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Hu Z, Wen Y, Wang Y, Lin Y, Shi J, Yu Z, Lin Y, Wang Y. Effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions on empathy: A meta-analysis. Front Psychol 2022; 13:992575. [PMID: 36337535 PMCID: PMC9632989 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.992575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 09/29/2022] [Indexed: 10/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Empathy is essential for human survival and social interaction. Although mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been used to improve empathy in healthy populations, its therapeutic efficacy remains unknown. This study aims to investigate the therapeutic effects of MBIs on empathy in a healthy population and the potential factors affecting the efficacy of MBIs. The literature search focused on PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and CNKI from inception to September 2022. Randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental studies reporting the effects of using MBIs on empathy in healthy populations were included. A total of 13 studies were included in this review. Results of the meta-analysis showed that MBIs improved empathy (SMD, 0.372, 95% CI, 0.164-0.579, p = 0.001) in the healthy population compared with that in the control group. Moreover, results of the subgroup analysis showed that intervention dose (over 24 h vs. under 24 h), format (online vs. offline), and types (different types) were important factors affecting treatment outcomes. This comprehensive review suggests that MBIs are effective treatment for empathy in healthy population. Future research should markedly focus on large-sample, rigorously designed experiments to explore the long-term effects of MBIs on empathy and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of MBIs. This study provides a reference for the daily application of MBIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengyu Hu
- Department of Sport Rehabilitation, Shenyang Sport University, Shenyang, China
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yurong Wen
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Department of Sport Rehabilitation, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, China
| | - Yafei Wang
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yangyang Lin
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jian Shi
- Department of Sport Rehabilitation, Shenyang Sport University, Shenyang, China
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zihan Yu
- Department of Sport Rehabilitation, Shenyang Sport University, Shenyang, China
| | - Youtian Lin
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Postgraduate Research Institute, Guangzhou Sport University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yuling Wang
- Rehabilitation Medicine Center, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
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2
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Miao J, Ailes I, Krisa L, Fleming K, Middleton D, Talekar K, Natale P, Mohamed FB, Hines K, Matias CM, Alizadeh M. Case report: The promising application of dynamic functional connectivity analysis on an individual with failed back surgery syndrome. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:987223. [PMID: 36213747 PMCID: PMC9537947 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.987223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS), a chronic neuropathic pain condition, is a common indication for spinal cord stimulation (SCS). However, the mechanisms of SCS, especially its effects on supraspinal/brain functional connectivity, are still not fully understood. Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) studies have shown characteristics in patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP). In this case study, we performed rsfMRI scanning (3.0 T) on an FBSS patient, who presented with chronic low back and leg pain following her previous lumbar microdiscectomy and had undergone permanent SCS. Appropriate MRI safety measures were undertaken to scan this subject. Seed-based functional connectivity (FC) was performed on the rsfMRI data acquired from the FBSS subject, and then compared to a group of 17 healthy controls. Seeds were identified by an atlas of resting state networks (RSNs), which is composed of 32 regions grouped into 8 networks. Sliding-window method and k-means clustering were used in dynamic FC analysis, which resulted in 4 brain states for each group. Our results demonstrated the safety and feasibility of 3T MRI scanning in a patient with implanted SCS system. Compared to the brain states of healthy controls, the FBSS subject presented very different FC patterns in less frequent brain states. The mean dwell time of brain states showed distinct distributions: the FBSS subject seemed to prefer a single state over the others. Although future studies with large sample sizes are needed to make statistical conclusions, our findings demonstrated the promising application of dynamic FC to provide more granularity with FC changes associated with different brain states in chronic pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingya Miao
- Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Jingya Miao,
| | - Isaiah Ailes
- Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Laura Krisa
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Kristen Fleming
- Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Devon Middleton
- Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Kiran Talekar
- Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Peter Natale
- Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Feroze B. Mohamed
- Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Kevin Hines
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Caio M. Matias
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Mahdi Alizadeh
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
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3
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Medrano-Escalada Y, Plaza-Manzano G, Fernández-de-las-Peñas C, Valera-Calero JA. Structural, Functional and Neurochemical Cortical Brain Changes Associated with Chronic Low Back Pain. Tomography 2022; 8:2153-2163. [PMID: 36136876 PMCID: PMC9498382 DOI: 10.3390/tomography8050180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Revised: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is one of the most prevalent musculoskeletal disorders, being one of the leading contributors to disability worldwide and involving an important economic and social burden. Up to 90% of CLBP is non-specific (not associated with specific injuries), with a chronicity expectation estimated at 10%. Currently, motivational and emotional central circuits are being investigated due to their role in CLBP persistency and chronification. Therefore, this narrative review aimed to summarize the evidence regarding the cortical brain changes described for proposing novel multidisciplinary approaches. Novel advances in neuroimaging techniques demonstrated structural (e.g., decrease in the grey matter located at the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), functional (e.g., connectivity impairments in those areas involved in pain processing), and neurochemical changes (e.g., decrease in cerebral metabolites). In addition, significant changes were found in the primary somatosensory and motor cortex, contributing to the alteration of low back muscles activation and function.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gustavo Plaza-Manzano
