On the specification of input units in speech perception.

The first part of this paper considers the experimental evidence concerning a primary recognition unit in speech decoding. Considerations of general human information processing abilities lead to the suggestion that this primary unit must be a fairly long, but clearly identifiable, stretch of speech. Further evidence for the need of a primary recognition unit arises from a consideration of human abilities to identify the order of sounds in a repeated sequence of nonspeech sounds. In spite of the obvious ease with which the order of elements is perceived in speech, listeners have a great deal of difficulty determining the order of sounds in a repeated sequence of nonspeech sounds. Yet there is quite compelling evidence that speech and the perception of order are functions of the same cerebral hemisphere, and, further, that aphasic deficits are accompanied by deficits in the perception of temporal order. The data in the literature suggest that syllables, and phrases defined by suprasegmentals, might function as primary recognition units.In the second part of the paper, the results of an experiment are reported, showing that if a sequence of nonspeech sounds is provided with organization analogous to the organization provided by suprasegmentals in speech then normal subjects' performance on the task of determining the temporal order of the sequence is improved. Aphasic patients, however, appear to be unable to take advantage of such organizing parameters since their performance is not significantly affected by providing organization of the stimulus.     

THE EFFECT OF BODY LEAN AND STATUS OF AN INTERVIEWER ON THE NON-VERBAL BEHAVIOR OF JAPANESE INTERVIEWEES

This study was a preliminary investigation of non-verbal communication in Japanese subjects. Sixteen males and sixteen females were interviewed by one of two male confederates. The confederates were described and dressed as either high or equal status persons. They assumed either a forward lean or a backward lean during the four minute interview. Tape and video recordings were analyzed across a wide spectrum of non-verbal behaviors emitted by the subjects during the interview. Both status and body lean variables affected a variety of dependent measures, particularly for female subjects. A factor analysis of the non-verbal behaviors produced some unexpected results which have implications for similar studies done in other cultures.     

Acoustical correlates of the perception of speech rate: An experimental investigation

The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of vocal frequency and vocal intensity upon the perception of speech rate at three levels of actual speech rate. A single sample of spontaneous speech was electronically varied to produce nine stimulus segments that factorially combined three levels each of vocal frequency and intensity. The nine stimuli were recorded such that preceding each was the original segment that served as the standard with which each of the nine stimuli was to be compared. The speech rate of the set of nine stimulus pairs was then electronically altered to obtain a slow set, a moderate set, and a fast set, although the duration of every segment in the three sets was 20 seconds. The sets were rated by different groups of judges in terms of four 7-point scales that measured perceived speech rate, pitch, loudness, and perceived duration. The results indicate that the perception of speech rate is positively related to vocal frequency and intensity at each of the three actual speech rates, and suggest that these relationships are a function of the repeated experience of almost always hearing such covariation in spontaneously occurring speech.The authors are indebted to the Language Laboratory of the University of Maryland Baltimore County and are grateful for the generous amount of computer time provided by the Computer Centers of the Baltimore County and College Park campuses of the university. They are also indebted to Mr. George J. Johnson, Jr., for the design and construction of the instrument used in the study, to Drs. Edwin Susskind and Jahathan Finkelstein for their active concern about the meaning of the results, and to Dr. Klaus Scherer for his very helpful critique.     

Countertransference as a guideline in the treatment of a psychotic patient

Presenting vignettes from a long analysis, the author describes many varieties of rage provoked in her by Meagan, a 29-year-old schizophrenic woman, and shows how the countertransference was the primary tool in helping to distinguish among the states, understand their origin, and work them through in the transference.     

Short- and long-term decrements in toxicosis-induced odor-aversion learning: the role of duration of exposure to an odor

Six experiments employed an odor-aversion paradigm to investigate the role of the duration of exposure to an odor in determining that odor's subsequent associability with illness. Rats were exposed to an odor at times T1 and T2, and the second of these exposures was followed by toxicosis. When the initial odor exposure was brief, the odor aversion was attenuated with a moderate T1-T2 interval of 3 hr (Experiment 1) but not with long intervals of 28 hr and 76 hr (Experiment 2). In contrast, when the initial odor exposure was long, the odor aversion was attenuated at a long T1-T2 interval (Experiment 3). With a T1-T2 interval of 24 hr, a brief initial exposure did not attenuate odor aversions when the context either remained the same or was changed from T1 to T2, whereas a long initial exposure attenuated such aversions when the context remained the same but not when the context was changed (Experiment 4). With a T1-T2 interval of 3 hr, a brief initial exposure attenuated odor aversions when the context remained the same or was changed from T1 to T2, whereas a long initial exposure attenuated such aversions when the context remained the same but not when the context was changed (Experiment 5). A brief exposure at T1, either with or without a subsequent context "extinction," attenuated odor aversions when the T1-T2 interval was 3 hr but not when this interval was 24 hr; a long initial exposure at T1, without a subsequent context "extinction," attenuated odor aversions when the T1-T2 interval was 4 hr and 24 hr but with a subsequent context "extinction" did not attenuate such aversions at either 4-hr or 24-hr T1-T2 intervals (Experiment 6). The results demonstrate that the duration of exposure to an odor determined whether that odor presentation caused short- or long-term decrements in odor conditionability and are discussed in terms of the relation between self- and retrieval-generated processes.     

Empowering the silent ranks: Introduction

Conclusion In conclusion, with this Special Issue we have tried to point out the complexities of diversity and the challenges it poses for community psychology. The groups we present are only an example of the many that suffer similar plights and enjoy similar strengths. The richness of their cultural backgrounds, the learnings that stem from their struggles, their sameness and uniqueness should challenge us to collaborate with them and to unearth other groups which did not have an opportunity to present their histories in this issue. Silence, as previously stated, can be a clear “voice” of resistance. However, it is our contention that in the long run, it is not the best strategy to achieve change in oppressive power relationships. Our reading of the articles in this issue, strengthens this belief. Thus, this publication provides a vehicle so that the distant humming of some groups starts resonating in our halls, while the voice of others that has already been heard is amplified. Eventually we hope that the thunderous and deafening sound of all these previously unheard voices, can move community psychology, and those of us within it, into a harmonious world of sound. Irma Serrano-García initiated the Special Issue by organizing the APA symposium from which it emerged. Since that event, the editors' contributions to writing the Introduction and to all other aspects of editing have been equal.