Behavioral Evidence Research Articles

Detecting a Stalker: The Effect of Body Posture, Gaze Direction, and Camouflage Pattern on Predator Detection

ABSTRACTThe success of a predatory attack is related to how much a predator manages to approach a prey without being detected. Some carnivore mammals use environmental objects (e.g., leaves and branches) as visual obstacles during stalking behavior, allowing them to expose only parts of their bodies while approaching and visual monitoring their prey. Here, we investigate the influence of carnivores’ body postures, gaze direction, and camouflage pattern on their detection by prey. To do so, we photographed taxidermized carnivore models (cougar, ocelot, and lesser grison) in their preserved natural habitats and presented these images to human dichromats (i.e., colourblinds) and trichromats (i.e., normal color vision). Our findings highlight the importance of body outline and gaze as search images during predator detection tasks. We also demonstrate that coat and facial color patterns can camouflage predator's body outline and gaze. This is the first behavioral evidence that the facial coloration of natural predators might mask their gaze to potential prey. Furthermore, we observed that carnivore coat color patterns may serve as an additional cue for trichromats, particularly in hidden carnivore detection tasks that proved to be more challenging for dichromats. Our results show possible strategies that evolved between predator and preys, in which prey make use of body outlines, gaze direction, and coat color to improve predator detection, while predators potentially evolved stalking behavior and body/gaze camouflage as counter strategies to cope with the improvements in prey's perception and conceal their presence.

A VAR Framework of Exchange Rates, Interest Rates, and Inflation Through COVID-19 in Turkey: Empirical Evidence From Linear Cointegration and Causality Analysis

In this study, we investigate the impact of exchange rates and interest rates on inflation in Turkey using monthly data from January 2004 to July 2020 obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute. Our vector autoregressive (VAR) model showed an evidence of stochastic behaviour among the series. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) results showed a short-run and long-run covariate between exchange rates, interest rates and inflation. Specifically, the findings showed a short-run and long-run relationship between inflation, producer price index (PPI), and Turkish interbank offer rates (TIBOR). However, there was no connection between inflation and dollar exchange rates (DSR) and commercial banks’ interest rates (CBIR). The VAR Granger causality results revealed the variables to be exogenous except DSR, which displayed endogenous to other variables. Nevertheless, the results revealed unidirectional causality from the producer price index (PPI) to DSR and unidirectional causation from TIBOR to CBIR. It means an increase in production costs through raw materials importation led to devaluation of the Turkish lira. Similarly, TIBOR rates drive CBIR high, making domestic lending more expensive, which will inhibit loan provisions to the private sectors, which will result in an economic contraction and eventually high inflation. Our unit roots breakpoint results pointed to breaks in the dataset were between 2016-2019, reflecting the effects of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) failed coup, the 2018 U.S. embargo, and an assumed fiscal dominance as the major and direct causes of economic instability and inflation. However, Covid-19 may have acted as a contributing factor since then. Thus, we recommend that the monetary authorities articulate policy to avoid the assumed fiscal dominance.

Hypervigilance strikes a balance between external and internal attention: behavioral and modeling evidence from the switching attention task.

Hypervigilance involves increased attentional scanning of the environment to facilitate the detection of possible threats. Accordingly, this state is mostly bound to external attention and as a corollary, it might be detrimental to internal attention and further affect attentional balance defined as the ability to switch dynamically between these two domains. In the current study, we aimed to address this question and induced hypervigilance in 49 healthy participants through the presentation of a task-unrelated aversive sound while they performed the switching attention task (SAT), which was previously devised to study attentional balance. The skin conductance response results, as well as subjective sound ratings, confirmed that the hypervigilance manipulation was successful. At the behavioral level, hypervigilance led to a more symmetrical balance between internal and external attention compared to the control and neutral conditions, where it was asymmetrical, replicating previous studies. Moreover, using a drift diffusion model, we found that hypervigilance reduced the drift rate for internal repetition trials, suggesting that hypervigilance possibly caused an impaired shielding of internal attention.

Attentional network deficits in patients with migraine: behavioral and electrophysiological evidence.

