The Normative Paradigm of Constitutional Democracy

This piece criticizes traditional formal and procedural conceptions of democracy, which fail to account for the development of contemporary constitutional democracy. The latter is characterized by a substantive dimension with respect to the content of the decisions taken through the democratic process. The validity of such decision is conditioned by the respect and actualization of fundamental rights, which are established by the constitution. The limits and constraints established by the constitution require juridical science to play a critical and programmatic role vis-à-vis the ‘unlawful’ exercise of public powers, when these enter in contrast with the limits imposed by the constitution.     

Improved mental representation of space in beginner orienteers

The purpose of the present study was to monitor any improvement in orienteering skills attributable to acquiring a better mental representation of space. Two groups were examined: the experimental group, who attended 6 mo. of orienteering lessons, versus the control group, who did jogging training instead. Each group, consisting of 20 children, was tested on the Corsi Block-tapping Test, run Forward and Backward, and the Star-Butterfly Test. Pre- and post-tests were administered. In the experimental group, scores increased in mean complexity from pre- to post-test on the Forward and the Backward Corsi tests, while on the Star-Butterfly Test both time and mistakes had decreased after the training. In the control group, mean complexity and Star-Butterfly Test scores were unchanged from pre- to post-test. These results showed that after continual training in orienteering techniques, the orienteering group was able to remember and repeat sequences of events with greater precision than before the training, while these skills were unchanged in the control group after training in jogging.     

Multisensory Assessment of Acoustic Comfort Aboard Metros: a Virtual Reality Study

In this study, a multisensory methodology is used to assess acoustic comfort aboard different real‐world metros by means of subjective annoyance and cognitive performance measures. Two experimental conditions were compared: unimodal versus bimodal. Immersive virtual reality was used to simulate journeys aboard metro coaches. Participants performed four tasks (Rey Test, Verbal Fluency, Backward Counting and Auditory Words Discrimination) while listening to metro sounds (unimodal condition) or while listening to metro sounds within a virtual metro coach (bimodal condition). At the end of each journey, participants reported their degree of noise annoyance. The results showed that cognitive performances were worse in the bimodal than in the unimodal condition. Moreover, the bimodal condition affected negatively the capacity to discriminate words and to count backward. However, reported noise annoyance was higher in the unimodal than bimodal condition. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Five-factor personality traits and age trajectories of self-rated health: the role of question framing

We examined the influence of personality traits on mean levels and age trends in 4 single‐item measures of self‐rated health: general rating, comparison to age peers, comparison to past health, and expectations for future health. Community‐dwelling participants (N = 1,683) completed 7,474 self‐rated health assessments over a period of up to 19 years. In hierarchical linear modeling analyses, age‐associated declines differed across the 4 health items. Across age groups, high Neuroticism and low Conscientiousness, low Extraversion, and low Openness were associated with worse health ratings, with notable differences across the 4 health items. Furthermore, high Neuroticism predicted steeper declines in health ratings involving temporal comparisons. We consider theoretical implications regarding the mechanisms behind associations among personality traits and self‐rated health.     

Eye movements and bisection behavior in spatial neglect syndrome: representational biases induced by the segment length and spatial dislocation of the stimulus

The present study explored behavioral and eye-movement measures in unilateral neglect patients in response to online bisection task (unfilled gap line). Two different tasks supported the bisection performance, a pointing and a grasping strategy. It was explored whether these different strategies may influence subjects' behavioral and eye-movement measures in response to different segment features: segment length (from shorter to longer) and segment spatial dislocation (from right to left spatial location). Consistent spatial biases were found for both bisection responses, fixation count, and duration, as well as for the first fixation count in case of pointing task. An "extreme-left" gradient effect was suggested and discussed, with patients' behavioral and eye measures more impaired. On the contrary, the patients' performance overlaps with the controls' one in case a grasping task. The direct link of visual pointing and grasping strategy, respectively, with the two cortical ventral and dorsal pathways was adduced to explain our results.     

Eye movements and bisection behavior in spatial neglect syndrome: representational biases induced by the segment length and spatial dislocation of the stimulus

The present study explored behavioral and eye-movement measures in unilateral neglect patients in response to online bisection task (unfilled gap line). Two different tasks supported the bisection performance, a pointing and a grasping strategy. It was explored whether these different strategies may influence subjects’ behavioral and eye-movement measures in response to different segment features: segment length (from shorter to longer) and segment spatial dislocation (from right to left spatial location). Consistent spatial biases were found for both bisection responses, fixation count, and duration, as well as for the first fixation count in case of pointing task. An “extreme-left” gradient effect was suggested and discussed, with patients’ behavioral and eye measures more impaired. On the contrary, the patients’ performance overlaps with the controls’ one in case a grasping task. The direct link of visual pointing and grasping strategy, respectively, with the two cortical ventral and dorsal pathways was adduced to explain our results.     

