Dying anyway
Staying positive in a dystopian future: A novel dissociation between personal and collective cognition
Sushmita Shrikanth, Piotr Szpunar & Karl Szpunar
Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, forthcoming
Abstract:
The future of groups of people is a topic of broad interest in society and academia. Nonetheless, relatively little is known about the manner in which people think about the collective future of groups, and whether personal and collective future thinking represent distinct domains of future-oriented cognition. In the present studies (N = 691), we used an adapted future fluency task to demonstrate a novel domain-by-valence interaction between personal and collective future thinking, such that U.S.-based participants were positively biased about their personal future while at the same time being negatively biased about the future of their country. We further present evidence that this valence-based dissociation extends into the distant future, emerges in a non-U.S. (Canadian) sample, depends on the individual’s relation to the group, and has consequences for how people think about the world around them. Taken together, our findings represent the first behavioral evidence of a dissociation between personal and collective future thinking, and suggest that the study of collective future thinking represents a fruitful endeavor for psychological science.
Cues to mental health from men’s facial appearance
Robert Ward & Naomi Jane Scott
Journal of Research in Personality, forthcoming
Abstract:
Previous work shows that mental health can be evident from neutral facial appearance. We assessed the accuracy of mental health perceptions from facial appearance, and how perceived mental health related to other appearance cues, specifically attractiveness, perceived physical health, and masculinity. We constructed composite images from men scoring high and low on autistic quotient, depressive symptoms, and schizotypy inventories, and asked observers to rate these images for mental health. We found perceived mental health reflected actual mental health in all cases. Furthermore, the accuracy of mental health inference was not fully explained by other appearance cues. We consider implications of accurate mental health detection from appearance, and the possibility that appearance could be a risk factor for mental health issues.
A microscopic dot on a microscopic dot: Self-esteem buffers the negative effects of exposure to the enormity of the universe
Matthew Hornsey et al.
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, May 2018, Pages 198-207
Abstract:
Although our planet feels indescribably large, in the context of the universe it is infinitesimally small. For some, the feeling of smallness associated with being reminded of the vastness of the universe might represent a psychological threat. For others, it could be a self-transcendent experience, helping them rise above self-focused concerns and to feel a sense of oneness with others. In two studies (Ns = 294 and 409) we exposed people to videos that did or did not depict the enormity of the universe. Compared to a control condition, low self-esteem people exposed to the vastness of the universe reported more negative affect, less identification with others, less empathy to victims of a humanitarian disaster, and lower egalitarianism. This effect was not found for high self-esteem respondents. Results are discussed with reference to research on awe and the small self.
The enduring influence of death on health: Insights from the terror management health model
Kasey Lynn Morris et al.
Self and Identity, forthcoming
Abstract:
The terror management health model suggests targeting sources of self-esteem or identity, in conjunction with mortality salience, offers a pathway for health behavior promotion. To date, however, experimental evidence has been limited to single time point studies. Two studies assessed whether similar processes impact behavior over time. In Study 1, mortality salience was paired with exercise (i.e., riding a recumbent bike); two weeks later, individuals primed with mortality reported more exercise than those not primed with death, and this increased fitness-contingent self-esteem and exercise intentions. In Study 2, when smokers visualized a prototypical unhealthy (vs. typical) smoker after mortality salience, they reported more attempts to quit smoking (over three weeks) than participants not primed with mortality. This facilitated continued quit attempts and decreased smoker identification three weeks later. Implications are discussed for a longitudinal process model in which mortality salience catalyzes a reinforcing relationship between behavior and esteem/identity, potentially sustaining health behavior change over time.
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder in military veterans, firefighters, and police officers: A randomised, double-blind, dose-response, phase 2 clinical trial
Michael Mithoefer et al.
Lancet Psychiatry, forthcoming
Methods: We did a randomised, double-blind, dose-response, phase 2 trial at an outpatient psychiatric clinic in the USA. We included service personnel who were 18 years or older, with chronic PTSD duration of 6 months or more, and who had a Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS-IV) total score of 50 or greater. Using a web-based randomisation system, we randomly assigned participants (1:1:2) to three different dose groups of MDMA plus psychotherapy: 30 mg (active control), 75 mg, or 125 mg. We masked investigators, independent outcome raters, and participants until after the primary endpoint. MDMA was administered orally in two 8-h sessions with concomitant manualised psychotherapy. The primary outcome was mean change in CAPS-IV total score from baseline to 1 month after the second experimental session. Participants in the 30 mg and 75 mg groups subsequently underwent three 100–125 mg MDMA-assisted psychotherapy sessions in an open-label crossover, and all participants were assessed 12 months after the last MDMA session. Safety was monitored through adverse events, spontaneously reported expected reactions, vital signs, and suicidal ideation and behaviour. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01211405.
Findings: Between Nov 10, 2010, and Jan 29, 2015, 26 veterans and first responders met eligibility criteria and were randomly assigned to receive 30 mg (n=7), 75 mg (n=7), or 125 mg (n=12) of MDMA plus psychotherapy. At the primary endpoint, the 75 mg and 125 mg groups had significantly greater decreases in PTSD symptom severity (mean change CAPS-IV total scores of −58•3 [SD 9•8] and −44•3 [28•7]; p=0•001) than the 30 mg group (−11•4 [12•7]). Compared with the 30 mg group, Cohen's d effect sizes were large: 2•8 (95% CI 1•19–4•39) for the 75 mg group and 1•1 (0•04–2•08) for the 125 mg group. In the open-label crossover with full-dose MDMA (100–125 mg), PTSD symptom severity significantly decreased in the group that had previously received 30 mg (p=0•01), whereas no further significant decreases were observed in the group that previously achieved a large response after 75 mg doses in the blinded segment (p=0•81). PTSD symptoms were significantly reduced at the 12-month follow-up compared with baseline after all groups had full-dose MDMA (mean CAPS-IV total score of 38•8 [SD 28•1] vs 87•1 [16•1]; p<0•0001). 85 adverse events were reported by 20 participants. Of these adverse events, four (5%) were serious: three were deemed unrelated and one possibly related to study drug treatment.
