Sharing genes fosters identity fusion and altruism

Researchers have shown that the more genes twins share, the more they care about one another. Here, we examine a psychological mediator of such genetic influences, “identity fusion” (a visceral sense of oneness with them). Results supported this hypothesis. Relative to dizygotic twins, monozygotic twins reported stronger fusion and elevated desire to have contact and share experiences with their twin (Study 1), to forgive and grant favors to their twin after being disappointed by him/her (Study 2), and willingness to make sacrifices for their twin (Study 3). Fusion with the twin mediated the impact of zygosity on these outcomes. These findings demonstrate that genetic relatedness fosters a powerful feeling of union with one’s twin that predicts sharing, tolerance, and self-sacrificial behavior toward him or her.     

继时呈现条件下类别归纳过程的ERPs研究

采用ERP技术对继时呈现条件下类别归纳过程进行了实验研究.使用几何图形为材料,18名被试在单维属性不告知、单维属性告知、双维属性不告知三种条件下完成类别归纳任务.通过对相关ERP成分的分析得出以下结论:(1)在继时呈现归纳材料的情况下,对刺激的加工是在已有背景基础上对后来呈现的刺激进行选择性加工,从而形成类别;(2)成年人与儿童在类别归纳中认知加工方式可能存在不同,当类别归纳的复杂程度增加时,即在需要归纳的属性从一个变为两个的时候,成年人仍然倾向于通过归纳出类别判断规则用于分类任务,而非通过相似性进行判断;(3)继时呈现材料条件下类别归纳任务中出现的P400可能是标志类别归纳过程完成的ERP成分,而且与对刺激属性加工具体过程无关.     

高中生不同类型的沉思对抑郁症状发展的中介作用

探讨不同类型的沉思对抑郁症状变化的中介作用及性别差异。用流调中心用抑郁量表和沉思反应量表等自评量表对512名高中生追踪调查3个月,用层次回归法分析数据。结果表明：（1）男、女生的抑郁情绪、强迫性冥思和反思不存在差异。（2）强迫性冥思对抑郁症状的变化起部分中介作用;反思与第二次抑郁症状不相关,不存在中介作用。（3）女生的强迫性冥思对抑郁症状的变化起部分中介作用;男生的强迫性冥思对抑郁症状变化不存在中介作用。结论不同类型的沉思对抑郁症状变化的中介作用是不同的,并且存在性别差异。     

Gaze following and gaze priming in lemurs

Although primates have often been found to co-orient visually with other individuals, members of these same species have usually failed to use co-orientation to find hidden food in object-choice experiments. This presents an evolutionary puzzle: what is the function of co-orientation if it is not used for a function as basic as locating resources? Co-orientation responses have not been systematically investigated in object-choice experiments, and requiring co-orientation with humans (as is typical in object-choice tasks) may underestimate other species’ abilities. Using an object-choice task with conspecific models depicted in photographs, we provide experimental evidence that two lemur species (Eulemur fulvus, n = 4, and Eulemur macaco, n = 2) co-orient with conspecifics. Secondly, by analysing together two measures that have traditionally been examined separately, we show that lemurs’ gaze following behaviour and ultimate choice are closely linked. Individuals were more likely to choose correctly after having looked in the same direction as the model, and thus chose objects correctly more often than chance. We propose a candidate system for the evolutionary origins of more complex gaze following: ‘gaze priming.’     

主管认知信任和情感信任对员工行为及绩效的影响

采用问卷调查法,检验主管认知信任与情感信任对员工行为及绩效影响的双路径模型。通过结构方程模型分析563份上下级配对数据,结果显示：主管认知信任通过注意聚焦的完全中介作用正向影响员工的任务绩效和组织公民行为。主管情感信任则通过情感承诺的部分中介作用正向影响员工的任务绩效和组织公民行为,即一方面直接影响员工的任务绩效和个体指向公民行为,另一方面通过情感承诺间接影响员工的任务绩效和组织公民行为。并且,主管情感信任对员工行为和绩效的影响作用要大于认知信任的作     

唐代鹦鹉故事的佛教因缘

在唐代289年间,人与鹦鹉演绎了许多美丽凄楚的故事。其中,不少鹦鹉故事蕴含着浓厚的佛教色彩。究其原因,既与当时的社会风气、民众心理有关,也与鹦鹉自身的特性有关。其中,最重要的原因是受印度佛经故事的影响。但鹦鹉故事中所蕴含的佛教已融入了中土传统文化的某些因素。研究这一文化现象,对于了解唐代的社会及其宗教文化有一定的意义。     

