What’s in a name, what’s in a place? The role of verbal labels in distinct cognitive tasks

The effects of congruent and incongruent labelling on two simple cognitive tasks, sequence learning and place learning, were investigated. The results of both studies indicate the greater cognitive importance of information derived from the object compared to information derived from the verbal label.     

What’s in a name? The role of graphics,functions, and their interrelationships in icon identification

Communication using icons is now commonplace. It is therefore important to understand the processes involved in icon comprehension and the stimulus cues that individuals utilize to facilitate identification. In this study, we examined predictors of icon identification as participants gained experience with icons over a series of learning trials. A dynamic pattern of findings emerged in which the primary predictors of identification changed as learning progressed. In early learning trials, semantic distance (the closeness of the relationship between icon and function) was the best predictor of performance, accounting for up to 55% of the variance observed, whereas familiarity with the function was more important in later trials. Other stimulus characteristics, such as our familiarity with the graphic in the icon and its concreteness, were also found to be important for icon design. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed, with particular emphasis on the parallels with picture naming. The icon identification norms from this study may be downloaded from brm.psychonomic-journals .org/content/supplemental.     

What’s in God’s name: literary forerunners and philosophical allies of the imjaslavie debate

The aim of this paper is to explore the interaction between a tradition that belongs originally to the realm of orthodox contemplative monasticism (i.e., hesychasm) and nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Russian intellectuals. In the first part, this paper will explore how hesychasm gradually penetrated nineteenth-century secular culture; a special focus will be on the hermitage of Optina Pustyn?? and its renowned elders, as well as their appeal to members of the Optina-intelligentsia, especially F?dor Dostoevskij. Then, attention will shift to the imjaslavie controversy at the beginning of the twentieth century, which flared up initially as a dispute between Athonite monks and reached a sad culmination in 1912?C1913 with a manu militari intervention by troops of the Russian Holy Synod. However, the debate was taken up by some prominent intellectuals of the Russian religious renaissance, such as Pavel Florenskij, Nikolaj Berdjaev, and Sergej Bulgakov, who explicitly sided with the imjaslavcy (??Glorifiers of the Name??) and actively stepped into the debate.     

Falling outside of the ‘nice little binary box’: a psychoanalytic exploration of the non-binary gender identity

The non-binary gender identity has recently emerged on the landscape of gender variance. It captures individuals who may experience a gender identity that is neither exclusively male nor female, is a combination of male and female or is between or beyond genders. The availability of literature exploring the non-binary gender experience is somewhat limited. Consequently, our understanding of the development of ‘self’ amongst such individuals seems to lag behind that of other gender variant identity, in particular the binary transgender identity. A psychoanalytically informed qualitative research design was used to explore the psychological realities of 6 individuals, aged between 19 and 29 years, who identified as gender fluid, genderqueer, polygender, non-binary Trans person, non-binary trans guy and non-binary gender. Analysis focused upon the integration of conscious and unconscious material in order to provide some insight into the participants’ internal world and object-relating. Three core themes emerged from the data: ‘A developing gender identity’, ‘Correct and incorrect language’ and ‘Being seen and unseen’. These themes, as well as the heterogeneity and complexity of non-binary gender identity, are explored within the discussion, with some implications around our clinical and wider cultural response to people who identify themselves in this way.     

What’s in a Purse? Maybe a Woman’s Reputation

Does a woman’s reputation suffer when others discover condoms in her possession? Fifty-two male and female predominantly white undergraduates from a small, private, Catholic university in the northeast USA examined the contents of a purse to formulate an impression of its owner. Unflattering inferences were drawn about the character of the target when her purse contained condoms. A follow-up study with 55 comparable participants confirmed that these inferences were indeed uncomplimentary. The results are discussed in terms of the multi-dimensional price women pay when assuming responsibility for their sexual health.     

What makes labour and birth traumatic? A survey of intrapartum ‘hotspots’

Evidence suggests between 1% and 6% of women develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after childbirth. ‘Hotspots’ are moments of extreme distress during traumatising events that are implicated in symptoms of PTSD. This cross-sectional internet survey of hotspots examined (1) the content of intrapartum hotspots and (2) whether particular events, cognitions or emotions during hotspots are related to PTSD. Women (N?=?675) who experienced a difficult or traumatic birth completed a questionnaire composed of a validated measure of PTSD, questions concerning the existence of hotspots, and a newly developed measure of emotions and cognitions during hotspots. The majority of women (67.4%) reported at least one hotspot during birth and 52.9% had re-experiencing symptoms of these hotspots. Women were more likely to have PTSD if hotspots involved fear and lack of control (odds ratio (OR) 1.30, 95% CI 1.17–1.43) or intrapartum dissociation (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.05–1.19). Risk of PTSD was higher if hotspots concerned interpersonal difficulties (OR 4.34, 95% CI 2.15–8.77) or obstetric complications (OR 3.35, 95% CI 1.64–6.87) compared to complications with the baby.     

