Introduzione. Nell’invecchiamento sano, le abilità comunicative possono subire un deterioramento che non riguarda solo gli aspetti linguistici di base, ma anche la pragmatica, ovvero la capacità di usare il linguaggio e altri mezzi espressivi in modo adeguato al contesto sociale. Sebbene la letteratura suggerisca un declino pragmatico legato all’invecchiamento, mancano studi longitudinali...
The present contribution aims to provide initial insights from the “ARCADE” PRIN project. Adopting a multi-technique approach that combines observational analysis with simulation methods, the project brings together the expertise of three Research Units (RUs – Rome, Turin, and Padua) in the fields of Road Engineering and Psychology. The objective is to identify behavioral, psychological, and...
Time perception is a fundamental cognitive function that plays a crucial role in coordinating behavior and interacting with the environment. Explicit and implicit timing represent two distinct yet partially overlapping processes, with explicit timing involving conscious estimation of intervals and implicit timing relying on automatic processing of temporal regularities. Aging is associated...
Conspiracy theories attempt to explain the underlying causes of major socio-political events by attributing them to secret plots. This suggests the importance of tackling conspiracy beliefs from a multidimensional perspective and moving beyond explicit methods, which often fail to capture the complexity and implicit nature of conspiracy beliefs. To address this issue, two conceptualizations...
This study explored age-related changes in attentional components—selective attention, divided attention, and switching ability—using the Attentional Demands Task (AD-Task). Ninety-three healthy participants aged 18 to 70 were divided into three groups: young adults (25 f, age 21.12.47, range 19-29), middle-aged adults (20 f, age 55.73.05, range 50-60), and older adults (19 f, age 65.62.85,...
Introduction: The effect of placebos on task-related physical fatigue and brain activity remains underexplored yet relevant to dissect. This study investigates the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying motor placebo effects and their impact on fatigue at both central and peripheral levels, using Readiness Potential (RP) as an electrophysiological (EEG) central measure and Median Frequency...
Introduzione
L’efficacia di interventi di clown dottori in contesti ospedalieri è un risultato consolidato in letteratura, mentre indagini sulle caratteristiche psicologiche dei clown dottori sono scarse. La ricerca qui presentata si propone di indagare le relazioni tra stili comici preferiti dai clown dottori, il loro grado di giocosità e flessibilità cognitiva.
Metodo
Un campione di 210...
In manual manufacturing processes, assembly tasks involve not only physical effort but also cognitive demands. While physical workload has been extensively investigated, the anticipatory assessment of mental workload remains a relatively underexplored domain. This contribution presents a theoretical framework aimed at mapping the specific cognitive and executive functions involved in...
Organizational decision-making (DM) is a multifaceted process influenced by both cognitive and social variables. Among these, the construction of Self-Relevance (SR) – the subjective significance attributed to a decision by an individual – has received limited attention in neuroscience, particularly in applied workplace settings. This study aimed to explore the behavioural and...
Introduzione. L’invecchiamento comporta un declino progressivo di funzioni cognitive come memoria, attenzione, funzioni esecutive (FE) e Teoria della Mente (ToM), con impatti sull’abilità comunicativo-pragmatica. Tuttavia, la relazione tra queste abilità non è ancora completamente chiara. Nonostante l’influenza della pragmatica sull'autonomia e sulla qualità della vita, la ricerca sul suo...
La creatività è un costrutto complesso che coinvolge sia la produzione di idee originali che la valutazione della creatività delle idee stesse. Mentre la produzione creativa si riferisce alla capacità di generare idee nuove e appropriate, la valutazione della creatività riguarda l'abilità di riconoscere e giudicare il valore creativo di un'idea o di un prodotto. Questa distinzione è cruciale,...
Cinematographic editing influences how viewers perceive time, yet the psychological and neural mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain underexplored. This study examined the role of the supplementary motor area (SMA) in shaping temporal perception during film viewing using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Forty-eight participants were assigned to one of three tDCS...
