Psychology Commons^™

Oxytocin Attenuates Yohimbine-Induced Reinstatement Of Alcohol-Seeking In Female Rats Via The Central Amygdala, Samantha M. Wilfur, Elizabeth C. Mcneely, Aliya A. Lackan, Cassie P. Bowers, Kah-Chung Leong

Psychology Faculty Research

Alcohol use disorder is a significant public health concern, further exacerbated by an increased risk of relapse due to stress. In addition, factors such as biological sex may contribute to the progression of addiction, as females are especially susceptible to stress-induced relapse. While there have been many studies surrounding potential pharmacological interventions for male stress-induced ethanol reinstatement, research regarding females is scarce. Recently, the neuropeptide oxytocin has gained interest as a possible pharmacological intervention for relapse. The present study examines how oxytocin affects yohimbine-induced reinstatement of ethanol-seeking in female rats using a self-administration paradigm. Adult female rats were trained to …

Stuck In The Past? Rumination-Related Memory Integration, Paula T. Hertel, C. Wahlheim, William A. Price, Emily M. Crusius, Christina L. Patino

Psychology Faculty Research

Memories connected to ruminative concerns repetitively capture attention, even in situations designed to alter them. However, recent research on memory updating suggests that memory for benign substitutes (e.g., reinterpretations) might be facilitated by integration with the ruminative memories. As a first approach, two experiments (Ns = 72) mimicked rumination-related memories with rumination-themed stimuli and an imagery task. College undergraduates screened for ruminative status first studied and imaged ruminative cue-target word pairs, and then in a second phase they studied the same cues re-paired with benign targets (along with new and repeated pairs). On the test of cued recall of …

Attitudes, Clinical Practices, And Perceived Advocacy Needs Of Professionals With Interests In Personality Disorders, William D. Ellison, S. Huprich, A. Behn, M. Goodman, S. Kerr, K. N. Levy, S. M. Nelson, C. Sharp, The Board Of Directors Of The International Society For The Study Of Personality Disorders

Psychology Faculty Research

Experts in personality disorders (PDs) generally prefer dimensional diagnostic systems to categorical ones, but less is known about experts’ attitudes toward personality pathology diagnoses in adolescents, and little is known about public health shortfalls and advocacy needs and how these might differ geographically. To fill these gaps, the International Society for the Study of Personality Disorders surveyed 248 professionals with interests in PDs about their attitudes toward different diagnostic systems for adults and adolescents, their PD-related clinical practices, and perceived advocacy needs in their area. Results suggested that dimensional diagnostic systems are preferable to categorical and that skepticism about personality …

Myelin Characteristics Of The Corpus Callosum In Capuchin Monkeys (Sapajus [Cebus] Apella) Across The Lifespan, Chase M. Watson, Chet C. Sherwood, Kimberley A. Phillips

Psychology Faculty Research

The midsagittal area of the corpus callosum (CC) is frequently studied in relation to brain development, connectivity, and function. Here we quantify myelin characteristics from electron microscopy to understand more fully differential patterns of white matter development occurring within the CC. We subdivided midsagittal regions of the CC into: I—rostrum and genu, II—rostral body, III—anterior midbody, IV—posterior midbody, and V—isthmus and splenium. The sample represented capuchin monkeys ranging in age from 2 weeks to 35 years (Sapajus [Cebus] apella, n = 8). Measurements of myelin thickness, myelin fraction, and g-ratio were obtained in a systematic random …

Paired Housing Or A Socially-Paired Context Decreases Ethanol Conditioned Place Preference In Male Rats, Eva Lorenz, Chase Moye, Kah-Chung Leong

Psychology Faculty Research

Alcohol abuse dramatically affects individuals’ lives nationwide. The 2020 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) estimated that 10.2% of Americans suffer from alcohol use disorder. Although social support has been shown to aid in general addiction prevention and rehabilitation, the benefits of social support are not entirely understood. The present study sought to compare the benefits of social interaction on the conditioned ethanol approach behavior in rats through a conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm in which a drug is paired with one of two distinct contexts. In experiment 1A, rats were single-housed and received conditioning trials in which …

