scholarly journals Emotion and expertise: how listeners with formal music training use cues to perceive emotion

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aimee Battcock ◽  
Michael Schutz
Keyword(s):  
Musical Training ◽  
Relative Weight ◽  
Music Training ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
Musical Background ◽  
Margin Of Error ◽  
Commonality Analysis ◽  
Valence And Arousal ◽  
Musical Emotion

AbstractAlthough studies of musical emotion often focus on the role of the composer and performer, the communicative process is also influenced by the listener’s musical background or experience. Given the equivocal nature of evidence regarding the effects of musical training, the role of listener expertise in conveyed musical emotion remains opaque. Here we examine emotional responses of musically trained listeners across two experiments using (1) eight measure excerpts, (2) musically resolved excerpts and compare them to responses collected from untrained listeners in Battcock and Schutz (2019). In each experiment 30 participants with six or more years of music training rated perceived emotion for 48 excerpts from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier (WTC) using scales of valence and arousal. Models of listener ratings predict more variance in trained vs. untrained listeners across both experiments. More importantly however, we observe a shift in cue weights related to training. Using commonality analysis and Fischer Z score comparisons as well as margin of error calculations, we show that timing and mode affect untrained listeners equally, whereas mode plays a significantly stronger role than timing for trained listeners. This is not to say the emotional messages are less well recognized by untrained listeners—simply that training appears to shift the relative weight of cues used in making evaluations. These results clarify music training’s potential impact on the specific effects of cues in conveying musical emotion.

Maternal Perception of Infants’ Expressions of Emotion

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 173-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Krippl ◽  
Stephanie Ast-Scheitenberger ◽  
Ina Bovenschen ◽  
Gottfried Spangler
Keyword(s):  
Response Pattern ◽  
Electrodermal Activity ◽  
Startle Amplitude ◽  
Caregiving System ◽  
Parental Caregiving ◽  
Opponent Process ◽  
Opponent Process Theory ◽  
Valence And Arousal ◽  
Methodological Considerations

In light of Lang’s differentiation of the aversive and the approach system – and assumptions stemming from attachment theory – this study investigates the role of the approach or caregiving system for processing infant emotional stimuli by comparing IAPS pictures, infant pictures, and videos. IAPS pictures, infant pictures, and infant videos of positive, neutral, or negative content were presented to 69 mothers, accompanied by randomized startle probes. The assessment of emotional responses included subjective ratings of valence and arousal, corrugator activity, the startle amplitude, and electrodermal activity. In line with Lang’s original conception, the typical startle response pattern was found for IAPS pictures, whereas no startle modulation was observed for infant pictures. Moreover, the startle amplitudes during negative video scenes depicting crying infants were reduced. The results are discussed with respect to several theoretical and methodological considerations, including Lang’s theory, emotion regulation, opponent process theory, and the parental caregiving system.

scholarly journals Induced Empathy Moderates Emotional Responses to Expressive Qualities in Music

2020 ◽  
pp. 102986492097472
Author(s):  
Katherine O’Neill ◽  
Hauke Egermann
Keyword(s):  
Ecological Validity ◽  
Emotional Responses ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Music Listening ◽  
Psychological Mechanisms ◽  
Priming Paradigm ◽  
Valence And Arousal ◽  
Experimental Group

Recent research has explored the role of empathy in the context of music listening. Here, through an empathy priming paradigm, situational empathy was shown to act as a causal mechanism in inducing emotion, although the way empathy was primed had low levels of ecological validity. We therefore conducted an online experiment to explore the extent to which information about a composer’s expressive intentions when writing a piece of music would significantly affect the degree to which participants reportedly empathise with the composer and in turn influence emotional responses to expressive music. A total of 229 participants were randomly assigned to three groups. The experimental group read short texts describing the emotions felt by the composer during the process of composition. To control for the effect of text regardless of its content, one control group read texts describing the characteristics of the music they were to hear, and a second control group was not given any textual information. Participants listened to 30-second excerpts of four pieces of music, selected to express emotions from the four quadrants of the circumplex theory of emotion. Having heard each music excerpt, participants rated the valence and arousal they experienced and completed a measure of situational empathy. Results show that situational empathy in response to music is significantly associated with trait empathy. As opposed to those in the control conditions, participants in the experimental group responded with significantly higher levels of situational empathy. Receiving this text significantly moderated the effect of the expressiveness of stimuli on induced emotion, indicating that it induced empathy. We conclude that empathy can be induced during music listening through the provision of information about the specific emotions of a person relating to the music. These findings contribute to an understanding of the psychological mechanisms that underlie emotional responses to music.

