The effects of self-other overlap and group efficacy on group-based anger and collective action tendency: An online experimental study.

Collective emotions and actions represent foundational constructs in social psychology, significantly influencing societal dynamics and responses. Within this framework, the Self-Other Overlap (SOO) - wherein individuals perceive minimal distinction between their own and others' identities - has been identified as an impactful factor at the interpersonal level. However, the extrapolation of SOO's implications at the collective, group level remains an underexplored domain in contemporary research. In addressing this lacuna, the present research endeavors to elucidate the multifaceted implications of SOO on group emotions and actions, contextualized within societal challenges such as "food hygiene problems". Utilizing validated instruments including the Self-Other Overlap Scale, Group-Based Anger Scale, Collective Action Tendency Scale, and Group Efficacy Scale for Coping Situations, this study adopts a tripartite situational experiment, engaging a collective sample of 359 participants, systematically recruited via the Credamo smart research platform to ensure representativeness. Study 1 examined the potential influence of variable SOO degrees on Group-Based Anger (GA) and Collective Action Tendency (CAT). Study 2 further refined the exploration, discerning the differential impacts of SOO targets on GA and CAT. Conclusively, Study 3 sought to ascertain the potential moderating role of Group Efficacy (GE) within the SOO-GA-CAT relationship. The empirical findings yielded several salient insights: notably, an augmentation in SOO levels corresponded with an amplification of GA and CAT. Furthermore, a delineation in SOO targets, specifically from external to ingroup entities, manifested in a pronounced augmentation of GA and CAT. Intriguingly, while elevated SOO predisposed heightened CAT, the modulatory effect of GE on CAT manifested predominantly in lower SOO contexts. In summation, the present study underscores the pivotal role of SOO magnitude and orientation as determinants of GA and CAT. The nuanced interplay between SOO degree and GE, particularly vis-à-vis CAT, provides a fresh scholarly perspective, contributing to the enriched understanding of group dynamics and collective behavioral paradigms.

Metaverse as a possible tool for reshaping schema modes in treating personality disorders.

Personality disorders (PD) are usually treated with face-to-face sessions and/or digital mental health services. Among many schools of therapies, schema therapy stands out because rather than simply targeting the symptoms of PD, it cordially targets the cause of PD and heals the early maladaptive schema, thus is exceptionally good at soothing emotional disturbances before enacting cognitive restructuring, resulting in long-term efficacy. However, according to Piaget's genetic epistemology, the unmet needs lie in the fact that the schemata that determine the adaptive behavior can only be formed in the interaction with the real world that the patient is living in and reconsolidated by the feedback from the object world upon the patient's newly-formed behavior. Therefore, in order to reshape the patient's schema modes to support adaptive behavior and regain emotional regulation capabilities of the healthy adult, one may have to reconstruct the object world surrounding the patient. Metaverse, the bestowed successor to the Internet with the cardinal feature of "the sense of full presence," can become a powerful tool to reconstruct a new object world for the patient with the prescription of a psychotherapist, so as to transform the treatment techniques in schema therapy into the natural autobiographical experiences of patients in the new object world, thus gradually reshape the patient's schema modes that can ultimately result in an adaptive, and more inclusive, interaction with the real world. This work describes the underlying theory, the mechanism, the process, and ethical considerations of such promising technology for the not-too-far future.

Mechanism study on anti-proliferative effects of curcumol in human hepatocarcinoma HepG2 cells / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the anti-proliferative effects of curcumol, an herbal extract from curcuma, in human hepatocarcinoma HepG2 cells, and its possible molecular mechanism.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The effects of curcumol on human hepatocarcinoma cells were assessed in vitro. Proliferation of HepG2 cells treated with various concentration (2.5-10 mg x L(-1)) of curcumol was determined using the MTT assay and the distribution of cell cycle of HepG2 cells was analyzed using the FCM technique. Expression of 14 cell cycle regulation-related genes were assessed by TaqMan real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method and Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>Curcumol significantly inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells and induced G1 phase arrest in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The mRNA levels of pRB1, cyclin D1, CDK2, CDK8 and p27KIP1 were elevated, while cyclin A1 decreased, in both of the low (25 mg x L(-1)) and the high dose (100 mg x L(-1)) treatment of curcumol. There were no significant changes in the expression of either cyclin E1 or CDK4. The expression of p53 and its target genes p21WAF1 and Wip1 protein were increased.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Curcumol can inhibit the proliferation of HepG2 cells in vitro and induce G1 arrest of cell cycle through mechanisms activating p53 and pRB pathways that involve genes of cyclin A1, CDK2, CDK8, p21WAF1 and p27KIP1.</p>