Insightful problem solving and emulation in brown capuchin monkeys

We investigated problem solving abilities of capuchin monkeys via the “floating object problem,” a task in which the subject must use creative problem solving to retrieve a favored food item from the bottom of a clear tube. Some great apes have solved this problem by adding water to raise the object to a level at which it can be easily grabbed. We presented seven capuchins with the task over eight trials (four “dry” and four “wet”). None of the subjects solved the task, indicating that no capuchin demonstrated insightful problem solving under these experimental conditions. We then investigated whether capuchins would emulate a solution to the task. Seven subjects observed a human model solve the problem by pouring water from a cup into the tube, which brought the object to the top of the tube, allowing the subject to retrieve it. Subjects were then allowed to interact freely with an unfilled tube containing the object in the presence of water and objects that could be used to solve the task. While most subjects were unable to solve the task after viewing a demonstrator solve it, one subject did so, but in a unique way. Our results are consistent with some previous results in great ape species and indicate that capuchins do not spontaneously solve the floating object problem via insight.     

Effects of Neuro-Linguistic Psychotherapy on psychological difficulties and perceived quality of life

Aims: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of Neuro-Linguistic Psychotherapy on psychological difficulties and perceived quality of life of clients who came for psychotherapy during free practice. Method: A total of 106 psychotherapy clients were randomly assigned to a therapy group or a control group. The outcome was assessed by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Personality Disorders (SCID II) with respect to clinical symptoms and by the Croatian Scale of Quality of Life (KVZ) with respect to Quality of Life. The therapy group received the measures at pre-, post- and five-months follow-up occasions, whereas the control group received them initially and after a period of three months. Results: In the therapy group, as compared to the control group, there was a significant decrease of clinical symptoms and increase in the quality of life. With respect to clinical symptoms, effect sizes were 0.65 at post-measurement and 1.09 at follow-up, indicating a substantial reduction of symptom strain, which is comparable to the well established effects of Cognitive Behavior Therapy. We also found a significant increase in perceived quality of life after therapy, as compared to the wait-list control group, with effect sizes between 0.51 and 0.73. Therapeutic improvements were still present five months after the end of therapy, showing further development in the same direction. Conclusions: Neuro-linguistic psychotherapy is an efficient intervention, which is on a par with other, well-established psychotherapeutic techniques.     

But I thought I knew that: using confidence estimation as a debiasing technique to improve classroom performance

Our assessments of how much we know about a particular topic can be affected by our confidence in our knowledge. Research in judgement and decision making has shown that people are generally overconfident in their judgements or decisions, and that this bias can be reduced with training. We present two studies designed to assess whether debiasing can be accomplished in a classroom setting and whether it has practical value for students. In Experiment 1 simply providing confidence estimates as questions were answered was enough to debias students in a series of course‐related quizzes. In Experiment 2, weekly quizzes were given in a computer‐administered format. Students were given feedback for each question as it was completed. We found that accuracy on quizzes improved as confidence declined. We also found that students performed better in the course when they received debiasing training. We suggest that debiasing training prompted students to develop and use metacognitive skills that allowed them to assess their knowledge more accurately. Given this, training for these skills has practical value in the classroom. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gender differences in social cognitive determinants of exercise adoption

Gender differences in lifestyle-related mortality and morbidity suggest a need to investigate gender-specificity of health behaviour change process and factors influencing it. We tested whether changes in self-efficacy beliefs and planning, as well as the level of social support predict change in exercise. Finnish men and women, aged 50–65 years, at an increased risk for type 2 diabetes were recruited from health care centres to participate in the Good Ageing in Lahti Region (GOAL) Lifestyle Implementation Trial. Psychosocial factors were measured with questionnaires and exercise with 7-day physical activity diaries at baseline and at 3 months. At baseline, no gender differences were found in self-efficacy and planning, but men reported receiving more social support than women. At 3 months, women reported having formed more action plans for changing their exercise routines than men. Among women, increase in self-efficacy and planning predicted increase in exercise. Among men, changes in planning played a less significant role. The more salient role of planning for women than for men, and the fact that women receive less social support, may reflect life circumstances allowing less spontaneous lifestyle decisions and a lower acceptance of lifestyle changes by their social environment.     

In search of the “Rescue Personality”. A questionnaire study with emergency medical services personnel

The construct of the “Rescue Personality” as claimed by Mitchell (1983) in the course of Critical Incident Stress Debriefing was investigated in a sample of 173 Emergency Medical Services (EMSs) personnel. As hypothesized EMS personnel scored lower on neuroticism and openness but higher on conscientiousness and risk and competition seeking compared with a norm sample. By contrast, EMS personnel showed lower scores for agreeableness and no differences for extraversion. Duration of EMS service was not associated with personality except for extraversion preliminarily supporting a predisposition model. Furthermore, EMS volunteers did not differ from EMS professionals regarding personality, again except for extraversion. These results provide first evidence for most of Mitchell’s assumptions concerning the “Rescue Personality”. Implications for vocational choice, prevention and crisis intervention are discussed.     

Hindsight bias after receiving self-relevant health risk information: A motivational perspective

The phenomenon of hindsight bias was explored in the context of self-relevant health risk information. Participants in a community screening estimated their cholesterol level (foresight measure) before receiving positive or negative feedback based on their actual cholesterol level. Hindsight estimations were then assessed twice: once immediately after the feedback, and again several weeks later. While the unexpected positive feedback group showed no systematic recall bias, hindsight estimations of individuals receiving unexpectedly negative feedback showed a dynamic change over time. Immediately after the feedback, participants' recollection of their expected cholesterol level were shifted towards their actual cholesterol level (hindsight bias). In contrast, several weeks later, foresight estimations were recalled as less accurate than they had been (reversed hindsight bias). These data might reflect a change of the motivational focus from "hot affect" and fear control, which occur immediately after receiving negative feedback, to danger control, which occurs some time after the feedback, as proposed by the dual process model.     

LOSING SAMMY: A CATALYST FOR EXITING AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP

Abstract

Miscarriage is a relatively prevalent occurrence in our society. The reported incidence of this event indicates that 20% of all women experience a miscarriage. Women who have miscarried report friends and family responding in ways that seem to try to reduce the impact and importance of the event. This leaves the grieving woman with a sense of little support or understanding of what she had just experienced. Furthermore, the experiences reported by women who have had a miscarriage are quite different from those reported by other individuals who have experienced other types of loss such as a spouse, partner, parent, or friend. Women who have miscarried report a lack of recognition that they have experienced a loss. Little is known about how society views miscarriage or why individuals respond in such an apparently unsupportive manner to a woman who has had a miscarriage. The present work sought to determine whether miscarriage is an unrecognized loss and to assess the meaning of miscarriage to others. Although the results indicate miscarriage is viewed as a loss, it is a loss with minimal grounded or valuative meaning for others, which suggests that the cultural norm of silence surrounding early pregnancy and miscarriage should be lifted