Some effects of praise during the escape condition of the functional analysis

Many researchers provide praise for complying with demands during the escape condition of the functional analysis (FA). However, praise may function as a reinforcer for some individuals which may reduce the aversiveness of task presentation or increase behavior that competes with problem behavior (e.g., compliance with demands). In general, this may result in lower or less stable levels of problem behavior and decrease the efficiency of the FA. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to evaluate some effects of praise on the rate of problem behavior and compliance during the escape condition of the FA in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. We found that praise did not affect the rate of problem behavior but did increase compliance in three of five subjects. The results of the study and implications for the assessment of problem behavior are discussed.     

State anxiety reduces procrastinating behavior

Three experiments conducted in China and the US investigated the impact of state anxiety on behavioral procrastination. Participants were induced into a high- or a low-anxiety state and then given a period of 12 min either to practice for an upcoming test or entertain themselves (e.g., watch videos). The results showed that participants in a high-anxiety state spent more time practicing for the upcoming test than participants in a low-anxiety state. Impulsivity and trait procrastination were also measured. Impulsivity was found to be positively correlated with both trait procrastination and dilatory behavior. Overall the findings support a self-regulatory theory account such that the negative emotion associated with anxiety motivates people to increase the effort towards reaching a goal and take proactive measures for the most important task, thus reducing procrastination.     

Visual object imagery and autobiographical memory: Object Imagers are better at remembering their personal past

In the present study we examined whether higher levels of object imagery, a stable characteristic that reflects the ability and preference in generating pictorial mental images of objects, facilitate involuntary and voluntary retrieval of autobiographical memories (ABMs). Individuals with high (High-OI) and low (Low-OI) levels of object imagery were asked to perform an involuntary and a voluntary ABM task in the laboratory. Results showed that High-OI participants generated more involuntary and voluntary ABMs than Low-OI, with faster retrieval times. High-OI also reported more detailed memories compared to Low-OI and retrieved memories as visual images. Theoretical implications of these findings for research on voluntary and involuntary ABMs are discussed.     

Affect in Play Scale-Preschool Version: Validation on a Sample of School Age Italian Children

The Affect in Play Scale-Preschool version is a semi-structured measure of cognitive and affective pretend play processes using a 5?min standardized play task devised for preschool children. This study investigated an extension of the scale in a sample of 333 children, aged 6–10 years. Participants were assessed using another measure of play processes, the Affect in Play Scale, a divergent thinking task, the Alternate Uses Test, a measure of school coping, the School Coping measure, and a measure of empathy, the Index of Empathy for Children. External validity with these measures was investigated, using correlational analyses. Construct validity of the scale was assessed using a confirmatory factor analysis approach. A correlated two-factor structure with a cognitive and an affective factor demonstrated the best fit. Implications for the use of this extension to assess cognitive and affective processes in pretend play and developmental outcomes were discussed.     

Your Strengths are Calling: Preliminary Results of a Web-Based Strengths Intervention to Increase Calling

Cross-sectional research indicated that the application of signature strengths at work seemed to be crucial for perceiving a job as a calling. The present study aimed at testing this assumed causality in a random-assignment, placebo-controlled web-based intervention study. The intervention group (n = 83) was instructed to use their four highest character strengths more often at work for 4 weeks. Meanwhile the control group (n = 69) reflected about four situations (independent from the current workplace) where they excelled. For the evaluation of the effects of the two conditions, participants completed measures on calling and global life satisfaction before (Pretest), directly after the four-week training period (Posttest 1), and 3 (Posttest 2) and 6 months (Posttest 3) later. Calling significantly increased in the intervention group but not in the control group from Pretest to Posttest 1, and remained constant until Posttest 3. Global life satisfaction significantly increased in the intervention group but not in the control group from Pretest to Posttest 2 and from Posttest 1 to Posttest 3. That indicated that the changes on global life satisfaction were less steep than the changes in calling and lagged, but significant long lasting changes were observed likewise. Results supported the assumption that the application of strengths at work impacts calling and life satisfaction. Limitations as well as implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Do as I … Did! Long-term memory of imitative actions in dogs (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Canis familiaris</Emphasis>)

This study demonstrates long-term declarative memory of imitative actions in a non-human animal species. We tested 12 pet dogs for their ability to imitate human actions after retention intervals ranging from 1 to 24 h. For comparison, another 12 dogs were tested for the same actions without delay between demonstration and recall. Our test consisted of a modified version of the Do as I Do paradigm, combined with the two-action procedure to control for non-imitative processes. Imitative performance of dogs remained consistently high independent of increasing retention intervals, supporting the idea that dogs are able to retain mental representations of human actions for an extended period of time. The ability to imitate after such delays supports the use of long-term declarative memory.     

Communicating Employability: the Role of Communicative Competence for Zimbabwean Highly Skilled Migrants in the UK

Skilled migration is an increasingly important topic for both policy and research internationally. OECD governments in particular are wrestling with tensions between their desire to use skilled migration to be on the winning side in the ‘global war for talent’ and their pandering to and/or attempts to outflank rising xenophobia. One aspect that has received relatively little attention is skilled migration from the African Commonwealth to the UK, a situation in which skilled migrants have relatively high levels of linguistic capital in the language of the host country. We focus here on the case of Zimbabwe. In spite of its popular image as a failed state, Zimbabwe has an exceptionally strong educational tradition and high levels of literacy and fluency in English. Drawing on 20 in-depth interviews of Zimbabwean highly skilled migrants, we explore the specific ways in which the communicative competences of these migrants with high formal levels of English operate in complex ways to shape their employability strategies and outcomes. We offer two main findings: first, that a dichotomy exists between their high level formal linguistic competence and their ability to communicate in less formal interactions, which challenges their employability, at least when they first move to the UK; and second, that they also lack, at least initially, the competence to narrativise their employability in ways that are culturally appropriate in England. Thus, to realise the full potential of their high levels of human capital, they need to learn how to communicate competently in a very different social and occupational milieu. Some have achieved this, but others continue to struggle.     

Natural sampling and base-rate neglect

Using an analogue of the lawyer-and-engineer item (Kahneman & Tversky, 1973), we compared conditions in which base rates were either presented as percentages (A), or frequencies (B), to conditions in which the natural sampling process was described additionally (C) or was directly experienced (D). We expected the likelihood of base-rate utilization to increase as the presentation approaches the process of natural sampling. Accordingly, results showed that the contingency of judgments on base rates systematically increased across conditions A to D. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.