We use a new model of metarepresentational development to predict a cognitive deficit which could explain a crucial component of the social impairment in childhood autism. One of the manifestations of a basic metarepresentational capacity is a ‘theory of mind’. We have reason to believe that autistic children lack such a ‘theory’. If this were so, then they would be unable to impute beliefs to others and to predict their behaviour. This hypothesis was tested using Wimmer and Perner's puppet play paradigm. Normal children and those with Down's syndrome were used as controls for a group of autistic children. Even though the mental age of the autistic children was higher than that of the controls, they alone failed to impute beliefs to others. Thus the dysfunction we have postulated and demonstrated is independent of mental retardation and specific to autism.Résumé
Les auteurs présentent un nouveau mod`éle de développement méta-cognitif pour prédire le déficit cognitif qui rendrait compte d'un composant essentiel du handicap social de l'enfant autiste. Une des manifestations d'une capacité de base méta-cognitive est une ‘theorie de l'esprit'. Nous avons des raisons de croire que cette théorie fait defaut chez l'enfant autiste. Celui-ci serait done incapable d'attribuer des croyances aux autres ou de prédire leur comportement. Cette hypothèse a été testée avec le paradigme de jeu des marionettes utilisé par Wimmer et Perner. Des enfants normaux et des enfants avec trisomie 21 ont servi de groupe contrôle. Bien que Page mental des enfants autistes ait été plus élevé que deux du groupe contrôle, seuls les enfants autistes Wont pu attribuer aux autres des croyances. Ainsi le dysfonctionnement prévu a pu être démontre, il s'avère indépendant du retard mental et spécifique a l'autiste.
We use a new model of metarepresentational development to predict a cognitive deficit which could explain a crucial component of the social impairment in childhood autism. One of the manifestations of a basic metarepresentational capacity is a ‘theory of mind’. We have reason to believe that autistic children lack such a ‘theory’. If this were so, then they would be unable to impute beliefs to others and to predict their behaviour. This hypothesis was tested using Wimmer and Perner's puppet play paradigm. Normal children and those with Down's syndrome were used as controls for a group of autistic children. Even though the mental age of the autistic children was higher than that of the controls, they alone failed to impute beliefs to others. Thus the dysfunction we have postulated and demonstrated is independent of mental retardation and specific to autism.Résumé
Les auteurs présentent un nouveau mod`éle de développement méta-cognitif pour prédire le déficit cognitif qui rendrait compte d'un composant essentiel du handicap social de l'enfant autiste. Une des manifestations d'une capacité de base méta-cognitive est une ‘theorie de l'esprit'. Nous avons des raisons de croire que cette théorie fait defaut chez l'enfant autiste. Celui-ci serait done incapable d'attribuer des croyances aux autres ou de prédire leur comportement. Cette hypothèse a été testée avec le paradigme de jeu des marionettes utilisé par Wimmer et Perner. Des enfants normaux et des enfants avec trisomie 21 ont servi de groupe contrôle. Bien que Page mental des enfants autistes ait été plus élevé que deux du groupe contrôle, seuls les enfants autistes Wont pu attribuer aux autres des croyances. Ainsi le dysfonctionnement prévu a pu être démontre, il s'avère indépendant du retard mental et spécifique a l'autiste.
Grade level: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, e, i, s, t.
