Social relationships endow health and fitness benefits, but considerable variation exists in the ... more Social relationships endow health and fitness benefits, but considerable variation exists in the extent to which individuals form and maintain salutary social relationships. The mental and physical health effects of social bonds are more strongly related to perceived isolation (loneliness) than to objective social network characteristics. We sought to develop an animal model to facilitate the experimental analysis of the development of, and the behavioral and biological consequences of, loneliness. In Study 1, using a population-based sample of older adults, we examined how loneliness was influenced both by social network size and by the extent to which individuals believed that their daily social interactions reflected their own choice. Results revealed three distinct clusters of individuals: (i) individuals with large networks who believed they had high choice were lowest in loneliness, (ii) individuals with small social networks who believed they had low choice were highest in lo...
Begin forwarded message: Recent advances in neuroimaging have allowed researchers to begin to exa... more Begin forwarded message: Recent advances in neuroimaging have allowed researchers to begin to examine the neural substrates of social cognition and behavior. While this research is nascent, researchers have begun applying it toward understanding the areas of the brain associated with prejudice and stereotyping. While some reliable findings have implicated particular brain structures associated with thinking about stereotyped out-groups, the conclusions we can draw from these studies are thus far limited and tempered with the ...
Evaluative processes have their roots in early evolutionary history, as survival is dependent on ... more Evaluative processes have their roots in early evolutionary history, as survival is dependent on an organism’s ability to identify and respond appropriately to positive, rewarding or otherwise salubrious stimuli as well as to negative, noxious, or injurious stimuli. Consequently, evaluative processes are ubiquitous in the animal kingdom and are represented at multiple levels of the nervous system, including the lowest levels of the neuraxis. While evolution has sculpted higher level evaluative systems into complex and sophisticated information-processing networks, they do not come to replace, but rather to interact with more primitive lower level representations. Indeed, there are basic features of the underlying neuroarchitectural plan for evaluative processes that are common across levels of organization—including that of evaluative bivalence.
Human relationships with people and nonhuman beings were explored in 229 older adults (50-68 yrs ... more Human relationships with people and nonhuman beings were explored in 229 older adults (50-68 yrs old) in the longitudinal Chicago Health, Aging, and Social Relations Study. The Multi-Domain Relationship Satisfaction scale was constructed to pose parallel questions about participants' satisfaction with their most important person, group, God, and pet. Subscates reflecting person, group, and God satisfaction exhibited convergent and discriminant validity and moderate temporal stability over a one-year period. Person-group and group-God satisfaction ratings were significantly correlated. Person and group satisfaction contributed independently to well-being controlling for sociodemographic factors, and God satisfaction and pet satisfaction. Future research should examine the extent to which differences or commonalities in the effects of relationships in these domains are attributable to specific provisions of various relationship types.
Evolution has sculpted the incredibly complex human nervous system, among the most complex functi... more Evolution has sculpted the incredibly complex human nervous system, among the most complex functions of which extend beyond the individual to an intricate social structure. Although these functions are deterministic, those determinants are legion, heavily interacting and dependent on a specific evolutionary trajectory. That trajectory was directed by the adaptive significance of quasi-random genetic variations, but was also influenced by chance and caprice. With a different evolutionary pathway, the same neural elements could subserve functions distinctly different from what they do in extant human brains. Consequently, the properties of higher level neural networks cannot be derived readily from the properties of the lower level constituent elements, without studying these elements in the aggregate. Thus, a multi-level approach to integrative neuroscience may offer an optimal strategy. Moreover, the process of calibrative reductionism, by which concepts and understandings from one ...
Low socioeconomic status (SES) has been associated with higher levels of allostatic load (AL). Po... more Low socioeconomic status (SES) has been associated with higher levels of allostatic load (AL). Posited mechanisms for this association include stress, personality, psychosocial variables, coping, social networks, and health behaviors. This study examines whether these variables explain the SES-AL relationship in a population-based sample of 208 51- to 69-year-old White, Black, and Hispanic adults in the Chicago Health, Aging, and Social Relations Study. AL was based on nine markers of physiological dysregulation. SES was inversely associated with a composite measure of AL; hostility and poor sleep quality helped to explain the association between AL and SES. Factor analyses revealed four AL components corresponding to the bodily systems of interest. SES was significantly associated with two AL components, suggesting that the effects of SES on physiological dysregulation are specific to certain systems in a middle to early old-age population.
Scientific theories in the natural sciences posit invisible forces operating with measurable effe... more Scientific theories in the natural sciences posit invisible forces operating with measurable effects on physical bodies, but the scientific study of invisible forces acting on human bodies has made limited progress. The topics of sociality, spirituality, and meaning making are cases in point. The authors discuss some of the possible reasons for this as well as contemporary developments in the social sciences and neurosciences that may make such study possible and productive.
Social and demographic trends are placing an increasing number of adults at risk for loneliness, ... more Social and demographic trends are placing an increasing number of adults at risk for loneliness, an established risk factor for physical and mental illness. The growing costs of loneliness have led to a number of loneliness reduction interventions. Qualitative reviews have identified four primary intervention strategies: (a) improving social skills, (b) enhancing social support, (c) increasing opportunities for social contact, and (d) addressing maladaptive social cognition. An integrative meta-analysis of loneliness reduction interventions was conducted to quantify the effects of each strategy and to examine the potential role of moderator variables. Results revealed that single-group pre-post and nonrandomized comparison studies yielded larger mean effect sizes relative to randomized comparison studies. Among studies that used the latter design, the most successful interventions addressed maladaptive social cognition. This is consistent with current theories regarding loneliness a...
