Foveal diplopia thresholds and fixation disparities

Comparison of the magnitude and intrinsic spread of foveal diplopia thresholds with the accuracy of ocular alignment as determined with a subjective alignment method shows that: the accuracy of alignment in the vertical direction (within 1–2 min) is remarkably good and much better than in the horizontal direction; the largest disparities occurring due to restricted alignment accuracy are usually substantially smaller than the foveal diplopia thresholds; interindividual variability in the magnitude of foveal diplopia thresholds is not due only to interindividual variability in the alignment accuracy; and the spread of foveal diplopia thresholds exceeds the spread of ocular alignment, which implies that the noise in the foveal disparity domain is not only due to the restricted alignment accuracy but also to sensory processes. Finally, the data confirm that, unlike the case with diplopia thresholds, the spread of stereoscopic thresholds is not affected by the restricted alignment accuracy.     

Integrality over different paradigms: Card sorting and two-stimulus matching

Orthogonal interference—indicating the cohesiveness between geometrical dimensions—was examined using two separate tasks: (1) card sorting and (2) two-stimulus matching requiring same/different responses. The card-sorting results of the present experiment were contrasted with the results of our previous research (1977, 1979) which used the two-stimulus matching task. Results were generally similar in that the orthogonal interference and, consequently, the degree of integrality/separability were the same for both tasks. Evidence was found for the emergence of a new nominal dimension. This and other results are only compatible with a weaker form of the global-to-local hypothesis of perceptual processing.     

Analysis of variances and covariances is misleading as a guide to a common factor model

The “factor” analyses published by Schultz, Kaye, and Hoyer (1980) confused component and factor analysis and led in this case as in many others to unwarranted conclusions. They used component analysis to develop factor models that were subjected to restricted (confirmatory) maximum likelihood analysis, but the final models for which good fits with the observed correlations were obtained were not common factor models. They were, however, discussed as such and conclusions drawn accordingly. When their correlation matrices are analyzed by the principal factors method, two factors are sufficient to account for the intercorrelations. These two factors generally support the a priori expectation of a difference between intelligence tasks and spontaneous flexibility tasks. They are also quite similar in younger and older subjects, when similarity is judged in terms of factor pattern. Factor loadings for the younger subjects, however, are much smaller than expectations based on the respective ranges of talent in the two groups of subjects or on past experience with similar tests in undergraduate student populations.     

Cognitive self-instruction for the control of impulsive classroom behavior: Ensuring the treatment package

The practical utility of cognitive self-instruction training in facilitating the work habits and academic performance of impulsive first-graders was assessed in the context of the regular classroom. The training paradigm was modified and environmental conditions were arranged to facilitate the transfer of the cognitive self-instruction strategy to the classroom. Following training, there were no significant increases in on-task behavior or in academic performance within the context of a group design. On the basis of this and other studies, a drastic revision of the cognitive self-instruction paradigm seems indicated. Not only must training become broader based, but models must be developed that take into account the requisite cognitive processes for task completion as well as the cognitive abilities of the youngsters to whom training is addressed. In general, the incorporation of information from the developmental and cognitive process literature would appear to facilitate the development of more effective training models.     

Selective involvement of the auditory-verbal modality in an acquired communication disorder: Benefit from sign language therapy

A 39-year-old female suffered bitemporal infarctions and exhibited an unusual behavioral syndrome of muteness and impaired auditory comprehension, with milder aphasic deficits in reading and writing. The anatomic basis of this modality-selective communication disorder appeared to involve both peripheral perceptual and motor as well as “central” language mechanisms. The patient's ability to communicate was greatly aided by instruction in Amerind and Ameslan Sign Language, in which she learned more than 100 signs. Patients whose acquired language deficits spare modalities of input or output may be ideal candidates for sign language therapy.     

The lexicon and sentence generation in aphasia

The experiment tested a prediction, derived from the lexicalist model of grammar (J. Bresnan 1978, in M. Halle, J. Bresnan, & G. A. Miller (Eds.), Linguistic theory and psychological reality, Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, pp. 1–59), that difficulty in accessing a verb from the lexicon should impair the generation of the associated to-complement clause while not significantly affecting the generation of word-independent constructions such as questions. Four aphasic subjects with word-finding difficulties but relatively high BDAE ratings on grammatical ability were examined. A modified story completion paradigm was used to elicit the favored constructions. Consistent with the hypothesis, all subjects showed greater difficulty in generating to-complements.     

Personality and mood: State-trait relationships

The scores of 33 subjects of the neuroticism scale of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire correlated more highly with mood levels averaged over the 12 occasions studied than, on average, with mood scores on single occasions, and more highly with mood described in global terms than with scores on each of the original 18 mood scales. Subjects with high neuroticism scores had poorer mood on average and showed greater variation in mood pattern from one occasion to another than did more stable subjects. It is suggested that forms of relatively poor mood may be more varied than forms of good mood, and that, although neuroticism makes a poor mood more likely, the precise composition of this mood on any occasion may be determined by the combination of situation characteristics and person variables. Psychoticism scores correlated significantly, though weakly, with the average scores for some mood scales independently of neuroticism.