amani B, Krzeczkowski JE, Schmidt LA, Van Lieshout RJ. Public health nurse-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for postpartum depression: Assessing the effects of maternal treatment on infant emotion regulation. Dev Psychopathol 2024:1-9. [PMID: 38273706 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423001566] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
The effects of maternal postpartum depression (PPD) on offspring emotion regulation (ER) are particularly deleterious as difficulties with ER predict an increased risk of psychopathology. This study examined the impact of maternal participation in a public health nurse (PHN)-delivered group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on infant ER. Mothers/birthing parents were ≥ 18 years old with an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) score ≥ 10, and infants were < 12 months. Between 2017 and 2020, 141 mother-infant dyads were randomized to experimental or control groups. Infant ER was measured at baseline (T1) and nine weeks later (T2) using two neurophysiological measures (frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) and high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV)), and informant-report of infant temperament. Mothers were a mean of 30.8 years old (SD = 4.7), 92.3% were married/ common-law, and infants were a mean of 5.4 months old (SD = 2.9) and 52.1% were male. A statistically significant group-by-time interaction was found to predict change in HF-HRV between T1 and T2 (F(1,68.3) = 4.04, p = .04), but no significant interaction predicted change in FAA or temperament. Results suggest that PHN-delivered group CBT for PPD may lead to adaptive changes in a neurophysiological marker of infant ER, highlighting the importance of early maternal intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bahar Amani
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | | | - Louis A Schmidt
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Ryan J Van Lieshout
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
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15
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Kirsch LP, Tanzer M, Filippetti ML, von Mohr M, Fotopoulou A. Mother knows best: Mothers are more egocentric towards their own child's bodily feelings. COMMUNICATIONS PSYCHOLOGY 2023; 1:s44271-023-00038-5. [PMID: 38694256 PMCID: PMC7615916 DOI: 10.1038/s44271-023-00038-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/04/2024]
Abstract
Our emotional state can influence how we understand other people's emotions, leading to biases in social understanding. Yet emotional egocentric biases in specific relationships such as parent-child dyads, where not only understanding but also emotional and bodily regulation is key, remain relatively unexplored. To investigate these biases and control for sensory priors, we first conducted two experiments in dyads of adult strangers (total N=75) using a bodily Emotional Egocentricity Task that enables simultaneous affective tactile stimulation within a dyad. We showed its effectiveness in eliciting both classical and sensory-controlled egocentric biases. We then recruited 68 mother-child dyads and found that mothers exhibit higher classical and sensory-controlled emotional egocentric biases towards their own child compared to an unfamiliar child. Results suggest that mothers tend to rely on their bodily feelings more when judging the states of their own child than those of other children, possibly consistent with their regulatory parental role.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise P. Kirsch
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, F-75006 Paris, France
| | - Michal Tanzer
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | | | - Mariana von Mohr
- Lab of Action and Body, Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Aikaterini Fotopoulou
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
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16
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Dumitriu D, Lavallée A, Riggs JL, Frosch CA, Barker TV, Best DL, Blasingame B, Bushar J, Charlot-Swilley D, Erickson E, Finkel MA, Fortune B, Gillen L, Martinez M, Ramachandran U, Sanders LM, Willis DW, Shearman N. Advancing early relational health: a collaborative exploration of a research agenda. Front Pediatr 2023; 11:1259022. [PMID: 38143537 PMCID: PMC10748603 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2023.1259022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Here, we introduce the Early Relational Health (ERH) Learning Community's bold, large-scale, collaborative, data-driven and practice-informed research agenda focused on furthering our mechanistic understanding of ERH and identifying feasible and effective practices for making ERH promotion a routine and integrated component of pediatric primary care. The ERH Learning Community, formed by a team of parent/caregiver leaders, pediatric care clinicians, researchers, and early childhood development specialists, is a workgroup of Nurture Connection-a hub geared toward promoting ERH, i.e., the positive and nurturing relationship between young children and their parent(s)/caregiver(s), in families and communities nationwide. In response to the current child mental health crisis and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) policy statement promoting ERH, the ERH Learning Community held an in-person meeting at the AAP national headquarters in December 2022 where members collaboratively designed an integrated research agenda to advance ERH. This agenda weaves together community partners, clinicians, and academics, melding the principles of participatory engagement and human-centered design, such as early engagement, co-design, iterative feedback, and cultural humility. Here, we present gaps in the ERH literature that prompted this initiative and the co-design activity that led to this novel and iterative community-focused research agenda, with parents/caregivers at the core, and in close collaboration with pediatric clinicians for real-world promotion of ERH in the pediatric primary care setting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dani Dumitriu
- Division of Child and Adolescent Health, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, New York, NY, United States
- Division of Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, United States
| | - Andréane Lavallée
- Division of Child and Adolescent Health, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, New York, NY, United States
| | - Jessica L. Riggs
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Cynthia A. Frosch
- Department of Human Development and Family Science, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, United States
| | - Tyson V. Barker
- Science and Innovation Strategy, Institute for Child Success, Greenville, SC, United States
| | - Debra L. Best
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | | | - Jessica Bushar
- HealthySteps, ZERO TO THREE, Washington, DC, United States
| | | | - Elizabeth Erickson
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Morgan A. Finkel
- Division of Child and Adolescent Health, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, New York, NY, United States
| | - Bryn Fortune
- Fortune Consulting, Early Relational Health-Family Network Collaborative, Royal Oak, MI, United States
| | - Leah Gillen
- Department of Research and Innovation, Reach out and Read, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Marty Martinez
- Chief Executive Officer, Reach Out and Read, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Usha Ramachandran
- Department of Pediatrics, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - Lee M. Sanders
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - David W. Willis
- Center for the Study of Social Policy, Washington, DC, United States
| | - Nikki Shearman
- Department of Research and Innovation, Reach out and Read, Boston, MA, United States
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17
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Dall'Aglio L, Xu B, Tiemeier H, Muetzel RL. Longitudinal Associations Between White Matter Microstructure and Psychiatric Symptoms in Youth. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2023; 62:1326-1339. [PMID: 37400062 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2023.04.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Revised: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Associations between psychiatric problems and white matter (WM) microstructure have been reported in youth. Yet, a deeper understanding of this relation has been hampered by a dearth of well-powered longitudinal studies and a lack of explicit examination of the bidirectional associations between brain and behavior. We investigated the temporal directionality of WM microstructure and psychiatric symptom associations in youth. METHOD In this observational study, we leveraged the world's largest single- and multi-site cohorts of neurodevelopment: the Generation R (GenR) and Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Studies (ABCD) (total n scans = 11,400; total N = 5,700). We assessed psychiatric symptoms with the Child Behavioral Checklist as broad-band internalizing and externalizing scales, and as syndrome scales (eg, Anxious/Depressed). We quantified WM with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), globally and at a tract level. We used cross-lagged panel models to test bidirectional associations of global and specific measures of psychopathology and WM microstructure, meta-analyzed results across cohorts, and used linear mixed-effects models for validation. RESULTS We did not identify any longitudinal associations of global WM microstructure with internalizing or externalizing problems across cohorts (confirmatory analyses) before, and after multiple testing corrections. We observed similar findings for longitudinal associations between tract-based microstructure with internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and for global WM microstructure with specific syndromes (exploratory analyses). Some cross-sectional associations surpassed multiple testing corrections in ABCD, but not in GenR. CONCLUSION Uni- or bi-directionality of longitudinal associations between WM and psychiatric symptoms were not robustly identified. We have proposed several explanations for these findings, including interindividual differences, the use of longitudinal approaches, and smaller effects than expected. STUDY REGISTRATION INFORMATION Bidirectionality Brain Function and Psychiatric Symptoms; https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/PNY92.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenza Dall'Aglio
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Bing Xu
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Henning Tiemeier
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Harvard T. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Ryan L Muetzel
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
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18
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de C Williams AC. Pain: Behavioural expression and response in an evolutionary framework. Evol Med Public Health 2023; 11:429-437. [PMID: 38022798 PMCID: PMC10656790 DOI: 10.1093/emph/eoad038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2023] [Revised: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
