Mindfulness and Fear Conditioning

This is the final version of the article. Available from the publisher via the link in this record.During mindfulness-based interventions participants can be invited to bring aversive stimuli to mind while practicing mindfulness. This is thought to help the stimuli become less aversive. However, the mechanisms underlying this process are not fully understood. In this study we explored these by examining the effects of mindfulness practice and stimulus visualization on stimuli associated with electric shocks. Participants were trained on a discrimination between two visual stimuli using a standard electrodermal conditioning procedure, in which one stimulus (CS+) was paired with shock and the other (CS-) was not. They then visualized either the CS+ or CS-, while practicing mindfulness or performing a control activity. Following a number of extinction trials, the impact of these manipulations was assessed during a reacquisition test-phase. Both mindfulness and visualization of the CS+ led to slower reacquisition of the CS+/shock association, when measured physiologically, and their effects were additive. Moreover, these effects dissociated from participants’ expectancy of shock. If confirmed in future work, these findings may have implications for the treatment of stimulus-specific anxiety.This research was funded by British Academy / Leverhulme Small Research Grant SG150007

Cue Competition in Human Associative Learning

CogSci 2013 - 35th annual meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, Berlin, Germany, 31 July - 3 August 2013There is a question as to whether cue competition effects can be observed in incidental learning paradigms in humans. The SRT and other location prediction tasks fall into that group often considered to show associative learning under incidental conditions. We used a standard SRT task in which the preceding two trials of a run of three predicted the third 2/3 of the time, and added another predictive cue, a colored square, which could also stochastically predict the next response required. The question was to what extent would these two cues compete in terms of incidental learning to make the next response faster and more accurate than controls? We assessed this by comparing the dual cue group to a color only control and a sequence only control. Our results showed that all three groups learned, and that the dual group learned about both cues at least as well as the individual controls, but that when switched to a test phase where each cue could be assessed independently, the dual group showed a marked decline in performance relative to the color control. We interpret this as evidence for overshadowing occurring between the two predictive cues in the dual group, such that when combined their performance is equivalent or superior to either control, but when assessed independently, the color cue actually has a weaker association to the outcome than the equivalent cue in the control group.This research was supported by an ESRC grant to IPL McLaren and FW Jone

Cue Competition in Human Incidental Learning

McLaren, I. P., Jones, F. W., McLaren, R. and Yeates, F. (2013) Cue competition in human incidental learning. In: Reinforcement Learning and Decision Making Meeting 2013, 25th-27th October, Princeton, New Jersey, USA .There is a question as to whether cue competition effects can be observed in incidental learning paradigms in humans. Some authors have reported that cue competition is not observed, and that previous demonstrations of cue competition have relied on explicit awareness of the task in hand. This would imply that these effects are more likely to be the product of cognitive inference than associative learning. We addressed this question by using two paradigms previously shown to produce associative learning under incidental conditions. One was a standard SRT task in which the preceding two trials of a run of three predicted the third 2/3 of the time, and the other was based on another predictive cue, a colored square, which could also stochastically predict the next response required.We have demonstrated in other studies that both cues would support learning under incidental conditions in the absence of any verbalisable knowledge of the rules involved. The question was to what extent would these two cues compete if run concurrently, as assayed by their ability to make the next response faster and more accurate than controls? We assessed this by comparing a dual cue group to a color only control and a sequence only control. Our results showed that all three groups learned, but that during a test phase where each cue could be assessed independently, the dual group showed a marked decline in performance relative to the color control, and very similar performance to the sequence control. We interpret this as evidence for overshadowing occurring between the two predictive cues in the dual group, such that when combined their performance would be equivalent or superior to either control, but when assessed independently, the color cue actually has a weaker association to the outcome than the equivalent cue in the control group. We conclude that the sequence cues overshadowed the color cues in this task, and discuss possible theoretical accounts of this phenomenon

Implicit Learning: A Demonstration and a Revision of a Novel SRT Paradigm.

