Alfred W Kaszniak

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Scholarly Contributions

Chapters

• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014). Contemplative pedagogy: Perspectives from cognitive and affective science. In Contemplative learning and inquiry across disciplines(pp 197-211). New York: State University of New York Press.
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  O. Gunnlaugson, E.W. Sarath, C. Scott & H. Bai, (Eds.)
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014). Preface. In Dialectical behavior therapy for wellness and recovery: Interventions and Activities for Diverse Client Needs(pp ix-xi). New York: Wiley.
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  by Andrew Bein
• Bondi, M., Salmon, D., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2009). The neuropsychology of dementia. Oxford University Press.
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  Scholarly review chapter on current neuropsychological research concerning dementia;Your Role: Co-author;Full Citation: Bondi, M., Salmon, D., & Kaszniak, A.W. (2009) The neuropsychology of dementia. In I. Grant, & K. Adams (Eds.), Neuropsychological Assessment of Neuropsychiatric & Neuromedical Disorders (pp. 159-198). New York: Oxford University Press.;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: Colleagues at UCSD;
• Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2007). Conceptual, theoretical, and methodological issues in inferring subjective emotional experience: Recommendations for researchers. Oxford University Press.
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  ;Your Role: co-author of review and theory scholarly chapter;Full Citation: Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A.W. (2007). Conceptual, theoretical, and methodological issues in inferring subjective emotional experience: Recommendations for researchers. In J.J.B. Allen & J. Coan (Eds.), The Handbook of Emotion Elicitation and Assessment(pp. 361-375). New York: Oxford University Press.;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: Collaborator in an NIH project officer and former graduate student.;
• Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2006). Conceptual, theoretical, and methodological issues in inferring subjective emotional experience: Recommendations for researchers.. Oxford University Press.
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  Chapter reviews theory and empirical research on the measurement of self-reported subjective emotional experience.;Your Role: co-author of scholarly chapter reviewing empirical research and theory.;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;

Journals/Publications

• O'Connor, M., Arizmendi, B., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2014). Virtually supportive: a feasibility pilot study of an online support group for dementia caregivers in a 3D virtual environment. Journal of Aging Studies, 30, 87-93.
• Burns, C. M., Chen, K., Kaszniak, A. W., Lee, W., Alexander, G. E., Bandy, D., Fleisher, A. S., Caselli, R. J., & Reiman, E. M. (2013). Higher serum glucose levels are associated with cerebral hypometabolism in Alzheimer regions. Neurology, 80(17), 1557-1564.
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  PMID: 23535495;PMCID: PMC3662330;Abstract: Objective: To investigate whether higher fasting serum glucose levels in cognitively normal, nondiabetic adults were associated with lower regional cerebral metabolic rate for glucose (rCMRgl) in brain regions preferentially affected by Alzheimer disease (AD). Methods: This is a cross-sectional study of 124 cognitively normal persons aged 64 ± 6 years with a first-degree family history of AD, including 61 APOE&4 noncarriers and 63 carriers. An automated brain mapping algorithm characterized and compared correlations between higher fasting serum glucose levels and lower [18F]- fluorodeoxyglucose-PET rCMRgl measurements. Results: As predicted, higher fasting serum glucose levels were significantly correlated with lower rCMRgl and were confined to the vicinity of brain regions preferentially affected by AD. A similar pattern of regional correlations occurred in the APOE&4 noncarriers and carriers. Conclusions: Higher fasting serum glucose levels in cognitively normal, nondiabetic adults may be associated with AD pathophysiology. Findings suggest that the risk imparted by higher serum glucose levels may be independent of APOE&4 status. This study raises additional questions about the role of the metabolic process in the predisposition to AD and supports the possibility of targeting these processes in presymptomatic AD trials. © 2013 American Academy of Neurology.
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Kligman, E. (2013). Hospice care for patients with dementia. Arizona Geriatrics Society Journal, 18(2), 23-24.
• Rushton, C. H., Kaszniak, A. W., & Halifax, J. S. (2013). A framework for understanding moral distress among palliative care clinicians. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 16(9), 1074-1079.
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  PMID: 23777328;Abstract: Background: Palliative care clinicians confront suffering as they care for people living with life-limiting conditions. When the degree of suffering becomes unjustified, moral distress can ensue. Promising work from neuroscience and social psychology has yet to be applied to clinical practice. Objective: Our objective was to expand a social psychology model focusing on empathy and compassion in response to suffering to include an ethical dimension and to examine how the interrelationships of its proposed components can assist clinicians in understanding their responses to morally distressing situations. Analysis: In the clinical context, responses to distressing events are thought to include four dimensions: empathy (emotional attunement), perspective taking (cognitive attunement), memory (personal experience), and moral sensitivity (ethical attunement). These dynamically intertwined dimensions create the preconditions for how clinicians respond to a triggering event instigated by an ethical conflict or dilemma. We postulate that if the four dimensions are highly aligned, the intensity and valence of emotional arousal will influence ethical appraisal and discernment by engaging a robust view of the ethical issues, conflicts, and possible solutions and cultivating compassionate action and resilience. In contrast, if they are not, ethical appraisal and discernment will be deficient, creating emotional disregulation and potentially leading to personal and moral distress, self-focused behaviors, unregulated moral outrage, burnout, and secondary stress. Conclusion: The adaptation and expansion of a conceptual framework offers a promising approach to designing interventions that help clinicians mitigate the detrimental consequences of unregulated moral distress and to build the resilience necessary to sustain themselves in clinical service. © 2013 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
• Rushton, C. H., Kaszniak, A. W., & Halifax, J. S. (2013). Addressing moral distress: Application of a framework to palliative care practice. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 16(9), 1080-1088.
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  PMID: 23930918;Abstract: Background: Moral distress is a pervasive reality of palliative care practice. An existing framework for understanding it has been proposed as a way to begin to address moral distress's detrimental effects on clinicians. Objective: The objective was to illustrate the application of this adapted conceptual framework to a clinical case and to offer recommendations for enlarging the professional repertoire for responding to challenging cases involving moral distress. Analysis: In the clinical case, clinicians are expected to respond to the patient's suffering based on four factors: empathy (emotional attunement), perspective taking (cognitive attunement), memory (personal experience), and moral sensitivity (ethical attunement). Each of these interrelated and iterative factors may become activated as clinicians care for patients with life-limiting conditions. This creates the foundations for clinicians' responses. When responses risk becoming aversive in the face of moral dilemmas, strategies are needed to foster principled compassion instead of unregulated moral outrage. A number of cognitive, attentional, affective, and somatic approaches derived from contemplative traditions are consistent with the framework. Combined with a systems-focused approach that incorporates organizational factors, they offer a means of improving professional repertoires for responding to difficult situations. Conclusion: Application of the proposed framework to a clinical case provides opportunities for understanding mechanisms of response that may be amenable to intervention and for suggesting appropriate alternative strategies and practices. A full understanding of the process can help to mitigate or to avoid the progression of distress and concurrently to appraise the situation that leads to moral distress or moral outrage. © 2013 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Menchola, M. (2012). Behavioral neuroscience of emotion in aging. Current Topics in Behavioral Neuroscience, 10, 51-66.
• Levy, D. M., Wobbrock, J. O., Kaszniak, A. W., & Ostergren, M. (2012). The effects of mindfulness meditation training on multitasking in a high-stress information environment. Proceedings - Graphics Interface, 45-52.
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  Abstract: We describe an experiment to determine the effects of meditation training on the multitasking behavior of knowledge workers. Three groups each of 12-15 human resources personnel were tested: (1) those who underwent an 8-week training course on mindfulness-based meditation, (2) those who endured a wait period, were tested, and then underwent the same 8-week training, and (3) those who had 8-weeks of training in body relaxation. We found that only those trained in meditation stayed on tasks longer and made fewer task switches, as well as reporting less negative emotion after task performance, as compared with the other two groups. In addition, both the meditation and the relaxation groups showed improved memory for the tasks they performed.
• Levy, D. M., Wobbrock, J. O., Kaszniak, A. W., & Ostergren, M. (2011). Initial results from a study of the effects of meditation on multitasking performance. Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings, 2011-2016.
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  Abstract: This paper reports initial results from a study exploring whether training in meditation or relaxation can improve office workers' ability to multitask on a computer more effectively and/or with less stress. Human resource (HR) personnel were given 8 weeks of training in either mindfulness meditation or body relaxation techniques, and were given a stressful multitasking test both before and after training. (A third group, a control group, received no intervention during the 8-week period but was tested both before and after this period.) Results indicate that overall task time and errors did not differ significantly among the three groups. However, the meditation group reported lower levels of stress and showed better memory for the tasks they had performed; they also switched tasks less often and remained focused on tasks longer.
• O'Donnell, R., & Kaszniak, A. (2011). Charting late-life affective disorders. Generations, 35(2), 46-57.
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  Abstract: Affective disorders among elders, including depression and anxiety, are more prevalent than previously believed, and can result in increased social isolation, frailty, severity of illness, and even mortality. Although there is an abundance of research regarding mood and anxiety disorders among the general population, empirical investigations of these disorders in older populations is limited. This article provides a brief overview of recent research, with an emphasis on research reviews and meta-analyses of depression and anxiety disorders among older adults, and considers signs and symptoms, prevalence, biological and cognitive correlates, risk factors, assessment, and treatment. © 2011 American Society on Aging; all rights reserved.
• B., J., Chen, K., Caselli, R. J., Lee, W., Reschke, C., Bandy, D., Alexander, G. E., Burns, C. M., Kaszniak, A. W., Reeder, S. A., Corneveaux, J. J., Allen, A. N., Pruzin, J., Huentelman, M. J., Fleisher, A. S., & Reiman, E. M. (2010). Hypometabolism in Alzheimer-affected brain regions in cognitively healthy latino individuals carrying the apolipoprotein E ε4 allele. Archives of Neurology, 67(4), 462-468.
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  PMID: 20385913;PMCID: PMC2943432;Abstract: Objective: To investigate with fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography whether regional reductions in the cerebral metabolic rate for glucose (CMRgl) previously found in cognitively healthy latemiddle-aged apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 carriers extend to members of the Latino Mexican American community. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: Banner Alzheimer's Institute, Phoenix, Arizona. Patients or Other Participants: Eleven APOE ε4 carriers and 16 noncarriers from Arizona's Latino community (mean [SD] age, 54.6 [6.4] years) matched for sex, mean age, and educational level and who were predominantly of self-designated Mexican origin. Main Outcome Measure: A brain mapping algorithm was used to compare cross-sectional regional CMRgl in Latino APOE ε4 carriers vs noncarriers. Results: Participant groups had similar distributions for age, sex, education, family history of dementia, clinical ratings, and neuropsychological test scores. Latino APOE ε4 carriers had lower CMRgl than the noncarriers in the posterior cingulate, precuneus, and parietal regions previously found to be preferentially affected in patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) and cognitively healthy non-Latino APOE ε4 carriers. Additionally, the Latino APOE ε4 carriers had lower CMRgl in the middle and anterior cingulate cortex, hippocampus, and thalamus. Conclusions: This study provides support for the relationship between APOE ε4 and risk of AD in Latino individuals. It illustrates the role of positron emission tomography as a presymptomatic endophenotype for the assessment of AD risk factors and supports the inclusion of Latino APOE ε4 carriers in proof-of-concept studies using fluorodeoxyglucose PET to evaluate promising presymptomatic treatments in cognitively healthy carriers of this common AD susceptibility gene. ©2010 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
• Drag, L. I., Bieliauskas, L. A., Kaszniak, A. W., Bohnen, N. I., & Glisky, E. L. (2009). Source memory and frontal functioning in Parkinson's disease. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 15(3), 399-406.
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  PMID: 19402926;PMCID: PMC2735205;Abstract: The most extensively described pathological abnormality in Parkinson's disease (PD) is loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta and the ventral tegmental area, with degeneration of their striatal terminals. Because of the intimate connections between the striatum and the frontal lobes, individuals with PD often demonstrate impairments on those tasks relying on the prefrontal cortex (e.g., tests of executive functioning). Source memory, or memory for context, is believed to rely on the prefrontal cortex and has been previously associated with executive functioning performance, although it has received little attention in the PD literature. Executive functioning and source memory were measured in a group of nondemented PD patients and healthy control participants. Within the PD group, an anti-Parkinson's medication withdrawal manipulation was used to examine whether source memory was affected by phasic changes in dopamine levels. Compared to healthy control participants, PD patients were impaired in source memory (both on- and off-medication) and on a composite measure of executive functioning. Within the PD group, medication administration improved motor performance but did not have a significant effect on source memory. © 2009 The International Neuropsychological Society.
• Drag, L. L., Bieliauskas, L. A., Kaszniak, A. W., Bohnen, N. I., & Glisky, E. L. (2009). Source memory and frontal functioning in Parkinson's disease. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society.
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  Report of empirical study.;Your Role: Co-author;Full Citation: Drag, L.L., Bieliauskas, L.A., Kaszniak, A.W., Bohnen, N.I., & Glisky, E.L. (2009). Source memory and frontal functioning in Parkinson's disease. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 15, 399-406.;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member in unit: Yes;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: One author is colleague at University of Michigan;
• Griffin-Pierce, T., Silverberg, N., Connor, D., Jim, M., Peters, J., Kaszniak, A., & Sabbagh, M. N. (2008). Challenges to the recognition and assessment of Alzheimer's disease in American Indians of the southwestern United States. Alzheimer's and Dementia, 4(4), 291-299.
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  PMID: 18631981;PMCID: PMC2743332;Abstract: Little is known about Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related neurodegenerative diseases in American Indian (AI) populations. To provide appropriate health care to elder AIs, whose population is expected to increase dramatically during the next 50 years, it is imperative to attain a better understanding of the interaction of culture and disease in this underserved population. Raising awareness in the AI population regarding the nature of dementia as it compares to normal aging and the development of culturally appropriate instruments to detect and stage AD are essential for future health care efforts. Barriers restricting clinical service to this population include historical factors relating to access to health care, cultural beliefs regarding aging, demographic diversity of the population, competing epidemiologic risk factors, and lack of proper assessment tools for clinicians. © 2008 The Alzheimer's Association.
