Lower Behavior Scores Research Articles

High performers demonstrate greater neural synchrony than low performers across behavioral domains

Abstract Heterogeneity in brain activity can give rise to heterogeneity in behavior, which in turn comprises our distinctive characteristics as individuals. Studying the path from brain to behavior, however, often requires making assumptions about how similarity in behavior scales with similarity in brain activity. Here, we expand upon recent work (Finn et al., 2020) which proposes a theoretical framework for testing the validity of such assumptions. Using intersubject representational similarity analysis in two independent movie-watching functional MRI (fMRI) datasets, we probe how brain-behavior relationships vary as a function of behavioral domain and participant sample. We find evidence that, in some cases, the neural similarity of two individuals is not correlated with behavioral similarity. Rather, individuals with higher behavioral scores are more similar to other high scorers whereas individuals with lower behavioral scores are dissimilar from everyone else. Ultimately, our findings motivate a more extensive investigation of both the structure of brain-behavior relationships and the tacit assumption that people who behave similarly will demonstrate shared patterns of brain activity.

Portfolio optimisation of international real estate investment trusts market during COVID-19: A behavioural perspective

This paper employs the cumulative prospect theory to investigate how deviation from rational investor asset selection improves portfolio optimisation. Firstly, asset portfolios are constructed by utilising the cumulative prospect theory, which captures investors’ psychology and risk tolerance and is herein referred to as a behavioural portfolio (BF). Secondly, the cluster technique is also used to build behavioural-centred investment portfolios that capture all the relevant moment properties of the asset return distribution as well as investors’ psychological dynamics and risk appetite, herein called the cluster moment behavioural portfolio (CMBF). The constructed portfolios are optimised by copula and differential evolution techniques. The analysis of optimisation of the constructed portfolios indicates that for behavioural portfolios (BF), in all phases of our sample period, portfolios with higher behavioural scores outperformed those with lower behavioural scores. And in the cluster moment behavioural portfolio (CMBP), for the pre-COVID and the COVID phases, the portfolios with lower behavioural scores outperform those with higher behavioural scores; however, for the full sample phase, the portfolio with a higher behavioural score outperforms the portfolio with the lower behavioural scores. The optimisation results of all the constructed portfolios largely favour portfolios with higher behavioural scores over those with lower scores. The results offer investment suggestions to guide investors with varying risk tolerance levels and those who deviate from the rational investor on how they can enhance their portfolio optimisation.

Consumer knowledge and awareness of the toxicity and handling of household products at a tertiary care center in Beirut, Lebanon.

Household products intoxication is a common and preventable problem. Household product hazard awareness is lacking among consumers in Lebanon, posing a public health hazard. A cross-sectional observational study was conducted at the American University of Beirut Medical Center by administering surveys to 176 adult participants. The surveys focused on demographics, awareness of product toxicity, practices used to avoid intoxication, and sources of information. Each participant was given a score for behavior and awareness. Informative brochures were handed to increase awareness among consumers. We surveyed 176 patients, of whom (84.7%) were females with a mean age of 42.2 ± 13.5 years. Most were married (77.3%), had a college education (76.7%), were employed (62.5%), and were in charge of household cleaning (76.7%). Toilet cleaners were the substances most perceived to be toxic (94.0%). Most people (86.4%) had low to medium scores on behavior, while most (77.3%) had high scores on awareness. Male gender and using product labels as sources of information were associated with higher behavior scores, while referring to a friend or a relative as a source of information on product intoxication was associated with a lower behavior score. Greater awareness scores were strongly associated with being married, having a higher monthly income, and referring to warning signs presented on the labels as a source of knowledge. Unsafe handling and storage of household products are common among consumers in our population. Therefore, it may be necessary to launch education campaigns to improve consumer handling of household products.

Study of Relationship between Learning and Behavioral Parameters in Mature Male Rhesus Monkeys (Macaca mulatta).

A study of mature male rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) was carried out to determine the relationships between learning ability, and behavioral parameters. In individuals with low behavioral scores of aggression, sociability, and mobility, the levels of learning, training, and skill retention were significantly higher than in individuals with higher behavioral scores. At the same time, individuals with a high level of anxiety were characterized with enhanced level of learning, training and skill stability.

Changes in Empathy in Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain: A Structural-Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.

