Movement segmentation and visual perturbation increase developmental differences in motor control and learning

We examined the developmental differences in motor control and learning of a two‐segment movement. One hundred and five participants (53 female) were divided into three age groups (7–8 years, 9–10 years and 19–27 years). They performed a two‐segment movement task in four conditions (full vision, fully disturbed vision, disturbed vision in the first movement segment and disturbed vision in the second movement segment). The results for movement accuracy and overall movement time show that children, especially younger children, are more susceptible to visual perturbations than adults. The adults’ movement time in one of the movement segments could be increased by disturbing the vision of the other movement segment. The children's movement time for the second movement segment increased when their vision of the first movement segment was disturbed. Disturbing the vision of the first movement segment decreased the percentage of central control of the second movement in younger children, but not in the other two age groups. The children's normalized jerk was more easily increased by visual perturbations. The children showed greater improvement after practice in the conditions of partial vision disturbance. As the participants’ age increased, practice tended to improve their feedforward motor control rather than their feedback motor control. These results suggest that children's central movement control improves with age and practice. We discuss the theoretical implications and practical significance of the differential effects of visual perturbation and movement segmentation upon motor control and learning from a developmental viewpoint.     

自我旋转面孔识别的ERPs研究

本研究采用事件相关电位技术考察平面旋转角度对自我面孔识别影响的时间进程。实验采用面孔异同匹配范式(same-different judgment), 首先呈现一张正立的自我或他人内特征的探测面孔, 然后再呈现一张旋转至某个角度(0°、90°、180°)的自我或他人的目标面孔, 要求被试判断两张面孔是否属于同一个人, 并记录其判断的反应时和ERP成分。实验发现, 在N170 (180~240 ms)和N2 (240~300 ms)成分上, 旋转至90°、180°的面孔刺激比正立条件下的面孔刺激分别在枕颞叶和额区诱发了更大的平均波幅。在LPP (400~500 ms)成分上, 对于自我面孔, 正立条件、旋转至90°、旋转至180°所诱发的波幅差异显著。而对于他人面孔, 3个角度所诱发的波幅无显著差异。结果表明, 面孔识别早期阶段是自动化的结构编码, 旋转角度增加了面孔结构编码的难度; 在面孔识别晚期阶段, 大脑对面孔的特异性信息进行精细加工, 自我面孔会占用个体有限认知资源进行下一步精细的心理旋转加工, 因此平面旋转角度会调节晚期个体对自我面孔的加工过程, 并且其影响时间约为100 ms。     

健康的贫富差距及其内在机制

健康的贫富差距是指不同社会经济地位的群体在各种健康指标上的系统差异。在过去30余年间, 国外研究揭示了社会经济地位与各种健康指标的负向关系, 并从环境特征和个人特征两个层面对健康的贫富差距做出了解释。以实证证据为基础, 研究者提出了社会文化自我模型、储备能力模型和生物−心理−社会整合模型等理论模型, 尝试从综合的视角理解健康的贫富差距。未来研究应该从多学科跨领域的视角, 使用多样化的研究方法和统计技术深化对健康的贫富差距内在机制的理解, 充分考虑社会文化背景的影响和个体差异的存在, 为促进我国的健康公平实践工作提供切实有效的理论指导。     

Not myself and the connected self: cases of youth depression and recovery in Malaysia

This study aims to explore the subjective experience of depressed young people in Malaysia. Twelve participants aged 20–24, who were diagnosed as suffering from depression but who had recovered, were interviewed. An adapted grounded theory approach guided our data collection and data analysis process. Two themes emerged which revealed the importance of the connectedness of individuals within their social environment. Coping with cultural norms and with rejection were found to be the most stressful precursors to depression. Depression is described as an alienating and involuntary experience. The recovery process requires a pivotal moment which enables reconnection with others. Implication of study will be discussed against the backdrop of the Malaysian context.     

