Association of dietary flavan-3-ol intakes with plasma phenyl-γ-valerolactones: analysis from the TUDA cohort of healthy older adults

BACKGROUND

Dietary polyphenols, including flavan-3-ols (F3O), are associated with better health outcomes. The relationship of plasma phenyl-γ-valerolactones (PVLs), the products of colonic bacterial metabolism of F3O, with dietary intakes is unclear.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate whether plasma PVLs are associated with self-reported intakes of total F3O and procyanidins+(epi)catechins.

DESIGN

We measured 9 PVLs by uHPLC-MS-MS in plasma from adults (>60y) in the Trinity-Ulster-Department of Agriculture (TUDA study (2008 to 2012; n=5186) and a follow-up subset (2014 to 2018) with corresponding dietary data (n=557). Dietary (poly)phenols collected by FFQ were analyzed using Phenol-Explorer.

RESULTS

Mean (95% confidence interval [CI]) intakes were estimated as 2283 (2213, 2352) mg/d for total (poly)phenols, 674 (648, 701) for total F3O, and 152 (146, 158) for procyanidins+(epi)catechins. Two PVL metabolites were detected in plasma from the majority of participants, 5-(hydroxyphenyl)-γ-VL-sulfate (PVL1) and 5-(4'-hydroxyphenyl)-γ-VL-3'-glucuronide (PVL2). The 7 other PVLs were detectable only in 1-32% of samples. Self-reported intakes (mg/d) of F3O (r = 0.113, P = 0.017) and procyanidin+(epi)catechin (r = 0.122, P = 0.010) showed statistically significant correlations with the sum of PVL1 and PVL 2 (PVL1+2). With increasing intake quartiles (Q1-Q4), mean (95% CI) PVL1+2 increased; from 28.3 (20.8, 35.9) nmol/L in Q1 to 45.2 (37.2, 53.2) nmol/L in Q4; P = 0.025, for dietary F3O, and from 27.4 (19.1, 35.8) nmol/L in Q1 to 46.5 (38.2, 54.9) nmol/L in Q4; P = 0.020, for procyanidins+(epi)catechins.

CONCLUSIONS

Of 9 PVL metabolites investigated, 2 were detected in most samples and were weakly associated with intakes of total F3O and procyanidins+(epi)catechins. Future controlled feeding studies are required to validate plasma PVLs as biomarkers of these dietary polyphenols.

Peripheral Amino Acid Appearance Is Lower Following Plant Protein Fibre Products, Compared to Whey Protein and Fibre Ingestion, in Healthy Older Adults despite Optimised Amino Acid Profile

Plant-based proteins are generally characterised by lower Indispensable Amino Acid (IAA) content, digestibility, and anabolic properties, compared to animal-based proteins. However, they are environmentally friendlier, and wider consumption is advocated. Older adults have higher dietary protein needs to prevent sarcopenia, a disease marked by an accelerated loss of muscle mass and function. Given the lower environmental footprint of plant-based proteins and the importance of optimising dietary protein quality among older adults, this paper aims to assess the net peripheral Amino Acid (AA) appearance after ingestion of three different plant protein and fibre (PPF) products, compared to whey protein with added fibre (WPF), in healthy older adults. In a randomised, single-blind, crossover design, nine healthy men and women aged ≥65 years consumed four test meals balanced in AA according to the FAO reference protein for humans, matched for leucine, to optimally stimulate muscle protein synthesis in older adults. A fasted blood sample was drawn at each visit before consuming the test meal, followed by postprandial arterialise blood sampling every 30 min for 3 h. The test meal was composed of a soup containing either WPF or PPF 1-3. The PPF blends comprised pea proteins with varying additional rice, pumpkin, soy, oat, and/or almond protein. PPF product ingestion resulted in a lower maximal increase of postprandial leucine concentration and the sum of branched-chain AA (BCAA) and IAA concentrations, compared to WPF, with no effect on their incremental area under the curve. Plasma methionine and cysteine, and to a lesser extent threonine, appearance were limited after consuming the PPF products, but not WPF. Despite equal leucine doses, the WPF induced greater postprandial insulin concentrations than the PPF products. In conclusion, the postprandial appearance of AA is highly dependent on the protein source in older adults, despite providing equivalent IAA levels and dietary fibre. Coupled with lower insulin concentrations, this could imply less anabolic potential. Further investigation is required to understand the applicability of plant-based proteins in healthy older adults.

