The role of socio-communicative rearing environments in the development of social and physical cognition in apes

The cultural intelligence hypothesis (CIH) claims that humans’ advanced cognition is a direct result of human culture and that children are uniquely specialized to absorb and utilize this cultural experience ( Tomasello, 2000 ). Comparative data demonstrating that 2.5‐year‐old human children outperform apes on measures of social cognition but not on measures of physical cognition support this claim ( Herrmann et al., 2007 ). However, the previous study failed to control for rearing when comparing these two species. Specifically, the human children were raised in a human culture whereas the apes were raised in standard sanctuary settings. To further explore the CIH, here we compared the performance on multiple measures of social and physical cognition in a group of standard reared apes raised in conditions typical of zoo and biomedical laboratory settings to that of apes reared in an enculturated socio‐communicatively rich environment. Overall, the enculturated apes significantly outperformed their standard reared counterparts on the cognitive tasks and this was particularly true for measures of communication. Furthermore, the performance of the enculturated apes was very similar to previously reported data from 2.5‐year‐old children. We conclude that apes who are reared in a human‐like socio‐communicatively rich environment develop superior communicative abilities compared to apes reared in standard laboratory settings, which supports some assumptions of the cultural intelligence hypothesis.     

Design of the Steps to Health Study of Physical Activity in Survivors of Endometrial Cancer: Testing a Social Cognitive Theory Model

Physical activity has been shown to benefit cancer survivors' physical functioning, emotional well-being, and symptoms. Physical activity may be of particular benefit to survivors of endometrial cancer because they are more likely to be obese and sedentary than the general population, as these are risk factors for the disease, and thus experience a number of related co-morbid health problems. However, there is little research systematically studying mechanisms of physical activity adherence in cancer survivor populations. This paper describes the design of the Steps to Health study, which applies a Social Cognitive Theory-based model of endometrial cancer survivors' adoption and maintenance of exercise in the context of an intervention to increase walking or other moderate intensity cardiovascular activity. In Steps to Health we will test the influence of self-efficacy and outcome expectations on adherence to exercise recommendations, as well as studying the determinants of self-efficacy. Endometrial cancer survivors who are at least 6 months post-treatment are provided with an intervention involving print materials and telephone counseling, and complete assessments of fitness, activity, self-efficacy and outcome expectations, and determinants of self-efficacy every two months for a six month period. In addition to testing an innovative model, the Steps to Health study employs multiple assessment methods, including ecological momentary assessment, implicit tests of cognitive variables, and ambulatory monitoring of physical activity. The study results can be used to develop more effective interventions for increasing physical activity in sedentary cancer survivors by taking into account the full complement of sources of self-efficacy information and outcome expectations.     

The automaticity of emotional face-context integration

Recent studies have demonstrated that context can dramatically influence the recognition of basic facial expressions, yet the nature of this phenomenon is largely unknown. In the present paper we begin to characterize the underlying process of face-context integration. Specifically, we examine whether it is a relatively controlled or automatic process. In Experiment 1 participants were motivated and instructed to avoid using the context while categorizing contextualized facial expression, or they were led to believe that the context was irrelevant. Nevertheless, they were unable to disregard the context, which exerted a strong effect on their emotion recognition. In Experiment 2, participants categorized contextualized facial expressions while engaged in a concurrent working memory task. Despite the load, the context exerted a strong influence on their recognition of facial expressions. These results suggest that facial expressions and their body contexts are integrated in an unintentional, uncontrollable, and relatively effortless manner.     

Response-retrieval and negative priming

The existence of across-notation automatic numerical processing of two-digit (2D) numbers was explored using size comparisons tasks. Participants were Arabic speakers, who use two sets of numerical symbols—Arabic and Indian. They were presented with pairs of 2D numbers in the same or in mixed notations. Responses for a numerical comparison task were affected by decade difference and unit-decade compatibility and global distance in both conditions, extending previous findings with Arabic digits (Nuerk, Weger, & Willmes, 2001). Responses for a physical comparison task were affected by congruency with the numerical size, as indicated by the size congruency effect (SiCE). The SiCE was affected by unit-decade compatibility but not by global distance, thus suggesting that the units and decades digits of the 2D numbers, but not the whole number value were automatically translated into a common representation of magnitude. The presence of similar results for same- and mixed-notation pairs supports the idea of an abstract representation of magnitude.     

