Children exposed to family violence show the same pattern of activity in their brains as soldiers exposed to combat, new research has shown. In the first functional MRI brain scan study to investigate the impact of physical abuse and domestic violence on children, scientists at UCL in collaboration with the Anna Freud Centre, found that […]
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Maturing Brain Circuitry Changes Play A Role In Moral Sensitivity
People’s moral responses to similar situations change as they age, according to a new study at the University of Chicago that combined brain scanning, eye-tracking, and behavioral measures to understand how the brain responds to morally laden scenarios. Both preschool children and adults distinguish between damage done either intentionally or accidently when assessing whether a […]
Neural Mechanisms Of Cooperation And Anticipation Of Guilt Are Identified
On a daily basis, our social life places us in situations where we have to decide whether or not to cooperate with others. However, the motivation that encourages us to behave cooperatively is often not clear. Now, new research published by Cell Press in the May 12, 2011, issue of the journal Neuron suggests that […]
Brain Imaging Shows How Mindfulness Meditation Changes Decision-Making Processes
If a friend or relative won $100 and then offered you a few dollars, would you accept this windfall? The logical answer would seem to be, sure, why not? “But human decision making does not always appear rational,” said Read Montague, professor of physics at Virginia Tech and director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory at […]
Impaired Impulsivity And Delayed Gratification In Alcohol-Dependence Is Associated With Specific Brain Anomalies
Researchers already know that alcohol dependence (AD) is strongly associated with impaired impulse control or, more precisely, the inability to choose large, delayed rewards rather than smaller but more immediate rewards. Findings from a study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the neural basis of impulsive choice among individuals with alcohol use disorders […]
Scientists Explore New Link Between Genetics, Alcoholism, And The Brain
Researchers at the University of Michigan Health System have uncovered a new link between genetic variations associated with alcoholism, impulsive behavior, and a region of the brain involved in craving and anxiety. The results, published online April 12 in Molecular Psychiatry, suggest that variations in the GABRA2 gene contribute to the risk of alcoholism by influencing […]
Brain Imaging Illustrates How Meditation Reduces Pain
Meditation produces powerful pain-relieving effects in the brain, according to new research published in the April 6 edition of the Journal of Neuroscience. “This is the first study to show that only a little over an hour of meditation training can dramatically reduce both the experience of pain and pain-related brain activation,” said Fadel Zeidan, Ph.D., […]
Powerful Feelings Of Social Rejection Activate Brain Regions Involved In Physical Pain Sensation
Physical pain and intense feelings of social rejection “hurt” in the same way, a new study shows. The study demonstrates that the same regions of the brain that become active in response to painful sensory experiences are activated during intense experiences of social rejection.
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