scholarly journals Effect sizes and test-retest reliability of the fMRI-based Neurologic Pain Signature

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaochun Han ◽  
Yoni K. Ashar ◽  
Philip Kragel ◽  
Bogdan Petre ◽  
Victoria Schelkun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Retest Reliability ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Pain Reports ◽  
Nociceptive Input ◽  
Test Retest Reliability

Identifying biomarkers that predict mental states with large effect sizes and high test-retest reliability is a growing priority for fMRI research. We examined a well-established multivariate brain measure that tracks pain induced by nociceptive input, the Neurologic Pain Signature (NPS). In N = 295 participants across eight studies, NPS responses showed a very large effect size in predicting within-person single-trial pain reports (d = 1.45) and medium effect size in predicting individual differences in pain reports (d = 0.49, average r = 0.20). The NPS showed excellent short-term (within-day) test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.84, with average 69.5 trials/person). Reliability scaled with the number of trials within-person, with ≥60 trials required for excellent test-retest reliability. Reliability was comparable in two additional studies across 5-day (N = 29, ICC = 0.74, 30 trials/person) and 1-month (N = 40, ICC = 0.46, 5 trials/person) test-retest intervals. The combination of strong within-person correlations and only modest between-person correlations between the NPS and pain reports indicates that the two measures have different sources of between-person variance. The NPS is not a surrogate for individual differences in pain reports, but can serve as a reliable measure of pain-related physiology and mechanistic target for interventions.

A-53 The Relationship between Age and TMT-A Performance in Patients with Heart Failure

2021 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 1095-1095
Author(s):  
Nicholas S Lackey ◽  
Natasha Nemanim ◽  
Alexander O Hauson ◽  
Eric J Connors ◽  
Anna Pollard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Failure ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Meta Regression ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Objective A previous meta-analysis utilized the Trail Making Test A (TMT-A) to measure the impact of heart failure (HF) on attention. A near medium effect size with moderate heterogeneity was observed, the HF group performed worse than healthy controls (HC). This study explores if the age of the HF group moderates differences in the performance of individuals with HF versus HC on TMT-A. Data Selection Two researchers searched eight databases, extracted data, and calculated effect sizes as part of a larger study. Inclusion criteria were: (a) adults with HF (New York Heart Association severity II or higher), (b) comparison to a HC group, (c) standardized neuropsychological/cognitive testing, and (d) adequate data to calculate effect sizes. Exclusion criteria were: (a) participants had other types of major organ failure, (b) the article was not in English, or (c) there was a risk of sample overlap with another included study. A total of six articles were included in this sub-study (Total HF n = 602 and HC n = 342). The unrestricted maximum likelihood computational model was used for the meta-regression. Data Synthesis Studies included in the meta-regression evidenced a statistically significant medium effect size estimate with moderate heterogeneity (k = 6, g = 0.636, p < 0.001, I2 = 56.85%). The meta-regression was statistically significant (slope = −0.0515, p = 0.0016, Qmodel = 9.86, df = 1, p = 0.0016). Conclusions Individuals with HF performed worse on the TMT-A than HC. Age accounted for a significant proportion of the observed heterogeneity in the meta-regression. Future research should examine the relationship of age on cognition in individuals with HF.

scholarly journals The Heart in the Mind: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Association Between Theory of Mind and Cardiac Vagal Tone

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Zammuto ◽  
Cristina Ottaviani ◽  
Fiorenzo Laghi ◽  
Antonia Lonigro
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Behavioral Regulation ◽  
Human Ability ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Meta Regression Analysis ◽  
The Mind

Theory of mind (ToM) is the human ability to infer the mental states of others in order to understand their behaviors and plan own actions. In the past decades, accumulating evidence has shown that heart rate variability (HRV), an index of parasympathetic control of the heart, is linked to behavioral regulation, social competence, and social cognition abilities, all implicated—to some extent—in ToM. This study aims to systematically review and meta-analyze the available studies, investigating the relation between ToM and HRV in typically developing people. Six studies were eligible for the meta-analysis, yielding a significant association between HRV and ToM of a small-to-medium effect size (g = 0.44). This result was not influenced by publication bias. Due to the small number of studies eligible for the meta-analysis, it was not possible to test for the effect of categorical moderators. The moderating role of sex and quality of the studies was examined by meta-regression analysis. Moderation analysis did not yield any significant effect; however, at a descriptive level, studies yielding the largest effect size were characterized by the use of high frequency-HRV assessment at rest and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test to evaluate ToM abilities. The results preliminarily suggest that tonic HRV might be used as an indicator of the ability to understand the content of mind of others.