Source Credibility in Consumer-Generated Advertising in Youtube: The Moderating Role of Personality

This research investigates the effects of the big five consumer personality traits on perceptions of source credibility related to consumer-generated advertising (CGA). An online experiment with 175 participants was conducted with viewing of a YouTube video in which source credibility (as firm-generated or consumer-generated) was manipulated. Findings show participants viewed CGA as more credible than firm-generated advertising. CGA positively influenced attitudes toward the ad and brand for consumers with low openness, and positively influenced opinion giving for consumers with high extraversion and low neuroticism. Also, a significant main effect of neuroticism was found. Theoretical and practical implications, and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Empathy‐Related Responding in Chinese Toddlers: Factorial Structure and Cognitive Contributors

The critical role of the second year of life in the development of empathy is well accepted by psychologists. However, the developmental trends of the different components of empathy and the potential factors underlying these components during this critical period remain unclear. Eighty‐four Chinese toddlers in the second year of life participated in the present study. Empathy‐related responses were observed during three simulated procedures performed by each child's primary caregiver, the experimenter and a baby doll. An exploratory factor analysis was used to identify the different components of empathy. The shared representation of the self and others was measured using the Tasks for the Observation of Self‐Concept, self/other awareness was measured with a series of mirror tests and inhibitory control was measured using the Cylinder Inhibitory Control Task. The results showed that the empathy of Chinese toddlers contains three factors: sympathy, personal distress and orientation. Potential cognitive factors contribute to the different components of empathy through both independent and joint effects. © 2016 The Authors Infant and Child Development Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Partner effects of Mexican cultural values: the couple and parenting relationships

In this investigation, the authors explored the impact of individuals' cultural values on their partners' relationship adjustment and perceptions of their parenting relationship. The authors examined Mexican cultural values of simpatía (i.e., harmonious interpersonal relationships) and respeto (i.e., respect for authority figures) using a sample of 50 Mexican-origin couples in southern Arizona. Congruent with their hypotheses, results supported the proposition that fathers' simpatía is positively associated with both relationship adjustment and the parenting relationship as reported by mothers, whereas fathers' respeto is negatively associated with both relationship adjustment and the parenting relationship as reported by mothers. However, the authors found little evidence of a contribution of mothers' cultural values to fathers' perceptions of either relationship adjustment or the parenting relationship. They interpret these findings to suggest that mothers' relationship adjustment and parenting relationship are more sensitive to and dependent on fathers' degree of traditional cultural values among Mexican-origin families.     

Turnover of highly educated R&D professionals: The role of pre‐entry cognitive style,work values and career orientation

Retention of key R&D experts has been recognized as a critical managerial challenge for many technology‐based companies. In this study, we propose that turnover of highly educated professional workers is meaningfully related to individual characteristics such as cognitive style, work values and career orientation. We tested the hypotheses using data collected from a sample of 132 R&D professionals with PhD degrees in engineering or natural science in a Korean electronics firm. The time‐dependent risk of turnover was estimated by survival analysis using a proportional hazards regression model. The results showed that over the 7‐year period after their organizational entry, R&D professionals with high levels of intrinsic values and cosmopolitan orientation were more likely to leave the organization than were their counterparts with low levels of intrinsic values and cosmopolitan orientation. The hazard function showed that the positive effect of intrinsic work values on turnover was particularly salient in the third and fourth year of R&D professionals' organizational tenure. We found that the positive effect of cosmopolitan orientation on turnover increased over time, introducing a greater risk of turnover with increasing tenure. The present findings have practical implications for the retention of highly educated R&D professionals in a corporate setting.     

成瘾相关记忆的表观遗传学机制 ——药物成瘾研究的新视角

成瘾相关记忆长期性的脑机制一直是药物成瘾研究领域的难点与热点,该文简要介绍了成瘾记忆长期性分子机制的研究脉络,提示表观遗传学修饰可能是研究药物成瘾的新视角。成瘾药物可以调节染色体不同亚型组蛋白乙酰化水平,不同基因DNA的甲基化程度从而改变染色体的空间结构,进而调节基因的表达导致成瘾,特别是DNA甲基化改变的相对的稳定性可能是成瘾记忆长期存在的分子基础。记忆再巩固过程中学习记忆相关脑区的记忆促进基因与记忆抑制基因的表观遗传学改变可能是未来研究的新趋势     

中国IT业从业人员非技能胜任素质测评系统的研发报告

具备专业知识的专业人员,在不同岗位上工作,有人成功,有人未获成功？非技能胜任素质应当是不可忽视的因素。本项研究以心理学研究和人才测评相结合的方法,对IT业从业人员的非技能胜任素质做了深入的研究,构建了IT业四类关键岗位——管理类、销售类、技术支持类、研发类的非技能胜任素质模型,并探索各胜任素质特征与工作绩效的关系,为IT业内各类岗位人才选拔、评价和培养提供了科学的依据以及人职匹配的操作模型。