Recently Integrated Alu Elements In Capuchin Monkeys: A Resource For Cebus/Sapajus Genomics, J. M. Storer, J. A. Walker, C. E. Rockwell, G. Mores, T. O. Beckstrom, J. D. Orkin, A. D. Melin, Kimberley A. Phillips, C. Roos, M. A. Batzer

Psychology Faculty Research

Capuchins are platyrrhines (monkeys found in the Americas) within the Cebidae fam-ily. For most of their taxonomic history, the two main morphological types of capuchins, gracile (untufted) and robust (tufted), were assigned to a single genus, Cebus. Further, all tufted capuchins were assigned to a single species, Cebus apella, despite broad geographic ranges spanning Central and northern South America. In 2012, tufted capuchins were assigned to their genus, Sapajus, with eight currently recognized species and five Cebus species, although these numbers are still under debate. Alu retrotransposons are a class of mobile element insertion (MEI) widely used …

Preschool Children’S Processing Of Events During Verb Learning: Is The Focus On People (Faces) Or Their Actions (Hands)?, Jane B. Childers, Emily Grace Warkentin, Blaire M. Porter, Marissa Young, Sneh Lalani, Akila Gopalkrishnan

Psychology Faculty Research

Verbs are central to the syntactic structure of sentences, and, thus, important for learning one’s native language. This study examined how children visually inspect events as they hear, and do not hear, a new verb. Specifically, there is evidence that children may focus on the agent of the action or may prioritize attention to the action being performed; to date, little evidence is available. This study used an eye tracker to track 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds’ looking to the agent (i.e., face) vs. action (i.e., hands) while viewing events linked to a new verb as well as distractor events. A …

Inferences Training Affects Memory, Rumination, And Mood, B. Perlman, N. Mor, Y. Wisney Jacobinski, A. Doron Zakon, N. Avirbach, Paula T. Hertel

Psychology Faculty Research

Making negative inferences for negative events, ruminating about them, and retrieving negative aspects of memories have all been associated with depression. However, the causal mechanisms that link negative inferences to negative mood and the interplay between inferences, rumination, and memory have not been explored. In the current study, we used a cognitive-bias modification (CBM) procedure to train causal inferences and assessed training effects on ruminative thinking, memory, and negative mood among people with varying levels of depression. Training had immediate effects on negative mood and rumination but not after recall of a negative autobiographical memory. Note that training affected memory: …

Challenging Depressive Beliefs: Habitual And Recollective Components Of Stability Or Change, Paula T. Hertel, M. C. Acuff, J. Hernandez, E. Poppe

Psychology Faculty Research

Background and objectives. Depressed people tend to hold stable negative beliefs that resist challenges. Two experiments investigated the cognitive bases of belief change or resistance to change following the provision of supportive or challenging pseudo-evidence.

Method. Students scoring high and low on a measure of depressed state read belief statements, each followed by invented experimental evidence to either verify or discount them. Two days later, they read all the belief statements again, together with new statements, this time rating belief.

Results. The students agreed that the statements described common beliefs and that the evidence was plausible. Discounted statements were believed …

Perception Of Narcissism In College Professors, Harry M. Wallace, A. Carrillo, Jack Kelley

Psychology Faculty Research

We conducted three studies to examine perceptions of grandiose narcissism in college professors. Narcissism might appear incompatible with the profession if professors are viewed fundamentally as helpers or as introverted bookworms. Then again, people might expect professors to display big egos congruent with the prestige of their profession and their privileged public platforms. Our research indicates that professors are generally not seen as highly narcissistic according to the criteria of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory and the Narcissistic Admiration and Rivalry Questionnaire, though they are viewed as more narcissistic than elementary school teachers. More professor narcissism was expected at colleges that …

