On The Dimensional and Hierarchical Structure of Affect

Green, Goldman, and Salovey (1993) challenged the view that "positive affect" and "negative affect" are largely uncorrelated dimensions. On the basis of factor analytic studies of happiness and sadness, and of positive and negative emotional activation (PA and NA), they claimed that a "largely bipolar structure of affect" (p. 1029) emerges when random and nonrandom error are taken into account. A reappraisal of their own findings and confirmatory analysis of additional data do not support this claim. Happiness and sadness form a largely unidimensional bipolar structure, but PA and NA are relatively independent. However, exploratory analyses yield a three-level hierarchy incorporating in one structure a general bipolar Happiness-Versus-Unhappiness dimension, the relatively independent PA and NA dimensions at the level below it, and discrete emotions at the base. We emphasize the heuristic value of a hierarchical perspective.     

Cognitive factors involved in the onset and maintenance of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after physical or sexual assault.

Cognitive factors hypothesised to influence the development and maintenance of PTSD were investigated. 92 assault victims completed questionnaires assessing a range of cognitive variables. Factors relating to onset of PTSD were investigated by comparing victims who did and who did not suffer PTSD. Factors relating to maintenance of PTSD were investigated by comparing victims who had recovered from PTSD with victims who had persistent PTSD. Cognitive factors associated with both onset and maintenance of PTSD were: appraisal of aspects of the assault itself (mental defeat, mental confusion, appraisal of emotions); appraisal of the sequelae of the assault (appraisal of symptoms, perceived negative responses of others, permanent change); dysfunctional strategies (avoidance/safety seeking) and global beliefs impacted by assault. Cognitive factors that were associated only with the onset of PTSD were: detachment during assault; failure to perceive positive responses from others and mental undoing. Relationships between the cognitive variables and PTSD remained significant when variations in perceived and objective assault severity were statistically controlled. The cognitive factors identified in the study may contribute to PTSD directly, by generating a sense of ongoing threat, or indirectly, by motivating cognitive and behavioural strategies that prevent recovery, or by affecting the nature of the traumatic memory.     

Computers for cognitive research: A HyperCard adventure game

For researchers interested in exploring the cognitive and metacognitive processes involved in problem-solving, one obstacle has been the difficulty of creating engaging and ecologically valid situations in which to observe these skills in practice. Computer games can provide a rich environment for research on such skills. I present a HyperCard example of an adventure game that serves as an environment for research on analogy in problem-solving. The design of the game and interface is detailed, and initial results of and suggestions for extensions to this work are presented.     

Conditioned response-contingent delays of the unconditioned stimulus in human aversive conditioning.

Four groups of subjects were given either 0. 100, 500, or 1,000 msec delays of the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) contingent upon the occurrence of a conditioned response (CR) and were given a UCS 515 msec after conditioned stimulus (CS) onset when a CR did not occur. A fifth group received standard classical conditioning trials with an interstimulus interval of 515 msec. Overall performance decreased as CR-contingent UCS delay increased, with the classical conditioning group approximating the performance of the group receiving the 100-msec delay. The data were analyzed with the two-phase model of conditioning and the following results were obtained: The duration of Phase 1 of the model increased with contingent delay; operator limits associated with CR trials or with combined CR-CR (CR absent) trials decreased as a function of delay; and operator limits associated exclusively with CR trials were unaffected by the delay. Subjects receiving a contingent delay of 0 msec gave the shortest latency responses and exhibited reliable latency decreases across trials, suggesting an attempt to "beat" the UCS. The results were interpreted as contrary to what would be expected from low-of-effect theories which postulate that reinforcement results from a CR-UCS interaction, although they could be subsumed under a drive or an associative strength theory in which the aversive, or CR-supportive, strength of the UCS is assumed to be negatively correlated with contingent UCS delay.     

Contextual imagery in meaning and memory

Three hundred homonyms were selected, and sentence fragments were written to emphasize two meanings of each. The words were rated on image-arousing capacity both in and out of context and on frequency of occurrence in context. Imagery values for the words out of context were predicted quite well by an average of the contextual imagery ratings, weighted by their relative frequencies. The finding is consistent with the hypothesis that words presented in isolation are interpreted in specific senses according to a frequency bias, with imagery ratings reflecting those senses. In a memory experiment. words were selected to vary orthogonally on both contextual and out-of-context imagery. Recall of words in isolation was a function of out-of-context imagery, while recall of words presented in context was a function of contextual imagery, further supporting the hypothesis.     

A test of inclusion which allows for errors of measurement

A test which allows for errors of measurement is derived for the hypothesis that all the members of a population who possess a certain skill are a sub-set of the members who possess another skill. Formulae are given for one particular case when two questions are used for each skill, and for when three questions are used for each skill. An illustrative example is given for the two-question case. The authors are indebted to M. L. Turner for his assistance in the initial stages of development of the test.     

SDT analysis of binary decisions and sensory intensity ratings to noxious thermal stimuli

During three sessions, each of 24 Ss responded to noxious thermal stimuli, using the following judgments: binary decision, S responded “high” or “low”; sensory intensity rating, S rated his sensory experience along a thermal intensity continuum; and concurrent report, S’s binary decision was followed by an intensity rating. The binary-decision d’ was significantly higher than the rating d′, suggesting that Ss could not maintain multiple thermal criteria in a consistent fashion. The criteria for pain obtained with single and concurrent intensity rating judgments did not differ. These results suggest that the most efficacious and valid method for the study of experimental pain is to obtain concurrent responses, and to use binary decisions to compute d’ and sensory intensity ratings to locate S’s criterion for reporting pain.     

Intercurrent and reinforced behavior under multiple spaced-responding schedules

Lever pressing in rats was reinforced with food under a multiple spaced-responding schedule. A lever, food cup, and drinking tube were mounted in a running wheel so that lever pressing, running, and licking could be recorded. Running and licking had no scheduled consequences. Lever pressing was reinforced under a multiple schedule with three spaced-responding components and an extinction component. Each component was associated with a different auditory stimulus. Spaced-responding components reinforced only lever presses terminating interresponse times equal to or greater than 10, 20, or 60 sec, respectively. Rates of lever pressing, reinforcement, and licking all decreased as schedule parameter increased. Efficiency of spaced responding, as measured by reinforcements per response, also decreased. Rate of wheel running either increased or increased and then decreased with increasing schedule parameter. Individual running rates differed substantially. Neither licking nor running rate correlated with individual differences in efficiency. Analysis of conditional probabilities among the several response classes showed that, as the schedule requirement increased, the probability of running after a lever press increased and the probability of licking after a lever press decreased. After reinforcement, one subject always pressed the lever next. In the other subjects, the conditional probability of lever pressing, given reinforcement, increased while the probability of licking, given reinforcement, decreased with increasing schedule requirement. Results are discussed in relation to the concepts of schedule-induced and mediating behavior.     

Mental rotation and the perspective problem

Experiment I contrasts the difficulty of problems in which a child must anticipate the appearance of an array of objects that is rotated (rotation problems) to the difficulty of problems in which a child must anticipate the appearance of a fixed array to an observer who has been rotated with respect to it (perspective problems). Perspective problems are much more difficult and show a different error pattern. Experiment II contrasts standard perspective problems, in which a child must anticipate the appearance of the array to an observer whose position differs from his own, to “perspective-move” problems, in which a child must anticipate the appearance of the array from his own new position; i.e., he himself moves. The latter problems are much easier, and the error pattern is much like that for rotation problems. The mental operations involved in solving these various types of problems are discussed.