The influence of attention on holistic face encoding

We examined the influence of attention on the formation of holistic face representations using the composite effect (Perception 16 (1987) 747). In Experiment 1, stimuli composed of a face superimposed on a house were shown during encoding. Subjects delineated either the face or the house, thus manipulating attention away or toward the face. In Experiment 2, an intact face image was presented with letters scrolling from top to bottom. Subjects were asked to either ignore the letters or read them and decipher the words that they formed. Aligned and misaligned composites were shown at testing. Recognition performance was consistently better for misaligned than aligned stimuli, regardless of the allocation of attention during encoding. In Experiment 3, we show that the composite effect can be eliminated by a disruption in holistic processing at the time of encoding. We conclude that holistic encoding is one aspect of face analysis that occurs equally well with or without attention.     

Effects of pointing direction and direction predictability on event-related lateralizations of the EEG

In two experiments, we investigated hemispheric electroencephalography (EEG) differences in 9(12) healthy volunteers during pointing to lateral and central targets. The questions addressed were whether horizontal pointing direction and the predictability of pointing direction modulated hemispheric differences (event-related lateralizations of the EEG = ERLs). To vary pointing direction predictability, targets were displayed either randomly at one of nine different positions on a screen (random) or at the same horizontal position in five subsequent trials (sequenced) while vertical positions varied randomly. Event-related lateralizations (ERLs) varied with pointing direction. This was true across changes in target eccentricity and pointing distance. Foci of the ERLs were in premotor and posterior parietal cortex, which might reflect the critical involvement of these areas in the control of visually guided reaching. Direction predictability reduced the parietal and premotor ERL before pointing onset, probably reflecting a lesser effort in visuomotor transformation. Predictability also added an overlying N2pc component to the early ERL after target onset and increased direction effects during movement.     

Role of proprioceptive information in movement programming and control in 5 to 11-year old children

The role of proprioceptive inputs in the control of goal-directed movements was examined, by means of the tendon vibration technique, in 5 to 11-year old children performing a serial pointing task. Children pointed, with movements of various amplitudes and at various positions, by alternating wrist flexions and extensions. Tendon vibration was applied to both agonist and antagonist muscles to perturb relevant muscular proprioceptive inputs during the static or dynamic phase of the task, i.e., during stops on targets or during movement execution. Constant and variable amplitude errors as well as constant position error were evaluated. Vibratory perturbation applied during movement execution resulted in a similar reduction in movement amplitude, yielding an increased constant error in all age groups and a systematic position error in the direction of the movement starting point. Perturbing proprioception during static phases preceding movement resulted in an age-related increase in the variable amplitude error, which was maximal in 5-year old children performing extension movements. The results were interpreted in terms of the use of proprioceptive information in the feedforward and feedback based components of movement control in children. In particular, the results indicated (1) developmental changes in the relative weighting of each component, (2) an increased capacity to move from one strategy to the other, depending on the availability of information, and (3) developmental changes from an alternated to an integrated control of amplitude and position in serial pointing.     

Opposed left and right brain hemisphere contributions to sexual drive: a multiple lesion case analysis

Brain topographical studies of normal men have have shown that sexual excitation is asymmetric in the brain hemispheres. Group studies of patients with unilateral epileptic foci and other studies of patients with unilateral brain lesions have come to the same conclusion. The present study reviewed previously published single case reports of patients with frank hypo or hypersexuality subsequent to a unilateral brain lesion. Hyposexual patients tended to have left hemisphere lesions (primarily of the temporal lobe), and hypersexual patients tended to have right hemisphere lesions (primarily of the temporal lobe) (p < 0.05). We interpret this double dissociation as part of a more general phenomenon of psychic tone similarly dissociated with regard to hemispheric control, including mood, psychomotor baseline, speech rate, and even immunity. The behavioral significance of this psychic tone is to modulate approach versus avoidance behavior.     

Loneliness and relationship dispositions in emerging adults: Gender and culture as moderators

Prior research has provided evidence of the link between loneliness and the number of past sexual partners—suggesting the role of short-term intimate connections as a strategy to fulfill belongingness needs. The current study examined whether increased loneliness was associated with increased tendencies to engage in short-term sexual (sociosexuality) and romantic (emophilia) relationships with a sample of 319 Malaysian emerging adults. We also tested whether these associations varied by gender and cultural orientation. Findings from a cross-sectional survey revealed that lonelier individuals generally reported higher emophilia. The positive association between loneliness and sociosexuality, however, was only present among those who were high in vertical individualism (i.e., socialized to construe themselves as independent and different from others). Gender did not moderate either of these associations. These results suggest that the loneliness-driven short-term connections may be less readily manifested as sexual tendencies in populations that are more sexually conservative. Our findings highlight the importance of considering the role of cultural differences at the individual level in addition to the overall cultural context when examining intimate relationship tendencies.     

