“Media Use and the Analytical Brain”: Screen-Based Media Use and Behavioral Preference in Indonesian Children: [“Penggunaan Media dan Otak Analitik”: Penggunaan Media Berbasis Layar dan Preferensi Perilaku Anak Indonesia]

This study aims to examine the relationship between screen-based media use and autistic features. The present study involved 207 parents of Indonesian children 4-6 years old and 10-12 years old. Parents completed several questionnaires addressing children screen-based activities and level of autistic traits. The questionnaires are: (1) a screen-based media survey; (2) Empathizing-Systemizing Quotients (EQ-SQ Child); and (3) The Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ-Child). An online survey was utilized to collect all study data. The results showed that children spent more than four hours on average per day with media use. The regression analysis indicated that total time spent by children on media use shows a positive correlation with systemizing. The total time spent by children on media use also positively correlated with the extreme male brain condition. The total time spent on screen-based media use did not significantly contribute to explaining the variance of empathizing. However, empathizing is negatively correlated with time devoted in watching activities (television, videos, and movies) and playing video games. The more children spend time playing in video games, the more the autism quotient (AQ) score increases. Finally, the current study provides empirical evidence for a relation of screen-based media use and autistic features in children. The findings suggest that the duration of screen-time are significant predictors of systemizing and extreme male behavior, albeit the significance for empathizing depends on the type of media. The results highlight the clinical importance of examining screen-based media use among children.   Studi ini bertujuan untuk menguji hubungan antara penggunaan media berbasis layar dengan karakteristik autisme. Studi ini melibatkan 207 orang tua di Indonesia yang memiliki anak berusia 4-6 tahun dan 10-12 tahun. Orang tua menyelesaikan beberapa survei secara daring. Kuesioner tersebut terdiri dari: (1) survei mengenai durasi penggunaan media berbasis layar pada anak; (2) skala Empathizing-Systemizing Quotient (EQ-SQ Child); dan (3) skala Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ-Child). Hasil studi menunjukkan bahwa anak menghabiskan waktu secara rerata lebih dari empat jam per hari dengan penggunaan media. Analisis regresi menunjukkan bahwa durasi total penggunaan media berkorelasi positif dengan tingkat sistemisasi anak dan extreme male brain behavior, namun tidak berkontribusi secara signifikan dalam menjelaskan tingkat empati anak. Tingkat empati secara spesifik berkorelasi negatif dengan waktu yang digunakan untuk aktivitas menonton (televisi, video, dan film) dan bermain video game. Semakin lama durasi anak bermain video game, maka skor autism quotient (AQ) juga meningkat. Dengan demikian, studi ini memberikan bukti empiris mengenai hubungan penggunaan media berbasis layar dengan karakteristik autisme pada anak. Durasi penggunaan media berbasis layar adalah prediktor yang siginifikan untuk tingkat sistemasi dan extreme male brain behavior, sedangkan tingkat berempati anak lebih dipengaruhi oleh jenis media. Hasil studi ini menyoroti pentingnya memperhatikan dampak dari penggunaan media berbasis layar pada anak

“Media Use and the Analytical Brain”: Screen-Based Media Use and Behavioral Preference in Indonesian Children [“Penggunaan Media dan Otak Analitik”: Penggunaan Media Berbasis Layar dan Preferensi Perilaku Anak Indonesia]

