Evidence for independent parallel channels in tachistoscopic perception

This paper reviews the implications of a number of experimental results for a test between two different types of models of perceptual processing: models that assume a limitation of perceptual capacity vs models that postulate independent, parallel perceptual channels. The results of recent “detection” experiments (e.g., Estes & Taylor, 1966) have been consistent with the limited-capacity model developed by Rumelhart (1970). The same results, however, are predicted by the “ICC” independent-parallel-channels model, an extension of work by Eriksen and Spencer (1969) developed in the present paper. This model emphasizes the interaction of two factors: decisional properties of the detection task, plus perceptual confusion phenomena known to occur under tachistoscopic conditions.Two experiments relevant to a test between the ICC and Rumelhart conceptions are reported. Experiment I involved a “time-sharing” paradigm that varied the demands of two detection tasks performed within a single trial. Experiment II involved the elimination of certain perceptual confusion phenomena. The results of Expts I and II appeared consistent with the ICC model but inconsistent with the Rumelhart model. After consideration of alternative limited-capacity models, it was concluded that: (1) a decision-confusion interaction is a necessary component of information-processing models, and that (2) the ICC independent-parallel-channels model is sufficient to account for the broad spectrum of experimental results reviewed.     

A methodological review of sex-related access discrimination problems

This article provides a comprehensive review of the literature pertaining to sex-related access discrimination problems. The results indicate that positive and negative access discrimination occurs for both males and females. The major variables that appear to account for sex-related access discrimination are the sex role of the position, the amount of job-related information regarding the applicant, and the characteristics of the evaluator population. In general, it appears that the effects of access discrimination can be obfuscated if sufficient information is available regarding job-related variables other than sex. In selected instances, it also appears that populations which have been sensitized to female access discrimination problems may demonstrate reverse discrimination towards women applying for “out-of-role” positions. The article ends with a set of specific hypotheses designed to further investigate and clarify the process of sex-related discrimination in employment situations.     

The role of the right hemisphere in the apprehension of complex linguistic materials

To secure information on which aspects of linguistic functioning might be mediated by the nondominant hemisphere, a test battery assessing sensitivity to narrational and humorous materials was administered to a population of right-hemisphere-damaged patients, as well as relevant control groups of normal, aging, and aphasic individuals. While elementary linguistic functioning was adequate, the right-hemisphere-injured groups exhibited consistent difficulties in respecting the boundaries of a fictive entity, assessing the plausibility of elements within a story or joke, selecting the appropriate punch line for a joke, and integrating elements of a story into a coherent narrative. Certain elements—specifically emotional content and noncanonical facts injected into a narrative—also posed characteristic difficulties for these patients. The results suggest that, in contrast to the other populations, right-hemisphere patients exhibit special difficulties in processing complex linguistic entities and in utilizing the surrounding context as they assess linguistic messages.     

Autumn leaves and old photographs: The development of metaphor preferences

In order to determine the development of preferences for different types of metaphors, a metaphor preferences task was designed. Subjects at seven ages, from 6 through 20 years, received incomplete sentences followed by metaphorical and literal completions, and were asked to select their preferred completions. The pattern of preferences shifted with age. Metaphors based on grounds involving color or shape were preferred by the youngest subjects; metaphors based on movement or sound were preferred by subjects of intermediate age; and metaphors based on nonperceptual, conceptual grounds were preferred by the oldest subjects. At all ages the most frequently chosen metaphors were those based on a combination of two grounds (e.g., color and shape). Preference for literal completions declined with age, but there was an increase in literal selections in the 8th and 10th grades. This study demonstrates the systematic development of aesthetic preferences in the domain of figurative language.     

Misunderstanding metaphor: What's the problem?

In order to investigate the potential difficulties posed by task demands and by surface features of metaphorical sentences, children aged 6, 7, and 9 years were presented with metaphorical grounds encoded in five alternative linguistic forms: predicative metaphors, topicless metaphors, similes, analogies, and riddles. The task demands posed by comprehension of predicative metaphors proved greater than those posed by topicless metaphors, suggesting that it is more difficult to specify the similarity between two given terms than it is to generate a missing term. When topicless metaphors were rewritten either in an explicit analogic form or in the form of a riddle, comprehension was increased; however, when predicative metaphors were rewritten as similies, the addition of the term “like” to make clear the similarity relationship between the two terms failed to elevate understanding.     

Drawing on the experiences of alternative decision-makers: Can we preserve the jury in complex civil litigation?

Many have questioned the wisdom of using traditional juries to decide cases involving complex scientific and technical evidence. Alternative decision-makers that have been proposed include: judges; expert arbitrators; special juries composed of people who possess either a minimum level of higher education or knowledge especially relevant to the issues in the particular trial; and panels of experts in the particular field, acting as either a jury or a non-jury tribunal. These alternatives differ from the traditional jury not only in their composition but also, to varying degrees, in terms of the resources available to them and the procedures under which they operate. In this article, we explore the advantages that these alternative decision-makers have over juries and discuss how the same resources and procedures enjoyed by the alternatives could be made available to and enhance the abilities of the traditional jury in cases involving complex evidence.     

Two scales for measuring patients' perceptions for coercion during mental hospital admission

Legal and extra-legal coercion are pervasive in mental hospital admission and there are sharp disputes about its appropriate role. This article presents two scales for measuring psychiatric patients' perceptions of coercion during hospital admission and reports data on these scales' internal consistency. We measure patients' perceptions of coercion by asking questions, in either an interview or questionnaire format, about their experience of lack of control, choice, influence, and freedom in hospital admission. Patients' responses to questions about their perceptions of coercion were highly internally consistent. The internal consistency of the scale was robust with respect to variation in site, instrument format, patient population, and interview procedure. Correspondence analysis was used to construct two numerical scales of perceived coercion.