Semantic activation due to synonym, antonym, and rhyme production

Semantic activation due to priming, and the time course of its dissipation, were examined. Following a word presentation, the subject performed one of three tasks: synonym, antonym, or rhyme production. The first presentation of a word together with the task was the primer. The second presentation of the same word occurred after 0 to 4 intervening words. Effects of priming were looked for in the speed of the first response to the second presentation of the word. A production facilitation occurred when synonym production was primed by antonym production to the same word, the primed word immediately following the primer. Facilitation decreased with increasing number of interpolated tasks. No effect was found when antonym production was primed by synonym production to the same word. The results are discussed in terms of spreading-activation due to active use of the associative link between the concept and its antonyms.     

Interactive effects of noise and neuroticism on recall from semantic memory

Subjects recalled names of countries during 8 or 5 min. (Experiments 1 and 2) or performed a set of brief (40 sec) tasks recalling items from semantic or factual memory (Experiment 3), either in silence or in intermittent white noise (95 dB (A)). Noise interfered consistently with the performance of "neurotic" subjects (i.e., subjects scoring above the median on the EPI scale of neuroticism) but had little effect on that of "stable" ones. Performance was not significantly related to extraversion, nor to self-rated activation, and it was uncorrelated with neuroticism in the no-noise condition. An interpretation of the results emphasizing the distracting effects of noise is discussed.     

Visual proprioceptive control of standing in human infants

Human infants learning to stand use visual proprioceptive information about body sway in order to maintain stable posture. Moreover, the visual proprioceptive information is more potent than the nonvisual. This is shown by an experiment in which infants were caused to sway and even fall forward or backward in response to appropriate visual stimulation.     

The comprehension of rate-incremented aural coding

Stimulus and psychological measures of a battery of 36 rate-manipulated versions of an extended message indicate that optimization of the efficiency of aural coding beyond that previously reported can be accomplished by the simultaneous application of a combination of natural and artificial distortions of the durational characteristics of speech. Peak efficiency of listening was successfully pushed to 400 wpm (words per minutes) primarily by means of a selective reduction of speech pause time. Regression estimates predicting the influence of pause time, total duration, and talker rate upon judgments of speech rate and comprehension are presented and implications for listening strategies and speech apperception drawn.This research was supported by grant HD02417 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.     

QUANTITATIVE PSYCHOPHYSICAL AND ELECTRO-PHYSIOLOGICAL DATA ON SOME ODOROUS COMPOUNDS

D rake , B., J ohansson , B., von S ydow , E. & D øving , K. B. Quantitative psychophysical and electrophysiological data on some odorous compounds. Scand.J. Psychol ., 1969, 10 , 89–96.—Magnitude estimations of odor intensity, and electrophysiological responses from frog olfactory epithelia, were obtained for dilution series of 8 odorous compounds. Comparing of data with each other and with known vapor phase concentrations showed relations between pooled psychophysical data and vapor phase concentrations, and between electrophysiological data and vapor phase concentrations, describable by power functions (exponents 0.26–0.50 and 0.18—0.39). There were also high correlations between electrophysiological data and individual as well as pooled psychophysical data. The results give an impression about the feasibility of using a biological detector in gas chromatography.     

CHANGES IN REPEATED REPRODUCTION OF WEIGHT AS A FUNCTION OF ADAPTATION LEVEL

The retention of memorized weights was repeatedly tested by the reproduction method, the subject's state of adaptation for weight being systematically changed between the tests. The reproduction scores were found to vary as approximately linear functions of the adaptation level. This relationship was unaffected by changes in the degree of learning of the memorized weight and in several other variables. The 'anchoring' and retention of weight, and different indicators of adaptation level, are discussed.     

ON QUALITATIVE CHANGES IN THE RETENTION OF FORMS

An experiment was performed to test the following prediction: If a pattern is learned in terms of 'schema with correction', and the subject's conception of the figural schema is changed during the retention interval, the 'memory' of the pattern will change correspondingly. Following the repeated presentation of a pattern S , and the memorization of a related pattern A , patterns deviating from S more and more in a predetermined direction were interpolated. This led to a highly significant systematic error of the predicted kind in the subject's performance when he subsequently was given a recognition test for A.     

Personality Differences Among Navy Occupational Groups

Differences among six Navy occupational groups (Administrative, Technical, Mechanical, Electrical, Construction, and Cooks) were determined for 31 personality and value scales, including the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values, the Survey of Interpersonal Values, and the FIRO-B Inventory. Age and Navy experience were controlled by dividing groups into “experienced” and “inexperienced” categories. Significant differences between groups were present for 29 of the 62 comparisons. Most of the variance in test scores among groups could be accounted for by dichotomizing the six occupational specialties into two broad categories, “white collar” (Administrative and Technical) and “blue collar” (other groups). The results suggested relationships between choice of occupational specialty and the value systems, needs, and motivations of individuals in the naval service.     

Stimulus variation and sequential judgements of duration

When a series of reproductions of an interval is made in the absence of a standard the judgements progressively lengthen. The similarity between stimulus conditions in this type of time estimation experiment and the conditions which produce a decrement in human vigilance is discussed. It is argued that failure to detect cues for the passage of time reduces the amount of time perceived to elapse. Reproduced judgements must consequently be increased in length to match remembered standards. The hypothesis is then made that the kind of variation in background stimulation which facilitates vigilance should increase the frequency of detection of cues for duration and reduce reproduced judgements. This hypothesis is tested with 80 subjects and a reversal of the serial reproduction effect is found on trials with changed background conditions.