Perinatal Penicillin Exposure Affects Cortical Development and Sensory Processing

The prevalent use of antibiotics in pregnant women and neonates raises concerns about long-term risks for children’s health, but their effects on the central nervous system is not well understood. We studied the effects of perinatal penicillin exposure (PPE) on brain structure and function in mice with a therapeutically relevant regimen. We used a battery of behavioral tests to evaluate anxiety, working memory, and sensory processing, and immunohistochemistry to quantify changes in parvalbumin-expressing inhibitory interneurons (PV+ INs), perineuronal nets (PNNs), as well as microglia density and morphology. In addition, we performed mesoscale calcium imaging to study neural activity and functional connectivity across cortical regions, and two-photon imaging to monitor dendritic spine and microglial dynamics. We found that adolescent PPE mice have abnormal sensory processing, including impaired texture discrimination and altered prepulse inhibition. Such behavioral changes are associated with increased spontaneous neural activities in various cortical regions, and delayed maturation of PV+ INs in the somatosensory cortex. Furthermore, adolescent PPE mice have elevated elimination of dendritic spines on the apical dendrites of layer 5 pyramidal neurons, as well as increased ramifications and spatial coverage of cortical microglia. Finally, while synaptic defects are transient during adolescence, behavioral abnormalities persist into adulthood. Our study demonstrates that early-life exposure to antibiotics affects cortical development, leaving a lasting effect on brain functions.

An analog of psychedelics restores functional neural circuits disrupted by unpredictable stress

Psychological stress affects a wide spectrum of brain functions and poses risks for many mental disorders. However, effective therapeutics to alleviate or revert its deleterious effects are lacking. A recently synthesized psychedelic analog tabernanthalog (TBG) has demonstrated anti-addictive and antidepressant potential. Whether TBG can rescue stress-induced affective, sensory, and cognitive deficits, and how it may achieve such effects by modulating neural circuits, remain unknown. Here we show that in mice exposed to unpredictable mild stress (UMS), administration of a single dose of TBG decreases their anxiety level and rescues deficits in sensory processing as well as in cognitive flexibility. Post-stress TBG treatment promotes the regrowth of excitatory neuron dendritic spines lost during UMS, decreases the baseline neuronal activity, and enhances whisking-modulation of neuronal activity in the somatosensory cortex. Moreover, calcium imaging in head-fixed mice performing a whisker-dependent texture discrimination task shows that novel textures elicit responses from a greater proportion of neurons in the somatosensory cortex than do familiar textures. Such differential response is diminished by UMS and is restored by TBG. Together, our study reveals the effects of UMS on cortical neuronal circuit activity patterns and demonstrate that TBG combats the detrimental effects of stress by modulating basal and stimulus-dependent neural activity in cortical networks.

The impact of HIV on hepatocellular cancer survival in Nigeria

BACKGROUND

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an increasing cause of mortality in HIV-infected individuals. We compared host and tumour characteristics between HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected Nigerians with HCC and examined the impact of HIV on survival.

METHODS

This prospective observational study was conducted at Jos University Teaching Hospital in Jos, Nigeria, among adults (>18 years) with HCC enrolled between September 2015 and September 2017 and followed until April 2019. Demographics, tumour characteristics and survival were compared between HCC subjects with and without HIV.

RESULTS

101 (10 HIV-infected and 91 HIV-uninfected) subjects were enrolled [male 72%; median age 48 (IQR 35-60)]. 60% HIV-infected subjects were receiving ART; 90% had CD4 counts ≥ 200/mm³ at HCC diagnosis, and 20% had HIV RNA levels < 20 copies/mL. 57.4% were infected with chronic HBV (HBsAg+). The duration of symptoms was shorter in HIV-infected vs. HIV-uninfected subjects [93 (IQR 54-132) vs. 155 (93-248] days; p = 0.02]. At the end of follow-up, 99 of 101 (98.0%) subjects were confirmed to have died: 9 of 10 (90.0%) HIV-infected and 90 of 91 (98.9%) HIV-uninfected. The probability of survival at three months was 22% and 47% in HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected subjects, respectively (P = 0.02). Median time to death was significantly shorter in HIV-infected vs. HIV-uninfected subjects [24 days (IQR 16-88) vs. 85 days (IQR 34-178), respectively (P = 0.03)].

