Many patients do not maintain physical activity (PA) post cardiac rehabilitation (CR),however few studies examine a large enough sample over the long-term. Thus, a retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out to examine PA and its correlates 2-6 years post CR; 584 graduates completed a mailed survey (mean+SD age: 69.8+9.8 years, BMI: 27+5.0 kg/m2, 80% male, 41.4+11.6 months since graduation, 36% response rate). PA was assessed using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE, mean+SD: 122.3+75.9). Seventy five percent of participants met Canadian PA guidelines. Greater PA was significantly associated with male sex, younger age, fear of falling, cholesterol control, self-controlled transportation, marital status, full-time work, rural location, higher VO2max, more comorbid conditions, greater perceived health, PA enjoyment, quality of life (QOL), social support, income, and CR staff support. Age,PA enjoyment, QOL, work status, cholesterol control and CR staff were significant in a multivariate model (R2=0.22, F=18.7, p<0.001).

Many patients do not maintain physical activity (PA) post cardiac rehabilitation (CR),however few studies examine a large enough sample over the long-term. Thus, a retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out to examine PA and its correlates 2-6 years post CR; 584 graduates completed a mailed survey (mean+SD age: 69.8+9.8 years, BMI: 27+5.0 kg/m2, 80% male, 41.4+11.6 months since graduation, 36% response rate). PA was assessed using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE, mean+SD: 122.3+75.9). Seventy five percent of participants met Canadian PA guidelines. Greater PA was significantly associated with male sex, younger age, fear of falling, cholesterol control, self-controlled transportation, marital status, full-time work, rural location, higher VO2max, more comorbid conditions, greater perceived health, PA enjoyment, quality of life (QOL), social support, income, and CR staff support. Age,PA enjoyment, QOL, work status, cholesterol control and CR staff were significant in a multivariate model (R2=0.22, F=18.7, p<0.001).

The Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) has gained widespread favor since its publication. However, validation studies of its interpretive descriptors remained limited to date. As such, the primary goal of the current study aimed at validating the interpretive descriptors through the lens of empirical correlates using the PDSQ as the external criterion. It also served as a replication and extension to the 2018 study conducted by Rogers and colleagues. The final archival sample included 204 clients from the UNT Psychology Clinic who were administered PAI between May 2016 and December 2020. Overall, reliability and construct validity were strongly supported for PAI clinical scales. Further, the current study replicated large majority of the correlates identified by Rogers and colleagues, which boosted the confidence in reproducible interpretations based on empirical correlates. Importantly, investigation of item-level and gendered correlates provided crucial interpretive implications that were otherwise obscured. For example, item-level correlates refined interpretation by clarifying the nature of scale-level correlates, particularly those of moderate strength. On the other hand, notable gender differences were identified for certain scales, which led to drastic differences in patterns of gendered vs. non-gendered correlates. Finally, several important methodological considerations are proposed in hope to facilitate the empirical research concerning measurement validity, as well as combat the current replication crisis. The need to adopt more stringent standards for effect size, as well as the instability of correlates of moderate strength were discussed. Implications of clinical practice and future directions for research are also discussed.

Deception has long been of interest to humans, but only recently has the neuroscience of deception started. Similarly, lie-detection, as an applied aspect of the study of deception, has long been studied but only with the advent of imaging techniques and the development of the neuroscience of deception has it become possible to develop techniques based on scanningour brains. Currently, both areas suffer from methodological and philosophical problems. As an applied science fMRI lie-detection has greater issues to deal with, specifically legal and ethical issues. Despite interesting results, implicating frontal regions as the neural correlates of deception, the neuroscience of deception need better designs and more study to be able to draw any general inferences. By its nature fMRI lie-detection suffers greatly from this, and additional problems concerning privacy and legality make it seem too early to implement it incourt or anywhere, as stated by many scientists. On the other hand the technology already exists and is likely to be used.

This thesis reviews both psychological and neural research in the fields of self-evaluation, self-views and self-enhancement bias. The research has made associations to grandiosity and need for admiration, which are two of the defining characteristics of narcissistic personality disorder. Neural correlates associated with this research are the medial prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, posteromedial cortex and anterior insula. Narcissists have been seen to have a decreased form of emotional empathy even though they rate themselves to have higher emotional empathy than they actually have, which is linked to self-enhancement bias and grandiosity. Alexithymia has not gained much attention in relation to narcissism, but research presented suggests that this might need to change. Neural correlates that are associated with lack of emotional empathy and alexithymia are the anterior insula, frontoparalimbic areas and the medial prefrontal cortex. Narcissistic personality disorder is in the DSM-5 specified to be defined by a grandiose sense of self, a need for admiration, and a lack of empathy in either fantasy or behavior. However according to researchers in the field this only covers a part of the spectrum of narcissism. Deficits in the DSM-5 will he highlighted, as well as suggestions on what to do in order to help clarify the definition in DSM-5 and the concept in general.

