EFFECTS OF LYSERGIC ACID DIETHYLAMIDE (LSD-25) ON NORMAL SUBJECTS IN A SCHIZOPHRENIA-DISCRIMINATING TEST BATTERY

Psychological tests with differing sensitivity to schizophrenic reactions were administered to eight normal subjects after oral intake of 75–100 μ g LSD-25. Control data were obtained from placebo trials. Six of the tests were chosen as sensitive to schizophrenic reactions, two tests as so-called 'hold' tests, and another test as a measure of attention, which is supposed to be reduced by LSD. Significantly lower results were obtained on four of the six sensitive tests after LSD, on one of the 'hold' tests, and on the attention test.     

Verbal and visuo-spatial memory Two clinical tests administered to a group of normal subjects

Abstract.— A group of 165 normal subjects were examined on two memory tests in clinical use, the Word Pairs Test and the Visual Gestalts Test. The purpose of the study was to establish norms with the variables of age, sex, and length of schooling being taken into consideration. During the learning phase a complex interaction between all three factors was found for the Word Pairs, whereas in the Visual Gestalts scores were only affected by age. In the delayed memory task used in both tests, age was again found to be the only significant factor. Using quartile scores, it was found that females performed better than males on the verbal test and vice versa on the visuo-spatial test. Normative data are presented for three age groups. A significant decline in performance appeared in the age group 40–49 years. The data became more heterogenous with an increase in the age of the subjects.     

On the development of encoding in anticipation of various tests of retention

Abstract.— Seven, 9, 12–13, and 18–21-year-old subjects learned a pictorial material in anticipation of free recall (FR), serial recall (SR), or recognition tests. Type of anticipated test and test actually given were factorially combined, retention being tested after 2 min or after 2 weeks. Recall performance improved with age but recognition performance did not improve after CA 9. Differential anticipation had little effect on the performance of the youngest children. For older subjects the effects were clear-cut and similar at all age levels and at both retention intervals. SR and recognition performance was best when subjects anticipated these tests, respectively; anticipation of recognition interfered with recall performance, and vice versa. The main age-related improvement occurred between age levels 7 and 9.     

THE EFFECTIVENESS AND TRANSFER VALUE OF TWO METHODS OF CONCEPT LEARNING

WERDELIN, I., BONDESSON, E. & LARSSON, G.-B. The effectiveness and transfer value of two methods of concept learning. Scand. J. Psychol. , 1971, 12, 198–204.–Two methods of learning are compared as to their effectiveness and transfer value, the "direction method", where principles are presented and exemplified, and the "discovery method", where the learner discovers the principles from examples. In an experiment with 12a pupils in grade five it was found that the direction method was superior to the discovery method in these learning situations, that the methods are differently effective with different materials, and that experience with one of the methods may transfer to the ability to learn new materials with either method. The connections between concept, method and previous experience are very complex, however.     

Spatial learning in pigs: effects of environmental enrichment and individual characteristics on behaviour and performance

This study investigated the effects of both environmental enrichment and individual behavioural characteristics on spatial cognitive capabilities of pigs, using a novel latent spatial learning paradigm based on Tolman’s detour experiments (1948). Pigs were housed either in ‘barren’ pens or in pens enriched with straw bedding from birth. Pigs were restrained in a Backtest at 10 and 17 days postpartum. Based on their escape behaviour in this test, which has been shown to reflect their behavioural style, six ‘high-resisting’(HR) and six ‘low-resisting’ (LR) pigs were selected from each housing environment (n = 24 in total). At 12 weeks of age, pairs of pen mates (LR and HR) were exposed to a maze three times (exploration trials). Pigs were then placed individually in the maze, and social reinstatement proved to be a strong incentive to find the exit leading to the home pen. We subsequently blocked the direct route to the exit, forcing animals to find a detour (memory test 1, MT1). This test was repeated once to investigate the relative improvement, i.e. detour learning (memory test 2, MT2). Housing condition and Backtest response strongly affected exploration patterns. In spite of this, no effects on performance during the subsequent memory tests were found. Performance was substantially improved in MT2, indicating that once a goal is apparent, pigs are able to solve a complex spatial memory task easily. In conclusion, social reinstatement provided a good incentive to complete a spatial task, and the substantial improvement in performance between MT1 and MT2 stresses the need for task complexity when testing spatial memory in pigs. Housing conditions or individual behavioural style did not affect spatial memory during MT1 or MT2. However, housing environment and behavioural style strongly affected explorative behaviour of pigs in an unfamiliar maze during both exploration trials and memory tests. This implicates that apparent effects of environmental enrichment on spatial learning and memory in pigs might reflect differences in explorative patterns rather than in cognitive processes.     

