Bias in older adults’ driving self-assessments: The role of personality

A convenience sample of 50 older drivers (M_age = 73.14, SD = 4.85) completed the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®) Step III™ instrument and rated their own driving abilities (compared to all other drivers, same age drivers, and their own driving 20 years prior) and their ability to perform 68 specific driving-related behaviors. Each subject’s driving performance was also evaluated in a comprehensive on-road assessment conducted by a certified driving rehabilitation specialist, who rated the same 68 driving behaviors as well as driving performance. Drivers identified by the MBTI Step III instrument as Extraverted, Sensing, and (above median) Confident rated their driving significantly more favorably than Introverts, Intuitives, and below median Confidence drivers. Step III Sufficiency scales were associated with on-road performance: drivers with scores indicating low Confidence, low Stamina, or critical high levels of Compensatory Strain received significantly lower evaluations. Drivers with a Sensing preference or critical Strain score rated their driving significantly more favorably than evaluators did. These findings present preliminary evidence for the utility of personality assessments in identifying self-serving bias in driving self-evaluations, essential for safe self-regulation of driving.     

The benefits of knowing what you know (and what you don’t): How calibration affects credibility

People tend to believe, and take advice from, informants who are highly confident. However, people use more than a mere “confidence heuristic.” We believe that confidence is influential because—in the absence of other information—people assume it is a valid cue to an informant’s likelihood of being correct. However, when people get evidence about an informant’s calibration (i.e., her confidence-accuracy relationship) they override reliance on confidence or accuracy alone. Two experiments in which participants choose between two opposing witnesses to a car accident show that neither confidence nor accuracy alone explains judgments of credibility; rather, whether a person is seen as credible ultimately depends on whether the person demonstrates good calibration. Credibility depends on whether sources were justified in believing what they believed.     

Words fail: Lesion-symptom mapping of errors of omission in post-stroke aphasia

Impaired object naming is a core deficit in post-stroke aphasia, which can manifest as errors of commission – producing an incorrect word or a non-word – or as errors of omission – failing to attempt to name the object. Detailed behavioural, computational, and neurological investigations of errors of commission have played a key role in the development of neurocognitive models of word production. In contrast, the neurocognitive basis of omission errors is radically underspecified despite being a prevalent phenomenon in aphasia and other populations. The prevalence of omission errors makes their neurocognitive basis important for characterizing an individual's deficits and, ideally, for personalizing treatment and evaluating treatment outcomes. This study leveraged established relationships between lesion location and errors of commission to investigate omission errors in picture naming. Omission error rates from the Philadelphia Naming Test for 123 individuals with post-stroke aphasia were analysed using support vector regression lesion-symptom mapping. Omission errors were most strongly associated with left frontal and mid-anterior temporal lobe lesions. Computational model analysis further showed that omission errors were positively associated with impaired semantically driven lexical retrieval rather than phonological retrieval. These results suggest that errors of omission in aphasia predominantly arise from lexical–semantic deficits in word retrieval and selection from a competitor set.     

On the bilingual advantage in conflict processing: Now you see it, now you don’t

We report two experiments exploring more in detail the bilingual advantage in conflict resolution tasks. In particular, we focus on the origin of the bilingual advantage on overall reaction times in the flanker task. Bilingual and monolingual participants were asked to perform a flanker task under different task versions. In Experiment 1, we used two low-monitoring versions where most of the trials were of just one type (either congruent or incongruent). In Experiment 2, we used two high-monitoring versions where congruent and incongruent trials were more evenly distributed. An effect of bilingualism in overall reaction times was only present in the high-monitoring condition. These results reveal that when the task at hand recruits a good deal of monitoring resources, bilinguals outperform monolinguals. This observation suggests that bilingualism may affect the monitoring processes involved in executive control.     

