The perceptual basis of loudness ratio judgments

In Experiment 1, subjects were required to estimateloudness ratios for 45 pairs of tones. Ten 1,200-Hz tones, differing only in intensity, were used to generate the 45 distinct tone pairs. In Experiment 2, subjects were required to directly compare two pairs of tones (chosen from among the set of 45) and indicate which pair of tones had the greaterloudness ratio. In both Experiments 1 and 2, the subjects’ judgments were used to rank order the tone pairs with respect to their judged loudness ratios. Nonmetric analyses of these rank orders indicated that both magnitude estimates of loudness ratios and direct comparisons of loudness ratios were based on loudnessintervals ordifferences where loudness was a power function of sound pressure. These experiments, along with those on loudness difference judgments (Parker & Schneider, 1974; Schneider, Parker, & Stein, 1974), support Torgerson’s (1961) conjecture that there is but one comparative perceptual relationship for ioudnesses, and that differences in numerical estimates for loudness ratios as opposed to loudness intervals simply reflect different reporting strategies generated by the two sets of instructions.     

Simultaneous detection and recognition of chromatic flashes

Studies of simultaneous detection and recognition were performed to test alternative models of the detection process, signal detection theory and low-threshold theory. Sensitivity in a detection experiment was independent of whether the type of signal (red or green light flash) was known in advance, because only one type of s trial was possible, or was unknown because either stimulus could occur. When a recognition judgment was added to either a binary or rating-scale detection response, Ss were able to report the nature of the stimulus at better than chance levels even when they indicated that the stimulus was not detected. Since such performance occurred when Ss used detection responses likely to have been given only in the nondetect state, the data lead to the rejection of low-threshold theory.     

Barker and Achinstein on Goodman

Barker and Achinstein think that it is not possible for a predicate like grue to serve as well as a predicate like green in the role of a qualitative or non-positional predicate. Their arguments consist in a number of attempts to show that one who possesses green in his language can do things with that predicate which one who must work with grue instead cannot do. However, they succeed in showing only that a qualitative predicate is better adapted to our needs than its positional counterpart, rather than that grue is not capable of being a qualitative predicate.     

Chronic Medical problems,coping resources,and depression: A longitudinal study of rural Tennesseans

This analysis examined chronic medical problems as a risk factor for depressive symptomatology using longitudinal survey data from a sample of rural Tennesseans. Two waves of data (1977 and 1983) were collected on 532 rural Middle-Tennessee residents. An initial investigation found chronic medical problems a powerful predictor of depression. Furthermore, internal and external resources (personal resources and social support) operated as moderating factors between the stress of medical problems and psychiatric impairment. Panel regression analyses indicated that Time 1 depression level as well as medical problems at Time 2 (t2) were significant predictors of depression at t2 in rural areas of the mid-South. Finally, the buffering effects of both social support and personal resources were explored.     

Developmental and reading ability differences in accessing information from semantic memory

A categorical judgment task was utilized to investigate the relationships between word recognition skills and reading achievement at several grade levels. In the first experiment skilled and unskilled readers from Grades 2, 4, and 6 made cognitive decisions about pairs of words using either graphemic, lexical, or semantic information. In Experiment 2 skilled, average, and unskilled readers from Grades 1, 3, and 5 made semantic decisions about word or picture pairs. The speed and accuracy of word encoding, lexical access, and semantic memory access processes varied as a function of reading ability. These results suggest that inefficient word recognition skills can contribute to reading deficiencies as can deficiencies in semantic memory organization.     

The use of restricted environmental stimulation therapy (REST) in the treatment of essential hypertension: Two case studies

The previous paper (Suedfeld et al., 1982, pp. 553–559) reported the use of Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy (REST) in treating hypertension. This paper reports the response of two patients to 24 hr of a similar treatment offered as an adjunct to a weight-control program. In both patients blood pressure dropped immediately following the REST session and remained lower for up to 9 months. The initial drop in blood pressure was independent of weight loss. These results are interpreted in terms of a psychobiological model of self-regulation.