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Subjective Ratings (subjective + rating)
Selected AbstractsAbuse liability of intravenous buprenorphine/naloxone and buprenorphine alone in buprenorphine-maintained intravenous heroin abusersADDICTION, Issue 4 2010Sandra D. Comer ABSTRACT Background Sublingual buprenorphine is an effective maintenance treatment for opioid dependence, yet intravenous buprenorphine misuse occurs. A buprenorphine/naloxone formulation was developed to mitigate this misuse risk. This randomized, double-blind, cross-over study was conducted to assess the intravenous abuse potential of buprenorphine/naloxone compared with buprenorphine in buprenorphine-maintained injection drug users (IDUs). Methods Intravenous heroin users (n = 12) lived in the hospital for 8,9 weeks and were maintained on each of three different sublingual buprenorphine doses (2 mg, 8 mg, 24 mg). Under each maintenance dose, participants completed laboratory sessions during which the reinforcing and subjective effects of intravenous placebo, naloxone, heroin and low and high doses of buprenorphine and buprenorphine/naloxone were examined. Every participant received each test dose under the three buprenorphine maintenance dose conditions. Results Intravenous buprenorphine/naloxone was self-administered less frequently than buprenorphine or heroin (P < 0.0005). Participants were most likely to self-administer drug intravenously when maintained on the lowest sublingual buprenorphine dose. Subjective ratings of ,drug liking' and ,desire to take the drug again' were lower for buprenorphine/naloxone than for buprenorphine or heroin (P = 0.0001). Participants reported that they would pay significantly less money for buprenorphine/naloxone than for buprenorphine or heroin (P < 0.05). Seven adverse events were reported; most were mild and transient. Conclusions These data suggest that although the buprenorphine/naloxone combination has intravenous abuse potential, that potential is lower than it is for buprenorphine alone, particularly when participants received higher maintenance doses and lower buprenorphine/naloxone challenge doses. Buprenorphine/naloxone may be a reasonable option for managing the risk for buprenorphine misuse during opioid dependence treatment. [source] Emotional processing in psychopathic personalityAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 5 2002Ute Habel Abstract Emotional-processing deficits may be one of the characteristic features of impaired affect in individuals with psychopathy. These include shallowness and profound lack of remorse or empathy. Performances on standardized emotion discrimination tasks and mood induction tasks were compared between 17 patients with antisocial personality disorder (DSM-IV) and 17 nonpsychopaths. Subjects with psychopathic personality demonstrated poorer performance on emotion-discrimination tasks compared with controls. However, higher scores on factor "emotional detachment" of the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R) were associated with better discrimination ability. Subjective ratings were comparable between groups during mood induction. Although the findings support the hypothesis of a significant association between impaired emotional processing and psychopathy, they also suggest a relationship between emotional discrimination and the core personality features of psychopathy. Aggr. Behav. 28:394,400, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Stress Hormone Dysregulation at Rest and After Serotonergic Stimulation Among Alcohol-Dependent Men With Extended Abstinence and ControlsALCOHOLISM, Issue 5 2001Robert M. Anthenelli Background: Alcohol dependence has been associated with long-lasting alterations in limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (LHPA) axis and serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine [5-HT]) function. Other conditions that are associated with alcoholism (cigarette smoking and antisocial personality disorder [ASPD]) have been linked with disturbances in these interrelated systems. We evaluated the stress hormone response to 5-HTergic stimulation in alcohol-dependent men with extended abstinence (average abstinence duration, 4.3 months) and controls to determine the relative contributions of alcoholism, cigarette smoking, and ASPD on baseline and provoked plasma cortisol and adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) concentrations. Methods: One hundred nine alcohol-abstinent men with alcohol dependence (62%), habitual smoking (70%), and ASPD (43%) received d,l-fenfluramine (100 mg po) in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial. The group of recovering alcohol-dependent individuals included abstinent primary alcohol-dependent men and alcohol-dependent men with ASPD, whereas the group of non-alcohol-dependent men comprised healthy controls and non-alcohol-dependent men with ASPD. Plasma cortisol and ACTH levels were obtained at AM baseline and at half-hour intervals after drug administration. Subjective ratings of drug response and physiological measures were also obtained at baseline and every 30 min. Results: Abstinent alcohol-dependent men had significantly lower (approximately 20%) AM baseline plasma cortisol concentrations than non-alcohol-dependent men on both challenge days; however, no differences between the groups were observed with regard to resting AM plasma ACTH levels. After adjusting for these baseline differences, recovering alcohol-dependent men (area under curve = 35.6 ± 37.4 [,g/dl] × min) had a twofold