Publications

The present research examined the background and consequences of different styles of engagement in video game play. Based on self-determination theory(1) and the dualistic model of passion,(2) the authors hypothesized that high levels of basic psychological need satisfaction would foster harmonious passion for video play, supporting the subjective sense that play is something one wants to do. It was also predicted that low levels of need satisfaction would promote obsessive passion for games and contribute to the feeling that game play is something one feels compelled to or has to do. It was expected, in turn, that passion for play would directly influence player outcomes closely tied to games, moderate links between play and well-being, and relate to overall levels of well-being as a function of basic need satisfaction. As expected, results showed that low levels of basic need satisfaction were associated with more obsessive passion, higher amounts of play, greater tension following play, and low game enjoyment, whereas high levels of need satisfaction did not predict hours of play but were associated with more harmonious passion, game enjoyment, and energy following play. Moderation analyses showed that high amounts of play related negatively to well-being only to the extent that players reported an obsessive passion and that the unique relations between passion and overall levels of player well-being were quite small once controlling for their basic need satisfaction in daily life. Discussion of the current findings focuses on their significance for understanding disordered play and the value of applying a theory-based approach to study motivation for virtual contexts.

Considerable research in aging has dealt with elderly people’s health, the main purposes of which are to prevent chronic diseases and increase functional ability. However, psychological well-being is also important for the elderly, so it is crucial to identify...

Over the past twenty years, an increasing number of researchers from various universities have been investigating motivational issues underlying the self-regulation of behavior. Using either Self-Determination Theory or closely related theoretical perspectives, these researchers have performed laboratory experiments, as well as field studies in a variety of real-world settings, including education, work, parenting, health care, sport, and protection of the environment. In April 1999, thirty of these researchers convened at the University of Rochester to present their work, share ideas, and discuss future research directions. The Handbook of Self-Determination Research is an outgrowth of that important and fascinating conference. It summarizes the research programs of these social, personality, clinical, developmental, and applied psychologists who have a shared belief in the importance of self-determination for understanding basic motivational processes and for solving pressing real-world problems. Eighteen chapters, including an overview of self-determination theory, present the current state of the research in this scientifically rigorous, yet highly relevant, approach to studying motivational problems in various life domains. Researchers from eighteen universities in the United States, Canada, and Germany present concise and up-to-date accounts of their research programs concerned with the self-determination of human behavior. In these chapters, scholars also consider the relevance of the research on self-determination to other areas of inquiry such as coping, self-esteem, and interest. Edward L. Deci and Richard Ryan are professors of psychology in the University of Rochester's Department of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology.

No abstract is provided for this article.

No abstract is provided for this article.

No abstract is provided for this article.

Recent theories have implicated disturbed cognitions in the etiology and perpetuation of eating disorders. However, the specific nature of these disturbances has received only limited empirical attention. Therefore the present study assessed subjects with a range of eating pathology on three types of cognitive dysfunction: logical errors, cognitive slippage, and conceptual complexity. Affective features were also assessed for purposes of contrast and discriminant validity. The Cognitive Error Questionnaire (Lefebvre, 1981), Thought Disorder Index (Blatt & Ritzier, 1974), Friedman's Developmental Level (Goldfried, Stricker, & Weiner, 1971), Sentence Completion Test (Loevinger & Wessler, 1970), Dysphoria Questionnaire (Johnson & Larson, 1982), and Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, 1978) were administered to 19 restrictive anorexics, 14 bulimic anorexics, 17 normal-weight bulimics, 15 subclinical eating disorders, and 17 normal control subjects. All groups were matched for age, sex, race, education, and marital status. The eating disordered groups were matched for duration of illness and treatment history, and the anorexic groups were matched on percent of ideal body weight. Both anorexic groups manifested more logical errors than the control group; the normal-weight bulimic and subclinical groups were indistinguishable from the controls on this index. There were no significant differences among groups on cognitive slippage or conceptual complexity. In contrast, dysphoria and depression were prominent features of all four eating disordered groups. The significance and conjoint influence of cognitive and affective factors in eating pathology is discussed.

The duration and quality of human performance depend on both intrinsic motivation and external incentives. However, little is known about the neuroscientific basis of this interplay between internal and external motivators. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine the neural substrates of intrinsic motivation, operationalized as the free-choice time spent on a task when this was not required, and tested the neural and behavioral effects of external reward on intrinsic motivation. We found that increased duration of free-choice time was predicted by generally diminished neural responses in regions associated with cognitive and affective regulation. By comparison, the possibility of additional reward improved task accuracy, and specifically increased neural and behavioral responses following errors. Those individuals with the smallest neural responses associated with intrinsic motivation exhibited the greatest error-related neural enhancement under the external contingency of possible reward. Together, these data suggest that human performance is guided by a "tonic" and "phasic" relationship between the neural substrates of intrinsic motivation (tonic) and the impact of external incentives (phasic).

