Visual Feature Integration of Three Attributes in Stimulus-Response Mapping Is Distinct From That of Two

In the human visual system, different attributes of an object are processed separately and are thought to be then temporarily bound by attention into an integrated representation to produce a specific response. However, if such representations existed in the brain for arbitrary multi-attribute objects, a combinatorial explosion problem would be unavoidable. Here, we show that attention may bind features of different attributes only in pairs and that bound feature pairs, rather than integrated object representations, are associated with responses for unfamiliar objects. We found that in a mapping task from three-attribute stimuli to responses, presenting three attributes in pairs (two attributes in each window) did not significantly complicate feature integration and response selection when the stimuli were not very familiar. We also found that repeated presentation of the same triple conjunctions significantly improved performance on the stimulus-response task when the correct responses were determined by the combination of three attributes, but this familiarity effect was not observed when the response could be determined by two attributes. These findings indicate that integration of three or more attributes is a distinct process from that of two, requiring long-term learning or some serial process. This suggests that integrated object representations are not formed or are formed only for a limited number of very familiar objects, which resolves the computational difficulty of the binding problem

Quasi-Randomized Trial of Effects of Perioperative Oral Hygiene Instruction on Inpatients with Heart Diseases Using a Behavioral Six-Step Method

The assessor-blinded, parallel-design, quasi-randomized study (alternating allocation) aimed to determine the effects of the six-step method on postoperative numbers of oral bacteria, periodontal status, and atrial fibrillation (AF) among inpatients with heart diseases and periodontitis. Seventy inpatients who received preoperative periodontal treatment were quasi-randomly assigned to intervention and control groups at University Hospital. The intervention group received intensive oral hygiene instruction using a six-step method for 15 minutes per week and the control group received routine oral hygiene instruction. Significantly fewer oral bacteria were identified on the tongue at discharge compared with baseline in the intervention than the control group (ANCOVA) (large effect size, p = 0.02). Changes in scores for self-efficacy, plaque scores, probed pocket depth, and bleeding on probing between baseline and discharge were significantly greater in the intervention, than in the control group (p < 0.05). The period of postoperative AF (days) was significantly shorter in the intervention, than in the control group (p = 0.019). In conclusion, oral hygiene instruction using the six-step method decreased the numbers of oral bacteria on the tongue and improved self-efficacy, oral health behaviors, oral hygiene status, periodontal status, and period of postoperative AF among inpatients with periodontitis and heart diseases

中学生の円滑なコミュニケーションを促す授業実践 : 自己理解と自己表現に着目して

コミュニケーション能力は，社会において他者と関わる上で必要な基礎的能力と位置づけられ，その育成への取り組みが求められている。本稿では，中学校１年生を対象とし，生徒に自己を多面的に捉え表現することを促す授業実践について報告する。また，同授業実践における自己の捉えの推移を分析したところ，自己への捉えを見直したり，自己を表現することの良さに気付いたりする機会となること，他者理解においても有効であることを示す

Student tendencies in communication : self-efficacy in schoolwork

社会において様々な集団に属している私たちにとって，コミュニケーションは必要不可欠である。本研究では，生徒の学業における自己効力感と学校生活でのコミュニケーション傾向の関係を明らかにすることを目的とした。その結果，自己主張に消極的な生徒は，攻撃的な生徒よりも学業における自己効力感が低いなど，学業における自己効力感とコミュニケーション傾向との関連が示された。Communication skills are necessary because humans belong to many different social 'groups'. The focus of this study was students’ self-efficacy with respect to schoolwork. This study aimed to investigate differences in communication tendencies at school with respect to students’ self-efficacy in schoolwork. It was found that self-efficacy in schoolwork and communication are to some extent related. For example, non-assertive students (failing to express one’s honest feelings) had lower self-efficacy related to approval of their schoolwork than aggressive students (forceful type of argumentation)

Consideration of Student’s Self-Understanding Using Egograms : From the Perspective of Changes in Assertive Behavior

