Subjective cognitive complaint in healthy older adults: Identification of major domains and relation to objective performance

This study analyzed complaints across a range of memory domains in middle-aged and older adults, as well as assessed their relationship with objective cognitive performance and personal characteristics. A total of 115 community-dwelling, healthy adults between the ages of 45 and 87 completed the Self-Evaluation Questionnaire (QAM) and were tested with a comprehensive neuropsychological battery. A principal component analysis identified seven dimensions of complaint. Difficulty inhibiting internal and external sources of interference when learning or remembering something was the main area of complaint and it was correlated with word-list recall and Digit Symbol. We identified complaints related to a set of memory failures that appear to be more detrimental to autonomy and safety. These were correlated with a measure of functional autonomy and might, therefore, indicate more severe difficulties. Overall, this study provides indications regarding the main domains of memory complaints and identifies which complaints are most reflective of objective cognitive problems.     

Accents in the workplace: their effects during a job interview

As the workplace becomes increasingly global, organizations are more likely to employ persons from other countries whose accents clearly identify them as different from the local workforce. Understanding the impact of accents in the workplace is important because accents can be salient in the same way as ethnicity, age, gender, and skin color and may be a source of employment discrimination. The present study looked at the influence of accents on the evaluation of job applicants during an interview for a human resource manager position. Participants from the US were asked to evaluate an applicant with one of three accents (Midwestern US, French, Colombian) by listening to an audiofile. The results showed that the applicant with the Midwestern US accent was evaluated more positively than the applicant with the French accent; however, the applicant with the Colombian accent did not receive an evaluation that differed significantly from those given to the applicants with either the French or the Midwestern US accent. Analyses of process variables indicated that the bias against the French-accented applicant was mediated by perceived lower similarity. These results are consistent with the similarity-attraction hypothesis, which states that demographic variables will impact judgments to the extent to which they make the decision-maker view the applicant as similar or dissimilar. The ability of accent to trigger bias highlights the importance of considering the full array of characteristics that can lead to discrimination in employment settings. Research on employment discrimination has traditionally focused on visual cues such as gender and ethnicity, but in an interview situation, the way the applicant speaks is also important.     

Older adults' motivated choice for technological innovation: evidence for benefit-driven selectivity

This study examined older adults' motivation to adopt technological innovation. Sixty-eight older e-mail users and nonusers discussed the use of e-mail and of traditional communication methods in 18 focus groups. The results show older adults' benefit-driven approach to new communication technology. Regardless of whether their decision about the new technology was positive or negative and irrespective of their e-mail experience, participants focused on benefits rather than costs. For traditional media, both costs and benefits were important. Results contradict the common belief that barriers such as usability problems determine whether older people use new technology and indicate the decisive role of perceived benefits for successful innovation.     

Quality at the Point of Service: Profiles of Practice in After-School Settings

A unique observational data set was used to explore quality at the point of service in after-school programs. Staff practices in after-school settings were represented on a series of unidimensional scales closely indexed to staff behavior. In order to account for heterogeneity of staff performances, pattern-centered methods were used to construct profiles of common staff practices. Results revealed six pedagogy profiles that were classified in terms of three broad types of performances delivered by after-school staff: (1) positive youth development, (2) staff-centered, and (3) low-quality. Staff membership in these profiles was not related to youth-staff ratio. However, results revealed significant differences between the profiles on the content of the offering and the age of youth in the setting.     

A meta-analysis of mental rotation in the first years of life

Mental rotation, the cognitive process of moving an object in mind to predict how it looks in a new orientation, is coupled to intelligence, learning, and educational achievement. On average, adolescent and adult males solve mental rotation tasks slightly better (i.e., faster and/or more accurate) than females. When such behavioral differences emerge during development, however, remains poorly understood. Here we analyzed effect sizes derived from 62 experiments conducted in 1705 infants aged 3–16 months. We found that male infants recognized rotated objects slightly more reliably than female infants. This difference survives correction for small degrees of publication bias. These findings indicate that gender differences in mental rotation are small and not robustly detectable in the first months of postnatal life.

Research Highlights

• We analyzed effect sizes of 62 mental rotation experiments including 1705 infants.
• Looking time reveals that 3–16-months-old infants are able to perform mental rotation.
• Mental rotation is slightly more reliable in male infants compared to female infants.
• Gender difference in mental rotation is robust to small degrees of publication bias.