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Adolescents display heightened affective and social sensitivity, as well as differences in associative learning of both appetitive and aversive stimuli, compared to children and adults. Heightened sensitivity and decreased specificity in response to rewards and threats might explain differences in Pavlovian and instrumental learning in adolescence. During learning, adolescent affective and social sensitivity contributes to strong acquisition, heightened generalisation, reduced extinction, and increased exploration. Understanding social-affective learning in adolescence has implications for mental health and education. Adolescence is a period of heightened affective and social sensitivity. In this review we address how this increased sensitivity influences associative learning. Based on recent evidence from human and rodent studies, as well as advances in computational biology, we suggest that, compared to other age groups, adolescents show features of heightened Pavlovian learning but tend to perform worse than adults at instrumental learning. Because Pavlovian learning does not involve decision-making, whereas instrumental learning does, we propose that these developmental differences might be due to heightened sensitivity to rewards and threats in adolescence, coupled with a lower specificity of responding. We discuss the implications of these findings for adolescent mental health and education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circadian rhythms have received increasing attention within the context of mental disorders. Evening chronotype has been associated with enhanced risk to develop anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The classical fear conditioning paradigm is a powerful tool to reveal key mechanisms of anxiety and PTSD. We used this paradigm to study the neurocognitive basis of the association between chronotype and fear responses in healthy humans. 20 participants with evening chronotype and 20 controls (i.e., intermediate chronotype) completed a 2-day Pavlovian fear learning and extinction virtual reality task. Participants received fear conditioning, and extinction learning on day 1. Extinction memory recall was tested on day 2. To address interactions between chronotype and time of day of the fear conditioning, and extinction performance, half of the participants were tested in the morning, and the other half in the evening. Skin conductance response (SCR) and subjective fear ratings were measured as primary outcomes. Chronotype was established via the morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ). We found an overall higher SCR for fear acquisition in participants with the evening chronotype profile, compared to controls. Moreover, the higher the MEQ scores -indicative of less eveningness - the lower the SCR was. No effects of chronotype were found for extinction and extinction recall. The higher vulnerability of the evening chronotype for anxiety and related disorders may thus be explained by enhanced fear acquisition of this group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research is to develop a cost-free affective tool, based on Bloom and Krathwohl's taxonomy that can be used to measure the affective domain in current healthcare professionals. Exploratory design, Posttest only. Graduate Doctor of Physical Therapy program at American International College. A convenience sample of graduate DPT students from all 3 cohorts at American International College. The Affective tool was designed to encompass the important characteristics found in Bloom and Krathwohl taxonomy that are embodied by an affective clinician. Generating a tool with characteristics would lead to a strong therapeutic alliance between patient and provider. Key terms were collected, and the survey was created, consisting of 3 sentences for each of the 5 domains. A Likert scale, using a 1 through 5 range for answers with strongly disagree to strongly agree options and a "did not observe". The tool was sent out for validation from professionals in various fields including exercise science, OT, PT, PTA, and athletic training. Edits were made to the tool for grammar and clarity for use in virtual observation setting. Participants observed a virtual integrated clinical experience between a physical therapist and a patient from Fox Rehabilitation. Following the visit, participants completed the online tool to score the affective skills that were exhibited in the virtual visit. One-way ANOVA analysis No statistical difference was found between the three cohorts. However, the quality of the responses differed between the cohorts. It was noted that the third-year DPT students' commentary was more thoughtful focusing on the procedural components of the treatment session, and the interpersonal relationship between the patient and the physical therapist during the treatment session. The qualities of affective skills begin to develop throughout the DPT program, but the need for an assessment tool that can accurately and objectively measure these skills still exists and requires further investigation and development. No disclosures or conflicts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The neuro-physiological response to stress has far-reaching implications for learning and memory processes. Here, we examined whether and how the stress-induced release of cortisol, following the socially-evaluated cold pressor test, influenced the acquisition of preferences in an evaluative conditioning (EC) procedure. We found that when the stressor preceded the evaluation phase, cortisol responders showed decreased evaluative conditioning effects. By contrast, impairing effects of a stressor-induced cortisol release before encoding were not found. Moreover, explicit memory was not found to be affected by the stressor or its timing. Implications of the timing-dependent effects of stress-induced cortisol release on EC and the relation between stress and associative memory are discussed. • Cortisol has a strong impact on the retrieval of acquired preferences. • Stress-induced cortisol before evaluation decreased preference retrieval. • Acute stress induced before encoding had no impairing effect on preference learning. • Cortisol effects on preference learning are not reflected in episodic memory. • All data and analyses scripts are publicly available online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Datathons