Lower Preference Scores Research Articles

The implicit preference evaluation for the ceramic tiles with different visual features: Evidence from an event-related potential study.

Ceramic tiles are popular because of their various forms, and they are often used to decorate the environment. However, few studies have applied objective methods to explore the implicit preference and visual attention of people toward ceramic tile features. Using event-related potential technology can provide neurophysiological evidence for the study and applications of tiles. This study explored the influence of pattern, lightness, and color system factors of ceramic tiles on the preferences of people using a combination of subjective questionnaires and event-related potential (ERP) technology. Twelve different conditions of tiles (2 × 3 × 2) were used as stimuli. EEG data were collected from 20 participants while they watched the stimuli. Subjective preference scores and average ERPs were analyzed using analysis of variance and correlation analysis. (1) Pattern, lightness, and color system factors significantly affected the subjective preference scores for tiles; the unpatterned tiles, light-toned tiles, and warm-colored tiles received higher preference scores. (2) The preferences of people for different features of tiles moderated ERP amplitudes. (3) The light-toned tiles with a high preference score caused a greater N100 amplitude than the medium-toned and dark-toned tiles; and the patterned tiles and warm-colored tiles with low preference scores induced greater P200 and N200 amplitudes. In the early stage of visual processing, light-toned tiles attracted more attention, possibly because of the positive emotional effects related to the preference. The greater P200 and N200 elicited by the patterned and neutral-colored tiles in the middle stage of visual processing indicates that patterned and neutral-colored tiles attracted more attention. This may be due to negativity bias, where more attention is allocated to negative stimuli that people strongly dislike. From the perspective of cognitive processes, the results indicate that the lightness of ceramic tiles is the factor that people first detect, and the visual processing of pattern and color system factors of ceramic tiles belong to a higher level of visual processing. This study provides a new perspective and relevant information for assessing the visual characteristics of tiles for environmental designers and marketers involved in the ceramic tiles industry.

The impact of visual complexity on perceived safety and comfort of the users: A study on urban streetscape of Sri Lanka.

Increase in the variety of development in urban context has made it more complicated and complex for the users of public spaces. Absence of sufficient information to read the surrounding causes psychological anxiousness leading to perceived danger or discomfort for the urbanites. Consequently, perceived safety and comfort of the users is distinctively low in urban contexts, creating neglected and underused spaces. Complexity is one of the information processing variables as per Kaplan and Kaplan’s informational model which helps users to comprehend the surrounding environment. The streetscape plays a vital role in the daily movement patterns within the urban cities and is the transition boundary between the public and private realms. Visual complexity of these streets is a result of different configurations of elements within the urban areas. This research is conducted to ascertain the relationship between visual complexity levels of the streets with the perceived safety and comfort of the users. Shannon Diversity Index (SDI) and Fractal dimension analysis were conducted with 48 SVIs (Street View Images) selected within 1km radius of Colpetty junction, Colombo Sri Lanka covering all the possible compositions found within the context. The visual index data extraction had identified ten major components within the selected 48 SVIs. 78 subjective ranking responses for perceived safety, comfort (preference) and perceived complexity were collected from snowball sampling. Findings of the study revealed that perceived safety levels and preference scores for the SVIs are related to the Shannon Diversity Index calculation in an inverted ‘U’ shape where the highest and lowest SDI values are related with low preference scores and low safety levels. The SVIs with medium SDI values are perceived as the safest and most preferred by the users of urban streets of Colombo Sri Lanka. The SDI and fractal dimension values were significantly correlated with the perceived complexity scores of the users. The results of this study can be accommodated in the planning and designing of urban streetscapes of tropical climates for sustainable and friendly urban expansions.

Expression of stable and reliable preference and aversion phenotypes following place conditioning with psychostimulants.

