Life Sciences Commons^™

Human Dimensions Of Woody Encroachment Management In Nebraska, Emily Rowen

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Woody plant encroachment (WPE) is a social-ecological problem that will challenge conservation professionals and agricultural producers to adapt their management strategies. This research first examined WPE from the perspective of individual conservation professionals through an online survey. Conservation professionals’ attitudes about adaptation to vegetation transitions, such as WPE, were of interest because these attitudes are one measure of how prepared this group is to respond to WPE. Hypothesized predictors of adaptation attitude were tested through linear regression modeling. These predictors included ecological change, observation of WPE, or risk perception. It was found that risk perception was the strongest predictor of …

The Influence Of Athletic Identity, Passion, And Perceptions Of Severity Of Concussions On Athletes’ Willingness To Report Concussion Symptoms, Eric M. Martin, Megan Byrd, Adriana Amador, Emma Ridenhour, Carolena Charalambous

Kinesiology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Context: The influence of several psychological characteristics on the willingness of athletes to report concussion behaviors has not been well explored. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to understand how athletic identity and sport passion predicted participants’ willingness to report symptoms above what was explained by athlete demographics, concussion knowledge, and perceived seriousness of concussions. Design: The study was cross-sectional. Methods: Three-hundred and twenty-two male and female high school and club sport athletes completed survey measures of concussion knowledge, athletic identity, harmonious and obsessive passion, and degree to which athletes indicated they would report concussions and …

Assessment Of The Triple Reuptake Inhibitor Diclofensine: Effort-Based Decision-Making In A Rodent Model Of Motivational Dysfunction, Sofia Papanikolaou

Holster Scholar Projects

Serotonin-selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most commonly prescribed antidepressant medications. Despite their popularity, they remain relatively ineffective at treating effort-related motivational symptoms of depression such as fatigue and anergia. Increasing research on triple reuptake inhibitors (TRIs) that target three neurotransmitters—dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine—has suggested that TRIs could have efficacy in targeting motivational dysfunction due to their dopaminergic effects. Previous research has shown that the dopamine depleting agent tetrabenazine can reliably induce motivational deficits in rats, as evidenced by a shift towards low-effort behavior in effort-based choice tasks, and provide a validated approach to creating a model of motivational dysfunction. …

Regaining Effort-Based Food Motivation: The Drug Methylphenidate Reverses The Depressive Effects Of Tetrabenazine In Female Rats, Deanna Pietrorazio

Honors Scholar Theses

Tetrabenazine (TBZ), a vesicular monoamine transporter type 2 (VMAT-2) inhibitor, depletes dopamine and induces motivational deficits and other depressive symptoms in humans. Methylphenidate (MPH) is a dopamine transport blocker that is used to enhance motivational function. Previous studies have shown that in male rats, TBZ induces a shift in effort-related choice such that a low-effort bias is induced. In male rats this occurs at a dose range of 0.75-1.0 mg/kg TBZ, and this effect is reversible with co-administration of MPH. Recent studies have shown that females need a higher dose of TBZ (2.0 mg/kg) to show the low-effort bias. The …

Emory-Tibet Science Initiative: Changes In Monastic Science Learning Motivation And Engagement During A Six-Year Curriculum, Kelsey M. Gray, Cindy Achat-Mendes, Ann Cale Kruger, Tashi Lhamo, Rinchen Wangyal, Gelek Gyatso, Carol M. Worthman

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Led by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the initiative taken by the Tibetan Buddhist monastic community to connect with western science and scientists presents a unique opportunity to understand the motivations and engagement behaviors that contribute to monastic science learning. In this study, we draw on quantitative data from two distinct surveys that track motivations and engagement behaviors related to science education among monastic students. The first survey was administered at one monastic university in 2018, and the second follow-up survey was completed by students at two monastic universities in 2019. These surveys assessed the reception of science education related …

The Development And Evaluation Of Novel Da Transport Inhibitors And Their Effects On Effort-Related Motivation: A Review, Mukund Desibhatla

