Distraction Strategies Research Articles

COPING STRATEGIES AND THE DIMENSIONS OF ATTACHMENT IN STUDENTS

The paper focuses on the relationship between the dimensions of affective attachment and a three-dimensional model of coping strategies (problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping and avoidance: distraction and social diversion). To analyze this problem, the Coping in Stressful Situations questionnaire (CISS, Endler & Parker, 1990) along with the Questionnaire for Attachment Assessment (UPIPAV -R, Hanak, 2004; Hanak 2011) was used on a sample of 152 students of the Faculty of Philosophy.The results indicate the existence of significant correlations between coping strategies and the dimensions of attachment. Specifically, there is a negative correlation between problem-focused coping and unresolved family trauma, fear of using an outside secure base and a negative working model of self, while there is a positive correlation with the ability to mentalize. There is a positive correlation between emotion-focused coping and distraction strategies, and fear of using an outside secure base, a negative working model of self and negative working model of others, and poor anger management where there is a positive correlation between emotion-focused coping and unresolved family trauma. Finally, there is a negative correlation between social diversion and unresolved trauma, and a negative working model of self and a positive one between fear of using an outside secure base. The results of the regression analysis indicate that the aforementioned dimensions of affective attachment, as predictors explain 21,1% of the variance of problem-focused coping, 13,3% of the variance of the distraction strategy, 24,6% of the variance of the strategy of social diversion, and as much as 49,9% of the variance of emotion-focused coping.Even though drawing any conclusions requires a greater sample, we could say that the participants are more prone to maladaptive coping if they display more pronounced dimensions of affective attachment typical of insecure patterns of attachment (a negative working model of self and a negative working model of others, unresolved family trauma, fear of using an outside secure base and poor anger management).

Dipendenze tecnologiche e rischio evolutivo. Confronto tra minori con background migratorio e minori italiani su prevalenza e correlati maladattivi

Abstract The Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) has been included in the third section of the DSM-5 as a new behavioral addiction, related to some developmental risks such as depression, anxiety, attention disorders, social phobia, behavioural disorders, low academic performance. Similar to the IGD, the Internet Addiction (AI) has also been studied as a behavioral addiction related to an uncontrolled use of the Web for the purpose of mood modulation. The Internet Addiction has in turn been correlated with numerous devlopmental risks, both in terms of internalization and externalization. Given the vulnerability of migrant populations to behavioral addiction such as gambling disorder, it is important to check whether this vulnerability also includes technological dependencies: IGD and IA. The aims of the present study are: 1) to obtain prevalence data of IGD and IA in students with a migration background, 2) to highlight any maladaptive differences related to technological dependencies in minors with a migratory background. 528 students (673.3% females), aged between 9 and 20 years old (M = 15.76; DS = 2.176), and attending secondary schools of first and second grade in 4 Italian cities, participated to a specific survey on the topic. 9.7% of the students declared that they do not have Italian citizenship. The reserch tools were: VGA Questionnaire (VGA) to measure the Internet Gaming Addiction; Internet Addiction Test (IAT), to evaluate Internet addiction; Children’s Coping Strategies Checklist – Revised 1 (CCSC-R1) to measure coping strategies in difficult situations; Interpersonal Relationship Test (TRI) to estimate the quality of social relationships in different domains. 6.1% of students without Italian citizenship meet the diagnostic criteria for IGD, compared to 2.0% of Italian participants, while there is no statistically significant difference regarding internet addiction. 4.5% of males meet the diagnostic criteria for IGD, against 1.2% of females, while the situation is the opposite with regard to internet addiction: 12.2% for females versus 8.8% of males. Regression models show that being an migrant is a likely risk factor for IGD, along with distraction and avoidant coping strategies. On the contrary, migrant status appears no to be a risk factor for Internet addiction. The results of this study seem to indicate a higher prevalence of IGD in the student population with non-Italian citizenship and confirm that the migratory background appears to be a potential risk factor for the development of the disorder.