What’s in a Dao?: Ontology and Semiotics in Laozi and Zhuangzi

The present essay examines the conflicting ontological assumptions that one can find behind the word dao in the texts of the Laozi and Zhuangzi and argues that the relative indifference to these texts toward whether or not dao has an ontic reality should not be considered a flaw of early Daoism. Rather, the historical process by which the term dao collects various possible ontological implications can be thought of as a philosophical stance in its own right. That is, if the terms which one is obliged to use in discussing the immaterial necessarily hide, at least as much as they explain, the nature of Being, then it is a reasonable response to decline to ground one??s ethics in an ontology, and that while the resulting philosophy may not qualify as a fully-adumbrated system, this does not diminish its potential usefulness.     

What’s in a face? Perhaps some elements of both eudaimonic and hedonic well-being

The idea that eudaimonic well-being (EWB) should be distinguished from the more widespread notion of hedonic well-being (HWB), has stirred up disagreement among happiness researchers. Siding with EWB researchers, this study provides theoretical and empirical arguments supporting the distinctiveness and usefulness of a EWB dimension. A path model with data from Norwegian university students (N?=?184) showed that, when requested to draw both a happy face and a sad face, indicators of HWB were associated with a preference for working with the happy rather than the sad face. Indicators of EWB were uncorrelated with this hedonic bias. Eudaimonic feeling states were associated with the level of creativity involved in the drawings, while hedonic feelings were not. Finally, participants who draw bigger faces also felt more pleasure during the act of drawing. Eudaimonic feelings were unrelated to the size of the drawing.     

A pilot exploration of the use of compassionate images in a group of self‐critical people

Self‐criticism has long been associated with a variety of psychological problems and is often a key focus for intervention in psychotherapy. Recent work has suggested that self‐critics have underelaborated and underdeveloped capacities for compassionate self‐soothing and warmth. This pilot study developed a diary for monitoring self‐attacking and self‐soothing thoughts and images. It also explored the personal experiences of a group of volunteer self‐critics from the local depression support group who were given training in self‐soothing and self‐compassion. Although using small numbers, this study suggests the potential value of developing more complex methodologies for studying the capacity for self‐compassion, interventions to increase self‐compassion (including imagery techniques), and their effects on mental health.     

Voices from the margins: Islam,queer identity,and female agency in Rayda Jacobs’s Confessions of a Gambler

This article foregrounds the intersection between queer Islamic masculinity and Islamic female identity in Rayda Jacobs’s Confessions of a Gambler, and shows how these two identity categories are subjugated in light of dominant expressions of Islamic masculinity. The novel’s action takes place within a traditional Cape Muslim community and employs, among other literary strategies, the main protagonist’s vice of gambling and her son’s sexuality as tools to illuminate the interstitial and perilous social space occupied by women and gay men in South African Muslim society. The research dissects the poignant picture that Jacobs paints of marginal identities as they exist at the intersection of religion, gender identity and sexual identity, and ultimately exhibits that homophobia and gender inequalities are not necessarily intrinsic to Islam. The article adopts a cultural studies style literary analysis. In light of this theoretical approach, this article evaluates Jacobs’s novel in a manner that goes beyond its literariness and shows how it also acts as a form of social commentary. This article also shows how the novel problematises hegemonic representations of gender and sexuality within Islam by giving voice to women and gay men: identity categories which remain largely voiceless in the dominant representations of Islam.     

Sense of identity in advanced Alzheimer’s dementia: A cognitive dissociation between sameness and selfhood?

We looked at whether sense of identity persists in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and if its profile remains the same between two examinations. A specifically designed protocol was administered to 16 AD patients in the mild to severe stages of dementia and to 16 matched healthy controls, both living in the same institution. We showed that sense of identity was broadly preserved in AD patients. The patterns of their responses were similar to those of controls, and remained consistent over a two-week period. However, some qualitative characteristics of sense of identity in AD patients differed significantly from those of controls, suggesting that AD patients may not be able to update their self-knowledge, probably because of their episodic memory deficit. These results are discussed in the light of both current models of the self and philosophical concepts such as sameness and selfhood.     

What’s in a name? Intolerance of uncertainty,other uncertainty-relevant constructs,and their differential relations to worry and generalized anxiety disorder*

A number of studies have examined the association of intolerance of uncertainty (IU) to trait worry and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). However, few studies have examined the extent of overlap between IU and other psychological constructs that bear conceptual resemblance to IU, despite the fact that IU-type constructs have been discussed and examined extensively within psychology and other disciplines. The present study investigated (1) the associations of IU, trait worry, and GAD status to a negative risk orientation, trait curiosity, indecisiveness, perceived constraints, self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism, intolerance of ambiguity, the need for predictability, and the need for order and structure and (2) whether IU is a unique correlate of trait worry and of the presence versus absence of Probable GAD, when overlap with other uncertainty-relevant constructs is accounted for. N = 255 adults completed self-report measures of the aforementioned constructs. Each of the constructs was significantly associated with IU. Only IU, and a subset of the other uncertainty-relevant constructs were correlated with trait worry or distinguished the Probable GAD group from the Non-GAD group. IU was the strongest unique correlate of trait worry and of the presence versus absence of Probable GAD. Indecisiveness, self-oriented perfectionism and the need for predictability were also unique correlates of trait worry or GAD status. Implications of the findings are discussed, in particular as they pertain to the definition, conceptualization, and cognitive-behavioral treatment of IU in GAD.     

