Pattern detection by mongol and non-mongol subnormals.

Ten mongols and ten clinically heterogeneous subnormals matched on chronological age, mental age and digit span took part in an experiment in which tape-recorded supra-span digit sequences with different patterns were presented. There were six patterns: random, mirror (e.g. 583385); same-digit pairs (e.g. 558833), same-digit throughout (e.g. 333333), couplet repetition (e.g. 585858) and triplet repetition (583583). The numbers of digits correctly recalled in any order by the mongols in the various conditions ranked from least to most were: random, mirror, same-digit pairs, same-digit messages, triplet repetition and couplet repetition. The rank order for the non-mongols was the same except that the positions of couplet and triplet repetition were reversed. Mongols had significantly poorer recall for random, mirror and same-digit pair messages than non-mongols but were their equals in other conditions. The mongols' performance was more sensitive to pattern than the performance of the other subjects. There was some evidence that, in the messages with same-digit pairs and the same digit throughout, all subjects (but mongols in particular) tended to insert new digits into the response sequence and that the digit introduced was the next one in simple arithmetic progression. It would appear that the hypothesis about poor auditory-vocal channelling capacities of mongols needs qualification.     

The measurement of factor indeterminacy

Results obtained by Guttman [1955] on the determinacy of common factors have been thought to have disturbing consequences for the common factor model. It is argued that factors must be thought of as unobservable, and uniquely defined but numerically indeterminate. It follows that Guttman's measure of indeterminacy is inconsistent with the foundations of the factor model in probability theory, and the traditional measures of factor indeterminacy used by earlier writers should be reinstated. These yield no disturbing conclusions about the model.     

A general approach to nonlinear factor analysis

The method presented attempts to allow for nonlinear, possibly nonmonotonic relations between manifest and latent variates. An attempt is made to provide a workable criterion for choosing between alternative models on the basis of observable data as well as for constructing the appropriate function. An idealized numerical example is given.The author is indebted to Mr. E. J. Burr of the Department of Mathematics, University of New England, and to Dr. J. A. Keats of the University of Queensland, for their advice and criticism.     

Arousal and imitation of aggression

Forty boys, aged 5 and 6 years, viewed either an aggressive or nonaggressive film and were tested for imitation of the behavior displayed in the film. On the next day, before being tested again for imitation of the film, half the subjects in each film condition engaged in arousing play with the experimenter, and half in quiet play. According to the prediction, those aroused on the second day displayed more imitative behavior than those not aroused, regardless of which film they had seen. The results are discussed in terms of arousal as a performance variable in social learning.Thanks are due to Louis Morris, for advice and suggestions, and to Jeffrey Cohen, for assistance in data collection. This research was facilitated by funds from the Tulane University Council on Research.     

A note on the factor analysis of partial covariance matrices

A relationship is given between the joint common factor structure of two sets of variables, and the factor structure of the partial covariance matrix of one of the sets with the other partialled out.     

A unified treatment of the weighting problem

A general procedure is described for obtaining weighted linear combinations of variables. This includes as special cases, multiple regression weights, canonical variate analysis, principal components, maximizing composite reliability, canonical factor analysis, and certain other well-known methods. The general procedure is shown to yield certain desirable invariance properties, with respect to transformations of the variables.The author wishes to thank Dr. A. J. Cropley for preparing the necessary computer programs for this study.     

Attitudes of male and female cadets toward military sex integration

Two studies examine the attitudes of male and female Army ROTC cadets toward the movement of women into nontraditional and leadership positions in the military. As expected, female cadets reacted more favorably toward women than did male cadets. The time spent in sexually integrated school year ROTC units did not appear to influence opinions, while experience of the integrated summer training camp produced more negative attitudes on the part of men. The results suggest that the ROTC socialization process is ineffective in overcoming traditional sex-role biases against women in the military and that alternative structural changes may be needed to facilitate sexual integration.     

On asymmetries in cross-modal spatial attention orienting

In a previous study, Ward (1994) reported that spatially uninformative visual cues orient auditory attention but that spatially uninformative auditory cues fail to orient visual attention. This cross-modal asymmetry is consistent with other intersensory perceptual phenomena that are dominated by the visual modality (e.g., ventriloquism). However, Spence and Driver (1997) found exactly the opposite asymmetry under different experimental conditions and with a different task. In spite of the several differences between the two studies, Spence and Driver (see also Driver & Spence, 1998) argued that Ward's findings might have arisen from response-priming effects, and that the cross-modal asymmetry they themselves reported, in which auditory cues affect responses to visual targets but not vice versa, is in fact the correct result. The present study investigated cross-modal interactions in stimulus-driven spatial attention orienting under Ward's complex cue environment conditions using an experimental procedure that eliminates response-priming artifacts. The results demonstrate that the cross-modal asymmetry reported by Ward (1994) does occur when the cue environment is complex. We argue that strategic effects in cross-modal stimulus-driven orienting of attention are responsible for the opposite asymmetries found by Ward and by Spence and Driver (1997).