Cyborg identities and contemporary techno-utopias: adaptations and transformations of the body in the age of nanotechnology

The possibility of improving the human body through a closer relationship with technology in order to overcome the human species toward new stages of evolution is a constant element of techno-utopian visions, among other transhumanism. This projection to a radical transformation of the body - and mind - as a result of technological action is based on the concepts of adaptation, or non adaptation, of a human being to a world constantly changed by technoscience. The belief is that not only the body has to change, but that identity is not a stable concept. This mobility in the relationship between body and identity is typical of the post human thought, which inherits from the informational model the conviction that the biological embodiment of human is to be regarded as an accident of history rather than as an essential condition of life. Hybridization is therefore valued by the post human thought as a condition which has "made" the human as he is today, and it appears as a fundamental topic in any discourse on nanotechnology, biotechnology and development of human-machine interfaces.     

Psychometric properties of the Social Skills Questionnaire: Portuguese adaptation of the student form (grades 7 to 12)

The present study aims to analyze the psychometric properties of the student form (Grades 7 to 12) of the Social Skills Questionnaire authored by Gresham and Elliott (1990), on a sample of Portuguese adolescents. Participants included 573 students, both female and male, aged 14 to 19. Reliability was assessed through Cronbach's alpha and was .87 for the total scale, ranging from.58 to .72 for the subscales. A confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the main adjustment indices presented unexpected values. A principal components analysis indicated that several items of the cooperation subscale correlated with other factors. Adequate adjustment indices were found when cooperation was removed from the model. Semantic dualities due to cultural factors and difficulties assuming the cooperation dimension as an independent dimension might explain the results observed. The reorganization of the SSQ offers a reliable and valid instrument for research within the Portuguese population.     

Un regard structural sur l’inégalité des genres au travail : La causalité des différences « genrées » dans les caractéristiques de réseau de l’employé

This study aims at identifying gender differences in network structure and, hence, at understanding the underlying nature of gender inequalities in organisations. The hypotheses address four ego-network characteristics: network size and density, and ego’s centrality and brokerage. Contrary to the existing body of literature, none significant isolated gender difference in network structure is identified. Instead, those gender differences are triggered exclusively by organisational status, that is to say, they are due to the increased level of power. Thus, organisational status is considered as moderating the relationship between gender and network structure’s characteristics. Some further perspectives are suggested to clarify and generalise the phenomena observed.     

Do humans and nonhuman animals share the grouping principles of the iambic–trochaic law?

The iambic–trochaic law describes humans’ tendency to form trochaic groups over sequences varying in pitch or intensity (i.e., the loudest or highest sounds mark group beginnings), and iambic groups over sequences varying in duration (i.e., the longest sounds mark group endings). The extent to which these perceptual biases are shared by humans and nonhuman animals is yet unclear. In Experiment 1, we trained rats to discriminate pitch-alternating sequences of tones from sequences randomly varying in pitch. In Experiment 2, rats were trained to discriminate duration-alternating sequences of tones from sequences randomly varying in duration. We found that nonhuman animals group sequences based on pitch variations as trochees, but they do not group sequences varying in duration as iambs. Importantly, humans grouped the same stimuli following the principles of the iambic–trochaic law (Exp. 3). These results suggest the early emergence of the trochaic rhythmic grouping bias based on pitch, possibly relying on perceptual abilities shared by humans and other mammals, whereas the iambic rhythmic grouping bias based on duration might depend on language experience.     