This study aims to examine the relationship between screen-based media use and autistic features. The present study involved 207 parents of Indonesian children 4-6 years old and 10-12 years old. Parents completed several questionnaires addressing children screen-based activities and level of autistic traits. The questionnaires are: (1) a screen-based media survey; (2) Empathizing-Systemizing Quotients (EQ-SQ Child); and (3) The Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ-Child). An online survey was utilized to collect all study data. The results showed that children spent more than four hours on average per day with media use. The regression analysis indicated that total time spent by children on media use shows a positive correlation with systemizing. The total time spent by children on media use also positively correlated with the extreme male brain condition. The total time spent on screen-based media use did not significantly contribute to explaining the variance of empathizing. However, empathizing is negatively correlated with time devoted in watching activities (television, videos, and movies) and playing video games. The more children spend time playing in video games, the more the autism quotient (AQ) score increases. Finally, the current study provides empirical evidence for a relation of screen-based media use and autistic features in children. The findings suggest that the duration of screen-time are significant predictors of systemizing and extreme male behavior, albeit the significance for empathizing depends on the type of media. The results highlight the clinical importance of examining screen-based media use among children. Studi ini bertujuan untuk menguji hubungan antara penggunaan media berbasis layar dengan karakteristik autisme. Studi ini melibatkan 207 orang tua di Indonesia yang memiliki anak berusia 4-6 tahun dan 10-12 tahun. Orang tua menyelesaikan beberapa survei secara daring. Kuesioner tersebut terdiri dari: (1) survei mengenai durasi penggunaan media berbasis layar pada anak; (2) skala Empathizing-Systemizing Quotient (EQ-SQ Child); dan (3) skala Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ-Child). Hasil studi menunjukkan bahwa anak menghabiskan waktu secara rerata lebih dari empat jam per hari dengan penggunaan media. Analisis regresi menunjukkan bahwa durasi total penggunaan media berkorelasi positif dengan tingkat sistemisasi anak dan extreme male brain behavior, namun tidak berkontribusi secara signifikan dalam menjelaskan tingkat empati anak. Tingkat empati secara spesifik berkorelasi negatif dengan waktu yang digunakan untuk aktivitas menonton (televisi, video, dan film) dan bermain video game. Semakin lama durasi anak bermain video game, maka skor autism quotient (AQ) juga meningkat. Dengan demikian, studi ini memberikan bukti empiris mengenai hubungan penggunaan media berbasis layar dengan karakteristik autisme pada anak. Durasi penggunaan media berbasis layar adalah prediktor yang siginifikan untuk tingkat sistemasi dan extreme male brain behavior, sedangkan tingkat berempati anak lebih dipengaruhi oleh jenis media. Hasil studi ini menyoroti pentingnya memperhatikan dampak dari penggunaan media berbasis layar pada anak

Impaired Neural Synchrony in the Theta Frequency Range in Adolescents at Familial Risk for Schizophrenia

Puberty is a critical period for the maturation of the fronto-limbic and fronto-striate brain circuits responsible for executive function and affective processing. Puberty also coincides with the emergence of the prodromal signs of schizophrenia, which may indicate an association between these two processes. Time-domain analysis and wavelet based time–frequency analysis was performed on electroencephalographic (EEG) data of 30 healthy control (HC) subjects and 24 individuals at familial risk (FR) for schizophrenia. All participants were between the ages of 13 and 18 years and were carefully matched for age, gender, ethnicity, education, and Tanner Stage. Electrophysiological recordings were obtained from 32 EEG channels while participants performed a visual oddball task, where they identified rare visual targets among standard “scrambled” images and rare aversive and neutral distracter pictures. The time-domain analysis showed that during target processing the FR group showed smaller event-related potentials in the P2 and P3 range as compared to the HC group. In addition, EEG activity in the theta (4–8 Hz) frequency range was significantly reduced during target processing in the FR group. Inefficient cortical information processing during puberty may be an early indicator of altered brain function in adolescents at FR for schizophrenia and may represent a vulnerability marker for illness onset. Longitudinal assessments will have to determine their predictive value for illness onset in populations at FR for psychotic illness

Maternal mindfulness and anxiety during pregnancy affect infants’ neural responses to sounds

Maternal anxiety during pregnancy has been consistently shown to negatively affect offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes. However, little is known about the impact of positive maternal traits/states during pregnancy on the offspring. The present study was aimed at investigating the effects of the mother’s mindfulness and anxiety during pregnancy on the infant’s neurocognitive functioning at 9 month of age. Mothers reported mindfulness using the Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory and anxiety using the Symptom Checklist at ±20.7 weeks of gestation. Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were measured from 79 infants in an auditory oddball paradigm designed to measure auditory attention - a key aspect of early neurocognitive functioning. For the ERP-responses elicited by standard sounds, higher maternal mindfulness was associated with lower N250 amplitudes (p<.01, η²=.097), whereas higher maternal anxiety was associated with higher N250 amplitudes (p<.05, η²=.057). Maternal mindfulness was also positively associated with the P150 amplitude (p<.01, η²=.130). These results suggest that infants prenatally exposed to higher levels of maternal mindfulness devote fewer attentional resources to frequently occurring irrelevant sounds. The results show that positive traits and experiences of the mother during pregnancy may also affect the unborn child. Emphasizing the beneficial effects of a positive psychological state during pregnancy may promote healthy behavior in pregnant women

