315 research outputs found
Examining the Link Between Discrimination and Pain Physiology
No full textThere are well-documented pain disparities across sociodemographic groups (Campbell & Edwards, 2012), however, the physiological mechanisms behind these disparities are not well- known. The proposed research explores whether self- reported experiences of lifetime discrimination is associated with increased pain sensitivity when assessed in a laboratory setting. Participants were 72 Caucasian American, African American, Hispanic American, and Mixed- Race American undergraduate students from Texas A&M University in College Station. We conducted several psychophysical pain testing procedures to quantify pain and administered the Perceived Ethnic Discrimination Questionnaire (PEDQ) and the Experiences of Discrimination Questionnaire (EOD) to better understand the complexity of discrimination.We did not find statistically significant associations between our pain measure and discrimination, however results trended in the expected direction such that Latinx participants showed a pattern of higher pain sensitivity trending with higher discrimination. By understanding how discrimination is linked to pain sensitivity, we can create interventions to reduce pain by targeting the underlying mechanisms that exacerbate pain in specific socioeconomic subgroups
Exposure to Threatening Environments, Threat-Related Attention Bias, and Pain
No full textThe study here was designed to examine the relationship between lifetime exposure to threatening environments, related attention biases, and sensitivity to pain. There is little understanding of the mechanisms that lead certain people to experience greater pain than others in response to a given stimulus. There is evidence that there are disparities in pain sensitivity among various sociodemographic groups (e.g., sex, race), and that attentional vigilance towards pain can enhance pain sensitivity. Participants included healthy volunteers.
We hypothesized that people with greater lifetime exposure to threatening environments would demonstrate greater attentional biases to threat in the lab, report greater pain vigilance, and be more sensitive to physical pain stimuli. The findings did not support our original hypotheses; interpretations and suggestions for future work are discussed
Lifetime Experiences of Ostracism and Mechanisms of Pain
No full textOne social mechanism by which marginalization is enacted is via ostracism where people with minoritized identities systematically experience greater ostracism. More recent research has demonstrated ostracism���s impact on physical health, but little is known about the relationship between accumulated lifetime experiences of ostracism and pain. Despite recent calls for added attention to social modulation of pain and social indicators of pain disparities, the impact of unique social factors on pain ��� including those of ostracism ��� is not well understood. Results of laboratory studies on the effects of acute ostracism experiences on pain sensitivity have been mixed. However, these studies have focused on acute laboratory ��� rather than lived and repeated experiences of ��� ostracism and primarily included single static measures, and not dynamic measures, of pain sensitivity. Additionally, they have neglected to examine associations between ostracism experiences and pain among people with minoritized identities. In this study, we explore accumulated lifetime experiences of ostracism as a potential contributing factor to enhanced pain and one social mechanism by which societal inequity may create and maintain inequity in pain. We extracted measures of lifetime experiences of ostracism from six studies focused on social factors and pain conducted between 2016-2020. The total analysis sample includes 505 adults without chronic pain. Results indicate that greater experiences of lifetime ostracism are associated with lower cold pain tolerance. Within-group analyses suggest that the relationship between lifetime ostracism experiences and acute pain sensitivity may be different among racialized groups and community samples. To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine whether accumulated lifetime experiences of ostracism are associated with greater pain. This may be an important social indicator of pain that contributes to racialized disparities in pain
Traumatic Life Experience and Sensitivity to Laboratory-Controlled Pain Stimuli: A Meta-Analysis