Honors Scholar Theses

Depression is a debilitating disorder that can cause motivational deficits such as psychomotor retardation, anergia, apathy, and fatigue. Recent research indicates that these motivational deficits, and potential pathways of therapeutic intervention, can be studied in animal models involving rats and mice. Treatments with the VMAT-2 inhibitor tetrabenazine (TBZ) and cytokine interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) can create a low-effort bias and impair effort-related motivation (Nunes et al. 2013, 2014). A number of high-affinity DA transport inhibitors such as d-amphetamine, methylphenidate, and cocaine can restore extracellular DA, albeit with the cost of undesirable effects such as high abuse liability. These observations have led researchers …

Virtual High School Physiology: Hands-On Experiences During The Covid Pandemic, Sowmya Anjur

Faculty Publications & Research

The CoVID pandemic has forced us to rethink our curriculum and allow for many unforeseen factors. Going virtual since March has affected teaching and learning and made it almost impossible for students to perform hands-on learning. My school is a residential school for students in grades 10-12 and since we cannot have students congregating on campus, and possibly spreading the virus, we went virtual. We have had to revamp our curriculum and change our teaching to engage students online. The question then becomes - how do we promote equity, diversity and inclusion through online learning, knowing that many of our …

Strategies For Change: Behavior Change Using Self Talk, Kaitlyn Chamberlain

Diet, Food, Exercise, and Nutrition (D-FEND)

Speaker shares how self-talk can help improve our ability to meet our goals.

Strategies For Change: Motivation & Rewards, Kayce Hyde

Diet, Food, Exercise, and Nutrition (D-FEND)

Kayce Hyde speaks about motivation and how we can initiate, guide and maintain goal-oriented behaviors.

Beauty That Moves: Dance For Parkinson’S Effects On Affect, Self-Efficacy, Gait Symmetry, And Dual Task Performance, Cecilia Fontanesi, Joseph F. X. Desouza

Publications and Research

Background: Previous studies have investigated the effects of dance interventions on Parkinson’s motor and non-motor symptoms in an effort to develop an integrated view of dance as a therapeutic intervention. This within-subject study questions whether dance can be simply considered a form of exercise by comparing a Dance for Parkinson’s class with a matched-intensity exercise session lacking dance elements like music, metaphorical language, and social reality of art-partaking.

Methods: In this repeated-measure design, 7 adults with Parkinson’s were tested four times; (i) before and (ii) after a Dance for Parkinson’s class, as well as (iii) before and (iv) after a …

Skilled Throwing Performance: A Test Of The Optimal Theory, Jacquelyn V.L. Sertic, Jason M. Avedesian, James W. Navalta

Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences Faculty Publications

The OPTIMAL theory of motor learning postulates that autonomy support (AS), enhanced expectancies (EE), and an external focus of attention (EF) facilitate improved motor learning and performance. However, its applicability to elite-level throwing athletes has not been investigated by previous literature. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the successive implementation of AS, EE, and EF factors on overhand throwing performance in elite collegiate softball athletes (14.44 ± 2.75 years of softball experience). The secondary purpose was to determine whether self-efficacy beliefs would be augmented by factor manipulation. Twenty-four participants threw softballs at a bullseye target during five …

Enrollment Decision-Making By Students In Forestry And Related Natural Resource Degree Programmes Globally, T. L. Bal, M. D. Rouleau, T. L. Sharik, A. M. Wellstead

Michigan Tech Publications

A survey of 396 undergraduate and graduate students from 51 countries on 5 continents currently enrolled in Forestry or Related Natural Resource (FRNR) degree programmes was conducted of attendees to the International Union of Forest Research Organizations' (IUFRO) conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, 2014. These perspectives come from some of the most active students in their respective fields. We explored the motivating reasons for enrolling in their current FRNR programme, and conversely why they may have been hesitant to do so. Results indicate that enjoyment of nature was the most important factor on average driving the decision to enroll, …

Core Neuropsychological Measures For Obesity And Diabetes Trials: Initial Report, Kimberlee D'Ardenne, Cary R. Savage, Dana Small, Uku Vainik, Luke E. Stoeckel

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty and Staff Publications

Obesity and diabetes are known to be related to cognitive abilities. The Core Neuropsychological Measures for Obesity and Diabetes Trials Project aimed to identify the key cognitive and perceptual domains in which performance can influence treatment outcomes, including predicting, mediating, and moderating treatment outcome and to generate neuropsychological batteries comprised of well-validated, easy-to-administer tests that best measure these key domains. The ultimate goal is to facilitate inclusion of neuropsychological measures in clinical studies and trials so that we can gather more information on potential mediators of obesity and diabetes treatment outcomes. We will present the rationale for the project and …

