Name: validation of a psychosocial intervention on body image in older people: an experimental design
Uploaded: 2021-05-31T13:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design at JoVE.com

All contributing authors wish to express their gratitude to the Spanish Red Cross, because without its support we could not have done this research. Also, we appreciate a lot of the feedback and help from the Committee on Scientific Conduct and Ethics of the Alfonso X el Sabio University.

The Committee reviewed the Protocol on Scientific Conduct and Ethics of the Alfonso X el Sabio University. Also, a group of scientists external to the research team checked and approved the complete experimental process. To allowing participation in the study, it was necessary to sign an informed consent accepting to enroll in the program, as recommended by the Declaration of Helsinki30. Before enrollment, it was ensured that none of the participants would suffer any psychological stress or harm r...

This experimental work supports the positive consequences of participating in a body satisfaction program in older people by examining satisfaction values before and after the intervention and comparing experimental and non-experimental groups. Also, the control of other intervening variables improves the reliability and validity of the results obtained.
The most critical step of the protocol was the selection of the program applied in the control group. It was necessary to replicate the same ...

In Western societies, looking good, healthy, and young is very important to feel right, fit in, interact with others, and be successful, becoming a core element of the self-concept and self-esteem. How satisfied one person is with her/his body depends on personal perception, specifically, with how s/he feels, perceives, imagines, and reacts to physical appearance and body functioning1,2. Following this definition, it is possible to identify two qualitatively different dimensions within this construct. On the one hand, there is the perceptive dimension, which depends on evaluating the size, shape, and proportions of the body itself; on the other hand, there is the cognitive-emotional domain (i.e., &#39;body satisfaction&#39;3), which is the subject of this research.
Essentially, body satisfaction is a person&#39;s degree of acceptance of his or her physical appearance4, which is bad if this assessment affects self-confidence negatively and positive when it increases personal confidence in interacting with others5,6. Traditionally, it has been considered that when a person ages and enters the last stage of life (taking age 50 as the cut-off point for middle age), body image concerns decrease substantially. In other words, it is believed that perceptual distortions about body image typical in adolescence and youth6,7,8&#160;are rare in older people9,10. The reason is that the focus of concern shifts from weight and fitness to other significant physical defects more associated with lack of health and physical decline.
In this line, the scientific literature has shown that the main concerns about the physical appearance of older people focus on the signs of aging, such as loss of fitness, wrinkling and aging skin, hair loss and grey hair, body odor, among others11,12. It has also been argued that the perception of these aging signs plays an evolutionary and adaptive role, since it allows people to become progressively aware of aging, thus helping to accept the transformation and deterioration of physical appearance. Although this may be right, it is no less true that aging awareness negatively influences body satisfaction. Not in vain, the widespread phenomenon of &#39;midlife crisis&#39; refers to a tipping point in which the person starts to realize that s/he is aging and, in some cases, this comes along with experiencing depressive symptoms which, if not properly addressed, can interfere with personal wellbeing and mental health11,13.
The psychological and emotional implications derived from the senescence awareness have been studied14. In that sense, the deterioration of the physical appearance has been considered the most unmistakable sign that someone can experience regarding the arrival of senescence15. This is coupled with the feeling of playing an irrelevant and undervalued social role 16. Therefore, self-identification as an &#39;older person&#39; is irremediably linked to a gradual acceptance of new limitations and unfavorable circumstances. Thus, the older person begins to experience difficulties and emotional problems, such as anxiety, stress, or depression. Shortly, the person may self-identify with negative social roles while poorly accepting the physical limitations associated with aging17,18.
In different age groups, such as adolescents and youth, it is known that satisfaction and body image can improve with intervention programs1,19. Examples of this are the well-known interventions of Cash (1997)20&#160;and PICTA (Preventive program on body image and eating disorders in Spanish) by Maganto, del R&#237;o and Roiz (2002)21, as well as some more recent programs (Kilpela et al., 2016)22, Halliwell et al. (2016)23, McCabe et al. (2017)24&#160;or Bailey, Gammage and Van Ingen (2019)25. However, none of them target mature people and focus mainly on females, except for the intervention developed by S&#225;nchez-Cabrero (2012)26&#160;called &#39;IMAGINA&#39; that this study aims to validate. Let us suppose that a therapeutic intervention on body image can contribute to self-acceptance and develop a positive self in young people. There is no reason for not applying it and intervening in older people who face radical changes in their bodies27,28,29.
The experimental design is the most effective methodology for determining causal relationships and evaluating whether a therapeutic intervention produces improvements. First, it is necessary to isolate the intervention effect from the rest of the intervening variables, something that in the social sciences is very costly and complex since the factors that can influence are almost innumerable. Second, it also requires a pre-post treatment comparison, comparisons between control and experimental groups, the randomization of the participants in the conditions of control and treatment, as well as the study of the most relevant intervening variables. Thus, this experiment follows two main objectives: (1) to analyze the improvement in body image satisfaction of persons over 50 years of age enrolling in a specific program of body satisfaction compared with the progress gained in a general program (non-specific); (2) to examine the relationship between body satisfaction and intervening variables such as age, gender, relationship status, time of year of participation, and living either in a metropolitan or countryside residence.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ)</td>
			<td>International Journal of Eating Disorders</td>
			<td>1987</td>
			<td>Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ) developed by Cooper, Taylor, Cooper, and Fairburn (1987), which was adapted and scaled to Spanish participants by Raich et al. (1996). This is a self-report of 34 items following a Likert scale that goes from 1 (never) to 6 (always). The final score ranges from 34 to 204 and scoring above 110 indicates dissatisfaction and discomfort with physical appearance (Cooper et al., 1987). It is a reliable instrument since several studies have reported Cronbach&#8217;s &#945; between 0.95 and 0.97. Also, the BSQ has good external validity, i.e., it is convergent with other similar tools, such as the Multidimensional Body Self-Relations Questionnaire, MBSRQ (Cash, 2015) and the body dissatisfaction subscale of the Eating Disorders Inventory, EDI (Garner, Olmstead, and Polivy, 1983).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IMAGINA: programa de mejora de la autoestima y la imagen corporal para adultos</td>
			<td>Sinindice</td>
			<td>2012</td>
			<td>IMAGINA Program was meant to be a therapeutical tool to increase a body image satisfaction of older adults in Spain. It has eight group-sessions of 90-120 minutes duration each, aiming at entertaining and engaging participants. Body image and self-esteem are expected to improve through social participation, communication, body image workshops, and healthy nutrition information.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS)</td>
			<td>IBM</td>
			<td>24</td>
			<td>Software package used in statistical analysis of data</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

