Priming Studies Research Articles

Enhancing Okra [Abelmoschus esculentus L. (Moench)] Performance: A Comparative Study of Priming Across Varieties

This study, titled “Enhancing okra performance: A comparative study of priming across varieties,” aimed to evaluate the effects of osmopriming with Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) 6000 and biopriming with Pseudomonas fluorescens on five okra varieties—Aruna, Anjitha, Pusa-5, Salkeerthi, and Varsha Uphar. The initial seed quality parameters of all the five varieties were assessed immediately after these treatments. Variety Salkeerthi showed superiority for germination and vigour indices closely followed by Varsha Uphar. Both priming treatments had similar effects on initial seed quality parameters and showed superiority over the control. The research employed a Randomized Complete Block design with three replications to assess growth, fruit, and seed traits, revealing significant differences among varieties, treatments, and their interaction. Varsha Uphar exhibited the highest field emergence, plant height, early flowering, number of fruits per plant, and seed yield per plant. Pusa-5 achieved the highest fruit weight and fruit yield per plant. Among treatments, biopriming with Pseudomonas fluorescens (T2) excelled in field emergence, number of branches, and fruit traits, while osmopriming with PEG 6000 (T1) was superior for internodal length and seeds per pod. The Varsha Uphar × Pseudomonas fluorescens combination (V5 × T2) recorded the best performance in field emergence, days to 50 per cent flowering, plant height, and seed yield per plant. Meanwhile, Pusa-5 × PEG 6000 (V3 × T1) produced the highest fruit weight and fruit yield per plant. The findings indicate that priming, particularly biopriming with Pseudomonas fluorescens, significantly enhances seedling emergence, growth, and yield, highlighting its potential for improving okra productivity. This study underscores the value of adopting seed priming techniques to optimize performance in okra cultivation.

Structural Priming and the Placement of Focus-Sensitive Particles

The German focus-sensitive particle auch (‘too’) can associate with different constituents (ACs) in an utterance. In terms of position, it can precede or follow its AC. There is a strong preference for using preceding auch when the AC is the object. In three sentence fragment arrangement tasks, we investigated whether speakers are structurally primed by the context. To that end, we used context sentences as part of short dialogues with different particles: nur (‘only’), kein(e)(‘no’), both of which precede their AC, and nicht (‘not’), which follows its AC. The results show that the established preference for preceding auch is affected by the position of the particle in the context (following auch occurred more often when the context contained following nicht). Follow-up experiments rule out an explanation based on intonation (Experiment 2) or on the underlying syntactic structure (Experiment 3). We found clear surface structural priming effects for function words with effect sizes similar to those found in studies of structural priming for content words. Furthermore, the findings for sentences used in isolation can be extended to sentences that are part of short dialogues.

Evaluating the Replicability of Social Priming Studies

To assess the replicability of social priming findings we reviewed the extant close replication attempts in the field. In total, we found 70 close replications, that replicated 49 unique findings. Ninety-four percent of the replications had effect sizes smaller than the effect they replicated and only 17% of the replications reported a significant p-value in the original direction. The strongest predictor of replication success was whether or not the replication team included at least one of the authors of the original paper. Twelve of the 18 replications with at least one original author produced a significant effect in the original direction and the meta-analytic average of these studies suggest a significant priming effect (d = 0.40, 95% CI[0.23; 0.58]). In stark contrast, none of the 52 replications by independent research teams produced a significant effect in the original direction and the meta-analytic average was virtually zero (d = 0.002, 95% CI[-0.03; 0.03]). We argue that these results have shifted the burden of proof back onto advocates of social priming. Successful replications from independent research teams will likely be required to convince sceptics that social priming exists at all.

