bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Comparison of Frontal EMG Biofeedback and Several Types of Relaxation Instructions in Reducing Multiple Indices of Arousal
Authors: Burish Thomas G. , Hendrix E. Mitchell , Frost Randy O. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTDuring the training phase, 96 subjects were given one of four types of relaxation instructions (single instructions, repeated instructions, relaxation training, no instructions) and in addition either did or did not receive frontal EMG biofeedback training. Results indicated that each of the instructions and biofeedback procedures were equally effective in reducing frontal EMG, but that none of these procedures had any effect on subjective anxiety or autonomic indices of arousal (pulse rate, skin temperature, and finger pulse volume). During the generalization/stress phase, subjects were threatened with electric shock and were told to apply the relaxation techniques they learned during the training phase even though no additional instructions and/ or biofeedback training would be provided. To assess the effectiveness of the shock manipulation, a no‐threat control group was included. Results indicated that: a) the shock manipulation was effective in increasing arousal, b) previous instructions and/or biofeedback were equally effective in reducing frontal EMG levels, but that c) only relaxation training was consistently effective in reducing subjective and autonomic indices of arousal. These findings: a) suggest that in stressful situations, relaxation training may be more effective than either EMG biofeedback or simple relaxation instructions in producing a general relaxation effect as opposed to a specific EMG effect; and b) indicate the importance of assessing the effectiveness of relaxation procedures during stressful situations during which subjects’ levels of arousal are elevated above resting baseline levels.
Sensation Seeking and Psychophysiological Responses to Auditory Stimulation
Authors: Ridgeway Doreen , Hare Robert D. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThis study tested the hypothesis that the orienting response (OR) is one of the biological correlates of sensation seeking. Skin conductance (SC), heart rate (HR), and peripheral vasomotor (VM) activity were recorded while ten 60dB, 1000 Hz, slow‐rise‐time tones were presented to male subjects with high (N = 16) and low (N = 15) total scores on Form V of the Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS).There were no significant differences between groups in the SC or VM responses to the first (novel) tone or in the rate at which these responses habituated. The HR response to the first tone was deceleration (an OR) for the high SS group (as well as for a high Disinhibition subgroup), while the response of the low SS group (and a low Disinhibition subgroup) included what appeared to be startle components—a short‐latency accelerative response that habituated rapidly on subsequent trials. It is suggested that individuals with low sensation seeking tendencies may be unusually prone to startle, and that subsequent research on the biological correlates of sensation seeking should take into account individual differences in the tendency to give orienting, defensive, and startle responses.
AERs and Detection in Tasks Yielding U‐Shaped Backward Masking Functions
Authors: Schwartz Marvin , Pritchard Walter S. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTIn backward masking, psychophysical performance varies as a function of the interval between target and mask (stimulus onset asynchrony—SOA). Early studies of averaged evoked responses (AERs) and backward masking suggested a close, monotonic relationship, i.e., increasing psychophysical performance accompanied by increasingly larger AERs as a function of SOA. We asked what would happen to AERs if the perceptual task were designed to produce a U‐shaped performance function, i.e., one in which performance initially decreased and then increased as a function of SOA? In two experiments U‐shaped psychophysical performance was accompanied by monotonic AER functions. In a third experiment, comparing backward and forward masking at comparable SOAs, disparate psychophysical performances were obtained from the same subjects accompanied by similar AERs. Target AERs do not necessarily correlate with a subject's behavioral performance.
Relationships Between Sex‐Related Psychological Characteristics During Adolescence and Catecholamine Excretion During Achievement Stress
Authors: Wright Maijaliisa Rauste‐von , Wright Johan von , Frankenhaeuser Marianne 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe study is concerned with stress and coping patterns in 18‐yr‐old male and female students who participated in a longitudinal developmental study. Measures of the urinary excretion of adrenaline and noradrenaline obtained during a 6‐hr matriculation examination (stress condition) and 2–3 hrs of routine school work (control condition) were related to relatively enduring psychological characteristics of the subjects assessed at the age of 18 and, for some of the variables, also at age 15. In the control condition, correlations between adrenaline excretion and psychological variables were low and sex differences slight. In the stress condition, the pattern of correlations between catecholamine excretion and psychological variables was much higher and markedly different for the two sexes. In males, adrenaline excretion was positively related to achievement‐orientation and negatively related to anxiety. In females, adrenaline excretion was negatively related to self‐esteem and sense of fulfilling social expectations. An interpretation emphasizing sex differences in strategies for coping with achievement demands is discussed.
