Slow alpha in the EEG power spectrum as an indicator for conceptual arousal]

Based on previous findings (B?sel et al., 1990) it was assumed that in concept learning tasks generating on hypotheses on a concept which has to be developed is accompanied by increases of the Alpha 1 power (7.5-10 Hz) in the spontaneous EEG activity. In this study 16 subjects performed five problem solving tasks with similar processing requirements. EEG data were analyzed by means of post hoc comparisons of subjects differing in performance quality. Additionally, four control tasks were employed in which, based on previous studies, variations in the Theta frequency range were expected. An effect in the Alpha 1 frequency band was observed in tasks requiring reconstructive recall or testing the usefulness of an mathematical algorithm. The creation of a rank order or mental map is accompanied by power increases in the lower portions of the Alpha 1 frequency band (7.5-8.5 Hz). Moreover a high amount of controlled variance (eta2 up to 34%) was obtained for this effect. Increases in EEG Theta power, which presumably indicate subjects' component analysis, were found before the subjects recognized parts of geometric figures or before relevant features in the "buddhist monk problem" were discriminated. The dynamics of EEG power over time is in examples of frequency/time plots in a figure, illustrated.     

The correlation between coping with stress and blood pressure reaction]

This study explored the relationship between individual strategies of coping and blood pressure responses during and after mental stress. Blood pressure behavior was measured noninvasively and continuously before, during and after a mental stress situation in 27 normotensive subjects. Coping strategies were assessed with the Stressverarbeitungsfragebogen (SVF; coping with stress inventory). Two extreme groups were formed on the basis of the scores in the SVF. Results were: (a) Individuals who used coping strategies characterized by controlling the situation directly and constructively, in contrast to probands not using these strategies, exhibited lower blood pressure during the stress situation and a faster return to baseline levels after cessation of stress. (b) Subjects using a coping behavior characterized by the use of defense mechanisms such as suppression and denial, also showed lower blood pressure during stress but a significantly delayed return to baseline levels of blood pressure after stress was concluded.     

Discrimination learning of rotated faces: a Markov analysis of coding and association processes]

30 subjects participated in a discrimination experiment learning face-letter associations under four rotation conditions (45 degrees, 90 degrees, 135 degrees, 180 degrees). Under each condition two thirds of the faces were presented twice, upright and rotated away from the vertical; the remaining faces were presented once, upright or rotated. Learning is described by a joint Markov model: For faces that are presented twice it assumes a separate association and encoding process (two-stage-model), for faces that are presented once it assumes an association process (all-or-none-model). The Markov model fits the data for all four rotation conditions. The angle of rotation does not affect learning for faces that are presented once. For faces that are presented twice it influences both the association and the encoding process. For the angles employed, the effect of rotation can be approximated linearly. The results suggest that the encoding of a rotated face differs increasingly from an upright face as a function of these angles of rotation. This confirms analogous conclusions from mental rotation experiments.     

Output and retrieval interference in the missing-number task

Three experiments are reported that represent a reexamination of the missing-number method (Buschke, 1963b) of estimating short-term memory span. The missing-number task involved presenting a random sequence of all but one of the numbers of a known reference set and asking subjects to identify the missing number. Experiment 1 introduced a modified missing-number task that included two missing items and two choices made by the subject. With a large decline in performance for the second choice relative to the first, it is possible that only the second choice was subject to output or retrieval interference. An alternative explanation is that subjects output the number with the weakest memory representation as their first response. By postcuing subjects to report their two choices in a forward or backward sequence, Experiment 2 provided evidence against the importance of output interference and support either for the importance of retrieval interference or for the "weakest-first" hypothesis. However, with a paradigm that replaced only correctly identified missing numbers, a prediction that subjects would select the number with the weakest memory representation as their first response was not confirmed in Experiment 3. Instead, retrieval interference was implicated to explain the first-choice superiority found in Experiments 1 and 3. The results were interpreted in terms of the TODAM model of Murdock (1982, 1987, in press).     

Rubbing your stomach while tapping your fingers: interference between motor planning and semantic judgments.