validation of a psychosocial intervention on body image in older people: an experimental design

For most people, body satisfaction is crucial to develop both a positive self-concept and self-esteem, and therefore, it can influence mental health and well-being. This idea has been tested with younger people, but no studies explore whether body image interventions are useful when people age. This research validates a specific program designed for older people (IMAGINA Specific Body Image Program). This is done by employing a mixed experimental design, with between-subject and within-subject comparisons that focus on body satisfaction before and after experimental treatment, comparing two groups. Using this experimental methodology makes it possible to identify the effect of the intervention in a group of 176 people. The score obtained with the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ) was the dependent variable, and the IMAGINA program was the independent one. As for age, gender, relationship status, season, and residence environment, these were controlled variables. There were significant differences in body satisfaction between the two programs, obtaining better results with IMAGINA. The controlled variables had a much less significant effect than the treatment. Therefore, it is possible to improve body satisfaction in older adults through interventions similar to the one presented here.

The experimental research followed a mixed design, with between-subject measurements (experimental and control groups) and repeated measurements before and after treatment.
IMAGINA program by S&#225;nchez-Cabrero (2012)26&#160;was selected as the experimental therapeutical program to increase body image satisfaction of older adults in Spain. It has eight group-sessions of 90-120 minutes duration each, aiming at entertaining and engaging participants, using activities pr...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design at JoVE.com

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design

This experimental intervention examines the body satisfaction of older people. The aim is to compare a specific intervention with another general program and determine which is more effective for improving body satisfaction in people over fifty years old.

For most people, body satisfaction is crucial to develop both a positive self-concept and self-esteem, and therefore, it can influence mental health and ...