CONCLUSIONS

High early mortality was observed in this cohort of Nigerian adults with HCC. HIV infection was associated with a faster clinical presentation and shorter survival. More aggressive HCC surveillance may be warranted in HIV-infected subjects, particularly if they are co-infected with chronic HBV.

The Diet of Higher Insulinemic Potential Is Not Associated with Worse Survival in Patients with Stage III Colon Cancer (Alliance)

BACKGROUND

Hyperinsulinemia is considered to be important in the development of colon cancer, but few studies have investigated the associations of hyperinsulinemia with colon cancer survival via dietary scores.

METHODS

Empirical dietary index for hyperinsulinemia (EDIH) was derived to assess the insulinemic potential of daily diets reflecting the long-term insulin exposure, with higher (more positive) scores indicating higher insulinemic diets. We prospectively estimated the HRs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) to investigate the association of EDIH with disease-free, recurrence-free, and overall survival among patients with stage III colon cancer (1999-2009) enrolled in a randomized adjuvant chemotherapy trial (CALGB 89803).

RESULTS

Of 1,024 patients (median follow-up: 7.3 years), 311 died, 350 had recurrences, and 394 had events for disease-free survival. Compared with patients in the lowest quintile of EDIH, the corresponding HRs of patients in the highest quintile for disease-free survival events, cancer recurrence, and overall mortality were 0.80 (95% CI, 0.56-1.15), 0.76 (95% CI, 0.51-1.11), and 0.77 (95% CI, 0.52-1.14).

CONCLUSIONS

Higher EDIH was not associated with the risk of colon cancer recurrence or mortality in this population of patients with stage III colon cancer.

IMPACT

EDIH, as a measure of dietary insulinemic potential, may be associated with colon cancer risk but not survival in patients with late-stage colon cancer.

Clinical Severity Alone Does Not Determine Disposition Decisions for Patients in the Emergency Department with Suicide Risk

BACKGROUND

Boarding of patients with suicide risk in emergency departments (EDs) negatively affects both patients and society. Factors other than clinical severity may frequently preclude safe outpatient dispositions among suicidal patients boarding for psychiatric admission in the ED.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the extent to which nonclinical factors preclude safe outpatient discharge from the ED among patients boarding for psychiatric admission based on suicide risk.

METHODS

A survey regarding the importance of 13 clinical and 19 nonclinical barriers to safe outpatient disposition was administered in the ED to 40 adults who were determined by psychiatrists to require inpatient level of psychiatric care due to suicide risk. A second survey regarding whether addressing the nonclinical factors would have enabled a safe outpatient disposition in each case was administered to the psychiatrists who evaluated each patient participant.

RESULTS

Out of 40 patient participants, 39 cited at least one nonclinical factor that could have enabled a safe outpatient disposition had it been correctable in the ED. According to the psychiatrists who made the decision to hospitalize, 10 (25%) of the patient participants could have been discharged had social support become available.

CONCLUSION

Both clinical and nonclinical factors affect disposition from the ED after an evaluation for suicide risk. Attention to nonclinical factors should be considered in programmatic efforts to reduce ED boarding of patients with suicide risk.

HIV-1 Nef-induced cardiotoxicity through dysregulation of autophagy

Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of co-morbidity in HIV-1 positive patients, even those in whom plasma virus levels are well-controlled. The pathogenic mechanism of HIV-1-associated cardiomyopathy is unknown, but has been presumed to be mediated indirectly, owing to the absence of productive HIV-1 replication in cardiomyocytes. We sought to investigate the effect of the HIV-1 auxiliary protein, Nef, which is suspected of extracellular release by infected CD4+ T cells on protein quality control and autophagy in cardiomyocytes. After detection of Nef in the serum of HIV-1 positive patients and the accumulation of this protein in human and primate heart tissue from HIV-1/SIV-infected cells we employed cell and molecular biology approaches to investigate the effect of Nef on cardiomyocyte-homeostasis by concentrating on protein quality control (PQC) pathway and autophagy. We found that HIV-1 Nef-mediated inhibition of autophagy flux leads to cytotoxicity and death of cardiomyocytes. Nef compromises autophagy at the maturation stage of autophagosomes by interacting with Beclin 1/Rab7 and dysregulating TFEB localization and cellular lysosome content. These effects were reversed by rapamycin treatment. Our results indicate that HIV-1 Nef-mediated inhibition of cellular PQC is one possible mechanism involved in the development of HIV-associated cardiomyopathy.