greater cortisol response to fenfluramine than non-alcohol-dependent men (area under curve = 17.5 ± 32.5 [,g/dl] × min) (F= 5.1;df= 1,105;p < 0.03). The elevated cortisol response, which occurred primarily along the descending limb of the response curve, was paralleled by a nonsignificant statistical trend for alcohol-dependent men to also exhibit a greater ACTH response to fenfluramine at the 210-min (p < 0.07) and 240-min (p < 0.09) time points as compared with non-alcohol-dependent men. Cigarette smoking and ASPD did not affect hormonal responses, nor could the groups' subjective ratings and physiological measures be distinguished. Conclusions: Alcohol-dependent men with extended abstinence differed from age- and race-matched non-alcohol-dependent men in resting AM and fenfluramine-induced plasma cortisol levels. This dysfunction in glucocorticoid homeostatic mechanisms was associated with alcoholism and not with smoking or ASPD. We also observed a nonsignificant statistical trend for plasma ACTH levels to be elevated among alcohol-dependent men along the descending limb of the response curve. Alcohol-dependent men seemed to have inherited or acquired damage to 5-HT-regulated LHPA axis function, the precise mechanisms and sites of which remain to be determined. [source] Background music as noise abatement in open-plan offices: A laboratory study on performance effects and subjective preferencesAPPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2009Sabine J. Schlittmeier Continuous noise is played in many open-plan offices to partially mask ambient sounds, in particular background speech. With this, the detrimental impact of background sounds on cognitive performance is intended to be reduced as well as subjectively perceived disturbance. Our experiments explored whether background music can achieve the same effects. Besides collecting subjective rating data, we tested cognitive performance using verbal serial recall. This is the standard task for exploring verbal short-term memory, which is central to human information processing. Either staccato music, legato music or continuous noise was superimposed on office noise. In Experiment 1 (N,=,30), only continuous noise reduced the detrimental impact of office noise significantly. Legato music did not qualify in this respect although it did not diminish cognitive performance when presented in isolation in Experiment 2 (N,=,20). Subjective ratings in both experiments revealed that most participants would prefer legato music to continuous noise in office environments. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Guideline threshold limit values (TLVs) for discomfort in repetitive assembly workHUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS IN MANUFACTURING & SERVICE INDUSTRIES, Issue 5 2007L. O'Sullivan This study focused on two of the main occupational risk factors associated with work-related musculoskeletal disorders in light repetitive electronic assembly work, namely repetition and force. Present-day evaluation techniques are primarily posture based and show low sensitivity with regard to rating repetition and force. A simulated assembly task was conducted to investigate the interactions of risk factors and the suitability of hand activity level (HAL) and TLV values for electronics assembly work. Subjects completed the assembly task for three levels of repetition and force. For each treatment a subjective rating of discomfort was recorded. Repeated measures ANOVA identified repetition and force as highly significant factors in light electronic assembly work ( p < .001, p < .05, respectively). The task was also rated using HAL and normalized peak forces (NPF). This study questioned the ability of TLVs in rating discomfort and amendments to the TLVs are suggested. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Hum Factors Man 17: 423,434, 2007. [source] Development and validation of a pediatric severity index for sickle cell patients,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEMATOLOGY, Issue 10 2010Xandra W. van den Tweel There is no instrument to measure severity of sickle cell disease (SCD) in pediatric patients that is generally accepted. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a severity index for SCD in children. We developed an index consisting of 12 items and tested its validity of the index using data from 92 children. We tested whether different scores were obtained for patients classified by severity both subjectively and objectively by a partially validated existing index. Furthermore, we tested whether the index could differentiate patients classified according to genotype or the number of ,-gene deletions and evaluated whether the score on the index was correlated with the average number and days of hospitalizations/year, age and a risk of death score. We explored the effect of three different weighting systems (Score A, B, and C) to summarize these items. All weightings demonstrated a significant difference between the scores of mild, moderate, and severely affected patients, as classified by a subjective rating or with an existing index (P < 0.01). The index clearly differentiated patients by genotype (P < 0.01) or ,-gene deletions (P < 0.01). The correlation with hospitalization was moderate. Age and the risk of death score were weakly associated with the pediatric severity index for SCD. This is the first pediatric SCD severity index that was developed and validated using modern clinimetric methodology. The validity and reliability of this index should be further evaluated