Patients with migraine often experience not only headache pain but also cognitive dysfunction, particularly in attention, which is frequently overlooked in both diagnosis and treatment. The influence of these attentional deficits on the pain-related clinical characteristics of migraine remains poorly understood, and clarifying this relationship could improve care strategies. This study included 52 patients with migraine and 34 healthy controls. We employed the Attentional Network Test for Interactions and Vigilance-Executive and Arousal Components paradigm, combined with electroencephalography, to assess attentional deficits in patients with migraine, with an emphasis on phasic alerting, orienting, executive control, executive vigilance, and arousal vigilance. An extreme gradient boosting binary classifier was trained on features showing group differences to distinguish patients with migraine from healthy controls. Moreover, an extreme gradient boosting regression model was developed to predict clinical characteristics of patients with migraine using their attentional deficit features. For general performance, patients with migraine presented a larger inverse efficiency score, a higher prestimulus beta-band power spectral density and a lower gamma-band event-related synchronization at Cz electrode, and stronger high alpha-band activity at the primary visual cortex, compared to healthy controls. Although no behavior differences in three basic attentional networks were found, patients showed magnified N1 amplitude and prolonged latency of P2 for phasic alerting-trials as well as an increased orienting evoked-P1amplitude. For vigilance function, improvements in the hit rate of executive vigilance-trials were exhibited in controls but not in patients. Besides, patients with migraine exhibited longer reaction time as well as larger variability in arousal vigilance-trials than controls. The binary classifier developed by such attentional deficit features achieved an F1 score of 0.762 and an accuracy of 0.779 in distinguishing patients with migraine from healthy controls. Crucially,the predicted value available from the regression model involving attentional deficit features significantly correlated with the real value for the frequency of headache. Patients with migraine demonstrated significant attentional deficits, which can be used to differentiate migraine patients from healthy populations and to predict clinical characteristics. These findings highlight the need to address cognitive dysfunction, particularly attentional deficits, in the clinical management of migraine.

Behavioral and neural evidence for difficulty recognizing masked emotional faces.

Facial emotion recognition is vital for human social behavior. During the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks were widely adopted for viral mitigation and remain crucial public health tools. However, questions persist about their impact on emotion recognition and neural processing, especially in children, parents, and young adults. We developed the Masked Affective and Social Cognition task, featuring masked and unmasked faces displaying fear, sadness, and anger. We recruited three racial and ethnically diverse samples: 119 college students, 30 children who entered school age at the beginning of the pandemic, and 31 fathers of the aforementioned children. Of the latter two groups, 41 participants (n = 23 fathers, 18 children) did the Masked Affective and Social Cognition task during a neuroimaging scan, while the remaining 20 participants (n = 8 fathers, 12 children) who were not eligible for scanning completed the task during their lab visit. Behaviorally, we found that participants recognized emotions less accurately when viewing masked faces and also found an interaction of emotion by condition, such that accuracy was particularly compromised by sad masked faces. Neurally, masked faces elicited greater activation in the posterior cingulate, insula, and fusiform gyrus. Anterior insula and inferior frontal gyrus activation were driven by sad, masked faces. These results were consistent across age groups. Among fathers, activation to sad masked faces was associated with stress and depression. Overall, our findings did not depend on previous mask exposure or timing of participation during the pandemic. These results have implications for understanding face emotion recognition, empathy, and socioemotional neurodevelopment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The “moral neutrality pattern” of individuals with indirect multicultural experiences in immoral and moral judgments: behavioral and neural evidence

Based on the moral relativism theory, the current study proposes that individuals with indirect multicultural experiences may exhibit a “moral neutrality pattern” in complete moral judgments, that is, they may perceive others’ immoral actions as less immoral and moral actions as less moral. In Study 1, using publicly available CGSS data and our large-scale survey, we found positive correlations between multicultural experiences and a tendency to express less blame for immoral behavior, and less praise for moral behavior. In Study 2, the behavioral results indicated that individuals with high multicultural experiences (HM) expressed less praise than those with low multicultural experiences (LM) for “slightly moral condition”. The ERP time-domain results suggested that the HM group tended to exhibit lower LPP differential wave amplitudes than the LM group across different moral conditions (extremely immoral, slightly immoral, slightly moral, and extremely moral minus neutral moral conditions, respectively). Notably, the difference in LPP differential wave amplitude between the HM and LM groups was more pronounced for “slightly moral condition”, starting from 500-700ms and continuing to 900-1100ms. Overall, this study provides preliminary behavioral and neural evidence for the moral neutrality pattern of individuals with multicultural experiences. This echoes the global concerns for ethics in today’s globalization and enriches our understanding of the how individuals with indirect multicultural experiences form complete moral judgments.

