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Recent success stories in automated object or face recognition, partly fuelled by deep learning artificial neural network (ANN) architectures, have led to the advancement of biometric research platforms and, to some extent, the resurrection of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In line with this general trend, inter-disciplinary approaches have been taken to automate the recognition of emotions in adults or children for the benefit of various applications, such as identification of children's emotions prior to a clinical investigation. Within this context, it turns out that automating emotion recognition is far from being straightforward, with several challenges arising for both science (e.g., methodology underpinned by psychology) and technology (e.g., the iMotions biometric research platform). In this paper, we present a methodology and experiment and some interesting findings, which raise the following research questions for the recognition of emotions and attention in humans: (a) the adequacy of well-established techniques such as the International Affective Picture System (IAPS), (b) the adequacy of state-of-the-art biometric research platforms, (c) the extent to which emotional responses may be different in children and adults. Our findings and first attempts to answer some of these research questions are based on a mixed sample of adults and children who took part in the experiment, resulting in a statistical analysis of numerous variables. These are related to both automatically and interactively captured responses of participants to a sample of IAPS pictures.

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The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) is a widely-used self-report instrument for the assessment of schizotypal personality traits. However, the factor structure of scores on English and non-English translations of the SPQ has been a matter of debate. With little previous factorial evaluation of the German version of the SPQ (SPQ-G), we re-assessed the higher-order factor structure of the measure. A total of 2,428 German-speaking adults from Central Europe (CE) and the United Kingdom (UK) completed the SPQ-G. Confirmatory factor analysis - testing proposed 2-, 3-, and 4-factor models of SPQ-G scores - indicated that the 4-factor solution had best fit. Partial measurement invariance across cultural group (CE and UK) and sex was obtained for the 4-factor model. Further analyses showed CE participants had significantly higher scores than UK participants on one schizotypal facet. These results suggest that scores on the SPQ-G are best explained in terms of a higher-order, 4-factor solution in German migrant and non-migrant adults.

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INTRODUCTION: The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) is a widely used self-report measurement instrument for the assessment of schizotypal personality traits. However, the factor structure of the SPQ has been a matter of some debate. As a contribution to this debate, we examined the factor structure of the SPQ in Malaysian adults. METHOD: A total of 382 Malaysian adults completed a Malay translation of the SPQ. Confirmatory factory analysis was used to examine the fit of 3- and 4-factor solutions for the higher-order dimensionality of the SPQ. Ethnic invariance for the best-fitting model was tested at the configural, metric, and scalar levels, and a multivariate analysis of variance was used to examine sex and ethnicity differences in domain scores. RESULTS: The 4-factor model provided a better fit to the data than did the 3-factor model. The 4-factor model also demonstrated partial measurement invariance across ethnic groups. Latent mean comparisons for sex and ethnicity revealed a number of significant differences for both factors, but effect sizes were small. DISCUSSION: The 4-factor structure of the SPQ received confirmatory support and can be used in Malay-speaking populations.

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This study sought to replicate previous work showing relationships between components of schizotypy and conspiracist beliefs, and extend it by examining the mediating role of cognitive processes. An international online sample of 411 women and men (mean age = 35.41 years) completed measures of the schizotypal facets of Odd Beliefs or Magical Thinking and Ideas of Reference, conspiracist beliefs, and cognitive processes related to need for cognition, analytic thinking, and cognitive insight. Path analysis confirmed the associations between both schizotypal facets and conspiracist beliefs in the present sample. Confirmatory evidence was found for the association between analytic thinking and conspiracist beliefs, and results also suggested an association between cognitive insight and conspiracist beliefs. Cognitive insight also mediated the link between Odd Beliefs or Magical Thinking and Ideas of Reference with conspiracist beliefs. However, analytic thinking provided a mediating link to conspiracy ideation for Odd Beliefs or Magical Thinking and not Ideas of Reference. Finally, there was an association between Odd Beliefs or Magical Thinking and need for cognition, but this path did not extend to conspiracist beliefs. These results suggest possible mediating roles for analytic thinking and self-certainty between schizotypy and conspiracist beliefs.

