bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Platelet Function and Spontaneous Thrombolytic Activity of Patients with Cerebral Infarction Assessed by the Global Thrombosis Test
Authors: Taomoto Katsushi , Ohnishi Hideyuki , Kuga Yoshihiro , Nakashima Kazuya , Ichioka Tsugumichi , Kodama Yuuji , Kubota Hisashi , Tominaga Takashi , Hirose Tomofumi , Hayashi Masato , Kinugasa Chifumi , Yamashita Tsutomu , Yamamoto Junichiro
Published: October 2010

Measurements of platelet reactivity and assessment of the efficacy of antiplatelet drugs are widely recognized as pre-requisite for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients. A recently established shear-induced platelet reactivity test using non-anticoagulated blood (the Global Thrombosis Test) has facilitated measurements of physiologically relevant platelet function and thrombolytic activity. 195 healthy volunteers, not taking antiplatelet drugs or anticoagulants, and 185 patients with acute cerebrovascular diseases were enrolled. The effect of antiplatelet drugs on platelet function and thrombolytic activity was assessed using the Global Thrombosis Test after 14 days of medication. The occlusion time (OT), an index of platelet reactivity, in healthy controls was 284.9 ± 92.2 s. The lysis time (LT), an index of thrombolytic activity, in healthy controls was 2,231 ± 1,223 s. Both times had no significant difference between males and females. The OT of all stroke patients was 210.3 ± 140.8 s and was shorter than that of the healthy controls (284.9 ± 92.2, p < 0.0001). The LT of all stroke patients was 3,159 ± 1,549 s and was longer than that of the controls (2,231 ± 1,223, p < 0.0001). Medication significantly prolonged the OT from 184.5 ± 150.6 s (before) to 295.3 ± 208.1 s (after) in all patients, indicating a reversal of the hyper-platelet reactivity. In addition, medication shortened the LT from 3,924 ± 1,718 s (before) to 3,107 ± 1,794 s (after) in all patients. A prothrombotic state exists in stroke patients due to enhanced platelet function and suppressed thrombolytic activity. Medication improved these physiological parameters of haemostasis.
The First Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Case in the Winter Season from Turkey
Authors: Köksal Iftihar , Yilmaz Gurdal , Iskender Serap , Arslan Mustafa , Yavuz Ilknur , Aksoy Firdevs , Vatansever Zati
Published: October 2010

Turkey is one of the countries in which Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever is frequently seen and most of the cases are reported between April and August. We describe the first case of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever in the winter season, when Hyalomma tick activity is absent, from Turkey.
High Conservation of Hepatitis B Virus Surface Genes during Maternal Vertical Transmission despite Active and Passive Vaccination
Authors: Su Hai-Xia , Zhang Yu-Hai , Zhang Zhi-Guo , Li Duan , Zhang Jing-Xia , Men Ke , Zhang Lei , Long Yong , Xu De-Zhong , Yan Yong-Ping
Published: October 2010

Objective: Our purpose was to explore the relationship between hepatitis B virus (HBV) gene heterogeneity and maternal vertical transmission. Methods: HBsAg-positive mothers and their neonates were selected and classified into a vertical infection neonate group (group N), a vertical infection mother group (group M) and a control group (group C). Serum HBsAg and HBeAg were examined. HBV gene fragments, including the pre-S1, and pre-S2 and S coding regions, were amplified and sequenced, and the genotype and serotype of the sequences were identified. Mutation sites and frequency of mutations were then compared between group N and group C. Results: A total of 104 HBV clone sequences were obtained. All obtained sequences belonged to genotype C and serotype adr. Upon comparing sequences between group N and group C, 4 nonsynonymous mutations were found with significant difference in mutation frequency (p < 0.05). When the mothers were both HBsAg and HBeAg positive, 10 nonsynonymous mutations were found. The frequencies of these mutations were significantly lower in group N than in group C (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The 10 HBV mutations were negatively associated with vertical transmission when maternal HBeAg was positive. Furthermore, the species that were vertically transmitted to the fetus were mainly wild-type.
Genotypic Analysis of Epstein-Barr Virus Isolates Associated with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma in Northern China
Authors: Cui Ying , Wang Yun , Liu Xia , Chao Yan , Xing Xiaoming , Zhao Chengquan , Liu Chengyu , Luo Bing
Published: October 2010

Objectives: To characterize the specific Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) polymorphisms from nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients and healthy donors in Northern China, and to explore the relationship between the EBV genotypes and NPC. Methods: The genotypes of EBV strains were analyzed by the polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism. Results: The predominant EBV type was A, C or F in both NPC and healthy individuals. The distributions of the EBV subtypes between NPC and healthy donors were not significantly different (p > 0.05). The frequency of type f strains in NPC was significantly lower in Northern China than in Southern China. Conclusions: No evidence of special EBV genotypes associated with NPC was found, suggesting that EBV strains derived from the NPC patients may reflect geographic distribution rather than being NPC restricted.
HPV-58 Molecular Variants Exhibit Different Transcriptional Activity
Authors: Raiol Tainá , de Amorim Regina Maria Santos , Galante Pedro , Martins Cláudia Renata Fernandes , Villa Luisa Lina , Sichero Laura
Published: October 2010