Drug-seeking behavior occurs more readily in some individuals than others. This phenomenon is considered in studies of drug self-administration in which high drug-seeking/taking individuals can be identified. In contrast, studies of conditioned place preference (CPP) often involve a random sample of drug-naïve rodents that includes phenotypes not considered relevant to addiction. The main objective of the current studies was to determine if a priori identification of different conditioning phenotypes could improve the validity and sensitivity of CPP expression as a preclinical test for vulnerability to addiction. Analysis of cocaine place conditioning data from 443 Swiss-Webster mice revealed a trimodal distribution with peaks corresponding to means of k = 3 clusters. The cluster means occurred at high, low, or negative preference scores, the latter suggesting a phenotype acquiring conditioned place aversion (CPA). The same clusters were identified in mice conditioned with methamphetamine, MDPV, or amphetamine, and these clusters remained stable and reliable during three additional expression tests spaced at 24h. A meta-analysis of effect sizes obtained from CPP literature revealed a positively skewed distribution affected by sample size, consistent with the existence of a CPA phenotype within the populations tested. A dopamine receptor antagonist, flupentixol, blocked cocaine CPP expression in a group containing all phenotypes, but sensitivity improved markedly when CPA phenotypes were excluded from the dataset. These studies suggest that taking phenotype into consideration when designing place conditioning studies will improve their application as a preclinical tool in addiction biology and drug discovery.

A generic Bayesian-based framework for enhancing top-N recommender algorithms

Personalized top-N recommender algorithms have been investigated widely in decades. The core task of different recommender algorithms is to estimate user-item preference scores and then to suggest, for each user, top-N items that have high preference scores. However, little attention was paid to the recommendation of items with low preference scores. In this work, we use the bayesian estimation theory to build the relationship between the estimated preference scores and the actual recommendation accuracy. We then propose a novel metric RNR (Recall-to-Noise Ratio) to recommend items with low estimated preference scores. An interesting counterintuitive phenomenon is found that user-item links with low preference scores may achieve higher accuracy than high preference score ones in the recommendation. Based on RNR, we design a generic framework that could recommend user-item links that have low preference scores without the loss of recommendation accuracy. The effectiveness of the proposed framework is illustrated by both theoretical analysis and empirical experiments.

The neonatal treatment with clomipramine decreases sexual motivation and increases estrogen receptors expression in the septum of male rats: Effects of the apomorphine

Administering clomipramine during the early days of life induced several behavioral and neurochemical alterations in adult male rats, which resemble major depression disorder. The alterations included poor sexual performance, which is considered a reward-seeking behavior regulated by dopaminergic system. Given that estrogen receptors are expressed in different areas of the brain involved in regulating reproductive behavior, motivation and mood. The objective of this study was to analyze the effect of a non-selective dopamine agonist (apomorphine) on sexual incentive motivation in rats exposed to clomipramine (CMI) in the neonatal period. In addition, we evaluated the expression of mRNA ERα and ERβ in nucleus accumbens (NAcc) and septum of CMI rats. We found that only a few rats subjected to neonatal CMI treatment performed mounts, intromissions and ejaculations. Also, those rats spent less time exploring the sexual incentive zone and had lower preference scores; this effect was reverted by administering 0.1 mg/kg of apomorphine. Finally, the CMI rats presented higher levels of mRNA ERα and ERβ, only in septum area. These data indicate that neonatal treatment with CMI altered the expression of mRNA ERα and ERβ in the septum, which participates in regulating the motivational component of sexual behavior.

Micro-RNAs, their target proteins, predispositions and the memory of filial imprinting

Visual imprinting is a learning process whereby young animals come to prefer a visual stimulus after exposure to it (training). The intermediate medial mesopallium (IMM) in the domestic chick forebrain is critical for visual imprinting and contributes to molecular regulation of memory formation. We investigated the role of micro-RNAs (miRNAs) in such regulation. Twenty-four hours after training, miRNA spectra in the left IMM were compared between chicks with high preference scores (strong memory for imprinting stimulus), and chicks with low preference scores (weak memory for imprinting stimulus). Using criteria of significance and expression level, we chose gga-miR-130b-3p for further study and found that down-regulation correlated with learning strength. No effect was detected in posterior nidopallium, a region not involved in imprinting. We studied two targets of gga-miR-130b-3p, cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding proteins 1 (CPEB-1) and 3 (CPEB-3), in two subcellular fractions (P2 membrane-mitochondrial and cytoplasmic) of IMM and posterior nidopallium. Only in the left IMM was a learning-related effect observed, in membrane CPEB-3. Variances from the regression with preference score and untrained chicks suggest that, in the IMM, gga-miR-130b-3p level reflects a predisposition, i.e. capacity to learn, whereas P2 membrane-mitochondrial CPEB-3 is up-regulated in a learning-specific way.

