Applied human neuroscience: Fostering and designing inclusive environments with the 3E-Cognition perspective.

The conventional medical paradigm often focuses on deficits and impairments, failing to capture the rich tapestry of experiences and abilities inherent in neurodiversity conditions. In this article, we introduce the 3E-Cognition perspective, offering a paradigm shift by emphasizing the dynamic interplay between the brain, body, and environment in shaping cognitive processes. The perspective fosters a more inclusive and supportive understanding of neurodiversity, with potential applications across various domains such as education, workplace, and healthcare. We begin by introducing the 3E-Cognition principles: embodied, environmentally scaffolded, and enactive. Then, we explore how the 3E-Cognition perspective can be applied to create inclusive environments and experiences for neurodiverse individuals. We provide examples in the realms of education, workplace, and healthcare. In all of these domains, spaces, methodologies, epistemologies, and roles that cater to diverse needs and strengths can be designed using the 3E principles. Finally, we discuss the challenges and benefits of implementing the 3E-Cognition perspective. We focus on the need for technological advancements and research in complex real-world scenarios; we suggest mobile brain/body imaging is a possible solution. We furthermore highlight the importance of recognizing and valuing the diverse manners of experiencing and interacting with the world, the promotion of diverse well-being, and the facilitation of innovation and creativity. Thus, we conclude that the 3E-Cognition perspective offers a groundbreaking approach to understanding and supporting neurodiversity: by embracing the inherent interconnectedness of the brain, body, and environment, we can create a more inclusive and supportive world.

Internet-based peer support interventions for people living with HIV: A scoping review.

Peer support interventions for people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA) are effective, but their associated time and material costs for the recipient and the health system make them reachable for only a small proportion of PLWHA. Internet-based interventions are an effective alternative for delivering psychosocial interventions for PLWHA as they are more accessible. Currently, no reviews are focusing on internet-based interventions with peer support components. This scoping review aims to map the existing literature on psychosocial interventions for PLWHA based on peer support and delivered through the internet. We conducted a systematic scoping review of academic literature following methodological guidelines for scoping reviews, and 28 articles met our criteria. We summarized the main characteristics of the digital peer support interventions for PLWHA and how they implemented peer support in a virtual environment. Overall the reported outcomes appeared promising, but more robust evidence is needed.

Social Support and Depressive Symptoms in the Context of COVID-19 Lockdown: The Moderating Role of Attachment Styles.

Objectives: COVID-19 sanitary measures (social distancing, school closures) have deeply impacted social life, support networks, and their protective role in mental health. The present study aims to understand how attachment styles influence the way individuals experience social support. Particularly, investigating its moderating role in the relationship between social support and depression. Methods: An online survey was designed to clarify the role of adult attachment styles (ECR-S) in the perceived social support (MOSS) and self-reported depressive symptoms (BDI-SF) in the COVID-19 context. Results: Positive social interactions was the most important dimension of social support for lower depression symptoms. Individuals attachment strategies have a moderating role in the relation between of social support and depression. Crucially, insecure attachment style wanes the positive impact of social support in depression. Conclusion: Aligned with the existing literature, attachment security is an essential factor in our current understanding of relationships and mental health. Exploring specific and indivual attachment strategies might be a powerful tool to protect population's mental healt.

Characteristics of psychosocial interventions to improve ART adherence in people living with HIV: A systematic review.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic continues to be a significant global public health crisis. The main HIV/AIDS treatment is the antiretroviral therapy (ART), which is highly effective but depends on the patient's adherence to be successful. However, the adherence to antiretroviral therapy remains unsatisfactory across different populations, which raises considerable difficulties at both individual and collective levels. Suboptimal adherence to ART can be overcome through multidisciplinary management that includes evidence-based psychosocial interventions. Existing reviews on these interventions have focused mainly on studies with experimental designs, overlooking valuable interventions whose evidence comes from different study designs. Here, we aimed to carry out a comprehensive review of the current research on psychosocial interventions for ART adherence and their characteristics including studies with different designs. We conducted a systematic review following PRISMA guidelines. We searched five databases (Pubmed, EBSCO, LILACS, WoS and SCIELO) for articles reporting a psychosocial intervention to improve treatment adherence for people living with HIV (adults). The quality of each study was analyzed with standardized tools, and data were summarized using a narrative synthesis method. Twenty-three articles were identified for inclusion, and they demonstrated good to fair quality. Individual counseling was the most frequent intervention, followed by SMS reminders, education, and group support. Most interventions combined different strategies and self-efficacy was the most common underlying theoretical framework. This review provides insight into the main characteristics of current psychosocial interventions designed to improve ART treatment adherence. PROSPERO number: CRD42021252449.