Effects of Angry Rumination and Distraction in Intimate Partner Violent Men.

Although the tendency to ruminate is related to the frequency of intimate partner violent (IPV) perpetration, it is unclear how IPV men react emotionally and physiologically during angry rumination. This study is the first to experimentally manipulate rumination and distraction with violent men. Using the rumination and distraction paradigm developed by Nolen-Hoeksema and Morrow, IPV (N = 87) and nonviolent (NV; N = 30) men underwent an anger induction and then were randomly assigned to either ruminate or distract. IPV men were hypothesized to experience increased effects of rumination compared to NV men. As predicted, the results demonstrate an increase in heart rate from baseline to postrumination. No change in physiological arousal was observed in the distraction condition over time. Surprisingly, no difference state anger was found between IPV and NV men, and both conditions resulted in an increase in state anger. Implications for battering interventions suggest that distraction strategies, such as taking a time-out, are not sufficient to decrease physiological arousal. Intervention strategies that address mindfulness, physiological soothing, distorted cognitions, and rumination may be more powerful in decreasing negative physiological arousal among IPV men.

Emotional and Behavioural Distraction by a Social Robot for Children Anxiety Reduction During Vaccination

Social Assistive Robots are starting to be widely used for paediatric health-care. In this setting, the development of effective strategies to engage and remain compelling during the interaction is still an open research area since, in the case of an incoming medical procedure, children could be in an anxiety state. In this work, the proposed strategy relies on the use of a social robot interacting with the children and applying distraction strategies that are used in human–human interaction. Additionally, the robot displays emotional behaviours to attract the children attention. We present the results of a 2 months study (N = 139) conducted in a Health-Vaccines Centre, where the effects of the distraction provided by a social robot, showing such interactive behaviours interleaved with emotional ones, are compared with the same distracting strategies without any emotional social cues and with the case without the robot. Such emotional behaviours are selected with a positive or negative valence according to the initial anxiety state of the children (e.g., low or high). Outcome criteria for the evaluation of the intervention included the parents reported fear, anxiety and happiness at different stages of the interaction, self-report of the perceived pain, and an external behavioural evaluation of the pain. Results showed that the robot distraction strategies were able to reduce fear and anxiety, and increase happiness in every condition. Moreover, children perceived less pain with respect to the case of no robot. Finally, results showed that the initial children anxiety has an impact on the ability of the robot to be engaging.

Neighborhood Profiles and Associations with Coping Behaviors among Low-Income Youth.

Extant research has typically examined neighborhood characteristics in isolation using variable-centered approaches; however, there is reason to believe that perceptions of the neighborhood environment influence each other, requiring the use of person-centered approaches to study these relationships. The present study sought to determine profiles of youth that differ in their perceptions of their neighborhoods and objective neighborhood characteristics, and whether these profiles are associated with youth coping. Participants were low-income, African American youth (N= 733; 51.0% female, M age = 18.76 years, SD = 1.71) from a metropolitan city who were originally recruited for the Youth Opportunity program in Baltimore, Maryland. A latent profile analysis was conducted which included self-reported neighborhood social cohesion, collective efficacy, disorder, violence, and disadvantage derived from census data. Coping behaviors, specifically positive cognitive restructuring, problem-focused coping, distraction strategies, and avoidant behaviors were assessed via self-reported questionnaires. Four neighborhood profiles were identified: highest disorder (20.0%); highest violence/highest disadvantage (5.2%); high violence (26.6%); and highest cohesion/lowest disorder (48.2%). Individuals in the highest violence/highest disadvantage profile reported higher positive cognitive restructuring and problem-focused coping than the other profiles. These findings warrant an investigation into the individual assets and contextual resources that may contribute to more positive coping behaviors among youth in more violent and disadvantaged neighborhoods, which has the potential to improve resilient outcomes among youth in similar at-risk settings.