Objective: Many pieces of research have focused on pain within individuals, but little attention has been paid to whether pain can change an individual’s empathic ability and affect social relationships. The purpose of this study is to explore how chronic low back pain changes empathy.Methods: Twenty-four chronic low back pain patients and 22 healthy controls were recruited. We set up an experimental pain-exposed model for each healthy subject. All subjects received a painful-empathic magnetic resonance scan. After the scan, all subjects rated the pain intensity and multiple empathy-related indicators. The clinical assessment scale was the 20-item Basic Empathy Scale in Adults.Result: The chronic low back pain patients reported lower scores on the total scores of BES-A, the subscale scores of emotional disconnection and cognitive empathy, and the discomfort rating. The fMRI results in the chronic low back pain patients showed that there were multiple abnormal brain pathways centered on the anterior insula. The DTI results in the chronic low back pain patients showed that there were reduced fractional anisotropy values in the corpus callosum, bilateral anterior thalamic radiation (ATR), right posterior thalamic radiation (PTR), right superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), and left anterior corona radiate (ACR).Conclusion: Our study found that patients with chronic low back pain have impaired empathy ability. The abnormal functional connectivity of multiple brain networks, multiple damaged white matter tracts, and the lower behavioral scores in chronic low back pain patients supported our findings.

Peripheral axonopathy in sciatic nerve of adult Wistar rats following exposure to vanadium

Depletion of myelin and neurobehavioural deficits are indications that vanadium crosses the blood-brain barrier and such neurotoxic effects of vanadium on the brain of Wistar rats have been elucidated. The effect however on the peripheral nerves, is yet to be reported. Thus, this work was designed to evaluate the axonal and myelin integrity of sciatic nerves in Wistar rats following exposure to vanadium. Ten male Wistar rats were exposed to 3 mg/kg body weight of sodium metavanadate for 7 days, subjected to rearing and forelimb grip behavioural tests, and sciatic nerves processed for histology (haematoxylin and eosin, cresyl violet, and luxol fast blue). Dystrophic axons with vesiculated myelin, thinned myelin sheath, and demyelinated axons were observed in the vanadium exposed rats, suggestive of axonopathy, classified as fourth-degree nerve injury. Lower behavioural scores were recorded for vanadium-dosed rats; thus, corroborating histological pictures observed of the sciatic nerves. Authors posit that vanadium crossed the "blood-nerve" barrier and caused the observed axonal pathologies and myelin depletion in the sciatic nerves of these rodents with resultant motor deficits. The present paper discusses possible motor deficits and the likely public health importance in regions with crude oil pollution and gas flaring rich in vanadium products.

Behavioral portfolio selection and optimization: an application to international stocks

The behavioral approach of decision making has emerged as a diversified solution in the presence of risk and uncertainty. Using the popular cumulative prospect theory as an objective function for portfolio selection, this study implements the classical mean–variance model to compare the portfolio performance of high behavioral stocks with that of stocks with lower behavioral values. Based on a sample of 37 international stocks over the period from October 1998 to November 2017, empirical results from D-vine pair copula GARCH-GEV indicate that the portfolio of high behavioral prospect stocks outperforms the portfolio of stocks with low behavioral scores. This finding may suggest that portfolios with high behavioral values coincide with rational efficiency sets.

Effect of pomegranate juice on traumatic brain injury patients

Pomegranate has characteristically high content of antioxidant substances. Free radicals such as ROS, NOS, O2, H2O2, OH. and nitric oxide can be scavenged effectively by pomegranate juice. A synergic positive relationship was found between phenolic contents and total antioxidant capacity, indicating that phenolic is dominant antioxidant components of pomegranate. Objectives: To evaluate the effect of pomegranate juice supplementation on nutritional and behavioral outcomes after TBI. Methods: 75 patients were enrolled in the study. Those with low behavioral scores were going to the intervention phase. i.e. supplemented with 250ml/day of pomegranate juice and followed every 3 months for one-year period. Results: Vitamin E was the most deficient 95.9%, Vitamin D and Vitamin A deficiency were 83.7% and 61.2% respectively. Deficient minerals were magnesium 79. %, potassium 67.3%, zinc 53.1%. Vitamin A, D and E in TBI patients were significantly lower than in normal patients p=0.008,0.001, 0.03 respectively. Tau protein and GSH were lower in TBI patients than in normal group p=0.57 and 0.13 respectively. Conclusion: Pomegranate Juice may improve behavioral outcomes.