Indicative and counterfactual ‘only if’ conditionals

We report three experiments to test the possibilities reasoners think about when they understand a conditional of the form ‘A only if B’ compared to ‘if A then B’. The experiments examine conditionals in the indicative mood (e.g., A occurred only if B occurred) and counterfactuals in the subjunctive mood (A would have occurred only if B had occurred). The first experiment examines the conjunctions of events that reasoners judge to be consistent with conditionals, e.g., A and B, not-A and not-B. It shows that people think about one possibility to understand ‘if’ and two possibilities to understand ‘only if’; they think about two possibilities to understand counterfactual ‘if’ and ‘only if’. The second experiment shows that the possibilities people think about when they understand ‘only if’ are in a different temporal order (e.g., B and A) to the possibilities they think about for ‘if’ (A and B). The third experiment shows that people make different inferences from ‘only if’ and ‘if’ conditionals and counterfactuals. The implications of the results for theories of counterfactual conditionals are considered.     

Group motives in threatening contexts: When a loyalty conflict paradoxically reduces the influence of an anti‐discrimination ingroup norm

The influence of pro‐ versus anti‐discrimination ingroup norms on Swiss nationals' attitudes towards foreigners was investigated as a function of national identification and perceived material ingroup threat. As predicted, results revealed a significant interaction between identification and threat: High identifiers showed a more negative attitude than low identifiers mainly when perceived threat was high. In other words, high identifiers conformed to the pro‐discrimination norm, but showed a counter‐conformity effect for the anti‐discrimination norm. Additional results revealed that high identifiers actually disagreed with the anti‐discrimination norm when perceived threat was high, but that they were more attached to the ingroup. These findings suggest that when the ingroup norm is not an appropriate response to an ingroup threat (i.e. anti‐discrimination norm), high identifiers find themselves in a loyalty conflict: they are unable to simultaneously conform to the group norm and protect the group. This conflict was resolved through a compensatory mechanism: High identifiers distanced themselves from the ingroup norm in order to protect the group (i.e. by increasing negative attitudes towards foreigners) but reinforced other ingroup ties (i.e. by increasing attachment to the ingroup values). Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The influence of code‐oriented versus meaning‐oriented approaches to reading instruction on word recognition in the Spanish language

This study was designed to examine the possible effect of instructional method and grade on the development of the competences used in reading isolated words in a transparent orthography (i.e., Spanish). A cross‐sectional design was used with a sample of 202 children who were learning to read by different instructional methods (code‐oriented vs. meaning‐oriented approaches). The effect of instructional method was analysed on reaction times, latency responses, and misreading on lexical decision and naming tasks. Words varied in frequency, length, and positional frequency of syllables (PFS) and the nonwords varied only in length and PFS. Our prediction was that the differences in reaction times and error performance as a function of the variables that allow us to test the routes—such as lexicality, word frequency, PFS, and word length—would be greater in the individuals who learn by a meaning‐oriented approach, which means that this group would be more affected by unfamiliar and longer words, low PFS, and nonwords in comparison to individuals who learn by a code‐oriented approach. This would support the view that individuals who learn by a meaning‐oriented approach have particular difficulties in naming words under conditions that require extensive phonological computation. Reliable effects of instructional method were found both in reaction times and latency responses and also on misreading in words and nonwords. The findings demonstrate superiority in the sublexical analysis in children who were learning by code‐oriented approaches. However, individuals who were learning by meaning‐oriented approaches had particular difficulties in naming words under conditions that require extensive phonological computation.     

Perceptual processing of partially and fully assimilated words in French

Models of speech perception attribute a different role to contextual information in the processing of assimilated speech. This study concerned perceptual processing of regressive voice assimilation in French. This phonological variation is asymmetric in that assimilation is partial for voiced stops and nearly complete for voiceless stops. Two auditory-visual cross-modal form priming experiments were used to examine perceptual compensation for assimilation in French words with voiceless versus voiced stop offsets. The results show that, for the former segments, assimilating context enhances underlying form recovery, whereas it does not for the latter. These results suggest that two sources of information -- contextual information and bottom-up information from the assimilated forms themselves -- are complementary and both come into play during the processing of fully or partially assimilated word forms.