No full textPsychological trauma often co-occurs with pain. This relationship has been explored using measures designed to assess pain sensitivity in controlled, laboratory settings; however, findings and posited explanatory mechanisms are wide-ranging. This meta-analysis examines all existing literature that has assessed the relationship between psychological trauma (e.g., car accidents, sexual assault, childhood abuse, neglect) and laboratory pain via quantitative sensory testing (QST) methods (e.g. algometer test for pressure pain threshold, cold pressor test for cold pain threshold). The goals of this review include evaluating the direction of the relationship between psychological trauma and pain sensitivity, as well as exploring potential moderators that may elucidate contributing mechanisms. Following literature and data extraction, analyses were conducted with 53 samples within 48 studies in which there were sufficient data to calculate effect sizes (k = 142) related to psychological trauma and pain sensitivity as measured by QST. Using a random effects correlated weights model with robust variance estimation, an estimated effect size of g = 0.22 (p = 0.002) suggests a small but notable effect of psychological trauma on laboratory-controlled pain sensitivity across prior work. Upon examination of mechanistic moderators, this relationship appears driven by QST measures that tap into pain detection (g = 0.24, p = 0.02) and central sensitization (g = 0.24, p = 0.04); however, models for moderation by pain severity (g = 0.15, p = 0.14) and inhibitory processes (g = 0.30, p = 0.21) were not significant
An Analytical Criterion for Centrifugal Instability in Non-Axisymmetric Vortices
No full textNon-axisymmetric vortices are ubiquitous in nature; examples include polar vortices in planets, the giant red spot in Jupiter, tornadoes and cyclones on Earth, mesoscale eddies in the ocean. Turbulent flows are furthermore known to be dominated by small- and large-scale vortex structures. Owing to the wide range of applications, knowledge of conditions under which a given vortex becomes unstable is beneficial. Here, the centrifugal instability of two-dimensional, non-axisymmetric vortices in the presence of an axial flow and a background rotation is studied using the local stability approach. The local stability approach, based on geometric optics and similar in formulation to the rapid distortion theory \cite{bib:godeferd2001}, considers the evolution of shortwavelength perturbations along streamlines in the base flow. This approach, developed by Lifschitz Hameiri \cite{bib:lifschitz1991}, is particularly useful for base flows for which a global stability analysis is computationally expensive. A sufficient criterion for centrifugal instability in an axisymmetric vortex with and is first derived by analytically solving the local stability equations for wave vectors that are periodic upon evolution around a closed streamline. This criterion is then heuristically extended to non-axisymmetric vortices and written in terms of integral quantities on a streamline. The criterion is then shown to be accurate in describing centrifugal instability over a reasonably large range of parameters that specify Stuart vortices and Taylor-Green vortices
Confrontation: An Interpersonal Response to Ostracism
No full textConfrontation is defined as expressing displeasure with mistreatment and is a behavioral response to ostracism – being ignored and excluded by others. According to the temporal need-threat model of ostracism, targets’ interpersonal behaviors following ostracism act to restore depleted need satisfaction and mood. The aims of this research were 1) to examine the use of confrontation in response to ostracism, and 2) to study its effectiveness as a coping method.
In sum, these studies established confrontation as a frequent response to ostracism that is influenced by both the targets’ psychological response and the social context in which it occurs. Four experiments were conducted using participants from an introductory psychology subject pool. Study 1 manipulated ostracism to targets’ attitudes towards contacting the sources of ostracism. Study 2 used a mixed design and behavioral measure of confrontation to examine how frequently people confront, and potential effects on need-satisfaction and mood over time. Study 3 manipulated the coping method used following ostracism to compare confrontation’s effectiveness to a solo writing task and a distraction task. Study 4 examined individual differences and contextual factors that influence the likelihood of confrontation.
Study 1 found that while participants most preferred to take no action, public contact with the ostracism sources was preferred over other options. In Study 2, one in three ostracized participants chose to confront, more frequent than included participants. Study 3 found that confrontation was more effective for reducing anger than the writing task. Distraction was more effective in increasing need-satisfaction compared to the confrontation task. Study 4 showed that male gender, need-depletion, and negative affect increased the likelihood of confrontation. However, these effects varied based on whether or not participants believed they were playing with members of their racial in-group or out-group.
