Research

12 pages, 278 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) in Patients with Early-Stage Alzheimer’s Disease: A Pilot Study

by M. V. Giulietti, R. Spatuzzi, P. Fabbietti and A. Vespa

Brain Sci. 2023, 13(3), 484; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13030484 - 13 Mar 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2026

Bachground In this study, we hypothesize that mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) may improve well-being and the related outcomes in Alzheimer’s dementia patients (AD-P) at an early stage. MBIs consist of the practice of consciously observing the psychic contents in the present moment (thoughts, sensations, [...] Read more.

Bachground In this study, we hypothesize that mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) may improve well-being and the related outcomes in Alzheimer’s dementia patients (AD-P) at an early stage. MBIs consist of the practice of consciously observing the psychic contents in the present moment (thoughts, sensations, feelings, and other events). This attention allows one to become aware of the psychic contents and integrate them, thus favoring the quality of life and an increase in the mood of practitioners. Methods The randomized controlled study enrolled 22 AD-P at an early stage (age ≥ 60 years) treated with MBIs and 22 patients without treatment (six months of MBI training). Tests (T0–T1 six months): Mini-Mental State Examination (MMPI); Spiritual Well-Being (SWB); Beck Depression Inventory (BDI); SF36. Test-Caregiver: Everyday Cognition scales (ECOG). Results AD-P with mindfulness: Improvement of ECOG (p = 0.026), quality of life (p < 0.001), spiritual well-being (p < 0.001); decrease in depression BDI (p < 0.001). The MMSE remains unchanged. The control group of untreated patients showed a significant worsening in all these dimensions. Conclusions MBI training is effective in increasing quality of life and preventing worsening in patients with early-stage Alzheimer’s dementia. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

17 pages, 2774 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Sound of Emotion: Pinpointing Emotional Voice Processing Via Frequency Tagging EEG

by Silke Vos, Olivier Collignon and Bart Boets

Brain Sci. 2023, 13(2), 162; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13020162 - 18 Jan 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2147

Abstract

Successfully engaging in social communication requires efficient processing of subtle socio-communicative cues. Voices convey a wealth of social information, such as gender, identity, and the emotional state of the speaker. We tested whether our brain can systematically and automatically differentiate and track a [...] Read more.

Successfully engaging in social communication requires efficient processing of subtle socio-communicative cues. Voices convey a wealth of social information, such as gender, identity, and the emotional state of the speaker. We tested whether our brain can systematically and automatically differentiate and track a periodic stream of emotional utterances among a series of neutral vocal utterances. We recorded frequency-tagged EEG responses of 20 neurotypical male adults while presenting streams of neutral utterances at a 4 Hz base rate, interleaved with emotional utterances every third stimulus, hence at a 1.333 Hz oddball frequency. Four emotions (happy, sad, angry, and fear) were presented as different conditions in different streams. To control the impact of low-level acoustic cues, we maximized variability among the stimuli and included a control condition with scrambled utterances. This scrambling preserves low-level acoustic characteristics but ensures that the emotional character is no longer recognizable. Results revealed significant oddball EEG responses for all conditions, indicating that every emotion category can be discriminated from the neutral stimuli, and every emotional oddball response was significantly higher than the response for the scrambled utterances. These findings demonstrate that emotion discrimination is fast, automatic, and is not merely driven by low-level perceptual features. Eventually, here, we present a new database for vocal emotion research with short emotional utterances (EVID) together with an innovative frequency-tagging EEG paradigm for implicit vocal emotion discrimination. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 5757 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Age Effects in Emotional Memory and Associated Eye Movements

by Daphne Stam, Laura Colman, Kristof Vansteelandt, Mathieu Vandenbulcke and Jan Van den Stock

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(12), 1719; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12121719 - 15 Dec 2022

Viewed by 1411

Abstract

Mnemonic enhanced memory has been observed for negative events. Here, we investigate its association with spatiotemporal attention, consolidation, and age. An ingenious method to study visual attention for emotional stimuli is eye tracking. Twenty young adults and twenty-one older adults encoded stimuli depicting [...] Read more.