scholarly journals An Egocentric Network Contact Tracing Experiment: Testing Different Procedures to Elicit Contacts and Places

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1466
Author(s):  
Andrew Pilny ◽  
C. Joseph Huber
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Survey Methods ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Physiological Variables ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Egocentric Network ◽  
Survey Instruments

Contact tracing is one of the oldest social network health interventions used to reduce the diffusion of various infectious diseases. However, some infectious diseases like COVID-19 amass at such a great scope that traditional methods of conducting contact tracing (e.g., face-to-face interviews) remain difficult to implement, pointing to the need to develop reliable and valid survey approaches. The purpose of this research is to test the effectiveness of three different egocentric survey methods for extracting contact tracing data: (1) a baseline approach, (2) a retrieval cue approach, and (3) a context-based approach. A sample of 397 college students were randomized into one condition each. They were prompted to anonymously provide contacts and populated places visited from the past four days depending on what condition they were given. After controlling for various demographic, social identity, psychological, and physiological variables, participants in the context-based condition were significantly more likely to recall more contacts (medium effect size) and places (large effect size) than the other two conditions. Theoretically, the research supports suggestions by field theory that assume network recall can be significantly improved by activating relevant activity foci. Practically, the research contributes to the development of innovative social network data collection methods for contract tracing survey instruments.

scholarly journals Learning from the Reliability Paradox: How Theoretically Informed Generative Models Can Advance the Social, Behavioral, and Brain Sciences

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel Haines ◽  
Peter D. Kvam ◽  
Louis H. Irving ◽  
Colin Smith ◽  
Theodore P. Beauchaine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Generative Models ◽  
Parameter Estimates ◽  
Group Level ◽  
Retest Reliability ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Generative Modeling ◽  
Behavioral Tasks ◽  
Test Retest Reliability

Behavioral tasks (e.g., Stroop task) that produce replicable group-level effects (e.g., Stroop effect) often fail to reliably capture individual differences between participants (e.g., low test-retest reliability). This “reliability paradox” has led many researchers to conclude that most behavioral tasks cannot be used to develop and advance theories of individual differences. However, these conclusions are derived from statistical models that provide only superficial summary descriptions of behavioral data, thereby ignoring theoretically-relevant data-generating mechanisms that underly individual-level behavior. More generally, such descriptive methods lack the flexibility to test and develop increasingly complex theories of individual differences. To resolve this theory-description gap, we present generative modeling approaches, which involve using background knowledge to specify how behavior is generated at the individual level, and in turn how the distributions of individual-level mechanisms are characterized at the group level—all in a single joint model. Generative modeling shifts our focus away from estimating descriptive statistical “effects” toward estimating psychologically meaningful parameters, while simultaneously accounting for measurement error that would otherwise attenuate individual difference correlations. Using simulations and empirical data from the Implicit Association Test and Stroop, Flanker, Posner Cueing, and Delay Discounting tasks, we demonstrate how generative models yield (1) higher test-retest reliability estimates, and (2) more theoretically informative parameter estimates relative to traditional statistical approaches. Our results reclaim optimism regarding the utility of behavioral paradigms for testing and advancing theories of individual differences, and emphasize the importance of formally specifying and checking model assumptions to reduce theory-description gaps and facilitate principled theory development.

