Asymmetries of comparison

Tversky’s (1977) seminal work on directionality in judgments of similarity demonstrated that people may not judge the similarity of A to B to be equal to the similarity of B to A. In a series of studies, we investigated comparison asymmetries. In Experiment 1, our aim was to extend Tversky’s findings to a heterogeneous stimulus set, but no reliable asymmetries were observed. Experiment 2 employed a variety of comparison judgments, and, although some of these measures showed asymmetries, we still failed to observe asymmetries in rated similarity. A final attempt to obtain asymmetries used direction as a within-subjects factor, and for the first time, rating asymmetries were observed. Our data reinforce the idea of comparison asymmetries but suggest that similarity rating asymmetries are only observed under quite circumscribed conditions.     

Speed of Lexical Activation in Nonfluent Broca''s Aphasia and Fluent Wernicke''s Aphasia

Rapid, automatic access to lexical/semantic knowledge is critical in supporting the tight temporal constraints of on-line sentence comprehension. Based on findings of “abnormal” lexical priming in nonfluent aphasics, the question of disrupted automatic lexical activation has been the focus of many recent efforts to understand their impaired sentence comprehension capabilities. The picture that emerges from this literature is, however, unclear. Nonfluent Broca's aphasic patients showinconsistent,notabsent,lexical priming, and there is little consensus about the conditions under which they do and do not prime. The most parsimonious explanation for the variable findings from priming studies to date is that the primary disturbance in Broca's lexical activation has something to do withspeedof activation. Broca's aphasic patients prime when sufficient time is allowed for activation to spread among associates. To examine this “slowed activation” hypothesis, the time course of lexical activation was examined using a list priming paradigm. Temporal delays between successive words ranged from 300 to 2100 msec. One nonfluent Broca's aphasic patient and one fluent Wernicke's patient were tested. Both patients displayed abnormal priming patterns, though of different sorts. In contrast to elderly subjects, who prime at relatively short interstimulus intervals (ISIs) beginning at 500 msec, the Broca's aphasic subject showed reliable automatic priming but only at a long ISI of 1500 msec. That is, this subject retained the ability to access lexical information automatically if allowed sufficient time to do so, a finding that may help explain disrupted comprehension of normally rapid conversational speech. The Wernicke's aphasic subject, in contrast, showed normally rapid initial activation but continued to show priming over an abnormally long range of delays, from 300 msec through 1100 msec. This protracted priming suggests failure to dampen activation and might explain the semantic confusion exhibited by fluent Wernicke's patients.     

Hemispheric Asymmetries: Attention to Visual and Auditory Primitives

A computational theory of hemispheric asymmetries in perception (double filtering by frequency) is described. Its central tenet is that the cerebral hemispheres first perform symmetric filtering of visual and auditory information. Functional hemispheric asymmetry arises from a second filtering stage (containing filters skewed in different directions in the two hemispheres). The first stage selects a range of task-relevant spatial or auditory frequencies from the absolute values. This range is passed to the asymmetric filters. In this way, the hemispheric difference becomes one of relative rather than absolute information. Behavioral deficits due to unilateral lesions in neurological patients and neuroimaging and electrophysiological measures in normal subjects implicate posterior cortex in these hemispheric differences.     

The meaning of indifference in choice behavior: Asymmetries in adjustments embodied in matching

Measuring and assessing people’s preferences is an intricate task that can be realized by different methods. Evidently, the different methods do not necessarily yield consistent results. In the present paper we examine the matching procedure and demonstrate inconsistencies within the method itself. It is shown that the inconsistencies stem from: (1) asymmetry in upward and downward matching (i.e., matching options by increasing or lowering values do not yield the same tradeoffs) and (2) participants’ tendency to match (adjust) the options such that they become more similar, eventually facilitating the choice process. Matching is the most straightforward method of eliciting indifference. Hence, the observed inconsistencies, encapsulated in the matching procedure, have direct implications for the construction of indifference curves (equal-utility contours) that are examined in the final section.     

