文化心理学的兴起

文化心理学的历史虽然可以追溯到心理学创建之初。但作为现代意义上的文化心理学,其真正兴起是20世纪80年代以后的事情。该文分析了文化心理学兴起的背景,并阐述了文化心理学的基本特征。     

Mechanism of action of methylphenidate: insights from PET imaging studies

Methylphenidate (MPH) is the most commonly prescribed drug for the treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). We have used Positron Emission Tomography (PET) to investigate the mechanism of action of MPH in the human brain. We have shown (a) that oral MPH reaches peak concentration in the brain 60-90 minutes after its administration, (b) that therapeutic doses of MPH block more than 50% of the dopamine transporters (DAT), and (c) that of the two enantiomers that compose MPH, it is d-threo-methylphenidate (d-MPH) and not l-threo-methylphenidate (l-MPH) that binds to the DAT. We have also shown that therapeutic doses of MPH significantly enhance extracellular dopamine (DA) in the basal ganglia, which is an effect that appears to be modulated by the rate of DA release and that is affected by age (older subjects show less effect). Thus, we postulate (a) that MPH's therapeutic effects are in part due to amplification of DA signals, (b) that variability in responses is in part due to differences in DA tone between subjects, and (c) that MPH's effects are context dependent. Because DA enhances task specific neuronal signaling and decreases noise, we also postulate that MPH-induced increases in DA could improve attention and decrease distractibility; and that since DA modulates motivation, the increases in DA would also enhance the saliency of the task facilitating the 'interest it elicits' and thus improving performance.     

Origins of timing errors in human sensorimotor coordination

The authors analyzed fluctuations in timing errors when 8 human participants attempted to coordinate movement with external rhythmic signals. The temporal dynamics of the errors is usually described in terms of simple, self-correcting models. Here the authors demonstrate that timing errors are characterized by a 1/f(alpha) type of long memory process. The value of the exponent alpha differentiates different types of coordination states: synchronization and syncopation. More interesting, evidence was found that alpha can be changed when participants use different coordination strategies. Together with the authors' understanding of the generation mechanism for long memory processes, these results suggest that 1/f(alpha) type of long-range correlated timing errors are of higher cortical origin and are likely the outcome of distributed neural processes acting on multiple time scales.     

不同方向视觉运动追踪的特性

对向左、向右、向上与向下4个方向的平滑运动视觉追踪的眼动特点进行了探讨,并采用了频谱分析的方法对4个方向上视觉追踪的眼动参数进行了分析。结果表明,(1)水平追踪与垂直追踪之间的差异较为普遍,几乎存在于所有的眼动参数上;(2)左右追踪之间、上下追踪之间也分别都存在差异,它们主要表现在数据分布结构上;(3)眼睛跳动距离是视觉追踪的敏感指标。另外,不同方向的差异在不同眼动参数之间并不具有一致性。这反映了视觉追踪眼动的复杂性,不同类型眼动之间存在相互关联,这种关联性还有待于进一步研究。     

The “Weakest Link” as an Indicator of Cognitive Vulnerability Predicts Stress Generation: A Multi-Wave Longitudinal Study among Adolescents

Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy - This multi-wave longitudinal study examined the role of depressive symptoms and the weakest link approach as an indicator of cognitive...     

认知行为疗法在儿童社会退缩行为干预中的新进展

社会退缩行为指儿童在社会情境中抑制自己参与同伴互动并表现出独处的行为。社会退缩阻碍儿童形成良好的社交能力,影响其人格和认知的健康发展,因而对儿童社会退缩行为进行及时干预显得十分重要。研究对认知行为疗法在儿童社会退缩行为干预中的进展进行了整合,包括虚拟现实暴露疗法、学校情境下的认知行为治疗及网络认知行为治疗。未来研究应设计针对社会退缩行为不同亚类型的干预方案,以及在干预中重视情绪调节的训练和教师的介入。     

正念注意觉知量表儿童版~MAAS-C在中国城市及农村儿童中使用的信效度检验

目的:修订中文版正念注意觉知量表儿童版(the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale—Children,MAAS-C),考察其在中国文化背景下的适用性及信效度。方法:城市及农村地区共619名小学4-6年级学生参与研究。对数据进行项目分析、探索性因素分析、验证性因素分析、信度分析、效标关联效度分析、性别及城乡地区等值性检验。结果:中文版MAAS-C为单维结构,具有良好的结构效度、效标效度及信度。测量不变性检验表明,该量表在不同性别儿童间达到严格等值,城乡地区儿童间达到弱等值。结论:正念觉知量表儿童版的中文版本各项心理测量学指标良好,适宜在我国儿童群体中使用。     

Fleeing or not: Responsivity of a chased target influences the cognitive representation of the chasing action

The chasing action, in which an actor chases a target, is a fundamental activity for the evolutionary shaping of social abilities. Where previous research has emphasized the chaser’s role, the current study explored whether the fleeing responsivity of a chased target influences the cognitive representation of the chasing action. We investigated this with a change-detection task, in which a set of chasing actions, either exhibiting or not exhibiting fleeing behavior, were memorized in sequence, and it was tested whether a memorized action reappeared after altering an object’s appearance. The results suggest that the target’s fleeing responsivity influenced the detection of representation-related changes in the appearance of the involved agents, especially when the appearance of one target was replaced with another (i.e., a new pair, but with the same functional role), showing impaired sensitivity to change for the chasing action (Experiment 1). This effect disappeared, however, when the perceived chasing from presented movements was impaired, while displaying largely the same low-level differences as those present in earlier trials through the use of mirrored chasing (Experiment 2) and setting the faced direction opposite of the moving direction (Experiment 3). These findings suggest that the fleeing responsivity of the chased target can influence the stored representation of the action. This differentiation may be attributed to the stronger construction of social interaction structure for chasing action with fleeing than without, since the fleeing behavior can be deemed a contingency cue for social interaction interpretation.     

The spread and impact of Cartesian philosophy in China: historical and comparative perspectives

Cartesian philosophy has had a profound influence on modern Chinese intellectuals since the mid 19^th century. After the May Fourth Movement, there have been many Chinese scholars who worked immensely on Cartesian philosophy and conducted fruitful research including translations, biographies, monographs, and a large number of papers. The examination of mind/body has been one of the most important philosophic issues and also a fundamental truth-searching of the various great thinkers, from Confucius and Socrates to many later Eastern and Western philosophers. There are certain similarities and distinctions between Confucian ‘mind/body’ and Cartesian ‘mind/body’. As a super country with the highest population in the world, the studies of Cartesian philosophy in China have been very inadequate; it should be more prosperous and successful.     

通过身体动作理解人与环境:具身的社会认知

近年来,身体与环境的互动、个体认知过程中的情境因素已逐渐成为具身认知领域的研究热点。众多的具身认知研究开始探究何种情境才能有效地启动具身效应。个体的身体感知或者身体动作的变化会对其知觉、情绪等高级心理过程产生无意识的具身效应,认知神经机制的研究显示大脑的运动皮层在这一系列的高级心理过程中发挥了极为重要的作用。本文主要对具身社会认知神经机制的研究进行梳理与分析,旨在从认知神经机制的层面剖析身体动作如何影响个体对人与环境的理解和互动,以及从方法论的角度上思考目前具身认知神经机制的研究现状。