The picture superiority effect in categorization: visual or semantic?

Two experiments are reported whose aim was to replicate and generalize the results presented by Snodgrass and McCullough (1986) on the effect of visual similarity in the categorization process. For pictures, Snodgrass and McCullough's results were replicated because Ss took longer to discriminate elements from 2 categories when they were visually similar than when they were visually dissimilar. However, unlike Snodgrass and McCullough, an analogous increase was also observed for word stimuli. The pattern of results obtained here can be explained most parsimoniously with reference to the effect of semantic similarity, or semantic and visual relatedness, rather than to visual similarity alone.     

Epistemic justification and epistemic luck

Among epistemologists, it is not uncommon to relate various forms of epistemic luck to the vexed debate between internalists and externalists. But there are many internalism/externalism debates in epistemology, and it is not always clear how these debates relate to each other. In the present paper I investigate the relation between epistemic luck and prominent internalist and externalist accounts of epistemic justification. I argue that the dichotomy between internalist and externalist concepts of justification can be characterized in terms of epistemic luck. Whereas externalist theories of justification are incompatible with veritic luck but not with reflective luck, the converse is true for internalist theories of justification. These results are found to explain and cohere with some recent findings from elsewhere in epistemology, and support a surprising picture of justification, on which internalism and externalism are complementary rather than contradictory positions.     

Worker Well-Being: What it Is,and how it Should Be Measured

Applied Research in Quality of Life - Worker well-being is a hot topic in organizations, consultancy and academia. However, too often, the buzz about worker well-being, enthusiasm for new programs...     

Levels of representation in word processing

Abstract

Four experiments are described examining the effects of words frequency, orthographic structure, and letter spacing on a range of tasks designed to tap different levels of representation in word processing. In Experiment 1, the task was lexical decision. Effects of both frequency (high-frequency words were recognized faster than low-frequency words) and orthographic regularity (illegal non-words were rejected faster than legal non-words) were found. In Experiment 2 subjects had to detect a rotated letter within the letter strings. Effects of orthographic structure emerged, with a marked disadvantage for illegal non-words with respect to the other types of string. No difference was found among high-frequency words, lowfrequency words and legal non-words. In Experiment 3, subjects had to detect a letter elevated above the horizontal plan with respect to the rest of the string. Effects of both spatial arrangement of letters and number of letters were found (spaced strings were responded to less accurately than non-spaced strings and seven-letter extra-spaced strings were responded to slower than the other strings). Neither lexical nor orthograpic variables affected this task. In Experiment 4 subjects had to detect the presence of a bold segment contained in one of the letters in the strings. Performance was unaffected by both lexical and spatial variables. The pattern of results is discussed with reference to a multi-stage model of word recognition in which lexical and spatial variables affect processing at different stages. At a feature map level, in which features are extracted from the discontinuities of light intensities, processing is independent of both spatial and lexical factors. At a letter-shape map level, in which spatial relationships between features are coded, spacing between letters affects encoding. At a graphemic map level, in which letter identities and their relative positions within strings are coded, orthographic variables have an effect. Lexicality and frequency affect only subsequent stages of processing, when stored lexical information is retrieved (e.g. for lexical decision).     

Who Benefits from Couple Relationship Education? Findings from the Largest German CRE Study

In evaluation studies on couple relationship enhancement (CRE) programs, researchers are encouraged to also investigate which couples benefit from program participation. The authors qualified 104 university students to offer an evidence-based CRE program. Up to a 15-month follow-up, the participating couples (N = 234) reported a significant decrease in unsolved relationship conflicts. A 2-day-long intensive training led to better results compared with a weekly format regarding dropouts. Couples with lower pretest satisfaction ratings reported significant improvements over time, whereas couples with initial higher ratings reported no change or a deterioration. Further predictors were identified. The findings should be taken into account in future research.     

Differential effects of grammatical gender and gender inflection in bare noun production

In a new series of experiments with the picture-word interference paradigm, we replicated the grammatical gender interference effect in bare noun production in Italian: naming times are slower to picture-word noun pairs sharing the same gender. This effect is independent from the morphological transparency for gender, but responses are significantly slower when the distracters are transparent for gender. Overall, the pattern of results supports the assumption that in bare noun production grammatical gender is always selected, at least in languages like Italian. We assume that the differential effects of the nominal endings are due to the mechanisms involved in the recognition of grammatical gender of the distracter nouns which are sensitive to the morphological transparency for gender: lexical representation of transparent written words leads to a higher level of activation, thus resulting in stronger gender interference.     

Pritchard Versus Pritchard on Luck

This paper argues for a particular account of luck by comparing two distinct versions of the modal account of luck that have been provided by Duncan Pritchard (2005, 2014). More specifically, it argues that there are three respects in which Pritchard’s earlier modal account of luck is preferable to his later account: it accounts better for the fact that luck comes in degrees, it includes a significance condition, and it better acknowledges the subjective nature of luck. The paper then discusses two consequences of the points it makes for epistemology: an alleged pragmatic encroachment, and a particular view on the relation between knowledge, luck, and justification.     

Type A behaviour pattern and attentional bias in relation to anger/hostility, achievement, and failure

Type A subjects are characterised by dysfunctional cognitions related to themes of competitiveness, achievement, and hostility. The present experiment investigated attentional biases for words relevant to the content of these dysfunctional schemata in Type A individuals. After completing the MMPI-2 Type A Scale, subjects completed two alternative versions of a visual probe detection task (administered 4–12 days apart) which contained achievement, failure, and anger/hostility/aggression related words. Prior to testing at time 1, subjects were told that the purpose of the procedure was to collect normative data only. Prior to testing at time 2, subjects were told that performance on the test was known to be closely related to IQ and that they could compare their performance with that of other subjects following completion of the task. Type A subjects directed attention towards anger/hostility/aggression words under low performance motivation conditions but away from such words under high performance motivation conditions. Type A subjects also showed less selective attention to failure words than Type B subjects, and no group differences were detected for achievement related words. The results are discussed with reference to models of dysfunctional cognitive processing, and the role of anger/hostility, in particular, in Type A personality.