scholarly journals Interpersonal touch enhances cognitive control: A neurophysiological investigation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blair Saunders ◽  
Anja Riesel ◽  
Julia Klawohn ◽  
Michael Inzlicht
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Inhibitory Control ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Control Task ◽  
Romantic Couples ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Interpersonal Touch ◽  
Neural Monitoring

Touch is central to mammalian communication, socialisation, and wellbeing. Despite this prominence, interpersonal touch is relatively understudied. In this preregistered investigation, we assessed the influence of interpersonal touch on the subjective, neural, and behavioural correlates of cognitive control. Forty-five romantic couples were recruited (N=90; dating>6 months), and one partner performed an inhibitory control task while electroencephalography was recorded to assess neural performance monitoring. Interpersonal touch was provided by the second partner, and was manipulated between experimental blocks. A within-subject repeated-measures design was used to maximise statistical power, with our sample size providing 80% power for even small effect sizes (ds > .25). Results indicated that participants were not only happier when receiving touch, but also showed increased neural processing of mistakes. Further exploratory cognitive modelling using indirect effects tests and drift diffusion models of decision making revealed that touch was indirectly associated with both improved inhibitory control and increased rates of evidence accumulation (drift rate) through its influence on neural monitoring. Thus, beyond regulating emotion and stress, interpersonal touch appears to enhance the neurocognitive processes underling flexible goal-directed behaviour.

Power of Modified Brown-Forsythe and Mixed-Model Approaches in Split-Plot Designs

Methodology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Livacic-Rojas ◽  
Guillermo Vallejo ◽  
Paula Fernández ◽  
Ellián Tuero-Herrero
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Covariance Structure ◽  
Simulation Method ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Fixed And Random Effects ◽  
Split Plot ◽  
High Level

Abstract. Low precision of the inferences of data analyzed with univariate or multivariate models of the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) in repeated-measures design is associated to the absence of normality distribution of data, nonspherical covariance structures and free variation of the variance and covariance, the lack of knowledge of the error structure underlying the data, and the wrong choice of covariance structure from different selectors. In this study, levels of statistical power presented the Modified Brown Forsythe (MBF) and two procedures with the Mixed-Model Approaches (the Akaike’s Criterion, the Correctly Identified Model [CIM]) are compared. The data were analyzed using Monte Carlo simulation method with the statistical package SAS 9.2, a split-plot design, and considering six manipulated variables. The results show that the procedures exhibit high statistical power levels for within and interactional effects, and moderate and low levels for the between-groups effects under the different conditions analyzed. For the latter, only the Modified Brown Forsythe shows high level of power mainly for groups with 30 cases and Unstructured (UN) and Autoregressive Heterogeneity (ARH) matrices. For this reason, we recommend using this procedure since it exhibits higher levels of power for all effects and does not require a matrix type that underlies the structure of the data. Future research needs to be done in order to compare the power with corrected selectors using single-level and multilevel designs for fixed and random effects.

scholarly journals Investigating human skeletal muscle physiology with unilateral exercise models: when one limb is more powerful than two

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. 563-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin J. MacInnis ◽  
Chris McGlory ◽  
Martin J. Gibala ◽  
Stuart M. Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Human Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Capillary Density ◽  
Muscle Physiology ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Confounding Variables ◽  
Direct Sampling ◽  
Wide Range

Direct sampling of human skeletal muscle using the needle biopsy technique can facilitate insight into the biochemical and histological responses resulting from changes in exercise or feeding. However, the muscle biopsy procedure is invasive, and analyses are often expensive, which places pragmatic restraints on sample sizes. The unilateral exercise model can serve to increase statistical power and reduce the time and cost of a study. With this approach, 2 limbs of a participant are randomized to 1 of 2 treatments that can be applied almost concurrently or sequentially depending on the nature of the intervention. Similar to a typical repeated measures design, comparisons are made within participants, which increases statistical power by reducing the amount of between-person variability. A washout period is often unnecessary, reducing the time needed to complete the experiment and the influence of potential confounding variables such as habitual diet, activity, and sleep. Variations of the unilateral exercise model have been employed to investigate the influence of exercise, diet, and the interaction between the 2, on a wide range of variables including mitochondrial content, capillary density, and skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Like any model, unilateral exercise has some limitations: it cannot be used to study variables that potentially transfer across limbs, and it is generally limited to exercises that can be performed in pairs of treatments. Where appropriate, however, the unilateral exercise model can yield robust, well-controlled investigations of skeletal muscle responses to a wide range of interventions and conditions including exercise, dietary manipulation, and disuse or immobilization.

