UCS duration and conditioned suppression: Acquisition and extinction between-groups and terminal performance within-subjects

Two experiments demonstrated a positive monotonic relation between UCS duration and conditioned suppression ranging from no suppression at 0.05 sec to nearly complete suppression at 3.0 sec. In Exp 1, 5 acquisition groups were run at 0.5 mA. No suppression occurred at the shortest duration, approximately 50% suppression by Session 3 in two intermediate groups (0.2 and 0.5 sec) and nearly complete suppression by Session 3 at the two longest durations (1.0 and 3.0 sec). The relation between UCS duration and recovery of responding during extinction followed a parallel pattern. In Exp 2, terminal performance was studied within-subjects and the same relation was replicated.     

Effects of feedback and calibration on the verbal estimation of the duration of tones

Two experiments investigated the effects of feedback (Experiment 1) and calibration (Experiment 2) on verbal estimation of the duration of tones ranging from 77 to 1183 ms in length. In Experiment 1, accurate feedback was provided after half the trials in the feedback condition, and this was contrasted with a no-feedback condition in which feedback was absent. In Experiment 2, in the calibration condition, participants estimated the duration of the second of two tones, after a first tone of a known duration (ranging from 50 to 1200 ms) had been presented. In the no calibration condition the value of the first tone was unknown. Compared with conditions without feedback or calibration, the feedback/calibration operation produced no significant change in group mean estimates, nor coefficients of variation of estimates, but the absolute deviation of estimates from the real stimulus duration, and the absolute deviation of individual estimates from the group mean, were both significantly reduced. The feedback/calibration thus made participants' mean estimates thus more accurate and more similar to one another, but the actual mechanism by which this was done was apparently a subtle process of adjustment, rather than a gross change in mean estimate or estimate variability.     

Stress Reactivity in Fire Fighters: An Exercise Intervention

This experiment was designed to investigate the efficacy of 16 weeks of exercise training as an intervention to reduce the psychophysiological response of fire fighters to psychological stress. Fifty-three members of the Austin Fire Department (AFD) were recruited as participants and were randomly assigned to either exercise on a rowing ergometer or to continue their present modes of exercise training. Psychological stress was induced by a computerized version of the AFD Strategy and Tactics Drill (STD), in which participants responded to a simulated fire scene. Participants completed the STD prior to and following the exercise intervention. Prior to training, the groups did not differ in their cardiovascular response to the STD. Significant group differences were observed after training, in which exercise-trained participants reacted with significantly lower pulse and mean arterial pressure than their counterparts in the control condition. Exercise participants also reported significantly less stress-related state anxiety and negative affect. Exercise training appears to be a useful intervention to reduce the response to fire-related psychological stress in fire fighters.     

Language and false belief in Korean-speaking and English-speaking children

The link between language and false belief (FB) understanding has been the focus of considerable debate regarding which language component (semantics, general language, or complementation) is necessary for FB development. We examined the relative roles of complementation and receptive vocabulary in FB development in Korean-speaking and English-speaking children. FB understanding, memory for complements involving the verbs think, say and want, and receptive vocabulary were measured at three time points in 59 Korean-speaking children and 72 English-speaking children. A multi-level growth model indicated that the development of receptive vocabulary and separately the development of think understanding uniquely predicted the development of FB understanding. Neither say nor want was associated with FB understanding. The same pattern was found for Korean- and English-speaking children. The results provide evidence for the role of general language in FB understanding and against the unique role of sentential complementation.     

Where “culture wars” and therapy meet: Exploring the intersection between political issues and therapeutic practice

In the era of “culture wars,” instances where client and practitioner discuss political issues in therapy may become more frequent. This paper introduces the way in which “culture wars” manifest in today's societies and highlights the importance of therapeutic practitioners to engage with and explore their own views in relation to these polarising political debates. In doing so, this paper reflects upon the existing research focussing on the way in which “culture wars” enter the therapeutic encounter and highlights the feelings of anxiety and conflict that arise when practitioners are tasked with “talking politics” with clients. It considers the implications for practice and policy and concludes with recommendations for future scholarship, arguing for more culturally specific studies that examine how “culture wars” issues impact therapeutic work in a variety of international settings.