In the Zone: An Exploration of Personal Characteristics Underlying Affective Responses to Heavy Exercise

Positive affective responses to exercise have been linked to longer-term adherence. The dual-mode model indicates that affective responses during heavy exercise (between the ventilatory threshold and the respiratory compensation point) are subject to interindividual variability (zone of response variability). Participants (N = 48) completed measures to assess personal characteristics prior to a graded exercise test. Responses to the Feeling Scale were recorded during the graded exercise test and subsequently used to group participants as either negative responders or neutral/positive responders to heavy exercise. Discriminant function analysis was applied, and a significant weighted linear composite predicted affective response. Preference for exercise intensity and sex were significant predictors (p = .003). Negative responders had lower preference scores and were more likely to be men. The combination of these two variables successfully predicted group membership 71% of the time. Individual differences appear relevant when examining affective responses to heavy exercise.

Sex differences and parallels in the development of externalizing behaviours in childhood: Boys’ and girls’ susceptibility to social preference among peers

This study examined whether being poorly preferred by peers may partially explain why boys with oppositional behaviour develop more conduct problems than girls. Children from the general Dutch population attending regular elementary schools (N = 759, 50.3% boys) were followed annually from age 7 to 10 years. Teachers-rated externalizing behaviour and peer-nominated social preference was assessed across four waves. Autoregressive cross-lagged models indicated that oppositionality predicted increases in conduct problems. Above and beyond this direct link, oppositionality predicted low social preference in subsequent years, which in turn predicted an increase in conduct problems. In this latter pathway, sex differences were found. That is, oppositional boys were as likely as oppositional girls to show an increase in low social preference one year later. However, boys who had low social preference scores showed stronger increases in conduct problems one year later, compared to girls who had low social preference scores. Hence, developmental models of externalizing behaviour should consider the possible sex-differential impact of troublesome peer-relationships to understand the development of milder to more severe externalizing behaviours.

Discrimination of doenjang samples using a mass spectrometry-based electronic nose and human sensory preference testing

Doenjang samples were discriminated using a mass spectrometry-based electronic nose (MS-E-nose) and discriminant function analysis (DFA). Human sensory preference testing was performed using the same samples. DFA plots indicated classification of doenjang samples into 3 groups. Samples with high discriminate function (DF) 1 and low DF2 scores contained fewer volatile compounds. Grouping results using the MS-E-nose and human sensory preference testing were compared. Fully mashed doenjang samples with more diverse and intense volatile compounds showed low DF1 and high preference scores. DF2 scores for selected samples showed positive correlations to the amount of sample. The MS-E-nose was a useful tool for discrimination of the aroma of doenjang samples and for confirmation of changes in the aroma intensities of doenjang samples.

Genetic diversity and sensory preference in pomegranate fruits

Genetic diversity and sensory preference in pomegranate fruits. Abstract - Introduction. The aims of our study were to evaluate the genetic diversity in flavor attributes of and preferences for fresh pomegranate arils.Materialsandmethods.Experiments were conducted with fresh arils extracted from 18 distinct pomegranate varieties within the Israel Pomegranate Breeding Collection of the ARO. Consumer flavor acceptance tests were conducted at a commercial supermarket branch, and descriptive flavor analysis tests were conducted by a trained sensory panel. Results and discussion. Consumer flavor acceptance tests revealed wide diversity in the flavor preferences for various pomegranate varieties. Further descriptive flavor analysis tests revealed that arils from highly preferred varieties were characterized by high sweetness, moderate to low acidity levels, rich red wine and pomegranate fruity odors, low bitterness and astringency, and soft seeds. In contrast, arils from the least preferred varieties were either too or bitter, had low red wine and pomegranate fruity odors, or had very hard seeds. Furthermore, all sour varieties tested (acid content ≥ 1.8%) received low sensory preference scores, whereas sweet-sour and sweet varieties (acid contents 0.7-1.8% and ≤ 0.7%, respectively) achieved variable flavor preference scores. Overall, it is suggested that pomegranate flavor preference derives mainly from high sweetness, low to moderate acidity, rich red wine and pomegranate fruity odors, and soft seeds.

