Positive Valence Research Articles

Attentional bias in psoriasis: The role of processing time and emotional valence.

The present study explored whether people with psoriasis display an attentional bias towards disease-related threat words and whether this bias occurs relatively early during the phase of stimulus disengagement, or during a later maintained attention phase dominated by controlled strategic processes. We also explored the degree to which attentional bias is dependent on the emotional valence of control words. Individuals with psoriasis and matched controls took part in 4 online experiments. Participants completed a spatial cueing paradigm using disease-related threat words and control words as cues, in order to obtain reaction time estimates of attentional bias. We did not observe evidence for attentional bias when control words were matched with threat words for emotional valence, regardless of whether processing time for the cues was limited (Experiment 1: SOA = 250 ms) or extended (Experiment 2: SOA = 1050 ms). We also did not observe evidence for attentional bias when control words of positive valence were used, but processing time was limited (Experiment 3). An attentional bias was only observed (p = .012, Cohen's d = .37) when sufficient processing time was available and positively-valanced control words were used (Experiment 4). Rather than showing large and generalized AB effects as predicted by previous accounts, our results tentatively suggest that AB in psoriasis is restricted to situations where participants have ample processing time and threat words are easily distinguishable from control words on the basis of emotional valence. The pattern of results suggests that attentional bias in psoriasis is best characterized as a relatively slow strategic process.

Stigmatisation or Destigmatisation?

Mental health has emerged as an international priority to secure health, well-being and human development. Media are important sources of health information, and this gives media a powerful voice in contributing to the creation, perpetuation, evolution and/or attenuation of stigma towards mental illness. Through employing stigmatisation as the theoretical framework and qualitative content analysis as the research method, this study examined the coverage of mental health problems during the Covid-19 pandemic by Malaysian legacy and online newspapers. Six dimensions of stigma (concealability, origin, course, disruptiveness, aesthetics and peril) were examined and it was found that individual level of origin and peril were the most prominent dimensions of stigma found in the reporting. In addition, the newspapers focused on promoting mental health awareness and literacy in their destigmatisation effort, while reflecting either a positive or neutral valence in their coverage. The implications of the findings were discussed with regard to the role of media in reporting mental health problems and destigmatisation of mental illness.

The role of emotions in public goods games with and without punishment opportunities

We consider the emotional correlates of activity in the Public Good game when monetary and non-monetary punishments are available, and when no punishment is possible. In our experiment, emotions are measured using Face Reading software that tracks the emotional content of facial expressions in real time. When no punishment is possible, greater anger and more negative emotional valence correlate with learning that one has contributed more than others. Lower valence and happiness, in turn, are associated with reducing one's cooperation in the next period. When non-monetary punishment in the form of expressed disapproval is possible, positive emotional valence is associated with cooperation, punishment of free-riders, and an increase in cooperation from one period to the next. Negative valence, on the other hand, is associated with the receipt of punishment, suggesting that the expression of disapproval inherent in the non-monetary punishment was well understood and had an effect on the emotions of the recipient. The data support the conjecture that the reinforcement that positive emotion provides is what allows non-monetary punishment to increase cooperation. In contrast, when monetary punishment is available, emotional correlates are less consistent, suggesting that monetary punishment is less reliant on emotions to be effective.

Global reward processing deficits predict negative symptoms transdiagnostically and transphasically in a severe mental illness-spectrum sample.