Abstract T MP42: The Use of Voxel-Based Lesion Symptom Mapping to Relate Lesion Location to Motor Performance in Chronic Stroke Survivors

Background and Purpose: We used voxel-based lesion symptom mapping (VLSM) to determine the relationship between lesion location and performance on upper extremity behavioral outcome measures post-stroke. We hypothesized that a lesion within the upper extremity region of the primary motor cortex would correlate with poorer hand motor outcome measures. Methods: Thirty-six chronic stroke survivors with upper extremity motor deficits who underwent 3 weeks of hand/wrist robotic therapy were included in the study. Behavioral motor outcome measures included: Fugl-Meyer Arm (FMA) Test, Action Research Arm Test (ARAT), and Box & Blocks Test (BB). Anatomical imaging included a high-resolution T1-weighted volumetric scan and a T2-weighted scan. Lesioned areas were manually traced using MRIcron; stroke masks were flipped to left and binarized. All of the subjects’ T1-weighted images were transformed to Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) standardized stereotaxic space. Data were analyzed using the non-parametric mapping (NPM) software package in MRIcron with the Brunner-Munzel test set at 1,000 permutations and a 10% threshold. The threshold for the overlap between low behavioral scores and related brain regions was set at α= 0.01. Results: Lesions in the inferior frontal gyrus and underlying white matter and the posterior limb of the internal capsule (PLIC) correlated with poorer motor outcomes on the FMA and ARAT, indicating a degree of anatomical overlap between impairment and activity levels of upper extremity motor performance. Lesions of the premotor area also correlated with poorer ARAT outcomes, whereas lesions of the middle frontal gyrus and underlying white matter correlated with poorer performance on the BB, reflecting the role that motor planning plays in those activities. Conclusions: Voxel-Based Symptom Mapping adds a new dimension in clarifying the specific lesion location associated with dexterous motor function post-stroke. Activity vs. impairment deficits relate to lesions in anatomical areas involved in motor planning vs. those involved in movement execution.

Young school-aged children's behaviour and their participation in extracurricular activities

WHILE RESEARCH HAS REPEATEDLY shown the benefits of participation in extracurricular activities for adolescents, few studies have focused on very young children. Extracurricular activities afford children opportunities for development and can also influence their behaviour. Children's behaviour is an important predictor of their future successes or failures. This study investigated the relationship between behaviour and participation in extracurricular activities in children aged between five and eight years. Mothers of children (n = 906) in Prep to Year 3 from seven schools in middle- to high-SES areas from a regional city participated in the study. Mothers gave details of their child's extracurricular activities and used the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) (Goodman, 1997) to measure their child's behaviour. Low scores on the SDQ indicate normal behaviour while high scores indicate borderline or abnormal behaviour. Participation, number of activities, and duration of activities were all associated with children's behaviour. Children who participated in extracurricular activities had lower behaviour scores than those who did not. The results suggest that children benefit from participating in two or more activities for 80–90 minutes per week.

Corticosterone, Avoidance of Novelty, Risk‐Taking and Aggression in a Wild Bird: No Evidence for Pleiotropic Effects

AbstractCertain inherent characteristics of individuals can determine both physiological and behavioural responses to environmental challenges, which could drive a correlation between levels of corticosterone (CORT), the most important stress hormone and behavioural profiles. Therefore, CORT level may mediate consistent behaviours along the shy/bold continuum, and thus, it could serve as a pleiotropic basis for behavioural syndromes. Moreover, behavioural responses to environmental challenges may have consequences for CORT concentrations, which would also result in a correlation between physiology and behaviours even without requiring pleiotropic mechanisms. Accordingly, we investigated the relationship between CORT and behaviour in free‐living male collared flycatchers, Ficedula albicollis, using recently developed field assays. More specifically, we characterised novel object avoidance, intraspecific aggression and risk‐taking in males and related these correlated behaviours to the concentration of CORT metabolites in droppings measured by enzyme immunoassay. Individuals with higher levels of excreted CORT metabolites had no consistently higher or lower behavioural scores along the shy/bold spectrum, as avoidance of novelty, aggression and risk‐taking were not systematically related to CORT metabolite concentrations in the same direction. Moreover, environmental challenges owing to the presence of a novel object, territorial intruder and a potential predator caused no elevation in the level of CORT metabolites. Therefore, we did not find correlative evidence for CORT driving correlated behaviours through pleiotropic effects or for particular behaviours during courtship causing elevation in CORT levels.