Personality May Confound Common Measures of Mate-Choice

The measurement of female mating preferences is central to the study of the evolution of male ornaments. Although several different methods have been developed to assess sexual preference in some standardized way, the most commonly used procedure consists of recording female spatial association with different males presented simultaneously. Sexual preference is then inferred from time spent in front of each male. However, the extent to which the measurement of female mate-choice is related to exploration tendencies has not been addressed so far. In the present study we assessed the influence of variation in exploration tendencies, a trait closely associated to global personality, on the measurement of female mating preference in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) using the widely used four-chamber choice-apparatus. The number of movements performed within both exploration and mate-choice apparatus was consistent within and across the two contexts. In addition, personality explained variation in selectivity, preference strength and consistency. High-exploratory females showed lower selectivity, lower preference scores and displayed more consistent preference scores. Our results suggest that variation in personality may affect the measurement of female mating preference and may contribute to explain existing inconsistencies across studies.

CONSUMER PREFERENCES FOR 'ELSTAR' APPLES AT DIFFERENT RIPENESS STAGES TREATED WITH 1-MCP

1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) is a potentially valuable tool to improve the postharvest quality of apples during commercialisation. The sensory (organoleptic) quality of 1-MCP treated apples is strongly influenced by the at-treatment ripeness stage, storage conditions, and storage duration. This investigation evaluates the consumer preferences for riper and less-ripe 1-MCP treated 'Elstar' apples after two storage periods. The apples were commercially stored for 4 months in CA plus 8 d shelf life at 20°C (January 2007 consumer test) and 8 months CA plus 8 d shelf life (May 2007 consumer test). In January, shoppers preferred the less-ripe untreated and ripe 1-MCP treated 'Elstar' apples while less ripe 1-MCP treated and ripe untreated fruit were clearly non-preferred. But in May after 4 further storage months, the consumer preference pattern had changed and less ripe 1-MCP treated fruit were now clearly preferred while ripe untreated fruit showed very low preference scores. These consumer preference test results show that 1-MCP treated 'Elstar' can under some circumstances (e.g., short term CA storage with less ripe fruit) be non-preferred. Optimal post-harvest management after the introduction of 1-MCP now requires producers and postharvest operators to be even more diligent to match fruit ripening with storage conditions and consumer marketing windows.

CONSUMERS' LIKING TOWARD ROASTED CHESTNUTS FROM FRESH AND FROZEN NUTS. INFLUENCE OF PSYCHO-SOCIAL FACTORS AND FAMILIARITY WITH PRODUCT

Three types of roasted chestnuts were obtained by roasting fresh nuts, by roasting frozen nuts or by heating pre-roasted and frozen nuts. A consumer expectation and liking test was carried out on roasted chestnuts in absence of information about the product processing (blind test), and after information was given (labelled test). Before the test, a questionnaire was presented and demographic and psychographic data were collected. In the blind test consumers expressed the same liking score toward roasted chestnuts from fresh and frozen nuts and a lower preference score toward heated chestnuts from pre-roasted and frozen nuts. A negative disconfirmation of the expectation (products worse than expected) was observed for roasted chestnuts from fresh fruits (traditional products) whilst a positive disconfirmation (products better than expected) for non traditional products. The information on the type of product enhanced the liking toward the traditional product (positive assimilation) and depleted the liking toward non traditional products (negative assimilation). The tendency of chestnut consumers to deplete their liking toward non-traditional products is less than that to enhance it toward the traditional product. The expectations and liking toward both traditional and non-traditional products were positively correlated to consumer age. Younger consumer showed a lower assimilation for roasted chestnuts from frozen nuts only. The product knowledge was negatively correlated to the liking of roasted chestnuts from frozen nuts and the attitude toward innovation was positively correlated to the expectations and the assimilation of information toward non traditional products.

