Within-network brain connectivity during a social optimism task is related to personal optimism and optimism for in-group members.

Optimism bias is the tendency to believe desirable events are more likely to happen than undesirable ones. People often display optimistic biases for themselves (personal optimism), but also for members of groups they like or identify with (social optimism). However, the neural bases of and connections between these two concepts are poorly understood. The present study hence used both questionnaires and a social optimism task performed during magnetic resonance imaging to investigate how network connectivity associates with personal and social optimism biases. Using sparse canonical correlation analysis, we found that a behavioral dimension that included both in-group optimism bias and personal optimism bias was positively associated with a dimension of network connectivity. This dimension comprised two networks with positive weights (dorsal precuneus-related default mode network and dorsal sensorimotor network), and three with negative weights (including parts of the salience and central executive networks). Our findings indicate that connectivity in networks adjacent to the temporoparietal junction favors propagation of both personal and social optimism biases. Meanwhile, low connectivity in more frontal networks associated with more complex cognition may also further such propagation.

On the complex and dimensional relationship of maternal posttraumatic stress disorder during early childhood and child outcomes at school-age.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have shown associations between maternal interpersonal violence-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), child mental health problems, and impaired socioemotional development. However, the existing literature lacks evidence linking constellations of risk factors such as maternal interpersonal-violence-related PTSD, psychopathology, and interactive behavior with toddlers and outcome measures at school-age. METHODS: This study involved a prospective, longitudinal investigation of 62 mothers and examined the relationship between maternal variables measured when children were in early childhood (mean age 27 months), and child outcomes when children were school-age (age mean = 83.2 months) while retaining a focus on the context of maternal PTSD. To identify and weigh associated dimensions comparatively, we employed sparse canonical correlation analysis (sCCA) aimed at associating dimensions of a dataset of 20 maternal variables in early childhood with that of more than 20 child outcome variables (i.e., child psychopathology, life-events, and socioemotional skills) at school-age. RESULTS: Phase 1 variables with the highest weights were those of maternal psychopathology: PTSD, depressive and dissociative symptoms, and self-report of parental stress. The highest weighted Phase 2 child outcome measures were those of child psychopathology: PTSD, anxiety, and depressive symptoms as well as peer bullying and victimization. CONCLUSIONS: sCCA revealed that trauma-related concepts in mothers were significantly and reliably associated with child psychopathology and other indicators of risk for intergenerational transmission of violence and victimization. The results highlight the dimensional and multifaceted nature-both for mothers as well as children-of the intergenerational transmission of violence and associated psychopathology.

Predictive modeling of optimism bias using gray matter cortical thickness.

People have been shown to be optimistically biased when their future outcome expectancies are assessed. In fact, we display optimism bias (OB) toward our own success when compared to a rival individual's (personal OB [POB]). Similarly, success expectancies for social groups we like reliably exceed those we mention for a rival group (social OB [SOB]). Recent findings suggest the existence of neural underpinnings for OB. Mostly using structural/functional MRI, these findings rely on voxel-based mass-univariate analyses. While these results remain associative in nature, an open question abides whether MRI information can accurately predict OB. In this study, we hence used predictive modelling to forecast the two OBs. The biases were quantified using a validated soccer paradigm, where personal (self versus rival) and social (in-group versus out-group) forms of OB were extracted at the participant level. Later, using gray matter cortical thickness, we predicted POB and SOB via machine-learning. Our model explained 17% variance (R2 = 0.17) in individual variability for POB (but not SOB). Key predictors involved the rostral-caudal anterior cingulate cortex, pars orbitalis and entorhinal cortex-areas that have been associated with OB before. We need such predictive models on a larger scale, to help us better understand positive psychology and individual well-being.

Optimism bias and its relation to scenario valence, gender, sociality, and insecure attachment.

Optimism bias refers to the tendency to display unjustified high/low expectations of future positive/negative events. This study asked 202 participants to estimate the likelihood of 96 different events. We investigated optimism biases for both oneself and the general population, and how these biases are influenced by gender, valence of the event, sociality of the event, as well as attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance. We found that sociality interacted with gender, with the difference in optimism bias for social vs. alone events being larger among women than among men. Attachment anxiety mainly reduced the optimism bias among men deliberating over future alone situations, while attachment avoidance primarily reduced optimism bias among female respondents deliberating over future social interactions. These results may have implications for the well-being and motivation of differently attached men and women and ultimately inspire psychotherapy interventions.