The cognitive and behavioral impact of a culinary education program on schoolchildren

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nur Al Ali ◽  
Andres Arriaga ◽  
Margarita Rubio
Keyword(s):  
Diet Quality ◽  
Education Program ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Culinary Education

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to design a culinary education program and ascertain its impact on knowledge, phobias, culinary skills and diet quality in schoolchildren. Design/methodology/approach Repeated measures design to determine changes after the implementation of the culinary education program in a pre-school and primary school located in a Madrid (Spain) neighborhood with a low socioeconomic level. A total of 58 children agreed to participate in the program and 40 parents authorized the evaluation of the effect of the program. Variables were measured with Student’s t-test or Wilcoxon-signed range test for quantitative variables. Effect size was calculated by Cohen’s d. Findings The mean scores in knowledge and beliefs improved from 5.0 to 7.8 (P < 0.001; Cohen’s d = 1), the mean value obtained in the food phobias test decreased from 24.6 to 20.7 (P = 0.01; Cohen’s d = 0.53), diet quality on Kid Med Test score increased from 7.4 to 8.2 (P = 0.06; Cohen’s d = 0.38), and the children improved their culinary skills from 21.2 to 27.9 (P < 0.001; Cohen’s d = 0.66). Research limitations/implications Self-declared data could lead to information biases. Other limitations were the lack of control group and a scarce statistical power that could explain the absence of statistical significance in the results on diet quality. To observe the effects of this change on eating habits, long-term evaluations would have to be carried out. Originality/value The brand-new culinary education program had a positive effect on children’s knowledge of nutrition and culinary skills as well as reducing food phobias. This proposal is beyond the state-of-the-art and could be implemented elsewhere with a robust effect on children, parents and educators.

scholarly journals Multimodal Neuroimaging Differences in Nicotine Abstinent Smokers Versus Satiated Smokers

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 755-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bader Chaarani ◽  
Philip A Spechler ◽  
Alexandra Ivanciu ◽  
Mitchell Snowe ◽  
Joshua P Nickerson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Inhibitory Control ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Stop Signal ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Stop Signal Task ◽  
Multimodal Neuroimaging ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Nicotine Abstinence ◽  
Behavioral Impairments

Abstract Introduction Research on cigarette smokers suggests cognitive and behavioral impairments. However, much remains unclear how the functional neurobiology of smokers is influenced by nicotine state. Therefore, we sought to determine which state, be it acute nicotine abstinence or satiety, would yield the most robust differences compared with nonsmokers when assessing neurobiological markers of nicotine dependence. Methods Smokers (N = 15) and sociodemographically matched nonsmokers (N = 15) were scanned twice using a repeated-measures design. Smokers were scanned after a 24-hour nicotine abstinence and immediately after smoking their usual brand cigarette. The neuroimaging battery included a stop-signal task of response inhibition and pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling to measure cerebral blood flow (CBF). Whole-brain voxel-wise analyses of covariance were carried out on stop success and stop fail Stop-Signal Task contrasts and CBF maps to assess differences among nonsmokers, abstinent smokers, and satiated smokers. Cluster correction was performed using AFNI’s 3dClustSim to achieve a significance of p &lt; .05. Results Smokers exhibited higher brain activation in bilateral inferior frontal gyrus, a brain region known to be involved in inhibitory control, during successful response inhibitions relative to nonsmokers. This effect was significantly higher during nicotine abstinence relative to satiety. Smokers also exhibited lower CBF in the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus than nonsmokers. These hypoperfusions were not different between abstinence and satiety. Conclusions These findings converge on alterations in smokers in prefrontal circuits known to be critical for inhibitory control. These effects are present, even when smokers are satiated, but the neural activity required to achieve performance equal to controls is increased when smokers are in acute abstinence. Implications Our multimodal neuroimaging study gives neurobiological insights into the cognitive demands of maintaining abstinence and suggests targets for assessing the efficacy of therapeutic interventions.

scholarly journals Using Electroencephalography (EEG) Power Responses to Investigate the Effects of Ambient Oxygen Content, Safety Shoe Type, and Lifting Frequency on the Worker’s Activities

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Z. Ramadan ◽  
Atef M. Ghaleb ◽  
Adham E. Ragab
Keyword(s):  
Oxygen Content ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Human Performance ◽  
Construction Materials ◽  
Alpha Power ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Ambient Oxygen ◽  
Eeg Power