Clarifying conflict of interest

As the debate over how to manage or discourage physicians' financial conflicts of interest with the drug and medical device industries has become more heated, critics have questioned or dismissed the concept of "conflict of interest" itself. A satisfactory definition relates conflict of interest to concerns about maintaining social trust and distinguishes between breaches of ethical duty and temptations to breach duty. Numerous objections to such a definition have been offered, none of which prevails on further analysis. Those concerned about conflicts of interest have contributed to misunderstandings, however, by failing to demonstrate when social arrangements leading to temptations to breach duties are in themselves morally blameworthy. Clarifying "conflict of interest" is important if we are eventually going to develop productive modes of engagement between medicine and for-profit industry that avoid the serious ethical pitfalls now in evidence.     

实用主义对我来说意味着什么：十条原则

实用主义是一种复杂的传统,它的代表人物都极力维护他们各自不同的观点在哲学上的地位。本文列出的实用主义十个基本原则是实用主义哲学的本质所在,而且其中的大多数一直是实用主义运动所关注的。这十个原则即：（1）实在的本性是变动的、开放的和偶然的;（2）思想理论领域的人类行动、实践和意愿的优先性;（3）非还原的、具身性的自然主义;（4）与二元论及确定性研究截然相对的反笛卡尔主义;（5）作为知识获得和意义生成之必要条件的共同体;（6）确认经验和实验在认识中（如同在人类其他活动领域中）作用的经验主义立场;（7）强调面向未来的前瞻性;（8）对实践和理论的改良态度;（9）强调整体性而非二元论的整体论思想;（10）强调实践、价值、意义等的多样性的多元论主张。     

Accounting for fluctuations in body dissatisfaction

The present study evaluated whether the strength of relationship between contextual cues (presence of company and mood) and state body dissatisfaction varied as a function of individual differences in key trait measures (body shame, body surveillance tendencies, internalization of appearance standards, and trait affect) which have been linked to trait body dissatisfaction. Fifty-five undergraduate women completed a questionnaire containing the trait-based measures and then carried a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) for a 7-day period. The PDA prompted participants six times daily to self-report their current mood and state body dissatisfaction. Multi-level modeling revealed that individual differences in body shame predicted inter-individual variability in the strength of the relationships between presence of company and state body dissatisfaction, and positive mood and state body dissatisfaction. Trait positive affect also explained variance in the positive mood state-body dissatisfaction relationship. The implications of the findings for prevention of body image disturbances are discussed.     

Measuring dysmorphic concern in Italy: psychometric properties of the Italian Body Image Concern Inventory (I-BICI)

The present research evaluated an Italian version of the Body Image Concern Inventory (I-BICI). A total of 412 Italian volunteers from Central and Southern Italy completed the measure (M=27.05 years, range=13-66 years) and the basic psychometric properties (factor structure, internal consistency, convergent validity) were assessed. The total measure demonstrated good internal consistency. Significant correlations were found between the I-BICI and measures of eating disorder (EDI-2) and obsessive-compulsive symptomatology (PI). Confirmatory factor analysis replicated the mesaure’s proposed factor structure. Directions for future research are discussed.     

Directed forgetting of faces: the role of response criterion

In two experiments, we examined recognition for faces following item method directed forgetting. During testing, participants reported whether the face was a new face or, if they thought it was a studied face, they identified the instruction paired with the face during study. In both experiments, the proportion of new faces falsely recognized and classified as forget faces exceeded those falsely recognized and classified as remember faces. Despite the use of different response criteria during testing, participants showed greater discrimination accuracy when identifying remember faces than when identifying forget faces. Taken together, these data patterns indicate that participants employed a strength-based criterion when responding. Specifically, participants responding to new faces were more likely to classify those faces as forget faces from study rather than as remember faces from study.