Effects of emotion on prospection during decision-making

In two experiments we examined the role of emotion, specifically worry, anxiety, and mood, on prospection during decision-making. Worry is a particularly relevant emotion to study in the context of prospection because high levels of worry may make individuals more aversive toward the uncertainty associated with the prospect of obtaining future improvements in rewards or states. Thus, high levels of worry might lead to reduced prospection during decision-making and enhance preference for immediate over delayed rewards. In Experiment 1 participants performed a two-choice dynamic decision-making task where they were required to choose between one option (the decreasing option) which provided larger immediate rewards but declines in future states, and another option (the increasing option) which provided smaller immediate rewards but improvements in future states, making it the optimal choice. High levels of worry were associated with poorer performance in the task. Additionally, fits of a sophisticated reinforcement-learning model that incorporated both reward-based and state-based information suggested that individuals reporting high levels of worry gave greater weight to the immediate rewards they would receive on each trial than to the degree to which each action would lead to improvements in their future state. In Experiment 2 we found that high levels of worry were associated with greater delay discounting using a standard delay discounting task. Combined, the results suggest that high levels of worry are associated with reduced prospection during decision-making. We attribute these results to high worriers' aversion toward the greater uncertainty associated with attempting to improve future rewards than to maximize immediate reward. These results have implications for researchers interested in the effects of emotion on cognition, and suggest that emotion strongly affects the focus on temporal outcomes during decision-making.The open access fee for this work was funded through the Texas A&M University Open Access to Knowledge (OAK) Fund

Do Worry and Brooding Predict Health Behaviors? A Daily Diary Investigation

Background Meta-analyses have reported associations between perseverative cognition (both worry and brooding) and increased engagement in health-risk behaviors, poorer sleep, and poorer physiological health outcomes. Method Using a daily diary design, this study investigated the within- and between-person relationships between state and trait perseverative cognition and health behaviors (eating behavior, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and sleep) both crosssectionally and prospectively. Participants (n = 273, 93% students, Mage = 20.2, SD = 4.11, 93% female) completed morning and evening diaries across 7 consecutive days. Results Multilevel modeling analyses revealed that, cross-sectionally, higher levels of state worry were associated with more time spent sitting and higher levels of state brooding predicted less daily walking. Conclusion Worry and brooding may represent useful intervention targets for improving inactivity and walking levels, respectively

Kaart van de Rheede van Hellevoetsluis, beneffens de zeegaaten Goeree en Quax-diep

De eerste afbeelding is samengesteld uit de volgende twee scan

Improved performance of PACE 2 with modified collection system in combination with probe competition assay for detection of Chlamydia trachomatis in urethral specimens from males.

The Gen-Probe PACE 2 assay (GP) in combination with a modified collection system was compared with cell culture (CC) for the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis in urethral specimens from males. Analysis of discordant results was performed by PCR. The modifications, i.e., application of a more rigid swab type and a 50% reduction in the amount of transport medium, were made to improve the sensitivity of the assay. By using the modified GP on 302 urethral specimens from males, a sensitivity of 89.5% and a specificity of 100% were determined. In addition, performance of a probe competition assay on all GP samples with a result > 0.6 and < 1.0 times the cutoff factor (gray zone) detected three more true-positive samples. The sensitivity of GP in combination with the probe competition assay increased to 94.9%, with a specificity of 100%. This was identical to the performance of CC. The modified GP offers a very sensitive and specific alternative to CC

Evaluation of Clearview and Magic Lite tests, polymerase chain reaction, and cell culture for detection of Chlamydia trachomatis in urogenital specimens.

The Clearview Chlamydia test (CV; Unipath Ltd., Bedford, United Kingdom), the Magic Lite Chlamydia test (ML; CIBA Corning, Medfield, Mass.), a polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and cell culture (CC) were evaluated for detection of Chlamydia trachomatis in urogenital specimens. Specimens were collected from 283 men and 724 women visiting the outpatient clinic for Sexually Transmitted Diseases at the University Hospital Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. ML, PCR, and CC were all performed on the same sample to prevent swab-to-swab variability. CV was performed on a separate sample. Analysis of discordant results was performed by application of the following confirmatory assays: first, PCR on the CC, second, ML was repeated, and third, PCR was repeated by using a different DNA extraction protocol. If more than one test was positive, the sample was considered true positive. If only one test was positive, which was confirmed by the confirmatory assay, the sample was also considered true positive. By using these interpretations, the following results were obtained. The sensitivity and specificity of CV for samples from men were 60.4 and 86.3%, respectively. For samples from women, these values were 62.3 and 99.7%, respectively. The low specificity for samples from men was caused by unidentified substances in the swab that was used. The use of CV on samples from men is not recommended by the manufacturer. For samples from women, the specificity of CV was high, but the low sensitivity of CV limits its use for diagnostic purposes. The sensitivities of ML were low for samples from both men and women (68.8% and 50.9% respectively), while specificities were excellent for samples from both groups (100 and 99.9%, respectively). The low sensitivity of ML limits its diagnostic value. The PCR technique was highly specific for samples from both men (99.6%) and women (99.9%). The sensitivity of PCR, however, was unexpectedly low for samples from both groups (men, 87.5%; women, 79.2%), most likely because of the sample treatment method used. The sensitivity and specificity values of CC for samples from men were 95.8 and 100%, respectively. For samples from women, these values were 100 and 99.9%, respectively. In the present study, CC was the most reliable technique for the detection of C. trachomatis