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Full-Text Articles in Psychology
The Effects Of A Standardized Ginkgo Bilboa Extract On Learning In Aged And Young Rats, Scott Heldt
The Effects Of A Standardized Ginkgo Bilboa Extract On Learning In Aged And Young Rats, Scott Heldt
Modern Psychological Studies
The effects of chronic oral administration of a standardized Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) on the performance of two classical memory tasks was investigated. Long-Evans rats, 3 and 16 months of age, received daily doses of diets with or without GBE (100 mg/kg) for a period of 6 weeks before testing and throughout the experiment. A 2 x 2 (Age x Treatment) ANOVA indicated that GBE treatment prevented learning on a radial maze task as measured by number of days to criterion, F(1, 28) = 5.73, p < .05. A 2 x 2 x 19 (Age x Treatment x Day) ANOVA was used to analyze the number of correct responses from Days 1 to 19. The results showed an interaction between Age and Treatment F(1, 28) = 6.34, p <. 05; namely young treated rats performed worse than other groups. Analysis of response frequency by a 2 x 2 (Age x Treatment) ANOVA revealed a significant interaction F(1, 28) = 4.41, p < .05, and a subsequent post hoc test indicated that the young treatment group responded notably more than the old groups. Measured performance on a one-way passive avoidance task indicated that neither treatment nor age had an effect. The results suggest that at the prescribed dose level and duration, GBE impairs performance on a radial maze task, particularly in young rats.
Recovery From Stroke Involving The Left Middle Cerebral Artery, Lori Walter
Recovery From Stroke Involving The Left Middle Cerebral Artery, Lori Walter
Modern Psychological Studies
The rehabilitative treatment of a 73-yearold male who suffered from a left middle cerebral artery (MCA) thrombotic infarct was observed to analyze the effects of age and psychological and social factors on stroke recovery. The patient was assessed as having minimal verbalization, right side neglect, right hemiparesis, right hemisensory deficits, decreased balance and mild dysphasia. After 29 days of physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy, he showed improvement in activities of daily living, walking, and communication. He was discharged 33 days poststroke (DPS). Age of the patient and severity of the stroke seemed to be poor predictors of stroke …
Glucagon Produces Delayed Increase In Drinking-Associated Food Intake, Brian A. Carr, Paul J. Kulkowsky
Glucagon Produces Delayed Increase In Drinking-Associated Food Intake, Brian A. Carr, Paul J. Kulkowsky
Modern Psychological Studies
Glucagon is a pancreatic hormone and a brain-gut peptide thought to function as a short-term satiety signal in control of food intake. This study examined effects of glucagon injection on intake of alcohol, food, and water. Overnight water-deprived female and male Wistar rats (Ns = 10) were given access to 5% w/v ethanol and Purina chow. After adaptation to this schedule, rats received intraperitoneal (ip) injection of 0, 200, or 400 g/kg of glucagon, at 0 or 30 min prior to alcohol access. Food intake was significantly increased by glucagon at 30-60 min after either time of injection (0 or …
Students' Sophistication Level And Confidence In Testing Procedures Predicts Susceptibility To The Barnum Effect, Thomas R. Rutledge
Students' Sophistication Level And Confidence In Testing Procedures Predicts Susceptibility To The Barnum Effect, Thomas R. Rutledge
Modern Psychological Studies
The present study examined the relationship between students' level of sophistication and confidence in personality assessment procedures with their susceptibility to the Barnum effect— the tendency for individuals to accept highly generalized, ambiguous profiles as accurate descriptions of their personality. Thirty-five university students (22 females, 13 males, mean age 26) completed a brief personality questionnaire under the impression they would be receiving an interpretation from a) a masters level clinician, b) a clinical psychologist (PhD), or c) a form of computer assessment. A pretest asking for the subject's age, sophistication, and their perceptions of the three assessment sources accompanied the …
The Effect Of The Nmda Noncompetitive Antagonist Ketamine On Serial Learning In Rats, Brooks Snider, David M. Compton, Robert Foster
The Effect Of The Nmda Noncompetitive Antagonist Ketamine On Serial Learning In Rats, Brooks Snider, David M. Compton, Robert Foster
Modern Psychological Studies
Past research has demonstrated that Nmethyl- D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists disrupt the acquisition of a variety of spatial and non-spatial tasks. In the present investigation, the effects of the NMDA antagonist, ketamine, were examined in a task with minimal spatial demands. Twenty-six male Long-Evans rats, approximately 5 months of age at the beginning of training, served as the subjects. Before training began, all rats were reduced to 85% of their free feeding weight and maintained with this 15% reduction throughout training. After injections of ketamine or saline, rats were trained to respond in a runway to a nonmonotonic serial pattern …
The Role Of Gender In The Processing Of Dating Scripts, Krista M. Reed, Lea T. Adams
The Role Of Gender In The Processing Of Dating Scripts, Krista M. Reed, Lea T. Adams
Modern Psychological Studies
The issues under investigation were gender differences in either content or memory discrimination of dating scripts and general examination for differences in memory of typical and atypical events using the script pointer plus tag (SP+T) hypothesis. A total of 52 female and 54 male undergraduates participated. Subjects were enrolled in introductory psychology classes at a large midwest university and were primarily Caucasian, single, and between the ages of 18-21 years. In Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the study, items that would possibly occur in 4 different dating scenarios were generated and then rated for typicality. Males and females both …