First-Pass versus Second-Pass Parsing Processes in a Wernicke''s and a Broca''s Aphasic: Electrophysiological Evidence for a Double Dissociation

The present paper is a first attempt to integrate the classical brain lesion behavioral impairment approach of functional neuroanatomy and the electrophysiological brain mapping approach in the domain of syntactic processing. In a group of normal age-matched controls we identified three electrophysiological components previously observed in correlation with language comprehension processes: an early left anterior negativity normally seen in correlation with syntactic first-pass parsing processes (ELAN), a centroparietal negativity seen in correlation with processes of lexical-semantic integration (N400), and a late centroparietal positivity observed in correlation with secondary syntactic processes of reanalysis and repair (P600). The early left anterior negativity was absent in a patient with an extended lesion in the anterior part of the left hemisphere sparing the temporal lobe, although the late centroparietal positivity and the centroparietal N400 were present. In a patient with a left temporal-parietal lesion the early left anterior negativity was found to be present, whereas the N400 component was absent. These findings suggest that first-pass parsing and secondary processes are subserved by distinct brain systems.     

Asymmetries in processing horizontal and vertical dimensions

The aim of this study was to determine whether the referential term on the horizontal dimension corresponds to the dominant hand and whether the referential term on the vertical dimension is independent of handedness. In order to verify the hypothesis, right-handers, left-handers, and ambidextrous subjects were required to verify and falsify statements including the words ABOVE and BELOW and the words LEFT and RIGHT. The results showed that right-handers were faster in verifying and falsifying the statements containing the term RIGHT, whereas left handers were faster in verifying and falsifying those containing the term LEFT. Ambidextrous subjects, however, showed no sign of asymmetry in the positional judgments of stimuli along the horizontal dimension. By contrast, right-handers, left-handers, and ambidextrous subjects were equally faster in verifying and falsifying the statements containing the term ABOVE than the statements containing the term BELOW. The relation between the positive term on the horizontal dimension and the dominant hand can be explained by the fact that, in the absence of any asymmetries in the physical world, the dominant hand can furnish a natural reference direction for judgments related to this dimension.     

Ideological Asymmetries and the Essence of Political Psychology

Individuals are not merely passive vessels of whatever beliefs and opinions they have been exposed to; rather, they are attracted to belief systems that resonate with their own psychological needs and interests, including epistemic, existential, and relational needs to attain certainty, security, and social belongingness. Jost, Glaser, Kruglanski, and Sulloway ( 2003 ) demonstrated that needs to manage uncertainty and threat were associated with core values of political conservatism, namely respect for tradition and acceptance of inequality. Since 2003 there have been far more studies on the psychology of left‐right ideology than in the preceding half century, and their empirical yield helps to address lingering questions and criticisms. We have identified 181 studies of epistemic motivation (involving 130,000 individual participants) and nearly 100 studies of existential motivation (involving 360,000 participants). These databases, which are much larger and more heterogeneous than those used in previous meta‐analyses, confirm that significant ideological asymmetries exist with respect to dogmatism, cognitive/perceptual rigidity, personal needs for order/structure/closure, integrative complexity, tolerance of ambiguity/uncertainty, need for cognition, cognitive reflection, self‐deception, and subjective perceptions of threat. Exposure to objectively threatening circumstances—such as terrorist attacks, governmental warnings, and shifts in racial demography—contribute to modest “conservative shifts” in public opinion. There are also ideological asymmetries in relational motivation, including the desire to share reality, perceptions of within‐group consensus, collective self‐efficacy, homogeneity of social networks, and the tendency to trust the government more when one's own political party is in power. Although some object to the very notion that there are meaningful psychological differences between leftists and rightists, the identification of “elective affinities” between cognitive‐motivational processes and contents of specific belief systems is essential to the study of political psychology. Political psychologists may contribute to the development of a good society not by downplaying ideological differences or advocating “Swiss‐style neutrality” when it comes to human values, but by investigating such phenomena critically, even—or perhaps especially—when there is pressure in society to view them uncritically.     

