The effect of the first glimpse at a scene on eye movements during search

Previewing scenes briefly makes finding target objects more efficient when viewing is through a gaze-contingent window (windowed viewing). In contrast, showing a preview of a randomly arranged search display does not benefit search efficiency when viewing during search is of the full display. Here, we tested whether a scene preview is beneficial when the scene is fully visible during search. Scene previews, when presented, were 250 ms in duration. During search, the scene was either fully visible or windowed. A preview always provided an advantage, in terms of decreasing the time to initially fixate and respond to targets and in terms of the total number of fixations. In windowed visibility, a preview reduced the distance of fixations from the target position until at least the fourth fixation. In full visibility, previewing reduced the distance of the second fixation but not of later fixations. The gist information derived from the initial glimpse of a scene allowed for placement of the first one or two fixations at information-rich locations, but when nonfoveal information was available, subsequent eye movements were only guided by online information.     

Interpretation and misinterpretation of warning signage: perceptions of rockfalls in a naturalistic setting

The aim of the present study was to investigate the factors relating to non-adherence to warning signs about falling rocks from coastal cliff faces. Face-to-face interviews (n?=?62) in a naturalistic setting (in the vicinity of a high-risk rockfall area) were conducted to investigate attention to and comprehension of warning signs, as well as beliefs relating to non-adherence of the signage. It was found that, while most participants could correctly identify the danger in the area and had noticed the warning signage, less than half of the participants could correctly interpret the signage. The perception of danger did not differ significantly between the participants who had, or had not, entered the high-risk zone. Differences in knowledge and beliefs between local residents and visitors to the area were identified. It was concluded that the warning signs did not provide enough detail for people to make informed decisions about safe behaviours. Comprehension of the signage may have been hampered by a lack of prior-knowledge of the particular risk, a failure to think carefully about the situation (i.e. low-effort processing), and the pictorial representation on the signs misleading the participants as to the true danger.     

Training Analysis: Oxymoron or Viable Compromise? Training Analysis,Power, and the Therapeutic Alliance

Balint was among the first to express concern about the “hidden power dynamics” that underlie training analyses. In this paper, I identify some of the problems with this form of treatment, which simultaneously tries to educate the candidate about analytic treatment and ensures that the candidate satisfies certain requirements before he or she is permitted to practice analysis. I argue that the candidate's trying to complete the training analysis—a prerequisite to becoming a full-fledged psychoanalyst—may prevent the full manifestation of the breadth and extent of the candidate's neurosis. Paying attention to the therapeutic alliance assists the analytic dyad in navigating the complex work of a training analysis.     

The Relationship Between Deployment and Turnover in Australian Navy Personnel

Increases in the frequency of operations tempo have focused attention on the relationship between deployment and separation from military service. This retrospective study explored the association between deployment and turnover over a 10-year period in Royal Australian Navy (RAN) personnel. Participants were 2355 males who served in the RAN during the period of the 1991 Gulf War (August 1990–September 1991); approximately half had been deployed to that conflict. Data were collected 10 years later as part of the Australian Gulf War Veterans' Health Study. During that 10-year period, 61% of participants left the RAN. The likelihood of separation decreased as number of deployments increased even when controlling for age, rank, and length of service. Personnel deployed to the 1991 Gulf conflict did not have a significantly higher risk of separation. The results provide evidence that deployment is not necessarily a risk factor for separation.     

Neurobiological Correlates of Autism: A Review of Recent Research

This review paper integrates recent structural and functional imaging, postmortem, animal lesion, and neurochemical research about the pathophysiology of autism. An understanding of the neurobiological correlates of autism is becoming increasingly important as more children are diagnosed with the condition and funding for well-targeted interventions increases. Converging evidence suggests that autism involves abnormalities in brain volume, neurotransmitter systems, and neuronal growth. In addition, evidence firmly links autism with abnormalities in the cerebellum, the medial temporal lobe, and the frontal lobe. Potential implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are reviewed.     

The Emotionality Activity Sociability Temperament Survey: Factor analysis and temporal stability in a longitudinal cohort

We investigated Buss and Plomin’s Emotionality Activity Sociability (EAS) Temperament Survey for Children, used to assess temperament. Temperament is believed to comprise stable traits that change little over time. We examined stability of EAS temperament in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, in which 7429 mothers completed the EAS when their children were 3, 5 and 6 years old. Factor analysis was conducted at each time point, and stability over time was assessed using correlation and mixed effects regression modelling, accounting for differences within and between individuals. A four-factor model provided the best fit, with 19–20 of the 20 items loading onto the dimensions predicted by Buss and Plomin. Test–retest correlations ranged from 0.52–0.64 (3–5 years), 0.59–0.74 (5–6 years) and 0.46–0.58 (3–6 years). Mixed effects regression modelling suggested good stability over time: differences between, rather than within, individuals accounted for between 69% and 82% of the variance. This study demonstrates the stability of temperament over time, a vital pre-requisite to investigating childhood temperament as a predictor of outcomes.     

Being moved by meaningfulness: appraisals of surpassing internal standards elicit being moved by relationships and achievements

ABSTRACT

People can be moved and overwhelmed, a phenomenon typically accompanied by goose-bumps and tears. We argue that these feelings of being moved are not limited to situations that are appraised as pro-social but elicited when someone surpasses an internal standard. In line with these predictions, people were moved by relationships and success (Study 1), by reunion, separation, success and failure (Study 2) and by social, environmental and sports achievements (Study 3). In all three studies, the elicitation of these feelings was partially mediated by appraisals of surpassing social or achievement standards. In line with this, ratings of meaningfulness were closely associated with feelings of being moved and moving stimuli elicited behavioural intentions such as spending time with family and friends, helping others and/or achieving something in life. Thus, moving situations may remind us about what we perceive as meaningful and thereby help us to act accordingly.     

Recognising subtle emotional expressions: The role of facial movements

Two studies investigated the importance of dynamic temporal characteristic information in facilitating the recognition of subtle expressions of emotion. In Experiment 1 there were three conditions, dynamic moving sequences that showed the expression emerging from neutral to a subtle emotion, a dynamic presentation containing nine static stills from the dynamic moving sequences (ran together to encapsulate a moving sequence) and a First–Last condition containing only the first (neutral) and last (subtle emotion) stills. The results showed recognition was significantly better for the dynamic moving sequences than both the Dynamic-9 and First–Last conditions. Experiments 2a and 2b then changed the dynamics of the moving sequences by speeding up, slowing down or disrupting the rhythm of the motion sequences. These manipulations significantly reduced recognition, and it was concluded that in addition to the perception of change, recognition is facilitated by the characteristic muscular movements associated with the portrayal of each emotion.