Academic self-regulation as a function of age: the mediating role of autonomy support and differentiation in school

Numerous studies in the tradition of the self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan in Can Psychol 49(1):14–23, 2008) point out the significance of self-determined academic motivation and its relevance for learning processes and well-being. Whereas these results sketch a rather heterogeneous picture of the development of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, only a limited amount of research results are dedicated to the development of academic self-regulation. This cross-sectional research is based on the data of 432 pupils aged 6–20 from primary to secondary school. With the aid of questionnaires, participants provided information concerning their academic self-regulation and how much autonomy support and differentiation they perceive in school. The results of cluster analysis and structural equation modelling indicated that age is negatively related to academic self-regulation, while intrinsic and (rather) controlled regulation decreased the older the pupils are. The values for rather self-determined regulation remained comparatively stable. In addition, the longer pupils attended school, the less they reported perceived autonomy support and differentiation. Perceived autonomy support had an impact on intrinsic and rather self-determined regulation but not on controlled regulation, whereas perceived differentiation was not related to academic self-regulation. These findings offer novel explanations why settings in schools—especially in secondary schools—can become less suitable for learners (Eccles and Roeser in Handbook of adolescent psychology, Wiley, Hoboken, pp 404–434, 2009) and how they can assist educators in designing autonomous learning environments that contribute to maintaining and developing intrinsic and self-determined academic regulation strategies.     

Disentangling proactive and reactive aggression in children using self-report

The distinction between proactive and reactive functions of aggression is one of the most common divisions when investigating aggression among children and adolescents. To date, self-report is the least used measurement, despite existing literature supporting the view that the best informant regarding internal processes and motives are children themselves. The main aim of this study was to examine the construct and concurrent validity of a new self-report questionnaire, which aims to disentangle acts of reactive vs. proactive aggression that are most common within the daily lives of children. We examined the self-report measure among 578 children (313 girls, 265 boys, mean age 11 years, range 9–13 years). Most children (90% boys; 85% girls) reported at least one act of aggression over the last four weeks. Furthermore, the outcomes support the two-factor structure (reactive and proactive aggression) and the questionnaire showed good concurrent and discriminant validity with measures for emotional and social functioning. This study validates the use of the self-report instrument for reactive and proactive aggression and demonstrates that children can successfully distinguish between their own motives for reactive and proactive forms of aggressive behaviours.     

Work-role psychosocial flourishing: Its mediation role on workplace bullying and employee turnover intention

The study investigated the work-role of psychosocial flourishing attributes in countering workplace bullying behaviour and turnover intention. Data on participants’ perceptions of workplace bullying behaviour, turnover intentions, and psychosocial flourishing were collected from n = 373 employees in various South African organisations. Simple mediation modelling was utilised to determine psychosocial flourishing effects on workplace bullying - turnover intention. The results showed strong perceptions of workplace bullying to be related to high turnover intention with psychosocial flourishing partially explaining lower levels of turnover intent from strong perceptions of workplace bullying. Work-role psychological flourishing might be beneficial to workplace health and psychological safety as well as for reducing unwanted turnover.     

EEG microstates during different phases of Transcendental Meditation practice

Two phases of Transcendental Meditation (TM)—transcending and undirected mentation—were compared to each other and to task-free resting using multichannel EEG recorded from 20 TM practitioners. An EEG microstate analysis identified four classes of microstates which were labeled A, B, C and D, based on their similarity to previously published classes. For each class of microstates, mean duration, coverage and occurrence were computed. Resting and transcending differed from undirected mentation with decreased prominence of Class A and increased prominence of Class D microstates. In addition, transcending showed decreased prominence of Class C microstates compared to undirected mentation. Based on previous findings on the functional significance of the microstate classes, the results indicate an increased reference to reality and decreased visualization during resting and transcending compared to undirected mentation. Also, our results indicate decreased saliency of internally generated mentations during transcending compared to undirected mentation reflecting a more detached and less evaluative processing. It is proposed that the continuous cycling through these two phases of meditation during a TM session might facilitate and train the flexible modulation of the parameters of these microstates of these particular classes which are known to be altered in psychiatric disorders. This might promote beneficial stabilizing effects for the practitioner of TM.     

Examining the Construct Validity of the MMPI–2–RF Interpersonal Functioning Scales Using the Computerized Adaptive Test of Personality Disorder as a Comparative Framework