This experiment evaluates the positive consequences of participating in a body satisfaction program in older people, by examining body satisfaction before and after intervention and comparing experimental and nonexperimental groups. This experimental mixed design makes it possible to isolate the effect of treatment from the manipulation effect by intergroup comparison and other variables related to individual differences by within subject comparison. this is the most effective methodology for determining causal relationships in behavior sciences and evaluating whether a psychotherapeutic intervention produces real and solid improvements.Start by opening the statistical software and go to file menu, select new and click on the data icon. Open variable view and create a statistical variable for each variable listed in table one in the manuscript. Open data view and fill in the data of the pre and post measures of the body shape questionnaire or BSQ test for each participant.Similarly, fill in the data from the demographic and attributive questionnaire. After filling in the data, go to transform compute variable and assign a number in target variable gap from the popup up menu, then select the pre-treatment variable from the type and label menu, move it to numeric expression gap and click on the subtraction icon on the calculator. Select the post-treatment variable from the type and label menu and move it again to numeric expression gap.Finally, hit the OK'tab to create a variable with the difference between the pre and post BSQ measurement. After digitization of the data, look at the reliability by selecting reliability analysis from scale in the analyze menu and moving the pre and post-treatment BSQ measurements used in the experiment to the reliability analysis dialogue box. Click on statistic and choose intraclass correlation coefficient, then click the options two-way mixed and consistency.Finally, click on the OK'icon to generate the desired output. Run the descriptive analysis by selecting analyze menu and descriptive statistics, then click frequencies. After the output, select analyze descriptive statistics and descriptive.To specify the descriptive statistics of the quantitative variables, go to split file in the main menu and choose the categorical variable to be analyzed in the popup menu. Select the option organize output by groups'and click OK.To conduct a paired samples Student's T-test on the body image data collected before and after taking part in the two conditions, go to analyze menu, choose compare means and in the paired samples T-test dialogue box, put BSQ pre-treatment and BSQ post-treatment as variable one and two. Specify the paired samples Student's T-test according to each categorical variable, by selecting split file from the main menu and choosing the categorical variable to be analyzed in the popup box.Then click the tab organize output by groups and hit OK.Repeat this process for each nominal variable. To see the effect of each program conduct one way ANOVA by selecting compare means in analyze menu to access the one way ANOVA dialogue box. In the box put the variables BSQ pre and post-treatment and the pre-post difference in the dependent list as well as the experimental condition variable as the factor.For repeated measures ANOVA analysis, go to general linear model in analyze menu. In the repeated measures dialogue box, assign a name in the within subject factor name. Then put two as the number of levels and BSQ in the measure name.Finally, click on define to switch to the variable selection box. Within the popup menu, select tabs within subject's variables, between subject's factor and all the socio-demographic variables as covariates. Finally, click on model and select full factorial.Go to options to choose estimates of effect size. Repeat the process to build custom terms and use the icon by'to combine the variable condition with all the sociodemographic variables. In the representative analysis, the size of effect in the experimental and control groups before and after participants'enrollment, along with the difference between two moments were displayed with a paired samples test.The output of the paired samples test showed that there was significant improvement in body image in participants of the IMAGINA program compared to that of the control condition. The analysis of intergroup effect with a one way ANOVA revealed non-significant mean differences between pre and post conditions, concluding that the test design is robust. Also a significant improvement in BSQ in the pre-post difference, indicated good performance of the BSQ test.Findings from the multivariate test demonstrated a statistically significant inter, intragroup interaction effect. Pointing to the effectiveness of the IMAGINA body satisfaction program. The effect of intervening variables like gender, marital status and season of year was analyzed in body satisfaction differences.Male subjects were observed to be more satisfied with their physical appearance than women. However, the difference between the measure of the BSQ before and immediately after the intervention was statistically significant for both genders after taking part in the IMAGINA program. Participants within a relationship, were found to be more unhappy with their physical appearance in the pre and post-treatment condition.But this also improved their body satisfaction more significantly during their participation in IMAGINA. The season of year did not significantly affect individuals in the control group, but it affected those in the experimental group. The improvement was higher for metropolitan individuals than in countryside individuals in the experimental condition.The most critical step in this protocol is to replicate the same experimental conditions in experimental and control conditions to isolate the effect generated by the treatment.