Learning And Motivation For Rewards In Schizophrenia: Implications For Behavioral Rehabilitation, Victoria Martin, Alexandra Brereton, Jicheng Tang

Publications and Research

Purpose of review: Impaired reward processing and amotivation are well documented in schizophrenia. We aim to review the current state of neuroimaging and behavioral research addressing components of motivational deficits in this complex and impairing syndrome. Evidence will be integrated to inform the ongoing development of effective strategies for behavioral rehabilitation. Recent findings: While striatal dopamine and aberrant reward prediction errors have been connected to amotivation in schizophrenia, they are not sufficiently full explanations of reward processing impairments. Frontal dysfunction and associated cognitive control deficits also have evidenced involvement in atypical reward prediction, learning, and valuation. Ongoing work supports the …

Altered Gating Of KV1.4 In The Nucleus Accumbens Suppresses Motivation For Reward, Bernadette O'Donovan, Adewale Adeluyi, Erin L Anderson, Robert D. Cole, Jill R. Turner, Pavel I. Ortinski

Neuroscience Faculty Publications

Deficient motivation contributes to numerous psychiatric disorders, including withdrawal from drug use, depression, schizophrenia, and others. Nucleus accumbens (NAc) has been implicated in motivated behavior, but it remains unclear whether motivational drive is linked to discrete neurobiological mechanisms within the NAc. To examine this, we profiled cohorts of Sprague-Dawley rats in a test of motivation to consume sucrose. We found that substantial variability in willingness to exert effort for reward was not associated with operant responding under low-effort conditions or stress levels. Instead, effort-based motivation was mirrored by a divergent NAc shell transcriptome with differential regulation at potassium and dopamine …

Comparative Role Of Reward In Long-Term Peer And Mate Relationships In Voles, Nastacia L. Goodwin, Sarah A. Lopez, Nicole S. Lee, Annaliese K. Beery

Neuroscience: Faculty Publications

This is a contribution to SI: SBN/ICN meeting. In social species, relationships may form between mates, parents and their offspring, and/or social peers. Prairie voles and meadow voles both form selective relationships for familiar same-sex peers, but differ in mating system, allowing comparison of the properties of peer and mate relationships. Prairie vole mate bonds are dopamine-dependent, unlike meadow vole peer relationships, indicating potential differences in the mechanisms and motivation supporting these relationships within and/or across species. We review the role of dopamine signaling in affiliative behavior, and assess the role of behavioral reward across relationship types. We compared the …

Ventral Tegmental Area Astrocytes Orchestrate Avoidance And Approach Behavior, J. A. Gomez, J. M. Perkins, Gerard M.J. Beaudoin Iii, N. B. Cook, S. A. Quraishi, E. A. Szoeke, K. Thangamani, C. W. Tschumi, M. J. Wanat, A. M. Maroof, M. J. Beckstead, P. A. Rosenberg, C. A. Paladini

Biology Faculty Research

The ventral tegmental area (VTA) is a heterogeneous midbrain structure, containing neurons and astrocytes, that coordinates behaviors by integrating activity from numerous afferents. Within neuron-astrocyte networks, astrocytes control signals from distinct afferents in a circuit-specific manner, but whether this capacity scales up to drive motivated behavior has been undetermined. Using genetic and optical dissection strategies we report that VTA astrocytes tune glutamatergic signaling selectively on local inhibitory neurons to drive a functional circuit for learned avoidance. In this circuit, astrocytes facilitate excitation of VTA GABA neurons to increase inhibition of dopamine neurons, eliciting real-time and learned avoidance behavior that is …

The Convergence Of Psychology And Neurobiology In Flavor-Nutrient Learning, Kevin P. Myers

Faculty Journal Articles

Flavor evaluation is influenced by learning from experience with foods. One main influence is flavor-nutrient learning (FNL), a Pavlovian process whereby a flavor acts as a conditioned stimulus (CS) that becomes associated with the postingestive effects of ingested nutrients (the US). As a result that flavor becomes preferred and intake typically increases. This learning powerfully influences food choice and meal patterning. This paper summarizes how research elucidating the physiological and neural substrates of FNL has progressed in parallel with work characterizing how FNL affects perception, motivation, and behavior. The picture that emerges from this work is of a robust system …

Motivators For Alzheimer's Disease Clinical Trial Participation, Shoshana H. Bardach, Sarah D. Holmes, Gregory A. Jicha

Graduate Center for Gerontology Faculty Publications

Background

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) research progress is impeded due to participant recruitment challenges. This study seeks to better understand, from the perspective of individuals engaged in clinical trials (CTs), research motivations.

