Papers by Eleanor Dommett
Advances in neurodevelopmental disorders, Jun 26, 2024
Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, Jul 1, 2019
Objective: Response inhibition has been frequently studied in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)... more Objective: Response inhibition has been frequently studied in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with mixed results. The inconsistent findings may stem in part from failure to consider the heterogeneity of the disorder. The authors examined behavioral and eventrelated potential (ERP) components (N2 and P3) during a simple response inhibition go/nogo task in a sample of patients with OCD (N548) and control subjects (N553). Comparisons in behavioral and electrophysiological measures were made between groups (OCD compared with control) and within the OCD group in terms of symptom clusters (symmetry, forbidden thoughts, and cleaning) and comorbidity status (OCD only and OCD with depression). Results: In the OCD group, the N2 component appeared more frontally localized compared with the control group. Participants with OCD demonstrated longer N2 latency and a larger difference in N2 between the nogo and go conditions, suggesting slower but greater conflict monitoring. P3 had a larger amplitude in the OCD group compared with the control group, indicative of greater response inhibition, but was also reduced in the nogo compared with go condition, suggesting suppressed response inhibition. No significant differences were found between symptom clusters, but patients with OCD only made more omission errors compared with patients with OCD and comorbid depression. The latter cohort also had faster P3 latencies, which, combined with the behavioral data, indicates slightly improved response inhibition when comorbid depression is found. Conclusions: On the basis of these results, it would seem unlikely that symptom clusters have contributed to previous inconsistencies in the literature. Comorbid depression, which may have affected previous results, should be considered in future research.
Education Sciences
Concerns about university students’ mental wellbeing have been rising and various studies have at... more Concerns about university students’ mental wellbeing have been rising and various studies have attempted to unpick the factors that could impact their wellbeing. This focus group study explored the impact that virtual learning environments (VLEs) may have on undergraduate students’ mental wellbeing. Forty-four undergraduate students from on-campus courses at three UK universities participated in 12 focus groups in 2020. Using reflexive thematic analysis with an inductive approach, three themes were generated: (1) lecturer VLE-use supports or undermines students’ mental wellbeing; (2) access to the VLE affects students’ productivity, academic performance, and mental wellbeing; and (3) students’ mindset towards the VLE impacts their studies and mental wellbeing. The dominant pattern across the data set was that the way lecturers used the VLE impacted students’ motivation, ability to think clearly about their studies, and could provoke strong emotions. We discuss how the mechanisms des...
Behavioral sciences, Feb 2, 2023
Journal of Participatory Research Methods
Inclusive research practice characterized by the involvement of neurodivergent people in meaningf... more Inclusive research practice characterized by the involvement of neurodivergent people in meaningful roles has been described as a “requirement of excellence” in neurodiversity research. This report describes a co-design process in partnership with a Community Advisory Board undertaken to develop a research study involving neurotypical and neurodivergent students as participants. From the formation of the partnership with seven Community Advisory Board members to the outcomes of the co-design process, this report details the methods associated with each step, as well as the benefits and challenges collated in collaboration with members of the Community Advisory Board. Opportunities for improvement in co-design for participatory neurodiversity research are suggested.
Review questions: (1) What is the impact of online educational practices on the learning experien... more Review questions: (1) What is the impact of online educational practices on the learning experience of neurotypical and neurodivergent students? (2) What is the effectiveness of online educational practices designed to improve educational outcomes, including retention, engagement markers from virtual learning environments, ease of use, as well as measures of focus, distraction, and course satisfaction? (3) Is the current evidence sufficient to inform practice when designing online learning for neurodivergent students? Searches: A comprehensive, electronic search for relevant literature will be performed on Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE), PubMed Central, Psychological Information Database (PsycInfo), The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Academic Search Complete, Scopus, and the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC), focusing on neurodiversity, specifically ADHD, ASD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, and Tourette syndrome (Clouder et al.,...
