Duration processing in children as determined by time reproduction: implications for a few seconds temporal window

From research carried out over recent years using different experimental paradigms, it has become apparent that central information processing is temporally segmented into sequential units of a few seconds. This segmentation presumably reflects a neuronal process of temporal integration (TI) which automatically binds successive events into temporal units. Support for such TI comes, for example, from studies on temporal reproduction where standards up to approximately 2-3 s are reproduced veridically. Using this paradigm of temporal reproduction, we investigated the effect of normal cognitive development of sensory modality and of the range of presented standards on TI. Sixty children aged 6-7, 9-10 and 13-14 years reproduced visual or auditory standard durations ranged from 1 to 5.5 s or from 1 to 3 s. The results showed that durations of approximately 2 s were reproduced correctly, whereas those longer than 2.5 s were under-reproduced in the three age groups. For standards shorter than 2 s substantial age-related differences were revealed: the youngest group displayed significant over-reproduction comparing to older subjects. These observations indicate that the upper limit for TI is a stable feature across the different age groups. Furthermore an age-related modulation within the temporal window of the operating TI seems to be linked to cognitive development.     

Spectral cues which influence monaural Localization in the horizontal plane

An extensive series of behavioral tests was carried out to determine what region, or regions, of the sound spectrum were critical for locating sounds monaurally in the horizontal plane. Seven subjects were requested to locate narrow bands of noise centered at different frequencies, combinations of these noise bands, low-pass, high-pass, and broadband noise. As observed in an earlier study, increasing bandwidth did not necessarily lead to improved localization performance until the band became broad, including, for example, all frequencies above 4.0 kHz. What seems to be happening is that listeners perceive narrow bands of noise originating from restricted places in the horizontal plane which may differ one from another depending on the frequency composition of the stimulus. In several instances, if two noise bands were presented simultaneously, the resulting stimulus was located with reasonable accuracy provided each component, when presented singly, was perceived as emanating from clearly separate azimuthal positions. If, however, two noise bands, which were perceived to originate from approximately the same azimuthal position when presented singly, were now presented simultaneously, the resulting stimulus still was perceived to originate from the same region of the horizontal plane. This, then, is a case where augmenting the spectral content of the stimulus does not bring about improved performance. We suggest that the expression of judgmental biases in the apparent location of a band of noise may prove useful for understanding why some stimuli of specified width and center frequency are localizable while others are not.     

Development of the Behavioral Evaluation of Disorders of Sleep Scale

We describe the development, preliminary psychometric properties, and cross-validation of the Behavioral Evaluation of Disorders of Sleep (BEDS: Schreck 1997/1998). Parental reports of problem sleep behavior in elementary school aged children 5 years to 12 years were collected for two samples. With the first sample, an exploratory factor analysis of parental responses (N = 307) resulted in reports of five distinct types of sleep problems: Expressive Sleep Disturbances; Sensitivity to the Environment; Disoriented Awakening; Sleep Facilitators; and Apnea/Bruxism. Four of these factors (Expressive Sleep Disturbances; Sensitivity to the Environment; Disoriented Awakening; and Apnea) were confirmed with the new participant sample (N = 1054). These factors of problem sleep behavior were similar to findings in other studies, with the exception of the exclusion of bedtime behavior problems.     

The linear regression line as a judgmental aid in visual analysis of serially dependent A-B time-series data

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of different types and magnitudes of serial dependence (first-order moving average and autoregression) and of linear regression lines within experimental phases on the agreement between results of visual and results of statistical data analyses. The stimulus material consisted of computer-simulated A-B-design data graphs. The time series were generated with a constant variance, varying degrees of treatment effects (changes in level), five conditions of serial dependency, and with or without linear regression lines. The material was presented to three groups of student raters (n₁=52, n₂=14, n₃=17) who rated the treatment effect in the graphs on a five-point scale. These ratings were compared with statistical results (time-series analyses). Each group had to interpret 70 graphs, 35 of which had regression lines. Data were analyzed by means of two three-factor and one four-factor ANOVA and by graphic display. The linear regression lines generally enhanced the agreement between the raters' estimations and the statistical results. Serial dependency also increased the agreement between the two analysis methods. However, with strong autoregression processes in the data, the raters tended to overestimate treatment effects relative to time-series analysis.Parts of this study were presented at the World Congress on Behavior Therapy, Washington, DC, December 11, 1983. The authors wish to express their appreciation to Christoph Bonk and Willi Ecker for their extensive collaboration in data analysis and for their assistance in carrying out the study.     

The evaluation of effectiveness and likability of gender-role congruent and gender-role incongruent leaders

The aim of the present study was to test the gender-role congruency hypothesis in the context of assumed leadership. Three hundred and forty-two female and 154 male Dutch students participated in a laboratory experiment. We expected that gender-role incongruent leaders would be evaluated less favorably than gender-role congruent leaders and that male subjects would devalue the gender-role incongruent leaders to a greater extent than would female subjects. In addition, we were interested in the relative contribution of the effectiveness and likability measures to the devaluation of gender-role incongruent leaders. The gender-role congruency hypothesis was supported by the data from male subjects only, and then only for the effectiveness measures. The results are discussed in the context of two meta-analyses concerning the impact of gender stereotypes on judgments of competence and evaluation of leaders.     

Struktura poprawnych trybów sylogizmun-terminowego

Allatum est die 22 Octobris 1957     

The Effect of Shame‐Proneness,Guilt‐Proneness,and Internalizing Tendencies on Nonsuicidal Self‐Injury

Nonsuicidal self‐injury is especially common in adolescents and young adults. Self‐injury may be related to shame or guilt—two moral emotions—as these differentially predict other maladaptive behaviors. Using a college sample, we examined not only how shame‐proneness, guilt‐proneness, and internalizing emotional tendencies related to self‐injury, but also whether these moral emotions moderate the relation between internalizing tendencies and self‐injury. High shame‐proneness was associated with higher frequencies of self‐injury. High guilt‐proneness was associated with less self‐injury, although this effect was mitigated at higher levels of internalizing tendencies. These results suggest shame‐proneness is a risk factor for self‐injury, while guilt‐proneness is protective.