Positive overgeneralization and Behavioral Approach System (BAS) sensitivity interact to predict prospective increases in hypomanic symptoms: a behavioral high-risk design

Recent work has identified Behavioral Approach System (BAS) sensitivity as a risk factor for the first onset and recurrence of mood episodes in bipolar disorder, but little work has evaluated risk factors for the prospective development of hypomanic symptoms in individuals at risk for, but without a history of, bipolar disorder. The present study used a prospective behavioral high-risk design to evaluate the impact of positive overgeneralization, a cognitive correlate of risk for hypomania, on hypomanic symptoms in individuals with high vs. moderate BAS sensitivity, but without a history of mood elevation. Hierarchical linear regressions indicated that upward positive overgeneralization and BAS sensitivity interacted to predict increased levels of hypomanic symptoms at follow-up, controlling for initial hypomanic symptoms. The pattern of this interaction was such that positive overgeneralization predicted higher levels of hypomanic symptoms among high-BAS, but not moderate-BAS, individuals. Thus, the self-reported tendency to experience grandiose increases in confidence following success may confer additional risk for mood elevation among individuals already at risk for developing bipolar disorder. Potential implications for prevention and treatment are discussed.     

The effects of high-preference problems on the completion of nonpreferred mathematics problems

Failure to initiate and remain engaged in academic tasks can have long-lasting effects for students. In this study, we investigated the effects of high-preference sequences on both digits correct per minute and latency to initiate nonpreferred mathematics problems for 3 students with emotional and behavioral disorders. We found that high-preference sequences had negligible positive effects on rate of problem completion but had larger effects on problem initiation. This study replicates and extends prior work on the effects of high-preference sequences on mathematics problem initiation and completion.     

Anxiety, advice, and the ability to discern: feeling anxious motivates individuals to seek and use advice

Across 8 experiments, the influence of anxiety on advice seeking and advice taking is described. Anxious individuals are found to be more likely to seek and rely on advice than are those in a neutral emotional state (Experiment 1), but this pattern of results does not generalize to other negatively valenced emotions (Experiment 2). The relationships between anxiety and advice seeking and anxiety and advice taking are mediated by self-confidence; anxiety lowers self-confidence, which increases advice seeking and reliance upon advice (Experiment 3). Although anxiety also impairs information processing, impaired information processing does not mediate the relationship between anxiety and advice taking (Experiment 4). Finally, anxious individuals are found to fail to discriminate between good and bad advice (Experiments 5a-5c), and between advice from advisors with and without a conflict of interest (Experiment 6).     

Evaluative conditioning may occur with and without contingency awareness

Evaluative conditioning (EC) is considered to play an important role in the attitude formation. One of the ongoing debates in this field concerns the impact of contingency awareness (i.e., awareness of the contingent relationship between conditioned and unconditioned stimulus, CS–US) on the EC occurrence. Despite the claims that EC does not require awareness of CS–US contingencies, the recent studies have claimed just the opposite. However, a number of methodological issues can be raised to undermine those claims. In two experiments, we tried to eliminate potential faults and sought to learn whether EC occurs with or without contingency awareness of either US identity or US valence. We report significant EC effects both with and without contingency awareness. These results provide support for the claim that the EC effects might be produced by independent mechanisms linked to awareness. We also argue that those mechanisms are differently captured by available measures of EC.     

Perceived Racism and Encouragement Among African American Adults

The effects of spirituality, racial socialization, and ethnic pride on encouragement in the face of racism among African American adults (N= 201) were investigated. The negative relationship between perceived racism and encouragement disappeared when spirituality, ethnic pride, and a racial socialization history were entered into the regression equation. Se investigaron los efectos de la espiritualidad, la socialización racial y el orgullo étnico sobre el ánimo para enfrentarse al racismo entre adultos Afroamericanos (N = 201). La relación negativa entre el racismo percibido y el ánimo desapareció cuando se introdujeron en la ecuación regresiva la espiritualidad, el orgullo étnico y una historia de socialización racial.     

False Memory Is in the Details: Photographic Details Differentially Predict Memory Formation

Although false memory formation is a well‐documented phenomenon, the strength and rates of false memory formation vary across studies. Research indicates that the types of details provided in suggestions differentially influence memory formation, with some details enhancing and others impeding memories. This study explored the facilitation of false memories using doctored photographs, by manipulating the presence of salient familiar and unfamiliar details within photographs. Over three interviews, 82 participants viewed four photographs allegedly provided by parents. One was a doctored photograph depicting a hot‐air balloon ride, in which the presence of salient self‐relevant and unfamiliar details was varied. Participants rated the strength of their memory and associated memory characteristics for the events. Including self‐relevant details without unfamiliar details resulted in the highest memory ratings and greater increases in memory characteristic ratings. Memories were weakest when both details were provided. The theoretical implications of the findings are discussed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Absolutely independent axiomatizations for countable sets in classical logic

The notion of absolute independence, considered in this paper has a clear algebraic meaning and is a strengthening of the usual notion of logical independence. We prove that any consistent and countable set in classical prepositional logic has an absolutely independent axiornatization.     

Further evidence of the intricacy of memory span

Memory span was measured for lists of verbal items constructed such that the items in the first half of the list were of one category and those of the second half were of another. In Experiment 1, the lists consisted of digits and words (e.g., 2, 8, 7, horse, cow, sheep or horse, cow, sheep, 2, 8, 7); in Experiment 2, they consisted of words from the same semantic domain and words from different semantic domains; in Experiments 3 and 4, they consisted of words that rhymed and words that did not rhyme. A category-order effect occurred in each experiment: Span was larger when the digits, same-domain words, or rhyming words occurred in the first half of the list than when they occurred in the second half. These findings suggest that memory span is more complex than is generally assumed.