Generating probable consequences

A study was conducted to examine some of the factors that influence peoples' generation of likely consequences associated with a major hypothetical life event, involving the loss of the function of one of one's own limbs. The design included four limbs involving two inclusion relations, thumb-hand and foot-leg, and two viewpoints involving consequences for one-self or for others. The results indicated that subjects generate more numerous consequences for primary than for secondary consequences, more for short-term consequences than for medium- or long-term ones, more for an inclusive limb than for an included limb (e.g., hand vs thumb), and more pertaining to one-self than to others. Individual differences in the generation of consequences were not associated with prior experience involving functional loss of the limbs tested or with general differences in academic performance. The results permit inference about some of the mental processes that accompany consequence generation.     

The effects of natural category size on memory for episodic encodings

Previous findings indicate that natural category size affects cued recall but not recognition performance. Words that define or belong to larger categories are not as likely to be recalled in the presence of an extralist cue. However, category size has no effect on recognition in the presence of the target as the cue. Theoretically, this difference could be due to inherent differences between these tasks, to the use of different types of test cues, or to differences in the nature of the required responses (naming compared with “yes/no”decisions). Three experiments indicated that none of these factors is a sole determinant. Natural category size effects were found in cued-recall and recognition tasks, with extralist and target cues and regardless of the required response. The critical factor is whether the testing conditions require or encourage subjects to search the category defined by the cue. With the initiation of such a search, information represented in semantic memory is likely to influence memory for episodic information.     

Contributions to the history of psychology: LX. Remarks about S. Howard Bartley, as a scholar, scientist, and human being

The scholarly record of S. Howard Bartley (1902-1988) evokes respect because it shows quality, diversity, and quantity. Bartley's publications are well known and have been frequently cited in the literature of psychology, physiology, and optometry. His contributions to encyclopedias, handbooks, and other summative records of knowledge are legion. Notwithstanding his acknowledged eminence, unusual factors in his early upbringing worked to limit ability to gain full recognition for his work. Acting as a person, Bartley exhibited major talent in artistic areas and created endless delights for friends and colleagues in work and social settings.     

Heteronyms and polyphones: Categories of words with multiple phonemic representations

Heteronyms are words that have two different possible pronunciations that are associated with two (or more) different meanings. They can be used to investigate psychological mechanisms in reading and other cognitive processes. A corpus of English heteronyms has been collected and is tabulated here. In addition, a corpus of English polyphones is tabulated. These are words with different pronunciations that are not associated with different meanings.     

The University of South Florida homograph norms

Norms were collected to determine the relative dominance of different meanings of homo-graphic words. Forty-six subjects wrote down the first word that came to mind for each of 320 homographs. Each homograph, the number of times each meaning was given, and the specific associates are made available. In addition, correlations with other norms are presented.     

Large effects on long-term retention after standard list learning vs. adjusted learning

Prior research using the method of adjusted learning has focused on the method’s potential relative to the standard list learning method for minimizing retention differences among items. Concomitantly, there is less overlearning of individual items with the adjusted learning method. Although prior research has reported a retention difference favoring the standard list learning method, our research demonstrates that the magnitude of this difference can be surprisingly large. The results presented here from 11 experiments show retention to be more than 100% greater after standard list learning than after adjusted learning.     

Outdoor enclosures for feralizing rats and mice

Rationales for the naturalistic study of rattus and mus in outdoor enclosures are well known but rarely transformed into practice. This paper describes the materials, construction details, and operational procedures for rat and mouse pens that are easily and inexpensively built and maintained. The suggestion here is that outdoor enclosures offer meaningful views of rodent behavior not accessible in traditional laboratory situations.     

Anxiety and locus of conflict in delinquents

The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) and the Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (CMAS) were administered to 54 juvenile delinquents (27 males, 27 females). Ratings on locus of conflict were also obtained. The STAIC A-State scale was significantly correlated with internalization but not with externalization or the total maladjustment index. Neither A-Trait nor the anxiety portion of the CMAS was correlated with locus of conflict. All measures of anxiety were significantly correlated with each other. Boys were rated as more internal, external, and maladjusted than girls despite the fact that girls reported more subjectively experienced anxiety.