Brain Sci
December 2022
This paper reviews the principles identified in analytic neuroscience that could be used in the setup of an international project, "Hippocrates" (H-project), named after the author of the endocrine theory of temperaments. The H-project can aim to summarize the findings in functional neurochemistry of consistent behavioural patterns (CBPs) in health (such as temperament traits) and psychopathology (symptoms of psychiatric disorders); to have systematically structured neurochemical investigations; to have an analysis of CBPs that include all ranges of behavioural histories and to have these modules complemented by regional contrasts related to climate, diets and other bio-environmental factors. The review highlights the benefits of constructivism and illustrates the contrast between constructivism and current approaches in terms of analytic and methodological aspects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis review highlights the differential contributions of multiple neurochemical systems to temperament traits related and those that are unrelated to emotionality, even though these systems have a significant overlap. The difference in neurochemical biomarkers of these traits is analysed from the perspective of the neurochemical model, Functional Ensemble of Temperament (FET) that uses multi-marker and constructivism principles. Special attention is given to a differential contribution of hypothalamic-pituitary hormones and opioid neuropeptides implicated in both emotional and non-emotional regulation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Psychiatry
October 2021
Attempts to revise the existing classifications of psychiatric disorders (DSM and ICD) continue and highlight a crucial need for the identification of biomarkers underlying symptoms of psychopathology. The present review highlights the benefits of using a Functional Constructivism approach in the analysis of the functionality of the main neurotransmitters. This approach explores the idea that behavior is neither reactive nor pro-active, but constructive and generative, being a transient selection of multiple degrees of freedom in perception and actions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeuropsychobiology
November 2021
Background/aims: Progress in the development of DSM/ICD taxonomies has revealed limitations of both label-based and dimensionality approaches. These approaches fail to address the contingent, nonlinear, context-dependent, and transient nature of those biomarkers linked to specific symptoms of psychopathology or to specific biobehavioural traits of healthy people (temperament). The present review aims to highlight the benefits of a functional constructivism approach in the analysis of neurochemical biomarkers underlying temperament and psychopathology.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Investigations into neurochemical mechanisms of opioid addiction are difficult due to the complexity of behavior and multiplicity of involved neurotransmitter and hormonal systems. The aim of this study was to examine the benefits of structured analysis of these mechanisms using the framework of the neurochemical model Functional Ensemble of Temperament (FET) and the example of maternal behavior under the condition of opium consumption in pregnancy. The FET differentiates between (a) endurance, (b) speed of integration, and (c) emotionality aspects of behavior suggesting that these systems are differentially regulated by (a) serotonin-neuropeptides-brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), (b) dopamine-GABA, and (c) opioid receptor systems, correspondingly.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeuropsychobiology
November 2021
Reports an error in "Human status criteria: Sex differences and similarities across 14 nations" by David M. Buss, Patrick K. Durkee, Todd K.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF[Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported online in on Sep 7 2020 (see record 2020-68801-001). In the original article, the third sentence in the Content level subsection in the Status Criteria More Central to Women section of the Results should appear instead as , and increase women's status more than men's. A coding error in Figure 7 for Dishonoring Family appeared.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Temperament and mental illness are thought to represent varying degrees along the same continuum of neurotransmitter imbalances. A taxonomy of temperament could provide the basis for a new taxonomy of mental illness. Most popular models of temperament, being based heavily on emotionality traits, show very poor ability to discriminate between mental disorders.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhilos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
April 2018
Throughout the last 2500 years, the classification of individual differences in healthy people and their extreme expressions in mental disorders has remained one of the most difficult challenges in science that affects our ability to explore individuals' functioning, underlying psychobiological processes and pathways of development. To facilitate analyses of the principles required for studying individual differences, this theme issue brought together prominent scholars from diverse backgrounds of which many bring unique combinations of cross-disciplinary experiences and perspectives that help establish connections and promote exchange across disciplines. This final paper presents brief commentaries of some of our authors and further scholars exchanging perspectives and reflecting on the contributions of this theme issue.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhilos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
April 2018
This paper applies evolutionary and functional constructivism approaches to the discussion of psychological taxonomies, as implemented in the neurochemical model Functional Ensemble of Temperament (FET). FET asserts that neurochemical systems developed in evolution to regulate functional-dynamical aspects of construction of actions: orientation, selection (integration), energetic maintenance, and management of automatic behavioural elements. As an example, the paper reviews the neurochemical mechanisms of interlocking between emotional dispositions and performance capacities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhilos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
April 2018
