Attentional bias (AB) refers to increased attention or salience to certain stimuli. Women who use hormonal contraception only have a greater accuracy and response bias for sad expressions, which...Show moreAttentional bias (AB) refers to increased attention or salience to certain stimuli. Women who use hormonal contraception only have a greater accuracy and response bias for sad expressions, which can be linked to depression symptoms and diagnoses. It was hypothesized that women who use hormonal contraception have a larger AB towards negative emotions in comparison to naturally cycling women. Healthy female volunteers (N=266) participated in an online AB task, the emotional dot-probe task including the facial expressions: neutral, angry, happy, and fearful faces. Additionally, the participants filled in the DASS-21 questionnaire, where this study utilized the depression subscale. AB was quantified as the difference between reaction times to incongruent and congruent trials. A significant AB was found in this online set-up. The naturally cycling women group showed a stronger AB in comparison to the hormonal contraception users. This effect was independent of emotion. Even though no significant effect of depression was found and no correlation between AB and depression was found, there was a trend for the naturally cycling women group to score higher on depressive symptoms, which may contribute to the higher AB in this group. The contradictory results may be clarified by the fact that, compared to naturally cycling women, hormonal contraception users experience less variation in mood during the menstrual cycle and there is less negative mood throughout the menstrual period. By comparing these groups, these findings contribute to increasing evidence of research examining the use of hormonal contraception and the influence it may have on mood.Show less
Introduction The reinforcement learning theory shows that learning for another (prosocial learning) and learning for ourselves (selfish learning) can both be used as an effective way to learn. Low...Show moreIntroduction The reinforcement learning theory shows that learning for another (prosocial learning) and learning for ourselves (selfish learning) can both be used as an effective way to learn. Low self-esteem is linked to many clinical disorders and with prosocial and selfish behavior. The current study further examines selfish and prosocial learning and a possible relation with self-esteem. Method A total of 139 healthy participants finished the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale and performed an online learning task. Participants had to choose between different stimuli that were probabilistically associated with rewards for themselves (self), another person (prosocial), or no one (control). The number of high probable stimuli (correctly chosen trials) for the selfish condition, prosocial condition and the none condition were analyzed. The two probability ratios that were used were 40/60 and 30/70. Results In contrast with our hypothesis, in the 30/70 probability context there was no significant difference found between conditions over time. Additionally, no significant effect was found between conditions and the 25% high and low self-esteem over time. Additionally, no significant correlations were found between self-esteem and the difference score ‘Prosocial minus Selfish’, the selfish condition and the prosocial condition. Discussion The current study found no significant relation between selfish and prosocial learning and self-esteem. The insignificant effects found in this study may be due to the difficulty of the task, uncontrollable environment, in diversity of sample and differences between global and specific self-esteem. Future research should focus on providing better insight in the relation between prosocial learning and self-esteem.Show less
The current research investigated the role of state self-esteem in the relationship between menstrual cycle and mood symptoms, specifically depression and anxiety. Research has not only generally...Show moreThe current research investigated the role of state self-esteem in the relationship between menstrual cycle and mood symptoms, specifically depression and anxiety. Research has not only generally shown a higher incidence rate of depression in women but also specifically increased rates of depression in women with menstrual related symptoms. In the present study it was hypothesized that women during their menstruation, compared to during their ovulation, show more depressive and anxious symptoms. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that there is a mediating effect of self-esteem. It was predicted that women during their menstruation have less self-esteem and that women with less self-esteem show more depressive and anxious symptoms. An online questionnaire about depression, anxiety, self-esteem, and additionally questions about women’s menstrual cycle was filled out by 268 participants. Focusing on only naturally cycling women, 18 women were grouped into the ovulating and 25 women into the menstruating group. Contrary to the predictions, results from the multiple regression analyses showed that there was neither an effect of the menstrual cycle phase on mood symptoms such as depression and anxiety nor a mediation effect of state self-esteem in the relationship of the menstrual cycle phase on mood symptoms. However, there seemed to be a relationship between self-esteem and depressive symptoms. This means the lower the woman’s self-esteem, the higher she scored on depressive symptoms. It thus seems as if depressive and anxious symptoms are not influenced by whether a woman is currently ovulating or menstruating. The results of the study add to the body of literature about the menstrual cycle, self-esteem, and mood symptoms.Show less