in a prospective study including a larger cohort, preferably diagnosed at birth. Am. J. Hematol., 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Quality of life of male outpatients with personality disorders or psychotic disorders: a comparisonCRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR AND MENTAL HEALTH, Issue 5 2008Yvonne HA Bouman Background,Quality of life (QoL) has become increasingly important as an outcome measure in community-based psychiatry. QoL refers to an individual's sense of well-being and satisfaction with his current life conditions. It is measured both through objective social indicators and life domain-specific subjective indicators. People with a personality disorder (PD) or a major mental disorder (MMD) tend to show poor social adjustment, but their relative subjective QoL is not known. Aim,To compare the QoL of male outpatients in treatment for PD or MMD overall and by means of specific social and subjective indicators. Methods,A sample of 135 men under treatment for PD in Dutch forensic outpatient facilities were compared with 79 men with MMD using the extended Dutch version of the Lancashire Quality of Life Profile (LQoLP). Results,Almost all of the objective indicators of QoL were significantly poorer among men with MMD than those with PD, but the groups did not differ on domain-specific subjective ratings of QoL. Indeed, global subjective QoL was lower in the PD than in the MMD patient group. PD outpatients seemed to have a more complex concept of QoL than the MMD outpatients for whom almost half of the variance in subjective QoL rating was related to their everyday activities and their objective sense of safety. Conclusions and implications for practice,Further study of QoL among PD patients would be warranted to test the extent to which subjective dissatisfaction is intrinsic to PD and to explore the possibility of improving it with targeted treatments. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Behavioral and cardiovascular effects of 7.5% CO2 in human volunteersDEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 1 2005Jayne E. Bailey M.Sc. Abstract The study of carbon dioxide (CO2) inhalation in psychiatry has a long and varied history, with recent interest in using inhaled CO2 as an experimental tool to explore the neurobiology and treatment of panic disorder. As a consequence, many studies have examined the panic-like response to the gas either using the single or double breath 35% CO2 inhalation or 5,7% CO2 inhaled for 15,20 min, or rebreathing 5% CO2 for a shorter time. However, this lower dose regime produces little physiological or psychological effects in normal volunteers. For this reason we have studied the effects of a higher concentration of CO2, 7.5%, given over 20 min. Twenty healthy volunteers were recruited to a double blind, placebo-controlled study where air and 7.5% CO2 were inhaled for 20 min. Cardiovascular measures and subjective ratings were obtained. When compared to air, inhaling 7.5% CO2 for 20 min increases systolic blood pressure and heart rate, indicating increased autonomic arousal. It also increases ratings of anxiety and fear and other subjective symptoms associated with an anxiety state. The inhalation of 7.5% CO2 for 20 min is safe for use in healthy volunteers and produces robust subjective and objective effects. It seems promising as an anxiety provocation test that could be beneficial in the study of the effects of anxiety on sustained performance, the discovery of novel anxiolytic agents, and the study of brain circuits and mechanisms of anxiety. Depression and Anxiety 00:000,000, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Preference judgements involve a network of structures within frontal, cingulate and insula corticesEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 5 2009Amir M. Chaudhry Abstract Environmental stimuli constantly compete for human attention and in many cases decisions are made based on the affective meaning they convey. Although the network of structures involved in processing affective value has been well described, the specific contribution of these structures to the process by which affective value guides decision making is less well understood and is the focus of the present study. Thus, subjects read descriptions of individually tailored holidays, varying in incentive value and then made preference judgements, cognitive judgements or no decision. Choices made from an affective perspective, compared with those made from a cognitive perspective, activated a region of the anterior insula/operculum and also the anterior cingulate cortex. Furthermore, activity in perigenual, anterior cingulate cortex was correlated with subjective ratings of incentive value. In contrast, medial orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and a region of posterior ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (PFC), bordering on the insula, were found to be more active when affective stimuli guided response selection than when no selection was made. However, only the activity in the ventrolateral PFC was specific to response selection based on affective compared with cognitive judgements. It is proposed that the necessary introspection required to make subjective preference judgements is provided by the insula and cingulate cortices, while the medial OFC and posterior ventrolateral PFC/insula cortices contribute to stimulus evaluation and motivational aspects of response selection, respectively. [source] Enhancement of steady-state auditory evoked magnetic