According to the placebo-reward hypothesis, placebo is a reward-anticipation process that increases midbrain dopamine (DA) levels. Reward-based learning processes, such as reinforcement learning, involves a large part of the DA-ergic network that is also activated by the placebo intervention. Given the neurochemical overlap between placebo and reward learning, we investigated whether verbal ...

Mange av pasientene i barne- og ungdomspsykiatrien (BUP) har relasjonelle traumer og tillitsvansker. Slike erfaringer kan gjøre dem ekstra sårbare for endringer, behandlerbytter og brudd i behandling. Når pasienter i BUP blir myndige og fortsatt har et behandlingsbehov, overføres de til psykisk helsevern for voksne (PHV). Overgangen mellom to behandlingssystemer innebærer store endringer for en ...

Formålet med denne retrospektive studien var (1) å undersøke om det er forskjeller i opplevde positive og negative konsekvenser mellom pårørende barn av psykisk og somatisk syke foreldre, (2) å undersøke om det forelå en sammenheng mellom foreldrenes sykdomsstatus, og type oppgaver som barn av de ulike pårørendegruppene utførte i oppveksten, og (3) å se om disse oppgavetypene har en sammenheng med ...

Background Myocardial infarction is likely to be experienced as a life-threatening and potentially traumatic event. Approximately one-third of patients with myocardial infarction experience clinically significant symptoms of anxiety/ depression. However, it is unclear how many of these patients experience these symptoms because of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We conducted a clinical screening ...

People across the world and throughout history have gone to great lengths to enhance their physical appearance. Evolutionary psychologists and ethologists have largely attempted to explain this phenomenon via mating preferences and strategies. Here, we test one of the most popular evolutionary hypotheses for beauty-enhancing behaviors, drawn from mating market and parasite stress perspectives, ...

Background: To examine demographic and clinical characteristics as potential predictors of change for children and youth with emotional disorders treated at two child and adolescent mental health outpatient services (CAMHS) in Norway. <p>Methods: The study was of naturalistic observational type with “treatment as usual” (TAU). The sample consisted of 84 children and youth with emotional disorders. ...

Background: Several studies have demonstrated the effect of guided Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) for depression. However, ICBT is not suitable for all depressed patients and there is a considerable level of nonresponse. Research on predictors and moderators of outcome in ICBT is inconclusive. Objective: This paper explored predictors of response to an intervention combining the ...

The world lost a very dear and brilliant man when Prof Dr Marcel Waldinger passed away this year. I am proud that I got to know him well, and had the chance to learn a lot from him as a scientist. He was passionate about his work related to men and womens sexual dysfunctions, with a special focus on PE, postorgasm illness syndrome, and persistent sexual arousal syndrome.

Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is assumed to index attentional processes by inhibition of the startle reflex. By directing attention towards a weak stimulus, i.e., the prepulse, PPI is increased. We investigated controlled and automatic processes related to attention in young and elderly subjects. Both groups (n=41) attended to a task where they were to judge if length of a comparison tone was shorter ...

Objective: The purpose of the paper is to study the ranking of disorders according to their perceived importance. Previous studies suggest that rankings according to the perceived or attributed “value” or importance create informal hierarchies of disorders on normative attitudes about symptoms, treatment and outcome. In this work we studied disorder ranking in the general population and among health ...