Studies exploring the neural correlates of the emotion regulation strategy called cognitive change (reappraisal) have been thoroughly discussed and synthesized. This is not the case for another emotion regulation strategy called response modulation. The aim of this thesis was to conduct a systematic review on the neural correlates of one specific emotion regulation technique in response modulation, called expressive suppression. Expressive suppression is the inhibition of emotion expressive behavior. Using a systematic search, screening, and selection process, out of the initial 557 articles eight studies were included for data extraction and discussion. The studies exposed participants to negative emotion-inducing stimuli and instructed participants to either suppress their emotional behavior or to watch the stimuli without regulating the emotion. All studies used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Expressive suppression yielded increased activation in frontal and parietal regions, especially in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and bilateral inferior parietal cortex, compared to a non-regulation condition. Results of amygdala activation were inconsistent with different studies showing an increase, decrease, or no difference in activation during expressive suppression versus the non-regulation contrast condition. The thesis ends with a discussion of methodological issues and future directions.

Optimism refers to peoples’ general tendency to anticipate good outcomes in areas that are important to them. Numerous studies have shown that optimism is significantly correlated with improved physical and mental health. Optimism can come to an overly optimistic degree, called optimism bias. People generally expect better outcomes and fewer negative events to happen for themselves in the future compared to the average person. There are two sides to this: being optimistically biased might lead to risky behavior, but it might also ease people's worries about the future. To have a consistently negative view is suggested to correlate with depressive symptoms and worsened health. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the neural correlates and functional markers of optimism and optimism bias. Optimism is suggested to correlate with gray-matter volume in the thalamus, orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and bilateral putamen. The inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) have a crucial role in dismissing undesirable information and self referential processing. Research regarding this issue might be beneficial for further understanding of the connection between optimism and well-being.

The essay aims to provide an overview of existing research on moral cognition and its neural correlates, as well as to highlight aspects in which the findings from the field of cognitive neuroscience can add to the understanding of the challenges that arise from having artificial systems as moral decision-makers. Morality is an important characteristic of the human way of life and a central mechanism in the modern society. Research suggests that morality has evolved as a function to promote cooperation and prosocial behaviour. Morality has been a topic of investigation in several interdisciplinary fields and often includes the exploration of reason and emotion and their respective roles. Contemporary technological advances include the increased presence of artificial intelligence (AI) that aims to simulate the human mind. Empirical evidence suggests that deontological responses are more closely related to emotional components of moral cognition and linked to increased activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. In contrast, utilitarian responses appear to be more reliant on reason and a more complex neural network that is linked to increased activity in primarily dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. AI has successfully accomplished certain elements of simulating human cognition. However, key findings suggest that the integration of reason and emotion is essential which is possibly challenging for AI to fully replicate.

Over the last several decades, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory - Adolescent (MMPI-A) has remained one of the most extensively studied and commonly used adolescent assessment measures. Most recently, the MMPI-A was revised, published as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory - Adolescent Restructured Form (MMPI-A-RF). Given the infancy of the extant MMPI-A-RF literature, the current dissertation sought to be one of the first criterion studies since the test manual to establish its relevant clinical correlates in a sample of youth referred for mental health services. Following in line with previous clinical correlate research, the psychometric properties of the MMPI-A-RF were determined. Under this approach, the present study bolstered support for the construct validity of the RC scales through the identification of clinically relevant, scale and item-level correlates. In particular, the RCd and RC4 evidenced especially strong convergent and discriminant validity. As a result, the current study highlighted the MMPI-A-RF's efficacy in detecting psychopathology along the broad externalizing and internalizing spectrum. In addition, the role of gender and its effect on MMPI-A-RF clinical interpretations were explored. Practical recommendations for ensuring a gender-specific approach to MMPI-A-RF interpretation were outlined.

Traditional ways to examine and investigate the neural correlates of consciousness usually require the participants to actively report their perceptions and conscious contents. Having the participants actively report can confound the neural correlates with co-occurring processes. Instead, no-report paradigms try to remove the active process of reporting by either objectively trying to measure conscious content by tracking eye movements and pupil dilation, or retroactively inquire about the conscious states. The results of an fMRI experiment utilising tracking of optokinetic nystagmus and pupil dilation as an objective measure of conscious content highlight a difference in frontal areas while activation in posterior areas are similar to active report experiments. EEG experiments utilising the sustained inattentional blindness paradigm did not see the late positivity commonly seen when the participants were aware of the stimuli but it was not task relevant. Utilising no-report paradigms can provide unique insights into the discussion of theories of consciousness and further develop our understanding of consciousness.