The reconstruction of static visual forms from sparse dotted samples

This study explored the ability of observers to recognize very sparsely sampled, stereoscopic, dotted surfaces. The observers’ performance exceeded that of a simple surface-fitting algorithm that served as a first approximation model to the solution of the perceptual problem. We explored various attributes ofthe stimulus surfaces, but were unable to find any single attribute that could account for the measured performance. Therefore, we propose that the observers used several global surface attributes jointly to distinguish one form from another. Collectively, these attributes define what is meant by form in this study. We suggest that our results argue for a globally precedent, multidimensional model of form reconstruction as opposed to a local-feature, unidimensional interpretation.     

DSM-IV Literature reviews: Rationale,process, and limitations

DSM-IV will benefit from the extensive research and interest in diagnosis generated in large part by DSM-III. The development of DSM-IV is proceeding through three stages of empirical documentation, including literature reviews, analysis of unpublished data sets, and field trials. This paper discusses the rationale, process, and limitations of the literature reviews. The purpose of the literature reviews is to provide and to document a comprehensive review of the clinical and empirical literature to facilitate objective and empirically based decisions. The review process is guided by the explicit and systematic methods developed within meta-analysis. Limitations of the reviews are also discussed.The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the American Psychiatric Association and its Task Force on DSM-IV.     

Semantic context and figure-ground organization

Summary The semantic-priming paradigm was used to investigate the effect of semantic context on the latency to identify visually ambiguous and unambiguous targets. Ambiguous targets had reversible figure-ground organizations analogous to Rubin's vase-profiles picture in which the figural vase is shaped by the same contour that, if reassigned, shapes two figural profiles. The two organizations of the ambiguous targets were either a series of black irregular shapes or a familiar word in white letters; subjects were required to achieve the latter organization. Unambiguous target words were not reversible. Related primes, unlike unrelated primes, facilitated the identification of both types of target; but the magnitude of facilitation was greater for ambiguous targets. The results demonstrate that semantic context influences the speed of figure-ground organization and add perceptual ambiguity to the target manipulations that interact with context to affect encoding.     

Open-Field Foraging: The Influence of Prior Taste-Aversion Conditioning

The Psychological Record - Two experiments evaluating open-field foraging behavior of rats that had received prior taste aversion conditioning to liquid saccharin are reported. In both studies each...     

Impact of physical fitness on strategy development in decision-making tasks

Data from 30 female subjects indicated that a 17.3% increase in a physical fitness index improved by 12% to 68% the information processing and decision-making capabilities of the subjects. The changes in physical fitness did not affect the performance on a variety of other tasks.     

Dimensions of the group environment scale

Student teachers in yearlong mental health consultation groups completed Moos's Group Environment Scale (GES) and three semantic differential ratings of their satisfaction with the group experience. Factor analysis of the GES yielded four dimensions, the first two corresponding to Moos's hypothesized dimensions of Relationship and System Maintenance/System Change. Intercorrelations of factor composite scores with the differential ratings provided concurrent validity evidence for the factored dimensions. Results were interpreted as supporting a multidimensional rather than unidimensional structure for the GES.     

Spontaneous Interentity Coordination in a Dissipative Structure

Humans and other creatures display remarkable interorganism coordination. For ecological theorists, interorganism coordination poses a challenge because it appears to be an especially “representation-hungry” phenomenon (Clark, 1999 Clark, A. (1999). An embodied cognitive science? Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 3, 345–351.[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Ecological researchers have proposed that interorganism coordination arises from fundamental laws of pattern formation and synchronization. A key example in support of the ecological approach to coordination is the phase locking of 2 or more weakly coupled metronomes. Here we provide a complementary example of interentity coordination in a system that is more closely analogous to living systems. We show that two self-organizing dissipative structures, coupled in a single electrical field, spontaneously exhibit fairly complex motion coordination. Further, the degree of coordination predicts the rate of entropy production for the system as a whole. We suggest that the complex behavior of motion coordination fulfills a rudimentary end-directedness of the system: evolve to states that create higher rates of entropy production.     

Grandiose Narcissism and Fairness in Social Exchanges

The present study explored how the personality variable, grandiose narcissism, was associated with various responses to unfairness such as retaliation, forgiveness and avoidance. Participants completed personality questionnaires and read a series of scenarios that depicted unfair treatment. They then answered questions concerning how they would respond to each scenario. Results revealed that grandiose narcissists were less likely to acquiesce and more likely to engage in revenge toward or avoid the person who treated them unfairly. Grandiose narcissism tended not to be associated with forgiveness in response to specific examples of unfair treatment. The consequences of narcissists’ more negative behavior during social exchanges are discussed, as are suggestions for future studies.