Multimodal communication and spatial binding in pied currawongs (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Strepera graculina</Emphasis>)

To make accurate assessments about their environment, animals must integrate a variety of sensory cues into a single unified percept. The effects of redundant multimodal signaling may be equivalent to the responses elicited by each individual cue, or enhanced when cues are combined. Binding of two seemingly coupled cues can persist despite small spatial and temporal discrepancies in signal presentation, a phenomenon termed the ventriloquist effect. Our study had two aims: first, to test the cognitive ability of a territorial, forest-dwelling bird to bind two spatially disparate cues; and second, to define the processing of the acoustic and visual cues as having either equivalent or enhanced effects when presented together. We broadcasted pied currawong (Strepera graculina) vocalizations alone or in the presence of a model currawong situated either adjacent to, or far away from a speaker, to free-living currawongs. The number of locomotive events and the average standard deviation in the distance from the speaker maintained by the focal currawong were greater in response to "far" than "close" treatments. Additionally, the average standard deviation of the distance to speaker for the uni-modal, speaker only treatment was similar to "far" responses. These findings support our hypothesis that currawongs cognitively bind two stimuli in close spatial proximity. In nature, this would result in an enhanced level of response toward territorial intruders. Our study was novel in its attempt to assess cognitive processes involved in the integration of spatially disparate bimodal signaling events in free-living birds.     

Theory of Planned Behaviour, Skin Care and Pressure Sores Following Spinal Cord Injury

Objectives: To use the Theory of Planned Behaviour to explore factors associated with performing skin care behaviors and the occurrence of pressure sores in people with spinal cord injury. Design: A within-group cross-sectional design was used to assess 59 people with spinal cord injury living in the community. Of these, 17 participants returned a repeat assessment allowing a longitudinal examination of the relationship between intention and actual behaviour. Methods: A measure was developed in accordance with the Theory of Planned Behaviour guidelines through interviews with people with spinal cord injury. Measures of mood and knowledge of skin care behaviour were also included. Results: The Theory of Planned Behaviour components, mood and knowledge of skin behaviours predicted intention, skin care behaviour and occurrence of pressure sores. Knowledge of skin care was negatively correlated with occurrence of pressure sores (r=−.38, p < .01). Indirect perceived control was a particularly important predictor of pressure relief, accounting for 24% of the variance. Conclusions: Psychosocial factors, including the Theory of Planned Behaviour components, predicted skin care behaviours and the occurrence of pressure sores. These findings provide empirical support for the Theory of Planned Behaviour. The study also carries clinical implications for skin care education for people with SCI and their families.     

The depression gender gap: a view through a biocultural filter

That women, compared with men, are more prone to become "depressed" has been known for decades. The etiology of the depression gender gap has been a source of much discussion, with the bulk occurring within the medical model. As a complement to--rather than a competitor with--such discussion, the depression gender gap is analyzed through a biocultural lens wherein the evolutionary history of Homo sapiens becomes part of the frame of reference. Given that a "constant" is difficult to explain by the use of "variables," the very consistent 2:1 gender ratio of female to male (rates of) depression is difficult to explain by referring to cultural parameters, which are variable. It is more parsimonious to suggest that a constant becomes a better candidate to explain another constant. The constant used in this exercise is some portion of the genetic package that subtends the species Homo sapiens; in other words, everyone on the planet is human. The authors argue that the basal dynamic of H. Fisher's (1983) sex contract is a useful analytical tool in examining the contemporary gender gap in depression. They suggest that the germane clause of the sex contract is the use of psychological immobilization as an effective social instrument.     

Cross-modal attentional entrainment: Insights from magicians

Recently, performance magic has become a source of insight into the processes underlying awareness. Magicians have highlighted a set of variables that can create moments of visual attentional suppression, which they call “off-beats.” One of these variables is akin to the phenomenon psychologists know as attentional entrainment. The current experiments, inspired by performance magic, explore the extent to which entrainment can occur across sensory modalities. Across two experiments using a difficult dot probe detection task, we find that the mere presence of an auditory rhythm can bias when visual attention is deployed, speeding responses to stimuli appearing in phase with the rhythm. However, the extent of this cross-modal influence is moderated by factors such as the speed of the entrainers and whether their frequency is increasing or decreasing. In Experiment 1, entrainment occurred for rhythms presented at .67 Hz, but not at 1.5 Hz. In Experiment 2, entrainment only occurred for rhythms that were slowing from 1.5 Hz to .67 Hz, not speeding. The results of these experiments challenge current models of temporal attention.     

