bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Blink Activity in a Discrimination Task as a Function of Stimulus Modality and Schedule of Presentation
Authors: Goldstein Robert , Walrath Larry C. , Stern John A. , Strock Barbara D. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTEyeblink performance parameters were investigated in subjects engaged in a series of duration discrimination tasks differing in modality (visual vs. auditory) and presentation schedule (fixed vs. variable). Visual tasks were associated with slower blink rates and shorter blink durations than auditory tasks. Sensitivity measures suggested that this difference might be due, in part, to the greater difficulty of the visual tasks. Blink latency declined within and across tasks and was longer for target stimuli which were followed by responses. Since the target stimuli were the short duration stimuli, the latter effect could be a compound of two opposing effects. The first is related to the response, which tends to delay the blink on target trials, while the second, related to decision processes, would tend to increase latencies on nontarget trials. Schedule of stimulus presentation did not affect dependent measures as predicted. RT was unaffected by either of the experimental variables.
Cognitive Event‐Related Brain Potentials in Children with Attention and Reading Deficits
Authors: Holcomb Phillip J. , Ackerman Peggy T. , Dykman Roscoe A. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTERPs were recorded from four groups of children: reading disabled, attentional deficit disorder with and without hyperactivity, and normal controls. Subjects pressed a button to a low probability nonsense syllable (target, p= .168) and ignored all other events, which included a high probability nonsense syllable (nontarget, p= .664) and either low probability (category, p= .168) symbols (Block 1) or 3‐letter words (Block 2). The amplitudes of several late ERP components and the latency of the P3 component were examined. The overall amplitude of P3 was significantly smaller in all clinical groups than in controls, but the difference in P3 amplitude between targets and nontargets was smaller only in the two attentional deficit groups. Reading disabled children had smaller P3 and Pc components to words than to symbols, while controls had equivalent values. The N2 component had a different scalp distribution for words and symbols, but did not differentiate reading disabled children from controls. P3 latency was significantly longer in the three clinical groups than in controls, but only the attentional deficit groups showed an increase in P3 latency across blocks of the task. The results are discussed within the framework of recent cognitive models dealing with attentional processes.
Effects of Stimulus Intensity on Autonomic Responding: The Problem of Differentiating Orienting and Defense Reflexes
Authors: Turpin Graham 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTPsychophysiological research has frequently applied autonomic measures as indices of information processing. One rationale which underlies this approach is the distinction between orienting (OR) and defense reflexes (DR). Sokolov (1963) proposed that elicitation of these reflexes depends upon the intensity of the stimulus. He also suggested that ORs and DRs could be differentiated both in terms of their consequences for information processing and by their component autonomic reactions.Evidence in support of Sokolov's model is reviewed, and a series of experiments are described which were designed to demonstrate the effects of auditory stimulus intensity on autonomic responding. On the basis of these observations, a revised scheme of OR/DR differentiation is put forward. The major features of the scheme are the response direction of the autonomic measures, the identification of short‐ and long‐latency response components, and the inclusion of the startle reflex. The implications of the revised scheme for research on autonomic responses to affective stimulation are discussed.It is concluded that the sole use of autonomic measures to index information processing is inadequate. Consequently, future research requires both autonomic indices and behavioral and subjective measures of affective and information processing.
Duration of Initial Heart Rate Assessment in Psychophysiology: Current Practices and Implications
Authors: Hastrup Janice L. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTHeart rate is a widely‐used dependent variable in psychophysiological research. A survey of articles published in Psychophysiology during 1978, 1980, 1982, and 1984 revealed wide variation in procedures for obtaining “resting’ measurement of heart rate prior to administration of other stimuli or tasks. Duration of the baseline period at the beginning of 35 reported investigations was negatively correlated (r=−.64) with heart rates. Variations in duration of baseline measurement may influence some kinds of Type II errors such as the likelihood of detecting relative group differences in heart rate during more active stimulus‐presentation or task periods. Alternative procedures (a minimum 15‐min adaptation period prior to assessment, individualization of duration of baseline assessments) are suggested.
