Methods for the Behavioral,Educational, and Social Sciences: An R package

Methods for the Behavioral, Educational, and Social Sciences (MBESS; Kelley, 2007b) is an open source package for R (R Development Core Team, 2007b), an open source statistical programming language and environment. MBESS implements methods that are not widely available elsewhere, yet are especially helpful for the idiosyncratic techniques used within the behavioral, educational, and social sciences. The major categories of functions are those that relate to confidence interval formation for noncentral t, F, and chi2 parameters, confidence intervals for standardized effect sizes (which require noncentral distributions), and sample size planning issues from the power analytic and accuracy in parameter estimation perspectives. In addition, MBESS contains collections of other functions that should be helpful to substantive researchers and methodologists. MBESS is a long-term project that will continue to be updated and expanded so that important methods can continue to be made available to researchers in the behavioral, educational, and social sciences.     

Memory search following valid and invalid abrupt-onset cues

The impact of abrupt-onset cues on memory search was investigated, where the abrupt-onset cue was a valid (Experiment 1), random (Experiment 2), or irrelevant (Experiment 3) predictor of the location containing the test probe. In Experiment 4, the abrupt-onset cue either preceded or followed the test probe. Sternberg-like functions were obtained in Experiments 1 and 2, with the effects of the abrupt-onset cue localized primarily in the intercept rather than the slope. Experiment 3 demonstrated that a spatially separated and irrelevant abrupt-onset cue increased latency even when all memory probes occurred at the fixation point. In Experiment 4, the robust impact of an abrupt-onset cue vanished, regardless of stimulus onset asynchrony, when it followed the target. We concluded that abrupt-onset cues captured attention regardless of their predictability, manifested as a delaying of search. However, once attention was captured by the target, a subsequent abrupt-onset stimulus had no effect. These results were discussed in terms of diffuse attention and contingent capture models of attention.     

Remembering the forgotten: psychotherapy groups for the nursing home resident

The mental health needs of the long-term nursing home resident receive little attention. It is especially difficult for the more cognitively intact resident to obtain psychological help. An integrated group psychotherapy model that incorporates developmental, cognitive-behavioral, and psychodynamic approaches is described, based on the author's clinical experience in developing and co-leading four groups in three long-term care facilities over a period of ten years. The technical and countertransference challenges of working with this unique population and in this format are described, along with clinical material to illustrate common themes. The success of the groups in improving the morale, sense of community, and quality of life for group members is demonstrated.     

Determinants of Depression Severity and Duration in Canadian Adults: The Moderating Effects of Gender and Social Support

This study examined the effects of 4 subtypes of social support (tangible, affective, positive social interaction, and emotional/informational) and gender on the severity and duration of depressive symptoms within the general adult Canadian population. Data were collected from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS; Statistics Canada, 2002 ). Upon meeting predetermined criteria, 6,316 participants were included in the study. The findings suggest that, overall, positive social interaction was significantly associated with decreases in depression severity; while emotional/informational support was significantly associated with increases in depression severity. Positive social interaction and emotional/informational support appeared to significantly decrease the duration of depression. Interesting gender differences also emerged among the 4 subtypes of social support. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Dispositional and Situational Moderators of the Relationship Between Leader–Member Exchange and Work Tension

This paper examines the relationship between leader–member exchange (LMX) and experienced work tension. The dispositional moderators of positive affectivity (PA) and negative affectivity (NA) and the situational moderator of frequency of interaction with the supervisor are included. We tested these relationships in a sample of 537 employees from various organizations. Specifically, we found that high NA coupled with high LMX produced the highest levels of work tension. Additionally, low frequency of interaction with the supervisor coupled with high LMX produced the highest levels of work tension. Finally, we found that the lowest levels of work tension were reported when individuals had high PA, high LMX, and high frequency of interaction with their supervisors.     

Conceptual Hierarchies in a Flat Attractor Network: Dynamics of Learning and Computations

The structure of people's conceptual knowledge of concrete nouns has traditionally been viewed as hierarchical ( Collins & Quillian, 1969 ). For example, superordinate concepts ( vegetable ) are assumed to reside at a higher level than basic-level concepts ( carrot ). A feature-based attractor network with a single layer of semantic features developed representations of both basic-level and superordinate concepts. No hierarchical structure was built into the network. In Experiment and Simulation 1, the graded structure of categories (typicality ratings) is accounted for by the flat attractor network. Experiment and Simulation 2 show that, as with basic-level concepts, such a network predicts feature verification latencies for superordinate concepts ( vegetable ). In Experiment and Simulation 3, counterintuitive results regarding the temporal dynamics of similarity in semantic priming are explained by the model. By treating both types of concepts the same in terms of representation, learning, and computations, the model provides new insights into semantic memory.