http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification 720 https://escholarship.org/uc/ucr_chass_psych_oapolicydeposits/rss Recent eScholarship items from Department of Psychology Open Access Policy Deposits Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:42:54 +0000 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2rq1p9s3 Previous research often reveals relatively poor correspondence among three prominent indirect measures configured to assess racial stereotypes: the Weapon Identification Task (WIT), the First-Person Shooter Task (FPST), and the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Importantly, these measures differ on a variety of procedural dimensions (e.g., task instructions, stimulus presentation, response time limits), which confounds explanations of low correspondence. In a fully within-participants design, N = 372 participants completed versions of the WIT, FPST, and IAT that were aligned on several procedural dimensions. Process modeling revealed high correlations among measures for model parameters reflecting controlled and automatic processes. However, model-based racial bias estimates correlated only moderately between the WIT and the FPST, and not at all with the IAT. Our findings suggest that all three measures share some correspondence when procedurally aligned, but each reflects a specific... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2rq1p9s3 Mon, 14 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Laukenmann, Ruben Calanchini, Jimmy https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3p89v85s Dense, individual-level datasets are an important resource for social neuroscience that enable models of brain responses to a wide range of naturalistic features, often investigated with movie fMRI. This data release provides high spatiotemporal resolution 3 Tesla BOLD fMRI data in three healthy participants while viewing four feature-length movies with sound (Grand Budapest Hotel, Forrest Gump, Planet Earth, Jiro Dreams of Sushi; ca. 520 minutes) and a movie trailer composite, together with clip and movie repeats. All movie functional data were acquired with partial brain coverage from an approximately axial slab covering ventral prefrontal and temporal lobes, including the amygdala, with a repetition time of 556 ms and complex-valued image reconstruction. The dataset is released in both unprocessed and minimally preprocessed forms with individual, high quality anatomic templates. Preprocessed fMRI data are provided in both individual template and FreeSurfer average surface spaces.... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3p89v85s Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Tyszka, J Diamandis, Zachary Keles, Umit Xu, Yue Kim, Na Zhu, Wenying Wu, Qianying Kahn, David Adolphs, Ralph https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3f8730h0 Human personality generally refers to coherent individuating patterns in affect, behavior, and cognition. We can only observe and measure behavior, from which we then infer personality and other psychological processes (affect, cognition, etc.). We emphasize that the study of personality always explains or summarizes patterns not only in behavior but also in these other psychological processes inferred from behavior. We thus argue that personality should be attributed only to nonhuman animals with behaviors from which we can infer a sufficiently rich set of psychological processes. The mere inference of a biological trait that explains behavioral variability, on our view, is not sufficient to count as a personality construct and should be given a different term. Methodologically, inferring personality in nonhuman animals entails challenges in characterizing ecologically valid behaviors, doing so across rich and varied environments, and collecting enough data. We suggest that studies... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3f8730h0 Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Adolphs, Ralph Xu, Yue https://escholarship.org/uc/item/78q085d9 Memory generalization allows individuals to extract and apply information from prior experiences to novel situations, supporting flexible learning and efficient decision-making. Theoretical models suggest that sleep should facilitate generalization, yet the literature examining its role in promoting generalization is mixed. We recruited 137 participants via Prolific to complete an image-location memory task over two sessions spaced 12 h apart. Participants were randomly assigned to the Wake group (learning in the morning) or the Sleep group (learning in the evening). In Session 1, participants learned the location of stimuli on the screen and were tested on their memory 5 min later. Twelve hours later, in Session 2, they were tested on their memory again. Stimuli consisted of 160 images from eight semantic categories and were strategically positioned on-screen to test the effects of generalization on retrieval (i.e., category-based memory distortions and biases). After the delay,... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/78q085d9 Thu, 10 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Lu, Tiange Ji, Zhuangning Tompary, Alexa Schechtman, Eitan https://escholarship.org/uc/item/128347j5 BACKGROUND: Machine learning methods employing neuroimaging data are useful for monitoring the activation of neural representations. Specifically, they can be used to discern the brain networks engaged in processing specific categories of items. This approach has been employed on neuroimaging data, including functional magnetic resonance imaging data and electroencephalography (EEG) data. NEW METHOD: Here, we present a task and an analytical pipeline for investigating category representations using EEG. Participants (N = 30) viewed a series of images and words of objects belonging to five categories (Animals, Tools, Food, Scenes, and Vehicles) and responded when items from the same category were presented consecutively. RESULTS: We trained support vector machines on EEG data within participants and found that both image trials and word trials yielded significant category classification accuracy, with image trials achieving higher accuracy than word trials. When comparing categories... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/128347j5 Thu, 10 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Morakabati, Neda R Thiha, Alison S Schechtman, Eitan https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1315b1q6 Loneliness and social isolation are associated with numerous adverse physical and psychological health outcomes in older adulthood, including cognitive impairment and mortality risk. Yet, how the individual and joint effects of loneliness and social isolation contribute to these outcomes remains unclear, particularly given the interplay between individual differences (loneliness) and environmental factors (social isolation) in shaping these important health outcomes in older adulthood (i.e., person-environment interactions). We used Cox regression, logistic regression, and multistate survival models to systematically investigate the individual and adjusted associations among loneliness, social isolation, cognitive aging outcomes, and mortality risk. Further, extensive between-study variability in operational definitions, modeling approaches, and covariate adjustments may be contributing to mixed results in the existing literature. In this registered report, we applied a multistudy... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1315b1q6 Tue, 1 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Yoneda, Tomiko https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2906-1881 Jackson, Kathryn L Noyer, Emily C Beam, Christopher R Pfund, Gabrielle Antonoplis, Stephen https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2789-5516 Beck, Emorie https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8152-3510 Bedjeti, Katy Qin, Pei Garner, Kayla M Luo, Jing Van Bogart, Karina Pieramici, Lily Hauner, Katherina Turiano, Nicholas A O’Súilleabháin, Páraic S Barnes, Lisa Bennett, David A Terrera, Graciela Muniz Mroczek, Daniel K James, Bryan D Steptoe, Andrew Ong, Anthony D Graham, Eileen K https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5pg770z7 Infants learn through everyday interactions with the physical and social environment. For infants with cerebral palsy (CP), motor impairments may disrupt everyday learning opportunities. How can we measure real-world motor behavior and learning opportunities in infants with CP? Machine learning models have been developed to quantify body position throughout a day in infants with typical development (TD) using wearable sensor data. However, these models have not been validated in infants with motor impairments. This study assessed the validity of body position classification using machine learning and sensors in infants with CP. Ten infants with CP (7-18 months; one session each) and 19 infants with TD (4-12 months; 45 sessions) wore four inertial sensors on their legs throughout a day. Ninety minutes were video recorded and manually scored for body position in five categories: supine, prone, sitting, standing, and held. Random forest classifiers were trained to predict body position... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5pg770z7 Thu, 27 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Kretch, Kari S Enriques, Florencia A Franchak, John M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0751-2864 Abney, Drew H Bell, Christopher A Jerry, Christian M Lindig, Katherine Steffen, Grace https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9ks304jj Happiness seekers tend to focus on changing their life circumstances, such as buying a new house, switching jobs, or getting married. However, people have been found to adapt to both positive and negative life changes, such as marriage, job promotion, disability, and widowhood. This process—known as hedonic adaptation—can serve as a formidable barrier to achieving lasting happiness. The Hedonic Adaptation Prevention model outlines why people adapt to life changes and sheds light on how adaptation to favorable events can be forestalled and how adaptation to unfavorable events can be hastened. In this chapter, we focus on a positive change as the model’s starting point, which is associated with an immediate boost in well-being and a gradual decline back to baseline. Individuals adapt to positive life changes due to increasing aspirations and declines in the number of positive events and emotions associated with the change. Fortunately, lasting happiness change is indeed possible,... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9ks304jj Thu, 20 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Armenta, Christina Bao, Katherine Jacobs Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 Sheldon, Kennon M https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8k11p098 As many happiness seekers inevitably discover, human beings are remarkably susceptible to hedonic adaptation—the process of becoming accustomed to positive life changes. Even if individuals observe short-term increases in happiness, how can they avoid the natural erosion of happiness over time? Can anyone ever stay happier? In the present chapter, we review the mechanisms underlying hedonic adaptation to positive experiences and present evidence that sheds light on how people can deliberately prevent or slow it down. We argue that the intentional, effortful use of positive activities can produce and sustain significant increases in happiness. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8k11p098 Thu, 20 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Fritz, Megan M Walsh, Lisa C https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9689-4824 Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7m87n1gj Making Happiness Last <i>Using the Hedonic Adaptation Prevention Model to Extend the Success of Positive Interventions</i> https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7m87n1gj Thu, 20 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Bao, Katherine Jacobs Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1gq1h509 Background Escalating healthcare expenditures highlight the need to identify modifiable predictors of the use and costs of healthcare and sickness benefit transfers. We conducted a prospective analysis on Danish data to determine the costs associated with flourishing as compared to the below threshold level of flourishing. Methods We used data from a 2016 Danish survey of 3508 adults, which was linked to Danish register data. Flourishing was assessed with a validated psychological well-being scale. A two-part regression model was used to predict 2017 costs while adjusting for 2016 costs, demographic variables, and health status, including psychiatric morbidity and health behaviours. Costs are expressed in USD PPP. Results Applying criteria from prior literature, the prevalence of flourishing in Denmark (measured in 2016) was 34.7%. Flourishing was associated with significantly lower healthcare costs ($-687.7, 95% CI&nbsp;=&nbsp;$-1295.0, $-80.4) and sickness benefit transfers... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1gq1h509 Thu, 20 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Santini, Ziggi Ivan Nielsen, Line Hinrichsen, Carsten Nelausen, Malene Kubstrup Meilstrup, Charlotte Koyanagi, Ai McDaid, David Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 VanderWeele, Tyler J Koushede, Vibeke https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9cc2b7g9 BACKGROUND: Social connection is critical to both psychological well-being and optimal immune function. The present study tested whether a behavioral intervention to increase social connection (promoting extraverted behavior) might reduce a threat-related immunoregulatory gene expression program known as the Conserved Transcriptional Response to Adversity (CTRA). The CTRA is characterized by elevated inflammatory gene expression and reduced innate antiviral gene expression in response to beta adrenergic signaling and has been associated with adverse social conditions such as loneliness and ostracism. METHODS: In an 8-week intervention (with 6-week behavior change protocol), participants from a campus community (N&nbsp;=&nbsp;119; 87&nbsp;% undergraduate; 9&nbsp;% graduate; 4&nbsp;% staff) were randomized to act more extraverted (sociable; Extraversion condition) or track routine daily activities (Control condition). Participants reported on psychological outcomes and provided... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9cc2b7g9 Thu, 13 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Martinez, Ramona L Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 Cole, Steve W https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6485k3fn This narrative review examines research on artificial intelligence (AI), including rule-based systems, natural language processing models, and large language models, in relation to well-being, social connection, and personal growth. After briefly tracing the history of AI, we review evidence from AI-facilitated well-being interventions, educational applications, interpersonal skill development, AI-mediated communication, and AI companionship. In clinical and nonclinical settings, structured AI applications show some short-term benefits for anxiety, stress, loneliness, self-esteem, learning, and social confidence, while emerging evidence suggests that AI companions may provide temporary emotional support and a sense of connection. However, findings across these domains are not consistent and appear to depend on how AI is used, the structure of the interaction, the type of feedback provided, and the broader context. Important risks include emotional dependence, overreliance, reduced... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6485k3fn Thu, 13 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Vannoy, Tanya K Cadieux, Stephen Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4v87h4rb This study merged archival data from three separate experiments to investigate the typology of individuals who benefit most and least from gratitude letter writing interventions (<i>N</i> = 487). First, k-means clustering of pre- to post-intervention changes in affect revealed three distinct groups: Buffered, Mixed Feelings, and Backfired. The Buffered cluster comprised individuals who, on average, experienced decreases in negative affect (e.g., less frustration) but no changes in positive emotions (e.g., joyful). The Mixed Feelings cluster experienced increases in positive affect, alongside self-conscious emotions, particularly indebtedness, which became more closely aligned with uplifting emotional states following the intervention. The Backfired cluster experienced decreases in positive feelings and increases in negative affect. Next, differences in individual characteristics across clusters indicated that those in the Buffered cluster were relatively more neurotic, had higher... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4v87h4rb Thu, 13 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Vannoy, Tanya K Walsh, Lisa C Liao, Luke Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/42m7f8zn How Chanting Enhances Well-Being: The Roles of Vocalization, Repetition, and Concentration https://escholarship.org/uc/item/42m7f8zn Thu, 13 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Cadieux, Stephen Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/12v499gc Pathways to Self-Compassion: The Effects of Self-Kind Behaviors and Self-Kind Thoughts on Self-Compassion and Well-Being https://escholarship.org/uc/item/12v499gc Thu, 13 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Martinez, Ramona L Regan, Annie Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/68c924z0 BACKGROUND: Living in a country with a large gap between high and low earners has been linked to poor health, including depression. Less studied is gene-by-environment interplay with income inequality as the environmental exposure. Here, we examine the association between childhood exposure to inequality and individual differences in adult depressive symptoms, testing for moderation of genetic influences by inequality using polygenic indices for major depressive disorder, as well as twin models. METHODS: The research participants were 69,924 members of twin studies from four developed countries, born between 1893 and 1979, aged 22-103 years at depressive symptom assessment. Genotyping was available for 6,256 participants. Income inequality was operationalized as share of income accruing to the top 1% for each country when the participants were between age 5 and 15 years. RESULTS: Childhood income inequality was associated with depressive symptom scores in adulthood, adjusting... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/68c924z0 Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Petkus, Andrew J Reynolds, Chandra A https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6502-7173 Finch, Brian K Thomas, Kyla Beam, Christopher R Catts, Vibeke S Ericsson, Malin Finkel, Deborah G Franz, Carol E https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8987-1755 Kremen, William S Larsen, Lisbeth Aagaard Martin, Nicholas G McGue, Matt Mosing, Miriam A Neiderhiser, Jenae M Nygaard, Marianne Pedersen, Nancy L Thalamuthu, Anbupalam Whitfield, Keith E Gatz, Margaret Consortium, the IGEMS https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9th8c22k Cognitive decline, in healthy older adults without cognitive impairment or dementia, has been associated with numerous microstructural alterations in brain tissue using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Prior studies have primarily linked age-related cognitive decline to alterations in white matter tissue, but methodological advances in diffusion-weighted imaging (dMRI) data acquisition and modeling now allow for these analyses to be extended to gray matter tissue. Here, using a sample of 152 healthy adults (18-88 years of age), we used a multicompartment dMRI model to assess (1) age-related differences in gray matter microstructure of functionally defined networks and (2) whether microstructural alterations accounted for age-related differences in episodic memory and speed-dependent fluid cognition. We observed significant age-related alterations in gray matter tissue in the form of nonlinear, age-related increases and decreases in intracellular and dispersed diffusion, respectively,... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9th8c22k Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Merenstein, Jenna L Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 Madden, David J https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8f63b4kw Adults of all ages are worse at recognizing pairs of items that were previously seen together relative to the individual items, and this paired-associative memory deficit is exacerbated in aging. Less is known about memory for higher associative loads, which place greater demands on binding processes that link items into a cohesive memory trace, among other processes (e.g., working memory, recollection). In this study, adults across the lifespan (n&nbsp;=&nbsp;250, 18-78&nbsp;years) completed a novel recognition task in which they studied word pairs, triplets, and quadruplets and were tested on their memory for repeated, recombined, and novel word sets. Associative memory deficits were seen in adults of all ages as fewer correct responses to repeated sets (hits), more incorrect responses to recombined sets (recombined false alarm, FA), and larger differences between these measures (associative memory) at higher set sizes. In addition, older adults had worse associative memory... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8f63b4kw Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Franco, Corinna Y Alcaraz-Torres, Alexander Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7nd9f115 <p>Adults of all ages are worse at remembering which pairs of items were previously seen together relative to memory for the individual items, and this paired-associative memory deficit is exacerbated in aging. Less is known about memory for higher-order associations, including whether they place greater demands on the binding processes that link information into a cohesive memory trace. In this study, adults across the lifespan (Experiment 1: n = 250, 18-78 years) and in extreme age groups (Experiment 2: n = 64, 18-25 and 64-78 years) completed a novel recognition task in which they studied word pairs, triplets, and quadruplets and were later tested on their memory for repeated, recombined, and novel word sets. Associative memory deficits were seen in both experiments as the difference between correct responses to repeated (hits) and incorrect responses to recombined (recombined false alarm, FA) sets that decreased from pairs to quadruplets. In addition, older age groups had... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7nd9f115 Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Franco, Corinna Alcaraz-Torres, Alexander Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7hn5j4hf Introduction: Frailty is characterized by a persistent and progressive decline in functional capacity, leading to increased vulnerability to stressors and a heightened risk of adverse health outcomes, both physically and mentally. Despite frailty's prevalence in older adults, there is limited research on its neural substrates. Methods: In this study, we used connectome-based predictive modeling (CPM) to find a linear relationship between task-based connectomes taken from tasks that involved similar handgrip manipulations and a separate measure of physical frailty: the maximum grip strength in older adults. Results: We observed that the task-based connectomes were able to explain individual differences in grip strength, with the Subcortical and Cerebellum network, particularly the caudate nucleus functional connectivity, being the strongest predictor. Discussion: These findings demonstrate that task-based functional connectomes can serve as personalized markers for predicting individual... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7hn5j4hf Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Ghaffari, Amin Abouzaki, Majd Romero, Yasmine Sun, Andrew Seitz, Aaron https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4936-9303 Langley, Jason Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 Hu, Xiaoping https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6bh2b8ms The presence of neurofibrillary tangles containing hyper-phosphorylated tau is a characteristic of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. The positron emission tomography (PET) radioligand sensitive to tau neurofibrillary tangles (¹⁸F-AV1451) also binds with iron. This off-target binding effect may be enhanced in older adults on the AD spectrum, particularly those with amyloid-positive biomarkers. Here, we examined group differences in ¹⁸F-AV1451 PET after controlling for iron-sensitive measures from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and its relationships to tissue microstructure and cognition in 40 amyloid beta positive (Aβ+) individuals, 20 amyloid beta negative (Aβ-) with MCI and 31 Aβ- control participants. After controlling for iron, increased ¹⁸F-AV1451 PET uptake was found in the temporal lobe and hippocampus of Aβ+ participants compared to Aβ- MCI and control participants. Within the Aβ+ group, significant correlations were seen between ¹⁸F-AV1451... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6bh2b8ms Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Langley, Jason Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 Hu, Xiaoping P https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8155-7040 Initiative, for the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging https://escholarship.org/uc/item/41t6h49z Locus Coeruleus Engagement Drives Network Connectivity Dynamics In Humans And Rats https://escholarship.org/uc/item/41t6h49z Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Hussain, Sana Shalchy, Mahsa Alizadeh Yaghoubi, Kimia C Langley, Jason Chen, Xu Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 Huang, Ringo Clewett, David Nielsen, Shawn E Velasco, Rico Kennedy, Briana Han, Sophia Tu, Kristie Seitz, Aaron R Zhang, Nanyin Mather, Mara Hu, Xiaoping Peters, Megan AK https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0248-0816 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3bv183c6 Abstract Evidence from animal and histological studies have indicated that accumulation of iron in the brain results in reactive gliosis that contributes to cognitive deficits. The current study extends these findings to human cognitive aging and suggests that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques like quantitative relaxometry can be used to study iron and its effects in vivo . The effects of iron on microstructure and memory performance were examined using a combination of quantitative relaxometry and multi-compartment diffusion imaging in 35 young (21.06 ± 2.18 years) and 28 older (72.58 ± 6.47 years) adults, who also completed a memory task. Replicating past work, results revealed age-related increases in iron content (R 2 *) and diffusion, and decreases in memory performance. Independent of age group, iron content was significantly related to restricted (intracellular) diffusion in regions with low-moderate iron (hippocampus, caudate) and to all diffusion metrics in... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3bv183c6 Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Venkatesh, Anu Daugherty, Ana M Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2g16p0xp This study aimed to provide a complete characterization of age group differences in cortical lobar, hippocampal, and subcortical gray matter microstructure using a multi-compartment diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI) approach with parameters optimized for gray matter (Neurite Orientation Dispersion and Density Imaging, NODDI). 76 younger (undergraduate students) and 64 older (surrounding communities) adults underwent diffusion-, T1-, and susceptibility-weighted MRI. Results revealed eight unique patterns across the 12 regions of interest in the relative direction and magnitude of age effects across NODDI metrics, which were grouped into three prominent patterns: cortical gray matter had predominantly higher free diffusion in older than younger adults, the hippocampus and amygdala had predominantly higher dispersion of diffusion and intracellular diffusion in older than younger adults, and the putamen and globus pallidus had lower dispersion of diffusion in older than younger adults.... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2g16p0xp Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Greenman, Danielle Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1458p9sj <p>Healthy aging is accompanied by declines in the ability to learn associations between events, even when their relationship cannot be described. Previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have attributed these implicit associative learning (IAL) deficits to differential engagement of the hippocampus and basal ganglia in older relative to younger adults in early and late stages of the task, respectively. However, these task stages have been confounded with age group differences in learning performance that emerge later and to a lesser degree in older adults. To disentangle the effects of task stage from learning stage (i.e., when there is significant evidence of learning) on age group differences in the neural substrates of IAL, we acquired fMRI data while 28 younger (20.8 ± 2.3 years) and 22 older (73.6 ± 6.8 years) healthy adults completed the Triplets Learning Task, in which the location of two cues predicted the location of a target with high (HF) or low... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1458p9sj Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Merenstein, Jenna Louise Petok, Jessica R Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1458d4j5 OBJECTIVE: Elevated kurtosis values have been observed in subcortical grey matter structures of patients with neurodegenerative diseases. Here, we examined relationships between iron measures and kurtosis in iron-rich subcortical grey matter structures.Please check and confirm the affiliation 4 for the author "Xiaoping P. Hu".Affiliation 4 for Xiaoping P. Hu was incorrect since he is not associated with that department. We have removed this affiliation. Thanks!&nbsp; MATERIALS AND METHODS: Multi-shell diffusion and multi-echo gradient echo acquisitions were used to derive mean kurtosis and iron measures (R₂* and magnetic susceptibility), respectively, in subcortical grey matter nuclei and white matter tracts in a discovery cohort (110 healthy older and 63 younger adults) and replication cohort (72 healthy older adults).Please confirm if the author names are presented accurately and in the correct sequence (Ilana J. Bennett and Xiaoping P. Hu). Also, kindly confirm the... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1458d4j5 Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Langley, Jason Solis, Kitzia Masjedizadeh, Vala Shao, Murphy Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 Hu, Xiaoping P https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8155-7040 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0d2128zn Handgrip strength relates to corticospinal tract microstructure in older adults https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0d2128zn Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Solis, Kitzia Shao, Murphy Langley, Jason Seitz, Aaron R Hu, Xiaoping Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0bd5p26g Brain regions accumulate different amounts of iron with age, with older adults having higher iron in the basal ganglia (globus pallidus, putamen, caudate) relative to the hippocampus. This has important implications for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies in aging as the presence of iron may influence both neuronal functioning as well as the measured fMRI (BOLD) signal, and these effects will vary across age groups and brain regions. To test this hypothesis, the current study examined the effect of iron on age group differences in task-related activity within each basal nuclei and the hippocampus. Twenty-eight younger and 22 older adults completed an associative learning task during fMRI acquisition. Iron content (QSM, R₂*) was estimated from a multi-echo gradient echo sequence. As previously reported, older adults learned significantly less than younger adults and age group differences in iron content were largest in the basal ganglia (putamen, caudate).... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0bd5p26g Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Petok, Jessica R Merenstein, Jenna L Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3844m9kj <h4>Objective</h4>Neural tube defects (NTDs) are congenital anomalies caused by failure of neural tube closure during pregnancy and contribute to childhood morbidity and mortality. Folic acid supplementation reduces NTDs risk, yet adherence remains low, particularly among Hispanic women and non-Hispanic Black women. This study examines folic acid supplementation by race/ethnicity, nativity, and social determinants of health (SDOH).<h4>Methods</h4>Data came from the National Institutes of Health All of Us Research Program (Registered Tier Dataset v7), a large, diverse biomedical dataset that includes underrepresented populations. Analyses were restricted to participants enrolled between May 2018-June 2022. Adjusted multivariable logistic regression models assessed for differences in folic acid supplementation, controlling for age, income, education, insurance, and pregnancy.<h4>Results</h4>Among pregnant and non-pregnant women of childbearing age (18-49&nbsp;years; N&nbsp;=&nbsp;85,874),... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3844m9kj Wed, 3 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Almeida, Isabel F Marks, Yael Vu, Brian Mostafazadeh, Tara https://escholarship.org/uc/item/04d287c8 Cultural tightness refers to the strength of social norms and tolerance for norm violations within regions. In two studies, we investigated the link between cultural tightness and sociopolitical ideologies, beliefs, and personality traits within the United States and across 56 nations. We relied on two separate operationalizations of cultural tightness and aggregated self-reported sociopolitical ideologies, beliefs, and personality trait data from tens of thousands of geolocated internet respondents. Regression analyses suggest that more culturally tight U.S. states are less open, more conscientious, and higher in the need for certainty. Tighter states also more strongly endorse racial stereotyping, right-wing authoritarianism, and other system-justifying beliefs, but less weakly endorse egalitarianism. In addition, tighter nations are lower in extraversion and creativity. Taken together, we find that cultural tightness is a parsimonious predictor of regional... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/04d287c8 Thu, 21 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Wilson, Liz https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8068-980X Calanchini, Jimmy https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1959-143X https://escholarship.org/uc/item/41w6w2sc ObjectiveElevated kurtosis values have been observed in subcortical grey matter structures of patients with neurodegenerative diseases. Here, we examined relationships between iron measures and kurtosis in iron-rich subcortical grey matter structures.Please check and confirm the affiliation 4 for the author "Xiaoping P. Hu".Affiliation 4 for Xiaoping P. Hu was incorrect since he is not associated with that department. We have removed this affiliation. Thanks!&nbsp;Materials and methodsMulti-shell diffusion and multi-echo gradient echo acquisitions were used to derive mean kurtosis and iron measures (R2* and magnetic susceptibility), respectively, in subcortical grey matter nuclei and white matter tracts in a discovery cohort (110 healthy older and 63 younger adults) and replication cohort (72 healthy older adults).Please confirm if the author names are presented accurately and in the correct sequence (Ilana J. Bennett and Xiaoping P. Hu). Also, kindly confirm the details in the... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/41w6w2sc Mon, 18 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Langley, Jason Solis, Kitzia Masjedizadeh, Vala Shao, Murphy Bennett, Ilana J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5330-4679 Hu, Xiaoping P https://escholarship.org/uc/item/01d2d9rm Life is full of uncertainty about the future. Some uncertainty is stressful and anxiety-provoking, some is comforting and protective, and some can even be pleasurable. This chapter addresses the various ways people manage uncertainty about the future. We first consider situations in which uncertainty is aversive, namely during stressful waiting periods. People regularly wait for feedback about their academic, professional, personal, and financial prospects, and most people find these waiting periods to be unpleasantly fraught with worry. Two theoretical models, the Uncertainty Navigation Model and the newer Emotion-Motivation-Obstruction (EMO) model, guide our coverage of aversive uncertainty and provide a roadmap to the subjective experiences, health consequences, and coping efforts such situation entail. We then turn to situations in which uncertainty is desirable. People regularly avoid information to which they have ready access, even when acquiring the information may benefit... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/01d2d9rm Thu, 7 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Sweeny, Kate Howell, Jennifer L https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5p33b3sp ObjectivesSuccess in life often requires patience. However, little is known about patience as a psychological process outside of research on temporal discounting, and even less is known about the experience of impatience. Across three studies, we tested the role of mindfulness in daily experiences of patience and impatience.MethodParticipants (total n = 600) recalled daily experiences of impatience each day for 5&nbsp;days. Studies 2 and 3 introduced mindfulness interventions compared to either a control (Study 2) or mind-wandering (Study 3) condition.ResultsAcross studies, multilevel models revealed robust associations between daily mindfulness, reduced impatience, and bolstered patience. In Study 3, participants in the mindfulness condition perceived frustrating delays as less objectionable, felt more motivated and able to respond with patience during these days, and ultimately responded more patiently.ConclusionsFindings suggest that mindfulness promotes patience during everyday... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5p33b3sp Fri, 24 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Hawes, Jason Sweeny, Kate https://escholarship.org/uc/item/11m4g7kx Individuals experiencing economic stress demonstrate lower cognitive control and higher intergroup bias. The present research extends beyond individuals to investigate relationships among regional economic conditions, regional cognitive control, and intergroup bias. We aggregated 2.9 million US-based participants’ geolocated responses on the Black/White Implicit Association Test, then applied the Process Dissociation Procedure to estimate state-level cognitive control and racial evaluations across the years 2005 to 2019. Black populations’ cognitive control was weaker in states where Black residents faced more adverse economic conditions, but stronger in states where White residents faced more adverse economic conditions. White populations’ cognitive control was weaker in states where more Black residents faced unemployment. Black populations’ outgroup biases were more negative in states where more White residents lived in poverty, and White populations’ ingroup biases were more... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/11m4g7kx Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Chaplin, Kayla Wilson, Liz Laukenmann, Ruben Calanchini, Jimmy https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8wt3d45s Muslim youths in the U.S. are facing mental health issues due to discrimination, bullying, and islamophobia, which may impact academic learning outcomes. However, there is considerable diversity in Muslim youth: the vast majority immigrating from or have parents from various geographic regions: Southeast Asia, Middle East, North Africa, Europe, etc. A few studies have reported group differences with discrimination regarding the Muslim population. Given the different cultural contexts and intersections of identities, more research is needed to better understand how the diversity of Muslim youth in the U.S. may require different tailored interventions and prevention programs that foster positive learning outcomes. This review paper starts by reviewing research reporting factors impacting the well-being of Muslim youth. Then, it highlights differences in experiences that may affect learning outcomes, such as geographic region, ethnicity, immigration status, minority status, and income... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8wt3d45s Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Shahzad, Mehak Rodriguez, Tania Wu, Rachel https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7jg0d5xq Flow is the experience of being deeply immersed in an activity, an experience that researchers have embraced as a predictor of well-being. Although research on the beneficial effects of flow is widespread, its multidisciplinary nature has precluded a clear consensus on their nature and strength. Results from a meta-analysis revealed a moderately strong, positive relationship between flow and well-being, consistent with our hypothesis. Features of the well-being measure moderated the association, such that eudaimonic measures showed a stronger association than did hedonic measures, and among hedonic measures, measures of cognitive well-being were more strongly associated with flow than affective measures. Measures of positive aspects of well-being were also more strongly associated with flow than measures of negative aspects. The association was surprisingly robust to features of the flow measure and activity, the design of the study, and characteristics of the sample. These findings... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7jg0d5xq Mon, 30 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Sweeny, Kate Huerta, Janine Medina Hawes, Jason Susoeff, Sophia https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5jc775rx Frailty is characterized by a persistent and progressive decline in physiological reserves, leading to increased vulnerability to stressors and a heightened risk of adverse health outcomes, both physically and mentally. Despite frailty's prevalence in older adults, there is limited research on its neural substrates, especially using task-based brain functional connectivity. In this study, we used connectome-based predictive modelling (CPM) to find a linear relationship between task-based connectomes - taken from tasks that involved similar handgrip manipulations - and a separate measure of frailty: the maximum grip strength in older adults. We observed that the task-based connectomes were able to explain individual differences in grip strength, with the Subcortical and Cerebellum network, particularly the caudate nucleus, functional connectivity being the strongest predictor. These findings demonstrate that task-based functional connectomes can serve as personalized markers that... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5jc775rx Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Ghaffari, Amin abouzaki, Majd Romero, Yasmine Sun, Andrew Seitz, Aaron Langley, Jason Bennett, Ilana J Hu, Xiaoping https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8155-7040 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7d8064r8 ABSTRACT Pursuing a goal often requires sustained effort and commitment, sometimes for longer than one hoped or expected. When people face delays in achieving their goals, they may become impatient—and when they believe they are the cause of those delays, they may feel impatient with themselves. In this paper, we present a novel theoretical approach to understanding such moments of self‐impatience, adapted from the process model of patience . This approach positions self‐impatience as an emotional response to self‐caused delays that are unreasonable or inappropriate. To be patient with oneself, then, means to successfully regulate the feeling or consequences of self‐impatience. We outline our theoretical model of self‐patience, the process model of self‐patience , highlighting where it overlaps with and deviates from the original model. We then close with suggestions for future research that derive from our theoretical proposals. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7d8064r8 Sun, 1 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Susoeff, Sophia Sweeny, Kate https://escholarship.org/uc/item/36n166qd Humans actively seek information to reduce uncertainty, providing insight on how our decisions causally affect the world. While we know that episodic memories can help support future goal-oriented behaviors, little is known about how hypothesis testing during exploration influences episodic memory. To investigate this question, we designed a hypothesis testing paradigm, in which participants figured out rules to unlock treasure chests. Using this paradigm, we characterized how hypothesis testing during exploration influenced memory for the contents of the treasure chests. We found that there was an inverted U-shaped relationship between decision uncertainty and memory, such that memory was best when decision uncertainty was moderate. An exploratory analysis also showed that surprising outcomes lead to lower memory confidence independent of accuracy. These findings support a model in which moderate decision uncertainty during hypothesis testing enhances incidental information encoding. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/36n166qd Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Shen, Xinxu Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 Smith, David V Murty, Vishnu P https://escholarship.org/uc/item/00w6986q Do goals, beliefs, and desires affect visual experience? This question has long been controversial in cognitive science. There exists extensive literature documenting motivational effects on perceptual reports, but these findings could reflect biases in what people report seeing rather than what they see. Here, we propose that examining the underlying neurocomputational processes can provide new perspectives on this longstanding debate. We review evidence suggesting that motivation biases both perception and action, but does so via distinct neural systems: amygdala and locus coeruleus (LC)-norepinephrine (NE) activity enhances sensory representations for desirable stimuli, while striatal dopamine biases action selection toward goal-congruent actions. The neurocomputational approach provides a framework to advance a mechanistic understanding of motivated seeing and how these biases are shaped by context. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/00w6986q Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Kim, Haena Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 Leong, Yuan Chang https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7wx8m5zv Between 1819 and the 1970s, the U.S. government forced Native American children to attend boarding schools with the explicit purpose of assimilating them into White American culture. In this article, we examined whether the cultural legacy of historical Native American boarding schools persists locally in the aggregated racial biases of modern-day residents. Using the data of 290,593 Project Implicit visitors, we found that counties where Native American boarding schools were located in the past show lower levels of modern-day racial prejudice against Native Americans and view Native Americans as more U.S. American/less foreign compared to counties without historical boarding schools. Our findings provide a nuanced perspective on the ways in which historical injustices can manifest in physical, social, and cultural environments. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7wx8m5zv Tue, 3 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Primbs, Maximilian A Calanchini, Jimmy https://escholarship.org/uc/item/72x2w84s Abstract Patience has been a consistent source of interest and inspiration for generations of thinkers and writers. In this article, I delineate the tenets of a comprehensive framework for understanding patience, the process model of patience (Sweeny, Personality and Social Psychology Review , 2025, 29, 145), that positions impatience as a common and unpleasant emotion and patience as a targeted form of emotion regulation. I then outline potential applications of the model for consumer decisions, service experiences, and marketing contexts and close with practical recommendations to optimize consumer behavior in contexts where impatience is likely to arise. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/72x2w84s Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Sweeny, Kate https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2459x4rw This investigation tests whether people higher in trait patience navigate stressful waiting periods with greater emotional well-being and less maladaptive coping. In one exploratory study (N&nbsp;=&nbsp;799) and three conceptual replications (Ns&nbsp;=&nbsp;217, 410, 411), undergraduates completed a baseline survey assessing trait patience before entering a laboratory paradigm where they experienced uncertainty while awaiting feedback on their intelligence (Study 1), social skills (Study 2), health risk (Study 3), and attractiveness (Study 4). Participants completed measures of worry, positive and negative emotion, distraction, and suppression during the wait. Mini meta-analysis findings show that patient people worry less and feel less negative and more positive emotion when waiting for personally-relevant news, while avoiding the relatively maladaptive coping strategies of distraction and suppression, with the strongest associations emerging for positive emotion. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2459x4rw Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Sweeny, Kate Schnitker, Sarah A https://escholarship.org/uc/item/995647pv Multinomial processing tree (MPT) models can provide novel insights into the cognitive processes underlying a wide variety of social cognitive judgments and behaviors. In previous research, MPT models have been used to disentangle the contributions of multiple latent processes to tasks configured to assess moral reasoning, processing fluency, decision-making, implicit biases, and social categorization, among many other topics. However, until recently, MPT models were limited in their application to categorical data. New methodological advances extend traditional MPT estimation methods by incorporating reaction time data, thereby expanding the breadth and depth of questions that can be investigated. This article provides a user-friendly step-by-step tutorial for response-time extended MPT methods with annotated code and data, using the Implicit Association Test as a working example. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/995647pv Thu, 6 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Wilson, Liz Hartmann, Raphael Klauer, Karl Christoph Laukenmann, Ruben Calanchini, Jimmy https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6ws9r0n7 Introduction to the Special Issue: Tutorials on Novel Methods and Analyses in Social Cognition, Part 1 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6ws9r0n7 Thu, 6 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Calanchini, Jimmy Degner, Juliane Smith, Colin Tucker https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0dr5f1xn Introduction to the Special Issue: Tutorials on Novel Methods and Analyses in Social Cognition, Part 2 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0dr5f1xn Thu, 6 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Smith, Colin Tucker Degner, Juliane Calanchini, Jimmy https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1qs144pr Purpose: Evidence on the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on outcomes in patients with ovarian cancer patients is limited. We compared remission outcomes in patients with ovarian cancer before and during the pandemic. Patients and Methods: This retrospective cohort study included patients diagnosed with epithelial ovarian cancer between 01/01/2017 and 06/30/2021 at Kaiser Permanente Southern California. Pre and post pandemic periods were designated using March 4, 2020, as the cut-off. Stage I-IV patients who completed chemotherapy and/or surgery as first-line treatment were included. Data on remission outcomes (complete and clinical remission) were abstracted by manual chart reviews. Complete remission was defined as no evidence of disease; clinical remission included both complete and partial response to treatment. Modified Poisson regression was used to evaluate the association of pandemic and remission. Effect modification by race/ethnicity was evaluated. Results:... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1qs144pr Sat, 18 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Mukherjee, Amrita Ayoub, Natalie Xu, Lanfang Cannavale, Kimberly L Gilfillan, Alec D Szamreta, Elizabeth A Monberg, Matthew J Hodeib, Melissa Chao, Chun R https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0d96m72r BACKGROUND: The empathogen and psychostimulant 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is thought to boost both subjective well-being and social connection. Although MDMA is considered to enhance social connection to a greater extent than other stimulant drugs, few studies have compared MDMA to other stimulants. In addition, previous studies have focused on social positivity effects (e.g., increased trust) for specific in-lab interaction partners without considering more generalized social positivity effects (e.g., trust in one's community). AIMS: We tested the effects of MDMA on subjective ratings of well-being and global social connection, including feelings of trust toward one's community and society. The effects of MDMA were compared to a prototypic stimulant, methamphetamine (MA). METHODS: Across two studies, we examined differences in subjective well-being and global social well-being 90 minutes after a conversation on MDMA (study 1; <i>N</i> = 15; 100 mg) and after a conversation... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0d96m72r Thu, 9 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Martinez, Ramona L Radošić, Nina Molla, Hanna de Wit, Harriet Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4c37z9m3 A Multimethod Approach to Women's Experiences of Reproductive Health Screening https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4c37z9m3 Thu, 25 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Ghane, Arezou Sweeny, Kate Dunlop, William L https://escholarship.org/uc/item/05t1f0hm The Developing Belief Network is a global research collaborative studying religious development in diverse social-cultural settings, with a focus on the intersection of cognitive mechanisms and cultural beliefs and practices in early and middle childhood. The current manuscript describes the study protocol for the network's second wave of data collection, which aims to further explore the development and diversity of religious cognition and behavior using a multi-time point approach. This protocol is designed to investigate three key research questions-how children represent and reason about religious and supernatural agents, how children represent and reason about religion as an aspect of social identity, and how religious and supernatural beliefs are transmitted within and between generations-via a set of eight tasks for children between the ages of 5 and 13 years and a survey completed by their parents/caregivers. This study is being conducted in 41 distinct cultural-religious... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/05t1f0hm Mon, 15 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Williams-Gant, Allison J Weisman, Kara Amin, Tamer G Ghossainy, Maliki E Soueidan, Ghadir Nissel, Jenny Kenderla, Praveen Abdel-Hak, Marwa Anggoro, Florencia K Bangayan, Samantha Burdett, Emily RR Chau, Emily Chen, Eva E Chua, Jallene Coetzee, Lezanie Coley, John D Dahl, Audun Dautel, Jocelyn B Davis, Elizabeth L https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2599-4390 Davis, Helen Elizabeth DeLeon, Adine Diesendruck, Gil Evans, Denise Feeney, Aidan Fong, Frankie TK Foo, Xuqing Garcia, Alison Gonzalez-Rubio, Isabela Galaz, Elena Guerrero Gurven, Michael Hu, Ying Huachorunto, Keila Indrawati, Komang Jee, Benjamin D Kahwa, Michael Kahwa, Unity Korah, Ringking Kramer, Hannah J Kushnir, Tamar Kyriakopoulou, Natassa Lebepe, Shitshembiso Lee, Hea Jung Lesage, Kirsten A Leshabana, Patricia Li, Dandan Li, Pearl Han Llacua, Jessica Tacza Maluleke, Vongani Marin, Ashley Marshall, Julia Masebe, Nthabiseng McAuliffe, Katherine McLaughlin, Abby McMullan, Anthea McShane, Caitlin Min, Casey Mutegeki, Mike Namara, Olive Nichols, Shaun Nicolopoulou, Ageliki Nielsen, Mark Otali, Emily Parise, Katerina Paucar, Xiomara Alicia Payir, Ayse Poonawalla, Sakina Reyes-Jaquez, Bolivar Riddick, Sophie Rockers, Peter C Ruiz, Justin K Sanjidah, Rifah Shneidman, Laura Skopeliti, Irini Srinivasan, Mahesh Stegall, Jessa Stephens, Joanna Stutesman, Megan G Sun, Jiayue Tarullo, Amanda Taylor, Laura K Theogen, Itangishatse Toong, Desiree Turan-Küçük, Esra Nur Tusiime, Patrick Ventura, Estefany Pizarro Xu, Jingyi Ye, Nina Yu, Yue Yucel, Meltem Zhang, Wenzhuo Zhao, Xin Corriveau, Kathleen H Richert, Rebekah A Network, on behalf of the Developing Belief https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2vp6f444 Working together (vs. individually) improves the performance of people from working-class contexts. Consequently, teams with a higher (vs. lower) percentage of individuals from working-class contexts perform better. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the way teams work together, leading to a rise in asynchronous and remote teamwork. Here, we ask: Does the way people work together matter for the benefits documented in prior work? In this registered report, we examined meeting mode-that is, the extent to which teams work together synchronously and in-person (vs. asynchronously and remotely)-as an important boundary condition for the performance of people from working-class contexts in teams. We hypothesize and, in exploratory analyses, find preliminary support for the idea that the beneficial effects of working together for students from working-class contexts are diminished when teams work together primarily asynchronously and remotely. Moreover, we tested... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2vp6f444 Wed, 10 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Dietze, Pia Dittmann, Andrea G https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2g93225f Given the near-historic levels of economic inequality in the United States, it is vital to understand when and why people are motivated to reduce it. We examine whether the manner in which economic inequality and policy are framed—in terms of either upper-socio-economic-class advantages or lower-socio-economic-class disadvantages—influences individuals’ reactions to inequality. Across five studies, framing redistributive policy (Study 1) as disadvantage-reducing (versus advantage-reducing) and economic inequality (Studies 2–5) as lower-class disadvantages (versus upper-class advantages or a control frame) enhances support for action to reduce inequality. Moreover, increased support is partly driven by perceptions that inequality is more unjust if framed as lower-class disadvantages. Using diverse methodologies (for example, social media engagement on Facebook) and nationally representative samples of self-reported upper-class and lower-class individuals, this work suggests that... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2g93225f Wed, 10 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Dietze, Pia Craig, Maureen A https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2d48q2j0 The visual system takes advantage of redundancy in the world by extracting summary statistics, a phenomenon known as ensemble perception. Ensemble representations are formed for low-level features like orientation and size and high-level features such as facial identity and expression. Whereas recent research has shown that the visual system forms intact ensemble representations even when faces are partially occluded via solid bars, how ensemble perception is impacted with the addition of naturalistic objects such as face masks or sunglasses is largely unknown. To investigate this, we conducted a series of experiments using continuous report tasks in which faces (either varying in identity or expression) were partially occluded with a surgical mask or sunglasses and participants had to report the average face using a face wheel. We found evidence that participants could still accurately extract the average even when a significant portion of it was occluded with either face masks... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2d48q2j0 Thu, 28 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Hendley, Hayden Schill Hassani, Natalia K Pallis Brady, Timothy F https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5924-5211 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/90n34580 <p>In daily life, we frequently feel for objects without vision using our sense called Haptics. Much of the research that has been done focused on single-handed searches with no agreed-upon conclusion on whether two hands are better than one. Here, we asked if there is a clear advantage, disadvantage, or no difference in simultaneous bimanual compared to sequential unimanual search. Participants felt for a unique target amongst uniformed distractors with their left hand only, right hand only, and with both hands simultaneously. Additionally, we asked how performance might vary when the distinguishing feature of the unique target was the same or different between the hands. Simultaneous bimanual search showed significantly more efficient search than the sequential unimanual search. Surprisingly, there was no appreciable difference between performance when searching for targets with the same and different features. This suggests that the advantage of searching bimanually isn’t due... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/90n34580 Mon, 11 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Castillo, Samantha Marie Babazadeh, Yass Puram, Meghana Sturgill, Hunter B. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7sd8m75t <p>The present study examined people’s perceptions of others as a function of fashion choices, specifically Western wedding dresses. A total of 250 UC Riverside undergraduate participants viewed a series of pictures of the model’s silhouettes wearing Western-style wedding dresses and reported their perceptions (e.g., confident, original, shy, vain, fun) of the model in each picture. The wedding dresses varied in neckline (i.e., Sweetheart, V-Neck, Halter, High Neck) and silhouette (i.e., A-line, Mermaid, Fit and Flare, Ballgown). We found significant, reliable differences in how participants perceived the models as a function of dress silhouette and neckline. Specifically, participants perceived the models wearing the Fit and Flare silhouette to be especially confident, original, fun, and vain, but the models wearing the A-line silhouette to be the least confident, original, and fun. Furthermore, participants perceived the models wearing the V-neck neckline to be especially confident... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7sd8m75t Mon, 11 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Hoang, Mindy Calanchini, Jimmy https://escholarship.org/uc/item/07f9w7fz <p>Community violence exposure increases risk for fear-based disorders, such as anxiety, potentially due to disrupted recall of extinguished fear, whereby stimuli previously associated with threat continue to produce a fear response long after they have been deemed safe. However, this emerging work lacks adequate representation of youth from historically marginalized groups, despite their disproportionate exposure to community violence. As such, this study investigates whether such exposure is associated with neurological and behavioral indices of extinction recall in a sample of preadolescent Latina girls.&nbsp;</p> <p>Thirty-five predominantly Mexican-heritage Latina girls (MAge = 10.04, SD = 1.23, range = 8-12 years) underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while completing an extinction recall task assessing their ability to retrieve related but competing memories of previously conditioned and extinguished threats. Following the fMRI scan, participants self-reported... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/07f9w7fz Mon, 11 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Zelaya, Alexa Zhang, Ashley Kersting, Matthew Mullins, Jordan Michalska, Kalina J. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7bs7j57k Importance: Mindfulness meditation may improve well-being among employees; however, effects of digital meditation programs are poorly understood. Objective: To evaluate the effects of digital meditation vs a waiting list condition on general and work-specific stress and whether greater engagement in the intervention moderates these effects. Design, Setting, and Participants: This randomized clinical trial included a volunteer sample of adults (aged ≥18 years) employed at a large academic medical center who reported mild to moderate stress, had regular access to a web-connected device, and were fluent in English. Exclusion criteria included being a regular meditator. Participants were recruited from May 16, 2018, through September 28, 2019, and completed baseline, 8-week, and 4-month measures assessing stress, job strain, burnout, work engagement, mindfulness, depression, and anxiety. Data were analyzed from March 2023 to October 2024. Intervention: Participants were randomized... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7bs7j57k Mon, 4 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Radin, Rachel M Vacarro, Julie Fromer, Elena Ahmadi, Sarah E Guan, Joanna Y Fisher, Sarah M Pressman, Sarah D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1576-6466 Hunter, John F Sweeny, Kate Tomiyama, A Janet https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2152-5813 Hofschneider, Lauren Tiongco Zawadzki, Matthew J Gavrilova, Larisa Epel, Elissa S Prather, Aric A https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2v29r50r Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) may be an early life factor associated with adult weight stigma via biological (e.g., stress response), cognitive (e.g., self-criticism/deprecation), and/or emotional (e.g., shame) mechanisms. This pilot study investigated relationships between ACEs and internalized and experienced weight stigma in adult women with overweight/obesity and explored differential relationships between weight stigma and ACE subtypes (i.e., abuse, neglect, household dysfunction). Adult women (68% white, <i>M</i> _age = 33 ± 10 years, <i>M</i> _BMI = 33.7 ± 7.2 kg/m²) completed measures of ACEs (ACE Questionnaire), internalized weight stigma (IWS; Weight Bias Internalization Scale-Modified; WBIS-M), and lifetime experiences of weight stigma (yes/no). Data were analyzed with linear and logistic regression (<i>n</i> = 46), adjusting for age, race, and body mass index (BMI). Linear regressions revealed a positive association between ACE... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2v29r50r Mon, 4 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Keirns, Natalie G Tsotsoros, Cindy E Addante, Samantha Layman, Harley M Krems, Jaimie Arona https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2590-2241 Pearl, Rebecca L Tomiyama, A Janet https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2152-5813 Hawkins, Misty AW https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9f4860mw The second coming of the Ku Klux Klan popularized the Klan and its ideas in the early 1920s, terrorizing Black American, their allies, and others deemed un-American. This article investigates the extent to which the cultural legacy of racial hatred of the Klan has persisted over the years. We use data from large online databases, multiverse analyses, and spatial models to evaluate whether regions with more historical Klan activity show higher levels of modern-day racial bias, and more modern-day White Supremacist activity. We find that regions with more Ku Klux Klan activity in the 1920s show higher levels of modern White Supremacist activity but, unexpectedly, lower levels of modern implicit and explicit racial bias. We discuss the implications of these findings for models linking historical events with present-day attitudes and behavior, and for situational models of bias more broadly. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9f4860mw Tue, 22 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Primbs, Maximilian A Wienk, Margaux NA Holland, Rob W Calanchini, Jimmy Bijlstra, Gijsbert https://escholarship.org/uc/item/99c2q87t A theoretical framework is offered to explain mood contagion processes in groups. Specifically, we describe and test a two-stage leader activation and member propagation (LAMP) model that starts with the activation of the contagion process by leaders (Stage 1), followed by the mutual propagation of the mood among members (Stage 2). Results from 102 self-managing groups provide support for the LAMP model. Group mood convergence was negatively related to attribute diversity (in extroversion and neuroticism) between the leader and group members (Stage 1) and among group members (Stage 2). In both stages, group members' susceptibility to emotional contagion and interpersonal attraction had positive main effects on group mood convergence, and moderated the relationship between attribute diversity and mood convergence in groups. The findings offer new insights into group mood convergence, as it unfolds over time. © 2013. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/99c2q87t Thu, 19 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Sy, Thomas Choi, Jin Nam https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8176p6vm Charismatic leadership: Eliciting and channeling follower emotions https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8176p6vm Thu, 19 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Sy, Thomas Horton, Calen Riggio, Ronald https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7hg2w614 Over four decades, research has demonstrated Pygmalion and Galatea effects (positive expectations leading to high performance) across various settings. In contrast, research on the parallel notion of Golem effects (negative expectations leading to low performance) has been largely overlooked. This study is the first to examine the relationship between group-level Implicit Followership Theories (GIFTs) and naturally occurring Golem effects. Integrating the literature on Implicit Followership Theories, self-fulfilling prophecies, and social identity, we propose that negative GIFTs can serve as proxies of expectations for followers that trigger Golem effects in workgroups. Data from 202 followers and 101 leaders provide support for our hypothesized multi-level model, revealing a top-down relationship between negative GIFTs and follower performance through their self-efficacy and effort. Findings highlight the importance of GIFTs in the Golem process, showing that followers' cognitions... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7hg2w614 Thu, 19 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Leung, Alex Sy, Thomas https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1cv9z50z Summary: Implicit theories of leadership emotions (ITLEs) are individuals' schemas about emotional traits and behaviors characterizing leaders. We investigate the specific emotional content and structure of ITLEs. Five studies involving 1286 participants provide evidence for content, convergent, discriminant, criterion, and incremental validity, and internal consistency of the ITLEs instrument. ITLEs are represented by a first‐order structure (Cheer, Calm, Pride, Anger, Fear, and Remorse), and a second‐order structure (Positive and Negative ITLEs). Results revealed that female leaders elicited lower ratings on the Anger, Fear, and Remorse prototypes and higher ratings on the Cheer (but not Pride and Calm) prototype. Moreover, the relationship between ITLEs prototypes and leadership perceptions were moderated by management level, such that the relationship was significant only for high level leaders but not low level leaders. Moderated mediation results indicated that leadership... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1cv9z50z Thu, 19 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Sy, Thomas van Knippenberg, Daan https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7152k002 OBJECTIVE: Previous research has shown that self-esteem is associated with academic achievement. However, few studies have used longitudinal data to examine how self-esteem and achievement co-develop over a long time span, and even fewer have focused on ethnic minority youth. METHOD: We used data from a longitudinal study of Mexican-origin youth (N&nbsp;=&nbsp;674) to examine the bidirectional associations between self-esteem and academic achievement from 5th to 11th grade. Global and domain-specific self-esteem (academic, honesty, peer relationships, appearance) were assessed at ages 10, 12, 14, and 16 using Marsh et al.'s (2005) Self-Description Questionnaire. Academic achievement was assessed at the same ages using self-reported grades and standardized test scores from school records. RESULTS: Youth with high global and academic self-esteem showed relative improvements in their grades (but not test scores), and youth who received higher grades and test scores showed relative... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7152k002 Wed, 4 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Zheng, Lucy R Atherton, Olivia E https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5766-6901 Trzesniewski, Kali https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8165-3107 Robins, Richard W https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5088-3484 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4w13x1st ‘Helpless’ infants are active, goal-directed agents: response to Cusack et al. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4w13x1st Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Zettersten, Martin https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0444-7059 Foushee, Ruthe Goddu, Mariel K https://escholarship.org/uc/item/46k1v072 In three longitudinal studies, we examined the relationship between worry about an outcome and information-management behavior-specifically seeking and avoiding information about that outcome-in the context of awaiting uncertain news. Study 1 examined a group of U.S. voters across the 4 weeks preceding the 2020 presidential election. Study 2 examined law graduates who completed the California bar exam during the 17 weeks between when they took the exam and when their results were posted online. Study 3 examined job candidates from a variety of academic fields from October to April as they searched for academic jobs. In all three studies, people who reported greater worry about the relevant outcome across the wait reported greater information seeking. Additionally, people were particularly likely to seek information at the times during the wait when they reported the most acute worry. Evidence for the relationship between worry and information avoidance during the wait was more... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/46k1v072 Thu, 8 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Howell, Jennifer L https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5418-3736 Sweeny, Kate https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8km9b89k We investigate the roles of linguistic and sensory experience in the early-produced visual, auditory, and abstract words of congenitally-blind toddlers, deaf toddlers, and typically-sighted/hearing peers. We also assess the role of language access by comparing early word production in children learning English or American Sign Language (ASL) from birth, versus at a delay. Using parental report data on child word production from the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory, we found evidence that while children produced words referring to imperceptible referents before age 2, such words were less likely to be produced relative to words with perceptible referents. For instance, blind (vs. sighted) children said fewer highly visual words like "blue" or "see"; deaf signing (vs. hearing) children produced fewer auditory signs like hear. Additionally, in spoken English and ASL, children who received delayed language access were less likely to produce words overall. These... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8km9b89k Thu, 24 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Campbell, Erin E Davis, Charles P Zettersten, Martin https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0444-7059 Cooke, Molly Houston, Derek Caselli, Naomi Bergelson, Elika https://escholarship.org/uc/item/96f8d10h We describe the difficulties of measuring variability in performance, a critical but largely ignored problem in studies of risk perception. The problem seems intractable if a large number of successful and unsuccessful trials are infeasible. We offer a solution based on estimates of task-specific variability pooled across the sample. Using a dataset of adult performance in throwing and walking tasks, we show that mischaracterizing the slope leads to unacceptably large errors in estimates of performance levels that undermine analyses of risk perception. We introduce a "pooled-slope" solution that approximates estimates of individual variability in performance and outperforms arbitrary assumptions about performance variability within and across tasks. We discuss the advantages of objectively measuring performance based on the rate of successful attempts-modeled via psychometric functions-for improving comparisons of risk across participants, tasks, and studies. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/96f8d10h Wed, 2 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Franchak, John M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0751-2864 Hospodar, Christina M Adolph, Karen E https://escholarship.org/uc/item/85g8797q MDMA is a recreational drug commonly used to enhance euphoria, but it is also used in non-party settings with self-insight or social connection intentions. Yet, little is known about whether distinct consumer groups are formed based on consumption setting and intention. We aimed to characterize different types of recreational MDMA users based on consumption setting and intentions, and to examine their differences in perceptions of long-term social-emotional effects of MDMA use. We analyzed self-reports of 766 individuals (ages 18–61, mostly from Western countries), reporting on their MDMA consumption habits and perceived effects. We used a K-medoids clustering algorithm to identify distinct types of consumption settings and intentions. We identified three setting types – party settings with friends (N = 388), private home settings (N = 132), mixed settings (N = 246) – and three intention types –&nbsp;euphoria and energy (N = 302), self-insight (N = 219), mixed intentions (N = 245).... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/85g8797q Tue, 1 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Elmer, Timon Vannoy, Tanya K Studerus, Erich Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/46t662qq Only the lonely: learning, use of skills, and sense of meaning buffer the costs of reduced social connection for life satisfaction https://escholarship.org/uc/item/46t662qq Thu, 27 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Martinez, Ramona L Regan, Annie Okabe-Miyamoto, Karynna Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3x19f57z MDMA is a stimulant-like drug with distinctive empathogenic effects. Its pro-social effects, such as feelings of connectedness, may contribute to both its popularity as a recreational drug and its apparent value as an adjunct to psychotherapy. However, little is known about the behavioral processes by which MDMA affects social interactions. This investigation examined the effects of MDMA (100&nbsp;mg versus placebo; N = 18) on feelings of connectedness with an unfamiliar partner during a semi-structured casual conversation. A separate study examined the effects of a prototypic stimulant methamphetamine (MA; 20&nbsp;mg versus placebo; N = 19) to determine the pharmacological specificity of effects. Oxytocin levels were obtained in both studies. Compared to placebo, both MDMA and MA increased feelings of connection with the conversation partners. Both MDMA and MA increased oxytocin levels, but oxytocin levels were correlated with feeling closer to the partner only after MDMA. These... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3x19f57z Thu, 27 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Molla, Hanna Lee, Royce Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 de Wit, Harriet https://escholarship.org/uc/item/21b9q83j Previous research has found only a small, inconsistent association between hedonic consumption and subjective well-being, often attributed to individuals adapting to the happiness gains from their purchases. Given that diverse experiences can reduce or avert hedonic adaptation, we hypothesized that variety in hedonic spending would be associated with greater well-being. This hypothesis was tested in four studies (total N = 2,920), using both self-reported and objective bank-reported spending data. In our correlational analyses, hedonic spending variety was uniquely associated with well-being, even after controlling for total hedonic spending and other financial variables. Our investigation also explored the directional relationship between hedonic spending variety and well-being, yielding mixed results for both causal pathways in two time-lagged panel studies. Additionally, in two parallel experiments, participants reported that varied hedonic spending contributed more to happiness... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/21b9q83j Thu, 27 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Gladstone, Joe J Ruberton, Peter M Margolis, Seth Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1mn7b2gw Since the first confirmed case in Wuhan, China on December 31, 2019, the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has spread quickly, infecting 165 million people as of May 2021. Since this first detection, research has indicated that people contracting the virus may suffer neurological and mental disorders and deficits, in addition to the respiratory and other organ challenges caused by COVID-19. Specifically, early evidence suggests that COVID-19 has both mild (e.g., loss of smell (anosmia), loss of taste (ageusia), latent blinks (heterophila), headaches, dizziness, confusion) and more severe outcomes (e.g., cognitive impairments, seizures, delirium, psychosis, strokes). Longer-term neurological challenges or damage may also occur. This knowledge should inform clinical guidelines, assessment, and public health planning while more systematic research using biological, clinical, and longitudinal methods provides further insights. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1mn7b2gw Thu, 27 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Aknin, Lara B De Neve, Jan Emmanuel Dunn, Elizabeth W Fancourt, Daisy E Goldberg, Elkhonon Helliwell, John F Jones, Sarah P Karam, Elie Layard, Richard Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 Rzepa, Andrew Saxena, Shekhar Thornton, Emily M VanderWeele, Tyler J Whillans, Ashley V Zaki, Jamil Caman, OzgeKaradag Amor, Yanis Ben https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6wh3h007 In our everyday lives, we must remember important information, especially if there are consequences for forgetting. In this review, I discuss recent work on responsible remembering: the strategic and effortful prioritization of important information with consequences for forgetting. Thus far, research regarding responsible remembering has revealed several key factors and mechanisms that work together to enhance memory for important information that will continue to be refined: the identification and selection of what to remember (metacognitive reflectivity), the forgetting of less important information to facilitate memory for items that do need to be remembered (responsible forgetting), the functional prioritization of attention at the expense of competing factors (responsible attention), and the selective recall of important information via efficient retrieval strategies (responsible retrieval). Together, these functions form a cohesive system that aims to selectively prioritize,... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6wh3h007 Mon, 24 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Murphy, Dillon https://escholarship.org/uc/item/62p4s4z9 Prosocial and health protective behaviors are critical to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, yet adolescents have been difficult to engage. Attachment security promotes adolescents' capacities to navigate stress, and influences prosocial and health behaviors. Drawing on a diverse sample of 202 adolescents (48% female; 47.5% Latinx) this study evaluated relations among attachment, mental health, and prosocial and health protective responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Attachment security (age 12) predicted adolescents' (age 15) COVID-19 prosocial (f² &nbsp;=&nbsp;.201) and health protective behaviors (f² &nbsp;=&nbsp;.274) during the pandemic via smaller-than-expected increases in mental health symptoms above pre-pandemic levels (age 14). Findings highlight the importance of attachment for supporting adolescents' mental health responses to life stressors and promoting prosocial and health protective behaviors. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/62p4s4z9 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Coulombe, Brianne R Yates, Tuppett M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0907-8520 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/619427h5 This investigation evaluated a theoretically specified model of associations among mothers' history of child sexual abuse (CSA), a helpless state of mind (SOM) with regard to the mother-child relationship, and increased behavior problems in the next generation. Moreover, we evaluated the moderating influence of child gender on predicted relations between mothers' CSA severity and helpless SOM (i.e., moderated mediation). Participants were 225 biological mother-preschooler dyads (48% female; 46.4% Latinx) drawn from an ongoing, longitudinal study of representation and regulation in child development. Mothers' history of CSA was assessed when their children were 4 years old and emerged as a prominent risk factor in this diverse, high-risk community sample with 40% of mothers reporting contact-based sexual abuse prior to age 18. Mediation analyses revealed a significant indirect pathway from a continuous rating of mothers' CSA severity to increased externalizing behavior problems... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/619427h5 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Linde-Krieger, Linnea Yates, Tuppett M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0907-8520 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3rk4b076 Consistent with models of environmental sensitivity (Pluess, 2015), research suggests that the effects of parents' behaviors on child adjustment are stronger among children who struggle to regulate their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors compared with children with better self-regulation. This study extended prior research by assessing maternal representations of the child, which presumably underlie mothers' parenting behaviors, to evaluate the moderating influence of preschoolers' self-regulation on relations between mothers' representations and changes in children's negative and positive developmental adjustment outcomes from preschool to first grade. Participants were 187 mothers and their preschoolers. Mothers' representations were assessed via the coherence of their verbal narratives regarding their preschooler and teachers reported on preschoolers' self-regulation. In preschool and first grade, examiners rated children's externalizing behavior problems and ego-resilience,... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3rk4b076 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Sher-Censor, Efrat Khafi, Tamar Y Yates, Tuppett M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0907-8520 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3r3189fn We examined the effects of interference on value-based memory in younger and older adults by presenting participants with lists of words paired with point values counting toward their score if recalled. In Experiment 1, we created a situation where there was a buildup of interference such that participants could recall words from any studied list to earn points. However, to increase participants' motivation to combat interference, we told participants that if they recalled words from previously studied lists, those words would be worth double the original point value of the word. In Experiment 2, to examine age-related differences in the absence of any interference, participants studied and were tested on the same set of words throughout several study-test cycles. The buildup of interference caused by participants needing to recall both just-studied and previously studied words in Experiment 1 impaired selectivity in older adults relative to younger adults and this effect was... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3r3189fn Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Murphy, Dillon H https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5604-3494 Castel, Alan D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1965-8227 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3qf7x7tr Despite abundant research documenting negative associations between parental psychological control and youth adjustment, little is known about precursors of parental psychological control. The current study evaluated maternal, youth, and neighborhood predictors of changes in maternal psychological control across the transition to adolescence. Mother-youth dyads (N = 211, 50.2% female children; 46.4% Latinx, 17.5% Black, 11.4% white, and 24.7% multiracial) reported on maternal psychological control at youth ages 10 and 12. Controlling for youth ethnicity and race, family income-to-needs, and prior levels of maternal psychological control at age 10, structural equation models showed that maternal problems (i.e., anxiety, alcohol dependence, caregiving helplessness) predicted increases and youth externalizing problems (e.g., attention problems, rule-breaking) predicted decreases in maternal reports of psychological control. Neighborhood risks (i.e., poverty, crime, single-parent... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3qf7x7tr Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Trang, Duyen T Yates, Tuppett M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0907-8520 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0wb6w8dw We often encounter more information than we can remember, making it critical that we are selective in what we remember. Being selective about which information we consolidate into our long-term memory becomes even more important when there is insufficient time to encode and retrieve information. We investigated whether older and younger adults differ in how time constraints, whether at encoding (Experiment 1) or retrieval (Experiment 2), affect their ability to be selective when remembering important information that they need to recall later. In Experiment 1, we found that younger and older adults exhibited similar selectivity, and the participants remained selective when rushed at encoding. In Experiment 2, older adults maintained their selectivity when given insufficient time at retrieval, but younger adults' selectivity was increased when given limited recall time. Altogether, the present experiments provide new support for negligible, and in some cases, even beneficial, effects... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0wb6w8dw Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Hoover, Kara M Murphy, Dillon H https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5604-3494 Middlebrooks, Catherine D Castel, Alan D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1965-8227 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/66x7k595 Emotional overinvolvement (EOI) in parents’ Five Minute Speech Samples (FMSSs; Magaña-Amato, 1993) is thought to measure overconcern and enmeshment with one’s child. Although related to maladaptive outcomes in studies of adult children, FMSS EOI evidences varied relations with behavior problems in studies with young children. These mixed findings may indicate that certain FMSS EOI criteria reflect inappropriate and excessive involvement with adult children, but do not indicate maladaptive processes when parenting younger children. Thus, this study evaluated relations of each FMSS EOI criterion with changes in child behavior problems from preschool to first grade in a community sample of 223 child–mother dyads (47.98% female; Wave 1 M(age) 49.08 months; 56.50% Hispanic/Latina). Maternal FMSS EOI ratings were obtained at Wave 1, and independent examiners rated child externalizing and internalizing behavior problems at Wave 1 and again 2 years later. Path analyses indicated that... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/66x7k595 Fri, 14 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Khafi, Tamar Y Yates, Tuppett M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0907-8520 Sher-Censor, Efrat https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1q69m43f Using an ecological framework, this 2-wave longitudinal study examined the effects of parentification on youth adjustment across the transition to adolescence in a high-risk, low-income sample of African American (58%) and European American (42%) mother-child dyads (T1 Mage = 10.17 years, T2 Mage = 14.89 years; 52.4% female). Childrens provision of family caregiving was moderately stable from early to late adolescence. Emotional and instrumental parentification evidenced distinct long-term effects on adolescents psychopathology and the quality of the parent-child relationship. Ethnicity moderated these relations. Emotional and instrumental parentification behaviors were associated with predominantly negative outcomes among European American youth in the form of increased externalizing behavior problems and decreased parent-child relationship quality, whereas emotional parentification was associated with positive outcomes among African American youth in the form of increased parent-child... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1q69m43f Fri, 14 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Khafi, Tamar Yates, Tuppett Luthar, Suniya https://escholarship.org/uc/item/11s2m4st ABSTRACT: Research suggests that acting more extraverted (outgoing, assertive, and/or energetic) boosts subjective well‐being in the short term for most people; however, some work indicates that acting more extraverted could be aversive for those who are relatively more introverted. To further understand participants' experiences in extraverted behavior interventions, we analyzed free‐response data from a study in which undergraduate participants generated ideas on desirable outcomes, anticipated obstacles, and prospective plans in their efforts to act more sociable. Additionally, to understand the potential relationship between components of person‐activity fit (how natural, enjoyable, and meaningful a person finds an intervention activity like acting more extraverted), we conducted exploratory correlational analyses between the components of fit, personality traits, desire to change extraversion, and the endorsement of outcomes, challenges, and plans identified from our thematic... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/11s2m4st Thu, 13 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Martinez, Ramona L Regan, Annie Gollwitzer, Peter M Oettingen, Gabriele Lyubomirsky, Sonja https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-5595 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3nq3v7bc Millions of people move within the U.S. each year. We propose that people function as proxies for their locations, bringing the culture of their previous residence to their new homes. As a result, migration might systematically influence regional biases across geographic units over time. Using county-to-county migration data from the U.S. census and county-level racial attitude estimates from Project Implicit, the present research examined the impact of people relocating from one U.S. county to another on racial attitudes in their new county. Consistent with our prediction, the bias brought by the migrants positively predicts county-level racial bias after migration, even after controlling for county-level racial bias before migration. This finding remains robust across various sample inclusion criteria and spans three time periods (2006–2010, 2011–2015, and 2016–2020). These results highlight the significant role of migration in spreading and shaping regional racial attitudes,... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3nq3v7bc Mon, 3 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Jin, Rui Calanchini, Jimmy Ratliff, Kate A https://escholarship.org/uc/item/35x7f70b Anorexia nervosa is a severe eating disorder characterized by food restriction in service of a future goal: thinness and weight loss. Prior work suggests altered intertemporal decision-making in this disorder, with more farsighted decisions—i.e. reduced delay discounting—in patients with acute anorexia nervosa. Future-oriented cognition, such as frequent prospective future thinking in daily life, promotes farsighted decision making. However, whether temporal orientation is altered in anorexia nervosa, potentially contributing to reduced delay discounting in this population, remains unclear. We measured delay discounting behavior, anorexia nervosa symptomatology, and temporal orientation in a large sample of never-diagnosed individuals. We found that higher anorexia nervosa symptomatology was associated with reduced delay discounting. Anorexia nervosa symptoms were also correlated with increased future-oriented cognition. Moreover, future-oriented cognition mediated the difference... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/35x7f70b Thu, 27 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Schuman, Isabel Wang, Jingyi Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 Lapate, Regina C https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2x90v8xp Long-form audio recordings have had a transformational effect on the study of infant language acquisition by using mobile, unobtrusive devices to gather full-day, real-time data that can be automatically scored. How can we produce similar data in service of measuring infants’ everyday motor behaviors, such as body position? The aim of the current study was to validate long-form recordings of infant position (supine, prone, sitting, upright, held by caregiver) based on machine learning classification of data from inertial sensors worn on infants’ ankles and thighs. Using over 100&nbsp;h of video recordings synchronized with inertial sensor data from infants in their homes, we demonstrate that body position classifications are sufficiently accurate to measure infant behavior. Moreover, classification remained accurate when predicting behavior later in the session when infants and caregivers were unsupervised and went about their normal activities, showing that the method can handle... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2x90v8xp Thu, 13 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Franchak, John M https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0751-2864 Tang, Maximilian Rousey, Hailey Luo, Chuan https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2229d1t1 Impulsivity refers to the tendency to insufficiently consider alternatives or to overvalue rewards that are available immediately. Impulsivity is a hallmark of human decision making with well documented health and financial ramifications. Numerous contextual changes and framing manipulations powerfully influence impulsivity. One of the most robust such phenomenon is the finding that people are more patient as the values of choice options are increased. This magnitude effect has been related to cognitive control mechanisms in the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC). We used repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to transiently disrupt dlPFC neural activity. This manipulation dramatically reduced the magnitude effect, establishing causal evidence that the magnitude effect depends on dlPFC. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2229d1t1 Wed, 29 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 Aydogan, Gökhan Kim, Bokyung McClure, Samuel M https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3px397tr Recent work has identified a critical role for the hippocampus in reward-sensitive behaviors, including motivated memory, reinforcement learning, and decision-making. Animal histology and human functional neuroimaging have shown that brain regions involved in reward processing and motivation are more interconnected with the ventral/anterior hippocampus. However, direct evidence examining gradients of structural connectivity between reward regions and the hippocampus in humans is lacking. The present study used diffusion MRI (dMRI) and probabilistic tractography to quantify the structural connectivity of the hippocampus with key reward processing regions in vivo. Using a large sample of subjects (N = 628) from the human connectome dMRI data release, we found that connectivity profiles with the hippocampus varied widely between different regions of the reward circuit. While the dopaminergic midbrain (ventral tegmental area) showed stronger connectivity with the anterior versus posterior... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3px397tr Tue, 28 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Elliott, Blake L Mohyee, Raana A Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 Olson, Ingrid R Ellman, Lauren M Murty, Vishnu P https://escholarship.org/uc/item/41d3x1sf Compact representations of the environment allow humans to behave efficiently in a complex world. Reinforcement learning models capture many behavioral and neural effects but do not explain recent findings showing that structure in the environment influences learning. In parallel, Bayesian cognitive models predict how humans learn structured knowledge but do not have a clear neurobiological implementation. We propose an integration of these two model classes in which structured knowledge learned via approximate Bayesian inference acts as a source of selective attention. In turn, selective attention biases reinforcement learning towards relevant dimensions of the environment. An understanding of structure learning will help to resolve the fundamental challenge in decision science: explaining why people make the decisions they do. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/41d3x1sf Fri, 24 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Radulescu, Angela Niv, Yael Ballard, Ian https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3zk778bx Animals rely on learned associations to make decisions. Associations can be based on relationships between object features (e.g., the three leaflets of poison ivy leaves) and outcomes (e.g., rash). More often, outcomes are linked to multidimensional states (e.g., poison ivy is green in summer but red in spring). Feature-based reinforcement learning fails when the values of individual features depend on the other features present. One solution is to assign value to multi-featural conjunctive representations. Here, we test if the hippocampus forms separable conjunctive representations that enables the learning of response contingencies for stimuli of the form: AB+, B-, AC-, C+. Pattern analyses on functional MRI data show the hippocampus forms conjunctive representations that are dissociable from feature components and that these representations, along with those of cortex, influence striatal prediction errors. Our results establish a novel role for hippocampal pattern separation... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3zk778bx Fri, 24 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Ballard, Ian Wagner, Anthony McClure, Samuel https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2f3436br BACKGROUND: Reinforcement learning models provide excellent descriptions of learning in multiple species across a variety of tasks. Many researchers are interested in relating parameters of reinforcement learning models to neural measures, psychological variables or experimental manipulations. We demonstrate that parameter identification is difficult because a range of parameter values provide approximately equal quality fits to data. This identification problem has a large impact on power: we show that a researcher who wants to detect a medium sized correlation (r = .3) with 80% power between a variable and learning rate must collect 60% more subjects than specified by a typical power analysis in order to account for the noise introduced by model fitting. NEW METHOD: We derive a Bayesian optimal model fitting technique that takes advantage of information contained in choices and reaction times to constrain parameter estimates. RESULTS: We show using simulation and empirical data... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2f3436br Fri, 24 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 McClure, Samuel M https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1pj2g4tp The mesolimbic dopamine system contributes to a remarkable variety of behaviors at multiple timescales. Midbrain neurons have fast and slow signaling components, and specific afferent systems, such as the hippocampus (HPC) and prefrontal cortex (PFC), have been demonstrated to drive these components in anesthetized animals. Whether these interactions exist during behavior, however, is unknown. To address this question, we developed a novel analysis of human functional magnetic resonance imaging data that fits models of network excitation and inhibition on ventral tegmental area (VTA) activation. We show that specific afferent systems predict distinct temporal components of midbrain VTA signal. We found that PFC, but not HPC, positively predicted transient, event-evoked VTA activation. In contrast, HPC, but not PFC, positively predicted slow shifts in VTA baseline variability. Thus, unique functional contributions of afferent systems to VTA physiology are detectable at the network... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1pj2g4tp Fri, 24 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Murty, Vishnu Ballard, Ian Adcock, R https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6tw141rf Visual perceptual learning (VPL), the training-induced improvement in visual tasks, has long been considered the product of neural plasticity at early and local stages of signal processing. However, recent evidence suggests that multiple networks and mechanisms, including stimulus- and task-specific plasticity, concur in generating VPL. Accordingly, early models of VPL, which characterized learning as being local and mostly involving early sensory areas, such as V1, have been updated to embrace these newfound complexities, acknowledging the involvement on parietal (i.e. intra-parietal sulcus) and frontal (i.e. dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) areas, in aspects concerning decision-making, feedback integration and task structure. However, evidence of multiple brain regions differentially involved in different aspects of learning is thus far mostly correlational, emerging from electrophysiological and neuroimaging techniques. To directly address these multiple components of VPL, we... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6tw141rf Mon, 20 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Maniglia, Marcello https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2053-0071 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8pz7q79x OBJECTIVE/BACKGROUND: Flow, a psychological state of intense engagement in and enjoyment of an activity, can arise during both solitary and socially interactive experiences. In the literature, whereas people high in extraversion have difficulty achieving flow in solitude, those with an autotelic personality-a combination of traits that make people prone to flow-readily experience flow in both solitary and interactive conditions. In this pre-registered experiment, we investigated whether autotelic personality mitigates the negative association between solitary flow and extraversion. METHOD: Participants and their romantic partners (final N = 368) played the game Perfection™ in three conditions (order was counterbalanced): alone (solitary condition), in the presence of their partner without interaction (mere-presence condition), and collaboratively (interactive condition). RESULTS: There were independent, positive main effects of extraversion and autotelic personality on flow experience... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8pz7q79x Sat, 18 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Tse, Dwight CK Joseph, Ayodele Sweeny, Kate https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6wc485gw Big team science has the potential to reshape comparative cognition research, but its implementation — especially in making fair comparisons between species, handling multisite variation and reaching researcher consensus — poses daunting challenges. Here, we propose solutions and discuss how big team science can transform the field. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6wc485gw Thu, 16 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Alessandroni, Nicolás Altschul, Drew Baumgartner, Heidi A Bazhydai, Marina Brosnan, Sarah F Byers-Heinlein, Krista Call, Josep Chittka, Lars Elsherif, Mahmoud Espinosa, Julia Freeman, Marianne S Gjoneska, Biljana Güntürkün, Onur Huber, Ludwig Krasheninnikova, Anastasia Mazza, Valeria Miller, Rachael Moreau, David Nawroth, Christian Pronizius, Ekaterina Ruiz-Fernández, Susana Schwing, Raoul Šlipogor, Vedrana Visser, Ingmar Vonk, Jennifer Yeager, Justin Zettersten, Martin https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0444-7059 Prétôt, Laurent https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3rh1k42t We examined age-related similarities and differences in people's metacognitive awareness of retrieval from semantic long-term memory as well as the originality of their responses. Participants completed several semantic fluency tasks, and before recalling items, made metacognitive predictions of their performance. Additionally, after retrieval, participants made metacognitive evaluations of the originality of their responses. Results revealed that both younger (<i>M</i>_<i>age</i> = 24.49) and older adults (<i>M</i>_<i>age</i> = 68.31) were underconfident in their performance, despite some metacognitive awareness of their ability to retrieve information from semantic memory. Younger and older adults became more metacognitively aware of their abilities with task experience, but there were no significant differences in participants' metacognitive predictions and postdictions, although older adults believed that they were less original than younger adults. These... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3rh1k42t Wed, 8 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Murphy, Dillon H https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5604-3494 Castel, Alan D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1965-8227 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/08d220rj Evidence strongly suggests that being overweight or obese at midlife confers significantly higher risk for Alzheimer's disease and greater brain atrophy later in life. Few studies, however, examine associations between longitudinal changes in adiposity during early adulthood and later brain morphometry. Measures of body mass index (BMI) were collected in 373 men from the Vietnam Era Twin Study of Aging at average ages 20, 40, 56, and 62&nbsp;years, yielding 2 BMI trajectories. We then examined associations between BMI phenotypes (trajectories, continuous BMI, obese/nonobese), cortical thickness, and white matter measures from structural magnetic resonance imaging at mean age 62 (time 4, range 56-66 years). Those on the obesity trajectory (N&nbsp;= 171) had a thinner cortex compared with the normal/lean trajectory (N&nbsp;= 202) in multiple frontal and temporal lobe bilateral regions of interest: superior, inferior, middle temporal gyri, temporal pole, fusiform gyrus, banks of... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/08d220rj Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 Franz, Carol E https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8987-1755 Xian, Hong Lew, Daphne Hatton, Sean N https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9149-8726 Puckett, Olivia Whitsel, Nathan Beck, Asad Dale, Anders M Fang, Bin Fennema-Notestine, Christine Hauger, Richard L Jacobson, Kristen C Lyons, Michael J Reynolds, Chandra A https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6502-7173 Kremen, William S https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5cn2m75f Stimulus-response habits benefit behavior by automatizing the selection of rewarding actions. However, this automaticity can come at the cost of reduced flexibility to adapt behavior when circumstances change. The goal-directed system is thought to counteract the habit system by providing the flexibility to pursue context-appropriate behaviors. The dichotomy between habitual action selection and flexible goal-directed behavior has recently been challenged by findings showing that rewards bias both action and goal selection. Here, we test whether reward reinforcement can give rise to habitual goal selection much as it gives rise to habitual action selection. We designed a rewarded, context-based perceptual discrimination task in which performance on one rule was reinforced. Using drift-diffusion models and psychometric analyses, we found that reward facilitates the initiation and execution of rules. Strikingly, we found that these biases persisted in a test phase in which rewards... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5cn2m75f Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 Ballard, Ian C https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1814-3141 Waskom, Michael Nix, Kerry C D’Esposito, Mark https://escholarship.org/uc/item/17g990g8 Neurons in the locus coeruleus (LC) have been traditionally viewed as a homogenous population. Recent studies begin to reveal their heterogeneity at multiple levels, ranging from molecular compositions to projection targets. To further uncover variations of neuronal properties in the LC, we took a genetic-based tagging approach to identify these neurons. Our data revealed diverse spike waveforms among neurons in the LC region, including a considerable fraction of narrow-spiking units. While all wide-spiking units possessed the regular waveform polarity (negative-positive deflection), the narrow units can be further divided based on opposing waveform polarities. Under anesthesia, wide units emitted action potential at a higher rate than the narrow units. Under wakefulness, only one subtype of narrow units exhibited fast-spiking phenotype. These neurons also had long latencies to optogenetic stimulation. In-situ hybridization further supported the existence of a small population... https://escholarship.org/uc/item/17g990g8 Thu, 19 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 Silva Tortorelli, Lucas Garad, Machhindra https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5329-6226 Megemont, Marine Haga-Yamanaka, Sachiko Goel, Anubhuti https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9514-0406 Yang, Hongdian https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5203-9519