A computational and perceptual account of motion lines

To indicate motion in a static drawing, artists often include lines trailing a moving object. The use of these motion lines is notable because they do not seem to be related to anything in the optic array. The dynamic behavior of a neural-network model for contour detection is analyzed and it is shown that it generates trails of oriented responses behind moving stimuli. The properties of the oriented response trails are shown to correspond to motion lines. The model generates trails of different orientations depending on the speed and length of the movement, and thereby predicts different uses of two types of motion lines. The model further predicts that motion lines should bias real motion in some situations. An experiment relating motion lines to ambiguous motion percepts demonstrates that motion lines contribute to motion percepts.     

The retrieval of abstract and concrete materials as functions of imagery,mediation, and mnemonic aids

Department of Educational Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802 This study is a report of an investigation of the interaction between imagery ability and processes employed for facilitating recall. The tasks were assumed to involve contrasting processes through the use of imaginal or verbal mediators and concrete or abstract jingles (mnemonic aids) in memorizing two concrete and two abstract lists of 10 words in each list. The dependent variables were latencies in arriving at an association, number of errors and omissions on immediate recall, and number of errors and omissions on delayed recall. The main effects of imagery ability, favoring high imagers, and of kind of lists favoring concrete lists were significant. In delayed recall there was a significant interaction of mnemonic aid and kind of list. Imagery ability interacted with mediators to influence Ss’ recall. The results were discussed as supporting Paivio’s two-stage association model.     

Job-Related Well-Being Through the Great Recession

We study how job-related well-being (measured by Warr’s ‘Enthusiasm’ and ‘Contentment’ scales) altered through the Great Recession, and how this is related to changing job quality. Using nationally representative data for Britain, we find that job-related well-being was stable between 2001 and 2006, but then declined between 2006 and 2012. We report relevant changes in job quality. In modelling the determinants of job-related well-being, we confirm several previously-studied hypotheses and present some new findings: downsizing, work re-organisation, decreased choice, and linking pay to organisational performance each reduce well-being; indicators of skills challenge in jobs have more of a positive association with Enthusiasm than with Contentment, while effort has a more negative association with Contentment than with Enthusiasm. Our estimates are largely orthogonal to the effects of personality traits and demographic controls on well-being. Using a standard decomposition, we find that the 2006–2012 fall in job-related well-being is partly accounted for by accelerations in the pace of workplace change, rising job insecurity, increased effort and changing participation.     

Testing the Bivalent Fear of Evaluation Model of Social Anxiety: The Relationship between Fear of Positive Evaluation,Social Anxiety,and Perfectionism

The Bivalent Fear of Evaluation (BFOE) model of social anxiety proposes that fear of negative evaluation (FNE) and fear of positive evaluation (FPE) play distinct roles in social anxiety. Research is however lacking in terms of how FPE is related to perfectionism and how these constructs interact to predict social anxiety. Participants were 382 individuals from the general community and included an oversampling of individuals with social anxiety. Measures of FPE, FNE, perfectionism, and social anxiety were administered. Results were mostly consistent with the predictions made by the BFOE model and showed that accounting for confounding variables, FPE correlated negatively with high standards but positively with maladaptive perfectionism. FNE was also positively correlated with maladaptive perfectionism, but there was no significant relationship between FNE and high standards. Also consistent with BFOE model, both FNE and FPE significantly moderated the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and social anxiety with the relationship strengthened at high levels of FPE and FNE. These findings provide additional support for the BFOE model and implications are discussed.     

Teaching Theology to Undergraduates: Are mature students easier to please?

A total of 1,687 course evaluation questionnaires, submitted by students attending undergraduate programmes in theology, indicated some significant age-related differences in responses. Overall, mature students displayed a higher level of appreciation for the lecturers, although they tended to be more critical when opportunities were not given for an interactive learning experience.