scholarly journals Obeying orders reduces vicarious brain activation towards victims’ pain

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilie A. Caspar ◽  
Kalliopi Ioumpa ◽  
Christian Keysers ◽  
Valeria Gazzola
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Research ◽  
Shock Intensity ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Free Condition ◽  
Moral Transgressions ◽  
Reduced Activity

ABSTRACTPast historical events and experimental research have shown complying with the orders from an authority has a strong impact on people’s behaviour. However, the mechanisms underlying how obeying orders influences moral behaviours remain largely unknown. Here, we test the hypothesis that when male and female humans inflict a painful stimulation to another individual, their empathic response is reduced when this action complied with the order of an experimenter (coerced condition) in comparison with being free to decide to inflict that pain (free condition). We observed that even if participants knew that the shock intensity delivered to the ‘victim’ was exactly the same during coerced and free conditions, they rated the shocks as less painful in the coerced condition. MRI results further indicated that obeying orders reduced activity associated with witnessing the shocks to the victim in the ACC, insula/IFG, TPJ, the MTG and dorsal striatum (including the caudate and the putamen) as well as neural signatures of vicarious pain in comparison with being free to decide. We also observed that participants felt less responsible and showed reduced activity in a multivariate neural guilt signature in the coerced than in the free condition, suggesting that this reduction of neural response associated with empathy could be linked to a reduction of felt responsibility and guilt. These results highlight that obeying orders has a measurable influence on how people perceive and process others’ pain. This may help explain how people’s willingness to perform moral transgressions is altered in coerced situations.

scholarly journals SEXUAL ABUSE IN LAURIE HALSE ANDERSON’S NOVEL SPEAK

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-34
Author(s):  
Dwi Anggriani ◽  
M. Amrin Siregar
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
Qualitative Method ◽  
Female Sexuality ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Descriptive Qualitative

This paper discusses the impacts of sexual abuse found in the novel Speak which has been selected as the source of data because this novel has a strong impact on sexual abuse victim. The story is about a female teenager who becomes a victim of abuse and it gives her many impacts. The aims of this study are to find out and analyze the impacts of sexual abuse and is conducted based on the concept of sexual abuse, a crime related to sexuality and more specifically related to male and female sexuality. Sexual abuse can include sexual harassment and sexual assault. Sexual abuse is an act that can harm and damage the victims with physical, psychological, sexual and even emotional impacts.  This study applies descriptive qualitative method which collects the data taken from the novel that has been read. The result of the study shows that there are three forms of sexual abuse impacts: physical, psychological and behavioral.

scholarly journals Mechanism for differential recruitment of orbitostriatal transmission during outcomes and actions in alcohol dependence

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Renteria ◽  
Christian Cazares ◽  
Emily T. Baltz ◽  
Drew C. Schreiner ◽  
Ege A. Yalcinbas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Alcohol Dependence ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Psychiatric Disease ◽  
Projection Neurons ◽  
Orbital Frontal Cortex ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Reduced Activity

AbstractPsychiatric disease often produces symptoms that have divergent effects on neural activity. For example, in drug dependence, dysfunctional value-based decision-making and compulsive-like actions have been linked to hypo- and hyper-activity of orbital frontal cortex (OFC)-basal ganglia circuits, respectively, however, the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here we show that alcohol dependence enhanced activity in OFC terminals in dorsal striatum (OFC-DS) associated with actions, but reduced activity of the same terminals during periods of outcome retrieval, corresponding with a loss of outcome control over decision-making. Disrupted OFC-DS terminal activity was due to a dysfunction of dopamine-type 1 receptors on spiny projection neurons (D1R SPNs) that resulted in increased retrograde endocannabinoid (eCB) signaling at OFC-D1R SPN synapses reducing OFC-DS transmission. Blocking CB1 receptors restored OFC-DS activity in vivo and rescued outcome-based control over decision-making. These findings demonstrate a circuit-, synapse-, and computation specific mechanism gating OFC activity following the induction of alcohol dependence.

scholarly journals Gender differences in the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on socio-economic and psychological wellbeing of students in Russia

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (Supplement_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
A Andreenkova ◽  
EV Andreenkova
Keyword(s):  
Social Ties ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Psychological Wellbeing ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Academic Workload ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Pandemic of COVID-19 had strong impact on young people in high education whose life plans, education prospects and personal networks were threatened. Based on theoretical framework of differential consequences of catastrophic events for less privileged groups, we explore the impact of pandemic (IP) on genders in student communities. Methods The C19 ISWS survey was conducted in spring 2020 by web-survey method among students of Russian universities (2738 cases). IP was measured in five domains: 1) socio-economic: subjective evaluation of economic wellbeing before and during the pandemic; 2) psychological (Depression Scale CES D8); 3) social ties: change in frequency of contact with family and friends, intensity of contacts in hours per day; 4) physical health (experience of COVID symptoms); 5) academic workload in hours before and during pandemic. ANOVA analysis was used to investigate strength of impact on gender groups after controlling for other factors (age, city, grade). Results Change of financial wellbeing experienced 39% of students with 4% significant difference between male and female students. Male and females had different mental reaction to COVID on few aspects - anxiousness (13 points difference), apathy (12 points), restlessness (9 points) and general depression (7 points), but not on social aspects as loneliness and isolation. IP was not differential for health (22% in average experienced the symptoms of COVID), academic workload (decreased hours per day on 5% for both genders) and social ties (strong decrease in contacts with friends, small decrease in contacts with family but similar by genders). Conclusions IP is strong and differential by gender for socio-economic and socio-psychological wellbeing, but similar for social communication and social ties, health and academic workload. These results may serve as a basis for forming more effective communication strategies and social support to mitigate IP for male and female students.

