Task dependent modulation of exogenous attention: Effects of target duration and intervening events

Inhibition of return (IOR) consists of slower reaction times in response to stimuli appearing at previously attended or inspected locations. The exact mechanisms underlying the effect have not yet been determined. In the present work, we manipulated two variables, target duration and intervening event (fixation cue between cue and target), through which we modulated the IOR effect as a function of task. When the target was presented until response, the presence of an intervening event made the cueing effect more negative in all tasks, although facilitation in the absence of an intervening event was only observed in discrimination and go–no-go tasks. When the target duration was 50 ms, the effect of the intervening event on cueing was also only observed for the discrimination and go–no-go tasks. Target duration had no effect at all in the discrimination task. Possible mechanisms for these modulations (detection cost and spatial selection benefit, both of which are based on cue–target integration processes) are discussed.     

Peripheral spatial cues modulate spatial congruency effects: Analysing the “locus” of the cueing modulation

The spatial Stroop effect (slower left/right responses to left/right pointing arrows when they appear at spatially incongruent than at congruent locations) has often been used to examine the processing of irrelevant spatial information. We present data from two experiments in which the magnitude of such location-based interference is drastically reduced when the location of the arrow is precued by a spatial noninformative cue. The main aim of the present study was to clarify whether such modulation takes place at perceptual or at response-related stages of processing. First, we manipulated the spatial compatibility between the direction of the arrow and the location of the response so that each subject would respond with spatially compatible vs. incompatible key presses for each half of the experiment. We found that such manipulation did not have any effect on the standard reduction of the congruency effect by peripheral cues. In a second experiment, subjects made left/right key presses to directional arrows pointing bottom/up, which could appear equally often at left/right/bottom/up locations. In cued trials, we found a reduction of the congruency effect on the vertical axis (stimulus location-direction congruency), whereas congruency was unaffected by cueing in targets presented on the horizontal axis (stimulus-response location congruency). According to these results, we conclude that spatial noninformative cues modulate spatial Stroop interference by reducing the conflict between stimulus dimensions at perceptual- rather than motor-related stages of processing.     

Grounding nonexistence

ABSTRACT

Contingent negative existentials give rise to a notorious paradox. I formulate a version in terms of metaphysical grounding: nonexistence can't be fundamental, but nothing can ground it. I then argue for a new kind of solution, expanding on work by Kit Fine. The key idea is that negative existentials are contingently zero-grounded – that is to say, they are grounded, but not by anything, and only in the right conditions. If this is correct, it follows that grounding cannot be an internal relation, and that no complete account of reality can be purely fundamental.     

Mothers', fathers' and children's perceptions of parents' expectations about children's family obligations in nine countries

Children's family obligations involve assistance and respect that children are expected to provide to immediate and extended family members and reflect beliefs related to family life that may differ across cultural groups. Mothers, fathers and children (N = 1432 families) in 13 cultural groups in 9 countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand and United States) reported on their expectations regarding children's family obligations and parenting attitudes and behaviours. Within families, mothers and fathers had more concordant expectations regarding children's family obligations than did parents and children. Parenting behaviours that were warmer, less neglectful and more controlling as well as parenting attitudes that were more authoritarian were related to higher expectations regarding children's family obligations between families within cultures as well as between cultures. These international findings advance understanding of children's family obligations by contextualising them both within families and across a number of diverse cultural groups in 9 countries.     

Neuroticism and Depression in Children: The Role of Cognitive Emotion Regulation Strategies

This study's general objective was to analyze whether different types of cognitive emotion regulation strategies (CERS), namely adaptive strategies—specifically positive refocusing and positive reappraisal—and maladaptive strategies—self-blame, catastrophizing, and rumination—mediated the neuroticism-depression relationship in children 9–12 years old, and whether gender and school transition moderated the relationships proposed. A self-reporting measure was administered to 315 children to evaluate said variables. The resulting data were analyzed using structural equations. The study verified that maladaptive CERS partially mediated neuroticism's relationship with depression, while adaptive CERS, though negatively associated with depression, did not show a mediating effect on this relationship. The results provide evidence of the mediating function of maladaptive CERS on the neuroticism-depression relationship. Gender and school transition did not moderate the relationships proposed. Because, by their very nature, these strategies are modifiable, these results constitute an important finding that can be transferred to the design and content of child mental health prevention and promotion programs.     

Immigration and Occupational Mobility of Native Workers in Spain. A Gender Perspective

This paper studies the economic effect of immigration on native working conditions, focusing on the impact of the inflow of immigrant labour on occupational mobility among native workers. Basing on a gender-segmented labour market, we propose an extension of the model presented by Peri and Sparber American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 1(3), 135-169, (2009). The model controls for gender and time in order to check for potential differences in immigration effects associated with gender or immigrant length of residence. This research reveals the existence of such differences, by showing that female immigrant inflow has a greater positive short-term impact on occupational mobility among female unskilled native workers. In addition, the long-term study discloses a slight occupational assimilation of male immigrants towards employment patterns of male native workers and a permanent confinement of female immigrants in a few “niche jobs”.     

Predictive model for early math skills based on structural equations

Early math skills are determined by higher cognitive processes that are particularly important for acquiring and developing skills during a child's early education. Such processes could be a critical target for identifying students at risk for math learning difficulties. Few studies have considered the use of a structural equation method to rationalize these relations. Participating in this study were 207 preschool students ages 59 to 72 months, 108 boys and 99 girls. Performance with respect to early math skills, early literacy, general intelligence, working memory, and short‐term memory was assessed. A structural equation model explaining 64.3% of the variance in early math skills was applied. Early literacy exhibited the highest statistical significance (β = 0.443, p < 0.05), followed by intelligence (β = 0.286, p < 0.05), working memory (β = 0.220, p < 0.05), and short‐term memory (β = 0.213, p < 0.05). Correlations between the independent variables were also significant (p < 0.05). According to the results, cognitive variables should be included in remedial intervention programs.