Behavior and Behavior Mechanisms Commons^™

On Reporting The Onset Of The Intention To Move, Uri Maoz, Liad Mudrik, Ram Rivlin, Ian Ross, Adam Mamelak, Gideon Yaffe

Psychology Faculty Books and Book Chapters

"In 1965, Hans Kornhuber and Luder Deecke made a discovery that greatly influenced the study of voluntary action. Using electroencephalography (EEG), they showed that when aligning some tens of trials to movement onset and averaging, a slowly decreasing electrical potential emerges over central regions of the brain. It starts 1 second ( s) or so before the onset of the voluntary action1 and continues until shortly after the action begins. They termed this the Bereitschaftspotential, or readiness potential (RP; Kornhuber & Deecke, 1965).2 This became the first well-established neural marker of voluntary action. In that, the RP allowed for more …

Amygdaloid And Non-Amygdaloid Fear Both Influence Avoidance Of Risky Foraging In Hungry Rats, Earnest S. Kim, Eun Joo Kim, Regina Yeh, Minkyung Shin, Jake Bobman, Franklin B. Krasne, Jeansok J. Kim

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

Considerable evidence seems to show that emotional and reflex reactions to feared situations are mediated by the amygdala. It might therefore seem plausible to expect that amygdala-coded fear should also influence decisions when animals make choices about instrumental actions. However, there is not good evidence of this. In particular, it appears, though the literature is conflicted, that once learning is complete, the amygdala may often not be involved in instrumental avoidance behaviours. It is therefore of interest that we have found in rats living for extended periods in a semi-naturalistic ‘closed economy’, where they were given random shocks in regions …

Risk Factors Of Suicidal Phenomenon: Prevention And Intervention, Lisa M. Meyer

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Around the world suicide has caused more deaths per year than homicide or war (World Health Organization, 2002). Suicidal attempts (the person survives) and suicidal ideation (thinking seriously about suicide) are others dimensions of the suicide phenomenon. A number of risk factors have been considered as factors contributing to the increased likelihood of suicidal ideation, attempts, and completions. Sociological (external) factors and psychological (internal) factors have been considered in increasing suicidal risk. Beyond the individual factors research has also explained the family, social, and community aspects of the suicidal phenomenon. Helping professionals planning suicide intervention and prevention strategies need to …

Basic Psychological Needs, Suicidal Ideation, And Risk For Suicidal Behavior In Young Adults, Peter C. Britton, Kimberly A. Van Orden, Jameson K. Hirsch, Geoffrey C. Williams

ETSU Faculty Works

Associations between the satisfaction of basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness with current suicidal ideation and risk for suicidal behavior were examined. Two logistic regressions were conducted with a cross-sectional database of 440 university students to examine the association of need satisfaction with suicidal ideation and risk for suicidal behavior, while controlling for demographics and depressive symptoms. Suicidal ideation was reported by 15% of participants and 18% were found to be at risk for suicidal behavior. A one standard deviation increase in need satisfaction reduced the odds of suicidal ideation by 53%, OR (95% CI) = 0.47 (0.33–0.67), …

Grandfamilies Outcome Workgroup’S (Grow) Review Of Grandfamilies Support Groups: An Examination Of Concepts, Goals, Outcomes And Measures, Kerry A. Littlewood

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

A support group is the most widely used intervention for grandparents and other relatives raising children. Support groups require few resources to establish and are relatively inexpensive to implement. Despite the popularity of support groups for grandfamilies, there is little evidence evaluating their effectiveness to improve the lives of its members. In response to this issue and to support outcome-based research in the field, the Grandfamilies Outcome Workgroup (GrOW) was established. This study highlights GrOW’s review of the literature on the effectiveness of support groups for grandfamilies. Next, the GrOW Inventory of Support Groups (GrOW Inventory) was developed to explore …

Residential Treatment For Combat-Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Identifying Trajectories Of Change And Predictors Of Treatment Response, Joseph M. Currier, Jason M. Holland, Kent D. Drescher

Psychology Faculty Research

Background

Combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be a difficult condition to treat and has been associated with serious medical and economic issues among U.S. military veterans. Distinguishing between treatment responders vs. non-responders in this population has become an important public health priority. This study was conducted to identify pre-treatment characteristics of U.S. veterans with combat-related PTSD that might contribute to favorable and unfavorable responses to high value treatments for this condition.