The role of individual differences in emotion regulation efficacy

Emotion regulation (ER) helps to maintain mental health and achieve optimal functioning. Whether people benefit from various ER strategies may depend on individual difference variables. A sample of undergraduates (N = 378, Mage = 18.6) underwent a negative emotion induction and then were assigned to learn about and perform an ER strategy (cognitive reappraisal, acceptance, or distraction). We tested whether individual differences (cognitive restructuring skills, need for cognition, mindfulness, and experiential avoidance) moderated the efficacy of ER (i.e., decreased negative emotion from before to after applying the strategy). Experientially avoidant individuals had less efficacy in applying the acceptance strategy, compared to the cognitive reappraisal and distraction strategies. Motivation and perceived ability to use each strategy were examined as mediators.

СТРАТЕГІЧНІ НАПРЯМИ УПРАВЛІННЯ ІНФОРМАЦІЙНОЮ БЕЗПЕКОЮ ПІДПРИЄМСТВ АГРОПРОДОВОЛЬЧОЇ СФЕРИ

The purpose of the article was to study the strategic directions of information security management of agricultural enterprises. Research methods. The tasks set out in the article were implemented using the methods of systematization and generalization, analysis and synthesis, dialectical approach. The results of the study. In the research course the main elements of the formation and implementation of the information strategy of agrarian entities were identified. Stakeholders in the formation and implementation of the information security strategy of the agricultural enterprise were identified. The main nine types of information strategies were described. There are: prevention strategy, containment strategy, surveillance strategy, detection strategy, response strategy, distraction strategy, perimeter protection strategy, compartmentalization strategy, layering strategy. On the basis of generalization of information security strategies of the agro-food enterprises the key directions of its formation and realization were determined. A logical outline of the forming process an information security strategy was constructed, which should be closely related to the main business goals of the enterprise and its corporate strategy. The current trends and best practices of information security development of the enterprise were considered. Conclusions. The research made it possible to determine the essence of information strategy of agricultural enterprises as a structured and interconnected set of weighted actions aimed at long-term protection of enterprise information objects. Practical value. The proposed process of forming the information strategy of agricultural edu-cation will allow agricultural enterprises to choose the optimal information strategy, which will be interdependent with the general strategy and will allow to form the necessary set of software, technical, hardware and organizational tools for the protection of information resources. Prospects for further research include the development of a methodology for determining the information security strategy of agrarian enterprise. Keywords: agricultural enterprise, agro-food sector, element, information security, strategic direction, information security strategy, digitalization.

Current status of the magnetically controlled growing rod in treatment of early-onset scoliosis: What we know after a decade of experience.

The magnetically controlled growing rod (MCGR) has had approximately 10 years of clinical experience worldwide. Clinical effectiveness to control early-onset scoliosis is consistent even at final surgery. MCGRs have significantly lower relative percentage of infection or wound complications as compared to traditional growing rods. Most common complications include foundation failure and failure of distraction. Contouring of the rod especially at the proximal segment while accommodating for the straight actuator remains a difficult task and its failure may lead to proximal junctional kyphosis. Unique complications of MCGR include clunking, temporary diminishing distraction gains, and metallosis. Temporary reductions in distraction gains are observed as the MCGR lengthens but return to normal baseline distraction gains after rod exchange. Lack of standardization for rod configuration, distraction strategies and decisions of whether to keep the rods in situ, remove without fusion surgery or to perform spinal fusion at skeletal maturity will require further study.

