Resolving defence mechanisms: A perspective based on dissipative structure theory

Theories and classifications of defence mechanisms are not unified. This study addresses the psychological system as a dissipative structure which exchanges information with the external and internal world. When using defence mechanisms, the cognitive‐affective schema of an individual could remain stable and ordered by excluding psychological entropy, obtaining psychological negentropy or by dissipating the energy of self‐presentation. From this perspective, defences can be classified into three basic types: isolation, compensation and self‐dissipation. However, not every kind of defence mechanisms can actually help the individual. Non‐adaptive defences are just functioning as an effective strategy in the short run but can be a harmful approach in the long run, while adaptive defences could instead help the individual as a long‐term mechanism. Thus, we would like to suggest that it is more useful for the individual to use more adaptive defence mechanisms and seek out social or interpersonal support when undergoing psychic difficulties. As this model of defences is theoretical at present, we therefore aim to support and enrich this viewpoint with empirical evidence.     

When Do Comprehender Groups Differ? A Moment-by-Moment Analysis of Think-Aloud Protocols of Good and Poor Comprehenders

The purpose of this study was to examine moment-by-moment fluctuations in text comprehension processing and determine how and when poor and good comprehenders differ. To do so, we reanalyzed a dataset of think-aloud protocols from 138 intermediate elementary students. Both good and poor comprehenders used a variety of processing strategies when reading text; however, good comprehenders were more strategic in which processes they used than were poor comprehenders. Patterns of two types of poor comprehenders were also analyzed: paraphrasers and lateral connectors. The results indicate that these different reader types not only vary in aggregate but also moment-by-moment processing.     

Effects of absolute luminance and luminance contrast on visual discrimination in low mesopic environments

Recent research revealed considerable decline in visual perception under low luminance conditions. However, systematic studies on how visual performance is affected by absolute luminance and luminance contrast under low mesopic conditions (<0.5 cd/m²) is lacking. We examined performance in a simple visual discrimination task under low mesopic luminance conditions in three experiments in which we systematically varied base luminance and luminance contrast between stimulus and background. We further manipulated eccentricity of the stimuli because of known rods and cones gradients along the retina. We identified a “deficiency window” for performance as measured by d’ when luminance was < 0.06 cd/m² and luminance contrast as measured by the luminance ratio between stimulus and background was below < 1.7. We further calculated performance-based luminance as well as contrast efficiency functions for reaction times (RTs). These power functions demonstrate the contrast asymptote needed to decrease RTs and how such a decrease can be achieved given various combinations of absolute luminance and luminance contrast manipulations. Increased eccentricity resulted in slower RTs indicative of longer scan distances. Our data provide initial insights to performance-based efficiency functions in low mesopic environments that are currently lacking and to the physical mechanisms being utilized for visual perception in these extreme environments.     

Queering Bem: Theoretical Intersections Between Sandra Bem’s Scholarship and Queer Theory

Sandra Bem revolutionized psychology with her research on gender, androgyny, and gender schematicity, which culminated in her book, The Lenses of Gender. Her work also provides a model for how to cross inter-disciplinary lines to enhance scholarship and reach political goals. We analyze similarities and differences between Bem’s scholarship and scholarship in queer theory, a theoretical movement in the humanities that analyzes discourses that construct man/woman and straight/gay binaries. There are important overlaps between Bem’s lenses of gender (biological essentialism, gender polarization, and androcentrism) and the ideas of many queer theorists. There are also several interesting differences between Bem’s ideas and queer theory: attention to the intrapsychic processes that make up gender, the extent to which individuals can be liberated from gender, proliferating versus contesting gender, intersectionality, and epistemology and methodology. By assessing the similarities and differences between Bem and queer theorists, we show that the two complement each other, affording a better understanding of gender and sexuality. Additionally, both Bem and queer theory lend insight into feminist and queer activism. The theoretical and political advances that can be made by integrating Bem’s ideas and those of queer theorists serve as examples for why it is worthwhile to cross disciplinary lines.     

