Hypothesis testing in patients with chronic progressive multiple sclerosis

Patients with chronic progressive MS (N = 38) were compared with an age and education matched medical control group (N = 19) on a visual discrimination task designed to evaluate hypothesis testing and focusing behavior. Thirty-three MS patients (85%) and all control patients were able to formulate and use hypotheses, but MS patients were less likely to employ strategies leading to a correct solution. Furthermore, MS patients were more likely to perseverate with one strategy despite negative verbal feedback. Five MS patients were unable to formulate hypotheses. These findings suggest that MS patients have impaired cognitive functioning in addition to previously reported problems with memory.     

Plagiarism,Integrity, and Workplace Deviance: A Criterion Study

Plagiarism is increasingly evident in business and academia. Though links between demographic, personality, and situational factors have been found, previous research has not used actual plagiarism behavior as a criterion variable. Previous research on academic dishonesty has consistently used self-report measures to establish prevalence of dishonest behavior. In this study we use actual plagiarism behavior to establish its prevalence, as well as relationships between integrity-related personal selection and workplace deviance measures. This research covers new ground in two respects: (a) That the academic dishonesty literature is subject to revision using criterion variables to avoid self bias and social desirability issues and (b) we establish the relationship between actual academic dishonesty and potential workplace deviance/white-collar crime.     

An Adapted Serial Reaction Time Task for Sequence Learning Measurements

Serial Reaction Time (SRT) task is a visuomotor task to measure sequence learning. Several modifications of SRT task were used in the past. Traditional SRT tasks provided sequence learning measure at one instance only. Moreover, traditional SRT tasks did not use consistent measures to rule out attention factors contributing to SRT scores. The present study aims to design an Adapted SRT (AD-SRT) task with provisions to measure progress in sequence learning over trials. It is hypothesized that measures of sequence learning over several trials and intervals of SRT task could reflect on sequence learning ability in children with language impaired. The study design includes two choice reaction time task (TCRT) as a measure of baseline performance of attention. The AD-SRT task design, its ability to measure progress in sequence learning and its relation to attention measures are discussed in detail.     

‘Cost in Transliteration’: The neurocognitive processing of Romanized writing

Romanized transliteration is widely used in internet communication and global commerce, yet we know little about its behavioural and neural processing. Here, we show that Romanized text imposes a significant neurocognitive load. Readers faced greater difficulty in identifying concrete words written in Romanized transliteration (Romanagari) compared to L1 and L2. Functional neuroimaging revealed that the neural cost of processing transliterations arose from significantly greater recruitment of language (left precentral gyrus, left inferior parietal lobule) and attention networks (left mid-cingulum). Additionally, transliterated text uniquely activated attention and control areas compared to both L1 (cerebellar vermis) and L2 (pre-supplementary motor area/pre-SMA). We attribute the neural effort of reading Romanized transliteration to (i) effortful phonological retrieval from unfamiliar orthographic forms and (ii) conflicting attentional demands imposed by mapping orthographic forms of one language to phonological-semantic representations in another. Finally, significant brain-behaviour correlation suggests that the left mid-cingulum modulates cognitive-linguistic conflict.     

Early adolescents' willingness to intervene: What roles do attributions,affect, coping,and self-reported victimization play?

Limited research has sought to understand early adolescents' willingness to intervene in peer victimization as a function of their own responding to being victimized. The present study examined whether early adolescents' attributions, affect, and coping responses to a victimization vignette were related to their willingness to intervene, and whether self-reported victimization moderated the aforementioned associations. Participants were 653 5th- to 8th-grade students (50.4% girls, 58.5% Caucasian, 34.5% Hispanic) who completed a self-report survey that included a vignette asking students to imagine that they were victimized in school. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted separately for boys and girls. Although attributions and affect showed no significant associations with students' willingness to intervene, seeking social support coping was associated with greater willingness to intervene for both boys and girls, and problem-focused coping was associated with willingness to intervene for girls only. Unexpectedly, self-reported victimization was associated positively with both boys' and girls' willingness to intervene. Findings also revealed two unexpected two-way interactions between peer victimization and boys' characterological self-blame and girls' wishful thinking coping. Overall, study findings highlight the need for future research and anti-bullying programs to address how victimization could either motivate or discourage a student's willingness to intervene.     

Inhibitory control gains from higher-order cognitive strategy training

The present study examined the transfer of higher-order cognitive strategy training to inhibitory control. Middle school students enrolled in a comprehension- and reasoning-focused cognitive strategy training program and passive controls participated. The training program taught students a set of steps for inferring essential gist or themes from materials. Both before and after training or a comparable duration in the case of the passive controls, participants completed a semantically cued Go/No-Go task that was designed to assess the effects of depth of semantic processing on response inhibition and components of event-related potentials (ERP) related to response inhibition. Depth of semantic processing was manipulated by varying the level of semantic categorization required for response selection and inhibition. The SMART-trained group showed inhibitory control gains and changes in fronto-central P3 ERP amplitudes on inhibition trials; whereas, the control group did not. The results provide evidence of the transfer of higher-order cognitive strategy training to inhibitory control and modulation of ERPs associated with semantically cued inhibitory control. The findings are discussed in terms of implications for cognitive strategy training, models of cognitive abilities, and education.     

Self-actualization from an Eastern Perspective—A Preliminary Exploration

Growth of the branches of humanistic and positive psychology has brought in a paradigm shift in the understanding of human nature and behavior from the reductionistic and mechanistic perspectives. Emphasis on the study of the self necessitates greater use of a qualitative subjective methodological framework. In this respect, the current Western approach falls short in front of the Eastern philosophy, which has an array of such procedures and methodologies, which practitioners of humanistic and positive psychology are now exploring. The Indian systems of thought elaborate on the means to realizing or knowing the true nature of the self within, through the multi-faceted and individualized process of Yoga. Alternative systems of Yoga are provided that could be practiced by individuals based on their subjective preferences and suitability. The major alternatives that have been identified are Bhakti, Jnana, Karma and Raja Yoga. In this context, the present study is a pilot attempt to explore self-actualization among practitioners of two paths of Yoga i.e. Bhakti Yoga and Jnana Yoga. The opinions and beliefs of the practitioners on variables related to the self and its actualization, as also their world-views are explored. Implications on personality, distinguishing characteristics and the functioning of self are proposed, to enable an individual to adopt a suitable path.     

语音信息对中国英语学习者语义加工的影响及其脑机制

本研究采用经典的句尾畸义词诱发N400的ERP实验范式探讨了中国英语学习者在进行英文阅读时语音的影响及其相关脑机制。实验包括两类畸义语句:1.同音畸义:句尾词有畸义,但语音和相应正常语义句尾词相同;2.非同音畸义:句尾词有畸义,且语音和相应正常语义句尾词不同。行为数据显示:在错误率上同音畸义显著地高于非同音畸义。ERP显示:无论在早期(N100)还是晚期(N400)脑电成份上,同音畸义和非同音畸义的ERP振幅都有明显差异。本研究从行为和脑电两个方面一致揭示中国英语学习者阅读英文时受到了语音的影响。