CogSci 2013 - 35th annual meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, Berlin, Germany, 31 July - 3 August 2013Yeates, Jones, Wills, Aitken, McLaren and McLaren (2012)devised a serial reaction time (SRT) task that provided evidence for human learning without awareness. Adapting the SRT paradigm usually employed to investigate implicit learning, participants responded to two simple white circle fills on either side of a screen. Instead of these following a sequence that participants were unaware of (e.g. Willingham, Nissen & Bullemer, 1989) this task involved a separate stimulus, which was sometimes predictive of one of the circle fills. A square in the center of the screen would fill with one of eight colors before each circle fill: one of these colors predicted a right circle fill and the other a left on 80% of trials on which those colors occurred. When pressing the key that followed the consistent response trained with these two colors, participants were both faster and more accurate than when responding to either the inconsistent response or control colors. Participants demonstrated a lack of contingency awareness, performing at chance in identifying the predictive colors and on a suitably sensitive prediction task. On reanalyzing this result, this paper shows that it was confounded with a sequential artifact produced by the experimental design itself. Pilot studies demonstrated weak learning of color contingencies when the artifact was removed, thus we sought to improve learning by both increasing the amount of training and placing the predictive color cue on the circle fills. Without the sequential artifact, we can produce the same result, although we concede the effect is less robust than we first indicated. Thus, we are able to reiterate our original conclusion: that this task can demonstrate learning of color contingencies in the absence of awareness and can be used to investigate implicit learning in humans

Implicit Learning: A Demonstration and a Novel SRT Paradigm

CogSci 2012 - 34th annual meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, Sapporo, Japan, 1-4 August 2012Evidence for human learning without awareness of what is learned has been sought in serial reaction time (SRT) tasks in which, unknown to participants, the locations of stimuli follow a particular rule or sequence (Willingham, Nissen & Bullemer, 1989). A number of criticisms have been levelled at such tasks, including a lack of adequate control for sequential effects and a discrepancy in sensitivity between measures of implicit and explicit knowledge about the task (Jones & McLaren, 2009; Shanks & St. John, 1994). In this study we provide a novel, two-choice SRT paradigm whereby the locations of the response stimuli are sometimes predicted by a separate set of stimuli on screen. A color-filled square appears before each stimulus requiring a response, with participants informed this is simply a fixation point to prepare for the next trial. Two out of eight colors are predictive on 80% of trials, and performance on these consistent trials was faster than on the other six colors that were equally likely to result in either of the two possible responses. All these trial types were faster and more accurate than the remaining inconsistent 20% of trials for the predictive colors, which also produce more errors than control colors. A prediction task and interview followed the task, on which participants performed at near (slightly below) chance levels. We suggest that this task is a useful tool for studying associative learning in humans, as it provides reliable effects that appear to demonstrate implicit learning with relatively brief training.This research was supported by an ESRC grant to IPL McLaren and FW Jone

Singing and music making: physiological responses across early to later stages of dementia [version 1; peer review: awaiting peer review]

BACKGROUND: Music based interventions have been found to improve the wellbeing of people living with dementia. More recently there has been interest in physiological measures to provide additional information about how music and singing impact this population. METHODS: This multiple-case study design explored physiological responses (heart rate-HR, electrodermal activity-EDA, movement, and skin temperature-ST) of nine people with mild-to-moderate dementia during a singing group, and six people in the later stages of dementia during an interactive music group. The interactive music group was also video recorded to provide information about engagement. Data were analysed using simulation modelling analysis. RESULTS: The singing group showed an increase in EDA (p < 0.01 for 8/9 participants) and HR (p < 0.01 for 5/9 participants) as the session began. HR (p < 0.0001 for 5/9 participants) and ST (p < 0.0001 for 6/9 participants) increased during faster paced songs. EDA (p < 0.01 all), movement (p < 0.01 for 8/9 participants) and engagement were higher during an interactive music group compared to a control session (music listening). EDA (p < 0.0001 for 14/18 participants) and ST (p < 0.001 for 10/18 participants) increased and in contrast to the responses during singing, HR decreased as the sessions began (p < 0.002 for 9/18 participants). EDA was higher during slower music (p < 0.0001 for 13/18 participants), however this was less consistent in more interactive sessions than the control. There were no consistent changes in HR and movement responses during different styles of music. CONCLUSIONS: Physiological measures may provide valuable information about the experiences of people with dementia participating in arts and other activities, particularly for those with verbal communication difficulties. Future research should consider using physiological measures with video-analysis and observational measures to explore further how engagement in specific activities, wellbeing and physiology interact

Singing and music making: physiological responses across early to later stages of dementia [version 2; peer review: 1 approved with reservations]