An evolutionary perspective offers insights into the major public health problem of chronic (persistent) pain; behaviours associated with it perpetuate both pain and disability. Pain is motivating, and pain-related behaviours promote recovery by immediate active or passive defence; subsequent protection of wounds; suppression of competing responses; energy conservation; vigilance to threat; and learned avoidance of associated cues. When these persist beyond healing, as in chronic pain, they are disabling. In mammals, facial and bodily expression of pain is visible and identifiable by others, while social context, including conspecifics' responses, modulate pain. Studies of responses to pain emphasize onlooker empathy, but people with chronic pain report feeling disbelieved and stigmatized. Observers frequently discount others' pain, best understood in terms of cheater detection-alertness to free riders that underpins the capacity for prosocial behaviours. These dynamics occur both in everyday life and in clinical encounters, providing an account of the adaptiveness of pain-related behaviours.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda C de C Williams
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational & Health Psychology, University College London, Gower St, London WC1E 6BT, UK
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19
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Bouw N, Swaab H, Tartaglia N, Wilson RL, Van der Velde K, van Rijn S. Early symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 1-8 year old children with sex chromosome trisomies (XXX, XXY, XYY), and the predictive value of joint attention. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2023; 32:2323-2334. [PMID: 36107256 PMCID: PMC10576671 DOI: 10.1007/s00787-022-02070-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The objective of the present study is to investigate the impact of Sex Chromosome Trisomy (SCT; XXX, XXY, XYY) on the early appearance of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms, and the predictive value of Joint Attention for symptoms of ASD. SCTs are specific genetic conditions that may serve as naturalistic 'at risk' models of neurodevelopment, as they are associated with increased risk for neurobehavioral vulnerabilities. A group of 82 children with SCT (aged 1-8 years) was included at baseline of this longitudinal study. Joint Attention was measured at baseline with structured behavior observations according to the Early Social Communication Scales. ASD symptoms were assessed with the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers questionnaire and Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised in a 1-year follow-up. Recruitment and assessment took place in the Netherlands and in the United States. The results demonstrate that ASD symptoms were substantially higher in children with SCT compared to the general population, with 22% of our cohort at clinical risk for ASD, especially in the domain of social interaction and communication. Second, a predictive value of Joint Attention was found for ASD symptoms at 1-year follow-up. In this cohort, no differences were found between karyotype-subtypes. In conclusion, from a very early age, SCT can be associated with an increased risk for vulnerabilities in adaptive social functioning. These findings show a neurodevelopmental impact of the extra X or Y chromosome on social adaptive development associated with risk for ASD already from early childhood onward. These findings advocate for close monitoring and early (preventive) support, aimed to optimize social development of young children with SCT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nienke Bouw
- Clinical Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Leiden University, PO Box 9500, 2300 RA, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Hanna Swaab
- Clinical Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Leiden University, PO Box 9500, 2300 RA, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Nicole Tartaglia
- Developmental Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Rebecca L Wilson
- Developmental Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | | | - Sophie van Rijn
- Clinical Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Leiden University, PO Box 9500, 2300 RA, Leiden, The Netherlands.
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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20
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Bassi G, Mancinelli E, Salcuni S, Gori A, Musetti A. Failure in reflective functioning as a key factor in the association between problematic social networking sites use, attachment and childhood maltreatment: A network analysis approach on gender differences. Dev Psychopathol 2023:1-9. [PMID: 37791536 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423001268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Following a network analysis approach, the present study aims to explore the pattern of mutual relationships between failure in reflective functioning (RF) - defined as hypomentalization - problematic social networking sites use (PSNSU), attachment anxiety and avoidance, and childhood maltreatment among emerging adults, with a focus on gender differences. The study sample comprises N = 1,614 emerging adults (Mage = 23.84; SD = 3.21; 50% identified themselves as women) who completed online self-assessment measures. Results showed significantly greater PSNSU, hypomentalization, childhood emotional abuse, and both attachment avoidance and anxiety among women. Indeed, within the network analysis, performed separately for men and women, network-specific associative patterns were observed; yet also similarities have emerged. Within the women's network, differently from males, attachment avoidance connects, through attachment anxiety, to emotional abuse, mood modification related to PSNSU, and hypomentalization. Nonetheless, hypomentalization was central in both networks, functioning as a hub between attachment anxiety, the PSNSU cluster, and the childhood maltreatment cluster. These results shed light on the use of social network sites as a potential maladaptive emotion regulation strategy, particularly among women. In this regard, the role of RF should be considered as a key treatment target to reduce PSNSU and support the use of adaptive emotion regulation strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Bassi
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Elisa Mancinelli
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Digital Health Lab, Centre for Digital Health and Wellbeing, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, Italy
| | - Silvia Salcuni
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Alessio Gori
- Department of Health Science, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Alessandro Musetti
- Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Cultural Industries, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
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21
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Liu J, Chen H, Cornea E, Gilmore JH, Gao W. Longitudinal developmental trajectories of functional connectivity reveal regional distribution of distinct age effects in infancy. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:10367-10379. [PMID: 37585708 PMCID: PMC10545442 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2022] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Prior work has shown that different functional brain networks exhibit different maturation rates, but little is known about whether and how different brain areas may differ in the exact shape of longitudinal functional connectivity growth trajectories during infancy. We used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during natural sleep to characterize developmental trajectories of different regions using a longitudinal cohort of infants at 3 weeks (neonate), 1 year, and 2 years of age (n = 90; all with usable data at three time points). A novel whole brain heatmap analysis was performed with four mixed-effect models to determine the best fit of age-related changes for each functional connection: (i) growth effects: positive-linear-age, (ii) emergent effects: positive-log-age, (iii) pruning effects: negative-quadratic-age, and (iv) transient effects: positive-quadratic-age. Our results revealed that emergent (logarithmic) effects dominated developmental trajectory patterns, but significant pruning and transient effects were also observed, particularly in connections centered on inferior frontal and anterior cingulate areas that support social learning and conflict monitoring. Overall, unique global distribution patterns were observed for each growth model indicating that developmental trajectories for different connections are heterogeneous. All models showed significant effects concentrated in association areas, highlighting the dominance of higher-order social/cognitive development during the first 2 years of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janelle Liu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, and Imaging, Cedars–Sinai Medical Center, Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA 90048, United States
| | - Haitao Chen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, and Imaging, Cedars–Sinai Medical Center, Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA 90048, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States
| | - Emil Cornea
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, United States
| | - John H Gilmore
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, United States
| | - Wei Gao
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, and Imaging, Cedars–Sinai Medical Center, Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA 90048, United States
- Department of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States
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22
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Zanfino G, Puzzo C, de Laurenzi V, Adriani W. Characterization of Behavioral Phenotypes in Heterozygous DAT Rat Based on Pedigree. Biomedicines 2023; 11:2565. [PMID: 37761006 PMCID: PMC10526166 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11092565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Revised: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Dopamine is an essential neurotransmitter whose key roles include movement control, pleasure and reward, attentional and cognitive skills, and regulation of the sleep/wake cycle. Reuptake is carried out by the dopamine transporter (DAT; DAT1 SLC6A3 gene). In order to study the effects of hyper-dopaminergia syndrome, the gene was silenced in rats. DAT-KO rats show stereotypical behavior, hyperactivity, a deficit in working memory, and an altered circadian cycle. In addition to KO rats, heterozygous (DAT-HET) rats show relative hypofunction of DAT; exact phenotypic effects are still unknown and may depend on whether the sire or the dam was KO. Our goal was to elucidate the potential importance of the parental origin of the healthy or silenced allele and its impact across generations, along with the potential variations in maternal care. We thus generated specular lines to study the effects of (grand) parental roles in inheriting the wild or mutated allele. MAT-HETs are the progeny of a KO sire and a WT dam; by breeding MAT-HET males and KO females, we obtained subjects with a DAT -/- epigenotype, named QULL, to reflect additional epigenetic DAT modulation when embryos develop within a hyper-dopaminergic KO uterus. We aimed to verify if any behavioral anomaly was introduced by a QULL (instead of KO) rat acting as a direct father or indirect maternal grandfather (or both). We thus followed epigenotypes obtained after three generations and observed actual effects on impaired maternal care of the offspring (based on pedigree). In particular, offspring of MAT-HET-dam × QULL-sire breeding showed a compulsive and obsessive phenotype. Although the experimental groups were all heterozygous, the impact of having a sire of epigenotype QULL (who developed in the uterus of a KO grand-dam) has emerged clearly. Along the generations, the effects of the DAT epigenotype on the obsessive/compulsive phenotype do vary as a function of the uterine impact on either allele in one's genealogical line.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gioia Zanfino
- Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy; (G.Z.); (C.P.)