Reward processing impairments are a key factor associated with negative symptoms in those with severe mental illnesses. However, past findings are inconsistent regarding which reward processing components are impaired and most strongly linked to negative symptoms. The current study examined the hypothesis that these mixed findings may be the result of multiple reward processing pathways (i.e., equifinality) to negative symptoms that cut across diagnostic boundaries and phases of illness. Participants included healthy controls (n = 100) who served as a reference sample and a severe mental illness-spectrum sample (n = 92) that included psychotic-like experiences, clinical high-risk for psychosis, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia participants. All participants completed tasks measuring four RDoC Positive Valence System constructs: value representation, reinforcement learning, effort-cost computation, and hedonic reactivity. A k-means cluster analysis of the severe mental illness-spectrum samples identified three clusters with differential reward processing profiles that were characterized by: (1) global reward processing deficits (22.8%), (2) selective impairments in hedonic reactivity alone (40.2%), and (3) preserved reward processing (37%). Elevated negative symptoms were only observed in the global reward processing cluster. All clusters contained participants from each clinical group, and the distribution of these groups did not significantly differ among the clusters. Findings identified one pathway contributing to negative symptoms that was transdiagnostic and transphasic. Future work further characterizing divergent pathways to negative symptoms may help to improve symptom trajectories and personalized treatments.

In Water High Yield and Selectivity of CH<sub>4</sub> and H<sub>2</sub> Production Using UVC Light and a SiO<sub>2</sub>-surface-modified TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalysts

To improve CH<sub>4</sub> and H<sub>2</sub> formation from CO<sub>2</sub> photoreduction using non-organic, non-laborious, and inexpensive photocatalysts, we have prepared two surface-silicate-modified TiO<sub>2</sub> catalysts: P25-SiO<sub>2</sub> and AmTiO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> (amorphous TiO<sub>2</sub>) to be tested in water and using UV light. The last catalyst produces more CH<sub>4</sub> and H<sub>2</sub> in water than P25 (3:1 TiO<sub>2</sub> anatase: rutile) under UV light irradiation of HCO<sub>3</sub><sup>-</sup> and CO<sub>2</sub>; am-TiO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> at pH = 7, produces 8 times more CH<sub>4</sub> and H<sub>2</sub> than P25 with selectivity at the reactor headspace of 30% and 53%, respectively. Using CO<sub>2</sub> (pH = 3), 80 times more CH<sub>4</sub> than P25 under the same conditions is obtained with a yield of 71%. This corresponds to a production of 8.9 μmol g<sub>cat</sub><sup>-1</sup>·h<sup>-1</sup>, one of the highest reported rates of CH<sub>4</sub> production from CO<sub>2</sub> using carbon-free semiconductors. H<sub>2</sub> is also produced by water splitting using Am-TiO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> and water at low pH. The enhanced reactivity compared to P25 is attributed to three main factors: a) Low catalyst PZC (4.1) that facilitates CO<sub>2</sub> adsorption and proton availability at the active site to catalyze the e transfer from Ti at the TiO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub>-carbonate adduct b) SiO<sub>2</sub> acts as electron trap reducing carriers recombination (External intramolecular trapping (EIT) mechanism) and c) am-TiO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub>, light collection efficiency, surface area and irregular atoms distribution. Catalysts were also tested for Methylene blue (MB) photooxidation. P25 is quite a better catalyst in oxidizing MB via OH radicals, probably due to the more positive valence band potentials in the SiO<sub>2</sub>-modified catalysts that avoid the OH radical formation from water; however, when bicarbonate is added to MB solution, am-TiO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> catalysts reactivity increases as a consequence of its valence band down-bending.

Adiposity and Insulin Resistance Moderate Brain Electrophysiology and Affect Regulation in Young Adults