Implementing the Coping Positively with My Worries Manual: A Pilot Study

Children with chronic illnesses may experience anxiety related to medical procedures and hospitalization, and they may lack coping strategies for managing this anxiety. The objectives of the current study were to implement a new anxiety management manual for children and use qualitative methods to examine how children personalized strategies from the manual. Parent perceptions of child coping also were examined. Twenty-six children with chronic illnesses and twenty-five parents reviewed an anxiety coping manual focused on cognitive behavioral strategies of distraction, imagination, relaxation, and positive self-talk/thinking. Children reviewed the manuals with an interviewer and then they developed coping menus to reflect how they would use the cognitive and behavioral strategies from the manual. Parents also completed a survey to provide information about their child’s current coping and the strategies from the manual they thought their child was most likely to implement. Qualitative techniques were used to analyze data. Findings indicated that children had the ability to personalize coping strategies taught in the anxiety coping manual. Parents felt their children were most likely to use relaxation and distraction strategies. Parents reported that children had some pre-existing coping strategies, similar to those presented in the manual. Children were developing personalized strategies for managing their anxiety, including distraction, imagery, relaxation, and positive self-talk. Parents, family members and pets were key support figures. Future research should explore whether children use the strategies over time, as they undergo repeated procedures and hospitalizations.

Multilevel survival analysis: Studying the timing of children's recurring behaviors.

The timing of events (e.g., how long it takes a child to exhibit a particular behavior) is often of interest in developmental science. Multilevel survival analysis (MSA) is useful for examining behavioral timing in observational studies (i.e., video recordings) of children's behavior. We illustrate how MSA can be used to answer 2 types of research questions. Specifically, using data from a study of 117 children 36 months old (SD = .38) during a frustration task, we examined the timing of their recurring anger expressions, and how this is related to (a) negative affectivity, a dimension of temperament related to the ability to regulate emotions, and (b) children's strategy use (distraction, bids to their mother). Contrary to expectations, negative affectivity was not associated with the timing of children's recurring anger expressions. As expected, children's recurring anger expressions were less likely to occur in the seconds when children were using a distraction strategy, whereas they were more likely when children made bids to their mother. MSA is a flexible analytic technique that, when applied to observational data, can yield valuable insights into the dynamics of children's behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

We Are Not God: Reflections on the Theology of Laudato Si

We Are Not God:Reflections on the Theology of Laudato Si* Reinhard Hutter "We are not God. The earth was here before us and it has been given to us" (Laudato Si §67) by "a Father Who Creates and Who Alone Owns the World" (§75) Is Catholic Social Teaching a specifically theological enterprise? And if so, can one show it in the case of the most recent magisterial instantiation of Catholic Social Teaching, Pope Francis's 2015 encyclical letter Laudato Si, On the Care for Our Common Home? I think that a positive answer must be given to both questions. Part of the reasons I think so are of an autobiographical nature. About forty-five years ago I founded an environmental youth group, the first ever in my hometown in northern Bavaria. This youth group was part of a youth network that was a branch of a national environmental organization. I am talking here about the academic year 1974–1975, just about four years after Greenpeace had been founded in Vancouver, Canada, and five years before the Green Party was to be founded in then West Germany. The wake-up call and catalyst for my initiative had been a memorable encounter with the first Club of Rome Report from 1972, The Limits to Growth. This report shocked me and my friends into an acute awareness of an approaching ecological crisis. Our environmental youth group was a first local activist response. In our high-school chemistry lab, we tested the—at that time rather alarming—water [End Page 639] quality of the main river in our area and publicized our findings in the local newspaper; we organized polls, public events, and demonstrations in order to raise the awareness of the local population about environmental challenges and threats; we also organized the first municipal glass-recycling program; and we overall acted as "mud rakers," exposing in the local newspaper pollution caused by companies, municipalities, and private organizations. Needless to say, we did not only have friends. Most members of our youth group eventually joined the Green Party when it was founded in 1980. I, however, decided to study philosophy and theology at the university. And this decision is part of the providential chain of events that brings me to this conference today and to the topic I am speaking about. Those among you my age or older might remember that in the mid-1970s in Europe and in the United States neither the Catholic Church nor the Protestants were really concerned about the unfolding global environmental crisis. One noteworthy exception was Blessed Pope Paul VI, who in his 1971 apostolic letter Octogesima Adveniens—written on the occasion of the eightieth anniversary of Rerum Novarum, the foundational text of modern Catholic Social Teaching—referred to the ecological crisis as "a tragic consequence" of unchecked human activity: "Due to an ill-considered exploitation of nature, humanity runs the risk of destroying it and becoming in turn a victim of this degradation" (§21). Together with other important teachings of Pope Paul VI, this prophetic warning remained almost completely unheeded. The post-conciliar progressives were then engaged in the "theology of revolution," a largely Marxist-inspired radical precursor to the subsequent more moderate and more theologically grounded "theology of liberation." Most post-conciliar progressives dismissed our ecological concerns as a bourgeois and possibly even reactionary strategy of distraction that pulled away attention and energy from the one cause that mattered—the class struggle and the eventual overthrow of global capitalism. That forty years later, the magisterium of the Catholic Church would issue a teaching document of the magnitude, scope, and depth of Laudato Si was then utterly unimaginable and beyond the range of our wildest hopes. Why did I decide to turn to philosophy and theology while most of my friends from the youth group joined the Green Party? They, quite obviously, desired to help transform our local initiatives into national and even global policies of environmental protection and ecological sustainability. While I continued to share these concerns and, as a matter of fact, voted for the Green Party regularly at all elections on the local and on the state level in then West Germany, my...

