Psychological factors in retrograde amnesia: Self-deception and a broken heart

The psychoses of epilepsy are well recognized complications of seizure disorders, diagnosed easily from the history. However, in the absence of recognized seizures, the diagnosis can be challenging.

We present a 27-year-old female, who suffered a treatment refractory psychosis for 6 years. She did not report, or display, any seizure activity, and extensive investigation was unremarkable. The onset of new symptoms prompted a repeat work-up which clinched the diagnosis of psychosis of epilepsy.

Treatment with Lamotrigine and Amisulpiride achieved an excellent response, and she has remained symptom free for 7 months.

We conclude with a brief literature review.     

自恋与归因方式、心理健康的关系研究

目的探讨自恋与归因方式、心理健康之间的关系。方法对614名大学生进行自恋人格问卷(NPI)、归因方式问卷(ASQ)、心理健康自评量表(SCL-90)测评。结果①高、低自恋者在归因方式上存在显著性差异(t=5.12,P<0.001);②自恋与整体归因(r=0.199,P<0.01)、人际事件归因(r=0.215,P<0.01)、成就事件归因(r=0.138,P<0.01)以及归因的内外维度(r=0.185,P<0.01)、持续维度(r=0.151,P<0.01)、普遍维度(r=0.166,P<0.01)都显著性正相关;③高、低自恋者在心理异常总分及各因子之间均没有表现出差异性;④自恋总分与心理异常总体上无显著性相关,仅与人际敏感(r=-0.108,P<0.01)、恐怖(r=-0.119,P<0.05)两个因子显著性负相关。结论自恋者自我服务的归因方式在一定程度上有益于心理健康;自恋的权欲、优越感、自我钦羡3个因子与心理健康相联系,代表自恋的适应方面;特权感因子则与病态心理相联系,是自恋的不适应方面。     

Positive illusions and its association with cardiovascular functions

The relationship between positive illusions (or self-enhancement) and cardiovascular functions was investigated using Asian samples in two studies. In phase 1 of Study 1, a generalized self-enhancement index was created for 241 participants using a paired word association memory task, a facial emotion recognition task, and a reading test. 122 participants subsequently volunteered for a second phase in this study where their ambulatory cardiovascular functions were measured throughout a single waking day. In Study 2, a priming procedure experimentally induced self-enhancement (n = 35) and self-effacement (n = 37) and the participants' cardiovascular arousal and perceived control for a mental arithmetic task were measured. Self-enhancement predicted lower cardiovascular functions for both studies. In Study 1, self-enhancement assessed at phase 2 was a significant predictor while self-enhancement measured at phase 1 was not. In Study 2, the relationship between self-enhancement and vascular reactivity was partially mediated by perceived control. The findings indicate that the relationship between self-enhancement and cardiovascular stress response, which has implications for cardiovascular health, (i) is relevant for Asian populations, (ii) is not just correlational but potentially causal, and (iii) is partly mediated by an increase in perceived control for vascular reactivity.     

无意识目标追求的成败对自我提升的影响

目的:探讨无意识目标追求的成败对自我提升的影响。方法:采用2(目标:无意识目标/无目标)×2(任务难度:容易/困难)的组间设计,120名被试依次完成杂乱句子任务(The Scrambled Sentence Task,SST)和字母排序任务(Anagram Task)后,立刻测量其自我提升。结果 :目标主效应显著,F(1,104)=6.551,P=0.012;任务难度主效应显著,F(1,104)=9.257,P=0.003;目标和任务难度的交互作用显著,F(1,104)=5.351,P=0.023。结论:激活无意识的"成功"目标和执行困难任务可以影响自我提升;相对于无意识目标追求的成功,无意识目标追求的失败可以增强自我提升。     

Assessing the neural correlates of self-enhancement bias: a transcranial magnetic stimulation study

Considerable research has focused on overly positive self-perceptions (self-enhancement), and yet little is known about the underlying neural mechanisms. The present study sought to assess the neural correlates of self-enhancement by applying Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) to three brain regions. Twelve participants rated their best friend, as well as the self on a set of desirable or undesirable traits while TMS pulses were delivered in a virtual lesion manner. During the baseline condition (Sham TMS), participants produced more desirable and fewer undesirable ratings for themselves as compared to their best friend, showing self-enhancement. Compared to Sham TMS, TMS delivered to the Medial Prefrontal Cortex (MPFC) reduced self-enhancement whereas TMS delivered to the Supplementary Motor Area (SMA) and the precuneus did not. Together, these findings suggest that the MPFC may influence self-enhancement.     