The Key Figures in the Field

Studies in East European Thought -     

Shindigs,brunches, and rodeos: The neural basis of event words

Events (e.g., “running” or “eating”) constitute a basic type within human cognition and human language. We asked whether thinking about events, as compared to other conceptual categories, depends on partially independent neural circuits. Indirect evidence for this hypothesis comes from previous studies showing elevated posterior temporal responses to verbs, which typically label events. Neural responses to verbs could, however, be driven either by their grammatical or by their semantic properties. In the present experiment, we separated the effects of grammatical class (verb vs. noun) and semantic category (event vs. object) by measuring neural responses to event nouns (e.g., “the hurricane”). Participants rated the semantic relatedness of event nouns, as well as of two categories of object nouns—animals (e.g., “the alligator”) and plants (e.g., “the acorn”)—and three categories of verbs—manner of motion (e.g., “to roll”), emission (e.g., “to sparkle”), and perception (e.g., “to gaze”). As has previously been observed, we found larger responses to verbs than to object nouns in the left posterior middle (LMTG) and superior (LSTG) temporal gyri. Crucially, we also found that the LMTG responds more to event than to object nouns. These data suggest that part of the posterior lateral temporal response to verbs is driven by their semantic properties. By contrast, a more superior region, at the junction of the temporal and parietal cortices, responded more to verbs than to all nouns, irrespective of their semantic category. We concluded that the neural mechanisms engaged when thinking about event and object categories are partially dissociable.     

The use of experimenter-given cues by South African fur seals (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Arctocephalus pusillus</Emphasis>)

Dogs can use a variety of experimenter-given cues such as pointing, head direction, and eye direction to locate food hidden under one of several containers. Some authors have proposed that this is a result of the domestication process. In this study we tested four captive fur seals in a two alternative object choice task in which subjects had to use one of the following experimenter-given cues to locate the food: (1) the experimenter pointed and gazed at one of the objects, (2) the experimenter pointed at only one of the objects, (3) the experimenter gazed at only one of the objects, (4) the experimenter glanced at only one of the objects, (5) the experimenter pointed and gazed at one of the objects but was sitting closer to one object than to the other, (6) the experimenter pointed only with the index finger at one of the objects, (7) the experimenter presented a replica of one of the objects. The fur seals were able to use cues which involved a fully exposed arm or a head direction, but failed to use glance only, the index finger pointing and the object replica cues. The results showed that a domestication process was not necessary to develop receptive skills to cues given by an experimenter. Instead, we hypothesize that close interactions with humans prior to testing enabled fur seals to use some gestural cues without formal training. We also analyzed the behavior of the seals depending on the level of difficulty of the task. Behavioral signs of hesitation increased with task difficulty. This suggests that the fur seals were sensitive to task difficulty.     

The role of associative strength in children's false memory illusions

The effects of associative strength on rates of 7- and 11-year-old children's true and false memories were examined when category and Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) lists were used to cue the same critical lure. Backward associative strength (BAS) was varied such that the category and DRM lists had the same strength (DRM=category), DRM lists had more BAS (DRM>category), or category lists had more BAS (DRM<category). If BAS drives children's false memories then BAS, not the type of relation across items in a list, should determine false memory production. The results confirmed this prediction using both recall and recognition measures: (1) both true and false memories increased with age, (2) true memory was better for category than DRM lists but there were no differences for false memory, and (3) at all ages, false memories varied predictably with changes in BAS but were unaffected by list-type manipulations. These findings are discussed in the context of models of false memory development.     

The impact of the socio-economic crisis on intrapsychic and intersubjective processes within the therapeutic relationship: Implications for the ethical practice of counselling psychology and psychotherapy

Using attachment and mentalisation theories as a framework, the present paper aims to explore the impact of the current socio-economic crisis on the micro-processes and interpersonal dynamics that emerge between client and therapist as well as the ethical dilemmas that surface within the context of the therapeutic relationship. The first part of the paper focuses on the intrapsychic level and the subjective appraisal and experience of the crisis, as this may differ from individual to individual as well as the unique meaning-making processes that take place for clients and therapists alike. It is argued that the socio-economic crisis itself cannot be seen as an entity that is entirely independent and external to the individual but as a phenomenon that interacts in unique ways with the individual’s inner current and past experience. The second part focuses on the exploration of intersubjective processes that emerge between client and therapist, in particular the transference-countertransference dynamic, as this develops within conditions of increased arousal and anxiety. The role and responsibility of counselling psychologists in preserving reflexivity, empathy and a mentalising stance (through supervision and personal therapy) are highlighted in order to safeguard the ethical and competent practice of counselling psychology.