AbstractBackgroundObesity and insulin resistance (IR) may negatively influence affect regulation in young adulthood. The paucity of studies that have investigated such associations have predominantly used functional magnetic resonance imaging. However, electroencephalography (EEG) can evaluate neural signatures in real‐time that may be complementary. Thus, this study investigated how adiposity and IR moderated brain activity and underlying affect regulation using EEG.MethodReal‐time EEG was recorded in 28 lean and obese young adults with and without IR (18‐39 years, 46.4% female). Two event‐related potential (ERP) components of affect regulation, early posterior negativity (EPN) and late positive potential (LPP), were quantified from EEG data. Participants completed the Interactional Picture Affective System task to measure affect regulation, from which mean valence ratings and stimulus‐to‐response‐onset reaction times were calculated. ERP components and affect regulation parameters were then contrasted in three conditions, as follows: 1) Negative – Neutral; 2) Positive – Neutral; and 3) Negative – Positive. Height, weight, body fat percentage (%BF), and serum proteomics were collected. Fasting glucose and insulin readings were obtained to quantify Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA‐IR). Hierarchical moderated regression analysis was utilized to test the interrelationships between adiposity, IR, neural activity, and affect regulation.ResultAcross all contrasted conditions, HOMA‐IR and %BF were found to moderate the relationships between frontal and parietal LPP amplitudes during the late latency window and affect regulation. Specifically, higher late frontal LPP amplitudes were associated with less negative and more positive valence ratings to unpleasant and pleasant stimuli, respectively, among participants with low, but not high, IR and %BF levels. In the Negative – Neutral and Negative – Positive conditions, lower late parietal LPP amplitudes were also associated with less negative overall valence ratings in response to unpleasant stimuli, but only in lean, insulin sensitive participants. These results overall suggest that modulation of negative and positive affectivity only occurs in lean young adults without IR.ConclusionYoung adults with greater adiposity and IR showed worse affect regulation than those without obesity and IR. Furthermore, AD‐associated characteristics may start early in life, and EEG signatures may be a useful neuroimaging approach for tracking such events.

State-dependent modulation of positive and negative affective valences by a parabrachial nucleus-to-ventral tegmental area pathway in mice.

Appropriately responding to various sensory signals in the environment is essential for animal survival. Accordingly, animal behaviors are closely related to external and internal states, which include the positive and negative emotional values of sensory signals triggered by environmental factors. While the lateral parabrachial nucleus (LPB) plays a key role in nociception and supports negative valences, it also transmits signals including positive valences. However, the downstream neuronal mechanisms of positive and negative valences have not been fully explored. In the present study, we investigated the ventral tegmental area (VTA) as a projection target for LPB neurons. Optogenetic activation of LPB-VTA terminals in male mice elicits positive reinforcement in an operant task and induces both avoidance and attraction in a place-conditioning task. Inhibition of glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) 65-expressing cells in the VTA promotes avoidance behavior induced by photoactivation of the LPB-VTA pathway. These findings indicate that the LPB-VTA pathway is one of the LPB outputs for the transmission of positive and negative valence signals, at least in part, with GABAergic modification in VTA.

Associations between daily affective experiences, trait and daily rumination on negative and positive affect: a diary study.

Rumination has mostly been studied in relation to depression, however, it may also occur in response to positive emotions (i.e., positive rumination) and therefore may be a protective factor related to the maintenance of positive mood. We hypothesized that daily positive and negative affect would be associated with daily positive and negative rumination even after controlling for trait-level rumination. We carried out a diary study with university students (n = 178), where participants had to answer short surveys online about their daily affect and daily rumination every evening for 10 days. We analyzed our data with multilevel regression in R. Daily positive and negative affect were significantly associated with daily negative and positive rumination, while trait-level rumination scores were not. Daily and trait-level rumination were moderately correlated (r = 0.333-0.440). Our findings highlight that daily rumination plays a more significant role in daily emotional experiences than trait rumination across positive and negative valence domains. Daily negative affect appears to be more closely related to higher daily negative rumination than the lack of daily positive rumination, which could be relevant for intervention strategies.

The dark and bright side of the numbers: how emotions influence mental number line accuracy and bias

ABSTRACT The traditional view of cognition as detached from emotions is recently being questioned. This study aimed to investigate the influence of emotional valence on the accuracy and bias in the representation of numbers on the mental number line (MNL). The study included 164 participants who were randomly assigned into two groups with induced positive and negative emotional valence using matched arousal film clips. Participants performed a computerised number-to-position (CNP) task to estimate the position of numbers on a horizontal line. The results showed that participants in the positive valence group exhibited a rightward bias, while those in the negative valence group showed an opposite pattern. The analysis of mean absolute error revealed that the negative valence group had higher error rates compared to the positive valence group. Furthermore, the MNL estimation pattern analysis indicated that a two-cycle cyclic power model (CPM) best explained the data for both groups. These findings suggest that emotional valence influences the spatial representation of numbers on the MNL and affects accuracy in numerical estimations. Our findings are finally discussed in terms of body-specificity and the Brain’s Asymmetric Frequency Tuning (BAFT) theories. The study provides new insights into the interplay between emotions and numerical cognition.