Oxytocin Attenuates The Stress-Induced Reinstatement Of Alcohol-Seeking In Male Rats: Role Of The Central Amygdala, Hannah S. Ballas, Samantha M. Wilfur, Nicole A. Freker, Kah-Chung Leong

Psychology Faculty Research

Factors such as stress and anxiety often contribute to alcohol-dependent behavior and can trigger a relapse of alcohol addiction and use. Therefore, it is important to investigate potential pharmacological interventions that may alleviate the influence of stress on addiction-related behaviors. Previous studies have demonstrated that the neuropeptide oxytocin has promising anxiolytic potential in mammals and may offer a pharmacological target to diminish the emotional impact on reinstatement of alcohol-seeking. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of oxytocin on stress-induced alcohol relapse and identify a neural structure mediating this effect through the use of an ethanol …

Development And Initial Validation Of A Scale To Measure Momentary Self-Concept Clarity, William D. Ellison, Juyoung Yun, Margaret I. Lupo, Autumn K. Lucas-Marinelli, Victoria B. Marshall, Arielle Faith R. Matic, Alec C. Trahan

Psychology Faculty Research

Several studies have suggested that momentary self-concept clarity (SCC) levels are important for emotion regulation and self-control processes, but these studies have used unvalidated measures of momentary SCC. Here, we report on the development and preliminary validation of a brief self-report scale, the Momentary Self-Concept Clarity Scale (M-SCCS). One hundred and twenty-two adults completed momentary SCC items 6-7 times per day for two weeks. Multilevel factor analyses suggested the M-SCCS has good factorial validity. The scale also showed excellent between-person reliability, fair within-person reliability, and patterns of criterion relations that resemble other self-report measures of SCC. There was little measurement …

Social Autonomy ≠ Social Empowerment: The Social Self-Restriction Model, Harry M. Wallace, Kevin Mcintyre

Psychology Faculty Research

This paper introduces the social self-restriction (SSR) model, which highlights a drawback associated with the increasingly accessible privilege of social autonomy. Social autonomy enables individuals to connect with preferred social partners and avoid undesirable others. The benefits of social autonomy are undeniable; however, the SSR model makes the novel assertion that people tend to exercise social autonomy in ways that ultimately constrain their potential for social empowerment—a higher-order form of personal freedom. Attaining the ideal of high social empowerment requires both high social autonomy and high social adaptability. People with high social adaptability can feel reasonably comfortable and act competently …

Rumination: Practicing Retrieval Of Autobiographical Memories, Paula T. Hertel, Paola Herrera, Pallavi Shamapant

Psychology Faculty Research

Background

People who ruminate about negative personal experiences seem to be engaged in practicing retrieval, with the expected consequences of perpetuating those very memories (see Roediger and Butler in Trends Cogn Sci 15:20–27, 2011).

Method

To provide an experimental model of the effect of retrieval practice on subsequent recall of autobiographical memories, we recruited students with low and high scores on the Ruminative Response Scale (Treynor et al. in Cogn Ther Res 27:247–259, 2003), gave them positive and ruminative cues to generate memories, and cued three rounds of practice of half of the memories from each valence.

Results

A week …

An Initial Study Of Practicing Psychologists' Views Of The Utility Of Ecological Momentary Assessment For Difficult Psychotherapy Cases, William D. Ellison

Psychology Faculty Research

Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) is a burgeoning area of research, and several clinical applications of the resulting data have been identified by researchers, suggesting potential benefit to psychotherapy practice. However, practitioners often do not use traditional empirically-supported tools for diagnosis and outcome monitoring (e.g., validated interview measures and questionnaires). Thus, it is not clear how readily practitioners will take up newer technology-enhanced assessment methods, despite current enthusiasm among researchers. The current study aimed to explore the perceived usefulness of EMA-based tools for clinical assessment and outcome monitoring of difficult psychotherapy cases, as well as to identify correlates of attitudes about …