Background: Music based interventions have been found to improve the wellbeing of people living with dementia. More recently there has been interest in physiological measures to provide additional information about how music and singing impact this population. / Methods: This multiple-case study design explored physiological responses (heart rate-HR, electrodermal activity-EDA, movement, and skin temperature-ST) of nine people with mild-to-moderate dementia during a singing group, and six people in the later stages of dementia during an interactive music group. The interactive music group was also video recorded to provide information about engagement. Data were analysed using simulation modelling analysis. / Results: The singing group showed an increase in EDA (p < 0.01 for 8/9 participants) and HR (p < 0.01 for 5/9 participants) as the session began. HR (p < 0.0001 for 5/9 participants) and ST (p < 0.0001 for 6/9 participants) increased during faster paced songs. EDA (p < 0.01 all), movement (p < 0.01 for 8/9 participants) and engagement were higher during an interactive music group compared to a control session (music listening). EDA (p < 0.0001 for 14/18 participants) and ST (p < 0.001 for 10/18 participants) increased and in contrast to the responses during singing, HR decreased as the sessions began (p < 0.002 for 9/18 participants). EDA was higher during slower music (p < 0.0001 for 13/18 participants), however this was less consistent in more interactive sessions than the control. There were no consistent changes in HR and movement responses during different styles of music. / Conclusions: Physiological measures may provide valuable information about the experiences of people with dementia participating in arts and other activities, particularly for those with verbal communication difficulties. Future research should consider using physiological measures with video-analysis and observational measures to explore further how engagement in specific activities, wellbeing and physiology interact

Change in Composition of the Anopheles Gambiae Complex and its Possible Implications for the Transmission of Malaria and Lymphatic Filariasis in North-Eastern Tanzania.

A dramatic decline in the incidence of malaria due to Plasmodium falciparum infection in coastal East Africa has recently been reported to be paralleled (or even preceded) by an equally dramatic decline in malaria vector density, despite absence of organized vector control. As part of investigations into possible causes for the change in vector population density, the present study analysed the Anopheles gambiae s.l. sibling species composition in north-eastern Tanzania. The study was in two parts. The first compared current species complex composition in freshly caught An. gambiae s.l. complex from three villages to the composition reported from previous studies carried out 2-4 decades ago in the same villages. The second took advantage of a sample of archived dried An. gambiae s.l. complex specimens collected regularly from a fourth study village since 2005. Both fresh and archived dried specimens were identified to sibling species of the An. gambiae s.l. complex by PCR. The same specimens were moreover examined for Plasmodium falciparum and Wuchereria bancrofti infection by PCR. As in earlier studies, An. gambiae s.s., Anopheles merus and Anopheles arabiensis were identified as sibling species found in the area. However, both study parts indicated a marked change in sibling species composition over time. From being by far the most abundant in the past An. gambiae s.s. was now the most rare, whereas An. arabiensis had changed from being the most rare to the most common. P. falciparum infection was rarely detected in the examined specimens (and only in An. arabiensis) whereas W. bancrofti infection was prevalent and detected in all three sibling species. The study indicates that a major shift in An. gambiae s.l. sibling species composition has taken place in the study area in recent years. Combined with the earlier reported decline in overall malaria vector density, the study suggests that this decline has been most marked for An. gambiae s.s., and least for An. arabiensis, leading to current predominance of the latter. Due to differences in biology and vectorial capacity of the An. gambiae s.l. complex the change in sibling species composition will have important implications for the epidemiology and control of malaria and lymphatic filariasis in the study area

Decarbonisation and its discontents: a critical energy justice perspective on four low-carbon transitions

Low carbon transitions are often assumed as normative goods, because they supposedly reduce carbon emissions, yet without vigilance there is evidence that they can in fact create new injustices and vulnerabilities, while also failing to address pre-existing structural drivers of injustice in energy markets and the wider socio-economy. With this in mind, we examine four European low-carbon transitions from an unusual normative perspective: that of energy justice. Because a multitude of studies looks at the co-benefits renewable energy, low-carbon mobility, or climate change mitigation, we instead ask in this paper: what are the types of injustices associated with low-carbon transitions? Relatedly, in what ways do low-carbon transitions worsen social risks or vulnerabilities? Lastly, what policies might be deployed to make these transitions more just? We answer these questions by first elaborating an “energy justice” framework consisting of four distinct dimensions—distributive justice (costs and benefits), procedural justice (due process), cosmopolitan justice (global externalities), and recognition justice (vulnerable groups). We then examine four European low-carbon transitions—nuclear power in France, smart meters in Great Britain, electric vehicles in Norway, and solar energy in Germany—through this critical justice lens. In doing so, we draw from original data collected from 64 semi-structured interviews with expert partisans as well as five public focus groups and the monitoring of twelve internet forums. We document 120 distinct energy injustices across these four transitions, including 19 commonly recurring injustices. We aim to show how when low-carbon transitions unfold, deeper injustices related to equity, distribution, and fairness invariably arise