A Demonstration of Set-Points for Subjective Wellbeing

This paper presents evidence for the existence of ‘set-points’ for subjective wellbeing. Our results derive from a 10-year longitudinal study in which subjective wellbeing has been measured using a single question of general life satisfaction. The process of data analysis is driven by logic based on the theory of subjective wellbeing homeostasis. This analysis involves the iterative elimination of raw data, from 7,356 individual respondents, based on confidence limits. All results are projected onto a 0–100 point scale. We demonstrate evidence for the existence of set-points lying between 71 and 90 points, with an average set-point-range of 18–20 points for each person. The implications and limitations of these findings are discussed.     

Locke,Kierkegaard and the Phenomenology of Personal Identity

Abstract

Personal Identity theorists as diverse as Derek Parfit, Marya Schechtman and Galen Strawson have noted that the experiencing subject (the locus of present psychological experience) and the person (a human being with a career/narrative extended across time) are not necessarily coextensive. Accordingly, we can become psychologically alienated from, and fail to experience a sense of identity with, the person we once were or will be. This presents serious problems for Locke’s original account of “sameness of consciousness” constituting personal identity, given the distinctly normative (and indeed eschatological) focus of his discussion. To succeed, the Lockean project needs to identify some phenomenal property of experience that can constitute a sense of identity with the self figured in all moments to which consciousness can be extended. I draw upon key themes in Kierkegaard’s phenomenology of moral imagination to show that Kierkegaard describes a phenomenal quality of experience that unites the experiencing subject with its past and future, regardless of facts about psychological change across time. Yet Kierkegaard’s account is fully normative, recasting affective identification with past/future selves as a moral task rather than something merely psychologically desirable (Schechtman) or utterly contingent (Parfit, Strawson).     

Anticipating the Societal Challenges of Nanotechnologies

“In this article we sketch out the landscape for this Special Issue on anticipating and embedding the societal challenge of nanotechnologies. Tools that actors may choose to employ for these processes are articulated, and further explored through the introduction of the seven articles which comprise this Issue. Taken together, these articles create a cogent narrative on the societal challenges posed by nanotechnologies. They are drawn together by three distinct themes, each of which is briefly considered within this context of this Introductory article”.     

The Time Course of Verb Processing in Dutch Sentences

The verb has traditionally been characterized as the central element in a sentence. Nevertheless, the exact role of the verb during the actual ongoing comprehension of a sentence as it unfolds in time remains largely unknown. This paper reports the results of two Cross-Modal Lexical Priming (CMLP) experiments detailing the pattern of verb priming during on-line processing of Dutch sentences. Results are contrasted with data from a third CMLP experiment on priming of nouns in similar sentences. It is demonstrated that the meaning of a matrix verb remains active throughout the entire matrix clause, while this is not the case for the meaning of a subject head noun. Activation of the meaning of the verb only dissipates upon encountering a clear signal as to the start of a new clause.     

When does imagery practice enhance performance on a motor task?

Imagery practice of motor tasks has been recommended for a wide range of activities as from flight training to basketball. A key question, both from a practical and a theoretical standpoint, is when during the learning process does imagery practice confer the most benefit? However, the literature does not provide clear guidance, in part because of methodological limitations. A 3 x 2 (physical practice x pretest-posttest) split-plot design was employed to investigate the effects of imagery practice on the acquisition of a discrete target at three different stages of learning. Analysis indicated that imagery practice was most beneficial in the early stages of learning and showed an inverse relationship between experience and efficacy of imagery practice. Results are discussed in terms of current theories of imagery practice and suggestions are made regarding when such practice might be best applied during skill development.     

Minimally Creative Thought

Creativity has received, and continues to receive, comparatively little analysis in philosophy and the brain and behavioural sciences. This is in spite of the importance of creative thought and action, and the many and varied resources of theories of mind. Here an alternative approach to analyzing creativity is suggested: start from the bottom up with minimally creative thought. Minimally creative thought depends non‐accidentally upon agency, is novel relative to the acting agent, and could not have been tokened before the time it is in fact tokened, relative to the agent in question. Thoughts that meet these three conditions—agency, psychological novelty, and modal—are what may be called cognitive breakthroughs. Even if such breakthroughs are not necessary to or definitive of richer creativity, they are indeed central to much of creativity. The minimal analysis provides a more workable explanandum for theories of creativity of varied motivation and method.     

Task analysis,correspondence training,and general case instruction for teaching personal hygiene skills

The effect of a 10‐step task analysis, general case instruction, and correspondence training was evaluated for teaching appropriate personal hygiene following bowel movements. Correspondence training maintained a central role in this study. According to Israel (1978), the relationship between an individual's verbal and nonverbal behaviors is influential in self‐instruction training. Essentially, correspondence training encourages an individual to generate his or her own instructional cues; in consequence, the procedure can be instrumental in ensuring the maintenance and generalization of important verbal and nonverbal behavior. Three adults with developmental disabilities participated in this study. The dependent variables included the level of assistance required on each step of the task analysis and an end of sequence rating on a three‐point Likert‐type cleanliness scale. Results showed that all three participants learned to care for themselves appropriately following bowel movements. Moreover, the skills generalized to other settings and were maintained over a nine‐month period. The target skill was evaluated against the five criteria for a behavioral cusp and met the criteria for ‘an important behavior change’ (Bosch & Fuqua, 2001, p. 123). Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of practice on variability, effects of variability on transfer

Five experiments examined how practice early in skill acquisition affected variability and accuracy during skill retention (Experiments 1-5) and skill transfer (Experiments 3, 4, 5). Lag constraints required that each path from apex to base of a computer-generated pyramid display differ from some number (the lag) of immediately prior paths. Location constraints specified end points at which paths must exit the pyramid. In all experiments, an early optimal period for acquiring a variability level was identified. Both low and high levels of variability were sustained during retention; high levels facilitated transfer. The results suggest that (a) early practice that requires high variability sensitizes learners to changes in condition and (b) such perception-performance links facilitate transfer by activating appropriate alternative strategies/schema or initiating their construction.     

Psychoeducation for hypochondriasis: a comparison of a cognitive-behavioural approach and a problem-solving approach

In this study, two 6-week psychoeducational courses for hypochondriasis are compared, one based on the cognitive-behavioural approach, and the other on the problem-solving approach. Effects of both courses on hypochondriacal complaints, depression, trait anxiety, and number of problems encountered in daily life, are measured pre-treatment, post-treatment, and at 1- and 6-month follow-up. Participants (N=48, of whom 4 dropped out), suffering from DSM-IV hypochondriasis, were randomized into one of the two course conditions. Results showed beneficial effects of both courses. Few differential treatment effects were found: in both conditions all effect measures decreased significantly over time (p<0.01). However, between- and inter-individual variability in decrease-patterns was of considerable size, leading to large deviations from the mean pattern. Acceptability and feasibility of both courses were rated highly by their respective participants. It is concluded that both courses can be considered equally beneficial and effective over time, with the effects evident immediately after treatment and maintained over the follow-up period.