fields in tinnitusEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 4 2004Eugen Diesch Abstract The steady-state auditory evoked magnetic field and the Pbm, the magnetic counterpart of the second frontocentrally positive middle latency component of the transitory auditory evoked potential, were measured in ten tinnitus patients using a 122-channel gradiometer system. The patients had varying degrees of hearing loss. In all patients, the tinnitus frequency was located above the frequency of the audiometric edge, i.e. the location on the frequency axis above which hearing loss increases more rapidly. Stimuli were amplitude-modulated sinusoids with carrier frequencies at the tinnitus frequency, the audiometric edge, two frequencies below the audiometric edge, and two frequencies between the audiometric edge and the tinnitus frequency. Below the audiometric edge, the root-mean-square field amplitude of the steady-state response computed across the whole head as well as the contralateral and the ipsilateral dipole moment decreased as a function of carrier frequency. With carrier frequency above the audiometric edge, the steady-state response increased again. The amplitudes of the transitory Pbm component were patterned in a qualitatively similar way, but without the differences being significant. For the steady-state response, both whole-head root-mean-square field amplitude and the dipole moment of the sources at the tinnitus frequency showed significant positive correlations with subjective ratings of tinnitus intensity and intrusiveness. These correlations remained significant when the influence of hearing loss was partialled out. The observed steady-state response amplitude pattern likely reflects an enhanced state of excitability of the frequency region in primary auditory cortex above the audiometric edge. The relationship of tinnitus to auditory cortex hyperexcitability and its independence of hearing loss is discussed with reference to loss of surround inhibition in and map reorganization of primary auditory cortex. [source] Measurement of trust over time in hybrid inspection systemsHUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS IN MANUFACTURING & SERVICE INDUSTRIES, Issue 2 2005Reena Master A study was conducted to measure the effects of human trust and to determine how it develops over time in a hybrid inspection system given different types of errors (i.e., false alarms and misses). The study also looked at which of the four dimensions of trust (competence, predictability, reliability, and faith) were the best predictors of overall trust. Results from the study showed that trust is sensitive to the type of errors made by a system. There was a significant change in overall trust between the stages for the conservative and risky systems, but no significant change in the neutral system. In regards to the best predictors of trust, faith appeared as one of the predictors in all three trial blocks for the conservative and risky systems. As time progressed, predictability emerged in the second and third trial blocks for the conservative system. Competence played an important role in the development of trust for the risky system, whereas reliability played an important role for the neutral system. These results suggest that subjective ratings of trust and the properties of the system can be used to predict the allocation of functions in hybrid inspection systems. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Hum Factors Man 15: 177,196, 2005. [source] Diazepam-induced prospective memory impairment and its relation to retrospective memory, attention, and arousalHUMAN PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY: CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL, Issue 2 2006Jill B. Rich Abstract The amnestic effects of benzodiazepines are well documented on a variety of memory tasks. However, prospective memory (PM), or remembering to execute an action at a future time, has not been studied previously. This study examined the effect of diazepam on word list recall, PM, sustained attention, and subjective ratings of arousal. Forty-eight healthy participants, aged 19,35, received an average of 0.19,mg/kg oral diazepam or placebo in a double-blind manner. Retrospective memory and PM were assessed by free recall of unrelated word lists and by instructing participants to request a hidden belonging at the end of the session, respectively. Sustained attention was measured by multiple trials of a digit cancellation task, and subjective arousal was assessed by self-ratings of drowsiness. Diazepam impaired performance on all measures, including PM. Reduced PM performance was associated with decreased subjective arousal in the diazepam group but was unrelated to sustained attention. This is the first report of the effects of benzodiazepines on prospective remembering, and further supports the view that the arousal/attentional system is composed of partially independent subsystems that have differential relationships to memory. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] A placebo controlled investigation into the effects of paroxetine and mirtazapine on measures related to car driving performanceHUMAN PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY: CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL, Issue 4 2003F. Ridout Abstract Objective To assess the effects of paroxetine and mirtazapine on psychometric performance related to car driving, including an on-the-road test of BRT. Method In a 4-way, double blind randomised crossover study, 12 healthy volunteers received paroxetine 20,mg mane, mirtazapine 15,mg/30,mg nocte (comparator), mirtazapine 15,mg mane/15,mg b.i.d.