Based on the view that social and emotional learning (sel) needs to be an integral part of middle school education, this book provides an overview to social and emotional learning and the development of middle school students, presents a representative range of sel programs and perspectives, and offers reflections on the current status of sel and possible directions to take in creating and improving programs and perspectives. The chapters are: (1) "Social and Emotional Learning Past and Present: a Psychoeducational Dialogue" (Jonathan Cohen); (2) "The Meaning of Development in Middle School" (William Solodow); (3) "Why sel Is the Better Way: The New Haven Social Development Program" (Timothy P. Shriver, Mary Schwab-Stone, and Karol DeFalco); (4) "Creating a
Based on the view that social and emotional learning (SEL) needs to be an integral part of middle school education, this book provides an overview to social and emotional learning and the development of middle school students, presents a representative range of SEL programs and perspectives, and offers reflections on the current status of SEL and possible directions to take in creating and improving programs and perspectives. The chapters are: (1) "Social and Emotional Learning Past and Present: A Psychoeducational Dialogue" (Jonathan Cohen); (2) "The Meaning of Development in Middle School" (William Solodow); (3) "Why SEL Is the Better Way: The New Haven Social Development Program" (Timothy P. Shriver, Mary Schwab-Stone, and Karol DeFalco); (4) "Creating a Positive School Climate: Strategies for Fostering Self-Esteem, Motivation, and Resilience" (Robert B. Brooks); (5) "Social Decision Making and Problem Solving: Essential Skills for Interpersonal and Academic Success" (Maurice Elias and Linda Bruene Butler); (6) "The Development of Responsibility in Early Adolescence: Approaches to Social and Emotional Learning in the Middle School" (Ruth Charney, Linda Crawford, and Chip Wood); (7) "Social and Emotional Learning: A Psychoanalytically Informed Perspective" (Steven Marans and Jonathan Cohen); (8) "Waging Peace in Our Schools: Social and Emotional Learning through Conflict Resolution" (Janet Patti and Linda Lantieri); (9) "Social, Emotional, and Political Learning" (Peggy McIntosh and Emily Style); (10) "The Cognitive, Emotional, and Behavioral (CEB) Framework for Promoting Acceptance of Diversity" (Norris M. Haynes and Steven Marans); (11) "Successful Implementation of SEL Programs: Lessons from the Thinking Skills Movement" (Ronald S. Brandt); and (12) "Learning about Social and Emotional Learning: Current Themes and Future Directions" (Jonathan Cohen). Each chapter contains references. (KB)
Based on the view that social and emotional learning (sel) needs to be an integral part of middle school education, this book provides an overview to social and emotional learning and the development of middle school students, presents a representative range of sel programs and perspectives, and offers reflections on the current status of sel and possible directions to take in creating and improving programs and perspectives. The chapters are: (1) "Social and Emotional Learning Past and Present: a Psychoeducational Dialogue" (Jonathan Cohen); (2) "The Meaning of Development in Middle School" (William Solodow); (3) "Why sel Is the Better Way: The New Haven Social Development Program" (Timothy P. Shriver, Mary Schwab-Stone, and Karol DeFalco); (4) "Creating a
Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction, a stress-reduction program, has increasing empirical support as a patient-care intervention. Its emphasis on self-care, compassion, and healing makes it relevant as an intervention for helping nurses manage stress and reduce burnout. This article describes the implementation of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction in a hospital system as a way to lower burnout and improve well-being among nurses, using both quantitative and qualitative data.
Zotero Collections:
This article is the second in a series reporting on research exploring the effects of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction on nurses and describes the quantitative data. The third article describes qualitative data. Treatment group participants reduced scores on 2 of 3 subscales of the Maslach Burn...
Zotero Collections:
Part III of the study on mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) describes qualitative data and discusses the implications of the findings. Study analysis revealed that nurses found MBSR helpful. Greater relaxation and self-care and improvement in work and family relationships were among reported benefits. Challenges included restlessness, physical pain, and dealing with difficult emotions.
Zotero Collections:
Empathy was measured by an interview assessing emotions and cognitions in response to videotaped vignettes of persons in affective events and by empathy self-report questionnaires. As hypothesized, empathy was lower among conduct-disordered (CD) than comparison youth and was related inversely to antisocial and aggressive attitudes for all youth tested. Affectively, CD youth (n = 30) reported fewer concordant emotional responses to vignette persons than did a comparison peer group (n = 32). Cognitively, CD youth reported fewer correct identifications of vignette persons' emotions, lower mean levels of cognitive attributions for their own responsive emotions, and lower scores on empathy-related cognitive scales. Significant gender differences occurred, with girls scoring higher than boys on empathy questionnaires. Findings are discussed in terms of previous empathy and aggression research, and directions for future study are suggested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)
Empathy is an essential part of normal social functioning, yet there are precious few instruments for measuring individual differences in this domain. In this article we review psychological theories of empathy and its measurement. Previous instruments that purport to measure this have not always focused purely on empathy. We report a new self-report questionnaire, the Empathy Quotient (EQ), for use with adults of normal intelligence. It contains 40 empathy items and 20 filler/control items. On each empathy item a person can score 2, 1, or 0, so the EQ has a maximum score of 80 and a minimum of zero. In Study 1 we employed the EQ with n = 90 adults (65 males, 25 females) with Asperger Syndrome (AS) or high-functioning autism (HFA), who are reported clinically to have difficulties in empathy. The adults with AS/HFA scored significantly lower on the EQ than n = 90 (65 males, 25 females) age-matched controls. Of the adults with AS/HFA, 81% scored equal to or fewer than 30 points out of 80, compared with only 12% of controls. In Study 2 we carried out a study of n = 197 adults from a general population, to test for previously reported sex differences (female superiority) in empathy. This confirmed that women scored significantly higher than men. The EQ reveals both a sex difference in empathy in the general population and an empathy deficit in AS/HFA.