Methods

Participants, or their caregivers, from AD treatment and prevention CTs were surveyed about research motivators.

Results

The 87 respondents had a mean age of 72.2, were predominantly Caucasian, 55.2% were male, and 56.3% had cognitive impairment. An overwhelming majority rated the potential to help themselves or a loved one and the potential to help others in the future as important motivators. Relatively few respondents were motivated by free …

Influence Of Dietary Salt Knowledge, Perceptions, And Beliefs On Consumption Choices After Stroke In Uganda, Martin N. Kaddumukasa, Elly Katabira, Martha Sajatovic, Svetlana Pundik, Mark Kaddumukasa, Larry B. Goldstein

Neurology Faculty Publications

Background

Previous research on Uganda's poststroke population revealed that their level of dietary salt knowledge did not lead to healthier consumption choices.

Purpose

Identify barriers and motivators for healthy dietary behaviors and evaluate the understanding of widely accepted salt regulation mechanisms among poststroke patients in Uganda.

Methods

Convergent parallel mixed methods triangulation design comprised a cross-sectional survey (n = 81) and 8 focus group discussions with 7-10 poststroke participants in each group. We assessed participant characteristics and obtained insights into their salt consumption attitudes, perceptions, and knowledge. Qualitative responses were analyzed using an inductive approach with thematic analytic procedures. Relationships …

The Relationship Between Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction, Behavioral Regulation, And Participation In Crossfit, Melissa J. Davies, Lyndsie Coleman, Megan Babkes Stellino

College of the Pacific Faculty Articles

CrossFit can be described as a relatively new fitness training method that is based on a variety of high-intensity weight training, body weight movements, and cardiovascular exercise. Given the recent rise in CrossFit establishments, the purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between basic need satisfaction (autonomy, relatedness, competence), behavioral regulation toward CrossFit, and actual participation behaviors within the framework of Self-Determination Theory. CrossFit participants (N = 206; Mage = 37.6 years), majority Caucasian (76%), females (58%), who reported attending three (n = 91; 44.2%) and five (n = 78; 37.9%) CrossFit sessions per week completed online surveys …

Drink Like A Lawyer: The Neuroscience Of Substance Use And Its Impact On Cognitive Wellness, Debra S. Austin

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

Lawyers suffer from higher levels of anxiety and depression than the rest of the population, but most do not enter law school with these mental health issues. Disciplinary actions against attorneys involve substance abuse 50 to 75 percent of the time. However, neuroscience research has shown that both the brain and the genes enjoy the power of plasticity, which means that personal choices and environments shape the development of lawyers throughout their lives. Legal educators need a better understanding of what aspects or characteristics of legal education contribute to the decline in mental health of law students, lawyers, and judges, …

Exposure To Kynurenic Acid During Adolescence Increases Sign-Tracking And Impairs Long-Term Potentiation In Adulthood, Nicole E. Deangeli, Travis P. Todd, Stephen E. Chang, Hermes H. Yeh, Pamela W. Yeh, David J. Bucci

Dartmouth Scholarship

Changes in brain reward systems are thought to contribute significantly to the cognitive and behavioral impairments of schizophrenia, as well as the propensity to develop co-occurring substance abuse disorders. Presently, there are few treatments for persons with a dual diagnosis and little is known about the neural substrates that underlie co-occurring schizophrenia and substance abuse. One goal of the present study was to determine if a change in the concentration of kynurenic acid (KYNA), a tryptophan metabolite that is increased in the brains of people with schizophrenia, affects reward-related behavior. KYNA is an endogenous antagonist of NMDA glutamate receptors and …