(verum) and placebo over a 5 day period with a washout period of 7 days between treatments. Psychometric assessments included ,on-the-road' BRT (BRT), CFF (CFF), CRT (CRT) and subjective measures of sedation and sleep parameters. Results Paroxetine had no significant effect on BRT compared with placebo. Although subjective ratings of sleep quality and sedation were impaired, there were significant improvements in both CFF and the recognition reaction component of CRT with paroxetine. Mirtazapine 15,mg/30,mg nocte impaired laboratory performance and some subjective tests. Mirtazapine 15 mg mane/15,mg b.i.d. improved sleep, but significantly impaired all other measures. Conclusion Paroxetine 20,mg/day has no psychomotor or behavioural toxicity and has no negative impact on BRT. Further research into the chronic and sub-chronic effects of mirtazapine is needed to establish the clinical significance of these results. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] A perceptual quality model intended for adaptive VoIP applications,INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS, Issue 3 2006Christian Hoene Abstract Quality models predict the perceptual quality of services as they calculate subjective ratings from measured parameters. In this article, we present a new quality model that evaluates Voice over IP (VoIP) telephone calls. In addition to packet loss rate, coding mode and delay, it takes into account the impairments due to changes in the transmission configuration (e.g. switching the coding mode or re-scheduling the playout time). Moreover, this model can be used at run time to control the transmission of such calls. It is also computationally efficient and open source. To demonstrate the potential of our model, we apply it to select the ideal coding and packet rate in bandwidth-limited environments. Furthermore, we decide, based on model predictions, whether to delay the playout of speech frames after delay spikes. Delay spikes often occur after congestion and cause packets to arrive too late. We show a considerable improvement in perceptual speech quality if our model is applied to control VoIP transmissions. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Objective emotional assessment of tactile hair properties and their modulation by different product worldsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF COSMETIC SCIENCE, Issue 3 2002W. Boucsein Synopsis Tactile properties of cosmetic products constitute weak stimuli and thus can be expected to be easily modified by mental images. In order to enhance an intended positive-emotion-inducing effect of such a product, its experience can be embedded in a certain ,world' that generates a positive emotional imagination. The present study investigated such an influence in 12 males and 12 females, half of each being laymen and experts in sensory assessment. Two product worlds (emotional and technical) and three different hair samples, two of them treated with different shampoos and an untreated one as control, were presented to each subject in counter-balanced order of all six combinations. An objective emotional assessment using a psychophysiological technique developed in an earlier study was applied and compared with a traditional sensory assessment. Among the physiological measures, peripheral blood volume and facial muscular activity were the most sensitive in revealing effects of and interactions between the product worlds and hair samples. A multivariate evaluation of the physiological data revealed three discriminant functions that explained 78.4% of the total variance and enabled a re-classification considerably better than chance. The first discriminant function clearly separated the treated from the untreated hair samples which was not possible by subjective ratings or traditional sensory assessment. The two other discriminant functions comprised a hedonistic and a product world factor. The emotional product world exerted the largest influence in case of the weakest tactile differences between the hair samples, and its influence was larger on laymen than on experts. Gender effects were most prominent in the subjective domain. In conclusion, multivariate psychophysiological methodology is superior to traditional sensory assessment in revealing subtle differences in the tactile perception of cosmetic products. Résumé Les propriétés tactiles des produits cosmétiques constituent de faibles stimuli, de sorte que l'on peut s'attendre à ce qu'elles soient facilement modifiées par des images mentales. Afin d'intensifier l'effet intentionnellement incitant à une émotion positive envers un tel produit, son expérience peut être introduite dans un certain ,environnement' qui engendrerait une imagination émotionelle positive. La présente étude a testé telle influence sur 12 hommes et 12 femmes, la moitié de chaque groupe étant noninitiée et l'autre experte en évaluation sensorielle. Nous avons présentéà chaque sujet, par ordre contrebalancé des six possibilités, deux ,environnements' du produit (émotif et technique), et trois différents échantillons capillaires dont deux où les cheveux étaient traités par différents shampooings, et, pour le contrôle, un échantillon de cheveux nontraités. Nous avons employé une évaluation émotionelle objective par une technique psychophysiologique développée durant une étude précédente et l'avons comparée à une évaluation sensorielle traditionnelle. Parmi les