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Behavior

fMRI Validation of fNIRS Measurements During a Naturalistic Task

We present a method to compare brain activity recorded with near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in a dance video game task to that recorded in a reduced version of the task using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging). Recently, it has been shown that fNIRS can accurately record functional brain activities equivalent to those concurrently recorded with functional magnetic resonance imaging for classic psychophysical tasks and simple finger tapping paradigms. However, an often quoted benefit of fNIRS is that the technique allows for studying neural mechanisms of complex, naturalistic behaviors that are not possible using the constrained environment of fMRI. Our goal was to extend the findings of previous studies that have shown high correlation between concurrently recorded fNIRS and fMRI signals to compare neural recordings obtained in fMRI procedures to those separately obtained in naturalistic fNIRS experiments. Specifically, we developed a modified version of the dance video game Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) to be compatible with both fMRI and fNIRS imaging procedures. In this methodology we explain the modifications to the software and hardware for compatibility with each technique as well as the scanning and calibration procedures used to obtain representative results. The results of the study show a task-related increase in oxyhemoglobin in both modalities and demonstrate that it is possible to replicate the findings of fMRI using fNIRS in a naturalistic task. This technique represents a methodology to compare fMRI imaging paradigms which utilize a reduced-world environment to fNIRS in closer approximation to naturalistic, full-body activities and behaviors. Further development of this technique may apply to neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson&#8217;s disease, late states of dementia, or those with magnetic susceptibility which are contraindicated for fMRI scanning.

We present a method to compare functional brain activity recorded during a naturalistic task using fNIRS with activity recorded during fMRI.

We present a method to compare brain activity recorded with near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in a dance video game task to that recorded in a reduced ...

Experimental Assessment of Mouse Sociability Using an Automated Image Processing Approach

Mouse is the preferred model organism for testing drugs designed to increase sociability. We present a method to quantify mouse sociability in which the test mouse is placed in a standardized apparatus and relevant behaviors are assessed in three different sessions (called session I, II, and III).
The apparatus has three compartments (see Figure 1), the left and right compartments contain an inverted cup which can house a mouse (called &#34;stimulus mouse&#34;).
In session I, the test mouse is placed in the cage and its mobility is characterized by the number of transitions made between compartments. In session II, a stimulus mouse is placed under one of the inverted cups and the sociability of the test mouse is quantified by the amounts of time it spends near the cup containing the enclosed stimulus mouse vs. the empty inverted cup. In session III, the inverted cups are removed and both mice interact freely. The sociability of the test mouse in session III is quantified by the number of social approaches it makes toward the stimulus mouse and by the number of times it avoids a social approach by the stimulus mouse.
The automated evaluation of the movie detects the nose of the test mouse, which allows the determination of all described sociability measures in session I and II (in session III, approaches are identified automatically but classified manually). To find the nose, the image of an empty cage is digitally subtracted from each frame of the movie and the resulting image is binarized to identify the mouse pixels. The mouse tail is automatically removed and the two most distant points of the remaining mouse are determined; these are close to nose and base of tail. By analyzing the motion of the mouse and using continuity arguments, the nose is identified.
<img alt="Figure 1" src="/files/ftp_upload/52508/52508fig1.jpg" /> 
Figure 1. Assessment of Sociability During 3 sessions. Session I (top): Acclimation of test mouse to the cage. Session II (middle): Test mouse moving freely in the cage while the stimulus mouse is enclosed in an inverted cup. Session III (bottom): Both test mouse and stimulus mouse are allowed to move freely and interact with each other.

This protocol describes a method to quantify mouse sociability. Mice are videotaped as they move and interact in a special cage. Movie processing allows for the automated quantification of sociability with excellent accuracy and reliability.

Mouse is the preferred model organism for testing drugs designed to increase sociability. We present a method to quantify mouse sociability in which the ...