Abstract concepts and expertise: the case of institutional concepts

Recent views recognize that abstract concepts encompass a variety of exemplars, each relying on different dimensions, including not only sensorimotor but also inner, linguistic, and social experiences. How these dimensions characterize types of abstract concepts, and whether their weight varies across contexts and individuals remains an open question. We investigated the role of linguistic and social situations in the processing of institutional concepts, such as justice, by individuals with different levels of expertise. In a priming study, legal experts and non-experts were asked to respond to target words (go-trials) consisting of different kinds of abstract (institutional, theoretical) and concrete concepts (food, tools) and to ignore filler words (no-go trials). The verbal stimuli were primed by pictures depicting social-action, linguistic-social, linguistic-textual situations, and a control condition. As predicted, critical priming modulated performance on abstract concepts, likely due to their highly context-dependent meaning. Interestingly, we found that the processing of institutional concepts was selectively facilitated by social action prime, suggesting that this situational content may be integrated to support their representation. Crucially, the dialogic context, the linguistic social prime, affected more non-experts than law-experts, who tended to frame institutional concepts as shared idea for regulating social practices. Our results show that linguistic and social inputs become differently salient for institutional concepts representation depending on individual competence.

Emerging Roots: Investigating Early Access to Meaning in Maltese Auditory Word Recognition.

In Semitic languages, the consonantal root is central to morphology, linking form and meaning. While psycholinguistic studies highlight its importance in language processing, the role of meaning in early lexical access and its representation remain unclear. This study investigates when meaning becomes accessible during the processing of Maltese verb forms, using a computational model based on the Discriminative Lexicon framework. Our model effectively comprehends and produces Maltese verbs, while also predicting response times in a masked auditory priming experiment. Results show that meaning is accessible early in lexical access and becomes more prominent after the target word is fully processed. This suggests that semantic information plays a critical role from the initial stages of lexical access, refining our understanding of real-time language comprehension. Our findings contribute to theories of lexical access and offer valuable insights for designing priming studies in psycholinguistics. Additionally, this study demonstrates the potential of computational models in investigating the relationship between form and meaning in languageprocessing.

The lexical boost is not an automatic part of sentence production: Evidence from Japanese structural priming.

The lexical boost is an increase in structural priming with overlapping elements like verbs. Residual activation priming theories argue that the boost is an automatic side effect of sentence planning. In contrast, explicit memory theories of the boost argue that it is the result of a non-automatic explicit memory retrieval. These theories were contrasted in Japanese by including a prime memory task in a structural priming study. Structural priming was found for both datives and passives, but no lexical boost was found, and one possible reason was that explicit memory for the prime structure was weak. In a follow-up study, priming was found in a sentence-completion task, but there was no lexical boost. The existence of abstract priming and the lack of a lexical boost in these studies falsify theories that argue that verb overlap automatically creates a boost under conditions that exhibit abstract priming.

Assessing the influence of latency variability on EEG classifiers - a case study of face repetition priming

Data-driven strategies have been widely used to distinguish experimental effects on single-trial EEG signals. However, how latency variability, such as within-condition jitter or latency shifts between conditions, affects the performance of EEG classifiers has not been well investigated. Without explicitly considering and disentangling such attributes of single trials, neural network-based classifiers have limitations in measuring their contributions. Inspired by domain knowledge of subcomponent latency and amplitude from traditional cognitive neuroscience, this study applies a stepwise latency correction method on single trials to control for their contributions to classifier behavior. As a case study demonstrating the value of this method, we measure repetition priming effects of faces, which induce large reaction time differences, latency shifts, and amplitude effects in averaged event-related potentials. The results show that within-condition jitter negatively impacts classifier performance, but between-condition latency shifts improve accuracy, whereas genuine amplitude differences have no significant influence. While demonstrated in the case of priming effects, this methodology can be generalized to experiments involving many kinds of time-varying signals to account for the contributions of latency variability to classifier performance.

Can food sovereignty be institutionalised? Insights from the Cuban experience

AbstractCuba stands out among Latin American nations for its efforts to institutionalize food sovereignty (FS) through the promotion of alternative small‐scale farming, making it a prime case study for this model. This paper examines the extent to which Cuba has institutionalized FS and the factors driving this process from an agrarian political economy perspective. Public policies, sustainable practices and key actors—including a ‘partner state’—have advanced agroecology as a core strategy to reduce food imports since the early 1990s. However, other entities, such as the military enterprise Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A. (GAESA), may be seen as obstacles to this strategy. Whilst these struggles and tensions are not unique to Cuba, the island stands out for its decisive steps in institutionalizing FS. Cuba has achieved significant ‘pockets’ or ‘spaces’ of FS, despite lacking a fully consolidated domestic food system.