We estimate the environmental and public health benefits that may be realized if solar energy cost reductions continue until solar power is competitive across the U.S. without subsidies. Specifically, we model, from 2015 to 2050, solar power–induced reductions to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, air pollutant emissions, and water usage. To find the incremental benefits of new solar deployment, we compare the difference between two scenarios, one where solar costs have fallen such that solar supplies 14% of the nation's electricity by 2030 and 27% by 2050, and a baseline scenario in which no solar is added after 2014. We monetize benefits, where credible methods exist to do so. We find that under these scenarios, solar power reduces GHG and air pollutants by ∼10%, from 2015 to 2050, providing a discounted present value of $56–$789 billion (central value of ∼$250 billion, equivalent to ∼2 ¢/kWh-solar) in climate benefits and $77–$298 billion (central value of $167 billion, or ∼1.4 ¢/kWh-solar) in air quality and public health benefits. The ranges reflect uncertainty within the literature about the marginal impact of emissions of GHG and air pollutants. Solar power is also found to reduce water withdrawals and consumption by 4% and 9%, respectively, including in many drought-prone states.
The goal of this study was to evaluate potential mental health benefits of yoga for adolescents in secondary school. Students were randomly assigned to either regular physical education classes or to 11 weeks of yoga sessions based upon the Yoga Ed program over a single semester. Students completed baseline and end-program self-report measures of mood, anxiety, perceived stress, resilience, and other mental health variables. Independent evaluation of individual outcome measures revealed that yoga participants showed statistically significant differences over time relative to controls on measures of anger control and fatigue/inertia. Most outcome measures exhibited a pattern of worsening in the control group over time, whereas changes in the yoga group over time were either minimal or showed slight improvements. These preliminary results suggest that implementation of yoga is acceptable and feasible in a secondary school setting and has the potential of playing a protective or preventive role in maintaining mental health.
Zotero Collections:
In recent years, the term integrative medicine has gained acceptance in medical academia. The Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine defines this term as "the practice of medicine that reaffirms the importance of the relationship between practitioner and patient, focuses on the whole person, is informed by evidence, and makes use of all appropriate therapeutic approaches, healthcare professionals, and disciplines to achieve optimal health and healing."1 Integrative oncology has been specifically described as both a science and a philosophy that focuses on the complex health of people with cancer and proposes an array of approaches to accompany the conventional therapies of surgery, chemotherapy, molecular therapeutics, and radiotherapy to facilitate health.2 The SIO and its Medline-indexed journal ( Journal of the Society of Integrative Oncology ), founded by leading oncologists and oncology professionals from major cancer centers and organizations, promote quality research and appropriate application of useful, adjunctive complementary modalities (〈http://www.IntegrativeOnc. org〉). The SIO assembled a panel of experts in oncology and integrative medicine to evaluate the current level of evidence regarding complementary therapies in the care of cancer patients. To help health care professionals make evidence-based treatment decisions in integrative oncology, the panel made specific recommendations based on the strength of the evidence and the risks/ benefits ratio. These practice guidelines, developed by the authors and endorsed by the Executive Committee of the SIO, address principles for clinical encounters, followed by individual classes of treatment modalities. There is an essential difference between "complementary" and " alternative" therapies. "Alternative" therapies are typically promoted as a substitute for mainstream care. By definition, alternative therapies have not been scientifically proven, often have no scientific foundation, and have sometimes even been disproved. However, complementary medicine makes use of unconventional treatment modalities and approaches that are nonsurgical and nonpharmaceutical but that have known efficacy. When combined with mainstream care, these modalities can enhance effectiveness and reduce adverse symptoms. The use of complementary and alternative therapies by cancer patients is common, and given that complementary therapies can be helpful in symptom control, but the substitution of therapies with no evidence of safety and/or efficacy can delay or impede treatment, we strongly recommend that medical professionals routinely inquire as to the use of such therapies during the initial evaluation of cancer patients. The extensive use of complementary and alternative therapies can also challenge and frustrate both health care professionals and patients, leading to a gap in communication that negatively affects the patient-provider relationship. This communication gap may also arise from the patient's perception that health care professionals are indifferent to or object to the use of unconventional therapies, a perception that can lead to a loss of trust within the therapeutic bond. Health care professionals, who remain open to inquiries and aware of subtle, nonverbal messages from patients, can create an environment where patients feel free to openly discuss all choices in their care. Evidence suggests that patients supported in this manner are less likely to pursue potentially dangerous alternative therapies and are more likely to adhere to conventional, evidence-based treatment programs. We strongly recommend that qualified professionals provide guidance in an open, evidence-based, and patient-centric manner with those who use or are interested in pursuing complementary or alternative medicine so that they can approach these therapies appropriately. Patients should be informed of the conventional treatment approach, the nature of specific alternative therapies, the realistic expectations, and the potential risks and benefits. © 2009 BC Decker Inc.
