When can information from ordinal scale variables be integrated?

Many theoretical constructs of interest to psychologists are multidimensional and derive from the integration of several input variables. We show that input variables that are measured on ordinal scales cannot be combined to produce a stable weakly ordered output variable that allows trading off the input variables. Instead a partial order is obtained in which the amount of ordering depends on the number and nature of the input variables and the relationship between them. However, if trade-offs are excluded, it is still possible to obtain a weak order using lexicographic ordering of the input variables. An implication is that psychological processes that integrate information from different input variables and that produce consistent output require that the input variables be measured on more than ordinal scales. A further implication is that the level of measurement of the input variables affects the kind of psychological model that can be applied to the process.     

A probabilistic model of theory formation

Concept learning is challenging in part because the meanings of many concepts depend on their relationships to other concepts. Learning these concepts in isolation can be difficult, but we present a model that discovers entire systems of related concepts. These systems can be viewed as simple theories that specify the concepts that exist in a domain, and the laws or principles that relate these concepts. We apply our model to several real-world problems, including learning the structure of kinship systems and learning ontologies. We also compare its predictions to data collected in two behavioral experiments. Experiment 1 shows that our model helps to explain how simple theories are acquired and used for inductive inference. Experiment 2 suggests that our model provides a better account of theory discovery than a more traditional alternative that focuses on features rather than relations.     

Examining the relationship between performance-based and questionnaire assessments of executive function in young preterm children: Implications for clinical practice

The aim of this study was to determine whether specific performance-based executive function assessment tools were associated with executive functioning in everyday life as reported by parents and teachers of four- to five-year-old preterm and term children. At the age of 4 years, 141 preterm children born <33 weeks’ gestation and 77 term children were assessed using performance-based intelligence (WPPSI-III) and executive function (EF) assessment tools (NEPSY-II, Day-Night and Shape School tasks). The assessment results were compared with the parent and teacher completed questionnaires of EF (BRIEF-P) when the children started kindergarten at the age of 4 to 5 years. The performance-based intelligence and EF assessment results were not consistently associated with the parent and teacher reports of EF in everyday life for either preterm or term groups. Clinical implications of using and interpreting performance-based EF assessment tools and EF questionnaires are discussed with a particular focus on young preterm children at the commencement of formal schooling.     

The dark side of emotional intelligence: the role of gender and the Dark Triad in emotional manipulation at work

Objective : This study investigated people's willingness to emotionally manipulate others maliciously and disingenuously in the workplace. It also examined the role of gender, emotional intelligence, and the Dark Triad traits in this destructive behaviour. Method : A sample of employees (N = 765; 581 females, 184 males) from varying occupations completed measurements of emotional manipulation willingness in the workplace, emotional intelligence, and the Dark Triad. Results : T-tests revealed that females were significantly less likely than males to engage in both malicious and disingenuous emotional manipulation. In bivariate correlations, higher levels of emotional intelligence were associated with disingenuous emotional manipulation in females only. Emotional intelligence was also a significant contributor to disingenuous emotional manipulation in multiple regression analysis, indicating the existence of a “dark side to emotional intelligence” at work. In females, the magnitude of correlations (small to moderate) between the Dark Triad traits and both forms of emotional manipulation were similar. In males, both forms of emotional manipulation most strongly correlated with Machiavellianism, followed by narcissism, then psychopathy. Conclusion : This study is the first to demonstrate that good emotional intelligence skills can facilitate undesirable workplace behaviours. Emotional manipulation is elevated in males with a relentless drive to achieve goals, and in females with broader deceptive tendencies.     

Desiderata for a Viable Secular Humanism

Philip Kitcher has recently worried that the New Atheists, by mounting an attack against religion tout court, risk alienating a large swath of ‘religious’ people whose way of life is, to Kitcher's mind, innocuous. Encouraging a more moderate response, Kitcher thinks certain non‐threatening modes of religious existence should be protected. In this article, I argue that while Kitcher's attempt to provide balance to the secularism debate is a great service, he ultimately fails to distinguish innocuous modes of religious belief from more threatening modes, a failing that allows the debate to return to its previous extremes. In drawing attention to the shortcomings of Kitcher's approach, I make the humanist's argumentative burden explicit: the defender of a ‘moderate’ secular humanism must show that people who arrange their lives around belief in a transcendent being are more likely to do ethical harm than those that don't.