The Issue of Schooling….or How to Tame a Horse

The issue of schooling is being thoroughly analysed by a number of excellent scholars in this special issue. It is a very comprehensive analytical work which I intend to take into a commentary consideration in this brief article. Schooling is a matter of great and recent concern not the least from a political point of view, where schooling seems to take on a specific role that deals with not only schooling as a normativity but also schooling as the absolute forming of students. Despite ongoing disagreements on what kind of schooling may prove the best as well as the correct form of education as a whole, in this paper I argue that relevant science may have a pretty good idea as to how to apply schooling in such a way as to ensure that teaching is applied equally efficient. It is, however, slightly more difficult to see how this very same science and the above mentioned knowledge finds its way into educational policies not to mention finding its way into the classroom. I argue, that schooling is not (surprisingly and not only) society’s tool for data delivery and data interpretation, but also (and perhaps rather) some certain specific actors of society’s tool for culturalization. This thereby changes schooling from being an educational tool only, a mere transfer of data and a formation of students into a political tool, thus creating a notion of schooling being more or less synonymous with a different kind of formation, a formation of a quite specific nature to suit quite specific properties. I claim these properties to be of an economic, market oriented and universalist nature. I therefore wish to draw attention to two aspects of interest: the oddity of science’s position in this matter, where science appears to have plausible answers as to how the best possible schooling looks like, however, at the same time – not surprisingly - also seem to live up to politically phrased demands in accordance with the premise of the competition state. This, off course, give rise to further questions on the necessity of politically independent universities and the pressure they underlie.     

Processing order in dual-task situations: The “first-come,first-served” principle and the impact of task order instructions

When two overlapping tasks are processed, they hit a bottleneck at a central processing stage that prevents simultaneous processing of the two tasks. Thus far, however, the factors determining the processing order of the tasks at the bottleneck are unknown. The present study was designed to (re)investigate whether the arrival times of the two tasks at the central bottleneck are a key determinant of the processing order (cf. Sigman & Dehaene, 2006). To this end, we implemented a visual–auditory dual task with a random stimulus order, in which we manipulated arrival time by prolonging the initial, perceptual processing stage (stimulus analysis) of the visual task and compared the effects of this manipulation with those of one impacting the central bottleneck stage of the visual task. Additionally, we implemented two instruction conditions: Participants were told to respond either in the order of stimulus presentation or in the order they preferred. The manipulation of the visual perception stage led to an increase in task response reversals (i.e., the response order was different from the order of stimulus presentation), whereas there was no such increase when the bottleneck stage was manipulated. This pattern provides conclusive evidence that the processing order at the bottleneck is (at least in part) determined by the arrival times of the tasks at that point. Reaction time differences between the two instruction conditions indicated that additional control processes are engaged in determining task processing order when the participants are expressly told to respond in the order of stimulus presentation.     

Region-based shielding of visual search from salient distractors: Target detection is impaired with same- but not different-dimension distractors

Shielding visual search against interference from salient distractors becomes more efficient over time for display regions where distractors appear more frequently, rather than only rarely Goschy, Bakos, Müller, & Zehetleitner (Frontiers in Psychology 5: 1195, 2014). We hypothesized that the locus of this learned distractor probability-cueing effect depends on the dimensional relationship of the to-be-inhibited distractor relative to the to-be-attended target. If the distractor and target are defined in different visual dimensions (e.g., a color-defined distractor and orientation-defined target, as in Goschy et al. (Frontiers in Psychology 5: 1195, 2014), distractors may be efficiently suppressed by down-weighting the feature contrast signals in the distractor-defining dimension Zehetleitner, Goschy, & Müller (Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance 38: 941–957, 2012), with stronger down-weighting being applied to the frequent- than to the rare-distractor region. However, given dimensionally coupled feature contrast signal weighting (cf. Müller J, Heller & Ziegler (Perception & Psychophysics 57:1–17, 1995), this dimension-(down-)weighting strategy would not be effective when the target and the distractors are defined within the same dimension. In this case, suppression may operate differently: by inhibiting the entire frequent-distractor region on the search-guiding master saliency map. The downside of inhibition at this level is that, although it reduces distractor interference in the inhibited (frequent-distractor) region, it also impairs target processing in that region—even when no distractor is actually present in the display. This predicted qualitative difference between same- and different-dimension distractors was confirmed in the present study (with 184 participants), thus furthering our understanding of the functional architecture of search guidance, especially regarding the mechanisms involved in shielding search from the interference of distractors that consistently occur in certain display regions.