scholarly journals Monoclonal Antibodies as Neurological Therapeutics

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 92
Author(s):  
Panagiotis Gklinos ◽  
Miranta Papadopoulou ◽  
Vid Stanulovic ◽  
Dimos D. Mitsikostas ◽  
Dimitrios Papadopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Monoclonal Antibodies ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Neurological Diseases ◽  
Therapeutic Agents ◽  
Medical Specialties ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Neurological Conditions ◽  
Disease Pathways

Over the last 30 years the role of monoclonal antibodies in therapeutics has increased enormously, revolutionizing treatment in most medical specialties, including neurology. Monoclonal antibodies are key therapeutic agents for several neurological conditions with diverse pathophysiological mechanisms, including multiple sclerosis, migraines and neuromuscular disease. In addition, a great number of monoclonal antibodies against several targets are being investigated for many more neurological diseases, which reflects our advances in understanding the pathogenesis of these diseases. Untangling the molecular mechanisms of disease allows monoclonal antibodies to block disease pathways accurately and efficiently with exceptional target specificity, minimizing non-specific effects. On the other hand, accumulating experience shows that monoclonal antibodies may carry class-specific and target-associated risks. This article provides an overview of different types of monoclonal antibodies and their characteristics and reviews monoclonal antibodies currently in use or under development for neurological disease.

scholarly journals Expectancy of Stress-Reducing Aromatherapy Effect and Performance on a Stress-Sensitive Cognitive Task

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina Chamine ◽  
Barry S. Oken
Keyword(s):  
Task Performance ◽  
Stress Reduction ◽  
Cognitive Task ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Event Related Potentials ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
N200 Amplitude ◽  
Related Potentials ◽  
And Performance

Objective. Stress-reducing therapies help maintain cognitive performance during stress. Aromatherapy is popular for stress reduction, but its effectiveness and mechanism are unclear. This study examined stress-reducing effects of aromatherapy on cognitive function using the go/no-go (GNG) task performance and event related potentials (ERP) components sensitive to stress. The study also assessed the importance of expectancy in aromatherapy actions.Methods. 81 adults were randomized to 3 aroma groups (active experimental, detectable, and undetectable placebo) and 2 prime subgroups (prime suggesting stress-reducing aroma effects or no-prime). GNG performance, ERPs, subjective expected aroma effects, and stress ratings were assessed at baseline and poststress.Results. No specific aroma effects on stress or cognition were observed. However, regardless of experienced aroma, people receiving a prime displayed faster poststress median reaction times than those receiving no prime. A significant interaction for N200 amplitude indicated divergent ERP patterns between baseline and poststress for go and no-go stimuli depending on the prime subgroup. Furthermore, trends for beneficial prime effects were shown on poststress no-go N200/P300 latencies and N200 amplitude.Conclusion. While there were no aroma-specific effects on stress or cognition, these results highlight the role of expectancy for poststress response inhibition and attention.

scholarly journals C/EBPα directs monocytic commitment of primary myeloid progenitors

Blood ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 108 (4) ◽  
pp. 1223-1229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dehua Wang ◽  
Jenice D'Costa ◽  
Curt I. Civin ◽  
Alan D. Friedman
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Pcr Assay ◽  
Gm Csf ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
Proliferation And Apoptosis ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Lineage Markers ◽  
Transcriptional Induction

