Neuroanatomists posit that the central nucleus of the amygdala (Ce) and bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BST) comprise two major nodes of a macrostructural forebrain entity termed the extended amygdala. The extended amygdala is thought to play a critical role in adaptive motivational behavior and is implicated in the pathophysiology of maladaptive fear and anxiety. Resting functional connectivity of the Ce was examined in 107 young anesthetized rhesus monkeys and 105 young humans using standard resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) methods to assess temporal correlations across the brain. The data expand the neuroanatomical concept of the extended amygdala by finding, in both species, highly significant functional coupling between the Ce and the BST. These results support the use of in vivo functional imaging methods in nonhuman and human primates to probe the functional anatomy of major brain networks such as the extended amygdala.
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Recent passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 20091 provides significantly increased funding for renewable energy industries that are expected to increasingly supplant the traditional fossil fuel energy industries of coal, oil, and natural gas.
Objective—This study explored the relationship of experiential avoidance (e.g., the tendency to avoid, suppress, or otherwise control internal experiences even when doing so causes behavioral harm) to alcohol use disorders and alcohol-related problems. Participants—Cross-sectional data was collected from 240 undergraduate college students in their first year in college between December 2009 and April 2010.Methods—Participants completed a diagnostic interview and online self-report survey.
Results—Students with a history of alcohol abuse or dependence had significantly higher levels of experiential avoidance relative to students with no alcohol use disorder diagnosis. A hierarchical linear regression analysis found that experiential avoidance significantly predicted alcohol-related problems, even after controlling for gender and psychological distress. Furthermore, experiential avoidance mediated the relationship of psychological distress to alcoholrelated problems.
Conclusions—These findings suggest experiential avoidance may play a role in problematic alcohol use among college students.
Game theory models are ubiquitous in economics, common in political science, and increasingly used in psychology and sociology; in evolutionary biology, they offer compelling explanations for competition in nature. But game theory has been only sporadically applied to the humanities; indeed, we almost never associate mathematical calculations of strategic choice with the worlds of literature, history, and philosophy. And yet, as this book shows, game theory can illuminate the rational choices made by characters in texts ranging from the Bible to Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 and can explicate strategic questions in law, history, and philosophy. Much of its analysis is based on the theory of moves (TOM), which is grounded in game theory, and which is developed gradually and applied systematically throughout. TOM illuminates the dynamics of player choices, including their misperceptions, deceptions, and uses of different kinds of power. The book examines such topics as the outcome and payoff matrix of Pascal’s wager on the existence of God; the strategic games played by presidents and Supreme Court justices; and how information is slowly uncovered in the game played by Hamlet and Claudius. The reader gains not just new insights into the actions of certain literary and historical characters but also a larger strategic perspective on the choices that make us human.
Nature relatedness (NR) describes the affective, cognitive, and experiential aspects of human–nature relationships (Nisbet in Environ Behav 41: 715–740, 2009). Evidence from three studies suggests that individual differences in NR are associated with differences in well-being. In study 1 (N = 184), we explore associations between NR and a variety of well-being indicators, and use multiple regression analyses to demonstrate the unique relationship of NR with well-being, while controlling for other environmental measures. We replicate well-being correlates with a sample of business people (N = 145) in Study 2. In study 3 (N = 170), we explore the influence of environmental education on NR and well-being, and find that changes in NR mediate the relationship between environmental education and changes in vitality. We discuss the potential for interventions to improve psychological health and promote environmental behaviour.
Human beings have a deep need to be connected to each other. In the modern age that need is easily satisfied by a few seconds of flicking through social media feeds and catching up on each other’s selfies and status updates. For the last two decades or so our phones have given us a handy […]
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) courses are being taught around the world in various contexts and targeted to various populations. The program has been intentionally designed without a detailed teaching manual so as to allow instructors to respond to what is called for in each teaching moment. It also affords tailoring the program to specific circumstances such as when working with persons suffering from depression or substance abuse. But how does one remain true to core teaching intentions and program components, while undertaking such tailoring? Modifications to the format and content of MBSR have been reported but little is known if these adaptations influence outcomes and processes underlying change compared to the basic curriculum. Here we discuss what we consider to be essential aspects of the program to be carefully considered when adapting it. We describe selected adaptations of MBSR to highlight the types of changes made and report results when data are available. We conclude with suggestions pertaining to how to best remain authentic while being imaginative regarding the administration of MBSR in non-medical settings (e.g., prison) and for special populations (e.g., women with addictions).
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) courses are being taught around the world in various contexts and targeted to various populations. The program has been intentionally designed without a detailed teaching manual so as to allow instructors to respond to what is called for in each teaching moment. It also affords tailoring the program to specific circumstances such as when working with persons suffering from depression or substance abuse. But how does one remain true to core teaching intentions and program components, while undertaking such tailoring? Modifications to the format and content of MBSR have been reported but little is known if these adaptations influence outcomes and processes underlying change compared to the basic curriculum. Here we discuss what we consider to be essential aspects of the program to be carefully considered when adapting it. We describe selected adaptations of MBSR to highlight the types of changes made and report results when data are available. We conclude with suggestions pertaining to how to best remain authentic while being imaginative regarding the administration of MBSR in non-medical settings (e.g., prison) and for special populations (e.g., women with addictions).
Yoga has become a popular form of exercise and relaxation. Learn how yoga can help with panic and anxiety.