scholarly journals Mechanism for differential recruitment of orbitostriatal transmission during actions and outcomes following chronic alcohol exposure

eLife ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Renteria ◽  
Christian Cazares ◽  
Emily T Baltz ◽  
Drew C Schreiner ◽  
Ege A Yalcinbas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Psychiatric Disease ◽  
Projection Neurons ◽  
Orbital Frontal Cortex ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Reduced Activity

Psychiatric disease often produces symptoms that have divergent effects on neural activity. For example, in drug dependence, dysfunctional value-based decision-making and compulsive-like actions have been linked to hypo- and hyper-activity of orbital frontal cortex (OFC)-basal ganglia circuits, respectively, however, the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here we show that alcohol exposed mice have enhanced activity in OFC terminals in dorsal striatum (OFC-DS) associated with actions, but reduced activity of the same terminals during periods of outcome retrieval, corresponding with a loss of outcome control over decision-making. Disrupted OFC-DS terminal activity was due to a dysfunction of dopamine-type 1 receptors on spiny projection neurons (D1R SPNs) that resulted in increased retrograde endocannabinoid (eCB) signaling at OFC-D1R SPN synapses reducing OFC-DS transmission. Blocking CB1 receptors restored OFC-DS activity in vivo and rescued outcome-based control over decision-making. These findings demonstrate a circuit-, synapse-, and computation specific mechanism gating OFC activity in alcohol exposed mice.

Characteristics of Participants and Nonparticipants in Experimental Research

1985 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. W. Coye
Keyword(s):  
Locus Of Control ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Experimental Research ◽  
Group Performance ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Academic Major ◽  
Need For Achievement ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Need For Affiliation ◽  
Volunteer Bias

Characteristics of students who volunteered to participate in a laboratory experiment on group performance were compared with those of students who did not elect to participate. Subjects were 113 undergraduate students (65 men, 48 women; median age 23 yr.). There were no significant differences for the total sample between the participants and nonparticipants on locus of control, need for achievement, need for affiliation, age, or sex. Participation was, however, related to academic major, and male participants had higher need for achievement than male nonparticipants. Also, comparison of male and female subsamples with published national means indicated significant differences on need for achievement and need for affiliation. Male and female nonparticipants were higher than national means on need for achievement and lower than national means on need for affiliation. Need for achievement of male nonparticipants was lower than national means. Issues associated with volunteer bias are discussed and cautions raised.

Gender Differences in Brain Activation During Encoding and Recognition of Male and Female Faces

2010 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tadashi Ino ◽  
Ryusuke Nakai ◽  
Takashi Azuma ◽  
Toru Kimura ◽  
Hidenao Fukuyama
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Male And Female

scholarly journals Acute Ethanol Exposure Enhances Synaptic Plasticity in the Dorsal Striatum in Adult Male and Female Rats

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yosef Avchalumov ◽  
Juan C. Piña-Crespo ◽  
John J. Woodward ◽  
Chitra D. Mandyam
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Synaptic Plasticity ◽  
Synaptic Transmission ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Ethanol Exposure ◽  
Female Rats ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Male And Female Rats ◽  
Acute Ethanol

Background: Acute (ex vivo) and chronic (in vivo) alcohol exposure induces neuroplastic changes in the dorsal striatum, a critical region implicated in instrumental learning. Objective: Sex differences are evident in alcohol reward and reinforcement, with female rats consuming higher amount of alcohol in operant paradigms compared to male rats. However, sex differences in the neuroplastic changes produced by acute alcohol in the dorsal striatum have been unexplored. Methods: Using electrophysiological recordings from dorsal striatal slices obtained from adult male and female rats, we investigated the effects of ex vivo ethanol exposure on synaptic transmission and synaptic plasticity. Ethanol (44 mM) enhanced basal synaptic transmission in both sexes. Ethanol also enhanced long-term potentiation in both sexes. Other measures of synaptic plasticity including paired-pulse ratio were unaltered by ethanol in both sexes. Results: The results suggest that alterations in synaptic plasticity induced by acute ethanol, at a concentration associated with intoxication, could play an important role in alcohol-induced experience-dependent modification of corticostriatal circuits underlying the learning of goal-directed instrumental actions and formation of habits mediating alcohol seeking and taking. Conclusions: Taken together, understanding the mechanism(s) underlying alcohol induced changes in corticostriatal function may lead to the development of more effective therapeutic agents to reduce habitual drinking and seeking associated with alcohol use disorders.

