Which cues are available to 24-month-olds? Evidence from point-of-gaze measures during search

In previous research 2-year-olds have failed to show knowledge of solidity in a search task in which a ball rolled behind a screen and was stopped by a barrier. The screen had four doors and the barrier was visible above the door hiding the ball. To establish what cues 2-year-olds might be using, precise point-of-gaze measures were taken during the hiding event. A transparent screen with opaque doors provided two cues: (1) the ball could be tracked until it failed to emerge, and (2) the barrier's position could indicate the correct door. Point-of-gaze measures revealed that children failed to use the more indirect cue of the barrier, which requires reasoning and spatial integration. Their search success was predicted only by the more immediate cue of actively tracking the ball. These findings support the claim that children use best those cues directly related to the object's disappearance, while failing to use cues that entail higher cognitive demands.     

Overcoming the self-promotion dilemma: interpersonal attraction and extra help as a consequence of who sings one's praises

Prior research has shown that positive information presented by a third party shields people from the negative consequences of being perceived as self-promoting. But in many contexts, those third parties are intermediaries with a financial interest in the person being promoted rather than neutral parties. In three experimental studies, the authors demonstrate that even when intermediaries are not neutral, they can be helpful for overcoming the self-promotion dilemma--the need to assert one's competence but not be harmed by the fact that people who self-promote are viewed negatively. The authors find that hiring an agent to sing one's praises results in more favorable perceptions of the client, which contributes, in turn, to a greater willingness to offer that person assistance. It is also shown that even when the intermediary is physically present and seen to be complicit with the client, the positive effects of having someone else speak on one's behalf persist.     

A bird in hand: discouraging gambling on a slot machine simulation

Using a slot machine simulation, our laboratory has found that participants, given the opportunity not to gamble and to keep the money they have been staked, almost always choose to play the simulation. In this study, the authors investigated whether increasing the salience of the money for which participants played or increasing the response effort required to gamble the money would decrease gambling. In Experiment 1, participants in different groups were told about, were shown, or held the dollars 10 they were to be staked to play the simulation. Results showed that participants who held the money prior to gambling played fewer trials and bet less money than participants in other groups. In Experiment 2, participants in different groups were staked with dollars 5 in nickels, quarters, or their choice of nickels or quarters. Results showed that the participants staked with nickels ultimately gambled a similar amount of money as did participants staked with quarters. They did so by playing the simulation more times than the other participants. Participants staked with nickels did, however, end the session with the most money. Findings suggest ways that gambling and gambling losses can be lessened.     

An acquired deficit of audiovisual speech processing

We report a 53-year-old patient (AWF) who has an acquired deficit of audiovisual speech integration, characterized by a perceived temporal mismatch between speech sounds and the sight of moving lips. AWF was less accurate on an auditory digit span task with vision of a speaker's face as compared to a condition in which no visual information from the lower face was available. He was slower in matching words to pictures when he saw congruent lip movements compared to no lip movements or non-speech lip movements. Unlike normal controls, he showed no McGurk effect. We propose that multisensory binding of audiovisual language cues can be selectively disrupted.     

Ethical clinical practice and sport psychology: when two worlds collide

From their own practices, the authors offer insight into potential ethical dilemmas that may frequently develop in an applied psychology setting in which sport psychology is also being practiced. Specific ethical situations offered for the reader's consideration include confidentiality with coaches, administration, parents, and athlete-clients; accountability in ethical billing practices and accurate diagnosing; identification of ethical boundaries in nontraditional practice settings (locker room, field, rink, etc.); and establishment of professional competence as it relates to professional practice and marketing.     

Can false memories spontaneously recover?

Can false memories that were suppressed at one time spontaneously recover at a later time? Fuzzy trace theory and activation-monitoring theory predict that false memories in the Deese, Roediger, and McDermott (DRM) procedure become substantially reduced as list learning progresses because participants employ a memory-editing process. It follows that if the editing process is rendered less effective, false memories should spontaneously recover. We found that after DRM lists were well learned and false recognition to critical words was substantially reduced by multiple study-test trials, those false memories spontaneously recovered when participants were either rushed or delayed on a retest. We attributed the reduction in false recognition over trials to a memory-editing process that suppresses false recognition as participants gradually learn which words were in the lists and which words, though similar, were not. Rushing or delaying the participants on a retest made it more difficult for them to edit their memory, and false memories spontaneously returned.     

If We Produce Discrepancies,Then How? Testing a Computational Process Model of Positive Goal Revision

Within the self‐regulation literature on goals, both discrepancy reduction and discrepancy production are considered important theoretical and practical processes. Yet, discrepancy production has only been examined in a limited number of goal‐striving contexts, and the analytical strategies employed (e.g., difference scores) are difficult to interpret. This study extends discrepancy production research to multiple goal contexts where the goals are in conflict. Computational modeling and an organizational simulation were used to test a control theory explanation of discrepancy production. The occurrence of discrepancy production in the computational model and participants was assessed using hierarchical linear modeling. Comparing the data from the computational model with participants' data indicated a good fit. Implications of the findings and methods are discussed.     

Clinical Expertise in Psychotherapy: How Expert Therapists Use Theory in Generating Case Conceptualizations and Interventions

Case conceptualization is a primary skill that may be the linchpin of clinical practice as it sets the framework for making sense of a patient’s difficulties and guides a path toward change. Providing meaning and structure to often ambiguous and nuanced clinical information, an apt case conceptualization facilitates the therapist’s complex integration of core therapeutic skills to produce expert performance. Rooted in the cognitive sciences literature on expertise, we introduce the concept of metabolizing theory to capture expert therapists’ capacity to use theoretical and clinical knowledge in an intuitive, flexible manner that responds and adapts to the unique and complex context of the treatment.     

Health Care Chaplains and their Role on Institutional Ethics Committees: An Australia Study

This paper presents the results of the largest Australian pastoral study concerning the perceptions of health care chaplains about their involvement on hospital research ethics committees (also known in some contexts as institutional ethics committees). Survey results from over 300 Australian health care chaplains indicated that nearly 90% of chaplains believed there was merit in chaplains serving on hospital research ethics committees, yet only a minority (22.7%) had ever participated on such committees. Data from in-depth interviews is also presented exploring the reasons for the lack of participation and the varying opinions regarding the role, appropriateness, and value of chaplains on ethics committees. Some implications of this study with respect to chaplaincy, hospital research ethics committees, health care institutions, ecclesiastical institutions, and government responsibilities are discussed.