Differential reinforcement of vocal duration

The effects of differential reinforcement of vocal duration were examined in a series of experiments in which each of 28 subjects (Ss) emitted a vowel whenever a light was flashed. In the first phase of each experiment, a penny was dispensed after each of 20 responses. In the second and subsequent phases, only those responses whose durations exceeded a criterion were reinforced; when 10 successive reinforcements were presented, one phase was terminated and the next begun. The criterion for reinforcement in each phase was determined by a different schedule in each of six experiments; it ranged from 80 to 120 per cent of the mean duration of the 10 terminal responses in the prior phase. Differential reinforcement effected a large and systematic change in the duration of vocal responses as long as the responses selected for reinforcement had a sufficiently high probability of occurrence. This requirement was formulated as the difference between the criterion duration and the mean duration of the terminal responses in the prior phase, divided by their standard deviation. This statistic, named the shaping index, was correlated with the number of responses emitted before each phase was terminated. It was found to be large whenever the shaping process failed. Many Ss failed to tact the reinforcement contingency despite marked changes in their vocal behavior and extensive probing by a questionnaire, administered at the end of each session.     

Causal Inference from Noise

Correlation is not causation is one of the mantras of the sciences—a cautionary warning especially to fields like epidemiology and pharmacology where the seduction of compelling correlations naturally leads to causal hypotheses. The standard view from the epistemology of causation is that to tell whether one correlated variable is causing the other, one needs to intervene on the system—the best sort of intervention being a trial that is both randomized and controlled. In this paper, we argue that some purely correlational data contains information that allows us to draw causal inferences: statistical noise. Methods for extracting causal knowledge from noise provide us with an alternative to randomized controlled trials that allows us to reach causal conclusions from purely correlational data.     

Anxiety symptom interpretation in high-anxious, defensive high-anxious, low-anxious and repressor sport performers

For the first time in a sport setting this study examined the intensity and direction of the competitive state anxiety response in collegiate athletes as a function of four different coping styles: high-anxious, defensive high-anxious, low-anxious and repressors. Specifically, the study predicted that repressors would interpret competitive state anxiety symptoms as more facilitative compared to high-anxious, defensive high-anxious, and low-anxious performers. Separate Multivariate Analyses of Variance (MANOVA) were performed on the intensity and direction subscales of the modified Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2). A significant main effect was identified for trait worry revealing that low trait anxious athletes reported lower intensities of cognitive and somatic anxiety and higher self-confidence and interpreted these as more facilitative than high trait anxious athletes. The prediction that performers with a repressive coping style would interpret state anxiety symptoms as more facilitative than performers with non-repressive coping styles was not supported.     

Caregiver perceptions of Parent Peer Support Services within the Wraparound Service Delivery Model

This qualitative study examined caregivers’ perceptions of Parent Peer Support (PPS) services, embedded in the Wraparound service delivery model for youth with severe emotional and behavioral disturbances (SEBD), to identify potential engagement facilitators and barriers. Wraparound is a holistic process involving multiple formal and informal providers to collectively implement an individualized, family-centered plan of care focused on maintaining youth with SEBD within the community. PPS are frequently referred to caregivers involved in Wraparound to provide additional support. Caregivers (n?=?35) previously involved in an evaluation of one state’s Wraparound model participated in a single 30–60-min interview. Interview questions examined caregivers’ expectations about PPS, reasons for accepting or refusing PPS, and caregivers’ perceived impact of PPS. Transcribed interviews were analyzed using strategies from grounded theory methodology. Perceived need, as well as desire for shared experiences, knowledge, and assistance in accessing resources, facilitated accepting the PPS service. Barriers included inaccurate expectations of PPS, time limitations on Wraparound services, escalating youth behavior requiring more restrictive placements, scheduling difficulties, perceived unresponsiveness, and caregivers feeling overwhelmed by the number of providers. Caregivers indicated that PPS provided several benefits for themselves, youth in the care, and their families. However, potential barriers to ongoing engagement included perceived intrusiveness, as well as misalignment between services offered and caregivers’ needs.     

Does suppressing negative emotion impair subsequent emotions? Two experience sampling studies

Motivation and Emotion - Suppression is one of the most commonly studied emotion-regulation strategies and a variety of studies have shown that suppression of emotions is associated with adverse...     

Academic Performance of Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Served in a Self-Contained Setting

This study describes the academic, social, and behavioral performance of elementary and secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) receiving services in a self-contained school for students with serious behavior problems, with an emphasis on how school adjustment and problem behavior patterns predict academic performance. Results revealed that elementary and secondary group scores were well below the 25th percentile on reading, math, and written expression measures. Further, a seven variable model representing academic, social, and behavioral domains was able to differentiate between age groups explaining 54% of the variance and correctly classifying 78.26% (n = 18) of the elementary students and 84.21% (n = 16) of the secondary students. Findings also suggested that behavioral variables (e.g., school adjustment, externalizing, and internalizing) were predictive of broad reading and broad written expression scores, with school adjustment (a protective factor) accounting for the most variance in the three-variable model. Limitations and recommendations for future research are addressed.     

Emotional exchange in mother-child dyads: stability, mutual influence, and associations with maternal depression and child problem behavior.

This study examined the stability of the child and maternal affective expression and maternal responsiveness and the mutual influence of child and maternal expression of emotion. The authors tested whether maternal depression and child problem behavior were associated with the pattern of emotional exchange within the mother-child dyads. The sample consisted of 69 mother-child dyads (children aged 2-5 years), with 32 of the mothers having childhood-onset depression. Mothers were mostly stable in their affective expression (positive and negative) and responsiveness, whereas children were only stable in positive expression. Within the dyads, mothers seemed to play a more important role in regulating children's later emotional expression. Maternal depression was associated with concurrent maternal responsiveness and their reduced positive expression over time. Results are discussed in relation to the differential function of parental general positivity and responsiveness and the interpersonal transmission of emotional problems.     

Developing rich and quickly accessed knowledge of an artificial grammar

In contrast to prior research, our results demonstrate that it is possible to acquire rich, highly accurate, and quickly accessed knowledge of an artificial grammar. Across two experiments, we trained participants by using a string-edit task and highlighting relatively low-level (letters), medium-level (chunks), or high-level (structural; i.e., grammar diagram) information to increase the efficiency of grammar acquisition. In both experiments, participants who had structural information available during training generated more highly accurate strings during a cued generation test than did those in other conditions, with equivalent speed. Experiment 2 revealed that structural information enhanced acquisition only when relevant features were highlighted during the task using animation. We suggest that two critical components for producing enhanced performance from provided model-based knowledge involve (1) using the model to acquire experience-based knowledge, rather than using a representation of the model to generate responses, and (2) receiving that knowledge precisely when it is needed during training.