| | - Concetto Puzzo
- Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy; (G.Z.); (C.P.)
- Faculty of Psychology, International Telematic University Uninettuno, 00186 Rome, Italy
| | - Vincenzo de Laurenzi
- Center for Advanced Studies and Technology (CAST), “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy;
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Walter Adriani
- Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy; (G.Z.); (C.P.)
- Faculty of Psychology, International Telematic University Uninettuno, 00186 Rome, Italy
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23
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Lan Q, Zhang C, Lunkenheimer E, Chang S, Li Z, Wang L. Maternal postnatal depressive symptoms and children's internalizing problems: The moderating role of mother-infant RSA synchrony. Dev Psychopathol 2023:1-13. [PMID: 37702076 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423001153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/14/2023]
Abstract
Maternal depressive symptoms are a crucial risk factor for children's internalizing problems, though positive mother-child relationships may buffer this risk transmission. Mother-child physiological coregulation (e.g., synchrony) has emerged as a potentially important mechanism of developmental psychopathology and may play a role in the transmission of internalizing symptoms. In this two-wave longitudinal study, we examined whether and how mother-infant physiological synchrony (of respiratory sinus arrhythmia; RSA) moderated the association between maternal postnatal depressive symptoms and children's internalizing problems in a rural, low-SES community sample (N = 166 dyads). At 6 months, mother-infant RSA synchrony and infant negative affect were assessed during free play. Mother reported their depressive symptoms at 6 months and children's internalizing problems at 24 months. Multilevel structural equation models indicated that mother-infant dyads demonstrated significant and positive RSA synchrony on average and RSA synchrony significantly moderated the association between maternal depressive symptoms and children's internalizing problems even after controlling for infant negative affect. Greater maternal depressive symptoms were associated with higher child internalizing problems when RSA synchrony was lower but not when it was higher. This finding suggests that mother-infant RSA synchrony may operate as a resilience factor for the intergenerational transmission of internalizing symptoms in community samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qili Lan
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Chen Zhang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Erika Lunkenheimer
- Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, USA
| | - Suying Chang
- United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Office for China, Beijing, China
| | - Zhi Li
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Li Wang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
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Corcoran AW, Perrykkad K, Feuerriegel D, Robinson JE. Body as First Teacher: The Role of Rhythmic Visceral Dynamics in Early Cognitive Development. PERSPECTIVES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2023:17456916231185343. [PMID: 37694720 DOI: 10.1177/17456916231185343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/12/2023]
Abstract
Embodied cognition-the idea that mental states and processes should be understood in relation to one's bodily constitution and interactions with the world-remains a controversial topic within cognitive science. Recently, however, increasing interest in predictive processing theories among proponents and critics of embodiment alike has raised hopes of a reconciliation. This article sets out to appraise the unificatory potential of predictive processing, focusing in particular on embodied formulations of active inference. Our analysis suggests that most active-inference accounts invoke weak, potentially trivial conceptions of embodiment; those making stronger claims do so independently of the theoretical commitments of the active-inference framework. We argue that a more compelling version of embodied active inference can be motivated by adopting a diachronic perspective on the way rhythmic physiological activity shapes neural development in utero. According to this visceral afferent training hypothesis, early-emerging physiological processes are essential not only for supporting the biophysical development of neural structures but also for configuring the cognitive architecture those structures entail. Focusing in particular on the cardiovascular system, we propose three candidate mechanisms through which visceral afferent training might operate: (a) activity-dependent neuronal development, (b) periodic signal modeling, and (c) oscillatory network coordination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew W Corcoran
- Monash Centre for Consciousness and Contemplative Studies, Monash University
- Cognition and Philosophy Laboratory, School of Philosophical, Historical, and International Studies, Monash University
| | - Kelsey Perrykkad
- Cognition and Philosophy Laboratory, School of Philosophical, Historical, and International Studies, Monash University
| | | | - Jonathan E Robinson
- Cognition and Philosophy Laboratory, School of Philosophical, Historical, and International Studies, Monash University
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Fulford D, Holt DJ. Social Withdrawal, Loneliness, and Health in Schizophrenia: Psychological and Neural Mechanisms. Schizophr Bull 2023; 49:1138-1149. [PMID: 37419082 PMCID: PMC10483452 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbad099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS Some of the most debilitating aspects of schizophrenia and other serious mental illnesses (SMI) are the impairments in social perception, motivation, and behavior that frequently accompany these conditions. These impairments may ultimately lead to chronic social disconnection (ie, social withdrawal, objective isolation, and perceived social isolation or loneliness), which may contribute to the poor cardiometabolic health and early mortality commonly observed in SMI. However, the psychological and neurobiological mechanisms underlying relationships between impairments in social perception and motivation and social isolation and loneliness in SMI remain incompletely understood. STUDY DESIGN A narrative, selective review of studies on social withdrawal, isolation, loneliness, and health in SMI. STUDY RESULTS We describe some of what is known and hypothesized about the psychological and neurobiological mechanisms of social disconnection in the general population, and how these mechanisms may contribute to social isolation and loneliness, and their consequences, in individuals with SMI. CONCLUSIONS A synthesis of evolutionary and cognitive theories with the "social homeostasis" model of social isolation and loneliness represents one testable framework for understanding the dynamic cognitive and biological correlates, as well as the health consequences, of social disconnection in SMI. The development of such an understanding may provide the basis for novel approaches for preventing or treating both functional disability and poor physical health that diminish the quality and length of life for many individuals with these conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Fulford
- Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
- Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Daphne J Holt
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
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26
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Kareklas K, Teles MC, Nunes AR, Oliveira RF. Social zebrafish: Danio rerio as an emerging model in social neuroendocrinology. J Neuroendocrinol 2023; 35:e13280. [PMID: 37165563 DOI: 10.1111/jne.13280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 04/14/2023] [Accepted: 04/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
The fitness benefits of social life depend on the ability of animals to affiliate with others and form groups, on dominance hierarchies within groups that determine resource distribution, and on cognitive capacities for recognition, learning and information transfer. The evolution of these phenotypes is coupled with that of neuroendocrine mechanisms, but the causal link between the two remains underexplored. Growing evidence from our research group and others demonstrates that the tools available in zebrafish, Danio rerio, can markedly facilitate progress in this field. Here, we review this evidence and provide a synthesis of the state-of-the-art in this model system. We discuss the involvement of generalized motivation and cognitive components, neuroplasticity and functional connectivity across social decision-making brain areas, and how these are modulated chiefly by the oxytocin-vasopressin neuroendocrine system, but also by reward-pathway monoamine signaling and the effects of sex-hormones and stress physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Magda C Teles
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
- ISPA-Instituto Universitário, Lisbon, Portugal
| | | | - Rui F Oliveira
- Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
- ISPA-Instituto Universitário, Lisbon, Portugal