scholarly journals Revision of the Exechia parva group (Diptera: Mycetophilidae)

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Peder Lindemann ◽  
Geir Søli ◽  
Jostein Kjærandsen
Keyword(s):  
Index Number ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Morphological Examination ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Fungus Gnats ◽  
Species Complexes ◽  
Holarctic Region ◽  
Species Groups ◽  
Morphological Species ◽  
Zoogeographical Region

Exechia is a diverse genus of small fungus gnats, widespread in the Holarctic Region, while the fauna is largely unknown elsewhere, such as in the Afrotropical and Oriental Region. Members of Exechia can be arranged into several species groups, based on homologies in the male and female terminalia. The Exechia parva group is delimited, based on male terminalia possessing a pair of gonocoxal lobes on the apicoventral gonocoxal margin. Eight previously-described species can be placed in this group, of which six are from the Holarctic Region, while one is recorded each from the Oriental and the Afrotropical Regions. The Exechia parva group was reviewed and found to include 33 species, of which 24 were described as new to science and six were re-described. Identification keys to 32 species for males and nine species for females are provided together with illustrations and photos of male and female terminalia. Species delimitations were based on morphological examination of 94 male and female specimens, as well as DNA barcodes obtained from 124 specimens. Molecular and morphological species delimitations were mostly congruent, except in two cases where two species were delimited within a single Barcode Index Number (BIN). We found that each species is only known from a single zoogeographical region and that several species complexes are largely congruent with zoogeographical divisions, indicating that intercontinental barriers may have a strong impact on the species diversity of the group.

scholarly journals Dopamine transporter trafficking and Rit2 GTPase: Mechanism of action and in vivo impact

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rita R. Fagan ◽  
Patrick J. Kearney ◽  
Carolyn G. Sweeney ◽  
Dino Luethi ◽  
Florianne E. Schoot Uiterkamp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ventral Striatum ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Surface Expression ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
N Terminus ◽  
Bona Fide ◽  
Pkc Activation ◽  
Insight Into

ABSTRACTFollowing its evoked release, DA signaling is rapidly terminated by presynaptic reuptake, mediated by the cocaine-sensitive DAT. DAT surface availability is dynamically regulated by endocytic trafficking, and direct PKC activation acutely diminishes DAT surface expression by accelerating DAT internalization. Previous cell line studies demonstrated that PKC-stimulated DAT endocytosis requires both Ack1 inactivation, which releases a DAT-specific endocytic brake, and the neuronal GTPase, Rit2, which binds DAT. However, it is unknown whether Rit2 is required for PKC-stimulated DAT endocytosis in DAergic terminals, or whether there are region- and/or sex-dependent differences in PKC-stimulated DAT trafficking. Moreover, the mechanisms by which Rit2 controls PKC-stimulated DAT endocytosis are unknown. Here, we directly examined these important questions. Ex vivo studies revealed that PKC activation acutely decreased DAT surface expression selectively in ventral, but not dorsal, striatum. AAV-mediated, conditional Rit2 knockdown in DAergic neurons impacted baseline DAT surface:intracellular distribution in DAergic terminals from female ventral, but not dorsal, striatum. Further, Rit2 was required for PKC-stimulated DAT internalization in both male and female ventral striatum. FRET and surface pulldown studies in cell lines revealed that PKC activation drives DAT-Rit2 surface dissociation, and that the DAT N-terminus is required for both PKC-mediated DAT-Rit2 dissociation and DAT internalization. Finally, we found that Rit2 and Ack1 independently converge on DAT to facilitate PKC-stimulated DAT endocytosis. Together, our data provide greater insight into mechanisms that mediate PKC-regulated DAT internalization, and reveal unexpected region-specific differences in PKC-stimulated DAT trafficking in bona fide DAergic terminals.

Evaluating Engagement Online

2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (5) ◽  
pp. 281-287
Author(s):  
Elizabeth J. Parks-Stamm ◽  
Chanda Grey
Keyword(s):  
Gender Bias ◽  
Experimental Research ◽  
Online Discussion ◽  
Student Evaluations ◽  
Classroom Engagement ◽  
Differential Impact ◽  
Online Instructors ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Evaluation Data ◽  
Online Discussion Forum

Abstract. Past experimental research has shown that women are penalized with harsh evaluations when they violate gender prescriptions to be nurturing and helpful. Instructor participation in an asynchronous online discussion forum and end-of-class evaluation data from 360 courses was used to test the hypothesis that students would penalize female, but not male, online instructors based on their classroom engagement. Results showed a penalties effect in student ratings for low-participating female, but not male, instructors in gender-balanced courses. The results demonstrate the differential impact of instructor engagement on male and female evaluations, shedding light on when and why gender bias is found in student evaluations. Implications for the use of student evaluations of faculty are discussed.

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