• Milman, L. H., Holland, A., Kaszniak, A. W., D'Agostino, J., Garrett, M., & Rapcsak, S. (2008). Initial validity and reliability of the SCCAN: Using tailored testing to assess adult cognition and communication. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 51(1), 49-69.
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  PMID: 18230855;Abstract: Purpose: The Scales of Cognitive and Communicative Ability for Neurorehabilitation (SCCAN; L. Milman & A. Holland, 2007) was developed in the hospital setting to address changes in assessment practice. The SCCAN was designed to provide an overview of impairment and activity limitations across 8 cognitive scales (Speech Comprehension, Oral Expression, Reading, Writing, Orientation, Attention, Memory, and Problem Solving). The scales were developed using item response theory so that tailored testing could be implemented to reduce test administration time. This research investigated the validity and reliability of the SCCAN. Method: A battery of neuropsychological tests was administered to 40 neurologically healthy control participants and 51 participants diagnosed with left-hemisphere pathology, right-hemisphere pathology, or probable Alzheimer's disease. Analyses were performed to assess test sensitivity and specificity, construct validity, administration time, and reliability. Results: The test accurately classified 95% of the control participants and 98% of the participants diagnosed with neurological disorders. Results indicate that the test also differentiated the performance profiles of the 3 clinical populations. In addition, test scores correlated significantly with external measures of the same cognitive areas. Mean administration time was 34 min. Test-retest stability (r = .96, p < .001) and internal consistency (r = .99, p < .001) coefficients were both significant, indicating that tailored testing procedures generated reliable test scores. © American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
• Milman, L. H., Holland, A., Kaszniak, A. W., D'Agostino, J., Garrett, M., & Rapcsak, S. R. (2008). Initial validity and reliability of the SCCAN: Using tailored testing to assess adult cognition and communication. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research.
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  This paper describes the development and validation of a new screening instrument to assess cognitive and communicative functioning in adults with neurological disease or damage.;Your Role: Co-author of paper; Collaborated in development of measures, data analysis, and write-up;Full Citation: Milman, L.H., Holland, A., Kaszniak, A.W., D'Agostino, J., Garrett, M., & Rapcsak, S.R. (2008). Initial validity and reliability of the SCCAN: Using tailored testing to assess adult cognition and communication. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 51, 49-69.;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member in unit: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;
• Silverberg, ., Jim, ., Connor, ., Jim, ., Peters, ., Kaszniak, ., & Sabbagh, . (2008). Challenges to the recognition and assessment of dementia in American Indians of the Southwestern United States. Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association.
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  Paper describes rational, development, and initial observations on the neuropsychological assessment of American Indian persons who may have a dementing illness (e.g., Alzheimer's disease);Your Role: Co-author of paper; Collaborated in selection of neuropsychological assessment instruments and their interpretation.;Full Citation: Griffin-Pierce, T., Silverberg, N., Jim, M., Connor, D., Jim, M., Peters, J., Kaszniak, A.W., & Sabbagh, M. (2008). Challenges to the recognition and assessment of dementia in American Indians of the Southwestern United States. Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 4, 291-199.;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: The senior author was a UA faculty member in Anthropology; The other co-authors were from either t-GEN or Sun Health Research Institute (member institutions in the Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium);
• Burton, K., & Kaszniak, A. (2006). Emotional experience and facial expression in Alzheimer's disease. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 13(3-4), 636-651.
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  PMID: 16887793;Abstract: Emotional experiences and facial muscle activity of individuals with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) (n = 13) and healthy elderly control subjects (n = 21) were measured while viewing emotion-eliciting images. Alzheimer's disease and control groups rated their emotional experiences similarly and in the expected directions on dimensions of valence and arousal. Change in corrugator activity while viewing images, compared to baseline, was comparable across groups and was greatest while viewing negative images. Change in zygomatic activity, however, was significantly different between AD and control groups, with AD subjects demonstrating an inverted pattern of activity compared to controls. These findings are discussed as possible consequences of frontal cortical system involvement accompanying the disease process. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
• Burton, K., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2006). Emotional experience and facial muscle activity in Alzheimer's disease. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition.
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  Paper describes empirical psychophysiological study of emotion experience and physiology in healthy elderly versus persons with Alzheimer's disease.;Your Role: Collaborated with student in experiment design, statistical analysis and interpretation of data, and writing of paper.;Full Citation: Burton, K., & Kaszniak, A.W. (2006). Emotional experience and facial muscle activity in Alzheimer's disease. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 13, 636-651.;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;
• Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2006). Awareness of subtle emotional feelings: A comparison of long-term meditators and non-meditators. Emotion.
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  Paper describes an empirical study of subjective and physiological emotion response in long-term Zen and Vipassana meditators vs non-meditator healthy adults.;Your Role: Collaborated with student in design of experiment, selection of dependent measures, statistical analyses of psychophysiological and self-report data, data interpretation, and writing of paper.;Full Citation: Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A.W. (2006). Awareness of subtle emotional feelings: A comparison of long-term meditators and non-meditators. Emotion, 6, 392-405. ;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;
• Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2006). Awareness of subtle emotional feelings: A comparison of long-term meditators and nonmeditators. Emotion, 6(3), 392-405.
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  PMID: 16938081;Abstract: The authors explored whether meditation training to enhance emotional awareness improves discrimination of subtle emotional feelings hypothesized to guide decision-making. Long-term meditators and nonmeditators were compared on measures of self-reported valence and arousal, skin conductance response (SCR), and facial electromyography (EMG) to masked and nonmasked emotional pictures, and on measures of heartbeat detection and self-reported emotional awareness. Groups responded similarly to nonmasked pictures. In the masked condition, only controls showed discrimination in valence self-reports. However, meditators reported greater emotional clarity than controls, and meditators with higher clarity had reduced arousal and improved valence discrimination in the masked condition. These findings provide qualified support for the somatic marker hypothesis and suggest that meditation may influence how emotionally ambiguous information is processed, regulated, and represented in conscious awareness. Copyright 2006 by the American Psychological Association.
• Quan, S. F., Wright, R., Baldwin, C. M., Kaemengk, K. L., Goodwin, J. L., Kuo, T. F., Kaszniak, A. W., Boland, L., Caccappolo, E., & Bootzin, R. R. (2006). Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea and neurocognitive functioning in the Sleep Heart Health Study. Sleep Medicine.
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  Paper describes an empirical study of the relationship between neuropsychological test performance and sleep-related respiratory difficulties in adults.;Your Role: Collaborated in selection of neuropsychological assessment instruments, interpretation of data analyses, and writing of paper.;Full Citation: Quan, S.F., Wright, R., Baldwin, C.M., Kaemengk, K.L., Goodwin, J.L., Kuo, T.F., Kaszniak, A.W., Boland, L., Caccappolo, E., & Bootzin, R.R. (2006). Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea and neurocognitive functioning in the Sleep Heart Health Study. Sleep Medicine, 7, 498-507. ;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;
• Quan, S. F., Wright, R., Baldwin, C. M., Kaemingk, K. L., Goodwin, J. L., Kuo, T. F., Kaszniak, A., Boland, L. L., Caccappolo, E., & Bootzin, R. R. (2006). Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea and neurocognitive functioning in the Sleep Heart Health Study. Sleep Medicine, 7(6), 498-507.
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  PMID: 16815753;Abstract: Background and purpose: Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea (OSAH) is associated with sleep fragmentation and nocturnal hypoxemia. In clinical samples, patients with OSAH frequently are found to have deficits in neuropsychological function. However, the nature and severity of these abnormalities in non-clinical populations is less well defined. Patients and methods: One hundred and forty-one participants from the Tucson, AZ and New York, NY field centers of the Sleep Heart Health Study completed a battery of neuropsychological tests for 9-40 months (mean=24 months, SD=7 months) after an unattended home polysomnogram. Sixty-seven participants had OSAH (AHI>10) and 74 did not have OSAH (control (CTL), apnea-hypopnea index (AHI)
• Kaszniak, A., O'Connor, M., Allen, J. J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2005). Emotional disclosure for whom? A study of vagal tone in bereavement. Biological psychology, 68(2).
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  Recent investigations have shown little evidence that written disclosure benefits bereaved individuals over a control condition. The present study hypothesized that the effectiveness of written disclosure for bereavement may be moderated by vagal tone, as indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). Vagal tone has been identified as an important individual difference in depression. The present study investigated 35 bereaved participants in a longitudinal design, with participants writing each week for 3 weeks, and then participating in follow-up sessions 1 week and 1 month later. As with previous studies, bereaved participants showed improvement, although no differential improvement was seen in the emotional Disclosure group compared to a Control writing group. As hypothesized, however, those participants with the highest RSA benefited most from the written disclosure, while RSA level did not predict outcome in the control condition. Future research should investigate whether vagal tone moderates the impact of written disclosure for non-bereaved individuals.
• Kaszniak, A., Pannu, J. K., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2005). Metamemory experiments in neurological populations: a review. Neuropsychology review, 15(3).
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  Metamemory refers to knowledge about one's memory capabilities and strategies that can aid memory, as well as the processes involved in memory self-monitoring. Although metamemory has been studied in cognitive psychology for several decades, there have been fewer studies investigating the neuropsychology of metamemory. In recent years, a growing number of studies of neurological patient groups have been conducted in order to investigate the neural correlates of metamemory. In this review, we examine the neuropsychological evidence that the frontal lobes are critically involved in monitoring and control processes, which are the central components of metamemory. The following conclusions are drawn from this literature: (1) There is a strong correlation between indices of frontal lobe function or structural integrity and metamemory accuracy (2) The combination of frontal lobe dysfunction and poor memory severely impairs metamemorial processes (3) Metamemory tasks vary in subject performance levels, and quite likely, in the underlying processes these different tasks measure, and (4) Metamemory, as measured by experimental tasks, may dissociate from basic memory retrieval processes and from global judgments of memory.
• O'Connor, M., Allen, J. J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2005). Emotional disclosure for whom? A study of vagal tone in bereavement. Biological Psychology, 68(2), 135-146.
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  PMID: 15450693;Abstract: Recent investigations have shown little evidence that written disclosure benefits bereaved individuals over a control condition. The present study hypothesized that the effectiveness of written disclosure for bereavement may be moderated by vagal tone, as indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). Vagal tone has been identified as an important individual difference in depression. The present study investigated 35 bereaved participants in a longitudinal design, with participants writing each week for 3 weeks, and then participating in follow-up sessions 1 week and 1 month later. As with previous studies, bereaved participants showed improvement, although no differential improvement was seen in the emotional Disclosure group compared to a Control writing group. As hypothesized, however, those participants with the highest RSA benefited most from the written disclosure, while RSA level did not predict outcome in the control condition. Future research should investigate whether vagal tone moderates the impact of written disclosure for non-bereaved individuals. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
• Pannu, J. K., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2005). Metamemory experiments in neurological populations: A review. Neuropsychology Review, 15(3), 105-130.
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  PMID: 16328731;Abstract: Metamemory refers to knowledge about one's memory capabilities and strategies that can aid memory, as well as the processes involved in memory self-monitoring. Although metamemory has been studied in cognitive psychology for several decades, there have been fewer studies investigating the neuropsychology of metamemory. In recent years, a growing number of studies of neurological patient groups have been conducted in order to investigate the neural correlates of metamemory. In this review, we examine the neuropsychological evidence that the frontal lobes are critically involved in monitoring and control processes, which are the central components of metamemory. The following conclusions are drawn from this literature: (1) There is a strong correlation between indices of frontal lobe function or structural integrity and metamemory accuracy (2) The combination of frontal lobe dysfunction and poor memory severely impairs metamemorial processes (3) Metamemory tasks vary in subject performance levels, and quite likely, in the underlying processes these different tasks measure, and (4) Metamemory, as measured by experimental tasks, may dissociate from basic memory retrieval processes and from global judgments of memory. © 2005 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.
• Pannu, J. K., Kaszniak, A. W., & Rapcsak, S. Z. (2005). Metamemory for faces following frontal lobe damage. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 11(6), 668-676.
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  PMID: 16248902;Abstract: Previous research has provided evidence of metamemory impairments in patients with frontal lobe damage on verbal episodic memory tasks. In the present study, we employed metamemory paradigms to investigate whether patients with frontal lesions show monitoring deficits on semantic memory tasks involving facial stimuli. Patients with frontal lobe damage and healthy control subjects made memory decisions to famous faces in a retrospective confidence judgment task and in a prospective feeling-of-knowing (FOK) task. Results indicated that frontal patients performed worse than controls on the retrospective confidence task, but there were no differences between the groups on the FOK task. These findings suggest that metamemory deficits in frontal patients are not confined to specific stimulus domains (words vs. faces) or memory systems (episodic vs. semantic). In addition, the dissociation between retrospective confidence judgments and FOK accuracy documented in this study and also in a recent report by Schnyer et al. suggesting that metamemory should not be considered a unitary function with a single neuroanatomic substrate. Copyright © 2005 INS.
• Schaie, K. W., I., G., Revell, A. J., Willis, S. L., Kaszniak, A. W., & Teri, L. (2005). Extending neuropsychological assessments into the primary mental ability space. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 12(3), 245-277.
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  Abstract: A battery of 17 neuropsychological tests (including the CERAD battery) and 17 psychometric ability tests were administered to a sample of 499 participants of the Seattle Longitudinal study who had been given the psychometric ability tests seven and 14 years earlier. The neuropsychological tests were projected into a 5-factor psychometric ability space by means of extension analysis. The concurrent regressions of the neuropsychology tests on the psychometric ability tests were then used to estimate neuropsychology test scores from the psychometric ability tests administered in 1984, 1991 and 1998. Neuropsychologists then rated the study participants as either normal, suspect or cognitively impaired in 1998. Changes in estimated test scores were computed over seven and fourteen years. Significant odds ratios between normal and cognitively impaired groups were found for all neuropsychological tests over the proximal period and for most tests over the 14-year period. Similar findings occurred for the odds ratios between the normal and suspect groups for the most proximal 7-year changes. Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis, Inc.