Asymmetries in Coupling Dynamics of Perception and Action

The influence of information-based dynamics on coordination dynamics of rhythmic movement was examined with special reference to the expression of asymmetries. In Experiment 1, right-handed subjects performed unimanual, rhythmical movements in coordination with either a discrete or continuous visual display. The right hand-visual display system defined a more stable perception-action collective than the left, particularly when continuous visual information was available. In Experiment 2, the same subjects performed rhythmic bimanual movements in coordination with a continuous visual display. The action collective was inherently more stable than the perception-action collective, although similar patterns were observed at both levels. Importantly, the dynamics of the perception-action collective impinged upon the dynamics of the action collective in terms of stability. Asymmetries remained evident between limbs in the bimanual preparations, with the left hand exhibiting greater limit-cycle variability and also a tendency to more often effect transitions at the action couple. Features of dynamical models that capture characteristics of manual asymmetries are discussed.     

Asymmetries in peer interaction: The effect of social representations of gender and knowledge asymmetry on children's cognitive development

This study examines the role of social representations of gender and knowledge as sources of asymmetry on the features of children's interactions as well as on their cognitive development. The research was carried through an innovative pre‐test, first interaction, second interaction, post‐test design. One hundred fifty‐nine children of the same age (6.5–7.5 years old) but of different levels of knowledge of a spatial‐transformation task collaborated in same‐sex and opposite‐sex dyads to find a joint solution. In the first interaction, a child less developmentally advanced (NC) had to work with a child more developmentally advanced (TC), whereas in the second interaction of the same gender composition, the same NC had to work with a fresh NC. Cognitive progress was assessed using pre‐test to post‐test gains. The results revealed that the gender composition of the pairs and knowledge asymmetry influence not only the behavioral patterns and strategies that each partner employs in the interaction but also the cognitive outcomes of the children. These findings shed more light to the process through which socio‐cognitive conflict gets resolved, which was considered until now a “black box.” Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Asymmetries for the visual expression and perception of speech

This study explored asymmetries for movement, expression and perception of visual speech. Sixteen dextral models were videoed as they articulated: 'bat,' 'cat,' 'fat,' and 'sat.' Measurements revealed that the right side of the mouth was opened wider and for a longer period than the left. The asymmetry was accentuated at the beginning and ends of the vocalization and was attenuated for words where the lips did not articulate the first consonant. To measure asymmetries in expressivity, 20 dextral observers watched silent videos and reported what was said. The model's mouth was covered so that the left, right or both sides were visible. Fewer errors were made when the right mouth was visible compared to the left--suggesting that the right side is more visually expressive of speech. Investigation of asymmetries in perception using mirror-reversed clips revealed that participants did not preferentially attend to one side of the speaker's face. A correlational analysis revealed an association between movement and expressivity whereby a more motile right mouth led to stronger visual expressivity of the right mouth. The asymmetries are most likely driven by left hemisphere specialization for language, which causes a rightward motoric bias.     

Asymmetries of reading and writing kanji by Japanese children

The present study aims at investigating the nature of kanji learning by focusing on various types of relationships between reading (naming) and writing of isolated kanji. Prominent asymmetries were found in normal children. There were a double asymmetrical type and two single asymmetrical types of kanji. Parallel to these asymmetries, asymmetrical children were identified, i.e., some children could read kanji they could not write and others could write kanji they could not read. These asymmetries are considered to arise from linguistic properties of kanji such as graphic complexity, multiple readings (inter-pretations), homophony, and the lack of phonological cues, as well as from children's strategies in processing kanji. The question of why kanji learning is difficult is also discussed.The cooperation of Mr. F. Torikoshi and Mr. T. Kuramoto, Nakano-Higashi Primary School, and the invaluable comments of Prof. E. B. Coleman, University of Texas at El Paso, are gratefully acknowledged.     

