The mind–body problem and the role of pain: cross-fire between Leibniz and his Cartesian readers

This article is about the exchanges between Leibniz, Arnauld, Bayle and Lamy on the subject of pain. The inability of Leibniz’s system to account for the phenomenon of pain is a recurring objection of Leibniz’s seventeenth-century Cartesian readers to his hypothesis of pre-established harmony: according to them, the spontaneity of the soul and its representative nature cannot account for the affective component of pain. Strikingly enough, this problem has almost never been addressed in Leibniz studies, or only incidentally, through the more general problem of evil. My purpose in this article is to clarify Leibniz’s psychophysical parallelism by opposing his representationist account of pain to the functionalist account endorsed by Arnauld, Bayle, Lamy and Malebranche.     

Feature inference with uncertain categorization: Re-assessing Anderson’s rational model

A key function of categories is to help predictions about unobserved features of objects. At the same time, humans are often in situations where the categories of the objects they perceive are uncertain. In an influential paper, Anderson (Psychological Review, 98(3), 409–429, 1991) proposed a rational model for feature inferences with uncertain categorization. A crucial feature of this model is the conditional independence assumption—it assumes that the within category feature correlation is zero. In prior research, this model has been found to provide a poor fit to participants’ inferences. This evidence is restricted to task environments inconsistent with the conditional independence assumption. Currently available evidence thus provides little information about how this model would fit participants’ inferences in a setting with conditional independence. In four experiments based on a novel paradigm and one experiment based on an existing paradigm, we assess the performance of Anderson’s model under conditional independence. We find that this model predicts participants’ inferences better than competing models. One model assumes that inferences are based on just the most likely category. The second model is insensitive to categories but sensitive to overall feature correlation. The performance of Anderson’s model is evidence that inferences were influenced not only by the more likely category but also by the other candidate category. Our findings suggest that a version of Anderson’s model which relaxes the conditional independence assumption will likely perform well in environments characterized by within-category feature correlation.     

Identifying Effective Components of Child Maltreatment Interventions: A Meta-analysis

There is a lack of knowledge about specific components that make interventions effective in preventing or reducing child maltreatment. The aim of the present meta-analysis was to increase this knowledge by summarizing findings on effects of interventions for child maltreatment and by examining potential moderators of this effect, such as intervention components and study characteristics. Identifying effective components is essential for developing or improving child maltreatment interventions. A literature search yielded 121 independent studies (N = 39,044) examining the effects of interventions for preventing or reducing child maltreatment. From these studies, 352 effect sizes were extracted. The overall effect size was significant and small in magnitude for both preventive interventions (d = 0.26, p < .001) and curative interventions (d = 0.36, p < .001). Cognitive behavioral therapy, home visitation, parent training, family-based/multisystemic, substance abuse, and combined interventions were effective in preventing and/or reducing child maltreatment. For preventive interventions, larger effect sizes were found for short-term interventions (0–6 months), interventions focusing on increasing self-confidence of parents, and interventions delivered by professionals only. Further, effect sizes of preventive interventions increased as follow-up duration increased, which may indicate a sleeper effect of preventive interventions. For curative interventions, larger effect sizes were found for interventions focusing on improving parenting skills and interventions providing social and/or emotional support. Interventions can be effective in preventing or reducing child maltreatment. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Patterns of Force,Sequences of Resistance: Revisiting Luckenbill with Robberies Caught on Camera

Robberies are improvised encounters involving offender threat, sometimes force, and often victim resistance. While the association between threat, force, and resistance in robberies is well-established, sequential patterns are disputed due to biases of retrospective studies. To overcome these biases, we draw on CCTV camera recordings of 49 store robberies. Tentative findings suggest that lethal threat reduces victim resistance and thereby offender violence, except in robberies where offenders depend on victims in accessing the valuables. In those robberies, lethal threat increases the likelihood of victim resistance despite having no effect on offender violence. By providing more reliable and detailed accounts of real-life behavior during robberies, our analysis illustrates the potential of a newly emergent field of studies of crimes caught on camera.     

Father-Child and Mother-Child Interactions with Children with Anxiety Disorders: Emotional Expressivity and Flexibility of Dyads

This observational study examined whether emotional expressivity and emotional flexibility differed between parent-child dyads with and without children with an anxiety disorder (AD). Effects of parents’ own AD on emotional expressivity and flexibility of dyads was also studied. The sample consisted of 128 referred children (59.4% girls) with an AD (8–18-year-olds) and both of their parents, and 44 matched non-AD children (63.6% girls) and both of their parents. Father-child and mother-child dyads were videotaped while discussing a conflict. Measures of dyadic emotional expressivity (positive and negative affect) and dyadic emotional flexibility (transitions, dispersion, average duration) were derived from these interactions using state space grid analysis. No differences existed in emotional expressivity of parent-child dyads with or without AD children, however both father-child and mother-child dyads with a child with an AD displayed less emotional flexibility during interactions than healthy controls. Mother-child dyads where both mother and child had AD showed more emotional expressivity and less emotional flexibility compared to mother-child dyads with only AD children and to dyads without AD. In particular, the inability to flexibly move in and out of different emotions distinguishes healthy dyads from non-healthy dyads. Targeting emotional flexibility of dyads with children with an AD, and also emotional expressivity of dyads when mother has an AD, might be a valuable goal for family-based intervention.     

Examining the Utility of the New Raney Vocabulary Measure Alongside the WAIS-III

Psychometric tests related to vocabulary assessments are, for the most part, restricted in their use by trained professionals and/or are costly. These restrictions limit their use, especially for research purposes. To circumvent these limitations, the Raney Vocabulary Measure was created for assessing vocabulary proficiency, specifically for research purposes. The measure consists of 30 questions where participants were instructed to choose the best definition of each word. The purpose of the study was to examine the utility of the new measure using the highly standardized but protected Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. Results from the linear combination of the subscales revealed the significant prediction of the Raney Vocabulary Measure, with the Vocabulary subtest contributing most to the unique variance. These results support that the test examines vocabulary ability. The current results are promising as the test would allow for greater accessibility for researchers who do not have access to restricted psychometric tests.     

When motion improves working memory

ABSTRACT

In the present study, we used a complex span task to explore how memory traces resulting from Self-Performed Task (SPT) and Verbal Task (VT) are maintained in working memory. Participants memorised series of five sentences describing an action either through SPT or VT. Between pairs of sentences, participants performed a concurrent task that varied according to its nature and its cognitive load. The concurrent task was either a verbal task, a low cognitive load motor task or a high cognitive load motor task. A control condition served as a baseline. First, we observed that performance in SPT and VT did not decrease with verbal or motor suppression, but was lower with an increase of the cognitive load. This suggests that memory traces are maintained through attentional refreshing whatever the encoding (SPT or VT). Second, while the enactment effect was replicated in the control condition, it tended to vanish with a verbal concurrent task; moreover, it was reversed with motor concurrent tasks. Surprisingly, the latter effect resulted from an increase of VT memory performance when participants repeated the same gesture between sentences. Finally, our results provide additional evidence that the enactment effect does not rely on attention.