In sum, confrontation was a common response to ostracism. The usage of confrontation was influenced by sadness as well as interactions between social context and psychological responses or individual differences
Promoting a SAFE Environment: An Empirical Look at the State Authenticity as Fit to Environment Model
No full textThe state authenticity as fit to environment (SAFE) model describes a process by which people���s sense of fit is cued by the environment (Schmader & Sedikides, 2018). According to the SAFE model, the environment cues positive feelings of fit for people from advantaged identities, while the opposite is true for people from disadvantaged identities. The model further suggests that positive feelings of fit lead to increased authenticity, which in turn leads to increased approach motivation, whereas a lack of fit leads to decreased authenticity, and increased avoidance motivation. Study 1 of this research empirically examined the predictions of the SAFE model by comparing the experiences of college students of color and white students at a predominantly white institution. To further test the SAFE model, a longitudinal study was conducted to see if the predictions of the model persisted across time. Specifically, study 2 examined the safe model over the duration of one semester. Both studies found mixed empirical support for the SAFE model. Students of color consistently reported lower fit and increased self-alienation compared to white students. Implications for the model and future research are discussed
FINANCING COMMUNITY FACILITIES: A CASE STUDY OF THE PARKS AND RECREATIONAL GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND MEASURE OF SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA
No full textThis study of the City of San Jose’s Parks and Recreation General Obligation (GO) Bond Measure seeks to identify the politics-, management-, and planning-related lessons learned by the City as it developed its community facilities using the GO bonds proceeds. The study finds that these lessons include: be conservative in what you promise the residents; be prepared for changes in economic environment by identifying supplementary funding sources should the primary source not yield adequate funds; make sure that the jurisdiction is organizationally capable of handling the increased workload; and prepare detailed project plans prior to the bond issuance.Community Infrastructure and Services; Municipal Bonds; Public Finance
Fractionating Selection History: Dissociable Components of Experience-Driven Attention
No full textThe classical view of attentional control suggests that attentional selection is guided by physical salience and task goals. Selection history, which refers to attentional selection of stimuli an observer has previously interacted with, has challenged the dichotomised view and advocates attentional selection independent of physical salience and task goals. Research to date has identified different components of selection history, including (1) reward history (2) punishment history and (3) history as a repeated target, but how these components relate and influence attentional selection remains unclear. Across five experiments, we demonstrate that although these components of selection history share a similar behavioural profile, they rely on distinct learning and neural mechanisms.
Specifically, reward and punishment history are shaped by a common associative learning mechanism and recruit the dopaminergic midbrain structures, supporting the motivational salience account which suggests that attention prioritises relevance-for-survival regardless of a particular emotional valence. In contrast, history as a repeated target develops via an instrumental learning mechanism and the corresponding attentional priority is afforded by enhanced representations in the visual areas. Such dissociation between reward and punishment history on one hand and history as a repeated target on the other provides compelling evidence that the three components of selection history comprise unique sources of attentional bias that independently influences the attentional system
Using Item Response Theory to Evaluate and Revise the Child Behavior Questionnaire
No full textEarly emerging individual differences in reactivity and self-regulation, or temperament, are crucial for understanding development in childhood and beyond. The Child Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ) is currently the most popular measure for assessing temperament in childhood. However, its current length (195 items) may overburden informants. Short forms of the CBQ exist, but these versions may suffer from a lack of measurement precision and content coverage given the procedures used for their development. Modern psychometric techniques based on Item Response Theory (IRT) are well suited to the task of reducing assessment length without compromising measurement quality. Accordingly, the current study used IRT and related techniques to revise the CBQ with the goal of making it more efficient. Result indicated that CBQ could be reduced in length by 44% while still functioning similarly to the original form in terms of measurement precision, inter-parent agreement, and the ability to predict adjustment outcomes. This revised 110-item CBQ, which is substantially shorter and maintains the favorable measurement properties of the original, should prove useful for researchers and clinicians who desire a comprehensive assessment of temperament
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