Hypothesis This study examines moderators and mediators of a yoga intervention targeting quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes in women with breast cancer receiving radiotherapy.Methods Women undergoing 6 weeks of radiotherapy were randomized to a yoga (YG; n = 53) or stretching (ST; n = 56) intervention or a waitlist control group (WL; n = 54). Depressive symptoms and sleep disturbances were measured at baseline. Mediator (posttraumatic stress symptoms, benefit finding, and cortisol slope) and outcome (36-item Short Form [SF]-36 mental and physical component scales [MCS and PCS]) variables were assessed at baseline, end-of-treatment, and 1-, 3-, and 6-months posttreatment. Results Baseline depressive symptoms (P = .03) and sleep disturbances (P < .01) moderated the Group x Time effect on MCS, but not PCS. Women with high baseline depressive symptoms in YG reported marginally higher 3-month MCS than their counterparts in WL (P = .11). Women with high baseline sleep disturbances in YG reported higher 3-months MCS than their counterparts in WL (P < .01) and higher 6-month MCS than their counterparts in ST (P = .01). YG led to greater benefit finding than ST and WL across the follow-up (P = .01). Three-month benefit finding partially mediated the effect of YG on 6-month PCS. Posttraumatic stress symptoms and cortisol slope did not mediate treatment effect on QOL. Conclusion Yoga may provide the greatest mental-health-related QOL benefits for those experiencing pre-radiotherapy sleep disturbance and depressive symptoms. Yoga may improve physical-health-related QOL by increasing ability to find benefit in the cancer experience.
OBJECTIVES: Life-threatening diseases such as cancer represent unique traumas-compared with singular, time-limited traumatic events-given their multidimensional, uncertain, and continuing nature. However, few studies have examined the impact of cancer on patients as a persistent stressor. The aim of this qualitative study is to explore patients' ongoing experiences of living with cancer and the changes encountered in this experience over time.METHODS: Written reflections to three open-ended questions collected from 28 patients on their experience of cancer at two time points were analyzed to explore participants' experiences and perspectives over time. Content analysis using a framework approach was employed to code, categorize, and summarize data into a thematic framework.
RESULTS: Data analysis yielded the thematic framework-living with paradox, consisting of four interrelated themes: sources, experiences, resolution of paradox, and challenges with medical culture/treatment. The primary theme concerned moving through a dualistic and complex cancer experience of concurrently negative and positive emotional states across the course of cancer.
CONCLUSIONS: Respondents indicated that cycling through this contradictory trajectory was neither linear, nor singular, nor conclusive in nature, but reiterative across time. Recognition that patients' cancer experience may be paradoxical and tumultuous throughout the cancer trajectory can influence how practitioners provide patients with needed support during diagnosis, treatment, and recovery. This also has implications for interventions, treatment, and care plans, and adequately responding to the diversity of patient's psychosocial, physical, existential, and spiritual experience of illness.
