Behavioral Mechanisms Research Articles

Food choice mimicry on a large university campus

Abstract Social influence is a strong determinant of food consumption, which in turn influences the environment and health. Purchasing mimicry, a phenomenon where a person copies another person’s purchases, has been identified as the key governing mechanism. Although consistent observations have been made on the role of purchasing mimicry in driving similarities in food consumption, much less is known about the precise prevalence, the affected subpopulations, and the food types most strongly associated with mimicry effects. Here, we study social influence on food choice through carefully designed causal analyses, leveraging the sequential nature of shop queues on a large university campus. In particular, we consider a large number of adjacent purchases where a focal user immediately follows another user (“partner”) in the checkout queue and both make a purchase. Across food additions purchased during lunchtime together with a meal, we find that the focal user is significantly more likely to purchase the food item when the partner buys the item, vs. when the partner does not, increasing the purchasing probability by 14% in absolute terms, or by 83% in relative terms. The effect is observed across all food types, but largest for condiments. Furthermore, purchasing mimicry is present across age, gender, and status subpopulations, but strongest for students and the youngest. We elucidate the behavioral mechanism of purchasing mimicry, and derive direct implications for interventions improving dietary behaviors on campus, such as facilitating pre-ordering to reduce detrimental interactions.

Cracking the code of teacher burnout: the chain mediation of GPT integration degree through behavioral engagement and classroom atmosphere in a cross-level chain mediation model

Chat GPT technology plays a pivotal role in global educational innovation and the enhancement of the quality of teaching and learning. In the field of education research, numerous studies have been conducted to investigate the effectiveness of GPT technology, teacher acceptance, and student engagement in depth. To date, few studies have considered the compounding effects of these factors on teacher burnout from the perspectives of psychology and behavioral sciences in conjunction with the dichotomous and complex relationship between teachers and students. Consequently, based on the findings of previous scholars, this study constructed a cross-layer chain mediation model based on the SOR and EASI models. This model was used to explore how different motivators affect the alleviation of teacher burnout through psychological and behavioral mechanisms. The study involved 47 teachers and 506 students from 10 universities. The findings of the study indicated that (1) the direct effect of GPT integration degree on teacher burnout was not statistically significant, and (2) the classroom atmosphere played a pivotal mediating role in the relationship between GPT integration degree and teacher burnout. (3) The degree of GPT integration degree exerts an indirect and orderly negative influence on teacher burnout through behavioral engagement and classroom atmosphere. The objective of this study is to further enhance our comprehension of the utilization of GPT technology in education and to provide strategic recommendations for its advancement in educational practice.

Implications of temperature-dependent development and survival of Hemipteroseius adleri Costa, 1968 on its distribution in central Europe

Otopheidomenidae include 30 species of parasites of insects. These mites occur in areas with warm and hot climates. The only exception is Hemipteroseius adleri, the distribution of which reaches the central European region, which is characterised by a moderate climate with below-zero temperatures in winter. In Europe, H. adleri only parasitises the red firebug (Pyrrhocoris apterus). Field observations indicate that only fertilised females of H. adleri survive winter conditions. The aim of the study therefore was to evaluate the impact of air temperature on the development and survival of H. adleri. A research model was established involving mites parasitising red firebugs in laboratory conditions at 15, 20, 25 and 30 °C. After oviposition, no egg development was possible at 15 °C. Egg development began at 20 °C, however the egg-to-adult period lasted for 13 days and larval mortality was significantly higher at this temperature than at 25 and 30 °C. At the latter tem temperatures, mites matured fastest (five and four days, respectively). The net reproductive rate (R0) was 10.8, the mean generation time was (T) 14.4 (SD = 0.273), the intrinsic rate of population increase (rm) was 0.165 (SD = 0.003), and the finite rate of population increase (λ) was 1.12. At 25 °C, H. adleri required 4.2 days to double its population. The results indicate that the thermal conditions prevailing in early spring in central Europe are highly unfavourable for the effective reproduction of H. adleri. The presence of northern populations of this mite is discussed in the context of behavioural thermoregulation mechanisms adapted by its host, P. apterus.