Scalable and successful patient portal lifestyle coaching training for primary care clinical staff.

Maintaining a healthy weight postintentional weight loss is crucial for preventing chronic health conditions, yet many regain weight postintervention. Electronic health record (EHR) portals offer a promising avenue for weight management interventions, leveraging patient-primary care relationships. Our previous research demonstrated that coaching alongside self-monitoring improves weight maintenance compared to monitoring alone. Integrating weight management into routine clinical practice by training existing staff could enhance scalability and sustainability. However, challenges such as inconsistent staff qualifications and high coach turnover rates could affect intervention effectiveness. Standardizing services, training, and coaching continuity seem crucial for success. To report on developing, testing, and evaluating an EHR-based coaching training program for clinical staff, guided by an implementation tool for the MAINTAIN PRIME study. Conducted across 14 University of Utah primary care sites, we developed, tested, and evaluated a coaching training for clinical staff. Guided by a planning model and the Predisposing, Enabling, and Reinforcing (PER) tool, stakeholders actively participated in planning, ensuring alignment with clinic priorities. All clinical staff were invited to participate voluntarily. Evaluation measures included staff interest, training effectiveness, confidence, and readiness. Data collection utilized REDCap, with survey results analyzed using descriptive statistics. Despite increased clinical workload and reassignments posed by coronavirus disease 2019, we were able to train 39 clinical staff, with 34 successfully coaching patients. Feedback indicated high readiness and positive perceptions of coaching feasibility. Coaches reported satisfaction with training, support, and enjoyed establishing connections with patients. The PER strategies allowed us to implement a well-received training program found effective by primary care coaches.

Green synthesis of silver nanoparticle for catalytic applications and priming study by seed germination

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have been successfully synthesized using leaf extract of Neem (Azadirachta Indica), Mint (Mentha Piperita), Tulsi (Ocimum Tenuiflorum), Bermuda grass (Cynodon Dactylon) and silver salt. As plant extracts produce best capping material for the stabilization of nanoparticles. AgNPs were characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy in range of 200–800 nm and transmission electron microscopy TEM, XRD and FTIR. The nanoparticles synthesized were mainly in sizes between 25 and 100 nm. They appeared to be spherical, nanotriangles and irregular in shape. Catalytic application was observed for all the aqueous solution of leaves, quantity taken was 1 ml, 2 ml, 3 ml, 4 ml and 5 ml. Furthermore, prepared Ag nanoparticles are also used for seed germination.

The role of conventional meat unnaturalness in cultured meat acceptance: A test of holistic mindset

The eventual reality of a cultured meat market is increasingly uncertain, primarily due to low consumer acceptance levels influenced by perceptions of unnaturalness towards cultured meat. Previous research has shown limited success in increasing acceptance through naturalness messages. In this research, we employ a counter-messaging strategy that highlights the unnaturalness of conventional meat and show that it is effective at increasing willingness to try cultured meat among a particular consumer segment. Across two experimental studies, we show that this counter-messaging strategy is successful at increasing willingness to try cultured meat among holistic mindset consumers—i.e., those holding beliefs to the effect that considering the whole is fundamental to understanding the parts of a phenomenon. We establish this effect by both measuring (Study 1) and priming (Study 2) analytic-holistic mindset and also establish the mechanism driving this interactive effect (Study 2): positively-valenced feelings. Our findings are informative theoretically, extending mindset and counter-messaging theory to the context of cultured meat and, practically, offering crucial pointers to stakeholders interested in the promotion of cultured meat.

