Individual differences and developmental change in the ERN response: implications for models of ACC function

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been associated with conditions precipitating an increase in effortful processing or increased attention, including the presence of conflicting information and the detection of errors. The error-related negativity (ERN), an electrocortical response, has been used as a marker for these conditions. The ERN amplitude however is subject to developmental change across the lifespan as well as being sensitive to individual differences in personality, affect, and autonomic responsivity. In this review, we examine the implications of such influences for a standard ACC model of conflict processing, and outline the need of any model of ACC function to include mechanisms that allow for the integration of neurovisceral and cognitive domains.     

Reactions of third-graders to recognition allocation after being peer-imitated

Being imitated has generally been regarded as a positive experience conducive to reciprocal imitation of and increased attraction to one’s imitator. An experiment on 3rd-graders, in an adaptation of a Thelen-Kirkland paradigm, investigates whether the receipt of public recognition for a good product would simply amplify those positive effects, or would tend to reverse them, and explores whether gender would moderate models, reactions under such conditions. Recognition allocation was manipulated by having an “authority” award a symbolic star solely to the model, to the confederate imitator alone, to the confederate nonimitator alone, or to no one. The results suggested that the boys rather than girls showed amplification effects of receiving sole recognition: they reciprocally imitated more, and expressed greater attraction to, their same-sex imitator than did the girls. Overall, models expressed relatively less attraction to the imitator than to the nonimitator. When interviewed, the models were equally divided as to which of the two deserved the recognition when they themselves or their imitator received it, but they stated unequivocally that the nonimitator who received the recognition deserved it. They also clearly stated a preference for those tasks on which they themselves had been imitated—given that they themselves or their imitator had received recognition credit, compared to models in the nonimitator-recognition and control conditions. It is clear that recognition allocation is an important construct that should be considered in investigating models, reactions to being imitated, particularly in the light of its significance in the adult world, at least of this culture. Several directions are proposed for pursuing this construct further.     

Racial Identity Status Profiles and Expressions of Anger in Black Americans: An Exploratory Study

The relationship between Black adult racial identity status profiles and anger expression was examined. Two profiles, Undifferentiated and Immersion‐Emersion, emerged. A comparison of modes of anger expression revealed that the Immersion‐Emersion dominant profile was associated with higher scores on Anger‐Out and lower scores on Anger‐Control. Implications for research and counseling are discussed. Se examinó la relación entre los perfiles del estado de la identidad racial de individuos Negros adultos y la expresión de ira. Surgieron dos perfiles, indiferenciado e inmersión‐emersión. Una comparación de los modos de expresión de la ira reveló que el perfil dominante de Inmersión‐Emersión estaba asociado a registros más altos en Ira‐Fuera y más bajos en Control de la ira. Se discuten las implicaciones para la investigación y la consejería.     

Concepts of Mental Retardation

The Psychological Record - Five concepts of mental retardation have been reviewed and evaluated in the light of contemporary scientific psychology. Of the five, the restricted developmental...     

Auditory attention switching and judgment switching: Exploring multicomponent task representations

An auditory attention-switching paradigm was combined with a judgment-switching paradigm to examine the interaction of a varying auditory attention component and a varying judgment component. Participants heard two dichotically presented stimuli—one spoken by a female speaker and one spoken by a male speaker. In each trial, the stimuli were a spoken letter and a spoken number. A visual explicit cue at the beginning of each trial indicated the auditory attention criterion (speaker sex/ear) to identify the target stimulus (Experiment 1) or the judgment that had to be executed (Experiment 2). Hence, the attentional selection criterion switched independently between speaker sexes (or between ears), while the judgment alternated between letter categorization and number categorization. The data indicate that auditory attention criterion and judgment were not processed independently, regardless of whether the attention criterion or the judgment was cued. The partial repetition benefits of the explicitly cued component suggested a hierarchical organization of the auditory attention component and the judgment component within the task set. We suggest that the hierarchy arises due to the explicit cuing of one component rather than due to a “natural” hierarchy of auditory attention component and judgment component.