- Department of Radiology, Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
- Grupo InPhysio, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Hospital Clínico San Carlos (IdISSC), 28040 Madrid, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-913-941-545
| | - César Fernández-de-las-Peñas
- Department of Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28922 Alcorcón, Spain
- Clínica e Investigación en Fisioterapia, Terapia Manual, Punción Seca y Ejercicio Terapéutico, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28922 Alcorcón, Spain
| | - Juan Antonio Valera-Calero
- VALTRADOFI Research Group, Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health, Universidad Camilo José Cela, Villanueva de la Cañada, 28692 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health, Universidad Camilo José Cela, Villanueva de la Cañada, 28692 Madrid, Spain
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Mao CP, Wilson G, Cao J, Meshberg N, Huang Y, Kong J. Abnormal Anatomical and Functional Connectivity of the Thalamo-sensorimotor Circuit in Chronic Low Back Pain: Resting-state Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study. Neuroscience 2022; 487:143-154. [PMID: 35134490 PMCID: PMC8930700 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2022.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2021] [Revised: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Thalamocortical dysfunction is thought to underlie the pathophysiology of chronic pain revealed by electroencephalographic studies. The thalamus serves as a primary relay center to transmit sensory information and motor impulses via dense connections with the somatosensory and motor cortex. In this study, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) (probabilistic tractography) and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (functional connectivity) were used to characterize the anatomical and functional integrity of the thalamo-sensorimotor pathway in chronic low back pain (cLBP). Fifty-four patients with cLBP and 54 healthy controls were included. The results suggested significantly increased anatomical connectivity of the left thalamo-motor pathway characterized by probabilistic tractography in patients with cLBP. Moreover, there was significantly altered resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of bilateral thalamo-motor/somatosensory pathways in patients with cLBP as compared to healthy controls. We also detected a significant correlation between pain intensity during the MRI scan and rsFC of the right thalamo-somatosensory pathway in cLBP. Our findings highlight the involvement of the thalamo-sensorimotor circuit in the pathophysiology of cLBP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cui Ping Mao
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Georgia Wilson
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Jin Cao
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Nathaniel Meshberg
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Yiting Huang
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Jian Kong
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.
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Cabedo-Peris J, Martí-Vilar M, Merino-Soto C, Ortiz-Morán M. Basic Empathy Scale: A Systematic Review and Reliability Generalization Meta-Analysis. Healthcare (Basel) 2021; 10:29. [PMID: 35052193 PMCID: PMC8775461 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare10010029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Revised: 12/18/2021] [Accepted: 12/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The Basic Empathy Scale (BES) has been internationally used to measure empathy. A systematic review including 74 articles that implement the instrument since its development in 2006 was carried out. Moreover, an evidence validity analysis and a reliability generalization meta-analysis were performed to examine if the scale presented the appropriate values to justify its application. Results from the systematic review showed that the use of the BES is increasing, although the research areas in which it is being implemented are currently being broadened. The validity analyses indicated that both the type of factor analysis and reliability are reported in validation studies much more than the consequences of testing are. Regarding the meta-analysis results, the mean of Cronbach's α for cognitive empathy was 0.81 (95% CI: 0.77-0.85), with high levels of heterogeneity (I2 = 98.81%). Regarding affective empathy, the mean of Cronbach's α was 0.81 (95% CI: 0.76-0.84), with high levels of heterogeneity. It was concluded that BES is appropriate to be used in general population groups, although not recommended for clinical diagnosis; and there is a moderate to high heterogeneity in the mean of Cronbach's α. The practical implications of the results in mean estimation and heterogeneity are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Javier Cabedo-Peris
- Department of Basic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, Universitat de València, 46010 Valencia, Spain;
| | - Manuel Martí-Vilar
- Department of Basic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, Universitat de València, 46010 Valencia, Spain;
| | - César Merino-Soto
- Research Institute of the School of Psychology, Universidad de San Martín de Porres, Lima 15102, Peru
| | - Mafalda Ortiz-Morán
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Nacional Federico Villarreal, Lima 15088, Peru;
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The influence of social pain experience on empathic neural responses: the moderating role of gender. Exp Brain Res 2021; 240:53-69. [PMID: 34854933 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-021-06279-2] [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: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 09/11/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Empathy for pain, the ability to share and understand the pain of others, plays an important role in the survival and development of individuals. Previous studies have found that social pain experience affects empathy for pain, but potential gender differences have not been considered. The stage of information processing during which gender is most likely to play a moderating role has yet to be clarified. In the current study, we set up two groups (social pain experience priming: social exclusion group; positive social interaction experience priming: social inclusion group) with a Cyberball game paradigm. We recorded the electrophysiological responses when participants were completing an empathy task. An early frontal P2 and N2 differentiation between painful stimuli and neutral stimuli was observed and females showed larger P2 amplitudes than males. At the P3 stage, in the social exclusion group, males showed similar parietal P3 amplitudes for painful and neutral stimuli, while females showed smaller P3 amplitudes for painful stimuli. At the central-parietal late positive potential (LPP) stage, females in the social inclusion group showed larger LPP amplitudes for painful stimuli than males. Our results suggest that gender plays a significant moderating role in how social pain experience affects empathy for pain during the late cognitive processing stage. Experiment 2 was designed to investigate the cognitive mechanism behind the results for the P3 component in females and the results partially confirmed our speculation. This study provides a neurophysiological basis for the dynamic gender differences in the effects of social pain experience on empathy for pain.
