scholarly journals Unconscious Visual Working Memory: a critical review and Bayesian meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filippo Gambarota ◽  
Naotsugu Tsuchiya ◽  
Massimiliano Pastore ◽  
Nicola Di Polito ◽  
Paola Sessa
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Methodological Issues ◽  
The Unconscious ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Meta Regression ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between consciousness and working memory (WM) has been recently debated both at the theoretical and methodological levels (Persuh et al., 2018; Velichkovsky, 2017). While there is behavioral and neural evidence that argues for the existence of unconscious WM, several methodological concerns have been raised, rendering this issue highly controversial. To address the robustness of the previous findings, here we adopt a meta-analytic approach to estimate the effect size and heterogeneity of the previously reported unconscious WM results, also including unpublished results. We used meta-regression to isolate relevant experimental variables, in particular, consciousness manipulation and WM paradigm to identify the source of the heterogeneity in the reported effect size of the unconscious WM. Our meta-analysis supports the existence of the unconscious WM effect and critically reveals several experimental variables that contribute to relevant heterogeneity. Our analysis clarifies several theoretical and methodological issues. We recommend that future studies explicitly operationalize the definition of consciousness, standardize the methodology and systematically explore the role of critical variables for the unconscious WM effect.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of Altruistic and Game-playing Love

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Dabiriyan Tehrani ◽  
Sara Yamini
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Subgroup Analysis ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Game Playing ◽  
Love Styles ◽  
Collectivistic Culture ◽  
Meta Regression ◽  
Collectivistic Cultures ◽  
The Relationship

This systematic review aimed to find attitudes toward Altruistic and Game-playing love styles across individualistic and collectivistic cultures. Addressing major moderators concerning Altruistic and Game-playing love styles are the secondary objectives of this review. This review included 102 articles comprising samples from 37 countries (N = 41997). The findings of this meta-analysis show that there is a collectivistic and individualistic difference in Game-playing but not in the Altruistic love style. Collectivistic and individualistic cultures, on average, demonstrate the same perception concerning the Altruistic love style, whereas collectivistic culture shows the Game-playing love style more strongly. To explain the role of moderators in key measures, the subgroup analysis and meta-regression show that both Game-playing and Altruistic love styles decline by increasing the length of the relationship. Likewise, having children affects these love styles such that the Altruistic love style is improved, and the Game-playing love style is reduced by the presence of children in families.

Steep discounting of delayed monetary and food rewards in obesity: a meta-analysis

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (11) ◽  
pp. 2423-2434 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Amlung ◽  
T. Petker ◽  
J. Jackson ◽  
I. Balodis ◽  
J. MacKillop
Keyword(s):  
Publication Bias ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Case Control ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Primary Analysis ◽  
Medium Effect Size ◽  
Meta Regression ◽  
Fail Safe ◽  
The Relationship

BackgroundAn increasing number of studies have investigated delay discounting (DD) in relation to obesity, but with mixed findings. This meta-analysis synthesized the literature on the relationship between monetary and food DD and obesity, with three objectives: (1) to characterize the relationship between DD and obesity in both case–control comparisons and continuous designs; (2) to examine potential moderators, including case–control v. continuous design, money v. food rewards, sample sex distribution, and sample age (<18 v. >18 years); and (3) to evaluate publication bias.MethodFrom 134 candidate articles, 39 independent investigations yielded 29 case–control and 30 continuous comparisons (total n = 10 278). Random-effects meta-analysis was conducted using Cohen's d as the effect size. Publication bias was evaluated using fail-safe N, Begg–Mazumdar and Egger tests, meta-regression of publication year and effect size, and imputation of missing studies.ResultsThe primary analysis revealed a medium effect size across studies that was highly statistically significant (d = 0.43, p < 10−14). None of the moderators examined yielded statistically significant differences, although notably larger effect sizes were found for studies with case–control designs, food rewards and child/adolescent samples. Limited evidence of publication bias was present, although the Begg–Mazumdar test and meta-regression suggested a slightly diminishing effect size over time.ConclusionsSteep DD of food and money appears to be a robust feature of obesity that is relatively consistent across the DD assessment methodologies and study designs examined. These findings are discussed in the context of research on DD in drug addiction, the neural bases of DD in obesity, and potential clinical applications.

scholarly journals Comparison of psychotherapies for adult depression to pill placebo control groups: a meta-analysis