are increasingly organized in the healthcare field. The goal is to assemble people with different backgrounds to work together as a team and engage in clinically relevant research or develop algorithms using health-related datasets. Criteria to assess the return of investment on such events have traditionally included publications produced, patents for prediction, classification, image recognition and other types of software, and start-up companies around the application of machine learning in healthcare. Previous studies have not evaluated whether a datathon can promote affective learning and effective teamwork.Methods: Fifty participants of a health datathon event in São Paulo, Brazil at Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein (HIAE) were divided into 8 groups. A survey with 25 questions, using the Affective Learning Scale and Team-Review Questionnaire, was administered to assess team effectiveness and affective learning during the event. Multivariate regression models and Pearson's correlation tests were performed to evaluate the effect of affective learning on teamwork.Results: Majority of the participants were male 76% (37/49); 32% (16/49) were physicians. The mean score for learning (scale from 1 to 10) was 8.38, while that for relevance of the perceived teamwork was 1.20 (scale from 1 to 5; "1" means most relevant). Pearson's correlation between the learning score and perception of teamwork showed moderate association (r = 0.36, p = 0.009). Five learning and 10 teamwork variables were on average positively graded in the event. The final regression model includes all learning and teamwork variables. Effective leadership was strongly correlated with affective learning (β = -0.27, p < 0.01, R2 = 75%). Effective leadership, team accomplishment, criticism, individual development and creativity were the variables significantly associated with higher levels of affective learning.Conclusion: It is feasible to enhance affective knowledge and the skill to work in a team during a datathon. We found that teamwork is associated with higher affective learning from participants' perspectives. Effective leadership is essential for teamwork and is a significant predictor of learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To explore the influence of the Amulet artwork and exhibition on midwifery students' perceptions of caring for parents experiencing perinatal death. Design A descriptive qualitative design involving face-to-face semi-structured interviews following institutional ethical approval. Setting A regional Maternity Hospital in Ireland which hosted the National Artwork and Exhibition exploring the hidden world of infant death. Participants A purposive sample of six consenting post registration midwifery students who had attended the Amulet artwork and exhibition. Findings Four core themes emerged and these were i) entering the mother's world and hearing her pain; ii) the journey of grief and connecting with the bereaved parent's unique experience; iii) facing the challenge of providing effective perinatal bereavement care; and iv) maintaining a journey of compassionate practice. Conclusion and implications for practice Exposure to, and reflection on the Amulet artwork and exhibition increased students' awareness and insight into the non-linear nature of the grieving process, and to the importance of maintaining a journey of compassionate care for parents experiencing perinatal death. The findings suggest that the use of creative women-centered strategies promote affective learning in relation to perinatal death and so may be of use to educators and maternity care providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employing an exploratory mixed-method approach, this research explores young adults' affective learning outcomes derived from their short-term educational travel abroad experiences. Different from previous travel research mostly focusing on the educational benefits of cognitive knowledge and technical skills, the current research highlights the prominent effect of educational travel on young adults' personal growth and attitudinal/emotional development by investigating the understudied domain of affective learning and how it manifests among college students having short-term study abroad experiences. Through a systematic review and a follow-up survey-based comparison study, five salient affective learning variables were identified— perspectives on global interdependence , intercultural attitudes , openness to diversity and challenge , environmental attitudes , and general self-efficacy. Furthermore, this research found that travelers' lower-order affective learning shows significant progress after the short-term educational overseas travel. This study contributes to a niche topic in tourism research and provides implications to promote educational travel as an effective transformative learning approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emotional learning involves the acquisition of skills to recognize and manage emotions, develop care and concern for others, make responsible decisions, establish positive relationships, and handle challenging situations effectively. Time is an important variable in learning context and especially in the analysis of teaching-learning processes that take place in collaborative learning, whereas time management is crucial for effective learning. The aim of this work has been to analyze the effects of emotion management on time and self-management in e-learning and identify the competencies in time and self-management that are mostly influenced when students strive to achieve effective learning . To this end, we run an experiment with a class of high school students, which showed that increasing their ability to manage emotions better and more effectively enhances their competency to manage the time allocated to the learning practice more productively, and consequently their learning performance in terms of behavioral engagement and achievement and partly, in terms of cognitive engagement and self-regulation. Teacher affective feedback was proved to be a crucial factor to enhance cognitive engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of fear conditioning, different psychophysiological measures have been related to different learning processes. Specifically, skin conductance responses (SCRs) have been related to cognitive expectancy