创伤性记忆的脑功能研究

创伤性记忆是创伤后应激障碍的核心症状。本文就其认知行为表现、相关的脑结构进行探讨,并围绕情绪记忆网络模型,从认知神经科学层面讨论了创伤性记忆治疗和干预的理论假设。     

Executive function performance and trauma exposure in a community sample of children

ObjectiveThough children exposed to familial violence are reported to have difficulties with a range of emotional and behavioral problems (e.g., lower school achievement) that implicate executive function (EF) deficits, relatively little research has specifically examined EF as a function of trauma exposure in children.MethodsBased on parent report of children's exposure to potentially traumatic events, children (N = 110; Age_Mean = 10.39) from an ethnically diverse community sample were compared across three trauma-exposure groups: familial trauma, non-familial trauma, and no trauma. Children completed a battery of tests to assess working memory, behavioral inhibition, processing speed, auditory attention, and interference control.ResultsFamilial trauma (relative to non-familial and no trauma exposure) was associated with poorer performance on an EF composite (composed of working memory, inhibition, auditory attention, and processing speed tasks); the effect size was medium. Both trauma-exposure status and dissociation symptoms explained unique variance in EF performance after controlling for anxiety symptoms, socio-economic status, and potential traumatic brain injury. While IQ and EF performance were related, SES predicted unique variance in IQ (and not EF) scores, while familial-trauma exposure did not.ConclusionsThe contribution of trauma exposure to basic executive functioning held after taking into account symptoms (anxiety and dissociation), socio-economic status, and possible traumatic brain injury exposure. EF problems may provide one route via which maltreated children become at risk for peer, academic, and behavior problems relative to their peers.Practice implicationsEF problems may provide one route via which maltreated children become at risk for peer, academic, psychological, and behavior problems relative to their peers. Recently, intervention strategies have emerged in the anxiety and mood disorder treatment literatures that appear to effectively target EFs. As future research continues to specify the relationship between child trauma exposure and EF performance, these innovative treatments may have important practice implications for addressing EF deficits.     

Child refugees,trauma and education: interactionist considerations on social and emotional needs and development

This paper focuses on the social and emotional needs of children and young people who are refugees. It was inspired by casework undertaken by the author involving a 13‐year‐old boy who was a refugee from Montenegro. A vignette of the case is presented in addition to a review of relevant literature to illustrate and discuss the various sources of trauma experienced by children and young people who are refugees, and the potential impact of these on psychological functioning and emotional wellbeing. Child refugees’ experiences of trauma are seldom restricted to experiences of loss, violence or persecution in their country of origin. Rather, there are multiple experiences in the country of origin, during migration and on arrival in a country of “refuge” that are potentially traumatic, and can have adverse effects on a child or young person’s development. Drawing on research with children and adults who are refugees, as well as research into post‐traumatic stress disorder and into the educational effects of trauma, the paper advocates interactionist and ecosystemic perspectives for understanding the difficulties encountered by refugee children, and considers possibilities for therapeutic intervention.     

将情绪唤醒机制运用于高职教学中的实践探索

针对高职学生的认知特点,情绪唤醒作用机制在高职教学中的运用具有非常重要的意义。引入情绪唤醒机制有助于改善学生在学习抽象知识内容时的理解力和记忆力,能提升学生的自主学习能力和解决问题的能力。在应用中,要有效运用教学手段调动学生情绪,引导学生注意力;注重突出形象思维优势来强化学生记忆;有意识运用负面情绪素材进行唤醒。     

Modifications of Recognition Memory Processes in Preterm Children: An Event‐Related Potential Study

Prematurity may cause hippocampal compromise. Therefore, hippocampus‐dependent memory processes (recollection‐based retrieval) may be more impaired than hippocampus‐independent processes (familiarity‐based retrieval). The memory of 18 children born preterm with reduced hippocampal volumes, without neonatal complications (weeks of gestation < 34, weight < 1,600 g), and 15 controls (8–10 years) was tested using an item recognition task. While groups were equal in memory performance, dissociation was found: The event‐related potential (ERP) correlate of familiarity was intact in the preterm group, whereas the correlate of recollection was attenuated. A follow‐up experiment ruled out that this was due to general cognitive deficits. Furthermore, gestational age correlated with the ERP index of recollection. Thus, recognition memory in preterm children may be characterized by a compensation of attenuated recollection by familiarity.     

