Belief,credence, and norms

There are currently two robust traditions in philosophy dealing with doxastic attitudes: the tradition that is concerned primarily with all-or-nothing belief, and the tradition that is concerned primarily with degree of belief or credence. This paper concerns the relationship between belief and credence for a rational agent, and is directed at those who may have hoped that the notion of belief can either be reduced to credence or eliminated altogether when characterizing the norms governing ideally rational agents. It presents a puzzle which lends support to two theses. First, that there is no formal reduction of a rational agent’s beliefs to her credences, because belief and credence are each responsive to different features of a body of evidence. Second, that if our traditional understanding of our practices of holding each other responsible is correct, then belief has a distinctive role to play, even for ideally rational agents, that cannot be played by credence. The question of which avenues remain for the credence-only theorist is considered.     

Words translated in sentence contexts produce repetition priming in visual word comprehension and spoken word production

Previous research with words read in context at encoding showed little if any long-term repetition priming. In Experiment 1, 96 Spanish–English bilinguals translated words in isolation or in sentence contexts at encoding. At test, they translated words or named pictures corresponding to words produced at encoding and control words not previously presented. Repetition priming was reliable in all conditions, but priming effects were generally smaller for contextualized than for isolated words. Repetition priming in picture naming indicated priming from production in context. A componential analysis indicated priming from comprehension in context, but only in the less fluent language. Experiment 2 was a replication of Experiment 1 with auditory presentation of the words and sentences to be translated. Repetition priming was reliable in all conditions, but priming effects were again smaller for contextualized than for isolated words. Priming in picture naming indicated priming from production in context, but the componential analysis indicated no detectable priming for auditory comprehension. The results of the two experiments taken together suggest that repetition priming reflects the long-term learning that occurs with comprehension and production exposures to words in the context of natural language.     

Association of Stress Management Skills and Perceived Stress with Physical and Emotional Well-Being Among Advanced Prostrate Cancer Survivors Following Androgen Deprivation Treatment

Advanced prostate cancer (APC) is associated with disruptions that compromise health related quality of life (HRQOL). Treatment often includes androgendeprivation therapy (ADT), which results in a range of side effects (e.g., fatigue, urinary dysfunction) that further impact HRQOL. Despite these challenges, there are limited evaluations of the impact of stress and stress management skills on HRQOL among APC survivors on ADT. This study evaluated relationships among stress, stress management skills, and HRQOL, and it was hypothesized that better stress management skills would relate to greater physical and emotional well-being by mitigating perceived stress levels. Participants (N = 77) were 69.7 years old (SD = 9.8), 18.6 months post-treatment (SD = 17.5), and ethnically diverse (65 % Non-Hispanic White, 13 % Hispanic, 21 % African-American). Measures included the Measure of Current Status for stress management skills, the Perceived Stress Scale for perceived stress, and the Medical Outcomes Study—Short Form (MOS SF-36; physical functioning and emotional well-being subscales) for HRQOL. Direct effects and mediation models were evaluated to determine the relationships between perceived stress, stress management skills, and HRQOL domains, controlling for relevant covariates. Stress management skills and perceived stress were significantly associated with physical functioning (β = .24, p < .05 and β = ?.43, p < .01, respectively) and emotional well-being (β = .35, p < .01 and β = ?.64, p < .01, respectively). Regression analyses supported the hypothesis that reduced perceived stress mediated the relationship between stress management skills and both physical functioning and emotional well-being. These results demonstrate that one way stress management skills may impact HRQOL is by lessening ongoing perceptions of stress.     

Moderating Effects of Neurocognitive Abilities on the Relationship between Temperament and Global Functioning

Clear links between temperament, psychopathology, and neuropsychological functioning exist; however the interrelations among temperament and neuropsychology, and their impact on functioning in typically developing children is not as well understood. This study examined the degree to which neuropsychological functioning, as measured by the NEPSY, moderates the impact of temperament on global functioning, as measured by the Children's Global Assessment Scale (CGAS), in 74 typically developing preschoolers. Temperament was assessed via parent ratings on the Children's Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ) and teacher ratings on the Temperament Assessment Battery for Children – Revised (TABC-R). Moderation analyses revealed significant interactions between verbal-executive skills and both child emotionality and lack of task persistence in predicting global functioning. The interaction patterns were mostly consistent across measures and indicated that when lower neurocognitive scores were coupled with higher levels of expressed negative emotions and more difficulties in task persistence, global functioning was at its lowest. In contrast better neurocognitive functioning mitigated the impact of high expressed emotions on global functioning. These findings support past literature and indicate that emotional and cognitive functioning interact to effect young children's global functioning.     

Narrative Persuasion,Transportation, and the Role of Need for Cognition in Online Viewing of Fantastical Films

Two studies examine narrative persuasion in the context of fantastical narratives viewed on a computer. In Study 1, participants (N = 160) used a personal computer to watch one of two short films that dealt with a contemporary social issue (privacy or the environment) set in an imaginary future. Neither film resulted in those who viewed it holding stronger story-consistent beliefs. However, viewers of the film about privacy who experienced higher levels of transportation were more likely to possess story-consistent privacy beliefs than those less transported or than viewers of the environmental film. Additionally, higher need for cognition was associated with stronger beliefs and intentions across both films, and viewers of the privacy film who were higher in need for cognition were most likely to endorse story-consistent privacy beliefs, perhaps due to extra cognitive effort demanded by the online delivery mode of the narrative. To explore this, in Study 2 (N = 126), participants were shown the privacy-themed film in either a low or high distraction condition. This successfully manipulated transportation, but in high distraction conditions, transportation was not significantly related to endorsement of story-consistent beliefs.     

