This dissertation looks beyond the asylum to consider the development of psychiatry in French Indochina as the product of everyday exchanges between lay people and experts. Drawing on archival research conducted over two years in Vietnam and France - including hundreds of patient case files - I trace the movements of patients in and out of asylums and between prisons, poor houses, youth reformatories, hospitals and family homes. Together, these individual patient itineraries challenge our notion of the colonial asylum as a closed setting where patients rarely left, run by experts who enjoyed broad and unquestioned authority. Instead, they reveal how ideas about what it meant to be abnormal, as well as normal enough to return to social life, were debated between psychiatrists, colonial authorities and the public throughout the early decades of twentieth century. By examining the dynamics of patient movements in and out of psychiatric care, this study shifts our perspective from the asylum itself to its relationship with the world beyond its walls. Colonial scholars have focused on the way psychiatry provided a new scientific discourse of racial difference and how it figured within a wider biopolitics of colonial rule. However the social histories of the asylums themselves, and how they functioned within colonial political systems, remain little explored. I argue that by situating the history of psychiatry within the local dynamics of colonial rule, the asylum emerges as less of a blunt instrument for the control and medicalization of colonial society than as a valuable historical site for reframing narratives of colonial repression and resistance.

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Neonatal treatment of quinpirole in rats increases dopamine D2-like receptor sensitivity over the animal’s lifetime, a phenomenon referred to as D2 priming. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were given quinpirole (1mg/kg, i.p.) or saline on postnatal days (P)1-21. After habituation to a locomotor arena on P29-31, beginning P33, animals were administered nicotine (0.3 mg/kg, 0.5 mg/kg, or 0.7 mg/kg, i.p.) or saline and placed into a locomotor arena for behavioral testing every second day for a total of 9 treatments. The results showed that adolescents neonatally treated with quinpirole produced more enhanced sensitization to nicotine than controls. Brains tissues were analyzed for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein involved in neuron development and maintenance. The results showed that neonatal quinpirole treatment produced a significant increase in accumbal BDNF. Also, adolescent nicotine treatment produced a significant increase in BDNF in the nucleus accumbens and dorsal striatum. These findings help to broaden understanding of behavioral and chemical changes involved in schizophrenia and nicotine use and could have applications in aiding to alleviate this common comorbidity.

Nicotine use is very prevalent in the schizophrenic population, which is a 2.5 fold greater than the general population. In the present study, the drug quinpirole (dopamine D2/D3 agonist) or saline was given neonatally to 25 Sprague-Dawley male and female rats. Rats were randomly assigned to condition. Beginning postnatal day 33 animals were given twice daily administrations of nicotine (0.5 mg/kg free base). After the first of the daily injections they were placed in a locomotor arena every other day for behavioral testing. One day after behavioral testing, the dorsal striatum and nucleus accumbens were removed for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) assay. BDNF is a neurotrophin that plays an important role in neuronal development, neuronal maintenance and plasticity, and synaptic activity. Results showed that nicotine produced locomotor sensitization but this was not enhanced by neonatal quinpirole, unlike past work. Regarding BDNF, there was a significant increase in the nucleus accumbens in rats treated with nicotine; neonatal quinpirole increased the BDNF response produced by nicotine. Nicotine produced an increase in dorsal striatum BDNF that was not affected by neonatal quinpirole treatment. Importantly, it appears that nicotine administrations, that occurred in two different contexts, may result in differential behavioral results relative to nicotine administrations given consistently in the same context.