The quest for generalizations over consonants: Asymmetries between consonants and vowels are not the by-product of acoustic differences

Consonants and vowels may play different roles during language processing, consonants being preferentially involved in lexical processing, and vowels tending to mark syntactic constituency through prosodic cues. In support of this view, artificial language learning studies have demonstrated that consonants (C) support statistical computations, whereas vowels (V) allow certain structural generalizations. Nevertheless, these asymmetries could be mere by-products of lower level acoustic differences between Cs and Vs, in particular the energy they carry, and thus their relative salience. Here we address this issue and show that vowels remain the preferred targets for generalizations, even when consonants are made highly salient or vowels barely audible. Participants listened to speech streams of nonsense CVCVCV words, in which consonants followed a simple ABA structure. Participants failed to generalize this structure over sonorant consonants (Experiment 1), even when vowel duration was reduced to one third of that of consonants (Experiment 2). When vowels were eliminated from the stream, participants showed only a marginal evidence of generalizations (Experiment 4). In contrast, participants readily generalized the structure over barely audible vowels (Experiment 3). These results show that different roles of consonants and vowels cannot be readily reduced to acoustical and perceptual differences between these phonetic categories.     

Asymmetries in the processing of Arabic digits and number words

Numbers can be represented as Arabic digits ("6") or as number words ("six"). The present study investigated potential processing differences between the two notational formats. In view of the previous finding (e.g., Potter & Faulconer, 1975) that objects are named slower, but semantically categorized faster, than corresponding words, it was investigated whether a similar interaction between stimulus format and task could be obtained with numbers. Experiment 1 established that number words were named faster than corresponding digits, but only if the two notation formats were presented in separate experimental blocks. Experiment 2 contrasted naming with a numerical magnitude judgment task and demonstrated an interaction between notation and task, with slower naming but faster magnitude judgment latencies for digits than for number words. These findings suggest that processing of the two notation formats is asymmetric, with digits gaining rapid access to numerical magnitude representations, but slower access to lexical codes, and the reverse for number words.     

Asymmetries between victims' and transgressors' perspectives following interpersonal transgressions

When interpersonal transgressions occur, the involved parties try to understand what occurred and how justice should be restored. However, research has documented that victims and transgressors often diverge in their accounts of what transpired. In this paper, I review and summarize empirical research on victims' and transgressors' asymmetric perceptions of interpersonal transgressions and the different justice‐restoring responses each party subsequently desires. By conceptualizing transgressions in terms of the social roles of victim and transgressor, I contend that justice responses can be thought of as attempts to correct inequitable distributions of material and symbolic resources. This social exchange perspective enables us to understand each party's motives and how various justice responses might satisfy them. I argue that because of these asymmetric perspectives, reconciliation is difficult, and conflict is liable to be perpetuated rather than resolved.     

Asymmetries in the spatial localization of transformed targets

This study was designed to examine the contribution of the right cerebral hemisphere in the spatial localization of visual targets for manual aiming. Visual targets were briefly presented to the right and left fields and subjects were required to point either to the target location, or a "mirror" image of the target location with their right or left index finger. Whereas reaction times were faster for left-hand pointing than for right-hand pointing, there was no differential effect of the mirror image transformation. This suggests that left-hand reaction time advantages are more related to right hemisphere involvement in the spatial parameterization of the movement than spatial localization of the target.     

情绪面孔搜索不对称性：情绪观与知觉观的争议

情绪面孔搜索不对称性是指当负性情绪面孔作为目标, 正性情绪面孔作为分心物时, 其搜索速度比正性情绪面孔作为目标时(负性情绪面孔作为分心物)更快。对于这一现象的解释存在争议, 研究者主要从不同情绪面孔在情绪因素和知觉因素两个方面的差异进行解释。来自行为研究和认知神经科学的证据对情绪面孔搜索不对称性效应的解释主要有威胁性刺激捕获假设和情绪摆脱假设的情绪观, 以及嘴部差异说、闭合结构说、知觉组群说以及其他面部特征假设的知觉观。经过对比评价两类观点的理论异同和实验证据认为未来的研究可以整合情绪因素和知觉因素来解释该效应。