Goal-relevant events need not be rare to boost memory for concurrent images

In the attentional boost effect, memory for images presented at the same time as unrelated targets (e.g., an orange square) is enhanced relative to images presented at the same time as distractors (e.g., a blue square). One difficulty in understanding the nature of this enhancement is that, in most experiments demonstrating the attentional boost effect, targets have been less common than distractors. As a result, the memory enhancement associated with target detection may have been driven by differences in the relative frequencies of targets and distractors. In four experiments, participants encoded images into memory at the same time that they monitored a second, unrelated stimulus stream for targets. In some conditions, targets were as common as distractors (1:1 ratio); in others, targets were rare (1:6 ratio). The attentional boost effect was present when the target and distractor frequencies were equated, ruling out oddball and distinctiveness effects as explanations. These effects were observed when targets required a buttonpress and when they were covertly counted. Memory enhancements were not observed for images presented at the same time as rare distractor stimuli. We concluded that selectively attending to events that require an overt or covert response enhances the processing of concurrent information.     

One night of sleep deprivation affects reaction time, but not interference or facilitation in a Stroop task

The Stroop color-naming task is one of the most widely studied tasks involving the inhibition of a prepotent response, regarded as an executive function. Several studies have examined performance on versions of the Stroop task under conditions of acute sleep deprivation. Though these studies revealed effects on Stroop performance, the results often do not differentiate between general effects of sleep deprivation on performance and effects specifically on interference in the Stroop task. To examine the effect of prolonged wakefulness on performance on the Stroop task, we studied participants in a 40-h "constant routine" protocol during which they remained awake in constant conditions and performed a Stroop color-naming task every two hours. We found that reaction time was slowest when the color and word did not match (incongruent), fastest when the color and word did match (congruent), and intermediate when participants named the color of the non-word stimulus (neutral). Performance on all three trial types degraded significantly as a function of time awake. Extended wakefulness did not significantly change the additional time needed to respond when the color and word did not match (Stroop interference), nor did it change the amount of facilitation when color and word matched. These results indicate that one night of sleep deprivation influences performance on the Stroop task by an overall increase in response time, but does not appear to impact the underlying processes of interference or facilitation. The results suggest that the degree to which an "executive function" is affected by sleep deprivation may depend on the particular executive function studied and the degree to which it is subserved by the prefrontal cortex.     

The criterion validity of the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children in an adolescent inpatient setting

The purpose of the current study was to examine the criterion validity of the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children (BPFS-C) by assessing the performance of the self-report and a newly developed parent report version of the measure (BPFS-P) in detecting a borderline personality disorder (BPD) diagnosis in adolescent inpatients. This study also examined parent-child agreement and the internal consistency of the BPFS subscales. An inpatient sample of adolescents (n = 51) ranging from ages 12-18 completed the BPFS and were administered the Child Interview for DSM-IV Borderline Personality Disorder (CI-BPD) by trained clinical research staff. ROC analyses revealed that the BPFS-C has high accuracy (AUC = .931; Se = .856; Sp = .840) in discriminating adolescents with a diagnosis of BPD, as measured by the CI-BPD, while the BPFS-P has moderate accuracy (AUC = .795; Se = .733; Sp = .720). Parent-child agreement on total scores was significant (r = .687; p < .005). Cronbach's alphas suggested internal consistency for the four subscales of the BPFS. These findings support the criterion validity of this measure, particularly the self-report version, in adolescent inpatient settings.     

To Aggregate or Not to Aggregate: Steps for Developing and Validating Higher-Order Multidimensional Constructs

The use of higher-order multidimensional constructs (i.e., latent constructs comprised of standalone variables) in the organizational psychology and behavior literatures is becoming commonplace. Despite their advantages (e.g., greater parsimony and bandwidth), the development and validation of such constructs often unfolds in an indiscriminant fashion. It is not surprising, then, that much debate has arisen regarding the viability of many higher-order constructs. In this article, we outline ten recommendations for improving the construct- and criterion-related validity of higher-order constructs. Chief among these recommendations include the need for researchers to specify precise theoretical and empirical inclusion criteria, to rule out alternative explanations for the emergence of a higher-order factor and to assess incremental and relative importance. To illustrate how these recommendations play out, we apply them to core self-evaluation as an example. We believe that higher-order constructs may offer unique insight into work-relevant phenomena, provided they are established via rigorous means.     