Design and development of a mobile health intervention for rehabilitation support after knee arthroplasty: TeleRehabilitation after knee ArThroplasty (TReAT) project

BackgroundThe steep increase in knee arthroplasties in lower- and middle-income countries has increased demand for personalised rehabilitation care. Technology-based rehabilitation programs offer potential to replace or augment conventional face-to-face rehabilitation for providing continuum of care. We aimed to systematically develop a theory, evidence-driven, contextualised, and user-centred mobile health platform for people undergoing knee arthroplasty to facilitate monitoring progress during rehabilitation.MethodsWe followed the UK Medical Research Council’s framework and adopted a behaviour design thinking approach, consisting of five steps; (1) conduct multiple literature reviews and cross-sectional surveys to determine the needs and problems experienced during the rehabilitation phase by healthcare professionals and individuals with replaced knees, (2) identify target behaviours along with barriers and facilitators, integrated within the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour (COM-B) framework, (3) identify intervention functions and components, behaviour change techniques, and features for the mobile application, selected after discussions with orthopaedic surgeons, physiotherapists and behavioural experts, (4) develop a prototype application for end-users, and a web-based platform for healthcare professionals, and (5) pilot test the intervention for end-users’ feedback on usability of the application and to identify possible strategies for implementing the intervention package.ResultsUsing the COM-B model, education, training, persuasion, enablement, and modelling were chosen as intervention functions for improving adherence to exercise protocol during early-phase of rehabilitation. The application featured five interlinked components; education, training, goal setting and self-management, communication, and a personalized therapy plan utilising 13 behaviour change techniques. An education booklet, exercise videos, text messaging, video consultation, and a digital tool for measuring range of motion were incorporated into the application. Feedback on the interactive prototype and education material was sought from ten patient volunteers and a physiotherapist. Pilot testing in a convenient sample with broad eligibility criteria (n = 30) indicated importance of digital literacy and dedicated time for remote consultation by healthcare provider within the existing clinical work. Overall, the intervention was well received and valued by the end users.ConclusionThis paper demonstrates the development of a contextualised digital behavioural intervention grounded in behavioural theory and evidence from literature to improve end-user’s engagement with rehabilitation protocols after knee arthroplasty in lower- and middle-income country context.Trial registrationStudy registered prospectively (on 16 February 2023) at Clinical Trials Registry of India (CTRI/2023/02/049792).

Supplemental Material for Behavioral and Neural Evidence for Difficulty Recognizing Masked Emotional Faces

Supplemental Material for Behavioral and Neural Evidence for Difficulty Recognizing Masked Emotional Faces

What Should We Say to Denmark? Mentalism as an Essential Complement to Behavourism

AbstractShould answers to fundamental questions of political philosophy be ‘convincing’ and ‘meaningful’ to real people with vested interests? Normative behaviourists argue that they should, and this can be achieved by avoiding the use of intuitions in our normative theorizing and instead relying on long-term empirical evidence of human behaviour. In this paper, I argue that to obtain the full benefits of behaviourism, it needs to be accompanied by some form of mentalism. Normative behaviourism sacrifices critical distance from the status quo to provide answers that are convincing and meaningful. However, there is no clear benefit obtained from this sacrifice. Furthermore, because of behaviourism’s institutional focus in its current form, it does not have much to say about how to achieve its goals. Behaviourists can solve both problems by incorporating a mentalist account of political agency, one that determines what values and ideals political agents should fight for and helps political agents develop strategies to achieve their goals.