2013 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 685-695 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Cuijpers ◽  
E. H. Turner ◽  
D. C. Mohr ◽  
S. G. Hofmann ◽  
G. Andersson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Effect Size ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Placebo Control ◽  
Number Needed To Treat ◽  
Regression Analyses ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Meta Regression

BackgroundThe effects of antidepressants for treating depressive disorders have been overestimated because of selective publication of positive trials. Reanalyses that include unpublished trials have yielded reduced effect sizes. This in turn has led to claims that antidepressants have clinically insignificant advantages over placebo and that psychotherapy is therefore a better alternative. To test this, we conducted a meta-analysis of studies comparing psychotherapy with pill placebo.MethodTen 10 studies comparing psychotherapies with pill placebo were identified. In total, 1240 patients were included in these studies. For each study, Hedges’ g was calculated. Characteristics of the studies were extracted for subgroup and meta-regression analyses.ResultsThe effect of psychotherapy compared to pill placebo at post-test was g = 0.25 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.14–0.36, I2 = 0%, 95% CI 0–58]. This effect size corresponds to a number needed to treat (NNT) of 7.14 (95% CI 5.00–12.82). The psychotherapy conditions scored 2.66 points lower on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) than the placebo conditions, and 3.20 points lower on the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Some indications for publication bias were found (two missing studies). We found no significant differences between subgroups of the studies and in meta-regression analyses we found no significant association between baseline severity and effect size.ConclusionsAlthough there are differences between the role of placebo in psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy research, psychotherapy has an effect size that is comparable to that of antidepressant medications. Whether these effects should be deemed clinically relevant remains open to debate.

The Relationship Between Immorality and Cleansing

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 303-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jedidiah Siev ◽  
Shelby E. Zuckerman ◽  
Joseph J. Siev
Keyword(s):  
Effect Size ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Weighted Mean ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. In a widely publicized set of studies, participants who were primed to consider unethical events preferred cleansing products more than did those primed with ethical events ( Zhong & Liljenquist, 2006 ). This tendency to respond to moral threat with physical cleansing is known as the Macbeth Effect. Several subsequent efforts, however, did not replicate this relationship. The present manuscript reports the results of a meta-analysis of 15 studies testing this relationship. The weighted mean effect size was small across all studies (g = 0.17, 95% CI [0.04, 0.31]), and nonsignificant across studies conducted in independent laboratories (g = 0.07, 95% CI [−0.04, 0.19]). We conclude that there is little evidence for an overall Macbeth Effect; however, there may be a Macbeth Effect under certain conditions.

scholarly journals IPR Law Protection and Enforcement and the Effect on Horizontal Productivity Spillovers from Inward FDI to Domestic Firms: A Meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danai Christopoulou ◽  
Nikolaos Papageorgiadis ◽  
Chengang Wang ◽  
Georgios Magkonis
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Property Rights ◽  
Intellectual Property Rights ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Host Countries ◽  
Productivity Spillovers ◽  
Domestic Firms ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Positive Effect

AbstractWe study the role of the strength of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) law protection and enforcement in influencing horizontal productivity spillovers from inward FDI to domestic firms in host countries. While most WTO countries adopted strong IPR legislation due to exogenous pressure resulting from the signing of the Trade-Related Aspects of IPR (TRIPS) agreement, public IPR enforcement strength continues to vary significantly between countries. We meta-analyse 49 studies and find that public IPR enforcement strength has a direct positive effect on horizontal productivity spillovers from inward FDI to domestic firms and a negative moderating effect on the relationship between IPR law protection strength and horizontal productivity spillovers from inward FDI to domestic firms.

scholarly journals A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies on metaphor comprehension in individuals with autism spectrum disorder: Do task properties matter?

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 1421-1454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamar Kalandadze ◽  
Valentina Bambini ◽  
Kari-Anne B. Næss
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Response Format ◽  
Metaphor Comprehension ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractIndividuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often experience difficulty in comprehending metaphors compared to individuals with typical development (TD). However, there is a large variation in the results across studies, possibly related to the properties of the metaphor tasks. This preregistered systematic review and meta-analysis (a) explored the properties of the metaphor tasks used in ASD research, and (b) investigated the group difference between individuals with ASD and TD on metaphor comprehension, as well as the relationship between the task properties and any between-study variation. A systematic search was undertaken in seven relevant databases. Fourteen studies fulfilled our predetermined inclusion criteria. Across tasks, we detected four types of response format and a great variety of metaphors in terms of familiarity, syntactic structure, and linguistic context. Individuals with TD outperformed individuals with ASD on metaphor comprehension (Hedges’ g = −0.63). Verbal explanation response format was utilized in the study showing the largest effect size in the group comparison. However, due to the sparse experimental manipulations, the role of task properties could not be established. Future studies should consider and report task properties to determine their role in metaphor comprehension, and to inform experimental paradigms as well as educational assessment.