This study aimed to examine the construct validity of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 Restructured Form (MMPI–2–RF) interpersonal functioning scales (Ben-Porath &; Tellegen, 2008/2011 Ben-Porath, Y. S., &; Tellegen, A. (2011). MMPI–2–RF (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 Restructured Form) manual for administration, scoring, and interpretation. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. (Original work published 2008) [Google Scholar]) using as a criterion measure the Computerized Adaptive Test of Personality Disorder–Static Form (CAT–PD–SF; Simms et al., 2011 Simms, L. J., Goldberg, L. R., Roberts, J. E., Watson, D., Welte, J., &; Rotterman, J. H. (2011). Computerized adaptive assessment of personality disorder: Introducing the CAT–PD project. Journal of Personality Assessment, 93, 380–389.[Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Participants were college students (n = 98) recruited through the university subject pool. A series of a priori hypotheses were developed for each of the 6 interpersonal functioning scales of the MMPI–2–RF, expressed as predicted correlations with construct-relevant CAT–PD–SF scales. Of the 27 specific predictions, 21 were supported by substantial (≥ |.30|) correlations. The MMPI–2–RF Family Problems scale (FML) demonstrated the strongest correlations with CAT–PD–SF scales Anhedonia and Mistrust; Cynicism (RC3) was most highly correlated with Mistrust and Norm Violation; Interpersonal Passivity (IPP) was most highly correlated with Domineering and Rudeness; Social Avoidance (SAV) was most highly correlated with Social Withdrawal and Anhedonia; Shyness (SHY) was most highly correlated with Social Withdrawal and Anxioiusness; and Disaffiliativeness (DSF) was most highly correlated with Emotional Detachment and Mistrust. Results are largely consistent with hypotheses suggesting support for both models of constructs relevant to interpersonal functioning. Future research designed to more precisely differentiate Social Avoidance (SAV) and Shyness (SHY) is suggested.     

Genetic architecture of context processing in late middle age: more than one underlying mechanism

Studies comparing young and older adults suggest a deficit in processing context information as a key mechanism underlying cognitive aging. However, the genetic architecture of context processing has not been examined. Consistent with previous results, we found evidence of functionally dissociable components of context processing accuracy in 1127 late middle-aged twins ages 51-60. One component emphasizes use of context cues to prepare responses (proactive cognitive control), and the other emphasizes adjustment of responses after probes are presented (reactive control). Approximately one-quarter of the variance in each component was accounted for by genes. Multivariate twin analysis indicated that genetic factors underlying two important components of context processing were independent of one another, thus implicating more than one underlying mechanism. Slower reaction time (RT) on noncontext processing trials was positively correlated with errors on the strongly proactive control component on which young adults outperform older adults, but RT was negatively correlated with errors on the strongly reactive control component on which older adults perform better. Although this RT measure was uncorrelated with chronological age in our age-homogeneous sample, slower RT was associated with performance patterns that were more like older adults. However, this did not generalize to other processing speed measures. Genetic correlations, which reflect shared genetic variance, paralleled the phenotypic correlations. There was also a positive genetic correlation between general cognitive ability and accuracy on the proactive control component, but there were still mostly distinct genetic influences underlying these measures. In contrast, the reactive control component was unrelated to general cognitive ability.     

Do rufous hummingbirds (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Selasphorus rufus</Emphasis>) use visual beacons?

Animals are often assumed to use highly conspicuous features of a goal to head directly to that goal (‘beaconing’). In the field it is generally assumed that flowers serve as beacons to guide pollinators. Artificial hummingbird feeders are coloured red to serve a similar function. However, anecdotal reports suggest that hummingbirds return to feeder locations in the absence of the feeder (and thus the beacon). Here we test these reports for the first time in the field, using the natural territories of hummingbirds and manipulating flowers on a scale that is ecologically relevant to the birds. We compared the predictions from two distinct hypotheses as to how hummingbirds might use the visual features of rewards: the distant beacon hypothesis and the local cue hypothesis. In two field experiments, we found no evidence that rufous hummingbirds used a distant visual beacon to guide them to a rewarded location. In no case did birds abandon their approach to the goal location from a distance; rather they demonstrated remarkable accuracy of navigation by approaching to within about 70 cm of a rewarded flower’s original location. Proximity varied depending on the size of the training flower: birds flew closer to a previously rewarded location if it had been previously signalled with a small beacon. Additionally, when provided with a beacon at a new location, birds did not fly directly to the new beacon. Taken together, we believe these data demonstrate that these hummingbirds depend little on visual characteristics to beacon to rewarded locations, but rather that they encode surrounding landmarks in order to reach the goal and then use the visual features of the goal as confirmation that they have arrived at the correct location.     

Viewer perspective affects central bottleneck requirements in spatial translation tasks

A psychological refractory period (PRP) approach and the locus of slack logic were applied to examine the novel question of whether spatial translation processes can begin before the central bottleneck when effector or noneffector stimuli are processed from an egocentric (viewer-centered) perspective. In single tasks, trials requiring spatial translations were considerably slower than trials without translations (Experiment 1). Dual tasks consisted of tone discriminations (Task 1) and spatial translations (Task 2) using PRP methods with different manipulations on perceptual and response demands. When a viewer-centered perspective was used, the effect of spatial translation was reduced at short compared with long stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs) when the potential for code overlap between tasks was removed (Experiments 2, 3, and 4); this finding supports the view that translation processes can begin before the central bottleneck. When an allocentric (non-viewer-centered) perspective was used (Experiment 5), the slowing associated with spatial translation was additive with SOA, suggesting that the processes of spatial translation cannot begin before the bottleneck. These findings highlight the importance of viewer perspective on central bottleneck requirements. Findings are further discussed in relation to the dorsal-ventral model of action and perception.