Early promoter activity of HPV-58 molecular variants isolated from high-grade cervical lesions in Brazil was compared. Luciferase reporter assays were conducted in C33 cells transfected with the complete long control region of 3 molecular variants of HPV-58 as well as HPV-58, -18 or -16 prototypes. The HPV-58 prototype and Bsb-329 and Bsb-367 variants showed a promoter activity similar to that of HPV-16, but lower than that of Bsb-295 and HPV-18. The introduction of the Bsb-295 7788 mutation into the HPV-58 prototype resulted in the enhancement of transcription closer to Bsb-295 and HPV-18. These results could impact the expression of E6 and E7 viral oncogenes.
A New Noncontact Tonometer Using Corneal Photoelasticity: Porcine Eye Study
Authors: Hwang Hosik , Kim Mansoo , Park Chankee
Published: October 2010

Purpose: To propose a new noncontact tonometer based on corneal photoelasticity. Method: In this study, we experimented with 18 enucleated porcine eyes. The anterior chamber was infused with a physiological solution. A circular polarizing filter was attached to an ophthalmic surgical microscope. Color fringe changes at the peripheral cornea related to its photoelasticity were recorded using an ophthalmic surgical microscope equipped with a charge-coupled device camera while intraocular pressure (IOP) changes were determined by the height of the physiological solution bottle. A peak intensity of the color fringes was determined by Image J software. Results: Circular, rainbow-like color fringes, a phenomenon that is the basis of photoelasticity, were detected in the peripheral cornea. When IOP increased from 7 to 29 mm Hg, the color fringes moved more peripherally becoming narrower with their peak intensity increasing. At an IOP of 7, 15, 22 and 29 mm Hg, the mean peak intensity of the color fringes had a gray value of 113.6, 114.2, 114.7 and 115.5, respectively. Correlation analysis between IOP and peak intensity of the color fringes in these porcine eyes showed a significant positive correlation with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.993 (p < 0.01). Conclusions: The proposed noncontact tonometer based on photoelasticity of the cornea could become a true noncontact device that could be used for the screening of glaucoma or as an IOP follow-up for glaucoma patients.
Clotting Factors and Eicosanoids Protect against Nematode Infections
Authors: Hyrsl Pavel , Dobes Pavel , Wang Zhi , Hauling Thomas , Wilhelmsson Christine , Theopold Ulrich
Published: October 2010

We show that hemolymph clotting protects Drosophila melanogaster against infections with an entomopathogenic nematode and its symbiotic bacterium. We also provide biochemical and genetic evidence for an involvement of eicosanoids in the same infection model. Taken together, our results confirm the conserved nature of the immune function of clot formation.
IFN-γ and TNF-α Synergistically Induce microRNA-155 Which Regulates TAB2/IP-10 Expression in Human Mesangial Cells
Authors: Imaizumi Tadaatsu , Tanaka Hiroshi , Tajima Atsushi , Yokono Yoshikazu , Matsumiya Tomoh , Yoshida Hidemi , Tsuruga Kazushi , Aizawa-Yashiro Tomomi , Hayakari Ryo , Inoue Ituro , Ito Etsuro , Satoh Kei
Published: October 2010

Background/Aims: MicroRNAs are noncoding small RNA molecules that posttranscriptionally regulate gene expression. microRNA-155 (miR-155), one of the microRNAs, is involved in the control of various genes. However, the role of miR-155 in inflammatory responses in mesangial cells is not known. In the present study, we examined the expression of miR-155 in mesangial cells. Methods: The expression of miR-155 in cultured normal human mesangial cells treated with interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and/or tumor-necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) was examined. The cells were transfected with miR-155 mimic, siRNA against transforming growth factor-β-activated kinase-1 (TAK1)-binding protein 2 (TAB2) or siRNA against nuclear factor-ĸB (NF-ĸB). Results: IFN-γ and TNF-α synergistically induced the expression of miR-155. Transfection of cells with miR-155 mimic inhibited the expression of TAB2 and IFN-γ-inducible protein of 10 kDa (IP-10). The expression of IP-10 was suppressed by knockdown of TAB2. Induction of miR-155 was inhibited by RNA interference against TAB2 or NF-ĸB. Conclusion: Combined stimulation with IFN-γ and TNF-α induces miR-155 via TAB2 and NF-ĸB. miR-155 negatively regulates TAB2, as a negative feedback system, to lower IP-10 expression. miR-155 may play a role in the regulation of inflammatory and immune reactions in the kidney.
Interactions between Auditory and Visual Semantic Stimulus Classes: Evidence for Common Processing Networks for Speech and Body Actions
Authors: Meyer Georg F. , Greenlee Mark , Wuerger Sophie
Published: October 2010