Incremental improvements are continuously being made to P300-Speller BCI paradigms. Accurate classification depends on a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) between the target and nontarget items. Fixed presentation rates produce a large flash-evoked response that persists throughout the recording epoch, which can potentially undermine the classification of P300-responses. By introducing a random interstimulus interval (ISI) to a previously improved P300-Speller paradigm (i.e., Checkerboard Paradigm; CBP) we expect to reduce the deleterious flash-evoked responses and increase the P300 classification SNR. Data were recorded from 32 EEG locations (right mastoid referenced) from 13 subjects using the CBP with two conditions. In the Random ISI (RI) condition, ISI varied between 0 ms and 187.5 ms and averaged 93.75 ms. In the Fixed ISI (SI) condition, ISI remained static at 93.75 ms. In both conditions, participants were instructed to spell out 72 characters using an 8x9 matrix of alphanumeric characters by silently counting each target flash. The first 36 characters served as ‘calibration’ data for a stepwise linear discriminant analysis (SWLDA; 0 - 800 ms poststimulus epochs). This SWLDA classifier was then used to provide online feedback for an additional 36 character selections. Absolute amplitude of target and nontarget responses were summed across the recording epoch for each subject and averaged between Pz and Cz (maximum). Target averages were then divided by nontarget averages to create a SNR measure and compared between RI and FI conditions. The RI manipulation produced a significantly (p = .04) larger SNR (M = 5.85) than the FI condition (M =4.07).Further analysis of the averaged waveforms revealed a significantly (p = .05) greater positive peak at Cz (253 ms peak latency) for the RI condition. Classification performance measures for RI and FI conditions were high for accuracy (84 and 85%, respectively; NS) and bitrate (21 and 23 bits/min, respectively; NS). Together these results suggest that while randomizing ISI can yield higher SNR, response classification is not affected. It is possible that SWLDA is a useful classification method, in general; however, these data suggest that it does not capitalize on the additional information gained from the increase in SNR. Alternative classification techniques that can take advantage of specific subcomponents of the response may be able to utilize this additional information to improve BCI speed and accuracy.

The aim of this thesis is to examine the mechanisms of Methylphenidate (MPH) on Conditioned Place Preference (CPP), a behavioral test of reward. The psychostimulant MPH is therapeutically used in the treatment of ADHD, but has been implicated in many pharmacological actions related to drug addiction and is considered to have abuse potential. Past work in our lab and others have shown substantial sex-differences in the neuropharmacological profile of MPH. Here a discussion of the relevant mechanisms of action of MPH and its relationship to neurotrophins and CPP are reviewed. Furthermore, previous work is reviewed and a rationale for two experiments are presented. The study resulted in two experiments conducted earlier this year. Each experiment is presented, examining sex differences in CPP in two different methodological paradigms as well as the effects of MPH on levels of the dopamine transporter (DAT) in striatal and accumbal neurons.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) causes life-debilitating conditions. While patient survival after a TBI has improved, the outlook for quality of life after TBI currently remains poor. In order to address this problem, there is a significant unmet need for new therapeutic options to prevent progression of deficits associated with TBI. To this end, we investigated two strategies to combat the deleterious affect of TBI. First, we targeted cerebral acidosis associated with TBI by testing whether disruption of acid sensing ion channel 1a (ASIC1a) in CNS, or buffering acidosis with sodium bicarbonate, could prevent neurological deficits after TBI. We next tested whether treatment with the neovel class of aminopropyl carbozoles, known as the P7C3 series, could also prevent TBI-associated neurological decline. Using the mouse fluid percussion injury model of TBI, we observed post-injury acidosis in the cortex, consistent with what has been shown in humans following brain injury. Administering HCO3- after fluid percussion injury prevented acidosis and reduced neurodegeneration. Because acidosis activates acid sensing ion channels (ASICs), we also studied AIC1a-/- mice and found reduced neurodegeneration after injury. Both HCO3-3 administration and loss of ASIC1a reduced functional deficits caused by fluid percussion injury. These results suggest that fluid percussion injury induces cerebral acidosis, which activates ASIC channels in the brain and contributes to neurodegeneration. Blocking ASIC1aactivity may thus offer a new therapeutic strategy to attenuate the adverse consequences of TBI. We next applied the blast injury model of TBI to test whether the P7C3 class of neuroprotective aminopropyl carbazoles would be of therapeutic benefit. In addition to preventing neuronal cell death, P7C3 molecules also preserved axonal integrity before neuronal cell loss in this model. The mechanism of P7C3 neuroprotection may be linked to its ability to activate the enzyme, nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase, which catalyzed the rate limiting step of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide salvage pathway. Administration of the lead compound in the series, P7C3-S243, 1 day after blast-mediated TBI blocked axonal degeneration and preserved normal synaptic activity. P7C3-S243 administration also reduced neuronal functional deficits, including impaired learning, memory, and motor coordination in mice. We additionally reported persistent neurologic deficits and acquisition of anxiety-like phenotype in untreated animals 8-months after blast-mediated TBI. Optimized variants of P7C3 thus offer hope for identifying neuroprotective agents for conditions involving axonal damage, neuronal cell death, or both. Together, the results of this body of work identify novel therapeutic interventions that may attenuate deficits associated with TBI, and thus improve the quality of life in people after TBI.

