Straightness as a cue for luminance edge interpretation

In order to determine the reflectance of a surface, it is necessary to discount luminance changes produced by illumination variation, a process that requires the visual system to respond differently to luminance changes that are due to illumination and reflectance. It is known that various cues can be used in this process. By measuring the strength of lightness illusions, we find evidence that straightness is, used as a cue: When a boundary is straight rather than curved, it has a greater tendency to be discounted, as if it were an illumination edge. The strongest illusions occur when a boundary has high contrast and has multiple X-junctions that preserve a consistent contrast ratio.     

Eye movements and word skipping during reading revisited

The authors examined word skipping in reading in 2 experiments. In Experiment 1, skipping rates were higher for a preview of a predictable word than for a visually similar nonword, indicating there is full recognition in parafoveal vision. In Experiment 2, foveal load was manipulated by varying the frequency of the word preceding either a 3-letter target word or a misspelled preview. There was again a higher skipping rate for a correct preview and a lower skipping rate when there was a high foveal load, but there was no interaction, and the pattern of effects in fixation times was the same as in the skipping data. Experiment 2 also showed significant skipping of nonwords similar to the target word, indicating skipping based on partial information.     

Updating target location at the end of an orienting saccade affects the characteristics of simple point-to-point movements

Six results are reported. (a) Reaching accuracy increases when visual capture of the target is allowed (e.g., target on vs. target off at saccade onset). (b) Whatever the visual condition, trajectories diverge only after peak acceleration, suggesting that accuracy is improved through feedback mechanisms. (c) Feedback corrections are smoothly implemented, causing the corrected and uncorrected velocity profiles to exhibit similar shapes. (d) Initial kinematics poorly predict final accuracy whatever the condition, indicating that target capture is not the only critical input for feedback control. (e) Hand and eye final variability are unrelated, suggesting that gaze direction is not a target signal for arm control. (f) Extent errors are corrected without modification of movement straightness; direction errors cause path curvature to increase. Together these data show that movements with straight paths and bell-shaped velocity profiles are not necessarily ballistic.     

Spoken Idiom Recognition: Meaning Retrieval and Word Expectancy

This study investigates recognition of spoken idioms occurring in neutral contexts. Experiment 1 showed that both predictable and non-predictable idiom meanings are available at string offset. Yet, only predictable idiom meanings are active halfway through a string and remain active after the string’s literal conclusion. Experiment 2 showed that the initial fragment of a predictable idiom inhibits recognition of a word providing a congruous, but literal, conclusion to the expression. No comparable effects were obtained with non-predictable idioms. These findings are consistent with the view that spoken idiom identification differs from word recognition and occurs word-by-word, just as with other familiar, multi-lexical phrases.The present study was supported by PRIN 2003–2004. We would like to thank Corrado Cavallero, Simona Collina, Melinda Tucker and Francesco Zardon for their valuable help.     

Putting stereotype content in context: image theory and interethnic stereotypes

Two studies apply intergroup image theory to better understand divergent interethnic images and to highlight the important role of intergroup context and perceived intergroup relations in shaping the content of social stereotypes. Image theory hypothesizes that specific interethnic stereotypes arise from specific patterns of perceived intergroup competition, relative power, and relative cultural status. Results from surveying Black, White, and Native Americans' appraisals of intergroup relations and reported outgroup stereotypes in various intergroup contexts suggest that the content of outgroup stereotypes varies systematically as a function of the perceived state of intergroup relations and the intergroup context in which these groups are situated. The data reported from both studies establish the importance of examining social stereotypes from a functional perspective in the context of intergroup relations.     

The effects of outcome expectations and satisfaction on weight loss and maintenance: correlational and experimental analyses--a randomized trial.

This study examines the hypothesis that highly favorable outcome expectations promote weight loss and hinder weight maintenance. To investigate the effects of outcome expectations and satisfaction with treatment outcomes on weight loss, 349 adults were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 weight loss programs that emphasize either (a) an "optimistic" message, focusing exclusively on the positive aspects of weight loss, or (b) a "balanced" message, giving equal time to positive and negative aspects of weight loss. Participants changed their weight loss cognitions in response to the intervention, but there was no significant difference between the intervention treatment groups in short-term or long-term (18-month) weight loss. Independent of treatment message, positive outcome expectations and satisfaction were both associated with weight loss.     

IQ decline following early unilateral brain injury: a longitudinal study

We examine whether children with early unilateral brain injury show an IQ decline over the course of development. Fifteen brain injured children were administered an IQ test once before age 7 and again several years later. Post-7 IQ scores were significantly lower than pre-7 IQ scores. In addition, pre-7 IQ scores were lower for children with larger lesions, but children with smaller lesions and higher pre-7 IQ scores showed a greater IQ decline over time. These findings suggest that the cognitive outcomes of children with early lesions, particularly those with relatively small lesions, change over the course of development.     

Instability of hierarchical cluster analysis due to input order of the data: the PermuCLUSTER solution

Hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis (HACA) may yield different solutions under permutations of the input order of the data. This instability is caused by ties, either in the initial proximity matrix or arising during agglomeration. The authors recommend to repeat the analysis on a large number of random permutations of the rows and columns of the proximity matrix and select a solution with the highest goodness-of-fit. This approach was implemented in an SPSS add-in, PermuCLUSTER, which can perform all HACA methods of SPSS. Analyses of 2 data sets show that (a) results are affected by input order, (b) instability in one method co-occurs with instability in other methods, and (c) some instability effects are more dramatic because they occur at higher agglomeration levels.     

Effects of oral cortisol treatment in healthy young women on memory retrieval of negative and neutral words

Studies in rodents have demonstrated that glucocorticoids enhance memory consolidation but impair delayed memory retrieval. Similar findings have been reported in humans. Emotional items are better remembered than neutral items. However, it is unknown if emotional valence influences the effects of cortisol on retrieval. In this double-blind crossover study, 16 healthy women learned a wordlist containing 15 neutral and 15 negative words. Delayed recall was tested 5h later. Cortisol administered before recall testing significantly reduced retrieval (p<.01). Exploratory follow-up analysis revealed that cortisol significantly impaired retrieval of negative words (p<.01), while having no significant effect on neutral words (p=.47). The current findings could suggest that emotional material is especially sensitive to the memory modulating effects of stress hormones.     

Dismal: a spreadsheet for sequential data analysis and HCI experimentation

Dismal is a spreadsheet that works within GNU Emacs, a widely available programmable editor. Dismal has three features of particular interest to those who study behavior: (1) the ability to manipulate and align sequential data, (2) an open architecture that allows users to expand it to meet their particular needs, and (3) an instrumented and accessible interface for studies of human-computer interaction (HCI). Example uses of each of these capabilities are provided, including cognitive models that have had their sequential behavior aligned with subject’s protocols, extensions useful for teaching and doing HCI design, and studies in which keystroke logs from the timing package in Dismal have been used.