Information Processing and Cardiovascular Control
Authors: Mulder G. , Mulder L. J. M. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTIt has previously been reported that an increase in mental task load is accompanied by a decrease in heart rate variability (HRV). In most of the experiments relating mental task load to HRV, the number of signals in paced choice reaction time tasks served as the main loading factor. However, this determinant of task load confounds muscular and mental load.In the present article we scored HRV by computing the power spectrum of the cardiac interval signal. The spectrum contains power related to respiratory activity (usually between 0.20 and 0.40 Hz) and power related to non‐linear processes involved in the control of body temperature and blood pressure (between 0.02 and 0.20 Hz). During performance on cognitive tasks the total power is attenuated, but the spectral power between 0.02 and 0.20 Hz (comprising about 80% of the total spectral energy, i.e. HRV) is particularly affected. Within this latter region we especially investigated the power between 0.06 and 0.14 Hz. The power in this region is believed to originate from processes involved in the dynamic control of mean arterial pressure. In Experiment 1 it was shown that this blood pressure‐related spectral component was rather insensitive to considerable changes in respiratory rate and depth. In Experiments 2 and 3 we kept signal rate constant but varied the cognitive demands of a sentence comprehension task and a working memory task. These experiments indicated that the power of the 0.10 Hz vasomotor oscillations was significantly affected by the processing demands of these tasks. The evidence suggested a decreased baroreflex sensitivity (i.e. a decrease in gain) during mental loading. A method was proposed to non‐invasively determine baroreflex sensitivity.
Simultaneous EMGs From Six Sites During Muscular Relaxation: A Comparison Between Forehead and Forearm Feedback
Authors: Sagberg Fridulv , Kveim Kolbjörn berg 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTIn light of the continuing popularity of frontalis EMG feedback for general relaxation purposes, a pertinent question is whether this procedure is superior to feedback from other muscles. This question was addressed by comparing a frontalis feedback group (n = 12) with a forearm feedback group (n = 10) in a one‐session experiment. The experimental session included a 10‐min rest period preceded by verbal relaxation instructions and demonstration of the respective feedback contingencies, and followed by a 30‐min feedback period. EMG records were obtained from forehead, forearm, neck, masseter, sternomastoid, and lower leg. In the two target muscles, significant group differences developed during rest, but no additional significant effects were produced during feedback. Regarding the four untrained sites, EMG tended to decrease in the forehead group, but not significantly below the levels of the forearm group. Simultaneous EMG cross‐correlations within 5‐min intervals based on successive 1‐sec averages showed significant covariation between muscles in the head and neck area; the source of this covariation was uncertain, however—electrical “crosstalk” and generalized muscular responding were two possibilities discussed.
Cardiac Orienting to Pulsed and Continuous Auditory Stimulation: A Developmental Study
Authors: Bohlin Gunilla , Lindhagen Karin , Hagekull Berit 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTPulsed presentations of auditory stimulation have been shown to be particularly effective in eliciting cardiac deceleration (orienting) during earliest infancy. In the present study the processing of pulsed as compared to continuous stimulation was studied developmentally for two infant age groups (13–18 and 26–35 weeks) and one adult group. Ten habituation trials of either a pulsed or a continuous 10‐sec tone were followed by 2 dishabituation trials, in which the temporal pattern (continuous vs pulsed) was shifted. The dishabituation data showed that the two kinds of stimulation were discriminated, but the only finding of differential processing relating to the relevance of pulsed stimulation for younger infants was a tendency for infant subjects, unlike adults, to show prolonged orienting to initial presentations of the pulsed tone. For rate of habituation there were no differential effects. Only in the adult group was the response during dishabituation influenced by the direction of change of temporal pattern. Orienting to stimulus offset was observed on initial presentations of the continuous stimulus for the older infant group.
Concept Identification as a Function of Preceding Negative or Positive Spontaneous Shifts in Slow Brain Potentials
Authors: Bauer Herbert , Nirnberger Günther 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe stimuli of a concept identification experiment (N = 20) were presented such that each stimulus was preceded by either a negative or a positive spontaneous slow potential shift in the EEG (C3 to mastoid). The stimuli were presented visually for 4 sec. The subject's task was to learn a concept consisting of one vertical and one slanted line. He or she responded by pressing a key within 2 sec after stimulus offset to indicate whether the stimulus belonged to the concept or not, with immediate feedback. Slow potential shifts were automatically detected by a computer and were used to trigger the stimuli. The results indicated that the concept was learned significantly faster when the stimulus was preceded by a negative shift (minimum of ‐ 25 μ V) than when it was preceded by a positive shift (minimum of + 25 μ V).
Operant Conditioning of Visual Evoked Potentials in Man
Authors: Roger M. , Galand G. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe operant conditioning technique was used to produce visual evoked response modifications in man. Our results show that: 1) 50% of our subjects are able to modify a definite component of their evoked potential. 2) These modifications still occur with irregular evoked potential intervals. 3) The criterion segment is the only part of the response which is modified; other components are not affected. 4) All components ranging from 90 to 385 msec can be modified; however, the second part of the response (after 200 msec) seems to be more easily modified.