Distraction Using Buzzy or Handheld Computers During Venipuncture.

Venipuncture is one of the most frequently performed painful procedures in children. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of 2 analgesic strategies for venipuncture in children in a specific setting like a blood-drawing center. This was a prospective randomized controlled trial. It was conducted in the blood-drawing center of a tertiary level children's hospital in Italy, between November 2014 and February 2015. Eligible patients were children aged from 4 to 12 years referred to the blood-drawing center for venipuncture. Enrolled children were randomized to be distracted by Buzzy device or by playing with a handheld computer. The procedural pain was measured with the faces pain scale-revised by children aged from 4 to 7 years and with a numerical rating scale by children aged from 8 to 12 years. Two hundred children with a median age of 8 years were enrolled in the study. The self-reported procedural pain was not statistically different between the Buzzy group and the handheld computer group: median (interquartile range) = 3.0 (1.0-4.8) and 2.0 (1.0-4.8), respectively (P = 0.72). Children reported significant pain in 25% of cases with both distraction strategies. The procedural success rate at the first attempt was not significantly different in the 2 groups. Analgesia provided by Buzzy or by a handheld computer was not significantly different in children undergoing venipuncture in a blood-drawing center, with the great proportion of them reporting no or mild pain during procedure.

Living with painful diabetic neuropathy: insights from focus groups into fears and coping strategies

Objective: Painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN) is known to negatively affect quality of life. Being physically active is a crucial part of successful diabetes self-management, but regimen adherence is often low. Coping strategies and fears have shown to be related to less physical activity (PA). The aim of the present study was to obtain more in-depth information on psychological risk factors leading to less PA in persons with PDN.Design: Three semi-structured focus group interviews were conducted with a representative sample of persons with PDN (N = 12). Data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using a hybrid method of thematic analyses and a grounded theory approach.Main Outcome Measures: Fears and coping strategies related to PA in persons with PDN.Results: Several specific fears were identified; fear of hypoglycaemia, fear of pain increase, fear of total exhaustion, fear of physical injury, fear of falling, fear of loss of identity, and fear of negative evaluation by others. To cope with these fears, avoidance, remaining active, cognitive distraction, and acceptance strategies were described.Conclusion: In persons with PDN, diabetes-related fears and pain-related fears play a role in less engagement in PA, indicating the need for new methods for improving self-management in persons with PDN.