scholarly journals Antiphospholipid Antibodies in Sickle Cell Disease: A Systematic Review and Exploratory Meta-Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 107602962110029
Author(s):  
Mira Merashli ◽  
Alessia Arcaro ◽  
Maria Graf ◽  
Matilde Caruso ◽  
Paul R. J. Ames ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sickle Cell Disease ◽  
Sickle Cell ◽  
Antiphospholipid Antibodies ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Anticardiolipin Antibodies ◽  
Cell Disease ◽  
Pooled Prevalence ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) and sickle cell disease (SCD) has never been systematically addressed. Our aim was to evaluate potential links between SCD and aPL in all age groups. EMBASE/PubMed was screened from inception to May 2020 and Peto odds ratios for rare events were calculated. The pooled prevalence (PP) of IgG anticardiolipin antibodies (aCL) was higher in individuals with SCD than in controls (27.9% vs 8.7%, P < 0.0001), that of IgM aCL was similar in the two groups (2.9% vs 2.7%); only individuals with SCD were positive for lupus anticoagulant (LA) (7.7% vs 0%, P < 0.0001). The PP of leg ulcers was similar between aPL positive and negative individuals (44% vs 53%) and between patients in acute crisis and stable patients (5.6% vs 7.3%). Reporting of aPL as a binary outcome and not as a titer precluded further interpretation. The results indicate that a prospective case-control study with serial measurements of a panel of aPL in SCD patients might be warranted, in order to understand further the possible pathogenic role of aPL in SCD.

Cybervictimization. Research Matrix

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
D.V. Zhmurov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
The United States ◽  
Personal Factors ◽  
Crime Victim ◽  
Internet Crime ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Object Of Study ◽  
System Characteristics

The article presents an analysis of the cybervictimization phenomenon. The author justifies the use of an integrative (interdisciplinary) approach to the study of this problem, proposes the definition of the term under study as a process or end result of becoming a crime victim in the sphere of unified computer networks. A theoretical and methodological matrix for the analysis of cybervictimization (PCPPE model) was developed. The model includes five system characteristics of cybervictimization, the comprehensive study of which to a maximum extent will simplify the understanding of the essence of the object of study. These characteristics include: profiling, conditionality, prevalence, predictability and epidemicity. Each of these aspects is explained in detail: the author developed a detailed nomenclature of cybervictimization forms. The problems of identifying its extent, as well as the determinant role of gender, age, behavioral and personal factors are discussed in the article, and a list of key cybervictimization acts is formulated. This meta-analysis includes thirteen global categories and about seventy of its accent forms. Among the global categories the following ones are identified: threats, harassment, illegal interest, infringement, insult, spoofing, disclosure, compulsion, seizure, infecting, access and use. The prevalence rates of cybervictimization on the example of the United States (Internet Crime Report) are also studied, certain aspects of the methodology of cyber victim number counting are considered.

scholarly journals Roles of N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptors (NMDARs) in Epilepsy

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuang Chen ◽  
Da Xu ◽  
Liu Fan ◽  
Zhi Fang ◽  
Xiufeng Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Synaptic Plasticity ◽  
Glutamate Receptors ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Nerve Conduction ◽  
Ionotropic Glutamate Receptors ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Excitatory Neurotransmission ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Neuron Injury

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders characterized by recurrent seizures. The mechanism of epilepsy remains unclear and previous studies suggest that N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) play an important role in abnormal discharges, nerve conduction, neuron injury and inflammation, thereby they may participate in epileptogenesis. NMDARs belong to a family of ionotropic glutamate receptors that play essential roles in excitatory neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity in the mammalian CNS. Despite numerous studies focusing on the role of NMDAR in epilepsy, the relationship appeared to be elusive. In this article, we reviewed the regulation of NMDAR and possible mechanisms of NMDAR in epilepsy and in respect of onset, development, and treatment, trying to provide more evidence for future studies.

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