Spatial localization of touch in the first year of life: early influence of a visual spatial code and the development of remapping across changes in limb position

Two experiments investigated infants' ability to localize tactile sensations in peripersonal space. Infants aged 10 months (Experiment 1) and 6.5 months (Experiment 2) were presented with vibrotactile stimuli unpredictably to either hand while they adopted either a crossed- or uncrossed-hands posture. At 6.5 months, infants' responses were predominantly manual, whereas at 10 months, visual orienting behavior was more evident. Analyses of the direction of the responses indicated that (a) both age groups were able to locate tactile stimuli, (b) the ability to remap visual and manual responses to tactile stimuli across postural changes develops between 6.5 and 10 months of age, and (c) the 6.5-month-olds were biased to respond manually in the direction appropriate to the more familiar uncrossed-hands posture across both postures. The authors argue that there is an early visual influence on tactile spatial perception and suggest that the ability to remap visual and manual directional responses across changes in posture develops between 6.5 and 10 months, most likely because of the experience of crossing the midline gained during this period.     

The Development of Hyperactive–Impulsive Behaviors During the Preschool Years: The Predictive Validity of Parental Assessments

The objectives of this study were to establish the different developmental trajectories of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors on the basis of both mother and father ratings at 19, 32, 50, and 63 months, and to examine the predictive validity of these trajectories with respect to later hyperactive-impulsive behaviors, as rated by teachers in the first 2 years of school. Hyperactive-impulsive behaviors were assessed in a population-based sample of 1,112 twins (565 boys and 547 girls) at 19, 32, 50, and 63 months of age. The results revealed a differentiated and consistent view of developmental trajectories of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors derived from these repeated assessments, with 7.1% of children seen by mothers (7% for fathers) as displaying high and stable hyperactive-impulsive behaviors. According to mother ratings, children on a high-chronic trajectory were more likely than other children to display hyperactive-impulsive behaviors at 72 and 84 months according to their teachers. Repeated measures over time and father-based trajectories significantly added to the prediction teacher later ratings of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors. These results support the predictive validity of parental assessment of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors during the preschool years and their use to identify children at risk for further evaluation and possible intervention.     

Acute aerobic exercise and information processing: energizing motor processes during a choice reaction time task

The immediate and short-term after effects of a bout of aerobic exercise on young adults’ information processing were investigated. Seventeen participants performed an auditory two-choice reaction time (RT) task before, during, and after 40 min of ergometer cycling. In a separate session, the same sequence of testing was completed while seated on an ergometer without pedalling. Results indicate that exercise (1) improves the speed of reactions by energizing motor outputs; (2) interacts with the arousing effect of a loud auditory signal suggesting a direct link between arousal and activation; (3) gradually reduces RT and peaks between 15 and 20 min; (4) effects on RT disappear very quickly after exercise cessation; and (5) effects on motor processes cannot be explained by increases in body temperature caused by exercise. Taken together, these results support a selective influence of acute aerobic exercise on motor adjustment stage.     

The developmental course of lexical tone perception in the first year of life

Perceptual reorganisation of infants' speech perception has been found from 6 months for consonants and earlier for vowels. Recently, similar reorganisation has been found for lexical tone between 6 and 9 months of age. Given that there is a close relationship between vowels and tones, this study investigates whether the perceptual reorganisation for tone begins earlier than 6 months. Non-tone language English and French infants were tested with the Thai low vs. rising lexical tone contrast, using the stimulus alternating preference procedure. Four- and 6-month-old infants discriminated the lexical tones, and there was no decline in discrimination performance across these ages. However, 9-month-olds failed to discriminate the lexical tones. This particular pattern of decline in nonnative tone discrimination over age indicates that perceptual reorganisation for tone does not parallel the developmentally prior decline observed in vowel perception. The findings converge with previous developmental cross-language findings on tone perception in English-language infants [Mattock, K., & Burnham, D. (2006). Chinese and English infants' tone perception: Evidence for perceptual reorganization. Infancy, 10(3)], and extend them by showing similar perceptual reorganisation for non-tone language infants learning rhythmically different non-tone languages (English and French).     