La letteratura sul bilinguismo suggerisce che le parole tabù (ovvero socialmente inappropriate) suscitino risposte più intense nella lingua nativa (L1) rispetto alla seconda lingua (L2). Il presente studio indaga tale ipotesi in un campione di parlanti bilingui italiano(L1)-inglese(L2), a medio-alata competenza nella L2. È stata utilizzata una procedura di progressive demasking, in cui una...
We present DiffuseFace, a database of AI-generated face portraits designed to address limitations of traditional databases and enhance diversity in emotion studies. Traditional databases, such as CEED (Benda & Scherf, 2020) and FACES (Ebner et al., 2010), typically include photographs of real actors captured in controlled environments. While invaluable, their creation demands substantial time...
Nel compito di decisione lessicale, il partecipante deve riconoscere se gli stimoli sono parole o non-parole. Nel presente studio, si è indagato se queste due categorie di stimoli siano associate a dinamiche decisionali differenti, focalizzandosi sull'esecuzione motoria della risposta. Sono state impiegate 5 categorie di stimoli: parole di alta frequenza, parole di bassa frequenza,...
According to the neural overlap hypothesis (Fias et al., 2001) magnitude information is automatically extracted from digits when there is a sufficient degree of neural overlap of structures dedicated to the processing of relevant and irrelevant information. Specifically, since the semantic information of numbers is processed in parietal areas, processing a visual feature with high parietal...
Aim: Prospective memory (PM) is the ability to remember future intentions, which is influenced by cue relevance in the ongoing task. Prospective memory tasks can be focal, with cues promoting automatic retrieval, or non-focal, requiring strategic monitoring. This study examined performance on focal and non-focal PM tasks under dual-task conditions, combining a Lexical Decision Task (LDT) and a...
Visual and auditory signals from a common source are typically integrated into a unified percept despite slight asynchronies—a phenomenon central to audiovisual (AV) speech perception. While this integration facilitates speech comprehension, it remains unclear how emotional context affects crossmodal binding. In two experiments, participants performed either a simultaneity judgment (SJ;...
Understanding cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying quantity processing is crucial for unraveling human cognition. The existence of a single magnitude system, encompassing non-symbolic number estimation alongside other magnitudes like time and space, is still highly debated since clear evidence is limited. Recent research examined whether spatial biases also influence numerosity...
The Spatial-Numerical Associations of Response Codes (SNARC) effect describes the spatial relationship between number magnitude and response side, with small numbers associated with the left space and large numbers with the right space (Dehaene et al., 1993). Typically, the SNARC effect is studied on simple movements, and it is revealed by spatial response tasks through response time...
In the field of sports science, eye tracking has emerged as a crucial tool for investigating the visual and cognitive mechanisms underlying athletic performance. However, current literature highlights a significant gap, namely the limited number of eye-tracking studies conducted during live game situations. The majority of existing research has focused on controlled game scenarios.
The aim...
Hormones play a crucial role in shaping the sensitivity and intensity of
disgust responses, with these effects varying based on sex and other
physiological factors. These mechanisms are deeply rooted in evolutionary
processes, where disgust serves as a protective function, helping to avoid
potential physical or social harm. Literature highlighted that women tend to
exhibit higher disgust...
Placebo research has primarily focused on the pain domain, aiming to develop strategies that improve patients’ conditions by enhancing clinical outcomes and preserving a positive therapeutic context. When this context is misperceived, however, it can instead trigger distress and fear. Building on this foundation, expanding placebo research into other domains could provide valuable insights...
Introduzione: La Teoria della Mente (ToM) è un costrutto complesso che si articola in diverse componenti, i.e. ToM cognitiva e affettiva, di primo e di I-II ordine, del quale è documentato un declino nell’invecchiamento. Quest’abilità ha una complessa interazione con altre funzioni cognitive, tra cui le Funzioni Esecutive (FEs), che a loro volta subiscono un deterioramento...