Mnemonic enhanced memory has been observed for negative events. Here, we investigate its association with spatiotemporal attention, consolidation, and age. An ingenious method to study visual attention for emotional stimuli is eye tracking. Twenty young adults and twenty-one older adults encoded stimuli depicting neutral faces, angry faces, and houses while eye movements were recorded. The encoding phase was followed by an immediate and delayed (48 h) recognition assessment. Linear mixed model analyses of recognition performance with group, emotion, and their interaction as fixed effects revealed increased performance for angry compared to neutral faces in the young adults group only. Furthermore, young adults showed enhanced memory for angry faces compared to older adults. This effect was associated with a shorter fixation duration for angry faces compared to neutral faces in the older adults group. Furthermore, the results revealed that total fixation duration was a strong predictor for face memory performance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

9 pages, 271 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Emotion Recognition and the Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder (SI-Bord): Outcomes and Community-Based Validation

by Emmet Godfrey, Molly Kelly Grealy, Erin Whyte O’Sullivan, Sarah Sullivan, Finn Brady, Grace Carroll and Tom Burke

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(11), 1512; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12111512 - 08 Nov 2022

Viewed by 1539

Abstract

Background: Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a psychiatric condition characterized by impulsivity, affect instability, dysregulation, low self-image, and interpersonal difficulties. There are many instruments to measure traits of BPD, however, few can be administered quickly. The Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder (SI-Bord) [...] Read more.

Background: Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a psychiatric condition characterized by impulsivity, affect instability, dysregulation, low self-image, and interpersonal difficulties. There are many instruments to measure traits of BPD, however, few can be administered quickly. The Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder (SI-Bord) is an instrument offering a brief administration time with comparable psychometric properties to more comprehensive measures. The present study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the SI-Bord in a healthy community-based sample and its relatedness to measures of social cognition. Methods: A community-based sample of participants completed an online survey consisting of measures of BPD traits and social cognition including: the Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder (SI-Bord), the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI), the Florida Affect Battery (FAB), the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), and the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI). Reliability was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha and inter-item correlations. Validity was assessed using factor analysis, examining associations with other measures of BPD traits, and examining associations with measures not measuring BPD traits. Results: 151 participants were included in the study. Participants’ age ranged from 20–76 (mean age of 38.79 ± 12.37) and comprised 76 females (50.33%) and 75 males (49.67%). Good internal consistency was found with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.71. Good inter-item reliability was found with a mean inter-item cross correlation of 0.25, with each item of the SI-Bord showing an inter-item correlation coefficient of >0.5. Factor analysis identified good construct validity with a strong singular dimension explaining a large proportion of variance (Question 1). The SI-Bord showed good concurrent validity with significantly strong positive correlations with the subscales of the PAI borderline scale measuring affect instability (r = 0.60; p < 0.001), identity problems (r = 0.67; p < 0.001), negative relationships (r = 0.61; p < 0.001), total score (r = 0.76; p < 0.001), and to a moderately strong positive correlation with self-harm (r = 0.39; p < 0.001). The SI-Bord was not correlated with the NPI-16 (r = 0.131; p = 0.11), showing good divergent validity. Conclusions: These findings support the SI-Bord as a quick and useful screening tool for traits associated with BPD. Further clinical validation is warranted. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

12 pages, 313 KiB

Open AccessArticle

On the Embodiment of Social Cognition Skills: The Inner and Outer Body Processing Differently Contributes to the Affective and Cognitive Theory of Mind

by Silvia Canino, Simona Raimo, Maddalena Boccia, Antonella Di Vita and Liana Palermo

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(11), 1423; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12111423 - 23 Oct 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2270

Abstract

A specific interpretation of embodiment assigns a central role to the body representations (BR) in cognition. In the social cognition domain, BR could be pivotal in representing others’ actions and states. However, empirical evidence on the relationship between different BR and social cognition, [...] Read more.

