Delay, Probability, and Social Discounting in A Public Goods Game

A human social discount function measures the value to a person of a reward to another person at a given social distance. Just as delay discounting is a hyperbolic function of delay, and probability discounting is a hyperbolic function of odds-against, social discounting is a hyperbolic function of social distance. Experiment 1 obtained individual social, delay, and probability discount functions for a hypothetical $75 reward; participants also indicated how much of an initial $100 endowment they would contribute to a common investment in a public good. Steepness of discounting correlated, across participants, among all three discount dimensions. However, only social and probability discounting were correlated with the public-good contribution; high public-good contributors were more altruistic and also less risk averse than low contributors. Experiment 2 obtained social discount functions with hypothetical $75 rewards and delay discount functions with hypothetical $1,000 rewards, as well as public-good contributions. The results replicated those of Experiment 1; steepness of the two forms of discounting correlated with each other across participants but only social discounting correlated with the public-good contribution. Most participants in Experiment 2 predicted that the average contribution would be lower than their own contribution.     

Dual effects of implicit bystanders: Inhibiting vs. facilitating helping behavior

Encouraging consumers to engage in helpful behavior is a perennial task of marketers in non-profit and for-profit organizations. Recent research suggests that merely imagining the presence of others can lead to less helping behavior on a subsequent unrelated task (Garcia, S.M., Weaver, K.D., Moskowitz, G.B., and Darley, J.M. (2002). Crowded minds: The implicit bystander effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83, 843–853.). The present analysis uncovers the boundary conditions of this effect. Across four studies, we establish that the degree to which a group situation fosters public scrutiny is an important moderator. When group primes are paired with public scrutiny, their inhibitive effect on helping behavior diminishes, and helping behavior on a subsequent task tends to increase. The present research thus adds complexity to previous findings by suggesting that implicit bystanders can both decrease and increase helping behavior.     

The Mediating Effects of Parenting Behaviors on Maternal Affect and Reports of Children’s Behavior

Parenting behaviors have received ample support as a mediator of the relationship between maternal affect and child behavior problems. The majority of these research efforts were based on a uni-dimensional conceptualization of maternal mood, even though decades of theory and research suggest that mood is multidimensional. We examined the mediating role of parenting behaviors on positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) and reports of child behavior problems. Evidence for mediation was demonstrated for both PA and NA for children in early to middle childhood. Consistent with the positive psychology movement, our results suggest that maternal PA plays an important role in parents’ utilization of effective parenting behaviors. Implications for clinical intervention and future research are discussed.     

The role of individual differences in sandbagging on selective avoidance of self-evaluative information

In the current experiment (N = 86), I evaluated the hypothesis that high and low sandbaggers differ in their preference for self-evaluative information. Results demonstrate that low sandbaggers sought accurate self-assessment information in private and in public, but high sandbaggers bypassed such information when it would be made public. These data support the notion that high sandbaggers are self-protective and tend to focus on social evaluation, while low sandbaggers seek accurate self-assessment regardless of the potential for social evaluation. Furthermore, data help to distinguish between sandbagging and self-handicapping. Discussion focuses on the motivation of sandbaggers, along with how this motivation differs from that of self-handicappers.     

Parallel neural systems for classical conditioning: Support from computational modeling

Classical conditioning has been explained by two main types of theories that postulate different learning mechanisms. Rescorla and Wagner (1972) put forth a theory in which conditioning is based on the ability of the US to drive learning through error correction. Alternatively, Mackintosh (1973) put forth a theory in which the ability of the CS to be associated with the unconditioned stimulus is modulated. We have proposed a reconciliation of these two mechanisms as working in parallel within different neural systems: a cerebellar system for US modulation and a hippocampal system for CS modulation. We developed a computational model of cerebellar function in eyeblink conditioning based on the error correction mechanism of the Rescorla-Wagner rule in which learningrelated activity from the cerebellum inhibits the inferior olive, which is the US input pathway to the cerebellum (Gluck et al., 1994). We developed a computational model of the hippocampal region that forms altered representations of conditioned stimuli based on their behavioral outcomes (Gluck & Myers, 1993; Myers et al., 1995). Overall, computational modeling and empirical findings support the idea that, at least in the case of eyeblink conditioning, there may be two different neural systems: the cerebellum which mediates US-based error correction and hippocampus which alters representations of CSs.     

Why open content matters

Knowledge must forever govern ignorance, and a people who would be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives. Popular government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy—or perhaps both.—James Madison, 1815 Bryan Pfaffenberger teaches in the Department of Technology, Culture, and Communication at the University of Virginia where he specializes in cyberlaw, intellectual property and other social aspects of information technology. He is also the author of several trade and reference titles, including Webster’s New World Dictionary of Computer Terms, 9th ed. (Hungry Minds) and Computers in Your Future, 4th ed. (Prentice-Hall). He may be reached at bp@virignia.edu or via the web at: 〈www.people.virginia.edu/~bp〉.     

Workaholism and Family Functioning: A Profile of Familial Relationships, Psychological Outcomes, and Research Considerations

This paper examines the relationship between workaholism and family functioning and the psychological outcomes of family members. A profile of the workaholic family is presented, along with an argument for family scientists and practitioners to pay more attention to this neglected area of family life. Considerations for how to address the need in family research and practice also are presented.