The Impact of Thought Speed and Variability on Psychological State and Threat Perception: Further Exploration of the Theory of Mental Motion

Thought speed and variability are purportedly common features of specific psychological states, such as mania and anxiety. The present study explored the independent and combinational influence of these variables upon condition-specific symptoms and affective state, as proposed by Pronin and Jacobs’ (Perspect Psychol Sci, 3:461–485, 2008) theory of mental motion. A general population sample was recruited online (N = 263). Participants completed a thought speed and variability manipulation task, inducing a combination of fast/slow and varied/repetitive thought. Change in mania and anxiety symptoms was assessed through direct self-reported symptom levels and indirect, processing bias assessment (threat interpretation). Results indicated that fast and varied thought independently increased self-reported mania symptoms. Affect was significantly less positive and more negative during slow thought. No change in anxiety symptoms or threat interpretation was found between manipulation conditions. No evidence for the proposed combinational influence of speed and variability was found. Implications and avenues for therapeutic intervention are discussed.

Mental Toughness Moderates Social Loafing in Cycle Time-Trial Performance

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if mental toughness moderated the occurrence of social loafing in cycle time-trial performance. Method: Twenty-seven men (Mage = 17.7 years, SD = 0.6) completed the Sport Mental Toughness Questionnaire prior to completing a 1-min cycling trial under 2 conditions: once with individual performance identified, and once in a group with individual performance not identified. Using a median split of the mental toughness index, participants were divided into high and low mental toughness groups. Cycling distance was compared using a 2 (trial) × 2 (high–low mental toughness) analysis of variance. We hypothesized that mentally tough participants would perform equally well under both conditions (i.e., no indication of social loafing) compared with low mentally tough participants, who would perform less well when their individual performance was not identifiable (i.e., demonstrating the anticipated social loafing effect). Results: The high mental toughness group demonstrated consistent performance across both conditions, while the low mental toughness group reduced their effort in the non-individually identifiable team condition. Conclusions: The results confirm that (a) clearly identifying individual effort/performance is an important situational variable that may impact team performance and (b) higher perceived mental toughness has the ability to negate the tendency to loaf.

Cálculo mental com números racionais : um estudo com alunos do 6º ano de escolariedade

Tese de doutoramento, Educação (Didática da Matemática), Universidade de Lisboa, Instituto de Educação, 2016

NGOs, International Aid, and Mental Health in Cambodia

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-03

Task Competency in the Rights Analytic: Mental Health and the Justification for Rights and Duties

The paper concerns the moral status of persons for the purposes of rights-holding and duty-bearing. Developing from Gewirth’s argument to the Principle of Generic Consistency (PGC) and Beyleveld et al.’s Principle of Precautionary Reasoning, I argue in favour of a capacity-based assessment of the task competencies required for choice-rights and certain duties (within the Hohfeldian analytic). Unlike other, traditional, theories of rights, I claim that precautionary reasoning as to agentic status holds the base justification for rights-holding. If this is the basis for generic legal rights, then the contingent argument must be used to explain communities of rights. Much in the same way as two ‘normal’ adult agents may not have equal rights to be an aeroplane pilot, not all adults hold the same task competencies in relation to the exercise of the generic rights to freedom derived from the PGC. In this paper, I set out to consider the rights held by children, persons suffering from mental illness and generic ‘full’ agents. In mapping the developing ‘portfolio’ of rights and duties that a person carries during their life we might better understand the legal relations of those who do not ostensibly fulfil the criteria of ‘full’ agent.

Mental imagery in interpreting – a neurocognitive perspective

The paper discusses mental imagery as an important part of information processing performed during interpreting. Mental imagery is examined to see if visual processing used to remember the source text or to facilitate its understanding helps to ‗off-load‘ other cognitive (mainly linguistic) resources in interpreting. The discussion is based on a neurocognitively-oriented depictivist model by Kosslyn (1994). The overview of mental imagery processes and systems is followed by the discussion of imagery used in interpreting. First, imagery development in student interpreters is described on the basis of a note-taking course for would-be consecutive interpreters organized by the author at AMU. The initial part of the course devoted to imagery involves visualizations of geographical, descriptive and narrative texts. The description abounds in authentic examples and presents conclusions for interpreting trainers. Later, imagery as employed by professional interpreters is discussed on the basis of a qualitative survey. General implications of the use of mental imagery for cognitive processing limitations in interpreting are presented in the concluding section.

