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RE: Italian breakfast in mind: The effect of caffeine, carbohydrate and protein on physiological state, mood and cognitive performance
No full textThe shape of you: do individuals associate particular geometric shapes with identity?
Full text linkFor more than a century, psychologists have been interested in how visual information can arouse emotions. Several studies have shown that rounded shapes evoke positive feelings due to their link with happy/baby-like expressions, compared with sharp angular shapes, usually associated with anger and threatening objects having negative valence. However, to date, no-one has investigated the preference to associate simple geometric shapes to personal identities, including one’s own, that of a close acquainted, or that of a stranger. Through 2 online surveys we asked participants to associate a geometric shape, chosen among a circle, a square and a triangle, to each of three identities, namely “you” (the self), “your best friend” or “a stranger”. We hypothesized that the circle would be more associated with the self, the square with the friend and the triangle with the stranger. Moreover, we investigated whether these associations are modulated by 3 personality traits: aggressivity, social fear and empathy. As predicted, we found that participants associate more often the circle with the self, both the circle and the square with the best friend, whereas they matched angular shapes (both the triangle and the square) to the stranger. On the other hand, the possibility that personality traits can modulate such associations was not confirmed. The study of how people associate geometric figures with the self or with other identities giving them an implicit socio-affective connotation, is interesting for all the disciplines interested in the automatic affective processes activated by visual stimuli
Editorial: The promising role of non-invasive brain stimulation in neurocognitive disorders treatment
No full textIn this Research Topic, we focused our interest on the use of Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation (NIBS) techniques, such as transcranial magnetic and electric stimulation (TMS and tES), in neurocognitive disorders. These tools offer a safe means to manipulate brain activity without the need for surgery or anesthesia. NIBS tools are commonly used for studying brain functions, modifying cognitive and behavioral processes, and exploring applications in neuropsychiatric disorders in both human subjects and murine models
Emotional faces influence evaluation of natural and transformed food
No full textPrevious evidence showed the presence of a straight relationship between feeding behavior and emotions. Despite that, no studies have focused on the influence of emotional faces on food processing. In our study, participants were presented with 72 couples of visual stimuli composed of a neutral, happy, or disgusted faces (5000 ms duration in Experiment 1, adaptation; 150 ms in Experiment 2, priming) followed by a food stimulus (1500 ms). Food stimuli were grouped in pleasant foods, further divided in natural and transformed, and unpleasant rotten foods. The task consisted in judging the food valence (as ‘pleasant’ or ‘unpleasant’) by keypress. Results showed a different pattern of response based on the transformation level of food. In general, the evaluation of natural foods was more rapid compared with transformed foods, maybe for their simplicity and healthier perception. In addition, transformed foods yielded incongruent responses with respect to the preceding emotional face, whereas natural foods yielded congruent responses with respect to it. These effects were independent of the duration of the emotional face (i.e., adaptation or priming paradigm) and may depend on pleasant food stimuli salience
Erratum to: Emotional faces influence evaluation of natural and transformed food (Psychological Research, (2018), 82, 4, (675-683), 10.1007/s00426-017-0857-7)
No full textThis article unfortunately contained two mistakes
The Italian Face-Name Association Test (ItFNAT): a preliminary validation of three parallel versions
No full textBackground and objectives: Associating names with faces is crucial for social interactions and reflects cognitive health. To address the need for reliable tools to assess associative memory, we developed and validated the Italian Face-Name Associative Test (ItFNAT), a tool allows clinicians to monitor cognitive functioning and detect early signs of cognitive decline. Materials and methods: 101 Italian participants (51 females) aged 18–80 years completed the three parallel versions of the ItFNAT, which assessed immediate recall (IR), delayed free recall (DFR), and delayed recall with cues (DTR). ItFNAT was administered alongside other neuropsychological tests to explore its relationship with memory and attention. Results: ItFNAT demonstrated high internal consistency across its three versions. Principal Component Analysis revealed that IR, DFR, and DTR loaded strongly onto a single factor in each version. Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA indicated no significant differences in scores across versions. Non-parametric analyses showed that years of education significantly influenced all three scores, while age negatively correlated with DTR. Spearman’s correlations revealed strong associations between ItFNAT scores and other widespread memory and attentive tests. Discussions: This study introduces the ItFNAT, a test designed to assess cross-modal associative memory. It includes three parallel versions with good internal consistency, and minimal score differences. Scores—IR, DFR, and DTR—reflect a shared underlying cognitive construct, correlating with both traditional memory tests and scales assessing working memory and attention. Education significantly influenced all three scores, while age negatively impacted DTR. Future research should refine its application for tracking cognitive function and detecting neurodegenerative changes
