The effects of memory load and the contrast of the rod signal on partial report superiority in a Sperling task

Subjects participated in a Sperling task. The independent variables included delay of report cue, dark background field vs. a light background field intense enough to nearly saturate the rod system (duration of rod icon), and whether or not subjects were required to retain a list of letters or words (memory load) while performing in the Sperling task. Partial report superiority is normally taken as an indication of iconic memory. However, the main result was that memory load, which presumably does not affect the duration of the icon, increased partial report superiority. The effect of luminance of the background field was to reduce the partial report superiority. The results show that the existence of a partial report superiority and/or a decaying partial report curve does not necessarily imply the existence of an icon or visual storage.     

Decoding effects of cognitive complexity,tolerance of ambiguity,and verbal–nonverbal inconsistency1

The effects of inconsistency between the verbal and nonverbal components of a message were investigated. Subjects were 72 females who rated the attitudes of encoding confederates who communicated either consistent or inconsistent messages. Verbal and nonverbal components were varied as either positive or negative and each of the four possible combinations served as an experimental condition. The nonverbal cues of amount of eye contact, postural orientation, forward–backward lean, and head nodding were found to influence the judgment of the total message. Verbal and nonverbal components were found to have interactive rather than additive effects. Inconsistent nonverbal cues had a stronger effect when accompanying a positive verbal message than when accompanying a negative verbal component. The effects of decoders' levels of cognitive complexity and tolerance of ambiguity were also assessed. Evidence suggests that both complexity and ambiguity tolerance have effects on the utilization of inconsistent nonverbal cues. Low complexity/low tolerance subjects were less influenced by nonverbal cues in the positive verbal–negative nonverbal condition. These subjects were also found to differentiate less between supplied rating dimensions than other groups.     

Reinforcement and punishment in a closed system

Children chose between toys freely and with various restrictive contingencies. Sometimes play with a preferred toy was contingent on play with a nonpreferred toy. Sometimes play with a nonpreferred toy was contingent on play with a preferred toy. Another toy (free toy) was always available during contingency sessions. Because toy playing occupied the entire session the response system was closed. When one response increased in duration others had to decrease. An analysis of closed-system responding revealed that the restrictions of the closed system together with the restrictions imposed by the contingencies forced subjects to alter the proportion of time devoted to the three responses. A geometrical model representing the closed system and an analytical method based on distance are presented to describe the data.     

The effect of additional variables on factor indeterminacy in models with a single common factor

Determinate solutions for the indeterminate common factor ofp variables satisfying the single common factor model are not unique. Therefore an infinite sequence of additional variables that conform jointly with the originalp variables to the original single common factor model does not determine a unique solution for the indeterminate factor of thep variables (although the solution is unique for the factor of the infinite sequence). Other infinite sequences may be found to determine different solutions for the factor of the originalp variables. The paper discusses a number of theorems about the effects of additional variables on factor indeterminacy in a model with a single common factor and draws conclusions from them for factor theory in general.     

Tests of symmetry in three-way contingency tables

Three-dimensional contingency tables are analyzed, with one variable (e.g., sex) as a factor, and with a natural relation between the other variables (e.g. left and right eye vision). Models of special interest, like symmetry and proportional symmetry between the related variables, and homogeneity across the factor levels, are investigated. Maximum likelihood estimators of parameters and partitions of chi-square goodness-of-fit statistics are explicitly presented; the independence of certain models is noted, and an example is discussed.     

A prospective study of the distribution of illness within the menstrual cycle

The cyclic physiological variations during the menstrual cycle are thought to be associated with change in emotional state, in susceptibility to illness, and in frequency of illness-related behavior. Variations in frequency of illness with the phases of the menstrual cycle were examined using data from a 3-year prospective study of social and psychological antecedents of viral illness in 94 student nurses. Reported illnesses, accidents, medical consultations, and hospital admissions were randomly distributed throughout the menstrual cycle. Subjects took more medication on the 1st day of menses than on any other day of the cycle; howeverreported menstrual symptoms were infrequent, with only 4% of the population reporting two or more such episodes. It was concluded that there was an increase in discomfort on the data of onset of menses which was self-medicated but not defined as illness. There was no discernible relationship of illness or disability to any phase of the cycle.This work was supported in part by Center for Oral Health Research (COHR) grant DEO 2116, and Oral Medicine Training Grant ST01-DE-77. The authors wish to recognize the contribution of Carol Ram, R. N., who was the administrator of this study and responsible for the collection and organization of the large bank of information from which the material for this paper was abstracted. Without her care, diligence, and intelligent management, this study could not have been completed. We also wish to acknowledge the consultive advice of Dr. Larry Laster, Director, Division of Biometrics, School of Dental Medicine, in choice of analytic techniques, and the help of Dr. Arthur Segal in the early stages of data analysis.     

TRANSITIONS IN CHILDREN'S ROLES AND CAPABILITIES*

Stage theories and empirical studies have concentrated on a few periods of childhood (e.g., age 5 to 7 years) as important times of transition. On the basis of ethnographic suggestions that the age period 8 to 10 years also involves interesting changes, the authors carried out a search of published empirical studies for findings of transitions in capabilities at 8 to 10 years. An annotated bibliography is provided summarizing the studies found in a 5-year period in three journals. The authors discuss possibilities for characterizing the transition at age 8 to 10, as well as how such a transition meshes with the concept of stage.