The name game: using retrieval practice to improve the learning of names

In medium-sized groups such as classes, it is often desirable that the members become acquainted with one another. Toward this end, various methods of introducing group members are often used, with only anecdotal evidence for their effectiveness. The name game is a method for introducing group members that is based on the principles of retrieval practice. The authors compared 2 versions of the name game with a widely used introductory method--pairwise introductions--and found that the name game participants were much better at remembering one another's name after 30 min, 2 weeks, and 11 months. A second experiment tested the contribution of retrieval practice by comparing 2 versions of the name game with a procedure that was matched for number of repetitions and time spent on the task. Again, the name games were superior.     

Key Word Index Volume 4

Other Index

Key Word Index Volume 4     

Treatment for sexually abused children and adolescents

The authors review research demonstrating the variable effects of childhood sexual abuse, the need for intervention, and the effectiveness of available treatment models. The well-controlled treatment-outcome studies reviewed do not focus on sensationalistic fringe treatments that treat sexually abused children as a special class of patients. Instead, studies demonstrate empirical evidence for extending and modifying treatment models from mainstream clinical child psychology to sexually abused children. The authors propose a continuum of interventions to meet the needs of this heterogeneous group. Interventions range from psychoeducation and screening, to short-term, abuse-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy with family involvement, to more comprehensive long-term plans for multiproblem cases. Last discussed are gaps in the research and suggestions for future research to address the pressing dilemmas faced by clinicians and policymakers.     

Young children's use of functional information to categorize artifacts: three factors that matter

Three experiments addressed factors that might influence whether or not young children take into account function, as opposed to overall appearance or shape, when they extend the names of novel artifacts. Experiment 1 showed that 4-year-olds more often extend a name on the basis of a demonstrated function when that function provides a plausible causal account of perceptible object structure. Experiment 2 showed that they more often extend a name by function when they respond slowly, and hence thoughtfully. Experiment 3 demonstrated that they are more likely to take function into account when they extend names than when they judge similarities. Comparisons of lexical and non-lexical conditions in younger children failed to show any differences. Overall, the findings suggest that by 4 years of age, children may learn names as labels for novel artifact kinds rather than perceptual classes, and that the processes by which they categorize may be mindful and reflective, as in adults.     

Asymmetries in a unilateral flanker task depend on the direction of the response: the role of attentional shift and perceptual grouping

Four experiments were conducted using a flanker task with 1 distractor appearing either on the left or right side of a central target. Responses were made on a keyboard aligned parallel to the displays. A larger flanker effect was obtained when the distractor was on the same side as the response. Two factors account for this asymmetry. First, when the flanker and target are identical, the 2 form a group that is assigned a spatial tag, creating a form of the Simon effect on the basis of the compatibility between the response keys and the group. Second, preparation of a lateralized response appears to entail a shift of visual attention in the corresponding direction, thus enhancing processing of the flanker on the response side. Consistent with the 2nd hypothesis, participants were more likely to correctly recognize letters that were briefly presented at the distractor position on the same side as the response.     

Group Psychotherapy as the Century Turns: Toward a Philosophy of Care

A futuristic essay should be written by two persons so as to invoke Bion's basic assumption pairing (Bion, 1964) with its connotations of hope, no matter how irrational. Accordingly, I split my self in two parts, one, the hard-headed realist, and the other, the prophetic visionary. As idealized identities, neither comes easily to me. But, perhaps heeding the two has permitted the articulation of some presentable notions about group psychotherapy and its evolving fate.     

The role of reinforcement contingencies in chronic alcoholism: An experimental analysis of one case

investigators have questioned chronic alcoholics and round that some of them have returned to normal social drinking (Davies, 1962; Lemere, 1953; Nørvig and Nielsen, 1956; Selzer and Holloway. 1957; and Shea, 1954). These findings would seem inconsistent with such notions as loss of control or craving as the basis of compulsive drinking. Moreover, antecedents and consequences of these explanatory constructs, have not been elucidated. The purpose of this research was to make an intensive study of a single subject to see if specific conditions could be identified under which a chronic alcoholic's drinking could be controlled, in a setting in which environmental variables could be systematically varied and drinking behavior documented.