3,917 research outputs found
âA little bit patronising if Iâm being honestâ: working-class mothering and expert discourses.
Recent early years policy interventions have focussed on the Home Learning Environment. The âHome Learning Environmentâ relates to the parenting children receive at home, rather than the physical environment in which they live, enabling a focus on individual behaviour. Family and parenting relations have been a target of state intervention for the last century, positioning working-class mothers as deficient and requiring correction. Little is known about how these discourses impact and shape working-class mothering. I explore how intensive parenting and attendant policy and dominant discourses impact on the day-to-day lives of working-class mothers. To do this, I draw on a critical discourse analysis of the BBCâs Tiny Happy People website to discern current âgoodâ mothering discourses being promoted and narrative analysis of twenty biographical interviews with working-class mothers. The interviews revealed a huge gulf between Tiny Happy Peopleâs âgoodâ mother and the womenâs lived realities. Absent and ignored were the significant material constraints faced by many of the women and the time burden created by the intensive mothering model being promoted. Working-class mothering values based on relationships and protecting their children from the effects of growing up working-class mean that Tiny Happy Peopleâs good mothering ideals were mainly rejected as unnecessary or unrealistic by the women interviewed. Policy and other initiatives aimed at working-class people must acknowledge the reality of their lives and target improvements to inadequate housing provision and a labour market which creates low-paid, precarious employment; these initiatives would dramatically transform family life. This research provides the first academic analysis of the BBCâs Tiny Happy People. It highlights the gulf between those in positions of power (whether within government or the media) and the working-class women interviewed
Listening to your partner: serotonin increases male responsiveness to female vocal signals in mice
The context surrounding vocal communication can have a strong influence on how vocal signals are perceived. The serotonergic system is well-positioned for modulating the perception of communication signals according to context, because serotonergic neurons are responsive to social context, influence social behavior, and innervate auditory regions. Animals like lab mice can be excellent models for exploring how serotonin affects the primary neural systems involved in vocal perception, including within central auditory regions like the inferior colliculus (IC). Within the IC, serotonergic activity reflects not only the presence of a conspecific, but also the valence of a given social interaction. To assess whether serotonin can influence the perception of vocal signals in male mice, we manipulated serotonin systemically with an injection of its precursor 5-HTP, and locally in the IC with an infusion of fenfluramine, a serotonin reuptake blocker. Mice then participated in a behavioral assay in which males suppress their ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) in response to the playback of female broadband vocalizations (BBVs), used in defensive aggression by females when interacting with males. Both 5-HTP and fenfluramine increased the suppression of USVs during BBV playback relative to controls. 5-HTP additionally decreased the baseline production of a specific type of USV and male investigation, but neither drug treatment strongly affected male digging or grooming. These findings show that serotonin modifies behavioral responses to vocal signals in mice, in part by acting in auditory brain regions, and suggest that mouse vocal behavior can serve as a useful model for exploring the mechanisms of context in human communication
Linking language and emotion: how emotion is understood in language comprehension, production and prediction using psycholinguistic methods
Emotions are an integral part of why and how we use language in everyday life. We communicate our concerns, express our woes, and share our joy through the use of non-verbal and verbal language. Yet there is a limited understanding of when and how emotional language is processed differently to neutral language, or of how emotional information facilitates or inhibits language processing. Indeed, various efforts have been made to bring back emotions into the discipline of psycholinguistics in the last decade. This can be seen in many interdisciplinary models focusing on the role played by emotion in each aspect of linguistic experience. In this thesis, I answer this call and pursue questions that remain unanswered in psycholinguistics regarding its interaction with emotion. The general trend that I am using to bring emotion into psycholinguistic research is straightforward. Where applicable and relevant, I use well-established tasks or paradigms to investigate the effects of emotional content in language processing. Hence, I focused on three main areas of language processing: comprehension, production and prediction.
