How many response options? A study of remember-know testing procedures

The remember-know procedure can be conducted in one or two steps. The one-step procedure does not include a recognition response (old-new) prior to the remember-know response. It is observed consistently that the one-step procedure leads to a more liberal placement of the response criterion, but it is unclear whether recognition accuracy is affected by the number of procedural steps. However, previous studies used bias-dependent measures of accuracy (A′ and d′). We manipulated the number of steps and confirmed the finding that the response criterion is more liberal with the one-step procedure. More importantly, we employed a signal detection theory bias-free accuracy measure (d_a) to show that varying the number of steps does not affect recognition accuracy, and we demonstrated that this pattern of results does not change when the dual process signal detection model (Yonelinas, 1997) is applied.     

The control of responsiveness in ADHD by catecholamines: evidence for dopaminergic, noradrenergic and interactive roles

We explore the neurobiological bases of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) from the viewpoint of the neurochemistry and psychopharmacology of the catecholamine-based behavioural systems. The contributions of dopamine (DA) and noradrenaline (NA) neurotransmission to the motor and cognitive symptoms of ADHD (e.g. hyperactivity, variable and impulsive responses) are studied in rodent and primate models. These models represent elements of the behavioural units observed in subjects with ADHD clinically, or in laboratory settings (e.g. locomotion, changed sensitivity/responsivity to novelty/reinforcement and measures of executive processing). In particular, the models selected emphasize traits that are strongly influenced by mesocorticolimbic DA in the spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) and the Naples high excitability (NHE) rat lines. In this context, the mode of action of methylphenidate treatment is discussed. We also describe current views on the altered control by mesolimbic catecholamines of appropriate and inappropriate goal-directed behaviour, and the tolerance or intolerance of delayed reinforcement in ADHD children and animal models. Recent insights into the previously underestimated role of the NA system in the control of mesocortical DA function, and the frontal role in processing information are elaborated.     

How to accurately detect autobiographical events

ABSTRACT— We describe a new method, based on indirect measures of implicit autobiographical memory, that allows evaluation of which of two contrasting autobiographical events (e.g., crimes) is true for a given individual. Participants were requested to classify sentences describing possible autobiographical events by pressing one of two response keys. Responses were faster when sentences related to truly autobiographical events shared the same response key with other sentences reporting true events and slower when sentences related to truly autobiographical events shared the same response key with sentences reporting false events. This method has possible application in forensic settings and as a lie-detection technique.     

The many faces of counts-as: A formal analysis of constitutive rules

The paper proposes a logical systematization of the notion of counts-as which is grounded on a very simple intuition about what counts-as statements actually mean, i.e., forms of classification. Moving from this analytical thesis the paper disentangles three semantically different readings of statements of the type “X counts as Y in context c”, from the weaker notion of contextual classification to the stronger notion of constitutive rule. These many ways in which counts-as can be said are formally addressed by making use of modal logic techniques. The resulting framework allows for a formal characterization of all the involved notions and their reciprocal logical relationships.     

Food in the corner and money in the cashews: Semantic activation of embedded stems in the presence or absence of a morphological structure

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review - In visual word identification, readers automatically access word internal information: they recognize orthographically embedded words (e.g., HAT in THAT) and are...     

Not Only Whites: Racial Priming Effect for Black Faces in Black People

Black people are widely negatively stereotyped. The presence of unconscious stereotypes can be effectively assessed with the administration of “racial priming tasks.” An ethnically diverse group was subjected to a priming paradigm to test whether racial cues could bias the identification of target objects. Participants were asked to categorize objects (either as dangerous or nondangerous) after the presentation of Black/White faces as primes. Results show that both Black and White participants were faster in categorizing dangerous objects when primed with Black faces compared to the control condition (i.e., scrambled faces). One possible explanation for this effect is that Black faces are generally associated with a feeling of danger, which ultimately leads to faster responses.     

What is Overt and what is Covert in Congenital Prosopagnosia?

The term covert recognition refers to recognition without awareness. In the context of face recognition, it refers to the fact that some individuals show behavioural, electrophysiological or autonomic indices of recognition in the absence of overt, conscious recognition. Originally described in cases of people that have lost their ability to overtly recognize faces (acquired prosopagnosia, AP), covert face recognition has more recently also been described in cases of congenital prosopagnosia (CP), who never develop typical overt face recognition skills. The presence of covert processing in a developmental disorder such as CP is a particularly intriguing phenomenon, and its investigation is relevant for a variety of reasons. From a theoretical point of view, it is useful to help shed light on the cognitive and neural underpinnings of face recognition deficits. From a clinical point of view, it has the potential to aid the design of rehabilitation protocols aimed at improving face recognition skills in this population. In the current review we selectively summarize the recent literature on covert face recognition in CP, highlight its main findings, and provide a theoretical interpretation for them.