Recognition vs recall of visually vs acoustically confusable letter matrices

In an attempt to separate auditory and visual components in short-term memory, five subjects were exposed to letter matrices composed of six visually confusable letters, six acoustically confusable letters, or a mixture of the two, under two response conditions: recognition and recall. A 50-msec stimulus presentation was followed by a variable dark interval of 1, 250, 1,000, or 3,000 msec. In the recall condition, the interval was followed by a buzzer which signaled the subject to recall, in any order, as many letters as possible. In the recognition condition, the variable interval was followed by a second letter matrix which was either identical to the first matrix or differed from is by one letter. Subjects responded either "same" or "different." The results support the notion that the auditory component plays a major role in recall, whereas the visual component dominates in recognition.     

Recognition time for information stored in long-term memory

Two experiments were performed to determine the effects of number of words in a target set (varying from 10 to 26) and the nature of distractor words on the latency of both positive and negative recognition responses. Before the test phase, S memorized a list of words and then was tested with a series of single words. To each presentation S made a positive or negative response to indicate whether or not the word was a member of the memorized target list. Response latency was observed to be an increasing function of memory list length. Negative response latency also was greater if distractor words were visually or semantically similar to specific target words. The results were analyzed in terms of a modified signal detection model. It is assumed that S makes a subjective judgment of the familiarity of a test item and on that basis decides either to respond immediately or to delay the response until a search of the memorized list can be executed. Several different models of the search process are considered and evaluated against latency measures and error data.     

Treatment of juvenile offenders: Study outcomes since 1980

Past reviews of the treatment of juvenile offenders have concluded that “nothing works.” More recently, some reviewers have concluded that treatment concepts are not necessarily ineffective, but, instead, research methodology and treatment integrity have been inadequate. The present review looks at the treatment of adjudicated juvenile offenders from a computer-data-based search of the literature published from 1980 to 1987. Research outcome and methodology are summarized and critiqued. The conclusions are that treatment outcomes were positive, but that serious methodological weaknesses still exist in the literature. Improvements still need to be made in sample sizes, use of appropriate and multiple measures of recidivism, random assignment and/or use of appropriate control groups, and long-term follow-up assessment.     

The effect of enactment upon sentence imitation in preschool children

Preschool children imitated two matched lists of sentences varying in length, in syntactic complexity, and in semantic complexity. Sentences on one list were acted out with toys prior to imitating them. For 3-year-olds, enactment increased retention of all sentential variables: number of words, number of frames, number of propositions, and syntax. For children younger than 3 years, enactment increased only the number of words retained, while for children older than 4 years, enactment had a minimal effect on all sentential variables. In a second experiment, prior enactment had long-term effects on the degree to which children's spontaneous stories about the toys resembled the previous sentences that they had been given to imitate. Long-term effects, however, did not extend to retention of syntax. Enactment appears to increase both young children's interest in a sentence imitation task and the amount of semantic encoding in which they engage. Its effect, however, is mediated by the degree of mastery of relevant linguistic rules.Some of these data were presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Detroit, April 1983. The authors would like to thank Lorraine Chiasson, Judith Codd, and Susan Saba for their assistance with the data analysis.     

Prevalence of renewal of problem behavior during context changes

Renewal is defined as the reemergence of a previously eliminated behavior following a context change. Determining the prevalence of this effect in clinical practice would allow clinicians to better anticipate the reemergence of problem behavior, such as when a patient is discharged from a treatment facility to return to their home. The current consecutive, case-series analysis determined the prevalence and magnitude of renewal when implementing behavioral treatments for problem behavior. Across 182 context changes, renewal was observed 77 times (42.3%). In the first session following the context change, problem behavior rates increased by a factor of 3 and then decreased across successive sessions. These results indicated that renewal effects may be common, but are also transient and return to rates observed before context changes.     