Cardiovascular Responses of Adolescents During a Naturally Occurring Stressor and Their Behavioral and Psychophysiological Predictors
Authors: Matthews Karen A. , Manuck Stephen B. , Saab Patrice G. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe present investigation examined the behavioral and psychophysiological characteristics of 23 adolescents who differed in levels of blood pressure and heart rate prior to and following a naturally occurring stressor–giving a required five‐minute speech in a high school English class. Measured characteristics were Type A behavior, hostility and anger, trait anxiety, family history of hypertension, and blood pressure and heart rate responses to three standardized laboratory stressors (serial subtraction, star‐tracing, and handgrip tasks). Results showed that anxious adolescents achieved elevated levels of systolic blood pressure and heart rate during public speaking relative to the next English class, whereas angry adolescents achieved elevated levels of diastolic blood pressure. Those adolescents who exhibited exaggerated increases in the cardiovascular measures while performing laboratory tasks also achieved elevated levels of blood pressure and/or heart rate during the naturally occurring stressor, but the strength of the relationships varied across tasks and physiological parameters. These findings should be viewed as tentative because of the uniqueness and size of the sample.
Blood Pressure Discrimination
Authors: Greenstadt Lisa , Shapiro David , Whitehead Roger 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThis research concerns the ability of humans to discriminate variations in their own blood pressure in comparing two successive 5‐s periods, and the effects of discrimination training (knowledge of results) on their performance. The subjects were 72 healthy male volunteers studied under various conditions. Continuous recordings were made of blood pressure, heart rate, and respiration. Without knowledge of results, discrimination of systolic blood pressure occurred at chance levels, but performance improved significantly over two sessions of discrimination training. This improvement was not maintained in a subsequent session in which no feedback was provided. Discrimination of diastolic blood pressure achieved significant levels when subjects were given knowledge of results. In general, the larger the difference to be discriminated in pressure, the better the performance. The paper also discusses relationships between blood pressure discrimination performance and simultaneous variations in heart rate and respiration, post‐session subjective reports, and the role of cuff pressure changes in performance.
Stimulus Rise Time, Intensity, and Bandwidth Effects on Acoustic Startle Amplitude and Probability
Authors: Blumenthal Terry D. , Keith Berg W. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe amplitude and probability of periorbital EMG responses were assessed for a variety of stimuli. In Experiment 1, 50‐ms duration broadband noise (20–20K Hz) and tones (1000 Hz), at 95 and 100 dB(A), with rise/fall times of 2.5, 10, and 25 ms, were presented. Noise stimuli were more effective than tones for both response amplitude and probability. Stimulus intensity affected both measures for tones, but only response amplitude for noise. Increasing stimulus rise/fall time had no significant effect for noise, but resulted in lower probability for tones. In Experiment 2, 50‐ms duration 1000 Hz tones, at 98 and 102 dB(A), with rise/fall times of 1, 2.5, 5, and 10 ms were presented. Response amplitude was not affected by rise/fall time changes, but increasing rise/fall time from 5 to 10 ms resulted in lower probability. These data show that the startle response can reflect manipulations of stimulus bandwidth, intensity, and rise/fall time, and that startle amplitude and probability reflect these manipulations in different ways. The two response measures may indicate the activity of partially independent underlying mechanisms, with a startle “trigger’ determining response probability and a startle “amplifier’ determining response amplitude for suprathreshold stimuli.
Sex Differences in Physiological Responses to Stress and in Coronary Heart Disease: A Causal Link?
Authors: Stoney Catherine M. , Davis Mary C. , Matthews Karen A. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThis editorial offers and provides preliminary support for the hypothesis that sex differences exist in physiological responses to acute behavioral stress, which may aid in understanding the enormous sex differences in risk for coronary heart disease. Epidemiological data regarding the differential sex experience of coronary heart disease morbidity and mortality are discussed, followed by a meta‐analytic review of available psychophysiological data on sex differences in stress‐induced cardiovascular and neuroendocrine responses. The implications of the meta‐analysis for conceptual and methodological issues in psychophysiological research are highlighted.
Efficiency of Coping with a Real‐Life Stressor: A Multimodal Comparison of Aerobic Fitness
Authors: Brooke Sam T. , Long Bonita C. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe mediating effects of aerobic fitness on the psychological and physiological responses to a real‐life psychological stressor (rappelling) were examined. Subjective anxiety, heart rate, nor epinephrine, epinephrine, and cortisol were monitored in IS male novice rappellers at various intervals before and following the rappel task. Results showed that high fit compared to low fit subjects maintained overall lower heart rate levels. Aerobic power was associated with faster recovery from subjective anxiety and a more efficient recovery for relative plasma epinephrine measures. Norepinephrine, heart rate, and cortisol did not parallel this recovery pattern. These results provide some support for the research which indicates that high levels of aerobic power are associated with greater coping efficiency.