Self-Protective Attributions In Stigmatized Individuals, Theodore Harding, Dorothee Dietrich
Self-Protective Attributions In Stigmatized Individuals, Theodore Harding, Dorothee Dietrich
Modern Psychological Studies
Research has shown that stigmatized subjects, defined as members of groups about which others hold negative attitudes, receiving negative feedback from a prejudiced evaluator attribute the nature of the feedback to the source rather than to their own performance. The purpose of this experiment was to determine whether this self-protective mechanism also occurs in nonstigmatized individuals. Sixty-seven subjects, male and female undergraduate students enrolled at a small midwestern liberal arts college, participated in a 2 x 2 between-subjects factorial design in which the independent variable of evaluator prejudice or nonprejudice was crossed with stigmatized or nonstigmatized subject status. Results of …
A Quantitative Dendritic Analysis Of Four Functionally Distinct Areas Of Human Cerebral Cortex, Serapio M. Baca, Bob Jacobs
A Quantitative Dendritic Analysis Of Four Functionally Distinct Areas Of Human Cerebral Cortex, Serapio M. Baca, Bob Jacobs
Modern Psychological Studies
Recent investigations have begun to elucidate the function of dendritic arbors, revealing that the geometry of dendrites and the presence of dendritic spines play important roles in both simulated and actual dendritic function (Midtgaard, 1994). The present study attempts to correlate dendritic complexity with cortical function under the assumption that connectivity in a local cortical area may determine its more holistic functional properties. Two human brains (ages: 23 and 69 years) were used for the present study. Four cortical areas (Brodmann's [1908] areas 3, 1, and 2; area 22; area 44; and area 10), respectively representing Benson's four levels of …
Attachment And First Sexual Experience, Chrystal Goings-Vogelsang
Attachment And First Sexual Experience, Chrystal Goings-Vogelsang
Modern Psychological Studies
This investigation examined the relationship between first sexual experience and attachment tendencies. Subjects' first sexual experiences were examined as a function of Bartholomew's four attachment categories: secure, fearful, preoccupied, and dismissing (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991). It was hypothesized that if a person's first sexual experience was negative, then he or she would score significantly lower on the secure attachment subscale. Results indicated (a) that college females who had a fearful attachment style were more likely to report that their first sexual partner pressured them into sex, b) that college females who were more dismissing in their attachment style were less …
Memory For Frequency Of Complex Sounds, Jennifer R. Lewis
Memory For Frequency Of Complex Sounds, Jennifer R. Lewis
Modern Psychological Studies
This study examined whether different testing conditions hamper or enhance the ability to remember frequency of events. Subjects were presented a series of computerized sounds during the acquisition phase and estimated during the testing phase how many times they had heard each sound. Subjects were placed into one of four conditions: (a) no labeling, subjects simply listened to the stimuli; (b) labeling, subjects devised a description for each sound; (c) continuous distractor, subjects performed a simple mathematical task for the entire acquisition periods; and (d) intermittent distractor, subjects performed the mathematical task between the sounding of stimuli. Results indicated that …
The Effects Of Sodium Salicylate On Sexual Arousal In Adult Male Mice (Mus Domesticus), Andrew S. Manos
The Effects Of Sodium Salicylate On Sexual Arousal In Adult Male Mice (Mus Domesticus), Andrew S. Manos
Modern Psychological Studies
Adult male rats produce 22-kHz vocalizations when exposed to a female conspecific. These ultrasonic vocalizations (USV) are a measure of the male's level of sexual arousal. Previous studies have shown that antipyretic drugs diminish the amount of USV made by male rats. Male mice also emit USV (70- kHz) indicative of sexual arousal. In this study, the effects of sodium salicylate, an antipyretic drug, were examined to see if USV were diminished in mice. Fifteen male adult mice were tested in a Treatment (Saline vs. Sodium Salicylate) x Dose (High vs. Low) design, with repeated measures across the treatments. Vocalizations …
The Bilateral Field Advantage On Verbal And Nonverbal Matching Tasks, Jennifer Reyburn
The Bilateral Field Advantage On Verbal And Nonverbal Matching Tasks, Jennifer Reyburn
Modern Psychological Studies
Three experiments examined the bilateral field advantage (BFA) on both verbal and nonverbal matching tasks. The goal of the experiments was to determine which conditions would maximize the size and reliability of the BFA, and thus enhance its value as a possible diagnostic tool to assess callosal dysfunction. In Experiment 1, 27 right-handed college students performed two matching tasks (order of tasks varied across subjects; dots-letters, letters-dots, or letter and dot trials randomly interleaved). Results revealed a verbal BFA in all task order conditions (p<.01), but a significant nonverbal BFA only in the interleaved condition (p<.01). Experiments 2 and 3 reproduced the interleaved condition with different parameters. In both experiments the verbal BFA was significant (p<.01), but nonverbal BFA was significant only when four-dot patterns were used (p<.05). Results suggest the interleaved presentation of verbal and nonverbal stimuli is a reliable method of measuring the BFA.