Incongruencies between auditory and visual signals negatively affect human performance and cause selective activation in neuroimaging studies; therefore, they are increasingly used to probe audiovisual integration mechanisms. An open question is whether the increased BOLD response reflects computational demands in integrating mismatching low-level signals or reflects simultaneous unimodal conceptual representations of the competing signals. To address this question, we explore the effect of semantic congruency within and across three signal categories (speech, body actions, and unfamiliar patterns) for signals with matched low-level statistics. In a localizer experiment, unimodal (auditory and visual) and bimodal stimuli were used to identify ROIs. All three semantic categories cause overlapping activation patterns. We find no evidence for areas that show greater BOLD response to bimodal stimuli than predicted by the sum of the two unimodal responses. Conjunction analysis of the unimodal responses in each category identifies a network including posterior temporal, inferior frontal, and premotor areas. Semantic congruency effects are measured in the main experiment. We find that incongruent combinations of two meaningful stimuli (speech and body actions) but not combinations of meaningful with meaningless stimuli lead to increased BOLD response in the posterior STS (pSTS) bilaterally, the left SMA, the inferior frontal gyrus, the inferior parietal lobule, and the anterior insula. These interactions are not seen in premotor areas. Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that pSTS and frontal areas form a recognition network that combines sensory categorical representations (in pSTS) with action hypothesis generation in inferior frontal gyrus/premotor areas. We argue that the same neural networks process speech and body actions.
Intention Processing in Communication: A Common Brain Network for Language and Gestures
Authors: Enrici Ivan , Adenzato Mauro , Cappa Stefano , Bara Bruno G. , Tettamanti Marco
Published: October 2010

Human communicative competence is based on the ability to process a specific class of mental states, namely, communicative intention. The present fMRI study aims to analyze whether intention processing in communication is affected by the expressive means through which a communicative intention is conveyed, that is, the linguistic or extralinguistic gestural means. Combined factorial and conjunction analyses were used to test two sets of predictions: first, that a common brain network is recruited for the comprehension of communicative intentions independently of the modality through which they are conveyed; second, that additional brain areas are specifically recruited depending on the communicative modality used, reflecting distinct sensorimotor gateways. Our results clearly showed that a common neural network is engaged in communicative intention processing independently of the modality used. This network includes the precuneus, the left and right posterior STS and TPJ, and the medial pFC. Additional brain areas outside those involved in intention processing are specifically engaged by the particular communicative modality, that is, a peri-sylvian language network for the linguistic modality and a sensorimotor network for the extralinguistic modality. Thus, common representation of communicative intention may be accessed by modality-specific gateways, which are distinct for linguistic versus extralinguistic expressive means. Taken together, our results indicate that the information acquired by different communicative modalities is equivalent from a mental processing standpoint, in particular, at the point at which the actor's communicative intention has to be reconstructed.
Building the Neoliberal World: Managers as Intellectuals in a Peripheral Economy
Authors: Connell Raewyn
Published: October 2010

The familiar idea of conflict between intellectuals and the holders of power is called into question in neoliberal global capitalism. A life-history study of a small group of public and private sector managers in Australia documents a labor process that is to a significant extent about data and ideas but is conducted under conditions that make reflective intellectual work unlikely. The tension is resolved in a technologically mediated collective labor process of management. This labor process is onto-formative: in contested and situationally specific ways, the practices of the managers bring a neoliberal order into being. This process is traced in relation to organizational life, privatization, and also globalization, which is partly constructed by practice from the periphery. Summaries of three case histories and extracts from others are given.
Putting Critical Theory to Work: Labor, Subjectivity and the Debts of the Frankfurt School
Authors: King Bradley
Published: October 2010

This article considers 1) the relevance of subjectivity and the problem of its absence in regard to recent debates around labor-process theory; and 2) the importance of maintaining a phenomenological conception of labor to the broader political project of critical theory and labor-process theory. By drawing on some of the classic texts of critical theory and some of the more recent texts in labor-process theory, I argue that understanding labor as both an instrumental and communicative practice works to undermine Habermasian conceptions of communication and praxis. What is at stake here is a critical conception of praxis that is able to recover labor as a fundamental problem in critical sociology. It is my contention that this mediation between critical phenomenology and labor-process theory can be productive not only in reinvigorating the political dimension of labor-process theory but also critical theory itself.
Perceptually Averaging in a Continuous Visual World
Authors: Albrecht Alice R. , Scholl Brian J.
Published: October 2010