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Hackel LM, Kalkstein DA. Social Concepts Simplify Complex Reinforcement Learning. Psychol Sci 2023; 34:968-983. [PMID: 37470669 DOI: 10.1177/09567976231180587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans often generalize rewarding experiences across abstract social roles. Theories of reward learning suggest that people generalize through model-based learning, but such learning is cognitively costly. Why do people seem to generalize across social roles with ease? Humans are social experts who easily recognize social roles that reflect familiar semantic concepts (e.g., "helper" or "teacher"). People may associate these roles with model-free reward (e.g., learning that helpers are rewarding), allowing them to generalize easily (e.g., interacting with novel individuals identified as helpers). In four online experiments with U.S. adults (N = 577), we found evidence that social concepts ease complex learning (people generalize more and at faster speed) and that people attach reward directly to abstract roles (they generalize even when roles are unrelated to task structure). These results demonstrate how familiar concepts allow complex behavior to emerge from simple strategies, highlighting social interaction as a prototype for studying cognitive ease in the face of environmental complexity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leor M Hackel
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern California
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28
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Wood A, Coan JA. Beyond Nature Versus Nurture: the Emergence of Emotion. AFFECTIVE SCIENCE 2023; 4:443-452. [PMID: 37744982 PMCID: PMC10513962 DOI: 10.1007/s42761-023-00212-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 07/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/26/2023]
Abstract
Affective science is stuck in a version of the nature-versus-nurture debate, with theorists arguing whether emotions are evolved adaptations or psychological constructions. We do not see these as mutually exclusive options. Many adaptive behaviors that humans have evolved to be good at, such as walking, emerge during development - not according to a genetically dictated program, but through interactions between the affordances of the body, brain, and environment. We suggest emotions are the same. As developing humans acquire increasingly complex goals and learn optimal strategies for pursuing those goals, they are inevitably pulled to particular brain-body-behavior states that maximize outcomes and self-reinforce via positive feedback loops. We call these recurring, self-organized states emotions. Emotions display many of the hallmark features of self-organized attractor states, such as hysteresis (prior events influence the current state), degeneracy (many configurations of the underlying variables can produce the same global state), and stability. Because most bodily, neural, and environmental affordances are shared by all humans - we all have cardiovascular systems, cerebral cortices, and caregivers who raised us - similar emotion states emerge in all of us. This perspective helps reconcile ideas that, at first glance, seem contradictory, such as emotion universality and neural degeneracy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrienne Wood
- Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA USA
| | - James A. Coan
- Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA USA
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29
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Shaffer C, Barrett LF, Quigley KS. Signal processing in the vagus nerve: Hypotheses based on new genetic and anatomical evidence. Biol Psychol 2023; 182:108626. [PMID: 37419401 PMCID: PMC10563766 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2023] [Revised: 06/25/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/09/2023]
Abstract
Each organism must regulate its internal state in a metabolically efficient way as it interacts in space and time with an ever-changing and only partly predictable world. Success in this endeavor is largely determined by the ongoing communication between brain and body, and the vagus nerve is a crucial structure in that dialogue. In this review, we introduce the novel hypothesis that the afferent vagus nerve is engaged in signal processing rather than just signal relay. New genetic and structural evidence of vagal afferent fiber anatomy motivates two hypotheses: (1) that sensory signals informing on the physiological state of the body compute both spatial and temporal viscerosensory features as they ascend the vagus nerve, following patterns found in other sensory architectures, such as the visual and olfactory systems; and (2) that ascending and descending signals modulate one another, calling into question the strict segregation of sensory and motor signals, respectively. Finally, we discuss several implications of our two hypotheses for understanding the role of viscerosensory signal processing in predictive energy regulation (i.e., allostasis) as well as the role of metabolic signals in memory and in disorders of prediction (e.g., mood disorders).
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare Shaffer
- Department of Psychology, College of Science, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Lisa Feldman Barrett
- Department of Psychology, College of Science, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Karen S Quigley
- Department of Psychology, College of Science, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.
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30
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Faraji J, Metz GAS. Toward reframing brain-social dynamics: current assumptions and future challenges. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1211442. [PMID: 37484686 PMCID: PMC10359502 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1211442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary analyses suggest that the human social brain and sociality appeared together. The two fundamental tools that accelerated the concurrent emergence of the social brain and sociality include learning and plasticity. The prevailing core idea is that the primate brain and the cortex in particular became reorganised over the course of evolution to facilitate dynamic adaptation to ongoing changes in physical and social environments. Encouraged by computational or survival demands or even by instinctual drives for living in social groups, the brain eventually learned how to learn from social experience via its massive plastic capacity. A fundamental framework for modeling these orchestrated dynamic responses is that social plasticity relies upon neuroplasticity. In the present article, we first provide a glimpse into the concepts of plasticity, experience, with emphasis on social experience. We then acknowledge and integrate the current theoretical concepts to highlight five key intertwined assumptions within social neuroscience that underlie empirical approaches for explaining the brain-social dynamics. We suggest that this epistemological view provides key insights into the ontology of current conceptual frameworks driving future research to successfully deal with new challenges and possible caveats in favour of the formulation of novel assumptions. In the light of contemporary societal challenges, such as global pandemics, natural disasters, violent conflict, and other human tragedies, discovering the mechanisms of social brain plasticity will provide new approaches to support adaptive brain plasticity and social resilience.
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31
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Tarsha MS, Narvaez D. The evolved nest, oxytocin functioning, and prosocial development. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1113944. [PMID: 37425179 PMCID: PMC10323226 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1113944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Prosociality, orientation to attuned, empathic relationships, is built from the ground up, through supportive care in early life that fosters healthy neurobiological structures that shape behavior. Numerous social and environmental factors within early life have been identified as critical variables influencing child physiological and psychological outcomes indicating a growing need to synthesize which factors are the most influential. To address this gap, we examined the influence of early life experiences according to the evolved developmental niche or evolved nest and its influence on child neurobiological and sociomoral outcomes, specifically, the oxytocinergic system and prosociality, respectively. To-date, this is the first review to utilize the evolved nest framework as an investigatory lens to probe connections between early life experience and child neurobiological and sociomoral outcomes. The evolved nest is comprised of characteristics over 30 million years old and is organized to meet a child's basic needs as they mature. Converging evidence indicates that humanity's evolved nest meets the needs of a rapidly developing brain, optimizing normal development. The evolved nest for young children includes soothing perinatal experiences, breastfeeding, positive touch, responsive care, multiple allomothers, self-directed play, social embeddedness, and nature immersion. We examined what is known about the effects of each evolved nest component on oxytocinergic functioning, a critical neurobiological building block for pro-sociomorality. We also examined the effects of the evolved nest on prosociality generally. We reviewed empirical studies from human and animal research, meta-analyses and theoretical articles. The review suggests that evolved nest components influence oxytocinergic functioning in parents and children and help form the foundations for prosociality. Future research and policy should consider the importance of the first years of life in programming the neuroendocrine system that undergirds wellbeing and prosociality. Complex, interaction effects among evolved nest components as well as among physiological and sociomoral processes need to be studied. The most sensible framework for examining what builds and enhances prosociality may be the millions-year-old evolved nest.
