Accuracy in judgments of aggressiveness

Perceivers are both accurate and biased in their understanding of others. Past research has distinguished between three types of accuracy: generalized accuracy, a perceiver's accuracy about how a target interacts with others in general; perceiver accuracy, a perceiver's view of others corresponding with how the perceiver is treated by others in general; and dyadic accuracy, a perceiver's accuracy about a target when interacting with that target. Researchers have proposed that there should be more dyadic than other forms of accuracy among well-acquainted individuals because of the pragmatic utility of forecasting the behavior of interaction partners. We examined behavioral aggression among well-acquainted peers. A total of 116 9-year-old boys rated how aggressive their classmates were toward other classmates. Subsequently, 11 groups of 6 boys each interacted in play groups, during which observations of aggression were made. Analyses indicated strong generalized accuracy yet little dyadic and perceiver accuracy.     

Minimal Requirements for the Emergence of Learned Signaling

The emergence of signaling systems has been observed in numerous experimental and real‐world contexts, but there is no consensus on which (if any) shared mechanisms underlie such phenomena. A number of explanatory mechanisms have been proposed within several disciplines, all of which have been instantiated as credible working models. However, they are usually framed as being mutually incompatible. Using an exemplar‐based framework, we replicate these models in a minimal configuration which allows us to directly compare them. This reveals that the development of optimal signaling is driven by similar mechanisms in each model, which leads us to propose three requirements for the emergence of conventional signaling. These are the creation and transmission of referential information, a systemic bias against ambiguity, and finally some form of information loss. Considering this, we then discuss some implications for theoretical and experimental approaches to the emergence of learned communication.     

Allocentric-heading recall and its relation to self-reported sense-of-direction

A sense of direction (SOD) computes the body's facing direction relative to a reference frame grounded in the environment. The authors report on three experiments in which they used a heading-recall task to tap the functioning of a SOD system and then correlated task performance with self-reported SOD as a convergent test of the task's construct validity. On each heading-recall trial, the participant judged the photographer's allocentric heading when photographing a pictured outdoor scene. Participants were tested over the full range of SOD ratings in Experiment 1, and in Experiments 2 and 3 heading-recall at the SOD extremes was tested. In all experiments, there was wide variability in heading-recall accuracy that covaried with self-rated SOD. Parametric manipulation of various task parameters revealed some likely functional properties of the SOD system. The results support the psychological reality of a SOD system and further indicate that there are large individual differences in the efficacy with which the system functions.     

Modern prejudice toward gay men and lesbian women: assessing the viability of a measure of modern homonegative attitudes within an Irish context

The authors examined the psychometric properties of the gay and lesbian versions of the Modern Homonegativity Scale (MHS-G and MHS-L) in samples of heterosexual Irish university students (Ns=179 and 353). Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that the MHS-G and MHS-L were unidimensional and factorially distinct from a well-established measure of old-fashioned homonegativity (Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men Scale [ATLG]). Alpha coefficients for both versions of the MHS were good (range = .81 to .86), with 95% confidence intervals suggesting that unsatisfactory levels of scale score reliability (i.e., alpha values < .70) were relatively implausible. As hypothesized, participants' level of modern homonegativity correlated positively with their levels of old-fashioned and modem racism, patriotism, nationalism, religious fundamentalism, social dominance, and perceived political conservatism. The authors also observed a substantial inverse correlation between modern prejudice toward sexual minorities and support for their human rights. Finally, a series of multiple regression analyses indicated that, despite their interrelatedness, modern and old-fashioned homonegativity, particularly as they pertain to gay men, possess differential predictors. Limitations of the current series of studies and the need to conduct further research on attitudes toward sexual minorities within an Irish context are also discussed.     

Socioeconomic differences in children's health: how and why do these relationships change with age?

The effects of socioeconomic status (SES) on health are well documented in adulthood, but far less is known about its effects in childhood. The authors reviewed the literature and found support for a childhood SES effect, whereby each decrease in SES was associated with an increased health risk. The authors explored how this relationship changed as children underwent normal developmental changes and proposed 3 models to describe the temporal patterns. The authors found that a model's capacity to explain SES-health relationships varied across health outcomes. Childhood injury showed stronger relationships with SES at younger ages, whereas smoking showed stronger relationships with SES in adolescence. Finally, the authors proposed a developmental approach to exploring mechanisms that link SES and child health.     

Interteaching: A strategy for enhancing the user-friendliness of behavioral arrangements in the college classroom

"Interteaching" is an arrangement for college classroom instruction that departs from the standard lecture format and offers an answer to criticisms commonly directed at behavioral teaching techniques. This approach evolved from exploratory use of small-group arrangements and Ferster and Perrott's (1968) "interview technique," leading ultimately to a format that is organized around focused dyadic discussion. Specific suggestions are offered that might enable both seasoned and novice instructors to incorporate this or similar arrangements into their classrooms. This approach retains some key characteristics of Keller's personalized system of instruction and precision teaching, but offers greater flexibility for strategies that are based on behavioral principles.     

Accuracy and bias in the perception of the partner in a close relationship

Partners in close relationships can be both accurate and biased in their perceptions of each other. Moreover, sometimes a bias can lead to accuracy. The authors describe a paradigm for the simultaneous measurement of accuracy and bias in 2-person relationships. One prevalent bias in close relationships is assumed similarity: Does the person think that his or her partner sees the world as he or she does? In a study of 238 dating and married heterosexual couples, the authors found evidence for both bias and accuracy: the bias effects were considerably stronger, especially when the measure was linked to the relationship. They found little or no evidence for gender differences in accuracy and bias.