Beyond processing individual features and objects, the visual system can also efficiently summarize scenes—for example, allowing observers to perceive the average size of a group of objects. Extraction of such statistical summary representations (SSRs) is fast and accurate, but researchers do not yet have a clear picture of the circumstances in which they operate. Previous studies have always used discrete input—either spatial arrays of shapes or temporal sequences of shapes presented one at a time. Real-world environments, in contrast, are intrinsically continuous and dynamic. We investigated the ability to compute average size in displays of objects (or sometimes a single object) that changed continuously, expanding and contracting over time. The results indicated that perceptual averaging can operate continuously in dynamic displays—sampling multiple times during a single continuous transformation with no discrete boundaries. Moreover, some dynamic changes (expansion) influence the resulting perceptual averages more than others (contraction), perhaps because of attentional capture. These results collectively illustrate how SSRs may be well adapted to dynamically changing real-world environments.
Self-Control Without a “Self”?
Authors: Miller Holly C. , Pattison Kristina F. , DeWall C. Nathan , Rayburn-Reeves Rebecca , Zentall Thomas R.
Published: October 2010

Self-control constitutes a fundamental aspect of human nature. Yet there is reason to believe that human and nonhuman self-control processes rely on the same biological mechanism—the availability of glucose in the bloodstream. Two experiments tested this hypothesis by examining the effect of available blood glucose on the ability of dogs to exert self-control. Experiment 1 showed that dogs that were required to exert self-control on an initial task persisted for a shorter time on a subsequent unsolvable task than did dogs that were not previously required to exert self-control. Experiment 2 demonstrated that providing dogs with a boost of glucose eliminated the negative effects of prior exertion of self-control on persistence; this finding parallels a similar effect in humans. These findings provide the first evidence that self-control relies on the same limited energy resource among humans and nonhumans. Our results have broad implications for the study of self-control processes in human and nonhuman species.
You Are How You Eat
Authors: Zhong Chen-Bo , DeVoe Sanford E.
Published: October 2010

Based on recent advancements in the behavioral priming literature, three experiments investigated how incidental exposure to fast food can induce impatient behaviors and choices outside of the eating domain. We found that even an unconscious exposure to fast-food symbols can automatically increase participants’ reading speed when they are under no time pressure and that thinking about fast food increases preferences for time-saving products while there are potentially many other product dimensions to consider. More strikingly, we found that mere exposure to fast-food symbols reduced people’s willingness to save and led them to prefer immediate gain over greater future return, ultimately harming their economic interest. Thus, the way people eat has far-reaching (often unconscious) influences on behaviors and choices unrelated to eating.
Number-Space Mapping in Human Infants
Authors: de Hevia Maria Dolores , Spelke Elizabeth S.
Published: October 2010

Mature representations of number are built on a core system of numerical representation that connects to spatial representations in the form of a mental number line. The core number system is functional in early infancy, but little is known about the origins of the mapping of numbers onto space. In this article, we show that preverbal infants transfer the discrimination of an ordered series of numerosities to the discrimination of an ordered series of line lengths. Moreover, infants construct relationships between numbers and line lengths when they are habituated to unordered pairings that vary positively, but not when they are habituated to unordered pairings that vary inversely. These findings provide evidence that a predisposition to relate representations of numerical magnitude to spatial length develops early in life. A central foundation of mathematics, science, and technology therefore emerges prior to experience with language, symbol systems, or measurement devices.
Conceptual Penetration of Visual Processing
Authors: Lupyan Gary , Thompson-Schill Sharon L. , Swingley Daniel
Published: October 2010

In traditional hierarchical models of information processing, visual representations feed into conceptual systems, but conceptual categories do not exert an influence on visual processing. We provide evidence, across four experiments, that conceptual information can in fact penetrate early visual processing, rather than merely biasing the output of perceptual systems. Participants performed physical-identity judgments on visually equidistant pairs of letter stimuli that were either in the same conceptual category ( Bb) or in different categories ( Bp). In the case of nonidentical letters, response times were longer when the stimuli were from the same conceptual category, but only when the letters were presented sequentially. The differences in effect size between simultaneous and sequential trials rules out a decision-level account. An additional experiment using animal silhouettes replicated the major effects found with letters. Thus, performance on an explicitly visual task was influenced by conceptual categories. This effect depended on processing time, immediately preceding experience, and stimulus typicality, which suggests that it was produced by the direct influence of category knowledge on perception, rather than by a postperceptual decision bias.
Believing Is Seeing
Authors: Langer Ellen , Djikic Maja , Pirson Michael , Madenci Arin , Donohue Rebecca
Published: October 2010

These experiments show that vision can be improved by manipulating mind-sets. In Study 1, participants were primed with the mind-set that pilots have excellent vision. Vision improved for participants who experientially became pilots (by flying a realistic flight simulator) compared with control participants (who performed the same task in an ostensibly broken flight simulator). Participants in an eye-exercise condition (primed with the mind-set that improvement occurs with practice) and a motivation condition (primed with the mind-set “try and you will succeed”) demonstrated visual improvement relative to the control group. In Study 2, participants were primed with the mind-set that athletes have better vision than nonathletes. Controlling for arousal, doing jumping jacks resulted in greater visual acuity than skipping (perceived to be a less athletic activity than jumping jacks). Study 3 took advantage of the mind-set primed by the traditional eye chart: Because letters get progressively smaller on successive lines, people expect that they will be able to read the first few lines only. When participants viewed a reversed chart and a shifted chart, they were able to see letters they could not see before. Thus, mind-set manipulation can counteract physiological limits imposed on vision.
The Counterfeit Self
Authors: Gino Francesca , Norton Michael I. , Ariely Dan
Published: October 2010

