Functional neuroimaging studies have largely been performed in patients with longstanding chronic posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Additionally, memory function of PTSD patients has been proved to be impaired. We sought to characterize the brain responses of patients with acute PTSD and implemented a trauma-related short-term memory recall paradigm. Individuals with acute severe PTSD (n=10...

OBJECTIVE Testing stress reactivity in the laboratory often requires deception or at least concealment of the hypothesis in order to mimic real-life provocations. Researchers routinely conduct a post-experimental validity check about the success of deception in order to rule out competing hypotheses. The research literature on the impact of failed deception offers contradictory results about th...

In Russia the diagnosis of gonorrhoea in women relied on microscopy, justified by the hypothesis that sensitivity increases using 'provocation' techniques. The aim was to test the value of Gonovaccine as provocation in women who would have received it normally. Cervical specimens from 204 women were tested by culture and a ligase chain reaction (LCR) assay before the women were randomized to re...

A population’s level of terrorism depends on two factors: people’s preferences (would they like creating damage?) and the constraints under which people act (what damage could they create, and at what punishment?). Causerelated policies, e.g. improving social stability or education, aim at appeasing preferences, thereby reducing terrorism. Symptom-related policies, e.g. embargoes or wars, chang...

BACKGROUND Patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have highly idiosyncratic triggers. To fully understand which role this idiosyncrasy plays in the neurobiological mechanisms behind OCD, it is necessary to elucidate the impact of individualization regarding the applied investigation methods. This functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study explores the neural correlates of con...

The present study investigated differences in the behavioral and psychophysiological responses to provocation and in the level of callous-unemotional traits in boys exhibiting different patterns of aggression. Eighty-five boys (ages 13-18) in a juvenile detention center played a competitive computer task against a hypothetical peer who provided low and high levels of provocation. Youth high on ...

The present study investigated differences in the behavioral and psychophysiological responses to provocation and in the level of callous-unemotional traits in boys exhibiting different patterns of aggression. Eighty-five boys (ages 13-18) in a juvenile detention center played a competitive computer task against a hypothetical peer who provided low and high levels of provocation. Youth high on ...

In this article, we meta-analytically examine experimental studies to assess the moderating effect of provocation on gender differences in aggression. Convergent evidence shows that, whereas unprovoked men are more aggressive than women, provocation markedly attenuates this gender difference. Gender differences in appraisals of provocation intensity and fear of danger from retaliation (but not ...

Background Understanding why individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) ruminate on prior provocations, despite its negative outcomes, is crucial to improving interventions. Provocation-focused rumination may be rewarding in the short term by amplifying anger and producing feelings of justification, validation, and increased energy, while reducing self-directed negative affect. If p...