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Perlstein S, Hawes SW, Byrd AL, Barzilay R, Gur RE, Laird AR, Waller R. Unique versus shared neural correlates of externalizing psychopathology in late childhood. JOURNAL OF PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND CLINICAL SCIENCE 2024; 133:477-488. [PMID: 38869879 PMCID: PMC11293992 DOI: 10.1037/abn0000923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2024]
Abstract
Childhood externalizing psychopathology is heterogeneous. Symptom variability in conduct disorder (CD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and callous-unemotional (CU) traits designate different subgroups of children with externalizing problems who have specific treatment needs. However, CD, ODD, ADHD, and CU traits are highly comorbid. Studies need to generate insights into shared versus unique risk mechanisms, including through the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In this study, we tested whether symptoms of CD, ODD, ADHD, and CU traits were best represented within a bifactor framework, simultaneously modeling shared (i.e., general externalizing problems) and unique (i.e., symptom-specific) variance, or through a four-correlated factor or second-order factor model. Participants (N = 11,878, age, M = 9 years) were from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study. We used questionnaire and functional magnetic resonance imaging data (emotional N-back task) from the baseline assessment. A bifactor model specifying a general externalizing and specific CD, ODD, ADHD, and CU traits factors demonstrated the best fit. The four-correlated and second-order factor models both fit the data well and were retained for analyses. Across models, reduced right amygdala activity to fearful faces was associated with more general externalizing problems and reduced dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activity to fearful faces was associated with higher CU traits. ADHD scores were related to greater right nucleus accumbens activation to fearful and happy faces. Results give insights into risk mechanisms underlying comorbidity and heterogeneity within externalizing psychopathology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Samuel W. Hawes
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL
| | - Amy L. Byrd
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Ran Barzilay
- Department of Psychiatry and the Lifespan Brain Institute of CHOP-Penn Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
| | - Raquel E. Gur
- Department of Psychiatry and the Lifespan Brain Institute of CHOP-Penn Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
| | - Angela R. Laird
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL
| | - Rebecca Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
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Paz Y, All K, Kohli S, Plate RC, Viding E, Waller R. Why Should I? Examining How Childhood Callous-Unemotional Traits Relate to Prosocial and Affiliative Behaviors and Motivations. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2024; 52:1075-1087. [PMID: 38498231 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-024-01170-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024]
Abstract
Childhood callous-unemotional (CU) traits are characterized by low empathy, limited prosocial behavior, and restricted social affiliation. However, few studies have investigated whether CU traits are associated with different subtypes of prosocial and affiliative behavior or the specific motivational difficulties underlying these behaviors. We addressed these questions using data from 135 young children (M = 5.48 years old; 58% female) who viewed depictions of adults or children in instrumental need, emotional need, or neutral situations. We assessed recognition, suggested initiation of, and motivation for prosocial or affiliative behavior in response to each depiction. We distinguished between subtypes of prosocial (instrumental and emotional) and affiliative (parallel, cooperative, associative) behavior, as well as self- versus other-orientated motivations. Parents reported on child CU traits and conduct problems. Overall, children accurately recognized prosocial and neutral situations, offered help, and expressed other-orientated motivations for prosocial behavior and social motivations for affiliative behavior. Higher CU traits were related to lower overall recognition accuracy, which was more pronounced for emotional need. Higher CU traits were also related to fewer offers of help and more denial of prosocial behavior, particularly for instrumental need. Finally, CU traits were related to lower probability of initiating affiliative behavior. CU traits were not differentially related to self- versus other-orientated motivations for prosocial or affiliative behavior. Findings demonstrate difficulties of children with CU traits in recognizing need and offering help. Interventions for CU traits could include modules that explicitly scaffold and shape prosociality and social affiliation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Paz
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, US
| | - K All
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, US
| | - S Kohli
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, US
| | - R C Plate
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, US
| | - E Viding
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - R Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave Stephen A. Levin Building, 425 S University Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, US.
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Waller R, Flum M, Paz Y, Perkins ER, Rodriguez Y, Knox A, Pelella MR, Jones C, Sun S, Denham SA, Herrington J, Parish-Morris J. Objective Linguistic Markers Associated with Callous-Unemotional Traits in Early Childhood. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2024:10.1007/s10802-024-01219-4. [PMID: 38874652 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-024-01219-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 06/15/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Callous-unemotional (CU) traits are associated with interpersonal difficulties and risk for severe conduct problems (CP). The ability to communicate thoughts and feelings is critical to social success, with language a promising treatment target. However, no prior studies have examined objective linguistic correlates of childhood CU traits in early childhood, which could give insight into underlying risk mechanisms and novel target treatments. METHODS We computed lexical (positive emotion, sad, and anger words) and conversational (interruptions and speech rate) markers produced by 131 children aged 5-6 years (M = 5.98; SD = 0.54, 58.8% female) and their parents while narrating wordless storybooks during two online visits separated by 6-8 weeks (M = 6.56, SD = 1.11; two books, order counterbalanced). Audio recordings were diarized, time-aligned, and orthographically transcribed using WebTrans. Conversational markers were calculated using R and word frequencies were calculated using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) software. We examined links between child CU traits and linguistic markers, and explored whether relationships were moderated by child sex. RESULTS Higher CU traits were associated with fewer positive emotion words produced by parents and children. Higher CU traits were also associated with greater concordance in the degree of interruptions and expression of anger emotion words by parents and children. CONCLUSIONS Results suggest that objective linguistic correlates of CU traits are detectable during early childhood, which could inform adjunctive treatment modules that improve outcomes by precisely tracking and targeting subtle communication patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
| | - M Flum
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Y Paz
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - E R Perkins
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Y Rodriguez
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - A Knox
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - M R Pelella
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - C Jones
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - S Sun
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - S A Denham
- George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA
| | - J Herrington
- Center for Autism Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylva, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - J Parish-Morris
- Center for Autism Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylva, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Cai CQ, White SJ, Chen SHY, Mueller MAE, Scott SK. Autistic adults perceive and experience laughter differently to non-autistic adults. Sci Rep 2024; 14:11590. [PMID: 38773178 PMCID: PMC11109116 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-56903-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Human interaction is immersed in laughter; though genuine and posed laughter are acoustically distinct, they are both crucial socio-emotional signals. In this novel study, autistic and non-autistic adults explicitly rated the affective properties of genuine and posed laughter. Additionally, we explored whether their self-reported everyday experiences with laughter differ. Both groups could differentiate between these two types of laughter. However, autistic adults rated posed laughter as more authentic and emotionally arousing than non-autistic adults, perceiving it to be similar to genuine laughter. Autistic adults reported laughing less, deriving less enjoyment from laughter, and experiencing difficulty in understanding the social meaning of other people's laughter compared to non-autistic people. Despite these differences, autistic adults reported using laughter socially as often as non-autistic adults, leveraging it to mediate social contexts. Our findings suggest that autistic adults show subtle differences in their perception of laughter, which may be associated with their struggles in comprehending the social meaning of laughter, as well as their diminished frequency and enjoyment of laughter in everyday scenarios. By combining experimental evidence with first-person experiences, this study suggests that autistic adults likely employ different strategies to understand laughter in everyday contexts, potentially leaving them socially vulnerable in communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ceci Q Cai
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - Sarah J White
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - Sinead H Y Chen
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - Marie A E Mueller
- Epidemiology and Applied Clinical Research, Division of Psychiatry, University College London, London, W1T 7BN, UK
| | - Sophie K Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK.