Italian breakfast in mind: The effect of caffeine, carbohydrate and protein on physiological state, mood and cognitive performance
Full text linkDue to the bidirectional influence between eating and mental activity, there is a growing interest in the neurosciences in the potential of food to influence mental states. Breakfast is the most investigated meal since it is supposed to influence satiety, mood and cognitive performance for the rest of the day. However, there is insufficient consistency among studies to draw firm conclusions about the short-term influence of carbohydrates and proteins on self-reported physiological state and mood. In order to shed light on this topic, 40 young Italian adults were involved in a single-blind randomized counterbalanced crossover experiment, in which we asked them to report on a series of visuo-analogue scales their physiological (i.e., hunger, tiredness and thirst) and affective states (i.e., happiness, excitement, activeness and relaxation) and perform 2 computer-administered cognitive tasks (simple reaction time and forward digit span) before and after having breakfast with a bitter espresso coffee and a whole wheat or a protein croissant. Our data show that breakfast improves the self-reported mood and physiological state, and also short-term verbal memory assessed by means of the forward digit span: we suppose that both croissants and caffeine played an important role in such findings. As for the reaction times, the whole wheat croissant intake determined slower reaction time compared with the protein croissant, maybe due to the higher glycemic response induced by carbohydrate ingestion. Confirming the bidirectional relationship between mind and food intake, the present findings are significant for nutrition science, since mood, physiological state and cognitive performance play a substantial role in general well-being as well as in eating behavior
Can the position on the screen of an image influence its judgment? The case of high- and low-calorie foods
Full text linkIf a food product is not perceived positively in its appearance, it is unlikely eaten. However, there are several subtle spatial cues able to bias attitudes towards food, such as the position where it is displayed. To date, no-one has investigated how the placement of high-calorie food (HcFd) or low-calorie food (LcFd) on a screen, influences them evaluations. Thus, we asked 57 participants to rate food images that appeared on the center, on the top, on the bottom, on the left or on the right side of the screen. For each item participants evaluated on a 100 mm VAS the liking, the desire to eat and buy, and the willingness to pay. We found that HcFd liking and desire to eat were higher when images were shown on the bottom side and lower when shown on the left side of the screen; LcFd liking scores were lower when shown on the bottom side and higher when shown on the left side of the screen. Such results were consistent with the literature reporting a peculiar perceptual/preference bias determined by the placement of high- and low-calorie products. Both policy makers and sellers can use such knowledge respectively to prevent unhealthy food intake or to improve the effectiveness of the advertisements
Side biases in Euro banknotes recognition: The horizontal mapping of monetary value
No full textMoney is a special stimulus for humans, because of its relevance in everyday life. However, the basic mechanisms underlying money representation have not yet been fully investigated. Left-right asymmetries in the visual perception and evaluation of monetary value offer such a possibility. The pattern of these asymmetries can contribute to disentangle between numerical and emotional processes possibly involved in banknotes perception. In the present experiment, we tested the recognition of 5€and 100€ banknotes presented in the left and right visual fields. Results show that the 100€ banknote is recognized faster than the 5€ banknote in the Right Visual Field (RVF), while there is no difference in the Left Visual Field (LVF). Our interpretation is that this effect is due to the matching between the positive valence conveyed by the 100€ banknote and the side in which it is mapped (right-positive). We consider this result as evidence of a valence-based recognition of banknotes
Gamma (60 Hz) auditory stimulation improves intrusions but not recall and working memory in healthy adults
No full textGamma-band (> 30 Hz) brain oscillations (γ) play a crucial role in memory and long-term potentiation, and their disruptions have been consistently documented in patients with Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Gamma-band oscillation entrainment through 60 Hz transcranial alternating stimulation (tACS) and 40 Hz tACS/sensory stimulation has been shown to enhance memory performance in healthy adults and patients with AD, respectively. However, the impact of gamma auditory stimulation on healthy adults' memory remains uncertain. In this balanced crossover study, 36 healthy subjects (27 Females) underwent three auditory stimulation conditions: no auditory stimulation (NO_AS), 40 Hz, and 60 Hz. Long-term verbal memory (LTM) and verbal working memory (WM) were assessed using, respectively, the Ray Auditory Verbal Test (RAVLT) and Digit Span Backward test (DS-B). We hypothesized that 60 Hz would improve LTM (as compared to NO_AS), but not WM; no specific effects were hypothesized for 40 Hz. We found that gamma-band auditory stimulation (40 Hz and 60 Hz) did not significantly affect RAVLT recall or WM. However, 60 Hz stimulation reduced RAVLT immediate recall intrusion; this outcome negatively correlated with DS-B performance, suggesting a positive impact of 60 Hz on executive functions. In summary, gamma-band auditory stimulation did not enhance memory in healthy adults, but 60 Hz stimulation potentially benefits executive functions. Further investigation is needed to understand gamma oscillation's role in cognitive processes for both healthy and clinical populations
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