Social Support and Cognition: A Systematic Review.

Although the influence of social support in health is a widely acknowledged factor, there is a significant gap in the understanding of its role on cognition. The purpose of this systematic review was, therefore, to determine the state-of-the-art on the literature testing the association between social support and cognition. Using six databases (WoS, PubMed, ProQuest, PsycINFO, Scopus and EBSCOhost), we identified 22 articles published between 1999 and 2019 involving an empirical quantitative focus which meet the inclusion criteria. Data extraction was performed following PRISMA recommendations. To summarize the extracted data, we used a narrative synthesis approach. Despite limitations, there is overall preliminary evidence of a relevant positive association between social support and cognition. Our results demonstrate there is enough information for an outbreak of experimental research in the area and an expansion of this body of knowledge. We argue that the present evidence lays the foundations for a more comprehensive theoretical model, one that corresponds with the complexity of the topic and possibly considers models derived from social interaction and active inference theories.

Perfect timing: Mobile brain/body imaging scaffolds the 4E-cognition research program.

Recent technological advancements encompassed under the Mobile Brain/Body Imaging (MoBI) framework have produced exciting new experimental results linking mind, brain and behaviour. Nevertheless, novel hypotheses, measures and experimental paradigms are needed in order to tackle MoBI's ultimate goal: to model and understand cognition, behaviour and experience as it emerges and unfolds unto and from the world. Such a goal is not completely novel or unique to the MoBI framework; it is at the core of a long-standing scientific and philosophical challenge. The ages-long debate revolves around the role of the body and the world on the emergence of the mind. Considering this, the present work has two goals. Our first goal is to briefly summarize some of the main ideas encompassed by the materialist/naturalist view of cognition as a complex emergent phenomenon. Our second and main goal is to argue that thanks to both MoBI and recent theoretical advances encompassed under the 4E-Cognition banner, theory and methodology might be finally synchronized, giving way to a revitalized form of emergentism, which lays new grounds for the understanding of cognitive phenomena. Finally, we offer the reader what we consider to be the main objective for the MoBI/4E framework and the understanding of the functional role of brain/body/world couplings in the emergence of cognition.

Hormonal Correlates of Exploratory and Play-Soliciting Behavior in Domestic Dogs.

Exploration and play are considered to be crucial behaviors during mammalian development. Even though the relationship between glucocorticoids and exploratory behavior, stress, and anxiety is well described in the literature, very little is known about their role in play behavior in non-rodents. Likewise, the functional role of the "social hormone" oxytocin in exploration, play, stress, and anxiety is still unknown. The present work addresses this literature gap by studying plasma hormone profiles for cortisol (CORT) and oxytocin (OT) of domestic dogs exposed to a novel arena containing two unfamiliar trainers who did not interact with the dogs. We provide evidence suggesting a functional relationship between hormonal measures of cortisol and oxytocin and adaptive behavior (play-soliciting and exploration) in freely behaving domestic dogs. We have taken into account several possible factors in our analyses and interpretations, from the nature and quality of the measurements to demographic factors to statistical robustness. Our results indicate that reduced CORT levels are associated with increments of both play-soliciting behavior frequency and exploratory behavior duration. Furthermore, taken together, our data and our simulations suggest a relationship between OT and the enactment of play-soliciting behaviors by freely behaving domestic dogs that must be further investigated. Future studies should consider naturalistic structured and semi-structured experimental approaches linking behavior with (neuro) physiological measures, taking into account demographic factors such as age and relevant interphase factors such as the sex of the dog; and socio-historic factors such as the playfulness of the dog, history of interaction with young humans, among others, to take full account of interaction between humans and animals in comparative studies (Parada and Rossi, 2018).