How Freely Moving Mind Wandering Relates to Creativity: Behavioral and Neural Evidence

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated that mind wandering during incubation phases enhances post-incubation creative performance. Recent empirical evidence, however, has highlighted a specific form of mind wandering closely related to creativity, termed freely moving mind wandering (FMMW). In this study, we examined the behavioral and neural associations between FMMW and creativity. Methods: We initially validated a questionnaire measuring FMMW by comparing its results with those from the Sustained Attention to Response Task (SART). Data were collected from 1316 participants who completed resting-state fMRI scans, the FMMW questionnaire, and creative tasks. Correlation analysis and Bayes factors indicated that FMMW was associated with creative thinking (AUT). To elucidate the neural mechanisms underlying the relationship between FMMW and creativity, Hidden Markov Models (HMM) were employed to analyze the temporal dynamics of the resting-state fMRI data. Results: Our findings indicated that brain dynamics associated with FMMW involve integration within multiple networks and between networks (r = −0.11, pFDR < 0.05). The links between brain dynamics associated with FMMW and creativity were mediated by FMMW (c’ = 0.01, [−0.0181, −0.0029]). Conclusions: These findings demonstrate the relationship between FMMW and creativity, offering insights into the neural mechanisms underpinning this relationship.

Effects of Postural Conditions During Magnetic Resonance Imaging on Thigh Muscle Size.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the gold standard for measuring muscle size. However, postural conditions for thigh musculature have not been standardized across studies, with some employing supine or prone positions and the thigh either placed on the examination table or suspended to avoid contact. In either case, the thigh is compressed or sagged by gravity, potentially affecting muscle size. This study aimed to examine the effects of postural conditions on thigh muscle size. Twenty Olympic-style weightlifters and 20 untrained controls (10 men and 10 women in each group) underwent 3-Tesla MRI in the supine and prone positions, with the thigh in compressed and suspended conditions to determine the maximal anatomical cross-sectional area (ACSAmax) and muscle volume of 15 thigh muscle groups/individual muscles. Postural conditions changed the ACSAmax of the quadriceps (range of postural-related changes: 1.0%-7.9%), hamstrings (0.8%-19.1%), and adductors (2.4%-19.2%). Regardless of measurement position, the total volume of thigh muscles decreased under compressed conditions (0.6%-3.8%). Quadriceps and adductors decreased in muscle volume under compressed conditions (0.9%-4.0% and 0.8%-6.6%), while hamstrings increased (1.4%-9.3%). Male weightlifters, who possessed the largest thigh muscle volume, showed greater postural-related changes in the muscle volume of quadriceps, hamstrings, and adductors than the other subgroups. Therefore, postural conditions during MRI substantially change thigh muscle size, and the magnitude of the change depends on muscle size. Our results provide invivo evidence of the compressive behavior of thigh muscles and a new technical perspective for assessing thigh muscle size.

Suicidal Behavior in Graduate Students in the Context of the Covid-19 Pandemic: Scoping Review

Background. Graduate students experienced mental distress during the pandemic. This was perceived through the narration of students’ frustrations and the emergence of new situations to which both students and advisors were forced to adapt. Objective. To map evidence of suicidal behavior in graduate students in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Method. This is a scoping review. The eligibility criteria were: Participants—graduate students. Concept—suicidal behavior. Context—COVID-19 pandemic. The search strategy was applied to MEDLINE®/PubMed® and adapted for the following databases: EMBASE® (Elsevier), CINAHL®/EBSCO, LILACS®/BVS, PsycINFO®, and Web of Science. The review considered primary research studies with quantitative and qualitative designs. Although there were no language restrictions, there was a limit regarding the start of the new coronavirus in December 2019. Results. Eleven articles were included in the analysis of this review. It was found that the majority of studies were published in 2022. Master’s students were more frequently investigated for the presence of suicidal ideation, while doctoral students were studied for the presence of suicidal ideation, suicide plan, suicide attempt, and suicide. The presence of suicidal ideation ranged from 6.87% to 40%. The PHQ-9 questionnaire was the most commonly used instrument to assess suicidal ideation. Discussion and conclusion. The findings provide support for institutional strategies to prevent suicidal behavior in graduate students.

