A Comparison of Expert Ratings and Self-Assessments of Situation Awareness During a Combat Fatigue Course

The current study compared expert-observer ratings of situation awareness (SA) with subjective self-ratings of SA in Norwegian military academy cadets during a summer combat survival course. The cadets (N?=?30) completed an 8-day combat survival course characterized by sleep and food deprivation, continuous operations, and altered circadian entrainment cues. Results indicated that self-ratings of SA did not correlate consistently with expert-observer SA ratings, and self-ratings were consistently higher than expert-observer ratings. The results are congruent with expected effects of these extreme conditions on cognition and self-awareness, demonstrate a pronounced self-enhancement bias and suggest that subjective measures of SA are not likely to provide valid estimates of SA under extreme conditions.     

Hume,Goodman and radical inductive skepticism

Goodman concurs in Hume’s contention that no theory has any probability relative to any set of data, and offers two accounts, compatible with that contention, of how some inductive inferences are nevertheless justified. The first, framed in terms of rules of inductive inference, is well known, significantly flawed, and enmeshed in Goodman’s unfortunate entrenchment theory and view of the mind as hypothesizing at random. The second, framed in terms of characteristics of inferred theories rather than rules of inference, is less well known, but provides a compelling view of inductive justification. Once the two accounts are clearly delineated, one can see that both are driven by a single deep conviction: that inductive justification can only be understood in terms of our actual inductive practice.     

Depression and cognitive sequelae registered within the first year among young Danish TBI survivors

The aim of the study was to determine the proportion of depression and cognitive sequelae among young (15-30 years) Danish TBI survivors referred to interdisciplinary evaluation through a nationwide government-initiated health initiative. The cross-sectional study is based on data from the “Danish register for young adults with acquired brain injury” on TBI survivors included from October 2013 to December 2016. The main measures were Major depression inventory, Trail making test A and B, Fluency, Word learning with selective reminding, Matrix reasoning, Coding and Glasgow outcome scale - extended (GOS-E). During the study period, 131 young TBI survivors were referred to one of five national outpatient clinics. Ninety-six had complete data and of these 14.6% fulfilled the ICD-10 diagnostic criteria for depression and 34.4% had cognitive sequelae. An association was found between depression and cognitive sequelae (p = 0.004). Patients with both depression and cognitive sequelae (n = 10) had a significantly lower mean score on GOS-E (p = 0.0001). Depression and cognitive sequelae were frequent and associated with a poorer global functional outcome among young TBI survivors referred within a year after trauma. This finding and the notion that only 20% of the expected TBI population was referred to this nationwide health initiative indicate an unacknowledged need for interdisciplinary follow-up.     

Visual half-field symmetry in orientation perception

The perception of orientation in the left and right visual half-fields has been investigated. No evidence for interfield differences was obtained for the discrimination of single lines by line matching or in magnitude of the systematic orientation distortion in orientation contrast and rod-and-frame experiments. Furthermore, increasing the time interval between test and comparison lines in successive matching provides no evidence for a differential operation of short-term spatial memory in the two hemispheres. It is concluded that hemispheric asymmetries do not arise at the level of sensory processing of spatial signals.     

New branches on the Tree of Knowledge. Challenges for systemic family therapists

Faced with today's challenges, I question whether the framework for family therapy provided by systemic thinking is sufficient when working with children and teenagers. The aim of this paper is not to argue for an eclectic model for therapy, but rather to encourage a critical dialogue between various bodies of knowledge. The paper raises the discussion of how family therapists relate to knowledge external to the therapy field. Contemporary developmental psychology, neurobiology, behavioural genetics and group socialization theory are highlighted as useful bodies of knowledge for family therapists. Examples from clinical practice are used to illustrate this.