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32
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Li X, Chen H, Hu Y, Larsen RJ, Sutton BP, McElwain NL, Gao W. Functional neural network connectivity at 3 months predicts infant-mother dyadic flexibility during play at 6 months. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:8321-8332. [PMID: 37020357 PMCID: PMC10321085 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 04/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Early functioning of neural networks likely underlies the flexible switching between internal and external orientation and may be key to the infant's ability to effectively engage in social interactions. To test this hypothesis, we examined the association between infants' neural networks at 3 months and infant-mother dyadic flexibility (denoting the structural variability of their interaction dynamics) at 3, 6, and 9 months. Participants included thirty-five infants (37% girls) and their mothers (87% White). At 3 months, infants participated in a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging session, and functional connectivity (FC) within the default mode (DMN) and salience (SN) networks, as well as DMN-SN internetwork FC, were derived using a seed-based approach. When infants were 3, 6, and 9 months, infant-mother dyads completed the Still-Face Paradigm where their individual engagement behaviors were observed and used to quantify dyadic flexibility using state space analysis. Results revealed that greater within-DMN FC, within-SN FC, and DMN-SN anticorrelation at 3 months predicted greater dyadic flexibility at 6 months, but not at 3 and 9 months. Findings suggest that early synchronization and interaction between neural networks underlying introspection and salience detection may support infants' flexible social interactions as they become increasingly active and engaged social partners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaomei Li
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 905 S. Goodwin Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
| | - Haitao Chen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Imaging, Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, 116 N. Robertson Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048, CA, United States
- David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Geffen Hall, 885 Tiverton Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States
| | - Yannan Hu
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 905 S. Goodwin Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
| | - Ryan J Larsen
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
| | - Bradley P Sutton
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1406 W. Green St, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
| | - Nancy L McElwain
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 905 S. Goodwin Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, United States
| | - Wei Gao
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Imaging, Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, 116 N. Robertson Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048, CA, United States
- David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Geffen Hall, 885 Tiverton Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States
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33
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Imafuku M, Yoshimoto H, Hiraki K. Infants' interoception is associated with eye contact in dyadic social interactions. Sci Rep 2023; 13:9520. [PMID: 37336917 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-35851-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Interoception, that is, the perception of visceral stimuli, is the basis of socio-emotional development. However, no studies have demonstrated the relationship between the two in infants. This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between interoception and social behavior in infants and mothers. Visual preference for cardio-visual synchronous and asynchronous stimuli was assessed using a preferential-looking paradigm in 6-month infants and their mothers. The infant-mother interaction was also measured to assess social behavior, such as eye contact and positive facial expressions. The results showed that infants looked at asynchronous cardio-visual stimuli longer than synchronous cardio-visual stimuli, whereas mothers looked at synchronous cardio-visual stimuli longer than asynchronous cardio-visual stimuli. The proportion of looking time toward asynchronous cardio-visual stimuli in infants was positively correlated with infant-mother gaze and affect (positive facial expression) synchrony. Furthermore, mediation analyses showed that the relationship between infants' interoception and eye contact behavior is attributable to mother's positive facial expression. Our findings suggest that in infant-mother interactions, infants' interoception may play a role in eye contact behavior through the mother's positive facial expression, highlighting the importance of infants' interoception on social cognitive development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masahiro Imafuku
- Department of Early Childhood Education and Care, Faculty of Education, Musashino University, 1-1-20 Shin-Machi, Nishitokyo-Shi, Tokyo, 202-8585, Japan.
| | - Hiromasa Yoshimoto
- Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro-Ku, Tokyo, 153-8902, Japan
| | - Kazuo Hiraki
- Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro-Ku, Tokyo, 153-8902, Japan
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34
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Blumenthal SA, Young LJ. The Neurobiology of Love and Pair Bonding from Human and Animal Perspectives. BIOLOGY 2023; 12:844. [PMID: 37372130 PMCID: PMC10295201 DOI: 10.3390/biology12060844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 06/09/2023] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
Love is a powerful emotional experience that is rooted in ancient neurobiological processes shared with other species that pair bond. Considerable insights have been gained into the neural mechanisms driving the evolutionary antecedents of love by studies in animal models of pair bonding, particularly in monogamous species such as prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster). Here, we provide an overview of the roles of oxytocin, dopamine, and vasopressin in regulating neural circuits responsible for generating bonds in animals and humans alike. We begin with the evolutionary origins of bonding in mother-infant relationships and then examine the neurobiological underpinnings of each stage of bonding. Oxytocin and dopamine interact to link the neural representation of partner stimuli with the social reward of courtship and mating to create a nurturing bond between individuals. Vasopressin facilitates mate-guarding behaviors, potentially related to the human experience of jealousy. We further discuss the psychological and physiological stress following partner separation and their adaptive function, as well as evidence of the positive health outcomes associated with being pair-bonded based on both animal and human studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah A. Blumenthal
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Larry J. Young
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
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35
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Abargil M, Irani M, Klein Selle N, Atzil S. Breastfeeding at Any Cost? Adverse Effects of Breastfeeding Pain on Mother-Infant Behavior. BIOLOGY 2023; 12:biology12050636. [PMID: 37237450 DOI: 10.3390/biology12050636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2023] [Revised: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Breast milk is considered the ideal infant nutrition, and medical organizations encourage breastfeeding worldwide. Moreover, breastfeeding is often perceived as a natural and spontaneous socio-biological process and one of the fundamental roles of new mothers. While breastfeeding is beneficial, little scientific consideration has been given to its potential psychological challenges. Here, we investigate the phenomenon of breastfeeding pain in mothers and its association with maternal and infant behavioral regulation. During the postpartum weeks, the mother-infant dyad can be considered one allostatic unit directed at infant regulation and development. We hypothesize that pain comprises an allostatic challenge for mothers and will thus impair the capacity for dyadic regulation. To test this, we recruited 71 mothers with varying levels of breastfeeding pain and videotaped them with their infants (2-35 weeks old) during spontaneous face-to-face interactions. We quantified the individual differences in dyadic regulation by behaviorally coding the second-by-second affective expressions for each mother and infant throughout their interactions. We tested the extent to which breastfeeding pain alters affect regulation during mother-infant interactions. We discovered that mothers with severe breastfeeding pain express less affective expressions and less infant-directed gaze during interactive moments of engagement and play than mothers with no or moderate pain. Moreover, infants of mothers experiencing pain during breastfeeding express less affective expressions and more mother-directed gaze while interacting with their mothers than infants of mothers who are not in pain. This demonstrates that the allostatic challenge of maternal pain interferes with the behavioral regulation of both mothers and infants. Since the mother-infant dyad is a codependent allostatic unit, the allostatic challenges of one partner can impact the dyad and thus potentially impact child development, bonding, and mother and infant well-being. The challenges of breastfeeding should be considered in addition to the nutritional advances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maayan Abargil
- The Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190501, Israel
| | - Merav Irani
- The Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190501, Israel
| | | | - Shir Atzil
- The Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190501, Israel
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36
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Arzate-Mejia RG, Mansuy IM. Remembering through the genome: the role of chromatin states in brain functions and diseases. Transl Psychiatry 2023; 13:122. [PMID: 37041131 PMCID: PMC10090084 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02415-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 03/19/2023] [Accepted: 03/24/2023] [Indexed: 04/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Chromatin is the physical substrate of the genome that carries the DNA sequence and ensures its proper functions and regulation in the cell nucleus. While a lot is known about the dynamics of chromatin during programmed cellular processes such as development, the role of chromatin in experience-dependent functions remains not well defined. Accumulating evidence suggests that in brain cells, environmental stimuli can trigger long-lasting changes in chromatin structure and tri-dimensional (3D) organization that can influence future transcriptional programs. This review describes recent findings suggesting that chromatin plays an important role in cellular memory, particularly in the maintenance of traces of prior activity in the brain. Inspired by findings in immune and epithelial cells, we discuss the underlying mechanisms and the implications for experience-dependent transcriptional regulation in health and disease. We conclude by presenting a holistic view of chromatin as potential molecular substrate for the integration and assimilation of environmental information that may constitute a conceptual basis for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo G Arzate-Mejia
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Brain Research Institute, Medical Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Science and Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETHZ), Zurich, Switzerland
- Center for Neuroscience Zürich, University Zürich and ETHZ, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Isabelle M Mansuy
- Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Brain Research Institute, Medical Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Science and Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETHZ), Zurich, Switzerland.