Prática de ensino supervisionado no 1.º e 2.º ciclo do ensino básico: calculo mental: um estudo sobre as estratégias utilizadas por alunos do 1.º e do 2.º ciclo do ensino básico

Relatório de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção de grau de mestre em Ensino do 1.º e do 2.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico

Prática de ensino supervisionadas do 1º e 2º ciclo do ensino básico: um estudo sobre as estratégias de cálculo mental utilizadas por alunos do 2º ciclo do ensino básico

Relatório Final apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de mestre em Ensino do 1º e do 2º Ciclo de Ensino Básico

Cálculo mental com números racionais não negativos: um estudo sobre as estratégias utilizadas por alunos do 4.º ano de escolaridade

Relatório Final apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para a obtenção de grau de mestre em Ensino do 1.º e 2.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico

Cálculo mental – um estudo sobre as estratégias utilizadas por alunos do 3.º ano na adição e subtração

Relatório de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção de grau de mestre em Ensino do 1.º e do 2.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico

A qualidade de vida dos profissionais de saúde mental

Os profissionais de saúde mental são o principal instrumento de intervenção nesta área considerada como prioridade de Saúde Pública e estão sujeitos a desgaste emocional e stress, que pode afetar negativamente a sua qualidade de vida. Com este estudo pretende-se avaliar a perceção do estado de saúde e da qualidade de vida relacionada com a saúde nos profissionais de saúde mental. Para responder ao objetivo traçado optou-se por realizar um estudo observacional analítico transversal, com abordagem quantitativa. Foi utilizado o SF36v2 como instrumento genérico de avaliação da Qualidade de Vida, que já se encontra validado para a população portuguesa, complementado por um questionário socioprofissional. A recolha de dados decorreu online, de 28 de Janeiro a 30 de Abril de 2013. A amostra foi constituída por 201 profissionais de saúde mental de Portugal Continental. Os profissionais de saúde mental que integraram a amostra revelaram pior perceção do estado de saúde e qualidade de vida, quando comparados com os valores de referência para a população portuguesa com nível de instrução alto. Em termos de domínios do instrumento, piores resultados foram encontrados para todos eles com exceção do domínio Saúde Mental. A avaliação da qualidade de vida dos profissionais de saúde mental possibilita a implementação alterações no funcionamento dos serviços de saúde mental, nomeadamente de programas de gestão de stress, de estratégias de coping e de competências de interação e comunicação entre os profissionais, podendo contribuir para uma melhoria na prestação dos cuidados de saúde aos utentes.

Nonreductive physicalism and mental causation

In this work I articulate...

Activity-Dependent Neurorehabilitation Beyond Physical Trainings: "Mental Exercise" Through Mirror Neuron Activation

The activity dependent brain repair mechanism has been widely adopted in many types of neurorehabilitation. The activity leads to target specific and non-specific beneficial effects in different brain regions, such as the releasing of neurotrophic factors, modulation of the cytokines and generation of new neurons in adult hood. However physical exercise program clinically are limited to some of the patients with preserved motor functions; while many patients suffered from paralysis cannot make such efforts. Here the authors proposed the employment of mirror neurons system in promoting brain rehabilitation by "observation based stimulation". Mirror neuron system has been considered as an important basis for action understanding and learning by mimicking others. During the action observation, mirror neuron system mediated the direct activation of the same group of motor neurons that are responsible for the observed action. The effect is clear, direct, specific and evolutionarily conserved. Moreover, recent evidences hinted for the beneficial effects on stroke patients after mirror neuron system activation therapy. Finally some music-relevant therapies were proposed to be related with mirror neuron system.

Is mental practice an effective adjunct therapeutic strategy for upper limb motor restoration after stroke? A systematic review and meta- analysis

Stroke is one of the most common conditions requiring rehabilitation, and its motor impairments are a major cause of permanent disability. Hemiparesis is observed by 80% of the patients after acute stroke. Neuroimaging studies showed that real and imagined movements have similarities regarding brain activation, supplying evidence that those similarities are based on the same process. Within this context, the combination of mental practice (MP) with physical and occupational therapy appears to be a natural complement based on neurorehabilitation concepts. Our study seeks to investigate if MP for stroke rehabilitation of upper limbs is an effective adjunct therapy. PubMed (Medline), ISI knowledge (Institute for Scientific Information) and SciELO (Scientific Electronic Library) were terminated on 20 February 2015. Data were collected on variables as follows: sample size, type of supervision, configuration of mental practice, setting the physical practice (intensity, number of sets and repetitions, duration of contractions, rest interval between sets, weekly and total duration), measures of sensorimotor deficits used in the main studies and significant results. Random effects models were used that take into account the variance within and between studies. Seven articles were selected. As there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (MP vs control), showed a - 0.6 (95% CI: -1.27 to 0.04), for upper limb motor restoration after stroke. The present meta-analysis concluded that MP is not effective as adjunct therapeutic strategy for upper limb motor restoration after stroke.