mesures physiologiques, le volume sanguin périphérique et les activités des muscles faciaux étaient exceptionnellement sensibles à manifester les effets des ,environnements' du produit, et des échantillons, ainsi que les interactions entre eux. Une évaluation multivariante des données physiologiques dévoila trois fonctions discriminantes expliquant les 78.4% de l'ensemble de la variance, et permettant une re-classification considérablement meilleure que le hasard. La première fonction discriminante a nettement distingué les échantillons de cheveux traités de ceux nontraités; ce qui n'était pas possible à travers une évaluation subjective ou des mesures sensorielles traditionnelles. Les deux autres fonctions discriminantes comportaient un facteur hédoniste et d'environnement du produit. Dans le cas des plus faibles différences tactiles entre les échantillons capillaires, l'environnement émotif du produit a exercé plus d'influence sur les noninitiés que sur les experts. Les effets du genre humain étaient surtout marquants dans le domaine subjectif. En conclusion, pour dévoiler les subtiles différences dans la perception tactile des produits cosmétiques, la méthodologie psychophysiologique multivariante est supérieure à l'évaluation sensorielle traditionnelle. [source] Effects of task difficulty and time-on-task on mental workloadJAPANESE PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Issue 3 2002Shigeru Haga Abstract: Twelve subjects performed a tracking task and a memory search task simultaneously on a computer screen. The dual task continued for approximately 10 min and was repeated three times, interrupted by a short break for subjective ratings: the NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) and the Check List of Mental Condition. Event related potentials (ERP) evoked by the presentation of memory task stimuli were also recorded. All the subjects participated in three experimental sessions, which varied in difficulty of tracking task. Results demonstrated that the NASA-TLX and ERP were sensitive only to the change in task difficulty and were not affected by time-on-task or interaction between task difficulty and time-on-task. [source] Heart rate variability does not tap putative efficacy of Thought Field TherapyJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 10 2001John P. Kline Callahan (2001) has offered a series of case reports in an effort to validate the rationale and methods of Thought Field Therapy (TFT). These case reports employ subjective ratings, that is, the Subjective Units of Distress (SUD) rating scale as well as a gross measure of heart rate variability (HRV). My criticisms center around (a) inappropriately strong inferences given exclusive reliance on case reports, a potentially biased sample, and lack of appropriate controls; (b) misinterpretation of statistical artifact as systematic effect; (c) lack of systematic evaluation of HRV changes; and (d) erroneous interpretation of HRV. Callahan's article provides no evidence for the efficacy of TFT nor does it provide evidence for the credibility of TFT's rationale. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Clin Psychol 57: 1187,1192, 2001. [source] Stress Hormone Dysregulation at Rest and After Serotonergic Stimulation Among Alcohol-Dependent Men With Extended Abstinence and ControlsALCOHOLISM, Issue 5 2001Robert M. Anthenelli Background: Alcohol dependence has been associated with long-lasting alterations in limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (LHPA) axis and serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine [5-HT]) function. Other conditions that are associated with alcoholism (cigarette smoking and antisocial personality disorder [ASPD]) have been linked with disturbances in these interrelated systems. We evaluated the stress hormone response to 5-HTergic stimulation in alcohol-dependent men with extended abstinence (average abstinence duration, 4.3 months) and controls to determine the relative contributions of alcoholism, cigarette smoking, and ASPD on baseline and provoked plasma cortisol and adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) concentrations. Methods: One hundred nine alcohol-abstinent men with alcohol dependence (62%), habitual smoking (70%), and ASPD (43%) received d,l-fenfluramine (100 mg po) in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial. The group of recovering alcohol-dependent individuals included abstinent primary alcohol-dependent men and alcohol-dependent men with ASPD, whereas the group of non-alcohol-dependent men comprised healthy controls and non-alcohol-dependent men with ASPD. Plasma cortisol and ACTH levels were obtained at AM baseline and at half-hour intervals after drug administration. Subjective ratings of drug response and physiological measures were also obtained at baseline and every 30 min. Results: Abstinent alcohol-dependent men had significantly lower (approximately 20%) AM baseline plasma cortisol concentrations than non-alcohol-dependent men on both challenge days; however, no differences between the groups were observed with regard to resting AM plasma ACTH levels. After adjusting for these baseline differences, recovering alcohol-dependent men (area under curve = 35.6 ± 37.4 [,g/dl] × min) had a twofold greater cortisol response to fenfluramine than non-alcohol-dependent men (area under curve = 17.5 ± 32.5 [,g/dl] × min) (F= 5.1;df= 1,105;p < 0.03). The elevated cortisol response, which occurred primarily along the descending limb of the response curve, was paralleled by a nonsignificant