Alla luce delle teorie dell’embodied cognition (Goldman & de Vignemont, 2009) e delle recenti prospettive teoriche che enfatizzano il ruolo dell’interocezione nei processi cognitivi (Azzalini et al., 2019), questo studio propone un nuovo training centrato sulle rappresentazioni mentali del corpo (RMC), funzionali e interocettive, valutandone l’efficacia nel potenziare diverse abilità in età...
The Sniffin’ Sticks Test (SST) is one of the most widely used tools for assessing olfactory function in research and clinical settings. However, despite its widespread use, a detailed psychometric evaluation of its items remains limited. Understanding the item functioning within the identification subtest is crucial to ensure the test's reliability, validity, and applicability across different...
Introduzione. Il declino cognitivo nell’invecchiamento coinvolge memoria, funzioni esecutive e velocità di elaborazione. Per quanto riguarda la comunicazione, la ricerca si è concentrata principalmente sugli aspetti linguistici, trascurando la pragmatica, ossia l’uso del linguaggio in contesti sociali. Studi recenti hanno evidenziato un declino comunicativo-pragmatico nei disturbi...
Introduzione
La riabilitazione cognitiva è essenziale per migliorare la qualità della vita nelle persone con sclerosi multipla (PcSM). I modelli di teleriabilitazione sincrona, supportati da tecnologie digitali, offrono un'alternativa domiciliare per affrontare barriere logistiche, economiche e geografiche. Tuttavia, l’evidenza sulla loro efficacia per i deficit cognitivi nella SM è ancora...
La lettura rappresenta un’attività stimolante che, in fase di invecchiamento, può supportare il mantenimento delle capacità cognitive. La letteratura scientifica ha però ampiamente dimostrato come anche la lettura sia un processo influenzato dall’invecchiamento, necessitando di integrità sia sensoriale sia delle diverse componenti cognitive. L’obiettivo della nostra ricerca è quello di...
La valutazione neuropsicologica si basa su dati normativi per interpretare i punteggi degli esaminati ai test. Il sistema del Punteggi Equivalenti (PE), ampiamente utilizzato in Italia, è un metodo non parametrico che categorizza la prestazione degli esaminati ai test in cinque livelli ordinali. Il sistema dei PE fornisce una chiara classificazione clinica ma presenta diverse limitazioni, tra...
Touchscreen interactions require complex motor coordination, particularly of the thumbs. This study investigates the kinematic differences underlying two classes of digital intention: content consumption and content generation. Eighteen naïve participants were instructed to type standardized sentences on Google and WhatsApp, respectively representing the two digital intentions. Thumb...
Negotiation plays a crucial role in reaching mutually beneficial agreement during shared decision-making. In neuroscience, hyperscanning paradigm allows to grasp the complexity of brain dynamics during such complex interactions. This study used functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning to investigate brain-to-brain synchronization during interactive negotiation, and explored...
Introduction. Early socio-cognitive development relies on the ability to discriminate and categorize social stimuli. Infants’ preference for faces is well-known, engaging brain regions within occipito-temporal cortex and right-lateralized responses by 4 months (de Heering & Rossion, 2015). Hands also play a crucial role in social communication and are salient from the first months of life. By...
Il malingering si riferisce alla simulazione o esagerazione intenzionale della sintomatologia clinica per ottenere un vantaggio secondario. La sua valutazione è cruciale in ambito forense e clinico.
La letteratura sottolinea l’importanza di strumenti psicometrici standardizzati, tra cui misure autoriferite di sintomi potenzialmente inverosimili (assurdi o fittizi) e test volti a rilevare...
Introduzione. Nonostante l’inquinamento atmosferico rappresenti uno dei principali rischi per la salute in Europa, posizionandosi come seconda causa di morte nel continente con oltre 300.000 decessi l’anno, vi è ancora poca consapevolezza del problema tra la popolazione. Inoltre, le politiche adottate per ridurre le emissioni e migliorare la qualità dell’aria sono spesso percepite dalla...
Plant Awareness Disparity (PAD) is a cognitive phenomenon where human observers tend to overlook plants in complex scenarios, favoring animals and inanimate objects. Our study investigates whether this tendency extends to the numerical perception of plants compared to other elements. We conducted two behavioral experiments to test the hypothesis that plant numerosity is systematically...