Additional file 3: Table S3. Within-subject contrasts for task reversal. Summary of within-subjec... more Additional file 3: Table S3. Within-subject contrasts for task reversal. Summary of within-subject contrasts for the significant main effect of day during task reversal, showing comparisons to the previous day. ι indicates a significant increase from the day before whilst β indicates a significant decrease.
Additional file 2: Table S2. Within-subject contrasts for task extinction. Summary of within-subj... more Additional file 2: Table S2. Within-subject contrasts for task extinction. Summary of within-subject contrasts for the significant main effect of day during task extinction, showing comparisons to the previous day. ι indicates a significant increase from the day before whilst β indicates a significant decrease.
Additional file 1: Table S1. Within-subject contrasts for task acquisition. Summary of within-sub... more Additional file 1: Table S1. Within-subject contrasts for task acquisition. Summary of within-subject contrasts for the significant main effect of day during task acquisition, showing comparisons to the previous day. ι indicates a significant increase from the day before whilst β indicates a significant decrease.
PLOS ONE, 2021
BackgroundCognitive enhancers (CE) are prescription drugs taken, either without a prescription or... more BackgroundCognitive enhancers (CE) are prescription drugs taken, either without a prescription or at a dose exceeding that which is prescribed, to improve cognitive functions such as concentration, vigilance or memory. Previous research suggests that users believe the drugs to be safer than non-users and that they have sufficient knowledge to judge safety. However, to date no research has compared the information sources used and safety knowledge of users and non-users.ObjectivesThis study compared users and non-users of CE in terms of i) their sources of knowledge about the safety of CE and ii) the accuracy of their knowledge of possible adverse effects of a typical cognitive enhancer (modafinil); and iii) how the accuracy of knowledge relates to their safety beliefs.MethodsStudents (N = 148) from King’s College London (UK) completed an anonymous online survey assessing safety beliefs, sources of knowledge and knowledge of the safety of modafinil; and indicated whether they used CE...
The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 2019
Objective: Response inhibition has been frequently studied in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)... more Objective: Response inhibition has been frequently studied in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with mixed results. The inconsistent findings may stem in part from failure to consider the heterogeneity of the disorder. The authors examined behavioral and eventrelated potential (ERP) components (N2 and P3) during a simple response inhibition go/nogo task in a sample of patients with OCD (N548) and control subjects (N553). Comparisons in behavioral and electrophysiological measures were made between groups (OCD compared with control) and within the OCD group in terms of symptom clusters (symmetry, forbidden thoughts, and cleaning) and comorbidity status (OCD only and OCD with depression). Results: In the OCD group, the N2 component appeared more frontally localized compared with the control group. Participants with OCD demonstrated longer N2 latency and a larger difference in N2 between the nogo and go conditions, suggesting slower but greater conflict monitoring. P3 had a larger amplitude in the OCD group compared with the control group, indicative of greater response inhibition, but was also reduced in the nogo compared with go condition, suggesting suppressed response inhibition. No significant differences were found between symptom clusters, but patients with OCD only made more omission errors compared with patients with OCD and comorbid depression. The latter cohort also had faster P3 latencies, which, combined with the behavioral data, indicates slightly improved response inhibition when comorbid depression is found. Conclusions: On the basis of these results, it would seem unlikely that symptom clusters have contributed to previous inconsistencies in the literature. Comorbid depression, which may have affected previous results, should be considered in future research.
Journal of Information Literacy, 2018
By 'open access' to this literature, we mean its free availability on the public internet, permit... more By 'open access' to this literature, we mean its free availability on the public internet, permitting any users to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of these articles, crawl them for indexing, pass them as data to software, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without financial, legal, or technical barriers other than those inseparable from gaining access to the internet itself. The only constraint on reproduction and distribution, and the only role for copyright in this domain, should be to give authors control over the integrity of their work and the right to be properly acknowledged and cited."