Social relationships endow health and fitness benefits, but considerable variation exists in the ... more Social relationships endow health and fitness benefits, but considerable variation exists in the extent to which individuals form and maintain salutary social relationships. The mental and physical health effects of social bonds are more strongly related to perceived isolation (loneliness) than to objective social network characteristics. We sought to develop an animal model to facilitate the experimental analysis of the development of, and the behavioral and biological consequences of, loneliness. In Study 1, using a population-based sample of older adults, we examined how loneliness was influenced both by social network size and by the extent to which individuals believed that their daily social interactions reflected their own choice. Results revealed three distinct clusters of individuals: (i) individuals with large networks who believed they had high choice were lowest in loneliness, (ii) individuals with small social networks who believed they had low choice were highest in lo...
Begin forwarded message: Recent advances in neuroimaging have allowed researchers to begin to exa... more Begin forwarded message: Recent advances in neuroimaging have allowed researchers to begin to examine the neural substrates of social cognition and behavior. While this research is nascent, researchers have begun applying it toward understanding the areas of the brain associated with prejudice and stereotyping. While some reliable findings have implicated particular brain structures associated with thinking about stereotyped out-groups, the conclusions we can draw from these studies are thus far limited and tempered with the ...
Evaluative processes have their roots in early evolutionary history, as survival is dependent on ... more Evaluative processes have their roots in early evolutionary history, as survival is dependent on an organism’s ability to identify and respond appropriately to positive, rewarding or otherwise salubrious stimuli as well as to negative, noxious, or injurious stimuli. Consequently, evaluative processes are ubiquitous in the animal kingdom and are represented at multiple levels of the nervous system, including the lowest levels of the neuraxis. While evolution has sculpted higher level evaluative systems into complex and sophisticated information-processing networks, they do not come to replace, but rather to interact with more primitive lower level representations. Indeed, there are basic features of the underlying neuroarchitectural plan for evaluative processes that are common across levels of organization—including that of evaluative bivalence.
Human relationships with people and nonhuman beings were explored in 229 older adults (50-68 yrs ... more Human relationships with people and nonhuman beings were explored in 229 older adults (50-68 yrs old) in the longitudinal Chicago Health, Aging, and Social Relations Study. The Multi-Domain Relationship Satisfaction scale was constructed to pose parallel questions about participants' satisfaction with their most important person, group, God, and pet. Subscates reflecting person, group, and God satisfaction exhibited convergent and discriminant validity and moderate temporal stability over a one-year period. Person-group and group-God satisfaction ratings were significantly correlated. Person and group satisfaction contributed independently to well-being controlling for sociodemographic factors, and God satisfaction and pet satisfaction. Future research should examine the extent to which differences or commonalities in the effects of relationships in these domains are attributable to specific provisions of various relationship types.
Evolution has sculpted the incredibly complex human nervous system, among the most complex functi... more Evolution has sculpted the incredibly complex human nervous system, among the most complex functions of which extend beyond the individual to an intricate social structure. Although these functions are deterministic, those determinants are legion, heavily interacting and dependent on a specific evolutionary trajectory. That trajectory was directed by the adaptive significance of quasi-random genetic variations, but was also influenced by chance and caprice. With a different evolutionary pathway, the same neural elements could subserve functions distinctly different from what they do in extant human brains. Consequently, the properties of higher level neural networks cannot be derived readily from the properties of the lower level constituent elements, without studying these elements in the aggregate. Thus, a multi-level approach to integrative neuroscience may offer an optimal strategy. Moreover, the process of calibrative reductionism, by which concepts and understandings from one ...
Low socioeconomic status (SES) has been associated with higher levels of allostatic load (AL). Po... more Low socioeconomic status (SES) has been associated with higher levels of allostatic load (AL). Posited mechanisms for this association include stress, personality, psychosocial variables, coping, social networks, and health behaviors. This study examines whether these variables explain the SES-AL relationship in a population-based sample of 208 51- to 69-year-old White, Black, and Hispanic adults in the Chicago Health, Aging, and Social Relations Study. AL was based on nine markers of physiological dysregulation. SES was inversely associated with a composite measure of AL; hostility and poor sleep quality helped to explain the association between AL and SES. Factor analyses revealed four AL components corresponding to the bodily systems of interest. SES was significantly associated with two AL components, suggesting that the effects of SES on physiological dysregulation are specific to certain systems in a middle to early old-age population.
Scientific theories in the natural sciences posit invisible forces operating with measurable effe... more Scientific theories in the natural sciences posit invisible forces operating with measurable effects on physical bodies, but the scientific study of invisible forces acting on human bodies has made limited progress. The topics of sociality, spirituality, and meaning making are cases in point. The authors discuss some of the possible reasons for this as well as contemporary developments in the social sciences and neurosciences that may make such study possible and productive.
Social and demographic trends are placing an increasing number of adults at risk for loneliness, ... more Social and demographic trends are placing an increasing number of adults at risk for loneliness, an established risk factor for physical and mental illness. The growing costs of loneliness have led to a number of loneliness reduction interventions. Qualitative reviews have identified four primary intervention strategies: (a) improving social skills, (b) enhancing social support, (c) increasing opportunities for social contact, and (d) addressing maladaptive social cognition. An integrative meta-analysis of loneliness reduction interventions was conducted to quantify the effects of each strategy and to examine the potential role of moderator variables. Results revealed that single-group pre-post and nonrandomized comparison studies yielded larger mean effect sizes relative to randomized comparison studies. Among studies that used the latter design, the most successful interventions addressed maladaptive social cognition. This is consistent with current theories regarding loneliness a...
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