The building blocks of social communication

In the present review, social communication will be discussed in the context of social cognition, and cold and hot cognition. The review presents research on prosody, processing of faces, multimodal processing of voice and face, and the impact of emotion on constructing semantic meaning. Since the focus of this mini review is on brain processes involved in these cognitive functions, the bulk of evidence presented will be from event related potential (ERP) studies as this methodology offers the best temporal resolution of cognitive events under study. The argument is made that social communication is accomplished via fast acting sensory processes and later, top down processes. Future directions both in terms of methodology and research questions are also discussed.     

Typhoid Pollyanna: The effect of category valence on retrieval order of positive and negative category members

Previous research suggests that people process pleasant information more efficiently than unpleasant information. This phenomenon has been illustrated in a variety of contexts and paradigms, and is frequently referred to as the Pollyanna principle. One important aspect of the Pollyanna principle is that people tend to retrieve pleasant members of a category from semantic memory prior to unpleasant members of the same category. However, we propose that the retrieval advantage of favourably viewed category members holds only for positive categories and that prototypicality of category members might be a better predictor of ease of retrieval than favourability. These possibilities were tested in two studies. In Study 1, favourability effects on retrieval order were observed for positive categories but not for neutral or negative categories. In Study 2, prototypical category members were retrieved before less prototypical category members for both positive and negative categories. These results suggest that the Pollyanna principle might be the result of a confound between favourability and prototypicality for members of favourable categories.     

Bilingual Generation Effect: Variations in Participant Bilingual Type and List Type

Slamecka and Katsaiti (1987, Experiment 1) reported that there is no generation effect with bilingual materials under intentional learning instructions. In contrast, O'Neill, Roy, and Tremblay (1993, Experiment 1) demonstrated a bilingual generation effect when an incidental learning set was induced. In the present experiment, the possibility that another procedural variation between the two studies accounts for the disparate findings was examined. A 2-stimuli (read bilingual translations, generate bilingual translations) list was compared with a 3-stimuli (read bilingual translations, generate bilingual translations, read unilingual repetitions) list, in accordance with the procedures used in the earlier experiments. Under incidental learning conditions, for both list types, a strong generation effect was found. Participant type—coordinate or compound bilingualism—was also varied. The generation effect was much larger for compound bilinguals than for coordinate bilinguals, presumably because of a greater difference in the allocation of attention to read than to generate items by compound bilinguals.     

Reply to Panel Questions

This commentary on papers by Neil Altman and Rachel Peltz argues that while the type of political culture in which one lives has a significant impact on the practice of psychoanalysis, no direct line can be drawn from psychoanalytic theory to any particular political persuasion. It is one thing to argue that psychoanalytic insights offer a way of thinking about political relations; it is quite another to suggest that they can be used to promote or justify a political agenda. While Altman and Peltz theorize about the negative impact of manic defense in contemporary culture, this commentary suggests that there are natural fluctuations in one's ability to respect inner reality and a degree of manic defense employed in everyday life that is quite normal. We all use reality to gain reassurance against death inside. But, when we are “distracted from distraction by distraction” (Eliot, 1971, p. 120) external objects are prematurely deadened so that the needed reassurance through external reality becomes increasingly elusive. Challenging some of Altman and Peltz's political assumptions, the commentary suggests that if psychoanalysis is to contribute to the political realm, it must do so on the basis of how it differs from other approaches to understanding what it means to be a human being.     

Caregiver Demand and Parent Distress in Juvenile Rheumatic Disease: The Mediating Effect of Parent Attitude Toward Illness

Parents of youth with juvenile rheumatic diseases (JRD) often take on illness management responsibilities that can become burdensome, potentially resulting in poor parent adjustment outcomes. However, not all caregivers will experience increased distress as a result of variability in stress appraisals. The current study examined the role of parent illness attitudes in the relation between perceived caregiver demand and parental distress. Youth (N = 70) ages 7–18 years diagnosed with a JRD and their parents were recruited from a pediatric rheumatology clinic. Parents completed measures of caregiver demand, parental distress, and illness attitudes. Hierarchical regression revealed a relationship between caregiver demand and parental distress. A significant relationship was also found between caregiver demand and parent illness attitudes, as well as parent illness attitudes and parental distress. Thus, parent illness attitudes mediated the relationship between caregiver demand and parental distress. Techniques aimed at altering negative illness attitudes may help parents cope with their caregiving responsibilities.     

