Reaction Times and Intelligence in Japanese Children

The hypothesis that reaction times are positively associated with intelligence was tested on 444 nine-year-old Japanese children. Intelligence was measured by the Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices, and 12 reaction time parameters were obtained to give measures of movement times, reaction times proper (decision times), differentiated into simple and complex reaction times, and variabilities. Factor analysis of the reaction time tasks indicated the presence of a general factor and three primary factors identifiable as movement times, simple reaction times, and complex reaction times. Of these, only complex reaction times showed significant associations with intelligence.     

Reaction Times and Intelligence in Korean Children

Nine-year-old Korean children (N = 299) were tested for reaction time (RT) and intelligence measured by Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices. Reaction times were broken into decision times and movement times and into three degrees of complexity. The results showed low but generally statistically significant correlations between decision times and intelligence. Generally, no significant differences existed between movement times and intelligence. Boys showed significantly faster movement times than girls did.     

An Experimental Manipulation of Social Comparison in Social Anxiety

Negative self-appraisal is thought to maintain social anxiety particularly when comparing oneself to others. Work on social comparison suggests that gender may moderate the effects of social comparison in social anxiety. Self-appraisals of the desirability of one's personality may be more important to women, whereas self-appraisal of signs of anxiety may be more important to men. Within each gender, those with high social anxiety are expected to report more negative self-appraisal when comparing themselves to someone else described as high achieving. This study is the first we are aware of that examined gender-based interactive effects after a social comparison manipulation. Participants read a bogus profile of a fellow student's adjustment to college. They were randomly assigned to read a profile suggesting that the fellow student was “high achieving” or more normative in his/her achievements. When comparing to a “high achieving” individual, men with high social anxiety reported the most negative self-appraisals of their signs of anxiety. In addition, greater social anxiety was associated with a poorer self-appraisal of personality only among men. The implications of the findings for conceptualizing the role of social comparison in social anxiety are discussed.     

材料性质对有意遗忘影响的实验研究

以大学生为被试 ,采用字表方式 ,探讨了词语和图片两种材料下的有意遗忘。结果发现 :①被试在词语和图片两种材料下的有意遗忘没有显著差异 ;②对于词语材料 ,被试既对指示记忆的项目进行了更加精细的编码 ,又对指示遗忘的项目产生了抑制 ;③对于图片材料 ,被试只对指示遗忘的项目产生了提取抑制 ,而没有对指示记忆的项目进行有意复述。     

刺激呈现次数和位置对纯粹接触效应的影响研究

纯粹接触效应是指个体接触一个刺激的次数越频繁,个体对该刺激就越喜欢的现象。本文通过两个实验考察刺激的呈现次数与位置对纯粹接触效应的影响。实验1讨论了纯粹接触效应与刺激呈现次数之间的关系,发现刺激的偏好程度和再认成绩在不同的刺激呈现次数水平上都具有显著性差异。实验2讨论了纯粹接触效应与刺激呈现位置之间的关系,结果发现不同呈现位置上刺激的偏好程度不具有显著性差异,而再认成绩之间具有显著性差异。     

序列反应时任务中内隐和外显学习表征方式的实验研究

采用改进的序列反应时任务,探讨内隐和外显学习的知识表征方式,发现内隐组和外显组被试都习得了一定的序列规则.内隐组对标准字母的反应显著快于知觉偏差,而后者则又显著快于对动觉偏差字母的反应;外显组对标准字母的反应显著快于知觉偏差和动觉偏差,而后两者之间则没有区别.以上结果表明外显和内隐学习中知觉表征和动觉表征都起作用,不过在内隐学习中动觉表征起的作用更大.     

不同情境条件下幼儿交往策略的实验研究

本文采用实验研究的方法,研究了不同情境条件对幼儿交往策略的影响。结果表明:互动的、关系的、群体的情境,能显著影响幼儿交往活动中策略的运用。在比较简单的情境中,幼儿运用策略的水平较高,而在比较复杂的情境中,幼儿运用策略的水平较低。同时,无论处于何种情境,大年龄幼儿的总体水平比小年龄幼儿的总体水平高。     

Parallel Processing Response Times and Experimental Determination of the Stopping Rule

It was formerly demonstrated that virtually all reasonable exhaustive serial models, and a more constrained set of exhaustive parallel models, cannot predict critical effects associated with self-terminating models. The present investigation greatly generalizes the parallel class of models covered by similar "impossibility" theorems. Specifically, we prove that if an exhaustive parallel model is not super capacity, and if targets are processed at least as fast as non-targets, then it cannot predict such (self-terminating) effects. Such effects are ubiquitous in the experimental literature, offering strong confirmation for self-terminating processing. Copyright 1997 Academic Press. Copyright 1997 Academic Press     

Assessment Centre Observation Procedures: An Experimental Comparison of Traditional,Checklist and Coding Methods

Concern about the construct validity of assessment centre judgements has led to calls for research into observers’ cognitive processes. In an experiment comparing the Traditional observation procedure against use of a Behavioural Checklist and of Behavioural Coding, six outcome variables were examined. The methods were found to yield similar outcomes in terms of accuracy of judgement, accuracy of written evidence, correlation between dimension ratings, and attitude toward the method employed. However, significant between-method differences were observed in variability between observers and in their willingness to recommend a procedure. It is argued that Behavioural Coding has special merit in assessment centres; the method reduces the cognitive demands placed on assessors, and valuably structures their information-processing. Traditional objections to simultaneous observation and classification are shown to be inappropriate.     