Method

This study focused on 805 patients who completed a VHA PTSD residential program between 2000 and 2007. These patients completed the PTSD Clinical Checklist at pre-treatment, post-treatment, …

Increasing Maternal Or Post-Weaning Folic Acid Alters Gene Expression And Moderately Changes Behavior In The Offspring, Subit Barua, Kathryn K. Chadman, Salomon Kuizon, Diego Buenaventura, Nathan W. Stapley, Felicia Ruocco, Umme Begum, Sara R. Guariglia, W. Ted Brown, Mohamad Junaid

Publications and Research

Background: Studies have indicated that altered maternal micronutrients and vitamins influence the development of newborns and altered nutrient exposure throughout the lifetime may have potential health effects and increased susceptibility to chronic diseases. In recent years, folic acid (FA) exposure has significantly increased as a result of mandatory FA fortification and supplementation during pregnancy. Since FA modulates DNA methylation and affects gene expression, we investigated whether the amount of FA ingested during gestation alters gene expression in the newborn cerebral hemisphere, and if the increased exposure to FA during gestation and throughout the lifetime alters behavior in C57BL/6J mice.

Methods …

Modifying Essentialist Beliefs Toward Mental Illness: An Alternative Focus For Anti-Stigma Interventions, Frederick T. Chin

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the College of Science and Technology Morehead State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science by Fredrick T. Chin on July 8, 2014.

The Role Of Online Communication In Buffering Negative Effects Of Ostracism, Victoria Skye Wingate

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the College of Science and Technology Morehead State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science by Victoria Skye Wingate on July 7, 2014.

The Interplay Of Trait Anger, Childhood Physical Abuse, And Alcohol Consumption In Predicting Intimate Partner Aggression, Rosalita C. Maldonado, Laura E. Watkins, David Dilillo

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

The current study examined three well-established risk factors for intimate partner aggression (IPA) within Finkel and Eckhardt’s I³ model, including two impellance factors—trait anger and childhood physical abuse history—and the disinhibiting factor of alcohol consumption. Participants were 236 male and female college students in a committed heterosexual dating relationship who completed a battery of self-report measures assessing childhood physical abuse, trait anger, alcohol consumption, and IPA perpetration. Results revealed a significant three-way interaction showing that as the disinhibition factor alcohol consumption increased, the interaction of the two impelling factors, trait anger and childhood physical abuse, became increasingly more positive. …

Trends And Determinants Of Up-To-Date Status With Colorectal Cancer Screening In Tennessee, 2002-2008, Sreenivas P. Veeranki, Shimin Zheng

ETSU Faculty Works

BACKGROUND:

Screening rates for colorectal cancer (CRC) are increasing nationwide including Tennessee (TN); however, their up-to-date status is unknown. The objective of this study is to determine the trends and characteristics of TN adults who are up-to-date status with CRC screening during 2002-2008.

METHODS:

We examined data from the TN Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System for 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008 to estimate the proportion of respondents aged 50 years and above who were up-to-date status with CRC screening, defined as an annual home fecal occult blood test and/or sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy in the past 5 years. We identified trends …

A Coordinated School Health Approach To Obesity Prevention Among Appalachian Youth: Middle School Student Outcomes From The Winning With Wellness Project, William T. Dalton Iii, Karen Schetzina, Elizabeth Conway-Williams

International Journal of Health Sciences Education

The Winning With Wellness (WWW) project was a school-based obesity prevention program that was developed to promote healthy eating and physical activity in youth residing in rural Appalachia. The project was based on the Coordinated School Health model (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2013a) and used a community-based participatory research approach with an emphasis on feasibility and sustainability. The purpose of this study was to examine self-reported health outcomes for middle school students across the course of the intervention. Sixth grade middle school students (N = 149; 52% girls) from four schools in Northeast Tennessee completed a …

Family Criticism And Depressive Symptoms In Older Adult Primary Care Patients: Optimism And Pessimism As Moderators, Jameson K. Hirsch, Kristin L. Walker, Ross B. Wilkinson, Jeffrey M. Lyness

ETSU Faculty Works

Objective: Depression is a significant global public health burden, and older adults may be particularly vulnerable to its effects. Among other risk factors, interpersonal conflicts, such as perceived criticism from family members, can increase risk for depressive symptoms in this population. We examined family criticism as a predictor of depressive symptoms and the potential moderating effect of optimism and pessimism.

Methods: One hundred five older adult, primary care patients completed self-report measures of family criticism, optimism and pessimism, and symptoms of depression. We hypothesized that optimism and pessimism would moderate the relationship between family criticism and depressive symptoms.

Results: In …

Learning From Las Vegas: Gambling, Technology, Capitalism, And Addiction, David T. Courtwright

Occasional Papers

Gambling has always led to addictive behavior in some individuals. However, the number and types of addicted gamblers have changed over time and in response to specific gambling environments. Recent work by historians, journalists, and anthropologists, reviewed in this paper, suggests that the situation worsened during the modern era, and that it has become worse still during the last half century. Technological, organizational, and marketing innovations have “weaponized” gambling, increasing both the likelihood that people will gamble and that they will gamble compulsively—a phenomenon with parallels to several other consumer products, including processed food, digitized games, and psychoactive drugs.

