An integrative review of attention biases and their contribution to treatment for anxiety disorders

Models of exposure therapy, one of the key components of cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety disorders, suggest that attention may play an important role in the extinction of fear and anxiety. Evidence from cognitive research suggests that individual differences may play a causal role in the onset and maintenance of anxiety disorders and so it is also likely to influence treatment. We review the evidence concerning attention and treatment outcomes in anxiety disorders. The evidence reviewed here suggests that that attention biases assessed at pre-treatment might actually predict improved response to treatment, and in particular that prolonged engagement with threat as measured in tasks such as the dot probe is associated with greater reductions in anxious symptoms following treatment. We examine this research within a fear learning framework, considering the possible role of individual differences in attention in the extinction of fear during exposure. Theoretical, experimental and clinical implications are discussed, particularly with reference to the potential for attention bias modification programs in augmenting treatment, and also with reference to how existing research in this area might inform best practice for clinicians.published_or_final_versio

The role of stimulus specificity and attention in the generalization of extinction

Exposure therapy for anxiety is effective but fear can still return afterward. This may be because the stimuli that people are exposed to are dissimilar from the stimuli to which fear was originally acquired. After pairing an animal-like image (A) with a shock stimulus (US), a perceptually similar stimulus (B) was presented without the US in extinction. Participants were then shown A (ABA), a second generalization stimulus (ABC) or B (ABB). Groups ABA and ABC evidenced a return of US expectancy relative to participants who were shown B (ABB). Participants in group ABC who self-reported high levels of attentional control evidenced greater return of expectancy relative to participants low in attentional control. Participants with a high level of attentional control also showed steeper extinction gradients. Attentional control may influence perceptions of similarity and the learning that follows. Making note of such differences may be valuable in exposure treatment for anxiety.postprin

Probability distributions of the work in the 2D-Ising model

Probability distributions of the magnetic work are computed for the 2D Ising model by means of Monte Carlo simulations. The system is first prepared at equilibrium for three temperatures below, at and above the critical point. A magnetic field is then applied and grown linearly at different rates. Probability distributions of the work are stored and free energy differences computed using the Jarzynski equality. Consistency is checked and the dynamics of the system is analyzed. Free energies and dissipated works are reproduced with simple models. The critical exponent $\delta$ is estimated in an usual manner.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures. Comments are welcom

Study-based registers of randomized controlled trials: starting a systematic review with data extraction or meta-analysis

Introduction: Despite years of use of study-based registers for storing reports of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), the methodology used in developing such registers/databases has not been documented. Such registers are integral to the process of scientific reviewing. We document and discuss methodological aspects of the development and use of study-based registers. Although the content is focused on the study-based register of randomized/controlled clinical trials, this work applies to developers of databases of all sorts of studies related to the human, animals, cells, genes, and molecules. Methods: We describe necessity, rationale, and steps for the development, utilization and maintenance of study-based registers as well as the challenges and gains for the organizations supporting systematic reviews of the published and unpublished literature. Conclusion: The ultimate goal of having a study-based register is to facilitate efficient production of systematic reviews providing rapid, yet accurate, evidence for the decision-makers. We argue that moving towards study-based registers is an inevitable welcome direction and that infrastructures are ready for such movement

Het portefeuillerecht in de veranderende wereld

In de jaren 50 van de vorige eeuw werd het door de wetgever noodzakelijk geacht om de bemiddelaar een wettelijk beschermde positie toe te kennen, het portefeuillerecht. Het portefeuillerecht was hoofdzakelijk bedoeld om de belangen van de bemiddelaar en de aan hem toekomende provisie te beschermen. De bepalingen waarin het portefeuillerecht is vastgelegd zijn sindsdien nagenoeg onveranderd gebleven. Het portefeuillerecht is thans vastgelegd in paragraaf 4.3.8.3 van de Wft en regelt de privaatrechtelijke verhouding tussen de bemiddelaar en de verzekeraar. Binnen de financiële sector hebben de afgelopen jaren grote veranderingen plaatsgevonden, diverse wetswijzigingen zijn direct en indirect van invloed geweest op het portefeuillerecht, zoals het afschaffen van het wettelijk recht op provisie. Het doel van de wetgever is dat deze wijzigingen leiden tot een veranderende wereld met een zuiver marktmodel, waarbij de bemiddelaar transformeert van handelsagent van de verzekeraar, naar een onafhankelijke adviseur. Doel van deze scriptie is om te onderzoeken wat de toegevoegde waarde van het portefeuillerecht is en te beoordelen of het portefeuillerecht nog bestaansrecht heeft

Characterization of an invertebrate nicotinic acetylcholine receptor gene: The ard gene of Drosophila melanogaster

AbstractThe ard gene encodes a neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) protein from Drosophila (ARD protein). Cytogenetically this gene maps at position 64B/C on the left arm of the 3rd chromosome. Five introns interrupt the protein coding region of the gene, and one is found upstream of the translation start site. The ard gene thus contains less introns than vertebrate muscle AChR genes, but, with one exception, the positions of the resident introns are precisely conserved. Implications for the evolution of AChR genes are discussed

Dialogical self strategies of self-organization: psychotherapy and restructuring of internal management

A identidade tem sido um conceito central na literatura em psicologia e na forma como as diferentes abordagens terapêuticas têm concebido os processos de mudança. Entre as inúmeras perspectivas desenvolvidas sobre essa dimensão do ser humano, destacamos o paradigma dialógico que tem vindo a influenciar de forma crescente a teoria e prática em psicoterapia. Segundo esta perspectiva, a funcionalidade psicológica está relacionada com o modo como os indivíduos conseguem articular e colocar em diálogo produtivo as suas várias vozes ou posições de identidade. Neste artigo apresentamos uma revisão da literatura sobre as estratégias que subjazem a essa capacidade auto-organizadora do sistema identitário e sobre as diretrizes que poderão orientar uma intervenção terapêutica dialógica quando essa capacidade se torna disfuncional.Self-concept has been playing a crucial role in psychological literature and in the way the different therapeutic approaches conceive the processes of change. From the diverse perspectives developed about this human dimension, we emphasise the dialogical paradigm that has been increasingly influential in the psychotherapeutic theory and practice. According to the dialogical perspective the psychological well-being is dependent on the way individuals articulate and maintain productive dialogues between the different voices of the self or “I-Positions”. In this paper we present a review of the literature on the strategies that underlie this self-regulatory ability of the self-system and the guidelines of the dialogical therapeutic intervention that could be used when these self-regulatory strategies become dysfunctional.(undefined

Comprehension and navigation of networked hypertexts

Contains fulltext : 191141.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access)This study aims to investigate secondary school students' reading comprehension and navigation of networked hypertexts with and without a graphic overview compared to linear digital texts. Additionally, it was studied whether prior knowledge, vocabulary, verbal, and visual working memory moderated the relation between text design and comprehension. Therefore, 80 first-year secondary school students read both a linear text and a networked hypertext with and without a graphical overview. Logfiles registered their navigation. After reading the text, students answered textbased multiple choice questions and drew mindmaps to assess their structural knowledge of each text content. It was found that both textbased and structural knowledge were lower after reading a networked hypertext than a linear text, especially in students with lower levels of vocabulary. Students took generally more time to read the hypertext than the linear text. We concluded that networked hypertexts are more challenging to read than linear texts and that students may benefit from explicit training on how to read hypertexts.9 p