• Trujillo, L. T., Peterson, M. A., Kaszniak, A. W., & Allen, J. J. (2005). EEG phase synchrony differences across visual perception conditions may depend on recording and analysis methods. Clinical Neurophysiology, 116(1), 172-189.
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  PMID: 15589196;Abstract: Objective: (1) To investigate the neural synchrony hypothesis by examining if there was more synchrony for upright than inverted Mooney faces, replicating a previous study; (2) to investigate whether inverted stimuli evoke neural synchrony by comparing them to a new scrambled control condition, less likely to produce face perception. Methods: Multichannel EEG was recorded via nose reference while participants viewed upright, inverted, and scrambled Mooney face stimuli. Gamma-range spectral power and inter-electrode phase synchrony were calculated via a wavelet-based method for upright stimuli perceived as faces and inverted/scrambled stimuli perceived as non-faces. Results: When the frequency of interest was selected from the upright condition exhibiting maximal spectral power responses (as in the previous study) greater phase synchrony was found in the upright than inverted/scrambled conditions. However, substantial synchrony was present in all conditions, suggesting that choosing the frequency of interest from the upright condition only may have been biased. In addition, artifacts related to nose reference contamination by micro-saccades were found to be differentially present across experimental conditions in the raw EEG. When frequency of interest was selected instead from each experimental condition and the data were transformed to a laplacian 'reference free' derivation, the between-condition phase synchrony differences disappeared. Spectral power differences were robust to the change in reference, but not the combined changes in reference and frequency selection criteria. Conclusions: Synchrony differences between face/non-face perceptions depend upon frequency selection and recording reference. Optimal selection of these parameters abolishes differential synchrony between conditions. Significance: Neural synchrony is present not just for face percepts for upright stimuli, but also for non-face percepts achieved for inverted/scrambled Mooney stimuli. © 2004 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
• Reminger, S. L., Kaszniak, A. W., Labiner, D. M., Littrell, L. D., David, B. T., Ryan, L., Herring, A. M., & Kaemingk, K. L. (2004). Bilateral hippocampal volume predicts verbal memory function in temporal lobe epilepsy. Epilepsy and Behavior, 5(5), 687-695.
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  PMID: 15380120;Abstract: The present study used quantitative volume estimates of the hippocampus based on structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to predict memory performance of individuals with epilepsy of temporal lobe origin (TLE). Twenty individuals with TLE completed standardized neuropsychological tests and a quality of life inventory, and participated in a brain MRI protocol designed to obtain high-resolution images of the hippocampus. The combined volume of the left and right hippocampi was found to be the best predictor of objective verbal memory performance. This finding is consistent with the functional adequacy model of hippocampal function. In contrast, the asymmetry between right and left hippocampal volume was the best predictor of subjective ratings of cognitive functioning, which is consistent with the functional reserve model. The collective and complementary functions of the left and right hippocampi merit further exploration in prospective studies of memory function and TLE. © 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
• Schnyer, D. M., Verfaellie, M., Alexander, M. P., LaFleche, G., Nicholls, L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2004). A role for right medial prefrontal cortex in accurate feeling-of-knowing judgments: Evidence from patients with lesions to frontal cortex. Neuropsychologia, 42(7), 957-966.
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  PMID: 14998710;Abstract: The hypothesis that prefrontal cortex plays a critical role in accurate predictions of episodic memory performance was tested using the feeling-of-knowing (FOK) paradigm. Fourteen patients with a broad spectrum of damage to the frontal cortex and matched controls read sentences and later were tested for recall memory, confidence judgments, and FOK accuracy using as cues the sentences with the final word missing. While frontal patients were impaired at recall and recognition memory, they were able to make accurate confidence judgments about their recall attempts. By contrast, as a group, the patients were markedly impaired in the accuracy of their prospective FOK judgments. Lesion analysis of frontal patients with clear FOK impairment revealed an overlapping region of damage in right medial prefrontal cortex. These findings provide functional and anatomical evidence for a dissociation between recall confidence and prospective memory monitoring and are discussed in terms of familiarity and access theories of FOK predictions. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
• Kaszniak, A., O'Connor, M., Allen, J. J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2002). Autonomic and emotion regulation in bereavement and depression. Journal of psychosomatic research, 52(4).
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  Prior research suggests important differences between depression and the depressed feelings experienced in the context of bereavement, despite some overlap. Differences include an increase in restlessness, suggesting underlying physiological differences between the groups.
• Keil, K., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2002). Examining executive function in individuals with brain injury: A review. Aphasiology, 16(3), 305-335.
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  Abstract: Background: Patients with aphasia resulting from a stroke may exhibit cognitive impairments in addition to their language disturbance. The ability to detect and quantify executive function impairment, in particular, may be critical to treating these patients. Furthermore, the effects of executive dysfunction on daily activities may interact with or amplify limitations due to their language disorder. Multiple measures exist in the clinical and research neuropsychological literatures for assessing executive function, however these vary in reliability, validity, and language demands. Aims: This review explores the definition of executive function, describes tests of executive function, and makes recommendations regarding their use in populations with language impairment. Initially a literature search was undertaken for reviews and empirical studies addressing the definition and measurement of executive function, as well as studies of cognitive function in patients with frontal lobe damage. Included in this review are tasks on which patients with frontal lesions showed impairments, activations were seen in neuroimaging studies, or which were developed for the purpose of tapping a cognitive process hypothesized to be an executive function. Main contribution: Studies of cognitive ability in those with aphasia are reviewed. Purported executive function tests are organized into a proposed substructure for grouping executive processes, and are evaluated for their usefulness in assessing those with aphasia. Tests that have been used hint at impairments in some individuals with aphasia, suggesting a need to look at correlation with severity of auditory comprehension and constructional praxis. Conclusions: Although few executive function tests are currently appropriate for use in a language-disordered population without modifications, many have potential. In order to advance our understanding of the construct of executive function, it is important to develop a clearer definition of the processes involved. In the meantime, the tests reviewed here may be helpful in assessing whether cognitive impairment exists in addition to the language dysfunction in those with aphasia.
• Laurance, H. E., Thomas, K. G., Newman, M. C., Kaszniak, A. W., Nadel, L., & Jacobs, W. J. (2002). Older adults map novel environments but do not place learn: Findings from a computerized spatial task. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 9(2), 85-97.
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  Abstract: The present study examined older adults' memory for the layout of a novel environment. Young and older adults were trained to find a visible or an invisible target located in a fixed place in a computer-generated (CG) space. All adults relocated a visible target equally well; however, young adults consistently relocated an invisible target whereas older adults did not. With extensive exposure to the CG environment, all adults recalled and reconstructed the layout of that spatial environment equally well. More importantly, however, young adults placed the invisible target within the layout correctly, but the older adults placed the target incorrectly. It is striking that older adults appear to acquire and retain a cognitive map of a novel CG environment despite their continued difficulty in remembering a location within their map.
• O'Connor, M., Allen, J. J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2002). Autonomic and emotion regulation in bereavement and depression. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 52(4), 183-185.
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  PMID: 11943236;Abstract: Objectives: Prior research suggests important differences between depression and the depressed feelings experienced in the context of bereavement, despite some overlap. Differences include an increase in restlessness, suggesting underlying physiological differences between the groups. Method: This study examined the level of depressive symptoms, heart rate (HR), and heart rate variability (HRV), and coping style of 10 bereaved, 10 depressed, and 10 control participants. Results: Bereaved participants showed significantly higher HR than either depressed or control participants, while there were no such differences in HRV. Level of depression in the bereaved group correlated negatively with HRV. Additional analyses showed that the use of passive coping had a marginally significant negative correlation with HRV in bereaved subjects. Conclusion: The present data suggest that differences in HR and HRV could be associated with increased cardiovascular fatalities in bereaved individuals, known as the "broken heart phenomenon." These physiological differences have potential implications for both the mental and physical health of the bereaved. © 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
• Newman, M. C., Allen, J. J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2001). Tasks for assessing memory for temporal order versus memory for items in aging. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 8(1), 72-78.
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  Abstract: Younger and older adults were compared on new tests for item and temporal memory suitable for use in future electrophysiological or neuroimaging studies. Following a series of 10 simple line drawings, 4-choice panels containing two previously seen targets and two novel distractors appeared. Participants identified which pictures had been seen previously (item), or which of the items was presented earliest (temporal order). Performance of younger adults was superior to that of older adults. Memory for item and temporal order were equivalent in the younger group. In contrast, the item memory of the older group was superior to memory for temporal order, confirming previous evidence of differential impairment of memory for temporal order with age.
• Rapcsak, S. Z., Nielsen, L., Littrell, L. D., Glisky, E. L., Kaszniak, A. W., & Laguna, J. F. (2001). Face memory impairments in patients with frontal lobe damage. Neurology, 57(7), 1168-1175.
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  PMID: 11591831;Abstract: Objective: To determine whether damage to prefrontal cortex is associated with face memory impairment. Background: Neurophysiologic and functional imaging studies suggest that prefrontal cortex is a key component of a distributed neural network that mediates face recognition memory. However, there have been few attempts to examine the impact of frontal lobe damage on face memory performance. Methods: Patients with focal frontal lobe lesions and normal control subjects were administered two-alternative forced-choice and single-probe "yes/no" tests of recognition memory for novel faces. Retrograde memory was assessed by using famous faces as stimuli. Results: Compared with control subjects, patients with frontal lobe lesions showed evidence of marked anterograde and relatively mild retrograde face memory impairment. In addition, patients with right frontal lesions demonstrated increased susceptibility to false recognition, consistent with the breakdown of strategic memory retrieval, monitoring, and decision functions. Conclusions: Prefrontal cortex plays an important role in the executive control of face memory encoding and retrieval. Left and right prefrontal regions seem to make different contributions to recognition memory performance.
• Duke, L. M., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2000). Executive control functions in degenerative dementias: A comparative review. Neuropsychology Review, 10(2), 75-99.
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  PMID: 10937917;Abstract: This paper reviews the literature concerning executive control impairments in degenerative dementias. The construct of executive control functioning is examined, as is the neuroanatomy of frontal-subcortical networks, believed to underlie executive function (EF) impairments. The pattern of EF impairments in Alzheimer's disease (AD) which affects temporal and parietal brain regions most severely is contrasted with observed executive dysfunctions in patients with dementias involving degeneration of primarily frontal and frontal-subcortical brain areas. EF impairments are present in each of these types of dementing illnesses. Although EF impairments are present in AD, they are less prominent than the memory disorder in the neuropsychological profile of the disease and tend to become more pronounced later in the course of the illness. In contrast, patients with frontal or frontal-subcortical dementia may demonstrate executive dysfunction, which occurs earlier in the disease progression and may be initially more severe.
• Lane, R. D., Sechrest, L., Riedel, R., Shapiro, D. E., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2000). Pervasive emotion recognition deficit common to alexithymia and the repressive coping style. Psychosomatic Medicine, 62(4), 492-501.
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  PMID: 10949094;Abstract: Objective: Previous research has demonstrated a deficit in the ability to recognize emotions in alexithymic individuals. The repressive coping style is thought to preferentially impair the detection of unpleasant compared with pleasant emotions, and the degree of deficit is typically thought to be less severe than in alexithymia. We compared emotion recognition ability in both individuals with alexithymia and those with the repressive coping style. Methods: Three hundred seventy-nine subjects completed the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale, the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale, the Marlowe-Crowne Scale (a measure of repressive defensiveness), the Bendig Short Fore of the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale, and the Perception of Affect Task. The Perception of Affect Task consists of four 35-item emotion recognition subtasks: matching sentences and words, faces and words, sentences and faces, and faces and photographs of scenes. The stimuli in each subtask consist of seven emotions (happiness, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, surprise, and neutral) depicted five times each. Recognition accuracy results were collapsed across subtasks within each emotion category. Results: Highly alexithymic subjects (for all, p < .01) and those with low emotional awareness (for all, p < .001) were consistently less accurate in emotion recognition in all seven categories. Highly defensive subjects (including repressors) were less accurate in the detection of anger, sadness, fear, and happiness (for all, p < .05). Furthermore, scores on the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale accounted for significantly more variance in performance on the Perception of Affect Task than scores on the Marlowe-Crowne Scale (p < .01). Conclusions: The results indicate that alexithymia and the repressive coping style are each associated with impairments in the recognition of both pleasant and unpleasant emotions and that the two styles of emotional self-regulation differ more in the magnitude than in the quality of these impairments.
• Manber, R., J., J., Burton, K., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2000). Valence-dependent modulation of psychophysiological measures: Is there consistency across repeated testing?. Psychophysiology, 37(5), 683-692.
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  PMID: 11037044;Abstract: The present study used the picture perception paradigm to examine the extent to which three well-documented psychophysiological measures demonstrate consistency across time in response to emotional stimuli. The three measures were the eye-blink startle response and the activation in two facial muscle regions (zygomatic and corrugator). Twenty-seven young women were assessed on two occasions, 2 weeks apart. Whereas activation in the corrugator and zygomatic muscle regions demonstrated the predicted patterns at both assessments (with some attenuation in the zygomatic muscle regions), the startle response had limited consistency across the two assessments. The startle response revealed the predicted linear pattern of valence modulation during the first assessment. During the second assessment, startle magnitude response was a quadratic function of valence ratings and a linear function of arousal ratings. The unexpected pattern of startle response during the second session appeared to be related to the content of the pleasant slides, with action slides generating quadratic valence modulation and erotic slides continuing to exhibit the expected linear valence modulation.
• Montgomery Jr., E. B., Koller, W. C., J., T., Newman, M. C., Swanson-Hyland, E., Kaszniak, A. W., & Lyons, K. (2000). Early detection of probable idiopathic Parkinson's disease: I. Development of a diagnostic test battery. Movement Disorders, 15(3), 467-473.