Theta And Learning: Dorsal And Ventral Hippocampal Theta Oscillation Respond Differently To Learning, Gregory N. Newman

Honors Scholar Theses

Rhythmic oscillations within the hippocampus are thought to synchronize various subregions during learning, maximizing efficiency of the neural circuits. In rats, the most prominent oscillation is hippocampal theta. Theta is known to be modulated by an animal’s velocity, but it has also been shown to change in response to cognitive demands. To determine if theta is important for learning and memory, EEG recordings were examined for changes in theta related to the decision point of a spatial or non-spatial T-maze task. Additionally, a straight runway served as a control to verify the consistent relationship between velocity and theta during a …

The Effect Of Patient Education On Anxiety Levels In Patients Receiving Chemotherapy For The First Time, Sarah Garcia

Evidence-Based Practice Project Reports

Cancer affects approximately 1.5 million people every year throughout the United States.Comprehensive care that includes psychosocial aspects is important to help patients effectively adapt to their diagnosis and treatment plan. Improper prevention and management of anxiety can lead to poor psychosocial outcomes, dissatisfaction with care, and decreased adherence to treatment. Current evidence suggests that education is effective at helping reduce anxiety in patients receiving chemotherapy for the first time. The purpose of this evidenced based practice project was to determine if nurse-led patient education regarding chemotherapy side effects, side-effect management, and orientation to the infusion center was effective at decreasing …

Do Culture And Biological Sex Influence People Who Engage In Non-Suicidal Self-Injury?, Rachel Berger

Graduate Theses

Non-Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI) refers to behaviors in which a person intentionally harms and causes tissue damage to oneself, without the desire to end his or her life. There have been contradictory findings with regard to differences in NSSI by biological sex and culture. In this study, I sought to examine if adults with independent cultural self- construals would report more occurrences of NSSI in comparison to those with interdependent cultural self-construals. Furthermore, I was interested in whether females would report more instances of NSSI in comparison to males in independent based cultures, and I examined whether the methods and reasons …

Depression And Risk Perceptions In Older African Americans With Diabetes, Barry W. Rovner, Md, Julia A. Haller, Md, Robin J. Casten, Phd, Ann P. Murchison, Md, Mph, Lisa A. Hark, Phd, Rd

Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior Faculty Papers

Introduction: The purpose of this study is to describe the impact of depression on perceptions of risks to health, diabetes self-management practices, and glycemic control in older African Americans with type 2 diabetes.

Methods: The authors analyzed data on depression, risk perceptions, diabetes self-management, and hemoglobin A1C in African Americans with type 2 diabetes.T tests, chi square, and multivariate regression were used to analyze the data.

Results: The sample included 177 African Americans (68% women) whose average age was 72.8 years. Thirty four (19.2%) participants met criteria for depression. Compared to non-depressed participants, depressed participants scored significantly higher on Personal …

The Reversal Effects Of Curcumin, An Herbal Remedy, On The Impairments Induced By Vmat-2 Inhibitor Tetrabenazine, Emily Qian, Samantha E. Yohn

Honors Scholar Theses

Substantial evidence has shown that dopamine (DA), particularly in the nucleus accumbens (NAc), is involved in behavioral activation and effort-related processes, such as overcoming work related response costs. Interference with accumbens DA transmission through administration of the vesicular monoamine transportor-2 (VMAT-2) inhibitor tetrabenazine (TBZ) produces an alteration of response allocation in the concurrent FR5/chow choice procedure, biasing animals toward the lower effort alternative. It has been suggested that these drug-induced shifts in effort-related choice behavior seen in rodents are analogous to symptoms such as psychomotor retardation, anergia, and fatigue, which can be observed in people with depression and other related …

Eye-Tracking Measures Of Attentional Bias In Cocaine Dependent Subjects, Nadeeka Dias

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Cocaine-dependent (CD) subjects show evidence of attentional bias toward cocaine-related cues, and this measure of cue-reactivity is predictive of craving and relapse. In previous work, cue-reactivity and attentional bias have been assessed by models that present drug-relevant stimuli (e.g., cocaine-specific Stroop task) and measure physiological and behavioral reactivity (e.g., heart rate, reaction times). Studies have indicated competition between the higher-order cortical processes (frontal eye-fields, DLPFC) in voluntary eye control (i.e., anti-saccades) and more reflexive saccades driven by involuntary midbrain (superior colliculus) perceptual input (i.e., pro-saccades). In addition, neuroimaging studies in patients with cocaine dependence have shown activation in frontal regions …