Differential effects of reasoning and speed training in children

The goal of this study was to determine whether intensive training can ameliorate cognitive skills in children. Children aged 7 to 9 from low socioeconomic backgrounds participated in one of two cognitive training programs for 60 minutes/day and 2 days/week, for a total of 8 weeks. Both training programs consisted of commercially available computerized and non-computerized games. Reasoning training emphasized planning and relational integration; speed training emphasized rapid visual detection and rapid motor responses. Standard assessments of reasoning ability - the Test of Non-Verbal Intelligence (TONI-3) and cognitive speed (Coding B from WISC IV) - were administered to all children before and after training. Neither group was exposed to these standardized tests during training. Children in the reasoning group improved substantially on TONI (Cohen's d = 1.51), exhibiting an average increase of 10 points in Performance IQ, but did not improve on Coding. By contrast, children in the speed group improved substantially on Coding (d = 1.15), but did not improve on TONI. Counter to widespread belief, these results indicate that both fluid reasoning and processing speed are modifiable by training.     

Psychological Intimacy in the Lasting Relationships of Heterosexual and Same-Gender Couples

This research focused on the meaning of psychological intimacy to partners in heterosexual and same-gender relationships that have lasted for an average of 30 years. In-depth interviews were used to explore the meaning of intimacy to 216 partners in 108 relationships. The participants were whites, blacks, and Mexican-Americans, with Catholic, Jewish, and Protestant religious backgrounds; they were employed in both blue- and white collar occupations.Psychological intimacy was defined as the sense that one could be open and honest in talking with a partner about personal thoughts and feelings not usually expressed in other relationships. Factors that had a significant role in shaping the quality of psychological intimacy in the last 5 to 10 years of these relationships (recent years) were the absence of major conflict, a confrontive conflict management style between partners, a sense of fairness about the relationship, and the expression of physical affection between partners. Women in same-gender relationships, compared to their heterosexual and gay counterparts, were more likely to report that psychologically intimate communication characterized their relationships. The findings are important for understanding factors that contribute to psychological intimacy in long-term relationships and how the gender roles of partners may shape the quality of psychological intimacy in heterosexual and same-gender relationships.     

Functional brain organization of working memory in adolescents varies in relation to family income and academic achievement

Working memory (WM) capacity reflects executive functions associated with performance on a wide range of cognitive tasks and education outcomes, including mathematics achievement, and is associated with dorsolateral prefrontal and parietal cortices. Here we asked if family income is associated with variation in the functional brain organization of WM capacity among adolescents, and whether that variation is associated with performance on a statewide test of academic achievement in mathematics. Participants were classified into higher‐income and lower‐income groups based on family income, and performed a WM task with a parametric manipulation of WM load (N‐back task) during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Behaviorally, the higher‐income group had greater WM capacity and higher mathematics achievement scores. Neurally, the higher‐income group showed greater activation as a function of WM load in bilateral prefrontal, parietal, and other regions, although the lower‐income group exhibited greater activation at the lowest load. Both groups exhibited positive correlations between parietal activations and mathematics achievement scores, but only the higher‐income group exhibited a positive correlation between prefrontal activations and mathematics scores. Most of these findings were maintained when higher‐ and lower‐income groups were matched on WM task performance or nonverbal IQ. Findings indicate that the functional neural architecture of WM varies with family income and is associated with education measures of mathematics achievement.     

Leaders and followers behaving badly: A meta-analytic examination of curvilinear relationships between destructive leadership and followers’ workplace behaviors

We draw from social psychological and resource-based theories to meta-analytically examine curvilinear relationships between destructive leadership and followers’ workplace behaviors (i.e., job performance, organizational citizenship behaviors, and workplace deviance). Overall, our meta-analytic results demonstrate that relationships between destructive leadership and followers’ workplace behaviors are essentially linear. The limited evidence of curvilinear relationships we did find supports the application of social psychological theories when examining high levels of destructive leadership. Overall, this study's meta-analytic regression, relative weight, and semipartial correlation results have important implications for how to interpret the conclusions drawn from prior destructive leadership research, how to conduct future studies that examine destructive leadership, and practitioners’ attempts to limit the effects of destructive leadership on followers’ workplace behaviors.