The first experimental chapter includes a series of experiments utilising the Modality Switching Paradigm to investigate whether sentences describing emotional states are processed differently from sentences describing cognitive states. No switching effects were found consistently in my 3 experiments. My results suggest that these distinct classes of interoceptive concepts, such as âthinkingâ or âbeing happyâ, are not processed differently from each other, suggesting that people do not switch attention between different interoceptive systems when comprehending emotional or cognitive sentences. I discuss the implications for grounded cognition theory in the embodiment literature.
In my second experimental chapter, I used the Cumulative Semantic Interference Paradigm to investigate these two questions: (1) whether emotion concepts interfere with one another when repeatedly retrieved (emotion label objects), and (2) whether similar interference occurs for concrete objects that share similar valence association (emotion-laden objects). This could indicate that people use information such as valence and arousal to group objects in semantic memory. I found that interference occurs when people retrieve direct emotion labels repeatedly (e.g., âhappyâ and âsadâ) but not when they retrieve the names of concrete objects that have similar emotion connotations (e.g., âpuppyâ and ârainbowâ). I discuss my findings in terms of the different types of information that support representation of abstract vs. concrete concepts.
In my final experimental chapter, I used the Visual World Paradigm to investigate whether the emotional state of an agent is used to inform predictions during sentence processing. I found that people do use the description of emotional state of an agent (e.g., âThe boy is happyâ) to predict the cause of that affective state during sentence processing (e.g., âbecause he was given an ice-creamâ). A key result here is that people were more likely to fixate on the emotionally congruent objects (e.g., ice-cream) compared to incongruent objects (e.g., broccoli). This suggests that people rapidly and automatically inform predictions about upcoming sentence information based on the emotional state of the agent. I discuss our findings as a novel contribution to the Visual World literature.
I conducted a diverse set of experiments using a range of established psycholinguistic methods to investigate the roles of emotional information in language processing. I found clear results in the eye-tracking study but inconsistent effects in both switching and interference studies. I interpret these mixed findings in the following way: emotional content does not always have effects in language processing and that effect are most likely in tasks that explicitly require participants to simulate emotion states in some way. Regardless, not only was I successful in finding some novel results by extending previous tasks, but I was also able to show that this is an avenue that can be explored more to advance the affective psycholinguistic field
Enhancing Workplace Neuro Health and Productivity: The Synergy of Wearable Technology with Biophilic and Oxygenation Strategies
In the contemporary workplace, where a staggering 62% of employees reported experiencing burnout in 2023 according to a Medium article, the integration of wearable technology with biophilic and oxygenation strategies emerges as a vital Neurohemal initiative. This approach is particularly relevant for supporting neurodivergent individuals, as well as those recovering from stroke and long-COVID, in the context of return-to-office mandates. The article underscores the significance of research on increased hydrostatic pressure in circulation, particularly its impact on spinal and spinal cord blood flow during water immersion. This insight lays the groundwork for innovations like non-wet water massage devices, which could significantly aid in neurological recovery, thereby facilitating smoother reintegration into the workplace. Moreover, the fusion of biometrics with medical technology in wearables is explored, with a focus on enhancing interoception and proprioception. This technological synergy is key in activating the parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS), inducing a relaxed state conducive to effective digestion and oxygenation, crucial in mitigating workplace stress. The concept of âInteroceptive in Waterâ is examined for its potential to improve blood flow and overall bodily function. In addition, the article advocates for the introduction of oxygenation bars in office spaces. These bars would offer a dedicated environment for enhanced oxygen intake, vital for cognitive function and stress alleviation, benefitting neurodivergent individuals, stroke survivors, and long-COVID patients. Wearables capable of detecting and correcting low oxygen or circulation issues are highlighted as essential tools for fostering a more inclusive, productive, and healthier workplace, thereby contributing to the overarching goal of NeuroHealth in the professional sphere
The Effects of High School Instrumental Music Performance Anxiety on the Accelerated Recovery of Social Anxiety