A specific interpretation of embodiment assigns a central role to the body representations (BR) in cognition. In the social cognition domain, BR could be pivotal in representing others’ actions and states. However, empirical evidence on the relationship between different BR and social cognition, in terms of Theory of Mind (ToM), in the same sample of participants is missing. Here, this relationship was explored considering individual differences in the action-oriented BR (aBR), nonaction-oriented BR (NaBR), and subjective predisposition toward internal bodily sensations (interoceptive sensibility, ISe). Eighty-two healthy adults were given behavioral measures probing aBR, NaBR, ISe, and affective/cognitive ToM. The results suggest that NaBR, which mainly relies on exteroceptive signals, predicts individual differences in cognitive ToM, possibly because it can allow differentiating between the self and others. Instead, the negative association between affective ToM and ISe suggests that an alteration of the internal body state representation (i.e., over-reporting interoceptive sensations) can affect emotional processing in social contexts. The finding that distinct aspects of the body processing from within (ISe) and from the outside (NaBR) differently contribute to ToM provides empirical support to the BR role in social cognition and can be relevant for developing interventions in clinical settings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

11 pages, 273 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Emotion Recognition in Patients with Low-Grade Glioma before and after Surgery

by Anne M. Buunk, Marleen J. J. Gerritsen, Hanne-Rinck Jeltema, Michiel Wagemakers, Jan D. M. Metzemaekers, Rob J. M. Groen and Jacoba M. Spikman

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1259; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091259 - 16 Sep 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1588

Abstract

Research on patients with low-grade gliomas (LGGs) showed neurocognitive impairments in various domains. However, social cognition has barely been investigated. Facial emotion recognition is a vital aspect of social cognition, but whether emotion recognition is affected in LGG patients is unclear. Therefore, we [...] Read more.

Research on patients with low-grade gliomas (LGGs) showed neurocognitive impairments in various domains. However, social cognition has barely been investigated. Facial emotion recognition is a vital aspect of social cognition, but whether emotion recognition is affected in LGG patients is unclear. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the effect of LGG and resection by examining emotion recognition pre- and postoperatively. Additionally, the relationships among emotion recognition and general cognition and tumor location were investigated. Thirty patients with LGG who underwent resective surgery were included and matched with 63 healthy control participants (HCs). Emotion recognition was measured with the Facial Expressions of Emotion–Stimuli and Tests (FEEST) and general cognition with neuropsychological tests. Correlations and within-group and between-group comparisons were calculated. Before surgery, patients performed significantly worse than the HCs on FEEST-Total and FEEST-Anger. Paired comparisons showed no significant differences between FEEST scores before and post-surgery. No significant correlations with general cognition and tumor location were found. To conclude, the results of this study indicate that the tumor itself contributes significantly to social cognitive dysfunction and that surgery causes no additional deficit. Impairments were not related to general cognitive deficits or tumor location. Consequently, incorporating tests for emotion recognition into the neuropsychological assessment of patients with LGG is important. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

13 pages, 331 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sociomoral Reasoning Skills during Childhood: A Comprehensive and Predictive Approach

by Frédérick Morasse, Annie Bernier, Gabrielle Lalonde, Sébastien Hétu and Miriam H. Beauchamp

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1226; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091226 - 10 Sep 2022

Viewed by 1877

Abstract

Sociomoral reasoning (SMR) is an essential component of social functioning allowing children to establish judgments based on moral criteria. The progressive emergence and complexification of SMR during childhood is thought to be underpinned by a range of characteristics and abilities present in the [...] Read more.

Sociomoral reasoning (SMR) is an essential component of social functioning allowing children to establish judgments based on moral criteria. The progressive emergence and complexification of SMR during childhood is thought to be underpinned by a range of characteristics and abilities present in the preschool years. Past studies have mostly examined concurrent associations between individual factors and SMR. Using a more comprehensive and predictive approach to identify early predictors of school-age SMR would contribute to a more complete picture of SMR development. This study aimed to investigate the contribution of four domains of preschool predictors to SMR at school-age: demographic (age, sex, parental education), cognitive (executive and sociocognitive functions), behavioral (internalizing and externalizing behaviors), and familial (parent–child interactions, parental stress) factors. Parents of 122 children 3 to 5 years (M = 3.70, SD = 0.66 years, 51% girls) completed questionnaires and children were administered executive and sociocognitive tasks. Parent–child interactions were assessed using an observational approach. SMR was measured four years later using the SoMoral task. A four-step hierarchical regression analysis revealed that executive functions and internalizing problems were significant independent predictors of SMR. These findings provide a more comprehensive understanding of the early precursors of SMR during childhood. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

