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Biomedical subjects

K A Morris

Publications and source records attributed to K A Morris.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

When comparisons arise.

People acquire information about their abilities by comparison, and research suggests that people restrict such comparisons to those whom they consider sources of diagnostic information. We suggest that diagnosticity is often considered only after comparisons are made and that people do not fail to make nondiagnostic comparisons so much as they mentally undo them. In 2 studies, participants made nondiagnostic comparisons even when they knew they should not, and quickly unmade them when they were able. These results suggest that social comparisons may be relatively spontaneous, effortless, and unintentional reactions to the performances of others and that they may occur even when people consider such reactions logically inappropriate.

Affect↗
PubMed1991

The basolateral amygdala-ventral striatal system and conditioned place preference: further evidence of limbic-striatal interactions underlying reward-related processes.

The effects on the expression of a conditioned place preference of bilateral, excitotoxic amino acid-induced lesions of the basolateral region of the amygdala, or the ventral striatum, or asymmetric, unilateral lesions of both structures were studied. The place preference was conditioned by exposing hungry rats to sucrose in a distinctive environment. Following acquisition, bilateral quisqualate-induced lesions of the basolateral amygdala, as well as bilateral quinolinate-induced lesions of the ventral striatum, abolished the conditioned place preference. Bilateral ventromedial, but not dorsolateral, quinolinate-induced caudate-putamen lesions attenuated the place preference. Combining a unilateral lesion of the basolateral amygdala with a contralateral lesion of the ventral striatum also disrupted the conditioned place preference. These data provide further support for the hypothesis that the basolateral amygdala and ventral striatum are important parts of a neural system subserving stimulus-reward associations.

Amygdala↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Acupuncture heroin detoxification: a single-blind clinical trial.

The increasing prevalence of HIV infection among injection drug users mandates the development of innovative treatments. While extensive clinical experience suggests that acupuncture detoxification is both safe and acceptable to those in withdrawal, little research has been conducted to assess its efficacy as a treatment modality. In this first controlled study of acupuncture heroin detoxification, 100 addicted persons were randomly assigned, in a single-blind design, to the standard auricular acupuncture treatment used for addiction or to a "sham" treatment that used points that were geographically close to the standard points. Attrition was high for both groups, but subjects assigned to the standard treatment attended the acupuncture clinic more days and stayed in treatment longer than those assigned to the sham condition. Additionally, attendance varied inversely with self-reports of frequency of drug use, suggesting that those with lighter habits found the treatment modality more helpful. Limitations of the study are discussed.

Acupuncture Points↗