Creating names for things

Ten subjects rendered names for each of 168 novel entities. The entities were quite varied. Naming strategies in this task situation were assessed with several dependent measures: (1) the structural form of the name expression (compound noun, lexically modified noun, etc.), (2) the content analysis of the name (i.e., into morphological patterns that directly convey content properties of referents), (3) statistical measures (number of syllables), and (4) comments and ratings elicited from participants. Several general strategies were induced.This is a shortened version of Carroll (1979a).     

Development in moral judgment as indicated by rejection of lower-stage statements

Previous failures of preference rating scales to identify developmental differences in moral judgment may have occurred because the focus was on acceptance of high-stage reasons rather than on consistent rejection of lower-stage reasons. Attention focused on seventh-, ninth-, and eleventh-grade students' (N = 178) rejection of the lower-stage statements that they presumably comprehend but have to varying degrees dropped from their spontaneous-production repertoire. Students rated the adequacy of the reasons presented in statements written to exemplify Kohlberg's stages 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Ratings of Stage 1, 2, 3, and 4 statements showed clear age discrimination (all p's < .001). As in previous preference studies, higher-stage items produced no significant age differences. Implications for evaluation of change studies were noted.     

A durable recording and feedback system

A durable low-cost data-recording and feedback system is described. Data transcribed with a special pen onto a plastic sheet can be removed only with two solvents. These data can be displayed for feedback purposes without fear of destruction.     

Failure to obtain a generation effect during naturalistic learning

Memory & Cognition - Many experiments have obtained a generation effect (GE)with various kinds of laboratory items. Six of the present seven experiments failed to find a GE when the responses...     

Olfactory Information Processing and Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

It has been suggested that olfactory information processing is impaired in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy. However, the existing evidence is not wholly in accordance with this notion. Patients with epileptogenic foci in the left temporal lobe, the right temporal lobe, or other brain regions were compared with normal control subjects in the identification and retention of common odors. All three patient groups were substantially and equally impaired in verbally labelling the odors in question. The patients with epilepsy associated with the left temporal lobe or with nontemporal regions showed no sign of any impairment on a test of immediate recognition memory for common odors. However, the patients with epilepsy associated with the right temporal lobe showed a specific disturbance in their retention of nameable odors. It is suggested that the latter patients were selectively impaired in their retrieval of the episodic memories which provide the context for the encoding of distinctive odors.     

Consent to mental health treatment: a theoretical analysis of coercion, freedom, and control

Research has shown that substantial numbers of mental health patients may be coerced into 'voluntary' treatment. This article examines the concept of coercion to address the concerns of social scientists, treatment providers, and policy makers to know when coercion into treatment has occurred. This logically takes precedence over the second important question of whether or not coercion is desirable in some situations. A review of the scientific research on coercion and related topics of freedom, control, and choice leads to a theoretical framework in which coercion is defined in terms of opportunities to choose among courses of action. Implications of this analysis are drawn for mental health service delivery, mental health policy, and mental health research.     

Monitoring the future: object and source memory for real and imagined events

In these experiments a memory‐monitoring decision is made, whereby subjects must decide not only whether or not to‐be‐learned stimuli will be remembered—the focus of all of the past research into the Judgement of Learning (JOL)—but also whether they will be able to assess the source of those stimuli, as assessed by a new measure, Judgement of Source (JOS). In Experiment 1 subjects had to judge whether they would remember the occurrence and the source of items that were either seen or imagined. Although seen items were better remembered and sourced than imagined, subjects were unable to predict this outcome: they underestimated their ability to recall seen items and overestimated their ability to recall imagined items. In Experiment 2 subjects had to discriminate between self‐performed or other‐performed enacted or imagined events. We expected that the motor cues associated with overt performance should provide more sensory information than had the visual input in Experiment 1, and this should help subjects to discriminate between real and imagined items. As predicted, JOL magnitude showed that subjects were now able to predict accurately that they would recall more enacted events than imagined events. JOS magnitude showed that subjects incorrectly predicted that self‐enactment would assist source memory compared to imagination. However, it was the source of other‐focused events which was more accurately remembered. The results are discussed in terms of Koriat's (1997) view about cue utility in making JOLs. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gender Differences in Parent–Child Emotion Narratives

Early parent–child conversations about past emotional experiences provide a rich environment for the socialization of emotions. This study explored the role of parent and child gender in this process. Participants were 21 White, middle-class, 40- to 45-month-old children and their mothers and fathers. At separate home visits, each parent discussed with their child four specific past events during which the child experienced happiness, anger, sadness, and fear, respectively. Mothers conversed more overall, talked more about emotional aspects of the experience, and used more emotion words than did fathers. Similarly, girls talked more about emotional aspects of their experiences than did boys. Further, girls used more emotion words when discussing scary events than did boys. Most intriguingly, both mothers and fathers used more emotional utterances when discussing sad events with daughters than with sons. Parent–daughter dyads also placed emotional experiences in a more interpersonal context than did parent–son dyads. Implications for the development of gender, emotional understanding, and clinical repercussions are discussed.     

Coping with neck and low back pain in the general population.

This study had 2 objectives: (a) to assess the psychometric properties of the Pain Management Inventory (PMI; G. K. Brown & P. M. Nicassio, 1987) with individuals in the general population with neck or low back pain, and (b) to assess the relationship between pain severity and coping. Data were taken from a mailed survey of a random sample of adults residing in Saskatchewan, Canada. Results validated the 2-factor structure of the PMI and provided evidence for the internal consistency of the coping subscales. Regression analyses revealed that passive coping was associated with being married, greater pain severity, depression, and poor health. Active coping was associated with female gender, higher education, less depression, good health, and frequent exercise. This study provides psychometric data to support the use of the PMI and information about factors associated with use of active and passive coping strategies in pain sufferers.