16 pages, 1567 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Frequency-Tagging EEG of Superimposed Social and Non-Social Visual Stimulation Streams Provides No Support for Social Salience Enhancement after Intranasal Oxytocin Administration

by Zhiling Qiao, Stephanie Van der Donck, Matthijs Moerkerke, Tereza Dlhosova, Sofie Vettori, Milena Dzhelyova, Ruud van Winkel, Kaat Alaerts and Bart Boets

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1224; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091224 - 10 Sep 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1464

Abstract

The social salience hypothesis proposes that the neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) can impact human social behavior by modulating the salience of social cues. Here, frequency-tagging EEG was used to quantify the neural responses to social versus non-social stimuli while administering a single dose of [...] Read more.

The social salience hypothesis proposes that the neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) can impact human social behavior by modulating the salience of social cues. Here, frequency-tagging EEG was used to quantify the neural responses to social versus non-social stimuli while administering a single dose of OT (24 IU) versus placebo treatment. Specifically, two streams of faces and houses were superimposed on one another, with each stream of stimuli tagged with a particular presentation rate (i.e., 6 and 7.5 Hz or vice versa). These distinctive frequency tags allowed unambiguously disentangling and objectively quantifying the respective neural responses elicited by the different streams of stimuli. This study involved a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial with 31 healthy adult men. Based on four trials of 60 s, we detected robust frequency-tagged neural responses in each individual, with entrainment to faces being more pronounced in lateral occipito-temporal regions and entrainment to houses being focused in medial occipital regions. However, contrary to our expectation, a single dose of OT did not modulate these stimulus-driven neural responses, not in terms of enhanced social processing nor in terms of generally enhanced information salience. Bayesian analyses formally confirmed these null findings. Possibly, the baseline ceiling level performance of these neurotypical adult participants as well as the personal irrelevance of the applied stimulation streams might have hindered the observation of any OT effect. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 311 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Corpus Callosum Microstructural Tract Integrity Relates to Longer Emotion Recognition Reaction Time in People with Schizophrenia

by Tom Burke, Christina Gleeson, Laurena Holleran, David Mothersill, Jessica Holland, Laura Costello, Ruán Kane, Declan P. McKernan, Derek W. Morris, John P. Kelly, Aiden P. Corvin, Brian P. Hallahan, Colm McDonald and Gary Donohoe

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1208; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091208 - 08 Sep 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1508

Abstract

Objective: Schizophrenia is a complex functionally debilitating neurodevelopmental disorder, with associated social cognitive impairment. Corpus Callosum (CC) white matter tracts deficits are reported for people with schizophrenia; however, few studies focus on interhemispheric processing relative to social cognition tasks. This study aimed [...] Read more.

Objective: Schizophrenia is a complex functionally debilitating neurodevelopmental disorder, with associated social cognitive impairment. Corpus Callosum (CC) white matter tracts deficits are reported for people with schizophrenia; however, few studies focus on interhemispheric processing relative to social cognition tasks. This study aimed to determine if a relationship between the CC and social cognition exists. Method: In this cross-section study, a sample of n = 178 typical controls and n = 58 people with schizophrenia completed measures of mentalising (Reading the Mind in the Eyes), emotion recognition outcome and reaction time (Emotion Recognition Test), and clinical symptoms (Positive and Negative Symptom Scale), alongside diffusion-based tract imaging. The CC and its subregions, i.e., the genu, body, and splenium were the regions of interest (ROI). Results: Reduced white matter tract integrity was observed in the CC for patients when compared to controls. Patients performed slower, and less accurately on emotion recognition tasks, which significantly and negatively correlated to the structural integrity of the CC genu. Tract integrity further significantly and negatively related to clinical symptomatology. Conclusions: People with schizophrenia have altered white matter integrity in the genu of the CC, compared to controls, which relates to cognitive deficits associated with recognising emotional stimuli accurately and quickly, and severity of clinical symptoms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