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Mismatch negativity (MMN) has been characterised as a 'pre-attentive' component of an event-related potential (ERP) that is related to discrimination and error prediction processes. The aim of the current experiment was to establish whether visual MMN could be recorded to briefly presented, backward and forward masked visual stimuli, given both below and above levels of subjective experience. Evidence of visual MMN elicitation in the absence of the ability to consciously report stimuli would provide strong evidence for the automaticity of the visual MMN mechanism. Using an oddball paradigm, two stimuli that differed in orientation from each other, a + and an ×, were presented on a computer screen. Electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded from nine participants (six females), mean age 21.4 years. Results showed that for stimuli that were effectively masked at 7 ms presentation, there was little variation in the ERPs evoked to standard and deviant stimuli or in the subtraction waveform employed to delineate the visual MMN. At 14 ms stimulus presentation, when participants were able to report stimulus presence, an enhanced negativity at around 175 and 305 ms was observed to the deviant and was evident in the subtraction waveform. However, some of the difference observed in the ERPs can be attributed to stimulus characteristics, as the use of a 'lonely' deviant protocol revealed attenuated visual MMN components at 14 ms stimulus presentation. Overall, results suggest that some degree of conscious attention is required before visual MMN components emerge, suggesting visual MMN is not an entirely pre-attentive process.

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Much debate in schizotypal research has centred on the factor structure of the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ), with research variously showing higher-order dimensionality consisting of two to seven dimensions. In addition, cross-cultural support for the stability of those factors remains limited. Here, we examined the factor structure of the SPQ among British and Trinidadian adults. Participants from a White British subsample (n = 351) resident in the UK and from an African Caribbean subsample (n = 284) resident in Trinidad completed the SPQ. The higher-order factor structure of the SPQ was analysed through confirmatory factor analysis, followed by multiple-group analysis for the model of best fit. Between-group differences for sex and ethnicity were investigated using multivariate analysis of variance in relation to the higher-order domains. The model of best-fit was the four-factor structure, which demonstrated measurement invariance across groups. Additionally, these data had an adequate fit for two alternative models: (a) 3-factor and (b) modified 4-factor model. The British subsample had significantly higher scores across all domains than the Trinidadian group, and men scored significantly higher on the disorganised domain than women. The four-factor structure received confirmatory support and, importantly, support for use with populations varying in ethnicity and culture.

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In this study, we explored the lived experiences of children with beta-thalassemia major (ß-TM). We considered children as experts on their experiences in contrast to the prevalent approach of asking parents or other adults about children's perspectives. The sample consisted of 12 children aged 8 to12 years. There were two stages to data collection. In Stage 1 we employed two focus group discussions and two role plays and analyzed the data thematically. This directly informed Stage 2, consisting of 12 in-depth interviews subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis. From our findings we show that living with ß-TM involves a continuous struggle between feelings of being different and strategies to minimize these differences to strive for normalcy. We suggest that understanding the experiences of living with ß-TM from children's perspectives can provide unique insights into their experiences, which can fill the gap in the existing, predominantly adult-oriented research on chronic illness.

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Scutellaria lateriflora, a traditional herbal remedy for stress and anxiety, was tested on human volunteers for its effects on mood. In a placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover study, 43 healthy participants were randomised to a sequence of three times daily S. lateriflora (350 mg) or placebo, each over two weeks. In this relatively non-anxious population (81% were mildly anxious or less, i.e. Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) scores ≤ 15), there was no significant difference between skullcap and placebo with BAI (p = 0.191). However, there was a significant group effect (p = 0.049), suggesting a carryover effect of skullcap. For Total Mood Disturbance measured by the Profile of Mood States, there was a highly significant (p = <0.001) decrease from pre-test scores with skullcap but not placebo (p = 0.072). The limitations of carryover effect, generally low anxiety scores and differences in anxiety levels between groups at baseline (p = 0.022), may have reduced the chances of statistical significance in this study. However, as S. lateriflora significantly enhanced global mood without a reduction in energy or cognition, further study assessing its putative anxiolytic effects in notably anxious subjects with co-morbid depression is warranted.