What you don’t know won’t hurt me: Costly (but quiet) exit in dictator games

We used simple economic games to examine pro-social behavior and the lengths that people will take to avoid engaging in it. Over two studies, we found that about one-third of participants were willing to “exit” a $10 dictator game and take $9 instead. The exit option left the receiver nothing, but also ensured that the receiver never knew that a dictator game was to be played. Because most social utility models are defined over monetary outcomes, they cannot explain choosing the ($9, $0) exit outcome over the dominating $10 dictator game, since the game includes outcomes of ($10, $0) and ($9, $1). We also studied exiting using a “private” dictator game. In the private game, the receiver never knew about the game or from where any money was received. Gifts in this game were added innocuously to a payment for a separate task. Almost no dictators exited from the private game, indicating that receivers’ beliefs are the key factor in the decision to exit. When, as in the private game, the receivers’ beliefs and expectations cannot be manipulated by exit, exit is seldom taken. We conclude that giving often reflects a desire not to violate others’ expectations rather than a concern for others’ welfare per se. We discuss the implications of our results for understanding ethical decisions and for testing and modeling social preferences. An adequate specification of social preferences should include “psychological” payoffs that directly incorporate beliefs about actions into the utility function.     

Childhood obesity and social stigma: What we know and what we don't know

Evidence for the development of social stigma associated with body build in childhood, specifically obesity, was critically reviewed. Although there is overwhelming evidence to suggest that children hold a positive stereotype toward a mesomorph (normal) build when compared to other builds, and that this preference increases with age, studies have not convincingly shown a negative stereotype toward the endomorph or obese body build. Furthermore, the belief that obese children are generally discriminated against is without empirical verification. Specifically, it is unclear from the various empirical studies that examine self-esteem and body image, that the psychological consequences of obesity are debilitating. Studies which have noted disturbances in self-concept and body image have sampled clinical populations (youngsters seeking medically supervised reduction); and those studies which have examined nonclinical populations have not found psychological difficulties. Finally, potential moderators such as facial attractiveness × body build interactions, situational contexts, and degree of obesity are examined and new research directions are discussed.     

Knowing when you don't know enough: Children's judgements about ambiguous information

Two experiments were carried out to find out whether young children's failure to realise when messages are ambiguous is specific to verbally transmitted information about a person's intended meaning. In Experiment 1, children judged whether they had been told/shown enough to identify which one of a set of cards the experimenter had chosen. In one game the experimenter gave verbal messages about her chosen cards, and in a second game, she gave visual messages. With ambiguous visual messages, relevant parts of cards were physically covered. We expected that this would make it more obvious that the speaker's intended meaning was not being fully conveyed. No difference was found between verbal and visual conditions: correct judgements about message ambiguity occured with the same frequency in both.In Experiment 2, children judged in one game whether they had been told enough about the experimenter's chosen card, as in Experiment 1. In a second game, visual information about a card was not conveyed by the experimenter, Rather, the child operated a pointer, set in a disc with windows, beneath which lay cards. The child judged whether the window showed enough for him/her to tell which card the pointer indicated. Again, correct judgments about ambiguity occured with the same frequency in both games.The results implied that children's failure to realise when verbal messages are ambiguous is but one aspect of a more general failure to realise when one has insufficient information at one's disposal to guarantee a correct interpretation of what the world is like.     

Regulatory focus as a predictor of omission bias in moral judgment: Mediating role of anticipated regrets

Omission bias occurs when people are more reluctant to accept negative consequences caused by their actions than by their inaction. Recent research on omission bias in decision‐making has found evidence for individual differences, thus indicating that some people are more likely to show omission inclination than others. The present research aims to explore the role of regulatory focus as individual difference variables in omission bias. Moreover, we examine whether anticipated regret mediates the relationship between regulatory focus and moral judgement. Moral judgement tasks utilized include: (i) moral dilemma scenarios (Study 1); and (ii) ethical scenarios embracing apparent legal rule violations (Study 2). The results of both studies show that only prevention focus is significantly related to omission bias in moral judgement. Specifically, this relationship holds regardless of the nature of the ‘omission’ (whether they are deontological or utilitarian). In addition, anticipated regret/guilt for action was found to mediate the relationship between prevention focus and omission bias. Implications and limitations are discussed based on the results of the current study.     