An Exploratory Examination Of Internalized Weight Stigma In A Sample Living With Food Insecurity, Carolyn Black Becker, Keesha M. Middlemass, Francesca Gomez, Lisa S. Kilpela

Psychology Faculty Research

Internalized weight stigma (IWS) is associated with various health concerns, regardless of body size. One weakness of existing IWS research is that it largely lacks diverse study populations. One recent exception, however, found increasing IWS was associated with higher levels of food insecurity (FI) in a low-income, majority Latinx sample. Using the same sample (N = 530), the present study further explored levels of IWS as compared to documented (mostly White/European) samples; we also investigated IWS in relation to three dichotomous eating disorder (ED) outcomes (e.g., any/no vomiting). Finally, based on previous qualitative findings regarding dietary restraint in the most …

The Effect Of Body Region On Hair Cortisol Concentration In Common Marmosets (Callithrix Jacchus), Evelyn Elizabeth Bartling-John, Kimberley A. Phillips

Psychology Faculty Research

Common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) are a valuable research model for the study of neuroscience and the biologic impact of aging due to their adaptivity, physiologic characteristics, and ease of handling for experimental manipulations. Quantification of cortisol in hair provides a noninvasive, retrospective biomarker of hypothalamics-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity and information on animal wellbeing, including responses to environmental and social stimuli. To obtain valid and reliable measurements of long-term HPA activity, we investigated the variability of cortisol concentration in the hair depending on the body region of marmosets. Hair was collected from the back and tail of 9 adult …

Oxytocin And Addiction: Potential Glutamatergic Mechanisms, Megana Sundar, Devon Patel, Zachary Young, Kah-Chung Leong

Psychology Faculty Research

Recently, oxytocin (OXT) has been investigated for its potential therapeutic role in addiction. OXT has been found to diminish various drug-seeking and drug-induced behaviors. Although its behavioral effects are well-established, there is not much consensus on how this neuropeptide exerts its effects. Previous research has given thought to how dopamine (DA) may be involved in oxytocinergic mechanisms, but there has not been as strong of a focus on the role that glutamate (Glu) has. The glutamatergic system is critical for the processing of rewards and the disruption of glutamatergic projections produces the behaviors seen in drug addicts. We introduce the …

The Availability Of Training Opportunities In Personality Disorders In American Psychological Association- And Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System-Accredited Clinical And Counseling Psychology Doctoral Programs, K. N. Levy, William D. Ellison

Psychology Faculty Research

Personality disorders are relatively common, especially in clinical settings. A number of evidence-based treatments are now available, especially for borderline personality disorder. However, little is known about the relevant training available to doctoral students in clinical and counseling psychology. in the current study, data were extracted from 336 clinical and counseling Ph.D. and Psy.D. programs from the Insider’s Guide to Graduate Programs in Clinical and Counseling Psychology (Norcross & Sayette, 2020), including the number of programs with faculty with specific interests in personality disorders and the number of programs with clinical opportunities related to personality disorders. We found that formal …

Psychometric Properties Of The Contextual Body Image Questionnaire For Athletes: A Replication And Extension Study In Female Collegiate Athletes, Tiffany Stewart, Lisa S. Kilpela, Nicole Wesley, K. Baule, Carolyn Becker

Psychology Faculty Research

Background

Although the link between body dissatisfaction and eating disorder (ED) pathology is well-established in general female samples, less is known about contextual body image (CBI) among female athletes. CBI refers to female athletes’ body image concerns in two contexts: sport and daily life. The Contextual Body Image Questionnaire for Athletes (CBIQA) measures four dimensions of body image (Appearance, Thin-Fat Self-Evaluation, Thin-Fat Others’ Evaluation, and Muscularity) in both contexts. In a sample of female collegiate athletes, this study sought to A) investigate the psychometric properties of the CBIQA, B) examine the cross-sectional relation of CBI with ED pathology and negative …