Interpretation: Active doses (75 mg and 125 mg) of MDMA with adjunctive psychotherapy in a controlled setting were effective and well tolerated in reducing PTSD symptoms in veterans and first responders.
Catechol-O-Methyltransferase moderates effect of stress mindset on affect and cognition
Alia Crum et al.
PLoS ONE, April 2018
Abstract:
There is evidence that altering stress mindset — the belief that stress is enhancing vs. debilitating — can change cognitive, affective and physiological responses to stress. However individual differences in responsiveness to stress mindset manipulations have not been explored. Given the previously established role of catecholamines in both placebo effects and stress, we hypothesized that genetic variation in catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), an enzyme that metabolizes catecholamines, would moderate responses to an intervention intended to alter participants’ mindsets about stress. Participants (N = 107) were exposed to a stress mindset manipulation (videos highlighting either the enhancing or debilitating effects of stress) prior to engaging in a Trier Social Stress task and subsequent cognitive tasks. The associations of the COMT rs4680 polymorphism with the effect of stress mindset video manipulations on cognitive and affective responses were examined. Genetic variation at rs4680 modified the effects of stress mindset on affective and cognitive responses to stress. Individuals homozygous for rs4680 low-activity allele (met/met) were responsive to the stress-is-enhancing mindset manipulation as indicated by greater increases in positive affect, improved cognitive functioning, and happiness bias in response to stress. Conversely, individuals homozygous for the high-activity allele (val/val) were not as responsive to the stress mindset manipulation. These results suggest that responses to stress mindset intervention may vary with COMT genotype. These findings contribute to the understanding of gene by environment interactions for mindset interventions and stress reactivity and therefore warrant further investigations.
Loneliness in middle age and biomarkers of systemic inflammation: Findings from Midlife in the United States
Paula Nersesian et al.
Social Science & Medicine, forthcoming
Methods: This study used data from the Midlife in the US (MIDUS) survey Biomarker Project, which collected data on psychological, social, and physiological measures from a sample of middle-aged adults. This sample included the 927 participants who were 35–64 years at Biomarker Project data collection. MIDUS collected baseline data from 1995-1996 and a follow-up survey was conducted from 2004-2006. The baseline Milwaukee sample of African Americans was collected in 2005–2006 and biomarker database was collected in 2004–2009. Biomarkers were obtained from a fasting blood sample. Self-reported loneliness was categorized as feeling lonely or not feeling lonely. Hierarchical regressions to examine the association between biomarkers of systemic inflammation (interleukin-6, fibrinogen, C-reactive protein) and feeling lonely, adjusted for covariates.
Results: Twenty-nine percent of the sample reported feeling lonely most or some of the time. There was a positive significant relationship between loneliness and the three systemic inflammation biomarkers after controlling for covariates: interleukin-6 (n = 873) (b [se] = 0.07[0.03], p = .014); fibrinogen (n = 867) (b [se] = 18.24[7.12], p = .011); and C-reactive protein (n = 867) (b [se] = 0.08[0.04], p = .035).
Preferences for experienced versus remembered happiness
Cassie Mogilner & Michael Norton
Journal of Positive Psychology, forthcoming
Abstract:
Consider two types of happiness: one experienced on a moment-to-moment basis, the other a reflective evaluation where people feel happy looking back. Though researchers have measured and argued the merits of each, we inquired into which happiness people say they want. In five studies (N = 3351), we asked people to choose between experienced happiness and remembered happiness – for shorter timeframes (e.g. one’s next hour) and longer timeframes (e.g. one’s lifetime). The results revealed a consistent pattern: most people choose experienced happiness for longer timeframes, but not for shorter timeframes. Since people typically live hour-to-hour, these findings imply that people may end up living a different version of happiness than what they believe is a happy life.
Preextinction Stress Prevents Context-Related Renewal of Fear
Shira Meir Drexler, Christian Merz & Oliver Wolf
Behavior Therapy, forthcoming
Abstract:
Extinction learning, which creates new safety associations, is thought to be the mechanism underlying exposure therapy, commonly used for the treatment of anxiety disorders and posttraumatic stress disorder. The relative strength and availability for retrieval of both the fear and safety memories determine the response in a given situation. While the fear memory is often context-independent and may easily generalize, extinction memory is highly context-specific. “Renewal” of the extinguished fear memory might thus occur following a shift in context. The aim of the current work was to create an enhanced and generalized extinction memory to a discrete stimulus using stress exposure before extinction learning, thereby preventing renewal. In our contextual fear conditioning paradigm, 40 healthy men acquired (Day 1), retrieved and extinguished (Day 2) the fear memories, with no differences between the stress and the control group. A significant difference between the groups emerged in the renewal test (Day 3). A renewal effect was seen in the control group (N = 20), confirming the context-dependency of the extinction memory. In contrast, the stress group (N = 20) showed no renewal effect. Fear reduction was generalized to the acquisition context as well, suggesting that stress rendered the extinction memory more context-independent. These results are in line with previous studies that showed contextualization disruption as a result of pre-learning stress, mediated by the rapid effects of glucocorticoids on the hippocampus. Our findings support research investigating the use of glucocorticoids or stress induction in exposure therapy and suggest the right timing of administration in order to optimize their effects.