Possession of characteristics related to Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Oppositional Def... more Possession of characteristics related to Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, and Autism Spectrum Disorder in children prenatally exposed to alcohol contributes to challenges within the diagnostic pathway for Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). The presentation of these characteristics, though problematic for the children affected, may not result in referral for diagnosis; focusing on diagnostic thresholds masks the dimensional nature of these characteristics. Children with traits which are undiagnosed may not receive effective support and are often identified as exhibiting challenging behaviour. In the UK, children with undiagnosed Special Educational Needs (SEN) are more likely to experience school exclusion. Common across each condition are challenges to executive function associated with emotional regulation (hot-executive function). This study explored the relationship between characteristics of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Opp...
Mean scores of baseline neuroticism and trait anxiety, pre- and post-video state anxiety, overall... more Mean scores of baseline neuroticism and trait anxiety, pre- and post-video state anxiety, overall change in state anxiety, and video experience
The primary aim of the current study was to employ event-related potentials (ERPs) methodology to... more The primary aim of the current study was to employ event-related potentials (ERPs) methodology to disentangle the mechanisms related to inhibitory control in older adults with Williams syndrome (WS). Eleven older adults with WS (mean age 42), 16 typically developing adults (mean age 42) and 13 typically developing children (mean age 12) participated in the study. ERPs were recorded during a three-stimulus visual oddball task, during which participants were required to make a response to a rare target stimulus embedded in a train of frequent non-target stimuli. A task-irrelevant infrequent stimulus was also present at randomised intervals during the session. The P3a latency data response related to task-irrelevant stimulus processing was delayed in WS. In addition, the early perceptual N2 amplitude was attenuated. These data are indicative of compromised early monitoring of perceptual input, accompanied by appropriate orientation of responses to task-irrelevant stimuli. However, the ...
Background Mindfulness programmes as a potential avenue of enhancing pupil wellbeing are beginnin... more Background Mindfulness programmes as a potential avenue of enhancing pupil wellbeing are beginning to show great promise. However, research concerning the effectiveness of mindfulness training for primary aged school children (7–11 years of age) has been neglected. Methods Building on methodological limitations of prior research, this study employed an active controlled design to assess the longer term wellbeing and emotion regulation outcomes after a 6 week mindfulness programme (Living Mindfully Programme, UK), for a group of school children aged between 9 and 10. The programme was delivered by class teachers as part of their normal curriculum entitlement. One hundred and eight children took part from across three schools in North East of England. Participants formed a treatment group (n = 64), active control (n = 19) and wait list control (n = 25). Self-report measures of wellbeing, mindfulness and emotion regulation were collected at pre and post training as well as at 3 months ...
There is a large body of research documenting sex differences in certain visual-spatial skills, a... more There is a large body of research documenting sex differences in certain visual-spatial skills, and relating these differences to evolutionary factors. There is also a growing body of work documenting sex differences in design preferences. This article seeks to bring these bodies of work together, presenting a model suggesting that sex differences in visual-spatial abilities may have worked alongside evolutionary pressures to encourage the sex differences observed in design preferences. It will also seek to identify areas in our knowledge where there are gaps, and, from these, suggest areas for further research. It will begin by reviewing the literature on sex differences in visual-spatial abilities, and then consider the literature concerning sex differences in design productions and preferences. From there, it will address possible evolutionary explanations and attempt to tie these different strands of research together.
Numerous studies have captured the nature of mind-wandering and how it changes across the lifespa... more Numerous studies have captured the nature of mind-wandering and how it changes across the lifespan; however, the influence of culture has been neglected. This study investigated the joint effects of culture and age in a large scale online questionnaire-based survey of 308 adults over 18 years of age, both in France and the United Kingdom. To capture a profile of thinking style, self-report measures of mind-wandering frequency, mindfulness, mood, rumination, self-reflection, future thinking, depressive symptoms, and cognitive failures were gathered. Findings revealed an earlier decrease in mind-wandering frequency for French speaking participants. Cultural effects were demonstrated on rumination and reflection rates across the life span, with in general more rumination and less reflection for English speakers. Overall, negatively toned thoughts were dominant for English compared to more expressive thoughts in general for French speakers. Confirmatory factor analyses featured differen...