Delay discounting validity and e-cigarette use: A comparison in e-cigarette users, combustible cigarette users, dual users, and nonusers.

Delay discounting refers to the devaluation of an outcome as temporal delay increases. Steep discounting is characterized by preferring a smaller, immediate outcome over a larger, delayed outcome and is associated with maladaptive behaviors such as tobacco use. Previous studies have compared delay discounting outcomes between combustible cigarette (CC) smokers and nonusers using various discounting tasks. With the growing use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes [EC]) and various delay discounting tasks available to researchers, we extended previous work in delay discounting and EC use in two ways. The present study assessed delay discounting in a web-based sample of 259 participants to (a) establish convergent validity across four different delay discounting tasks and (b) compare the outcomes between four subgroups: dual users, exclusive EC users, exclusive CC users, and nonusers. The four delay discounting tasks (Monetary Choice Questionnaire, 5-Trial Adjusting Delay Discounting Task [ADT-5], Temporal Discounting Questionnaire, and Brief Intertemporal Choice Task [BRIC Task]) showed moderate to strong convergent validity (p < .001). Further, findings indicated significant differences between all four subgroups across the four different delay discounting tasks (p < .048) with small effect sizes. Pairwise comparisons showed that exclusive EC users exhibited significantly steeper discounting than nonusers in ADT-5 (p = .043) and BRIC Task (p = .029) and dual users exhibited significantly steeper discounting than nonusers on ADT-5 (p = .043) and BRIC Task (p = .030). Our findings replicate previous findings and suggest the potential role of delay discounting in explaining the behavioral mechanism underlying e-cigarette use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Click, Buy, Repeat: Understanding the Psychological and Behavioral Mechanisms of Online Shopping Behavior.

Click, Buy, Repeat: Understanding the Psychological and Behavioral Mechanisms of Online Shopping Behavior.

Activation, but not inactivation, of the medial or lateral orbitofrontal cortex impaired context-specific fear encoding

In laboratories, classical fear conditioning and extinction procedures are commonly used to study the behavioral and neural mechanisms underlying fear regulation. Contextual fear conditioning involves the association of an aversive event with the environment where it occurs, which engages the hippocampus and its interactions with the amygdala. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), divided into the lateral OFC (lOFC) and medial OFC (mOFC) subregions, plays a crucial role in integrating contextual information from the hippocampus and modulating behavioral responses based on the anticipated outcomes of the context. Because of the extensive anatomical connections of the OFC with the fear circuit, including the hippocampus, the amygdala, and the medial prefrontal cortex, and the reasoning that proper retrieval of fear-related memory is context-dependent, we raised the question to investigate the ability of the animals to discriminate between contexts when they were trained under differential OFC activation levels during the encoding of contextual fear memory. In this study, we conducted a contextual fear conditioning procedure in rats using footshock as an unconditioned stimulus (US), followed by the test of their fear levels in contexts same (dangerous) or different (safe) from the conditioning context. We used a pharmacological approach to modulate the activation levels of the lOFC or the mOFC during conditioning to examine their roles on context-specific fear encoding. Our findings showed that the animals could accurately distinguish between the two contexts in control and OFC hypoactivation groups, but failed to do so if they were trained under OFC hyperactivation. Therefore, OFC hyperactivity disturbed the encoding of contextual information during fear acquisition.