Experimental Research Examining How People Can Cope with Uncertainty Through Soft Haptic Sensations

Human beings are constantly surrounded by uncertainty and change. The question arises how people cope with such uncertainty. To date, most research has focused on the cognitive strategies people adopt to deal with uncertainty. However, especially when uncertainty is due to unpredictable societal events (e.g., economical crises, political revolutions, terrorism threats) of which one is unable to judge the impact on one&#8217;s future live, cognitive strategies (like seeking additional information) is likely to fail to combat uncertainty. Instead, the current paper discusses a method demonstrating that people might deal with uncertainty experientially through soft haptic sensations. More specifically, because touching something soft creates a feeling of comfort and security, people prefer objects with softer as compared to harder properties when feeling uncertain. Seeking for softness is a highly efficient and effective tool to deal with uncertainty as our hands are available at all times. This protocol describes a set of methods demonstrating 1) how environmental (un)certainty can be situationally activated with an experiential priming procedure, 2) that the quality of the softness experience (what type of softness and how it is experienced) matters and 3) how uncertainty can be reduced using different methods.

To date research has focused on cognitive strategies people adopt to cope with uncertainty. This research examines instead an experiential way of dealing with uncertainty and introduces a set of experimental methods showing how the experience of haptic softness can serve as a tool to deal with uncertainty.

Human beings are constantly surrounded by uncertainty and change. The question arises how people cope with such uncertainty. To date, most research has ...

An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime

A considerable amount of research has evaluated children's lie-telling behaviors and skills1-2; however, limitations with the tasks used for eliciting false testimonies and interviewing children have restricted the generalizability of the findings. The primary aim of the current study is to provide an easy-to-administer and ecologically valid method for measuring the veracity and quality of school-aged children's (ages 6-11) testimonies when they are asked to provide different types of true and false reports. Moreover, the methodology enables researchers to examine the social and developmental factors that could influence the credibility of a child's testimony. In the current study, children will witness a theft, and are then asked to either falsely deny the transgression, falsely accuse a researcher of the theft, or tell the truth. Afterwards, children are to be interviewed by a second researcher using a thorough and ecologically valid interview protocol that requires children to provide closed-ended and free-recall responses about the events with the instigator (E1). Coders then evaluate the length and number of theft-related details the children give throughout the interview, as well as their ability to maintain their true and false reports. The representative results indicate that the truth and lie-telling conditions elicit the intended behaviors from the children. The open-ended interview questions encouraged children to provide free-recall information about their experiences with E1. Moreover, findings from the closed-ended questions suggest that children are significantly better at maintaining their lies with age, and when producing a false denial compared to a false accusation. Results from the current study can be used to develop a greater understanding of the characteristics of children's true and false testimonies about crime, which can potentially benefit law enforcement, legal staff and professionals who interview children.

An Experimental Analysis of Children&#039;s Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime

The current methodology is designed to provide an ecologically relevant approach for measuring the veracity, length and quality of children's true and false testimonies. Implications of the current methodology for future research and professionals who interview children will also be discussed.

A considerable amount of research has evaluated children's lie-telling behaviors and skills1-2; however, limitations with the tasks used for eliciting ...

Visualization Method for Proprioceptive Drift on a 2D Plane Using Support Vector Machine

Proprioceptive drift, which is a perceptual shift in body-part position from the unseen real body to a visible body-like image, has been measured as the behavioral correlate for the sense of ownership. Previously, the estimation of proprioceptive drift was limited to one spatial dimension, such as height, width, or depth. As the hand can move freely in 3D, measuring proprioceptive drift in only one dimension is not sufficient for the estimation of the drift in real life situations. In this article, we provide a novel method to estimate proprioceptive drift on a 2D plane using the mirror illusion by combining an objective behavioral measurement (hand position tracking) and subjective, phenomenological assessment (subjective assessment of hand position and questionnaire) with a sophisticated machine learning approach. This technique permits not only an investigation of the underlying mechanisms of the sense of ownership and agency but also assists in the rehabilitation of a missing or paralyzed limb and in the design rules of real-time control systems with a self-body-like usability, in which the operator controls the system as if it were part of his/her own body.

This article describes a novel method to estimate proprioceptive drift on a 2D plane using the mirror illusion and combining a psychophysical procedure with an analysis using machine learning.

Proprioceptive drift, which is a perceptual shift in body-part position from the unseen real body to a visible body-like image, has been measured as the ...