- Center for Neuroscience Zürich, University Zürich and ETHZ, Zürich, Switzerland.
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37
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Abu Salih M, Abargil M, Badarneh S, Klein Selle N, Irani M, Atzil S. Evidence for cultural differences in affect during mother-infant interactions. Sci Rep 2023; 13:4831. [PMID: 36964204 PMCID: PMC10039016 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-31907-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 03/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Maternal care is considered a universal and even cross-species set of typical behaviors, which are necessary to determine the social development of children. In humans, most research on mother-infant bonding is based on Western cultures and conducted in European and American countries. Thus, it is still unknown which aspects of mother-infant behaviors are universal and which vary with culture. Here we test whether typical mother-infant behaviors of affect-communication and affect-regulation are equally represented during spontaneous interaction in Palestinian-Arab and Jewish cultures. 30 Palestinian-Arab and 43 Jewish mother-infant dyads were recruited and videotaped. Using AffectRegulation Coding System (ARCS), we behaviorally analyzed the second-by-second display of valence and arousal in each participant and calculated the dynamic patterns of affect co-regulation. The results show that Palestinian-Arab infants express more positive valence than Jewish infants and that Palestinian-Arab mothers express higher arousal compared to Jewish mothers. Moreover, we found culturally-distinct strategies to regulate the infant: increased arousal in Palestinian-Arab dyads and increased mutual affective match in Jewish dyads. Such cross-cultural differences in affect indicate that basic features of emotion that are often considered universal are differentially represented in different cultures. Affect communication and regulation patterns can be transmitted across generations in early-life socialization with caregivers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miada Abu Salih
- Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Maayan Abargil
- Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Saja Badarneh
- Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel
| | | | - Merav Irani
- Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Shir Atzil
- Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel.
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Dyadic inter-brain EEG coherence induced by interoceptive hyperscanning. Sci Rep 2023; 13:4344. [PMID: 36927763 PMCID: PMC10020471 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-31494-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous single-brain studies suggested interoception plays a role in interpersonal synchronization. The aim of the present study was to assess the electrophysiological intersubject coherence through electrophysiological (EEG) hyperscanning recording during simple dyadic synchronization tasks when the participants focused on their breath. To this aim, the neural activity of 15 dyads of participants was collected during the execution of a cognitive and motor synchronization task in two distinct IA conditions: focus and no focus on the breath condition. Individuals' EEG frequency bands were recorded through EEG hyperscanning and coherence analysis was performed. Results showed greater EEG coherence was observed for the alpha band in frontopolar brain regions (Fp1, Fp2) and also in central brain regions (C3, C4) within the dyads, during the focus on the breath condition for the motor compared to the cognitive synchronization task; during the same experimental condition, delta and theta band showed augmented inter-individual coherence in the frontal region (Fz) and central areas (C3, C4). To conclude, the current hyperscanning study highlights how the manipulation of the interoceptive focus (obtained through the focus on the breath) strengthens the manifestation of the EEG markers of interpersonal tuning during a motor synchronization task in specific brain areas.
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Atzil S, Satpute AB, Zhang J, Parrish MH, Shablack H, MacCormack JK, Leshin J, Goel S, Brooks JA, Kang J, Xu Y, Cohen M, Lindquist KA. The impact of sociality and affective valence on brain activation: A meta-analysis. Neuroimage 2023; 268:119879. [PMID: 36642154 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.119879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2022] [Revised: 01/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Thirty years of neuroimaging reveal the set of brain regions consistently associated with pleasant and unpleasant affect in humans-or the neural reference space for valence. Yet some of humans' most potent affective states occur in the context of other humans. Prior work has yet to differentiate how the neural reference space for valence varies as a product of the sociality of affective stimuli. To address this question, we meta-analyzed across 614 social and non-social affective neuroimaging contrasts, summarizing the brain regions that are consistently activated for social and non-social affective information. We demonstrate that across the literature, social and non-social affective stimuli yield overlapping activations within regions associated with visceromotor control, including the amygdala, hypothalamus, anterior cingulate cortex and insula. However, we find that social processing differs from non-social affective processing in that it involves additional cortical activations in the medial prefrontal and posterior cingulum that have been associated with mentalizing and prediction. A Bayesian classifier was able to differentiate unpleasant from pleasant affect, but not social from non-social affective states. Moreover, it was not able to classify unpleasantness from pleasantness at the highest levels of sociality. These findings suggest that highly social scenarios may be equally salient to humans, regardless of their valence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shir Atzil
- The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
| | | | - Jiahe Zhang
- Northeastern University, Boston, MA, United States
| | | | - Holly Shablack
- Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA, United States
| | | | - Joseph Leshin
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | | | - Jeffrey A Brooks
- Hume AI, New York, NY, United States; University of California, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Jian Kang
- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Yuliang Xu
- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Matan Cohen
- The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
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McParlin Z, Cerritelli F, Manzotti A, Friston KJ, Esteves JE. Therapeutic touch and therapeutic alliance in pediatric care and neonatology: An active inference framework. Front Pediatr 2023; 11:961075. [PMID: 36923275 PMCID: PMC10009260 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2023.961075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Therapeutic affective touch has been recognized as essential for survival, nurturing supportive interpersonal interactions, accelerating recovery-including reducing hospitalisations, and promoting overall health and building robust therapeutic alliances. Through the lens of active inference, we present an integrative model, combining therapeutic touch and communication, to achieve biobehavioural synchrony. This model speaks to how the brain develops a generative model required for recovery, developing successful therapeutic alliances, and regulating allostasis within paediatric manual therapy. We apply active inference to explain the neurophysiological and behavioural mechanisms that underwrite the development and maintenance of synchronous relationships through touch. This paper foregrounds the crucial role of therapeutic touch in developing a solid therapeutic alliance, the clinical effectiveness of paediatric care, and triadic synchrony between health care practitioner, caregiver, and infant in a variety of clinical situations. We start by providing a brief overview of the significance and clinical role of touch in the development of social interactions in infants; facilitating a positive therapeutic alliance and restoring homeostasis through touch to allow a more efficient process of allostatic regulation. Moreover, we explain the role of CT tactile afferents in achieving positive clinical outcomes and updating prior beliefs. We then discuss how touch is implemented in treatment sessions to promote cooperative interactions in the clinic and facilitate theory of mind. This underwrites biobehavioural synchrony, epistemic trust, empathy, and the resolution of uncertainty. The ensuing framework is underpinned by a critical application of the active inference framework to the fields of pediatrics and neonatology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zoe McParlin
- Foundation COME Collaboration, Clinical-Based Human Research Department, Pescara, Italy
| | - Francesco Cerritelli
- Division of Neonatology, “V. Buzzi” Children's Hospital, ASST-FBF-Sacco, Milan, Italy
| | - Andrea Manzotti
- Foundation COME Collaboration, Clinical-Based Human Research Department, Pescara, Italy
- Division of Neonatology, “V. Buzzi” Children's Hospital, ASST-FBF-Sacco, Milan, Italy
- Research Department, SOMA, Istituto Osteopatia Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Karl J Friston
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jorge E Esteves
- Foundation COME Collaboration, Clinical-Based Human Research Department, Pescara, Italy
- Malta ICOM Educational, Malta, Finland
- Research Department, University College of Osteopathy, Research Department, London, United Kingdom
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41
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ERP and attachment dimensions as predictors of seeking care or food comfort in stressful situations. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3170. [PMID: 36823203 PMCID: PMC9950445 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29493-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
In this study, we aimed to test the association of the Late Positive Potential (LPP) response and attachment dimensions in the choice of care/food pictures and its reaction time (RT) in threatening versus neutral conditions. Fifty-two participants (38 females, Mage 22.62) responded to the ECR questionnaire and were exposed to adequate visual stimuli, during EEG recording. Results showed that threatening stimuli increase the choice of care, decrease RT, and increase LPP magnitude in centro-parietal areas (Cpz, Pz, P3 and P4). Food choice was lower, with increased RT. Furthermore, larger LPP magnitude in centro-parietal cluster was associated with increased RT in the choice of care. Considering the dimensions of attachment, in threatening conditions, while anxiety was not associated with RT and care/food choice, avoidance was associated with an increase in care choice and RT. In conclusion, the specific association of increased RT in care choice with high LPP magnitude centro-parietal cluster may be explained in terms of a functional interference of these areas in the choice of care, but not of food. Further, we postulate that the increased RT of avoidant individuals may reflect a more articulated choice process.