Steroid hormones are frequently highlighted as an important modulator of women’s susceptibility for developing mood and anxiety disorders. One of the often-considered influences is the effect of...Show moreSteroid hormones are frequently highlighted as an important modulator of women’s susceptibility for developing mood and anxiety disorders. One of the often-considered influences is the effect of estradiol on the dopaminergic activity in the prefrontal cortex. Given this association it was investigated if natural levels of estradiol might affect women’s executive functions. The focus of measurement was the participant’s performance on the flanker task. It was hypothesised that women in a menstrual cycle phase marked by high estradiol show enhanced interference control and post-error adjustment. The study was conducted as an observational, natural group design and executed in an online format. Self-reports on the menstrual cycle were used for an approximation of the women’s current estradiol levels based on which two groups of women, either high or low in estradiol, were created. Main comparisons were made between 29 naturally cycling women in total and 48 men. The outcomes suggest that the cycle phase of women and the assumed levels of estradiol may not have influenced the processes of interference control or post-error adjustment. To interpret the obtained results, the measured constructs, interference control, error monitoring, and the menstrual cycle are discussed, and possible uncontrolled variables outlined. Future research is needed to further explore women’s executive processes and related neural correlates in the context of the menstrual cycle. Research in this field may provide better understanding of possible influences on women’s cognitive and emotional circuits in the brain, which will help to achieve a clearer picture of women’s psychological wellbeing throughout their life span.Show less
Mechanisms underlying prosocial behavior, behavior or actions carried out with the intention to benefit another individual, are unclear. Previous studies have found a positive relationship between...Show moreMechanisms underlying prosocial behavior, behavior or actions carried out with the intention to benefit another individual, are unclear. Previous studies have found a positive relationship between empathy and prosocial learning. The current study, inspired by the study of Lockwood and colleagues (2016), consists of two experiments where the link between prosocial learning, learning to obtain rewards for others, and empathy is investigated through a probabilistic learning task based on reinforcement learning principles. Participants had to choose between two different symbols and learn which of these had the highest probability of earning points in three different conditions: for themselves (selfish), for another person (other) or for no one (none). The first experiment measured the conditions with two probabilities (60/40, 70/30), whereas in the second experiment one probability was used (75/25). The aim of the current study was to replicate the findings of Lockwood and colleagues (2016) who found a positive relationship between empathy and prosocial learning with the same probabilities as our second experiment. The results from both experiments revealed no significant relationship between empathy and prosocial learning. The second experiment showed that participants learned better in the selfish condition compared to the prosocial and none condition. It can be concluded that in the current study no link was found between empathy and prosocial learning, which might be explained from the differences in research design between the study of Lockwood and colleagues (2016) and the current study. There seemed to be a self-bias in learning, i.e., people learn better for themselves than for others.Show less
How we behave in social contexts influences essential life aspects such as quality of relationships and well-being. Here, actions may have positive or negative consequences for others. Notably,...Show moreHow we behave in social contexts influences essential life aspects such as quality of relationships and well-being. Here, actions may have positive or negative consequences for others. Notably, patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) display inflated responsibility attitudes and often fear negatively affecting others. This study investigated whether participants high in obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) display enhanced learning to benefit others in a prosocial learning task. Healthy individuals of two samples (N = 95; N = 86) performed the task in three responsibility contexts. Participants in the first study learned to obtain rewards for 1) no one, 2) an anonymous other, or 3) themselves. Participants in the second study learned to obtain rewards for a friend instead of no one. Groups of low and high scorers were created based on the participants’ scores on the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R). The results did not reveal support for a relationship between OCS and prosocial behavior. Further, high OCS learned similarly to obtain rewards in anonymous and public prosocial contexts. Additionally, in both studies, participants learned best to obtain rewards for themselves. Results suggest that responsibility contexts do not modulate high OCS participants’ learning. This unexpected pattern may be explained by the absence of negative consequences for others. The present study also suggests that individuals, in general, may show enhanced motivation for effort when they can obtain a reward for themselves. Future research should investigate whether individuals who score low and high on OCS exhibit differences in obtaining rewards and preventing punishment.Show less
