Search results for "Basic Behavioral and Social Science"
showing 10 items of 18 documents
The current and future state of animal coloration research
2017
Animal colour patterns are a model system for understanding evolution because they are unusually accessible for study and experimental manipulation. This is possible because their functions are readily identifiable. In this final paper of the symposium we provide a diagram of the processes affecting colour patterns and use this to summarize their functions and put the other papers in a broad context. This allows us to identify significant ‘holes’ in the field that only become obvious when we see the processes affecting colour patterns, and their interactions, as a whole. We make suggestions about new directions of research that will enhance our understanding of both the evolution of colour …
Predators' consumption of unpalatable prey does not vary as a function of bitter taste perception
2020
Many prey species contain defensive chemicals that are described as tasting bitter. Bitter taste perception is, therefore, assumed to be important when predators are learning about prey defenses. However, it is not known how individuals differ in their response to bitter taste, and how this influences their foraging decisions. We conducted taste perception assays in which wild-caught great tits (Parus major) were given water with increasing concentrations of bitter-tasting chloroquine diphosphate until they showed an aversive response to bitter taste. This response threshold was found to vary considerably among individuals, ranging from chloroquine concentrations of 0.01 mmol/L to 8 mmol/L.…
Social information use about novel aposematic prey is not influenced by a predator’s previous experience with toxins
2019
Aposematism is an effective antipredator strategy. However, the initial evolution and maintenance of aposematism are paradoxical because conspicuous prey are vulnerable to attack by naive predators. Consequently, the evolution of aposematic signal mimicry is also difficult to explain. The cost of conspicuousness can be reduced if predators learn about novel aposematic prey by observing another predator's response to that same prey. On the other hand, observing positive foraging events might also inform predators about the presence of undefended mimics, accelerating predation on both mimics and their defended models. It is currently unknown, however, how personal and social information combi…
Astrocytic Ephrin-B1 Controls Synapse Formation in the Hippocampus During Learning and Memory
2020
Astrocytes play a fundamental role in synapse formation, pruning, and plasticity, which are associated with learning and memory. However, the role of astrocytes in learning and memory is still largely unknown. Our previous study showed that astrocyte-specific ephrin-B1 knock-out (KO) enhanced but ephrin-B1 overexpression (OE) in hippocampal astrocytes impaired contextual memory recall following fear conditioning. The goal of this study was to understand the mechanism by which astrocytic ephrin-B1 influences learning; specifically, learning-induced remodeling of synapses and dendritic spines in CA1 hippocampus using fear-conditioning paradigm. While we found a higher dendritic spine density …
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Health Behavior Change: A Contextually-Driven Approach.
2018
Promoting health behavior change presents an important challenge to theory and research in the field of health psychology. In this paper, we introduce a context-driven approach, the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) model which is built on Relational Frame Theory. The ACT-based intervention aims to promote individuals’ new health behavior patterns through the improvement of the key construct of psychological flexibility, which is defined as the ability to contact the present moment more fully with acceptance and mindfulness as a conscious human being. Building on the psychological flexibility model, implemented through the six core ACT processes, individuals improve maintenance of lon…
Feasibility of a Responsibility-Based Leadership Training Program for Novice Physical Activity Instructors
2021
Most coaches and instructors would like to teach more than just sport skills to their athletes and children. However, to promote athletes' or children's holistic development and teach them to take responsibility and lead, requires the coaches and instructors to first master the skills themselves. Therefore, feasible, high quality leadership training programs where coaches and physical activity instructors are taught to teach and share leadership are needed. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the feasibility of a leadership training program to optimize it and to determine whether to proceed with its evaluation. In the leadership training program, eight Finnish novice physical activ…
Predicting limiting 'free sugar' consumption using an integrated model of health behavior.
2020
Excess intake of ‘free sugars’ is a key predictor of chronic disease, obesity, and dental ill health. Given the importance of determining modifiable predictors of free sugar-related dietary behaviors, we applied the integrated behavior change model to predict free sugar limiting behaviors. The model includes constructs representing ‘reasoned’ or deliberative processes that lead to action (e.g., social cognition constructs, intentions), and constructs representing ‘non-conscious’ or implicit processes (e.g., implicit attitudes, behavioral automaticity) as predictors of behavior. Undergraduate students (N = 205) completed measures of autonomous and controlled motivation, the theory of planned…
Neurobiological roots of language in primate audition : common computational properties
2015
Here, we present a new perspective on an old question: how does the neurobiology of human language relate to brain systems in nonhuman primates? We argue that higher-order language combinatorics, including sentence and discourse processing, can be situated in a unified, cross-species dorsal-ventral streams architecture for higher auditory processing, and that the functions of the dorsal and ventral streams in higher-order language processing can be grounded in their respective computational properties in primate audition. This view challenges an assumption, common in the cognitive sciences, that a nonhuman primate model forms an inherently inadequate basis for modeling higher-level language…
Redefining habits and linking habits with other implicit processes
2019
In their commentaries on Hagger (2019), Gardner, Rebar, and Lally (2019) and Phillips (2019) provide welcome debate on the conceptualization and operation of habits in physical activity. In this response, I extend their comments by (i) calling for a redefining of habits to encompass contemporary views of habit, and (ii) suggesting that descriptions of physical activity habits should make reference to their relations with other implicit constructs that reflect automatic processes. Specifically, I contend that extant definitions of habits for complex behaviors like physical activity should move away from definitions of unitary responses to specific cues or contexts, and, focus on ‘macro’ expr…
Discussing lifestyle behaviors: perspectives and experiences of general practitioners
2019
Background: Initiatives aimed at increasing participation in preventive health behaviors has been identified as a priority for addressing the increasing incidence of non-communicable chronic disease. General practice is an existing network that can be leveraged to intervene and promote messages for health behavior change. We aimed to explore the extent to which ‘lifestyle’ behaviors are discussed by general practitioners (GPs) with their patients in their practices, and the context and content of these discussions. Methods: GPs (N = 26) practising in Australian clinics participated in semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis. Results: Results showe…