Previous research (Klatzky et al., 1989) shows that the time required to make sensible/nonsensible judgments about an action-object phrase (e.g., "rub your stomach") is reliably faster when the phrase is preceded by a cure representing a specific prototypical hand shape (vs. a neutral cue). The current experiments investigated the effects of preparing for an alternate task (finger tapping vs. syllable vocalization) on facilitatory priming of sensibility judgments. Preparation for finger tapping reduced the magnitude of the priming effect more than preparation for vocalization, suggesting that resources accessed during semantic processing of action-object phrases are also used during manual response preparation. The results support the existence of a system representing manual actions that is limited in the number of activities that can be represented at one time and that is not so general that it represents manual and vocal tract movements.     

Home,school, and playroom: Training grounds for adult gender roles

Gender differences in children's play activities, preferred school subjects, and occupational goals were examined in relation to such parental variables as toy-giving and chore assignment. Subjects were 245 children in grades K, 3, 6, and 8. Subjects completed questionnaires before and after Christmas asking what gifts they wanted, asked for, received, and liked best. They also were asked to name their friends and play activities, favorite and least-liked school subjects, occupational aspirations, and chores at home. Children generally wanted, asked for, received, and most-liked gender-typical toys. They were less likely to receive requested gender-atypical toys. Children's preferred activities, job aspirations and assigned chores were along gender-typical lines. Girls preferred masculine toys and jobs more than boys preferred feminine ones. With increasing age, both girls and boys increasingly preferred masculine toys and male friends. No gender differences in favorite or least-liked school subjects were found. School subject preference was related to gender-typing of occupational choice for girls but not boys.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Anaheim, California, 1983.     

An exploratory study of videotapes of long-term group psychotherapy of outpatients with major and chronic mental illness

This study explored patterns emerging in videotaped sessions of group psychotherapy with seven outpatients of a large mental health facility. The 22 sessions spanned the 12th to 27th months of the group's existence. Group members had long histories (25–50 years) of symptoms characteristic of schizophrenia. Each session was rated on the Group Environment Scale. One session from a group in its earlier stages was also rated on the same instrument to give some indication of baseline patterns. Analyses of changes across the 15 months were not statistically significant. However, some GES subscales, including Cohesion, Independence, and Self-Discovery, showed relatively high mean levels across the 15-month period. These elevations are discussed as suggesting the codevelopment of orientations that have sometimes been viewed as incompatible and unattainable for schizophrenics. Interpreted clinically, the GES patterns help to elaborate recent findings about the relatively good success of long-term group therapy with such populations. The study, although merely suggestive, illustrates the potential for gleaning solid and clinically useful data from group psychotherapy research.The authors would like to thank Drs. Jill Rierdan, Nina Fieldsteel, Joseph Christy, and an anonymous reviewer for their suggestions, Kendra Bryant for serving as the reliability rater, and Janet Eltinge for her skilled videotaping.     

Type A behavior pattern and emotion expression in younger and older adults.

Eighty younger (less than 50 years, M = 28 years) and 80 older (more than 50 years, M = 69 years) Type A and Type B Ss were evaluated for Type A behavior pattern using the Structured Interview (SI) and given personality tests for anxiety, depression, anger, aggression, hostility, and anger-in-anger-out. Ss also underwent an emotion induction procedure. Videotapes of the emotion induction procedure (N = 160) and the SI (N = 80) were coded for facial expression of emotion. Type As did not differ from Bs on anxiety or depression but did on anger and aggression. Type As showed anger inhibition and anger bound to shame, as predicted by emotion socialization theory. The greatest number of differential effects were observed between age groups. Older individuals, in general, were more emotionally expressive than younger Ss across a range of emotions. Women appeared more conflicted about anger expression than men, and Type A women more so than Type A men.     

Framing the construct of life satisfaction in terms of older adults' personal goals.

Older adults' life satisfaction can be better understood in light of their personal goals. This study of 179 elders examined (a) how goals correlate with satisfaction, (b) whether elders maintain satisfaction by accommodating goals to past losses, and (c) how correlations between satisfaction and key predictors differ among groups with different goals. Satisfaction was related positively to social maintenance and energetic life-style goals and negatively to concerns for improvement, disengagement, stability, and reduced activity. Past losses were correlated with current goals but not with satisfaction, consistent with the notion of accommodation. A cluster analysis identified 5 patterns of goals: high demand, age prescribed, self-focused, socially engaged, and low demand. Correlations between satisfaction and other predictors differed by cluster, suggesting that the determinants of elders' satisfaction depend on personal goals.