Effects of Deep Pressure on Arousal and Performance in Adults With Autism: Examining the Efficacy of the Vayu Vest

Date Presented 3/30/2017

Adults with autism have impairments in autonomic nervous system regulation that impact their ability to engage socially and perform functional tasks. This study tested the efficacy of a sensory-based technology, the Vayu Vest, as a means of altering autonomic arousal and increasing performance.

Primary Author and Speaker: Stacey Reynolds

Additional Authors and Speakers: Shelly Lane

Contributing Authors: Brian Mullen, Caitlin Boulware, Holly Timberline, Michelle Norris, Caitlin McDaniel, Kaitlyn Baumann, Anthony Guarriello

The Effect of Team Building on Performance

In this article, meta-analytic integration of research examining the effects of team building on performance is reported. Overall, there was no significant effect of team building on performance. However, the effects of team building varied as a function of the type of operationalization of performance: On objective measures of performance, there was a nonsignificant tendency for team building to decrease performance, whereas on subjective measures of performance, there was a significant, albeit small, tendency for team building to increase performance. Examination of the specific components of team building revealed that interventions emphasizing role clarification were more likely to increase performance, whereas interventions that emphasized goal setting, problem solving, or interpersonal relations were no more likely to render an increase or decrease in performance. Finally, the effects of team building decreased as a function of the size of the team. The discussion considers implications of these effects of team building on performance.

The Effects of Democratic Leadership on Group Member Satisfaction

Previous research highlights one of the paradoxes of different leadership styles: Group members may be more satisfied with democratic leadership, or group members may be more satisfied with autocratic leadership. A meta-analytic integration of research evidence addressing this paradox revealed that there was, in general, a significant, small tendency for groups experiencing democratic leadership to be more satisfied than groups experiencing autocratic leadership. However, these effects were moderated by several variables, including the reality of the groups, the size of the groups, the gender composition of the groups, and the potency of leadership style. These moderating variables may be important given the recent push toward adoption of democratic decision making in organizations. The discussion considers theoretical accounts for these effects of leadership style on member satisfaction.

Group Cohesiveness and Quality of Decision Making

This article reports the results of a meta-analytic integration of the effects of group cohesiveness on quality of decision making in groups. Overall, there was no significant effect of cohesiveness on the quality of group decisions. However, more cohesive groups rendered poorer quality decisions when additional antecedent conditions of groupthink were present (directive leadership). In addition, the component of cohesiveness that appears to be critical for the emergence of groupthink is interpersonal attraction: Cohesiveness impaired decision quality more as the operationalization of cohesiveness entailed more interpersonal attraction, and less as the operationalization entailed more commitment to task or group pride. Finally, more cohesive groups did render poorer quality decisions as group size increased. Discussion considers the implications of these resultsforfuture research on the relaion between cohesiveness and quality of decision making in particular, and on groupthink in general.

Ethnophaulisms for Ethnic Immigrant Groups: Cognitive Representation of `the Minority' and `the Foreigner'

An archival analysis was conducted on the ethnophaulisms for ethnic immigrant groups as a function of the size and the `foreignness' of those groups. Cognitive representation was operationalized as the degree of complexity in, and the valence of, the ethnophaulisms applied to ethnic immigrant groups in the United States during each of 15 consecutive 10-year time periods. Group size was operationalized as the number of first-generation persons in these ethnic groups during each of these same 15 10-year time periods. Foreignness was operationalized in terms of complexion, facial appearance, and language of these ethnic immigrant groups. Ethnophaulisms for smaller groups tended to be less complex and more negative. And, ethnophaulisms for more foreign groups tended to be less complex and more negative. Analyses delineate the interrelations between ethnic immigrant group size, ethnic immigrant group foreignness, and the cognitive representations of these groups. The implications of these results for research on intergroup perceptions are discussed.

Using Meta-Analysis to Test Theoretical Hypotheses in Social Psychology

This article discusses the use of meta-analysis to test theoretical propositions in social psychology. Strategies for identifying theoretically meaningful predictors are considered. Specific techniques for translating hypothesized moderators into operations are then presented. Finally, issues regarding the definition of independent and dependent variables are discussed. Taken together, these strategies and techniques provide a set of tools that enable researchers to take advantage of variability among the results of previous individual studies to develop or test aspects of social psychological theory.