Binge Eating Among Older Women: Prevalence Rates And Health Correlates Across Three Independent Samples, Salomé A. Wilfred, Carolyn Black Becker, K. E. Kanzler, N. Musi, S. E. Espinoza, Lisa S. Kilpela

Psychology Faculty Research

Background: Emerging research indicates that binge eating (BE; consuming unusually large amounts of food in one siting while feeling a loss of control) is prevalent among older women. Yet, health correlates of BE in older adult populations are poorly understood. The original study aimed to investigate BE prevalence, frequency, and health correlates in a sample of older adult women. Based on results from this first study, we then sought to replicate findings in two additional samples of older adult women from separate studies.

Method: Using self-reported frequencies of BE from three separate samples of older women with very different demographics, …

The Legacy Of Hope Summit: A Consensus-Based Initiative And Report On Eating Disorders In The U.S. And Recommendations For The Path Forward, D. Blackwell, Carolyn Black Becker, O. Bermudez, M. E. Berrett, G. E. Brooks, D. W. Bunnell, D. Cabrera, C. Costin, N. Hemendinger, C. Johnson, K. L. Klump, C. A. Levinson, M. Lutter, M. Maine, C. J. Mcadams, B. H. Mcgilley, S. B. Murray, E. Myers, J. D. Ouellette, C. M. Peat, K. Saffran, S. Setliff

Psychology Faculty Research

Background: Several unsuccessful attempts have been made to reach a cross-disciplinary consensus on issues fundamental to the field of eating disorders in the United States (U.S.). In January 2020, 25 prominent clinicians, academicians, researchers, persons with lived experience, and thought leaders in the U.S. eating disorders community gathered at the Legacy of Hope Summit to try again. This paper articulates the points on which they reached a consensus. It also: (1) outlines strategies for implementing those recommendations; (2) identifies likely obstacles to their implementation; and (3) charts a course for successfully navigating and overcoming those challenges.

Methods: Iterative and consensual …

Everyday Challenges To The Practice Of Desirable Difficulties: Introduction To The Forum, Paula T. Hertel

Psychology Faculty Research

No abstract provided.

Oxytocin Attenuates Expression, But Not Acquisition, Of Sucrose Conditioned Place Preference In Rats, Devon Patel, Megana Sundar, Eva Lorenz, Kah-Chung Leong

Psychology Faculty Research

Maladaptation of reward processing for natural rewards, such as sucrose or sugar, may play a role in the development of diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Furthermore, uncovering mechanisms to disrupt or reverse maladaptation of reward-seeking behaviors for natural reinforcers can provide insight into treatment of such diseases, as well as disorders such as addiction. As such, studying the effects of potential pharmacotherapeutics on maladaptive sugar-seeking behavior offers valuable clinical significance. Sucrose conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigms can offer insight into aspects of reward processes as it provides a way to assess acquisition and expression of context-reward associations. The present …

For Whom, And For What, Is Experience Sampling More Accurate Than Retrospective Report?, William D. Ellison, Alec C. Trahan, Joseph C. Pinzon, Megan E. Gillespie, Logan M. Simmons, Kendel Y. King

Psychology Faculty Research

The experience sampling method (ESM) is often used in research, and promoted for clinical use, with the rationale that it avoids problematic inaccuracies and biases that attend retrospective measures of mental phenomena. Research suggests that averaged scores from ESM data are more accurate than retrospective ratings. However, it is not known how well individuals can remember information about momentary (rather than averaged) mental states, nor how accurately they estimate the dynamic covariation of these states. Individual differences in retrospective accuracy are also poorly understood. In two pre-registered studies, we examined differences between retrospective memory for stress and self-esteem and data …

Psychotherapy For Borderline Personality Disorder: Does The Type Of Treatment Make A Difference?, William D. Ellison