Mediational significance of PTSD in the relationship of sexual trauma and eating disorders

OBJECTIVE: To examine the mediational significance of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the development of eating disorder symptomatology following sexually traumatic experiences. METHOD: Seventy-one victims of sexual trauma and 25 control subjects completed interviews and questionnaires assessing eating disorder psychopathology and posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology. Mediational analyses were conducted examining the relationships among trauma, posttraumatic stress, and eating disorder symptoms. Mediational significance was assessed by the drop in the overall correlation between trauma and eating disorder symptoms when PTSD symptoms were included in the regression model. RESULTS: There is a significant association between a history of trauma and eating disorder symptoms. Also, there was a significant association between a history of trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Importantly, the relationship between trauma and eating disorder symptoms was significantly reduced when posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms were included in the regression analyses, indicating mediational significance of the posttraumatic stress construct. These findings were most pronounced for the physiological arousal and avoidance components of posttraumatic stress disorder. DISCUSSION: The present findings support the idea that individuals who develop eating disorders after sexual trauma are likely to have experienced posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology. These findings have significant implications for causal models of eating disorder onset in trauma victims. Furthermore, clinical interventions for traumatized eating disordered individuals may benefit from a focus on posttraumatic stress symptomatology.     

Effects of arousal on organization of positive and negative affect and cognitions: Application to attitude theory

This study explores the impact of arousal on key relations in attitude theory. Specifically, arousal was hypothesized and found to (a) increase the association between positive cognitions about the consequences of an act and attitudes toward the act and (b) decrease the association between negative cognitions and attitudes, thereby producing positive‐negative asymmetries. No positive‐negative asymmetries were predicted and found, however, for the association between positive or negative affective reactions toward the consequences of the act and attitudes. Finally, arousal was hypothesized and also found to induce a unitization in general affective and cognitive evaluations. High arousal and low arousal were manipulated through the controlled viewing of slides in a fully randomized, two‐group design with measurement error taken into account and electrodermal activity monitored to demonstrate changes in arousal. Subjects were 220 male students who provided judgments, evaluations, and attitudes toward the act of giving blood. Knowledge‐assembly theory and the semantic network theory of memory were used to frame hypotheses that, in turn, are based on a cognitive social learning theory of the self‐regulation of one's emotional states.     

学习前后情绪唤醒对内隐和外显记忆的影响

本研究采用加工分离实验范式,以大学生为被试,分别考察了即时回忆（实验1）和延时回忆（实验2）条件下,不同阶段的情绪唤醒对于外显记忆和内隐记忆的影响。本研究发现：（1）学习前情绪唤醒对即时的外显记忆有促进作用,但不影响即时的内隐记忆;（2）延时回忆中,学习前情绪唤醒促进内隐记忆,外显记忆不受影响。本研究表明,学习前后的情绪唤醒通过不同机制影响外显记忆和内隐记忆。     

Trauma characteristics and sleep impairment among trauma-exposed children

Trauma-related sleep difficulties are quite common and their functional and clinical importance are increasingly recognized. High rates of sleep problems have been documented among trauma-exposed adults, particularly those diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); however, research with trauma-exposed children is relatively limited. Research specifically with child samples is critical due to the numerous developmental and functional implications that may result from sleep impairment. Characteristics of the traumatic event may play a key role in understanding sleep difficulties, yet, these associations are not well understood among trauma-exposed children. The current study therefore investigated whether aspects of the traumatic event (i.e., type, nature, chronicity, age of onset, removal from home, and complex trauma) were related to higher levels of sleep disturbances among 276 treatment-seeking children ages 6–18 years (M = 10.88, SD = 3.39; 63.4% female; 62.7% Black). Sleep problems were common in this sample. Domestic and community violence exposure were associated with higher levels of select sleep difficulties, as were interpersonal trauma, chronic trauma, a trauma that began early in life, and complex trauma. Nonetheless, type of trauma and characteristics of the traumatic event were largely unrelated to sleep problems on either caregiver’s or children’s reports. Removal from the home was not linked with sleep impairment. Although findings signify the relevance of sleep disturbances among trauma-exposed children, trauma characteristics may have limited influence on sleep problems.     

