Relational processing and working memory capacity in comprehension of relative clause sentences

Previous research has indicated that the cognitive load imposed by tasks in various content domains increases with the complexity of the relational information processed. Sentence comprehension entails processing noun-verb relations to determine who did what to whom. The difficulty of object-extracted relative clause sentences might stem from the complex noun-verb relations they entail. Across three studies, participants read 16 types of object- and subject-extracted relative clause sentences at their own pace and then responded to a comprehension question for each sentence. Relational processing was assessed using a premise integration task or a Latin square task. These tasks predicted comprehension of object-relatives before and after controlling for subject-relatives. Working memory (WM) capacity was assessed using reading span or forward and backward digit span tests. WM tasks predicted comprehension of object-relatives before but not after controlling for subject-relatives. Comprehension of object-relatives relied more heavily on a domain-general capacity to process complex relations than on WM capacity.     

Effects of semantic context in the naming of pictures and words

Two experiments investigated whether lexical retrieval for speaking can be characterized as a competitive process by assessing the effects of semantic context on picture and word naming in German. In Experiment 1 we demonstrated that pictures are named slower in the context of same-category items than in the context of items from various semantic categories, replicating findings by Kroll and Stewart (Journal of Memory and Language, 33 (1994) 149). In Experiment 2 we used words instead of pictures. Participants either named the words in the context of same- or different-category items, or produced the words together with their corresponding determiner. While in the former condition words were named faster in the context of same-category items than of different-category items, the opposite pattern was obtained for the latter condition. These findings confirm the claim that the interfering effect of semantic context reflects competition in the retrieval of lexical entries in speaking.     

Congruity effects evoked by subliminally presented primes: automaticity rather than semantic processing

In a size judgment task on words denoting concrete objects, subliminally presented stimuli that preceded the targets influenced response times and were dependent on whether responses to the prime and the target were congruent or incongruent (Experiment 1). These findings, mirroring S. Dehaene et al. (1998), imply that primes are unconsciously categorized and processed to the response stage. However, the effect does not generalize to primes that are not in the response set (Experiment 2), and even exposure to primes not in the response set in an interleaved naming-size judgment task fails to induce it (Experiment 3). However, the effect generalizes from lowercase primes to the same set of uppercase targets (Experiment 4), suggesting an abstract level of operation. The findings suggest that rather than resulting from unconscious prime categorization, the congruity effect results from automatized stimulus-response mappings. Potential differences between the number and the word domain are discussed.     

Pragmatic post‐structuralism (II): an outcomes evaluation of a stopping violence programme

This paper reports features of a distinctly post‐structuralist ‘outcome evaluation’ of a New Zealand stopping violence programme for men who have assaulted their spouses. Through analysis of pre‐ and post‐programme interviews it was found that the men's accounts of their violence shifted as a consequence of their participation in and exposure to the programme's discursive resources. Overall the men's accounts demonstrated movement towards taking greater ownership and responsibility for their actions. However this trend was not universal and was mitigated through other pre‐programme discursive resources. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An exploratory study of perceived discrimination and homesickness: a comparison of international students and American students

The authors examined group differences in perceived discrimination and homesickness in a sample of 439 college students (198 international and 241 U.S. students) from 2 campuses of the same university. Within the international student group, the authors also examined relationships between homesickness, discrimination, age, English proficiency, and years of residence in the United States. Results indicated that international students experienced higher levels of discrimination and homesickness than did U.S. students. Age, English proficiency, and perceived discrimination predicted homesickness among the international students. Younger students, students with lower levels of English proficiency, and students with higher levels of perceived discrimination reported having higher levels of homesickness. Also, years of residence and race or ethnicity predicted international students' level of perceived discrimination. Being a European international student predicted lower levels of perceived discrimination than did being an international student from other regions of the world. The authors discuss implications for higher-education institutions and counseling personnel.     