What you don't know can hurt you: The effects of performance criteria ambiguity on sex differences in self-confidence1

Previous investigators have suggested that women display lower self-confidence than men across almost all achievement situations. The empirical validity of this suggestion is assessed in an experiment testing the hypothesis that performance evaluation guidelines moderate sex difference in self-confidence. Undergraduates read the guidelines by which their performance on an impending test would be evaluated. Guidelines were: ambiguous (A); clear—specifying the dimensions of performance to be examined, but not providing any examples of others' performance against which subjects' work would be compared (C); or clear with performance examples (CE). Subjects then completed the test and estimated how will they had done. Results showed the predicted pattern in conditions A and C: While women underestimated their actual performan?e much more than men when guidelines were ambiguous, they did not do so when guidelines were clear. Further, the rise in self-confidence for women from conditions A to C was greater than that for men. Also as predicted, both sexes' self-confidence and performance were higher in condition C than in condition A. Finally, although condition CE was expected to depress only women's self-confidence and performance, both sexes showed this effect. It is concluded that sex differences in self-confidence are moderated by situation variables and that programs designed to reduce such differences might be improved by a greater focus upon women's response to clearly specifiable factors in achievement settings.     

Self-evaluation and self-perception: The role of attention in the experience of anxiety

Abstract

Self-awareness promotes the experience of anxiety in two ways. It does so directly, by enhancing awareness of the emotional state itself, and by initiating the self-evaluation process that is necessary for anxiety to occur. It also does so indirectly, by constraining some behaviors and inhibiting others. In particular, it increases accuracy of self-perception, and, in so doing, retards the process of self-delusion. This is important, because the latter process has been shown to have a salutary effect on mental health, acting as a buffer against dysphoric states such as depression and anxiety.     

Attachment relationships and physical activity in adolescents: The mediation role of physical self-concept

ObjectivesBased on the integration of attachment and physical self-perception perspectives, the present study examined links between adolescents' engagement in physical activity and their attachment relationships with mothers, fathers, and friends, respectively, and assessed the potential mediation role of physical self-perception in this link.Design and methodsUsing a cross-sectional design, questionnaire data was obtained from 767 adolescents (49% boys, M_age = 12.92, SD = .86) and structural equation modeling was used to examine relationships among variables.ResultsAttachment security with parents and friend was associated with higher levels of physical activity. There was partial support of the mediation role of physical self-perception, as adolescents who were securely attached to mother and friend perceived themselves as having better physical condition, which in turn predicted greater engagement in physical activity. The mediation role of physical self-perception between mother attachment and PA was stronger for female adolescents. Secure attachment to father had a direct positive effect on physical activity. The direct effect was strongest for male adolescents.ConclusionsOur findings highlight the importance of relationship-based intervention strategies to enhance and maintain healthy regular physical activity among adolescents.     

When thoughts don’t feel like they used to: Changing feelings of subjective ease in judgments of the past

Thinking about the past is critical to everyday experiences, but people are not unbiased when doing so. Feelings of subjective ease that accompany generating reasons for known or alternative outcomes influence hindsight bias. But people do not always make decisions immediately after thinking about issues. Three experiments demonstrated that generating versus reading earlier generated reasons has markedly different effects on judgments, with theoretical and practical implications. Inevitability judgments were consistent with feelings of ease when generating reasons, but with numbers of reasons (content) when later reading those reasons. Experiments 2 and 3 also found that feelings of ease can be reconstructed if people reconsider their feelings when initially generating reasons. Discussion centers on the operation of subjective ease and its role in understanding judgment and decision making.     

The role of different types of instrumentality in motivation,study strategies,and performance: Know why you learn,so you'll know what you learn!

Background: Two theories in the field of motivation and achievement, namely the future time perspective theory and goal theory, result in conflicting recommendations for enhancing students' motivation, because of their differential emphasis on the task at hand and on the future consequences of a task. Aims: We will present a framework consisting of four types of instrumentality that combines both perspectives. The implications of those different types for goal orientation, motivation, cognitive strategies, study habits and performance are investigated. Samples: Participants were a group of 184 first‐year nurse students with ages ranging from 18 to 45 years. Methods: Questionnaires were administered that measured instrumentality, goal orientation, motivation, deep and surface level learning strategies, study habits, and a manipulation check. At the end of the year, exam scores were collected. Results: The results showed that different types of instrumentality are related differently to the motivational, cognitive and achievement measures. Being internally regulated and perceiving the utility of the courses resulted both in a more adaptive goal orientation and higher intrinsic motivation, which led to the use of more adaptive cognitive strategies and to better study habits, which ultimately enhanced performance. Linking performance to extrinsic rewards and not seeing the utility of the course for the future yielded the opposite pattern. Conclusions: Type of instrumentality has indeed a differential influence on motivational, cognitive, and behavioural variables.     