Parallel neural pathways control sodium consumption and taste valence

The hedonic value of salt fundamentally changes depending on the internal state. High concentrations of salt induce innate aversion under sated states, whereas such aversive stimuli transform into appetitive ones under sodium depletion. Neural mechanisms underlying this state-dependent salt valence switch are poorly understood. Using transcriptomics state-to-cell-type mapping and neural manipulations, we show that positive and negative valences of salt are controlled by anatomically distinct neural circuits in the mammalian brain. The hindbrain interoceptive circuit regulates sodium-specific appetitive drive , whereas behavioral tolerance of aversive salts is encoded by a dedicated class of neurons in the forebrain lamina terminalis (LT) expressing prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) receptor, Ptger3. We show that these LT neurons regulate salt tolerance by selectively modulating aversive taste sensitivity, partly through a PGE2-Ptger3 axis. These results reveal the bimodal regulation of appetitive and tolerance signals toward salt, which together dictate the amount of sodium consumption under different internal states.

An exploratory study on emotional consequents of visceral food pleasure

Purpose This study aims to explore the phenomenon of visceral food pleasure, described as a unitary experience that, after an initial sense of pleasure and relief generated by the satisfaction of eating impulses, is followed by negative feelings – such as guilt and worry – linked to the consumption of hedonic or unhealthy foods. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory approach has been adopted. In particular, the critical incident technique among 87 individuals has been used to extract insights about visceral food pleasure. Findings Contrary to previous research results, this study shows that viscearl food pleasure is not a unitary phenomenon, identifying four types of different facets, two of which have a negative valence in terms of felt emotions post-consumption and psychological well-being (i.e. the “greedy” and the “maladaptive” experiences). More importantly, the other two facets are associated with positive consequences in terms of emotions felt post-consumption and perceived psychological well-being (i.e. the “social” and the “fair sin” experiences). Practical implications Companies that provide food experiences can prime meanings that influence consumers’ perceptions of the episode to elicit positive emotions post-consumption and psychological well-being. Social implications Promoting a more holistic view of food consumption and psychological well-being can free consumers from negative emotions during food consumption episodes. Priming a particular meaning can be a way to do that. However, as visceral experience can still lead to health issues, this must be combined with an education process that makes consumers aware of their food habits. Originality/value This research challenges the idea that visceral food experiences are always negative. Indeed, when associated with particular meanings (i.e. social and reward), they have a positive valence post-consumption.

Workload-dependent hemispheric asymmetries during the emotion-cognition interaction: a close-to-naturalistic fNIRS study.

We investigated brain activation patterns of interacting emotional distractions and cognitive processes in a close-to-naturalistic functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) study. Eighteen participants engaged in a monitoring-control task, mimicking common air traffic controller requirements. The scenario entailed experiencing both low and high workload, while concurrently being exposed to emotional speech distractions of positive, negative, and neutral valence. Our investigation identified hemispheric asymmetries in prefrontal cortex (PFC) activity during the presentation of negative and positive emotional speech distractions at different workload levels. Thereby, in particular, activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) seems to play a crucial role. Brain activation patterns revealed a cross-over interaction indicating workload-dependent left hemispheric inhibition processes during negative distractions and high workload. For positive emotional distractions under low workload, we observed left-hemispheric PFC recruitment potentially associated with speech-related processes. Furthermore, we found a workload-independent negativity bias for neutral distractions, showing brain activation patterns similar to those of negative distractions. In conclusion, lateralized hemispheric processing, regulating emotional speech distractions and integrating emotional and cognitive processes, is influenced by workload levels and stimulus characteristics. These findings advance our understanding of the factors modulating hemispheric asymmetries during the processing and inhibition of emotional distractions, as well as the interplay between emotion and cognition. Moreover, they emphasize the significance of exploring emotion-cognition interactions in more naturalistic settings to gain a deeper understanding of their implications in real-world application scenarios (e.g., working and learning environments).