Heart Beat Perception and Emotional Experience
Authors: Schandry Rainer 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe main assumption of the present study is that emotional experience is coupled to perception of bodily processes. From this it is deduced that individuals who show good perception of heart activity tend to exhibit higher levels of a momentarily experienced emotion (in this case anxiety) and to score higher on the personality trait “Emotional Lability.” The aspect of cardiac awareness considered here is perception of heart beats. Subjects were instructed to count heart beats (only by concentrating on their body but not by taking their pulse) during a signalled time interval and the reported number of beats was then compared to the actual number of beats as extracted from the EKG. Additionally, skin conductance and respiration were recorded. During the experimental task (i.e., counting heart beats) increases in heart rate, respiration rate and number of spontaneous fluctuations in skin conductance were recorded. Groups of good and poor perceivers were formed on the basis of accuracy on the perception task. The two groups did not differ in heart rate; however, in State Anxiety and Emotional Lability, the group of good perceivers had significantly higher scores. The importance of visceroception for emotional experience is pointed out and the relevance for clinical psychology is discussed.
The Intentional Paradigm and Cognitive Psychophysiology
Authors: O'Connor Kieron P. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTApplications of cognitive and non‐cognitive mediational models in psychophysiology are reviewed, and a case is presented for considering pre‐attentive intentionality of the subject as a determining factor in response formation.A paradigm shift away from the S‐R causal contingency approach, which structures stimulus and response as discrete and separable events, is proposed. An alternative acausal RS approach which integrates production of stimulus and response as a manifestation of subjects’ intentional behavior is suggested.According to this model,‘psychic’ and ‘somatic’ activities are linked in common expression of episodic intentional skills developed by the subject.Psychophysiological measures recorded within one such RS paradigm are illustrated, and some methodological and conceptual implications of adopting a cognitive psychophysiological paradigm are discussed.
The Variation of Amplitude in a Money‐Winning Paradigm in Children
Authors: Hömberg Volker , Grünewald Gerhard , Grünewald‐Zuberbier Erika 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTIn the present study the influence on amplitude of monetary payoff values linked to stimuli was investigated. Eight school boys (aged 11–13 yrs) were presented with random series of four equally frequent visual numeric stimuli (0, 2, 10, and 50). In the payoff condition (PC) subjects were told that each number would indicate the number of German pennies as a winning. In the no‐payoff condition (NPC) subjects only had to attend to the stimuli. The amplitude of a late positive component (P440–540) of the visual evoked potential (identified as a representation of the in this age group) was significantly larger in PC than in NPC. The amplitude was also influenced by the amount of monetary payoff, being significantly largest after presentation of the ‘50’stimulus. Results are discussed in terms of the relevance of information provided by the stimulus, internal categorization, and subjective probabilities of the stimuli.
Perceived Changes in the Intensity oi Arterial Pulsations as a Function oi Applied Cufi Pressure
Authors: Papillo James F. , Tursky Bernard , Friedman Richard 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTA psychophysical scaling procedure was employed to investigate subjects' ability to discriminate pulsatile arterial sensations produced by applying an occluding cuff about the upper arm. Subjects (n = 8) were exposed to 5 presentations of 7 occluding cuff pressure levels ranging from above systolic to below diastolic arterial pressure. During each cuff inflation, subjects were instructed to attend to the pulsating sensations in the arm. When the cuff deflated, subjects adjusted the volume ofa tone to a level that matched their subjective estimate of pulsation intensity. Consistent with previous reports, subjects perceived maximum intensity pulsations when cuff pressure approximated calculated mean arterial pressure (MAP), 1/3 (systolic ‐diastolic) + diastolic. The perceived intensity ofthe sensations decreased monotonically as cuff pressure was varied in either the systolic or diastolic direction producing a highly symmetrical function on both sides of MAP.The gradient of arterial pulsations produced by the occluding cuff pressure, the accuracy of the judgments ofthe intensity of perceived pulsations, and the possibility that these pulsations may he more physiologically related to the hemodynamics of blood flow, suggest that these sensations may be employed as a more effective discriminative stimulus in a blood pressure biofeedback procedure.