The mammalian peptide neuromedin B (NMB) and its receptor are expressed in a variety of tissues; however, little is definitively established about its physiological actions because of the lack of potent, specific antagonists. Recently, the peptoid PD 168368 was found to be a potent human NMB receptor antagonist. Because it had been shown previously that either synthetic analogs of bombesin (Bn) or other receptor peptoid or receptor antagonists function as an antagonist or agonist depends on animal species and receptor subtype studied, we investigated the pharmacological properties of PD 168368 compared with all currently known Bn receptor subtypes (NMB receptor, gastrin-releasing peptide receptor, Bn receptor subtype 3, and Bn receptor subtype 4) from human, mouse, rat, and frog. In binding studies, PD 168368 had similar high affinities (K(i) = 15-45 nM) for NMB receptors from each species examined, 30- to 60-fold lower affinity for gastrin-releasing peptide receptors, and >300-fold lower affinity for Bn receptor subtype 3 or 4. It inhibited NMB binding in a competitive manner. PD 168368 alone did not stimulate increases in either intracellular calcium concentration or [(3)H]inositol phosphates in any of the cells studied but inhibited NMB-induced responses with equivalent potencies in cells containing NMB receptors. PD 168368 was only minimally soluble in water. When hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin rather than dimethyl sulfoxide was used as the vehicle, both the affinity and the antagonist potency of PD 168368 were significantly greater. The results demonstrate that PD 168368 is a potent, competitive, and selective antagonist at NMB receptors, with a similar pharmacology across animal species. PD 168368 should prove useful for delineating the biological role of NMB and selectively blocking NMB signaling in bioassays and as a lead for the development of more selective nonpeptide antagonists for the NMB receptor.

No abstract is provided for this article.

Neither the native ligand nor the cell biology of the bombesin (Bn)-related orphan receptor subtype 3 (BRS-3) is known. In this study, we used RT-PCR to identify two human lung cancer lines that contain sufficient numbers of native hBRS-3 to allow study: NCI-N417 and NCI-H720. In both cell lines, [DPhe6,betaAla11,Phe13, Nle14]Bn(6-14) stimulates [3H]inositol phosphate. In NCI-N417 cells, binding of 125I-[DTyr6,betaAla11,Phe13,Nle14]Bn(6-14) was saturable and high-affinity. [DPhe6,betaAla11,Phe13,Nle14]Bn(6-14) stimulated phospholipase D activity and a concentration-dependent release of [3H]inositol phosphate (EC50 = 25 nM) and intracellular calcium (EC50 = 14 nM); the increases in intracellular calcium were primarily from intracellular stores. hBRS-3 activation was not coupled to changes in adenylate cyclase activity, [3H]-thymidine incorporation or cell proliferation. No naturally occurring Bn-related peptides bound or activated the hBRS-3 with high affinity. Four different bombesin receptor antagonists inhibited increases in [3H]inositol phosphate. Using cytosensor microphysiometry, we found that [DPhe6,betaAla11,Phe13, Nle14]Bn(6-14) caused concentration-dependent acidification. The results show that native hBRS-3 receptors couple to phospholipases C and D but not to adenylate cyclase and that they stimulate mobilization of intracellular calcium and increase metabolism but not growth. The discovery of human cell lines with native, functional BRS-3 receptors, of new leads for a more hBRS-3-specific antagonist and of the validity of microphysiometry as an assay has yielded important tools that can be used for the identification of a native ligand for hBRS-3 and for the characterization of BRS-3-mediated biological responses.

Drawing from self-determination theory, three studies explored the social-environmental conditions that satisfy versus thwart psychological needs and, in turn, affect psychological functioning and well-being or ill-being. In cross-sectional Studies 1 and 2, structural equation modeling analyses supported latent factor models in which need satisfaction was predicted by athletes’ perceptions of autonomy support, and need thwarting was better predicted by coach control. Athletes’ perceptions of need satisfaction predicted positive outcomes associated with sport participation (vitality and positive affect), whereas need thwarting more consistently predicted maladaptive outcomes (disordered eating, burnout, depression, negative affect, and physical symptoms). In addition, athletes’ perceptions of psychological need thwarting were significantly associated with perturbed physiological arousal (elevated levels of secretory immunoglobulin A) prior to training. The final study involved the completion of a diary and supported the relations observed in the cross-sectional studies at a daily level. These findings have important implications for the operationalization and measurement of interpersonal styles and psychological needs.

No abstract is provided for this article.

Thirteen subjects low in fear of mutilation and 11 subjects high in this fear were exposed to repeated presentations of a 6‐sec tone followed by slides depicting a mutilated body or a 6‐sec tone of a different frequency paired with a slide of a neutral scene. For both groups, the N140 component of the evoked potential was larger following the signal for gruesome slides. Slow EEG activity displayed two negative waves. Notably, the late CNV wave was present even though a motor response was not required at the end of the foreperiod. Overall, high‐fear subjects' early waves tended to be larger preceding neutral scenes than gruesome slides, whereas low‐fear subjects showed a trend in the opposite direction. Similar but largely nonsignificant trends were present for the late wave. Heart rate reactions of both groups in the foreperiod included an early deceleration, acceleration, and a late deceleration. Among high‐fear subjects both the acceleratory and late deceleratory limbs were greater preceding mutilation than neutral slides. In contrast, low‐fear subjects' reactions lacked the acceleratory reaction and did not vary as a function of type of warning signal. These results, therefore, indicate differential autonomic patterns of anticipation of affective stimulation as a function of individual differences in fear.