The effect of chronic mild stress on tumor-bearing rats’ behavior and its mechanism

Object: Much evidence has demonstrated that stress and tumor interact, but the mechanisms are poorly understood. The purpose of this study is to discuss the effect of unpredictable chronic mild stress (CMS) upon the behavior of Walker 256 tumor-bearing rats and its mechanism. Methods: Observe the effects of CMS on the sucrose consumption, activities, body weight and levels of serums TNF-α and IL-6 of both tumor-bearing rats and non-tumor-bearing rats, and on the levels of Bcl-2 and the phosphor-ERK1/2 in their hippocampus. Results: CMS can reduce the average sucrose consumption, behavioral scores, body weight gain, expression of Bcl-2 and p-ERK1/2 protein in hippocampus, and increase serums TNF-α and IL-6 of both tumor-bearing rats and non-tumor-bearing rats. The stressed tumor-bearing rats had less sucrose consumption, body weight gain and lower behavioral scores, but higher level of serum TNF-α than stressed non-tumor-bearing rats. A negative correlation was found between the levels of serum TNF-α and sucrose consumption, while a positive correlation between the expression of Bcl-2 protein in hippocampus proper and sucrose consumption. Conclusion: CMS can reduce the protein levels of Bcl-2 and p-ERK1/2 in the rats’ hippocampus, which contributes to the changes in the rats’ behavior caused by CMS. Tumor-bearing rats are prone to behave depressively after the exposure to CMS. Our findings have suggested that the tumor, by increasing the inflammatory reaction, can be taken as a stressor, affecting the hippocampus and consequently causing depression by decreasing the expression of Bcl-2 and p-ERK1/2 in hippocampus.

Food safety knowledge and behaviors of women, infant, and children (WIC) program participants in the United States.

Although the incidence of foodborne illnesses has declined, thousands of cases are still reported in the United States. In conjunction with industry efforts to reduce foodborne pathogens, consumers play an important role in decreasing foodborne illnesses. To assess food safety knowledge and food handling behaviors of low-income, high-risk populations, a study was conducted with participants of the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). A survey was conducted with 1,598 clients from 87 WIC agencies nationwide. Descriptive statistics, chi-square analyses, t tests, and analyses of variance were calculated. A majority of respondents received food safety information from WIC (78.7%), family (63.1%), and television (60.7%). Most respondents recognized the necessity for washing and sanitizing cutting boards and utensils (94.3%), but only 66.1% knew the correct ways to sanitize. Using a thermometer to ensure doneness of meat was least recognized (23.7%) and used by even fewer respondents (7.7%). The majority (77.4%) used color of meat and/or juices when checking the doneness of ground beef items. Over half of the respondents (58.4%) used acceptable thawing methods, but many thawed frozen meats on the counter (21.0%) or in a sink filled with water (20.6%). There were significant differences in thawing methods, overall knowledge scores, and overall behavior scores among different racial and ethnic groups. White respondents had higher knowledge scores than did Hispanics, and blacks had lower behavior scores than did individuals in the other racial and ethnic groups. Results of the study suggested the need for food safety education for low-income consumers and different messages to be delivered to specific demographic groups.

Effects of Maternal Employment and Prematurity on Child Outcomes in Single Parent Families

Effects of maternal employment for preschool children vary based on specific characteristics of the mother's employment, the family's economic status, and the mother's attitudes about employment. However, there is limited research on a growing group of children at developmental risk-those born prematurely and living in a single-parent family. To examine the effects of maternal employment and prematurity on child cognition and behavior in single-parent families. Sixty preterm and 61 full-term preschool children were recruited through NICU admission records and birth records. Data were collected with the Kaufmann Assessment Battery for Children, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Child Behavior Checklist, Parenting Stress Index, and the Life History Calendar. Greater hours employed was related to higher achievement and mental processing scores only. Less discrepancy between actual and desired employment was related to higher achievement, mental processing, and language scores and lower behavior scores. Prematurity was not related to child cognitive and behavioral performance. Only the relationship between discrepancy and language remained after statistical control. The concerns about negative effects of maternal employment on young children may be overstated, especially in low-income, single-mother families. These findings are especially important in the context of welfare reform.

Factors related to the health knowledge and health behavior of disadvantaged black youth.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between various factors and the health knowledge and health behavior of disadvantaged black youth. Disadvantaged black male and female youths, age 12 to 17, were surveyed regarding their health knowledge, health locus of control, and health practices. Results of the data analyses using an ANOVA revealed significant differences for scores on the health knowledge test due to sex, age, and health locus of control. Females had higher test means than males, older students had higher knowledge scores than did younger students, and internally-oriented students had higher knowledge scores than did externally-oriented students. No significant interaction was found. An ANOVA on behavior scores revealed a sex by locus of control interaction. Male externals had much lower behavior scores than female externals. A significant interaction also was found between age and health locus of control. Older externals had significantly higher behavior scores than younger externals. Implications for health educators and nurse educators are discussed.