Endogenous Covert Spatial Orienting in Audition Cost-Benefit Analyses of Reaction Times and Event related Potentials

The presentstudy examines mechanisms ofendogenous covertspatialorienting inaudition as revealed by event-related brain potentials (ERPs) and reaction times (RTs). In one experimental condition, subjects were instructed to respond to any target tone irrespective of whether it was presented in a valid (spatially predictive cue), neutral (uninformative cue), or invalid (misleading cue) trial. In another experimental condition, only target tones presented at a cued position required a response-that is, subjects could completely ignore tones presented at the uncued ear. Cue validity had an effect on RT, which consisted in benefits for valid trials and in costs for invalid trials relative to the RTs in neutral trials. There were also distinct ERP effects of cue validity in the 100-300 msec time range. These ERP effects were enlarged in the condition in which uncued tones could be ignored. The effects of cue validity onRTsandERPsdemonstratedcovertorientinginauditionbothforstimulirequiring anovert response andalso for stimuli that did not require a behavioural response. It is argued that this attentional selection is located at intermediate stages of information processing, rather than at peripheral stages such as basic sensory-specific processing or response selection.     

日本"南蛮时代"探析

"南蛮时代"指16世纪中叶至17世纪中叶,是天主教风行日本和遭受残酷镇压的历史时期.在日耶稣会利用日本战国末期政治和社会文化的无序状态,通过适应传教策略,满足了不同阶级的不同需求,以廉价的成本,使耶稣会获得了数十万教徒的丰厚回报.然而,及至封建统一政权重新建立并开始整饬统治秩序时,天主教在政治和信仰伦理领域的"异端"成分凸显无遗,立时成为统治者整肃的对象."天主"在日本的寿终正寝,正是"事所必至、理有固然".     

Attentional Resources Measured by Reaction Times Highlight Differences Within Pleasant and Unpleasant,High Arousing Stimuli

Simple reaction times (RTs) to acoustic tones were recorded during picture viewing in order to investigate attentional resource allocation to threat stimuli compared with pleasant (sport/adventure) and neutral (household objects) contents. Stimuli were selected as equally arousing according to standardized subjective ratings. In the late stage of picture processing threat pictures showed shorter RTs compared with neutral and pleasant ones. In a second study, a choice-RT task was employed, and a wider range of both pleasant and unpleasant contents was shown. Results indicated slower RTs when blood/injury and erotic couples were presented, compared with other threat, and with other positive (sport/adventure) scenes. Specifically, erotic couples require a greater amount of attentional resources compared with sport/adventure; the same is true for blood/injury stimuli as compared with threat. Remarkable differences were thus shown in attentional deployment to specific stimulus contents within the same valence category. These differences should be taken into account when using such stimuli to investigate emotional processing.     

A Controlled Comparison of Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing and Progressive Counting

Ten therapists who were already trained and experienced in eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) received training in progressive counting (PC), a newer trauma resolution method. Nineteen volunteers with single-incident trauma or loss were assigned to a therapist and then randomized to treatment condition; 15 completed treatment to termination criteria or until the 4th session. Participants in both conditions experienced significant reductions in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, memory-related distress, and presenting problems at one week posttreatment, and maintained at 12-week follow-up, with no significant differences in outcomes, treatment efficiency, or dropout rate. The preliminary findings of this pilot study suggest that PC is an efficient, well-tolerated, and effective trauma treatment that is relatively easy for therapists to master.     

Tantalizing Times: An Examination of Discontent and Disconnects in Contemporary American Society

Using the myth of Tantalus as a point of departure and of reference, this paper examines various facets of contemporary anxieties and discontinuities. Tantalus was a mythical earthly king and a son of Zeus, king of the gods. His wishes for forbidden objects, omnipotence and immortality were the prelude for his having to endure excitements which could not be satisfied. Various changes have taken place in modern times which fill contemporary American life with the conflicts of Tantalus. The tantalizations are reflected in economics, culture & technology as well as various intellectual developments. The historical roots of this are traced. The paper attempts to weave a psychoanalytic interpretation of the myth with various anomalies of modern living to illustrate in many concrete ways how we live in Tantalizing Times.