Comparative visual search: a difference that makes a difference

In this article we present a new experimental paradigm: comparative visual search. Each half of a display contains simple geometrical objects of three different colors and forms. The two display halves are identical except for one object mismatched in either color or form. The subject's task is to find this mismatch. We illustrate the potential of this paradigm for investigating the underlying complex processes of perception and cognition by means of an eye-tracking study. Three possible search strategies are outlined, discussed, and reexamined on the basis of experimental results. Each strategy is characterized by the way it partitions the field of objects into "chunks." These strategies are: (i) Stimulus-wise scanning with minimization of total scan path length (a "traveling salesman" strategy), (ii) scanning of the objects in fixed-size areas (a "searchlight" strategy), and (iii) scanning of object sets based on variably sized clusters defined by object density and heterogeneity (a "clustering" strategy). To elucidate the processes underlying comparative visual search, we introduce besides object density a new entropy-based measure for object heterogeneity. The effects of local density and entropy on several basic and derived eye-movement variables clearly rule out the traveling salesman strategy, but are most compatible with the clustering strategy.     

Overt and covert aggression in work settings in relation to the subjective well‐being of employees

Aggressive behavior was studied in workplaces having (1) predominantly male, (2) predominantly female, or (3) both male and female employees in equal or near equal frequencies. In addition to examining the occurrence of different types of aggression in these workplaces, the question of whether being a target of aggression is related to employees’ subjective well‐being was addressed. One hundred sixty‐nine participants (mainly 30–50 years of age) employed in a wide range of organizations in the public sector completed a questionnaire measuring four types of observed and experienced aggression: direct overt, indirect manipulative, covert insinuative, and rational‐appearing aggression. Indirect manipulative and rational‐appearing aggression were perceived to be the most widely used aggression styles in the work context. In the predominantly male workplaces, the men were perceived to use more of all types of aggression than in the predominantly female workplaces. The women’s aggression was not related to the relative number of females and males with whom they worked. Participants were divided into two groups on the basis of the extent to which they estimated themselves to be targets of workplace aggression. Those who considered themselves to be victims of workplace aggression suffered significantly more from psychosocial problems and physical symptoms than those who had been victimized to a lesser extent or not at all. The victimized group also considered the aggression they had suffered to be the reason for their psychosocial and health problems. Aggr. Behav. 27:360–371, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Evaluation of the Norwegian version of the Adolescent Stress Questionnaire (ASQ-N): factorial validity across samples

In spite of the potential significance of stressors, the past decades have yielded only limited and incremental progress in the field of the development of valid and reliable stress inventories for adolescents. The Adolescent Stress Questionnaire (ASQ-N) was developed to address the domain of stressors specific to adolescent experience. The present study reports an evaluation of factorial validity, as well as the construct validity of the Norwegian version of the Adolescent Stress Questionnaire (ASQ-N) across two samples, with the use of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Gender and age differences on the ASQ-N sub-dimensions are also evaluated. The CFA supported a seven-factor structure, where all sub-dimensions showed adequate internal consistency. The sub-dimensions were correlated positively with measures of depression and anxiety, and were correlated negatively with self-esteem, supporting the construct validity of the ASQ-N. Significant gender differences in self-reported adolescent stress were found in five of the seven scales, where girls had higher mean scores than boys. The correlation between each stress scale and age was weak, with significant correlations found in four of the seven scales. It is suggested that the ASQ-N is a measure of adolescent stress that is adequate for the research context, as well as for clinical investigation.     

Adolescents born extremely preterm: behavioral outcomes and quality of life

Fifty-two extremely premature born and 54 full-term controls were assessed regarding behavioral outcomes, risk-taking and self-perceived quality of life. Behavioral outcomes were assessed with the Achenbach Youth Self Report; risk-taking was estimated regarding alcohol and nicotine use; self-perceived quality of life and future expectations were rated; and attention and hyperactivity problems were surveyed retrospectively with the Wender Utah Rating Scale. The prematurely born reported fewer problems than full-term born on the externalizing scale (delinquent behavior and aggressive behaviour); and they reported less alcohol consumption. No difference was observed between the two groups concerning nicotine use, views about quality of life and expectations for the future or in the retrospective assessment of attention and hyper-activity problems. Conclusively, the prematurely born adolescents described a quality of life and future expectations comparable to full-term born controls. They also reported fewer behavioral problems and less risk-taking behavior.     