Objective. The study assesses the changes in electroencephalography (EEG) power spectral density of individuals in hypoxia when wearing a different type of safety shoes under different lifting frequencies. It also assesses the EEG response behavior induced via the process of lifting loads related to these variables. Methods. The study was conducted in two consecutive phases: training and acclimatization phase and experimental lifting phase. Ten male college students participated in this study. A four-way repeated measures design was used in this research with independent variables: ambient oxygen content (“15%, 18%, and 20%”), safety shoes type (“light-duty, medium-duty, and heavy-duty”), lifting frequency (“1 and 4 lifts/min”), and replication (“first and second”). And the dependent variables were alpha, theta, beta, gamma, θ/α, θ/β, α/β, β/α, (θ+α)/β, and (θ+α)/(α+β). The participant was allowed to determine his maximum acceptable weight of lift (MAWL) in fifteen minutes of lifting using psychophysically technique. Then, he continued lifting the MAWL for another five minutes, where all the data were collected. Results. Results showed that the EEG responses at lower levels of the independent variables were significantly high than at higher levels; except for oxygen content, the EEG responses at lower levels were considerably lower than at a higher level. It also showed that an upsurge in the physical demand increased lifting frequency and replication and caused decreasing in alpha power, theta/beta, alpha/beta, (theta+alpha)/beta, (theta+alpha)/(alpha+beta) and increasing in the theta power and the gamma power. Furthermore, several interactions among independent variables had significant effects on the EEG responses. Conclusion. The EEG implementation for the investigation of neural responses to physical demands allows for the possibility of newer nontraditional and faster methods of human performance monitoring. These methods provide effective and reliable results as compared to other traditional methods. This study will safeguard the physical capabilities and possible health risks of industrial workers. And the applications of these tasks can occur in almost all working environments (factories, warehouses, airports, building sites, farms, hospitals, offices, etc.) that are at high altitudes. It can include lifting boxes at a packaging line, handling construction materials, handling patients in hospitals, and cleaning.

Performance Monitoring and Cognitive Control in Individuals with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

2012 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 323-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Larson ◽  
Peter E. Clayson ◽  
Thomas J. Farrer
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Mild Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Injury Severity ◽  
Control Process ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Event Related Potential

AbstractLiterature suggests that individuals with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) show subtle abnormalities in the cognitive control process of performance monitoring. The neural bases of performance monitoring can be measured using the error-related negaitivity (ERN) and post-error positivity (Pe) components of the scalp-recorded event-related potential (ERP). Thirty-six individuals with mTBI and 46 demographically similar controls completed a modified color-naming Stroop task while ERPs were recorded. Separate repeated-measures analyses of variance were used to examine the behavioral (response times [RT] and error rates) and ERP (ERN and Pe amplitudes) indices of performance monitoring. Both groups showed slower RTs and increased error rates on incongruent trials relative to congruent trials. Likewise, both groups showed more negative ERN and more positive Pe amplitude to error trials relative to correct trials. Notably, there were no significant main effects or interactions of group for behavioral and ERP measures. Subgroup and correlational analyses with post-concussive symptoms and indices of injury severity were also not significant. Findings suggest comparable performance to non-injured individuals in some aspects of cognitive control in this sample. Neuropsychological implications and comparison with other cognitive control component processes in individuals with TBI are provided. (JINS, 2012, 18, 323–333)

Do Young Children Modulate Their Cognitive Control?

2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Solène Ambrosi ◽  
Patrick Lemaire ◽  
Agnès Blaye
Keyword(s):  
Young Children ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Inhibitory Control ◽  
Age Range ◽  
Stroop Tasks ◽  
And Task

Abstract. Dynamic, trial-by-trial modulations of inhibitory control are well documented in adults but rarely investigated in children. Here, we examined whether 5-to-7 year-old children, an age range when inhibitory control is still partially immature, achieve such modulations. Fifty three children took flanker, Simon, and Stroop tasks. Above and beyond classic congruency effects, the present results showed two crucial findings. First, we found evidence for sequential modulations of congruency effects in these young children in the three conflict tasks. Second, our results showed both task specificities and task commonalities. These findings in young children have important implications as they suggest that, to be modulated, inhibitory control does not require full maturation and that the precise pattern of trial-by-trial modulations may depend on the nature of conflict.

Behavioural and EEG atypicalities during rest, visual perception, and cognitive control in autistic adults

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amandine Lassalle ◽  
Michael X Cohen ◽  
Laura Dekkers ◽  
Elizabeth Milne ◽  
Rasa Gulbinaite ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual Perception ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Neural Dynamics ◽  
Simple Explanation ◽  
Control Task ◽  
Neural Structure ◽  
Eeg Power ◽  
Autistic Adults