14 pages, 879 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Global and Regional Structural Differences and Prediction of Autistic Traits during Adolescence

by Frauke Nees, Tobias Banaschewski, Arun L. W. Bokde, Sylvane Desrivières, Antoine Grigis, Hugh Garavan, Penny Gowland, Yvonne Grimmer, Andreas Heinz, Rüdiger Brühl, Corinna Isensee, Andreas Becker, Jean-Luc Martinot, Marie-Laure Paillère Martinot, Eric Artiges, Dimitri Papadopoulos Orfanos, Hervé Lemaître, Argyris Stringaris, Betteke van Noort, Tomáš Paus, Jani Penttilä, Sabina Millenet, Juliane H. Fröhner, Michael N. Smolka, Henrik Walter, Robert Whelan, Gunter Schumann, Luise Poustka and on behalf of the IMAGEN Consortium Show full author list Hide full author list

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1187; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091187 - 02 Sep 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1944

Abstract

Background: Autistic traits are commonly viewed as dimensional in nature, and as continuously distributed in the general population. In this respect, the identification of predictive values of markers such as subtle autism-related alterations in brain morphology for parameter values of autistic traits could [...] Read more.

Background: Autistic traits are commonly viewed as dimensional in nature, and as continuously distributed in the general population. In this respect, the identification of predictive values of markers such as subtle autism-related alterations in brain morphology for parameter values of autistic traits could increase our understanding of this dimensional occasion. However, currently, very little is known about how these traits correspond to alterations in brain morphology in typically developing individuals, particularly during a time period where changes due to brain development processes do not provide a bias. Therefore, in the present study, we analyzed brain volume, cortical thickness (CT) and surface area (SA) in a cohort of 14–15-year-old adolescents (N = 285, female: N = 162) and tested their predictive value for autistic traits, assessed with the social responsiveness scale (SRS) two years later at the age of 16–17 years, using a regression-based approach. We found that autistic traits were significantly predicted by volumetric changes in the amygdala (r = 0.181), cerebellum (r = 0.128) and hippocampus (r = −0.181, r = −0.203), both in boys and girls. Moreover, the CT of the superior frontal region was negatively correlated (r = −0.144) with SRS scores. Furthermore, we observed a significant association between the SRS total score and smaller left putamen volume, specifically in boys (r = −0.217), but not in girls. Our findings suggest that neural correlates of autistic traits also seem to lie on a continuum in the general population, are determined by limbic–striatal neuroanatomical brain areas, and are partly dependent on sex. As we imaged adolescents from a large population-based cohort within a small age range, these data may help to increase the understanding of autistic-like occasions in otherwise typically developing individuals. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

23 pages, 1991 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evidence of Audience Design in Amnesia: Adaptation in Gesture but Not Speech

by Sharice Clough, Caitlin Hilverman, Sarah Brown-Schmidt and Melissa C. Duff

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(8), 1082; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12081082 - 16 Aug 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1582

Abstract

Speakers design communication for their audience, providing more information in both speech and gesture when their listener is naïve to the topic. We test whether the hippocampal declarative memory system contributes to multimodal audience design. The hippocampus, while traditionally linked to episodic and [...] Read more.

Speakers design communication for their audience, providing more information in both speech and gesture when their listener is naïve to the topic. We test whether the hippocampal declarative memory system contributes to multimodal audience design. The hippocampus, while traditionally linked to episodic and relational memory, has also been linked to the ability to imagine the mental states of others and use language flexibly. We examined the speech and gesture use of four patients with hippocampal amnesia when describing how to complete everyday tasks (e.g., how to tie a shoe) to an imagined child listener and an adult listener. Although patients with amnesia did not increase their total number of words and instructional steps for the child listener, they did produce representational gestures at significantly higher rates for the imagined child compared to the adult listener. They also gestured at similar frequencies to neurotypical peers, suggesting that hand gesture can be a meaningful communicative resource, even in the case of severe declarative memory impairment. We discuss the contributions of multiple memory systems to multimodal audience design and the potential of gesture to act as a window into the social cognitive processes of individuals with neurologic disorders. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 1955 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Threat Detection in Nearby Space Mobilizes Human Ventral Premotor Cortex, Intraparietal Sulcus, and Amygdala

by Aline W. de Borst and Beatrice de Gelder

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(3), 391; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12030391 - 15 Mar 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2486

Abstract

In the monkey brain, the precentral gyrus and ventral intraparietal area are two interconnected brain regions that form a system for detecting and responding to events in nearby “peripersonal” space (PPS), with threat detection as one of its major functions. Behavioral studies point [...] Read more.