A Survey of Laboratory Computers in Psyehophysiology
Authors: Jones Gary E . , Buckley Marion F. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTSince the mid 196O's there has hcen a growing interest in and use of computers in psychophysiology laboratories. There are even a growing number of accepted physiological measures which are fully dependent on computer technology for their derivation. Although minicomputers have been in use for over a decade, recent developments in microcomputer and microprocessor technology have led to rapid acceptance of microcomputers for laboratory work. These rapid advances have produced a need to survey the current state of laboratory computer applications and development. A comprehensive survey was mailed to 301 psychophysiology laboratory groups during the spring and summer of 1979 and completed surveys were received from 61% of the mailing. Sun'ey results are reported on computer hardware and configuration, dependent measures and user satisfaction, and use and cost of engineering and programming support. Developments in computer hardware and user services are also discussed.
Detection of and Recovery from Errors in Cardiac Interbeat Intervals
Authors: Cheung Michael N. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTAn algorithm is presented for the detection and correction of errors in cardiac interbeat interval data. Detection of errors is based on the assumption that the beat‐to‐beat variation in R‐R intervals cannot exceed certain critical percentages of the preceding interval. Detected errors are corrected by merging the questionable internal with the preceding or the succeeding interval, or by subdividing it, in such manner that the resultant beat‐to‐beat variability, is minimized. The algorithm is shown mathematically to be capable of detecting errors in data with extreme beat‐to‐beat variability. Empirical experience with the algorithm suggests that it corrects errors satisfactorily under vigorous conditions.
Amplitude and Latency Changes in the Visual Evoked Potential to Different Stimulus Intensities
Authors: Connolly J. F. , Gruzelier J. H. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTVisual evoked potentials (VEPs) were recorded from five sites (T3, T4, Cz, O1, O2) to six intensities of light flashes. Peak‐to‐trough amplitudes were measured for the P100‐N120 and N120‐P200 waveforms as well as baseline (prestimulus)‐to‐peak amplitudes for each component (i.e. P100, N120, and P200). Different methods of defining augmenting/reducing were compared. These included subtracting the VEP epoch mean level from mean levels within a timeband corresponding to P100 and calculating slopes both for these values and for the P100‐N120 amplitudes across intensities. The technique of using slopes to describe amplitude‐intensity functions was found to be unjustified and misleading. The Augmenting/Reducing groups defined by the slopes of peak‐to‐trough amplitudes or slopes of the timeband “amplitudes” proved to be almost mutually exclusive. Results also showed that the frequency with which actual VEP peaks occur within the appropriate timeband is very low and differs topographically. Augmenting/Reducing was then defined by monotonic increases in the P100‐N120 peak‐to‐trough amplitudes. Augmenters and Reducers differed from each other not only for amplitude‐intensity patterns but on a number of latency measures. Hemisphere differences were also found between groups. An inverse relationship was found between occipital and vertex amplitude‐intensity patterns such that vertex augmenting was accompanied by occipital reducing and vice versa. Temporal and vertex amplitude‐intensity patterns were similar.
Facial Reactions to Facial Expressions
Authors: Dimberg Ulf 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTPrevious research has demonstrated that different patterns of facial muscle activity are correlated with different emotional states. In the present study subjects were exposed to pictures of happy and angry facial expressions, in response to which their facial electromyographic (EMG) activities, heart rate (HR), and palmar skin conductance responses (SCRs) were recorded. It was found that happy and angry faces evoked different facial EMG response patterns, with increased zygomatic region activity to happy stimuli and increased corrugator region activity to angry stimuli. Furthermore, both happy and angry faces evoked HR decelerations and similar SCR magnitudes. The results are interpreted as suggesting that facial EMG recordings provide a method for distinguishing between response patterns to “positive” and “negative” emotional visual stimuli.
The Cardiac Cycle Time Effect: Influence of Respiration Phase and Information Processing Requirements
Authors: Coles Michael G. H. , Pellegrini Ana M. , Wilson George V. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe duration of a cardiac cycle can be changed by a stimulus occurring within it. The degree of change depends on the cycle time of the stimulus (Lacey & Lacey, 1977). In three experiments, a warned, two‐choice, reaction time task was used to evaluate this cycle time effect. Information delivered by warning and respond stimuli was manipulated by varying the degree to which the former stimulus predicted the latter. Stimuli were presented at delays of between 0 and 600 msec from the‘R’wave, and changes in interbeat interval and respiration phase were assessed for each stimulus. Subjects with slow heart rates showed a cycle time effect (increase in deceleration with delay) for both warning and respond stimuli presented during expiration. For inspiration, no trend was found for respond stimuli; but, for warning stimuli, a paradoxical increase in acceleration with delay was observed. Fast heart rate subjects showed a cycle time effect (decrease in deceleration with delay) for respond stimuli only, but for both respiration phases. Information about response choice, when given either by warning or respond stimuli, led to larger decelerations but this result was only significant when data for conditions associated with maximal deceleration were considered. Results are discussed in terms of the role of vagal activity in mediating the cycle time effect.