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Cai CQ, Lavan N, Chen SHY, Wang CZX, Ozturk OC, Chiu RMY, Gilbert SJ, White SJ, Scott SK. Mapping the differential impact of spontaneous and conversational laughter on brain and mind: an fMRI study in autism. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae199. [PMID: 38752979 PMCID: PMC11097909 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2024] [Revised: 04/23/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Spontaneous and conversational laughter are important socio-emotional communicative signals. Neuroimaging findings suggest that non-autistic people engage in mentalizing to understand the meaning behind conversational laughter. Autistic people may thus face specific challenges in processing conversational laughter, due to their mentalizing difficulties. Using fMRI, we explored neural differences during implicit processing of these two types of laughter. Autistic and non-autistic adults passively listened to funny words, followed by spontaneous laughter, conversational laughter, or noise-vocoded vocalizations. Behaviourally, words plus spontaneous laughter were rated as funnier than words plus conversational laughter, and the groups did not differ. However, neuroimaging results showed that non-autistic adults exhibited greater medial prefrontal cortex activation while listening to words plus conversational laughter, than words plus genuine laughter, while autistic adults showed no difference in medial prefrontal cortex activity between these two laughter types. Our findings suggest a crucial role for the medial prefrontal cortex in understanding socio-emotionally ambiguous laughter via mentalizing. Our study also highlights the possibility that autistic people may face challenges in understanding the essence of the laughter we frequently encounter in everyday life, especially in processing conversational laughter that carries complex meaning and social ambiguity, potentially leading to social vulnerability. Therefore, we advocate for clearer communication with autistic people.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ceci Qing Cai
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Nadine Lavan
- Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London E1 4NS, United Kingdom
| | - Sinead H Y Chen
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Claire Z X Wang
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Ozan Cem Ozturk
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Roni Man Ying Chiu
- Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Sam J Gilbert
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Sarah J White
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Sophie K Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, United Kingdom
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Paz Y, Perkins ER, Colins O, Perlstein S, Wagner NJ, Hawes SW, Byrd A, Viding E, Waller R. Evaluating the sensitivity to threat and affiliative reward (STAR) model in relation to the development of conduct problems and callous-unemotional traits across early adolescence. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2024. [PMID: 38480986 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The Sensitivity to Threat and Affiliative Reward (STAR) model proposes low threat sensitivity and low affiliation as risk factors for callous-unemotional (CU) traits. Preliminary evidence for the STAR model comes from work in early childhood. However, studies are needed that explore the STAR dimensions in late childhood and adolescence when severe conduct problems (CP) emerge. Moreover, it is unclear how variability across the full spectrum of threat sensitivity and affiliation gives rise to different forms of psychopathology beyond CU traits. METHODS The current study addressed these gaps using parent- and child-reported data from three waves and a sub-study of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study® of 11,878 youth (48% female; ages 9-12). RESULTS Consistent with the STAR model, low threat sensitivity and low affiliation were independently related to CU traits across informants and time. Moreover, there was significant interaction between the STAR dimensions, such that children with lower sensitivity to threat and lower affiliation had higher parent-reported CU traits. Unlike CU traits, children with higher threat sensitivity had higher parent-reported CP and anxiety. Finally, children with lower affiliation had higher parent-reported CP, anxiety, and depression. Results largely replicated across informants and time, and sensitivity analysis revealed similar findings in children with and without DSM-5 defined CP. CONCLUSIONS Results support the STAR model hypotheses as they pertain to CU traits and delineate threat sensitivity and affiliation as independent transdiagnostic risk factors for different types of psychopathology. Future research is needed to develop fuller and more reliable and valid measures of affiliation and threat sensitivity across multiple assessment modalities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yael Paz
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Emily R Perkins
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Olivier Colins
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Department of Special Needs Education, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium
| | - Samantha Perlstein
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Nicholas J Wagner
- Department of Brain and Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Samuel W Hawes
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Amy Byrd
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PN, USA
| | - Essi Viding
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Rebecca Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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7
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Cai CQ, Mueller MAE, Lima CF, Jin G, Turek A, Sivasathiaseelan H, Guldner S, Scott SK. Development of a novel tool to investigate human laughter behaviour and experience. Neurosci Lett 2024; 825:137690. [PMID: 38373631 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2024.137690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2023] [Revised: 02/12/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/21/2024]
Abstract
We present a questionnaire exploring everyday laughter experience. We developed a 30-item questionnaire in English and collected data on an English-speaking sample (N = 823). Based on Principal Component Analysis (PCA), we identified four dimensions which accounted for variations in people's experiences of laughter: laughter frequency ('Frequency'), social usage of laughter ('Usage'), understanding of other people's laughter ('Understanding'), and feelings towards laughter ('Liking'). Reliability and validity of the LPPQ were assessed. To explore potential similarities and differences based on culture and language, we collected data with Mandarin Chinese-speaking population (N = 574). A PCA suggested the extraction of the same four dimensions, with some item differences between English and Chinese versions. The Laughter Production and Perception Questionnaire (LPPQ) will advance research into the experience of human laughter, which has a potentially crucial role in everyday life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ceci Q Cai
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, University College London
| | - Marie A E Mueller
- Epidemiology & Applied Clinical Research, Division of Psychiatry, University College London
| | - César F Lima
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Gulun Jin
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, University College London
| | - Arabella Turek
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, University College London
| | - Harri Sivasathiaseelan
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, University College London
| | - Stella Guldner
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, University College London
| | - Sophie K Scott
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, University College London.