The data set represents a study of ASMR, neuroticism, state, and trait anxiety. The study measure... more The data set represents a study of ASMR, neuroticism, state, and trait anxiety. The study measured these metrics pre- and post exposure to ASMR videos in order to characterise traits reflective of individuals who can experience ASMR along with any changes in acute state anxiety due to watching ASMR videos.
"Compulsive Shopping" is characterized by poorly controlled preoccupations/urges/behavi... more "Compulsive Shopping" is characterized by poorly controlled preoccupations/urges/behaviors focused on shopping and spending, causing significant distress/impairment. This study looked at what roles executive and related memory problems might exist in compulsive shopping. 205 adults completed on-line questionnaires measuring compulsive shopping, mood, as well as working memory and inhibition components of executive function. The Bergen Shopping Addiction Scale was used to assign participants to either a High Compulsive Shopping (HCS) group or Low Compulsive Shopping (LCS) group. Working memory (WM) and inhibition control (IC) were measured as two components of executive function (EF) using the Adult Executive Functioning Inventory (ADEXI), the Dysexecutive Questionnaire Revised (DEX-R) measured general EF. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale measured anxiety and depression. MANCOVA and mediation analyses were carried out controlling for age, gender, anxiety, depression. The HCS group scored significantly higher on all three EF measures, indicating greater executive difficulties. Subsequent mediation analyses with the ADEXI-IC as the mediator removed the significance of the relationship between Group and both the DEX-R and ADEXI-WM outcome variables. Thus, observed Group difference in DEX-R and ADEXI-WM could be fully accounted for by group differences in inhibitory control. The results highlight the role inhibitory control plays in compulsive shopping.
Hoarding is the excessive acquisition of, and failure to discard of, large numbers of items, lead... more Hoarding is the excessive acquisition of, and failure to discard of, large numbers of items, leading to personal distress. Impairments on memory and executive functions have been systematically associated with hoarding behavior, predominantly focusing upon clinical (mainly middle-agedelderly) patients with hoarding and/or PTSD. We were interested in hoarding-related memory and executive problems in younger non-clinical hoarders or non-hoarders, based on their Saving Inventory-Revised scores. In total, 113 young adults (aged 18-35 years) were assigned to either a hoarder group (N=40) or non-hoarder group (N=73) determined by their scores on the Saving Inventory-Revised (SI-R). Working memory (WM) and inhibition control (IC) were measured using the Adult Executive Functioning Inventory (ADEXI) and the Dysexecutive Questionnaire Revised (DEX-R) measured general executive function (EF). The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale measured anxiety and depression. After controlling for gender and anxiety, the analysis revealed that the hoarders reported significantly more problems than the non-hoarders on both the IC and general EF. There was no significant between-group difference on the WM sub-scale ADEXI. Self-reported deficits in IC and EF are associated with hoarding behaviour. The IC deficits cold explain hoarders' inability to resist urges to buy, and general EF deficits suggest other domains are involved.
International Journal of School and Cognitive Psychology, 2018
More recent working memory models consider visual representations constrained within components o... more More recent working memory models consider visual representations constrained within components of the visual-specific architecture. However, in the visual patterns test, a multi-component approach with multiple can be used due to the use of verbal and semantic processing abilities within the task. The current investigation aimed to identify the extent to which visual and verbal types of information can contribute to visual working memory representation use. Within 2 experiments, 30 participants (5 males, 25 females) were used in an experiment where a dual task methodology was deployed, consisting of interference tasks presented during the 4 second maintenance phase of the procedure of the primary visual memory tasks. Results of these investigations indicated that a change in the conventional visual-specific approach may now be accepted with verbal interference effects being present in all primary change detection protocol tasks. The results will be discussed in the context of theor...