Cost and Quality Comparison of Hernia Surgery in Stationary, Day-Patient and Outpatient Care.

BACKGROUND: Medical progress is increasingly enabling more and more stationary treatment to be provided in the outpatient sector. This development should be welcomed, as healthcare costs have been rising for years. The design of efficient processes and a needs-based infrastructure enable further savings. According to international recommendations (EHS/IEHS), outpatient treatment of unilateral inguinal hernias is recommended. METHOD: Data from patients in GZO Hospital Wetzikon/Zurich between 2019 and 2021 for unilateral inguinal hernia repair was included in this study (n = 234). Any over- or under-coverage correlated with one of the three treatment groups: stationary, partially stationary and patients treated in outpatients clinic. Complications and 30-day readmissions were also monitored. RESULTS: Final revenue for all patients is -95.36 CHF. For stationary treatments, the mean shifts down to -575.01 CHF, for partially stationary treatments the mean shifts up to -24.73 CHF, and for patients in outpatient clinic final revenue is 793.12 CHF. This result is also consistent with the operation times, which are lowest in the outpatient clinic with a mean of 36 min, significantly longer in the partially stationary setting with 58 min, and longest in the stationary setting with 76 min. The same applies to the anesthesia times and the relevant care times by the nurses as the most important cost factors in addition to the supply and allocation costs. CONCLUSIONS: We show that cost-effective elective unilateral inguinal hernia care in the outpatient clinic with profit (mean 793.12 CHF) is possible. Stationary unilateral hernia care (mean -575.01 CHF) is loss-making. Crucial factors for cost efficiency are optimized processes in the operating room (anesthesia, surgical technique and quality, operating time), as well as optimized care processes with minimal preoperative services and care times for the patient. However, at the same time, these optimizations pose a challenge to surgical and anesthesiology training and structures with high levels of preoperative and Postoperative services and pay-as-you-go costs. The complication rate is 0.91% lower than in a comparable study. The readmission within 30 days post-operation results with a positive deviation of -3.53% (stationary) and with a negative deviation of +2.29% (outpatient clinic) compared to a comparative study.

Quality aspects relating to giving birth in Switzerland: An analysis of quality indicators in inpatient obstetrics from 2013 to 2017.

Quality transparency supports the reduction of information asymmetries in the health care system and enables the targeted regulation of health care. This study examines quality variation in inpatient obstetric care using the official Federal Office of Public Health Inpatient Quality Indicators (CH-IQI; vaginal births with 3rd- and 4th-degree perineal tears, vaginal births with episiotomy, and Caesarean section for low-risk births). It includes 101 maternity hospitals and 425,810 births between 2013 and 2017. For births with perineal laceration of 3rd and 4th degree, Switzerland performs 0.9% poorer in comparison to Germany (D-IQI) and Austria (A-IQI). For births with episiotomy, Switzerland is 1.1% above Germany. The Caesarean section rate for low-risk births was 26.8% in Switzerland in 2017 (Germany: 25.9%). When comparing Swiss clinics, private clinic locations in particular stand out. One possible reason for this may be the density of care, patient demands or the system of affiliated physicians at these clinics.

The relationship of maternal and child methylation of the glucocorticoid receptor NR3C1 during early childhood and subsequent child psychopathology at school-age in the context of maternal interpersonal violence-related post-traumatic stress disorder.