Standardization Within Subjects: A Critique of Ben‐Shakhar's Conclusions
Authors: Stemmler Gerhard 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTA recent study (Ben‐Shakhar. 1985) reported evidence in favor of standardizing skin conductance response measures within individuals as compared to the Paintal Index (phasic range‐correction) or to raw responses. Notwithstanding the possible efficiency of within‐individual standardization as a means to reduce individual differences in responsivity, this critique is intended to direct attention to three sources of bias that severely limit the generalizability of Ben‐Shakbar's evidence: the response magnitude bias, the bias from unequal numbers of stimuli, and the enhanced correlation of response and standardizing measure. In order to illustrate the range of results obtained from these transformations, an artificial data set was generated based upon the design and statistical procedures employed by Ben‐Shakhar.
Does Methylphenidate Affect Information Processing? Findings From Two Studies on Performance and P3b Latency
Authors: Brumaghim Joan T. , Klorman Rafael , Strauss Jaine , Lewine Jeffrey D. , Goldstein Michael G. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTTwo studies were conducted to assess the impact of methylphenidate on normal young adults in a fixed version of Steinberg's memory scanning task. Both studies yielded characteristic monotonic increases in reaction time (RT) and P3b latency as a function of memory load. Also, in both studies, methylphenidate speeded up RT as and decreased error rates and intra subject RT variability. However, the slope of RT as a function of memory load, i.e. the rate of memory search, was not altered by the stimulant. In Study 1, P3b latency also was not affected by methylphenidate, a result suggesting that the stimulant brought about the decrease in RT by acting after the completion of evaluation, presumably by accelerating response processes. However, in Study 2, the drug significantly shortened P3b latency and the interval between RT and P3b latency. Thus, a speeding of both evaluation as well as motor processes was achieved. A review of procedural differences between the two studies suggests some possible explanations. In combination, the two studies indicate that methylphenidate consistently shortened the timing of motor processes and, under some circumstances, the duration of evaluation processes as well.
Factors Related to Behavioral Control by Stimuli Presented During Sleep
Authors: Harsh John , Badia Pietro , O'Rourke Diane , Burton Stephen , Revis Christopher , Magee Jon 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTTwo experiments are presented concerning the control of learned behavior by stimuli presented during sleep. The rule of associative and nonassociative factors was assessed in Experiment 1. Group I was tested to demonstrate that, following instructions during wakefulness, subjects would terminate tones presented during sleep by taking a deep breath. To determine the likelihood of spontaneous responses during the tone, two groups were tested following the same instructions but with tones omitted on every trial (Group II) or every other trial (Group III). To determine whether breathing responses might be due to tone‐elicited arousal. Group IV was tested without instructions to make the breathing response. Reliable responding was found only for Group I. Experiment 2 concerned within‐ and across‐night patterns of responsiveness under the procedure investigated in Experiment 1. Subjects were tested for either 4 consecutive or 4 nonconsecutive nights. Response latencies increased within nights and also across nights with a greater rate of increase on consecutive nights. The data are discussed in relation to the importance of understanding the effects of behavioral demands during sleep.
Cardiovascuiar‐CNS Interactions During a Self‐Paced, Intentional Attentive State: Elite Marksmanship Performance
Authors: Hatfield Brad D. , Landers Daniel M. , Ray William J. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTData were obtained from elite rifle marksmen during baseline and performance conditions (prior to trigger pull) to examine electroencephalographic (EEC) alpha and heart rate (Ilk) patterning. The results were discussed in terms of “response intention” because a trend was found in HR patterning during performance which paralleled that associated with Laceys' (1970) work on selfpaced “key pressing.” Additionally, directional fractionation of the arousal response was evidenced by an increase in tonic MR from baseline to performance which was accompanied by an absence of change in EECJ, Finally, regression analyses revealed a differential relationship of temporal EEC with HR. Specifically, a cardiac “sensitivity” of the right hemisphere was shown by an association between HR and subsequent EEG during the final phase of the marksman's preparatory state. Occipital EEC also appeared to be influenced by cardiovascular activity. These findings extend the generality of the fractionated arousal construct to an intentional and well‐learned motor skill paradigm and question the generality of the activation model.
An Event‐Related Potential Analysis of Incongruity in Music and Other Non‐Linguistic Contexts
Authors: Besson M. , Macar F. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThis study was designed to determine whether the N400 component, described by Kutas and Hillyard as an index of semantic expectancy, would he elicited by deviations involving non‐linguistic expectancies. The stimuli within the four experimental conditions included: 1) sentences, 2) geometric patterns of increasing or decreasing size, 3) scale‐notes of increasing or decreasing frequency, and 4) well‐known French melodies. An N400 appeared only following semantic incongruities within sentences. Non‐linguistic deviations were followed by a late positivity whose amplitude varied across conditions. These results are consistent with an interpretation of N400 as an index of the further processing required by linguistic incongruities rather than by violations of arbitrary or over learned rules in general. However, alternative interpretations exist and are discussed.