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  PMID: 10830410;Abstract: We developed a test battery as an inexpensive and objective aid for the early diagnosis of idiopathic Parkinson's disease (iPD) and its differential diagnoses. The test battery incorporates tests of motor function, olfaction, and mood. In the motor task, a wrist flexion-and-extension task to different targets, movement velocities were recorded. Olfaction was tested with the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test. Mood was assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory. An initial regression model was developed from the results of 19 normal control subjects and 18 patients with early, mild, probable iPD. Prospective application to an independent validation set of 122 normal control subjects and 103 patients resulted in an 88% specificity rate and 69% sensitivity rate, with an area under the Receiver Operator Characteristic curve of 0.87.
• Newman, M. C., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2000). Spatial memory and aging: Performance on a human analog of the Morris water maze. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 7(2), 86-93.
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  Abstract: Rodent studies demonstrate parallel age-related changes in spatial memory and the hippocampal formation. Converging cognitive, neuropsychological, and neurobiological evidence suggests similar changes in humans, although these correlates have not been studied in the same individuals. The purpose of the current project was to develop and validate a human analog of a rodent spatial memory task for future use in correlative studies of spatial memory and brain structure and function. Younger and older healthy adults studied the location of a target relative to distal cues in a large tent-like enclosure. Group performances were similar for the practice trial, which could be solved verbally, suggesting similar abilities to remember the configuration of multiple stimuli in a large space. However, on subsequent trials, which depended more upon spatial memory, older adults were impaired relative to their younger counterparts.
• Rapcsak, S. Z., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2000). Searching for the neural correlates of consciousness: Clues from face recognition research. Brain and Cognition, 42(1), 37-40.
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  PMID: 10739592;
• Rapcsak, S. Z., Galper, S. R., Comer, J. F., Reminger, S. L., Nielsen, L., Kaszniak, A. W., Verfaellie, M., Laguna, J. F., Labiner, D. M., & Cohen, R. A. (2000). Fear recognition deficits after focal brain damage: A cautionary note. Neurology, 54(3), 575-581.
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  PMID: 10680785;Abstract: Objective: To test the hypothesis that fear recognition deficits in neurologic patients reflect damage to an emotion-specific neural network. Background: Previous studies have suggested that the perception of fear in facial expressions is mediated by a specialized neural system that includes the amygdala and certain posterior right-hemisphere cortical regions. However, the neuropsychological findings in patients with amygdala damage are inconclusive, and the contribution of distinct cortical regions to fear perception has only been examined in one study. Methods: We studied the recognition of six basic facial expressions by asking subjects to match these emotions with the appropriate verbal labels. Results: Both normal control subjects (n = 80) and patients with focal brain damage (n = 63) performed significantly worse in recognizing fear than in recognizing any other facial emotion, with errors consisting primarily of mistaking fear for surprise. Although patients were impaired relative to control subjects in recognizing fear, we could not obtain convincing evidence that left, right, or bilateral lesions were associated with disproportionate impairments of fear perception once we adjusted for differences in overall recognition performance for the other five facial emotion categories. The proposed special role of the amygdala and posterior right-hemisphere cortical regions in fear perception was also not supported. Conclusions: Fear recognition deficits in neurologic patients may be attributable to task difficulty factors rather than damage to putative neural systems dedicated to fear perception.
• Reminger, S. L., Kaszniak, A. W., & Dalby, P. R. (2000). Age-invariance in the asymmetry of stimulus-evoked emotional facial muscle activity. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 7(3), 156-168.
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  Abstract: This study examined possible effects of aging on the lateralization of stimulus-evoked emotional facial muscle activity. Older participants (mean age 68.4 years) and younger participants (mean age 26.4 years) viewed slides of positive, neutral, or negative emotional content. While participants viewed the slides, bilateral electromyographic (EMG) recordings were obtained from the skin surface over zygomatic and corrugator facial muscles. The participants also made ratings of experienced emotional valence and arousal. Expected patterns of subjective experience and asymmetrical EMG activity were found in response to target stimuli. Greater corrugator muscle activity occurred during presentation of negative stimuli, whereas greater zygomatic muscle activity occurred during presentation of positive stimuli. Consistent with right-hemisphere specialization theories of emotion, left-sided facial EMG activity was consistently greater than that of the right side during presentation of emotional stimuli. However, neither subjective ratings nor EMG patterns showed a significant effect of age group. Such similar patterns of emotional response for the two groups suggest, that the aging process does not produce marked changes in stimulus-evoked emotional experience or in the pattern, magnitude, or lateralization of facial muscle activity associated with emotional states.
• Rapcsak, S. Z., Reminger, S. L., Glisky, E. L., Kaszniak, A. W., & Comer, J. F. (1999). Neuropsychological mechanisms of false facial recognition following frontal lobe damage. Cognitive Neuropsychology, 16(3-5), 267-292.
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  Abstract: Previous neuropsychological studies have demonstrated an association between false recognition and frontal lobe dysfunction. In the experiments reported here we explore the contribution of memory impairment and executive dysfunction to the pathogenesis of false facial recognition in patients with focal frontal lobe damage. Memory illusions in response to novel faces were observed in both anterograde and retrograde tests of face recognition memory. However, in neither memory domain could false recognition be accounted for by face memory loss. Instead, our findings suggest that false facial recognition in frontal patients reflects the breakdown of strategic memory retrieval, monitoring, and decision functions critical for attributing the experience of familiarity to a specific source. Frontal executive memory functions are primarily recruited under conditions of uncertainty when the face cue does not automatically elicit relevant contextual information, leaving the source of familiarity unspecified. Our results indicate that frontal patients do not spontaneously engage in effortful recollection of specific contexts that can normally be used to oppose and inhibit recognition decisions based on general or context-free familiarity. However, frontal patients can use context recollection to suppress false recognition once this strategy is pointed out to them. In some frontal patients false recognition may be material-specific. © 1999 Psychology Press Ltd.
• Schnyer, D. M., Allen, J. J., Kaszniak, A. W., & Forster, K. I. (1999). An event-related potential examination of masked and unmasked repetition priming in Alzheimer's disease: Implications for theories of implicit memory. Neuropsychology, 13(3), 323-337.
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  PMID: 10447295;Abstract: Fifteen patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 26 matched older controls engaged in a lexical-decision task with a list of words and nonwords while event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were recorded. Two repetition conditions were embedded in the list: words repeated at relatively long lags or words repeated shortly after a brief masked presentation. Although older controls displayed behavioral and ERP repetition priming for words repeated at long lags, consistent with previous studies, AD patients displayed neither. In contrast, both controls and AD patients displayed an ERP repetition priming effect for words repeated shortly after a brief masked presentation. ERP priming effects for masked and unmasked repetition differed in older controls, and additionally, the ERP masked priming effect differed between controls and AD patients. Results are discussed in the context of studies that have examined memory performance in brain-damaged populations using an impaired-intact dichotomy.
• Rapcsak, S., Kaszniak, A. W., Reminger, S. L., Glisky, M. L., Glisky, E. L., & Comer, J. F. (1998). Dissociation between verbal and autonomic measures of memory following frontal lobe damage. Neurology, 50(5), 1259-1265.
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  PMID: 9595972;Abstract: Objective: The objective of this study was to contrast overt verbal versus covert autonomic responses to facial stimuli in a patient with false recognition following frontal lobe damage. Background: False recognition has been linked to frontal lobe dysfunction. However, previous studies have relied exclusively on overt measures of memory and have not examined whether or not patients with false recognition continue to demonstrate preserved covert discrimination of familiar and unfamiliar items. Methods: We recorded skin conductance responses (SCRs) in a patient with frontal lobe damage and in normal control subjects while they performed a familiarity decision task using famous and unfamiliar faces as stimuli. Results: Patient J.S. produced significantly more overt false recognition errors and misidentifications in response to unfamiliar faces than control subjects. However, similar to the control subjects, he showed accurate covert autonomic discrimination of truly familiar faces from unfamiliar ones. Furthermore, SCRs to falsely recognized unfamiliar faces were not significantly different from SCRs generated to unfamiliar faces that J.S. correctly rejected. Conclusions: Our findings provide further neuropsychological evidence that overt and covert forms of face recognition memory are dissociable. In addition, the failure to detect an autonomic correlate for the false recognition errors and misidentifications in J.S. suggests that these memory distortions were not related to the spurious activation of stored memory representations for specific familiar faces. Instead, these incorrect responses may have been driven by the sense of familiarity evoked by novel faces that had a general resemblance to faces encountered previously. We propose that false recognition in J.S. resulted from the breakdown of strategic frontal memory retrieval, monitoring, and decision functions critical for attributing the experience of familiarity to its appropriate source.
• Lane, R. D., Ahern, G. L., Schwartz, G. E., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1997). Is alexithymia the emotional equivalent of blindsight?. Biological Psychiatry, 42(9), 834-844.
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  PMID: 9347133;
• P.T., J. C., Williams, T. F., Albert, M. S., Butters, N. M., Folstein, M. F., Gilman, S., Gurland, B. J., Gwyther, L. P., Heyman, A., Kaszniak, A. W., Katz, I. R., Lanska, D., Levy, L. L., Lombardo, N. E., Orr-Rainey, N., Phillips, L. R., Storandt, M., Tangalos, E. G., & Wykle, M. L. (1997). Early identification of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. American Family Physician, 55(4), 1303-1314.
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  PMID: 9092291;
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Zak, M. G. (1996). On the neuropsychology of metamemory: Contributions from the study of amnesia and dementia. Learning and Individual Differences, 8(4), 355-381.
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  Abstract: Neurologic syndromes in which there is impaired deficit-awareness (termed "anosognosia") provide useful observations for understanding the nature of metacognition and its neurobiologic correlates. Anosognosia can occur in various disorders, including stroke, head injury, particular amnesic syndromes, and various dementing illnesses (e.g., Alzheimer's disease). Research on anosognosia for memory impairment is important both for its clinical implications and for its contributions toward understanding the neural correlates of, and processes by which, persons are aware of, monitor, and develop beliefs about their own memory functioning (i.e., metamemory). Following a brief introduction to anosognosia, a review is provided of research on awareness of memory deficit in persons with neurologic amnesia or dementia syndromes. Particular emphasis is placed upon the examination of how different experimental methods shed light on specific questions about metamemory impairment. © 1996 JAI Press Inc. All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.
• Lane, R. D., Sechrest, L., Reidel, R., Weldon, V., Kaszniak, A., & Schwartz, G. E. (1996). Impaired verbal and nonverbal emotion recognition in alexithymia. Psychosomatic Medicine, 58(3), 203-210.
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  PMID: 8771618;Abstract: Although clinical observations suggest that alexithymic individuals have a deficit in their ability to recognize emotional stimuli and that this deficit is not simply due to a problem in verbal labeling, these two hypotheses have not been empirically confirmed. Three hundred eighty participants in a community survey without current or past histories of psychiatric disorder completed two independent measures of alexithymia [the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale (LEAS) and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20)] and the Perception of Affect Task (PAT), a 140-item measure of the ability to match emotion stimuli. The PAT includes four subtasks that require the subject to match verbal or nonverbal emotion stimuli with verbal or nonverbal emotion responses. The subtasks include matching sentences and words (verbal-verbal), faces and words (nonverbal-verbal), sentences and faces (verbal-nonverbal), and faces and photographs of scenes (nonverbal-nonverbal). Across the entire sample, higher (alexithymic) TAS-20 and lower LEAS scores were both correlated with lower accuracy rates on each of the subtasks of the PAT (p < .001), accounting for 10.5% and 18.4% of the variance, respectively. Fifty- one subjects met TAS-20 criteria for alexithymia. Alexithymic individuals scored lower than other subjects on purely nonverbal matching, purely verbal matching, and mixed verbal-nonverbal matching (all p < .001). These results suggest that alexithymia is associated with impaired verbal and nonverbal recognition of emotion stimuli and that the hallmark of alexithymia, a difficulty in putting emotion into words, may be a marker of a more general impairment in the capacity for emotion information processing.
• Trosset, M. W., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1996). Measures of deficit unawareness for predicted performance experiments. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 2(4), 315-322.
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  PMID: 9375180;Abstract: Predicted performance experiments attempt to quantify an impaired individual's awareness of his or her deficit. These experiments measure perceived ability by the individual's prediction of his or her performance on a specific cognitive task and actual ability by his or her subsequent performance on that task. To date, the most comprehensive predicted performance experiment is the one proposed and implemented by McGlynn and Kaszniak (1991b). This experiment is potentially capable of removing a number of influences that may be confounded with deficit unawareness; however, it is not obvious what method of quantitative analysis best exploits this capability. In the present report, several possibilities are discussed. The limitations of McGlynn and Kaszniak's method are identified, and a more satisfying measure of deficit unawareness is proposed.
• Bell, I. R., Amend, D., Kasniak, A. W., Schwartz, G. E., Peterson, J. M., Stini, W. A., Miller, J. W., & Selhub, J. (1995). Trait shyness in the elderly: Evidence for an association with Parkinson's disease in family members and biochemical correlates. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology, 8(1), 16-22.
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  PMID: 7710641;Abstract: The emergence of potential treatments to slow the progression of idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) has increased the need for early identification of persons at risk. Although considered controversial, some prior studies indicate that PD patients may have premorbid histories of greater trait introversion or shyness as well as increased rates of disorders associated with shyness (e.g., anxiety, affective disorders, and irritable bowel syndrome). Essential features of trait shyness include (a) inhibited and avoidant behaviors and (b) physiological hyperreactivity to the novel or unfamiliar. In parallel, (a) depression in PD patients is associated with increased harm avoidance (a possible serotonergic function), and (b) PD patients have premorbid and comorbid decreases in novelty-seeking (a possible dopaminergic function). Taken together, previous research suggests the following hypotheses: (1) given evidence for marked heritability of shyness, shy elderly should report higher rates of PD in their family members than would nonshy elderly; and (2) shy elderly without PD should exhibit psychological and biologic characteristics similar to those reported in PD. Two groups, representing the top 27% (n = 37) and bottom 31% (n = 43) of scores on a standardized shyness scale, were drawn from a larger cohort of 138 older adults (ages 50-90) living in an active retirement community. Seventeen percent of the shy versus 2% of the nonshy reported PD in a family member or self (P < .05). Shy elderly were significantly more anxious (P < .01) and depressed (P < .05) than were the nonshy. Shy subjects rated themselves significantly higher on feeling ill from the odor of environmental chemicals (pesticide, car exhaust, paint, perfume, new carpet) than did the nonshy group. In a separate study of non-PD patients, depressed elderly with self-reported childhood shyness in themselves (n = 7) showed higher levels than did depressed elderly without childhood shyness (n = 7) of plasma L-cysteine (P = .05), the sulfurated amino acid previously shown to be elevated in PD patients, as well as of post-dexamethasone plasma cortisol (P < .05). The findings support the hypotheses and suggest the need for additional investigation of the neurobiology of trait shyness as a possible risk factor for PD.