The impact of emotional valence and stimulus habituation on fMRI signal reliability during emotion generation

BackgroundThe emotional domain is often impaired across many neurological diseases, for this reason it represents a relevant target of rehabilitation interventions. Functional changes in neural activity related to treatment can be assessed with functional MRI (fMRI) using emotion-generation tasks in longitudinal settings. Previous studies demonstrated that within-subject fMRI signal reliability can be affected by several factors such as repetition suppression, type of task and brain anatomy. However, the differential role of repetition suppression and emotional valence of the stimuli on the fMRI signal reliability and reproducibility during an emotion-generation task involving the vision of emotional pictures is yet to be determined. MethodsSixty-two healthy subjects were enrolled and split into two groups: group A (21 subjects, test-retest reliability on same-day and with same-task-form), group B (30 subjects, test-retest reproducibility with 4-month-interval using two equivalent-parallel forms of the task). Test-retest reliability and reproducibility of fMRI responses and patterns were evaluated separately for positive and negative emotional valence conditions in both groups. The analyses were performed voxel-wise, using the general linear model (GLM), and via a region-of-interest (ROI)-based approach, by computing the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) on the obtained contrasts. ResultsThe voxel-wise GLM test yielded no significant differences for both conditions in reliability and reproducibility analyses. As to the ROI-based approach, across all areas with significant main effects of the stimuli, the reliability, as measured with ICC, was poor (<0.4) for the positive condition and ranged from poor to excellent (0.4–0.75) for the negative condition. The ICC-based reproducibility analysis, related to the comparison of two different parallel forms, yielded similar results. DiscussionThe voxel-wise GLM analysis failed to capture the poor reliability of fMRI signal which was instead highlighted using the ROI-based ICC analysis. The latter showed higher signal reliability for negative valence stimuli with respect to positive ones. The implementation of two parallel forms allowed to exclude neural suppression as the predominant effect causing low signal reliability, which could be instead ascribed to the employment of different neural strategies to cope with emotional stimuli over time. This is an invaluable information for a better assessment of treatment and rehabilitation effects in longitudinal studies of emotional neural processing.

Novel genome-wide associations for effort valuation and psychopathology in children and adults.

The Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) initiative was established by the US National Institute of Mental Health as a multilevel, disorder-agnostic framework for analysis of human psychopathology through designated domains and constructs, including the "Positive Valence Systems" domain focused on reward-related behavior. This study investigates the reward valuation subconstruct of "effort" and its association with genetic markers, functional neurobiological pathways, and polygenic risk scores for psychopathology in 1215 children aged 6-12 and their parents (n = 1044). All participants completed the effort expenditure for rewards task (EEfRT), which assesses "effort" according to two quantitative measures: hard-task choice and reward sensitivity. Genetic association analyses were undertaken in MAGMA, utilizing EEfRT outcome variables as genome-wide association studies phenotypes to compute SNP and gene-level associations. Genome-wide association analyses found two distinct genetic loci that were significantly associated with measures of reward sensitivity and a separate genetic locus associated with hard task choice. Gene-set enrichment analysis yielded significant associations between "effort" and multiple gene sets involved in reward processing-related pathways, including dopamine receptor signaling, limbic system and forebrain development, and biological response to cocaine. These results serve to establish "effort" as a relevant construct for understanding reward-related behavior at the genetic level and support the RDoC framework for assessing disorder-agnostic psychopathology.