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Wagner N, Perkins E, Rodriguez Y, Ordway C, Flum M, Hernandez-Pena L, Perelstein P, Sem K, Paz Y, Plate R, Popoola A, Lynch S, Astone K, Goldstein E, Njoroge WFM, Raine A, Pincus D, Pérez-Edgar K, Waller R. Promoting Empathy and Affiliation in Relationships (PEAR) study: protocol for a longitudinal study investigating the development of early childhood callous-unemotional traits. BMJ Open 2023; 13:e072742. [PMID: 37802613 PMCID: PMC10565261 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-072742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Children with callous-unemotional (CU) traits are at high lifetime risk of antisocial behaviour. Low affiliation (ie, social bonding difficulties) and fearlessness (ie, low threat sensitivity) are proposed risk factors for CU traits. Parenting practices (eg, harshness and low warmth) also predict risk for CU traits. However, few studies in early childhood have identified attentional or physiological markers of low affiliation and fearlessness. Moreover, no studies have tested whether parenting practices are underpinned by low affiliation or fearlessness shared by parents, which could further shape parent-child interactions and exacerbate risk for CU traits. Addressing these questions will inform knowledge of how CU traits develop and isolate novel parent and child targets for future specialised treatments for CU traits. METHODS AND ANALYSIS The Promoting Empathy and Affiliation in Relationships (PEAR) study aims to establish risk factors for CU traits in children aged 3-6 years. The PEAR study will recruit 500 parent-child dyads from two metropolitan areas of the USA. Parents and children will complete questionnaires, computer tasks and observational assessments, alongside collection of eye-tracking and physiological data, when children are aged 3-4 (time 1) and 5-6 (time 2) years. The moderating roles of child sex, race and ethnicity, family and neighbourhood disadvantage, and parental psychopathology will also be assessed. Study aims will be addressed using structural equation modelling, which will allow for flexible characterisation of low affiliation, fearlessness and parenting practices as risk factors for CU traits across multiple domains. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION Ethical approval was granted by Boston University (#6158E) and the University of Pennsylvania (#850638). Results will be disseminated through conferences and open-access publications. All study and task materials will be made freely available on lab websites and through the Open Science Framework (OSF).
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Wagner
- Department of Brain & Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Emily Perkins
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Yuheiry Rodriguez
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Cora Ordway
- Department of Brain & Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Michaela Flum
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Lucia Hernandez-Pena
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Polina Perelstein
- Department of Brain & Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Kathy Sem
- Department of Brain & Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Yael Paz
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Rista Plate
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Ayomide Popoola
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Sarah Lynch
- Department of Brain & Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Kristina Astone
- Biostatistics and Epidemiology Data Analytics Center, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Ethan Goldstein
- Biostatistics and Epidemiology Data Analytics Center, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Wanjikũ F M Njoroge
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Adriane Raine
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Donna Pincus
- Department of Brain & Psychological Science, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Rebecca Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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Winters DE, Leopold DR, Carter RM, Sakai JT. Resting-state connectivity underlying cognitive control's association with perspective taking in callous-unemotional traits. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging 2023; 331:111615. [PMID: 36924739 PMCID: PMC10133184 DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2023.111615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
Abstract
Callous-Unemotional (CU) traits are often associated with impairments in perspective taking and cognitive control (regulating goal directed behavior); and adolescents with CU traits demonstrate aberrant brain activation/connectivity in areas underlying these processes. Together cognitive control and perspective taking are thought to link mechanistically to explain CU traits. Because increased cognitive control demands modulate perspective taking ability among both typically developing samples and individuals with elevated CU traits, understanding the neurophysiological substrates of these constructs could inform efforts to alleviate societal costs of antisocial behavior. The present study uses GIMME to examine the heterogenous functional brain properties (i.e., connection density, node centrality) underlying cognitive control's influence on perspective taking among adolescents on a CU trait continuum. Results reveal that cognitive control had a negative indirect association with CU traits via perspective taking; and brain connectivity indirectly associated with lower CU traits - specifically the social network via perspective taking and conflict network via cognitive control. Additionally, less negative connection density between the social and conflict networks was directly associated with higher CU traits. Our results support the growing literature on cognitive control's influence on socio-cognitive functioning in CU traits and extends that work by identifying underlying functional brain properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Drew E Winters
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, CO, USA.
| | - Daniel R Leopold
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, CO, USA; Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - R McKell Carter
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA; Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA, Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Joseph T Sakai
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, CO, USA
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Sun L, Lukkarinen L, Putkinen V, Karlsson HK, Hirvonen J, Tiihonen J, Lauerma H, Scott S, Nummenmaa L. Mu-opioid receptor system modulates responses to vocal bonding and distress signals in humans. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210181. [PMID: 36126675 PMCID: PMC9489292 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Laughter is a contagious prosocial signal that conveys bonding motivation; adult crying conversely communicates desire for social proximity by signalling distress. Endogenous mu-opioid receptors (MORs) modulate sociability in humans and non-human primates. In this combined PET-fMRI study (n = 17), we tested whether central MOR tone is associated with regional brain responses to social signals of laughter and crying. MOR availability was measured with positron emission tomography (PET) using the high-affinity agonist radioligand [11C]carfentanil. Haemodynamic responses to social laughter and crying vocalizations were measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Social laughter evoked activation in the auditory cortex, insula, cingulate cortex, amygdala, primary and secondary somatosensory cortex, and primary and secondary motor cortex; crying sounds led to more restricted activation in the auditory cortex and nearby areas. MOR availability was negatively correlated with the haemodynamic responses to social laughter in the primary and secondary somatosensory cortex, primary and secondary motor cortex, posterior insula, posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus, cuneus, temporal gyri and lingual gyrus. For crying-evoked activations, MOR availability was negatively correlated with medial and lateral prefrontal haemodynamic responses. Altogether our findings highlight the role of the MOR system in modulating acute brain responses to both positive and negative social signals. This article is part of the theme issue 'Cracking the laugh code: laughter through the lens of biology, psychology and neuroscience'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lihua Sun
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Lasse Lukkarinen
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku, Finland
| | - Vesa Putkinen
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Henry K. Karlsson
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Jussi Hirvonen
- Department of Radiology, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Jari Tiihonen
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute and Center for Psychiatry Research, Stockholm City Council, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry, University of Eastern Finland and Niuvanniemi Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Hannu Lauerma
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku, Finland
| | - Sophie Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK
| | - Lauri Nummenmaa
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Psychology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
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11
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Perlstein S, Hawes S, Vazquez AY, Pacheco-Colón I, Lehman S, Parent J, Byrd A, Waller R. Genetic versus environmental influences on callous-unemotional traits in preadolescence: The role of parenting and parental psychopathology. Dev Psychopathol 2022; 34:1-16. [PMID: 36229943 PMCID: PMC10102260 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579422000888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Children with callous-unemotional (CU) traits are at risk for severe conduct problems. While CU traits are moderately heritable, parenting also predicts risk. However, few studies have investigated whether parenting factors (e.g., acceptance, conflict, parental psychopathology) moderate the etiology of CU traits, while accounting for gene-environment correlations. To address this knowledge gap, we used data from 772 twin pairs from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study to test bivariate models that explored overlapping etiological influences on CU traits and child reports of their parenting environment. We also used gene-by-environment interaction models to test whether parenting moderated genetic versus environmental influences. There were no overlapping etiological influences on CU traits and parental acceptance, but modest genetic and non-shared environmental overlap between CU traits and family conflict. Parental acceptance and psychopathology moderated non-shared environmental influences, with stronger non-shared environmental influences on CU traits among children who experienced lower parental acceptance and greater parental psychopathology. Family conflict only moderated environmental influences when models did not covary for conduct problems. Parental acceptance and parental psychopathology may be specific environmental protective and risk factors for CU traits, whereas family conflict may represent a general environmental risk factor for both CU traits and conduct problems.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Samuel Hawes
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University
| | | | | | - Sarah Lehman
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University
| | | | - Amy Byrd
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh
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12
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Sun L, Lukkarinen L, Noppari T, Nazari-Farsani S, Putkinen V, Seppälä K, Hudson M, Tani P, Lindberg N, Karlsson HK, Hirvonen J, Salomaa M, Venetjoki N, Lauerma H, Tiihonen J, Nummenmaa L. Aberrant motor contagion of emotions in psychopathy and high-functioning autism. Cereb Cortex 2022; 33:374-384. [PMID: 35332920 PMCID: PMC9837606 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Psychopathy and autism are both associated with aberrant social skills and empathy, yet only psychopaths are markedly antisocial and violent. Here, we compared the functional neural alterations underlying these two groups that both have aberrant empathetic abilities but distinct behavioral phenotypes. We studied 19 incarcerated male offenders with high psychopathic traits, 20 males with high-functioning autism, and 19 age-matched healthy controls. All groups underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while they viewed dynamic happy, angry, and disgusted faces or listened to laughter and crying sounds. Psychopathy was associated with reduced somatomotor responses to almost all expressions, while participants with autism demonstrated less marked and emotion-specific alterations in the somatomotor area. These data suggest that psychopathy and autism involve both common and distinct functional alterations in the brain networks involved in the socioemotional processing. The alterations are more profound in psychopathy, possibly reflecting the more severely disturbed socioemotional brain networks in this population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lihua Sun
- Corresponding author: Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, Kiinamyllynkatu 4-8, Turku FI-20521, Finland.