Introduction: Interpersonal violent (IPV) experiences when they begin in childhood and continue in various forms during adulthood often lead to chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that is associated in multiple studies with hypocortisolism and lower percentage of methylation of the promoter region of the gene coding for the glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1). This prospective, longitudinal study examined the relationship of NR3C1 methylation among mothers with IPV-related PTSD and their toddlers and then looked at the relationship of maternal NR3C1 methylation and child psychopathology at school age. Methods: Forty-eight mothers were evaluated for life-events history and post-traumatic stress disorder via structured clinical interview when their children were ages 12-42 months (mean age 26.7 months, SD 8.8). Their children's psychopathology in terms of internalizing symptoms and externalizing behaviors was evaluated using the Child Behavior Checklist at ages 5-9 years (mean age 7 years, SD 1.1). Percentage of methylation for the NR3C1 gene promoter region was assessed from DNA extracted from maternal and child saliva using bisulfite pyrosequencing. Data analysis involved parametric and non-parametric correlations and multiple linear and logistic regression modeling. Results: Logistic regression models using child NR3C1 methylation as the dependent variable and maternal NR3C1 methylation and PTSD group status as predictors, as well as the interaction indicated that all three of these significantly predicted child NR3C1 methylation. These findings remained significant when controlling for child age, sex and maternal child abuse history. Overall, maternal NR3C1 methylation when children were toddlers was negatively and significantly associated with child externalizing behavior severity at school age. Discussion: We found that correlations between mothers and their children of NR3C1 methylation levels overall and at all individual CpG sites of interest were significant only in the IPV-PTSD group. The latter findings support that NR3C1 methylation in mothers positively and statistically significantly correlates with NR3C1 methylation in their children only in presence of IPV-PTSD in the mothers. This maternal epigenetic signature with respect to this glucocorticoid receptor is significantly associated with child behavior that may well pose a risk for intergenerational transmission of violence and related psychopathology.

Families With Violence Exposure and the Intergenerational Transmission of Somatization.

Introduction: Adults who have histories of childhood trauma have been noted to display greater somatization, dissociative symptoms and affect dysregulation. What happens in the parent-child relationship when those traumatized children become parents? A potential link to somatization in the child has been suggested by several prior studies. Children who have early attachment disturbances had more physical complaints if their mothers displayed less maternal sensitivity during observed parent-child interactions. Yet, the intergenerational link between maternal and child somatization has not been sufficiently explored in a longitudinal study in order to understand the potential impact of maternal trauma history and related psychopathology on subsequent child somatization and psychopathology. Methods: This paper examined prospective, longitudinal data of 64 mother-toddler dyads (mean age = 2.4 years, SD = 0.7) who were later studied when children had a mean age of 7 years. Mothers with and without histories of interpersonal violence (IPV; physical/sexual abuse and/or family violence exposure) were included. Mothers with IPV histories were oversampled. Linear and Poisson regression models were used to test the associations between maternal IPV-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with maternal somatization severity when children were toddlers, and between maternal somatization and maternal interactive behaviors with child somatization by maternal report and clinician-rated assessment at school-age. Results: Maternal PTSD severity was significantly associated with increased maternal somatization severity (p = 0.031). Maternal somatization severity during the child's early childhood predicted both maternal report of child somatization (p = 0.011) as well as child thought problems (p = 0.007) when children were school-aged. No association was found between maternal somatization and child-reported psychopathology. The study did not find that maternal alexithymia, caregiving behaviors or child exposure to violence contributed significantly to the model examining the association between maternal and child somatization. Conclusion: The results are in line with the hypothesis of intergenerational transmission of somatization in the context of IPV and related maternal PTSD during formative early development. We interpret this as an expression of psychological distress from mother to child, as maternal trauma and pathology affect the caregiving environment and, thus, the parent-child relationship. The authors conclude with a discussion of implications for parent-infant and early childhood intervention.

Brain Structure and Optimism Bias: A Voxel-Based Morphometry Approach.

Individuals often anticipate an unrealistically favorable future for themselves (personal optimism bias) or others (social optimism bias). While such biases are well established, little is known about their neuroanatomy. In this study, participants engaged in a soccer task and estimated the likelihood of successful passes in personal and social scenarios. Voxel-based morphometry revealed that personal optimism bias varied as a positive function of gray matter volume (GMV) in the putamen, frontal pole, hippocampus, temporal pole, inferior temporal gyrus, visual association areas, and mid-superior temporal gyrus. Social optimism bias correlated positively with GMV in the temporoparietal junction and negatively with GMV in the inferior temporal gyrus and pre-supplementary motor areas. Together, these findings suggest that parts of our optimistic outlook are biologically rooted. Moreover, while the two biases looked similar at the behavioral level, they were related to distinct gray matter structures, proposing that their underlying mechanisms are not identical.