Performance and mechanism investigation on the enhanced photocatalytic removal of atrazine on S-doped g-C3N4

Developing efficient method for removing low-concentration atrazine, a poisonous chlorinated triazine herbicide with poor biodegradability, was an important measure to control its risk. In this work, highly efficient photocatalytic oxidation of atrazine was achieved on S-doped g-C3N4 (S-g-C3N4). Approximate 99.6% of atrazine was removed in 2 h with a reaction rate constant of 2.76 h−1, nearly 2.44 times that on g-C3N4. The mechanism investigation indicated the improved photocatalytic performance of S-g-C3N4 could be attributed to the enlarged specific surface area, extended light absorption as well as the accelerated separation of the photogenerated charge carriers, which was brought about by the successful doping of sulfur in g-C3N4. Meanwhile, the influence of sulfur doping on the generation and contribution of different reactive species in atrazine removal were also elucidated. It revealed that compared with g-C3N4, the more positive valence band potential of S-g-C3N4 was beneficial to produce more singlet oxygen, which could react synergistically with the superoxide radicals, leading to the improved atrazine removal efficiency. The S-g-C3N4 based photocatalytic system also showed preferential photocatalytic oxidation capability in removing other triazine pesticides compared with 3-chlorophenol (3-CP). The potential applicability of the S-g-C3N4 based photocatalytic system in removing atrazine in high salty water was also investigated, which exhibited superior anti-interference ability towards virous coexistent ions. This work will provide essential and fundamental information for establishing efficient photocatalytic system for triazine type pollutants in waters.

Impact of Awe on Prosocial Behavior and Authenticity for Personal Growth and Communal Well-being

Awe, characterized by feelings of vastness and accommodation, can lead to both positive and negative valence emotions. The experience of awe triggers self-transcendence, driving individuals to seek greater meaning in their lives and fostering a sense of interconnectedness with others. Self-transcendence promotes authenticity by aligning actions with one's genuine self, reducing the fear of disapproval or inauthentic behavior within social groups. As a result, individuals who experience awe are more inclined to exhibit authentic prosocial behavior, benefiting both themselves and society. This paper explores the profound impact of awe on prosocial behavior and authenticity. It delves into the intricate relationship between awe, self-transcendence, authenticity, and prosociality, highlighting the significance of seeking awe-inspiring experiences for personal growth and communal well-being.

‘Your comments boost my value!’ – the mediator role of emotional brand attachment between brand equity and social media engagement

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has required new marketing strategies for leveraging brand equity among Higher Education Institutions. Previous research has uncovered the impact of electronic word of mouth in the Higher Education Institutions’ service industry, so this research extends our knowledge of the effects of electronic word of mouth on Higher Education Institutions’ brand equity and, additionally, on social media engagement. A quantitative approach was adopted, using questionnaires among Higher Education Institutions’ students and alumni. The results, obtained through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), provide evidence of the contribution of the positive valence of electronic word of mouth to brand equity, emotional brand attachment, and social media engagement. The findings suggest customers are becoming more susceptible to positive electronic word of mouth. The research extends current knowledge by demonstrating the relevance of positive valence to electronic word of mouth in Higher Education.

Bilateral anterior corona radiata microstructure organisation relates to impaired social cognition in schizophrenia