| | | | | | | | - Vesa Putkinen
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, Turku FI-20521, Finland
| | - Kerttu Seppälä
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, Turku FI-20521, Finland,Department of Medical Physics, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Matthew Hudson
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, Turku FI-20521, Finland
| | - Pekka Tani
- Department of Psychiatry, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | - Nina Lindberg
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry, Helsinki University Hospital, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | | | - Jussi Hirvonen
- Department of Radiology, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku FI-20251, Finland
| | - Marja Salomaa
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku FI-20251, Finland
| | - Niina Venetjoki
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku FI-20251, Finland
| | - Hannu Lauerma
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku FI-20251, Finland,Department of Psychiatry, Turku University Hospital, Turku FI-20251, Finland,Department of Psychiatry, University of Turku, Turku FI-20251, Finland
| | - Jari Tiihonen
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm SE-11364, Sweden,Center for Psychiatry Research, Stockholm City Council, Stockholm SE-11364, Sweden,Department of Forensic Psychiatry, University of Eastern Finland, Niuvanniemi Hospital, Kuopio FI-70240, Finland
| | - Lauri Nummenmaa
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, Turku FI-20521, Finland,Turku PET Centre, Turku University Hospital, Turku FI-20521, Finland,Department of Psychology, University of Turku, Turku FI-20251, Finland
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13
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The Time Course of Emotional Authenticity Detection in Nonverbal Vocalizations. Cortex 2022; 151:116-132. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2021] [Revised: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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14
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Gaule A, Bevilacqua L, Molleman L, Roberts R, van Duijvenvoorde AC, van den Bos W, McCrory EJ, Viding E. Social information use in adolescents with conduct problems and varying levels of callous-unemotional traits. JCPP ADVANCES 2022; 2:e12067. [PMID: 37431497 PMCID: PMC10242950 DOI: 10.1002/jcv2.12067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2021] [Accepted: 01/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Adolescents with conduct problems (CP) are characterised by difficulties with social relationships and display atypical social cognition, such as when interpreting emotional expressions or engaging in social problem-solving. One important aspect of social cognition that warrants investigation is the degree to which these adolescents factor others' views into their already held beliefs, and strategies used to do so. Effective social information use enables attunement to social environment, cooperation, and social problem-solving. Difficulties in this regard could contribute to problems in social interactions in adolescents with CP, and may vary with adolescents' high (CP/HCU) versus low levels of callous-unemotional traits (CP/LCU). Methods We compared social information use in boys (11-16 years) with CP/HCU (n = 32), CP/LCU (n = 31) and typically developing (TD) peers (n = 45), matched for IQ. Participants provided estimates of numbers of animals on a screen, saw another adolescent's estimate, and could adjust their initial estimate. We compared two aspects of social information use: (1) degree of adjustment of initial estimate towards another's estimate and (2) strategy use when adjusting estimates. Results Degree of adjustment towards another's estimate did not vary across groups, but strategy use did. Adolescents with CP/LCU compromised less following social information than TD peers. Conclusions Findings suggest that while adolescents with CP are able to take social information into account, those with CP/LCU use this information in a way that differs from other groups and could be less efficient. This warrants further systematic investigation as it could represent a target for behaviour management strategies. Overall, this study highlights the need for more research delineating the social-cognitive profile of adolescents with CP/LCU.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Gaule
- Division of Psychology and Language SciencesUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Leonardo Bevilacqua
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Institute of EducationUCL, London, UK
| | - Lucas Molleman
- Amsterdam Brain and CognitionUniversity of AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- Department of Developmental PsychologyUniversity of AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- Social PsychologyTilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands
| | - Ruth Roberts
- Division of Psychology and Language SciencesUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Anna C. van Duijvenvoorde
- Department of Developmental and Educational PsychologyLeiden UniversityLeidenThe Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and CognitionLeiden UniversityLeidenThe Netherlands
| | - Wouter van den Bos
- Amsterdam Brain and CognitionUniversity of AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
- Department of Developmental PsychologyUniversity of AmsterdamAmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Eamon J. McCrory
- Division of Psychology and Language SciencesUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Essi Viding
- Division of Psychology and Language SciencesUniversity College LondonLondonUK
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15
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Pinheiro AP, Anikin A, Conde T, Sarzedas J, Chen S, Scott SK, Lima CF. Emotional authenticity modulates affective and social trait inferences from voices. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200402. [PMID: 34719249 PMCID: PMC8558771 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The human voice is a primary tool for verbal and nonverbal communication. Studies on laughter emphasize a distinction between spontaneous laughter, which reflects a genuinely felt emotion, and volitional laughter, associated with more intentional communicative acts. Listeners can reliably differentiate the two. It remains unclear, however, if they can detect authenticity in other vocalizations, and whether authenticity determines the affective and social impressions that we form about others. Here, 137 participants listened to laughs and cries that could be spontaneous or volitional and rated them on authenticity, valence, arousal, trustworthiness and dominance. Bayesian mixed models indicated that listeners detect authenticity similarly well in laughter and crying. Speakers were also perceived to be more trustworthy, and in a higher arousal state, when their laughs and cries were spontaneous. Moreover, spontaneous laughs were evaluated as more positive than volitional ones, and we found that the same acoustic features predicted perceived authenticity and trustworthiness in laughter: high pitch, spectral variability and less voicing. For crying, associations between acoustic features and ratings were less reliable. These findings indicate that emotional authenticity shapes affective and social trait inferences from voices, and that the ability to detect authenticity in vocalizations is not limited to laughter. This article is part of the theme issue 'Voice modulation: from origin and mechanism to social impact (Part I)'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana P. Pinheiro
- CICPSI, Faculdade de Psicologia, Universidade de Lisboa, Alameda da Universidade, 1649-013 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Andrey Anikin
- Equipe de Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle (ENES)/Centre de Recherche em Neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), University of Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, 42023 Saint-Etienne, France
- Division of Cognitive Science, Lund University, 221 00 Lund, Sweden
| | - Tatiana Conde
- CICPSI, Faculdade de Psicologia, Universidade de Lisboa, Alameda da Universidade, 1649-013 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - João Sarzedas
- CICPSI, Faculdade de Psicologia, Universidade de Lisboa, Alameda da Universidade, 1649-013 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Sinead Chen
- National Taiwan University, Taipei City, 10617 Taiwan
| | - Sophie K. Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - César F. Lima
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3AZ, UK
