Early locus of a linguistic variable in a fast priming task

The syllable and the morpheme are known to be important linguistic variables, but is such information involved in the early stages of word recognition? Syllable‐morpheme information was manipulated in the early stage of word naming by means of the fast priming paradigm. The letters in the prime were printed in a mixture of lower‐ and upper‐case letters. The change from lower to upper case occurred either at a syllable‐morpheme boundary, before the boundary, or after it (e.g., reTAKE, rETAKE, or retAKE) creating either an intact pair or a broken one. The target was always in lower case (e.g., retake). The results of Experiments 1 and 2 revealed that intact syllable and morpheme information facilitated word naming at a short Stimulus Onset Asynchrony (below awareness) but not at a long SOA, suggesting that the use of such information is automatic. A second set of experiments attempted to determine if syllable information alone could facilitate word processing. In Experiments 3 and 4, monomorphemic words were divided either at, before, or after the syllable boundary (e.g., rePEL, rEPEL, or repEL). The primes were all pseudomorphemic in the sense that the initial syllables could appear as a morpheme in other words (e.g., restate) but were not morphemic in the target words (e.g., repel). The second syllable was neither morphemic nor pseudomorphemic. Using the same SOAs as in Experiments 1 and 2, intact syllables were found to be facilitative at the short SOA, but not at the long SOA. Thus, the syllable plays a role in an early stage of word recognition. Whether morphemes that are not syllables are facilitative is still to be determined in this paradigm.     

The values of psychoanalytic psychotherapists at two points in time (1979 vs. 1993): A cross-over comparative study

Our purpose in this study is to view theories of psychotherapy from a general social-political context, especially insofar as they pertain to values. Beginning with Weisskopf-Joelson’s (1980) thesis that theories of psychotherapy may be “perceptual houses” with their own unique value structures, we studied the values of psychoanalytic psychotherapists within the framework of Rokeach’s ( 1968) system. Through the Rokeach Value Survey, we examined the values held by a group of psychoanalytic trainees in 1979 and those held by a group of practicing psychoanalysts in 1993. Because neither group of subjects can be regarded as randomly representative of the universe of psychoanalysts, we regard the resultant data as evocative and informative rather than definitive. Nonetheless, we examined the extent to which value profiles for the psychoanalytic trainees of 1979 were similar or dissimilar to those of practicing psychoanalysts in 1993. Such comparisons at the least provide some general indication as to whether values have shifted in the universe within this time period. Findings are presented about specific patterns of values, and implications are discussed. There appears to be more consistency than difference in values among the psychoanalytically-oriented psychotherapists we studied, lending support to this discipline’s designation of a “perceptual house” insofar as its values are concerned.     

Why there is no error in the direct theory of perception

According to Gibson's direct theory, perception is an achievement, not a process. Perceptual error, therefore, is the failure to perceive. Taken in isolation, this assertion leads to implausible consequences, but taken together with other assertions of Gibson, it may be understood, without contradiction, to mean that there is no absolute error in perception. Whether perception is successful or not is determined by the context in which the perceptual act occurs.     

Creative Pseudo-Reality as a Defensive Factor in Jewish Wit: A Dialectical Perspective

Theoretical dynamics of ethnic humor are juxtaposed with Jewish wit, showing that there is a distinct factor which operates in the Jewish humor response to oppression. Drawing from Ziv's (1986) rich anthology of research and case studies, this factor is conceptualized as creative pseudo-reality. It is hypothesized that Jewish wit features this element of self-effacing humor besides the factors which it shares with the ethnic humor of other marginal groups. The implicit ability to construct a perceived environment which is bound neither to reason nor to logic, is seen as the last line of defense for an oppressed minority whose other options have been denied. Irony and triumph, suggested as key elements in this factor, are illustrated in annotated stereotypical excerpts of Jewish wit. Throughout the analysis, the dialectic principle—maintaining the co-existence of inconsistent dynamics—is highlighted in contrast to the reductionistic either/or approach commonplace in psychological and sociological discourse.     

Schizophrenic performance on form E of Cattell's 16PF test.

Form E of Cattell's 16PF test was administered to 515 hospitalized schizophrenics. This sample was compared to Cattell's standardization population for both raw scores and sten scores. Comparisons were made between males and females, acute patients and chronic patients, and amongst three categories of schizophrenia (paranoid, undifferentiated, schizo-affectives). The results indicate that the "schizophrenic profile," reported in previous research with Form A, did not obtain expected differentiations among schizophrenic categories. The question of the usefulness of Form E in diagnosing schizophrenia was raised.     

Self-help with diagnosis (a self-administered semi-projective device).

Studied the validity of a self-administered semi-projective packet of tests and questionnaires developed to provide quick, inexpensive information preparatory, or ancillary, to further diagnostic examinations. Brief writeups of inferences derived from the packet of tests were compared to diagnostic inferences based on from one to three psychiatric interviews, and with full examinations, which included psychiatric and social work interviews and extensive psychological testing. Generally, high comparability between the packet and both criteria were shown on questions of global diagnostic impression, character and defense, central conflicts, and basic ego functions; and significant information was often added by the packet to the data collected in diagnostic interviews. The patients filled out the packet forms conscientiously, and their written self-reports indicated that some patients could learn and otherwise benefit just from performing this task.     

Baby X

The present study investigated adult behavior while interacting with a three-month-old infant under conditions in which the child was introduced as a boy, as a girl, or with no gender information given. Gender labels did not elicit simple effects, but rather interacted significantly with the sex of the subject on both toy usage and physical contact measures. There was a stronger tendency for both male and female adults to utilize sex-stereotyped toys when the child was introduced as a girl. Most of the findings, however, reflected a differential response of men and women to the absence of gender information. In this condition, male subjects employed a neutral toy most frequently and handled the child least; in contrast, females used more stereotyped toys and handled the child more. All subjects attempted to guess the gender of the child (with “boy” guesses more frequent, although the child was actually female) and all justified their guess on the basis of stereotyped behavioral or physical cues like strength or softness.