What makes labour and birth traumatic? A survey of intrapartum 'hotspots'

Evidence suggests between 1% and 6% of women develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after childbirth. 'Hotspots' are moments of extreme distress during traumatising events that are implicated in symptoms of PTSD. This cross-sectional internet survey of hotspots examined (1) the content of intrapartum hotspots and (2) whether particular events, cognitions or emotions during hotspots are related to PTSD. Women (N?=?675) who experienced a difficult or traumatic birth completed a questionnaire composed of a validated measure of PTSD, questions concerning the existence of hotspots, and a newly developed measure of emotions and cognitions during hotspots. The majority of women (67.4%) reported at least one hotspot during birth and 52.9% had re-experiencing symptoms of these hotspots. Women were more likely to have PTSD if hotspots involved fear and lack of control (odds ratio (OR) 1.30, 95% CI 1.17-1.43) or intrapartum dissociation (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.05-1.19). Risk of PTSD was higher if hotspots concerned interpersonal difficulties (OR 4.34, 95% CI 2.15-8.77) or obstetric complications (OR 3.35, 95% CI 1.64-6.87) compared to complications with the baby.     

What’s Ignored in Itō Jinsai’s Interpretation of Mencius?

This article discusses the 17^th century Japanese Confucian Itō Jinsai’s interpretation of Mencius. It is argued that Itō Jinsai grinds the Mencius with an axe of Japanese “practical learning.” In his representation of Mencius, the government of “Kindly Way” is upheld as the core value in Mencius’ thought. Although there is a clear spirituality in his own philosophy, he stressed the political aspect of Mencius’ thought at the expense of the transcendental aspect of his theory of human mind and nature.     

What are the relationship experiences of in which one member identifies as transgender? A systematic review and meta-ethnography

Transgender individuals and their partners may face unique challenges that other couples do not. These unique challenges merit investigation, understanding and consideration by systemic practitioners in order to provide a culturally attuned service for transgender clients. A systematic review of the literature into the experiences of couples in which one member is transgender identified 22 qualitative papers. A translation and synthesis of constructs from these papers utilising a meta-ethnographic approach generated a number of third order constructs organised into nine overarching themes. These themes included experiences of stigma and discrimination, issues of power, privilege, visibility and identity, and experiences of dissonance and dysphoria that required adjustments and negotiations on the personal and relationship levels. Implications for practice and avenues for future research are discussed.     

What’s in a (Role) Name? Formal and Conceptual Aspects of Comprehending Personal Nouns

Two eye-tracking studies assessed effects of grammatical and conceptual gender cues in generic role name processing in German. Participants read passages about a social or occupational group introduced by way of a generic role name (e.g., Soldaten/soldiers, Künstler/artists). Later in the passage the gender of this group was specified by the anaphoric expression diese Männer/these men or diese Frauen/these women. Testing masculine generic role names of male, female or neutral conceptual gender (Exp. 1) showed that a gender mismatch between the role name’s conceptual gender and the anaphor significantly slowed reading immediately before and after the anaphoric noun. A mismatch between the antecedent’s grammatical gender and the anaphor slowed down the reading of the anaphoric noun itself. Testing grammatically gender-unmarked role names (Exp. 2) revealed a general male bias in participants’ understanding, irrespective of grammatical or conceptual gender. The experiments extend previous findings on gender effects to non-referential role names and generic contexts. Theoretical aspects of gender and plural reference as well as gender information in mental models are discussed.     

What’s in the name? Categorical perception for unfamiliar faces can occur through labeling

The conditions under which categorical perception (CP) occurs for unfamiliar faces are unclear. Although CP is generally found only for familiar faces, it has been reported for unfamiliar faces after brief training (Levin & Beale, 2000) or even without any learning of the original faces (Campanella, Hanoteau, Seron, Joassin, & Bruyer, 2003). Three experiments investigated whether CP can be observed for an unfamiliar morphed face continuum without preexposure to the endpoints of the continuum (Experiment 1); with brief exposure to the endpoints (Experiment 2); or with exposure to named endpoints (Experiment 3). CP was always observed for matched pairs of famous faces. However, CP for unfamiliar faces was induced only when participants observed names paired with the endpoint faces before the start of the experiment. The results suggest that CP effects for unfamiliar faces can be observed extremely rapidly when clear category labels are presented.     

What’s happening in CAI: A survey of ongoing projects

As there are more CAI papers in this year’s “Computers in Psychology” program than in any past year, the membership was surveyed to provide a broad overview of current trends. This is a report of the obtained data (1) on what courses use CAI and the hardware supporting those courses, (2) on the software and “courseware” involved, (3) on CAI record-keeping and evaluation procedures, and (4) on the financial costs and educational benefits of the various projects.