The ratio between the second and fourth fingers (2D:4D) is supposed to serve as a putative indica... more The ratio between the second and fourth fingers (2D:4D) is supposed to serve as a putative indicator of prenatal testosterone (PT). Significant associations between 2D:4D, children's basic numerical ability, and the Spatial Numerical Associations of Response Codes (SNARC) effect have recently been reported. The present study explored potential relationships between 2D:4D and the basic numerical ability of subitizing (the rapid enumeration of small quantities) in 80 right-handed adult volunteers. Participants completed a short battery of computerized subitizing and color recognition control tasks with both left and right hands, independently (order counterbalanced). Findings revealed a significant interaction between sex and 2D:4D on reaction time differences for right vs. left hand responses to the subitizing task. While 2D:4D in women showed a significant negative association with a right-hand advantage for the task, a nonsignificant trend in the opposite direction was observed...
Remembering to carry out intended actions in the future, known as prospective memory (PM), is an ... more Remembering to carry out intended actions in the future, known as prospective memory (PM), is an important cognitive ability. In daily life, individuals remember to perform future tasks that might rely on effortful processes (monitoring) but also habitual tasks that might rely on more automatic processes. The development of PM across childhood in laboratory contexts is well understood, but little is known about the social context in which children develop their PM skills in everyday life. In the current study, three hundred and one parents reported on their 3-to 11-year-old child's PM, child's strategy use, and on their own scaffolding of their child's PM using the Children's Everyday Memory Questionnaire (CEMQ; adapted from the Prospective Memory Questionnaire). Preliminary analyses showed that the PM items on the CEMQ were reliable and composed of two components (a PM and a PM strategy use subscale). Our results showed that children's PM and use of memory strategies, as reported by their parents, increased with age. Further, more frequent parent scaffolding was related to better PM in children. These relations were also explored separately for older and younger children. Notably, parents of younger, 3-to 6-year-olds reported scaffolding them more frequently with age, while parents of older, 7-to 11-year-olds reported scaffolding them less frequently with age. Open-ended responses revealed that parents used verbal reminders and children used external aids most frequently. Overall, parent scaffolding appears to impact children's PM, but future research is needed to identify the causal direction of these relations.
Possession of characteristics related to Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Oppositional Def... more Possession of characteristics related to Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, and Autism Spectrum Disorder in children prenatally exposed to alcohol contributes to challenges within the diagnostic pathway for Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). The presentation of these characteristics, though problematic for the children affected, may not result in referral for diagnosis; focusing on diagnostic thresholds masks the dimensional nature of these characteristics. Children with traits which are undiagnosed may not receive effective support and are often identified as exhibiting challenging behaviour. In the UK, children with undiagnosed Special Educational Needs (SEN) are more likely to experience school exclusion. Common across each condition are challenges to executive function associated with emotional regulation (hot-executive function). This study explored the relationship between characteristics of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Opp...
Mean scores of baseline neuroticism and trait anxiety, pre- and post-video state anxiety, overall... more Mean scores of baseline neuroticism and trait anxiety, pre- and post-video state anxiety, overall change in state anxiety, and video experience
The primary aim of the current study was to employ event-related potentials (ERPs) methodology to... more The primary aim of the current study was to employ event-related potentials (ERPs) methodology to disentangle the mechanisms related to inhibitory control in older adults with Williams syndrome (WS). Eleven older adults with WS (mean age 42), 16 typically developing adults (mean age 42) and 13 typically developing children (mean age 12) participated in the study. ERPs were recorded during a three-stimulus visual oddball task, during which participants were required to make a response to a rare target stimulus embedded in a train of frequent non-target stimuli. A task-irrelevant infrequent stimulus was also present at randomised intervals during the session. The P3a latency data response related to task-irrelevant stimulus processing was delayed in WS. In addition, the early perceptual N2 amplitude was attenuated. These data are indicative of compromised early monitoring of perceptual input, accompanied by appropriate orientation of responses to task-irrelevant stimuli. However, the ...