The Role of Pay Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment in Turnover Intentions: A Two-Sample Study

This paper reports the results of a two-sample study—a sample of medical reps from pharmaceutical companies (N = 232) and a sample of respondents from multiple organizations (N = 221)—of the relationships between pay satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intentions. Hypotheses were tested using a multidimensional perspective on both pay satisfaction and organizational commitment. Results from both samples show that the effect of pay satisfaction on intended turnover is fully mediated by affective commitment and perceived sacrifice commitment. Pay satisfaction is also significantly related to normative commitment but the latter has no influence on the outcome. Finally, in the sample of medical reps, pay satisfaction significantly reduces commitment based on lack of employment alternatives, a finding that is interpreted in light of the characteristics of pay systems in pharmaceutical companies. Future directions on compensation satisfaction and commitment research are discussed.     

Impact of language on development of auditory-visual speech perception

The McGurk effect paradigm was used to examine the developmental onset of inter-language differences between Japanese and English in auditory-visual speech perception. Participants were asked to identify syllables in audiovisual (with congruent or discrepant auditory and visual components), audio-only, and video-only presentations at various signal-to-noise levels. In Experiment 1 with two groups of adults, native speakers of Japanese and native speakers of English, the results on both percent visually influenced responses and reaction time supported previous reports of a weaker visual influence for Japanese participants. In Experiment 2, an additional three age groups (6, 8, and 11 years) in each language group were tested. The results showed that the degree of visual influence was low and equivalent for Japanese and English language 6-year-olds, and increased over age for English language participants, especially between 6 and 8 years, but remained the same for Japanese participants. This may be related to the fact that English language adults and older children processed visual speech information relatively faster than auditory information whereas no such inter-modal differences were found in the Japanese participants' reaction times.     

From Vygotsky to Vygotskian psychology: introduction to the history of the Kharkov School

Around the end of the 1920s, Vygotsky introduced his integrative framework for psycho-logical research to the Soviet Union. This framework was not abandoned and forgotten until its rediscovery in Russia and America in the 1950s, as some claim. In fact, even after his untimely death in 1934, Vygotsky remained the spiritual leader of a group of his for-mer students and collaborators, who became known as the Kharkov School. This paper reconstructs the early intellectual history of Vygotskian psychology, as it emerged, around the time of Vygotsky's death, in the research program of the Kharkov School.     

Quantifying continuous exercise using the ratio of work completed to endurance limit associated with exercise-induced delayed-onset muscle soreness

This study quantified training load of various exercises using a novel method developed by the authors and based on the ratio of work completed: endurance limit, associated with exercise-induced delayed-onset muscle soreness. Exercises were also quantified using the Training Impulse method. 8 runners performed a marathon and a 60-min. run at marathon velocity, and 9 rowers performed two maximal exercises (500 m and 2000 m) on a rowing ergometer. To examine the validity of the two methods, the relationships between the training loads provided by the Training Impulse and the Authors' methods, the direct comparison of the tasks performed, and the usability of the Authors' method components in regular training were assessed. Authors' method was significantly related to Training Impulse method (r = .83, p < .05) and was higher for running (r = .94, p < .05) but none was observed for rowing. In both methods, the marathon run resulted in high training load compared with the other tasks. When compared with the 60-min. run, the training load of the 2000-m row was slightly higher for the Authors' method, but lower for Training Impulse method. In the Authors' method, the delayed-onset muscle soreness component discriminates the marathon from the other tasks whereas the ration of work completed: endurance limit differentiates the 60-min. run from the 2000-m row. The duration component of the Training Impulse method could lead to overestimation of the training load of prolonged exercises compared with high intensity exercise. The relationship between the Training Impulse and the Authors' methods for prolonged exercises, the training load provided for each task, and the components of the Authors' method supported the validity of this new tool to describe exercise-induced fatigue.