Separation of data as a principle in factor analysis

Two systems of factor analysis—factoring correlations with units in the diagonal cells and factoring correlations with communalities in the diagonal cells—are considered in relation to the commonly used statistical procedure of separating a set of data (scores) into two or more parts. It is shown that both systems of factor analysis imply the separation of the observed data into two orthogonal parts. The matrices used to achieve the separation differ for the two systems of factor analysis.     

Peripheral control of drinking: gastrointestinal filling as a negative feedback signal, a theoretical and experimental analysis.

The studies described here investigated the hypothesis that the osmotic postingestional satiety signal proposed by McCleary operates through a mechanism related to gut filling rather than by osmotically induced shifts of fluid from osmoreceptors in the brain. A control theory model is presented, which was designed to make quantitatively explicit the hypothesis under question. The results showed that when mannitol, which is not absorbed from the intestine, is added to a highly palatable saccharin-glucose mixture, the amount of fluid consumed decreased in inverse proportion to the mannitol concentration. Mannitol was also shown to block fluid absorption from the intestine at a low concentration (approximately .070 M) and at higher concentrations to lead to a net flux of fluid into the intestinal lumen. It was also shown that mannitol in concentrations that reduced the intake of the palatable solution did not induce thirst when the animals were in water balance. It did induce thirst, however, when the animals were tested in a state of negative water balance. The results of these studies, considered as a whole, support the view that McCleary's osmotic postingestional satiety signal acts as an intestinal distention signal rather than by inducing thirst. The model is found to be reasonably accurate as a first approximation, and suggestions are made for improvements.     

The probabilistic analysis of language acquisition: theoretical, computational, and experimental analysis

There is much debate over the degree to which language learning is governed by innate language-specific biases, or acquired through cognition-general principles. Here we examine the probabilistic language acquisition hypothesis on three levels: We outline a novel theoretical result showing that it is possible to learn the exact generative model underlying a wide class of languages, purely from observing samples of the language. We then describe a recently proposed practical framework, which quantifies natural language learnability, allowing specific learnability predictions to be made for the first time. In previous work, this framework was used to make learnability predictions for a wide variety of linguistic constructions, for which learnability has been much debated. Here, we present a new experiment which tests these learnability predictions. We find that our experimental results support the possibility that these linguistic constructions are acquired probabilistically from cognition-general principles.     

The infant vocal-conditioning literature: a theoretical and methodological critique

Most studies of operant conditioning of infant vocalization do not fully use the experimental-analysis-of-behavior methodology that behavioral researchers have developed to study operant phenomena. This could be a contributing factor in their failure to correctly operationalize the definition of reinforcement, severely limiting the amount of information they can provide about operant learning in infants. Furthermore, single-subject-design studies may be added to supplement or replace group experimental designs in the study of infant vocal conditioning if we are to recognize the different learning processes that affect infant learning. Finally, single-subject experimental designs may be crucial to the development of an effective technology of early language intervention.     

Childhood and adult schizophrenia: Some clinical and experimental comparisons

The literature does not provide convincing evidence that childhood schizophrenia starting before age 11 represents the same disease process as adult schizophrenia, with regard to clinical symptomatology, genetic background and course of illness, and childhood schizophrenia seldom appears to involve long term schizophrenic deterioration. Our sample of 31 childhood schizophrenics studied with a battery of a motor conditional reflex tests, an autonomic conditioning test and a word association test did not present symptoms comparable to those seen in a group of adult schizophrenics tested with similar procedures. Supported by grant HDO1095 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.     

Attitudes and social representations: a theoretical and experimental approach

We propose here to establish the theoretical link between the concepts of ‘attitude’ and ‘social representation’. We shall base our proposal on recent conceptions of the notion of attitude, and on a structural approach to representations which account for their evaluative nature. This theoretical proposal will be followed by two experiments. The first showed that attitudes towards objects are based on the evaluative components of the representation of those objects. The second showed that a change in attitude about an object may be accompanied by changes in the evaluative dimension of its representation. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Automaticity: a theoretical and conceptual analysis

Several theoretical views of automaticity are discussed. Most of these suggest that automaticity should be diagnosed by looking at the presence of features such as unintentional, uncontrolled/uncontrollable, goal independent, autonomous, purely stimulus driven, unconscious, efficient, and fast. Contemporary views further suggest that these features should be investigated separately. The authors examine whether features of automaticity can be disentangled on a conceptual level, because only then is the separate investigation of them worth the effort. They conclude that the conceptual analysis of features is to a large extent feasible. Not all researchers agree with this position, however. The authors show that assumptions of overlap among features are determined by the other researchers' views of automaticity and by the models they endorse for information processing in general.     

