The effects of feature-label-order and their implications for symbolic learning

Symbols enable people to organize and communicate about the world. However, the ways in which symbolic knowledge is learned and then represented in the mind are poorly understood. We present a formal analysis of symbolic learning-in particular, word learning-in terms of prediction and cue competition, and we consider two possible ways in which symbols might be learned: by learning to predict a label from the features of objects and events in the world, and by learning to predict features from a label. This analysis predicts significant differences in symbolic learning depending on the sequencing of objects and labels. We report a computational simulation and two human experiments that confirm these differences, revealing the existence of Feature-Label-Ordering effects in learning. Discrimination learning is facilitated when objects predict labels, but not when labels predict objects. Our results and analysis suggest that the semantic categories people use to understand and communicate about the world can only be learned if labels are predicted from objects. We discuss the implications of this for our understanding of the nature of language and symbolic thought, and in particular, for theories of reference.     

Being Examples to the Flock: The Role of Church Leaders and African American Families Seeking Mental Health Care Services

Within the context of Black churches, African American clergy have a significant role in the delivery of mental health care services for parishioners and their families. Working toward better linkages between faith-based communities and more formal mental health care could help to provide more culturally sensitive and timely mental health care for African American families. Using a salient part of an integrative model (Davey and Watson in Contemp Fam Ther 30:31–47, 2008), the roles Black church leaders have historically played for African American families seeking outside mental health care services are considered. We additionally provide an example of a recent collaborative partnership with a Black church that points toward some promising directions for future research and clinical collaborations between the field of couple and family therapy and the Black church community.     

Are Children's Concerns About Punishment Related to Their Aggression?

Although moral reasoning is recognized as an influence on students' behavior, it is often overlooked in policies and interventions developed to change their behavior. Relations between specific types of moral reasoning (i.e., imminent, probable, physical, and psychological) and teacher-reported overt aggression were examined in 203 first and second graders. Regression analyses indicated that psychological reasoning explained a significant amount of the variance in overt aggression. Follow-up analyses indicated that overtly aggressive boys demonstrated more concern for the imminent consequences of their behavior on themselves (e.g., punishment) and less concern for the psychological consequences of their actions on others (e.g., hurting others' feelings) than nonaggressive boys. Implications for the prevention and treatment of aggressive behavior are discussed.     

A Comparison of Family Environment Characteristics Among White (Non‐Hispanic), Hispanic,and African Caribbean Groups

To investigate differences in the family environments of different cultural groups, the Family Environment Scale and a clinical interview were administered to 153 college students from White (non‐Hispanic), Hispanic, and African Caribbean backgrounds. A multivariate analysis of covariance and post hoc comparisons revealed significant differences between the groups on the Expressiveness, Independence, and Moral‐Religious Emphasis subscales. Para investigar las distinciones en los ambientes familiares entre grupos culturales diferentes, la Escala del Ambiente Familiar (FES) y una entrevista clínica fueron administradas a 153 estudiantes colegiales Blancos (no‐Hispanos), Hispanos, y Africano‐Caribeños. Un análisis de la covariancia multivariado y comparaciones post hoes revelarón diferencias significativas entre los grupos en Expresividad, Independencia, y Enfasis Moral‐Religioso.     

Computer program to generate operant schedules

A computer program for programming schedules of reinforcement is described. Students can use the program to experience schedules of reinforcement that are typically used with nonhuman subjects. A cumulative recording of a student’s responding can be shown on the screen and/or printed with the computer’s printer. The program can also be used to program operant schedules for animal subjects. The program was tested with human subjects experiencing fixed ratio, variable ratio, fixed interval, and variable interval schedules. Performance for human subjects on a given schedule was similar to performance for nonhuman subjects on the same schedule.     

Use of Multisystemic Therapy to Improve Regimen Adherence Among Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes in Poor Metabolic Control: A Pilot Investigation

The purpose of the current study was to conduct a pilot investigation to determine the effectiveness of Multisystemic Therapy (MST) for improving regimen adherence and metabolic control among adolescents with poorly controlled Type 1 diabetes. Thirty-one adolescents were randomly assigned to either MST or a control condition. MST treatment lasted approximately six months. Data were collected at study entry and at a six-month posttest. Twenty-five adolescents completed the study. Adolescents who received MST had significantly improved adherence to blood glucose testing and metabolic control from study entry to the six-month posttest, whereas controls did not. Adolescents receiving MST also had a decreased number of inpatient admissions at the six-month posttest. Improvements in metabolic control were related to improvements in parent report of adolescent adherence. Results suggest that MST holds promise as an intervention for improving adherence behavior and health outcomes among adolescents in poor metabolic control.     

An examination of the effect of computerized performance monitoring feedback on monitoring fairness, performance, and satisfaction

Research has examined how the design and implementation of computerized performance monitoring (CPM) systems affects individuals’ performance and attitudes. In this study, we examine how the attributes of the feedback received in a CPM context affects individuals’ reactions to monitoring. One hundred and sixty-five individuals participated in an experiment that examined the effect of three feedback attributes (feedback control, feedback constructiveness, and feedback medium) on monitoring fairness judgments, performance, and satisfaction. Results demonstrate feedback constructiveness significantly predicted monitoring fairness. Additionally, supervisor-mediated feedback was associated with higher levels of monitoring fairness than was computer-mediated feedback. Moreover, monitoring fairness mediated the relationship between these feedback attributes and performance and satisfaction. However, contrary to expectations, feedback control did not affect perceptions of monitoring fairness. Implications for future research on the design of CPM systems are discussed.     

Understanding text after severe closed-head injury: assessing inferences and memory operations with a think-aloud procedure

A think-aloud method was used to examine the content of information available to working memory during narrative comprehension in a CHI population. Twenty severe CHI participants (>1 year post-injury) and 20 controls talked aloud after they read each sentence of story narratives. Trabasso and Magliano's (1996a) verbal protocol analysis was then used to code for the production of inferential and non-inferential clauses and the memory operations that supported inferential clause production. We found that CHI and control groups produced a comparable number of clauses, that inferences dominated narrative comprehension, and that both groups produced more explanatory inferences than predictive or associative inferences. Despite these qualitative similarities, the CHI group demonstrated poorer comprehension, generated proportionately fewer inferences, relied less on retrieval as a memory source for explanatory inferences, and produced more non-inferential clauses and associative inferences.     

Social Anxiety and Specificity of Positive Alcohol Expectancies: Preliminary Findings

This preliminary study examined the relationship between social anxiety and specificity of positive alcohol outcome expectancies (AOE) in a community sample of 62 drinking adults. The sample was divided into subsets of socially anxious (n = 17) and nonsocially anxious (n = 45) men and women. The Drinking Expectancy Questionnaire (DEQ) and Alcohol Expectancies in Social Evaluative Situations Scale (AESES) were used to determine if groups differed in the general positive AOE they hold, or only in AOE specific to social situations. ANOVAs revealed that socially anxious individuals had greater positive AOE specific to social situations (DEQ—Assertion scale and AESES) than nonsocially anxious individuals, with no differences in other positive AOE. Partial correlations controlling for social anxiety revealed that AOE specific to social situations correlated with greater drinking and alcohol dependency levels. Findings indicate that identification of AOE specific to social situations may be useful in classifying socially anxious individuals at risk for alcoholism and as a focus of expectancy challenge strategies for individuals with co-occurring social anxiety and drinking problems.