The role of adventitious reinforcement during differential reinforcement of other behavior: A systematic replication

Differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) is commonly used to decrease problem behavior by presenting reinforcers contingent upon the absence of a target response. Although it is well demonstrated that DROs decrease response rates, the processes producing these decreases are not well understood. The present study systematically replicated previous research assessing whether adventitious reinforcement of alternative behavior contributes to the effectiveness of DRO. We presented university students with two options on a computer and reinforced target responding on a variable-ratio schedule. Next, we compared decreases in target-response rates and any increases in alternative responding during DRO schedules versus yoked variable-time schedules or extinction probes. DRO schedules resulted in the lowest target-response rate and highest alternative-response rate. These findings generally provide some support for the adventitious reinforcement of “other” behavior.     

The mental health of children of migrant workers in Beijing: The protective role of public school attendance

The present study aims to understand the mental health status of an understudied group of migrant children – children of migrant workers in China. A total of 1,466 children from Beijing participated in the study that compared migrant children (n = 1,019) to their local peers (n = 447) in public and private school settings. Results showed that overall, migrant children reported more internalizing and externalizing mental health problems and lower life satisfaction than local peers. However, public school attendance served as a protective factor for migrant children's mental health. The mental health status of migrant children attending public schools, including externalizing problems as well as friend and school satisfaction, was not different from local children. In addition, our data indicates that the protective effect of public school attendance for migrant children may be even more salient among girls than boys, and for younger children than older children.     

Restricting the scope of justice to justify discrimination: The role played by justice perceptions in discrimination against immigrants

In this research, we have analysed the role played by the scope of justice and belief in a just world (BJW) in discrimination against immigrants. In Study 1 (n = 185), we found that the relationship between prejudice and discrimination is mediated by a restricted view of the scope of justice. In addition, the results also showed that this mediation is moderated by BJW insofar as the mediation occurred in participants with a high level of BJW but not in participants with a low level of BJW. Studies 2 and 3 experimentally tested our prediction that the legitimising role played by the scope of justice is guided by a justice motive such as BJW. In both studies, the results showed a greater degree of discrimination against immigrants when a restricted scope of justice was considered but only when the BJW was made salient. In sum, these results introduced an innovation into the literature on the legitimation of social inequalities by demonstrating the relevant role played by the justice perceptions in discrimination against immigrants. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The role played by Gerhard Adler in the development of analytical psychology internationally and in the UK

The Jungian analyst Gerhard Adler left Berlin and re‐settled in London in 1936. He was closely involved with the professionalization of analytical psychology internationally and in the UK, including the formation of the International Association for Analytical Psychology (IAAP) and The Society of Analytical Psychology (SAP).The tensions that arose within the latter organization led to a split that ended in the formation of the Association of Jungian Analysts (AJA). A further split at AJA resulted in the creation of another organization, the Independent Group of Analytical Psychologists (IGAP). Adler's extensive publications include his role as an editor of Jung's Collected Works and as editor of the C.G. Jung Letters.     

On interpreting the relationship between remember–know judgments and confidence: The role of instructions

Two experiments were designed to test the hypothesis that the nature of the remember–know instructions given to participants influences whether these responses reflect different memory states or different degrees of memory confidence. Participants studied words and nonwords, a variable that has been shown to dissociate confidence from remember–know judgments and were given a set of published remember–know instructions that either emphasized know judgments as highly confident (Experiment 1) or as less confident (Experiment 2) states of recognition. Experiment 1 replicated the standard finding showing that remembering and knowing were differently influenced by the word–nonword variable, whereas confidence responses were not. By contrast, Experiment 2 showed a similar pattern of data for remember–know and sure–unsure responses, thus demonstrating the importance of the instructions for interpreting the relationship between remembering and knowing and confidence.