Effect of anionic polyacrylamide amendment on the climatic durability of solidified waste rock fine

In order to improve the climatic durability of solidified waste rock fine (WRF), anionic polyacrylamide (APAM) was innovatively introduced to amend solidified WRF in this study. The effects of APAM content, freeze-thaw (F-T), and wet-dry (W-D) cycles on the mechanical behaviors of solidified WRF were explored. After that, zeta potential, fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscope (SEM) tests were initiated to understand the behavioral mechanisms of APAM. The results show that APAM can significantly improve the mechanical properties and durability of solidified WRF, and there exist a threshold content of APAM (0.3%~0.8% in this study), beyond which the strength will decrease. The microscopic test shows that the bridging effect and the filming effect induced by APAM are considered to be the two decisive factors affecting the mechanical behavior of S-WRF. On the one hand, the linear APAM long chain enables the cohesion between particles to be stronger through ion bridging, on the other hand, the long chains cross-link with each other to form a network interwoven inside the structure, thus playing a microfabric reinforcement role and enhancing the crack resistance of the solidified matrix. In addition, life cycle assessment (LCA) further confirmed the advantages of using industrial by-products combined with APAM to amend solidified-WRF. These results provide a theoretical basis for using APAM as trace additives to mitigate climatic durability-related issues.

Mechanical acupuncture at HT7 attenuates alcohol self-administration in rats by modulating neuroinflammation and altering mPFC-habenula-VTA circuit activity.

Alcohol use disorder is a chronic disorder with significant limitations in pharmacological treatments, necessitating the exploration of non-pharmacological interventions. We used a model of alcohol self-administration (10% v/v) to analyze behavioral, neurochemical, and signaling mechanisms. Our findings demonstrate that stimulation of the HT7 acupuncture point significantly decreased the frequency of active lever presses in rats self-administering alcohol (p < 0.05). Alcohol self-administration increased microglial activity and sigma 1 receptor expression in the habenula (Hb), while HT7 stimulation mitigated these effects, decreasing microglial activity and sigma 1 receptor levels (p < 0.05). Additionally, alcohol self-administration reduced brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and increased tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) levels in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) (p < 0.05). HT7 stimulation reversed these alterations by increasing BDNF expression in the mPFC and decreasing TH levels in the VTA (p < 0.05). Further investigation revealed that BDNF microinjection into the mPFC inhibited sigma 1 receptor activity in the Hb, while microglial inhibition in the Hb decreased TH expression in the VTA (p < 0.05). The administration of the microglial inhibitor MINO to the Hb also reduced alcohol self-administration (p < 0.05). These results suggest that HT7 stimulation regulates the mPFC-Hb-VTA circuit, leading to decreased alcohol-seeking behavior. Our study demonstrates that HT7 acupuncture can modulate the mPFC-Hb-VTA circuit, providing a potential non-pharmacological treatment for alcohol-seeking behavior by influencing microglial activity, sigma 1 receptor expression, and TH levels. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying acupuncture's therapeutic effects on alcohol use disorder.

Aldosterone-induced salt appetite requires HSD2 neurons.

Excessive aldosterone production increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, dementia, and death. Aldosterone increases both sodium retention and sodium consumption, and increased sodium consumption may worsen end-organ damage in patients with aldosteronism. Preventing this increase could improve outcomes, but the behavioral mechanisms of aldosterone-induced sodium appetite remain unclear. In rodents, we previously identified aldosterone-sensitive neurons, which express the mineralocorticoid receptor and its pre-receptor regulator, 11-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2 (HSD2). In the present study, we identified HSD2 neurons in the human brain, then used a mouse model to evaluate their role in aldosterone-induced salt intake. First, we confirmed that dietary sodium deprivation increases aldosterone production, salt intake, and HSD2 neuron activity. Next, we showed that continuous chemogenetic stimulation of HSD2 neurons causes a large and specific increase in salt intake. Finally, we use dose-response studies and genetically targeted ablation of HSD2 neurons to show that these neurons are necessary for aldosterone-induced salt intake. Identifying HSD2 neurons in the human brain and establishing their necessity for aldosterone-induced salt intake in mice improves our understanding of appetitive circuits and highlights this small cell population as a therapeutic target for moderating dietary sodium.

Synchrony Across Brains.

Second-person neuroscience focuses on studying the behavioral and neuronal mechanisms of real-time social interactions within single and across interacting brains. In this review article, we describe the developments that have been undertaken to study socially interactive phenomena and have helped to focus on behavioral and neurobiological processes that extend across interaction partners. More specifically, we focus on the role that synchrony across brains plays in enabling and facilitating social interaction and communication and in shaping social coordination and learning, and we consider how reduced synchrony across brains may constitute a core feature of psychopathology.