A Screening Tool to Assess and Manage Behavioral Risk in the Postoperative Bariatric Surgery Patient: The WATCH

Bariatric surgery is increasingly recognized as a highly effective treatment for individuals who are severely obese. Amount of weight loss and resolution of comorbidities surpass those of nonsurgical approaches; however, suboptimal weight loss and weight regain are not uncommon. These outcomes, though not fully understood, are likely at least partially explained by failure to make long-term behavioral and/or cognitive changes. We are unaware of any established clinical tools to guide providers in assessing postoperative behaviors and identifying those who may require specialized treatment. The goal of this paper is to introduce a brief screening tool, The WATCH, to help clinicians assess and identify patients who may be at risk for poor or untoward outcomes post bariatric surgery. We first review the literature on postoperative outcomes, including weight loss, resolution of comorbidities, suboptimal outcomes, and development of problematic eating behaviors. We then provide an easily-recalled, five-item tool that assesses outcomes, and discuss patient responses that may necessitate further intervention or referral.     

Author biographies

Philip Pullman has repeatedly drawn attention to his commitment to 'realism' in the writing of his trilogy His Dark Materials. In this paper, which considers Volume 1, and which will be followed by papers on the succeeding volumes, we explore the meaning of this in the domain of psychic reality. We argue that Pullman writes in the tradition of children's literature which explores children's emotional development. His heroine, Lyra, embarks on a journey which involves learning to differentiate between untrustworthy and dependable parental figures. The magical features of the story allow for fluidity in exploring unconscious phantasy and dreamworlds. The 'fantasy' genre of the story allows its author at the same time to explore many aspects of the contemporary world and its problems, and thus offers its readers an experience of intellectual as well as emotional adventure. Philip Pullman machte wiederholt auf seine Verpflichtung an 'Realismus' in seinem Schreiben der Trilogie His dark Materials aufmerksam. In diesem Artikel, der den ersten Band betrachtet und dem weitere Artikel über die folgenden Bände folgen werden, erforschen wir die Bedeutung dieser Ausssage im Bereich der psychischen Realität. Wir argumentieren, dass Pullman in der Tradition der Kinderliteratur schreibt, die die emotionale Entwicklung von Kindern exploriert. Seine Heldin Lyra tritt eine Reise an, die beinhaltet zu lernen, wie man zwischen unzuverlässigen und verlässlichen Elternfiguren unterscheidet. Die magischen Anteile der Geschichte erlauben eine Fluidität, um unbewusste Phantasie und Traumwelten zu explorieren. Das 'Phantasie'genre der Geschichte erlaubt dem Autor, viele Aspekte der zeitgenössischen Welt und ihre Probleme zu explorieren und bietet den Lesern ein Erlebnis sowohl eines intellektuellen wie auch emotionalen Abenteuers. Dans plusieurs passages de sa trilogie À la Croisée des Chemins (His Dark Materials), Philip Pullman attire l'attention de ses lecteurs sur son parti pris de «réalisme». Dans cet article, qui traite du premier tome et qui sera suivi d'autres commentaires sur les tomes restants, les auteurs en explorent la signification pour la réalité psychique; selon eux, les textes de P. Pullman prennent place dans la tradition de la littérature enfantine ayant pour thème le développement émotionnel de l'enfant. Lyra, héroïne du récit, s'embarque pour un voyage qui, pour partie, exige qu'elle apprenne À différencier les figures parentales qui ne sont pas dignes de confiance de celles qui sont autrement plus fiables. Les aspects magiques de l'histoire permettent une certaine fluidité dans l'exploration des phantasmes inconscients et du monde onirique. Puisqu'il s'agit d'un récit «fantastique», le romancier peut s'autoriser À explorer plusieurs aspects du monde contemporain et des problèmes qui s'y manifestent; ce faisant, il propose À ses lecteurs de vivre une aventure non seulement émotionnelle mais aussi intellectuelle. L'autore ha ripetutamente sottolineato la sua fedelta' al 'realismo' nella stesura della trilogia His dark materials. In questo articolo, che esamina il volume 1, e che sara' seguito da altri articoli sui volumi successivi, gli autori esplorano che cosa questo significhi in termini psichici. Gli autori sostengono che gli scritti di Pullman si collochino nell'ambito della tradizione della letteratura infantile nella quale viene esplorato lo sviluppo emotivo dei bambini. L'eroina del libro, Lyra, intraprende un viaggio nel quale imparera' a distinguere tra figure genitoriali di cui non ci si puo' fidare e altre da cui si puo' dipendere. Le caratteristiche magiche del romanzo danno fluidita' all'esplorazione delle fantasie inconscie e del mondo dei sogni. Allo stesso tempo, il genere 'fantastico' della storia da' la possibilita' all'autore di esplorare molti degli aspetti del mondo contemporaneo e dei suoi problemi, dando quindi al lettore la possibilita' di un'esperienza intellettuale oltre che di un'avventura emotiva.