BACKGROUND: Stress places a metabolic burden on homeostasis and is linked to heightened sympathetic activity, increased energy expenditure and pathology. The yogic state is a hypometabolic state that corresponds with mind-body coherence and reduced stress. This study aimed to investigate metabolic responses to stress and different yoga practices in regular yoga practitioners (YP), non-yoga practitioners (NY) and metabolic syndrome patients (MS). METHODS: YP (n = 16), NY (n = 15) and MS (n = 15) subjects underwent an experimental protocol that comprised of different 5-minute interventions including mental arithmetic stress test (MAST), alternate nostril breathing (ANB), Kapabhati breathing (KB) and meditation (Med) interspersed with 5 minutes of quiet resting (neutral condition (NC)). During the intervention periods continuous body weight adjusted oxygen consumption (VO2ml/min/kg) was measured using open circuit indirect calorimetry with a canopy hood. RESULTS: This is the first study to report oxygen consumption (OC) in yoga practitioners during and after MAST and the first to report both within and between different populations. The results were analysed with SPSS 16 using 3X9 mixed factorial ANOVAs. The single between-subject factor was group (YP, NY and MS), the single within-subject factor was made up of the nine intervention phases (NC1, MAST, NC2, ANB, NC3, KB, NC4, Med, NC5). The results demonstrated that the regular YP group had significantly less OC and greater variability in their OC across all phases compared to the MS group (p = .003) and NY group (p = .01). All groups significantly raised their OC during the mental arithmetic stress, however the MS group had a significantly blunted post-stress recovery whereas the YP group rapidly recovered back to baseline levels with post stress recovery being greater than either the NY group or MS group. CONCLUSIONS: Yoga practitioners have greater metabolic variability compared to non-yoga practitioners and metabolic syndrome patients with reduced oxygen requirements during resting conditions and more rapid post-stress recovery. OC in metabolic syndrome patients displays significantly blunted post-stress recovery demonstrating reduced metabolic resilience. Our results support the findings of previous randomised trials that suggest regular yoga practice may mitigate against the effects of metabolic syndrome. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: ACTRN12614001075673; Date of Registration: 07/10/2014.
BACKGROUND: Stress places a metabolic burden on homeostasis and is linked to heightened sympathetic activity, increased energy expenditure and pathology. The yogic state is a hypometabolic state that corresponds with mind-body coherence and reduced stress. This study aimed to investigate metabolic responses to stress and different yoga practices in regular yoga practitioners (YP), non-yoga practitioners (NY) and metabolic syndrome patients (MS). METHODS: YP (n = 16), NY (n = 15) and MS (n = 15) subjects underwent an experimental protocol that comprised of different 5-minute interventions including mental arithmetic stress test (MAST), alternate nostril breathing (ANB), Kapabhati breathing (KB) and meditation (Med) interspersed with 5 minutes of quiet resting (neutral condition (NC)). During the intervention periods continuous body weight adjusted oxygen consumption (VO2ml/min/kg) was measured using open circuit indirect calorimetry with a canopy hood. RESULTS: This is the first study to report oxygen consumption (OC) in yoga practitioners during and after MAST and the first to report both within and between different populations. The results were analysed with SPSS 16 using 3X9 mixed factorial ANOVAs. The single between-subject factor was group (YP, NY and MS), the single within-subject factor was made up of the nine intervention phases (NC1, MAST, NC2, ANB, NC3, KB, NC4, Med, NC5). The results demonstrated that the regular YP group had significantly less OC and greater variability in their OC across all phases compared to the MS group (p = .003) and NY group (p = .01). All groups significantly raised their OC during the mental arithmetic stress, however the MS group had a significantly blunted post-stress recovery whereas the YP group rapidly recovered back to baseline levels with post stress recovery being greater than either the NY group or MS group. CONCLUSIONS: Yoga practitioners have greater metabolic variability compared to non-yoga practitioners and metabolic syndrome patients with reduced oxygen requirements during resting conditions and more rapid post-stress recovery. OC in metabolic syndrome patients displays significantly blunted post-stress recovery demonstrating reduced metabolic resilience. Our results support the findings of previous randomised trials that suggest regular yoga practice may mitigate against the effects of metabolic syndrome. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: ACTRN12614001075673; Date of Registration: 07/10/2014.