CHANGING THE STRUCTURE OF INTUITIVE ESTIMATES OF TIME-SAVINGS

SVENSON, O. Changing the structure of intuitive estimates of time-savings. Scand. J. Psychol. , 1971, 12, 131–134.–Estimates of time saved when increasing an original assumed mean speed to a higher one were collected for different distances and combinations of velocities. Following each answer in five learning phases one group of subjects was given information about the correct time-gain. A control group taking part only in the ten test phases of the experiment gave estimates systematically differing from real time-gains following a previously suggested relation. The estimates given by the experimental group were improved to the same degree as the control group's estimates were gradually better approximated by the previously found relation.     

Learning potential and anxious tendency: Test anxiety as a bias factor in educational testing

Abstract

Contrary to conventional educational testing, in so-called dynamic assessment subjects are allowed to consult help during testing or are offered prior training. The differential results of both testing procedures are sometimes ascribed to the idea that dynamic tests reflect the breadth of the zone of proximal development on top of independent achievement. Alternative explanations claim that conventional tests are more strongly biased towards various characteristics of persons, which have a negative influence on performance, when compared to dynamic tests. In this study, it was hypothesised that static as well as dynamic assessment is biased towards anxious tendencies of subjects, but the former more strongly than the latter. In order to investigate this supposition, the performance of subjects on dynamic and static tests was systematically compared and related to measures of test anxiety in a longitudinal experiment. In the experiment, repeated measures of independent mathematics achievement as well as mathematics learning potential were gathered among students of secondary education in the Netherlands. Prior to every mathematics test, subjects filled out a test anxiety questionnaire. After every mathematics test, subjects filled out a general state anxiety questionnaire. The participating subjects were students from secondary education, either preparing for higher vocational training or university, aged approximately 15 years on average.

The results of the experiment showed that lack of self-confidence is an important constituent factor of test anxiety, apart from worry and emotionality. The data supported the assumption that such testing procedures are less biased towards anxiety than conventional tests, but it was not established that dynamic testing procedures render results that are not biased by test anxious tendencies.     

Matching and oddity relational learning by pigeons (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Columba livia</Emphasis>): transfer from color to shape

Relational learning, as opposed to perceptual learning, is based on the abstract properties of the stimuli. Although at present there is no doubt that pigeons are capable of relational behavior, this study aims to further disclose the conditions under which it occurs. Pigeons were trained in an outdoor cage on a matching-to-sample or an oddity-from-sample task, with colored cardboard stimuli presented horizontally. The apparatus involved three sliding lids on which the stimuli were drawn and which, when displaced, revealed the reinforcement. The lids were either adjacent to each other or somewhat separated. Training sessions involved two colors, and test sessions six different colors (same dimension test), or six different shapes (different dimension test). One group of birds trained under the ‘adjacent’ condition failed when tested with new stimuli, but succeeded in both dimension tests after training under the ‘separate’ condition. Two other groups of birds succeeded in all tests after training under the latter condition. These results show that depending on procedural details, pigeons are or are not able to transfer from one visual dimension to another, thus extending previous related findings.     

人际关系适应特征的情境评价方法研究

本研究运用情境评价法对人际关系适应特征进行了实验研究 ,结果表明 :1以 Schutz提出的人际关系六因素为评价标准 ,采用情境评价法比问卷形式能更有效地揭示人际适应特征 ;2在情境评价中 ,以合作为主的情境设置比以竞争为主的情境设置更利于反映出人际适应特征 ;3情境评价采用定向、组织、交流和问题解决等阶段的过程设计符合情境评价的实际进程 ,有助于分阶段展开被试的行为特征 ,提高情境评价的可控性和准确性。     

Visuomotor perception in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder--combined type.

Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder--Combined Type (ADHD-CT) defined by behavioral characteristics of inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity including weaknesses in fine motor coordination and poor motor inhibition frequently exhibit poor handwriting and penmanship. Performance of children on visuomotor tasks is further complicated, as most studies have not excluded children with specific learning disabilities who are known to do poorly on these tests. This study was designed to examine the performance of children diagnosed with this disorder, without learning disabilities on visuomotor tasks. 26 preadolescent patients were administered a battery of tests that included the Bender-Gestalt, Conners' Parent Rating Scale, Continuous Performance Task, and Wide Range Achievement Test-Third Edition Scores on the Bender-Gestalt test averaged significantly lower than Koppitz normative data. This study lends support to the hypothesis that ADHD-CT children without learning disabilities exhibit deficits on tasks requiring visuomotor perception.     

内隐学习中东巴文促进幼儿汉字字形记忆的研究

采用任务分离范式考察了内隐学习中只学汉字、结合图画学习汉字、结合东巴文学习汉字对幼儿汉字字形记忆的影响。幼儿通过颜色判断任务进行学习。实验1采用再认任务考察学习方式对汉字字形外显记忆的影响。实验2采用偏好判断任务考察学习方式对汉字字形内隐记忆的影响。研究发现, 在伴随学习条件下, 东巴文能够促进幼儿对汉字字形的外显记忆, 东巴文可以成为幼儿汉字学习的工具。     

A MULTILEVEL INTEGRATION OF PERSONALITY, CLIMATE, SELF-REGULATION, AND PERFORMANCE

The purpose of this multilevel study was to test whether regulatory focus mechanisms (promotion focus and prevention focus; Higgins, 1997 , American Psychologist, 52, 1280–1300; Higgins, 2000 , American Psychologist, 55 , 1217–1230) can help explain how group safety climate and individual differences in Conscientiousness relate to individual productivity and safety performance. Results, based on a sample of 254 employees from 50 work groups, showed that safety climate and conscientiousness predicted promotion and prevention regulatory focus, which in turn mediated the relationships of safety climate and Conscientiousness with supervisor ratings of productivity and safety performance. Implications for theory and research on climate, motivation, and performance and avenues for future research are discussed.     

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIFFICULTY AND FACTOR LOADINGS OF SOME VISUAL-PERCEPTUAL TESTS

WERDELIN, I. & STJERNBERG, G. The relationship between difficulty and factor loadings of some visual-perceptual tests. Scand. J. Psychol. , 1971, 12, 21–28. – The study aimed at investigating whether it is possible to change factor loadings by varying the difficulty and complexity of the same visual-perceptual tests. 171 sixth grade pupils were given 27 tests. Some of these defined reference factors, others were differently difficult versions of four tests from separate parts of the visual-perceptual field. Data were treated by factor analysis, yielding the four factors R, S, N and P. It was found that the more difficult the test the higher its loadings on the S and R factors, and the easier the test the higher its loadings on the N and particularly the P factor.     

Academic self‐handicapping: Relationships with learning specific and general self‐perceptions and academic performance over time

Background. Academic self‐handicapping (ASH) tendencies, strategies students employ that increase their chances of failure on assessments while protecting self‐esteem, are correlated with classroom goal structures and to learners' general self‐perceptions and learning strategies. In particular, greater ASH is related to poorer academic performance but has yet to be examined with respect to learners' performance across a series of tests. Aims. This research was designed to examine the relationship between students' ASH tendencies and their self‐concept clarity, learning strategies, and performance on a series of tests in a university course. Sample. A total of 209 (153 female; 56 male) Canadian university psychology students participated in this study. Methods. Participants' ASH tendencies, self‐concept clarity, approaches to learning, and self‐regulatory learning strategies were assessed along with expected grades and hours of study in the course from which they were recruited. Finally, students' grades were obtained for the three tests for the course from which they were recruited. Results. Students reporting greater self‐handicapping tendencies reported lower self‐concept clarity, lower academic self‐efficacy, greater test anxiety, more superficial learning strategies, and scored lower on all tests in the course. The relationships of ASH scores and learner variables with performance varied across the three performance indices. In particular, ASH scores were more strongly related to second and third tests, and prior performances were accounted for. ASH scores accounted for a relatively small but significant proportion of variance for all three tests. Conclusions. These results showed that ASH is a unique contributing factor in student performance outcomes, and may be particularly important after students complete the initial assessment in a course.     