Good vision without peripheries: behavioral and fMRI evidence

In healthy vision, bright slow-motion stimuli are processed primarily by the regions of the visual system that receive input from the central part of the scene, whereas processing of dark fast-motion stimuli is more dependent on peripheral visual input. We tested 31 retinitis pigmentosa (RP) patients with long-term loss of peripheral photoreceptors and healthy controls with temporarily limited peripheral vision. We measured motion-based acuity using random-dot kinematograms, establishing individual thresholds for differentiating a circle from an ellipse. Participants subsequently performed a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) task set at a constant level of difficulty. The results showed that limiting vision did not affect motion-acuity thresholds in control participants but did cause different brain activations than those in RP patients, indicating prompt implementation of the strategy that would be perceptually successful. Compared with controls with both full and limited vision, impaired motion acuity in RP patients led to decreased brain activation, particularly in the primary peripheral visual areas V1-3. Importantly, compared with controls in full vision, matched decreased activation in MT+/V5, salience-processing cortices and the superior temporal cortex were detected in RP patients and in controls with limited peripheral vision, revealing brain networks that compensate for the loss of peripheral vision.

Behavioral and neural evidence for the underestimated attractiveness of faces synthesized using an artificial neural network

Recent advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have not eased human anxiety about AI. If such anxiety diminishes human preference for AI-synthesized visual information, the preference should be reduced solely by the belief that the information is synthesized by AI, independently of its appearance. This study tested this hypothesis by asking experimental participants to rate the attractiveness of faces synthesized by an artificial neural network, under the false instruction that some faces were real and others were synthetic. This experimental design isolated the impact of belief on attractiveness ratings from the actual facial appearance. Brain responses were also recorded with fMRI to examine the neural basis of this belief effect. The results showed that participants rated faces significantly lower when they believed them to be synthetic, and this belief altered the responsiveness of fMRI signals to facial attractiveness in the right fusiform cortex. These findings support the notion that human preference for visual information is reduced solely due to the belief that the information is synthesized by AI, suggesting that AI and robot design should focus not only on enhancing appearance but also on alleviating human anxiety about them.

Post and hold regulation and competitive conduct: Evidence from the U.S. beer industry

The literature argues that Post and Hold (pH) laws facilitate tacit collusive price-setting behavior among suppliers of alcoholic beverages. Yet there is no explicit empirical test of this claim. We specify and estimate a structural model designed to identify the extent to which pH laws induce tacit collusive price-setting behavior among beer suppliers. Our estimates reveal evidence of pH law-induced collusive behavior that causes higher prices and lower consumption. Furthermore, we find that an alcohol content tax as a replacement for pH regulation yields the highest surplus to consumers compared to a sales tax or the pH regulation.

Spectroscopic Evidence of Ultrafast Topological Phase Transition by Light-Driven Strain.

Enabling reversible control over the topological invariants, transitioning them from nontrivial to trivial states, has fundamental implications for quantum information processing and spintronics. It offers a promising avenue for establishing an efficient on/off switch mechanism for robust and dissipationless spin-currents. While mechanical strain has traditionally been advantageous for such manipulation of topological invariants, it often comes with the drawback of in-plane fractures, rendering it unsuitable for high-speed, time-dependent operations. This study employs ultrafast optical and THz spectroscopy to explore topological phase transitions induced by light-driven strain in Bi2Se3. Bi2Se3 requires substantial strain for Z2 switching. Our observations provide experimental evidence of ultrafast switching behavior, demonstrating a transition from a topological insulator with spin-momentum-locked surfaces to hybridized states and normal insulating phases under ambient conditions. Notably, applying light-induced strong out-of-plane strain effectively suppresses surface-bulk coupling, facilitating the differentiation of surface and bulk conductance even at room temperature─significantly surpassing the Debye temperature. We expect various time-dependent sequences of transient hybridization and manipulation of topological invariant through photoexcitation intensity adjustments. The sudden surface and bulk transport alterations near the transition point enable coherent conductance modulation at hypersound frequencies. Our findings on the potential of light-triggered ultrafast switching of topological invariants hold promise for high-speed topological switching and its related applications.

To use or not to use behavioural science evidence in designing health promotion interventions: Identification of targets for capacity building.