statistical trend for alcohol-dependent men to also exhibit a greater ACTH response to fenfluramine at the 210-min (p < 0.07) and 240-min (p < 0.09) time points as compared with non-alcohol-dependent men. Cigarette smoking and ASPD did not affect hormonal responses, nor could the groups' subjective ratings and physiological measures be distinguished. Conclusions: Alcohol-dependent men with extended abstinence differed from age- and race-matched non-alcohol-dependent men in resting AM and fenfluramine-induced plasma cortisol levels. This dysfunction in glucocorticoid homeostatic mechanisms was associated with alcoholism and not with smoking or ASPD. We also observed a nonsignificant statistical trend for plasma ACTH levels to be elevated among alcohol-dependent men along the descending limb of the response curve. Alcohol-dependent men seemed to have inherited or acquired damage to 5-HT-regulated LHPA axis function, the precise mechanisms and sites of which remain to be determined. [source] Effect of Kava and Valerian on human physiological and psychological responses to mental stress assessed under laboratory conditionsPHYTOTHERAPY RESEARCH, Issue 1 2002M. Cropley Abstract This study investigated whether kava or valerian could moderate the effects of psychological stress induced under laboratory conditions in a group of healthy volunteers. Fifty-four participants performed a standardized colour/word mental stress task on two occasions 1 week apart. Blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR) and subjective ratings of pressure were assessed at rest and during the mental stress task. Following the first session (time 1,=,T1), individuals took a standard dose of kava (n,=,18), or valerian (n,=,18) for 7 days, while the remainder acted as controls (n,=,18). Differences in BP and HR from resting levels were calculated as reactions to the stress task at both time points. At the second session (time 2,=,T2) there was a significant decrease in systolic BP responsivity in both the kava and valerian groups relative to T1, but there were no significant reductions in diastolic BP. Between T1 and T2, the HR reaction to mental stress was found to decline in the valerian group but not in the kava group. Individuals taking kava or valerian reported less pressure during the task at T2 relative to T1. There were no significant differences in BP, HR or subjective reports of pressure between T1 and T2 in the controls. Behavioural performance on the colour/word task did not change between the groups over the two time points. The results suggest that kava and valerian may be beneficial to health by reducing physiological reactivity during stressful situations. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Early- and late-onset startle modulation in unipolar depressionPSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 3 2004Gabriel S. Dichter Abstract In two experimental sessions, we assessed early- and late-onset acoustic startle eyeblink modulation and subjective ratings of emotional pictures by nondepressed participants and by unipolar depressed participants. Depressed participants were assessed before and after treatment with the antidepressant medication Bupropion SR. Both depressed and nondepressed participants exhibited arousal-dependent startle modulation to early probes occurring 300 ms after picture onset. Nondepressed participants demonstrated the expected valence-dependent startle modulation to late probes (3,500,4,500 ms post-onset). In contrast, the late-probe blink magnitudes of depressed patients were unrelated to picture valence. This pattern of group differences was not moderated by treatment. There were no between-group differences in self-report ratings to pictures. These results suggest that depression may be characterized by anomalous responses to affective stimuli and that startle modulation can be a more sensitive index of affective response deficits linked to depression than self-report measures. [source] Managing platform architectures and manufacturing processes for nonassembled productsTHE JOURNAL OF PRODUCT INNOVATION MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2002Marc H. Meyer The article presents methods for defining product platforms and measuring business performance in process intensive industries. We first show how process intensive product platforms can be defined using the products and processes of a film manufacturer. We then present an empirical method for understanding the dynamics of process intensive platform innovation, allocating engineering and sales data to specific platform and product development efforts within a product family. We applied this method to a major product line of a materials manufacturer. We gathered ten years of engineering and manufacturing cost data and allocated these to successive platforms and products, and then generated R&D performance measures. These data show the dynamic of heavy capital spending relative to product engineering as one might expect in a process intensive industries. The data also show how derivative products can be leveraged from underlying product platforms and processes for nonassembled products. Embedded within these data are strategies for creating reusable subsystems (comprising components, materials, etc.) and common production processes. Hard data on the degree to which subsystems and processes are shared across different products frequently are typically not maintained by corporations for the duration needed to understand the dynamics of evolving product families. For this reason, we