Lo screening neurocognitivo nei disturbi da uso di sostanze (DUS) e nel disturbo da gioco d’azzardo patologico (GAP) è cruciale, alla luce della significativa sovrapposizione tra questi disturbi e deficit in ambiti cognitivi chiave come il controllo degli impulsi e la flessibilità cognitiva. Studi recenti evidenziano come individui con DUS presentino compromissioni neurocognitive che incidono...
La ruminazione è un processo cognitivo caratterizzato dalla focalizzazione su un evento con valenza negativa, che porta ad esperire pensieri persistenti e ripetitivi su tale evento. Una forma specifica di ruminazione è quella che può verificarsi a seguito di eventi che suscitano rabbia, la cosiddetta ruminazione di rabbia. Il presente studio si propone di validare la versione italiana...
Aging is a multifaceted process involving biological, psychological, and social changes that collectively affect an individual’s ability to adapt and function. Rather than focusing solely on disease, current perspectives emphasize maintaining intrinsic capacity—mobility, cognition, emotional well-being, and vitality—as central to aging well. Declines in spatial navigation are particularly...
La vista svolge un ruolo cruciale nella rappresentazione dello spazio. Il compito di “cross-sectioning” richiede di identificare la forma interna bidimensionale di solidi 3D, tagliati trasversalmente da un piano. Cognitivamente, questo compito implica una solida rappresentazione spaziale degli oggetti e la manipolazione mentale di figure bidimensionali e tridimensionali. Il presente studio ha...
Introduzione: Il dolore cronico primario (Chronic Primary Pain, CPP) è una categoria diagnostica proposta recentemente che comprende condizioni di dolore cronico prive di segni clinici evidenti o di una chiara origine eziopatogenetica. Questi disturbi sembrano condividere un meccanismo cerebrale comune, noto come sensibilizzazione centrale, in cui i neuroni nocicettivi diventano iper-reattivi...
Il presente studio analizza l’impatto del consenso presunto sui tassi di donazione di organi, un tema di crescente rilevanza nel contesto sanitario globale. La carenza di organi disponibili per i trapianti continua a causare numerosi decessi, con dati preoccupanti registrati in vari Paesi. Mentre il modello del consenso presunto, adottato da nazioni come Austria e Francia, è visto come un...
Touch-based interaction is central to smartphone use. Research on human–technology interaction has traditionally focused on typing behavior, often through the analysis of timing and spatial characteristics — as exemplified by large-scale studies such as Palin et al. (2019). In contrast, swipe gestures remain understudied, despite their ubiquity in mobile interaction.
This study examines the...
Introduction: Language comprehension is thought to rely on the pre-activation of linguistic representations based on context, facilitating the processing of upcoming input. Prediction-by-production models propose that linguistic prediction draws on processes and representations shared with language production. To test this proposal, we applied high-density transcranial alternating current...
Text comprehension is one of the most influential aspects of academic performance, particularly problematic for students coming from another culture. To read is an ecological training to improve the comprehension, but finding books that are both interesting and understandable by preadolescents and adolescents learning Italian as their L2 language is a challenge. The AKA Books Project objective...
In recent years, neuroscientific research has established the crucial role of the cerebellum in social cognition processes. However, little is known about the specific cerebellar oscillatory frequencies involved in these processes, mostly due to the cerebellum's intrinsic characteristics that make traditional electrophysiological techniques (e.g., EEG and MEG) more complicated to apply....
This study explores the influence of circadian rhythms and total sleep deprivation on the components of attention - selective, divided, and switching - using the Attentional Demands Task (AD-Task).
The research consisted of two phases, during which subjective indices of sleepiness, vigor, and affect were monitored, in addition to sleep quality and individual chronotype. Regarding the...