Psychology Faculty Research

Purpose of Review: The first aim of this review is to summarize the major evidence-based psychotherapies for borderline personality disorder (BPD) and the research supporting their use. The second aim is to explore the evidence for the differential effectiveness of these treatments. Recent Findings: Four types of specific psychotherapies are identified that show promising results in at least two randomized controlled trials. In addition, several adjunctive and minimal/pragmatic interventions are available that are supported by research evidence. Recent findings highlight the applicability of these treatments across settings and populations and have begun to show that modified versions of them are …

Individual Differences And Stability Of Dynamics Among Self-Concept Clarity, Impatience, And Negative Affect, William D. Ellison, Megan E. Gillespie, Alec C. Trahan

Psychology Faculty Research

Self-concept clarity (SCC) is associated with behavioral and emotion regulation, although the nature of this link is unclear. SCC may serve as a self-regulatory resource or it may be a product of well-regulated behaviors and emotions. In two studies using experience sampling among undergraduates (n = 46 and n = 36), we investigate whether models representing relationships among SCC, impatience, and negative affect (NA) states conform to these theories, are similar across individuals, and are stable across a one-month period. Results reveal substantial variation between persons in these dynamic relationships, suggesting that multiple SCC-relevant regulatory processes exist. These patterns …

Dynamics Among Borderline Personality And Anxiety Features In Psychotherapy Outpatients: An Exploration Of Nomothetic And Idiographic Patterns, William D. Ellison, K. N. Levy, M. G. Newman, A. L. Pincus, S. J. Wilson, P. C. M. Molenaar

Psychology Faculty Research

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) involves instability in self-concept, emotions, and behavior. However, the dynamic, longitudinal relations among BPD symptoms and between these symptoms and other problematic emotional experiences are poorly understood. It is also unclear whether these dynamics are the same across persons (including across diagnostic boundaries), specific to individuals with BPD, or idiographic. The current study uses ecological momentary assessment and Group Iterative Multiple Model Estimation (GIMME), a novel, data-driven approach to identifying dynamic patterns in time-series data at group, subgroup, and individual levels, to investigate the dynamic connections among select features of BPD (anger, impulsivity, and identity disturbance) …

Life In A Harsh Environment: The Effects Of Age, Sex, Reproductive Condition, And Season On Hair Cortisol Concentration In A Wild Non-Human Primate, P. A. Garber, A. Mckenney, Evelyn Elizabeth Bartling-John, J. C. Bicca-Marques, M. F. De La Fuente, F. Abreu, N. Schiel, A. Souto, Kimberley A. Phillips

Psychology Faculty Research

Hair cortisol concentration (HCC) provides a long-term retrospective measure of hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis activity, and is increasingly used to assess the life history, health and ecology of wild mammals. Given that sex, age, season and pregnancy influence HCC, and that it may indicate ongoing stress, we examined HCC in common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) naturally inhabiting a hot and dry semi-desert like habitat, Caatinga, in northeastern Brazil. We trapped, measured, weighed, marked and collected shaved hair from the back of the neck of 61 wild marmosets during the wet and dry seasons. Using enzyme immunoassay, we found that HCC was …

Food Insecurity And Eating Disorders: A Review Of Emerging Evidence, V. M. Hazzard, K. A. Loth, L. Hooper, Carolyn Black Becker

Psychology Faculty Research

Purpose of Review: This review summarizes emerging evidence for the relationship between food insecurity and eating disorder (ED) pathology, outlines priorities for future research in this area, and comments on considerations for clinical and public health practice.

Recent Findings: Among adults, food insecurity is cross-sectionally associated with higher levels of overall ED pathology, binge eating, compensatory behaviors, binge-eating disorder, and bulimia nervosa. Evidence for similar relationships among adolescents has been less robust; however, compared to studies of adults, there have been substantially fewer studies conducted in adolescents to date.

Summary: Emerging evidence consistently indicates that food insecurity …