Whole-brain white matter correlates of personality profiles predictive of subjective well-being.

We investigated the white matter correlates of personality profiles predictive of subjective well-being. Using principal component analysis to first determine the possible personality profiles onto which core personality measures would load, we subsequently searched for whole-brain white matter correlations with these profiles. We found three personality profiles that correlated with the integrity of white matter tracts. The correlates of an "optimistic" personality profile suggest (a) an intricate network for self-referential processing that helps regulate negative affect and maintain a positive outlook on life, (b) a sustained capacity for visually tracking rewards in the environment and (c) a motor readiness to act upon the conviction that desired rewards are imminent. The correlates of a "short-term approach behavior" profile was indicative of minimal loss of integrity in white matter tracts supportive of lifting certain behavioral barriers, possibly allowing individuals to act more outgoing and carefree in approaching people and rewards. Lastly, a "long-term approach behavior" profile's association with white matter tracts suggests lowered sensitivity to transient updates of stimulus-based associations of rewards and setbacks, thus facilitating the successful long-term pursuit of goals. Together, our findings yield convincing evidence that subjective well-being has its manifestations in the brain.

Impact of mothers' IPV-PTSD on their capacity to predict their child's emotional comprehension and its relationship to their child's psychopathology.

Background: Previous studies demonstrated that when the violence-exposed child becomes a mother and interacts with her own child during early sensitive periods for social-emotional development, she may have difficulties providing sensitive responsiveness to the child's emotional communication. Such difficulties place the child's development of emotional comprehension (EC) and related self-regulation at risk. The aim of this study was to examine how mothers' interpersonal violence-related posttraumatic disorder (IPV-PTSD) would affect their children's EC and their own ability to predict their children's EC. We also investigated how mothers' predictive ability would correlate with child psychopathology. Methods: Sixty-one mother-child dyads (36 with IPV-PTSD) participated in this study. Children's (mean age = 7.0 years, SD = 1.1) EC was assessed with the Test of Emotion Comprehension (child TEC) and their psychopathology as reported by the mother was assessed with the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) and as evaluated by a clinician using selected modules of the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS). Mothers were measured for IPV-PTSD with the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) and for their capacity to predict their child's emotional comprehension (mother-responding-as-child TEC; mTEC). Results: We found no significant between-group differences in children's level of EC. Maternal PTSD was associated with lower scores on the mTEC, however. Reduced maternal scores on the mTEC were significantly associated with maternal report of increased aggressive child behaviour and with depression symptoms on the K-SADS. Further, scores on the mTEC interacted with maternal report of child aggression on child oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms on the K-SADS. Conclusion: These findings support that improving maternal emotional comprehension may help reduce child risk for psychiatric morbidity in this population.

Antecedentes: Los estudios previos demostraron que cuando la niña expuesta a violencia llega a ser madre e interactúa con su propio hijo durante periodos críticos tempranos para el desarrollo socioemocional, ella podría tener dificultades para brindar una respuesta sensible a la comunicación emocional del niño. Tales dificultades podrían poner en riesgo el desarrollo de la comprensión emocional del niño (CE) y la autorregulación asociada a ella. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar cómo el trastorno de estrés postraumático por violencia interpersonal de las madres (TEPT-VIF) podría afectar tanto la CE de sus hijos como su propia capacidad de predecir la CE en sus hijos. También investigamos cómo la capacidad predictiva de las madres podría correlacionarse con psicopatología infantil.Métodos: En este estudio participaron sesenta y una diadas madre-hijo (36 con TEPT-VIF). La CE de los niños (edad media = 7.0 años, DE = 1.1) fue evaluada mediante la prueba de Comprensión Emocional (TEC en sus siglas en inglés) del niño. Asimismo, la psicopatología del niño, según lo reportado por la madre, fue evaluada con la Lista de Chequeo Conductual del Niño (CBCL en sus siglas en inglés) y según la evaluación de un médico utilizando módulos seleccionados de la Escala Infantil para Trastornos Afectivos y Esquizofrenia (K-SADS por sus siglas en inglés). En las madres, se midió tanto el TEPT-VIF mediante la Escala para el Trastorno de Estrés Postraumático Administrada por el Clínico (CAPS en sus siglas en ingles) como su capacidad de predecir la comprensión emocional del niño mediante la prueba de Comprensión Emocional en la que la madre responde como el niño (mTEC en sus siglas en inglés).Resultados: No encontramos diferencias significativas entre los grupos en los niveles de CE de los niños. Sin embargo, el trastorno de estrés postraumático materno estuvo asociado a puntajes más bajos en el mTEC. Los puntajes maternos bajos en el mTEC estuvieron significativamente asociados en la K-SADS a un reporte materno de un aumento de la conducta agresiva del niño y a síntomas depresivos. Adicionalmente, los puntajes en el mTEC estuvieron relacionados en la K-SADS con un reporte materno de agresión del niño dentro de los síntomas del trastorno oposicionista desafiante (TOD).Conclusión: Estos hallazgos respaldan que el mejorar la comprensión emocional materna podría ayudar a disminuir el riesgo infantil de morbilidad psiquiátrica en esta población.

