Weather as Ecological Events

Gibson’s (1979 Gibson, J. J. (1979/1986). The ecological approach to visual perception. New York: Psychology Press. (Original work published 1979) [Google Scholar]/1986) definition of ecological events suggests that they are different types of change. Weather events exemplify all three varieties that Gibson outlined and can: (1) change the layout of surfaces, (2) change the color or texture of surfaces, and (3) change surface existence. Wind can bring temporary and enduring changes at the ground surface. Clouds can affect visual experiences on the ground through the amount and type of sunlight that is available. Precipitation in the form of rain, ice, and snow can create, disrupt, deform, or destroy surfaces at or on the ground. In this way, weather can change both the optical characteristics of surfaces (e. g., texture, reflectivity, transparency) as well as the affordances of the surfaces (e.g., wetting of surfaces reduces contact friction; high winds change the ease of passing through the medium of air, etc.). We present a taxonomy of weather events based on Gibson’s (1979 Gibson, J. J. (1979/1986). The ecological approach to visual perception. New York: Psychology Press. (Original work published 1979) [Google Scholar]/1986 Gibson, J. J. (1979/1986). The ecological approach to visual perception. New York: Psychology Press. (Original work published 1979) [Google Scholar]) classification of terrestrial events and provide some suggestions for future research.     

Infant crying: Acoustics,perception and communication

This paper first reviews briefly the literature on the acoustics of infant cry sounds and then presents two empirical studies on the perception of cry and noncry sounds in their social-communicative context. Acoustic analysis of cry sounds has undergone dramatic changes in the last 35 years, including the introduction of more than a hundred different acoustic measures. The study of cry acoustics, however, remains largely focused on neonates who have various medical problems or are at risk for developmental delays. Relatively little is known about how cry sounds and cry perception change developmentally, or about how they compare with noncry sounds. The data presented here support the notion that both auditory and visual information are important in caregivers' interpretations of infant sounds in naturalistic contexts. When only auditory information is available (Study 1), cry sounds become generally more recognizable from 3 to 12 months of age; perception of noncry sounds, however, generally does not change over age. When auditory and visual information contradict each other (Study 2), adults tend to perform at chance levels, with a few interesting exceptions. It is suggested that broadening studies of acoustic analysis and perception to include both cry and noncry sounds should increase our understanding of the development of communication in infancy. Finally, we suggest that examining the cry in its developmental context holds great possibility for delineating the factors that underlie adults' responses to crying.     

Interest and liking: Further sequential effects

This study was designed to investigate subjects’ interest and liking preferences for stimuli varying in type and level of familiarity. Subjects were presented with stimulus material in the form of slides, and were asked to view the slides firstly without instruction, and then twice more in order to rate the material for interest and liking. Half the subjects were asked to rate liking before interest, and half rated interest before liking. Results showed that interest ratings were relatively unaffected by the rating sequence, whereas ratings of liking were affected: when ratings of likingpreceded interest ratings, familiar items were preferred to less familiar items, but when ratings of liking were madeafter interest ratings, ratings of liking for less familiar items were preferred to more familiar items. This study forms part of the work of the Leicester Aesthetics Research Group. The work was supported by a grant from the Research Board, University of Leicester.     

Continuing in Mathematics: A Longitudinal Study of the Attitudes of High School Girls

The mathematics attitudes (determined by ratings on the Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitudes Scales) of ninth grade girls of similar intellect who subsequently took one to four years of college preparatory math were compared in 1975 and 1978 (n = 84). Math enrollment groups differed significantly on the following scales: Usefulness of Mathematics, Confidence in Learning Mathematics, Teacher (perceived attitude toward the student as a learner of mathematics), and Effectance Motivation in Mathematics as assessed both in Grades 9 and 12, and on the Math as a Male Domain Scale as assessed in Grade 12. From Grade 9 to 12, scores on the Attitude toward Success in Math Scale became significantly more positive.     

The effect of subject's race and other's race on judgments of causality for success and failure

This study examined the proposition that blacks and whites make dispositional attributions for an in-group's positive behaviors and an out-group's negative behaviors. The study also examined whether this positive in-group bias was caused by dislike of the out-group or belief in a stereotype. Thus, blacks and whites made attributions to black and white others who succeeded or failed on tasks for which there was either no stereotype or a more negative stereotype of whites than of blacks. An out-group other's failure on both tasks was attributed to lack of ability more than was an in-group other's failure. This finding suggests that the in-group bias is caused by dislike of the out-group. Furthermore, in success conditions subjects' attributions to the in-group or out-group other did not differ. It was suggested that these attributions may result from a combination of an in-group bias and a polarized appraisal.     

Complexity and colour preferences in chicks of different ages

Five- and six-day old chicks were found to prefer a complex stimulus to a simple one, whilst 2-day old ones showed no such preference; but a red stimulus, whether simple or complex, tended to be preferred at both age levels when it was paired with a non-coloured complex stimulus. Preference for complexity may be usefully viewed in any species in the context of the behavioural development of the individual.     

Elevation in Response to Entertainment Portrayals of Moral Virtue

Media psychologists have long puzzled over how individuals can experience enjoyment from entertainment such as tragedies that often elicit profound feelings of sadness. The present research examines the idea that a focus on “meaningful” entertainment and affective responses identified as “elevation” may provide a framework for understanding many examples of sad or dramatic entertainment. The results of this study suggest that many types of meaningful cinematic entertainment feature portrayals of moral virtues (e.g., altruism). These portrayals, in turn, elicit feelings of elevation (e.g., inspiration) that are signified in terms of mixed affect and unique physical responses (e.g., lump in throat). Ultimately, elevation also gives rise to motivations to embody moral virtues, such as being a better person or helping others.