     

Remembering successes and failures: rehearsal characteristics influence recollection and distancing

We investigated the relationship between components of rumination, brooding and reflection, and autobiographical remembering by testing whether voluntary and involuntary rehearsal mediated rumination-related variation in the sensory-affective and metacognitive features of memory experience. We focused on achievement and failure memories as both are goal-related events, yet they represent distinct experiences in terms of valence and functionality. For failure memories, brooding was associated with intense recollection and reduced psychological distance. Brooding was related to enhanced distance of achievements, indicating the disruptive effects of brooding on remembering. Although reflection attenuated the recollective experience for both achievement and failure memories, it brought achievement memories to a subjective closer past. Structural equation modelling demonstrated the mediating role of involuntary remembering on the pattern of remembering experience.     

Post-conflict slowing: cognitive adaptation after conflict processing

The aftereffects of error and conflict (i.e., stimulus or response incongruency) have been extensively studied in the cognitive control literature. Each has been characterized by its own behavioral signature on the following trial. Conflict leads to a reduced congruency effect (Gratton effect), whereas an error leads to increased response time (post-error slowing). The reason for this dissociation has remained unclear. Here, we show that post-conflict slowing is not typically observed because it is masked by the processing of the irrelevant stimulus dimension. We demonstrate that post-conflict slowing does occur when tested in pure trials where helpful or detrimental impacts from irrelevant stimulus dimensions are removed (i.e., univalent stimuli).     

A 2 × 2 taxonomy of multilevel latent contextual models: accuracy-bias trade-offs in full and partial error correction models

In multilevel modeling, group-level variables (L2) for assessing contextual effects are frequently generated by aggregating variables from a lower level (L1). A major problem of contextual analyses in the social sciences is that there is no error-free measurement of constructs. In the present article, 2 types of error occurring in multilevel data when estimating contextual effects are distinguished: unreliability that is due to measurement error and unreliability that is due to sampling error. The fact that studies may or may not correct for these 2 types of error can be translated into a 2 × 2 taxonomy of multilevel latent contextual models comprising 4 approaches: an uncorrected approach, partial correction approaches correcting for either measurement or sampling error (but not both), and a full correction approach that adjusts for both sources of error. It is shown mathematically and with simulated data that the uncorrected and partial correction approaches can result in substantially biased estimates of contextual effects, depending on the number of L1 individuals per group, the number of groups, the intraclass correlation, the number of indicators, and the size of the factor loadings. However, the simulation study also shows that partial correction approaches can outperform full correction approaches when the data provide only limited information in terms of the L2 construct (i.e., small number of groups, low intraclass correlation). A real-data application from educational psychology is used to illustrate the different approaches.     

Attention during visual secondary tasks in driving: Adaptation to the demands of the driving task

Visual attention in driving with visual secondary task is compared for two visual secondary tasks. N = 40 subjects completed a 1 h test drive in a motion-base driving simulator. During the drive, participants either solved an externally paced, highly demanding visual task or a self paced menu system task. The secondary tasks were offered in defined critical and non-critical driving situations. Eye movement behavior was analyzed and compared for both tasks. Before starting the secondary tasks, eye movement behavior shows a smaller standard deviation of gaze as well as longer fixation durations for both tasks. The comparison between the two tasks indicates that drivers use the possibilities the self paced task offers: during the secondary task, they monitor the driving scene with longer fixations and show a greater standard deviation of gaze position. Furthermore, independently of the type of secondary task, drivers adapt their eye movement behavior to the demands of the situation. In critical driving situations they direct a larger proportion of glance time to the driving task. Last, the relation between glance behavior and collisions is analyzed. Results indicate that collisions go together with an inadequate distribution of attention during distraction. The results are interpreted regarding the attentional processes involved in driving with visual secondary tasks. Based on the similarities and differences between the two secondary tasks, a cognitive approach is developed which assumes that the control of attention during distraction is based on a mental situational model of the driving situation.     