本研究は，小学校６年生の児童の自己理解や対人コミュニケーション傾向に着目し，次の３点について検討した。第１に，エゴグラムを用いて児童の特徴を把握するともに，自己理解を促す働きかけを行った。第２に，児童の対人行動の特徴，特にアサーティブネスを測定し，エゴグラムとの関連を検討した。第３に，アサーティブネスに関する介入授業を実施し，行動変容が生じるかを検討した。 エゴグラムは，児童が興味を示しやすく，自己理解を深めるために有用なツールであると考えられた。アサーティブネスとの関連については，アサーティブな行動をとる児童はNPの得点が比較的高く，非主張型の児童はAの得点が比較的高かった。攻撃型の児童の中でも特に攻撃的な言動をとりやすい児童には，AおよびCPの得点が他より高い傾向があった。しかし，介入授業を行うことによって，攻撃型の児童の数は，有意ではないものの，減少した。This study investigated the self-understanding and communication style of sixth-grade students, focusing on three points. First, we used egograms to understand students’ personalities and promote their self-understanding. Second, we measured students’ assertiveness and investigated the relationship between assertive behavior and students’ egogram patterns. Third, changes in assertive behavior by intervention intended to promote reflection on one’s communication style were examined. The egogram is a potentially effective tool for increasing students’ self-understanding because the students were highly interested in egograms. Assertive students tend to score highly in the NP of egograms. Non-assertive students tend to get high scores in A. Especially aggressive students tend to get high scores in CP and A. Our intervention decreased the aggressiveness of the students who chose an aggressive style of communication

Relationship between Conformity Behavior and Communication Style: Analysis of Assertive Behavior in Junior High School Students

本研究では，仲間への同調のしやすさと，日常的なコミュニケーション傾向にどのような関連があるかを検討した。中学１・２年生の生徒159名を対象に，内面的同調と表面的同調のしやすさを，質問紙によって測定した。また，場面想定法を用い，学校生活で起こりやすい一対一でのコミュニケーション場面において，普段どのような言動をとっているかを記述させる質問紙調査を実施した。その結果，自分の考えや意見を言うことに消極的な非主張型の生徒は，強い自己主張をする攻撃型の生徒に比べ，同調しやすいことがわかった。また，性別による違いもみられた。特に女子において，非主張型の生徒は，攻撃型の生徒や，アサーティブな主張ができる生徒より，表面的な同調行動が多い傾向があった。このような生徒は，友人に配慮しようとし，自分の主張を抑制していると考えられる。This study investigated the relationships between conformity behavior and daily communication style. In total, 159 junior high school students participated in the investigation. Their internal conformity tendencies and external conformity tendency were measured by a conformity behavior scale. We examined participants’ communication styles using hypothetical situations. Participants were presented with three daily communication situations and asked what they would usually say. The results showed that students with a non-assertive communication style were more likely to conform to others than those who have an aggressive communication style. Especially, non-assertive female students tend to conform externally more than aggressive or assertive female students. This type of student might inhibit self-assertion to concern their friends

Visual Feature Integration of Three Attributes in Stimulus-Response Mapping Is Distinct From That of Two

In the human visual system, different attributes of an object are processed separately and are thought to be then temporarily bound by attention into an integrated representation to produce a specific response. However, if such representations existed in the brain for arbitrary multi-attribute objects, a combinatorial explosion problem would be unavoidable. Here, we show that attention may bind features of different attributes only in pairs and that bound feature pairs, rather than integrated object representations, are associated with responses for unfamiliar objects. We found that in a mapping task from three-attribute stimuli to responses, presenting three attributes in pairs (two attributes in each window) did not significantly complicate feature integration and response selection when the stimuli were not very familiar. We also found that repeated presentation of the same triple conjunctions significantly improved performance on the stimulus-response task when the correct responses were determined by the combination of three attributes, but this familiarity effect was not observed when the response could be determined by two attributes. These findings indicate that integration of three or more attributes is a distinct process from that of two, requiring long-term learning or some serial process. This suggests that integrated object representations are not formed or are formed only for a limited number of very familiar objects, which resolves the computational difficulty of the binding problem

