Computational Social Psychology showcases a new approach to social psychology that enables theorists and researchers to specify social psychological processes in terms of formal rules that can be implemented and tested using the power of high speed computing technology and sophisticated software. This approach allows for previously infeasible investigations of the multi-dimensional nature of human experience as it unfolds in accordance with different temporal patterns on different timescales. In effect, the computational approach represents a rediscovery of the themes and ambitions that launched the field over a century ago. The book brings together social psychologists with varying topical interests who are taking the lead in this redirection of the field. Many present formal models that are implemented in computer simulations to test basic assumptions and investigate the emergence of higher-order properties; others develop models to fit the real-time evolution of people’s inner states, overt behavior, and social interactions. Collectively, the contributions illustrate how the methods and tools of the computational approach can investigate, and transform, the diverse landscape of social psychology.

This book features cutting edge research on the theory and measurement of affect dynamics from the leading experts in this emerging field. Authors will discuss how affect dynamics are instantiated across neural, psychological and behavioral levels of processing and provide state of the art analytical and computational techniques for assessing temporal changes in affective experiences. In the section on Within-episode Affect Dynamics, the authors discuss how single emotional episodes may unfold including the duration of affective responses, the dynamics of regulating those affective responses and how these are instantiated in the brain. In the section on Between-episode Affect Dynamics, the authors discuss how emotions and moods at one point in time may influence subsequent emotions and moods, and the importance of the time-scales on which we assess these dynamics. In the section on Between-person Dynamics the authors propose that interactions and relationships with others form much of the basis of our affect dynamics. Lastly, in the section on Computational Models of Affect, authors provide state of the art analytical techniques for assessing and modeling temporal changes in affective experiences. Affect Dynamics will serve as a reference for both seasoned and beginning affective science researchers to explore affect changes across time, how these affect dynamics occur, and the causal antecedents of these dynamics.

Despite substantial progress in the development of neuroimaging methodologies, translational applications of neuroimaging remain scarce. This Research Topic invites article submissions that present promising neuroimaging applications and methods addressing critical needs for improving health outcomes. These may include Original Research, Clinical Trial, Systematic Review or Methods articles that investigate neuroimaging metrics as outcome measures or in combination with neural perturbation techniques (e.g., neurofeedback, neurostimulation), other translational applications (e.g., guiding neurosurgery). To foster debate, we also welcome critical Review, Opinion, and Perspective articles that survey the field and its progress towards clinical utility.

The rock cycle is a key concept in earth science. Budding geologists will be endlessly fascinated by this endless cycle of earth's growth and development.

Brain oscillations, or neural rhythms, reflect widespread functional connections between large-scale neural networks, as well as within cortical networks. As such they have been related to many aspects of human behaviour. An increasing number of studies have demonstrated the role of brain oscillations at distinct frequency bands in cognitive, sensory and motor tasks. Consequentially, those rhythms also affect diverse aspects of human communication. On the one hand, this comprises verbal communication; a field where the understanding of neural mechanisms has seen huge advances in recent years. Speech is inherently organised in a rhythmic manner. For example, time scales of phonemes and syllables, but also formal prosodic aspects such as intonation and stress, fall into distinct frequency bands. Likewise, neural rhythms in the brain play a role in speech segmentation and coding of continuous speech at multiple time scales, as well as in the production of speech. On the other hand, human communication involves widespread and diverse nonverbal aspects where the role of neural rhythms is far less understood. This can be the enhancement of speech processing through visual signals, thought to be guided via brain oscillations, or the conveying of emotion, which results in differential rhythmic modulations in the observer. Additionally, body movements and gestures often have a communicative purpose and are known to modulate sensorimotor rhythms in the observer. This Research Topic of Frontiers in Human Neuroscience highlights the diverse aspects of human communication that are shaped by rhythmic activity in the brain. Relevant contributions are presented from various fields including cognitive and social neuroscience, neuropsychiatry, and methodology. As such they provide important new insights into verbal and non-verbal communication, pathological changes, and methodological innovations.