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Impaired Cognitive Empathy in Outpatients with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study. Neural Plast 2021; 2021:4430594. [PMID: 34616448 PMCID: PMC8487839 DOI: 10.1155/2021/4430594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Background In recent years, a growing number of researchers showed significant interest in psychological and social interventions to manage chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain. Cognitive and emotional empathy is an attractive and valuable sociopsychological factor that may provide protection and resilience against chronic MSK pain. However, its effect on outpatients remains underexplored. Objective To compare the empathy ability between chronic MSK pain outpatients and healthy controls and explore the relationship between cognitive/emotional empathy and chronic pain. Methods Patients with chronic MSK pain (n = 22) and healthy controls (n = 26) completed the pain assessment and empathy ability task, utilizing a multidimensional empathy assessment tool with satisfactory reliability and validity (i.e., the Chinese version of the Multifaceted Empathy Test (MET-C)). Results The data indicated that the chronic MSK pain outpatients had impaired cognitive empathy (i.e., lower squared cognitive empathy accuracy: Student's t = −2.119, P = 0.040, and longer task completion time: Student's t = 3.382, P = 0.002) compared to healthy controls, and cognitive empathy was negatively correlated with pain intensity (r = −0.614, P = 0.002). Further, the impaired cognitive empathy was present in identifying positive, but not negative emotions. Conclusion These results indicate that chronic MSK pain is associated with impaired empathy ability. Our studies contribute to offering a potential direction for developing psychosocial interventions to treat chronic MSK pain.
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Fan M, Jie J, Luo P, Pang Y, Xu D, Yu G, Zhao S, Chen W, Zheng X. Social Exclusion Down-Regulates Pain Empathy at the Late Stage of Empathic Responses: Electrophysiological Evidence. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:634714. [PMID: 33732123 PMCID: PMC7956954 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.634714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2020] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Social exclusion has a significant impact on cognition, emotion, and behavior. Some behavioral studies investigated how social exclusion affects pain empathy. Conclusions were inconsistent, and there is a lack of clarity in identifying which component of pain empathy is more likely to be affected. To investigate these issues, we used a Cyberball task to manipulate feelings of social exclusion. Two groups (social exclusion and social inclusion) participated in the same pain empathy task while we recorded event-related potentials (ERP) when participants viewed static images of body parts in painful and neutral situations. The results showed early N2 differentiation between painful and neutral pictures in the central regions in both groups. The pattern at the late controlled processing stage was different. Parietal P3 amplitudes for painful pictures were significantly smaller than those for neutral pictures in the social exclusion group; they did not differ in the social inclusion group. We observed a parietal late positive potential (LPP) differentiation between painful and neutral pictures in both groups. LPP amplitudes were significantly smaller in the social exclusion group than those in the social inclusion group for painful stimuli. Our results indicate that social exclusion does not affect empathic responses during the early emotional sharing stage. However, it down-regulates empathic responses at the late cognitive controlled stage, and this modulation is attenuated gradually. The current study provides neuroscientific evidence of how social exclusion dynamically influences pain empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Fan
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jing Jie
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,School of Biomedical Engineering, Hainan University, Haikou, China
| | - Pinchao Luo
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yu Pang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,School of Education and Psychological Science, Sichuan University of Science, and Engineering, Zigong, China
| | - Danna Xu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,School of Management, Guangzhou Vocational College of Science and Technology, Guangzhou, China
| | - Gaowen Yu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shaochen Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,China People's Police University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wei Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xifu Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
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