Background Mindfulness programmes as a potential avenue of enhancing pupil wellbeing are beginnin... more Background Mindfulness programmes as a potential avenue of enhancing pupil wellbeing are beginning to show great promise. However, research concerning the effectiveness of mindfulness training for primary aged school children (7–11 years of age) has been neglected. Methods Building on methodological limitations of prior research, this study employed an active controlled design to assess the longer term wellbeing and emotion regulation outcomes after a 6 week mindfulness programme (Living Mindfully Programme, UK), for a group of school children aged between 9 and 10. The programme was delivered by class teachers as part of their normal curriculum entitlement. One hundred and eight children took part from across three schools in North East of England. Participants formed a treatment group (n = 64), active control (n = 19) and wait list control (n = 25). Self-report measures of wellbeing, mindfulness and emotion regulation were collected at pre and post training as well as at 3 months ...
There is a large body of research documenting sex differences in certain visual-spatial skills, a... more There is a large body of research documenting sex differences in certain visual-spatial skills, and relating these differences to evolutionary factors. There is also a growing body of work documenting sex differences in design preferences. This article seeks to bring these bodies of work together, presenting a model suggesting that sex differences in visual-spatial abilities may have worked alongside evolutionary pressures to encourage the sex differences observed in design preferences. It will also seek to identify areas in our knowledge where there are gaps, and, from these, suggest areas for further research. It will begin by reviewing the literature on sex differences in visual-spatial abilities, and then consider the literature concerning sex differences in design productions and preferences. From there, it will address possible evolutionary explanations and attempt to tie these different strands of research together.
Numerous studies have captured the nature of mind-wandering and how it changes across the lifespa... more Numerous studies have captured the nature of mind-wandering and how it changes across the lifespan; however, the influence of culture has been neglected. This study investigated the joint effects of culture and age in a large scale online questionnaire-based survey of 308 adults over 18 years of age, both in France and the United Kingdom. To capture a profile of thinking style, self-report measures of mind-wandering frequency, mindfulness, mood, rumination, self-reflection, future thinking, depressive symptoms, and cognitive failures were gathered. Findings revealed an earlier decrease in mind-wandering frequency for French speaking participants. Cultural effects were demonstrated on rumination and reflection rates across the life span, with in general more rumination and less reflection for English speakers. Overall, negatively toned thoughts were dominant for English compared to more expressive thoughts in general for French speakers. Confirmatory factor analyses featured differen...
The data set represents a study of ASMR, neuroticism, state, and trait anxiety. The study measure... more The data set represents a study of ASMR, neuroticism, state, and trait anxiety. The study measured these metrics pre- and post exposure to ASMR videos in order to characterise traits reflective of individuals who can experience ASMR along with any changes in acute state anxiety due to watching ASMR videos.
"Compulsive Shopping" is characterized by poorly controlled preoccupations/urges/behavi... more "Compulsive Shopping" is characterized by poorly controlled preoccupations/urges/behaviors focused on shopping and spending, causing significant distress/impairment. This study looked at what roles executive and related memory problems might exist in compulsive shopping. 205 adults completed on-line questionnaires measuring compulsive shopping, mood, as well as working memory and inhibition components of executive function. The Bergen Shopping Addiction Scale was used to assign participants to either a High Compulsive Shopping (HCS) group or Low Compulsive Shopping (LCS) group. Working memory (WM) and inhibition control (IC) were measured as two components of executive function (EF) using the Adult Executive Functioning Inventory (ADEXI), the Dysexecutive Questionnaire Revised (DEX-R) measured general EF. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale measured anxiety and depression. MANCOVA and mediation analyses were carried out controlling for age, gender, anxiety, depression. The HCS group scored significantly higher on all three EF measures, indicating greater executive difficulties. Subsequent mediation analyses with the ADEXI-IC as the mediator removed the significance of the relationship between Group and both the DEX-R and ADEXI-WM outcome variables. Thus, observed Group difference in DEX-R and ADEXI-WM could be fully accounted for by group differences in inhibitory control. The results highlight the role inhibitory control plays in compulsive shopping.