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A passive three stimulus oddball paradigm was used to investigate Visual Mismatch Negativity (vMMN) a component of the Event Related Potential (ERP) believed to represent a central pre-attentive change mechanism. Responses to a change in orientation were recorded to monochrome stimuli presented to subjects on a computer screen. One of the infrequent stimuli formed an illusory figure (Kanizsa Square) aimed to capture spatial attention in the absence of an active task. Nineteen electrodes (10-20 system) were used to record the electroencephalogram in fourteen subjects (ten females) mean age 34.5 years. ERPs to all stimuli consisted of a positive negative positive complex recorded maximally over lateral occipital areas. The negative component was greater for deviant and illusory deviant compared to standard stimuli in a time window of 170-190 ms. A P3a component over frontal/central electrodes to the illusory deviant but not to the deviant stimulus suggests the illusory figure was able to capture attention and orientate subjects to the recording. Subtraction waveforms revealed visual discrimination responses at occipital electrodes, which may represent vMMN. In a control study with 13 subjects (11 females; mean age 29.23 years), using an embedded active attention task, we confirmed the existence of an earlier (150-170 ms) and attenuated vMMN. Recordings from an intracranial case study confirmed separation of N1 and discrimination components to posterior and anterior occipital areas, respectively. We conclude that although the illusory figure captured spatial attention in its own right it did not draw sufficient attentional resources from the standard-deviant comparison as revealed when using a concurrent active task.

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Event-related potentials (ERPs) have been recorded in response to the offset of sensory stimulation in both the auditory and visual modalities. The present experiment employed vibratory stimulation to characterize somatosensory ERPs in response to different duration stimuli. In two separate experiments, we recorded attended and unattended somatosensory ERPs to 70 Hz, sine wave stimuli using the following durations: 20 ms, 50 ms, 70 ms, 150 ms, 170 ms, 250 ms and 1000 ms. An oscillating coil delivered stimuli through a 'T-bar' to digits 2 and 3 of the right hand. The amplitude and latency measurements of P50, P100 and a later negative component (No1) were analyzed using MANOVA. There was no significant difference in the latency values of the P50 and P100, but as the duration increased, there was a significant increase (P < 0.01) in the latency of No1. No1 appeared 130 ms +/- 9 ms following the offset of the stimulus. Amplitude values of the P50 and P100 components decreased as the stimulus duration increased and this effect became significant (P < 0.05) as the duration difference increased. Stimuli of 150 ms or greater evoked a negative baseline shift that persisted for the duration of the stimulus and area measurements in 7 out of the 10 subjects showed a significant increase in amplitude when the stimulus was attended. An intracranial case study supported these findings. The characteristics of the No1 component indicate it is a somatosensory off response, and it, in conjunction with the P50 and sustained potential, may reflect activity of a neural system that is responsive to changes in the tactile environment.

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OBJECTIVE: The incidence of prostate cancer has risen sharply in the last decade, yet knowledge about the psychological health of men with this disease is still limited. A study was therefore undertaken to identify (1) the prevalence of psychological distress in these males, and (2) factors predicting psychological distress. DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional survey design by means of a self-administered questionnaire. METHOD: A sample of 94 men with various stages of prostate cancer completed the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Prostate Instrument (FACT-P), the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS) and items measuring satisfaction with medical care. RESULTS: We detected a prevalence rate of 38% of participants reporting psychological distress corresponding to a HADS cut-off score at or above 15. A standard multivariate regression analysis revealed social/family well-being, physical well-being and functional well-being as significant inverse predictors of psychological distress. CONCLUSIONS: Health professionals should be aware of the potential for psychological distress in patients exhibiting poor physical functioning and those with apparent deficits in social or family support in this under-studied group of patients. Strategies for psychosocial intervention are implied.

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