• Nussbaum, P. D., Kaszniak, A. W., Allender, J., & Rapcsak, S. (1995). Depression and cognitive decline in the elderly: A follow-up study. Clinical Neuropsychologist, 9(2), 101-111.
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  Abstract: Thirty-five depressed elderly subjects, who received comprehensive evaluations in a memory disorders clinic, were followed (mean of 24 months) and evaluated with a brief neuropsychological battery. Diagnoses were made by consensus of a board-certified neuropsychologist and neurologist. A deterioration of four points on follow-up Folstein MMSE, compared to initial MMSE (based on calculation of the standard error of difference), defined cognitive decline. Eight patients demonstrated cognitive decline and 27 did not. A MANOVA using initial neuropsychological, depression severity, and demographic variables did not differentiate the two groups. Chi-square analyses on medical and radiological data from the initial examination showed that those depressed subjects with decline had a greater number of abnormal MRIs, CTs, and EKGs. Results from MRI and CT demonstrated the presence of leuko-araiosis in the depressed patients with cognitive decline. Leuko-araiosis in some depressed elderly may contribute to their cognitive decline and dysphoric affect. Further, depression in some elderly may present the first sign of a later developing dementia.
• Bell, I. R., Schwartz, G. E., Amend, D., Peterson, J. M., Kaszniak, A. W., & Miller, C. S. (1994). Psychological characteristics and subjective intolerance for xenobiotic agents of normal young adults with trait shyness and defensiveness. A parkinsonian-like personality type?. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 182(7), 367-374.
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  PMID: 8021635;Abstract: The present study examines the psychological characteristics and self-reported responses to xenobiotic agents such as tobacco smoke and pesticide of normal young adults with personality traits similar to those claimed for Parkinsonian patients. Previous research, though controversial, has suggested that persons with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) have premorbid personality traits that may include shyness and repressive defensiveness. Other epidemiological evidence indicates that PD patients may have premorbidly increased prevalence of anxiety, affective, and/or somatoform disorders; decreased rates of smoking and alcohol consumption; and elevated exposure to herbicides or pesticides. A total of 783 college students enrolled in an introductory psychology course completed the Cheek-Buss Scale (shyness), the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (defensiveness), Symptom Checklist 90 (revised), the Mastery Scale, a health history checklist, and rating scales for frequency of illness from alcohol and 10 common environmental chemicals. Subjects were divided into four groups on the basis of above- versus below-menian scores on the Cheek-Buss and Marlowe-Crowne scales (persons high in shyness and defensiveness, those high only in shyness, those high only in defensiveness, and those low in both shyness and defensiveness). The group high in shyness but low in defensiveness had the highest, whereas the group low in shyness but high in defensiveness had the lowest, total scores on the SCL-90-R; the two shyest groups were lowest in sense of mastery. Similar to PD, the group high in both shyness and defensiveness overall reported the least number of smokers (10% vs. 19% in those high only in shyness, 17% in those high only in defensiveness, and 28% in those low in both traits, p < .001); differences within women largely accounted for this finding. Subjects higher in shyness and/or defensiveness rated themselves higher in frequency of illness from a small amount of alcohol than did those who were low in both shyness and defensiveness. The group who was high in both shyness and defensiveness tended to report the highest frequency of illness from pesticide as well as other xenobiotic odors (e.g., newsprint). Taken together with previous research, the findings suggest that certain young adults high in shyness, and especially those also high in defensiveness, may be among the subset of the population at increased risk for PD later in life.
• Butters, M. A., Kaszniak, A. W., Glisky, E. L., Eslinger, P. J., & Schacter, D. L. (1994). Recency Discrimination Deficits in Frontal Lobe Patients. Neuropsychology, 8(3), 343-353.
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  Abstract: Damage to the frontal lobes appears to cause a deficit in the temporal organization of memory. M. P. McAndrews and B. Milner (1991) found that subject-performed tasks (SPTs), which involve the performance of actions with common objects, allowed frontal-lobe-damaged patients to circumvent this deficit and perform normally on recency judgments. The present investigation of the critical properties of SPTs compared the performance of frontal-lobe-damaged patients and healthy controls on recency judgments under 5 encoding conditions: SPT, naming, visual imagery, experimenter-performed tasks, and verbal elaboration. Patients' performance varied across encoding conditions, but controls' did not. Post hoc comparisons confirmed that patients performed significantly worse than controls across all encoding tasks except SPT. The findings help elucidate the nature of both SPTs and memory for temporal order.
• Schacter, D. L., Osowiecki, D., Kaszniak, A. W., Kihlstrom, J. F., & Valdiserri, M. (1994). Source memory: Extending the boundaries of age-related deficits. Psychology and Aging, 9(1), 81-89.
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  PMID: 8185872;Abstract: Previous research has established that elderly adults can exhibit impaired memory for the source of newly acquired facts even when levels of fact recall in old and young do not differ. However, source memory impairments have been observed only under conditions of many-to-1 mapping: A large number of facts are related to either of 2 sources. It is thus possible that apparent source memory impairments reflect a more general age-related problem in handling many-to-1 mappings. Two experiments provide evidence against this possibility by demonstrating age-related source memory deficits with 1-to-1 mapping between facts and sources. The data also indicate that source memory deficits are observed across encoding tasks that manipulate the allocation of attention to the source or to the fact.
• Beeson, P. M., Bayles, K. A., Rubens, A. B., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1993). Memory impairment and executive control in individuals with stroke- induced aphasia. Brain and Language, 45(2), 253-275.
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  PMID: 8358599;Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine memory abilities of aphasic individuals in relation to site of neurological lesion. Fourteen individuals with stroke-induced aphasia (7 with anterior lesions; 7 with posterior lesions) and 14 demographically matched control subjects were given selected tests of short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM). Stroke patients were impaired relative to control subjects on tests of verbal memory, with greater impairment of LTM associated with anterior lesions and greater impairment of STM associated with posterior lesions. Verbal memory performance did not correlate highly with language ability, and did not appear to be simply a consequence of language impairment. Executive control deficits were postulated as explanatory of the LTM impairment associated with anterior lesions.
• Bell, I. R., Amend, D., Kaszniak, A. W., & Schwartz, G. E. (1993). Memory deficits, sensory impairment, and depression in the elderly [29]. Lancet, 341(8836), 62-.
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  PMID: 8093317;
• Bondi, M. W., Kaszniak, A. W., Bayles, K. A., & Vance, K. T. (1993). Contributions of Frontal System Dysfunction to Memory and Perceptual Abilities in Parkinson's Disease. Neuropsychology, 7(1), 89-102.
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  Abstract: This study tested (a) the hypothesis that Parkinson's disease (PD), thought to result in disturbed neuronal outflow from the striatum, leads to circumscribed deficits in cognitive functions presumed to be dependent on the functional integrity of the frontal lobes and (b) whether such deficits could account for previously reported memory and visuoperceptual difficulties in PD. Nondemented PD patients (n = 19) were demographically matched to 19 normal elderly control subjects. Three categories of tests were given: (a) tests sensitive to frontal system dysfunction, (b) tests of learning and memory, and (c) tests of visuoperceptual and visuoconstructive skills. Nondemented PD patients demonstrated selective deficits on frontal system tasks: tests of learning and memory and of visuoperceptual and visuoconstructive skill were not significantly impaired once performance on the frontal related tasks was statistically covaried. Results are consistent with the striatofrontal outflow model of neuropsychological impairment in nondemented PD patients.
• Bondi, M. W., Kaszniak, A. W., Rapcsak, S. Z., & Butters, M. A. (1993). Implicit and Explicit Memory Following Anterior Communicating Artery Aneurysm Rupture. Brain and Cognition, 22(2), 213-229.
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  PMID: 8373574;Abstract: Several tasks examined the status of implicit and explicit memory in three patients with a ruptured anterior communicating artery (ACoA) aneurysm, one patient with bilateral temporal lobe damage sustained from herpes encephalitis (HE), 12 Alzheimer"s disease (AD) patients, and 16 elderly normal controls demographically matched to the AD patients. All subjects completed word stem-completion repetition priming, pursuit-rotor tracking, and a fragmented pictures test, followed by explicit memory tests. ACoA, HE, and AD patients were impaired on all explicit tests. HE and AD patients were impaired on stem-completion priming, but were intact on other implicit tests. ACoA patients were intact on all implicit tests given. Discussion of these results considers similarities and differences in extent of basal forebrain and temporal lobe damage. © 1993 Academic Press. All rights reserved.
• Rogers, J., Kirby, L. C., Hempelman, S. R., Berry, D. L., McGeer, P. L., Kaszniak, A. W., Zalinski, J., Cofield, M., Mansukhani, L., Willson, P., & Kogan, F. (1993). Clinical trial of indomethacin in Alzheimer's disease. Neurology, 43(8), 1609-1611.
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  PMID: 8351023;Abstract: In a 6-month, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 100 to 150 mg/d indomethacin appeared to protect mild to moderately impaired Alzheimer's disease patients from the degree of cognitive decline exhibited by a well-matched, placebo-treated group. Over a battery of cognitive tests, indomethacin patients improved 1.3% (±1.8%), whereas placebo patients declined 8.4% (±2.3%) - a significant difference (p < 0.003). Caveats include adverse reactions to indomethacin and the limited scale of the trial.
• Bayles, K. A., Tomoeda, C. K., Kaszniak, A. W., & Trosset, M. W. (1991). Alzheimer's disease effects on semantic memory: Loss of structure or impaired processing?. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 3(2), X5-182.
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  Abstract: Results of several prior studies, in which Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients missed the same concepts on multiple tasks, have been used to substantiate the theory that AD causes concept-specific loss of information from semantic memory. However, sample sizes in these studies are modest, test-retest intervals small, and typically only a few tasks were used. In the present study 69 AD subjects were annually administered 11 tasks, each using the same 13 concepts. Only a few instances were observed in which a concept was missed across all 11 tasks. When performances on the Oral Reading and Dictation tasks were removed from analysis, because of their questionable reliance on semantic memory, the number of missed concepts rose only modestly. A substantial rise in the number of missed concepts occurred, however, when performances on the four multiple-choice tasks were removed. Interpreting the larger number of missed concepts on the live remaining generative semantic tasks as evidence of item specific loss is problematic, nonetheless, because the generative semantic tasks were among the hardest in the battery and the frequency with which an individual subject missed a concept across all tasks accorded with the subject's dementia severity level. Results also indicate that task difficulty, more than concept specificity, determine whether a concept is missed. Overall, results suggest that a concept will "disappear" when all of the tasks in which it is a stimulus become too difficult for the patient to perform. Study results call into question the appropriateness of using batteries of effortful, attention demanding tasks for ascertaining whether AD causes item-specific loss of conceptual knowledge.
• Bondi, M. W., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1991). Implicit and explicit memory in Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 13(2), 339-358.
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  PMID: 1864919;Abstract: Several tasks examined implicit and explicit memory in demographically matched samples of Alzheimer's (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, and healthy elderly subjects. A fragmented picture test, word stem-completion repetition priming, and a pursuit-rotor tracking task, followed by explicit memory tests, were given. AD patients were impaired on all explicit tests and on word stem-completion priming, but were intact on pursuit-rotor tracking and the skill learning (SL) component of the fragmented pictures test. PD patients were significantly better than AD patients on all explicit memory tests, but were selectively impaired on the SL component of the fragmented pictures test. Finally, a mirror-reading test was given to the PD patients and control subjects, with no significant differences found in performances between the two groups. Results are discussed in terms of hypothetical cognitive processes and brain circuits underlying different implicit and explicit memory domains.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Keyl, P. M., & Albert, M. S. (1991). Dementia and the older driver. Human Factors, 33(5), 527-537.
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  PMID: 1769673;Abstract: The association between dementia and driving errors in older adults has been anecdotally noted by clinicians and caregivers. However, until recently, little empirical documentation of this association existed. This paper provides a critical review of available research on dementia and driving and discusses issues that must be considered in attempting to apply this developing body of research to practical problems, such as the relicensing process for selected drivers. This is followed by a discussion of recent research relevant to the development of potential procedures for screening patients with dementing illness - particularly Alzheimer's disease - for probable driving risk.
• McGlynn, S. M., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1991). When metacognition fails: Impaired awareness of deficit in Alzheimer's disease. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 3(2), X6-189.
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  Abstract: Two new measures were developed to assess quantitatively the degree to which patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) are aware of their memory deficit, and to evaluate the relation between dementia severity and awareness of deficit. Results of a questionnaire measure indicated that AD patients rated their own difficulties with cognitive activities of daily life significantly lower than relatives rated patients' problems, and this discrepancy was related to patients' dementia severity. On another measure involving task performance predictions, AD patients were inaccurate in predicting their performance on most cognitive tasks when compared to both their actual performance and relatives' predictions, despite generally accurate prediction of their relatives' performance on the same tasks. These results are discussed in terms of a breakdown in metacognitive processes.
• Schacter, D. L., Kaszniak, A. W., Kihlstrom, J. F., & Valdiserri, M. (1991). The relation between source memory and aging.. Psychology and aging, 6(4), 559-568.