Syntactic priming in the classroom: using narratives to prime L2 arabic speakers

A robust finding in psycholinguistics is that prior language experience influences subsequent language processing. This phenomenon is known as syntactic priming. Most of the empirical support for L2 syntactic priming comes from lab-based experiments. However, this evidence might not reflect how priming occurs in typical language activities in the L2 classroom. As such, we conducted a classroom-based priming study. Using a between-subject design, 52 L2 Arabic speakers read and listened to eight story-reading sessions over two weeks that either included a high proportion of the fronted temporal phrase (TP) structure (experimental group) or included no fronted TPs (controls). The effect of L2 proficiency was also investigated. Results revealed that the experimental group did not significantly increase their use of fronted TPs in the immediate posttest or the one-week delayed posttest relative to the baseline. A null effect of Arabic L2 proficiency was also observed. We discuss our findings in light of related priming theories and previous findings. This study highlights the need for more research on syntactic priming via common language tasks in the L2 classroom.

Experimental Methodologies. A Corpus-Based Approach

On the basis of data, we analyse two different pairs of syntactic patterns, the so called dative alternation and particle placement of transitive phrasal verbs. Although it has sometimes been argued that only experimental data can contribute to studies of priming, the analysis shows that (a) the corpus-based results for datives are very similar to the experimental ones; (b) priming is also obtained for the verb particle construction, a construction hitherto not explored in the priming literature and (c), most importantly, in line with much previous psycholinguistic and corpus linguistic work, priming effects turn out to be strongly verb-specific such that some verbs are much more resistant or responsive to priming than others. As a variety of studies has shown, speakers tend to repeat syntactic structures they have just encountered (produced or comprehended) before.

A Physiochemical, In Vitro, and In Vivo Comparative Analysis of Verteporfin-Lipid Conjugate Formulations: Solid Lipid Nanoparticles and Liposomes.

VisudyneⓇ, a liposomal formulation of verteporfin (benzoporphyrin derivative; BPD), is the only nanomedicine approved to date for photodynamic therapy (PDT). We have previously demonstrated that BPD conjugated to the lysophospholipid 1-arachidoyl-2-hydroxy-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (BPD-PC) exhibits the greatest physical stability in liposomes, while maintaining cancer cell phototoxicity, from a panel of BPD lipid conjugates evaluated. In this study, we prepared 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC)-based solid lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) that stably entrap BPD-PC, which resemble the composition of the SpikevaxⓇ Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, and compared them to a DPPC based liposomal formulation (Lipo BPD-PC). We evaluated the photochemical, optical, and phototherapeutic properties of both formulations. We also investigated the in vivo distribution and tumor microdistribution of both formulations. Our results demonstrated that Lipo BPD-PC is able to generate 17% more singlet oxygen than LNP BPD-PC, while interestingly, LNP BPD-PC is able to produce 76% more hydroxyl radicals and/or peroxynitrite anion. Importantly, only 28% of BPD-PC leaches out of the LNP BPD-PC formulation during 7 days of incubation in serum at 37 °C, while 100% of BPD-PC leaches out of the Lipo BPD-PC formulation under the same conditions. Despite these differences, there was no significant difference in cellular uptake of BPD-PC or phototoxicity in CT1BA5 murine pancreatic cancer cells (derived from a genetically engineered mouse model). Interestingly, PDT using LNP BPD-PC was more efficient at inducing immunogenic cell death (calreticulin membrane translocation) than Lipo BPD-PC when using IC25 and IC50 PDT doses. In vivo studies revealed that CT1BA5 tumor fluorescence signals from BPD-PC were 2.41-fold higher with Lipo BPD-PC than with LNP BPD-PC; however, no significant difference was observed in tumor tissue selectivity or tumor penetration. As such, we present LNP BPD-PC as a unique and more stable nanoplatform to carry BPD lipid conjugates, such as BPD-PC, with a potential for future photodynamic immune priming studies and multiagent drug delivery.

