Exposure to pornography in general has been linked with adolescent dating violence and sexual aggression, but less is known about exposure to violent pornography specifically. The current study examined the association of violent pornography exposure with different forms of teen dating violence (TDV) using baseline survey data from a sample of Grade 10 high school students who reported being in a dating relationship in the past year (n = 1694). Gender-stratified logistic regression models generated odds ratios adjusted for demographics, substance use, history of suspension/expulsion, gender equitable attitudes, and tolerance of rape myths to identify significant associations between violent pornography exposure and self-reported physical, sexual, and threatening TDV perpetration and victimization. Violent pornography exposure was associated with all types of TDV, though patterns differed by gender. Boys exposed to violent pornography were 2–3 times more likely to report sexual TDV perpetration and victimization and physical TDV victimization, while girls exposed to violent pornography were over 1.5 times more likely to be perpetrate threatening TDV compared to their non-exposed counterparts. Comprehensive prevention strategies for TDV may consider the potential risks associated with exposure to violent pornography, particularly for boys, and provide an alternative source of education about healthy sexual behavior and relationships.
ImportancePresently, 81 countries mandate the fortification of grain products with folic acid to lessen the risk of neural tube defects in the developing fetus. Epidemiologic data on severe mental illness suggest potentially broader effects of prenatal folate exposure on postnatal brain development, but this link remains unsubstantiated by biological evidence.ObjectiveTo evaluate associations among fetal folic acid exposure, cortical maturation, and psychiatric risk in youths.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsA retrospective, observational clinical cohort study was conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) among 292 youths 8 to 18 years of age born between January 1993 and December 2001 (inclusive of folic acid fortification rollout ±3.5 years) with normative results of clinical magnetic resonance imaging, divided into 3 age-matched groups based on birthdate and related level of prenatal folic acid fortification exposure (none, partial, or full). Magnetic resonance imaging was performed between January 2005 and March 2015. Two independent, observational, community-based cohorts (Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort [PNC] and National Institutes of Health Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Normal Brain Development [NIH]) comprising 1078 youths 8 to 18 years of age born throughout (PNC, 1992-2003) or before (NIH, 1983-1995) the rollout of folic acid fortification were studied for replication, clinical extension, and specificity. Statistical analysis was conducted from 2015 to 2018.ExposuresUnited States–mandated grain product fortification with folic acid, introduced in late 1996 and fully in effect by mid-1997.Main Outcomes and MeasuresDifferences in cortical thickness among nonexposed, partially exposed, and fully exposed youths (MGH) and underlying associations between age and cortical thickness (all cohorts). Analysis of the PNC cohort also examined the association of age–cortical thickness slopes with the odds of psychotic symptoms.ResultsThe MGH cohort (139 girls and 153 boys; mean [SD] age, 13.3 [2.3] years) demonstrated exposure-associated cortical thickness increases in bilateral frontal and temporal regions (9.9% to 11.6%; corrected P < .001 to P = .03) and emergence of quadratic (delayed) age-associated thinning in temporal and parietal regions (β = –11.1 to –13.9; corrected P = .002). The contemporaneous PNC cohort (417 girls and 444 boys; mean [SD] age, 13.5 [2.7] years) also exhibited exposure-associated delays of cortical thinning (β = –1.59 to –1.73; corrected P < .001 to P = .02), located in similar regions and with similar durations of delay as in the MGH cohort. Flatter thinning profiles in frontal, temporal, and parietal regions were associated with lower odds of psychosis spectrum symptoms in the PNC cohort (odds ratio, 0.37-0.59; corrected P < .05). All identified regions displayed earlier thinning in the nonexposed NIH cohort (118 girls and 99 boys; mean [SD] age, 13.3 [2.6] years).Conclusions and RelevanceThe results of this study suggest an association between gestational exposure...
Instrumental learning is mediated by goal-directed and habit systems in the brain. While rodent studies implicate distinct prefrontal/striatal regions in goal-directed and habit learning, neural systems underpinning these two processes in humans remain poorly understood. Here, using a validated discrimination learning task that distinguishes goal-directed learning from habit learning in 72 subjects in fMRI, we investigated the corticostriatal correlates of goal-directed learning and tested whether brain activation during learning is associated with trait motivation and behavioral performance in the post-learning test phase. Participants showed enhanced activation in medial prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortices during goal-directed action selection in the training phase, whereas habitual action selection activated bilateral insula, bilateral dorsal caudate and left precentral gyrus. In addition, early phase of learning was associated with increased activation in the frontoparietal control network and dorsal striatum, whereas default mode regions depicted increased activation in the late phase. Finally, avoidance motivation scores measured by Behavioral Inhibition/Activation System (BIS/BAS) correlated with accuracy during goal-directed learning and showed a nominally significant correlation with activation in dorsomedial prefrontal cortex during goal-directed acquisition of stimuli. These findings reveal the temporal dynamics of instrumental behavior and suggest that avoidance motivation predicts performance and brain activity during goal-directed learning.
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