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Avenida das Forças Armadas, 1649-026 Lisboa, Portugal
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16
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Neves L, Martins M, Correia AI, Castro SL, Lima CF. Associations between vocal emotion recognition and socio-emotional adjustment in children. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:211412. [PMID: 34804582 PMCID: PMC8595998 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The human voice is a primary channel for emotional communication. It is often presumed that being able to recognize vocal emotions is important for everyday socio-emotional functioning, but evidence for this assumption remains scarce. Here, we examined relationships between vocal emotion recognition and socio-emotional adjustment in children. The sample included 141 6- to 8-year-old children, and the emotion tasks required them to categorize five emotions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, plus neutrality), as conveyed by two types of vocal emotional cues: speech prosody and non-verbal vocalizations such as laughter. Socio-emotional adjustment was evaluated by the children's teachers using a multidimensional questionnaire of self-regulation and social behaviour. Based on frequentist and Bayesian analyses, we found that, for speech prosody, higher emotion recognition related to better general socio-emotional adjustment. This association remained significant even when the children's cognitive ability, age, sex and parental education were held constant. Follow-up analyses indicated that higher emotional prosody recognition was more robustly related to the socio-emotional dimensions of prosocial behaviour and cognitive and behavioural self-regulation. For emotion recognition in non-verbal vocalizations, no associations with socio-emotional adjustment were found. A similar null result was obtained for an additional task focused on facial emotion recognition. Overall, these results support the close link between children's emotional prosody recognition skills and their everyday social behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonor Neves
- Centro de Investigação e Intervenção Social (CIS-IUL), Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Av. das Forças Armadas, 1649-026 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Marta Martins
- Centro de Investigação e Intervenção Social (CIS-IUL), Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Av. das Forças Armadas, 1649-026 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Ana Isabel Correia
- Centro de Investigação e Intervenção Social (CIS-IUL), Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Av. das Forças Armadas, 1649-026 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - São Luís Castro
- Centro de Psicologia da Universidade do Porto (CPUP), Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto (FPCEUP), Porto, Portugal
| | - César F. Lima
- Centro de Investigação e Intervenção Social (CIS-IUL), Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Av. das Forças Armadas, 1649-026 Lisboa, Portugal
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK
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17
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Plate RC, Zhao S, Katz C, Graber E, Daley G, Corbett N, All K, Neumann CS, Waller R. Are you laughing with me or at me? Psychopathic traits and the ability to distinguish between affiliation and dominance laughter cues. J Pers 2021; 90:631-644. [PMID: 34714936 DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Revised: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Laughter conveys important information that supports social communication and bonding. Research suggests that unique acoustic properties distinguish laughter that promotes affiliation from laughter that conveys dominance, but little is known about potential individual differences in laughter interpretation or contagion based on these specified social functions of laughter. Psychopathy is associated with both affiliative deficits (e.g., lack of empathy and impaired social bonding) and behaviors that assert social dominance (e.g., manipulativeness). Thus, relationships between psychopathic traits and impaired laughter interpretation or contagion could give insight into etiological pathways to psychopathy. METHOD In two studies conducted with four independent samples (total N = 770), participants categorized laughter clips that varied in the degree of affiliation or dominance conveyed. RESULTS Participants overall drew rich and accurate social inferences from dominant and affiliative laughter and modulated their interest in joining in with laughter based on the type and degree of affiliation and dominance conveyed. However, individuals higher in psychopathic traits failed to distinguish between laughter types and did not modulate their level of engagement based on laughter features. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest a potential mechanism that underlies the broader social difficulties associated with psychopathic traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rista C Plate
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Sylvia Zhao
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Chloe Katz
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Edie Graber
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Grace Daley
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Natalie Corbett
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Katherine All
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Craig S Neumann
- Department of Psychology, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA
| | - Rebecca Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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18
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Pre-SMA activation and the perception of contagiousness and authenticity in laughter sounds. Cortex 2021; 143:57-68. [PMID: 34388558 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2020] [Revised: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Functional near-infrared spectroscopy and behavioural methods were used to examine the neural basis of the behavioural contagion and authenticity of laughter. We demonstrate that the processing of laughter sounds recruits networks previously shown to be related to empathy and auditory-motor mirror networks. Additionally, we found that the differences in the levels of activation in response to volitional and spontaneous laughter could predict an individual's perception of how contagious they found the laughter to be.
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19
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Lima CF, Arriaga P, Anikin A, Pires AR, Frade S, Neves L, Scott SK. Authentic and posed emotional vocalizations trigger distinct facial responses. Cortex 2021; 141:280-292. [PMID: 34102411 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Revised: 04/21/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The ability to recognize the emotions of others is a crucial skill. In the visual modality, sensorimotor mechanisms provide an important route for emotion recognition. Perceiving facial expressions often evokes activity in facial muscles and in motor and somatosensory systems, and this activity relates to performance in emotion tasks. It remains unclear whether and how similar mechanisms extend to audition. Here we examined facial electromyographic and electrodermal responses to nonverbal vocalizations that varied in emotional authenticity. Participants (N = 100) passively listened to laughs and cries that could reflect an authentic or a posed emotion. Bayesian mixed models indicated that listening to laughter evoked stronger facial responses than listening to crying. These responses were sensitive to emotional authenticity. Authentic laughs evoked more activity than posed laughs in the zygomaticus and orbicularis, muscles typically associated with positive affect. We also found that activity in the orbicularis and corrugator related to subjective evaluations in a subsequent authenticity perception task. Stronger responses in the orbicularis predicted higher perceived laughter authenticity. Stronger responses in the corrugator, a muscle associated with negative affect, predicted lower perceived laughter authenticity. Moreover, authentic laughs elicited stronger skin conductance responses than posed laughs. This arousal effect did not predict task performance, however. For crying, physiological responses were not associated with authenticity judgments. Altogether, these findings indicate that emotional authenticity affects peripheral nervous system responses to vocalizations. They also point to a role of sensorimotor mechanisms in the evaluation of authenticity in the auditory modality.