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Puhlmann LM, Derome M, Morosan L, Kilicel D, Vrtička P, Debbané M. Longitudinal associations between self-reported attachment dimensions and neurostructural development from adolescence to early adulthood. Attach Hum Dev 2023; 25:162-180. [PMID: 34730475 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2021.1993628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The existing literature suggests that individual differences in attachment may be associated with differential trajectories of structural brain development. In addition to maturation during infancy and childhood, developmental trajectories are characteristic of adolescence, a period marked by increasingly complex interpersonal relationships and significant neurostructural and functional plasticity. It remains to be examined whether attachment prospectively relates to neurostructural developmental trajectories during adolescence. In this longitudinal study, we investigated whether self-reported attachment dimensions of anxiety (AX) and avoidance (AV) could predict elements of cortical thickness (CT) and subcortical volume (SV) trajectories in 95 typically developing adolescents (12-19 years old at study baseline). Self-reported scores of AX and AV were obtained at study baseline, and neurostructural development was assessed at baseline and three timepoints over the four following years. Self-reported AX and AV were associated with steeper CT decreases in prefrontal cortical and cortical midline structures as well as anterior temporal cortex, particularly in participants younger at study baseline. Regarding SV, preliminary differential associations were observed between developmental trajectories and attachment dimensions. Our study suggests that interindividual differences in attachment contribute to shaping neurodevelopmental trajectories for several cortical and subcortical structures during adolescence and young adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Mc Puhlmann
- Research Group "Social Stress and Family Health", Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research, Mainz, Germany
| | - Mélodie Derome
- Developmental Clinical Psychology Research Unit, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.,Developmental Neuroimaging and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Larisa Morosan
- Developmental Clinical Psychology Research Unit, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.,Developmental Neuroimaging and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Deniz Kilicel
- Developmental Neuroimaging and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Pascal Vrtička
- Research Group "Social Stress and Family Health", Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Centre for Brain Science, Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester, UK
| | - Martin Debbané
- Developmental Clinical Psychology Research Unit, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.,Developmental Neuroimaging and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.,Research Department of Clinical, Educational & Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
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White L, Kungl M, Vrticka P. Charting the social neuroscience of human attachment (SoNeAt). Attach Hum Dev 2023; 25:1-18. [PMID: 36727628 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2023.2167777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
This introduction aims to set out the potential as well as some of the pitfalls of the newly emerging area of the Social Neuroscience of Human Attachment (SoNeAt). To organize and interconnect the burgeoning empirical studies in this line of research, including those in this special issue, we outline a programmatic framework including an extension of our conceptual proposals NAMA and NAMDA to guide future research. We hope that this special issue will act as a stimulus for redoubling our efforts advancing the newly emerging SoNeAt area bridging attachment theory and social neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lars White
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Melanie Kungl
- Department of Psychology, Friedrich-Alexander-University, Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany
| | - Pascal Vrticka
- Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester, UK
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D’Amelio A, Patania S, Bursic S, Cuculo V, Boccignone G. Using Gaze for Behavioural Biometrics. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 23:1262. [PMID: 36772302 PMCID: PMC9920149 DOI: 10.3390/s23031262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2022] [Revised: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
A principled approach to the analysis of eye movements for behavioural biometrics is laid down. The approach grounds in foraging theory, which provides a sound basis to capture the uniqueness of individual eye movement behaviour. We propose a composite Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process for quantifying the exploration/exploitation signature characterising the foraging eye behaviour. The relevant parameters of the composite model, inferred from eye-tracking data via Bayesian analysis, are shown to yield a suitable feature set for biometric identification; the latter is eventually accomplished via a classical classification technique. A proof of concept of the method is provided by measuring its identification performance on a publicly available dataset. Data and code for reproducing the analyses are made available. Overall, we argue that the approach offers a fresh view on either the analyses of eye-tracking data and prospective applications in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro D’Amelio
- PHuSe Lab, Department of Computer Science, University of Milano Statale, Via Celoria 18, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Sabrina Patania
- PHuSe Lab, Department of Computer Science, University of Milano Statale, Via Celoria 18, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Sathya Bursic
- PHuSe Lab, Department of Computer Science, University of Milano Statale, Via Celoria 18, 20133 Milan, Italy
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Piazza dell’Ateneo Nuovo 1, 20126 Milan, Italy
| | - Vittorio Cuculo
- PHuSe Lab, Department of Computer Science, University of Milano Statale, Via Celoria 18, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Boccignone
- PHuSe Lab, Department of Computer Science, University of Milano Statale, Via Celoria 18, 20133 Milan, Italy
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45
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Silveira LM, Tavares LRR, Baptista-de-Souza D, Carmona IM, Carneiro de Oliveira PE, Nunes-de-Souza RL, Canto-de-Souza A. Anterior cingulate cortex, but not amygdala, modulates the anxiogenesis induced by living with conspecifics subjected to chronic restraint stress in male mice. Front Behav Neurosci 2023; 16:1077368. [PMID: 36688134 PMCID: PMC9853544 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.1077368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2022] [Accepted: 12/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Cohabitation with a partner undergoing chronic restraint stress (CRE) induces anxiogenic-like behaviors through emotional contagion. We hypothesized that the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the amygdala would be involved in the modulation of this emotional process. This study investigated the role of the ACC and amygdala in empathy-like behavior (e.g., anxiety-like responses) induced by living with a mouse subjected to CRE. Male Swiss mice were housed in pairs for 14 days and then allocated into two groups: cagemate stress (one animal of the pair was subjected to 14 days of restraint stress) and cagemate control (no animal experienced stress). Twenty-four hours after the last stress session, cagemates had their brains removed for recording FosB labeling in the ACC and amygdala (Exp.1). In experiments 2 and 3, 24 h after the last stress session, the cagemates received 0.1 μL of saline or cobalt chloride (CoCl2 1 mM) into the ACC or amygdala, and then exposed to the elevated plus-maze (EPM) for recording anxiety. Results showed a decrease of FosB labeling in the ACC without changing immunofluorescence in the amygdala of stress cagemate mice. Cohabitation with mice subjected to CRE provoked anxiogenic-like behaviors. Local inactivation of ACC (but not the amygdala) reversed the anxiogenic-like effects induced by cohabitation with a partner undergoing CRE. These results suggest the involvement of ACC, but not the amygdala, in anxiety induced by emotional contagion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Maria Silveira
- Psychobiology Group, Department of Psychology/Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH), Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Graduate Program in Psychology, Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH)-Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Ligia Renata Rodrigues Tavares
- Psychobiology Group, Department of Psychology/Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH), Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Joint Graduate Program in Physiological Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar)/Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Daniela Baptista-de-Souza
- Psychobiology Group, Department of Psychology/Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH), Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Laboratory of Pharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Araraquara, São Paulo, Brazil,Institute of Neuroscience and Behaviour, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Isabela Miranda Carmona
- Psychobiology Group, Department of Psychology/Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH), Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Joint Graduate Program in Physiological Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar)/Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Paulo Eduardo Carneiro de Oliveira
- Psychobiology Group, Department of Psychology/Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH), Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Graduate Program in Psychology, Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH)-Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Ricardo Luiz Nunes-de-Souza
