• Henriksen Farley posted an update 3 days, 23 hours ago

    With perceived high cognitive abilities, GED smokers were knowledgeable of many evidence-based smoking cessation strategies and were aware of health risks. Seclidemstat Health risks and the financial burden of smoking were motivation to quit. The majority were uninterested or lacked confidence that nicotine replacement therapy, medications, counseling, or the quitline could help them quit. Nearly all were enthusiastic and confident that financial incentives had the potential to help them quit.

    Research is needed to determine whether financial incentives could improve smoking cessation outcomes in this unique population with an unequal burden of smoking.

    Research is needed to determine whether financial incentives could improve smoking cessation outcomes in this unique population with an unequal burden of smoking.Previous laboratory studies have demonstrated that an observer’s current mood can influence their processing of facial stimuli, for instance, the appraisal of facial affect. The aim of the present study was to explore the association between current mood and face processing in participants’ daily lives, thereby making use of naturally occurring affective states. We employed Ambulatory Assessment (AA) and included two experimental tasks to test whether current mood predicts how participants evaluate (i) the valence of emotional faces and (ii) facial trustworthiness. We hypothesised a mood-congruent processing, such that individuals would rate pictures of faces more negatively and less trustworthy, the more negative their current mood was. We recruited 42 participants who completed a 7-day AA study with six random prompts per day. At each prompt, participants provided self-reports on momentary mood and completed an emotion rating task and a hypothetical distrust game. Results show that negative momentary mood was significantly associated with higher levels of distrust, but was not significantly associated with more negative emotion ratings. We discuss the incremental value and feasibility of implementing experimental tasks in AA contexts and the opportunities this opens for assessing affective and cognitive processes in natural environments.Background Little is known about how chronic unilateral anterior knee pain (AKP) affects bilateral quadriceps function and lower quarter flexibility. Objective To determine if patients with chronic unilateral AKP present bilateral deficits in quadriceps function and lower quarter flexibility. Methods Twenty-two patients with chronic unilateral AKP (pain duration 48.6 months) and 22 matched healthy controls were evaluated. Pain perception and functional outcomes were obtained. Knee joint and thigh circumferences, quadriceps subcutaneous tissue thickness and function (i.e. maximal and explosive strength, activation, and endurance), and lower quarter flexibility (i.e. hamstrings and iliopsoas/rectus femoris muscle) in both legs were compared across conditions. Results Knee joint and thigh circumferences, and quadriceps subcutaneous tissue thickness were not different between conditions (P ≥ .39). Compared with matched healthy controls, patients with chronic unilateral AKP showed 1) greater pain perception (0.0 versus 4.4 cm, P less then .0001); 2) a lower score for functional outcomes (79.6 versus 53.9, P less then .0001); 3) less bilateral quadriceps maximal (3.5 versus 2.8 Nm/kg, P less then .0001) and explosive (10.8 versus 8.7 Nm/kg/s, P = .01) strength, activation (0.95 versus 0.83, P less then .0001), and endurance (1.66 versus 1.52 Nm/kg, P = .02); and 4) less bilateral hamstrings (86.8 versus 72.6°, P = .002) and iliopsoas/rectus femoris (11.6 versus 7.8°, P less then .05) flexibility. Conclusion Patients with chronic unilateral AKP (without knee joint effusion or quadriceps muscle atrophy) appear to have bilateral deficits in quadriceps function and lower quarter flexibility, which should be addressed with pain reduction.To organise future behaviour, it is important to remember both the central and contextual aspects of a situation. We examined the impact of contextual threat or safety, learned through verbal instructions, on face identity recognition. In two studies (N = 140), 72 face-context compounds were presented each once within an encoding session, and an unexpected item/source recognition task was performed afterwards (including 24 new faces). Hierarchical multinomial processing tree modelling served to estimate individual parameters of item (face identity) and source memory (threat or safety context) as well as guessing behaviour. Results show that language was highly effective in establishing threatening and safe context conditions. In Study 1, a fleeting picture stream (1 s per picture) led to poor item and source recognition. Prolonged presentation times (Study 2 with 6 s per picture) improved face memory but no contextual modulation was observed. Thus, incidental face learning was surprisingly poor and rapidly changing contextual settings might have interfered with the accurate encoding of face identity information and item-source binding.

    Challenging behaviours after acquired brain injury (ABI) cause distress and reduce community participation. Evidence-based and effective interventions are needed. Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) interventions, such as PBS + PLUS, are person-driven and context-sensitive approaches which aim to improve quality of life and enhance behavioural self-regulation. This study aimed to expand the empirical outcomes of a recent waitlist-controlled trial of PBS + PLUS by examining individualized goal attainment.

    Participants were 44 adults with severe ABI sustained on average nine years previously (Range = 0.6-26) from the combined trial cohort who completed the intervention. Using Goal Attainment Scaling, trial therapists developed and reviewed goals collaboratively with the person with ABI and their natural supports.

    The 182 goals in the sample focussed on psychological wellbeing, interpersonal relationships, routines and self-care. By the end of 12-month intervention, 84.6% of goals were achieved and 53.3% exceeded their expected outcome.

    These findings indicate high levels of personally meaningful outcomes in a broad range of life-domains can be obtained for participants with severe ABI using PBS + PLUS. Whilst these results should be considered in combination with the findings of the waitlist-controlled trial, they contribute to the growing literature regarding benefits of PBS in enhancing quality of life post-ABI.

    Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry identifier ACTRN12616001704482.

    Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry identifier ACTRN12616001704482.