This Editorial highlights a unique focus of this theme issue on the biological perspectives in deriving psychological taxonomies coming from neurochemistry, neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, genetics, psychiatry, developmental and comparative psychology-as contrasted to more common discussions of socio-cultural concepts (personality) and methods (lexical approach). It points out the importance of the distinction between temperament and personality for studies in human and animal differential psychophysiology, psychiatry and psycho-pharmacology, sport and animal practices during the past century. It also highlights the inability of common statistical methods to handle nonlinear, feedback, contingent, dynamical and multi-level relationships between psychophysiological systems of consistent psychological traits discussed in this theme issue.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNonlinear Dynamics Psychol Life Sci
October 2017
The Functional Constructivism (FC) paradigm is an alternative to behaviorism and considers behavior as being generated every time anew, based on an individual's capacities, environmental resources and demands. Walter Freeman's work provided us with evidence supporting the FC principles. In this paper we make parallels between gradual construction processes leading to the formation of individual behavior and habits, and evolutionary processes leading to the establishment of biological systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNonlinear Dynamics Psychol Life Sci
October 2017
Front Psychol
November 2016
Temperament and mental illness have been linked to the same systems of behavioral regulation. A temperament model, carefully structured to respond to subtle differences within systems of behavior regulation, should exhibit distinct temperament patterns in the presence of mental illness. Previous comparisons of temperament profiles in mental disorders used mostly emotionality-related traits.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTandemly organized highly repetitive DNA sequences are crucial structural and functional elements of eukaryotic genomes. Despite extensive evidence, satellite DNA remains an enigmatic part of the eukaryotic genome, with biological role and significance of tandem repeat transcripts remaining rather obscure. Data on tandem repeats transcription in amphibian and avian model organisms is fragmentary despite their genomes being thoroughly characterized.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStudies of temperament profiles in patients with mental disorders mostly focus on emotionality-related traits, although mental illness symptoms include emotional and nonemotional aspects of behavioral regulation. This study investigates relationships between 12 temperament traits (9 nonemotionality and 3 emotionality related) measured by the Structure of Temperament Questionnaire and four groups of clinical symptoms (depression, anxiety, antisociality, and dominance-mania) measured by the Personality Assessment Inventory. The study further examines age differences in relationships among clinical symptoms and temperament traits.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTemperament traits and mental illness have been linked to varying degrees of imbalances in neurotransmitter systems of behavior regulation. If a temperament model has been carefully structured to reflect weak imbalances within systems of behavior regulation, then in the presence of mental illness, these profiles should exhibit distinct patterns consistent with symptoms of mental illness. In contrast to other temperament models used in studies of anxiety disorders, the Functional Ensemble of Temperament (FET) model differentiates not only between emotionality traits, but also between traits related to physical, social-verbal and mental aspects of behavior.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis paper critically reviews the unidimensional construct of General Arousal as utilised by models of temperament in differential psychology for example, to underlie 'Extraversion'. Evidence suggests that specialization within monoamine neurotransmitter systems contrasts with the attribution of a "general arousal" of the Ascending Reticular Activating System. Experimental findings show specialized roles of noradrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin systems in hypothetically mediating three complementary forms of arousal that are similar to three functional blocks described in classical models of behaviour within kinesiology, clinical neuropsychology, psychophysiology and temperament research.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAm J Psychol
April 2016
This article analyzes sex differences in communicative and exploratory abilities and mental disabilities from the rarely discussed perspective of sex differences in the shape of phenotypic distributions. The article reviews the most consistent findings related to such differences and compares them with the evolutionary theory of sex (ETS). The ETS considers sexual dimorphism as a functional specialization of a species into 2 partitions: variational and conservational.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChromosome Res
September 2015
Transcription of tandemly repetitive DNA in embryogenesis seems to be of special interest due to a crucial role of non-coding RNAs in many aspects of development. However, only a few data are available on tandem repeats transcription at subtelomere regions of chromosomes during vertebrate embryogenesis. To reduce this gap, we examined stage and tissue-specific pattern of subtelomeric PO41 (pattern of 41 bp) tandem repeat transcription during embryogenesis of chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFZh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova
January 2015
Aim: To study the effect of sex- and age-related features, social aspects and progression of alcoholism on tobacco smoking (TS), tobacco dependence (TD) and alcohol dependence (AD) in the Chuvash Republic.
Material And Methods: Authors questioned 769 inpatients with AD and then performed detailed examination and questioning of 390 patients.
Results And Conclusion: 74.
Background: Subtelomeres are located close to the ends of chromosomes and organized by tandemly repetitive sequences, duplicated copies of genes, pseudogenes and retrotransposons. Transcriptional activity of tandemly organized DNA at terminal chromosomal regions and the distribution of subtelomere-derived non-coding RNAs are poorly investigated. Here we aimed to analyze transcriptional activity of subtelomeric tandem repeat in somatic tissues and cultured cells of birds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe lexical approach is a method in differential psychology that uses people's estimations of verbal descriptors of human behavior in order to derive the structure of human individuality. The validity of the assumptions of this method about the objectivity of people's estimations is rarely questioned. Meanwhile the social nature of language and the presence of emotionality biases in cognition are well-recognized in psychology.
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