Cognitive Representation in Ethnophaulisms and Illusory Correlation in Stereotyping

Previous research has examined complexity in ethnophaulisms as an indicator of cognitive representations of minority ethnic groups. Smaller groups have been demonstrated to evoke greater prototype representations, as evidenced in less complexity in the ethnophaulisms ascribed to these smaller groups. The present research extends this approach to the study of developing stereotypes for novel ethnic groups in the distinctiveness-based illusory correlation paradigm. Results of three studies confirm that in the absence of any preconceived cognitive representations of, or evaluative responses toward, these novel groups, the more salient group is subject to greater prototype representation. In addition, this greater prototype representation for the more salient group predicts the distinctiveness-based illusory correlation effect and thereby predicts differential evaluations toward the ethnic groups. The implications of these results for the study of the distinctiveness-based illusory correlation paradigm in particular, and for cognitive representations of social groups in general, are discussed.

Cumulative Meta-Analysis: A Consideration of Indicators of Sufficiency and Stability

This article considers the application of cumulative meta-analysis, defined as the procedure of performing a (new) meta-analysis at every point during the history of a research domain. Two distinct facets of cumulative knowledge are identified: sufficiency (“Are additional studies needed to establish the existence of the phenomenon?”) and stability (“Will additional studies change the aggregate picture of the phenomenon?”). These two facets of cumulative knowledge define the purpose of the present effort: How can we determine whether a cumulative meta-analytic database has achieved sufficiency and stability? The authors delineate indicators of sufficiency and stability that might be derived from cumulative meta-analyses and explore the use of these indicators in a set of previously published meta-analytic databases. Discussion explores both retrospective and prospective implications of this approach to cumulative knowledge and compares the implications of this approach to cumulative knowledge with alternative views of social psychology as history.

Sticks and Stones Can Break My Bones, But Ethnophaulisms Can Alter the Portrayal of Immigrants to Children

An archival study examined the portrayal of ethnic immigrants to children as a function of the prevailing cognitive representation of those ethnic immigrant groups in ethnophaulisms. The complexity in ethnophaulisms (and, to a lesser degree, the valence in ethnophaulisms) predicted the portrayal of ethnic immigrant groups. Overall, ethnic immigrant groups characterized in terms of ethnophaulisms of low complexity were less frequently present in children’s literature, children from these ethnic groups were described more in terms of physical appearance than in terms of personal traits, fictional child characters from those ethnic groups were portrayed with smaller heads and with lower verbal complexity, and the folksongs attributed to these groups had a more negative affective tone. The implications of these results for approaches to intergroup relations are considered.

Cross-Racial Facial Identification: A Social Cognitive Integration

A meta-analytic integration of the cross-racialfacial identification effect is reported. The results indicate a significant, weak-to-moderate tendency for individuals to be more accurate in the recognition off aces of in-group members than those of out-group members. There is a trend for this effect to be stronger among White subjects than Black subjects. In addition, predictors exhibited different patterns for Black subjects and White subjects. Specifically, greater depth of processing engaged by experimental instructions in these studies strengthened the effect for White subjects and weakened it for Black subjects. Similarly, the cross-racial facial identification effect increased as a function of the duration of exposure to the target faces for White subjects but decreased as a function of duration of exposure for Black subjects. These results are explained in terms of recent theoretical developments concerning intergroup phenomena, particularly in terms of mechanisms of cognitive representations of in-groups and out-groups.

Jaywalking as a Function of Model Behavior

A meta-analytic integration is reported that summarizes the effects of model behavior on pedestrian jaywalking. Results indicate that obedient models (models who do not jaywalk) produce a small but significant decrease in the frequency of pedestrian jaywalking. Disobedient models (models who jaywalk) produce a small but significant increase in the frequency of pedestrian jaywalking. Disobedient models are found to exert a greater effect than obedient models. Crowded sidewalks exaggerate the tendency for a disobedient model to increase jaywalking and undermine the tendency for an obedient model to decrease jaywalking. In addition, the status of the model influences the effect of the model on jaywalking behavior: Specifically, an obedient model is significantly more likely to produce a decrease in jaywalking when the model is of high status. However, a disobedient model is marginally less likely to produce an increase in jaywalking when the model is of high status. Finally, the influence of both obedient and disobedient models is greater in cities of larger size. Discussion considers the theoretical and practical implications of these patterns.