In the last decades, increasing efforts have been devoted to exploring the influence of ethnic group membership on face processing. Several studies have shown that individuals process own-race faces differently from other-race faces. Specifically, research has documented the phenomenon known as the Other-Race Categorisation Advantage (ORCA), which refers to the tendency for individuals to...
Sleep paralysis (SP) is a parasomnia associated with REM sleep, marked by a temporary inability to move during the transition into or out of sleep, often accompanied by vivid and sometimes frightening hallucinations. While SP is a known symptom in narcolepsy, it can also occur in otherwise healthy individuals as isolated sleep paralysis (ISP), where it remains a distressing yet harmless...
Introduction:
Dreams have been proposed as a window into sleep-related memory consolidation and integration processes. In this study, we investigate the interplay between sleep, memory consolidation, and dream content using targeted memory reactivation (TMR), a method that delivers sensory cues during sleep to influence memory processing.
Methods:
Ten participants (5 females, mean age:...
Introduction: The rubber hand illusion is a well-known experiment that allows manipulation of one's own body experience. The original questionnaire gauges both the illusion experience and unforeseen experiences acting as control statements. In particular, two statements pertain to the referral of touch originating from the rubber hand (RoT), and one concerns the feeling of ownership of the...
Introduction. It has been shown that omission and substitution errors in reading single words and pseudowords in the acquired reading disorder of right brain-damaged patients can depend on at least two different mechanisms: the association of unilateral spatial neglect with altered eye movements (i.e., neglect dyslexia), which produce left-sided omissions (Primativo et al., 2015) or an...
This study introduces the Virtual Memory Ecological Battery (V-MEB), an innovative virtual reality-based assessment tool designed to evaluate memory functioning within ecologically valid environments for early detection of cognitive decline. Traditional neuropsychological assessments often lack ecological validity—the extent to which they reflect real-world cognitive demands. The V-MEB...
Financial well-being includes both objective indicators (e.g., income, savings) and subjective evaluations of one’s financial situation (subjective financial well-being, SFWB). Recent literature emphasizes the subjective dimension for its ability to provide a more holistic view of financial well-being. While early research treated SFWB as unidimensional, more recent studies recognize its...
In the last decade, the Open Science movement has proposed solutions to the proliferation of Questionable Research Practices, which undermined the credibility of psychological science. Among them, one the most successful has been the Open Science Framework (OSF), which encompasses a set of tools for making the entire research process more open, and which has had a central role in defining...
Comprendere lo sviluppo e le differenze individuali nella teoria della mente (ToM; la capacità di attribuire stati mentali agli altri) richiede strumenti di misura solidi e facilmente applicabili su larga scala. I compiti a risposta aperta - come il “Triangles task” - forniscono indicatori validi della ToM, ma richiedono uno scoring manuale molto dispendioso in termini di tempo e formazione....
Introduzione: Il Disturbo dello Spettro Autistico (ASD) include difficoltà nella comunicazione pragmatica, ovvero la capacità di usare il linguaggio e altri mezzi espressivi (e.g. gesti, espressioni facciali) in modo appropriato al contesto. Attualmente, pochi interventi mirano a migliorare tale abilità negli adolescenti autistici, e ancor meno in telehealth.
Scopo del lavoro è valutare...
Virtual reality (VR) integration in healthcare has demonstrated significant therapeutic potential, improving treatment adherence, accessibility, and clinical effectiveness. While self-report questionnaires remain the preferred method for user experience (UX) assessment due to their psychometric properties and efficiency, existing instruments present significant methodological limitations when...
Visual-spatial skills are fundamental for navigating the environment and performing daily activities. Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often exhibit atypical perceptual processing, especially regarding complex visual stimuli and visuo-perceptual abilities. This study aims to revise the Object Perspective Taking Test (OPT) and the Santa Barbara Sense of Direction Scale (SBSOD) in...
In the digital age, sharing frequent updates and content about one's private life is highly prevalent among adolescents. The construct of oversharing refers to excessive sharing behaviour in terms of frequency and intimacy of information.
Background: Despite the relevance and potential negative consequences, oversharing remains under-investigated in the literature. This study explores...