Education and Information Technologies, 2018
The aim of this study was to better understand how students use online forums and Twitter in unde... more The aim of this study was to better understand how students use online forums and Twitter in undergraduate learning. Students completed an anonymous online survey (N = 50, 54% completion rate) to assess their general approach to these tools, the types of interaction experienced and specific uses. Students were also asked to relate their use to categories of learning outcomes and rate the importance of different factors in using each tool. The study demonstrates more students use forums than Twitter but that both tools provide support for learning outcomes aimed at increasing knowledge and understanding and key skills. Furthermore, they do this differently; Twitter provides access to news media and those outside their programme whilst forums support discussion with peers. Different factors predicted how highly each tool was rated but in most cases, a key factor was whether students felt that use of a tool would increase their grade, indicating that assessment outcomes are strongly linked to use of both tools, despite them differing in terms of interactions and specific uses. The study has several limitations including a relatively small sample size and lack of detail about exact types of resources accessed and forum structures used. Keywords Undergraduate . Learning outcomes . Social media . Twitter . Online discussion forums The advent of the internet and the various technological tools that have arisen as a consequence of it, have increased the ability we have to support and expand social learning, that is socially constructed learning that arises through participation in
Journal of Psychopharmacology, 2017
The mechanism of action of psychostimulant drugs in the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactiv... more The mechanism of action of psychostimulant drugs in the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is still largely unknown, although recent evidence suggests one possibility is that the drugs affect the superior colliculus (SC). We have previously demonstrated that systemically administered d-amphetamine attenuates/abolishes visual responses to wholefield light flashes in the superficial layers of the SC in anaesthetised rats, and the present study sought to extend this work to methylphenidate (MPH). Anaesthetised rats were administered MPH at a range of doses (or saline) and subjected to monocular wholefield light flashes at two intensities, juxta-threshold and super-threshold. In contrast to d-amphetamine, systemic MPH produced an enhancement of visual activity at both intensities. Methylphenidate was also found to produce activation of the cortical EEG in anaesthetised rats. Furthermore, cortical activation induced by electrical stimulation of the pons was found to en...
Journal of undergraduate neuroscience education : JUNE : a publication of FUN, Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience, 2008
The majority of undergraduate students studying for a science degree will at some point carry out... more The majority of undergraduate students studying for a science degree will at some point carry out experiments in a laboratory setting, thus developing their practical skills and understanding of experimental principles. For distance learning students, there is no laboratory setting available for them to complete such work and as such there is a risk that they will lack these key skills. The Open University has developed a computerized tool, in the form of a Digital Microscope, to allow students to collect data to investigate the effects of drugs of abuse on different regions of the rat brain. Small groups of students were set a specific hypothesis to investigate, in this instance students were looking at the differential effects of cocaine and amphetamine on the caudate putamen. Using the microscope students counted the number of Fos positive cells in the caudate putamen to contribute to a group data set. Tutors collated the data from all students in the group and returned the full ...
The Neuroscientist, 2010
As a relatively young science, neuroscience is still finding its feet in potential collaborations... more As a relatively young science, neuroscience is still finding its feet in potential collaborations with other disciplines. One such discipline is education, with the field of neuroeducation being on the horizon since the 1960s. However, although its achievements are now growing, the partnership has not been as successful as first hopes suggested it should be. Here the authors discuss the theoretical barriers and potential solutions to this, which have been suggested previously, with particular focus on levels of research in neuroscience and their applicability to education. Moreover, they propose that these theoretical barriers are driven and maintained by practical barriers surrounding common language and research literacy. They propose that by overcoming these practical barriers through appropriate training and shared experience, neuroeducation can reach its full potential.
Science, 2005
Unexpected, biologically salient stimuli elicit a short-latency, phasic response in midbrain dopa... more Unexpected, biologically salient stimuli elicit a short-latency, phasic response in midbrain dopaminergic (DA) neurons. Although this signal is important for reinforcement learning, the information it conveys to forebrain target structures remains uncertain. One way to decode the phasic DA signal would be to determine the perceptual properties of sensory inputs to DA neurons. After local disinhibition of the superior colliculus in anesthetized rats, DA neurons became visually responsive, whereas disinhibition of the visual cortex was ineffective. As the primary source of visual afferents, the limited processing capacities of the colliculus may constrain the visual information content of phasic DA responses.
Uploads
Papers by Eleanor Dommett