Regional Gray Matter Correlates of Perceived Emotional Intelligence

Coping with stressful life events requires a degree of skill in the ability to attend to, comprehend, label, communicate and regulate emotions. Individuals vary in the extent to which these skills are developed, with the term ‘alexithymia’ often applied in the clinical and personality literature to those individuals most compromised in these skills. Although a frontal lobe model of alexithymia is emerging, it is unclear whether such a model satisfactorily reflects brain-related patterns associated with perceived emotional intelligence at the facet level. To determine whether these trait meta-mood facets (ability to attend to, have clarity of and repair emotions) have unique gray matter volume correlates, a voxel-based morphometry study was conducted in 30 healthy adults using the Trait Meta Mood Scale while co-varying for potentially confounding sociodemographic variables. Poorer Attention to Emotion was associated with lower gray matter volume in clusters distributed primarily throughout the frontal lobe, with peak correlation in the left medial frontal gyrus. Poorer Mood Repair was related to lower gray matter volume in three clusters in frontal and inferior parietal areas, with peak correlation in the left anterior cingulate. No significant volumetric correlations emerged for the Clarity of Emotion facet. We discuss the localization of these areas in the context of cortical circuits known to be involved in processes of self-reflection and cognitive control

Regional Gray Matter Correlates of Perceived Emotional Intelligence

Coping with stressful life events requires a degree of skill in the ability to attend to, comprehend, label, communicate and regulate emotions. Individuals vary in the extent to which these skills are developed, with the term ‘alexithymia’ often applied in the clinical and personality literature to those individuals most compromised in these skills. Although a frontal lobe model of alexithymia is emerging, it is unclear whether such a model satisfactorily reflects brain-related patterns associated with perceived emotional intelligence at the facet level. To determine whether these trait meta-mood facets (ability to attend to, have clarity of and repair emotions) have unique gray matter volume correlates, a voxel-based morphometry study was conducted in 30 healthy adults using the Trait Meta Mood Scale while co-varying for potentially confounding sociodemographic variables. Poorer Attention to Emotion was associated with lower gray matter volume in clusters distributed primarily throughout the frontal lobe, with peak correlation in the left medial frontal gyrus. Poorer Mood Repair was related to lower gray matter volume in three clusters in frontal and inferior parietal areas, with peak correlation in the left anterior cingulate. No significant volumetric correlations emerged for the Clarity of Emotion facet. We discuss the localization of these areas in the context of cortical circuits known to be involved in processes of self-reflection and cognitive control

Apathy Is Associated With Ventral Striatum Volume in Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorder

Apathy is prevalent in schizophrenia, but its etiology has received little investigation. The ventral striatum (VS), a key brain region involved in motivated behavior, has been implicated in studies of apathy. We therefore evaluated whether apathy is associated with volume of the VS on MRI in 23 patients with schizophrenia using voxel-based morphometry. Results indicated that greater self-reported apathy severity was associated with smaller volume of the right VS even when controlling for age, gender, depression, and total gray matter volume. The finding suggests that apathy is related to abnormality of brain circuitry subserving motivated behavior in patients with schizophrenia

2016 International Land Model Benchmarking (ILAMB) Workshop Report

As earth system models (ESMs) become increasingly complex, there is a growing need for comprehensive and multi-faceted evaluation of model projections. To advance understanding of terrestrial biogeochemical processes and their interactions with hydrology and climate under conditions of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide, new analysis methods are required that use observations to constrain model predictions, inform model development, and identify needed measurements and field experiments. Better representations of biogeochemistryclimate feedbacks and ecosystem processes in these models are essential for reducing the acknowledged substantial uncertainties in 21st century climate change projections

An Individual Differences Approach to Emotion Regulation Using a Neuropsychological Model of Approach and Avoidance Temperament

104 p.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2004.In this research, the relationships between approach and avoidance temperament, patterns of anterior brain asymmetry, situational strategies (suppression and cognitive reappraisal) to regulate negative emotion, and the outcomes of these strategies on emotion processes were examined. Two studies were conducted. Study 1 (N = 318) represents a replication of Elliot's and Thrash's (2002) finding that approach and avoidance temperament are latent personality variables that capture shared variance across the constructs of extraversion, positive temperament, and behavioral activation and the constructs of neuroticism, negative temperament, and behavioral inhibition, respectively. In Study 2 (N = 141), emotional responses of approach and avoidance temperament individuals to a situational stressor were measured in the experiential domain through self-report, in the behavioral domain through facial affective coding, and in the neuroendocrine domain through assessment of salivary cortisol levels. Results showed an interaction between temperament type and type of emotion regulation strategy such that approach temperament individuals used reappraisal advantageously to reduce degree of emotional reactivity. Avoidance temperament participants were more adept in using suppression to achieve the same results. Neuropsychological testing was also conducted in Study 2 to determine if temperament type was related to patterns of anterior brain asymmetry. Results indicated that approach-biased participants outperformed avoidance-biased participants on left frontal lobe tests (Tower of London, Verbal Fluency Test, Digit Span Test) and, conversely, that avoidance-biased participants excelled on right frontal lobe tests (Continuous Performance Test, Ruff Figural Fluency Test, Spatial Span Test). An analysis of brain asymmetry bias, as reflected in differences in neuropsychological profiles, and the effects of emotion regulation instructions on emotional outcomes yielded mixed results. Finally, it was found that patterns of neuropsychological asymmetry did not mediate the relationships between temperament and emotional outcome for either temperament group. The importance of examining temperament type and patterns of anterior brain asymmetry as individual difference variables in the study of emotion regulation effectiveness is discussed. Clinical and theoretical applications for these findings are also highlighted.U of I OnlyRestricted to the U of I community idenfinitely during batch ingest of legacy ETD

Relationships of Distinct Affective Dimensions to Performance on an Emotional Stroop Task

Numerous cognitive theories of anxiety have emphasized the role of attentional biases in the etiology and maintenance of anxiety (for review, se