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  PMID: 1777144;Abstract: Previous research has shown that elderly adults have difficulty recalling the source of recently acquired facts but does not indicate whether source memory is more impaired than fact memory. This study examined old and young subjects' memory for novel facts that had been read to them by 1 of 2 experimental sources either in a random order or in a blocked order. When fact memory was equated in young and old at different levels of performance, the elderly exhibited disproportionate source memory deficits in the blocked condition but not in the random condition. Results suggest that the relation between fact and source memory in the elderly varies across experimental conditions.
• Knotek, P. C., Bayles, K. A., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1990). Response consistency on a semantic memory task in persons with dementia of the Alzheimer type. Brain and Language, 38(4), 465-475.
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  PMID: 2375976;Abstract: The purpose of this investigation was to determine the test-retest response consistency rate on a semantic memory task in persons with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT). Ten mildly and 13 moderately impaired DAT subjects and 14 normal controls matched for age, years of education, and estimated IQ participated in this study. The Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) was administered twice to each subject with a 7-day intertest interval. The mild and moderate DAT subjects responded inconsistently to significantly more PPVT items than normal controls. When the effects of guessing were considered, moderate DAT subjects gave significantly more inconsistent PPVT responses than normal controls and mild DAT subjects showed a trend toward giving more inconsistent responses. These results substantiate the conclusion that the impairment of specific conceptual knowledge in DAT subjects cannot be reliably measured with a single administration of a semantic memory task such as the PPVT. © 1990.
• Mohr, D. C., Beutler, L. E., Engle, D., Shoham-Salomon, V., Bergan, J., Kaszniak, A. W., & Yost, E. B. (1990). Identification of Patients at Risk for Nonresponse and Negative Outcome in Psychotherapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58(5), 622-628.
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  PMID: 2254510;Abstract: This study evaluated the use of pretherapy patient variables as correlates of 3 categorical types of outcome: negative response (negative change of more than 1 normative SEest on depression measure); nonresponse (change within ± 1 SEest on depression measure); and positive response (positive change of more than 1 SEest on depression measure) to psychotherapy among 62 patients with major depressive disorder. By using 4 scales from the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems, age, and sex, 75.8% of the Ss were correctly classified into the 3 groups. Negative responders were characterized by high levels of interpersonal difficulty and low levels of subjective distress. Nonresponders displayed moderate levels of both interpersonal difficulties and subjective distress. Positive responders displayed high levels of both interpersonal difficulties and subjective distress.
• Tomoeda, C. K., Bayles, K. A., Boone, D. R., Kaszniak, A. W., & Slauson, T. J. (1990). Speech rate and syntactic complexity effects on the auditory comprehension of alzheimer patients. Journal of Communication Disorders, 23(2), 151-161.
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  PMID: 2341600;Abstract: The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effects of speech rate and syntactic complexity on the auditory language comprehension of individuals with presumptive Alzheimer's disease, compared to healthy elderly controls. Three presentation rates and command statements of increasing syntactic complexity were used. Although rate of presentation did not significantly affect comprehension in either group, both groups demonstrated increased difficulty with stimuli of greater syntactic complexity, with Alzheimer's patients performing significantly poorer at all levels. © 1990.
• Allender, J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1989). Processing of emotional cues in patients with dementia of the Alzheimer's type.. International Journal of Neuroscience, 46(3-4), 147-155.
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  PMID: 2777484;Abstract: Previous research on patients with dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT) has focused primarily on intellectual and memory deficits. The present study investigated another aspect of cognitive functioning, that of processing of emotional cues. Subjects included 30 DAT patients and 13 normal controls who were asked to identify emotional expressions in pictured faces and in tone of tape recorded sentences. A battery of neuropsychological tests was also administered. DAT patients were impaired on all tasks as compared to controls of comparable age, education and previous occupation. Multiple regression analyses demonstrated that the two emotional tasks were the most highly correlated of all the tasks for the patient sample. This relationship is discussed as validating the emotional tasks as measures of emotional cue processing rather than reflecting deficits based only on other task dimensions.
• Bayles, K. A., Boone, D. R., Tomoeda, C. K., Slauson, T. J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1989). Differentiating Alzheimer's patients from the normal elderly and stroke patients with aphasia. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 54(1), 74-87.
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  PMID: 2915529;Abstract: The performance of individuals with mild and moderate Alzheimer's disease (AD), normal age-matched elderly individuals, and stroke patients with fluent and nonfluent aphasia were compared on a group of neuropsychological tasks. The unique performance profiles associated with each subject group are discussed, and the best tasks for intergroup differentiation specified. Whereas the tasks employed were efficacious for discriminating early- and middle-stage AD patients from normal subjects and aphasic stroke patients, and early- from middle-stage AD patients, they were not efficacious for subtyping aphasia patients according to fluency. Generally, memory measures were best for intergroup differentiation.
• Kaemingk, K. L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1989). Neuropsychological aspects of human immunodeficiency virus infection. Clinical Neuropsychologist, 3(4), 309-326.
• Rapcsak, S. Z., Kaszniak, A. W., & Rubens, A. B. (1989). Anomia for facial expressions: Evidence for a category specific visual-verbal disconnection syndrome. Neuropsychologia, 27(8), 1031-1041.
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  PMID: 2797411;Abstract: We describe a patient with a selective impairment in naming and pointing to emotional facial expressions following damage to the right temporal lobe. His language functions were otherwise intact, and he performed well on a variety of perceptual and associative emotional facial tasks. We propose that his inability to match facial expressions with their names was induced by a disconnection between visual semantic and verbal semantic representations for facial emotions. © 1989.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (1988). Cognition in Alzheimer's disease: Theoretic models and clinical implications. Neurobiology of Aging, 9(C), 92-94.
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  PMID: 3380259;Abstract: Riege and Metter [22] review studies of cognitive functioning in probable Alzheimer's disease (pAD), representative of three distinguishable models: severity or staging, heterogeneity or subtyping, and information processing. As Riege and Metter point out, apparent differences in both disease description and implications for diagnostic assessment are dependent upon the model employed. The present commentary examines clinical and research implications derived from consideration of interactions between these three models, drawing upon recent cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of information processing in pAD. © 1988 Pergamon Journals Ltd.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Nussbaum, P. D., Berren, M. R., & Santiago, J. (1988). Amnesia as a Consequence of Male Rape: A Case Report. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 97(1), 100-104.
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  PMID: 3351105;Abstract: A male patient suffering from a generalized functional retrograde amnesia, for all autobiographical information, was admitted to a psychiatric inpatient facility. Psychological testing indicated possible sexual assault. Following five hypnotic sessions, the patient regained his memory, and a violent sexual attack by two males was validated. The amnesia is discussed in terms of the constructs of implicit versus explicit memory, and reasons why a male rape victim might suffer such an extreme reaction.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (1987). Neuropsychological consultation to geriatricians: Issues in the assessment of memory complaints. Clinical Neuropsychologist, 1(1), 35-46.
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  Abstract: Complaints of memory difficulty frequently prompt referral of older medical patients for neuropsychological evaluation. Such complaints are common among older individuals creating problems in differentiating normal aging from pathological processes. Available research indicates that difficulty in distinguishing between dementia and depression, as a cause of memory impairment in older age, is the largest source of diagnostic error. This paper reviews evidence concerning factors which contribute to this diagnostic difficulty. These include: normal age-related changes in cognitive functioning, cognitive deficits accompanying depression, partial overlap between the signs and symptoms of depression and dementing illnesses, and the occurrence of depression in dementia patients. Recommendations are made, based upon empirical studies and clinical observation, for both the appropriate selection of assessment instruments and attention to clinical features which can assist in differentiating dementia from pseudodementia.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Wilson, R. S., Fox, J. H., & Stebbins, G. T. (1986). Cognitive assessment in Alzheimer's disease: Cross-sectional and longitudinal perspectives. Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, 13(4 SUPPL.), 420-423.
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  PMID: 3491663;Abstract: This paper describes select results of a longitudinal study of 62 mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients, in comparison to 60 age-matched healthy controls. Initial neurologic, radiologic, psychiatric, laboratory and cognitive examinations, required two full days, followed by one-day examinations at annual intervals. Of the total original sample, 31 AD patients and 39 controls could actually be followed for three annual examinations. Cognitive examination data confirmed cross-sectional (group discriminative) validity of memory and language measures, and showed the expected longitudinal deterioration in the AD sample, with controls maintaining consistent performance over the three years. However, those measures showing largest group differences at initial examination were not best for tracking patient deterioration over time. Implications of these results for the selection of cognitive assessment measures are discussed.
• Kelly, M. P., Kaszniak, A. W., & Garron, D. C. (1986). Neurobehavioral impairment patterns in carotid disease and Alzheimer disease. International Journal of Clinical Neuropsychology, 8(4), 163-169.
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  Abstract: Patients with left carotid artery disease, right carotid artery disease, bilateral carotid artery disease, Alzheimer disease, and medical-surgical controls were compared using a battery of neuropsychological tests. The groups generally showed no differences on less complex tests of language, sensory, and motor function. Alzheimer disease patients were significantly more defective than all other groups on measures of attention, orientation, remote memory, recent memory, and reasoning. In addition, all carotid disease groups performed significantly more poorly than controls (but better than Alzheimer disease patients) on some measures of recent memory, with bilateral carotid disease patients performing most poorly. Patients with carotid artery disease differed from those with Alzheimer disease in both pattern and the degree of cognitive impairment.
• Bayles, K. A., Tomoeda, C. K., Kaszniak, A. W., Stern, L. Z., & Eagans, K. K. (1985). Verbal perseveration of dementia patients. Brain and Language, 25(1), 102-116.
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  PMID: 3161580;Abstract: Patterns of perseveration and frequency of carrier phrases were studied in the verbal descriptive discourse of dementia patients controlled for etiology and severity. Dementia patients were found to perseverate significantly more frequently than normals and severity of dementia was more strongly associated than etiology with increased perseveration. Frequency of carrier phrases did not distinguish the descriptive discourse of dementia patients from normals. Discontinuous perseveration was more common than continuous perseveration, and perseveration of ideas after an intervening response was the perseverate most typical of the dementia patient. Findings of the study are related to prominent theories of the cause of perseveration. © 1985.
• Wilson, R. S., Bacon, L. D., Fox, J. H., & Kaszniak, A. W. (1983). Primary memory and secondary memory in dementia of the Alzheimer type. Journal of Clinical Neuropsychology, 5(4), 337-344.
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  PMID: 6643687;
• Bayles, K. A., Boone, D. R., Kaszniak, A. W., & Stern, L. Z. (1982). Language impairment in dementia.. Arizona Medicine, 39(5), 308-311.
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  PMID: 7092597;
• Wilson, R. S., Bacon, L. D., Kaszniak, A. W., & Fox, J. H. (1982). The episodic-semantic memory distinction and paired associate learning. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 50(1), 154-155.
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  PMID: 7056914;Abstract: 39 senile dementia patients (mean age 69.1 yrs) completed the Associate Learning subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scale, and orthogonal measures of episodic and semantic memory were developed through factor analysis. As predicted, scores on the semantic factor were related only to learning high-associate word pairs; scores on the episodic factor were related to both high- and low-associate learning. Findings provide an interpretive framework for the Associate Learning subtest and support E. Tulving's (1972) 2-store model of long-term memory. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1982 American Psychological Association.
• Wilson, R. S., Kaszniak, A. W., Bacon, L. D., Fox, J. H., & Kelly, M. P. (1982). Facial recognition memory in dementia.. Cortex, 18(3), 329-336.
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  PMID: 7151442;Abstract: Previous investigations of memory in senile dementia of the Alzheimer's type (SDAT) have focused on verbal learning and memory. The aim of the present study was to determine whether the amnesia of SDAT is limited to verbal material. Patients with SDAT (N = 29; mean age = 69.3) and healthy normal controls (N = 41; mean age = 69.3) were given a test of facial perception and two recognition memory tasks, one for words and one for faces. The results indicate that dementia patients show a deficit in the retention of facial information. This deficit cannot be attributed to faculty initial perception or to a response bias. The verbal and facial memory deficits in SDAT appear to differ: performance on tests of verbal and facial memory is relatively independent, and substantial encoding and linguistic defects contribute to the verbal, but not the facial, memory disorder resulting in more severe impairment on tests of verbal memory. The implications of these findings for research on the neuropharmacology and pathophysiology of SDAT are discussed.
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Beutler, L. E. (1981). Differential diagnosis of insomnias and parasomnias.. Arizona Medicine, 38(6), 451-454.
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  PMID: 7023425;
• Koller, W. C., Glatt, S. L., Fox, J. H., Kaszniak, A. W., Wilson, R. S., & Huckman, M. S. (1981). Cerebellar atrophy: Relationship to aging and cerebral atrophy. Neurology, 31(11), 1486-1488.
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  PMID: 7198196;Abstract: We studied the incidence of computed tomography evidence of cerebellar atrophy in 20 elderly patients with dementia, 20 age-matched controls, and 40 younger normal subjects. Cerebellar vermian atrophy was present in 6 of 20 demented patients, 7 of 20 elderly controls, and 1 of 40 younger controls. There was no other atrophy of infratentorial structures except for occasional enlargement of the cisterna magna and cerebellopontine angle cisterns. Vermian atrophy did not correlate with cerebral atrophy (enlargement of either lateral ventricles of cortical sulci). None of these patients had clinical signs of cerebellar dysfunction. Therefore, atrophy of the cerebellar vermis may occur selectively with aging, without atrophy of the cerebral cortex, and without clinical manifestations.
• Reynolds, A. F., Villar, H. V., & Kasniak, A. W. (1981). Jejunoileal bypass: A reversible cause of dementia. Neurosurgery, 9(2), 153-156.
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  PMID: 7266813;Abstract: Neurological complications consisting of recent memory loss, visuospatial disorientation, and poor concentration disabled three patients years after a jejunoileal bypass for morbid obesity. The metabolic evaluation and computed tomography gave normal results. The neurological dysfunction cleared completely after reconstruction of the normal intestinal anatomy. Neurological recovery was documented by formal neuropsychological testing.
• Wilson, R. S., Kaszniak, A. W., & Fox, J. H. (1981). Remote memory in senile dementia. Cortex, 17(1), 41-48.