Multivariate patterns of brain-behavior associations across the adult lifespan.

The nature of brain-behavior covariations with increasing age is poorly understood. In the current study, we used a multivariate approach to investigate the covariation between behavioral-health variables and brain features across adulthood. We recruited healthy adults aged 20-73 years-old (29 younger, mean age = 25.6 years; 30 older, mean age = 62.5 years), and collected structural and functional MRI (s/fMRI) during a resting-state and three tasks. From the sMRI, we extracted cortical thickness and subcortical volumes; from the fMRI, we extracted activation peaks and functional network connectivity (FNC) for each task. We conducted canonical correlation analyses between behavioral-health variables and the sMRI, or the fMRI variables, across all participants. We found significant covariations for both types of neuroimaging phenotypes (ps = 0.0004) across all individuals, with cognitive capacity and age being the largest opposite contributors. We further identified different variables contributing to the models across phenotypes and age groups. Particularly, we found behavior was associated with different neuroimaging patterns between the younger and older groups. Higher cognitive capacity was supported by activation and FNC within the executive networks in the younger adults, while it was supported by the visual networks' FNC in the older adults. This study highlights how the brain-behavior covariations vary across adulthood and provides further support that cognitive performance relies on regional recruitment that differs between older and younger individuals.

[Quality Variation in Switzerland: Analysis of Mammary Resections for Breast Cancer using the Quality Indicator of Breast Preservation]. / Qualitätsvariation in der Schweiz: Analyse der Mamma-Resektionen bei Brustkrebs anhand des Qualitätsindikators der Brusterhaltung.

AIM OF STUDY: The aim of the study was to investigate whether there are regional differences in the treatment results of elective mammary resections for breast cancer in Switzerland and, if so, whether a possible cause could be found in the hospital planning by the cantons. METHODS: Using the Inpatient Quality Indicators (CH-IQI), the quality of outcomes was analysed at the level of the Swiss cantons and compared with the cantonal requirements for carrying out this treatment. RESULTS: Cantonal differences became apparent both in the quality of results based on the quality indicator of breast preservation and in the level of detail of the requirements for structural and process quality. CONCLUSION: The quality of treatment in Switzerland can hardly be compared in a transparent manner; interpreting the available quality information is demanding and hardly possible for patients. In order to reduce the quality differences shown, hospital planning should be intercantonal, as is the case in highly specialised medicine.

Intracortical probe arrays with silicon backbone and microelectrodes on thin polyimide wings enable long-term stable recordingsin vivo.

