Direct Comparison of Episodic Encoding and Retrieval of Words: An Event-related fMRI Study

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to compare directly episodic encoding and retrieval. During encoding, subjects studied visually presented words and reported via keypress whether each word represented a pleasant or unpleasant concept (intentional, deep encoding). During the retrieval phase, subjects indicated (via keypress) whether visually presented words had previously been studied. No reliable differences were found during the recognition phase for words that had been previously studied and those that had not been studied. Areas preferentially active during encoding (relative to retrieval) included left superior frontal cortex, medial frontal cortex, left superior temporal cortex, posterior cingulate, left parahippocampal gyrus, and left inferior frontal gyrus. Regions more active in retrieval than encoding included bilateral inferior parietal cortex, bilateral precuneus, right frontal polar cortex, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and right inferior frontal/insular cortex.     

Perceived characteristics of “competent” people

The purpose of this research was to determine the specific behaviors and cues which 104 assessors perceived as indicating the presence of psychological variables shown to be related to competent job behavior. The cue systems utilized were found to be reminiscent of theory Y conceptions of effective job behavior. Implications of the lack of correlation of cue utilization with assessor characteristics are discussed.     

The competitive bargaining set for cooperative n-person games

The continuum of solutions constituting the bargaining set for n-person games in characteristic function form (n ≥ 4) reflects various degrees of determinateness to form a coalition, different requirements of stability, or different levels of competition among the players. At one end of this continuum is the kernel solution. A new solution, called the competitive bargaining set, constitutes the other extreme. It incorporates the concept of a multiobjection, which is based on the idea that threats may be perceived and considered simultaneously even though their simultaneous implementation is impossible.For the simple homogeneous majority games [n ? 2, 1, 1, …, 1] the competitive bargaining set (1) yields unique outcomes for each coalition structure, (2) coincides with von Neumann and Morgenstern's main simple solution for certain coalition structures, and (3) converges to Shapley value as n → ∞ when the grand coalition forms.Mathematical and experimental implications of the new solution are discussed briefly.     

Some attitudinal and cognitive consequences of thought

A “reinterpretation of inconsistent cognitions” explanation of the previous finding that thought about an object tends to polarize attitudes toward that object was tested. Under the assumption that ambiguity facilitates reinterpretation, ambiguity of inconsistent information and opportunity for thought were manipulated. Consistent with expectations, (a) thought resulted in attitude polarization and this effect was increased with ambiguity (p < .01) and (b) evaluation (interpretation) of the inconsistent information varied as a function of thought (p < .05) and ambiguity (p < .01).