The effect of hospital clown nurse on children’s compliance to burn dressing change

Background and aimPediatric burn injury is a traumatic experience which affects the child both physically and psychologically. Following the burn injury, repetitive dressing changes are one of the main problems, and to manage the level of distress caused this procedure, various distraction strategies are being used. However, the effect of hospital clown during burn dressing change among children has not been studied before. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of hospital clown-nurse on children’s compliance to burn dressing change. MethodsThis randomized controlled experimental study was conducted with 50 children between 3–7years. There were 25 children in the experimental group and 25 children in the control group. In the intervention group, clown-nurse accompanied the child during burn dressing change while the children in the control group received standard care without hospital clown. Children’s behavioral reactions were observed during dressing change. ConclusionsChildren in the intervention group had better compliance to burn dressing change, in other words, they cried and/or yelled less, they were more active, had better mood, better communication and interaction with the accompanying parent and the nurse. In addition, older children in the experimental group had better compliance to the burn dressing change.

Experiences of using very low energy diets for weight loss by people with overweight or obesity: a review of qualitative research.

Although very low energy diets (VLEDs) are the most successful non-surgical, non-pharmacological treatment for obesity, they are underutilized, and little is known about experiences of people using VLEDs for weight loss. This systematic review synthesizes qualitative studies investigating participants' experiences of undertaking a VLED composed of total meal replacement products to lose weight. Of the 4,911 articles screened, three studies met criteria for inclusion. Thematic synthesis was used to analyse the study findings. Health and appearance were the main motivators to use a VLED for weight loss. Adherence was facilitated by group support meetings, rapid weight loss and ease of use of the diet. Being part of a clinical trial gave a sense of accountability and further reason to adhere to a VLED, and the VLED itself was well accepted by users. Barriers to adherence, such as temptations and social occasions, were overcome by avoidance and distraction strategies. In conclusion, this qualitative synthesis of users' experiences of VLEDs shows that VLEDs are well accepted and positively viewed by users. More in-depth research could facilitate understanding of how this weight loss strategy influences the weight maintenance period, in order to facilitate better long-term results.

Adolescent and nurse perspectives of psychotherapeutic interventions for PTSD delivered through task-shifting in a low resource setting.

BackgroundThis investigation compared the perceived effectiveness of supportive counselling (SC) and prolonged exposure for adolescents (PE-A) by treatment users (adolescents with PTSD) and non-specialist treatment providers (supervised nurses).MethodAdolescent participants and nurse providers were purposively recruited to share their experiences of trial participation through face to face semi-structured in-depth interviews and treatment-specific focus groups (all recorded). Twelve adolescent participant transcripts (ten interviews and two focus groups) and three nurse provider transcripts were doubly transcribed. Thematic content analysis was applied using Atlas.ti software. Two emerging themes are presented in this paper: 1) Perceptions of the intervention and 2) Usefulness of the intervention.ResultsRegardless of treatment arm, adolescents experienced warm counselling relationships and described the process of extending trust to the counselor. Adolescents in the PE-A arm provided clear descriptions of session structure and treatment rationale compared with adolescents receiving SC. The most helpful tools were breathing retraining and imaginal exposure for PE-A and creation of distraction strategies during non-directive SC. Adolescents in both arms continued to use the techniques acquired during treatment and reported symptom improvement. Participants who received SC acknowledged ongoing reexperiencing. Nurses perceived SC to be an immediately transferable skill, but feedback on their preference for one intervention over the other was inconclusive.ConclusionBoth PTSD treatment strategies, implemented by non-specialists, were perceived as helpful. Overall, adolescents reported warm therapeutic relationships and a reduction in PTSD symptoms. Nurses stated that they would require institutional support to ensure delivery of these interventions in a scalable and sustainable manner.

Targeting in quantum persuasion problem

In this paper we investigate the potential for persuasion arising from the quantum indeterminacy of a decision-maker’s beliefs, a feature that has been proposed as a formal expression of well-known cognitive limitations. We focus on a situation where an agent called Sender only has few opportunities to influence the decision-maker called Receiver. We do not address the full persuasion problem but restrict attention to a simpler one that we call targeting, i.e. inducing a specific belief state. The analysis is developed within the frame of a n-dimensional Hilbert space model. We find that when the prior is known, Sender can induce a targeted belief with a probability of at least 1∕n when using two sequential measurements. This figure climbs to 1/2 when both the target and the belief are known pure states. A main insight from the analysis is that a well-designed strategy of distraction can be used as a first step to confuse Receiver. We thus find that distraction rather than the provision of relevant arguments is an effective means to achieve persuasion. We provide an example from political decision-making.