This quantitative correlational study aims to examine the challenges secondary students encounter in sustaining positive mental health and how the benefits of music performance anxiety in secondary school students can aid in the accelerated recovery of social anxiety. There is a present gap in the research exploring the benefits of situational anxiety on clinically diagnosed anxiety disorders and noting that this situational anxiety is a standard expectation and volunteered for when participating in performing arts environments. The objective is to understand the therapeutic benefits of micro-dosing the brain with music performance anxiety in a controlled environment and its potential uses in aiding students\u27 mental resilience development. This quantitative study uses a correlational approach guided by the theoretical framework of Edward Thorndikeâs learning theory of connectionism. This research aims to gain a comparative understanding of individuals that have consistent music performance anxiety within a controlled environment and how that can assist the brain in its ability to process the symptoms of an anxiety disorder efficiently. The study focuses on the research obtained from data collected in a survey administered to secondary school-aged students. The questions in the survey center on music performance anxiety and how that affects the students. Findings revealed by the research lead to rejecting the null hypothesis as there is evidence for instrumental music experienceâs predictive nature and improvement in musical performance anxiety on general anxiety disorder
UMSL Bulletin 2023-2024
The 2023-2024 Bulletin and Course Catalog for the University of Missouri St. Louis.https://irl.umsl.edu/bulletin/1088/thumbnail.jp
Perspective Chapter: Embracing the Complexity of Human Emotion
In this chapter, we delve into the multifaceted world of human emotions through the lens of advanced analysis techniques, aiming to unlock a deeper understanding of human behavior and decision-making processes in our digital landscape. We begin by illustrating the complexity of human emotions and the significance of accurate emotion detection across various applications, from marketing and customer relationship management to healthcare and social media monitoring. This context leads us to discuss state-of-the-art emotion detection methods, including transformer-based models, context-aware emotion detection, physiological signal recognition, and multimodal emotion analysis. Here, we adopt a systematic approach to emotion analysis, utilizing the transformer-based architecture fine-tuned on a tweets dataset. Our methodology achieves an accuracy of 82.53%, a precision of 82.79%, a recall of 82.53%, and an F1 score of 82.29% in predicting emotional categories. The chapter also scrutinizes challenges, limitations, and ethical considerations in this field, including ambiguity, subjectivity, and cross-cultural variations. Finally, we glance into the future of emotion analysis, focusing on integrating emotional intelligence into artificial intelligence systems and developing personalized techniques. We aim to spur further research and collaboration in this field, thus enriching our understanding of the dynamic role of human emotions in our interconnected world
Breaking Virtual Barriers : Investigating Virtual Reality for Enhanced Educational Engagement
Virtual reality (VR) is an innovative technology that has regained popularity in recent years. In the field of education, VR has been introduced as a tool to enhance learning experiences. This thesis presents an exploration of how VR is used from the context of educators and learners. The research employed a mixed-methods approach, including surveying and interviewing educators, and conducting empirical studies to examine engagement, usability, and user behaviour within VR. The results revealed educators are interested in using VR for a wide range of scenarios, including thought exercises, virtual field trips, and simulations. However, they face several barriers to incorporating VR into their practice, such as cost, lack of training, and technical challenges. A subsequent study found that virtual reality can no longer be assumed to be more engaging than desktop equivalents. This empirical study showed that engagement levels were similar in both VR and non-VR environments, suggesting that the novelty effect of VR may be less pronounced than previously assumed. A study against a VR mind mapping artifact, VERITAS, demonstrated that complex interactions are possible on low-cost VR devices, making VR accessible to educators and students. The analysis of user behaviour within this VR artifact showed that quantifiable strategies emerge, contributing to the understanding of how to design for collaborative VR experiences. This thesis provides insights into how the end-users in the education space perceive and use VR. The findings suggest that while educators are interested in using VR, they face barriers to adoption. The research highlights the need to design VR experiences, with understanding of existing pedagogy, that are engaging with careful thought applied to complex interactions, particularly for collaborative experiences. This research contributes to the understanding of the potential of VR in education and provides recommendations for educators and designers to enhance learning experiences using VR
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