Distinct neural networks support the mere ownership effect under different motivational contexts

The “mere ownership effect” refers to individuals’ tendency to evaluate objects they own more favorably than comparable objects they do not own. There are numerous behavioral demonstrations of the mere ownership effect, but the neural mechanisms underlying the expression of this self-positivity bias during the evaluation of self-associated objects have not been identified. The present study aimed to identify the neurobiological expression of the mere ownership effect and to assess the potential influence of motivational context. During fMRI scanning, participants made evaluations of objects after ownership had been assigned under the presence or absence of self-esteem threat. In the absence of threat, the mere ownership effect was associated with brain regions implicated in processing personal/affective significance and valence (ventromedial prefrontal cortex [vMPFC], ventral anterior cingulate cortex [vACC], and medial orbitofrontal cortex [mOFC]). In contrast, in the presence of threat, the mere ownership effect was associated with brain regions implicated in selective/inhibitory cognitive control processes (inferior frontal gyrus [IFG], middle frontal gyrus [MFG], and lateral orbitofrontal cortex [lOFC]). These findings indicate that depending on motivational context, different neural mechanisms (and thus likely different psychological processes) support the behavioral expression of self-positivity bias directed toward objects that are associated with the self.     

Self-comparison processes, prototypes, and smoking onset among early adolescents

BACKGROUND: Research has shown that social images or prototypes of smoking peers play a role in adolescents' decisions to start smoking. To devise effective prevention measures, specific information is needed about how adolescents evaluate characteristics associated with smoker prototypes. Such evaluation is assumed to occur through self-comparison processes, that is, 'self-consistency' and 'self-enhancement' motivations. This is one of the first studies to examine longitudinal relations between both these motivational processes and smoking behavior. METHODS: Self-reported data on motivational processes and smoking were gathered at two waves (with a 1-year interval) among Dutch adolescents (12-16 years). Relations between self-comparison processes and willingness to smoke or future smoking behavior were tested among a sample of 1938 respondents. RESULTS: Smoker prototypes predicted adolescents' smoking onset, particularly those images that referred to daily smoking peers as being "cool" or "rebellious." Furthermore, self-consistency and self-enhancement motivations predicted smoking onset for certain characteristics associated with smoker prototypes. CONCLUSION: Evidence for the role of self-consistency and self-enhancement motivations in adolescents' smoking onset suggests that smoking prevention projects should target both similar and aspiring features associated with the image of smoking peers.     

Self-enhancement and cardiovascular reactivity: Limitations of the hemodynamic profile–compensation deficit (HP–CD) model of blood pressure regulation

We examined the consistency of results obtained when examining the relationship between self-enhancement and cardiovascular reactivity via analysing raw cardiovascular data and compared this with the hemodynamic profile–compensation deficit (HP–CD) model of blood pressure regulation (James et al., 2012) method. A sample of 112 male participants underwent a computer-based task three times in three weeks. Our results indicate that significant results for self-enhancement and hemodynamic cardiovascular reactivity found using raw cardiovascular data were non-significant when HP–CD model was used. Furthermore, the HP–CD model also obfuscates significant baseline changes with reactivity. We also found that the correlations between blood pressure reactivity and hemodynamic processes obtained in the laboratory setting was reduced rather than enhanced with the use of the HP–CD model. Our results suggest that the HP–CD model should be used cautiously and could contribute to inconsistent results when examining the role of psychological factors in biological outcomes.