Own and Friends' Smoking Attitudes and Social Preference as Early Predictors of Adolescent Smoking

This study examined the role of friends' attitudes in adolescent smoking (N = 203). Growth mixture modeling was used to identify three trajectories of smoking behavior from ages 12 to 14 years: a low-rate group, an increasing-rate group, and a high-rate group. Adolescents' own and their friends' attitudes at age 11 years were not significantly related to smoking. However, in the increasing-rate group (compared with the low-rate group), friends' attitudes interacted with both adolescents' own and friends' social preference (i.e., likeability). The link between friends' attitudes and membership in the increasing-rate group was stronger for early adolescents with low social preference scores and for early adolescents with friends who had low social preference scores. Other than for the high-rate group, for which causal factors of smoking may be located early in childhood (e.g., family and personality or temperamental characteristics), the combination of low social preference and friends who hold a positive attitude toward smoking is associated with escalating cigarette use among young adolescents.

Neural cell adhesion molecules, learning, and memory in the domestic chick.

The intermediate and medial hyperstriatum ventrale (IMHV) of the chick forebrain is a site of recognition memory for the learning process of imprinting. The results reported here demonstrate that neural cell adhesion molecules (NCAMs) play a time-dependent role in this recognition memory. Dark-reared chicks were trained, tested, and assigned a preference score as a measure of learning. Chicks with high preference scores were designated good learners and those with lower preference scores, poor learners. Controls were untrained. Tissue was removed, 9.5 hr or 24 hr after training, from the left and right IMHV, hyperstriatum accessorium, and posterior neostriatum. Three major NCAM isoforms (180, 140, and 120 kDa) were assayed. At 24 hr only, there was in left IMHV significantly more NCAM (for each isoform) in good learners than in the other 2 groups, and also a significant correlation between the amounts of NCAM and preference scores for all isoforms; the amount predicted by each regression line at preference score 50 (no learning) did not differ significantly from the mean value for untrained controls. There were no learning-related effects in either the hyperstriatum accessorium or the posterior neostriatum.

Clathrin proteins and recognition memory

Strong converging evidence indicates that the intermediate and medial part of the hyperstriatum ventrale (IMHV) of the chick forebrain is a site of recognition memory for the learning process of imprinting. Clathrin proteins have been implicated in synaptic plasticity. In the present study we demonstrate for the first time that they are involved in vertebrate learning. Chicks were trained by exposure to a conspicuous object and their preference for it versus a novel object subsequently measured as a preference score (an index of learning). Trained chicks with low preference scores were classed as “poor learners” and those with high preference scores as “good learners”. An additional group of chicks was untrained (“dark-reared”). Tissue was removed from the left and right IMHV, hyperstriatum accessorium and posterior neostriatum 9.5 h or 24 h after training. Clathrin heavy chain and clathrin light chains a and b were assayed using sodium dodecyl sulphate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunoblotting. In the IMHV, and only for clathrin heavy chain, was there a significant effect of training. The effect occurred 24 h but not 9.5 h after training, and was significant only in the left IMHV. In this region at 24 h, there was (i) significantly more clathrin heavy chain in good learners than in dark-reared chicks, and (ii) a significant positive correlation between the amount of clathrin heavy chain and preference score; the amount of protein present in the dark-reared chicks did not differ significantly from the amount predicted from the regression line for trained chicks performing at chance (preference score 50). These findings imply that for the left IMHV, visual experience per se, locomotor activity and other side effects of training did not affect the amount of clathrin heavy chain. Rather, the increase observed was a function of the amounts chick learned and, because it was delayed, is likely to be involved in long-term memory. The results for clathrin heavy chain taken together suggest that enhanced presynaptic events in the IMHV, possibly associated with an increase in synaptic vesicle release/uptake, are important in the recognition memory underlying imprinting.