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  PMID: 7273801;Abstract: This study was designed to examine Ribot's hypothesis that the probability of forgetting an event is inversely related to the time since the occurrence of that event. Patients with senile dementia (N=20; mean age=67.3) and normal controls (N=24; mean age=69.4) were given two tests of memory for persons and events that became famous between 1930 and 1975. The results indicate that patients with senile dementia do have significant (p
• Wilson, R. S., Kaszniak, A. W., Klawans, H. L., & Garron, D. C. (1980). High speed memory scanning in parkinsonism. Cortex, 16(1), 67-72.
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  PMID: 7379568;Abstract: This study tested the hypothesis that the slowing seen in parkinsonism includes cognitive as well as motoric components. The sample consisted of 20 nondemented parkinsonian patients, group matched to 16 normals by age, education, and verbal IQ. Each group was divided into young (64 and under) and old (65 and over) subsets. The Sternberg character classification paradigm was used to measure the speed and accuracy of one cognitive function, short term memory scanning. Following a logarithmic transformation of the reaction time data, scanning speed was found to be increased, but only for the elderly patients (p = .01). Scanning accuracy was normal for both patient groups. These findings suggest that at least one cognitive function, the scanning of elements held in short term memory, is slowed in parkinsonism. This mnemonic slowing, like bradykinesia, is seen primarily in elderly parkinsonian patients. It is not readily explained as a motor phenomenon as part of a generalized mnemonic or intellectual deficit, or as an artifact secondary to periodic extreme reaction times. The term bradyphrenia, used in early descriptions of parkinsonism, may be an apt descriptor of this deficit.
• Fox, J. H., Kaszniak, A. W., & Huckman, M. (1979). Computerized tomographic scanning and the diagnosis of dementia.. New England Journal of Medicine, 300(23), 1337-1338.
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  PMID: 440345;
• Fox, J. H., Kaszniak, A. W., & Huckman, M. (1979). Computerized tomographic scanning not very helpful in dementia--nor in craniopharyngioma.. New England Journal of Medicine, 300(8), 437-.
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  PMID: 759925;
• Kaszniak, A. W., Garron, D. C., & Fox, J. (1979). Differential effects of age and cerebral atrophy upon span of immediate recall and paired-associate learning in older patients suspected of dementia. Cortex, 15(2), 285-295.
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  PMID: 477343;Abstract: Seventy-eight patients suspected of dementia who were 50 years of age or older and without evidence of focal cerbral lesion or systemic illness, were administered the Digit-Span Forward and Paired Associate Learning subtests of the Wechsler Memory Scale. Computerized axial tomography, allowing a visualization and measurement of the lateral ventricle and cortical sulci, was employed to measure atrophy. Four groups were defind as follows: (1) age 50-69, without atrophy (n = 27), (2) age 50-69, with atrophy (N = 17), 50-69, without atrophy(N =27), (2) age 50-69, with atrophy (N =17), (3) age 70-89, without atrophy (N =18), (4) age 70-89, with atropy (N = 16). Results of analyses of variance indicate that Digit-Span is affected by cerebral atrophy but not by age, while Paired-Associate Learning is affected by both age and cerebral atrophy. No interaction effect between age and cerebral atrophy was found for either task. These results are discussed within the context of previous research, and implications for both models of memory and theories of the effects of cerebral atrophy in different age groups are suggested.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Garron, D. C., Fox, J. H., Bergen, D., & Huckman, M. (1979). Cerebral atrophy, EEG slowing, age, education, and cognitive functioning in suspected dementia. Neurology, 29(9 I), 1273-1279.
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  PMID: 573407;Abstract: Seventy-eight hospital patients, 50 years of age or older, were selected for suspected changes in mentation and for the absence of focal or other organic brain disease. They were studied in relation to education, age, cerebral atrophy (by computerized tomography), electroencephalographic (EEG) slowing, and performance in several neuropsychologic tests. Adequate test-retest reliability of the cognitive measures and interjudge reliability of the cerebral atrophy and EEG measures were demonstrated. Stepwise multiple regression analyses suggested the following: (1) EEG slowing is the strongest and most general pathologic influence on cognition in elderly persons without overt brain disease. (2) Cerebral atrophy independently affects primarily the verbal recall of recent and remote information. (3) Age independently affects primarily recent memory for both verbal and nonverbal material. (4) Formal education is a powerful influence that must be accounted for in all studies of the effects of age on cognition.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Fox, J., Gandell, D. L., Garron, D. C., Huckman, M. S., & Ramsey, R. G. (1978). Predictors of mortality in presenile and senile dementia. Annals of Neurology, 3(3), 246-252.
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  PMID: 666265;Abstract: Forty-seven hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of presenile or senile dementia and without focal neurological disease or major systemic illness were given complete neurological, neuroradiological, and neuropsychological examinations. Mortality at one year after hospitalization was determined, 12 patients being lost to follow-up. Of the remaining 35 patients, 19 were alive and 16 had died. These two groups did not differ in age, education, length of dementia history, sex, race, or degree of cerebral atrophy (by computerized tomography). Significant differences were found in degree of electroencephalographic abnormality and in 8 of 14 cognitive measures, the largest single difference being on a test of expressive language. Discriminant function analysis made with the cognitive measures as dependent variables yielded a correct prediction (classification analysis) of mortality in all but 1 case (97% accuracy). These results suggest that (1) degree of functional brain impairment rather than the degree of cerebral atrophy may be the more important influence on mortality in dementia patients without focal lesions, (2) short-term survival may be accurately predicted in such patients by tests of cognitive functioning, and (3) expressive language deficit in such patients may indicate a particularly poor prognosis for survival.

Presentations

• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, April). Chair and discussant, Meditation Concurrent Session. Toward a Science of Consciousness 20th Anniversary Conference. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, April). Conceptual and Methodological Issues in Neuroscientific Research on Mindfulness. Neuroscience and Mindfulness Conference. North Wales, UK: University of Bangor.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, April). Meditation, aging, and the brain. Neuroscience and Mindfulness Conference. North Wales, UK: University of Bangor.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, February). Mindfulness, meditation and aging: Research and practice. Invited presentation given to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, University of Arizona. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, January). Age-associated cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. Invited presentation given to Sunnyside High School. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, May). Empathy and compassion: The View from social neuroscience. Being with Dying training program. Santa Fe, NM: Upaya Zen Center and Institute.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, May). Neuroscience of focused attention, executive function, perspective shifting, and mind wandering: implications for clinicians. Being with Dying training program. Santa Fe, NM: Upaya Zen Center and Institute.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, May). Stress and stress reduction: Biological evidence and practical implications. Being with Dying training program. Santa Fe, NM: Upaya Zen Center and Institute.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, November). Conceptual and methodological issues in research on mindfulness and meditation. Invited presentation given to the Arizona Meditation Research Interest Group (AMRIG). Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, October). Meditation and aging: Research and clinical application. Invited lecture presented at The Behavioral Health Pavilion. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona College of Medicine South Campus.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, October/November). Aging and Meditation: Evidence from Cognitive, Affective and Neuroscientific Research. Second International Symposium for Contemplative Studies. Boston, MA.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, September). Ageing, mindfulness, and the brain. Mindfulness Matters: Science and Application in an Emerging Society. Stellenbosch, South Africa: Stellenbosch University.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, September). Evaluating contemplative training programs with diverse populations. Symposium on Fidelity and Fit, at Mindfulness Matters: Science and Application in an Emerging Society. Stellenbosch, South Africa: Stellenbosch University.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, September). Invited panelist, Closing Reflective Forum. Mindfulness Matters: Science and Application in an Emerging Society. Stellenbosch, South Africa: Stellenbosch University.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, September). Science and contemplative practice in a course on empathy and compassion. Symposium on Empathy, Contemplative Practice and Pedagogy, the Humanities, and the Sciences. Salt Lake City, UT: University of Utah.
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Dunne, J. (2014, January). Intention, expectation, and transformation. Invited public talk given at the Upaya Zen Center and Institute. Santa Fe, NM.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Thompson, E., & Halifax, J. (2014, February). Zen Brain: Consciousness, complex systems, and transformation. Seminar/retreat given at the Upaya Zen Center and Institute. Santa Fe, NM.
• Halifax, J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, December). A day of meditation and discussion. Upaya Sangha of Tucson retreat/seminar. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, April). Aging, meditation, and the brain. Tucson Medical Center Annual Brain Week Conference. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, April). Meditation and aging. American Society on Aging MindAlert Webinar Series.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, April). The neuroscience of addiction, craving and desire. "Zen Brain: Greed and Generosity - The Neuroscience and Path of Transforming Addiction" retreat/seminar. Santa Fe, NM: Upaya Zen Center and Institute.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, February). Consciousness, Neuroscience, and Meditation Practice. Invited public talk given at the Upaya Zen Center and Institute. Santa Fe, NM.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, February). Neuropsychology and consciousness. "Zen Brain: Exploring Consciousness--Waking, Sleeping, Dreaming, Dying" retreat/seminar. Santa Fe, NM: Upaya Zen Center and Institute.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, January). Wisdom and emotional balance: Unwrapping the gifts of age. First Annual Conference on Successful Aging. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, June). Neuroscientific approaches to consciousness. 2013 Mind and Life Summer Research Institute. Garrison, NY.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, March). Mindfulness, spirituality, and the brain. National Forum on Brain Health (part of the 2013 Aging in America Conference). Chicago, IL: American Society on Aging.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, May). Moderator, Panel Discussion. Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Annual Public Conference. Peoria, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, May). Transformation in long-term meditation. The Future of Meditation Research Conference. Big Sur, CA: Esalen Institute.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, November). Wisdom, growth and resilience in care partnership. 18th Annual Caregiver Conference. Tucson, AZ.
• Levy, D., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2013, October). Integrity of Practice: Walking the Talk. 5th Annual Conference of the Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education. Amherst, MA.
• Hasenkamp, W., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, June). The Varela and 1440 research awards programs. 2012 Mind and Life Summer Research Institute. Garrison, NY.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Affective neuroscience of aging. Invited public lecture given to the Spirit of the Senses Salon. Phoenix, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Clinical science and contemplative practice. International Symposia for Contemplative Studies. Denver, CO.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Education, social science, and positive psychology. International Symposia for Contemplative Studies. Denver, CO.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, December). The path of the Bodhisattva. Invited public talk given at the Upaya Zen Center and Institute. Santa Fe, NM.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, February). Emotion experience, expression and physiology in aging. Neuroscience Data Blitz, University of Arizona. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, January). Emotions, equanimity and Zen practice. Upaya Zen Center and Institute. Santa Fe, NM.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, March). Meditation and emotion regulation. Invited presentation given to the Arizona Meditation Research Interest Group. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, March). Metamemory: How the brain predicts itself. Invited community presentation to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. Marana, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, May). Dementia and end-of-life care. Invited presentation given to the staff and volunteers of Casa de la Luz Hospice. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, November). Dementia and end-of-life-care. Casa de la Luz Hospice Annual Meeting. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, October). Why we are here. Mind and Life XXV Dialogs with the Dalai Lama ("Contemplative Practice and Health: Laboratory Findings and Real World Challenges"). New York, NY: Rockefeller University.
• Kaszniak, A. W., Halifax, J., Chrousos, G., Davidson, R., Thompson, E., Dunne, J., & Todd, R. (2012, January). Discussion panels at the "Zen Brain: Emotions, Equanimity, and the Embodied Mind" retreat/seminar. Upaya Zen Center and Institute. Santa Fe, NM.
• Menchola, M., Burns, C. M., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Evaluation of educational material on dementia with an emphasis on Latino individual. Annual Meeting of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine. Seattle, WA.
• Sbarra, D. A., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Contemporary training in clinical psychology: The UA model. Invited presentation given to the Southern Arizona Psychological Association. Tucson, AZ.
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-01-01). Emotion, equanimity, compassion, and selflessness in long-term meditators. Conference/Retreat on Compassion and Selflessness: Zen, Neuroscience, and Complexity Theory. Upaya Zen Center and Institute, Santa Fe, NM.
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  Review of my own and others' empirical research.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference/Workshop;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-01-01). Recognizing the symptoms and understanding the experience of neuropsychological disorders. Oregon Psychological Association (Full Day Workshop). Lake Oswego, OR.
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  Professional psychologist continuing education workshop, reviewing current research on neuropsychological assessment.;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference/Workshop;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-03-01). The Science of Meditation. Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education. Web Seminar.
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  Review of current research.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-04-01). Cultivating compassion: Views from contemplative practice and social neuroscience. The Contemplative Heart of Higher Education Conference (1st Annual Conference of the Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education). Amherst, MA.
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  Review of my own and others' empirical research.;Invited: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-07-01). The relationship of spirituality and compassion in health care. Fetzer Summit on the Linkage between Spirituality and Compassion. Kalamazoo, MI.
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  Panel discussant, reviewing current empirical research.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Panel Discussant (Reporting Research);
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-09-01). Toward a neuropsychology of metamemory. Department of Neuroscience Colloquium. University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ.
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  Presentation of my recent empirical research on neural correlates of metamemory.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: University;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-10-01). The neuroscience of attention, emotion, and meditation: Implications for education.. Mindfulness: Foundations for Teaching and Learning Conference. Oakland, CA.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-11-01). Alzheimer's disease: Research progress. Memory Matters Conference. Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2009, 2009-11-01). Multitasking, neuroscience, and contemplative practice. The One Who Is Not Busy: Living and Working Calmly and Effectively in an Accelerating, Information-Saturated World. Seattle, WA.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Reiman, E., Kaszniak, ., & A.W., . (2009, 2009-11-01). Progress in Alzheimer's disease research and the Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium. University of Arizona Retirees Association. Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Your Role: Co-presenter;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Dreyfus, G., Dunne, J., Kaszniak, A. W., Klein, A., Pessoa, L., Meyer, D., Thompson, E., & Zelazo, P. (2008, 2008-06-01). Attention and emotion in cognitive neuroscience and Buddhist phenomenology and epistemology. Annual Mind and Life Summer Research Institute. Garrison, NY.