BACKGROUND: Stress places a metabolic burden on homeostasis and is linked to heightened sympathetic activity, increased energy expenditure and pathology. The yogic state is a hypometabolic state that corresponds with mind-body coherence and reduced stress. This study aimed to investigate metabolic responses to stress and different yoga practices in regular yoga practitioners (YP), non-yoga practitioners (NY) and metabolic syndrome patients (MS). METHODS: YP (n = 16), NY (n = 15) and MS (n = 15) subjects underwent an experimental protocol that comprised of different 5-minute interventions including mental arithmetic stress test (MAST), alternate nostril breathing (ANB), Kapabhati breathing (KB) and meditation (Med) interspersed with 5 minutes of quiet resting (neutral condition (NC)). During the intervention periods continuous body weight adjusted oxygen consumption (VO2ml/min/kg) was measured using open circuit indirect calorimetry with a canopy hood. RESULTS: This is the first study to report oxygen consumption (OC) in yoga practitioners during and after MAST and the first to report both within and between different populations. The results were analysed with SPSS 16 using 3X9 mixed factorial ANOVAs. The single between-subject factor was group (YP, NY and MS), the single within-subject factor was made up of the nine intervention phases (NC1, MAST, NC2, ANB, NC3, KB, NC4, Med, NC5). The results demonstrated that the regular YP group had significantly less OC and greater variability in their OC across all phases compared to the MS group (p = .003) and NY group (p = .01). All groups significantly raised their OC during the mental arithmetic stress, however the MS group had a significantly blunted post-stress recovery whereas the YP group rapidly recovered back to baseline levels with post stress recovery being greater than either the NY group or MS group. CONCLUSIONS: Yoga practitioners have greater metabolic variability compared to non-yoga practitioners and metabolic syndrome patients with reduced oxygen requirements during resting conditions and more rapid post-stress recovery. OC in metabolic syndrome patients displays significantly blunted post-stress recovery demonstrating reduced metabolic resilience. Our results support the findings of previous randomised trials that suggest regular yoga practice may mitigate against the effects of metabolic syndrome. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: ACTRN12614001075673; Date of Registration: 07/10/2014.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the feasibility and acceptability of a restorative yoga intervention for the treatment of hot flushes in postmenopausal women. METHODS: A pilot trial in 14 postmenopausal women experiencing > or =4 moderate to severe hot flushes per day or > or =30 moderate to severe hot flushes per week. The intervention consisted of eight restorative yoga poses taught in a 3-h introductory session and 8 weekly 90-min sessions. Feasibility was measured by recruitment rates, subject retention and adherence. Acceptability was assessed by subject interview and questionnaires. Efficacy measures included change in frequency and severity of hot flushes as recorded on a 7-day diary. RESULTS: Recruitment was accomplished as planned. The majority of study subjects (93%) completed the trial. Of those who completed the trial, 92% attended seven or more of the eight yoga sessions. The majority of the subjects were satisfied with the study and 75% continued to practice yoga 3 months after the study. Mean number of hot flushes per week decreased by 30.8% (95% CI 15.6-45.9%) and mean hot flush score decreased 34.2% (95% CI 16.0-52.5%) from baseline to week 8. No adverse events were observed. CONCLUSIONS: This pilot trial demonstrates that it is feasible to teach restorative yoga to middle-aged women without prior yoga experience. The high rates of subject retention and satisfaction suggest that yoga is an acceptable intervention in this population. Our results indicate that a larger, randomized controlled trial to explore the efficacy of restorative yoga for treatment of menopausal symptoms would be safe and feasible.
?Theory of mind,? the ability to make inferences about others' mental states, seems to be a modular cognitive capacity that underlies humans' ability to engage in complex social interaction. It develops in several distinct stages, which can be measured with social reasoning tests of increasing difficulty. Individuals with Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism, perform well on simpler theory of mind tests but show deficits on more developmentally advanced theory of mind tests. We tested patients with bilateral damage to orbito-frontal cortex (n = 5) and unilateral damage in left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (n = 5) on a series of theory of mind tasks varying in difficulty. Bilateral orbito-frontal lesion patients performed similarly to individuals with Asperger's syndrome, performing well on simpler tests and showing deficits on tasks requiring more subtle social reasoning, such as the ability to recognize a faux pas. In contrast, no specific theory of mind deficits were evident in the unilateral dorsolateral frontal lesion patients. The dorsolateral lesion patients had difficulty only on versions of the tasks that placed demands on working memory.
