A modest proposal: (re)defining unconscious fantasy

The author argues that unconscious fantasy, properly defined, necessarily represents the three-dimensional intersection of wishful thinking (fantasy), veridical perception of the environment (reality), and the naive cognition of childhood. It is proposed that, although attachment theory developed out of the intent to capture the unalloyed reality of dyadic experience, that experience is inextricably entangled with the other two components, wishes and naive cognition, and furthermore, that the behavior of children in the attachment paradigm can only be accounted for by positing the existence of underlying unconscious fantasies. In making these arguments, the author also addresses the development of unconscious fantasies and their relationship to compromise formations and trauma.     

Evidence-based treatment of stuttering: V. The art of clinical practice and the future of clinical research

This epilogue summarizes and expands on some of the many points raised in Parts I through IV, emphasizing that evidence-based practice is not in conflict with the "art" of clinical practice but may actually be synonymous. An evidence-based practice framework is also used to suggest some future directions for clinical research in stuttering. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES: The reader will learn about and be able to (1) describe the similarities between evidence-based practice and the art of clinical practice, (2) explain how evidence-based practice provides a structure for future stuttering research, and (3) evaluate the importance of an evidence-based approach to stuttering treatment.     

Modulation of tremor amplitude during deep brain stimulation at different frequencies

Rest tremor was quantified in the index finger tip of 16 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) receiving deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the ventro-intermediate nucleus (Vim) of the thalamus, the subthalamic nucleus (STN), or the internal part of the globus pallidus (GPi) while being off L-dopa for 12h. Clinically, without DBS, tremor amplitude varied from absent to high. Tremor was recorded continuously for about 5 min under three conditions of DBS repeated twice, namely, effective frequency (E), ineffective frequency (I), and no DBS (O). No changes in tremor were observed across conditions in subjects with little or no tremor. However, in subjects with moderate to large amplitude tremor, DBS decreased tremor amplitude to near normal values within a few seconds. Generally, transitions were progressive and occurred with a varying time delay. Occasionally, tremor escaped from control regardless of the stimulation condition considered. In some cases tremor amplitude in one condition appeared to depend on the preceding condition. Finally, the results were reproducible on two consecutive days. We conclude that tremor control with DBS follows specific dynamical rules, which must be compatible with the hypotheses proposed regarding the underlying mechanisms of DBS.     

When parallel processing in visual word recognition is not enough: new evidence from naming

Low-frequency irregular words are named more slowly and are more error prone than low-frequency regular words (the regularity effect). Rastle and Coltheart (1999) reported that this irregularity cost is modulated by the serial position of the irregular grapheme-phoneme correspondence, such that words with early irregularities exhibit a larger cost than words with late ones. They argued that these data implicate rule-based serial processing, and they also reported a successful simulation with a model that has a rule-based serial component—the DRC model of reading aloud (Coltheart, Rastle, Perry, Langdon, & Ziegler, 2001). However, Zorzi (2000) also simulated these data with a model that operates solely in parallel. Furthermore, Kwantes and Mewhort (1999) simulated these data with a serial processing model that has no rules for converting orthography to phonology. The human data reported by Rastle and Coltheart therefore neither require a serial processing account, nor successfully discriminate among a number of computational models of reading aloud. New data are presented wherein an interaction between the effects of regularity and serial position of irregularity is again reported for human readers. The DRC model simulated this interaction; no other implemented computational model does so. The present results are thus consistent with rule-based serial processing in reading aloud.     

Spatial coherence does not affect contrast discrimination for multiple Gabor stimuli

Gestalt grouping rules imply a process or mechanism for grouping together local features of an object into a perceptual whole. Several psychophysical experiments have been interpreted as evidence for constrained interactions between nearby spatial filter elements and this has led to the hypothesis that element linking might be mediated by these interactions. A common tacit assumption is that these interactions result in response modulation which disturbs a local contrast code. We addressed this possibility by performing contrast discrimination experiments using two-dimensional arrays of multiple Gabor patches arranged either (i) vertically, (ii) in circles (coherent conditions), or (iii) randomly (incoherent condition), as well as for a single Gabor patch. In each condition, contrast increments were applied to either the entire test stimulus (experiment 1) or a single patch whose position was cued (experiment 2). In experiment 3, the texture stimuli were reduced to a single contour by displaying only the central vertical strip. Performance was better for the multiple-patch conditions than for the single-patch condition, but whether the multiple-patch stimulus was coherent or not had no systematic effect on the results in any of the experiments. We conclude that constrained local interactions do not interfere with a local contrast code for our suprathreshold stimuli, suggesting that, in general, this is not the way in which element linking is achieved. The possibility that interactions are involved in enhancing the detectability of contour elements at threshold remains unchallenged by our experiments.     

Coincidence timing of finger, arm, and whole body movements

Two experiments investigated the effects of different types of movement responses on coincidence timing skill. The view was taken that the sensory-motor integration of the movement responses would be reflected in the accuracy and consistency of anticipation timing. A Bassin anticipation timer provided a light stimulus velocity of 3 mph for both experiments and the movements studied included a simple key press using a finger, an arm movement to a key press, and whole body movements culminating with a kick or step to a target. The experiments were modelled closely on the seminal study by Grose (1967). The results of Exp. 1 supported our prediction by demonstrating superiority of the finger task over the two larger movements for all measures of coincidence timing ability. The purpose of Exp. 2 was to compare the slightly different versions of the whole body task-that used in the first experiment and that used by Grose (1967). The results confirmed the close similarity of the two movement tasks and re-affirmed the results of Exp. 1. Exp. 2 also investigated sex effects on coincidence timing ability and, in contrast to previous evidence indicating that females perform with less accuracy and consistency than do males, no significant differences were found. Analysis of practice effects showed that, although there were no significant improvements over trial blocks in Exp. 1, there were significant improvements in Exp. 2. Comparisons with other research suggests that repeated practice in solving a coincident timing problem using whole body movements can lead to improved performance. In general, the findings are consistent with the constructs of action theory and emphasize the roles perceptual and movement variables have in defining situational constraints. Also, findings indicate that proficiency in coincidence anticipation appears to be influenced by the planning and organisation required for movement execution.     

Contents • Volume 103 • 2001

Volume Contents

Contents Volume 103 2001     

Is retrieval-induced forgetting an inhibitory process?

Three experiments investigated memory performance in the retrieval practice paradigm (Anderson, Bjork, & Bjork, 1994; Anderson & Spellman, 1995). This paradigm produces a retrieval-induced forgetting effect, wherein practicing some members of a studied category decreases the recall of other members of that category relative to a baseline. Our findings indicate that the retrieval-induced forgetting effect is replicable but that previous findings supporting an inhibitory account of this phenomenon may not be.     

New mothers and their babies: attachment in the face of maternal life-threatening illness

Life-threatening illness in the mothers of babies or young children is rare. Its impact is discussed in this paper, which focuses on attachment theory as a foundation for work in this area. A single case study is used to illustrate the potential conflicts and dilemmas for professionals caring for babies and their families in this situation.