developed and applied a second method to assess the degree of reuse of subsystems and processes. This method asks engineering managers to provide subjective ratings on an ordinal scale regarding the use of technology and processes from one product to the next in a cumulative manner. We find that high levels of reuse generally indicate that a product family was developed with a platform discipline. We applied this measure of platform intensity to two product lines of integrated circuits from another large manufacturer. We used this method to gather approximately ten years of information for each product family. Upon analysis, one product family showed substantial platform discipline, emphasizing a common architecture and processes across specific products within the product line. The other product family was developed with significantly less sharing and reuse of architecture, components, and processes. We then found that the platform centric product family outperformed the latter along a number of performance dimensions over the course of the decade under examination. [source] ORIGINAL RESEARCH,PHYSIOLOGY: Thermography as a Physiological Measure of Sexual Arousal in Both Men and WomenTHE JOURNAL OF SEXUAL MEDICINE, Issue 1 2007Tuuli M. Kukkonen BA ABSTRACT Introduction., Current physiological measures of sexual arousal are intrusive, hard to compare between genders, and quantitatively problematic. Aim., To investigate thermal imaging technology as a means of solving these problems. Methods., Twenty-eight healthy men and 30 healthy women viewed a neutral film clip, after which they were randomly assigned to view one of three other video conditions: (i) neutral (N = 19); (ii) humor (N = 19); and (iii) sexually explicit (N = 20). Main Outcome Measures., Genital and thigh temperatures were continuously recorded using a TSA ImagIR camera. Subjective measures of sexual arousal, humor, and relaxation were assessed using Likert-style questions prior to showing the baseline video and following each film. Results., Statistical (Tukey HSD) post-hoc comparisons (P < 0.05) demonstrated that both men and women viewing the sexually arousing video had significantly greater genital temperature (mean = 33.89°C, SD = 1.00) than those in the humor (mean = 32.09°C, SD = 0.93) or neutral (mean = 32.13°C, SD = 1.24) conditions. Men and women in the erotic condition did not differ from each other in time to peak genital temperature (men mean = 664.6 seconds, SD = 164.99; women mean = 743 seconds, SD = 137.87). Furthermore, genital temperature was significantly and highly correlated with subjective ratings of sexual arousal (range r = 0.51,0.68, P < 0.001). There were no significant differences in thigh temperature between groups. Conclusion., Thermal imaging is a promising technology for the assessment of physiological sexual arousal in both men and women. Kukkonen TM, Binik YM, Amsel R, and Carrier S. Thermography as a physiological measure of sexual arousal in both men and women. J Sex Med 2007;4:93,105. [source] No Negative Outcomes of Childhood Middle Ear Disease in Adulthood,THE LARYNGOSCOPE, Issue 3 2007David Welch PhD Abstract Objectives/Hypothesis: To test the hypothesis that childhood middle-ear disease may have disadvantageous long-term psychosocial consequences in adulthood. Study Design: Prospective, longitudinal study of a general-population birth cohort. Methods: One thousand thirty-seven people born in 1972/73 were studied from birth to age 26 when 1,019 (96% of survivors) were followed up. Childhood otitis media was assessed, and effects of it have previously been observed in childhood and adolescence. We considered outcome measures that were plausible adult counterparts of the childhood constructs shown to be impaired by otitis media: socioeconomic status, employment status, educational outcomes, personality, mental health, antisocial and criminal behavior, and subjective ratings of personal health (SF-36). Results: No outcome measure was predicted by severity of childhood otitis media. Conclusions; Adult psychological and socioeconomic outcomes are not related to childhood otitis media when appropriate treatment is available. [source] Individual differences in psychophysiological reactivity in adults with childhood abuseCLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY (AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THEORY & PRACTICE), Issue 4 2002Christian G. Schmahl Little is known about the neurobiological correlates of stress-related disorders. In particular almost nothing is known about biological correlates of specific personality disorders that have been linked to stress. We measured heart rate and blood pressure reactivity in response to personalized traumatic scripts together with subjective psychological ratings in four women with a history of childhood abuse with no disorder, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, and Histrionic Personality Disorder. Psychophysiology as well as subjective ratings differed markedly between the four women, with elevated reactions found in PTSD and histrionic personality, and extreme decline in physiological reactivity associated with a dissociative response in the borderline patient. It is concluded that reactivity to traumatic reminders can be correlated with the existence of different stress-related diagnoses. Personality characteristics seem to have an influence on psychophysiological reactivity in patients with stress-related psychiatric disorders. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | ||||||||||||||||