An inverse relationship between baseline fixed-interval response rate and the effects of a tandem response requirement.

Previous experiments examining the effects of adding a tandem fixed-ratio response requirement on fixed-interval schedule performance have reported inconsistent results. One variable that may account for such inconsistencies is the baseline response rate in the fixed-interval condition. This possibility was investigated in the present study. Rats were given histories with either interresponse times greater than 11 s or fixed-ratio 40 schedules of reinforcement, which engendered either relatively low or high rates of responding, respectively, in the subsequent fixed-interval condition. A tandem ratio response requirement (fixed-ratio 9) was then introduced. The effects of adding this tandem response requirement were inversely related to the baseline fixed-interval response rates; low rates of responding in the fixed-interval condition were markedly increased, whereas high rates of responding were relatively unaffected. This inverse relationship appears to be similar to the rate-dependent relations observed in behavioral pharmacology. These results may provide an explanation for the inconsistent findings reported in previous studies on tandem fixed-interval fixed-ratio schedules and suggest that principles of behavioral pharmacology research may be applicable to the study of the effects of nonpharmacological variables on schedule-controlled behavior.     

The High School Dropout Goes to College

662 former secondary school leavers of academic potential were identified for a program designed to give selected dropouts a chance to enter the University of Toledo. Following responses to questionnaires, 94 students were selected for further screening, which resulted in the final selection of 50 candidates. 34 members of the experimental group attended pre-school workshops in reading, writing, and study habit skills. 31 enrolled as regularly admitted students in academic programs of the university for the academic year. 11 completed their freshman year, although only 4 were making satisfactory academic progress.     

Automatic activation of self-discrepancies and emotional syndromes: when cognitive structures influence affect

Different types of self-discrepancies are associated with different negative affects. Two studies were conducted to determine whether automatic activation of specific actual-self: self-guide mismatches, as cognitive structures, would induce distinct emotional states. Subjects possessing significant discrepancies between their actual self and either their ideal self-guide (attributes that someone wishes or hopes the person would possess) or their ought self-guide (attributes that someone believes the person has the duty or obligation to possess) responded verbally to an audiotape while "thinking about other people." Study 1 involved two kinds of priming attributes: self-relevant and yoked (another subject's self-relevant attributes). Activating mismatches induced momentary syndromes of dejection (sadness, decreased arousal) in ideal-discrepant subjects but induced agitation (nervousness, increased arousal) in ought-discrepant subjects. In Study 2, subjects were randomized to either self-relevant/nondiscrepant, self-discrepant, or yoked priming. The findings of Study 1 were replicated for the self-discrepant priming condition alone. Results indicate that (a) mismatches constitute cognitive structures and (b) automatic activation of different mismatches via contextual priming induces distinct types of emotional discomfort.     

Knowledge about the deleterious effects of smoking and its relationship to smoking cessation among pregnant adolescents

Smoking cessation among pregnant adolescents remains a complex and unresolved issue. The purpose of this study was to examine adolescents' knowledge of the detrimental effects of smoking on pregnant women and fetuses and its relationship to efforts to quit smoking. The sample consisted of 71 pregnant adolescents, and a three-group randomized intervention design-Teen FreshStart (TFS), Teen FreshStart with buddy (TFSB), and usual care control (UCC)-was used. Instruments included a demographic questionnaire, a smoking history questionnaire, and an 11-item scale measuring knowledge of the effects of smoking during pregnancy. For the entire sample, knowledge scores increased significantly (p = .000) from T1 (preintervention) to T2 (postintervention), and the adolescents who quit smoking had significantly higher knowledge at T2 (p = .028) and greater increases (T1 to T2) in their knowledge (p = .019) than did those who did not quit. Together, the TFS and TFSB groups had significantly higher knowledge at T2 (p = .017) and a significantly greater increase in knowledge from T1 to T2 (p = .005) than did the UCC group. This also held true when the TFS and TFSB groups were examined individually. Each had significantly higher knowledge at T2 (TFS, p = .029; TFSB, p = .008) and a significantly greater increase in knowledge from T1 to T2 (TFS, p = .007; TFSB, p = .009) than did the UCC group. Furthermore, despite the small sample sizes, within-group comparisons showed (a) no significant differences between quitters and nonquitters in the UCC group, (b) significantly higher knowledge at T2 (p = .052) and a trend indicating greater increases in knowledge from T1 to T2 (p = .092) for the quitters compared with the nonquitters in the TFS group, and (c) a trend for adolescents in the TFSB group who quit smoking to have greater increases in knowledge compared with those who did not quit (p = .158). These results indicate the need for continued inquiry into the relationship between pregnant teenagers' health knowledge and decisions to stop smoking.     

The effect of applicant influence tactics on recruiter perceptions of fit and hiring recommendations: a field study

The present study examined the effect of applicant influence-tactic use on recruiter perceptions of fit. Two tactics, ingratiation and self-promotion, were expected to have positive effects on recruiter perceptions of fit and on recruiter hiring recommendations. In addition, the authors expected recruiter fit perceptions to mediate the relationship between applicant influence tactics and recruiter hiring recommendations. Results suggested that ingratiation had a positive effect on perceived fit and recruiter hiring recommendations (and indirectly, on receipt of a job offer). In addition, perceived fit mediated the relationship between ingratiation and hiring recommendations. The effects of self-promotion on fit and hiring recommendations were generally weak and nonsignificant. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Regulatory fit and persuasion: transfer from "Feeling Right."

The authors propose that when a message recipient "feels right" from regulatory fit (E. T. Higgins, 2000), this subjective experience transfers to the persuasion context and serves as information for relevant evaluations, including perceived message persuasiveness and opinions of the topic. Fit was induced either by strategic framing of message arguments in a way that fit/did not fit with the recipient's regulatory state or by a source unrelated to the message itself. Across 4 studies, regulatory fit enhanced perceived persuasiveness and opinion ratings. These effects were eliminated when the correct source of feeling right was made salient before message exposure, supporting the misattribution account. These effects reversed when message-related thoughts were negative, supporting the claim that fit provides information about the "rightness" of one's (positive or negative) evaluations.