The drinker and the nurturer: College students' perceptions of men and fathers

This three‐part study examined 421 mid‐Atlantic university students' perceptions of the content of social stereotypes related to fathers‐ and men‐in‐general. College students viewed men‐in‐general as having far fewer positive parenting and personal qualities, but generally did not differ in breadwinning characteristics when compared to fathers‐in‐general. The results empirically supported the notion that younger adults generally do not view men‐in‐general as having the qualities associated with active fathering (e.g., being physically, financially, or emotionally involved with children), although they are seen as comparable providers. Men‐in‐general also are viewed much more negatively than fathers‐in‐general. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Exploring Race Based Differences in Patterns of Life-Course Criminality

A persistent issue facing criminologists is the challenge of developing theoretical models that provide comprehensive explanations of the onset and persistence of criminality. One promising theory to develop over the last 30 years has been life-course theory. Using multivariate analysis of variance the main question posed in this research, do elements of social development shape the trajectory of persistent offending in a race-neutral fashion, or are the dynamics shaping life-course criminality unique for people of color, was examined. The results provide a number of useful insights into the relationship between race, life-course transition factors, and longitudinal patterns of criminality.     

A Peek Inside the Targets' Toolbox: How Stigmatized Targets Deflect Discrimination by Invoking a Common Identity

In an effort to identify effective strategies for reducing prejudice, this research tested whether stigmatized individuals can evoke a common identity to deflect discrimination. In an initial survey, gay/lesbian/bisexual participants reported a preference for evoking common identity in intergroup interactions. In two experiments, straight male perceivers in a managerial role-playing paradigm were more likely to select a gay man for an interview if he had primed a common identity. Evoking a common identity did not similarly benefit straight candidates. Findings suggest that integrating prejudice reduction and persuasion research can identify strategies that empower targets to effectively cope with prejudice.     

Visual variability affects early verb learning

Research demonstrates that within‐category visual variability facilitates noun learning; however, the effect of visual variability on verb learning is unknown. We habituated 24‐month‐old children to a novel verb paired with an animated star‐shaped actor. Across multiple trials, children saw either a single action from an action category (identical actions condition, for example, travelling while repeatedly changing into a circle shape) or multiple actions from that action category (variable actions condition, for example, travelling while changing into a circle shape, then a square shape, then a triangle shape). Four test trials followed habituation. One paired the habituated verb with a new action from the habituated category (e.g., ‘dacking’ + pentagon shape) and one with a completely novel action (e.g., ‘dacking’ + leg movement). The others paired a new verb with a new same‐category action (e.g., ‘keefing’ + pentagon shape), or a completely novel category action (e.g., ‘keefing’ + leg movement). Although all children discriminated novel verb/action pairs, children in the identical actions condition discriminated trials that included the completely novel verb, while children in the variable actions condition discriminated the out‐of‐category action. These data suggest that – as in noun learning – visual variability affects verb learning and children's ability to form action categories.     

Effects of Cognitive Complexity and Emotional Upset on Processing Supportive Messages: Two Tests of a Dual‐Process Theory of Supportive Communication Outcomes

We report tests of hypotheses derived from a theory of supportive communication outcomes that maintains the effects of supportive messages are moderated by factors influencing the motivation and ability to process these messages. Participants in two studies completed a measure of cognitive complexity, which provided an assessment of processing ability, and reported their degree of upset with a problem situation, which was hypothesized to impact both motivation and ability; they subsequently evaluated the helpfulness of comforting messages that varied in person centeredness. Consistent with predictions, an index of message processing depth—the degree to which participants discriminated between the helpfulness of better and worse supportive messages—was associated with the factors additively in both studies and interactively in one study.     

L-type voltage-gated calcium channels in conditioned fear: a genetic and pharmacological analysis

Using pharmacological approaches, others have suggested that L-type voltage-gated calcium channels (L-VGCCs) mediate both consolidation and extinction of conditioned fear. In the absence of L-VGCC isoform-specific antagonists, we have begun to investigate the subtype-specific role of LVGCCs in consolidation and extinction of conditioned fear using a molecular genetics approach. Previously, we used this approach to demonstrate that the Ca(v)1.3 isoform mediates consolidation, but not extinction, of contextually conditioned fear. Here, we used mice in which the gene for the L-VGCC pore-forming subunit Ca(v)1.2 was conditionally deleted in forebrain excitatory neurons (Ca(v)1.2(cKO) mice) to address the role of Ca(v)1.2 in consolidation and extinction of conditioned fear. We demonstrate that Ca(v)1.2(cKO) mice consolidate and extinguish conditioned fear as well as control littermates. These data suggest that Ca(v)1.2 is not critical for these processes and together with our previous data argue against a role for either of the brain-expressed L-VGCCs (Ca(v)1.2 or Ca(v)1.3) in extinction of conditioned fear. Additionally, we present data demonstrating that the L-VGCC antagonist nifedipine, which has been used in previous conditioned fear extinction studies, impairs locomotion, and induces an aversive state. We further demonstrate that this aversive state can enter into associations with conditioned stimuli that are present at the time that it is experienced, suggesting that previous studies using nifedipine were likely confounded by drug toxicity. Taken together, our genetic and pharmacological data argue against a role for Ca(v)1.2 in consolidation of conditioned fear as well as a role for L-VGCCs in extinction of conditioned fear.     

Eye movements enhance memory for individuals who are strongly right-handed and harm it for individuals who are not

Subjects who make repetitive saccadic eye movements before a memory test subsequently exhibit superior retrieval in comparison with subjects who do not move their eyes. It has been proposed that eye movements enhance retrieval by increasing interaction of the left and right cerebral hemispheres. To test this, we compared the effect of eye movements on subsequent recall (Experiment 1) and recognition (Experiment 2) in two groups thought to differ in baseline degree of hemispheric interaction—individuals who are strongly right-handed (SR) and individuals who are not (nSR). For SR subjects, who naturally may experience less hemispheric interaction than nSR subjects, eye movements enhanced retrieval. In contrast, depending on the measure, eye movements were either inconsequential or even detrimental for nSR subjects. These results partially support the hemispheric interaction account, but demand an amendment to explain the harmful effects of eye movements for nSR individuals.