Selectivity in the Use of Social Comparison Information

Previous research has generally supported Festinger's proposal that similar others are preferred sources of comparison information, but has not examined the use to which the information is put. Subjects in the present study took a test and received a score and comparison information from both similar and dissimilar others. A change in the overall central tendency from a baseline value produced a significant shift in ability estimates only if the change involved the scores of similar others. Thus, selectivity in the desire for information extends to the use of that information for self-evaluation.

Ethnophaulisms and Exclusion: The Behavioral Consequences of Cognitive Representation of Ethnic Immigrant Groups

Ethnophaulisms are the words used as slurs to refer to ethnic immigrant outgroups. This article explores the effects of these cognitive representations of ethnic immigrant groups on exclusion behavior directed toward these immigrant groups. Using archival data spanning a 150-year period of American history, the results of these analyses provide a sobering picture of the effects of the cognitive representation of immigrants: a century and a half of thinking about ethnic immigrant groups in a simplistic and negative manner and a corresponding tendency to exclude those immigrant groups from the receiving society. The implications of these results for theoretical approaches to intergroup relations are considered.

Availability and Social Projection

Two studies are reported that examined the effects of sequence of measurement and wording of the estimation question on estimates of consensus. In both studies estimates of consensus for own choice, and hence the magnitude of false consensus effects, were larger when estimates were generated before making the choice and when individuals estimated consensus for their own choices. It is suggested that sequence of measurement and the wording of the estimation question influence the cognitive availability of the choices used in social projection research. These findings confirm at the level of primary research some subtle determinants of the magnitude of social projection effects that werefirst identified using meta-analytic techniques.

Evidence for the Accessibility of Paired Distinctiveness in Distinctiveness-Based Illusory Correlation in Stereotyping

A study was designed to examine the mechanism underlying the illusory correlation phenomenon. Previous evidence indicates that the salience of the paired distinctive information leads to greater accessibility of that information when later judgments are required. To test this idea, response latencies were measured as subjects performed the group assignment decision task used to measure illusory correlation. The results supported the paired-distinctiveness account for illusory correlations: Subjects over-attributed the rarer undesirable behaviors to the smaller group; they were quicker in making assignment decisions for small group/rare behavior events; and the assignment decision latencies for the small group/rare behavior events correlated the most strongly with the extent of illusory correlation.

Atrocity as a Function of Lynch Mob Composition

An archival analysis was conducted to determine whether the atrocities committed by lynch mobs could be accounted for in terms of self-attention processes. In all, 60 newspaper reports of lynching events were coded for information regarding group composition and atrocity. Group composition was operationalized in terms of the Other-Total Ratio (that is, Other-Total Ratio = Number of Victims/[Number of Victims + Number of Lynchers]), an algorithm previously established to predict the effects of group composition on self-attention processes. Atrocity was operationalized in terms of a composite index, representing the occurrence or nonoccurrence of hanging, shooting, burning, lacerating, or dismembering of the victim, as well as the duration of the lynching. The self-attention theory Other-Total Ratio was found to be significantly negatively related to lynch mob atrocity. It was suggested that, as the lynchers became more numerous relative to the victims, the lynchers became less self-attentive, or more deindividuated, leading to a breakdown in normal self-regulation processes, which in turn led to an increase in the transgressive behaviors represented by the composite index of atrocity.

Cognitive Representation in Ethnophaulisms as a Function of Group Size: The Phenomenology of Being in a Group

Two studies examined cognitive representation for minority groups of varying sizes. Cognitive representation was operationalized as the degree of complexity in the ethnophaulisms, or ethnic slurs, for these minority groups. The results of these studies confirm the prediction that prototype cognitive representations will be more prevalent for smaller groups. The relation between group size and cognitive representation could not be dismissed as an artifact of a more fundamental association between prejudice and cognitive representation. Moreover, this basic effect did not seem to vary as a function of the region of origin of these ethnic groups or membership in the groups. The Discussion section considers the implications of these results for the study of stereotyping.

Status, Expectations, and Behavior

Status characteristics and expectation states theory is concerned with the processes whereby status differentials activate performance expectations and with the effect of these expectations on behavior. The relative contributions of status and expectations to behavior have not been clearly established in previous primary-level studies. Moreover, researchers working within alternative perspectives on interaction inequality have argued that expectations are a superfluous epiphenomenon of behavior. A meta-analytic integration was therefore conducted on previous research that has examined the status expectations - behavior pattern of effects. Consistent with the formulations of the theory, the results indicate that status exerts its effects on behavior indirectly, through the effects of status on expectations and the effect of expectations on behavior.