The Flexible Fairness: Equality, Earned Entitlement, And Self-Interest, Chunliang Feng, Yi Luo, Ruolei Gu, Lucas S. Broster, Xueyi Shen, Tengxiang Tian, Yue-Jia Luo, Frank Krueger

Behavioral Science Faculty Publications

The current study explored whether earned entitlement modulated the perception of fairness in three experiments. A preliminary resource earning task was added before players decided how to allocate the resource they jointly earned. Participants' decision in allocation, their responses to equal or unequal offers, whether advantageous or disadvantageous, and subjective ratings of fairness were all assessed in the current study. Behavioral results revealed that participants proposed more generous offers and showed enhanced tolerance to disadvantageous unequal offers from others when they performed worse than their presumed "partners," while the reverse was true in the better-performance condition. The subjective ratings also …

Older Adolescents’ Self-Determined Motivations To Disclose Their Hiv Status, Ann Gillard, Mark F. Roark

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

Disclosure of HIV status is an important topic for youth living with HIV/AIDS, yet theoretical frameworks for understanding HIV disclosure motivations have been poorly applied. Self-determination theory (SDT) proposes that people are at optimal functioning when they are engaging in activities that are interesting and enlivening. This study utilized SDT to understand young adults’ motivations to disclose their HIV status. Interviews and observations were conducted with nine youth aged 17–19 and two adult staff. Results indicate that SDT is useful for understanding types of motivation (i.e., amotivation, controlled, and autonomous motivation) to disclose. Amotivation was the most common type of …

Psychological Predictors Of Children's Recess Physical Activity Motivation And Behavior [Abstract], Megan Babkes Stellino, Christina Sinclair

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Vocal Expression Of Emotions In Mammals: Mechanisms Of Production And Evidence, Elodie Briefer

Communication Skills Collection

Emotions play a crucial role in an animal’s life because they facilitate responses to external or internal events of significance for the organism. In social species, one of the main functions of emotional expression is to regulate social interactions. There has recently been a surge of interest in animal emotions in several disciplines, ranging from neuroscience to evolutionary zoology. Because measurements of subjective emotional experiences are not possible in animals, researchers use neurophysiological, behavioural and cognitive indicators. However, good indicators, particularly of positive emotions, are still lacking. Vocalizations are linked to the inner state of the caller. The emotional state …

Adrenal Steroids Uniquely Influence Sexual Motivation Behavior In Male Rats, George Taylor, Joshua Dearborn, Susan Maloney

Psychology Faculty Works

The androgenic adrenal steroids dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and 4α-androstenedione (4-A) have significant biological activity, but it is unclear if the behavioral effects are unique or only reflections of the effects of testosterone (TS). Gonadally intact male Long-Evans rats were assigned to groups to receive supplements of DHEA, 4-A, TS, corticosteroid (CORT), all at 400 µg steroid/kg of body weight, or vehicle only for 5 weeks. All males were tested in a paradigm for sexual motivation that measures time and urinary marks near an inaccessible receptive female. It was found that DHEA and 4-A supplements failed to influence time near the estrous …

Motives For Sport Participation Of Athletes With Intellectual Disability, V. J. Pedrinelli, M.R. F. Brandã, Deborah R. Shapiro

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The present study aimed at knowing the reasons which led Brazilian athletes with intellectual disability to engage in sports practice and to take part in competitions promoted by the Special Olympics Brazil. A hundred and two athletes, between 21 and 49 years old, were evaluated through the Sport Motivation Questionnaire developed by Shapiro (2003). The data showed that the athletes took part mainly to get ribbons and medals, to play with other people from the team, to go to new and different places and to feel like an important person. The order of importance given to the motives differs when …

A Systematic Review Of Physical Activity Interventions In Hispanic Adults, Melinda J. Ickes, Manoj Sharma

Kinesiology and Health Promotion Faculty Publications

Healthy People 2020 aims to achieve health equity, eliminate disparities, and improve the health of all groups. Regular physical activity (PA) improves overall health and fitness and has the capability to reduce risk for chronic diseases. Identifying barriers which relate to the Hispanic population is important when designing PA interventions. Therefore, the purpose was to review existing PA interventions targeting Hispanic adults published between 1988 and 2011. This paper was limited to interventions which included more than 35% Hispanic adults (n = 20). Most of the interventions were community based (n = 16), although clinical, family-based, and faith-based …