Gottliebhoppe1103

"Minimal group" paradigms investigate social preferences arising from mere group membership. We asked whether demand characteristics contribute to children's apparent minimal group bias in a preregistered experiment (N = 160). In a group condition, we attempted to replicate findings of bias following assignment to minimal groups. A second closely matched no-group condition retained potential demand characteristics while removing group assignment. Parallel bias in the no-group condition would suggest that demand characteristics contribute to findings of apparent ingroup bias. Three main findings emerged. First, in the group condition, ingroup preference emerged in one of three bias measures only. Second, this preference emerged even though participants evaluated ingroup/outgroup photos varying in race/ethnicity between trials. Third, the measure that yielded ingroup preferences in the group condition produced no parallel bias in the no-group condition, consistent with the view that mere membership in a group, not experimental demand, leads to minimal ingroup preferences.Peer feedback becomes highly salient during adolescence, especially for girls. The way in which adolescents react to social feedback is associated with psychosocial adjustment and mental health. Consequently, researchers are increasingly interested in understanding the physiological and neural underpinnings of adolescent response to feedback by simulating the experience of rejection and acceptance using computer-based paradigms. However, these paradigms typically use nonfamiliar peers and the facade of internet chatrooms or games to present artificial peer feedback. The current study piloted the use of a novel and potentially more ecologically valid peer expressed emotion paradigm in which participants listen to prerecorded clips of ostensible personalized feedback made by their close friend. Physiological data measuring autonomic nervous system response were collected as an index of emotional reactivity/arousal and cognitive-affective processing. Results show promising preliminary evidence validating the task for future use. Participants (N = 18 girls, aged 11-17 years) reported feeling more positive following praise, relative to critical and neutral feedback, and reported feeling more upset following criticism, relative to praise and neutral feedback. Girls exhibited greater pupillary dilation, skin conductance levels (N = 17), and/or heart rate (N = 17) while listening to affectively charged, peer feedback compared with neutral yet personally relevant statements. Girls also exhibited variable physiological response when listening to praising versus critical feedback. Findings from this pilot study validate the use of this novel Peer Expressed Emotion task for the investigation of adolescents' emotional and physiological reactivity in response to real-world peer evaluation. However, it is important to recognize that this study provides only preliminary findings and that future research is needed to replicate the results in larger samples.Instrumental conditioning is a crucial substrate of adaptive behaviour, allowing individuals to selectively interact with the stimuli in their environment to maximise benefit and minimise harm. The extent to which complex forms of learning, such as instrumental conditioning, are possible without conscious awareness is a topic of considerable importance and ongoing debate. compound 991 datasheet In light of recent theoretical and empirical contributions casting doubt on the early demonstrations of unconscious instrumental conditioning, we revisit the question of its feasibility in two modes of conditioning. In Experiment 1, we used trace conditioning, following a prominent paradigm (Pessiglione et al., 2008) and enhancing its sensitivity. Success in this task requires participants to learn to approach reward-predictive stimuli and avoid punishment-predictive stimuli through monetary reinforcement. All stimuli were rendered unconscious using forward-backward masking. In Experiment 2, we used delay conditioning to shorten the stimulus-outcome delay, retaining the structure of the original task but presenting the stimuli under continuous flash suppression to allow for an overlap of the stimulus, action, and outcome, as well as replacing monetary reinforcement with primary appetitive reinforcement. In both experiments, we found evidence for absence of unconscious instrumental conditioning, showing that participants were unable to learn to adjust their behaviour to approach positive stimuli and avoid negative ones. This result is consistent with evidence that unconscious stimuli fail to bring about long-term behavioural adaptations, and provides empirical evidence to support theoretical proposals that consciousness might be necessary for adaptive behaviour, where selective action is required.

There is a lack of understanding of what contributes to attitudes toward individuals with an opioid addiction and preferences for policies that support them.

This study aimed to investigate stigmatization of an opioid addiction and support for publicly funded drug treatment. A randomized, between-subjects case vignette study (N=1998) was conducted with a nation-wide online survey. To assess public perceptions of stigma and support for publicly funded drug treatment, participants rated a hypothetical individual who became addicted to prescription opioids across three conditions 1) male or female, 2) an individual who was prescribed prescription painkillers or took prescription painkillers from a friend and 3) an individual who transitioned to using heroin or who continued using prescription painkillers.

Our results showed that there were stronger negative attitudes towards a male (p<.01) and toward an individual who took prescription painkillers from a friend (all p's<.05), and both stronger positiwhen an individual was prescribed prescription painkillers from a doctor. However, path analysis identified a channel through which a doctor's prescription increased support for publicly funded drug treatment by influencing positive attitudes, negative attitudes, and responsibility.

Our findings provide further evidence that information about individuals who become addicted to opioids can influence stigma perceptions and support for publicly funded drug treatment.

Our findings provide further evidence that information about individuals who become addicted to opioids can influence stigma perceptions and support for publicly funded drug treatment.