Why People Who Have Sex with Animals Believe That It Is Their Sexual Orientation—A Grounded Theory Study of Online Communities of Zoophiles

This study explores online spaces of zoophiles. Relevant discussion forums, specializing in mental health, were identified through having threads on “sexuality,” “paraphilias,” and “zoophilia.” Thematic analysis includes responses of 138 participants (135 exclusive zoophiles, and three zoophiles with pedophilic tendencies). Trend analysis identified most frequently discussed topics: animals as an object of love; emotional closeness with animals; what are paraphilias; can animals consent to sex with humans; misunderstanding terminology of zoophilia/bestiality. First, zoophiles frequently ask why zoophilia is considered an act of bestiality if the term to them means “to murder.” Second, zoophiles believe that animals have an intrinsic ability to consent to sexual behaviors involving people. Third, most messages pointed to the lack of emotional support from the family and widespread public contempt.     

Personality and Everyday Functioning in Older Adults With and Without HIV

Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings - In a cross-sectional multi-method study of older adults living with and without HIV (n?=?202; 69.8% HIV seropositive), we tested...     

Threat(s) and conformity deconstructed: Perceived threat of infectious disease and its implications for conformist attitudes and behavior

Threat has been linked to conformity, but little is known about the specific effects of different kinds of threat. We test the hypothesis that perceived threat of infectious disease exerts a unique influence on conformist attitudes and behavior. Correlational and experimental results support the hypothesis. Individual differences in Perceived Vulnerability to Disease predict conformist attitudes; these effects persist when controlling for individual differences in the Belief in a Dangerous World. Experimentally manipulated salience of disease threat produced stronger conformist attitudes and behavior, compared with control conditions (including a condition in which disease‐irrelevant threats were salient). Additional results suggest that these effects may be especially pronounced in specific domains of normative behavior that are especially pertinent to pathogen transmission. These results have implications for understanding the antecedents of conformity, the psychology of threat, and the social consequences of infectious disease. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The link between dispositional pride and creative thinking depends on current mood

Pride has long been considered a characteristic of creative geniuses, but the link between pride and creative thinking has yet to be systematically examined. In Study 1, we found that authentic pride related positively, whereas hubristic pride related negatively to creative thinking, assessed using the Unusual Uses Task, a behavioral measure of creative thinking. In Study 2, we found that the relation between pride and creativity depends on current mood. Specifically, authentic pride was most strongly related to creativity in the happiness condition, whereas hubristic pride was most strongly related to creativity in the anger condition. We discuss implications for understanding the affective processes underlying creativity and the adaptive and maladaptive consequences of pride.     

Reduced looming sensitivity in primary school children with Developmental Co-ordination Disorder

Almost all locomotor animals are sensitive to optical expansion (visual looming) and for most animals this sensitivity is evident very early in their development. In humans there is evidence that responses to looming stimuli begin in the first 6 weeks of life, but here we demonstrate that as children become independent their perceptual acuity needs to be 50 to 100 times better than has been demonstrated in infants in order to be skilful at collision avoidance at a roadside. We have recently established that sensitivity to the detection of visual looming in 6- to 11-year-old children is significantly below that of adults (Wann, Poulter & Purcell, 2011). Here, using comparable methods, we explore looming detection sensitivity in children with Developmental Co-ordination Disorder (DCD), who show broad patterns of impairment in visuo-motor control. We presented visual simulations of approaching vehicles, scaled to represent different approach rates, to children with DCD aged between 6 and 11 years (n = 11) and typically developing age and gender matched controls (n = 11). Looming detection thresholds were measured under foveal and perifoveal viewing conditions, for isotropic expansion and isotropic expansion with simulated viewpoint motion. Our results show that there are situations in which children with DCD may fail to detect vehicles approaching at speeds in excess of 22 km/h, suggesting a developmental immaturity in looming sensitivity. This provides one of the first clear demonstrations of low-level motion processing deficits in children with DCD. The decrement observed may give rise to potential errors in the road crossing behaviour of these children, whereby approaching vehicles could be perceived as stationary. These findings further contribute towards understanding the adverse statistic that children under 9 years of age are four times more likely than adults to be involved in a road accident as a pedestrian.