Lüdecke C,Sachsse U,Faure H (2010) Sucht – Bindung – Trauma: Psychotherapie von Sucht und Traumafolgen im neurobiologischen Kontext

Buchbesprechungen

Lüdecke C, Sachsse U, Faure H (2010) Sucht – Bindung – Trauma: Psychotherapie von Sucht und Traumafolgen im neurobiologischen Kontext Schattauer, Stuttgart, 364 S., ISBN-13: 978-3794527465, EUR 49,95     

Kant,Reichenbach, and the Fate of A Priori Principles

Abstract: This article contends that the relation of early logical empiricism to Kant was more complex than is often assumed. It argues that Reichenbach's early work on Kant and Einstein, entitled The Theory of Relativity and A Priori Knowledge (1920) aimed to transform rather than to oppose Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. One the one hand, I argue that Reichenbach's conception of coordinating principles, derived from Kant's conception of synthetic a priori principles, offers a valuable way of accounting for the historicity of scientific paradigms. On the other hand, I show that even Reichenbach, in line with Neo‐Kantianism, associated Kant's view of synthetic a priori principles too closely with Newtonian physics and, consequently, overestimated the difference between Kant's philosophy and his own. This is even more so, I point out, in the retrospective account logical empiricism presented of its own history. Whereas contemporary reconstructions of this history, including Michael Friedman's, tend to endorse this account, I offer an interpretation of Kant's conception of a priori principles that contrasts with the one put forward by both Neo‐Kantianism and logical empiricism. On this basis, I re‐examine the early Reichenbach's effort to accommodate these principles to the paradigm forged by Einstein.     

Waking and dreaming: related but structurally independent. Dream reports of congenitally paraplegic and deaf-mute persons

Models of dream analysis either assume a continuum of waking and dreaming or the existence of two dissociated realities. Both approaches rely on different methodology. Whereas continuity models are based on content analysis, discontinuity models use a structural approach. In our study, we applied both methods to test specific hypotheses about continuity or discontinuity. We contrasted dream reports of congenitally deaf-mute and congenitally paraplegic individuals with those of non-handicapped controls. Continuity theory would predict that either the deficit itself or compensatory experiences would surface in the dream narrative. We found that dream form and content of sensorially limited persons was indifferent from those of non-handicapped controls. Surprisingly, perceptual representations, even of modalities not experienced during waking, were quite common in the dream reports of our handicapped subjects. Results are discussed with respect to feedforward mechanisms and protoconsciousness theory of dreaming.     

Does temporal preparation increase the rate of sensory information accumulation?

Recent studies showed that temporal preparation, i.e., the ability to prepare for an upcoming stimulus, improves perceptual processing. The mechanisms underlying this benefit are still controversial. Based upon the theoretical framework of accumulation models, it has been proposed that the accumulation of sensory stimulus information begins earlier when participants are temporally prepared than when they are unprepared. Alternatively, however, temporal preparation might also affect the accumulation rate of sensory information. In the present study, we examined these possibilities. Specifically, in three experiments, we manipulated participants' decision criterion. This manipulation should interact with any experimental manipulation affecting the rate of information processing, but produce additive effects with any manipulation affecting the onset of information accumulation rather than its rate. We obtained additive effects on RT, irrespective of whether the decision criterion was manipulated by increasing catch trial proportion or nogo trial proportion. These results suggest that temporal preparation improves perceptual processing by operating on the onset of sensory information accumulation rather than the rate of sensory information accumulation.     

The Role of Affect in the Relationship Between Distributive Justice Expectations and Applicants' Recommendation and Litigation Intentions

This paper examined the moderating role of positive and negative affect in the relationship between distributive justice expectations and applicants' intentions to recommend the organization or to litigate. Specifically, it was suggested and supported in two samples of, respectively, 1,409 and 486 applicants, that the positive relationship between distributive justice expectations and recommendation intentions was stronger for applicants high in positive affect. In the second sample, it was further found that the negative relationship between distributive justice expectations and litigation intentions was stronger among applicants high in negative affect. This research is the first to identify the distinct roles of positive and negative affect in shaping responses to expectations of (un)fairness in the personnel selection literature. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Predictors of Heart-Focused Anxiety in Patients Undergoing Genetic Investigation and Counseling of Long QT Syndrome or Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: A One Year Follow-up

Since Long QT syndrome and Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy are inherited cardiac disorders that may cause syncope, palpitations, serious arrhythmias, and sudden cardiac death, at-risk individuals may experience heart-focused anxiety. In a prospective multi-site study, 126 Norwegian patients attending genetic counseling were followed 1 year with multiple administration of questionnaires, including the Cardiac Anxiety Questionnaire, measuring three distinct symptoms of heart-focused anxiety- avoidance, attention, and fear—in mixed linear analyses. Overall, at 1-year follow-up, patients with clinical diagnosis as compared to patients at genetic risk had significantly higher scores of avoidance (p < .002), attention (p < .005), and fear (p < .007). Sudden cardiac death in close relatives, uncertainty whether other relatives previously had undergone genetic testing, patients’ perceived general health, self-efficacy expectations and procedural satisfaction with genetic counseling were influential in predicting the different symptoms of heart-focused anxiety over time.