Comparing child word associations to adult associative norms: Evidence for child-specific associations with a strong priming effect in 3-year-olds

Investigating how infants first establish relationships between words is a necessary step towards understanding how an interconnected network of semantic relationships develops in the adult lexical-semantic system. Stimuli selection for these child studies is critical since words must be both familiar and highly imageable. However, there has been a reliance on adult word association norms to inform stimuli selection in English infant studies to date, as no resource currently exists for child-specific word associations. We present three experiments that explore the strength of word–word relationships in 3-year-olds. Experiment 1 collected children’s word associations (WA) (N = 150; female = 84, L1 = British English) and compared them to adult associative norms (Moss & Older, 1996; Nelson et al., 2004 (Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 36(3), 402–407)). Experiment 2 replicated WAs from Experiment 1 in an online adaptation of the task (N = 24: 13 female, L1 = British English). Both experiments indicated a high proportion of child-specific WAs not represented in adult norms (Moss & Older, 1996; Nelson et al., 2004 (Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 36(3), 402–407)). Experiment 3 tested noun–noun WAs from these responses in an online semantic priming study (N = 40: 19 female, L1 = British English) and found that association type modulated priming (F(2.57, 100.1) = 13.13, p <. 0001, generalized η2 = .19). This research presents a resource of child-specific imageable noun–noun word pair stimuli suitable for testing young children in word recognition and semantic priming studies.

Utility of ultrasound in the diagnostic work-up of suspected pulmonary embolism: an open-label multicentre randomized controlled trial (the PRIME study)

Prevalence of pulmonary embolism (PE) in patients referred to diagnostic imaging is decreasing, indicating a need for improving patient selection. The aim of this study was to assess reduction in referral to diagnostic imaging by integrating a bespoke ultrasound protocol and describe associated failure rate and adverse events in patients with suspected PE. In a randomized open-label multicentre trial spanning June 18, 2021, through Feb 1, 2023, adult patients with suspected PE and 1) a Wells score of 0-6 and elevated age-adjusted D-dimer or 2) Wells score >6 were randomly assigned 1:1 to direct diagnostic imaging (controls) or focused lung, cardiac, and deep venous ultrasound by unblinded investigators. Ultrasound could: 1) dismiss PE if no signs of PE and low clinical suspicion or an alternate diagnosis, 2) confirm PE in case of visible venous thrombus, ≥2 subpleural infarctions, McConnell's, or D-sign, or 3) refer to diagnostic imaging if neither category was fulfilled or a patient with confirmed PE by ultrasound required admission. Primary endpoint was proportion of patients referred to diagnostic imaging. Outcome assessors were not blinded to group assignment. All included participants were included in safety analyses. The trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04882579). A total of 150 patients were recruited, of whom 73 were randomized to ultrasound. Among 77 controls referred to diagnostic imaging, 26 patients had PE confirmed. In the ultrasound group, 40 patients were referred to diagnostic imaging of whom 20 had PE, reducing referral for diagnostic imaging by 45.2% (95% CI: 34.3-56.6, p<0.0001). Three further PEs were diagnosed by presence of a DVT. During 3-month follow-up, the number of patients who did not receive anticoagulation but was diagnosed with PE was two (4%; 95% CI: 1.1-13.5) and none (0%; 95% CI: 0.0-7.0) in the ultrasound and control group, respectively. Ultrasound substantially reduced referral to diagnostic imaging in suspected PE. Albeit with an unacceptable failure rate. University of Southern Denmark, Odense University Hospital, Master Carpenter Sophus Jacobsen and wife's foundation, Engineer K. A. Rhode and wife foundation.

Following Your Ideal Leader: Implicit Public Leadership Theories, Leader—Member Exchange, and Work Engagement

Although social comparisons are ubiquitous in leadership, previous scholarship in public administration has not yet studied comparative aspects of how followers perceive and respond to leadership. This study addresses this gap and disentangles the link between leadership and work engagement from a socio-cognitive and relational perspective. It examines how public employees compare their real leaders against ideal leaders and how perceived gaps between both affect their work engagement through leader–member exchange (LMX). Building on leadership and job demands–resources theory, a priming study using the Semantic Misattribution Procedure (SMP) extracts participants’ Implicit Public Leadership Theories. Structural equation modeling reveals that work engagement is substantially higher (lower) when characteristics of the supervisor resonate with positive (negative) prototypes of ideal leaders, with this association being fully mediated by LMX. The study shows how implicit information processing matters for the emergence of leader–follower relationships and, in turn, for important follower outcomes. It thus contributes to, and combines, a socio-cognitive and a relational approach to leadership in the public sector.