Although people buy counterfeit products to signal positive traits, we show that wearing counterfeit products makes individuals feel less authentic and increases their likelihood of both behaving dishonestly and judging others as unethical. In four experiments, participants wore purportedly fake or authentically branded sunglasses. Those wearing fake sunglasses cheated more across multiple tasks than did participants wearing authentic sunglasses, both when they believed they had a preference for counterfeits (Experiment 1a) and when they were randomly assigned to wear them (Experiment 1b). Experiment 2 shows that the effects of wearing counterfeit sunglasses extend beyond the self, influencing judgments of other people’s unethical behavior. Experiment 3 demonstrates that the feelings of inauthenticity that wearing fake products engenders—what we term the counterfeit self—mediate the impact of counterfeits on unethical behavior. Finally, we show that people do not predict the impact of counterfeits on ethicality; thus, the costs of counterfeits are deceptive.
How Implicit Beliefs Influence Trust Recovery
Authors: Haselhuhn Michael P. , Schweitzer Maurice E. , Wood Alison M.
Published: October 2010

After a trust violation, some people are quick to forgive, whereas others never trust again. In this report, we identify a key characteristic that moderates trust recovery: implicit beliefs of moral character. Individuals who believe that moral character can change over time ( incremental beliefs) are more likely to trust their counterpart following an apology and trustworthy behavior than are individuals who believe that moral character cannot change ( entity beliefs). We demonstrate that a simple but powerful message can induce either entity or incremental beliefs about moral character.
Observer Movement and Size Constancy
Authors: Combe Emmanuelle , Wexler Mark
Published: October 2010

It is commonly assumed that size constancy—invariance of perceived size of objects as they change retinal size because of changes in distance—depends solely on retinal stimulation and vergence, but on no other action-related signals. Distance to an object can change through displacement of either the observer or the object. The common assumption predicts that the two types of displacement should lead to the same degree of size constancy. We measured size constancy while observers viewed stationary stimuli at different distances. Changes in distance between trials were either actively produced by the observer or generated by real or simulated object displacement, with retinal stimulation held constant across the movement conditions. Responses were always closer to perfect constancy for observer than for object movement. Thus, size constancy is enhanced by information from observer displacement, and, more generally, processes thought to be purely perceptual may have unexpected components related to action.
Two by Two
Authors: Dale Philip S. , Harlaar Nicole , Haworth Claire M.A. , Plomin Robert
Published: October 2010

In this report, we provide initial results of the first application of the classic twin design to second-language acquisition. The analysis was conducted on assessments teachers made using United Kingdom National Curriculum standards and included 604 pairs of 14-year-old twins. The results demonstrate substantial heritability (.67) and low influence of shared environment (.13) on this measure of second-language acquisition. The heritability of second-language acquisition at 14 years is comparable to the heritability of the two first-language acquisition measures obtained at 12 and 14 years, respectively, and is higher than heritability estimates previously published for first-language acquisition in early childhood. Multivariate behavior genetic analyses suggest very high, but not complete, overlap of genetic influences on first- and second-language acquisition, and less overlap between shared environmental influences on the two domains.
Mere Visual Perception of Other People’s Disease Symptoms Facilitates a More Aggressive Immune Response
Authors: Schaller Mark , Miller Gregory E. , Gervais Will M. , Yager Sarah , Chen Edith
Published: October 2010

An experiment ( N = 28) tested the hypothesis that the mere visual perception of disease-connoting cues promotes a more aggressive immune response. Participants were exposed either to photographs depicting symptoms of infectious disease or to photographs depicting guns. After incubation with a model bacterial stimulus, participants’ white blood cells produced higher levels of the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the infectious-disease condition, compared with the control (guns) condition. These results provide the first empirical evidence that visual perception of other people’s symptoms may cause the immune system to respond more aggressively to infection. Adaptive origins and functional implications are discussed.
Feelings Not Forgone
Authors: Andrade Eduardo B. , Van Boven Leaf
Published: October 2010

In two experiments, we observed that when given the choice of gambling or not gambling, people who chose not to gamble underestimated the intensity of their affective reactions to the forgone gamble’s outcome. Those who would have been winners felt more displeasure than anticipated, and those who would have been losers felt more pleasure than anticipated. We suggest that this underestimation stems partly from people’s belief that affective experience is relatively uninfluenced by events they chose not to experience. Consistent with this suggestion, participants’ affective forecasts were not influenced by whether the participants or a computer made the choice not to gamble—as though participants did not feel personally responsible for the forgone outcome, whether chosen by themselves or by a computer. In contrast to their affective forecasts, however, participants’ affective reactions to forgone outcomes were less intense when the computer chose not to gamble than when the participants themselves made the choice not to gamble. Participants therefore proved to be more accurate in predicting their affective reactions to the results of the computer’s decision not to gamble than in predicting their affective reactions to the results of their own decision not to gamble. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.
Physical Contact and Financial Risk Taking
Authors: Levav Jonathan , Argo Jennifer J.
Published: October 2010