Wheel Running and Environmental Complexity as a Therapeutic Intervention in an Animal Model of FASD

Aerobic exercise (e.g., wheel running (WR) extensively used in animal research) positively impacts many measures of neuroplastic potential in the brain, such as rates of adult neurogenesis, angiogenesis, and expression of neurotrophic factors in rodents. This intervention has also been shown to mitigate behavioral and neuroanatomical aspects of the negative impacts of teratogens (i.e., developmental exposure to alcohol) and age-related neurodegeneration in rodents. Environmental complexity (EC) has been shown to produce numerous neuroplastic benefits in cortical and subcortical structures and can be coupled with wheel running to increase the proliferation and survival of new cells in the adult hippocampus. The combination of these two interventions provides a robust &#34;superintervention&#34; (WR-EC) that can be implemented in a range of rodent models of neurological disorders. We will discuss the implementation of WR/EC and its constituent interventions for use as a more powerful therapeutic intervention in rats using the animal model of prenatal exposure to alcohol in humans. We will also discuss which elements of the procedures are absolutely necessary for the interventions and which ones may be altered depending on the experimenter&#39;s question or facilities.

Cardiovascular exercise and stimulating experiences in a complex environment have positive benefits on multiple measures of neuroplasticity within the rodent brain. This article will discuss the implementation of these interventions as a &#34;superintervention&#34; which combines wheel running and environmental complexity and will address the limitations of these interventions.

Aerobic exercise (e.g., wheel running (WR) extensively used in animal research) positively impacts many measures of neuroplastic potential in the brain, ...

Feeding Experimentation Device (FED): Construction and Validation of an Open-source Device for Measuring Food Intake in Rodents

Food intake measurements are essential for many research studies. Here, we provide a detailed description of a novel solution for measuring food intake in mice: the Feeding Experimentation Device (FED). FED is an open-source system that was designed to facilitate flexibility in food intake studies. Due to its compact and battery powered design, FED can be placed within standard home cages or other experimental equipment. Food intake measurements can also be synchronized with other equipment in real-time via FED's transistor-transistor logic (TTL) digital output, or in post-acquisition processing as FED timestamps every event with a real-time clock. When in use, a food pellet sits within FED's food well where it is monitored via an infrared beam. When the pellet is removed by the mouse, FED logs the timestamp onto its internal secure digital (SD) card and dispenses another pellet. FED can run for up to 5 days before it is necessary to charge the battery and refill the pellet hopper, minimizing human interference in data collection. Assembly of FED requires minimal engineering background, and off-the-shelf materials and electronics were prioritized in its construction. We also provide scripts for analysis of food intake and meal patterns. Finally, FED is open-source and all design and construction files are online, to facilitate modifications and improvements by other researchers.

Feeding Experimentation Device FED: Construction and Validation of an Open-source Device for Measuring Food Intake in Rodents

Feeding Experimentation Device (FED) is an open-source device for measuring food intake in mice. FED can also synchronize food intake measurements with other techniques via a real-time digital output. Here, we provide a step-by-step tutorial for the construction, validation, and usage of FED.

Food intake measurements are essential for many research studies. Here, we provide a detailed description of a novel solution for measuring food intake in ...

In Vivo Protocol of Controlled Subconcussive Head Impacts for the Validation of Field Study Data

Subconcussive hits pose a threat to neuronal health as they have shown to induce neuronal structural damage and functional impairment without causing outward symptomology and appear to be a key contributor to an irreversible neurodegenerative disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). In addition, athletes can incur more than 1,000 of these hits per season. The subconcussive soccer heading model (SSHM) is a relevant, reproducible, and leading method of isolating and examining the effects of these subconcussive head impacts. By controlling variables such as ball traveling speed, the frequency of impacts, interval, ball placement to the head, as well as by measuring head impact magnitude, the SSHM provides the scientific community with a superior avenue of investigating the acute subconcussive effects on neuronal health. In this paper, we demonstrate the utility of SSHM in studying a time-course expression of neurofilament-light polypeptide (NF-L) in plasma in a repeated measures fashion. NF-L is an axonal injury marker that has previously been shown to be elevated in boxers and football players following subconcussive head trauma. Thirty-four adult aged soccer players were recruited and randomly assigned to either a soccer heading (n = 18) or kicking (n = 16) group. The heading group executed 10 headers with soccer balls projected at a velocity of 25 mph over 10 min. The kicking group followed the same protocol with 10 kicks. Plasma samples were obtained before and at 0 h, 2 h, and 24 h after heading/kicking and assessed for NF-L expressions. The heading group showed a gradual increase in plasma NF-L expression and peaked at 24 h after the heading protocol, whereas the kicking group remained consistent across the time points. These results confirmed the NF-L data from clinical field studies, encouraging the use of SSHM to validate clinical subconcussion data.

