The psychological science accelerator’s COVID-19 rapid-response dataset

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Psychological Science Accelerator coordinated three large-scale psychological studies to examine the effects of loss-gain framing, cognitive reappraisals, and autonomy framing manipulations on behavioral intentions and affective measures. The data collected (April to October 2020) included specific measures for each experimental study, a general questionnaire examining health prevention behaviors and COVID-19 experience, geographical and cultural context characterization, and demographic information for each participant. Each participant started the study with the same general questions and then was randomized to complete either one longer experiment or two shorter experiments. Data were provided by 73,223 participants with varying completion rates. Participants completed the survey from 111 geopolitical regions in 44 unique languages/dialects. The anonymized dataset described here is provided in both raw and processed formats to facilitate re-use and further analyses. The dataset offers secondary analytic opportunities to explore coping, framing, and self-determination across a diverse, global sample obtained at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which can be merged with other time-sampled or geographic data

A global experiment on motivating social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Finding communication strategies that effectively motivate social distancing continues to be a global public health priority during the COVID-19 pandemic. This cross-country, preregistered experiment (n = 25,718 from 89 countries) tested hypotheses concerning generalizable positive and negative outcomes of social distancing messages that promoted personal agency and reflective choices (i.e., an autonomy-supportive message) or were restrictive and shaming (i.e., a controlling message) compared with no message at all. Results partially supported experimental hypotheses in that the controlling message increased controlled motivation (a poorly internalized form of motivation relying on shame, guilt, and fear of social consequences) relative to no message. On the other hand, the autonomy-supportive message lowered feelings of defiance compared with the controlling message, but the controlling message did not differ from receiving no message at all. Unexpectedly, messages did not influence autonomous motivation (a highly internalized form of motivation relying on one’s core values) or behavioral intentions. Results supported hypothesized associations between people’s existing autonomous and controlled motivations and self-reported behavioral intentions to engage in social distancing. Controlled motivation was associated with more defiance and less long-term behavioral intention to engage in social distancing, whereas autonomous motivation was associated with less defiance and more short- and long-term intentions to social distance. Overall, this work highlights the potential harm of using shaming and pressuring language in public health communication, with implications for the current and future global health challenges

The Psychological Science Accelerator’s COVID-19 rapid-response dataset

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Psychological Science Accelerator coordinated three large-scale psychological studies to examine the effects of loss-gain framing, cognitive reappraisals, and autonomy framing manipulations on behavioral intentions and affective measures. The data collected (April to October 2020) included specific measures for each experimental study, a general questionnaire examining health prevention behaviors and COVID-19 experience, geographical and cultural context characterization, and demographic information for each participant. Each participant started the study with the same general questions and then was randomized to complete either one longer experiment or two shorter experiments. Data were provided by 73,223 participants with varying completion rates. Participants completed the survey from 111 geopolitical regions in 44 unique languages/dialects. The anonymized dataset described here is provided in both raw and processed formats to facilitate re-use and further analyses. The dataset offers secondary analytic opportunities to explore coping, framing, and self-determination across a diverse, global sample obtained at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which can be merged with other time-sampled or geographic data

A global experiment on motivating social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Finding communication strategies that effectively motivate social distancing continues to be a global public health priority during the COVID-19 pandemic. This cross-country, preregistered experiment (n = 25,718 from 89 countries) tested hypotheses concerning generalizable positive and negative outcomes of social distancing messages that promoted personal agency and reflective choices (i.e., an autonomy-supportive message) or were restrictive and shaming (i.e. a controlling message) compared to no message at all. Results partially supported experimental hypotheses in that the controlling message increased controlled motivation (a poorly-internalized form of motivation relying on shame, guilt, and fear of social consequences) relative to no message. On the other hand, the autonomy-supportive message lowered feelings of defiance compared to the controlling message, but the controlling message did not differ from receiving no message at all. Unexpectedly, messages did not influence autonomous motivation (a highly-internalized form of motivation relying on one’s core values) or behavioral intentions. Results supported hypothesized associations between people’s existing autonomous and controlled motivations and self-reported behavioral intentions to engage in social distancing: Controlled motivation was associated with more defiance and less long-term behavioral intentions to engage in social distancing, whereas autonomous motivation was associated with less defiance and more short- and long-term intentions to social distance. Overall, this work highlights the potential harm of using shaming and pressuring language in public health communication, with implications for the current and future global health challenges

A multi-country test of brief reappraisal interventions on emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased negative emotions and decreased positive emotions globally. Left unchecked, these emotional changes might have a wide array of adverse impacts. To reduce negative emotions and increase positive emotions, we tested the effectiveness of reappraisal, an emotion-regulation strategy that modifies how one thinks about a situation. Participants from 87 countries and regions (n = 21,644) were randomly assigned to one of two brief reappraisal interventions (reconstrual or repurposing) or one of two control conditions (active or passive). Results revealed that both reappraisal interventions (vesus both control conditions) consistently reduced negative emotions and increased positive emotions across different measures. Reconstrual and repurposing interventions had similar effects. Importantly, planned exploratory analyses indicated that reappraisal interventions did not reduce intentions to practice preventive health behaviours. The findings demonstrate the viability of creating scalable, low-cost interventions for use around the world

