Spatiotopic and retinotopic components of iconic memory

Summary Recently, there has been considerable interest in whether information in iconic memory is stored in retinotopic or spatiotopic coordinates. The present experiment examined the issue using a masking paradigm. In one set of conditions, subjects maintained fixation while a row of four letters appeared for 19 ms, centered about three degrees to the right of fixation. After a 153 ms ISI, the letters were followed by a blank field (no mask), a mask in the same position as the letters, or a mask displaced three degrees to the right of the letters. In a second set of conditions, the stimuli were the same but subjects were asked to shift fixation from the fixation point to the middle of the letter row during the interval between the letters and the mask. Subjects' eye movements were monitored in all conditions. Accuracy of report for the letters was lowered only with the mask over the letters with the no-eye-movement conditions and in both masking conditions with the eye movements. The results suggest that the icon includes two components, one that is retinotopic and one that is spatiotopic.     

Spectral cues provided by the pinna for monaural localization in the horizontal plane

Six subjects located, monaurally, 1.0-kHz-wide noise bursts whose source originated on the side of the functioning ear and whose center frequency ranged from 4.0 through 9.0 kHz (Part 1). Irrespective of their actual locations, the stimuli appeared to migrate from the frontal sector of the arc toward the side as the center frequency was increased above 4.0 kHz. For some subjects, the sounds appeared again in front at the higher center frequencies. Comparable data were obtained with noise bursts 2.0 kHz in width. We referred to these constellations of location judgments, influenced by the frequency composition of the stimuli, as spatial referent maps. In Part 2, we measured, by means of a miniature microphone placed at the entrance of the external ear canal, the pinna amplification function for these same stimuli emanating from the same locations. The results showed a positive relation between the apparent location of noise bursts centered at 6.0 kHz and above and the relative amplification provided by the pinna. Localization performances by two subjects, chosen on the basis of their noncorresponding spatial referent maps, were examined for stimuli of wider bandwidths IPart 3). Their proficiency differed markedly from one another, which we accounted for in terms of different spatial referent maps that were associated with differences in the pinna amplification function.     

Monaural localization following exposure to different segments of acoustic space

Four groups of eight monaural listeners received practice on locating sounds coming from different segments of the horizontal plane prior to a test in which all sounds originated within the same region. An additional eight monaural listeners were given the final localization test without the pretest practice. Knowledge of results was withheld. The main finding was that positive transfer of training was not equally apparent for all groups. That group for which the pretest and test involved the same ear and the same azimuthal positions of loudspeakers performed best. Practice in locating rearwardly positioned sounds did not benefit the localization of frontally positioned sounds even when the same ear was functioning in both situations. Experience in locating sounds from all segments of the horizontal plane appears to be required in order to build up an adequate internal representation of the acoustic surrounds.     

The differential impact of criminal stigmatization on male and female felons

By way of survey-experimental methods, stigmatization responses of a college student sample and a community sample were examined to assess how sex of convicted felon and sex of subject affect levels of stigmatization. Major results were that (a) relatively high levels of stigmatization were expressed by subjects in both samples toward both male and female felons; (b) female felons, however, were the recipients of less stigmatization than male felons, with the difference being larger in the community than the student sample; and (c) sex of subject had little effect on the expression of stigmatization. It is suggested that the factors leading to less stigmatization of the female felon are nativeté concerning the female offender and greater fear of the male offender. Finally, attitudinal and background correlates of stigmatization are examined.     

Mother-child talk about past emotions: Relations of maternal language and child gender over time

Abstract

Emotional understanding and expression is largely constructed in sociocul-tural contexts; thus examination of the ways in which parents talk about emotions with their young children is critical for understanding emotional socialisation. In this longitudinal research, 18 white, middle-class mothers and their preschool children discussed salient past events when the children were 40, 58, and 70 months of age. Analyses revealed that mothers talked more about emotions and talked about a greater variety of emotions with daughters than with sons. Mothers also focused more on negative emotions with daughters than with sons. Although there were no gender differences between girls and boys at the beginning of the study, by the last phase, girls talked more about emotion and about a greater variety of emotion than did boys and also initiated more emotion-related discussions than did boys. Results are discussed in relation to a growing body of evidence on gender and emotion across the life span.     

Religious Affiliation Influences on the Health Status and Behaviours of Students Attending Seventh-Day Adventist Schools in Australia

Students attending Seventh-day Adventist (Adventist) schools in Australia have been shown to have better health status and behaviours compared to secular norms, yet these schools cater for a high percentage of non-Adventist students. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of religious affiliation (Adventist/non-Adventist) on the health status and behaviours of students attending Adventist secondary schools in Australia. The sample included 1734 students who responded to a health and lifestyle survey that captured demographic details, self-reported height and weight, self-reported health status, mental health and select health behaviours. Students who identified themselves as Adventist reported significantly better health behaviours than the non-Adventist students in several behavioural domains, especially among the male students. However, this did not translate to a difference in health status. Further research is needed to understand the causal mechanisms responsible for the potential health advantage of Adventist students, which may include family or church religious influences.     

Genetic Counseling for Early-onset Familial Alzheimer Disease in Large Aboriginal Kindred from a Remote Community in British Columbia: Unique Challenges and Possible Solutions

A novel, pathogenic presenilin 1 (PS1) mutation has recently been identified in a large Aboriginal kindred living in dispersed communities throughout British Columbia, Canada. Disseminating genetic information and ensuring that appropriate genetic counseling services are provided to all concerned relatives have posed several unique challenges. These challenges include knowledge exchange and continuity of care in a geographically remote and culturally distinct community. To our knowledge, this is the first time a specific genetic counseling approach has been needed for early-onset familial Alzheimer disease (EOFAD) in a North American Aboriginal community.