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Affiliation(s)
- César F Lima
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Lisboa, Portugal; Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK.
| | | | - Andrey Anikin
- Equipe de Neuro-Ethologie Sensorielle (ENES)/Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), University of Lyon/Saint-Etienne, CNRS UMR5292, INSERM UMR_S 1028, Saint-Etienne, France; Division of Cognitive Science, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Ana Rita Pires
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Sofia Frade
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Leonor Neves
- Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL), Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Sophie K Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK
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20
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Martinelli A, Kreifelts B, Wildgruber D, Bernhard A, Ackermann K, Freitag CM, Schwenck C. Aggression differentially modulates neural correlates of social intention attribution to benevolent, tickling and taunting laughter: An fMRI study in children and adolescents. Soc Neurosci 2021; 16:303-316. [PMID: 33759708 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2021.1908420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Human laughter is a powerful means of communicating social intention, ranging from welcoming and friendly to hostile and ridiculing. To be communicated accurately, the recipient must correctly identify the laugher's underlying social intention. Regular misattribution of the social intention of others has been associated with maladaptive psychosocial development, in particular with aggressive behavior. We investigated the relationship between self-reported aggressive behavior and the neural correlates of social intention attributions to different audiovisual laughter types in 50 healthy children and adolescents (29 female, 10-18 years, M 15.5, SD 2.2) using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Trial-by-trial associations of neural response and behavioral attributions were distinctly modulated by aggression for benevolent versus taunting and tickling laughter. With increasing aggression, hostile misattributions of benevolent laughter were associated with decreased dorsolateral prefrontal and anterior insular cortex activation. In contrast, hostile attributions of taunting and tickling laughter were associated with increased superior frontal, superior temporal, medial prefrontal, supplementary motor, and anterior and mid-cingulate cortex activation. We argue that aggression may be associated with down-regulated emotional saliency of benevolent laughter, whereas up-regulated neural responses to taunting laughter may underlie a heightened sensitivity to hostility or acceptance of taunting behavior in more aggressive individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Martinelli
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - B Kreifelts
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - D Wildgruber
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - A Bernhard
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - K Ackermann
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - C M Freitag
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - C Schwenck
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany.,Department of Special Needs Educational and Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany
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21
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Helt MS, Sorensen TM, Scheub RJ, Nakhle MB, Luddy AC. Patterns of Contagious Yawning and Itching Differ Amongst Adults With Autistic Traits vs. Psychopathic Traits. Front Psychol 2021; 12:645310. [PMID: 33897548 PMCID: PMC8063025 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.645310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Accepted: 03/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Both individuals with diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and individuals high in psychopathic traits show reduced susceptibility to contagious yawning; that is, yawning after seeing or hearing another person yawn. Yet it is unclear whether the same underlying processes (e.g., reduced eye gaze) are responsible for the relationship between reduced contagion and these very different types of clinical traits. College Students (n = 97) watched videos of individuals yawning or scratching (a form of contagion not reliant on eye gaze for transmission) while their eye movements were tracked. They completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), the Psychopathy Personality Inventory-Revised (PPI-R), and the Adolescent and Adult Sensory Processing Disorder Checklist. Both psychopathic traits and autistic traits showed an inverse relationship to contagious yawning, consistent with previous research. However, the relationship between autistic (but not psychopathic) traits and contagious yawning was moderated by eye gaze. Furthermore, participants high in autistic traits showed typical levels of contagious itching whereas adults high in psychopathic traits showed diminished itch contagion. Finally, only psychopathic traits were associated with lower overall levels of empathy. The findings imply that the underlying processes contributing to the disruptions in contagious yawning amongst individuals high in autistic vs. psychopathic traits are distinct. In contrast to adults high in psychopathic traits, diminished contagion may appear amongst people with high levels of autistic traits secondary to diminished attention to the faces of others, and in the absence of a background deficit in emotional empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly S. Helt
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, United States
| | - Taylor M. Sorensen
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, United States
- New England Center for Children, Southborough, MA, United States
| | - Rachel J. Scheub
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, United States
- Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, United States
| | - Mira B. Nakhle
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, United States
- Department of Public Health, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Anna C. Luddy
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, United States
- Mass General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
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22
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Leveraging parasympathetic nervous system activity to study risk for psychopathology: The special case of callous-unemotional traits. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 118:175-185. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.07.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2020] [Revised: 06/14/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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23
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Berluti K, O’Connell KM, Rhoads SA, Brethel-Haurwitz KM, Cardinale EM, Vekaria KM, Robertson EL, Walitt B, VanMeter JW, Marsh AA. Reduced Multivoxel Pattern Similarity of Vicarious Neural Pain Responses in Psychopathy. J Pers Disord 2020; 34:628-649. [PMID: 33074056 PMCID: PMC9796697 DOI: 10.1521/pedi.2020.34.5.628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Psychopathy is a personality construct characterized by interpersonal callousness, boldness, and disinhibition, traits that vary continuously across the population and are linked to impaired empathic responding to others' distress and suffering. Following suggestions that empathy reflects neural self-other mapping-for example, the similarity of neural responses to experienced and observed pain, measurable at the voxel level-we used a multivoxel approach to assess associations between psychopathy and empathic neural responses to pain. During fMRI scanning, 21 community-recruited participants varying in psychopathy experienced painful pressure stimulation and watched a live video of a stranger undergoing the same stimulation. As total psychopathy, coldheartedness, and self-centered impulsivity increased, multivoxel similarity of vicarious and experienced pain in the left anterior insula decreased, effects that were not observed following an empathy prompt. Our data provide preliminary evidence that psychopathy is characterized by disrupted spontaneous empathic representations of others' pain that may be reduced by instructions to empathize.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn Berluti
- Department of Psychology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
| | | | - Shawn A. Rhoads
- Department of Psychology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
| | | | - Elise M. Cardinale
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
| | | | - Emily L. Robertson
- Department of Psychology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
| | - Brian Walitt
- National Institute of Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda. Maryland
| | - John W. VanMeter
- Department of Neurology, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC
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24