Specificity of developmental- and growth factor-dependent phosphorylation of Akt isoforms in neurons

Ein Signalweg während der neuronalen Entwicklung im adulten Gehirn ist der PI3K-PTEN-Akt Signalweg. Akt ist eine Kinase die drei verschiedene Isoformen besitzt, welche durch die Phosphorylierung von S473 und T308 aktiviert werden. KO Modelle der Isoformen haben gezeigt, dass nicht alle Funktionen von anderen Isoformen kompensiert werden können. Die genaue Rolle der einzelnen Isoformen in einem neuronalen Zusammenhang ist nur wenig untersucht. Ziel dieser Arbeit war, eine detaillierte Analyse der einzelnen Akt Isoformen nach der Aktivierung des PI3K-PTEN Signalweges. Dazu wurde im Labor eine neue Methode zur isoelektrischen Fokussierung etabliert., welche Proteine nach ihrer Ladung trennt und somit eine Analyse der Dynamik von Akt Phosphorylierungen in neuronalen Zellen erlaubt. Im Zuge dieser Arbeit konnten wir bisher unerkannte Merkmale der Akt Aktivierung und Phosphorylierung identifizieren. Wir konnten zeigen, dass die S473 und T308 Phosphorylierung in Neuroblastomazellen unabhängig voneinander auftreten kann und, dass verschiedene Akt1 Moleküle unterschiedlich auf die Inhibition von PI3K reagieren. Außerdem konnten wir Verschiebungen in der Aktivierung und in der Expression der unterschiedlichen Isoformen während der postnatalen Gehirnentwicklung der Ratte feststellen. Des Weiteren konnten wir zeigen, dass die Aktivierung von Akt von dem Signal und dem Alter der Neurone abhängig ist. Noch nicht vollständig differenzierte Neurone reagieren vor allem auf BDNF Stimulation, wohingegen adulte, differenzierte Neurone hauptsächlich auf EGF reagieren und dort explizit Akt2 über EGFR und PI3K-p110α Signale aktiviert wird. Im Gegensatz dazu führt der Verlust von PTEN zu einer Aktivierung von hauptsächlich Akt1. Zusammenfassend zeigt diese Arbeit einen komplexen Zusammenhang der Phosphorylierung von Akt auf, welcher Signal- und Entwicklungsabhängig ist bei dem unterschiedliche Akt Populationen auf Wachstumsfaktoren und auf PTEN Verlust reagieren.A major pathway involved in neuronal development is the PI3K-PTEN-Akt pathway. Akt comprises three isoforms, which are activated by phosphorylation of the residues S473 and T308. KO animals for the isoforms have shown differential as well as redundant functions of the three isoforms. However, their individual role in neuronal signaling pathways has not yet been studied in great detail. The aim of this study was to obtain further insight into differential Akt isoform signaling in response to changes in the activity of PI3K and PTEN pathway. A new isoelectric focusing method was established, which allowed us to separate Akt proteins according to their charge, therefore, providing a refined read-out to study dynamics of Akt phosphorylation in a neuronal background. In the course of this project we were able to identify previously undescribed features of Akt phosphorylation and activation. First, we could provide evidence for an uncoupling of the two activating phosphorylation events at S473 and T308 in neuroblastoma cells and differential sensitivities of Akt1 forms towards PI3K inhibition. Secondly, we found a transient shift in Akt isoform activation and abundance during postnatal rat brain development. Thirdly, we were able to show that the activation of different Akt isoforms is dependent of the upstream signal as well as the age of the neuron. Immature neurons were found to be highly responsive to BDNF treatment, whereas mature neurons were most responsive to EGF stimulation leading exclusively to activation of Akt2 in an EGFR- and PI3K/p110α-dependent manner. Stimulation of Akt phosphorylation by the loss of PTEN led to an activation of mainly Akt1 forms, which suggests inherent differences in the Akt pools that are accessible to growth factors dependent PI3Ks as compared to the pools that are controlled by PTEN. In summary, this thesis demonstrates the presence of complex phosphorylation events of Akt in a developmental- and signal-dependent manner in neurons

The non-essential TSC complex component TBC1D7 restricts tissue mTORC1 signaling and brain and neuron growth

The tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) 1 and 2 proteins associate with TBC1D7 to form the TSC complex, which is an essential suppressor of mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1), a ubiquitous driver of cell and tissue growth. Loss-of-function mutations in TSC1 or TSC2, but not TBC1D7, give rise to TSC, a pleiotropic disorder with aberrant activation of mTORC1 in various tissues. Here, we characterize mice with genetic deletion of Tbc1d7, which are viable with normal growth and development. Consistent with partial loss of function of the TSC complex, Tbc1d7 knockout (KO) mice display variable increases in tissue mTORC1 signaling with increased muscle fiber size but with strength and motor defects. Their most pronounced phenotype is brain overgrowth due to thickening of the cerebral cortex, with enhanced neuron-intrinsic mTORC1 signaling and growth. Thus, TBC1D7 is required for full TSC complex function in tissues, and the brain is particularly sensitive to its growth-suppressing activities.ISSN:2666-3864ISSN:2211-124