Inferences of Others' Competence Reduces Anticipation of Pain When under Threat

On a daily basis, we place our lives in the hands of strangers. From dentists to pilots, we make inferences about their competence to perform their jobs and consequently to keep us from harm. Here we explore whether the perceived competence of others can alter one's anticipation of pain. In two studies, participants (Receivers) believed their chances of experiencing an aversive stimulus were directly dependent on the performance of another person (Players). We predicted that perceiving the Players as highly competent would reduce Receivers' anxiety when anticipating the possibility of an electric shock. Results confirmed that high competence ratings consistently corresponded with lower reported anxiety, and complementary fMRI data showed that increased competence perception was further expressed as decreased activity in the bilateral posterior insula, a region localized to actual pain stimulation. These studies suggest that inferences of competence act as predictors of protection and reduce the expectation of negative outcomes

Inferences of Others' Competence Reduces Anticipation of Pain When under Threat

On a daily basis, we place our lives in the hands of strangers. From dentists to pilots, we make inferences about their competence to perform their jobs and consequently to keep us from harm. Here we explore whether the perceived competence of others can alter one's anticipation of pain. In two studies, participants (Receivers) believed their chances of experiencing an aversive stimulus were directly dependent on the performance of another person (Players). We predicted that perceiving the Players as highly competent would reduce Receivers' anxiety when anticipating the possibility of an electric shock. Results confirmed that high competence ratings consistently corresponded with lower reported anxiety, and complementary fMRI data showed that increased competence perception was further expressed as decreased activity in the bilateral posterior insula, a region localized to actual pain stimulation. These studies suggest that inferences of competence act as predictors of protection and reduce the expectation of negative outcomes

Neural correlates of specific and general Pavlovian-to-Instrumental Transfer within human amygdalar subregions: a high-resolution fMRI study

It is widely held that the interaction between instrumental and Pavlovian conditioning induces powerful motivational biases. Pavlovian-Instrumental Transfer (PIT) is one of the key paradigms demonstrating this effect, which can further be decomposed into a general and specific component. Although these two forms of PIT have been studied at the level of amygdalar subregions in rodents, it is still unknown whether they involve different areas of the human amygdala. Using a high-resolution fMRI (hr-fMRI) protocol optimized for the amygdala in combination with a novel free operant task designed to elicit effects of both general and specific PIT, we demonstrate that a region of ventral amygdala within the boundaries of the basolateral complex and the ventrolateral putamen are involved in specific PIT, while a region of dorsal amygdala within the boundaries of the centromedial complex is involved in general PIT. These results add to a burgeoning literature indicating different functional contributions for these different amygdalar subregions in reward-processing and motivation

How the Brain Converts Negative Evaluation into Performance Facilitation

Surpassing negative evaluation is a recurrent theme of success stories. Yet, there is little evidence supporting the counterintuitive idea that negative evaluation might not only motivate people, but also enhance performance. To address this question, we designed a task that required participants to decide whether taking up a risky challenge after receiving positive or negative evaluations from independent judges. Participants believed that these evaluations were based on their prior performance on a related task. Results showed that negative evaluation caused a facilitation in performance. Concurrent functional magnetic resonance imaging revealed that the motivating effect of negative evaluation was represented in the insula and striatum, while the performance boost was associated with functional positive connectivity between the insula and a set of brain regions involved in goal-directed behavior and the orienting of attention. These findings provide new insight into the neural representation of negative evaluation-induced facilitation

How the Brain Converts Negative Evaluation into Performance Facilitation

Surpassing negative evaluation is a recurrent theme of success stories. Yet, there is little evidence supporting the counterintuitive idea that negative evaluation might not only motivate people, but also enhance performance. To address this question, we designed a task that required participants to decide whether taking up a risky challenge after receiving positive or negative evaluations from independent judges. Participants believed that these evaluations were based on their prior performance on a related task. Results showed that negative evaluation caused a facilitation in performance. Concurrent functional magnetic resonance imaging revealed that the motivating effect of negative evaluation was represented in the insula and striatum, while the performance boost was associated with functional positive connectivity between the insula and a set of brain regions involved in goal-directed behavior and the orienting of attention. These findings provide new insight into the neural representation of negative evaluation-induced facilitation

Modelling the dynamics of an exploited Atlantic salmon population for management advice : a bayesian hierarchical approach

National audienc

« […] Comme le sel gâte le miel » ? Aborder l’estran actuel et la fonction d’un vase néolithique: Vase 01, Terdoux-La Bassee, Château d’Oléron, île d’Oléron, France

International audience« […] Comme le sel gâte le miel » est une comparaison littéraire extraite d’un proverbe algérien. Le choix de cette image illustre l’importance du miel comme produit adoucisseur depuis déjà un très long temps. Mais si le sucre et le sel sont bien des condiments opposés dans le monde culinaire, peut-on vraiment dire que le sel gâte le miel au sens propre du terme ?Ici, nous posons cette question en lien avec un cas d’étude issu des analyses menées dans le cadre d’une recherche doctorale portant sur les contenus lipidiques, et la fonction de céramiques néolithiques et protohistoriques retrouvées sur la façade atlantique de l’estuaire de la Gironde à la Bretagne. Ce cas d’étude concerne un vase néolithique mis au jour en position intertidale, préservé à moins de 40 cm de la surface actuelle, sur le site de Terdoux-La Bassée sur l’île d’Oléron (Château-d’Oléron, dir. L. Soler). Dans le but d’interroger, dans un milieu quotidiennement recouvert par l'océan, la qualité et le taux des lipides potentiellement conservés dans une céramique, nous avons effectué des analyses en chromatographie en phase gazeuse équipée d’un détecteur à ionisation de flamme (GC-FID), puis en chromatographie en phase gazeuse couplée à un spectromètre de masse (GC-MS) sur deux fragments de poteries issus du même vase. Il est à noter que ce vase ne présente pas de résidus amorphes sur ses parois, qui sont, par ailleurs, particulièrement altérées. Ces analyses ont révélé un cortège moléculaire de faible intensité, mais riche d’informations attestant d’une exploitation de produits apicoles et de graisses sous-cutanées thermo-transformées provenant d’animaux terrestres ruminants. La découverte d’une faible, mais bonne conservation des lipides en contexte intertidal et salin est en soi exceptionnelle, et la caractérisation de ces molécules offre de précieuses informations pour chercher à reconstituer l’utilité du vase - possiblement sa fonction -, et fournit des indices quant aux modes de vie et pratiques « culinaires » des populations du passé. Cette communication propose de présenter l’état actuel de l’étude, la méthodologie employée et de discuter des interprétations pouvant être effectuées à partir du contenu lipidique, du récipient, et de son contexte d’enfouissement