Habituation of the Skin Conductance Response to Strong Stimuli: A Twin Study
Authors: Lykken D.T. , Iacono W.G. , Haroian K. , Mc Gue M. , Bouchard T.J. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTSkin conductance responses to a series of loud tones were measured bilaterally in 121 pairs of adult twins, 53 pairs reared together and 68 pairs reared apart. Subjects were given an absorbing task on which to focus their attention and instructed to ignore the meaningless tones. Rangecorrection eliminated hand and sex differences in SCR amplitude and also the correlation with age of this variable. For the combined group of 79 pairs of monozygotic (MZ) twins, the within‐pair correlations for Y‐intercept, the slope of the habituation curve, and the number of trials to habituation were near the limits of retest reliability for these variables. After range‐correction, the correlation for Y‐intercept for the 42 pairs of dizygotic (DZ) twins was about half the MZ value, suggesting that initial electrodermal reactivity is strongly genetic and can be interpreted according to a polygenic‐additive model. Biometric model testing indicated that stable individual differences in uncorrected SCR amplitude and in habituation slope are primarily determined by non‐additive genetic factors. About 40% of the total variance (and most of the stable variance) in number of trials to habituation is genetically determined. Co‐twins of MZ twins who were electrodermal nonresponders tended also to be hyporesponsive while co‐twins of DZ nonresponders tended to be normoresponsive.
Heart Rate Offset Responses to Visual Stimuli in Infants from 14 to 26 Weeks of Age
Authors: Richards John E. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTHeart rate offset responses to visual stimuli were studied in infants tested cross‐sectionally at 14, 20, and 26 weeks of age. In Experiments 1 and 2, offset responses were measured in each infant following visual stimuli presented with three procedures. The fixed interval method consisted of stimulus presentations of 7 s in duration. The infant control method consisted of stimulus presentations which were terminated when the infant looked away from them. The interrupted stimulus method consisted of stimulus presentations which were terminated when the infant looked away toward an interrupting, secondary stimulus. In Experiment 3 these procedures were compared with two procedures in which stimulus termination occurred at the point of heart rate deceleration or the return of heart rate toward prestimulus level. The stimuli in Experiment 1 were checkerboard patterns, in Experiment 2 were complex and varying stimuli, and in Experiment 3 were either TV stimuli or an overhead light.The offset responses were similar for the fixed interval and infant control methods, and consisted of brief heart rate decelerations. The magnitude of the heart rate response was generally small (1.5 to 2 bpm), with the largest heart rate response being 4 bpm. The pre‐offset heart rate response was similar for the infant control and interrupted stimulus and heart rate acceleration trials, with heart rate showing a return to prestimulus levels immediately preceding subject‐controlled fixation termination. Infants with high levels of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) measured during a 5‐min baseline showed larger heart rate offset responses than did low RSA infants. These results call into question the interpretation of heart rate offset responses in the context of Sokolov's model of the orienting response. However, the offset paradigm is useful in the study of subject‐controlled attention processes.
Psychophysiology and Psychopathology: A Motivational Approach
Authors: Fowles Don C. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe current zeitgeist strongly emphasizes genetic and biochemical approaches to psychopathology over psychological and psychobiological approaches. It is argued that a psychobiological model, involving a theory of motivation derived from the animal learning literature, offers an attractive theoretical bridge between neurochemical influences and the phenotypic features of psychiatric disorders. This model involves separate but interactive appetitive and aversive motivational systems that control behavioral activation (appetitive) and inhibition (aversive). Ways in which these motivational constructs can be relevant to psychopathology are discussed for anxiety, psychopathy, childhood disorders, depression, mania, drug abuse, and schizophrenia. Because of this general application, motivational constructs offer an attractive theoretical framework for understanding psychopathology.Application of the motivational theory to psychophysiology suggested that heart rate may be significantly influenced by appetitive motivation. A series of studies have shown that heart rate during performance of a continuous motor task does respond to appetitive motivation in the form of performance‐contingent monetary incentives, but does not respond to aversive stimulation in the form of failure feedback. Nonspecific skin conductance fluctuations have not responded to appetitive motivation in this paradigm, but this failure could possibly be due to ceiling effects. Nonspecific skin conductance fluctuations do respond to aversive stimulation in other contexts. These findings suggest that under the right circumstances appetitive motivation can be assessed via heart rate and aversive motivation via skin conductance.