視覚特徴の組み合わせと反応のマッピング記憶の長期保持

我々は、日常生活において、物体が持つ視覚特徴の組み合わせと適切な反応の間の多様な連合関係を学習し、それに基づき行動している。このような視覚入力と運動の間の複雑な対応付けを視覚運動マッピングと言う。先行研究で提唱された対属性仮説によると、3属性以上の特徴の組み合わせは、2属性の特徴を結合した「属性対」の集合として反応と連合し、記憶に保持される。マッピング学習の過程や直後において、この仮説が成り立つことを示す実験結果が得られているが、より長期的にもこのような表現で保持されるかについては未検討である。そこで本研究は、特徴の組み合わせと反応のマッピングを学習後、長期の遅延を挟んで記憶を調べた。実験では、参加者に色、形、位置の組み合わせの異なる8個の刺激アイテムと4通りの反応の関係を学習してもらい、約1週間後にテストしたところ、正答率や反応時間は学習直後と差がなく、学習時と同様に2属性の特徴の組み合わせで反応が決まる場合より3属性の特徴の組み合わせで反応が決まる場合の方が、反応の正確さが低く反応時間も長いという結果が得られた。結果から、特徴の組み合わせと反応のマッピング学習の結果が長期的に保持されることが示され、対属性仮説が長期記憶においても成り立つことが示唆された。In daily life, we learn a variety of associations between combinations of visual features of objects and appropriate responses, enabling us to act on the basis of these associations. Complex associations between visual input and movement are known as "visuomotor mappings." According to the paired-attribute model, an integration of features of more than three attributes is represented as an assembly of multiple bindings of two features (attribute pairs) and connected to the response in memory. Experimental studies have shown that the model works for the process of learning mappings and retaining them immediately afterward, but no experiments have tested the model\u27s applicability to long-term retention. The present study investigated the long-term retention of mappings between integrations of features and responses. Participants were required to learn the correspondences between eight items that were different from each other in color, shape, or location and four responses. Par ticipants were tested immediately after learning. When tested again after 1 week, participants could respond as accurately and quickly as they did immediately after learning. Moreover, participants performed better when two features of items instructed correct responses than when three features instructed correct responses. Results reveal long-term retention of mappings between integrations of features and responses and suggest that the paired-attribute model is applicable to long-term retention of mappings.本研究はJSPS科研費17K00200の助成を受けたものである

Questionnaire survey on the continuity of home oxygen therapy after a disaster with power outages

AbstractBackgroundAfter the Great East Japan Earthquake, oxygen-dependent patients in areas experiencing power outages could not continue home oxygen therapy (HOT) without oxygen cylinders. The purpose of this study was to examine use of oxygen cylinders in areas experiencing power outages and the effects of HOT interruption on patients' health.MethodsQuestionnaires were mailed to 1106 oxygen-dependent patients and HOT-prescribing physicians in Akita, near the disaster-stricken area. We investigated patients' actions when unable to use an oxygen concentrator and classified the patients based on oxygen cylinder use. Patients who experienced an interruption of or reduction in oxygen flow rate by their own judgment were assigned to the “interruption” and “reduction” groups, respectively; those who maintained their usual flow rate were assigned to the “continuation” group. Differences were tested using analysis of variance and the χ2 tests.ResultsIn total, 599 patients responded to the questionnaire. Oxygen cylinders were supplied to 574 patients (95.8%) before their oxygen cylinders were depleted. Comparison of the continuation (n=356), reduction (n=64), and interruption (n=154) groups showed significant differences in family structure (p=0.004), underlying disease (p=0.014), oxygen flow rate (p<0.001), situation regarding use (p<0.001), knowledge of HOT (p<0.001), and anxiety about oxygen supply (p<0.001). There were no differences in changes in physical condition.ConclusionsMost patients could receive oxygen cylinders after the disaster. Some patients discontinued their usual oxygen therapy, but their overall health status was not affected

片側末梢投与されたA型ボツリヌス毒素は動物モデルにおいて両側三叉神経節に局在する

Peripheral nerve injury leads to sensory ganglion hyperexcitation, which increases neurotransmitter release and neuropathic pain. Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT/A) regulates pain transmission by reducing neurotransmitter release, thereby attenuating neuropathic pain. Despite multiple studies on the use of BoNT/A for managing neuropathic pain in the orofacial region, its exact mechanism of transport remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of BoNT/A in managing neuropathic pain in two different animal models and its transport mechanism in the trigeminal nerve. Intraperitoneal administration of cisplatin induced bilateral neuropathic pain in the orofacial region, reducing the head withdrawal threshold to mechanical stimulation. Unilateral infraorbital nerve constriction (IONC) also reduced the ipsilateral head withdrawal threshold to mechanical stimulation. Unilateral peripheral administration of BoNT/A to the rat whisker pad attenuated cisplatin-induced pain behavior bilaterally. Furthermore, contralateral peripheral administration of BoNT/A attenuated neuropathy-induced behavior caused by IONC. We also noted the presence of BoNT/A in the blood using the mouse bioassay. In addition, the Alexa Fluor-488-labeled C-terminal half of the heavy chain of BoNT/A (BoNT/A-Hc) was localized in the neurons of the bilateral trigeminal ganglia following its unilateral administration. These findings suggest that axonal and hematogenous transport are involved in the therapeutic effects of peripherally administered BoNT/A in the orofacial region