@phdthesis{VenturaBort2020,
  author    = {Ventura-Bort, Carlos},
  title     = {Temporo-spatial dynamics of the impact of emotional contexts on visual processing and memory},
  doi       = {10.25932/publishup-55023},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-550236},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {208},
  year      = {2020},
  abstract  = {It has frequently been observed that single emotional events are not only more efficiently processed, but also better remembered, and form longer-lasting memory traces than neutral material. However, when emotional information is perceived as a part of a complex event, such as in the context of or in relation to other events and/or source details, the modulatory effects of emotion are less clear. The present work aims to investigate how emotional, contextual source information modulates the initial encoding and subsequent long-term retrieval of associated neutral material (item memory) and contextual source details (contextual source memory). To do so, a two-task experiment was used, consisting of an incidental encoding task in which neutral objects were displayed over different contextual background scenes which varied in emotional content (unpleasant, pleasant, and neutral), and a delayed retrieval task (1 week), in which previously-encoded objects and new ones were presented. In a series of studies, behavioral indices (Studies 2, 3, and 5), event-related potentials (ERPs; Studies 1-4), and functional magnetic resonance imaging (Study 5) were used to investigate whether emotional contexts can rapidly tune the visual processing of associated neutral information (Study 1) and modulate long-term item memory (Study 2), how different recognition memory processes (familiarity vs. recollection) contribute to these emotion effects on item and contextual source memory (Study 3), whether the emotional effects of item memory can also be observed during spontaneous retrieval (Sstudy 4), and which brain regions underpin the modulatory effects of emotional contexts on item and contextual source memory (Study 5). In Study 1, it was observed that emotional contexts by means of emotional associative learning, can rapidly alter the processing of associated neutral information. Neutral items associated with emotional contexts (i.e. emotional associates) compared to neutral ones, showed enhanced perceptual and more elaborate processing after one single pairing, as indexed by larger amplitudes in the P100 and LPP components, respectively. Study 2 showed that emotional contexts produce longer-lasting memory effects, as evidenced by better item memory performance and larger ERP Old/New differences for emotional associates. In Study 3, a mnemonic differentiation was observed between item and contextual source memory which was modulated by emotion. Item memory was driven by familiarity, independently of emotional contexts during encoding, whereas contextual source memory was driven by recollection, and better for emotional material. As in Study 2, enhancing effects of emotional contexts for item memory were observed in ERPs associated with recollection processes. Likewise, for contextual source memory, a pronounced recollection-related ERP enhancement was observed for exclusively emotional contexts. Study 4 showed that the long-term recollection enhancement of emotional contexts on item memory can be observed even when retrieval is not explicitly attempted, as measured with ERPs, suggesting that the emotion enhancing effects on memory are not related to the task embedded during recognition, but to the motivational relevance of the triggering event. In Study 5, it was observed that enhancing effects of emotional contexts on item and contextual source memory involve stronger engagement of the brain's regions which are associated with memory recollection, including areas of the medial temporal lobe, posterior parietal cortex, and prefrontal cortex. Taken together, these findings suggest that emotional contexts rapidly modulate the initial processing of associated neutral information and the subsequent, long-term item and contextual source memories. The enhanced memory effects of emotional contexts are strongly supported by recollection rather than familiarity processes, and are shown to be triggered when retrieval is both explicitly and spontaneously attempted. These results provide new insights into the modulatory role of emotional information on the visual processing and the long-term recognition memory of complex events. The present findings are integrated into the current theoretical models and future ventures are discussed.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Chandra2020,
  author    = {Chandra, Johan},
  title     = {The role of the oculomotor control in eye movements during reading},
  doi       = {10.25932/publishup-47593},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-475930},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {xiii, 115},
  year      = {2020},