Standard errors of prediction for the vineland adaptive behavior scales

When a scale has been administered to the same person more than once, the question arises whether variation in obtained scores is due to measurement error or whether it reflects actual change in the examinee's functional level. This article offers standard errors of prediction and confidence intervals for the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS) that can help in making such decisions where these scales are concerned. The values presented here were derived from the normative data provided in the VABS manuals.     

Core self‐evaluations and subjective well‐being in the U.S. and the Philippines: The moderating role of self‐construal

Extant literature has shown that the compound personality variable core self‐evaluations (CSE) is associated with various psychological outcomes. However, there is a dearth of research on CSE across cultures. Consistent with self‐construal theory, because there can be differences in self‐construals within and between cultures, the present study examined the moderating role of culture on the relation between CSE and subjective well‐being while also allowing for individual differences in self‐construal in the US and the Philippines. In both countries, CSE positively predicted subjective well‐being. Notably, the association between CSE and subjective well‐being was stronger in the US than in the Philippines. In addition, independent self‐construal strengthened the positive impact of CSE on subjective well‐being especially in the US. Overall, CSE positively predicts subjective well‐being; however, the relationship depends on not only the cultural context, but also on individual differences in self‐construal.     

Evaluating the Face Validity of the ICECAP-O Capabilities Measure: A “Think Aloud” Study with Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Patients

The ICECAP-O index of capabilities measure for older people is intended to be used in the evaluation of health and social care interventions. Focusing on quality of life, rather than health or other influences on quality of life. This study evaluated the face validity of the self-administered ICECAP-O capabilities measure for older people by investigating how participants interpret and respond to questions using the cognitive interviewing technique. Twenty patients with osteoarthritis of the knee or hip participated in a cognitive interview whilst completing the ICECAP-O capabilities measure. Cognitive interviews were conducted using the concurrent ‘think aloud’ design. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim and analysed (i) using a standardised classification scheme to identify response problems and (ii) qualitatively thematically analysed to explore the nature of the problems that the participants experienced when completing the measure. Problems were identified in 7 % of participants’ responses. The majority of problems identified were comprehension problems. Thematic analysis highlighted the extent to which participants’ distinguished between functioning and capability. Cognitive interviewing was a valuable technique for pre-testing the face validity, acceptability and content validity of the ICECAP-O capabilities measure. Participants had minimal difficulties completing the ICECAP-O capabilities measure. Those difficulties identified have prompted suggestions for improving the measure.     

Academic cheating as a function of defense mechanisms and object relations

This study examined relationships between academic cheating behaviors by using self-reports of past cheating behavior, providing a situational experiment with the opportunity to cheat, and evaluating defense mechanisms and object relations as measured by the Defense Mechanisms Inventory. Subjects included 75 female and 8 male university students ranging in age from 18 to 51 years (M=25.5, SD=6.9). Analysis showed variations in students' self-reported cheating history relative to their measured object relations status and type of defense mechanisms. Actual cheating in the experimental setting was not significantly related to any of these variables. Findings are discussed based on a critique of heterogeneity of the cheating construct.     

Mechanisms of mindfulness: emotion regulation following a focused breathing induction

The current study investigated whether a 15 min recorded focused breathing induction in a normal, primarily undergraduate population would decrease the intensity and negativity of emotional responses to affectively valenced picture slides and increase willingness to remain in contact with aversive picture slides. The effects of the focused breathing induction were compared with the effects of 15 min recorded inductions of unfocused attention and worrying. The focused breathing group maintained consistent, moderately positive responses to the neutral slides before and after the induction, whereas the unfocused attention and worry groups responded significantly more negatively to the neutral slides after the induction than before it. The focusing breathing group also reported lower negative affect and overall emotional volatility in response to the post-induction slides than the worry group, and greater willingness to view highly negative slides than the unfocused attention group. The lower-reported negative and overall affect in response to the final slide blocks, and greater willingness to view optional negative slides by the focused breathing group may be viewed as more adaptive responding to negative stimuli. The results are discussed as being consistent with emotional regulatory properties of mindfulness.