Alternative Psychopharmakatherapie im Alter

In ?sterreich steigt der Anteil von ?lteren Menschen in der Bev?lkerung stetig an. Besonders die Anzahl der Mitbürger über 85 Jahre zeigte in den letzten 20 Jahren einen überproportionalen Zuwachs. Alterstypische Erkrankungen gewinnen deshalb zunehmend an sozialmedizinischer und volkswirtschaftlicher Bedeutung. Zu den h?ufigsten Alterserkrankungen z?hlen psychiatrische St?rungen, wie die Delir, Demenz und Depression, die ihrerseits wieder mit psychotischer Symptomatik, wie Wahn und Halluzinationen, Pers?nlichkeitsver?nderungen, Verhaltensauff?lligkeiten und gest?rtem Schlaf-Wachrhythmus einhergehen. Die h?ufigsten Gründe für eine Institutionalisierung gerontopsychiatrischer Patienten sind kognitive St?rungen begleitet von der Unf?higkeit, sich selbst zu versorgen, sich ausreichend zu pflegen und zu orientieren, sowie dem Auftreten einer Inkontinenz und von wahnhafter Symptomatik mit Aggressivit?t, Verhaltensst?rungen und n?chtlichen Unruhephasen. Da es durch falsche Diagnose und Therapie der im Alter überproportional h?ufigen Schlaf- und Verhaltensst?rungen bei Demenz sehr oft zu einem Circulus vitiosus mit kognitiver Verschlechterung, zunehmender Inkontinenz, Immobilit?t, Sturz- und Frakturneigung kommt, ist es wesentlich, das ?rztliche „Primum nil nocere“ zu beachten – die schonendsten Medikamente in niedrigster Dosierung über einen erforderlichen Zeitraum, aber nicht darüber, hinaus zu verordnen. Alternative Ma?nahmen k?nnen sowohl bei der Behandlung der h?ufigen Schlaf-Wachrhythmusst?rungen, als auch bei Verhaltensauff?lligkeiten bei Demenz sehr hilfreich für eine Verbesserung der Lebensqualit?t von Patient, Betreuer und Umgebung sein.     

Alternative Psychopharmakatherapie im Alter

In ?sterreich steigt der Anteil von ?lteren Menschen in der Bev?lkerung stetig an. Besonders die Anzahl der Mitbürger über 85 Jahren zeigte in den letzten 20 Jahren einen überproportionalen Zuwachs. Alterstypische Erkrankungen gewinnen deshalb zunehmend an sozial-medizinischer und volkswirtschaftlicher Bedeutung. Zu den h?ufigsten Alterserkrankungen z?hlen psychiatrische St?rungen wie Delir, Demenz und Depression, die ihrerseits wieder mit psychotischer Symptomatik wie Wahn und Halluzinationen, Pers?nlichkeitsver?nderungen, Verhaltensauff?lligkeiten und gest?rtem Schlaf-Wachrhythmus einhergehen. Die h?ufigsten Gründe für eine Institutionalisierung gerontopsychiatrischer Patienten sind kognitive St?rungen begleitet von der Unf?higkeit, sich selbst zu versorgen, sich ausreichend zu pflegen und zu orientieren sowie dem Auftreten einer Inkontinenz und von wahnhafter Symptomatik mit Aggressivit?t, Verhaltensst?rungen und n?chtlichen Unruhephasen. Da es durch falsche Diagnose und Therapie der im Alter überproportional h?ufigen Schlaf- und Verhaltensst?rungen bei Demenz sehr oft zu einem Circulus vitiosus mit kognitiver Verschlechterung, zunehmender Inkontinenz, Immobilit?t, Sturz- und Frakturneigung kommt, ist es wesentlich, das ?rztliche “Primum nil nocere” zu beachten - die schonendsten Medikamente in niedrigster Dosierung über einen erforderlichen Zeitraum, aber nicht darüber hinaus, zu verordnen. Alternative Ma?nahmen k?nnen sowohl bei der Behandlung der h?ufigen Schlaf-Wachrhythmusst?rungen, als auch bei Verhaltensauff?lligkeiten bei Demenz sehr hilfreich für eine Verbesserung der Lebensqualit?t von Patient, Betreuer und Umgebung sein.     

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