Parallel response selection in dual-task situations

Semantic priming and response priming were studied in a dual-task procedure. In two experiments, reaction times to the first and second stimuli were faster when the finger required for the Task 1 response was the same as the finger required for the Task 2 response. Such priming suggests that Task 2 response information was generated prior to the completion of Task 1 response selection. These data pose a potential challenge to the response-selection bottleneck (RSB) theory of dual-task performance, since they may indicate a violation of the discrete-stage processing assumption on which the underlying locus-of-slack logic depends. Accommodating these data while preserving the essential bottleneck character of RSB theory may be possible but may also alter the very nature of the bottleneck itself.     

Voluntary task switching: chasing the elusive homunculus

In the voluntary task switching procedure, subjects choose the task to perform on a series of bivalent stimuli, requiring top-down control of task switching. Experiments 1-3 contrasted voluntary task switching and explicit task cuing. Choice behavior showed small, inconsistent effects of external stimulus characteristics, supporting the assumption of top-down control of task choice. Switch costs were smaller when subjects chose to switch tasks than when instructed by an external cue. Experiments 4-6 separated choice costs from switch costs. These findings support models of task switching that incorporate top-down processes in accounts of switch costs. The degree to which task switching procedures capture top-down versus bottom-up processes may depend on the extent of environmental support provided by the procedure.     

A device for concurrent bilateral measurement of outer eyelid closures in the rabbit

This paper describes a transducer that allows for the concurrent recording of outer eyelid closure on both the left and the right eyes of a rabbit. The device makes use of voltage induced across a current-carrying conductor when the conductor is exposed to a magnetic field perpendicular to its axis (the Hall effect). The transducer is relatively compact, inexpensive, and allows the animal to be loosely restrained.     

Deficient inhibitory control in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

The purpose of this study was to examine two executive control processes — response inhibition and re-engagement of responses after inhibition in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Thirty-three children with ADHD and 22 normal control children of similar age (7 to 11 years) and mean IQ (107) were tested with the change paradigm. ADHD subgroups were defined by the context in which the ADHD symptoms predominated (in the home only; at school only; and in both, i.e., pervasive ADHD). Children with marked oppositional defiant or conduct disorder were excluded. Children with ADHD exhibited deficits in inhibitory control and in response re-engagement. Deficits were greatest in pervasive ADHD and, to a lesser extent, in those with ADHD limited to the school context. ADHD limited to the home context showed the least deficit. These results replicate an earlier study that found deficient inhibitory control in pervasive ADHD and demonstrate that the deficit in ADHD involves a second aspect of executive control.We are grateful to Anne Rhodes and Isobelle Williams for their assistance in the conduct of this research. This research was supported by grants from Health and Welfare Canada and the Medical Research Council of Canada. This paper was prepared with the assistance of Medical Publications, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario.     

The loss of repetition priming and automaticity over time as a function of degree of initial learning

Two experiments were performed to investigate the buildup of repetition priming in a lexical decision task with repeated presentations and its decline over the course of 2 months. Priming was found to accumulate as a power function of presentations and to decline as a power function of time. Accuracy measures indicated that the loss rate of priming was unaffected by the amount of initial priming. Response time measures indicated the same result when the experiments were analyzed separately; however, when the data were combined, increased initial priming was associated with greater losses in priming over time. The data were interpreted in terms of automaticity, and the power function decline in priming was taken as support for memory-based models of automaticity. Possible ways to incorporate forgetting into memory-based theories of automaticity are discussed.     

Effects of event rate and display time on sustained attention in hyperactive,normal, and control children

Two experiments were conducted to determine whether hyperactive boys have a unique deficit in sustained attention. Groups with DSM-III diagnoses of attention deficit disorder (ADDH), conduct disorder (CD), ADDH+CD, and learning disorder were compared with normal controls on the Continuous Performance Task. In Experiment 1, stimulus presentation rate (stimulus onset asynchrony, SOA) and display time were varied to manipulate attentional demand, and speed and accuracy of performance were measured. The ADDH group was uniquely affected, with less accurate performance at the fastest and slowest SOA. To distinguish the effects of time on task and SOA, the duration of each SOA condition was held constant in Experiment 2. The poorer performance of the ADDH group at the fastest SOA was no longer evident. This finding indicates that the deficit of sustained attention in boys who have ADDH is associated with a greater susceptibility to refractory effects, which is influenced by practice.This research was supported by the Ontario Mental Health and Ruth Schwartz Foundations through a graduate fellowship awarded to P. Chee and a research grant to R. Schachar, G. Logan, and R. Wachsmuth. Dr. Schachar was also supported by the Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation. This article is based, in part, on a doctoral dissertation submitted by the first author to the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. The authors thank Dr. John Lovering and the staff of the Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, The Hospital for Sick Children, for their cooperation in the conduct of this study. This paper was prepared with the assistance of the Medical Publications Department, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto.     

You learn it in your heart: transformative learning theory and clinical pastoral education

This article offers a broad overview of transformative learning theory focusing primarily on the rational and affective dimensions of the theory. As a comprehensive theory of adult learning, transformative learning theory seeks to articulate a process by which persons make meaning of their experiences and their lives. The theory provides a solid educational basis for the learning process in CPE. A list of major sources in the theory is included.     

Building a business case for developing supportive supervisors

A key theme from the previous commentaries is that the business case for developing supportive supervisors needs to be stronger for organizations to make the investments necessary to develop supportive supervisors. There are time constraints and other practical considerations for those in the role of supervisor that may get in the way of supportive supervision unless supervisor support is recognized as a valuable business expense (Ellinger, 2013; Zeni, MacDougall, Chauhan, Brock, & Buckley, 2013). As such, in our response to the commentaries, we present the findings of an additional analysis based on the data from our original sample that examine the relationship between supportive supervision (as rated by subordinates) and supervisor performance and promotability (as rated by the supervisor's boss). We provide evidence that highly supportive supervisors are seen as more promotable and as better performers than are supervisors who are less supportive. Having empirical evidence that shows that upper‐level leaders believe that supportive management contributes to the performance of supervisors is important because upper‐level leaders are the ones making decisions in organizations about what is valued and promoted.