Perceived Success and Competence of the Opponent,or the Laboratory Dien Bien Phu1

The effect of information relevance and information availability on perceptual differences between Chinese and American nationals was investigated. Subjects participated in pairs as decision makers in a complex experimental environment. Participants' perceptions of success, failure, and competence levels for their own team (under conditions where judgments could be based on varying levels of relevant information) and for a supposed opposing team (under conditions where perceptions had to be inferred in the absence of information) were obtained. It was found that Americans and Chinese did not differ in ratings of their own team. Chinese, as opposed to Americans, perceived the opposing team as having more success, less failure, and more competence. The perceptual errors of the French and Viet Minh which led t o the defeat of the French at Dien Bien Phu were replicated in the laboratory for Americans and Chinese. Areas in which such potential cultural (oriental versus occidental) differences might be important are mentioned.     

Alcohol and Complex Functioning1

Twenty-five managers participated in two parallel 6-hour quasi-experimental simulations. On placebo treatment days, the subjects received hourly placebo drinks. On alcohol treatment days (order counterbalanced), enough alcohol was provided prior to the fourth hour of simulation participation to attain a breath alcohol level (BAL) of near 0.10. All other drinks contained a placebo beverage. Complex task performance was assessed on five variables derived from complexity theory, comparing performance for three measurement periods: (a) prior to the fourth hour of simulation participation (placebo treatment), (b) during the fourth hour (rising BALs on alcohol treatment days), and (c) during the fifth/sixth hours (falling BALs). Alcohol diminished the participants’ breadth of approach (differentiation). Performance on indicators of strategic functioning (integration) decreased after BALs had begun to fall but not while BALs were rising. The implications for performance of complex tasks under the influence of alcohol and for the applicability of the acute tolerance phenomenon to complex task environments are considered.     

Bulimia nervosa in undergraduate women: Factors associated with internalization of the sociocultural standard of thinness

Diverse areas of research and theory are integrated in an attempt to better understand the specific risk factors for bulimia nervosa identified in the literature. It is suspected that the interplay of risk factors may be unique to different groups of individuals who develop bulimia. Further, it is proposed that specific determinants be studied individually to determine their particular influence in the etiology of bulimia. It is suggested that the investigation of specific risk factors for bulimia in certain groups will benefit researchers and clinicians in gaining a better conceptual understanding of the process involved in the development of the disorder. This article focuses on the determinants of a specific risk factor (i.e., internalization of the sociocultural standard of thinness) for bulimia in undergraduate women, a group identified as particularly vulnerable to this disorder. Research and theory are integrated to suggest that a combination of specific individual differences, family, and social factors make some undergraduate women more vulnerable to the influence of the sociocultural standard of thinness and bulimia. Suggestions for the inclusion of these psychosocial factors in future empirical investigations and treatment programs are also discussed.     

Paraverbal indicators of deception: a meta‐analytic synthesis

This meta‐analysis provides a quantitative synthesis of paraverbal indicators of deception as a function of different moderator variables. Of nine different speech behaviours analysed only two were reliably associated with deception in the weighted, and four in the analysis unweighted by sample size. Pitch, response latency and speech errors were positively, message duration negatively related to deception. As most effect sizes were found to be heterogeneous, analyses of moderator variables revealed that many of the observed relationships varied as a function of content, preparation, motivation, sanctioning of the lie, experimental design and operationalization. Of different theoretical approaches reviewed, a working memory model of lie production may best account for the findings. Because of the small effect sizes, and the heterogeneity in findings, practitioners must be cautioned to use such indicators in assessing the truthfulness of reports but nonetheless practical implications for different types of situations are outlined. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Measuring Executive Function Deficits Following Head Injury: An Application of SMS Simulation Technology

The Psychological Record - Neuropsychological tests have limited sensitivity in identifying subtle residual cognitive impairments in patients with good medical recovery from head injury and...     

Individual Differences in Risk Taking1

Risk taking behavior in civilian and military settings often results in unnecessary loss of life and equipment. The present research investigates the contribution of three cognitive styles (Type A., Cognitive Complexity, and GIAL) to risky behavior under varying task load conditions. The research is further concerned with uncovering possible relationships between these cognitive styles and physiological arousal (cardiovascular response) as interactive sources of risky actions. A variety of diverse and combined effects of styles on the propensity to take risks was obtained. These relationships were not generally reflected in arousal levels. In addition, the present findings support the conclusions of Streufert et al. (1983) who suggested that risk taking is primarily an effect of cognitive error. In the absence of an arousal based “thrill” finding, specific “educational” programs, based on a person's stylistic characteristics, may be possible to reduce the propensity for risky actions.     

Misattributions in attribution research: Choices of scientific certainty vs. understanding of reality: A rejoinder

Fincham (1984) has argued that Nogami and Streufert (1983) advanced a thesis which (1) attempts to empirically demonstrate that attributions for an accident are lower with severe as opposed to less severe outcomes and (2) applies these data to account for previous contradictory findings of the ‘defensive attribution’ literature. The present authors show that Fincham's attribution of intent to Nogami and Streufert is in error and that the divergent views of Nogami and Streufert versus those of Fincham and associates reflect legitimate but different approaches toward the problem of attribution theory and research.