Background. Complementary and integrative health approaches such as yoga provide support for psychosocial health. We explored the effects of group-based yoga classes offered through an integrative medicine center at a comprehensive cancer center. Methods. Patients and caregivers had access to two yoga group classes: a lower intensity (YLow) or higher intensity (YHigh) class. Participants completed the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS; scale 0-10, 10 most severe) immediately before and after the class. ESAS subscales analyzed included global (GDS; score 0-90), physical (PHS; 0-60), and psychological distress (PSS; 0-20). Data were analyzed examining pre-yoga and post-yoga symptom scores using paired t-tests and between types of classes using ANOVAs. Results. From July 18, 2016, to August 8, 2017, 282 unique participants (205 patients, 77 caregivers; 85% female; ages 20-79 years) attended one or more yoga groups (mean 2.3). For all participants, we observed clinically significant reduction/improvement in GDS, PHS, and PSS scores and in symptoms (ESAS decrease >= 1; means) of anxiety, fatigue, well-being, depression, appetite, drowsiness, and sleep. Clinically significant improvement for both patients and caregivers was observed for anxiety, depression, fatigue, well-being, and all ESAS subscales. Comparing yoga groups, YLow contributed to greater improvement in sleep versus YHigh (-1.33 vs -0.50, P = .054). Improvement in fatigue for YLow was the greatest mean change (YLow -2.12). Conclusion. A single yoga group class resulted in clinically meaningful improvement of multiple self-reported symptoms. Further research is needed to better understand how yoga class content, intensity, and duration can affect outcomes.
BACKGROUND: Unhealthy lifestyles are a major factor in the development and exacerbation of many chronic diseases. Improving lifestyles though immersive residential experiences that promote healthy behaviours is a focus of the health retreat industry. This systematic review aims to identify and explore published studies on the health, wellbeing and economic impact of retreat experiences. METHODS: MEDLINE, CINAHL and PsychINFO databases were searched for residential retreat studies in English published prior to February 2017. Studies were included if they were written in English, involved an intervention program in a residential setting of one or more nights, and included before-and-after data related to the health of participants. Studies that did not meet the above criteria or contained only descriptive data from interviews or case studies were excluded. RESULTS: A total of 23 studies including eight randomised controlled trials, six non-randomised controlled trials and nine longitudinal cohort studies met the inclusion criteria. These studies included a total of 2592 participants from diverse geographical and demographic populations and a great heterogeneity of outcome measures, with seven studies examining objective outcomes such as blood pressure or biological makers of disease, and 16 studies examining subjective outcomes that mostly involved self-reported questionnaires on psychological and spiritual measures. All studies reported post-retreat health benefits ranging from immediately after to five-years post-retreat. Study populations varied widely and most studies had small sample sizes, poorly described methodology and little follow-up data, and no studies reported on health economic outcomes or adverse effects, making it difficult to make definite conclusions about specific conditions, safety or return on investment. CONCLUSIONS: Health retreat experiences appear to have health benefits that include benefits for people with chronic diseases such as multiple sclerosis, various cancers, HIV/AIDS, heart conditions and mental health. Future research with larger numbers of subjects and longer follow-up periods are needed to investigate the health impact of different retreat experiences and the clinical populations most likely to benefit. Further studies are also needed to determine the economic benefits of retreat experiences for individuals, as well as for businesses, health insurers and policy makers.
Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia are directly associated with autonomic flexibility, self-regulation and well-being, and inversely associated with physiological stress, psychological stress and pathology. Yoga enhances autonomic activity, mitigates stress and benefits stress-related clinical conditions, yet the relationship between autonomic activity and psychophysiological responses during yoga practices and stressful stimuli has not been widely explored. This experimental study explored the relationship between HRV, mood states and flow experiences in regular yoga practitioners (YP), non-yoga practitioners (NY) and people with metabolic syndrome (MetS), during Mental Arithmetic Stress Test (MAST) and various yoga practices. The study found that the MAST placed a cardio-autonomic burden in all participants with the YP group showing the greatest reactivity and the most rapid recovery, while the MetS group had significantly blunted recovery. The YP group also reported a heightened experience of flow and positive mood states compared to NY and MetS groups as well as having a higher vagal tone during all resting conditions. These results suggest yoga practitioners have a greater homeostatic capacity and autonomic, metabolic and physiological resilience. Further studies are now needed to determine if regular yoga practice may improve autonomic flexibility in non-yoga practitioners and metabolic syndrome patients. Clinical Trial No 'ACTRN 2614001075673'.
Pages |