ObjectiveThe Corona Radiata (CR) is a large white matter tract in the brain comprising of the anterior CR (aCR), superior CR (sCR), and posterior CR (pCR), which have associations with cognition, self-regulation, and, in schizophrenia, positive symptom severity. This study tested the hypothesis that the microstructural organisation of the aCR, as measured by Fractional Anisotropy (FA) using Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), would relate to poorer social cognitive outcomes and higher positive symptom severity for people with schizophrenia, when compared to healthy participants. We further hypothesised that increased positive symptoms would relate to poorer social cognitive outcomes. MethodsData were derived from n = 178 healthy participants (41 % females; 36.11 ± 12.36 years) and 58 people with schizophrenia (30 % females; 42.4 ± 11.1 years). The Positive and Negative Symptom Severity Scale measured clinical symptom severity. Social Cognition was measured using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) Total Score, as well as the Positive, Neutral, and Negative stimuli valence. The ENIGMA-DTI protocol tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) was used. ResultsThere was a significant difference in FA for the CR, in individuals with schizophrenia compared to healthy participants. On stratification, both the aCR and pCR were significantly different between groups, with patients showing reduced white matter tract microstructural organisation. Significant negative correlations were observed between positive symptomatology and reduced microstructural organisation of the aCR. Performance for RMET negative valence items was significantly correlated bilaterally with the aCR, but not the sCR or pCR, and no relationship to positive symptoms was observed. ConclusionsThese data highlight specific and significant microstructural white-matter differences for people with schizophrenia, which relates to positive clinical symptomology and poorer performance on social cognition stimuli. While reduced FA is associated with higher positive symptomatology in schizophrenia, this study shows the specific associated with anterior frontal white matter tracts and reduced social cognitive performance. The aCR may have a specific role to play in frontal-disconnection syndromes, psychosis, and social cognitive profile within schizophrenia, though further research requires more sensitive, specific, and detailed consideration of social cognition outcomes.

Stereo-EEG-guided network modulation for psychiatric disorders: Surgical considerations

BackgroundDeep brain stimulation (DBS) and other neuromodulatory techniques are being increasingly utilized to treat refractory neurologic and psychiatric disorders. Objective/Hypothesis: To better understand the circuit-level pathophysiology of treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and treat the network-level dysfunction inherent to this challenging disorder, we adopted an approach of inpatient intracranial monitoring borrowed from the epilepsy surgery field. MethodsWe implanted 3 patients with 4 DBS leads (bilateral pair in both the ventral capsule/ventral striatum and subcallosal cingulate) and 10 stereo-electroencephalography (sEEG) electrodes targeting depression-relevant network regions. For surgical planning, we used an interactive, holographic visualization platform to appreciate the 3D anatomy and connectivity. In the initial surgery, we placed the DBS leads and sEEG electrodes using robotic stereotaxy. Subjects were then admitted to an inpatient monitoring unit for depression-specific neurophysiological assessments. Following these investigations, subjects returned to the OR to remove the sEEG electrodes and internalize the DBS leads to implanted pulse generators. ResultsIntraoperative testing revealed positive valence responses in all 3 subjects that helped verify targeting. Given the importance of the network-based hypotheses we were testing, we required accurate adherence to the surgical plan (to engage DBS and sEEG targets) and stability of DBS lead rotational position (to ensure that stimulation field estimates of the directional leads used during inpatient monitoring were relevant chronically), both of which we confirmed (mean radial error 1.2±0.9 mm; mean rotation 3.6±2.6°). ConclusionThis novel hybrid sEEG-DBS approach allows detailed study of the neurophysiological substrates of complex neuropsychiatric disorders.

AN INVESTIGATION OF THE KEY DETERMINANTS OF INTENTION TO USE PAYMENT WITH CRYPTOCURRENCY: THE CASE OF RESTAURANT BUSINESSES

With the developments in technology, it has started to be used as an additional payment method in businesses due to the emergence and increasing popularity of cryptocurrencies. This study was aimed to measure the factors that affect the customers' intention to use cryptocurrency technology as a payment method in restaurants, by examining the four dimensions of mindfulness and the positive valences and the negative valences of the valence theory. In this context, an online survey was applied to 405 cryptocurrency users to collect data. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to verify the measurement model, and the structural equation model (SEM) was used to test the model. The findings of the study reveal that the participants think that the convenience of using this method has no effect on the intention to use it, that using this method is beneficial, not risky, and that they will not have any privacy concerns if they use this method. This study offers valuable practical implications for restaurant operators in the context of cryptocurrency payment systems. This study successfully extended valence theory by adding awareness to valence theory.