Background: People with an Autism Spectrum Condition diagnosis (ASD) are hypothesized to show atypical neural dynamics, reflecting differences in neural structure and function. However, previous results regarding neural dynamics in autistic individuals have not converged on a single pattern of differences. It is possible that the differences are cognitive-set-specific, and we therefore measured EEG in autistic individuals and matched controls during three different cognitive states: resting, visual perception, and cognitive control.Methods: Young adults with and without an ASD (N=17 in each group) matched on age (range 20 to 30 years), sex, and estimated Intelligence Quotient (IQ) were recruited. We measured their behavior and their EEG during rest, a task requiring low-level visual perception of gratings of varying spatial frequency, and the “Simon task” to elicit activity in the executive control network. We computed EEG power and Inter-Site Phase Clustering (ISPC; a measure of connectivity) in various frequency bands.Results: During rest, there were no ASD vs. controls differences in EEG power, suggesting typical oscillation power at baseline. During visual processing, without pre-baseline normalization, we found decreased broadband EEG power in ASD vs. controls, but this was not the case during the cognitive control task. Furthermore, the behavioral results of the cognitive control task suggest that autistic adults were better able to ignore irrelevant stimuli.Conclusions: Together, our results defy a simple explanation of overall differences between ASD and controls, and instead suggest a more nuanced pattern of altered neural dynamics that depend on which neural networks are engaged.

Efficient but less mobilized monitoring system in individuals with high aggressive predispositions

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanny Grisetto ◽  
Yvonne N. Delevoye-Turrell ◽  
Clémence Roger
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Monitoring System ◽  
Congruency Effect ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
Aggressive Behaviors ◽  
Eeg Recordings ◽  
Global Reduction

Aggressive behaviors in pathological and healthy populations have been largely related to poor cognitive control functioning. However, few studies investigated the influence of aggressive traits (i.e., aggressiveness) on cognitive control. In the current study, we investigated the effects of aggressiveness on cognitive control abilities and particularly, on performance monitoring. Thirty-two participants performed a Simon task while electroencephalography (EEG) and electromyography (EMG) were recorded. Participants were classified as high and low aggressive using the BPAQ questionnaire (Buss &amp; Perry, 1992). EMG recordings were used to reveal three response types by uncovering small incorrect muscular activations in ~15% of correct trials (i.e., partial-errors) that have to be distinguished from full-error and pure-correct responses. For these three response types, EEG recordings were used to extract fronto-central negativities indicative of performance monitoring, the error and correct (-related) negativities (ERN/Ne and CRN/Nc). Behavioral results indicated that the high aggressiveness group had a larger congruency effect compared to the low aggressiveness group, but there were no differences in accuracy. EEG results revealed a global reduction in performance-related negativities amplitudes in all the response types in the high aggressiveness group compared to the low aggressiveness group. Interestingly, the distinction between the ERN/Ne and the CRN/Nc components was preserved both in high and low aggressiveness groups. In sum, high aggressive traits did not affect the capacity to self-evaluate erroneous from correct actions but are associated with a decrease in the importance given to one’s own performance. The implication of these findings are discussed in relation to pathological aggressiveness.

Lifestyle intervention using modified BASNEF model in hypertension management (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Resti Tito Villarino ◽  
Christopher Arcay ◽  
Maria Concepcion Temblor
Keyword(s):  
Lifestyle Intervention ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Phase 1 ◽  
Management Technique ◽  
Enabling Factors ◽  
Educational Models ◽  
Stroke Risk Factor ◽  
Repeated Measures Design ◽  
Lifestyle Intervention Program

BACKGROUND Hypertension is a serious health issue and a major cardiovascular disease and stroke risk factor. In hypertensive patients, various health educational models have been used to improve their lifestyle, but the findings are inconsistent. OBJECTIVE The study assessed the effects of a lifestyle intervention program using modified Beliefs, Attitude, Subjective Standards, Enabling Factors (BASNEF) model among non-adherent hypertensive respondents in relation to the introduction of a lifestyle intervention program in the management of hypertension. METHODS This is a quantitative quasi-experimental research particularly utilizing a repeated-measures design of within-subjects approach on the 50 non-adherent patients diagnosed with essential hypertension at Moalboal, Cebu, Philippines in 2019. The respondents received five sessions of trainings based on modified BASNEF model. The Morisky Medication Adherence instrument was used. The first phase included a demographic questionnaire and the last phase comprised the evaluation of the program. Frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations for descriptive statistics while t-test, repeated measures, ANOVA, and Pearson product moment correlation for inferential statistics. RESULTS The result indicated that the phase 1 mean (146.5) of the systolic readings differ significantly from the phase 4 mean (134.92) of the systolic readings. However, since these two means came from phases that were not consecutive, the result, as a whole, did not show a significant decrease or change when analyzed chronologically from one phase to the next. CONCLUSIONS The study has established that BASNEF model approach can be an effective BP management technique.

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