The behavioural sciences provide useful evidence to design effective health promotion interventions, but evidence is infrequently integrated in practice. This study examined associations between theoretical domains framework (TDF) constructs and public health practitioners' use of behavioural science evidence to plan public health actions. Using a cross-sectional design, a convenience sample of 160 practitioners were recruited from public health agencies across Canada. Respondents completed an online questionnaire assessing TDF constructs and the use of behavioural science theory and approaches (i.e., evidence) in their practice. Logistic regression analyses allowed for identification of factors associated with evidence use and intentions. All analyses were adjusted for sex, years of experience, and type of public health agency. Greater skills (ORadj = 4.1, 95%CI 1.3, 13.5) and stronger intentions/aligned goals (ORadj = 9.2, 95%CI 2.3, 36.1) were associated with greater use of behavioural science evidence to plan public health actions. Greater perceived capacity to overcome widespread absence of use of behavioural science evidence in their organization (ORadj = 7.2, 95%CI 1.7, 30.3) was also associated with greater use. More knowledge (ORadj = 8.6, 95%CI 1.9, 39.1) and stronger beliefs about consequences (ORadj = 4.0, 95%CI 1.1, 14.7) were significantly associated with stronger intentions/aligned goals. Findings show that more knowledge, positive attitudes, and stronger perceived competence are associated with greater likelihood of using behavioural science evidence to plan interventions. The use of behavioural science evidence will also require strengthening the norm pertaining to this professional practice in public health organizations.

Interoceptive and Bodily Processing in Prospective and Retrospective Timing.

This chapter reviews some directions along which Craig's proposal of subjective time as emergent from interoceptive and bodily dynamics allows to frame recent findings on prospective and retrospective time processing. Behavioral and neuroimaging evidence from prospective timing studies demonstrates that an interoceptive-insular system may support the development of a primary representation of time in the context of large-scale networks involved in duration processing. Studies showing a tight link between episodic memory and interoceptive, emotional, and sensorimotor states further provide insights on processes supporting retrospective timing. These lines of evidence show that acknowledging its dependence on bodily states is most likely a crucial step toward a mechanistic understanding of time perception.

Assessing tuberculosis knowledge, attitudes, practices, and health-seeking behaviours of students at a selected university in South Africa

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a public health concern in South Africa, particularly among young adults. This study aimed to assess and investigate the attitudes, practices, and health-seeking behaviours of students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) regarding TB. The research provides valuable insights into the awareness of TB among students, their preventive practices, and their healthcare-seeking behaviours related to the disease. A cross-sectional design was employed, utilising a structured questionnaire to collect data from a representative sample of UKZN students on the Howard College campus. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, such as frequencies and percentages, to summarise responses. Inferential statistics, including chi-square tests, were used to explore associations between variables and assess the knowledge, attitudes, and health-seeking behaviours of respondents. The study, which included 221 postgraduate and undergraduate students, revealed that participants were well aware of the symptoms, causes, and modes of TB transmission. The descriptive analysis indicated that 97.7% of respondents exhibited good knowledge about TB, with a total mean score of 0.977 and a standard deviation of 0.149. However, regarding health-seeking behaviours and practices, 53.4% of respondents demonstrated poor health-seeking behaviours, in contrast to 46.6% who exhibited good practices, with a mean score of 0.466 and a standard deviation of 0.499. Although all respondents indicated they would visit health facilities if they suspected they had TB, there was evidence of low screening practices and suboptimal health-seeking behaviours. Based on these findings, the study suggests leveraging social media to disseminate knowledge about TB to promote its prevention and treatment.

Identification of chemically altered cut marks: an experimental approach from Geometrics Morphometrics

Cut marks are striae accidentally produced by the contact made between the edge of a cutting tool and bone surfaces by anthropogenic activity, presenting evidence of hominin carcass processing and behaviour, butchery activities or diet. Post-depositional processes can cause the alteration (chemical or mechanical) of bones surfaces, changing their composition and causing the modification of bone surfaces. Previous research has addressed the problem of chemical alteration from a qualitative perspective, resulting in the loss of all diagnostic characteristics of the cut marks affected by these processes. Geometrics Morphometrics has led to great progress in the study of cut marks from a quantitative perspective and can be useful for the study of altered cut marks. In this study, an experiment was carried out in which 36 cut marks were reproduced and chemically altered. These marks were scanned and digitized before and after each phase of alteration. They were analyzed metrically as well as using Geometric Morphometrics, in order to study the evolution of modifications to cut mark morphology during the experiment. Results show clear morphological differences between the different phases of alteration with altered cut marks presenting a general tendency towards a decrease in both the width and depth over time. Research of this type opens up a new path for the study of the chemical alteration of cut marks, as well as other striae, through the application of Geometric Morphometrics.