We show that minimal physical contact can increase people’s sense of security and consequently lead them to increased risk-taking behavior. In three experiments, with both hypothetical and real payoffs, a female experimenter’s light, comforting pat on the shoulder led participants to greater financial risk taking. Further, this effect was both mediated and moderated by feelings of security in both male and female participants. Finally, we established the boundary conditions for the impact of physical contact on risk-taking behaviors by demonstrating that the effect does not occur when the touching is performed by a male and is attenuated when the touch consists of a handshake. The results suggest that subtle physical contact can be strongly influential in decision making and the willingness to accept risk.
Assessing the Seeds of Relationship Decay
Authors: Lee Soonhee , Rogge Ronald D. , Reis Harry T.
Published: October 2010

Using two longitudinal samples, we sought to identify the beginnings of relationship decay by validating the partner-focused go/no-go association task (partner-GNAT), an implicit measure assessing evaluations of romantic partners. In Study 1, we assessed positive and negative attitudes using generic positive and negative stimulus words (e.g., gift and death, respectively) as targets, whereas in Study 2, we used relationship-specific positive and negative stimulus words (e.g., accepting and attacking, respectively) as targets. Results from both samples showed that positive implicit partner evaluations were associated with a reduced risk of breakup over the following 12 months, even after controlling for self-reported relationship satisfaction, hostile conflict, and neuroticism. This suggests that the earliest seeds of relationship decay might be found within attitudes that subjects might be unaware of or are unable or unwilling to report. Both studies also offered support for the importance of negative implicit partner evaluations. In Study 1, this support was in the form of an interaction (revealing that individuals with both low positive and high negative evaluations were at greatest risk for breakup). In Study 2, this support was in the form of a main effect (negative implicit partner evaluations marginally predicted increased risk of breakup).
Money Giveth, Money Taketh Away
Authors: Quoidbach Jordi , Dunn Elizabeth W. , Petrides K.V. , Mikolajczak Moïra
Published: October 2010

This study provides the first evidence that money impairs people’s ability to savor everyday positive emotions and experiences. In a sample of working adults, wealthier individuals reported lower savoring ability (the ability to enhance and prolong positive emotional experience). Moreover, the negative impact of wealth on individuals’ ability to savor undermined the positive effects of money on their happiness. We experimentally exposed participants to a reminder of wealth and produced the same deleterious effect on their ability to savor as that produced by actual individual differences in wealth, a result supporting the theory that money has a causal effect on savoring. Moving beyond self-reports, we found that participants exposed to a reminder of wealth spent less time savoring a piece of chocolate and exhibited reduced enjoyment of it compared with participants not exposed to wealth. This article presents evidence supporting the widely held but previously untested belief that having access to the best things in life may actually undercut people’s ability to reap enjoyment from life’s small pleasures.
Generalization of Affective Learning About Faces to Perceptually Similar Faces
Authors: Verosky Sara C. , Todorov Alexander
Published: October 2010

Different individuals have different (and different-looking) significant others, friends, and foes. The objective of this study was to investigate whether these social face environments can shape individual face preferences. First, participants learned to associate faces with positive, neutral, or negative behaviors. Then, they evaluated morphs combining novel faces with the learned faces. The morphs (65% and 80% novel faces) were within the categorical boundary of the novel faces: They were perceived as those faces in a preliminary study. Moreover, a second preliminary study showed that following the learning, the morphs’ categorization as similar to the learned faces was indistinguishable from the categorization of actual novel faces. Nevertheless, in the main experiment, participants evaluated morphs of “positive” faces more positively than morphs of “negative” faces. This learning generalization effect increased as a function of the similarity of the novel faces to the learned faces. The findings suggest that general learning mechanisms based on similarity can account for idiosyncratic face preferences.
Red Diffuse Light Suppresses the Accelerated Perception of Fear
Authors: West Greg L. , Anderson Adam K. , Bedwell Jeffrey S. , Pratt Jay
Published: October 2010

Prioritization of affective events may occur via two parallel pathways originating from the retina—a parvocellular (P) pathway projecting to ventral-stream structures responsible for object recognition or a faster and phylogenetically older magnocellular (M) pathway projecting to dorsal-stream structures responsible for localization and action. It has previously been demonstrated that retinal exposure to red diffuse light suppresses M-cell neural activity. We tested whether the fast propagation along the dorsal-action pathway drives an accelerated conduction of fear-based content. Using a visual prior-entry procedure, we assessed accelerated stimulus perception while either suppressing the M pathway with red diffuse light or leaving it unaffected with green diffuse light. We show that the encoding of fearful faces is accelerated, but not when M-channel activity is suppressed, revealing a dissociation that implicates a privileged neural link between emotion and action that begins at the retina.
Keep Your Fingers Crossed!
Authors: Damisch Lysann , Stoberock Barbara , Mussweiler Thomas
Published: October 2010