Organic vs. functional neurological disorders: The role of childhood psychological trauma

Although the relationship between psychological trauma and medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) is well established, this relationship is less well understood in people with medically unexplained neurological symptoms. In the present study, we set out to compare people with functional neurological disorders, and organic neurological disorders, in terms of childhood and adulthood traumatic events, traumatic stress, emotional dysregulation and symptoms of depression and anxiety. We have hypothesised that those with functional neurological disorders would be more likely to report childhood and adulthood traumatic life events, traumatic symptomatology, emotional dysregulation and symptoms of anxiety and depression, compared to those with organic neurological disorders. Sample consisted of a consecutive series of people with functional neurological disorders and with organic neurological disorders (n = 82) recruited from a hospital in Scotland. Participants completed measures of life events, traumatic stress, emotional regulation, anxiety and depression. The two groups were found to significantly differ in relation to all measures, with the MUS group being more likely to report childhood and adulthood life events, more severe emotional dysregulation, traumatic stress and symptoms of anxiety and stress. Logistic regression analysis revealed that exposure to childhood traumatic life events, specifically childhood sexual abuse, and childhood physical neglect, were the only factors which were significantly associated with membership of the medically unexplained neurological symptoms group. Although further research is required to confirm our findings, our results suggest that identifying and addressing the impact of childhood trauma, may alleviate distress and aid recovery from functional neurological disorders.     

慢性冷水游泳应激对小鼠空间学习记忆和海马NO、NOS的影响

32只成年昆明种小鼠随机分成对照组和应激组,采用强迫冷水游泳建立慢性应激动物模型,Morris水迷宫行为实验观察动物的空间学习记忆能力,同时测定海马NO含量及NOS活性。结果表明,慢性冷水游泳应激可提高小鼠空间学习记忆能力,其机制可能与海马NO含量和NOS活性降低有关。     

Empowering or disabling? Emotional reactions to assessment amongst part-time adult students

This article focuses on emotional reactions to learning and assessment. It draws on a qualitative research project involving first-generation adult students on a foundation degree programme. Endorsing the notion of emotional reactions as situated in participants' lived power relations, we map out emotional patterns to Semester 1 and then explore in more detail, participants' particular emotional reactions to assessment. We found three key themes: higher education assessment as an unknown risk; assessment success ‘out of the blue’ and assessment as trauma and euphoria. A major aspect of the project was to offer socially constructed pedagogic developments in response to these themes and nurture emotion as positive energy for transformation.     

Trajectories of traumatic stress reactions in children exposed to intimate partner violence

BackgroundUnderstanding different longitudinal patterns of traumatic stress reactions in children exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) can promote early identification of at-risk children.ObjectiveOur study aims to explore trajectories of traumatic stress reactions following childhood IPV exposure, and their relation with parental traumatic stress and child emotional security in the interparental subsystem.Participants and SettingThe sample comprised 303 children (age 3–10, M = 6.20) from families referred to institutions for IPV. Data were collected at home.MethodsThree waves of parent-reported questionnaire data were analyzed using latent class growth analysis and linear regression.ResultsFive trajectories were identified: ‘resilient’, ‘moderate stable’, ‘struggling’, ‘improving’, and ‘elevated adjusting’. Only the ‘struggling’ trajectory had dysfunctional symptom levels at the final wave. Higher parental traumatic stress predicted ‘improving’ trajectory membership (β = 0.17, p = .033), whereas lower parental traumatic stress (β = −0.20, p = .003) and child emotional insecurity (β = −0.45, p = < .001) predicted ‘resilient’ trajectory membership. Higher child emotional insecurity predicted membership in trajectories with higher initial traumatic stress (improving: β = 0.26, p < .001; struggling: β = 0.31, p < .001; elevated adjusting: β = 0.27, p < .001). Child emotional security did not buffer the effect of parental traumatic stress on likelihood of dysfunctional trajectory membership (β = 0.04, p =.380).ConclusionsChildren exposed to IPV show different trajectories of traumatic stress reactions, partly corresponding to trajectories identified in other populations. Child emotional security and parental traumatic stress predict trajectory membership.     

Childhood adversity and cognitive functioning in patients with major depression

ObjectiveMajor depression is often accompanied by deficits in cognitive functioning and lowered executive functions. However, not all depressed patients show impairments in these domains. The aim of this study was to examine whether different kinds of childhood adversity might account for cognitive deficits in patients with major depression.MethodsNinety-one patients with major depression (DSM-IV) and 40 healthy controls completed a neuropsychological test battery assessing memory, processing speed and executive functions. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) was used to measure the severity and number of incidences of sexual, physical and emotional abuse and physical and emotional neglect.ResultsPatients with major depression had a significantly higher number of traumas and reported more severe emotional abuse, emotional neglect and physical neglect than healthy controls. Patients performed less well in memory tasks, general knowledge and processing speed than healthy controls. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the overall number of traumas was significantly associated with poorer general knowledge, lower processing speed and impaired executive functions in patients with major depression. A second model including all CTQ-subscales simultaneously demonstrated an association between physical neglect and poorer verbal learning, and physical abuse and diminished executive functions.ConclusionA higher number of childhood adversities may influence general knowledge, processing speed and executive functions in patients with major depression. In addition, physical abuse and neglect seemed to be associated with verbal learning deficits and poorer executive functions.     