learning, while fear potentiated startle (FPS) has been proposed to reflect affective learning that operates according to simple associative learning principles. On the basis of this two level account of fear conditioning we predicted that FPS should be less affected by verbal instructions and more affected by direct experience than SCRs. We tested this hypothesis by informing participants that contingencies would be reversed after a differential conditioning phase. Our results indicate that contingency reversal instructions led to an immediate and complete reversal of FPS regardless of the previous conditioning history. This change was accompanied by similar changes on US expectancy ratings and SCRs. These results conform with an expectancy model of fear conditioning but argue against a two level account of fear conditioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present research was to compare different methods of training for safe moped use, especially focusing on physiological reactions during risky experiences. By recording skin conductance response (SCR), we investigated whether training that requires active riding behavior in different risky situations through the use of the Honda Riding Training (HRT) simulator leads to different physiological reactivity, which, in turn, might lead to better learning outcomes. Results indicated that participants who rode actively through the HRT showed higher percentages of SCRs than participants who simply observed risky road scenes to spot hazards. SCR percentage was higher in scenes with no accident. Overall, SCR amplitude was greater when accidents occurred than in scenes with no accidents. Implications for the effectiveness of inexperienced riders training with riding simulators were also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate whether a persuasive social impact game may serve as a way to increase affective learning and attitude towards the homeless, this study examined the effects of persuasive mechanics in a video game designed to put the player in the shoes of an almost-homeless person. Data were collected from 5139 students in 200 middle/high school classes across four states. Classes were assigned to treatment groups based on matching. Two treatment conditions and a control group were employed in the study. All three groups affective learning and attitude scores decreased from the immediate posttest but the game group was significantly different from the control group in a positive direction. Students who played the persuasive social impact game sustained a significantly higher score on the Affective Learning Scale (ALS) and the Attitude Towards Homelessness Inventory (ATHI) after three weeks. Overall, findings suggest that when students play a video game that is designed using persuasive mechanics an affective and attitude change can be measured empirically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative study examines the social practices of two elementary classrooms to elucidate scaffolding students' social and emotional learning through values education. The conceptual model is based on Vygotsky's (1978) sociocultural theory and the related notions of zone of proximal development (ZPD) and assisted learning. Rogoff's (1995) community, interpersonal and personal planes frame the data analysis. In the findings the teacher/researcher examines social practices that promoted a student centred approach to developing participative decision making and collaborative skills. This research contributes to understanding the critical role of emotions and relationships, where primacy is given to the affective dimensions of learning. More research is needed to develop teachers' expertise to address student's social and emotional needs though scaffolding within the ZPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Visualizations embedded in intelligent systems can provide awareness of emotions. [•] Visualizations of emotions are described and implemented in an educational environment. [•] We apply our approach on learners of a programming course at university level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is widely accepted that a caring curriculum is integral to nursing education. Caring as a concept is extensively cited in the literature as a core value in nursing education and nursing practice. What is not evident is the curricular designs used by nurse educators to enable students to internalize caring behaviors. The literature supports the internalization of affective learning through hierarchically structured learning objectives, and the movement from emotional to reflexive responses through critical reflection. Krathwohl, Bloom, and Masia's (1964) taxonomy of affective objectives and concepts from Mezirow's (2000) transformational learning theory were used to synthesize the integration of caring affective objectives into the design of the nursing curricula. The expected outcome of such integration is a nursing curriculum that progressively supports the development of nursing students' caring behaviors that are consistent with the ideals of the profession. Examples of hierarchically leveled caring objectives are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The current research assessed the effects of verbal instruction on affective and expectancy learning during repeated contingency reversals (Experiment 1) and during extinction (Experiment 2) in a picture–picture paradigm. Affective and expectancy learning displayed contingency reversal and extinction, but changes were slower for affective learning. Instructions facilitated reversal and extinction of expectancy learning but did not impact on affective learning. These findings suggest a differential susceptibility of affective and expectancy learning to verbal instruction and question previous reports that verbal instructions can accelerate the extinction of non-prepared fear learning in humans. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a self-report instrument that can be used to measure learning in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. The study underwent three phases, each with its own data collection and analysis. Phase I featured the development, testing, and factor analysis of an 80-item instrument that addressed cognitive, affective, and psychomotor learning that was administered to a sample of 142 online and face-to-face learners. Based on the results, the instrument was reduced to 21 items for Phase II and tested with a new sample of 171 online and face-to-face students. The results of confirmatory factor analysis suggested a better data fit with an even smaller 9-item instrument, which was then administered to a new sample of 221 online and face-to-face students in Phase III. The results of this final phase are presented along with the resulting CAP Perceived Learning Scale, a 9-item self-report measure of perceived cognitive, affective, and psychomotor learning. Implications and usage of the CAP Perceived Learning Scale for research and practice are also discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Affect modulates the blink startle reflex in the picture-viewing paradigm, however, the process responsible for reflex modulation during conditional stimuli (CSs) that have acquired valence through affective conditioning remains unclear. In Experiment 1, neutral shapes (CSs) and valenced or neutral pictures (USs) were paired in a forward (CS→US) manner. Pleasantness ratings supported affective learning of positive and negative valence. Post-acquisition, blink reflexes were larger during the pleasant and unpleasant CSs than during the neutral CS. Rather than affect, attention or anticipatory arousal were suggested as sources of startle modulation. Experiment 2 confirmed that affective learning in the picture–picture paradigm was not affected by whether the CS preceded the US. Pleasantness ratings and affective priming revealed similar extents of affective learning following forward, backward or simultaneous pairings of CSs and USs. Experiment 3 utilized a backward conditioning procedure (US→CS) to minimize effects of US anticipation. Again, blink reflexes were larger during CSs paired with valenced USs regardless of US valence implicating attention rather than anticipatory arousal or affect as the process modulating startle in this paradigm. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Proliferation of technology has provided additional means of out-of-class communication. This paper focuses on the relationship between technologically-mediated out-of-class communication (TMOCC) and variables crucial to successful instructional communication. A proposed model predicted perceived immediacy to mediate the relationship between immediacy behaviors (i.e., verbal and computer-mediated behaviors) and instructional outcomes (i.e., student state motivation and affective learning). While the proposed model was not supported, a model of best fit depicts perceived immediacy as a mediator for the relationship between verbal behaviors and motivation, which then impacts affective learning. The implications of these findings are discussed, as well as limitations and opportunities for future research. • Technologically-mediated out-of-class communication (TMOCC) reported in high numbers by participants. • Verbal- and computer-mediated immediacy behaviors correlated with perceived immediacy. • Perceived immediacy correlated with affective learning and motivation. • Perceived immediacy acts as a mediator for verbal immediacy behaviors and motivation. • Motivation mediates perceived immediacy and affective learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People's ability to learn about the affective value of others is impressive. However, it is unclear whether this learning solely reflects general affect-based processes or a mixture of affect-based and person-attribution processes. Consistent with the former possibility, people's ability to learn the affective value of people and places have been shown to be comparable (Falvello, Vinson, Ferrari, & Todorov, 2015). To investigate whether general affect-based processes are sufficient to account for this kind of learning, we presented participants with images paired with valenced statements that were either relevant (e.g., a person statement with a person image) or irrelevant (e.g., a person statement with a non-person image). After this presentation, participants evaluated the goodness or badness of the images. In Experiment 1, we found that the learning effects for faces and places were comparable and occurred only when the statements were relevant. However, when we presented the images with multiple statements of the same valence (Experiments 2–4), we found that places acquired affective value from both relevant and irrelevant statements. In contrast, faces were less likely to acquire affective value from irrelevant statements. Our findings suggest that although general affect-based processes might be sufficient to account for affective learning of places, affective learning of faces might involve both affect-based and person-attribution processes. • People's ability to learn about the affective value of others is impressive. • The underlying mechanisms of this affective learning remain unclear. • We explored the nature of the affective learning of people and inanimate objects (places). • Affective learning of people involves affect-based and person-attribution processes. • Affect-based processes are sufficient to account for affective learning of places. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mass lecture courses are a mainstay in university instruction despite their limitations regarding student engagement and resultant learning outcomes. Out-of-class communications and learning management systems have been developed to address these limitations, but the former is resource-intensive and the latter is often viewed as an administrative rather than pedagogical aid. Facebook groups have proven to be useful and persistent spaces for connecting individuals around innumerable topics of interest. In this study, a course-specific Facebook group was created for an introductory mass media course at a large mid-Atlantic university to serve as a supplemental (and voluntary) space for course content discussions. End-of-the semester grades of the Facebook group users were significantly higher than the non-users, t(319) = 4.71, p < 001. In terms of affective learning, an analyses of the student responses indicated that students generally felt positively about being a part of the Facebook group. Thematic analysis of the Facebook posts indicated that students mainly used this space to discuss exam-related matters. We discuss potential reasons for this outcome, and implications of current research for future research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]