1,720,965 research outputs found
The influence of high autistic personality traits on the attribution of intentionality in typically developing individuals
No full textThe present study investigated the association between autistic personality traits and cognitive and affective Theory of Mind abilities, as well as whether intentionality attribution was atypical in individuals with autistic personality traits, such as in individuals with autism spectrum disorder, who tend to over-attribute intentions when facing accidental harm involving negative outcomes. One-hundred individuals performed tasks assessing autistic personality traits, Theory of Mind abilities, and provided intentionality judgments to scenarios characterized by side effects, which involved unintended negative outcomes as well. Results showed that autistic personality traits are associated with reduced cognitive and affective Theory of Mind abilities, as well as with increased intentionality attributions towards side effects. Reduced cognitive Theory of Mind ability mediates the relationship between autistic personality traits and over-attribution of intentionality, suggesting that individuals with autistic personality traits base their intentionality evaluations more on side effects than on agent’s intentions, as in autism spectrum disorder
The Fear to Move in a Crowded Environment. Poor Spatial Memory Related to Agoraphobic Disorder
Get PDFIndividuals with agoraphobia exhibit impaired exploratory activity when navigating unfamiliar environments. However, no studies have investigated the contribution of visuospatial working memory (VSWM) in these individuals’ ability to acquire and process spatial information while considering the use of egocentric and allocentric coordinates or environments with or without people. A total of 106 individuals (53 with agoraphobia and 53 controls) navigated in a virtual square to acquire spatial information that included the recognition of landmarks and the relationship between landmarks and themselves (egocentric coordinates) and independent of themselves (allocentric coordinates). Half of the participants in both groups navigated in a square without people, and half navigated in a crowded square. They completed a VSWM test in addition to tasks measuring landmark recognition and egocentric and allocentric judgements concerning the explored square. The results showed that individuals with agoraphobia had reduced working memory only when active processing of spatial elements was required, suggesting that they exhibit spatial difficulties particularly in complex spatial tasks requiring them to process information simultaneously. Specifically, VSWM deficits mediated the relationship between agoraphobia and performance in the allocentric judgements. The results are discussed considering the theoretical background of agoraphobia in order to provide useful elements for the early diagnosis of this disorder
Decisions about a crime: downward and upward counterfactuals
No full textDeciding about people’s responsibility, intentions and need for punishment is particularly hard and it may be often associated with counterfactual thinking, which refers to the creation of mental alternatives to actual events. Ninety-three participants were asked to generate downward or upward counterfactuals regarding a given criminal event and, then, to give judgments about defendant’s predictability, responsibility, intentionality and punishment. Results showed that downward counterfactuals had led people to judge the event less intentional, the defendant less responsible and, therefore, to give him a less severe punishment (vice versa for upward). The relationship between counterfactuals and intentionality judgments was partially mediated by the perceived defendant’s predictability of the negative outcomes. Finally, downward counterfactuals were linked to a greater focus on the context (external factors), whereas upward counterfactuals on the defendant/victim’s behaviours (internal factors). Findings were discussed considering both theoretical decision-making models and applications on the judicial field
How does reasoning influence intentionality attribution in the case of side effects?
Get PDFTo evaluate others' actions objectively, one must integrate the actor's mental states with the potential consequences of his actions. However, consequences can distort the perception of intentionality. The Knobe effect, or "side-effect effect," demonstrates that individuals attribute greater intentionality to negative than positive foreseen yet unintended side effects. This study explores how reasoning styles and abilities influence these judgments. A sample of 172 college students completed validated reasoning style questionnaires, including the Rational-Experiential Inventory (REI) and the Actively Open-Minded Thinking scale (AOT), a syllogistic reasoning task, and scenario-based tasks in a randomized, between-subjects design (negative vs. positive side effect). Our findings reveal that a more deliberative reasoning style and longer response times both reduce bias in attributing intentionality to negative side effects, highlighting two distinct pathways through which response times mediate the influence of reasoning style on reducing biased judgments. We explore how reasoning affects our attributions of intentionality leading to a more balanced consideration of an actor's mental state and the consequences in moral judgment
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
An EEG-fMRI Study on the Termination of Generalized Spike-And-Wave Discharges in Absence Epilepsy
Get PDFINTRODUCTION: Different studies have investigated by means of EEG-fMRI coregistration the brain networks related to generalized spike-and-wave discharges (GSWD) in patients with idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE). These studies revealed a widespread GSWD-related neural network that involves the thalamus and regions of the default mode network. In this study we investigated which brain regions are critically involved in the termination of absence seizures (AS) in a group of IGE patients.
METHODS: Eighteen patients (6 male; mean age 25 years) with AS were included in the EEG-fMRI study. Functional data were acquired at 3T with continuous simultaneous video-EEG recording. Event-related analysis was performed with SPM8 software, using the following regressors: (1) GSWD onset and duration; (2) GSWD offset. Data were analyzed at single-subject and at group level with a second level random effect analysis.
RESULTS: A mean of 17 events for patient was recorded (mean duration of 4.2 sec). Group-level analysis related to GSWD onset respect to rest confirmed previous findings revealing thalamic activation and a precuneus/posterior cingulate deactivation. At GSWD termination we observed a decrease in BOLD signal over the bilateral dorsolateral frontal cortex respect to the baseline (and respect to GSWD onset). The contrast GSWD offset versus onset showed a BOLD signal increase over the precuneus-posterior cingulate region bilaterally. Parametric correlations between electro-clinical variables and BOLD signal at GSWD offset did not reveal significant effects.
CONCLUSION: The role of the decreased neural activity of lateral prefrontal cortex at GSWD termination deserve future investigations to ascertain if it has a role in promoting the discharge offset, as well as in the determination of the cognitive deficits often present in patients with AS. The increased BOLD signal at precuneal/posterior cingulate cortex might reflect the recovery of neural activity in regions that are "suspended" during spike and waves activity, as previously hypothesized
The prevention of road accidents in non-expert drivers: Exploring the influence of Theory of Mind and driving style
Get PDFBackground: Drivers consider external and hypothetical behaviours of other drivers, but internal factors also
impact road safety.
Objectives: This study aims to examine the connection between Cognitive and Affective Theory of Mind (ToM)
and Driving Style in road safety. It hypothesizes that a higher level of ToM corresponds to a greater ability to
avoid accidents and to assume virtuous driving behaviour. The study investigates how ToM impacts driving
behaviour, directly correlating with assessing potential accidents’ probability and severity.
Method: 207 non-expert drivers, including 164 females, participated in assessing Cognitive and Affective ToM
through two tasks. They also completed self-measured questionnaires to assess their driving style and behaviours.
In addition, they evaluated 12 videos depicting cars, motorcycles, trucks, and pedestrians to determine the
probability of a road accident and the level of danger in each scenario.
Results: The results of the mediation models clearly indicate a relationship between ToM and the reduction of
road accidents. Specifically, Cognitive ToM plays a crucial role in assessing the probability of risky and
dangerous situations related to Risky and Angry Driving Styles. However, it was observed that Cognitive ToM
does not significantly affect the prediction of actual driving behaviours.
Conclusions: Findings are discussed within the theoretical framework of the Task-Capability Interface Model and
the Embodied Simulation Model based on mirror neuron research. Our results suggest the importance of creating
drive-assistance systems considering both the Cognitive ToM and Driving Style to reduce road accidents among non-expert drivers
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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