Objective.Recording and stimulating neuronal activity across different brain regions requires interfacing at multiple sites using dedicated tools while tissue reactions at the recording sites often prevent their successful long-term application. This implies the technological challenge of developing complex probe geometries while keeping the overall footprint minimal, and of selecting materials compatible with neural tissue. While the potential of soft materials in reducing tissue response is uncontested, the implantation of these materials is often limited to reliably target neuronal structures across large brain volumes.Approach.We report on the development of a new multi-electrode array exploiting the advantages of soft and stiff materials by combining 7-µm-thin polyimide wings carrying platinum electrodes with a silicon backbone enabling a safe probe implantation. The probe fabrication applies microsystems technologies in combination with a temporal wafer fixation method for rear side processing, i.e. grinding and deep reactive ion etching, of slender probe shanks and electrode wings. The wing-type neural probes are chronically implanted into the entorhinal-hippocampal formation in the mouse forin vivorecordings of freely behaving animals.Main results.Probes comprising the novel wing-type electrodes have been realized and characterized in view of their electrical performance and insertion capability. Chronic electrophysiologicalin vivorecordings of the entorhinal-hippocampal network in the mouse of up to 104 days demonstrated a stable yield of channels containing identifiable multi-unit and single-unit activity outperforming probes with electrodes residing on a Si backbone.Significance.The innovative fabrication process using a process compatible, temporary wafer bonding allowed to realize new Michigan-style probe arrays. The wing-type probe design enables a precise probe insertion into brain tissue and long-term stable recordings of unit activity due to the application of a stable backbone and 7-µm-thin probe wings provoking locally a minimal tissue response and protruding from the glial scare of the backbone.

Shared Neural Phenotypes for Mood and Anxiety Disorders A Meta-Analysis of 226 Task-Related Functional Imaging Studies.

(Appeared originally in JAMA Psychiatry 2020;77(2):172-179).

Associations Between Maternal Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Events With Child Psychopathology: Results From a Prospective Longitudinal Study.

Introduction: Exposure to interpersonal violence (IPV) can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in mothers, and in turn adversely affect the mother-child relationship during early development, as well as the mental health of their children. Our objectives are to assess: (1) the association of maternal IPV-PTSD to child psychopathology, (2) the association of maternal IPV independently of PTSD to child psychopathology, and (3) the relationship between child exposure to violence to the psychopathology of these children. Methods: We used data from the longitudinal Geneva Early Childhood Stress Project. The sample included 64 children [mean age at Phase 1 = 2.4 (1.0-3.7) years] of mothers with or without IPV-PTSD. Data on mothers was collected during Phase 1, using the Clinical Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), the Brief Physical and Sexual Abuse Questionnaire (BPSAQ) and the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2). Modules of a semi-structured diagnostic interview, and the Violence Exposure Scale were used to collect information on child at Phase 2, when children were older [mean age = 7.02 (4.7-10)]. Results: A higher CAPS score in mothers when children were toddler-age was associated with an increased risk of symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; ß = 0.33, p = 0.014) and PTSD in school-age children. The association between maternal IPV-PTSD and child PTSD (ß = 0.48, p < 0.001) symptoms remained significant after adjustment for potential confounders. Among children, exposure to violence was associated with an increased risk of symptoms of generalized anxiety (ß = 0.37, p = 0.006), major depressive (ß = 0.24, p = 0.039), ADHD (ß = 0.27, p = 0.040), PTSD (ß = 0.52, p < 0.001), conduct (ß = 0.58, p = 0.003) and oppositional defiant (ß = 0.34, p = 0.032) disorders. Conclusion: Our longitudinal findings suggest that maternal IPV-PTSD during the period of child development exert an influence on the development of psychopathology in school-aged children. Mothers' IPV was associated with child psychopathology, independently of PTSD. Child lifetime exposure to violence had an additional impact on the development of psychopathology. Careful evaluation of maternal life-events is essential during early childhood to reduce the risk for the development of child psychopathology. Early efforts to curb exposure to violence in children and early intervention are both needed to reduce further risk for intergenerational transmission of trauma, violence, and related psychopathology.

Enhanced sensitivity to optimistic cues is manifested in brain structure: a voxel-based morphometry study.

Recent research shows that congruent outcomes are more rapidly (and incongruent less rapidly) detected when individuals receive optimistic rather than pessimistic cues, an effect that was termed optimism robustness. In the current voxel-based morphometry study, we examined whether optimism robustness has a counterpart in the brain structure. The participants' task was to detect two different letters (symbolizing monetary gain or loss) in a visual search matrix. Prior to each onset of the search matrix, two different verbal cues informed our participants about a high probability to gain (optimistic expectancy) or lose (pessimistic expectancy) money. The target presented was either congruent or incongruent with these induced expectancies. Optimism robustness revealed in the participants' reaction times correlated positively with gray matter volume (GMV) in brain regions involved in selective attention (medial visual association area, intraparietal sulcus), emphasizing the strong intertwinement of optimistic expectancies and attention deployment. In addition, GMV in the primary visual cortex diminished with increasing optimism robustness, in line with the interpretation of optimism robustness arising from a global, context-oriented perception. Future studies should address the malleability of these structural correlates of optimism robustness. Our results may assist in the identification of treatment targets in depression.