The aim of this study was to investigate if parental verbal threat vs. safe comments paired with strangers led to children having more fear beliefs and attention towards the stranger paired with...Show moreThe aim of this study was to investigate if parental verbal threat vs. safe comments paired with strangers led to children having more fear beliefs and attention towards the stranger paired with threat comments, while also looking if temperament (measured as behavioral inhibition (BI)) would have a moderating role. It was expected that children would have more fear beliefs and attention towards the stranger paired with parental verbal threat comments compared to the stranger paired safe comments and that BI would have a moderating role on the effect of parental verbal comments. The sample consisted of 4-6-year-olds. In the experiment a manipulation was used where one stranger was paired with threat comments and the other one with safe comments, both given by the parent. Then, the children encountered the strangers during a social and interaction task. The results show that children’s fear beliefs about the stranger paired with parental threat comments were significantly higher than about the stranger paired with parental safe comments. This was not the case for children’s attention towards the strangers. So, parental verbal threat comments paired with a stranger led to more fear beliefs but did not increase attention. Furthermore, the moderating role of temperament was not significant. To conclude, this study supports the growing evidence that children's fear beliefs can be changed by giving information but did not found this effect for attention. Also, the effect of verbal threat information on fear beliefs and attention did not differ as a function of child temperament.Show less
As previous studies show a positive relationship between present time orientation and psychological well-being, the purpose of the current within-subjects study is to examine whether a present time...Show moreAs previous studies show a positive relationship between present time orientation and psychological well-being, the purpose of the current within-subjects study is to examine whether a present time orientation, and otherwise mindfulness, can be found in word use of suicidal musicians over time. Fewer words referring to the present, compared to the past and the future were expected. Moreover, a decrease in the use of present time words, and an increase in the use of past and future time words, closer to the moment of suicide, was expected. The different means of the time categories were calculated with the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC). The Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used to test for differences in these means. To test for change over time in the time categories, the Kendall’s Tau B correlation coefficients were used. Present time orientation (M = 8.449) had a mean greater than both the mean of past time orientation (M = 2.308) and the future time orientation (M = 1.500). Moreover, future time orientation had a mean greater than past time orientation. I found that these differences were statistically significant. There was a significant decrease in words referring to the past (τb = -.113, p = .005) and a non-significant decrease in words referring to the future (τb = -.071, p = .081). Lastly, there was a significant decrease in words referring to the present (τb = -.153, p < .001). The finding of a decrease in present time, and the finding of less words referring to the future, compared to the past, are in line with previous studies on this topic. It is concluded that fewer words referring to the future, compared to the past and present, and a decrease in present time words over time can be an indication of suicide risk.Show less
Physical pain and error processing have indicated a neurophysiological overlap. They both activate the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) through which is originated the error-related negativity (ERN)...Show morePhysical pain and error processing have indicated a neurophysiological overlap. They both activate the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) through which is originated the error-related negativity (ERN), a reflection of error sensitivity. Thus, our research was based on the hypothesis that people who are more sensitive to one type of alarm - pain - might also be more sensitive to a different kind of alarm signal - errors. Impulsivity was also investigated, since it has been related to the same neural network, and small ERN amplitudes have been linked to high rates of impulsiveness in reaction-time tasks, indicating dysfunctional inhibitory learning. Healthy volunteers (N = 65, mean age = 20.3 years), performed the Error Responsibility task, a variant of the Eriksen Flanker task, during EEG data recording, and filled in the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) and the Pain Sensitivity Questionnaire (PSQ). No significant relation was found between pain and error sensitivity. Attention impulsiveness was significantly associated with ERN and pain sensitivity. The absence of the neural shared sensitivity might not be warranted due to the measurement of pain only with a self-report questionnaire. Notably, it was replicated that highly impulsive people show reduced ERN, indicating inefficient error processing. Future studies could research whether the type of instrument for pain measurement influences the depiction of a common sensitivity between pain and error processing. Lastly, the results regarding impulsivity could assist existing treatment guidelines for clinical populations that lack inhibition control, being at risk of adopting dangerous methods to heal painful experiences.Show less