Agoraphobia in women: factor analysis of symptoms and personality correlates of factor scores in a clinical population

One hundred and sixty female patients with a DSM-III diagnosis of agoraphobia completed a measure of fears and general symptoms (FSS) and personality (HDHQ). Many patients had significant psychological symptoms in addition to their agoraphobia. FSS scores were factor analysed. First-order analysis revealed agoraphobia as a heterogeneous clinical entity occurring independently of a large General Symptoms factor which included panic attacks. Second-order analysis revealed a General Symptoms/Social Phobia factor and a well-defined but heterogeneous Agoraphobia factor comprising the lower-order factors Claustrophobia, Travel Fears and Agoraphobia (fear of crowded public places). Correlations of first- and second-order factors with HDHQ scores showed that the Travel Fears factor was not associated with abnormal personality traits, whereas the Claustrophobia and Agoraphobia factors were. This suggested that travel fears should respond well to behaviour therapy per se, whereas additional treatment aimed at modifying abnormal personality traits may sometimes be indicated for claustrophobia and fear of crowded places. The heterogeneous nature of agoraphobia and the large size of the independent General Symptoms factor underlined the desirability of a multi-modal approach to treatment and research.     

Methylphenidate and substance abuse: a review of pharmacology,animal, and clinical studies

This article reviews pharmacological, animal, and human evidence regarding the abuse liability of methylphenidate (MPH). Findings are not always consistent, but evidence converges to suggest that although intravenous methylphenidate has some abuse potential, there is very little potential for oral MPH abuse. Furthermore, the available data suggests that children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) who are treated with MPH are at lower risk for substance use disorder later in life. More longitudinal, prospective studies are needed to assess the long term effects of MPH treatment in ADHD.     

Models of data and theoretical hypotheses: a case-study in classical genetics

Linkage (or genetic) maps are graphs, which are intended to represent the linear ordering of genes on the chromosomes. They are constructed on the basis of statistical data concerning the transmission of genes. The invention of this technique in 1913 was driven by Morgan’s group’s adoption of a set of hypotheses concerning the physical mechanism of heredity. These hypotheses were themselves grounded in Morgan’s defense of the chromosome theory of heredity, according to which chromosomes are the physical basis of genes. In this paper, I analyze the 1919 debate between William Castle and Morgan’s group, about the construction of genetic maps. The official issue of the debate concerns the arrangement of genes on chromosomes. However, the disputants tend to carry out the discussions about how one should model the data in order to draw predictions concerning the transmission of genes; the debate does not bear on the data themselves, nor does it focus on the hypotheses explaining these data. The main criteria that are appealed to by the protagonists are simplicity and predictive efficacy. However, I show that both parties’ assessments of the simplicity and predictive efficacy of different ways of modeling the data themselves depend on background theoretical positions. I aim at clarifying how preference for a given model and theoretical commitments articulate.     

Infancy research,infant mental health,and adult psychotherapy: Mutual influences

This article considers the influence of infant research on psychodynamic theory and practice. Infant research highlights the dramatic effects of the early caregiving relationship on development throughout the life span. It also provides important perspectives on psychotherapeutic processes. This article highlights such elements as empathy, mutual recognition and attachment, along with elaborating the intersubjective and transactional systems perspectives. In addition, it stresses the powerful role of nonverbal, implicit communication and meaning‐making, which play a greater role in human relational experience–and therefore in the therapeutic process–than previously understood. In addition to clarifying these general orientations, the article describes specific therapeutic strategies based on the expanded developmental knowledge.     

Predicting disturbed parental awareness in mothers with a newborn infant: test of a theoretical model

Parental awareness refers to parents' perceptions and making sense out of children's responses and behaviours. This study examined a theoretical model on the determinants of disturbed parental awareness, with a central place given to Belsky's buffer hypothesis. Maternal characteristics were hypothesized to have direct effects on parental awareness, whereas effects of negative childhood experiences and low levels of social support were regarded as being mediated by maternal characteristics. The model was examined in a community sample of 101 mothers from different socioeconomic backgrounds with a zero‐to‐three infant. Social nurses providing home visits reported on parental awareness, childhood experiences, social support, and maternal characteristics. Results supported a modified model that added a direct pathway between childhood experiences and parental awareness, supporting the intergenerational transmission hypothesis. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conditioned suppression in goldfish as a function of shock-reinforcement schedule

The conditioned suppression technique (Estes and Skinner, 1941) was employed to study the effects of partial-shock reinforcement in the goldfish. Lever-pressing behavior of hungry goldfish was suppressed in the presence of a flashing light that had been previously paired with electric shocks. Fish that acquired the suppression under 50% and 100% shock-reinforcement, respectively, were subjected to repeated presentations of the flashing light alone. This procedure revealed a more rapid extinction of the suppressed behavior in the 50% than in the 100% shocked group. The finding was compared with those from other experiments and possible reasons for the differences were examined.     

The efficacy of breathing retraining and the centrality of hyperventilation in panic disorder: a reinterpretation of experimental findings

The present paper addresses de Ruiter, Rijken, Garssen, and Kraaimaat's (Behaviour Research and Therapy, 27, 647-655, 1989) interpretation of data pertaining to the efficacy of breathing retraining in the treatment of panic disorder. The proffered reinterpretation of these data makes it clear that breathing retraining led to a significant reduction in the frequency of panic attacks. These findings thus lend additional support to the central role of hyperventilation in primary panic attacks.