Real-world use of inhaled corticosteroid/formoterol as needed in adults with mild asthma: the PRIME study.

Inhaled corticosteroid/formoterol fumarate (ICS/FF) as needed is recommended by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) as sole therapy in adults with mild asthma, with low-dose maintenance ICS plus short-acting β2-agonist (SABA) as an alternative. SABA alone is no longer recommended. Given these changes in recommendations, the observational PRIME study aimed to describe real-world treatment patterns in mild asthma in Europe. Adults with asthma receiving low-dose maintenance ICS, or as needed ICS/FF or SABA were followed for 6 months. Data collected included Asthma Control Test (ACT), Asthma Control Questionnaire 5-item (ACQ-5), forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) and asthma exacerbations. The study was conducted in 883 patients in Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain; 833 (94.3%) completed follow-up. At enrolment, 32.2% received maintenance ICS, 56.3% ICS/FF as needed and 11.6% SABA as needed; 57.4%, 61.2% and 54.9%, respectively, had well-controlled asthma (ACQ-5/ACT definition). After 6 months, changes in mean FEV1 were small in the maintenance ICS and ICS/FF as needed groups, whereas there was a decline in FEV1 in the SABA as needed group. ACQ-5 total score improved from baseline in all three groups; 0.4%, 0.4% and 2.0% patients, respectively, had a severe exacerbation during the study. More patients received ICS/FF as needed than SABA as needed, suggesting that physicians are aware of the latest treatment recommendations. This real-world study provides additional support to the use of ICS/FF as needed as preferred treatment for patients with mild asthma, whereas SABA as needed was associated with a fall in lung function and more severe exacerbations.

A Real-world Study to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Evening primrose oil in Combination with Tocotrienol and Vitamin B6 in Women with Premenstrual Syndrome: Findings from PRIME study

A Real-world Study to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Evening primrose oil in Combination with Tocotrienol and Vitamin B6 in Women with Premenstrual Syndrome: Findings from PRIME study

An Evaluation of Racial and Ethnic Representation in Research Conducted with Young Adults Diagnosed with Cancer: Challenges and Considerations for Building More Equitable and Inclusive Research Practices.

The psychosocial outcomes of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) diagnosed with cancer are poorer compared to their peers without cancer. However, AYAs with cancer from diverse racial and ethnic groups have been under-represented in research, which contributes to an incomplete understanding of the psychosocial outcomes of all AYAs with cancer. This paper evaluated the racial and ethnic representation in research on AYAs diagnosed with cancer using observational, cross-sectional data from the large Young Adults with Cancer in Their Prime (YACPRIME) study. The purpose was to better understand the psychosocial outcomes for those from diverse racial and ethnic groups. A total of 622 participants with a mean age of 34.15 years completed an online survey, including measures of post-traumatic growth, quality of life, psychological distress, and social support. Of this sample, 2% (n = 13) of the participants self-identified as Indigenous, 3% (n = 21) as Asian, 3% (n = 20) as "other," 4% (n = 25) as multi-racial, and 87% (n = 543) as White. A one-way ANOVA indicated a statistically significant difference between racial and ethnic groups in relation to spiritual change, a subscale of post-traumatic growth, F(4,548) = 6.02, p < 0.001. Post hoc analyses showed that those under the "other" category endorsed greater levels of spiritual change than those who identified as multi-racial (p < 0.001, 95% CI = [2.49,7.09]) and those who identified as White (p < 0.001, 95% CI = [1.60,5.04]). Similarly, participants that identified as Indigenous endorsed greater levels of spiritual change than those that identified as White (p = 0.03, 95% CI = [1.16,4.08]) and those that identified as multi-racial (p = 0.005, 95% CI = [1.10,6.07]). We provided an extensive discussion on the challenges and limitations of interpreting these findings, given the unequal and small sample sizes across groups. We concluded by outlining key recommendations for researchers to move towards greater equity, inclusivity, and culturally responsiveness in future work.