Foucault speaks of the formation of an individual’s identity, or the process of becoming someone else, as a worthy game. For postmodernists, it is considered a life-long process of reconstruction and re-evaluation. The identities that are the focus of this research are psychiatrists, but also the self. This research follows previous post-graduate research that reflected on knowledge, power, space, surveillance, the body and organisational control. The major questions of this earlier research was; “What constituted normality in the work place and who were the arbiters of this normality” Chapter one of this work - Psychiatrists in Post-modernity, introduces the research project through the research questions, motivation for the project and the challenges to be met. Chapter two is a theoretical chapter that presents Post-modern Philosophical Perspective and discusses the history of development of post-modern thought in social research. Chapter three – History, Myth and Reality, places today’s psychiatry in Australia, in historical context. Chapter four – People, Politics and Purpose, considers the current state of mental health policy in Australia. Chapter five – Methodology and Methods, considers the methodological debate in the social sciences between qualitative and quantitative research methods. Chapter six – Outcomes and Interpretation presents an interpretation of the research interviews and discusses the connections and possible meanings of the stories told by psychiatrists, within the context of the post-modern philosophical perspective. Chapter seven – Post-modern Psychiatry considers the question: is there or can there be a post-modern psychiatry? It takes the interpretations, connections and meanings from Chapter six and locates them in the wider social context of the Australian National Mental Health Strategy / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

<p>Människor har ett grundläggande behov av samhörighet och att ingå i en social kontext. På så sätt skapas ett beroende av andras acceptans för att kunna upprätthålla hälsa och välmående. Social exkludering utgör därför ett hot mot mänskligt välbefinnande. I denna studie undersöks hur exkludering och grad av narcissism påverkar tre typer av individers självreglerande beteende; Aggressivitet, risktagande och prosocialitet. Sextio studenter med hög eller låg grad av narcissism tänkte tillbaka på när de blivit inkluderade eller exkluderade. Resultatet visade att deltagare med en hög grad av narcissism i personligheten agerade mer aggressivt och tenderade att agera mer riskbenäget när de exkluderats. Prosocialitet påverkades inte av exkluderingsmanipulationen, inte heller den situationella självkänslan och humör. Resultatet indikerar att grad av narcissism i personligheten är en viktig faktor för konsekvenser av social exkludering.</p>

<p>Psykologiska bedömningar av föräldrar beskrivs sällan som en mer uttalad och tydlig del av arbetet inom barn- och ungdomspsykiatri, utan det är i hög grad ett underförstått arbetsområde. Syftet med den här undersökningen var att beskriva hur arbetet med psykologiska bedömningar av föräldrar konceptualiseras och praktiseras under det inledande skedet av behandlingskontakter inom BUP. Nio psykologer vid sju öppenvårdsmottagningar intervjuades och intervjuerna analyserades tematiskt. En viktig aspekt som framkommer i resultatet är hur det gemensamma arbetet mellan psykolog och förälder för att etablera en arbetsallians erbjuder goda möjligheter till psykologiska bedömningar av föräldern. Under arbetet med alliansen, och med alliansen som bas, kan olika former av systematik och modeller för psykologiska bedömningar tillämpas. Resultatet indikerar också att arbetsalliansens centrala betydelse för bedömningsarbetet är tydligt relaterad till organisationens påverkan på det arbetet, liksom till betydelsen av psykologisk kompetens vid arbete med psykologiska bedömningar av föräldrar.</p>