Superstitions are typically seen as inconsequential creations of irrational minds. Nevertheless, many people rely on superstitious thoughts and practices in their daily routines in order to gain good luck. To date, little is known about the consequences and potential benefits of such superstitions. The present research closes this gap by demonstrating performance benefits of superstitions and identifying their underlying psychological mechanisms. Specifically, Experiments 1 through 4 show that activating good-luck-related superstitions via a common saying or action (e.g., “break a leg,” keeping one’s fingers crossed) or a lucky charm improves subsequent performance in golfing, motor dexterity, memory, and anagram games. Furthermore, Experiments 3 and 4 demonstrate that these performance benefits are produced by changes in perceived self-efficacy. Activating a superstition boosts participants’ confidence in mastering upcoming tasks, which in turn improves performance. Finally, Experiment 4 shows that increased task persistence constitutes one means by which self-efficacy, enhanced by superstition, improves performance.
Splitting Motivation
Authors: Schmidt Liane , Palminteri Stefano , Lafargue Gilles , Pessiglione Mathias
Published: October 2010

Motivation is generally understood to denote the strength of a person’s desire to attain a goal. Here we challenge this view of motivation as a person-level concept, in a study that targeted subliminal incentives to only one half of the human brain. Participants in the study squeezed a handgrip to win the greatest fraction possible of each subliminal incentive, which materialized as a coin image flashed in one visual hemifield. Motivation effects (i.e., more force exerted when the incentive was higher) were observed only for the hand controlled by the stimulated brain hemisphere. These results show that in the absence of conscious control, one brain hemisphere, and hence one side of the body, can be motivated independently of the other.
In the Infant’s Mind’s Ear
Authors: Mani Nivedita , Plunkett Kim
Published: October 2010

Do infants implicitly name visually fixated objects whose names are known, and does this information influence their preference for looking at other objects? We presented 18-month-old infants with a picture-based phonological priming task and examined their recognition of named targets in primed (e.g., dog-door) and unrelated (e.g., dog-boat) trials. Infants showed better recognition of the target object in primed than in unrelated trials across three measures. As the prime image was never explicitly named during the experiment, the only explanation for the systematic influence of the prime image on target recognition is that infants, like adults, can implicitly name visually fixated images and that these implicitly generated names can prime infants’ subsequent responses in a paired visual-object spoken-word-recognition task.
Pushing and Coasting in Dynamic Goal Pursuit
Authors: Fulford Daniel , Johnson Sheri L. , Llabre Maria M. , Carver Charles S.
Published: October 2010

In an experience-sampling study, we tested the influence of goal progress on subsequent effort toward that goal among persons with bipolar disorder (BD) and among control subjects without BD. We hypothesized, overall, that unexpectedly low progress toward a goal would lead to an increase in subsequent effort toward that goal, and unexpectedly high progress would lead to a decrease in effort (permitting effort to be shifted to another goal). Drawing on literature relating BD to elevated goal-approach sensitivity, we hypothesized that persons with BD would be less responsive to unexpectedly high progress than would control subjects. Participants answered questions three times a day, for 21 days, about three goals. The results of the study confirmed our overall hypothesis. In addition, although the reactions of persons with BD did not differ from the reactions of control subjects after lower-than-expected goal progress, persons with BD decreased effort toward goals significantly less than did control subjects after better-than-expected goal progress.
Idleness Aversion and the Need for Justifiable Busyness
Authors: Hsee Christopher K. , Yang Adelle X. , Wang Liangyan
Published: October 2010

There are many apparent reasons why people engage in activity, such as to earn money, to become famous, or to advance science. In this report, however, we suggest a potentially deeper reason: People dread idleness, yet they need a reason to be busy. Accordingly, we show in two experiments that without a justification, people choose to be idle; that even a specious justification can motivate people to be busy; and that people who are busy are happier than people who are idle. Curiously, this last effect is true even if people are forced to be busy. Our research suggests that many purported goals that people pursue may be merely justifications to keep themselves busy.
Who Confronts Prejudice?
Authors: Rattan Aneeta , Dweck Carol S.
Published: October 2010

Despite the possible costs, confronting prejudice can have important benefits, ranging from the well-being of the target of prejudice to social change. What, then, motivates targets of prejudice to confront people who express explicit bias? In three studies, we tested the hypothesis that targets who hold an incremental theory of personality (i.e., the belief that people can change) are more likely to confront prejudice than targets who hold an entity theory of personality (i.e., the belief that people have fixed traits). In Study 1, targets’ beliefs about the malleability of personality predicted whether they spontaneously confronted an individual who expressed bias. In Study 2, targets who held more of an incremental theory reported that they would be more likely to confront prejudice and less likely to withdraw from future interactions with an individual who expressed prejudice. In Study 3, we manipulated implicit theories and replicated these findings. By highlighting the central role that implicit theories of personality play in targets’ motivation to confront prejudice, this research has important implications for intergroup relations and social change.
Searching for Life Motion Signals
Authors: Wang Li , Zhang Kan , He Sheng , Jiang Yi
Published: October 2010