Group interventions for patients with cancer and HIV disease: part IV. Clinical and policy recommendations

Group interventions have assumed a growing role in primary prevention and supportive care for cancer and HIV disease. Earlier sections of this Special Report examined empirical findings for these interventions and provided recommendations for future research. The current section offers brief recommendations for service providers, policymakers, and stakeholders. Group services now occupy an increasingly prominent place in primary prevention programs and medical settings. In previous sections of this Special Report (Sherman, Leszcz et al., 2004; Sherman, Mosier et al., 2004a, 2004b) we examined the efficacy of different group interventions at different phases of cancer or HIV disease, considered characteristics of the intervention and the participants that might influence outcomes, and discussed mechanisms of action. Methodological challenges and priorities for future research were highlighted. In this, the final section, we offer brief recommendations for service providers, policymakers, and other stakeholders. We consider some of the barriers that constrain use of empirically-based group interventions and note how these programs might be implemented more widely and effectively.     

On the way to assess emotions in animals: do lambs (Ovis aries) evaluate an event through its suddenness, novelty, or unpredictability?

Appraisal theories provide a framework that gives insight into emotions and could allow comparisons across species. According to these theories, events are first evaluated on their suddenness, novelty, and unpredictability. The authors examined the ability of lambs (Ovis aries) to evaluate an event according to these 3 criteria through 3 tests. The lambs responded to suddenness with a startle response coupled with an increase in heart rate and to novelty with an orientation response coupled with an increase of vagal activity. There was no clear evidence that lambs can detect the predictability of an event. Those results support the usefulness of appraisal theories to assess emotion in animals.     

Suspensions and detentions in an urban,low-income school: punishment or reward?

Disciplinary records for 3rd through 8th grade students (n = 314) in an inner-city, public school were examined for one school year to assess students' variation in response to discipline. Rates of disciplinary referrals were compared for students who received no detentions or suspensions throughout the year (never group n = 117), students who received one or more detention or suspension in the fall but not in the spring (fall group n = 62), and students who received one or more detention or suspension in the fall and one or more detention or suspension in the spring (fall + spring group n = 75). Results indicated that during the fall, the fall group had nearly equivalent rates of referrals to the fall + spring group; however, the fall group exhibited significantly lower rates of referrals during winter and spring that were nearly equivalent to the never group, as would be expected for a punishment procedure. In contrast, the fall + spring group evidenced increases in referrals across the year, suggesting the possibility that detentions and suspensions were functioning as rewards for this group. The fall + spring group was rated by teachers and peers at mid-year as highly aggressive, lacking social skills, and high on hyperactivity, whereas the fall group and the never group were statistically equivalent on teacher and peer ratings. Implications for mental health programs for urban schools are discussed, especially the need for alternatives to detention and suspension for the subset of students who account for the majority of school discipline.     

An examination of the cognitive processes involved in childhood obsessive-compulsive disorder

The cognitive theory of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is the most widely accepted account of the aetiology and maintenance of this disorder in adults. This paper investigated whether cognitive processes were evident in a sample of children with a primary diagnosis of OCD. Using an idiographic approach, as proposed by the Obsessive-Compulsive Cognitions Working Group, this paper assessed cognitive appraisals of responsibility, probability, severity, thought-action fusion, self-doubt and cognitive control. Ratings of these cognitive appraisals were obtained across a sample of children with OCD, and were compared with ratings from a clinical control group of anxious children and a non-clinic control group. It was hypothesised that consistent with the cognitive theory of OCD, children in the OCD group would display higher estimations of these cognitive processes in comparison to anxious and non-clinic children. Results of this investigation provide preliminary support for a cognitive conceptualisation of OCD during childhood. OCD children reported significantly higher ratings of responsibility, severity, thought action fusion and less cognitive control in comparison to non-clinic children. OCD children could also be clearly differentiated from anxious children on ratings of cognitive control. Implications of this investigation are discussed and directions for future research are highlighted.     

The impact of verbal feedback about blushing on social discomfort and facial blood flow during embarrassing tasks

To investigate whether verbal feedback about blushing influences subsequent social discomfort or blushing itself, changes in facial blood flow and ratings of blushing and embarrassment were investigated in high (N=28) and low scorers (N=28) on the Blushing Propensity scale while singing and reading aloud, and while listening to audiotapes of their performance. After each task half of the participants were told that they had blushed, and the rest were told that they had not blushed. Blood flow increased progressively in participants with high blushing propensity scores who were given "blushing" feedback, but not in the other participants. This finding suggests that expecting to blush may become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Verbal feedback about blushing strongly influenced subsequent social discomfort, and mimicked the effects of blushing propensity on ratings of embarrassment and blushing intensity. In sum, the findings support the view that preconceptions about blushing propensity are shaped by past learning experiences, that concern about blushing is a major source of discomfort in embarrassing situations, and that these concerns are often unrelated to the actual intensity of blushing.