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Viding E, McCrory E. Disruptive Behavior Disorders: The Challenge of Delineating Mechanisms in the Face of Heterogeneity. Am J Psychiatry 2020; 177:811-817. [PMID: 32867523 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.20070998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Causal pathways to disruptive behavior disorders, even within the same diagnostic category, are varied. Both equifinality and multifinality pose considerable challenges to uncovering underlying mechanisms and understanding varied developmental trajectories associated with disruptive behavior disorders. Uncovering genetic causes requires improved granularity in how we operationalize presentation and developmental trajectories associated with disruptive behavior disorders. If we want to integrate the study of genetic, environmental, and neurocognitive factors within a longitudinal framework, we need to improve measurement. Furthermore, brain changes associated with disruptive behavior disorders should not simply be understood as outcomes of genetic and environmental influences, but also as factors that reciprocally influence future social environments over time in ways that are important in contributing to risk and resilience. Advancing the field with regard to these challenges will result in more truly integrated investigation of disruptive behavior disorders, which holds the promise of improving our ability to develop more effective preventive and intervention approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Essi Viding
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London
| | - Eamon McCrory
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London
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25
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Helt MS, de Marchena AB, Schineller ME, Kirk AI, Scheub RJ, Sorensen TM. Contagious itching is heightened in children with autism spectrum disorders. Dev Sci 2020; 24:e13024. [PMID: 33617103 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2019] [Revised: 06/23/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The authors tested susceptibility to contagious itching, laughter, and yawning in 55 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), ages 8-14, and 106 typically developing (TD) children, ages 5-14. Children with ASD were less likely to yawn or laugh contagiously compared with TD peers, but showed increased susceptibility to contagious itching, under naturalistic conditions. Contagious yawning and laughter were positively correlated with emotional empathy in the TD group. In contrast, contagious itching showed no relationship to empathy, and was positively correlated with autism symptom severity in the ASD group. The authors explore the implications of these findings in terms of psychological theories about ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly S Helt
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, USA
| | - Ashley B de Marchena
- Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, University of the Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Molly E Schineller
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, USA
| | - Anna I Kirk
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, USA
| | - Rachel J Scheub
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, USA
| | - Taylor M Sorensen
- Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Trinity College, Hartford, CT, USA
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26
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Roberts R, McCrory E, Bird G, Sharp M, Roberts L, Viding E. Thinking about Others' Minds: Mental State Inference in Boys with Conduct Problems and Callous-Unemotional Traits. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 2020; 48:1279-1290. [PMID: 32632744 PMCID: PMC7445196 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-020-00664-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Children with conduct problems (CP) and high levels of callous-unemotional traits (CP/HCU) have been found to have an intact ability to represent other minds, however, they behave in ways that indicate a reduced propensity to consider other people’s thoughts and feelings. Here we report findings from three tasks assessing different aspects of mentalising in 81 boys aged 11–16 [Typically developing (TD) n = 27; CP/HCU n = 28; CP and low levels of callous-unemotional traits (CP/LCU) n = 26]. Participants completed the Movie Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC), a task assessing ability/propensity to incorporate judgements concerning an individual’s mind into mental state inference; provided a written description of a good friend to assess mind-mindedness; and completed the Social Judgement Task (SJT), a new measure assessing mentalising about antisocial actions. Boys with CP/HCU had more difficulty in accurately inferring others’ mental states in the MASC than TD and CP/LCU boys. There were no group differences in the number of mind-related comments as assessed by the mind-mindedness protocol or in responses to the SJT task. These findings suggest that although the ability to represent mental states is intact, CP/HCU boys are less likely to update mental state inferences as a function of different minds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Roberts
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AP, UK.
| | - Eamon McCrory
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Geoffrey Bird
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.,MRC Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London, SE5 8AF, UK
| | - Molly Sharp
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Linda Roberts
- University of Manitoba, 66 Chancellors Cir, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3T 2N2, Canada
| | - Essi Viding
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AP, UK
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27
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Miron CD, Satlof-Bedrick E, Waller R. Longitudinal association between callous-unemotional traits and friendship quality among adjudicated adolescents. J Adolesc 2020; 81:19-26. [PMID: 32278252 DOI: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2020.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2019] [Revised: 02/20/2020] [Accepted: 03/30/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Youth with callous-unemotional (CU) traits show severe and chronic forms of antisocial behavior, as well as deficits in socioaffiliative processes, such as empathy, guilt, and prosocial behavior. Adolescence represents a critical developmental window when these socioaffiliative processes can help to deepen the strength of supportive peer friendships. However, few studies have explored the relationship between CU traits and friendship quality during adolescence. In the current study, we used data from the Pathways to Desistance dataset to examine reciprocal and longitudinal associations between CU traits and friendship quality at three assessment points separated by 6 months each during adolescence. METHODS The sample included adolescents who had interacted with the justice system (age at baseline, M = 16.04, SD = 1.14; N = 1354; 13.6% female). CU traits were assessed using the callousness scale of the self-reported Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory and friendship quality using a scale adapted from the Quality of Relationships Inventory. Models accounted for co-occurring aggression, impulsive-irresponsible traits, grandiose-manipulative traits, age, gender, location, and race. RESULTS At every assessment point, CU traits were uniquely related to lower friendship quality. Moreover, we found evidence for reciprocal effects between the first two assessment points, such that CU traits were related to decreases in friendship quality over time, while lower friendship quality simultaneously predicted increases in CU traits across the same period. CONCLUSIONS Interventions for CU traits could benefit from including specific modules that target the social processes associated with adaptive and successful friendships, including empathic listening and other-orientated thinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carly D Miron
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
| | | | - Rebecca Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA.
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28
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Correia AI, Branco P, Martins M, Reis AM, Martins N, Castro SL, Lima CF. Resting-state connectivity reveals a role for sensorimotor systems in vocal emotional processing in children. Neuroimage 2019; 201:116052. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2018] [Revised: 07/19/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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29
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The Sensitivity to Threat and Affiliative Reward (STAR) model and the development of callous-unemotional traits. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 107:656-671. [PMID: 31618611 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2019] [Revised: 10/07/2019] [Accepted: 10/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Research implicates callous-unemotional (CU) traits (i.e., lack of empathy, prosociality, and guilt, and reduced sensitivity to others' emotions) in the development of severe and persistent antisocial behavior. To improve etiological models of antisocial behavior and develop more effective treatments, we need a better understanding of the origins of CU traits. In this review, we discuss the role of two psychobiological and mechanistic precursors to CU traits: low affiliative reward (i.e., deficits in seeking out or getting pleasure from social bonding and closeness with others) and low threat sensitivity (i.e., fearlessness to social and non-social threat). We outline the Sensitivity to Threat and Affiliative Reward (STAR) model and review studies that have examined the development of affiliative reward and threat sensitivity across animal, neuroimaging, genetic, and behavioral perspectives. We next evaluate evidence for the STAR model, specifically the claim that CU traits result from deficits in both affiliative reward and threat sensitivity. We end with constructive suggestions for future research to test the hypotheses generated by the STAR model.