情绪性内隐记忆:内隐记忆中的情绪指标

现代认知心理学目前已经涉及到情绪与各种认知过程、尤其是情绪与记忆关系问题的探讨。对于记忆和情绪的双向关系问题,目前的研究热点是内隐记忆中诸情绪的记忆效应问题。其中,正常人与心理症患者或非正常的心理状态中的情绪的记忆效应构成了两个研究方向。前者集中探讨了心境与记忆的关系,发现记忆的心境依赖效应、记忆的心境一致性效应和资源分配效应,主张内隐记忆可能会负载某种心境的变化,进而可以通过某种先验情绪体验或情绪活动的变量集合来揭示内隐记忆的一些特征。后者从神经症患者的临床表现、机能性遗忘症、遗忘症与催眠情绪诱发、内隐知觉中的“纯粹接触效应”以及分离与去同步化等五个领域出发,系统界定了情绪记忆的内隐机能,认为与情绪反应相连的广泛的精神病症候变量均可反映内隐记忆。沿循上述思路与方法,现代认知心理学必将获得一种整合心理动力学的理论框架与手段,进一步探究认知、情绪和动机过程乃至身心交互作用等根本性问题。     

Neuronal plasticity in the mammalian brain: relevance to behavioral learning and memory

Much recent activity in the neurosciences relates to the search for the brain mechanisms underlying learning and memory. In recent years a brain circuit in cerebellum and brainstem has been discovered that is responsible for the learning of a simple motor response (nictitating membrane movement). This has provided a model for neuroscientists to use in understanding the brain circuits involved in this simple form of learning and, by extension, to more complex forms ultimately, and a means of exploring the changes in neural function underlying the learning. An enduring change in neural function is represented by long-term potentiation (LTP), an alteration in synaptic efficacy seen in hippocampus and other areas. LTP can be induced experimentally and occurs as a concomitant of learning. We review data suggesting that different brain circuits may underlie different forms of learning and memory. Several current theories of learning and memory with respect to hippocampal and other brain circuit involvement are considered. We conclude with the behavioral and physiological effects of exposure to teratogens or toxins and the CNS alterations associated with dementia.     

Going Down to the Crossroads: Neuroendocrinology,Developmental Psychobiology,and Prospects for Research at the Intersection of Neuroscience and Education

The relation of stress hormones and activity in stress response systems to the development of aspects of cognition and behavior important for educational achievement and attainment is examined from the perspective of the developmental psychobiological model. It is proposed that research in neuroendocrinology supports three general conclusions, namely (1) that there is a neuroscientifically definable optimal level of stress arousal in children against which various curricula and teaching and learning activities can be examined; (2) that consideration of the time course of stress arousal indicates that optimal levels of stress arousal are temporally limited and can be matched to specific instructional activities; and (3) that alterations to stress response systems through processes of allostasis and allostatic load, particularly for children facing early psychosocial disadvantage, can impair the flexible regulation of stress response systems needed for effective learning in school.     

慢性束缚应激损害小鼠学习记忆和抑制体重增加

研究慢性束缚应激对小鼠体重和学习记忆能力的影响.小鼠每天进行6h的束缚应激,记录每天的体重变化,Y迷宫试验观察小鼠学习记忆能力,同时用荧光法测定血浆皮质酮的变化.结果表明,慢性束缚应激显著抑制小鼠体重的增加(P《0.05),同时显著升高血浆皮质酮水平(P《0.01),Y迷宫实验证实束缚组小鼠的学习记忆能力下降.慢性束缚应激抑制小鼠体重的增加和损害小鼠学习记忆能力,可能与束缚应激导致的高水平血浆皮质酮相关.     

“投入量”量化指标合理性的检验

通过实证研究比较三组分别完成阅读理解、选词填空和用目标词造句三项涉及目标词的阅读任务后目标词的即时记忆和延时记忆,结合词汇测试成绩与有声思雏的数据对词汇附带学习中“投入量”这一量化指标的合理性进行定量分析与定性描述。实验结果表明：“投入量”并未真实体现学习者在词汇附带学习过程中的投入程度;“投入量”因素不仅要根据阅读任务的类型进行量化,同时还需考虑学习者的词汇学习过程。