A Meta-Analytic Review of the Consequences of Stigma and Stereotype Threat for Individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Haft ◽  
Fumiko Hoeft
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Stereotype Threat ◽  
Psychological Adjustment ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Academic Outcomes ◽  
Specific Learning Disabilities ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Related Stigma ◽  
Specific Learning

Exposure to stigma and stereotype threat has shown detrimental effects on psychological and academic outcomes in numerous marginalized groups. Research has demonstrated that individuals with specific learning disabilities (SLDs) are vulnerable to stigmatization because of their SLDs. The purpose of this quantitative meta-analysis is to provide an estimation of the overall relationship between SLD-related stigma and psychological and academic outcomes in individuals with SLDs, as well as examine the overall effect size of SLD-related stereotype threat across studies. A total of seven effect sizes examining SLD stigma and psychological adjustment, two effect sizes examining SLD stigma and academic outcomes, and six effect sizes examining SLD stereotype threat across 13 studies were analyzed. Meta-analytic findings revealed that greater SLD stigma scores had a medium-sized and significant correlation with less optimal psychological adjustment (r=-.39, k=7, p<.0001). SLD stigma showed a weak association with academic outcomes (r=-.06, k=2, p=.59). The estimated mean effect size of stereotype threat manipulations in individuals with SLDs was g=0.49 (k=6, p<.030), reflecting a medium effect and overall poorer performance-related outcomes in conditions of high stereotype threat. Given the small number of studies, moderator analyses were unable to be performed and evidence for publication bias is equivocal. These findings highlight the need for more research on SLD-related stigma and stereotype threat, and suggest that these negative experiences be a target of intervention and support efforts for individuals with SLDs.

L2 writing development through two types of writing task repetition

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatsushi Fukunaga
Keyword(s):  
Effect Size ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Writing Development ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Task Repetition ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Argumentative Essays ◽  
Task Types ◽  
Writing Task ◽  
Measurement Period

Abstract This study investigated whether any remarkable effects emerge in terms of overall complexity, complexity by subordination, accuracy, and fluency in two types of writing task repetition during a single academic semester (16 weeks). The Cognition Hypothesis states that tasks involving different cognitive demands will lead to different L2 output. Thus, this study explored whether any significant differences existed between two task types: descriptive and argumentative essays. The results revealed different patterns in the two types of writing tasks. For the descriptive essays, despite the improvements in overall complexity, complexity by subordination, and fluency with a large effect size, no significant findings were confirmed for accuracy. In contrast, in the argumentative essays, the learners improved all the linguistic aspects, but with a medium effect size. This study also unraveled developmental trajectories to demonstrate how different variables interacted in the two different types of writing tasks throughout the measurement period.

Novel patient-specific visual analogue survey (PVS) is validated in patients treated with collagenase injection for Dupuytren’s disease

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-9
Author(s):  
Stephen L Lyman ◽  
Jayme Burket Kotsov ◽  
Chisa Hidaka ◽  
Quynh Tran ◽  
Naomi Roselaar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Effect Size ◽  
External Validation ◽  
Patient Specific ◽  
Dupuytren’S Contracture ◽  
Post Injection ◽  
Retest Reliability ◽  
Dupuytren's Contracture ◽  
Number Of Patients ◽  
Patient Reported ◽  
Test Retest Reliability

ObjectivesWe developed and validated an electronically administered patient-specific visual analogue survey (PVS) to evaluate changes in hand function after treatment with injectable collagenase clostridium histolyticum (CCH) in Dupuytren’s contracture. The items in the PVS were authored and ranked in importance by the patients.MethodsIn an open-label trial for patients with Dupuytren’s contracture receiving CCH injection, 109 patients completed the PVS on the day of injection, day of manipulation and 30-day follow-up. For external validation, patients also completed standard patient-reported outcome measures, the Overall Treatment Effects Scale and QuickDASH, and underwent physician assessment of contracture via goniometry and the table top test.ResultsResponses were highly individualised with no single activity being chosen as important by more than 8% of patients. Sports-related activities were mentioned most often (23%). The PVS was highly responsive to changes in patients’ conditions with CCH injection (effect size=1.49), much more so than the QuickDASH (effect size=0.50). Additionally, the PVS had no floor or ceiling effects, whereas the QuickDASH ceiling approached 20% post-injection. The PVS had excellent internal consistency (Cronbach’s α=0.95) and correlated strongly with the QuickDASH post-injection (Spearman’s=−0.67). PVS scores were significantly higher for patients reporting their condition had improved versus those reporting no change after injection. The test–retest reliability of the PVS was poor to fair, in part due to allowing patients to choose different activities at test and retest. However, test–retest reliability was good (intraclass correlation coefficient >0.7) and better than QuickDASH among patients who rated the same activities at test and retest.ConclusionsThe PVS is simple to administer and enables individualised assessment in a large number of patients. It is also readily adaptable for use in other diseases, particularly within musculoskeletal medicine.Level of evidenceTherapeutic II: Prospective cohort.

scholarly journals An Online Mindful Parenting Training for Mothers Raising Toddlers: Assessment of Acceptability, Effectiveness, and Personal Goals

Mindfulness ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Myrthe G. B. M. Boekhorst ◽  
Lianne P. Hulsbosch ◽  
Ivan Nyklíček ◽  
Viola Spek ◽  
Anna Kastelein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Effect Size ◽  
Parental Stress ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Mindful Parenting ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Personal Goals

Abstract Objectives Mindful parenting (MP) interventions show promising results, but they mostly target parents (of children) with mental health problems. This study examined an online MP intervention for mothers with toddlers in a population-based sample. Aims were to assess acceptability and effectiveness of the intervention for mothers with and without parental stress, and examine their predetermined personal goals. Methods The study included 157 mothers with toddlers from the general population of whom 73 reported parental stress. The mothers participated in an 8-week online MP training. Questionnaires were completed at waitlist, pretest, posttest, and follow-up. Results Mothers rated the training positively, although only 23.1% completed the training. Personal goals were analyzed qualitatively, establishing four different themes: attention, well-being, patience, and balance. Significant improvements in personal goals posttest and follow-up were found (large and very large effect size, respectively). We found no significant improvements from waitlist to pretest for all outcome variables, except personal goals (medium effect size). Mixed-linear model analyses showed significant improvements posttest and follow-up as compared to pretest regarding Self-compassion, Parental over-reactivity and Symptoms of anxiety and depression (small to medium effect sizes). There was an effect at posttest for Parenting problems, and for Parental role restriction at follow-up (small effect sizes). Levels of parental stress and theme of personal goal did not influence the effectiveness of the intervention. Conclusions The current study provides initial evidence that an online MP training could be an easily accessible, inexpensive, and valuable intervention for parents without an indication for a therapist-assisted intervention. Trial Registration Dutch Trial Register (NTR7401)

Work satisfaction and burnout risk of gastroenterologists in Germany: results of a nationwide survey

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (10) ◽  
pp. 960-970 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Christian Adarkwah ◽  
Joachim Labenz ◽  
Berndt Birkner ◽  
UIrike Beilenhoff ◽  
Oliver Hirsch
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Work Satisfaction ◽  
Maslach Burnout Inventory ◽  
Personal Accomplishment ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Federal Organization ◽  
Burnout Risk

Abstract Background More and more gastroenterologists are not satisfied with their working conditions and run the risk of developing burnout symptoms. Little is known about the job satisfaction and burnout risk among physicians working in endoscopy units in Germany. This study examines the risk of burnout and job satisfaction among gastroenterologists in Germany. Methods An electronic survey was distributed to gastroenterologists organized mainly in the Federal Organization of Gastroenterology in Germany (BVGD, Berufsverband Gastroenterologie Deutschland e. V.). In addition to general demographic variables, job satisfaction was determined using the Work Satisfaction Questionnaires (WSQ), and burnout risk was determined using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Results A representative sample of gastroenterologists organized in the BVGD (Berufsverband Gastroenterologie Deutschland e. V.) took part in the study (n = 683, 22 %). Above all, we could demonstrate relevant differences with regard to burnout risk and job satisfaction depending on the place of work, clinic structure, position in the clinic, and age. Younger physicians had significantly higher depersonalization (p < 0.001) and exhaustion scores (p < 0.001) with almost medium and small effect sizes (δt = 0.45 and −0.31). The higher the position in the clinic, the higher the accomplishment scores (medium effect size 0.27). Older physicians were especially more satisfied in the areas of patient care (p < 0.001, medium effect size δt = −0.53). Employed doctors show a higher level of satisfaction in terms of “burden” compared to practice owners (p < 0.001, δt = −0.69). Compared to norms used in the EGPRN study which were adapted to physicians, almost one-third of our sample had high depersonalization scores, about 17 % had high exhaustion scores, and about half had low personal accomplishment scores showing a higher general burden among German gastroenterologists. Conclusion Decreased work satisfaction and risk of burnout are important issues among German gastroenterologists. Specific actions should address this problem in order to avoid negative consequences, respectively.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document