In the monkey brain, the precentral gyrus and ventral intraparietal area are two interconnected brain regions that form a system for detecting and responding to events in nearby “peripersonal” space (PPS), with threat detection as one of its major functions. Behavioral studies point toward a similar defensive function of PPS in humans. Here, our aim was to find support for this hypothesis by investigating if homolog regions in the human brain respond more strongly to approaching threatening stimuli. During fMRI scanning, naturalistic social stimuli were presented in a 3D virtual environment. Our results showed that the ventral premotor cortex and intraparietal sulcus responded more strongly to threatening stimuli entering PPS. Moreover, we found evidence for the involvement of the amygdala and anterior insula in processing threats. We propose that the defensive function of PPS may be supported by a subcortical circuit that sends information about the relevance of the stimulus to the premotor cortex and intraparietal sulcus, where action preparation is facilitated when necessary. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

9 pages, 648 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Disorder-Specific Profiles of Self-Perceived Emotional Abilities in Schizophrenia and Major Depressive Disorder

by Elisabeth M. Weiss, Eberhard A. Deisenhammer, Andreas Fink, Josef Marksteiner, Markus Canazei and Ilona Papousek

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(3), 356; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12030356 - 07 Mar 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1869

Abstract

Deficits in social cognition are a core feature of neuropsychiatric disorders. The purpose of this study was to compare profiles of self-perceived abilities across the core domains of emotional functioning between patients with schizophrenia (n = 22), major depressive disorder (n [...] Read more.

Deficits in social cognition are a core feature of neuropsychiatric disorders. The purpose of this study was to compare profiles of self-perceived abilities across the core domains of emotional functioning between patients with schizophrenia (n = 22), major depressive disorder (n = 31) and healthy participants (n = 43) with the Self-report Emotional Ability Scale (SEAS). Profile analyses were used to explore group differences in the overall level of self-perceived effectiveness of emotional functioning and in the patterns in which the four functions of emotion perception and regulation in the intra- and inter-personal domains are arranged to each other. Both patient groups showed significantly lower overall levels of self-perceived emotional functioning compared to healthy controls. Most importantly, we found significant differences between patient groups in their profile patterns. Patients with schizophrenia indicated experiencing difficulties in all investigated domains, but the profile pattern largely matched that of healthy individuals. Instead, the profile of patients with depression was much more accentuated, showing lower perceived effectiveness of emotion perception and regulation in the intra-personal domain compared to inter-personal functions. Our results of disorder-specific emotional deficits may have profound implications for early screening and identification of at-risk populations as well as recovery-oriented interventions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

8 pages, 521 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Direct Gaze Holds Attention, but Not in Individuals with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

by Mario Dalmaso, Lara Petri, Elisabetta Patron, Andrea Spoto and Michele Vicovaro

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(2), 288; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12020288 - 19 Feb 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2258

Abstract

The attentional response to eye-gaze stimuli is still largely unexplored in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Here, we focused on an attentional phenomenon according to which a direct-gaze face can hold attention in a perceiver. Individuals with OCD and a group of matched [...] Read more.