- Joint Graduate Program in Physiological Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar)/Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Laboratory of Pharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Araraquara, São Paulo, Brazil,Institute of Neuroscience and Behaviour, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Azair Canto-de-Souza
- Psychobiology Group, Department of Psychology/Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH), Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Graduate Program in Psychology, Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH)-Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Joint Graduate Program in Physiological Sciences, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar)/Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil,Institute of Neuroscience and Behaviour, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil,*Correspondence: Azair Canto-de-Souza, ;
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Quadrato motor training (QMT) influences IL-1β expression and creativity: Implications for inflammatory state reduction and cognitive enhancement. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2022.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
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47
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Pintos Lobo R, Bottenhorn KL, Riedel MC, Toma AI, Hare MM, Smith DD, Moor AC, Cowan IK, Valdes JA, Bartley JE, Salo T, Boeving ER, Pankey B, Sutherland MT, Musser ED, Laird AR. Neural systems underlying RDoC social constructs: An activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 144:104971. [PMID: 36436737 PMCID: PMC9843621 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Revised: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Neuroscientists have sought to identify the underlying neural systems supporting social processing that allow interaction and communication, forming social relationships, and navigating the social world. Through the use of NIMH's Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) framework, we evaluated consensus among studies that examined brain activity during social tasks to elucidate regions comprising the "social brain". We examined convergence across tasks corresponding to the four RDoC social constructs, including Affiliation and Attachment, Social Communication, Perception and Understanding of Self, and Perception and Understanding of Others. We performed a series of coordinate-based meta-analyses using the activation likelihood estimate (ALE) method. Meta-analysis was performed on whole-brain coordinates reported from 864 fMRI contrasts using the NiMARE Python package, revealing convergence in medial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, temporoparietal junction, bilateral insula, amygdala, fusiform gyrus, precuneus, and thalamus. Additionally, four separate RDoC-based meta-analyses revealed differential convergence associated with the four social constructs. These outcomes highlight the neural support underlying these social constructs and inform future research on alterations among neurotypical and atypical populations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Katherine L Bottenhorn
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Michael C Riedel
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Afra I Toma
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Megan M Hare
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Donisha D Smith
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Alexandra C Moor
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Isis K Cowan
- Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, USA
| | - Javier A Valdes
- College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Jessica E Bartley
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Taylor Salo
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Emily R Boeving
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Brianna Pankey
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | | | - Erica D Musser
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Angela R Laird
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
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Pollet TV, Thompson A, Malcolm C, McCarty K, Saxton TK, Roberts SGB. Are we measuring loneliness in the same way in men and women in the general population and in the older population? Two studies of measurement equivalence. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0266167. [PMID: 36580475 PMCID: PMC9799294 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND High levels of loneliness are associated with negative health outcomes and there are several different types of interventions targeted at reducing feelings of loneliness. It is therefore important to accurately measure loneliness. A key unresolved debate in the conceptualisation and measurement of loneliness is whether it has a unidimensional or multidimensional structure. The aim of this study was to examine the dimensional structure of the widely used UCLA Loneliness Scale and establish whether this factorial structure is equivalent in men and women. METHODS AND SAMPLE Two online UK-based samples were recruited using Prolific. The participants in Study 1 were 492 adults, selected to be nationally representative by age and gender, whilst the participants in Study 2 were 290 older adults aged over 64. In both studies, participants completed the UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3) as part of a larger project. RESULTS In both studies, the best fitting model was one with three factors corresponding to 'Isolation,' 'Relational Connectedness,' and 'Collective Connectedness.' A unidimensional single factor model was a substantially worse fit in both studies. In both studies, there were no meaningful differences between men and women in any of the three factors, suggesting measurement invariance across genders. CONCLUSION These results are consistent with previous research in supporting a multidimensional, three factor structure to the UCLA scale, rather than a unidimensional structure. Further, the measurement invariance across genders suggests that the UCLA scale can be used to compare levels of loneliness across men and women. Overall the results suggest that loneliness has different facets and thus future research should consider treating the UCLA loneliness scale as a multidimensional scale, or using other scales which are designed to measure the different aspects of loneliness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas V. Pollet
- Dept. of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - Alexandra Thompson
- Dept. of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - Connor Malcolm
- Dept. of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - Kristofor McCarty
- Dept. of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - Tamsin K. Saxton
- Dept. of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - Sam G. B. Roberts
- Dept. of Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom
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49
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Gentle as a mother's touch: C-tactile touch promotes autonomic regulation in preterm infants. Physiol Behav 2022; 257:113991. [PMID: 36242858 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2022.113991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Revised: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 10/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Preterm infants are challenged to adapt to an extrauterine milieu, while their interoceptive system and autonomic regulation capacity is still immature. Caressing parental touch is known to foster parasympathetic regulation in infants by stimulating C-tactile (CT) afferents and in preterm infants, slow stroking stimulation also leads to a heart rate decrease. The particular impact of maternal stroking has not yet been investigated and factors influencing the maturation of the CT system in preterm infants remain unclear. We therefore analysed 53 standardized events in which preterm infants (24 to 36 weeks gestational age at birth) were stroked by their mothers. Video analysis revealed that mothers use CT optimal velocities to stroke their preterm child. Analysis of pulse oximetric data showed no effect of stroking on infantile blood oxygenation, but a significant decrease of the heart rate. Compared to term-born children, this decrease was delayed by about two minutes. Furthermore, our data suggested that more immature preterm infants benefited less from stroking than more mature ones. We conclude that maternal stroking touch targets CT afferents in preterm infants and that the preterm CT system is not yet mature.
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50
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Jirout JJ, Eisen S, Robertson ZS, Evans TM. Mother-child synchrony is high across child executive function levels for both physical and digital spatial play. Trends Neurosci Educ 2022; 29:100183. [PMID: 36470613 DOI: 10.1016/j.tine.2022.100183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2021] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Play is a powerful influence on children's learning and parents can provide opportunities to learn specific content by scaffolding children's play. Parent-child synchrony (i.e., harmony, reciprocity and responsiveness in interactions) is a component of parent-child interactions that is not well characterized in studies of play. PROCEDURES We tested whether children's executive function relates to mother-child synchrony during physical and digital play in sixty mother-child dyads. MAIN FINDINGS Mother-child synchrony did not relate to children's executive function or differ by play type (physical, digital), though during digital play mother-child synchrony was higher for girls relative to boys. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that mother-child synchrony is not influenced by children's executive function and physical and digital play can be similarly beneficial in offering the opportunity for responsive, reciprocal, dynamic interactions. The sex difference suggests that further factors should be explored as influences of play synchrony.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie J Jirout
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street South, Charlottesville, VA 22903, United States.
| | - Sierra Eisen
- Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, United States
| | - Zoe S Robertson
- Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, United States
| | - Tanya M Evans
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street South, Charlottesville, VA 22903, United States
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