Hoarding is the excessive acquisition of, and failure to discard of, large numbers of items, lead... more Hoarding is the excessive acquisition of, and failure to discard of, large numbers of items, leading to personal distress. Impairments on memory and executive functions have been systematically associated with hoarding behavior, predominantly focusing upon clinical (mainly middle-agedelderly) patients with hoarding and/or PTSD. We were interested in hoarding-related memory and executive problems in younger non-clinical hoarders or non-hoarders, based on their Saving Inventory-Revised scores. In total, 113 young adults (aged 18-35 years) were assigned to either a hoarder group (N=40) or non-hoarder group (N=73) determined by their scores on the Saving Inventory-Revised (SI-R). Working memory (WM) and inhibition control (IC) were measured using the Adult Executive Functioning Inventory (ADEXI) and the Dysexecutive Questionnaire Revised (DEX-R) measured general executive function (EF). The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale measured anxiety and depression. After controlling for gender and anxiety, the analysis revealed that the hoarders reported significantly more problems than the non-hoarders on both the IC and general EF. There was no significant between-group difference on the WM sub-scale ADEXI. Self-reported deficits in IC and EF are associated with hoarding behaviour. The IC deficits cold explain hoarders' inability to resist urges to buy, and general EF deficits suggest other domains are involved.
International Journal of School and Cognitive Psychology, 2018
More recent working memory models consider visual representations constrained within components o... more More recent working memory models consider visual representations constrained within components of the visual-specific architecture. However, in the visual patterns test, a multi-component approach with multiple can be used due to the use of verbal and semantic processing abilities within the task. The current investigation aimed to identify the extent to which visual and verbal types of information can contribute to visual working memory representation use. Within 2 experiments, 30 participants (5 males, 25 females) were used in an experiment where a dual task methodology was deployed, consisting of interference tasks presented during the 4 second maintenance phase of the procedure of the primary visual memory tasks. Results of these investigations indicated that a change in the conventional visual-specific approach may now be accepted with verbal interference effects being present in all primary change detection protocol tasks. The results will be discussed in the context of theor...
The ratio between the second and fourth fingers (2D:4D) is supposed to serve as a putative indica... more The ratio between the second and fourth fingers (2D:4D) is supposed to serve as a putative indicator of prenatal testosterone (PT). Significant associations between 2D:4D, children's basic numerical ability, and the Spatial Numerical Associations of Response Codes (SNARC) effect have recently been reported. The present study explored potential relationships between 2D:4D and the basic numerical ability of subitizing (the rapid enumeration of small quantities) in 80 right-handed adult volunteers. Participants completed a short battery of computerized subitizing and color recognition control tasks with both left and right hands, independently (order counterbalanced). Findings revealed a significant interaction between sex and 2D:4D on reaction time differences for right vs. left hand responses to the subitizing task. While 2D:4D in women showed a significant negative association with a right-hand advantage for the task, a nonsignificant trend in the opposite direction was observed...
Remembering to carry out intended actions in the future, known as prospective memory (PM), is an ... more Remembering to carry out intended actions in the future, known as prospective memory (PM), is an important cognitive ability. In daily life, individuals remember to perform future tasks that might rely on effortful processes (monitoring) but also habitual tasks that might rely on more automatic processes. The development of PM across childhood in laboratory contexts is well understood, but little is known about the social context in which children develop their PM skills in everyday life. In the current study, three hundred and one parents reported on their 3-to 11-year-old child's PM, child's strategy use, and on their own scaffolding of their child's PM using the Children's Everyday Memory Questionnaire (CEMQ; adapted from the Prospective Memory Questionnaire). Preliminary analyses showed that the PM items on the CEMQ were reliable and composed of two components (a PM and a PM strategy use subscale). Our results showed that children's PM and use of memory strategies, as reported by their parents, increased with age. Further, more frequent parent scaffolding was related to better PM in children. These relations were also explored separately for older and younger children. Notably, parents of younger, 3-to 6-year-olds reported scaffolding them more frequently with age, while parents of older, 7-to 11-year-olds reported scaffolding them less frequently with age. Open-ended responses revealed that parents used verbal reminders and children used external aids most frequently. Overall, parent scaffolding appears to impact children's PM, but future research is needed to identify the causal direction of these relations.
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