Attenuated Auditory Event-Related Potentials and Associations with Atypical Sensory Response Patterns in Children with Autism

Neurobiological underpinnings of unusual sensory features in individuals with autism are unknown. Event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited by task-irrelevant sounds were used to elucidate neural correlates of auditory processing and associations with three common sensory response patterns (hyperresponsiveness; hyporesponsiveness; sensory seeking). Twenty-eight children with autism and 39 typically developing children (4–12 year-olds) completed an auditory oddball paradigm. Results revealed marginally attenuated P1 and N2 to standard tones and attenuated P3a to novel sounds in autism versus controls. Exploratory analyses suggested that within the autism group, attenuated N2 and P3a amplitudes were associated with greater sensory seeking behaviors for specific ranges of P1 responses. Findings suggest that attenuated early sensory as well as later attention-orienting neural responses to stimuli may underlie selective sensory features via complex mechanisms

Increased Sensory Processing Atypicalities in Parents of Multiplex ASD Families Versus Typically Developing and Simplex ASD Families

Recent studies have suggested that sensory processing atypicalities may share genetic influences with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). To further investigate this, the adolescent/adult sensory profile (AASP) questionnaire was distributed to 85 parents of typically developing children (P-TD), 121 parents from simplex ASD families (SPX), and 54 parents from multiplex ASD families (MPX). After controlling for gender and presence of mental disorders, results showed that MPX parents significantly differed from P-TD parents in all four subscales of the AASP. Differences between SPX and MPX parents reached significance in the Sensory Sensitivity subscale and also in subsequent modality-specific analyses in the auditory and visual domains. Our finding that parents with high genetic liability for ASD (i.e., MPX) had more sensory processing atypicalities than parents with low (i.e., SPX) or no (i.e., P-TD) ASD genetic liability suggests that sensory processing atypicalities may contribute to the genetic susceptibility for ASD

Neurofeedback Training for Psychiatric Disorders Associated with Criminal Offending: A Review

Background: Effective treatment interventions for criminal offenders are necessary to reduce risk of criminal recidivism. Evidence about deviant electroencephalographic (EEG)-frequencies underlying disorders found in criminal offenders is accumulating. Yet, treatment modalities, such as neurofeedback, are rarely applied in the forensic psychiatric domain. Since offenders usually have multiple disorders, difficulties adhering to long-term treatment modalities, and are highly vulnerable for psychiatric decompensation, more information about neurofeedback training protocols, number of sessions, and expected symptom reduction is necessary before it can be successfully used in offender populations. Method: Studies were analyzed that used neurofeedback in adult criminal offenders, and in disorders these patients present with. Specifically aggression, violence, recidivism, offending, psychopathy, schizophrenia, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), substance-use disorder (SUD), and cluster B personality disorders were included. Only studies that reported changes in EEG-frequencies posttreatment (increase/decrease/no change in EEG amplitude/power) were included. Results: Databases Psychinfo and Pubmed were searched in the period 1990-2017 according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, resulting in a total of 10 studies. Studies in which neurofeedback was applied in ADHD (N = 3), SUD (N = 3), schizophrenia (N = 3), and psychopathy (N = 1) could be identified. No studies could be identified for neurofeedback applied in cluster B personality disorders, aggression, violence, or recidivism in criminal offenders. For all treatment populations and neurofeedback protocols, number of sessions varied greatly. Changes in behavioral levels ranged from no improvements to significant symptom reduction after neurofeedback training. The results are also mixed concerning posttreatment changes in targeted EEG-frequency bands. Only three studies established criteria for EEG-learning. Conclusion: Implications of the results for the applicability of neurofeedback training in criminal offender populations are discussed. More research focusing on neurofeedback and learning of cortical activity regulation is needed in populations with externalizing behaviors associated with violence and criminal behavior, as well as multiple comorbidities. At this point, it is unclear whether standard neurofeedback training protocols can be applied in offender populations, or whether QEEG-guided neurofeedback is a better choice. Given the special context in which the studies are executed, clinical trials, as well as single-case experimental designs, might be more feasible than large double-blind randomized controls