The visual search paradigm has been widely used to study the mechanisms underlying visual attention, and search asymmetry provides a source of insight into preattentive visual features. In the current study, we tested visual search with biological-motion stimuli that were spatially scrambled or that represented feet only and found that observers were more efficient in searching for an upright target among inverted distractors than in searching for an inverted target among upright distractors. This suggests that local biological-motion signals can act as a basic preattentive feature for the human visual system. The search asymmetry disappeared when the global configuration in biological motion was kept intact, which indicates that the attentional effects arising from biological features (e.g., local motion signals) and global novelty (e.g., inverted human figure) can interact and modulate visual search. Our findings provide strong evidence that local biological motion can be processed independently of global configuration and shed new light on the mechanisms of visual search asymmetry.
Benign Violations
Authors: McGraw A. Peter , Warren Caleb
Published: October 2010

Humor is an important, ubiquitous phenomenon; however, seemingly disparate conditions seem to facilitate humor. We integrate these conditions by suggesting that laughter and amusement result from violations that are simultaneously seen as benign. We investigated three conditions that make a violation benign and thus humorous: (a) the presence of an alternative norm suggesting that the situation is acceptable, (b) weak commitment to the violated norm, and (c) psychological distance from the violation. We tested the benign-violation hypothesis in the domain of moral psychology, where there is a strong documented association between moral violations and negative emotions, particularly disgust. Five experimental studies show that benign moral violations tend to elicit laughter and amusement in addition to disgust. Furthermore, seeing a violation as both wrong and not wrong mediates behavioral displays of humor. Our account is consistent with evolutionary accounts of laughter, explains humor across many domains, and suggests that humor can accompany negative emotion.
Sealing the Emotions Genie
Authors: Li Xiuping , Wei Liyuan , Soman Dilip
Published: October 2010

This research investigated whether the physical act of enclosing an emotionally laden stimulus can help alleviate the associated negative emotions. Four experiments found support for this claim. In Experiments 1a and 1b, emotional negativity was reduced for participants who placed a written recollection of a regretted past decision or unsatisfied strong desire inside an envelope. However, enclosing a stimulus unrelated to the emotional experience did not have the same effect (Experiment 2). In Experiment 3, we showed that the effect was not driven by participants simply doing something extra with the materials, and that the effect of physical enclosure was mediated by the psychological closure that participants felt toward the event.
A Variable-Number-of-Tandem-Repeats Polymorphism in the Dopamine D4 Receptor Gene Affects Social Adaptation of Alcohol Use
Authors: Larsen Helle , van der Zwaluw Carmen S. , Overbeek Geertjan , Granic Isabela , Franke Barbara , Engels Rutger C.M.E.
Published: October 2010

Research suggests that people adapt their own drinking behavior to that of other people. According to a genetic-differences approach, some individuals may be more inclined than others to adapt their alcohol consumption level to that of other people. Using a 3 (drinking condition) × 2 (genotype) experimental design ( N = 113), we tested whether susceptibility to alcohol-related cues (i.e., seeing someone drink) was related to the variable number of tandem repeats in exon 3 of the D4 dopamine receptor gene. A strong gene-environment interaction showed that participants carrying at least one copy of the 7-repeat allele consumed substantially more alcohol in the presence of a heavy-drinking individual than did participants without this allele. This study highlights that individual variability in sensitivity to other people’s drinking behavior may be attributable to genetic differences. Carrying the 7-repeat allele may increase the risk for heavy alcohol use or abuse in the company of heavy-drinking peers.
The Impact of Culture on Adaptive Versus Maladaptive Self-Reflection
Authors: Grossmann Igor , Kross Ethan
Published: October 2010

Although recent findings indicate that people can reflect either adaptively or maladaptively over negative experiences, extant research has not examined how culture influences this process. We compared the self-reflective practices of Russians (members of an interdependent culture characterized by a tendency to brood) and Americans (members of an independent culture in which self-reflection has been studied extensively). We predicted that self-reflection would be associated with less-detrimental outcomes among Russians because they self-distance more when analyzing their feelings than Americans do. Findings from two studies supported these predictions. In Study 1, self-reflection was associated with fewer depressive symptoms among Russians than among Americans. In Study 2, Russians displayed less distress and a more adaptive pattern of construals than Americans after reflecting over a recent negative event. In addition, they self-distanced more than Americans while analyzing their feelings, and self-distancing mediated the cultural differences in self-reflection. These findings demonstrate how culture shapes the way people reflect over negative experiences.