Reduced network integration in default mode and executive networks is associated with social and personal optimism biases.

An optimism bias refers to the belief in good things happening to oneself in the future with a higher likelihood than is justified. Social optimism biases extend this concept to groups that one identifies with. Previous literature has found that both personal and social optimism biases are linked to brain structure and task-related brain function. Less is known about whether optimism biases are also expressed in resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC). Forty-two participants completed questionnaires on dispositional personal optimism (which is not necessarily unjustified) and comparative optimism (i.e., whether we see our own future as being rosier than a comparison person's future) and underwent a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scan. They further undertook an imaginative soccer task in order to assess both their personal and social optimism bias. We tested associations of these data with RSFC within and between 13 networks, using sparse canonical correlation analyses (sCCAs). We found that the primary sCCA component was positively connected to personal and social optimism bias and negatively connected to dispositional personal pessimism. This component was associated with (a) reduced integration of the default mode network, (b) reduced integration of the central executive and salience networks, and (c) reduced segregation between the default mode network and the central executive network. Our finding that optimism biases are linked to RSFC indicates that they may be rooted in neurobiology that exists outside of concurrent tasks. This poses questions as to what the limits of the malleability of such biases may be.

Linked patterns of biological and environmental covariation with brain structure in adolescence: a population-based longitudinal study.

Adolescence is a period of major brain reorganization shaped by biologically timed and by environmental factors. We sought to discover linked patterns of covariation between brain structural development and a wide array of these factors by leveraging data from the IMAGEN study, a longitudinal population-based cohort of adolescents. Brain structural measures and a comprehensive array of non-imaging features (relating to demographic, anthropometric, and psychosocial characteristics) were available on 1476 IMAGEN participants aged 14 years and from a subsample reassessed at age 19 years (n = 714). We applied sparse canonical correlation analyses (sCCA) to the cross-sectional and longitudinal data to extract modes with maximum covariation between neuroimaging and non-imaging measures. Separate sCCAs for cortical thickness, cortical surface area and subcortical volumes confirmed that each imaging phenotype was correlated with non-imaging features (sCCA r range: 0.30-0.65, all PFDR < 0.001). Total intracranial volume and global measures of cortical thickness and surface area had the highest canonical cross-loadings (|ρ| = 0.31-0.61). Age, physical growth and sex had the highest association with adolescent brain structure (|ρ| = 0.24-0.62); at baseline, further significant positive associations were noted for cognitive measures while negative associations were observed at both time points for prenatal parental smoking, life events, and negative affect and substance use in youth (|ρ| = 0.10-0.23). Sex, physical growth and age are the dominant influences on adolescent brain development. We highlight the persistent negative influences of prenatal parental smoking and youth substance use as they are modifiable and of relevance for public health initiatives.

Social optimism biases are associated with cortical thickness.

Optimism biases denote the tendency to see future desirable events as being more likely to happen to oneself than undesirable events. Such biases are important for mental health and may extend to other individuals or social groups (social optimism biases). However, little is known about whether social optimism biases relate to brain structure. Using sparse canonical correlation analysis, we associated cortical thickness (assessed by magnetic resonance imaging) with measures of social and personal optimism bias, trait optimism and related concepts. We identified a defensive self-enhancement dimension that associated significantly and reliably with the cortical thickness of the insula and inferior frontal cortex. This self-enhancement dimension included unfavorable biases toward unpopular out-groups and indicators of personal optimism and pessimism. A shared biological substrate underlying future expectancies that subserves the promotion of the self and the denigration of unpopular out-groups may render society-wide efforts to counteract stereotyping particularly difficult: such efforts may hinder the establishment of adaptive personal optimism biases.