HR Interventions that Go Viral

What causes one Human Resource (HR) intervention to thrive while another dies? The purpose of this paper is to explore the characteristics of HR interventions that are not only self-sustaining, but adapt and gain momentum over time. Based on a review of the literature, a case study, and 16 critical incident interviews with senior Industrial-Organizational (I–O) and HR professionals, several characteristics of the organization, the intervention, and the leader consistently emerged as important in creating sustainable HR programs, suggesting several new directions for future research.     

民族志:民族伦理学研究的方法论转向

上世纪80年代末期,中国开启了民族伦理学的研究。经过20余年的发展,民族伦理学取得了令人瞩目的成果,不仅有多部民族伦理学专著出版、大量的研究论文问世,而且在一些民族高等院校设立了民族伦理学研究所,招收民族伦理学方向的研究生。但是,在民族伦理学研究一派繁荣的表象     

早期归隐现象与管晏的隐逸观

我国古代的隐逸发生很早,至迟在商周之际就有不少可信的例子,到春秋时期成为一种普遍社会现象。对于隐逸,管、晏进行了具体分析,给予隐士客观评价,并主张国家积极征召隐士。管、晏的隐逸观与他们自身经历有关,也是其“举贤授能”人才思想的一部分。管、晏招隐士的主张,对于当时诸侯笼络人才、赢取民心、稳定社会具有积极作用。     

硕士生就业压力源、人格、情绪调节策略与负性情绪的关系

该研究以某985高校550名硕士毕业生为样本,编制、修订了相关问卷或量表,通过数据分析探讨了就业压力源对就业过程产生的负性情绪的直接效应及人格、情绪调解策略等中介变量的效应。结果发现,就业压力源、神经质性对负性情绪有显著直接效应,就业压力源通过人格的神经质性维度对负性情绪产生显著间接效应;神经质性的影响程度大于就业压力源的影响程度。关于负性情绪,未发现情绪调节策略对其有显著的直接效应或中介效应。     

长沙金盆岭晋墓与太阴炼形——以及墓葬器物群的分布逻辑

1958年发掘的湖南长沙金盆岭西晋永宁二年墓墓室四角距墓底1.54米处各有一块平砌的砖伸出壁面一段,表明该墓形制乃模拟北斗,象征着整个墓室乃是死者卧斗修炼成仙的炼形之宫。墓中出土的陶俑等40件精美器物分区摆放,其中对书俑应为司命司录俑,其三笔象征司命神所注写墓主人三命,另可识别有诵经真官俑、鬼官北斗俑等。不同的器物群构成不同的功能区域,代表着墓主人地下修炼成仙过程的不同阶段。墓内器物有其内在符号逻辑,表达着墓主人所追求的太阴炼形、飞升成仙的终极理想。文中首次提出墓葬器物分布逻辑分析法,力图还原墓葬及器物背后那个支配着整个仪式结构的思想图景。     

“Smart inhibition”: electrophysiological evidence for the suppression of conflict-generating task rules during task switching

A major challenge for task switching is maintaining a balance between high task readiness and effectively ignoring irrelevant task rules. This calls for finely tuned inhibition that targets only the source of interference without adversely influencing other task-related representations. The authors show that irrelevant task rules generating response conflict are inhibited, causing their inefficient execution on the next trial (indicating the presence of competitor rule suppression[CRS];Meiran, Hsieh, & Dimov, Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition, 36, 992–1002, 2010). To determine whether CRS influences task rules, rather than target stimuli or responses, the authors focused on the processing of the task cue before the target stimulus was presented and before the response could be chosen. As was predicted, CRS was found in the event-related potentials in two time windows during task cue processing. It was also found in three time windows after target presentation. Source localization analyses suggest the involvement of the right dorsal prefrontal cortex in all five time windows.