Individual reactions to a multisensory immersive virtual environment: the impact of a wind farm on individuals

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a wind farm on individuals by means of an audio-visual methodology that tried to simulate biologically plausible individual-environment interactions. To disentangle the effects of auditory and visual components on cognitive performances and subjective evaluations, unimodal (Audio or Video) and bimodal (Audio + Video) approaches were compared. Participants were assigned to three experimental conditions that reproduced a wind farm by means of an immersive virtual reality system: bimodal condition, reproducing scenarios with both acoustic and visual stimuli; unimodal visual condition, with only visual stimuli; unimodal auditory condition, with only auditory stimuli. While immersed in the virtual scenarios, participants performed tasks assessing verbal fluency, short-term verbal memory, backward counting, and distance estimations (egocentric: how far is the turbine from you?; allocentric: how far is the turbine from the target?). Afterwards, participants reported their degree of visual and noise annoyance. The results revealed that the presence of a visual scenario as compared to the only availability of auditory stimuli may exert a negative effect on resource-demanding cognitive tasks but a positive effect on perceived noise annoyance. This supports the idea that humans perceive the environment holistically and that auditory and visual features are processed in close interaction.     

A General Population Twin Study of Conduct Problems and the Auditory P300 Waveform

Reduced amplitude of the P300 event-related potential has been consistently associated with a variety of externalising problems, including conduct disorder. The few available genetically-informative studies of these relationships, however, were conducted among adolescents/adults (i.e., at an age when conduct disorder has typically already become manifest). Among 200 general population twins with a mean age of 9 years (range 6–14 years), we studied the relationship between the P300 waveform elicited by an auditory oddball task and the DSM-oriented conduct problems scale of the Child Behavior Checklist 6–18. Conduct problems scores were negatively and significantly correlated (r?=??0.19, p?=?0.01) with P300 amplitude; correlations between P300 amplitude and the other DSM-oriented Child Behavior Checklist scales were non-significant, except for oppositional defiant problems (p?=?0.01). We found moderate heritability estimates for both P300 amplitude (0.58, CI:0.37;0.73) and conduct problems (0.52, CI:0.25;0.70). Bivariate twin analyses indicated that the covariation between these two phenotypes can be explained by additive genetic factors only, with a genetic correlation of ?0.33. An association between reduced P300 amplitude and conduct problems can be substantiated already in childhood, at an age that precedes the most typical onset of conduct disorder. This relationship appears to be genetic in nature. Reduced P300 amplitude can represent a valuable marker for conduct problems, and can contribute to the early identification of children at high-risk for conduct disorder.     

Investigating the relationship between social behaviors and phonological awareness in preschool children

Purpose

This study examined the longitudinal effects of social behaviors in predicting phonological awareness outcomes in 4-year-old children.

Method

One hundred two children (52 boys, 50 girls) were recruited from 11 schools serving low-income neighborhoods in a large metropolitan city and were assessed at the beginning and end of the preschool year. All children received assessments of their phonological awareness skills, expressive vocabulary, non-verbal IQ, and teachers completed behavioral ratings at pretest. At the end of the academic year, children participated in tests of phonological awareness using standardized assessments.

Results

The results of a multiple regression analysis indicated that being excluded by peers contributed up to 3% of the variance in negatively predicting phonological awareness outcomes after controlling for initial phonological awareness skills, expressive vocabulary, and cognition which is a small effect size.

Conclusion

Early peer exclusion can impact negatively on the acquisition of phonological awareness skills in 4-year-old children in preschool. The results of this study suggest that a child's overall behavioral competence and how they are treated by the peer group may play an important role in their ease of academic skill attainment. Given the link between peer exclusion and difficulties with phonological awareness outcomes, additional professional development programs that provide teachers with strategies to create inclusive classrooms may be warranted in preventing against the emergence of maladaptive behaviors at first entry into formal schooling.     

Self-Control and the Self-Regulation of Dieting Decisions: The Role of Prefactual Attitudes,Subjective Norms,and Resistance to Temptation

This article investigates cognitive and motivational decision processes in the pursuit of dieting goals and implements the theory of trying in a field study. The theory of trying is an extension of the theory of planned behavior and investigates the effects on intentions of (a) 3 prefactual attitudes (attitudes toward success, failure, and the process of goal striving), (b) subjective norms, and (c) perceived behavioral control (i.e., resistance to temptation). Dieting decisions of 609 adult women were studied. Perceived behavioral control in the form of resistance to temptation was found to interact with subjective norms to influence intentions, and the 3 forms of prefactual attitudes had additive effects on intentions.