Embedded Figures Test compared with clinical tests of abstraction and memory in intellectual impairment

Results on a batter of memory and concept formation tests were compared with performance on the Embedded Figures Test (EFT) and the Visual Gestalts Test for 50 psychiatric patients with intellectual impairment (35 males and 15 females, aged 25–69 years). The EFT only correlated with the concept formation tests and the Visual Gestalts Test. Furthermore, an interrelationship between the EFT results and the degree of intellectual impairment was found. Also, the patients' performance on the EFT was significantly impairment was found. Also, the patients' performance on the EFT was significantly poorer than that of normal individuals. Thus it was concluded that the EFT should be considered as a visuo-spatial test of abstraction, sensitive to intellectual impairment.     

THE SUSCEPTIBILITY OF INTELLECTUAL FUNCTIONS TO A DEPRESSANT DRUG

F rankenhaeuser , M., and B eckman , M. The susceptibility of intellectual functions to a depressant drug. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1961, 2 , 93–99.—The performance of 32 subjects in tests on four intellectual factors (verbal, numerical, inductive and spatial) during the inhalation of nitrous oxide (30 per cent N₂O and 70 per cent O₂) and a control mixture (30 per cent N₂ and 70 per cent O₂) were compared . The drug caused a highly significant deterioration in the performance of all four tests. Both speed and accuracy of performance were impaired. The problem of a possible differential susceptibility to the drug of the various intellectual functions wag attacked by a statistical analysis of the differences between the tests with regard to changes in performance during drug inhalation. No reliable differences in extent of impairment between the four tests could be demonstrated.     

Selected linguistic and perceptual abilities of empirically derived subgroups of learning disabled readers

A battery of eight linguistic and perceptual tests chosen because of their use in previous research and in the public schools was administered to 100 school-verified verified learning disabled readers (LDR) and 50 normal readers (NR) matched for age and IQ. Standard scores, derived from a comparison of each LDR child's score with the NR group's performance on each diagnostic measure, were cluster analyzed to identify subgroups within the LDR group. Six LDR subgroups were found. Multivariate analysis of variance and discriminant analysis indicated that all LDR subgroups were significantly different from one another as well as significantly different from the NR group's performance on the diagnostic battery. In addition, significant differences were found among the six LDR subgroups on measures of oral reading, reading comprehension, and spelling skills. However, the six groups did not differ with respect to family history variables and the attainment of developmental milestones. These results were compared with those of previous studies and were examined for their implications for a more precise match between LDR learner characteristics and type of teaching method and/or materials.     

ON THE NATURE OF THE PERCEPTUAL SPEED FACTOR

W erdelin , I. & S tjernberg , G. On the nature of the perceptual speed factor. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1969, 10, 185–192.–149 subjects, about 15 years old, were given 25 psychological tests. Some of these defined the reference factors R, S, N , and P , others were designed to study the nature of the P factor. It was found that certain visual tests showed successively higher loadings in the P and N factors the more they were practiced. This effect of practice is probably restricted to tests of a certain kind. Very simple visual tests showed high loadings in the P factor. Hypotheses as to the nature of the P factor are suggested.     

STOCHASTIC PROCESS OF SOCIAL CONTACTS

R ainio , K. Stochastic process of social contacts. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1961, 2, 113–128.—The author applies Bush & Mosteller's stochastic learning model (Two Operator Model) to a social interaction situation, assuming that the probabilities which determine the choice of the individual with whom the contact is made change according to this model. Referring to Homans, the author assumes that experienced agreement of opinion is a rewarding and experienced disagreement of opinion a punishing factor (the former increases and the latter decreases the probability of choosing the same individual as the contactee). To test these hypotheses the author has developed a six-person laboratory test, in which the contact experiences can be controlled and systematically varied. The empirical results strongly support the hypotheses.     

Awareness, conditioning, and information processing in complex learning situations

Lindahl, Maj-Britt. Awareness, conditioning, and information processing in complex learning situations. Scand. J. Psychol., 1973, 14, 121–130.-Learning without awareness was studied with a method involving three phases for each of 2. 10 subjects: (1) a problem solving phase, (2) a phase of applying the solution found in (1), and (3) a test phase. In (2) the solution was applied to the classification of 50 successively presented instances. These were in one condition sampled so that a perceptually easily discriminable basis of classification obtained that was different from and redundant to the one of the solution of phase (1). The results of the test phase showed that this redundant basis of classification influenced the performance of the subjects in this condition despite unawareness of it according to verbal reports. The phenomenon was interpreted as a case of learning without awareness, describable in conditioning terms, that influenced performance. The limitations of this type of learning were discussed, and its relationship to an aware information processing type of learning was outlined.