Chronic stress can change how we learn and, thus, how we make decisions1,2,3,4,5. Here we investigated the neuronal circuit mechanisms that enable this. Using a multifaceted systems neuroscience approach in male and female mice, we reveal a dual-pathway, amygdala–striatal neuronal circuit architecture by which a recent history of chronic stress disrupts the action–outcome learning underlying… Continue reading A dual-pathway architecture for #stress to disrupt agency and promote #habit
Category: psychology
#Higher income is associated with greater life satisfaction, and more #stress
Is there a cost to our well-being from increased affluence? Drawing upon responses from 2.05 million U.S. adults from the Gallup Daily Poll from 2008 to 2017 we find that with household income above ~$63,000 respondents are more likely to experience stress. This contrasts with the trend below this threshold, where at higher income the… Continue reading #Higher income is associated with greater life satisfaction, and more #stress
The Spiral of #Attention, Arousal, and Release: A Comparative Phenomenology of Jhāna Meditation and Speaking in Tongues
Buddhist Jhāna meditation and the Christian practice of speaking in tongues appear wildly distinct. These spiritual techniques differ in their ethical, theological, and historical frames and seem, from the outside, to produce markedly different states of consciousness-one a state of utter calm and the other of high emotional arousal. Yet, our phenomenological interviews with experienced… Continue reading The Spiral of #Attention, Arousal, and Release: A Comparative Phenomenology of Jhāna Meditation and Speaking in Tongues
The tradeoff of #solitude? #Restoration and relatedness across shades of solitude
Social interaction and solitude entail tradeoffs. Communicate Bond Belong (CBB) theory holds that social interaction can foster relatedness with others at the cost of social energy, whereas solitude can restore social energy at the cost of relatedness. The current study empirically tests this tradeoff of solitude and its implications for well-being by investigating different degrees… Continue reading The tradeoff of #solitude? #Restoration and relatedness across shades of solitude
Associations of accelerometer-measured #physical activity, #sedentary behaviour, and #sleep with next-day #cognitive performance in older adults: a micro-longitudinal study
BackgroundPrevious studies suggest short-term cognitive benefits of physical activity occurring minutes to hours after exercise. Whether these benefits persist the following day and the role of sleep is unclear. We examined associations of accelerometer-assessed physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep with next-day cognitive performance in older adults.MethodsBritish adults aged 50-83 years (N = 76) without evidence of… Continue reading Associations of accelerometer-measured #physical activity, #sedentary behaviour, and #sleep with next-day #cognitive performance in older adults: a micro-longitudinal study
Parent-child #relationship quality predicts higher subjective #well-being in adulthood across a diverse group of countries
Theoretically and empirically, parenting is closely related to the psychological health of offspring, but long-term effects and possible international differences are not well established. In a pre-registered multilevel modeling analysis using data from the Global Flourishing Study, we tested whether retrospective parent-child relationship quality predicts adult well-being in a representative sample of 202,898 adults living… Continue reading Parent-child #relationship quality predicts higher subjective #well-being in adulthood across a diverse group of countries
Gut #microbiota regulates #stress responsivity via the circadian system
SummaryStress and circadian systems are interconnected through the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis to maintain responses to external stimuli. Yet, the mechanisms of how such signals are orchestrated remain unknown. Here, we uncover the gut microbiota as a regulator of HPA-axis rhythmicity. Microbial depletion disturbs the brain transcriptome and metabolome in stress-responding pathways in the hippocampus and… Continue reading Gut #microbiota regulates #stress responsivity via the circadian system
Effects of interventions to combat #tobacco addiction: #Cochrane update of 2021 to 2023 reviews
To summarise systematic reviews on tobacco addiction published by the Cochrane Tobacco Addiction Group (CTAG) from 2021 to 2023.MethodsWe identified all new and updated Cochrane Reviews published by CTAG between 2021 and 2023. We present key results from these reviews and discuss promising avenues for future research.ResultsCTAG published five new reviews and one overview of… Continue reading Effects of interventions to combat #tobacco addiction: #Cochrane update of 2021 to 2023 reviews
Adaptive #cognitive control circuit changes associated with problem-solving ability and #depression symptom outcomes over 24 months
Behavioral intervention therapies can improve symptoms of depression but do not work for all patients. To identify brain circuit changes that might underlie treatment response, Zhang et al. performed a longitudinal fMRI imaging study on patients with depression and comorbid obesity who received either problem-solving therapy (I-CARE) or usual care (U-CARE). They found that decreased cognitive… Continue reading Adaptive #cognitive control circuit changes associated with problem-solving ability and #depression symptom outcomes over 24 months
2 Medical News 