Neurobiology of social reward valuation in adults with a history of anorexia nervosa.

Objective: Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a disorder characterized by atypical patterns of reward valuation (e.g. positive valuation of hunger).

The functional significance of shyness in anorexia nervosa.

The defining features of anorexia nervosa (AN) include disordered eating and disturbance in the experience of their bodies; however, many women with AN also demonstrate higher harm avoidance (HA), lower novelty seeking, and challenges with interpersonal functioning. The current study explored whether HA and novelty seeking could explain variation in disordered eating and social functioning in healthy control women ( n = 18), weight-restored women with a history of AN (n = 17), and women currently-ill with AN (AN; n = 17). Our results indicated that clinical participants (AN + weight-restored women) reported poorer social skills than healthy control participants.

Vicarious reinforcement in rhesus macaques (macaca mulatta).

What happens to others profoundly influences our own behavior. Such other-regarding outcomes can drive observational learning, as well as motivate cooperation, charity, empathy, and even spite. Vicarious reinforcement may serve as one of the critical mechanisms mediating the influence of other-regarding outcomes on behavior and decision-making in groups.