The attentional response to eye-gaze stimuli is still largely unexplored in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Here, we focused on an attentional phenomenon according to which a direct-gaze face can hold attention in a perceiver. Individuals with OCD and a group of matched healthy controls were asked to discriminate, through a speeded manual response, a peripheral target. Meanwhile, a task-irrelevant face displaying either direct gaze (in the eye-contact condition) or averted gaze (in the no-eye-contact condition) was also presented at the centre of the screen. Overall, the latencies were slower for faces with direct gaze than for faces with averted gaze; however, this difference was reliable in the healthy control group but not in the OCD group. This suggests the presence of an unusual attentional response to direct gaze in this clinical population. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research, Other

20 pages, 5181 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

What Do We Know about Social and Non-Social Factors Influencing the Pathway from Cognitive Health to Dementia? A Systematic Review of Reviews

by Marta Lenart-Bugla, Mateusz Łuc, Marcin Pawłowski, Dorota Szcześniak, Imke Seifert, Henrik Wiegelmann, Ansgar Gerhardus, Karin Wolf-Ostermann, Etiënne A. J. A. Rouwette, M. Arfan Ikram, Henry Brodaty, Yun-Hee Jeon, Jane Maddock, Anna Marseglia, René J. F. Melis, Suraj Samtani, Hui-Xin Wang, Anna-Karin Welmer, Myrra Vernooij-Dassen and Joanna Rymaszewska

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1214; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091214 - 08 Sep 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4121

Abstract

The heterogeneous and multi-factorial nature of dementia requires the consideration of all health aspects when predicting the risk of its development and planning strategies for its prevention. This systematic review of reviews provides a comprehensive synthesis of those factors associated with cognition in [...] Read more.

The heterogeneous and multi-factorial nature of dementia requires the consideration of all health aspects when predicting the risk of its development and planning strategies for its prevention. This systematic review of reviews provides a comprehensive synthesis of those factors associated with cognition in the context of dementia, identifying the role of social aspects and evidencing knowledge gaps in this area of research. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses from 2009–2021 were searched for within Medline, PsycINFO, CINAHL Complete, Cochrane, and Epistemonikos. Reviewers independently screened, reviewed, and assessed the records, following the PRISMA-2020 guidelines. From 314 included studies, 624 cognitive-related factors were identified, most of them risk factors (61.2%), mainly belonging to the group of ‘somatic comorbidities’ (cardiovascular disease and diabetes) and ‘genetic predispositions’. The protective factors (20%) were mainly related to lifestyle, pointing to the Mediterranean diet, regular physical activity, and cognitively stimulating activities. Social factors constituted 9.6% of all identified factors. Research on biological and medical factors dominates the reviewed literature. Greater social support and frequent contact may confer some protection against cognitive decline and dementia by delaying its onset or reducing the overall risk; however, overall, our findings are inconsistent. Further research is needed in the fields of lifestyle, psychology, social health, and the protective factors against cognitive decline and dementia. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Other

Jump to: Research, Review

18 pages, 1106 KiB

Open AccessSystematic Review

What Are the Neural Correlates of Impaired Awareness of Social Cognition and Function in Dementia? A Systematic Review

by Anna Hengstschläger, Andrew Sommerlad and Jonathan Huntley

Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1136; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091136 - 26 Aug 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2108

Abstract

Deficits in social cognition and function are characteristic of dementia, commonly accompanied by a loss of awareness of the presence or extent of these deficits. This lack of awareness can impair social relationships, increase patients’ and carers’ burden, and contribute to increased rates [...] Read more.

Deficits in social cognition and function are characteristic of dementia, commonly accompanied by a loss of awareness of the presence or extent of these deficits. This lack of awareness can impair social relationships, increase patients’ and carers’ burden, and contribute to increased rates of institutionalization. Despite clinical importance, neural correlates of this complex phenomenon remain unclear. We conducted a systematic search of five electronic databases to identify functional and structural neuroimaging studies investigating the neural correlates of impaired awareness of social cognition and function in any dementia type. We rated study quality and conducted a narrative synthesis of the results of the eight studies that met the predefined eligibility criteria. Across these studies, deficits in awareness of impairments in social cognition and function were associated with structural or functional abnormalities in the frontal pole, orbitofrontal cortex, temporal pole, middle temporal gyrus, inferior temporal gyrus, fusiform gyrus, amygdala, hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and insula. Several identified regions overlap with established neural correlates of social cognition. More research is needed to understand awareness of social cognition and function and how this becomes impaired in dementia to improve neuroscientific understanding, aid the identification of this problematic symptom, and target interventions to reduce burden and improve care. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Social Cognition across Healthy and Neuropsychiatric Conditions

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Published Papers (16 papers)

Research

Review

Other

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI