‘Numerical trap’. A new look at outcome representation in studies on choice behaviour

In almost all experimental studies on choice behaviour the consequences of choices are limited to denumerable goods (usually money) and represented in a numerical way. It is argued that a different way of representing consequences would cause differences in social orientations. In an exploratory study (1) the kind of consequences (money, satisfaction with money and satisfaction with the situation) and (2) the way of representing consequences (numbers, rectangles, and faces) were varied. No differences were found between the three kinds of consequences represented by rectangles. Representation of money by numbers did not differ from representation of money by rectangles. However, subjects in the condition in which satisfaction with money was represented by faces were more cooperative and altruistic and less equality-oriented than subjects in the corresponding condition in which satisfaction with money was represented by rectangles. Additional correlational analyses showed differences between ways of representing consequences. It was concluded that both for theory and for future research it is important to consider how consequences are represented.     

Emotional expressions of female and male infants in a social and a nonsocial context

While observational studies of the emotional expressions of women and men have revealed several consistent patterns of gender differences, data pertaining to the emotional expressions of male and female infants are largely inconsistent. Attempting to trace the course of early emotional development in female and male infants, we undertook to compare the emotional expressions of boys and girls at 2 1/2 and 5 months of age in a variety of situations. All infants who participated in the study were from French-speaking Caucasian families of low and middle class. At each age level, infants were observed in a social and nonsocial situation. The social situation began with a mother—infant interaction, followed by a period during which the mother remained silent and still-faced. In the nonsocial situation, a mobile was presented and then removed. Infants' facial expressions were coded using the AFFEX system. Direction of gaze was also coded. Overall, boys' and girls' reactions were quite similar. At both ages, male and female infants spent more time looking at the toy than at their mother and showed more expressions of interest toward the toy. They also smiled more while interacting with their mother and displayed more negative expressions when facing their still-faced mother. One gender difference was found: At 2 1/2 months, girls smiled more than boys while interacting with their mother. Several explanations are proposed to account for these findings.     

Psychological space and regulation of social behaviour

The theory of social categorization assumes that the social behaviour of people can be explained as a result of cognitive differentiation of social objects into dichotomous categories (in-group, out-group). An argument can be put forth that social Categorization is a specific instance of functioning of a cognitive system that operates as multidimensional psychological space. Distances between representations of objects in the space influence the process of application of judgements to the given object and to the degree of involvement instigated by a state of an object and tendency lo produce specific behavioural acts toward the object. Typically, the relationship has a characteristic of an exponential function. There are conditions (social and psychological) that foster a discontinuity in a functioning of a cognitive system and therefore, lead to a dichotomous classification of social phenomena, while in some other conditions a continuity may prevail. Data that seem to support the above conjecture are described.     

Social problem-solving skills in children with traumatic brain injury: long-term outcomes and prediction of social competence.

The effects of childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI) on social problem-solving were examined in 35 children with severe TBI, 40 children with moderate TBI, and 46 children with orthopedic injuries (OI). The children were recruited prospectively following injuries that occurred between 6 and 12 years of age. They were followed longitudinally, and ranged from 9 to 18 years of age at the time of the current study, which occurred on average 4 years post injury. They were administered a semi-structured interview used in previous research on social problem-solving to assess the developmental level of their responses to hypothetical dilemmas involving social conflict. Children in the severe TBI group defined the social dilemmas and generated alternative strategies to solve those dilemmas at the same developmental level as did children in the OI group. However, they articulated lower-level strategies as the best way to solve the dilemmas and used lower-level reasoning to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies. After controlling for group membership, race, socioeconomic status, IQ, and age, children's social problem-solving, and particularly the developmental level of their preferred strategies for resolving conflicts, predicted parents ratings of children's social skills, peer relationships, aggressive behavior, and academic performance. The findings indicate that children with severe TBI demonstrate selective, long-term deficits in their social problem-solving skills that may help to account for their poor social and academic outcomes.