Behavioral contrast redux

Behavioral contrast is defined as a change in response rate during a stimulus associated with a constant reinforcement schedule, in inverse relation to the rates of reinforcement in the surrounding stimulus conditions. Contrast has at least two functionally separable components: local contrast, which occurs after component transition, and molar contrast. Local contrast contributes to molar contrast under some conditions, but not generally. Molar contrast is due primarily to anticipatory contrast. However, anticipatory contrast with respect to response rate has been shown to be inversely related to stimulus preference, which challenges the widely held view that contrast effects reflect changes in stimulus value owing to the reinforcement context. More recent data demonstrate that the inverse relation between response rate and preference with respect to anticipatory contrast is due to Pavlovian contingencies embedded in anticipatory contrast procedures. When those contingencies are weakened, anticipatory contrast and stimulus preference are positively related, thus reaffirming the view that the reinforcing effectiveness of a constant schedule is inversely related to the value of the context of reinforcement in which it occurs. The underlying basis of how the context of reinforcement controls reinforcement value remains uncertain, although clear parallels exist between contrast and the effects of contingency in both Pavlovian and operant conditioning.     

Developmental depersonalization: the prefrontal cortex and self-functions in autism

The human self model suggests that the construct of self involves functions such as agency, body-centered spatial perspectivity, and long-term unity. Vogeley, Kurthen, Falkai, and Maieret (1999) suggest that agency is subserved by the prefrontal cortex and other association areas of the cortex, spatial perspectivity by the prefrontal cortex and the parietal lobes, and long-term unity by the prefrontal cortex and the temporal lobes and that all of these functions are impaired in schizophrenia. Exploring the connections between the prefrontal cortex and the construct of self, the present article extends the application of the self model to autism. It suggests that in contrast to schizophrenia, agency and spatial perspectivity are probably preserved in autism, but that, similarly to schizophrenia, long-term unity is probably impaired. This hypothesis is compatible with a model of neuropsychological dysfunction in autism in a neural network including parts of the prefrontal cortex, the temporal lobes, and the cerebellum.     

The politicization of deviance: Resisting and reversing degradation and stigmatization

Using the Israeli case of Abu‐hatzira, this paper argues that processes of degradation, stigmatization and deviantization can be reversed. The case itself is documented to be followed by an interpretation clustered along two axes. It is argued, first, that Abu‐hatzira used in his favor an existing ethnic dispute in Israel, coupled with a religious factor. Second, reversal of deviantization can be achieved by politicizing “regular” deviance, subsequently making a political statement within the context of an effective ideology geared to mobilize a receptive audience.¹     

Environmentalism in India: Modernity and history's curses

Temples or Tombs? Industry versus Environment: Three Controversies, by Darryl D'Monte, Centre for Science and Environment, Delhi, 1985, 281 pages, hb Rsl80

The State of India's Environment 1984–85: The Second Citizens’ Report, Centre for Science and Environment, Delhi, 1985,380 pages, hb Rs320     

“To Materialize Their Every Wish”: Race,Class, and Psychoanalysis in White,Ralph, and Aron

Beginning with an anecdote from the author’s own analysis, this paper explores the phantoms (musical, cultural, and historical) that are conjured up by psychoanalysis. In so doing, it extends the author’s reflections, published in the third 2011 issue of this journal, on the relationship between psychoanalysis and historical materialism.     

MYTH,HISTORY AND REALPOLITIK: MOROCCO AND ITS JEWISH COMMUNITY

This article is an analytical overview of the history of Moroccan Jewry, from pre‐Islamic times to the present day, exploring the themes of myth, memory and political interests in the multi‐faceted, continuous interactions between the community and Moroccan society as a whole. In referring to seminal developments in Moroccan political history, it analyses the different ways in which the Jews of Morocco experienced them as an integral part of the larger societal mosaic. This survey of the 2,000‐year Jewish presence in Morocco employs a variety of classical and modern sources in order to locate the place of Moroccan Jews within the ebbs and flows of Moroccan dynastic history, particularly following the establishment of the first Islamic dynasty in the eighth century, C.E. It also engages with current historiographical debates on the subject matter. Overall, it provides clarity and order to the subject of Jewish–Muslim inter‐communal relations in Morocco over the longue durée, a matter too often shrouded in myths and half‐truths.     

Projection and Behavior: A Rorschach Study of Assaultive Mental Hospital Patients

Collapsing DSM-III schizotypal and borderline groups to form a borderline population is unwarranted when the results are then related to borderline personality organization. In a comparison of overlapping scoring systems for inferring defensive operations, Lerner, Albert, and Walsh intertwine fact and theory extravagantly and are not justified by their chosen populations nor their assumptions about the theories involved.     

Giving cognition a helping hand: The effect of congruent gestures on object name retrieval

The gestures that accompany speech are more than just arbitrary hand movements or communicative devices. They are simulated actions that can both prime and facilitate speech and cognition. This study measured participants’ reaction times for naming degraded images of objects when simultaneously adopting a gesture that was either congruent with the target object, incongruent with it, and when not making any hand gesture. A within‐subjects design was used, with participants (N= 122) naming 10 objects under each condition. Participants named the objects significantly faster when adopting a congruent gesture than when not gesturing at all. Adopting an incongruent gesture resulted in significantly slower naming times. The findings are discussed in the context of the intrapersonal cognitive and facilitatory effects of gestures and underline the relatedness between language, action, and cognition.     

Ethics, Finance, and Automation: A Preliminary Survey of Problems in High Frequency Trading

All of finance is now automated, most notably high frequency trading. This paper examines the ethical implications of this fact. As automation is an interdisciplinary endeavor, we argue that the interfaces between the respective disciplines can lead to conflicting ethical perspectives; we also argue that existing disciplinary standards do not pay enough attention to the ethical problems automation generates. Conflicting perspectives undermine the protection those who rely on trading should have. Ethics in finance can be expanded to include organizational and industry-wide responsibilities to external market participants and society. As a starting point, quality management techniques can provide a foundation for a new cross-disciplinary ethical standard in the age of automation.     

Adjusting to life in retirement: the protective role of new group memberships and identification as a retiree

ABSTRACT

Among the many factors that influence retirement adjustment, there is increasing recognition of the role played by people’s social relationships. In particular, research points to the benefits that joining new groups can have for people’s well-being when they experience life change. In three studies, we extend this research to assess the contribution that new groups and identities make to supporting the well-being and adjustment of people transitioning to retirement. Study 1, involving 302 retirees, demonstrates that joining new groups in retirement and developing a stronger sense of identification with retirees predicts life satisfaction after controlling for known predictors (e.g., financial planning, marital status, physical health status, retirement aspirations), while only retiree identification predicts adjustment. We then examine the extent to which multiple group memberships support retirement adjustment and well-being through the mediating role of new group memberships and retiree identification. This is first examined in a cross-sectional study of 90 retired academics (Study 2) and then in a two-wave study involving a general sample of 121 recent retirees (Study 3). Findings from both studies point to the importance of social group and identity gain in retirement adjustment and highlight the particular importance of retiree identification in the transition.