Input and output in distributive theory

Distributive theories evaluate distributions of goods based on candidate recipients’ characteristics, e.g. how well off candidates are, how deserving they are, and whether they fare below sufficiency. But such characteristics vary across possible worlds, so distributive theories may differ in terms of the world which for them settles candidates’ characteristics. This paper examines how distributive theories differ in terms of whether candidate recipients’ relevant characteristics are grounded in the possible world that would take place if the distributor does not intervene (call it the “input” world) or if they are grounded in each possible world that the distributor can bring about through different decisions (call each an “output” world). We illustrate the importance of this distinction in relation to one distributive theory, prioritarianism. As we show, both input and output versions of prioritarianism are plausible interpretations of the literature, and there are good reasons to take input prioritarianism seriously. Ultimately, however, we argue that input prioritarianism should be rejected.     

Intergenerational transmission: The individuation process and the capacity for intimacy of adult children of holocaust survivors

This article deals with the intergenerational processes of adult children of Holocaust surviors. By exploring their level of individuation from the parental family and their capacity for intimacy with spouses, the research findings reveal that: Adult children of survivors are emotionally more interconnected to their parents than are their counterparts (using the MIS). Adult children of survivors have a lower intimacy capacity with their spouses in comparison with the control group. These findings are explained from an intergenerational perspective regarding a post-traumatic population.Received PhD from University of Wisconsin-Madison. Current research in the individuation process throughout adulthood, and the post-traumatic effect of Holocaust survivors.     

Perceptual versus postperceptual mediation of visual context effects: Evidence from the letter-superiority effect

Two experiments demonstrated letter-context effects that cannot easily be accounted for by post-perceptual theories based on structural redundancy, figural goodness, or memory advantage. In Experiment 1, subjects identified the color of a letter fragment more accurately in letter than in nonletter contexts. In Experiment 2, subjects identified the feature presented in a precued color more accurately in letters than in nonletters. We argue that these effects result from top-down perceptual processing.     

Area activation: a computational model of saccadic selectivity in visual search

The Area Activation Model (Pomplun, Reingold, Shen, & Williams, 2000) is a computational model predicting the statistical distribution of saccadic endpoints in visual search tasks. Its basic assumption is that saccades in visual search tend to foveate display areas that provide a maximum amount of task‐relevant information for processing during the subsequent fixation. In the present study, a counterintuitive prediction by the model is empirically tested, namely that saccadic selectivity towards stimulus features depends on the spatial arrangement of search items. We find good correspondence between simulated and empirically observed selectivity patterns, providing strong support for the Area Activation Model.     

Mind the Gap: Between‐group differences and fair test use

This paper integrates recent meta‐analytical findings regarding group differences in job‐ and educational‐related criteria and cognitive ability measures used as predictors in personnel selection and selection to higher education institutions. The findings suggest that cognitive ability measures reveal much higher group differences than the corresponding between‐group differences in job‐ and educational‐related criteria. One possible explanation for these differential gaps is that cognitive ability measures are objective and standardized while the typical measures used as job‐ and‐educational related criteria are non‐standardized subjective evaluations of job performance and academic achievement. While these findings are consistent with unbiased prediction or over‐prediction for lower scoring groups, they imply that selection is biased against them. Implications and future research are discussed.     

Can psychopathic offenders discern moral wrongs? A new look at the moral/conventional distinction

A prominent view of psychopathic moral reasoning suggests that psychopathic individuals cannot properly distinguish between moral wrongs and other types of wrongs. The present study evaluated this view by examining the extent to which 109 incarcerated offenders with varying degrees of psychopathy could distinguish between moral and conventional transgressions relative to each other and to nonincarcerated healthy controls. Using a modified version of the classic Moral/Conventional Transgressions task that uses a forced-choice format to minimize strategic responding, the present study found that total psychopathy score did not predict performance on the task. Task performance was explained by some individual subfacets of psychopathy and by other variables unrelated to psychopathy, such as IQ. The authors conclude that, contrary to earlier claims, insufficient data exist to infer that psychopathic individuals cannot know what is morally wrong.     

What difference reveals about similarity

Detecting that two images are different is faster for highly dissimilar images than for highly similar images. Paradoxically, we showed that the reverse occurs when people are asked to describe how two images differ--that is, to state a difference between two images. Following structure-mapping theory, we propose that this disassociation arises from the multistage nature of the comparison process. Detecting that two images are different can be done in the initial (local-matching) stage, but only for pairs with low overlap; thus, "different" responses are faster for low-similarity than for high-similarity pairs. In contrast, identifying a specific difference generally requires a full structural alignment of the two images, and this alignment process is faster for high-similarity pairs. We described four experiments that demonstrate this dissociation and show that the results can be simulated using the Structure-Mapping Engine. These results pose a significant challenge for nonstructural accounts of similarity comparison and suggest that structural alignment processes play a significant role in visual comparison.     

Three layers of collective victimhood: effects of multileveled victimhood on intergroup conflicts in the Israeli–Arab context

Perceived collective victimhood plays a significant role in conflictual intergroup relations. We suggest a conceptualization of three different layers of collective victimhood: historical victimhood, general conflict victimhood, and conflict event victimhood. Three studies explore the interrelationship between the layers and their effects in the context of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. In Study 1, general conflict victimhood mediates the relationship between historical victimhood and willingness for compromise. In Study 2, conducted in two waves, changes in general conflict victimhood predict support for military actions against the out‐group. The relationship between general conflict victimhood and support for military actions was mediated by conflict event victimhood. In Study 3, three new scales were developed, and their relations with different outcomes examined. Findings were nearly identical to the models tested in Studies 1–2.     

Preparation time modulates pro-active control and enhances task conflict in task switching

Performance in the Stroop task reflects two conflicts—informational (between the incongruent word and ink color) and task (between relevant color naming and irrelevant word reading). Neuroimaging findings support the existence of task conflict in congruent trials. A behavioral indication for task conflict—Stroop reverse facilitation—was found in previous studies under low task-control conditions. Task switching also causes reduction in task control because the task set frequently changes. We hypothesized that it would be harder to efficiently manage task conflicts in switching situations and, specifically, as cue–target interval (CTI) decreases. This suggestion was examined in two experiments using a combined Stroop task-switching design. We found a large interference effect and reverse facilitation that decreased with elongation of CTI. Results imply that task switching reduces pro-active task control and thereby enhances the informational and the task conflicts. This calls for a revision of recent control models to include task conflict.     

Cognitive control of fixation duration in visual search: The role of extrafoveal processing

Participants' eye movements were monitored in two visual search experiments that manipulated target-distractor similarity (high vs. low) as well as the availability of distractors for extrafoveal processing (Free-Viewing vs. No-Preview). The influence of the target-distractor similarity by preview manipulation on the distributions of first fixation and second fixation duration was examined by using a survival analysis technique which provided precise estimates of the timing of the first discernible influence of target-distractor similarity on fixation duration. We found a significant influence of target-distractor similarity on first fixation duration in normal visual search (Free Viewing) as early as 26–28 ms from the start of fixation. In contrast, the influence of target-distractor similarity occurred much later (199–233 ms) in the No-Preview condition. The present study also documented robust and fast acting extrafoveal and foveal preview effects. Implications for models of eye-movement control and visual search are discussed.