Neuronal activity related to memory in the intermediate and medial part of the hyperstriatum ventrale of the chick brain

The intermediate and medial part of the hyperstriatum ventrale (IMHV) in the forebrain of the domestic chick Gallus gallus domesticus has been shown in previous studies to be critically involved in the learning process of imprinting. In the present study, 1-day-old chicks were imprinted by exposing them to one of two artificial stimuli. 24 h later each chick was given a preference test in which the two stimuli were presented in sequence. A preference score, an index of the strength of imprinting (i.e., of learning), was calculated from approach activity during the preference test. The chicks were divided into groups with low, medium and high preference scores (corresponding to weak, medium and strong learning respectively) and coded so that all subsequent procedures were performed blind. Each chick was then aneesthetized and spontaneous action potentials recorded extracellularly from groups of neurones in the left IMHV. The mean neuronal firing rate in chicks with medium and high preference scores was significantly greater than that in chicks with low preference scores. This relation between neuronal activity and preference score was not attributable to the chicks' locomotor activity per se. The results demonstrate an association between spontaneous electrical activity in the left IMHV and a measure of learning 1 day after the learning occurred.

Organization of partner preference and sexual behavior and its nocturnal rhythmicity in male rats.

Male rats were neonatally treated with 1,4,6-androstatriene-3,17-dione (ATD), which blocks aromatization of testosterone (T) to estradiol (E2), from Days 0, 2, or 5 through 14. Adult partner preference behavior (PPB; choice between estrous female rat [F] and active male rat [M]) was studied in the early part of the dark phase of the light-dark (LD) cycle. ATD Day 0 Ms showed a preference for the stimulus M or showed no preference for either of the stimulus Ss. Controls preferred the estrous F. ATD Days 2 and 5 Ms showed PPB intermediate between ATD Day 0 Ms and controls. Thus the neonatally sensitive period for organization of adult PPB extends beyond Day 5. Furthermore, PPB showed a nocturnal rhythmicity in ATD Ms but not in controls. In the late part of the dark phase, all Ms showed a preference for the stimulus F. ATD Days 2 and 5 Ms and control Ms were no longer different in PPB, but ATD Day 0 Ms still showed significantly lower preference scores for F than all other Ms. Thus the E2 metabolite of T suppresses organization of an adult nocturnal rhythm in PPB.

Ethanol preference following the sucrose-fading initiation procedure

Lever responding maintained with ethanol reinforcement at concentrations up to 20% (v/v) was initiated in non-food and -water deprived rats via a sucrose-fading procedure. Home cage two-bottle preference tests between water and 10% ethanol were conducted before (pre) and after (post) the ethanol initiation procedure to determine the effect of initial ethanol preference on ethanol initiation and of initiation on later ethanol preference. Initial preference testing found that the rats could be divided into two groups, animals with low ethanol preference scores (preference below 25%) and those with moderate ethanol preference scores (preference between 25% and 50%). All animals were successfully initiated with the sucrose-fading procedure to lever press with ethanol reinforcement. Following initiation, home cage preference was markedly increased for the initially low-preferring rats (from 12% to 43%), while moderate-preferring rats showed only slight increases (from 37% to 47%). The shift in ethanol preference was discussed in terms of the relation between ethanol preference and behavioral history.

Effects of Academic Tutoring on the Social Status of Low-Achieving, Socially Rejected Children

COIE, JOHN D., and KREHBIEL, GINA. Effects of Academic Tutoring on the Social Status of Lowachieving, Socially Rejected Children, CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1984, 55, 1465-1478. 40 socially rejected, low-achieving fourth graders were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 clinical intervention conditions: academic skills training (AS), social skills training (SS), combination (AS and SS), and control. Social rejection was defined by low social preference scores on positive and negative sociometric items. Low achievement was defined by lower than 36th percentile standing on the California Achievement Tests in reading or mathematics. Achievement and sociometric scores were obtained at the end of third grade (preintervention), fourth grade (postintervention), and fifth grade (follow-up). Classroom observations were made before and after intervention. The 2 x 2 (AS x SS) analyses ofcovariance revealed that AS training produced significant improvement in reading, math, and social preference scores. All but the math progress was sustained at the time of follow-up. SS training only resulted in significant reading comprehension progress. The AS groups showed significantly reduced off-task behavior and more on-task behavior. The AS groups tended to become less disruptive. They also experienced increases in positive teacher attention. The advantages of focusing on academic competency for this subset of rejected children are discussed in terms of the behavior changes, the enduring quality of the change, and models of interaction between academic and social effectiveness.