Uncovering the Motivational Core of Traits: The Case of Conscientiousness

Knowledge of the motivational bases of conscientiousness would be crucial for disentangling competing explanations about the processes underlying this trait. Thereby, building on the results of a previous investigation identifying 21 goal classes connected to conscientiousness, we performed three studies aimed at clarifying the full spectrum of goals and motives underlying this trait. In Study 1 (N = 299), we conceptually replicated the original associations between goal classes and conscientiousness poles, and we identified nine goal classes that individuals ascribe to conscientious profiles more than to other profiles. In Study 2 (N = 329), we examined the associations between the subjective importance of conscientious and unconscientious goal classes and personality traits, as well as the role of goals for the desire to change one's conscientiousness. In Study 3 (N = 432), we developed a 72-item assessment of nine goal classes and explored their connections with the most important facets of conscientiousness, self-control, future orientation, and the consideration of future consequences, using network analysis. We discuss the relevance of our results for research on conscientiousness and its underlying processes. © 2020 European Association of Personality Psychology     

Are the effects of attention on speed judgments genuinely perceptual?

A number of studies in recent years have suggested that exogenous and endogenous attention might enhance the perceived magnitude of various perceptual attributes, such as contrast and motion speed. Those studies have generally used comparative judgments as a measure to assess the point of subjective equality; however, similarity judgments have been proposed as possibly less prone to decision biases (Schneider & Komlos, 2008). In three experiments, using a similarity judgment task, we did not find any evidence of motion speed enhancement by exogenous attention. We suggest that the effect revealed by comparative judgments arises at the decisional, rather than the perceptual, stage.     

Filtering visual onsets via habituation: A context-specific long-term memory of irrelevant stimuli

The fact that we are often immediately attracted by sudden visual onsets provides a clear advantage for our survival. However, how can we resist from being continuously distracted by irrelevant repetitive onsets? Since the seminal work of Sokolov (1963), habituation of the orienting of attention has long been proposed to be a possible filtering mechanism. Here, in two experiments, we provide novel evidence showing that (a) habituation of capture of focused visual attention relies on a stored representation of the distractor onsets in relation to their context, and (b) that once formed such representation endures unchanged for weeks without any further exposure to the distractors. In agreement with the proposal of Wagner (1979) concerning the associative nature of habituation, the results of Experiment 1 suggest that habituation of attentional capture is context specific. Furthermore, the results of Experiment 2 show that to filter visual distractors our cognitive system uses long-lasting memories of the irrelevant information. Although distractor filtering can be implemented via top-down inhibitory control, neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying habituation provide a straightforward explanation for the reduced distraction obtained with training, thus working like an automatic filter that prevents irrelevant recurring stimuli from gaining access to higher stages of analysis.     

Maternal representations during pregnancy and early infant-mother interactions

This paper deals with the influence of maternal representations during pregnancy on the subsequent mother-infant relationship and the infant's style of attachment at 1 year of age. Psychoanalytic thinking, beginning with Freud to the most recent contributions, has considered the great importance of the mental dynamics between parents and children to which empirical research according to Bowlby's theoretical perspective has contributed. The current research project was planned in order to study the intergenerational processes. Starting during pregnancy, the woman was interviewed specifically to study maternal representations of herself as a mother and of the future baby. When the child was 1 year old, the style of attachment was studied during the Ainsworth Strange Situation paradigm and, at the same time, the mother was given the Adult Attachment Interview. Case studies are presented to illustrate, from the clinical point of view, the mental dynamics during pregnancy and the influence on the style of attachment of the baby. The clinical implications are discussed especially in terms of the fantasies in pregnancy and their relevance for the subsequent mother-infant relationship.     

"Brainwashing" Theories in European Parliamentary and Administrative Reports on "Cults" and "Sects"

This study examines the recent rash of official reports done by governmental agencies in Western Europe to guide policy development in those societies. Particular attention is given to reports in France, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, and Italy, and to the changes in such reports that have occurred, perhaps because of the influence of scholarly critiques offered for some of the earlier reports. The reports are divided into "Type I" and "Type II" reports, with the former being thorough-going in their anti-cult orientation, and the latter reports being more moderate in tone, with some attention paid to scholarship on new religions. However, the major thesis of the study is supported, as an examination of both types of reports reveals that they incorporate "brainwashing" and "mind control" imagery imported from the United States, even though such theories have been largely discounted within the United States. Use of such theories leads directly to some questionable policy recommendations, as demonstrated in the reports. Reasons for the spread of "brainwashing" ideas to Europe are discussed.     

HOPOS 2000. Call for Papers. THIRD INTERNATIONAL HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE CONFERENCE

Call for Papers

HOPOS 2000. Call for Papers. THIRD INTERNATIONAL HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE CONFERENCE     

Persistent Vegetative State: A Presumption to Treat

The article briefly analyzes the concept of a person, arguing that personhood does not coincide with the actual enjoyment of certain intellectual capacities, but is coextensive with the embodiment of a human individual. Since in PVS patients we can observe a human individual functioning as a whole, we must conclude that these patients are still human persons, even if in a condition of extreme impairment. It is then argued that some forms of minimal treatment may not be futile for these patients; they may constitute a form of respect for their human dignity and benefit these patients, even if they are not aware of that. Moreover, it is important to consider the symbolic significance of care: while many believe that PVS is a kind of imprisonment, for others providing food and fluids is the only way to testify our proximity to these persons. The best policy would be to provide, as a general rule, artificial nutrition and hydration to PVS patients: this treatment could be withdrawn, after a period of observation and reflection by the family and proxies, on the basis of the proxies' objection to the continuation or of the patient's advance directives specifically referring to this situation.