Do multielement visual tracking and visual search draw continuously on the same visual attention resources?

Multielement visual tracking and visual search are 2 tasks that are held to require visual-spatial attention. The authors used the attentional operating characteristic (AOC) method to determine whether both tasks draw continuously on the same attentional resource (i.e., whether the 2 tasks are mutually exclusive). The authors found that observers can search and track within the same trial significantly better than would be predicted if the 2 tasks were mutually exclusive. In fact, the AOC for tracking and search is similar to that for tracking and auditory monitoring. The results of additional experiments support an attention-switching account for this high level of dual-task performance in which a single attentional resource is efficiently switched between the tracking and search. The results provide important constraints for architectures of visual selective attention and the mechanisms of multielement tracking.     

Evidence for an activation locus of the word-frequency effect in lexical decision

The authors report a lexical decision experiment designed to determine whether activation is the locus of the word-frequency effect. K. R. Paap and L. S. Johansen (1994) reported that word frequency did not affect lexical decisions when exposure durations were brief; they accounted for this by proposing that data-limited conditions prevented late-occurring verification processes. Subsequently, P. A. Allen, A. F. Smith, M. Lien, T. A. Weber, and D. J. Madden (1997) and K. R. Paap, L. S. Johansen, E. Chun, and P. Vonnahme (2000) reported additional evidence that word-frequency effects do and do not have an activation locus, respectively. The authors further tested this issue in a lexical decision experiment using data-limited procedures--predicted by verification models to eliminate word-frequency effects. The authors observed word-frequency effects using individually determined exposure durations that were only 1 screen cycle longer than the exposure duration that yielded chance performance. Word-frequency effects persisted even when an adjusted measure of performance was used.     

Understanding the social costs of narcissism: the case of the tragedy of the commons

Two studies examined narcissism and behavior in a commons dilemma. Study 1 used a four-person, laboratory-based task and Study 2 used a dyadic task. Participants were told that they represented one of four (Study 1) or two (Study 2) forestry companies and then were asked to harvest timber from a renewable forest. Narcissism was found to be positively related to acquisitive goals and harvesting more timber in the initial round. The more narcissists harvesting in the competitive group of four (Study 1) or dyad (Study 2), the less timber was harvested overall and the more rapidly the forest was depleted. Within competitive groups and dyads, however, narcissists harvested more than the nonnarcissists competing with them. In all, narcissism provided a benefit to the self, but at a long-term cost to other individuals and to the commons.     

The emerging fragile X premutation phenotype: evidence from the domain of social cognition

Fragile X syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is caused by large methylated expansions of a CGG repeat (>200) region upstream of the FMR1 gene that results in the lack of expression of the fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP). Affected individuals display a neurobehavioral phenotype that includes a significant impairment in social cognition alongside deficits in attentional control, inhibition and working memory. In contrast, relatively little is known about the trajectory and specificity of any cognitive impairment associated with the fragile X premutation ("carrier-status") (approximately 55-200 repeats). Here, we focus on one aspect of cognition that has been well documented in the fragile X full mutation, namely social cognition. The results suggest that premutation males display a pattern of deficit similar in profile, albeit milder in presentation, to that of the full mutation. However, little evidence emerged for a correlation between CGG repeat length and severity of phenotypic outcomes. The findings are discussed in the context of functional neuroimaging and brain-behaviour-molecular correlates. We speculate that the deficiencies in social cognition are attributable to impairment of neural pathways modulated by the cerebellum.     

Cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of biogenic amines and corticotropin-releasing factor in adolescent non-human primates as a function of the timing of adverse early rearing

Adolescent bonnet macaques nursed as infants by mothers facing unpredictable requirements for food procurement (variable foraging demand, VFD) display persistent neurobiological disturbances. This study examined the long-term neurochemical and behavioral effects of adverse rearing initiated later in infancy than in previous cohorts of subjects to test the hypothesis that the timing of an early adverse experience would influence patterns of biobehavioral outcome. Cisternal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) monoamine and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) concentrations were obtained from 20 bonnet macaques (11 VFD-reared and 9 normally reared controls) approximately 2 years after the end of differential rearing. VFD-reared primates displayed on multiple samplings significantly lower CSF CRF concentrations and higher CSF 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) concentration compared to controls. In the VFD-reared, significant inverse correlations between CRF and all three monoamines were found (5-HIAA, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenethyleneglycol and homovanillic acid), most prominently for 5-HIAA. In controls, but not VFD-reared subjects, CSF CRF was positively correlated with changes in "gregariousness" upon presentation of a fear stimulus. VFD-reared subjects displayed greater baseline hierarchical engagement than controls. In contrast to prior findings, in which rearing under VFD conditions at an earlier age led to increased CSF CRF compared with controls, CSF CRF was lower after later exposure to VFD rearing than in controls. Thus, the timing of exposure to VFD conditions early in life evidently determines whether CSF CRF was found to be elevated or decreased, within the context of increased serotonin metabolism, during the course of primate maturation.     

Personality predicts working-memory-related activation in the caudal anterior cingulate cortex

Behavioral studies suggest that two affective dimensions of personality are associated with working memory (WM) function. WM load is known to modulate neural activity in the caudal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a brain region critical for the cognitive control of behavior. On this basis, we hypothesized that neural activity in the caudal ACC during a WM task should be associated with personality: correlated negatively with behavioral approach sensitivity (BAS) and positively with behavioral inhibition sensitivity (BIS). Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we measured brain activity in 14 participants performing a three-back WM task. Higher self-reported BAS predicted better WM performance (r = .27) and lower WM-related activation in the caudal ACC (r = -.84), suggesting personality differences in cognitive control. The data bolster approach-withdrawal (action control) theories of personality and suggest refinements to the dominant views of ACC and personality.     

Observational Effects on Preference Selection for Four Children on the Autism Spectrum: A Replication

Individuals with autism have been noted to have restricted interests and repetitive behavior such as nonfunctional manipulation of objects. In this study, we used an observational conditioning procedure to switch the preference of items for four individuals diagnosed with autism who are considered lower functioning. The procedure consisted of the participant observing an adult playing with toys that were initially non‐preferred by the participant in a functional and engaging manner. For two participants, results were similar to the findings by Leaf; one participant required additional conditioning procedures, and we were unable to switch the preference for the other participant. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Exploring Daily Religious/Spiritual Activities Among Older Couples: Religious/Spiritual Influence Moderating the Effects of Health Symptoms on Marital Interactions

Using data from 191 later-life couples across 14 days, patterns of husband and wife religious/spiritual activities were explored, as well as how those activities predicted daily marital processes and how they moderated the links between daily physical symptoms and marital interactions. Husband and wife reports of religious/spiritual influence were linked with their own positive and negative marital interactions (“actor” effects). However, only husband religious/spiritual influence was linked with wife marital interactions (“partner” effects). Religious/spiritual influence moderated the link between symptoms and marital interactions for wives. Findings suggest a buffering effect of religious/spiritual activities on daily symptoms for older married wives.     

Offense Characteristics of Incompetent to Stand Trial Defendants Charged With Violent Offenses

The current study compared offender and offense characteristics of pretrial defendants found incompetent to stand trial (IST) against those described as general offenders by victims in the 2008 Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) survey and evaluated factors that differentiated IST defendants who allegedly used weapons from those who did not during the course of a violent offense. IST defendants were older and used “weapons” more frequently than those reported in the BJS survey; however, other characteristics, including use of firearms, did not differ. No demographic, clinical, or legal factors differentiated pretrial defendants who used weapons from those who did not. Overall, pretrial defendants were frequently diagnosed with a comorbid substance use disorder, and were homeless, unemployed, and had an extensive history of psychiatric hospitalizations and prior arrests at the time of their alleged offenses. Such results indicate that models for comprehensive discharge planning may have utility in addressing the unique needs of this subgroup of mentally disordered offenders. The findings also raise questions about the federal and state prohibition of gun rights to all IST defendants. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.