The owl and the pussycat: Gaze cues and visuospatial orienting

Recent research has shown that nonpredictive gaze cues trigger reflexive shifts in attention toward the looked-at location. But just how generalizable is this spatial cuing effect? In particular, are people especially tuned to gaze cues provided by conspecifics, or can comparable shifts in visual attention be triggered by other cue providers and directional cues? To investigate these issues, we used a standard cuing paradigm to compare the attentional orienting produced by different cue providers (i.e., animate vs. inanimate) and directional cues (i.e., eyes vs. arrows). The results of three experiments revealed that attentional orienting was insensitive to both the identity of the cue provider and the nature of the triggering cue. However, compared with arrows, gaze cues prompted a general enhancement in the efficiency of processing operations. We consider the implications of these findings for accounts of reflexive visual orienting.     

Homelessness Among Families, Children, and Adolescents: An Ecological–Developmental Perspective

This paper reviews and evaluates the literatures on children in families that are homeless and on adolescents who are homeless on their own. After presenting several emerging theoretical approaches, we propose a broad ecological-developmental perspective that recognizes that, although persons in these groups often lack resources and experience negative events that can amplify the risk for poor outcomes, they also have resources and adaptive potential. The perspective also recognizes that homelessness may have different meanings and outcomes at different points in development and that we need to consider interactions between individual development and multiple levels of social organization in order to foster new solutions to homelessness. On the basis of this perspective, we discuss directions for treatment and preventive interventions as well as social policy.     

The Impact of the Built Environment on Children’s School Conduct Grades: The Role of Diversity of Use in a Hispanic Neighborhood

A population-based study examined the relationship between diversity of use of the built environment and teacher reports of children’s grades. Diversity of use of the built environment (i.e., proportion of a block that is residential, institutional, commercial and vacant) was assessed for all 403 city blocks in East Little Havana, Miami—a Hispanic neighborhood. Cluster analysis identified three block-types, based on diversity of use: Residential, Mixed-Use, and Commercial. Cross-classified hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the impact of diversity of use, school, gender, and year-in-school on academic and conduct grades for 2857 public school children who lived in these blocks. Contrary to popular belief, mixed-use blocks were associated with optimal outcomes. Specifically, follow-up analyses found that a youth living on a residential block had a 74% greater odds of being in the lowest 10% of conduct grades (conduct GPA <2.17) than a youth living on a mixed-use block. In fact, an analysis of the population attributable fraction suggests that if the risk associated with residential blocks could be reduced to the level of risk associated with mixed-use blocks, a 38% reduction in Conduct GPAs <2.17 could be achieved in the total population. These findings suggest that public policy targeting the built environment may be a mechanism for community-based interventions to enhance children’s classroom conduct, and potentially related sequelae.     

Accessibility of potential referents following categorical anaphors

In 4 experiments, the authors investigated the accessibility of potential antecedents that were either referents or nonreferents of categorical anaphors using several methodologies. In 2 preliminary experiments, using an immediate probe recognition task, the authors replicated previous findings of inhibition for nonreferents following categorical anaphors. In Experiments 1-3, naming times to nonreferent probes were inhibited, but only at a delay and at the end of the sentence. Eye movements were monitored in Experiment 4, and reading times were found to be slower in end-of-sentence regions following the remention of the nonreferent but not on the nonreferent itself. These results suggest that decreases in nonreferent accessibility are due to postanaphoric processes, such as integrating the nonreferent into the discourse structure, and are not due to more immediate changes in activation occurring as part of the resolution process. Further, some inhibition effects may result from the use of probe tasks that require decisions.     

Murdoch's ontological argument

Anselm's ontological argument is an argument for the existence of God. This paper presents Iris Murdoch's ontological argument for the existence of the Good. It discusses her interpretation of Anselm's argument, her own distinctive appropriation of it, as well as some of the merits of her version of the argument. In doing so, it also shows how the argument integrates some key Murdochian ideas: morality's wide scope, the basicness of vision to morality, moral realism, and Platonism.     

Differences between Saimiri sciureus and Callicebus moloch in physiological responsiveness: implications for behavior

The New World primates Callicebus moloch and Saimiri sciureus differ markedly in life modes. Physiological responsiveness (heart rate, cortisol) of these related taxa was compared in two situations that differed in the presumed degree of stress imposed, exposure to a novel environment and physical restraint. In both situations, Saimiri exhibited higher initial levels of heart rate and corticosteroids. In addition, the species differed in their patterns of response to both situations. Saimiri maintained initial heart rate levels across a 1-hour exposure period, whereas Callicebus showed a marked and continuous decline in heart rate. Adrenocortical activity increased in both species in response to test situations, but the elevations in plasma corticosteroids were substantially greater for Saimiri than for Callicebus. The results indicate that the species differ with respect to organization of physiological regulatory systems in a manner consistent with behavioral contrasts between them.     

A PRACTICAL STRATEGY FOR ONGOING REINFORCER ASSESSMENT

There is a need for practical methods of reinforcer assessment that systematically track ongoing changes in clients' preferences. In this study, the effects of a time-efficient reinforcer assessment package were evaluated in a multiple baseline across 3 preschoolers with autism, comparing individualized item selections by experienced teachers with children's presession preferences for items of various sensory qualities. Systematic assessment of children's reinforcers for correct responding virtually eliminated nontargeted maladaptive behaviors, as well as yielding expected improvements in accuracy. The powerful side-effects of potent reinforcers underline the importance of increased attention to reinforcer assessment in research and practice.     

ARTIFACTUAL EFFECTS OF SENSORY-INTEGRATIVE THERAPY ON SELF-INJURIOUS BEHAVIOR

Three individuals who exhibited self-injurious behavior (SIB) were exposed to sensory-integrative therapy. Prior to treatment, a functional analysis baseline was conducted to identify the motivational features of their SIB. One subject's SIB appeared to be an attention-getting response (maintained by positive reinforcement), which varied subsequently as a function of attention being either withheld or provided noncontingently during sensory-integration sessions. The 2nd subject displayed a pattern of responding suggestive of stereotypic SIB (maintained by automatic reinforcement), which paradoxically increased during sensory-integration sessions. The 3rd subject's SIB appeared to function as an escape response (maintained by negative reinforcement), and his behavior during sensory-integration sessions was similar to that observed during baseline sessions in which demands were not present. The SIB of all 3 subjects later was reduced when behavioral interventions were applied. The data presented raise questions about the active components of sensory-integrative therapy and the functional types of SIB for which it might be appropriate.