The subconcussive soccer heading model is a safe and concise methodological approach to isolate and measure the effects of subconcussive head impacts.

Subconcussive hits pose a threat to neuronal health as they have shown to induce neuronal structural damage and functional impairment without causing ...

Brain Infarct Segmentation and Registration on MRI or CT for Lesion-symptom Mapping

In lesion-symptom mapping (LSM), brain function is inferred by relating the location of acquired brain lesions to behavioral or cognitive symptoms in a group of patients. With recent advances in brain imaging and image processing, LSM has become a popular tool in cognitive neuroscience. LSM can provide fundamental insights into the functional architecture of the human brain for a variety of cognitive and non-cognitive functions. A crucial step in performing LSM studies is the segmentation of lesions on brains scans of a large group of patients and registration of each scan to a common stereotaxic space (also called standard space or a standardized brain template). Described here is an open-access, standardized method for infarct segmentation and registration for the purpose of LSM, as well as a detailed and hands-on walkthrough based on exemplary cases. A comprehensive tutorial for the manual segmentation of brain infarcts on CT scans and DWI or FLAIR MRI sequences is provided, including criteria for infarct identification and pitfalls for different scan types. The registration software provides multiple registration schemes that can be used for processing of CT and MRI data with heterogeneous acquisition parameters. A tutorial on using this registration software and performing visual quality checks and manual corrections (which are needed in some cases) is provided. This approach provides researchers with a framework for the entire process of brain image processing required to perform an LSM study, from gathering of the data to final quality checks of the results.

Provided here is a practical tutorial for an open-access, standardized image processing pipeline for the purpose of lesion-symptom mapping. A step-by-step walkthrough is provided for each processing step, from manual infarct segmentation on CT/MRI to subsequent registration to standard space, along with practical recommendations and illustrations with exemplary cases.

In lesion-symptom mapping (LSM), brain function is inferred by relating the location of acquired brain lesions to behavioral or cognitive symptoms in a ...

A Cross-Disciplinary and Multi-Modal Experimental Design for Studying Near-Real-Time Authentic Examination Experiences

Over the past ten years, research into students&#39; emotions in educational environments has increased. Although researchers have called for more studies that rely on objective measures of emotional experience, limitations on utilizing multi-modal data sources exist. Studies of emotion and emotional regulation in classrooms traditionally rely on survey instruments, experience-sampling, artifacts, interviews, or observational procedures. These methods, while valuable, are mainly&#160;dependent on participant or observer subjectivity and is limited in its authentic measurement of students&#39; real-time performance to a classroom activity or task. The latter, in particular, poses a stumbling block to many scholars seeking to objectively measure emotions and other related measures in the classroom, in real-time.
The purpose of this work is to present a protocol to experimentally study students&#39; real-time responses to exam experiences during an authentic assessment situation. For this, a team of educational psychologists, engineers, and engineering education researchers designed an experimental protocol that retained the limits required for accurate physiological sensor measurement, best-practices of salivary collection, and an authentic testing environment. In particular, existing studies that rely on physiological sensors are conducted in experimental environments that are disconnected from educational settings (e.g., Trier Stress Test), detached in time (e.g., before or after a task), or introduce analysis error (e.g., use of sensors in environments where students are likely to move). This limits our understanding of students&#39; real-time responses to classroom activities and tasks. Furthermore, recent research has called for more considerations to be covered around issues of recruitment, replicability, validity, setups, data cleaning, preliminary analysis, and particular&#160;circumstances (e.g., adding a variable in the experimental design) in academic emotions research that relies on multi-modal approaches.

An experimental design was developed to investigate the real-time influences of an examination experience to assess the emotional realities students experience in higher education settings and tasks. This design is the result of a cross-disciplinary (e.g., educational psychology, biology, physiology, engineering) and multi-modal (e.g., salivary markers, surveys, electrodermal sensor) approach.

Over the past ten years, research into students&#39; emotions in educational environments has increased. Although researchers have called for more studies ...