People Wait Longer when the Alternative is Risky: The Relation Between Preferences in Risky and Inter‐temporal Choice

In two experiments, we demonstrate that despite indicating indifference when probed about risk or delay in isolation, when forced to explicitly trade‐off between the two, participants prefer delayed over risky rewards. This pattern of findings sets a boundary condition for any common utility‐based comparison process involving both risk and delay. Furthermore, this change from indifference‐in‐isolation to delay‐preference‐in‐a‐trade‐off strengthens as reward amount increases. Exploratory modeling results suggest that the shift in preference can be explained by allowing for different discount rates for delay‐only choices compared with when delay is in competition with risk. This explanation is better than one in which probability weighting is different between risk‐only choices and risks considered in the presence of a delay. Together, the empirical and modeling work lays a path for future investigations of why and when people's evaluation of the properties of risky and delayed choices vary as a function of the alternatives on offer. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Attentional functions of cortical cholinergic inputs: what does it mean for learning and memory?

The hypothesis that cortical cholinergic inputs mediate attentional functions and capacities has been extensively substantiated by experiments assessing the attentional effects of specific cholinotoxic lesions of cortical cholinergic inputs, attentional performance-associated cortical acetylcholine release, and the effects of pharmacological manipulations of the excitability of basal forebrain corticopetal cholinergic projections on attentional performance. At the same time, numerous animal experiments have suggested that the integrity of cortical cholinergic inputs is not necessary for learning and memory, and a dissociation between the role of the cortical cholinergic input system in attentional functions and in learning and memory has been proposed. We speculate that this dissociation is due, at least in part, to the use of standard animal behavioral tests for the assessment of learning and memory which do not sufficiently tax defined attentional functions. Attentional processes and the allocation of attentional capacities would be expected to influence the efficacy of the acquisition and recall of declarative information and therefore, persistent abnormalities in the regulation of the cortical cholinergic input system may yield escalating impairments in learning and memory. Furthermore, the cognitive effects of loss of cortical cholinergic inputs are augmented by the disruption of the top-down regulation of attentional functions that normally acts to optimize information processing in posterior cortical areas. Because cortical cholinergic inputs play an integral role in the mediation of attentional processing, the activity of cortical cholinergic inputs is hypothesized to also determine the efficacy of learning and memory.     

Autism and the experience of a perceptual object

Sewards and Sewards (2002) argue that while computations necessary for object recognition occur throughout the ventral visual stream, object recognition awareness involves the anterior temporal lobe and the medial orbital prefrontal cortex. The present paper suggests, however, that the medial orbital prefrontal cortex has a unique contribution, namely that of producing a basic experience of a perceptual object. It is further argued that the mechanisms that produce this experience also result in making the object more important than its subparts and features. Finally, it is argued that a reduction in this importance may account for some perceptual difficulties in high-functioning autism. This view is consistent with evidence for early selective abnormalities in other systems involving the medial prefrontal cortex in autism.     

Fusions and Ordinary Physical Objects

In “Tropes and Ordinary Physical Objects”, Kris McDaniel argues that ordinary physical objects are fusions of monadic and polyadic tropes. McDaniel calls his view “TOPO”—for “Theory of Ordinary Physical Objects”. He argues that we should accept TOPO because of the philosophical work that it allows us to do. Among other things, TOPO is supposed to allow endurantists to reply to Mark Heller’s argument for perdurantism. But, we argue in this paper, TOPO does not help endurantists do that; indeed, we argue that anyone who accepts TOPO should reject endurantism.     

Positive Mood and Future-Oriented Self-Evaluation

When individuals think about their future, feedback on their strengths and weaknesses may often serve as a useful source of information. Three studies investigated the influence of positive and neutral moods on feedback seeking. In Studies 1 and 2, positive mood increased interest in feedback about weaknesses when this information was useful for self-assessment and self-improvement. But when the feedback was not useful for these superordinate, long-term goals then positive mood directed participants’ interest to strength-focused feedback, thereby serving short-term, affective concerns (e.g., feeling good about oneself). Study 3 directly manipulated self-evaluative goals. When a learning goal was activated, positive mood increased interest in weaknesses-focused feedback, but when an affective goal was activated, positive mood increased interest in strength-focused feedback. These results support our hypothesis that positive mood attunes individuals to the relationships of goals and means, thus promoting actions that serve primary goals.