  abstract  = {Most reading theories assume that readers aim at word centers for optimal information processing. During reading, saccade targeting turns out to be imprecise: Saccades' initial landing positions often miss the word centers and have high variance, with an additional systematic error that is modulated by the distance from the launch site to the center of the target word. The performance of the oculomotor system, as reflected in the statistics of within-word landing positions, turns out to be very robust and mostly affected by the spatial information during reading. Hence, it is assumed that the saccade generation is highly automated. The main goal of this thesis is to explore the performance of the oculomotor system under various reading conditions where orthographic information and the reading direction were manipulated. Additionally, the challenges in understanding the eye movement data to represent the oculomotor process during reading are addressed. Two experimental studies and one simulation study were conducted for this thesis, which resulted in the following main findings: (i) Reading texts with orthographic manipulations leads to specific changes in the eye movement patterns, both in temporal and spatial measures. The findings indicate that the oculomotor control of eye movements during reading is dependent on reading conditions (Chapter 2 \& 3). (ii) Saccades' accuracy and precision can be simultaneously modulated under reversed reading condition, supporting the assumption that the random and systematic oculomotor errors are not independent. By assuming that readers increase the precision of sensory observation while maintaining the learned prior knowledge when reading direction was reversed, a process-oriented Bayesian model for saccade targeting can account for the simultaneous reduction of oculomotor errors (Chapter 2). (iii) Plausible parameter values serving as proxies for the intended within-word landing positions can be estimated by using the maximum a posteriori estimator from Bayesian inference. Using the mean value of all observations as proxies is insufficient for studies focusing on the launch-site effect because the method exhibits the strongest bias when estimating the size of the effect. Mislocated fixations remain a challenge for the currently known estimation methods, especially when the systematic oculomotor error is large (Chapter 4). The results reported in this thesis highlight the role of the oculomotor system, together with underlying cognitive processes, in eye movements during reading. The modulation of oculomotor control can be captured through a precise analysis of landing positions.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Schinkoeth2020,
  author    = {Schink{\"o}th, Michaela},
  title     = {Automatic affective reactions to exercise-related stimuli},
  doi       = {10.25932/publishup-47111},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-471115},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {II, 117},
  year      = {2020},
  abstract  = {Even though the majority of individuals know that exercising is healthy, a high percentage struggle to achieve the recommended amount of exercise. The (social-cognitive) theories that are commonly applied to explain exercise motivation refer to the assumption that people base their decisions mainly on rational reasoning. However, behavior is not only bound to reflection. In recent years, the role of automaticity and affect for exercise motivation has been increasingly discussed. In this dissertation, central assumptions of the affective-reflective theory of physical inactivity and exercise (ART; Brand \& Ekkekakis, 2018), an exercise-specific dual-process theory that emphasizes the role of a momentary automatic affective reaction for exercise-decisions, were examined. The central aim of this dissertation was to investigate exercisers and non-exercisers automatic affective reactions to exercise-related stimuli (i.e., type-1 process). In particular, the two components of the ART's type-1 process, that are, automatic associations with exercise and the automatic affective valuation to exercise, were under study. In the first publication (Schinkoeth \& Antoniewicz, 2017), research on automatic (evaluative) associations with exercise was summarized and evaluated in a systematic review. The results indicated that automatic associations with exercise appeared to be relevant predictors for exercise behavior and other exercise-related variables, providing evidence for a central assumption of the ART's type-1 process. Furthermore, indirect methods seem to be suitable to assess automatic associations. The aim of the second publication (Schinkoeth, Weymar, \& Brand, 2019) was to approach the somato-affective core of the automatic valuation of exercise using analysis of reactivity in vagal HRV while viewing exercise-related pictures. Results revealed that differences in exercise volume could be regressed on HRV reactivity. In light of the ART, these findings were interpreted as evidence of an inter-individual affective reaction elicited at the thought of exercise and triggered by exercise-stimuli. In the third publication (Schinkoeth \& Brand, 2019, subm.), it was sought to disentangle and relate to each other the ART's type-1 process components—automatic associations and the affective valuation of exercise. Automatic associations to exercise were assessed with a recoding-free variant of an implicit association test (IAT). Analysis of HRV reactivity was applied to approach a somatic component of the affective valuation, and facial reactions in a facial expression (FE) task served as indicators of the automatic affective reaction's valence. Exercise behavior was assessed via self-report. The measurement of the affective valuation's valence with the FE task did not work well in this study. HRV reactivity was predicted by the IAT score and did also statistically predict exercise behavior. These results thus confirm and expand upon the results of publication two and provide empirical evidence for the type-1 process, as defined in the ART. This dissertation advances the field of exercise psychology concerning the influence of automaticity and affect on exercise motivation. Moreover, both methodical implications and theoretical extensions for the ART can be derived from the results.},
  language  = {en}
}