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30
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Viding E, McCrory E. Towards understanding atypical social affiliation in psychopathy. Lancet Psychiatry 2019; 6:437-444. [PMID: 31006435 DOI: 10.1016/s2215-0366(19)30049-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2018] [Revised: 01/13/2019] [Accepted: 01/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
One distinctive feature of individuals with psychopathy is their reduced motivation and capacity to develop authentic social relationships, which are founded on an enjoyment of prosocial interactions or concern for others. Surprisingly, potential neurocognitive vulnerabilities contributing to atypical social affiliation, and lack of prosocial behaviours in psychopathy, have yet to be systematically investigated. Research efforts have largely focused on how individuals with psychopathy process negative emotions, and how this might affect their capacity to feel guilt or empathise with others' distress. Here, we propose a framework for understanding the development of atypical social affiliation and attachment in psychopathy, and outline several key processes and neural systems speculated to underpin them. We then describe present neurocognitive findings that suggest that these processes and neural systems are compromised in individuals with, or at risk of developing, psychopathy. Finally, we consider several research directions that would help with the understanding of the origin and development of social affiliation in individuals with psychopathy. This work has the potential to inform and enhance prevention and treatment strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Essi Viding
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Eamon McCrory
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK; Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, UK
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31
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Sakai JT, Raymond KM, McWilliams SK, Mikulich-Gilbertson SK. Testing helping behavior and its relationship to antisocial personality and psychopathic traits. Psychiatry Res 2019; 274:98-104. [PMID: 30780067 PMCID: PMC6746344 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2019.02.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2017] [Revised: 02/09/2019] [Accepted: 02/09/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
When presented with decisions that require simultaneously weighing self-benefit and other harm, adolescents with callous-unemotional traits compared with controls engage in less Costly Helping (i.e., giving up a benefit to protect a beneficent other). Young adults completed questionnaires, played an online-administered game of Costly Helping, and viewed an Elevation stimulus video (when witnessing another's act of virtue, individuals may experience a positive or elevating response). Subjects were assigned to one of four study arms, which varied the order of presentation. Higher levels of Factor 1 (callousness) psychopathic trait scale scores (assessed using the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale) were associated with significantly less Costly Helping. Elevation associated positively with Costly Helping behaviors and negatively with psychopathic traits. Introducing Elevation as an independent variable in regression analyses attenuated the relationship between psychopathic traits and Costly Helping, suggesting mediation. Those viewing the Elevation stimulus video prior to playing the game, as opposed to after, trended toward more Costly Helping by taking less money for themselves ($3.28vs. $3.72). Results support that this simple game provides meaningful behavioral data associated with psychopathic traits. Differences in Elevation may, in part, explain the observed differences in prosocial behavior in those with high psychopathic traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph T. Sakai
- Corresponding author: Joseph Sakai, 13001 E. 17th Place, Campus Box F546, Aurora Colorado 80045, Telephone: 303-724-7402,
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32
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Pressman PS, Shdo S, Simpson M, Chen KH, Mielke C, Miller BL, Rankin KP, Levenson RW. Neuroanatomy of Shared Conversational Laughter in Neurodegenerative Disease. Front Neurol 2018; 9:464. [PMID: 29963008 PMCID: PMC6013725 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2018.00464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2018] [Accepted: 05/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Perceiving another person's emotional expression often sparks a corresponding signal in the observer. Shared conversational laughter is a familiar example. Prior studies of shared laughter have made use of task-based functional neuroimaging. While these methods offer insight in a controlled setting, the ecological validity of such controlled tasks has limitations. Here, we investigate the neural correlates of shared laughter in patients with one of a variety of neurodegenerative disease syndromes (N = 75), including Alzheimer's disease (AD), behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), right and left temporal variants of semantic dementia (rtvFTD, svPPA), nonfluent/agrammatic primary progressive aphasia (nfvPPA), corticobasal syndrome (CBS), and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). Patients were recorded in a brief unrehearsed conversation with a partner (e.g., a friend or family member). Laughter was manually labeled, and an automated system was used to assess the timing of that laughter relative to the partner's laughter. The probability of each participant with neurodegenerative disease laughing during or shortly after his or her partners' laughter was compared to differences in brain morphology using voxel-based morphometry, thresholded based on cluster size and a permutation method and including age, sex, magnet strength, disease-specific atrophy and total intracranial volumes as covariates. While no significant correlations were found at the critical T value, at a corrected voxelwise threshold of p < 0.005, a cluster in the left posterior cingulate gyrus demonstrated a trend at p = 0.08 (T = 4.54). Exploratory analysis with a voxelwise threshold of p = 0.001 also suggests involvement of the left precuneus (T = 3.91) and right fusiform gyrus (T = 3.86). The precuneus has been previously implicated in the detection of socially complex laughter, and the fusiform gyrus has a well-described role in the recognition and processing of others' emotional cues. This study is limited by a relatively small sample size given the number of covariates. While further investigation is needed, these results support our understanding of the neural underpinnings of shared conversational laughter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter S Pressman
- Division of Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry, Department of Neurology, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, United States.,Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.,Berkeley Psychophysiology Center, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Suzanne Shdo
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Michaela Simpson
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Center, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Kuan-Hua Chen
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Center, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Clinton Mielke
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Bruce L Miller
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Katherine P Rankin
- Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Robert W Levenson
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Center, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
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33
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Sonne JWH, Gash DM. Psychopathy to Altruism: Neurobiology of the Selfish-Selfless Spectrum. Front Psychol 2018; 9:575. [PMID: 29725317 PMCID: PMC5917043 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2018] [Accepted: 04/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The age-old philosophical, biological, and social debate over the basic nature of humans as being “universally selfish” or “universally good” continues today highlighting sharply divergent views of natural social order. Here we analyze advances in biology, genetics and neuroscience increasing our understanding of the evolution, features and neurocircuitry of the human brain underlying behavior in the selfish–selfless spectrum. First, we examine evolutionary pressures for selection of altruistic traits in species with protracted periods of dependence on parents and communities for subsistence and acquisition of learned behaviors. Evidence supporting the concept that altruistic potential is a common feature in human populations is developed. To go into greater depth in assessing critical features of the social brain, the two extremes of selfish–selfless behavior, callous unemotional psychopaths and zealous altruists who take extreme measures to help others, are compared on behavioral traits, structural/functional neural features, and the relative contributions of genetic inheritance versus acquired cognitive learning to their mindsets. Evidence from population groups ranging from newborns, adopted children, incarcerated juveniles, twins and mindfulness meditators point to the important role of neuroplasticity and the dopaminergic reward systems in forming and reforming neural circuitry in response to personal experience and cultural influences in determining behavior in the selfish–selfless spectrum. The underlying neural circuitry differs between psychopaths and altruists with emotional processing being profoundly muted in psychopaths and significantly enhanced in altruists. But both groups are characterized by the reward system of the brain shaping behavior. Instead of rigid assignment of human nature as being “universally selfish” or “universally good,” both characterizations are partial truths based on the segments of the selfish–selfless spectrum being examined. In addition, individuals and populations can shift in the behavioral spectrum in response to cognitive therapy and social and cultural experience, and approaches such as mindfulness training for introspection and reward-activating compassion are entering the mainstream of clinical care for managing pain, depression, and stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- James W H Sonne
- Department of Health Professions, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Don M Gash
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States
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