The effects of age of acquisition on object perception

The age at which an item is acquired has been shown to affect naming latency of words, objects, and faces. The phonological completeness hypothesis situates the effects of age of acquisition (AoA) at speech output. Ellis and Lambon Ralph (2000) argue that the effects of age of acquisition result from a “mapping” between representations of orthography to phonology. However, neither “phonological completeness” nor “mapping” of phonological representations can account for the effects of age of acquisition on familiarity decisions to celebrities' faces and names (Moore & Valentine, 1999). This is because a familiarity decision requires a push button response rather than a verbal response. Moore and Valentine argued that exposure to new exemplars of information peg out the parameters of recognition for that type of information that will facilitate subsequent learning. Thus, the prediction is derived that age of acquisition will affect other perceptual classifications of any familiar stimulus class. We report two object classification experiments, where participants were required to decide whether the pictures of objects, presented at brief exposures, were real or not real. Age of acquisition and word frequency were manipulated in separate experiments. An advantage for early acquired objects was observed, which we argue, cannot be attributable to an effect of word frequency. We further argue, that a phonological locus alone cannot account for the advantage for early acquired objects in this classification task. The results are discussed in terms of additional multiple perceptual input loci as proposed by the Moore and Valentine (1999) set up of a specialised processing system hypothesis (SSPS).     

Moderators of the Relationship Between Maternal Substance Abuse Symptoms and Preschool Children’s Behavioral Outcomes

While maternal substance use problems increase the likelihood of behavior problems in children, child outcomes are varied, leading to interest in understanding additional family factors that contribute to the development of behavior problems in children impacted by maternal substance abuse. The purpose of this study is to examine harsh parenting and family conflict as potential moderators of the relationship between symptoms of maternal substance use problems and child externalizing behavior problems. The non-clinical sample for this study included 250 low-income parents whose preschool age children were enrolled in Head Start programs in a Southern state. This study utilized data collected during two home visits, an average of 10 months apart, with data on family functioning and maternal symptoms of substance use problems collected at the first time point and child externalizing behavior collected at the second time point. Over one-third of the children (38.1 %) had clinically elevated externalizing behavior scores. We used regression analysis to examine whether harsh parenting or family conflict moderated the relationship between maternal substance use symptoms and child externalizing behavior. In this community sample, we found that in the absence of family risks related to harsh parenting and family conflict, maternal symptoms of substance use problems did not have a significant impact on child externalizing behavior in preschool children. However, when high levels of family conflict or harsh parenting were present, symptoms of maternal substance use problems increased the risk of externalizing behavior problems in children.     

Food Insecurity: Validation of a Two-Item Screen Using Convergent Risks

Food insecurity impacts children in over 10 % of US homes with negative effects for health, cognitive, and behavioral development. Experiences of food insecurity in childhood also carry negative consequences across the lifespan. Families cannot be connected with needed services when needs are unidentified. However, early detection is essential if the harmful effects of food insecurity are to be limited for children. An efficient and valid screen of food insecurity is needed for use by practitioners such as childcare providers, home visitors, or other intervention program staff working with low-income families. The present study provides evidence of validity for a 2-item screen for food insecurity as conducted by childcare providers. Concurrence with a wide range of convergent validity indicators suggests that 2 items can sufficiently identify families with food insecurity. Convergent indicators included other basic needs, physical health, environmental safety, caregiver mental health, parenting practices, and parenting stress. Sensitivity and specificity analyses also support the use of this screen. This study is the first to document the utility of a brief screen for food insecurity by childcare providers. With an efficient screen, these front-line service providers can be a valuable resource to identify and combat FI and its deleterious effects on children.     

A Study of Learning Curves: III. The Relationship Between a Growth Curve and the Arc Cotangent Function

(Watson, Robert I. The Clinical Method in Psychology. New York: Harper, 1951. Pp. 779.) Reviewed by Sidney Kosofsky.     

The Perils of Shape Shifting: Harry Potter and Christian Fundamentalism

Some conservative Christians have condemned the Harry Potter series, claiming that the stories lure children into witchcraft and contain a completely relative morality. In this article, I posit that both of these concerns are deeply related to fundamentalist Christians’ perceptions of appropriate selfhood. Employing Robert Jay Lifton’s work on the evolving shape of postmodern personalities, I demonstrate that J. K. Rowling’s portrayal of magic is what Lifton would call “symbolic self-projection.” In so doing, I will show that these fundamentalist concerns are really objections to the notion that a “centered self” is the locus of moral control. The divide between the world of Harry Potter and that of fundamentalist Christians is really a struggle over the appropriate shape of the human personality.     

An investigation of schizotypy in injecting amphetamine users

A fully dimensional view of psychiatric disorder conceptualises schizotypy as both a continuous personality trait and an underlying vulnerability to the development of psychotic illness. Such a model would predict that the structure of schizotypal traits would closely parallel the structure of schizophrenia or psychosis. This was investigated in injecting amphetamine users (N = 322), a clinical population who have high rates of acute psychotic episodes and subclinical schizotypal experiences. Schizotypy was assessed using the Oxford-Liverpool Inventory of Feelings and Experiences (O-LIFE), and psychotic symptoms were assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS). Using confirmatory factor analysis, O-LIFE subscale scores were mapped onto latent variables with their more clinical counterparts from the BPRS. A four-factor model comprising positive schizotypy, disorganisation, negative schizotypy, and disinhibition provided the best model fit, consistent with prior research into the structure of schizotypy. The model provided a good fit to the data, lending support to the theory that schizotypy and psychotic symptoms map onto common underlying dimensions.