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  Within this panel discussion, I described my recent research on emotion regulation among long-term Zen meditators, and offered comments on other research presentations.;Your Role: Member of discussion panel;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: Collaborators are faculty members at several other research universities.;Type of Presentation: Panel Discussant (Reporting Research);
• Kaszniak, ., & Menchola, . (2008, 2008-05-01). Self-reported emotion regulation strategy, health, and perceived burden among caregivers of persons with dementia. Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Annual Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
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  Presentation reported on an empirical study investigating the relationship between habitual emotion regulation strategies and stress among caregivers of persons with dementia.;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated on design of study, analysis and interpretation of data, and writing.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-01-01). Zen and the Affective Neuroscience of Compassion: A Developing Research Program. Zen Brain, Selfless Insight. Upaya Zen Center and Institute, Santa Fe, NM.
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  Presentation described research results from my ongoing study of emotion response and regulation in long-term Zen meditators.;Your Role: Sole author;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Invited/Plenary Speaker;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-02-01). Compassion, equanimity, and the brain: Neuroscientific studies of long-term meditator. Arizona Senior Academic Public Lecture Series. Tucson, AZ.
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  The presentation described my recent research on the cultivation of compassion and emotion regulation in long-term Zen meditators.;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-02-01). Discussant, Early risk and protective factors for cognitive decline. International Neuropsychological Society Annual Meeting. Waikoloa, HI.
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  In this discussion, I provided critical comment for a set of five symposium presentation, and reported on related new data from my own laboratory;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Panel Discussant (Reporting Research);
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-03-01). As time goes on: Understanding Alzheimer's disease progression and coping with caregiving challenges. Tucson Main Downtown Library. Tucson, AZ.
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  Community outreach lecture on Alzheimer's disease and caregiver coping.;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-06-01). The cognitive/affective neuroscience of multitasking. No Time to Think Conference. Seattle, WA.
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  In this presentation, I reviewed both my own and others' empirical research relating brain attentional systems to multitasking and its consequences.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-11-01). The psychology of empathy and compassion: Contemplative and scientific perspectives. 2008 Contemplative Practice Fellowship Meeting. Kalamazoo, MI.
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  Presentation described the progress in my fellowship, involving the development of a new undergraduate honors course on scientific and contemplative perspectives on empathy and compassion.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Edmonds, E. C. (2008, 2008-10-01). Anosognosia and Alzheimer's disease: Behavioral studie. Conference on Advances in the Study of Anosognosia. Phoenix, AZ.
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  Presentation reviewed the past 20 years of empirical research on unawareness of deficits (anosognosia) in persons with Alzheimer's disease.;Your Role: Senior author of presentation; Responsible for review of empirical studies and preparation of all aspects of presentation.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kong, L., Glisky, E., Kaszniak, A., Bieliauskas, L., & Rapcsak, S. (2008, 2008-02-01). Source memory and executive functioning in Parkinson's disease. International Neuropsychological Society Annual Meeting. Waikoloa, HI.
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  The presentation described results of an empirical study of the relationship between source memory and neuropsychological measures related to frontal lobe functioning in persons with Parkinson's disease;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated on experimental design, selection, statistical analysis, and interpretation of neuropsychological measures.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member in unit: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Menchola, M., Kaszniak, A. W., & Burton, K. W. (2008, 2008-10-01). Interaction between habitual and voluntary emotion regulation and the chronometry of affective responses. 48th annual meeting of the Society for Psychophysiological Research. Austin, TX.
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  Presentation described results of an empirical psychophysiological study of the effects of both habitual and instructed emotion regulation strategies on the time course of physiological response to emotional visual stimuli.;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated in design of experiment, statistical analysis of psychophysiological data, interpretation, and writing.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Menchola, M., Kaszniak, A., & Burton, K. (2008, 2008-05-01). Age differences in self-report and physiological measures of emotional respondin. Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Annual Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
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  Presentation reported on an empirical psychophysiological study of emotional response in healthy younger and older adults.;Your Role: co-author of presentation; Responsible for conceptualization of project, writing of grant proposal for funding, design of experiment; Collaborated on statistical analyses, interpretation, and writing.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Menchola, M., Kaszniak, A., & Burton, K. (2008, 2008-05-01). Development and evaluation of educational material on Alzheimer's disease: A pilot study with Hispanic elderly. Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Annual Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
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  Presentation described development and evaluation of educational materials on Alzheimer's disease appropriate for use with both Spanish- and English-speaking Hispanic older adults.;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated in the design and production of educational material and in the design, statistical analysis, and interpretation of an evaluation study of this material.;Submitted: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Ray, C. A., Kaszniak, ., & A.W., . (2008, 2008-04-01). Does engagement in an emotion regulation strategy in response to a previously conditioned stimulus result in enduring fear inhibition?. Cognitive Neuroscience Society Annual Meeting. San Francisco, CA.
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  The presentation described an empirical study of the effects of different emotion-regulation strategies on subjective and physiological responses to conditioned fear stimuli.;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated in experimental design , statistical analyses, and interpretation.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Ray, C. A., Sokal, B., Allen, J., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2008, 2008-10-01). Beating hearts and sweaty palms: Mean skin conductance response during fear conditioning is larger for those with lower resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia. 48th annual meeting of the Society for Psychophysiological Research. Austin, TX.
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  Presentation reported on an empirical study of the effects of directed emotion regulation strategies on subjective and physiological conditioned fear responses.;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated on experiment design, statistical analysis of psychophysiological data, interpretation, and writing.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member in unit: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Recknor, E. C., Kaszniak, A. W., Glisky, E. L., & Rapcsak, S. R. (2008, 2008-02-01). False Facial Recognition: The Relationship Between False Alarms and Frontal Lobe Functioning in Older Adults. International Neuropsychological Society annual meeting. Waikoloa, HI.
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  This presentation described the results of an empirical study investigating the relationship between false facial recognition and neuropsychological measures related to frontal lobe functioning in health older adults.;Your Role: Co-author of paper; Collaborated in selection, statistical analysis, and interpretation of neuropsychological and experimental cognitive measures;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member in unit: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Davidson, R., Dunne, J., Kaszniak, A. W., Nielsen, L., & Saron, C. (2007, 2007-06-01). The possibility of transforming emotion through meditation - A dialog. Mind and Life Summer Research Institute. Garrison, NY.
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  ;Your Role: Panel member of discussion panel; Presented some of my own research and commented on that of others.;Invited: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: Collaborators are faculty members at other research universities.;Type of Presentation: Panel Discussant (Reporting Research);
• Hirsch, F., Holland, A., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-05-01). Maximizing effective communication between individuals with Alzheimer's disease and their professional caregivers in long-term care. Clinical Aphasiology Conference. Scottsdale, AZ.
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  ;Your Role: Collaborated in design of experiment; Selected cognitive measures; collaborated in statistical analyses, interpretation, and writing of presentation.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-01-01). Alzheimer's disease and Hispanic/Latino persons: Improving understanding, treatment, and care through research and education. Phoenix Hispanic Outreach Alliance. Phoenix, AZ.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-02-01). Connecting cognitive neuroscience and neuropsychological assessment in Alzheimer's disease. Annual meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society. Portland, OR.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-03-01). Differentiating dementia from depression: Issues in diagnosis and implications for treatment. Southern Arizona Alzheimer's Association Caregiver Conference. Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Invited/Plenary Speaker;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-03-01). Normal memory aging or dementia: How can I know?. University of Arizona Faculty Lecture Series. Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-04-01). Research on Alzheimer's disease and related dementias: Diagnosis, treatment, and risk reduction. Arizona Psychological Association. Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-09-01). Recent advances in Alzheimer's research. Pima Council on Aging. Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Community Outreach;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-10-01). The affective neuroscience of compassion: A developing research agend. “Mind, Brain, and Society” workshop. University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ.
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  ;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference/Workshop;
• McRae, K., Ochsner, K. N., McIntosh, A. R., Lane, R. D., Kaszniak, A. W., Gabrieli, J., & Gross, J. J. (2007, 2007-11-01). Effective connectivity of effortful emotion regulation. Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience. San Diego, CA.
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  ;Your Role: Collaborated in experiment design, statistical analyses, interpretation, and writing of presentation;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: Other collaborators are faculty members at Stanford University.;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Nielsen, L., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2007, 2007-06-01). Emotion experience and regulation in long-term meditators. Mind and Life Summer Research Institute. Garrison, NY.
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  ;Your Role: Co-author of presentation; Collaborated in design of experiment, data collection, statistical analyses, interpretation, and writing.;Invited: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Other collaborative: Yes;Specify other collaborative: Collaborator is project officer at NIH and my former graduate student.;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2006, 2006-03-01). Work and mindfulness: Insights from neuroscience. Mindful Work and Technology Conference. Washington, DC.
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  Presentation review neuroscientific studies of attention and emotion relevant to understanding functioning in multitasking environments.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2006, 2006-04-01). Neuropsychological perspectives on testing accommodations. University of Arizona Testing Accommodations Symposium. Tucson, AZ.
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  Prresentation reviewed neuropsychological and neuroimaging research relevant to understanding individual differences in memory and learning.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2006, 2006-05-01). Effects of biologically-prepared stimuli on emotion physiology in healthy older adults and Alzheimer's disease. Annual Meeting of the Arizona Alzheimer's Disease Consortium. Phoenix, AZ.
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  Presentation described recent psychophysiological study of emotion response in persons with Alzheimer's disease versus healthy older adults.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2006, 2006-10-01). Symptoms of neurological disease in psychotherapy clients: When should I refer?. Workshop sponsored by the Southern Arizona Psychological Association. Tucson, AZ.
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  Half-day workshop reviewed neuropsychological research relevant to detection and referral of acquired neurologic illness in adults.;Invited: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference/Workshop;
• Kaszniak, A. W. (2006, 2009-02-01). Welcoming address and conference overview. 3rd Annual Amereican Indian Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia Update Conference. Wildhorse Pass, AZ.
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  Gave opening welcoming address and conference overview.;Invited: Yes;Interdisciplinary: Yes;Type of Presentation: Academic Conference;
• Menchola, M., Kaszniak, A. W., & Burton, K. W. (2006, 2006-10-01). Age differences and physiological responses to emotional images of varied content. 46th Annual Meeting of the Society for Psychophysiological Research. Vancouver, BC, Canada.
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  Presentation described an empirical study of adult age-related differences in physiological response to emotional stimuli.;Your Role: Collaborated in design of experiment, data collection, statistical analyses and interpretation of data, and writing of presentation.;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;
• Pannu, J. K., Kaszniak, A. W., Rapcsak, S. Z., Ryan, L., & Glisky, E. (2006, 2006-02-01). Tip-of-the-tongue states in aging: An event-related fMRI study. International Neuropsychological Society. Boston, MA.
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  Presentation reported on fMRI study of tip-of-the-tongue states in healthy older adults who vary in performance on neuropsychyological tests sensitive to the integrity of frontal and temporal lobe functioning.;Your Role: Collaborated in design of experiment, statistical analyses and interpretation of fMRI data, and writing of presentation;Submitted: Yes;Refereed: Yes;Collaborative with graduate student: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member in unit: Yes;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;Type of Presentation: Professional Organization;

Poster Presentations

• Arizmendi, B., O'Connor, M., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2014, June). Virtually supportive: a feasibility pilot study of an online support group for dementia caregivers in a 3D virtual environment. 16th Annual Conference of the Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium. Mesa, AZ.
• Burns, C. M., Kaszniak, A. W., Chen, K., Lee, W., Bandy, D. J., Caselli, R., & Reiman, E. (2014, April). Association between longitudinal increases in serum glucose and metabolic decline in Alzheimer's disease-related brain regions. 66th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology. Philadelphia, PA.
• Burns, C. M., Kaszniak, A. W., Chen, K., Lee, W., Bandy, D. J., Reschke, C., Caselli, R. J., & Reiman, E. M. (2014, June). An inverse relationship between longitudinal changes in fasting serum glucose and cerebral glucose metabolism in Alzheimer's disease related brain regions. 16th Annual Conference of the Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium. Mesa, AZ.
• Bartell, J., Burns, C., Thiyvagura, P., Li, A., Parks, S., Protas, H., Lee, W., Fleisher, A., Kaszniak, A. W., Chen, K., & Reiman, E. M. (2013, May). Association between higher fasting serum glucose levels and the pattern of lower regional gray matter volumes in cognitively normal adults. 2013 Annual Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Scientific Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
• Burns, C. M., Kaszniak, A. W., Chen, K., Lee, W., & Reiman, E. M. (2013, February). Elevated Fasting Serum Glucose Levels and Brain Function: A PET Study of Younger Adults. 41st Annual Meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society. Waikoloa, HI.
• Burns, C. M., Kaszniak, A. W., Chen, K., Lee, W., Caselli, R. J., & Reiman, E. M. (2013, May). Fasting serum glucose levels and brain function: a PET study of younger adults. 2013 Annual Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Scientific Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
• Burns, C. M., Ashish, D., McDonnell, D., Baena, E., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Mental health and mindfulness from the inside: Developing an introductory mindfulness based meditation class for prison inmates. International Symposia for Contemplative Studies. Denver, CO.
• Kaszniak, A. W., & Ashish, D. (2012, April). Loving-kindness meditation: A review and future directions. International Symposia for Contemplative Studies. Denver, CO.
• Wiley, A., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2012, April). Does mindfulness meditation buffer against self-control failure?. International Symposia for Contemplative Studies. Denver, CO.

Others

• Henry, M. L., Rapcsak, S. Z., & Kaszniak, A. W. (2008). Primary progressive aphasia and semantic dementia.
  More info

  The paper provides a review of clinical symptoms and prognosis in primary progressive aphasia and semantic dementia, primarily aimed at practicing physicians in Arizona.;Your Role: co-author of paper;Full Citation: Henry, M.L., Rapcsak, S.Z., & Kaszniak, A.W. (2008). Primary progressive aphasia and semantic dementia. Medical/Scientific Advisory Committee Newsletter (Alzheimer's Association Desert Southwest Chapter), 2 (3), 1-3.;Collaborative with faculty member at UA: Yes;