Over the past 30 years, mental health practitioners, encouraged by rigorous empirical studies and literature and meta-analytic reviews, have increasingly appreciated the ability of hypnosis to modulate attention, imagination, and motivation in the service of therapeutic goals. This article describes how hypnosis can be used as an adjunctive procedure in the treatment of depression and rumination symptoms, in particular. The focus is on attention-based treatments that include rumination-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive control training, and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. The authors provide numerous examples of techniques and approaches that can potentially enhance treatment gains, including a hypnotic induction to facilitate mindfulness and to motivate mindfulness practice. Although hypnosis appears to be a promising catalyst of attention and mindfulness, research is required to document the incremental value of adding hypnosis to the treatments reviewed.
Few complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) institutions require their students to undergo substantive training in research literacy and conduct, and well-developed programs to train CAM institution faculty in research are virtually non-existent. As part of a National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) initiative to increase research capacity at CAM institutions, the New England School of Acupuncture (NESA), in collaboration with the Harvard Medical School (HMS) Osher Institute, was awarded a Developmental Center for Research on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (DCRC) grant. This article discusses a number of initiatives that we designed and implemented to train NESA students, faculty members, and alumni in the foundations of clinical research and to stimulate interest in both participating in research and receiving additional research training. Specific initiatives included a 30-hour faculty "Foundations of Research" course; a year-long course entitled, "How to Write a Publishable Case Report"; institution of a monthly research seminar series; revision of an already required student research course; and the addition of 2 new student-mentored independent research electives. We discuss successes and challenges encountered in developing and administering these initiatives and the overall impact they have had on research culture and productivity at NESA.
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This book addresses the disparity between transformative learning theory as espoused and practiced in the classrooms of the academy, and its application beyond. It articulates new models of transformative education that integrate transformative learning theory with other models of change and development. The three editors and eleven contributors draw on both theory and practice to illustrate how transformative learning has been introduced to a variety of settings and cultures, and synergistically integrated with theories of communication, participatory action research, and communities of inquiry and practice. Organized around the themes of creating space for learning; looking though the lenses of culture, diversity, and difference; and animating awareness through the expressive and performative arts, this collection will broaden awareness and aid scholars, students, and practitioners in using transformative learning as an approach to adult learning and social and organizational change in a range of settings.
Abstract An important part of our Theory of Mind?the ability to reason about other people's unobservable mental states?is the ability to attribute false beliefs to others. We investigated whether processing these false beliefs, as well as similar but nonmental representations, is reliant on language. Participants watched videos in which a protagonist hides a gift and either takes a photo of it or writes a text about its location before a second person inadvertently moves the present to a different location, thereby rendering the belief and either the photo or text false. At the same time, participants performed either a concurrent verbal interference task (rehearsing strings of digits) or a visual interference task (remembering a visual pattern). Results showed that performance on false belief trials did not decline under verbal interference relative to visual interference. We interpret these findings as further support for the view that language does not form an essential part of the process of reasoning online (?in the moment?) about false beliefs.
Ananda Marga (AM) Yoga was taught to male inmates at Wake Correctional Center in Raleigh, NC. A five-year study of 190 inmates found that those who were taught Ananda Marga (AM) Yoga were significantly less likely to be reincarcerated upon release. Subjects were divided into two groups, those who attended at least one, but less than four classes, and those who attended more than four classes. Differences in reincarceration rates between these two groups during a two-year post-release period were striking. Of those who attended more than four classes, 8.5% were reincarcerated, while 25.2% of those who attended fewer than four classes were reincarcerated during this same period. This difference was found to be statistically significant at the 0.025 level.
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<p>This article argues that meditation guided by a competent teacher can be a positive influence in contemporary American society and even a force for progressive social change. A number of critical issues requiring further study are identified, including the need for a better understanding of meditation from the perspective of developmental psychology and of the relation between meditation and psychotherapy. The article proposes that American educational institutions can benefit from a deeper appreciation of the contemplative dimension of life. Special attention is given to how the American undergraduate college can provide students with opportunities to learn about and experience various forms of meditation. The role of teachers, chaplains, psychological counselors, and health care professionals in introducing meditation to students is discussed.</p>
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It is the purpose of this essay to explore ways in which the American undergraduatecollege can provide students with opportunities for understanding,
appreciating, and practicing the meditative and contemplative disciplines.
Since the assumption underlying this inquiry is a belief that meditation can
serve as an instrument of beneficial social change in American society, it is
useful at the outset to clarify the kind of social change that is desirable and to
suggest at least some ways meditation might be complementary to or even a
force for such change.
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Mindfulness meditation has garnered increased interest as a treatment for a variety of psychological conditions, including anxiety. Due to its increasing popularity and the lack of research comparing it with previously validated treatments, this project compares brief, laboratory-based mindfulness meditation and progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) interventions. These interventions were examined in relation to facets of state mindfulness, mood, and state anxiety, with particular emphasis on how gender differences moderate these outcomes. Undergraduate students were recruited and randomly assigned to either a mindfulness intervention or a relaxation intervention. Across conditions, participants reported significant reductions in both negative affect and positive affect, while those in the PMR group reported significant changes in cognitive anxiety and women in the PMR group reported significant changes in somatic anxiety. These results differ from those of previous studies, which could indicate that mindfulness and relaxation exercises may influence men and women differently when cognitive or somatic symptoms of anxiety are more predominant in the present moment. Additional applications of mindfulness and further directions for research are discussed.
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