The loss of rural vital places: A case study using the social determinants of health framework

Healthy food sources, recreational facilities, and social spaces serve as vital places for supporting health. Less is known about what happens when vital places are lost, especially in rural contexts that have experienced disinvestment and population decline. In this paper we use a case study of a small rural community in Pennsylvania that lost a substantial share of its vital places over a short period of time to explore the experiences of local residents. Using qualitative interviews with 26 local residents we show that the loss of vital places, which are part of the neighborhood and built environment, intersected with other social determinants of health with potential consequences for health and well-being. This was often because vital places were essential (i.e., few or no alternatives existed) and multifunctional (i.e., supporting health through multiple behavioral and social mechanisms). Examining experiences of local residents following the loss of vital places through a social determinants of health lens helps to identify consequences and inform adaptation strategies. We also use the findings to refine the vital places framework for rural contexts.

Understanding human-obstacle interaction dynamics on staircases: Implications for emergency evacuation and fire safety in high-rise buildings

Interactions between system components, including human-obstacle, human-building, human-robot, and human-human, significantly impact public safety, system efficiency, and functionality. A deeper understanding of these systems is essential to enhance their resilience and effectiveness. Despite the significance of these interactions, empirical research is limited, particularly regarding behavioral mechanisms when interacting with obstacles on stairways. Our study examines the evacuation behavior of 90 evacuees on the staircase of a high-rise building under different temporary obstacle conditions to understand how key factors affect decision-making and motion behavior during stairway descent. The experiments considered obstacle shapes as control variables and analyzed evacuation time, inner and outer stair route choices, regional speed fluctuations, velocity-relative displacement, evacuation efficiency, and biomechanical analysis of occupants’ comfort. Results show that larger obstacle shapes, increased evacuation urgency time, and closer proximity to the wall lead to a higher proportion of the splitting to merging state before and after obstacle interaction. A strong inner stair route preference emerges in no-obstacle conditions, with significant mean speed differences in downward movements when encountering temporary obstacle. Three phases of average speed variations are observed: deceleration, acceleration, and continued deceleration for the outer route; and deceleration followed by uniform speed for the inner route. A method was developed to calculate regional speed fluctuation using average speeds from trajectories. Comfort analysis revealed that temporary obstacle on building stairways significantly impact safe evacuation. Overall, these findings enhance the understanding of crowd dynamics in high-rise building emergency evacuations, with implications for model development, architectural design, building operations, emergency preparedness, behavioral cognition, and fire safety.

Valenced tactile information is evoked by neutral visual cues following emotional learning

Abstract Learning which stimuli in our environment co-occur with painful or pleasurable events is critical for survival. Previous research has established the basic neural and behavioral mechanisms of aversive and appetitive conditioning; however, it is unclear precisely what information content is learned. Here we examined the degree to which aspects of the unconditioned stimulus (US)—sensory information versus affective salience—are transferred to the conditioned stimulus (CS). To decode what stimuli features (e.g., valence vs. discriminative somatosensation) are represented in patterns of brain activation elicited during appetitive (soft touch) and aversive (painful touch) conditioning to faces, a novel approach to using modeling with representational similarity analysis (RSA) based on theoretically driven representational patterns of interest (POIs) was applied to fMRI data. Once associations were learned through conditioning, globally, the CS reactivated US representational patterns showing conditioning-dependent reactivation in specific high-order brain regions: In the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, the CS reactivated patterns associated with the affective salience of the US—suggesting that, with affective conditioning, these regions carry forward the affective associations of the experience.

Demographic Risk Factors Vary in the Invasion Front of Chronic Wasting Disease in West Virginia, USA.