Age differences in emotion regulation effort: Pupil response distinguishes reappraisal and distraction for older but not younger adults.

In previous research, older adults show greater emotional benefits from distracting themselves than from reappraising an event when strategically regulating emotion. Older adults also demonstrate an attentional preference to avoid, while younger adults show a bias toward approaching negative stimuli. This suggests a possible age-related differentiation of cognitive effort across approach and avoidance of negative stimuli during emotion regulation. In this study, we tracked cognitive effort via pupil dilation during the use of distraction (avoidance) and reappraisal (approach) strategies across age. Forty-eight younger adults (M = 20.94, SD = 1.78; 19 men) and 48 older adults (M = 68.82, SD = 5.40; 15 men) viewed a slideshow of negative images and were instructed to distract, reappraise, or passively view each image. Older adults showed greater pupil dilation during reappraisal than distraction, but younger adults displayed no difference between conditions-an effect that survived when controlling for gaze patterns. Gaze findings revealed that older adults looked less within images during active emotion regulation compared with passive viewing (no difference between distraction and reappraisal), and younger adults showed no difference across strategies. Younger adults gazed less within the most emotional image areas during distraction, but this did not significantly contribute to pupil response. Our findings support that distraction is less cognitively effortful than reinterpreting negative information in later life. These findings could be explained by older adults' motivational bias to disengage from negative information because of the age-related positivity effect, or compensation for decreased working memory resources across the life span. (PsycINFO Database Record

Defence against responsive and non‐responsive jamming attack in cognitive radio networks: an evolutionary game theoretical approach

An anti-jamming system based on Stackelberg game theory has been used in past to model the sequence of events of a jamming game in cognitive radio network. However, this approach fails to support the improvement of strategy in counteracting responsive and non-responsive attack. The proposed anti-jamming system selects a suitable strategy based on channel availability and jammer type. When channel availability is high, the interaction between cognitive radio and jammer is modelled using hidden Markov process, but when it is low, evolutionary game theory (EGT) is used. Furthermore, in the case of responsive jammer, a distraction strategy is incorporated to deceive the jammer, but Nash equilibrium is attained while dealing with mixed strategy of non-responsive jammer. The simulation results show that the proposed EGT-based anti-jamming system increases the throughput of system while decreasing the probability of bit error at least by 2% compared to the existing Stackelberg game approach.

The impact of pre-sleep arousal state and strategy to control unwanted thoughts on sleep quality

ABSTRACTObjective: It has been questioned whether elevated pre-sleep cognitive arousal contributes to poor sleep or whether it is the use of maladaptive thought control strategies, used to manage this cognitive arousal, that are responsible. The study aimed to examine how these factors – cognitive arousal (with and without anxiety) and maladaptive thought control strategies contribute to perceived sleep quality (SQ). Design: 129 “healthy adults” (46 males, 83 females) were exposed to picture-stimuli eliciting either anxious cognitive arousal or non-anxious cognitive arousal at bedtime. The groups were then randomly split and briefed to use either a cognitive distraction or cognitive suppression thought control strategy or no instructions were given (controls). Subjective SQ was measured immediately on waking. Results: Induced anxious cognitive arousal was associated with lower SQ compared to non-anxious cognitive arousal. Analyses revealed a significant interaction between arousal and the strategies used to control unwanted thoughts on SQ. When experiencing anxious cognitive arousal, the strategy of distraction was associated with poorer sleep outcomes. Conclusion: The findings suggest that the efficacy of differing thought control strategies vary depending upon whether cognitive arousal elicits anxiety or not. With that in mind, clinical implications in terms of augmenting the treatment of insomnia are discussed.