Pluralistic Ignorance Concerning Alcohol Usage Among Recent High School Graduates, Jill S. Braddock, Tonia R. Wolf
Pluralistic Ignorance Concerning Alcohol Usage Among Recent High School Graduates, Jill S. Braddock, Tonia R. Wolf
Modern Psychological Studies
Recent high school graduates in a midwestern community estimated their classmates' attitudes toward alcohol use in contrast to their own positions. Attitudes were assessed on three levels: subjective comfort with others' drinking, approval of peer drinking and actual drinking practices. Pluralistic ignorance was found to be a significant factor at all three levels, p < .0005. Respondents reported that they were less comfortable, less approving, and drank less than close friends, lesser still than friends, and far less than peers. These findings provide support for "normative education" prevention programs that attempt to correct erroneous perceptions about alcohol use and abuse.
An Overview Of Parallel Distributed Processing, Jonathan P. Heyl
An Overview Of Parallel Distributed Processing, Jonathan P. Heyl
Modern Psychological Studies
Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP), or Connectionism, is a frontier cognitive theory that is currently garnering considerable attention from a variety of fields. Briefly summarized herein are the theoretical foundations of the theory, the key elements observed in creating simulation computer programs, examples of its applications, and some comparisons with other models of cognition. A majority of the information is culled from Rumelhart and McClelland's (1986) two volume introduction to the theory, while some concerns from the field and the theorists' accompanying responses are taken from a 1990 article by Hanson and Burr.
Memory Decrement And Proactive Interference, William J. Thornton, Bennett L. Schwartz
Memory Decrement And Proactive Interference, William J. Thornton, Bennett L. Schwartz
Modern Psychological Studies
We hypothesized that subjective expectations were responsible for the release from proactive interference (PI) rather than the actual change in taxonomic subcategories. The experimental conditions included informing or not informing subjects of the change in taxonomic subcategory, crossed with whether the taxonomic subcategory was actually changed or remained unchanged. The interest in whether a release would be seen when the subjects were informed of a change, yet no change was actually administered, was most specific. Significantly higher recall was found for the condition in which subjects were informed of a change, but no actual change occured (I-NC) than in the …
Spontaneous Alternating Behavior, Attention, And Exploration: The Effects Of Colchicine Lesions In The Rat Hippocaompal Formation, David E. Wagoner Jr., Zhenique M. Israelian
Spontaneous Alternating Behavior, Attention, And Exploration: The Effects Of Colchicine Lesions In The Rat Hippocaompal Formation, David E. Wagoner Jr., Zhenique M. Israelian
Modern Psychological Studies
This study investigated perseverative behavior, attention, and exploratory behaviors via discrete lesions of the rat hippocampal formation. It was hypothesized that lesions which interrupted input to the hippocampus and output to cortical and subcortical regions would induce these behaviors. Forty-four male Long-Evan rats were randomly divided into four treatment groups: cerebral spinal fluid, and three colchicine lesioned groups, 10-COL, 15-COL, and 25-COL. The animals were compared based upon performance in a standard Tmaze to test perseveration. Behaviors were also observed in an activity chamber to measure locomotion, attention, and exploration. Animals in the 25-COL group demonstrated a significant increase in …