After detecting chronic wasting disease (CWD) in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in Hampshire County, West Virginia, USA, in 2005, we investigated the change of CWD apparent prevalence and potential factors influencing infection risk during the invasion front. Over eight sampling years (2006-2012 and 2017) during a 12-yr period within a 101-km2-area monitoring zone, we sampled and tested a total of 853 deer for CWD by ELISA and immunohistochemistry. Bayesian logistic regression of risk factors included collection year, age class, sex, and adjusted body weight (weight after accounting for sex, age, kidney fat index, and number of fetuses). In the whole-herd model (n=634), collection year, age, and adjusted body weight were associated with increased odds of CWD, whereas an age-weight interaction had a negative relationship. We found that males drove the positive associations with age and adjusted body weight, whereas females were responsible for the negative interaction effect. These findings suggest potential behavioral and physiological mechanisms related to sex that may influence CWD exposure. Older males exhibited higher CWD prevalence, aligning with previous studies. Notably, the novel finding of adjusted body weight as a risk factor in males warrants further investigation, and this study highlights the need for future research on social behavior and its role in CWD transmission within white-tailed deer populations.

The Influence of Advertising Strategies on Purchase Intention of Beauty Products on RED

With the popularity of social media platforms in China, research on social media advertising is increasing. Prior research has shown that the value perception given to consumers by social media advertising affects the purchase intention of consumers. However, its internal logic and behavioral mechanism have not been well investigated. In view of this, this research is designed to examine the direct effects of interactivity and aesthetic appeal of beauty product advertisements on perceived advertising value on RED and to explore the influence of perceived advertising value on consumers’ purchase intentions. Based on questionnaire analysis, bivariate regression analysis, and univariate regression analysis, we found the significant influence of interactivity and aesthetic appeal on advertising value as well as the influence of advertising value on consumers’ purchase intention. The chain behavior generation mechanism of consumers’ purchase decisions was also elaborated. This paper provides enlightenment for theoretical research, especially in enriching the SOR model. Also, the result has practical implications for enterprise practice, pointing out important directions for enterprises to design their advertisements.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Cardiovascular Disease.

The influence of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and its modalities on various neuropsychiatric conditions is herein explored together with their impact on specific cardiovascular (CV) diseases (CVD). A comprehensive review of the literature was undertaken via the PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar on the above relevant topics. The focus was on large randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses. Among the various neuropsychiatric disorders, depression and anxiety commonly occur in CVD patients, frequently eluding clinician's attention. This reciprocal liaison may incur higher rates of morbidity/mortality, through physiological and behavioral mechanisms. Multimodal psychiatric interventions, using medications and psychotherapies, such as CBT, seem promising. Such mindfulness-based interventions have the potential to be an efficacious complementary strategy to address psychological stress in CVD patients. As the cost of CBT is relatively low, such a supportive approach for stress management provides high patient acceptability, with a positive impact on improving quality of life, by promoting CV health and mitigating CV complications. There is ample evidence of a reciprocal liaison between heart and mind. Several CV risk factors are strongly affected by diseases of the mind, and the clinical course of various CVDs is influenced by affective or other psychiatric disorders. CBT and relevant mindfulness-based interventions have a significant supportive role in patients with various CVDs by targeting CV risk factor(s) or the underlying specific CVD and by identifying and addressing psychosocial issues. In this direction, various CBT interventions can provide the means to favorably influence both CV risk factors and CVDs.

Exploring neuronal markers and early social environment influence in divergent quail lines selected for social motivation

Many species, including humans exhibit a wide range of social behaviors that are crucial for the adaptation and survival of most species. Brain organization and function are shaped by genetic and environmental factors, although their precise contributions have been relatively understudied in the context of artificial selection. We used divergent lines of quail selected on their high versus low level of motivation to approach a group of conspecifics (S + and S-, respectively) to investigate the influence of genetic selection and early social environment on sociability. We observed distinct sex- and brain-region-specific expression patterns of three neuronal markers: mesotocin, and vasotocin, the avian homologues of mammalian oxytocin and vasopressin, as well as aromatase, the enzyme that converts androgens into estrogens. These markers displayed pronounced and neuroanatomically specific differences between S + and S- quail. Additionally, in a second experiment, we assessed the influence of early social environment on social skills in juvenile birds. Mixing S + and S- resulted in more S- males approaching the group without affecting the sociability of S + or other behaviors, suggesting that the early social environment may influence the results of genetic selection. In conclusion, the divergent quail lines offer a valuable model for unraveling the neuronal and behavioral mechanisms underlying social behaviors.