Abstract C/EBPα is required for generation of granulocyte-monocyte progenitors, but the subsequent role of C/EBPα in myeloid lineage commitment remains uncertain. We transduced murine marrow cells with C/EBPα-estradiol receptor (ER) or empty vector and subjected these to lineage depletion just prior to culture in estradiol with myeloid cytokines. This protocol limits biases due to lineage-specific effects on developmental kinetics, proliferation, and apoptosis. Also, lowering the dose of estradiol reduced activated C/EBPα-ER to near the physiologic range. C/EBPα-ER increased Mac1+/Gr1–/MPO–/low monocytes 1.9-fold while reducing Mac1+/Gr1+/MPOhi granulocytes 2.5-fold at 48 hours, even in 0.01 μM estradiol. This pattern was confirmed morphologically and by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay of lineage markers. To directly assess effects on immature progenitors, transduced cells were cultured for 1 day with and then in methylcellulose without estradiol. A 2-fold increase in monocytic compared with granulocytic colonies was observed in IL-3/IL-6/SCF or GM-CSF, but not G-CSF, even in 0.01 μM estradiol. C/EBPα-ER induced PU.1 mRNA, and PU.1-ER stimulated monocytic development, suggesting that transcriptional induction of PU.1 by C/EBPα contributes to monopoiesis. A C/EBPα variant incapable of zippering with c-Jun did not induce monopoiesis, and a variant unable to bind NF-κB p50 stimulated granulopoiesis, suggesting their cooperation with C/EBPα during monocytic commitment.

Music and Attention, Executive Function, and Creativity

2018 ◽  
pp. 262-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Psyche Loui ◽  
Rachel E. Guetta
Keyword(s):  
Executive Functions ◽  
Musical Training ◽  
Thought Processes ◽  
Conflict Monitoring ◽  
Far Transfer ◽  
Monitoring Task ◽  
Art Form ◽  
Creative Art ◽  
Research Questions

This chapter provides an overview of research at the intersection of music and cognitive functions. Music, an intrinsically creative art form, requires bottom-up and top-down perceptual processing, attention, and integration of executive functions. Literature on music and attention spans debates on selection theories, and the role of temporal attention and neuronal entrainment. Attention is a subset of executive functioning, goal-directed processes including conflict monitoring, task switching, and working memory. Considerable research has addressed the effects of musical training on executive functions, with contrasting reports of success in far transfer. Finally, contrary to goal-directed processes, creativity entails unconstrained thought processes that yield novel output. Perhaps due to the unrestricted nature of both music and creativity, the relevant research has also been variable. Considering these seemingly disparate aspects of cognitive function in tandem can inspire new and interesting research questions, promoting a more cohesive conceptualization of music within cognitive science more generally.

If Counterfactuals Were Excluded from Historical Reasoning . . .

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 370-381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yemima Ben-Menahem
Keyword(s):  
Relative Weight ◽  
Historical Reasoning ◽  
Difference Making ◽  
Making A Difference ◽  
Historical Necessity

The argument of this paper is that counterfactuals are indispensable in reasoning in general and historical reasoning in particular. It illustrates the role of counterfactuals in the study of history and explores the connection between counterfactuals and the notions of historical necessity and contingency. Entertaining alternatives to the actual course of events is conducive to the assessment of the relative weight and impact of the various factors that combine to bring about a certain result. Counterfactuals are essentially involved in understanding what it means for an event, an action, or an individual to make a difference. Making a difference, in turn, is shown to be a central category of historical reasoning. Counterfactuals, though sensitive to the description they use, make objective claims that can be confirmed or disconfirmed by evidence.

scholarly journals Japan’s development cooperation: from making amends to agenda–setting

2021 ◽  
pp. 351-373
Author(s):  
Nikolay Murashkin
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
International Development ◽  
Relative Weight ◽  
Development Cooperation ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
World War ◽  
Japan International Cooperation Agency ◽  
Key Drivers ◽  
International Development Cooperation

This article revisits the post–World War II evolution of Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) over the past 75 years, with a particular focus on the period starting from the 1980s and subsequent changes in Japan’s international development cooperation policies. I address cornerstones such as human security and quality growth, while examining the role of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), shifts and continuities in regional visions and sectoral priorities, such as infrastructure development. I argue that the threefold mix of key drivers behind Japan’s development cooperation has remained consistent, involving developmentalism stemming from Japan’s own experience of successful modernisation from a non–Western background, neo–mercantilism, as well as strategic and geopolitical considerations. The relative weight and interplay of these factors, however, fluctuated in different periods.

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