Self-Awareness, Deindividuation, and Social Identity: Unraveling Theoretical Paradoxes by Filling Empirical Lacunae

In an effort to examine paradoxes involving self-awareness, deindividuation, and social identity, this article reports the results of a study that examines the effects of a range of manipulation operationalizations of self and social identity on a complement of measurement operationalizations of self and social identity. Specifically, participants completed measures of self-awareness and ethnic social identity while confronted with their mirror image, while wearing a mask, or while exposed to a family tree delineating their ethnicity. Patterns of mean levels of self-awareness and ethnic social identity are used to examine the paradox of depersonalization and deindividuation, the paradox of (a)symmetrical activation of components of identity, and the paradox of deindividuation and the search for identity. Discussion considers the limitations of this approach and considers the implications of these results for the long-standing study of the interplay between self and social identity.

Effects of deep pressure stimulation on physiological arousal

Deep pressure stimulation has been used in therapeutic practice because of the assumption that it changes physiological arousal. The purpose of this study was to test the effects of deep pressure stimulation, applied with a Vayu Vest (Therapeutic Systems), on both autonomic arousal and performance in a normative adult sample. A repeated-measures, repeated-baseline design was used with participants completing a performance test before and after deep pressure application. A convenience sample of 50 adults participated in the study. Results showed that wearing the Vayu Vest for even short periods of time reduced sympathetic arousal and non-stimulus-driven electrical occurrences. Concomitant increases in parasympathetic arousal were found. Performance improvements were noted after wearing the Vayu Vest, potentially because of changes in arousal. We conclude that deep pressure stimulation is capable of eliciting changes in autonomic arousal and may be a useful modality in diagnostic groups seen by occupational therapy practitioners.

Effects of Deep Pressure Stimulation on Performance and Physiological Arousal: A Pilot Study of the Vayu Vest

Date Presented 4/17/2015

This study tested the effects of deep pressure, applied through an inflatable vest, on autonomic arousal in typical adults. Results indicate that deep pressure can reduce sympathetic arousal and can increase parasympathetic arousal and may be useful with diagnostic groups that exhibit overarousal or anxiety.

Brain literate: making neuroscience accessible to a wider audience of undergraduates

The ability to critically evaluate neuroscientific findings is a skill that is rapidly becoming important in non-science professions. As neuroscience research is increasingly being used in law, business, education, and politics, it becomes imperative to educate future leaders in all areas of society about the brain. Undergraduate general education courses are an ideal way to expose students to issues of critical importance, but non-science students may avoid taking a neuroscience course because of the perception that neuroscience is more challenging than other science courses. A recently developed general education cluster course at UCLA aims to make neuroscience more palatable to undergraduates by pairing neuroscientific concepts with philosophy and history, and by building a learning community that supports the development of core academic skills and intellectual growth over the course of a year. This study examined the extent to which the course was successful in delivering neuroscience education to a broader undergraduate community. The results indicate that a majority of students in the course mastered the basics of the discipline regardless of their major. Furthermore, 77% of the non-life science majors (approximately two-thirds of students in the course) indicated that they would not have taken an undergraduate neuroscience course if this one was not offered. The findings also demonstrate that the course helped students develop core academic skills and improved their ability to think critically about current events in neuroscience. Faculty reported that teaching the course was highly rewarding and did not require an inordinate amount of time.

A new archival approach to the study of values and value--behavior relations: validation of the value lexicon

The present effort employs a new archival approach to study values and value- behavior relations, which is likely to be particularly useful in applied settings. A value lexicon was developed on the basis of the Schwartz (1992) value theory to extract lexical indicators of values from texts. The convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity of this measure was established using American newspaper content from 1900 to 2000 vis-à-vis existing self-report measures of values and objective indicators of value-expressive behaviors. Results provide empirical support for the use of the value lexicon to study values and value- behavior relations. First, the value lexicon demonstrated convergence with self-report responses of values. Second, values in American newspapers were associated with objective indicators of their corresponding value-expressive behaviors compared with noncorresponding value- expressive behaviors. Third, patterns of values over this 101-year period exhibited meaningful fluctuations with major historical and political events. The discussion describes new possibilities for future research on values in many applied settings with the value lexicon. The discussion also suggests that the principles of the value lexicon could be adopted to measure other psychological constructs of interest to applied psychology.