Exploring cognitive behavioral mechanisms related to dissociation among patients suffering from schizophrenia: A pilot study

IntroductionDissociation is a challenging syndrome present in multiple psychiatric disorders for which no gold standard treatment exists. Recently, some authors have developed a Cognitive Behavioral Model of dissociation, offering new insights for psychotherapy. However, this model has primarily been assessed in patients suffering from PostTraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore the relevance of this conceptualization in patients suffering from schizophrenia. MethodWe recruited 20 patients (15 men) suffering from schizophrenia. After providing consent, they completed self-reported questionnaires assessing dissociation, PTSD, beliefs about emotion, beliefs about dissociation, mindfulness abilities, and emotion regulation. Then, they responded to three open-ended questions exploring the triggers of dissociation and strategies used to counteract it. ResultsWe found a low prevalence of the different cognitive-behavioral mechanisms related to dissociation in our sample. However, we found significant relationships between these mechanisms and dissociative symptoms. This relationship was also identified in the qualitative analysis. ConclusionThe present results offer primary data supporting the relevance of the cognitive-behavioral conceptualization of dissociation in patients suffering from schizophrenia. Further studies should be conducted with larger samples and include additional variables to enhance the understanding of dissociation in this population.

Neuroticism Mediates the Association between Autistic Traits and Choice Reaction Time among Young Adults.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that influences an individual's cognitive functions and social interaction. While most studies have focused on children and adolescents diagnosed with ASD, elevated levels of autistic traits in subclinical populations may also influence individuals' daily functioning. Autistic traits are also linked to the Big Five personality. In particular, neuroticism (emotion instability) has been shown to be positively associated with autistic traits, which may contribute to behavioral symptoms of autistic traits. The present study aimed to investigate the association between autistic symptoms and sensorimotor processing among a subclinical population. One hundred young adults (Mage = 20.32 years; SD = 3.69 years; 69 female) completed a choice reaction time (RT) task, and their behavioral performance was analyzed using the ex-Gaussian modeling. The Autism Quotient (AQ) and the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI) were used to assess autistic traits and neuroticism, respectively. The mediation analysis was conducted to examine the behavioral mechanism through which autistic traits influence sensorimotor processing. The results showed that the AQ score was negatively correlated with RT and positively correlated with neuroticism score. Importantly, the mediation analysis indicated an indirect effect, suggesting that neuroticism mediates the association between the AQ score and RT. The findings indicated a possible mechanism of the association between autistic traits and sensorimotor responses and suggested that neuroticism should be included as an intervention target for ASD. The present study contributes to the research on autistic traits and has practical implications for future intervention programs to improve daily functioning among individuals with ASD.

Technology Acceptance and Innovation Diffusion: Are Users More Inclined Toward AIGC-Assisted Design?

Artificial Intelligence Generated Content (AIGC) has shown significant potential in design, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence technology. However, understanding designers’ willingness to embrace this technology and the factors influencing their decision-making requires further research. In this study, we develop a theoretical model of user behavioral intention in AIGC-assisted design, drawing upon the Diffusion of Innovations theory and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. Through empirical analysis using the PLS-SEM structural equation model, we investigate the mechanisms behind various influencing factors on behavioral intention. Our findings highlight the relative advantage as the most significant positive factor, emphasizing the importance of the innovation’s benefits in the Diffusion of Innovations theory. Designers prioritize the innovation and assistance provided by AIGC technology in the design process and ideas, recognizing the advantages of the innovation itself over mere performance improvement. This study provides valuable insights into the psychological and behavioral mechanisms guiding designers’ decision-making regarding the application of AIGC technology in design.