The effects of the presence of a face and direct eye gaze on voice identity learning

We rarely become familiar with the voice of another person in isolation but usually also have access to visual identity information, thus learning to recognize their voice and face in parallel. There are conflicting findings as to whether learning to recognize voices in audiovisual vs audio-only settings is advantageous or detrimental to learning. One prominent finding shows that the presence of a face overshadows the voice, hindering voice identity learning by capturing listeners' attention (Face Overshadowing Effect; FOE). In the current study, we tested the proposal that the effect of audiovisual training on voice identity learning is driven by attentional processes. Participants learned to recognize voices through either audio-only training (Audio-Only) or through three versions of audiovisual training, where a face was presented alongside the voices. During audiovisual training, the faces were either looking at the camera (Direct Gaze), were looking to the side (Averted Gaze) or had closed eyes (No Gaze). We found a graded effect of gaze on voice identity learning: Voice identity recognition was most accurate after audio-only training and least accurate after audiovisual training including direct gaze, constituting a FOE. While effect sizes were overall small, the magnitude of FOE was halved for the Averted and No Gaze conditions. With direct gaze being associated with increased attention capture compared to averted or no gaze, the current findings suggest that incidental attention capture at least partially underpins the FOE. We discuss these findings in light of visual dominance effects and the relative informativeness of faces vs voices for identity perception.     

To Follow Expert Advice When Making a Decision: An Examination of Reactive Versus Reflective Autonomy

The present study examined whether reactive and reflective autonomy moderated individuals' responses to expert influence. Participants were given the opportunity to win money at a racetrack betting task for which they were provided with objective information about horses' previous performances along with specific expert recommendations. The experts were made to look either credible or noncredible by manipulating information on the success rate of their previous predictions. The results showed that the two forms of autonomy led to exactly opposite behaviors in response to the advice of credible experts. Reflective autonomy was significantly positively associated with following the recommendations of credible experts whereas reactive autonomy was significantly negatively associated with following the recommendations. The results also showed that it was particularly after losing their first race that reactive autonomy was related to rejecting the advice of experts. These findings indicate that reactive and reflective forms of autonomy may yield opposite patterns of behavior in certain situations.     

Recognition of music in long-term memory: Are melodic and temporal patterns equal partners?

The notion that the melody (i.e., pitch structure) of familiar music is more recognizable than its accompanying rhythm (i.e., temporal structure) was examined with the same set of nameable musical excerpts in three experiments. In Experiment 1, the excerpts were modified so as to keep either their original pitch variations, whereas durations were set to isochrony (melodic condition) or their original temporal pattern while played on a single constant pitch (rhythmic condition). The subjects, who were selected without regard to musical training, were found to name more tunes and to rate their feeling of knowing the musical excerpts far higher in the melodic condition than in the rhythmic condition. These results were replicated in Experiment 2, wherein the melodic and rhythmic patterns of the musical excerpts were interchanged to create chimeric mismatched tunes. The difference in saliency of the melodic pattern and the rhythmic pattern also emerged with a music-title-verification task in Experiment 3, hence discarding response selection as the main source of the discrepancy. The lesser effectiveness of rhythmic structure appears to be related to its lesser encoding distinctiveness relative to melodic structure. In general, rhythm was found to be a poor cue for the musical representations that are stored in long-term memory. Nevertheless, in all three experiments, the most effective cue for music identification involved the proper combination of pitches and durations. Therefore, the optimal code of access to long-term memory for music resides in a combination of rhythm and melody, of which the latter would be the most informative.     

Cognitive treatment of pathological gamblers

This study evaluates the efficacy of a cognitive treatment for pathological gambling. Five pathological gamblers were treated in a multiple baseline across subjects design. Cognitive correction targeted the erroneous perceptions towards the notion of randomness. Four subjects reported a clinically significant decrease in the urge to gamble, an increase in their perception of control, and no longer met the DSM-IV criteria for pathological gambling. Therapeutic gains were maintained at the 6 month follow-up. Results suggest that cognitive therapy targeting the misconception of the notion of randomness is a promising treatment for pathological gambling, a refractory disorder to most therapeutic interventions.