Theories of reasoning and the representational level: A reply to Oaksford

Oaksford (2001) considers that the findings of Espino, Santamaría, and García Madruga (2000a) could be explained by the Probability Heuristics Model (PHM) proposed by Chater and Oaksford (1999). He specifically voices three objections, the two main ones being based on the fact that PHM is not a theory about syllogism representation. If this is the case, we consider that PHM cannot explain our data, because most of them were registered before the participants evaluated the conclusion. We argue that only a theory at the representational level can property explain these data.     

Pilot test of Project CHOICE: a voluntary afterschool intervention for middle school youth.

The current study reports findings from a pilot evaluation of a voluntary alcohol and marijuana intervention for young teens. Students at 2 middle schools completed 4 surveys over 2 years. During Year 2, an intervention, Project CHOICE (PC), was implemented at 1 school and was voluntarily attended by 13% of adolescents. Participants ranged from 10 to 15 years of age and were approximately 45% male, 45% White, 30% Latino, and 15% of mixed ethnic origin. Outcomes included assessments of self use and perceptions of friends' and schoolmates' past-month use of alcohol and marijuana. Analyses that compared PC participants (n=64) with a matched control sample of students (n=264) revealed that PC participants reported lower rates of alcohol use and lower perceptions of friends' marijuana use and of schoolmates' use of these substances. Random-effects growth models indicated that self use and perceptions of friends' use of alcohol and marijuana increased more sharply among control school students (n=178) relative to students from the PC school (n=270), regardless of participation. Results suggest that a brief voluntary intervention attended by a small proportion of students can impact both individual and schoolwide substance-related outcomes.     

Medical Psychology in Brazil

In 1962, Psychology was officially accorded professional status in Brazil. Since then the profession has been undergoing continuous development, but the training of psychologists still suffers from flaws that are reflected in the public heath service, SUS (Sistema Único de Saúde). However, SUS itself is also open to criticism: the service is badly distributed, the number of posts for psychologists is limited, and working conditions are poor. Nevertheless, many positive changes are occurring. These include plans to alter academic training to better meet the needs of the Brazilian population, an expansion of the roles played by psychologists in the health service, and increasing research activity. These and many other changes suggest that the progressive evolution of the profession in Brazil will continue.     

Early and late processes in syllogistic reasoning: evidence from eye-movements

An eye-movement monitoring experiment was carried out to examine the effects of the difficulty of the problem (simple versus complex problems) and the type of figure (figure 1 or figure 4) on the time course of processing categorical syllogisms. The results showed that the course of influence for these two factors is different. We found early processing effects for the figure but not for the difficulty of the syllogism and later processing effects for both the figure and the difficulty. These results lend support to the Model Theory (Johnson-Laird, P. N., Byrne, R. M. J. (1991). Deduction. Hillsdale, New Jersey: LEA.) as opposed to other theories of reasoning (Chater, N., Oaksford, M. (1999). The probability heuristics model of syllogistic reasoning. Cognitive Psychology, 38, 191-258; Rips, L. J. (1994). The psychology of proof. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press; Rips, L. J. (1994). The psychology of proof. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press).     

Development and validation of a modified version of the Peritraumatic Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire

This article reports results from 3 studies conducted to develop and validate a modified version of the self-administered form of the Peritraumatic Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire (PDEQ; C. R. Marmar, D. S. Weiss, & T. J. Metzler, 1997). The objective was to develop an instrument suitable for use with persons from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. In Study 1, the original PDEQ was administered to a small sample (N = 15) recruited from among men admitted to the hospital for physical injuries stemming from exposure to community violence. Results led to modifications aimed at improving the utility of the instrument. In Study 2, the modified PDEQ was subjected to structural equation modeling and item response theory analyses to assess its psychometric properties in a larger, primarily male, sample of community violence survivors (N = 284). In Study 3, the reliability and validity of the modified instrument were further assessed in a sample of female survivors of sexual assault (N = 90). Results attest to the psychometric properties as well as the reliability and validity of the modified 8-item PDEQ.     

Is this a family business? Effectiveness of implementing family businesses branding strategies on a radio platform

Understanding how family firms can use their family image to their advantage in communication strategies is an opportunity for business continuity. This study identifies the effects of family hotels' corporate brand strategy through radio advertising on customer perceptions and attitudes using family image communication literature and radio advertising research. Online experiment using radio ads from these hotels and a survey of 1002 participants from Chile and Spain were conducted. The results suggest that strategies improving the firm's ability to communicate the family image results in better consumer response in terms of expectation, perceived quality, visit intention, and willingness to pay more. We conclude that radio ads are an effective channel for communicating family firm images. Managers can take advantage of monetizing the benefits of family firm images through radio ads.     

The impostor phenomenon: self-perceptions, reflected appraisals, and interpersonal strategies

Three studies tested theoretical assumptions regarding the impostor phenomenon. In Study 1, participants completed measures of impostorism, rated themselves, and indicated how they thought other people regarded them. Contrary to standard conceptualizations of impostorism, high impostors were characterized by a combination of low self-appraisals and low reflected appraisals. Study 2 was an experiment designed to determine whether the behaviors associated with the impostor phenomenon are interpersonal strategies. Participants were told that they were expected to perform either better or worse than they had previously predicted on an upcoming test, then expressed their reactions anonymously or publicly. High impostors expressed lower performance expectations than low impostors only when their responses were public. When expectations for performance were low, participants high in impostorism responded differently under public than private conditions. Study 3 examined the possibility that high scores on measures of impostorism may reflect two types of impostors--true impostors (who believe that others perceive them too positively) and strategic impostors (who only claim that they are not as good as other people think). The results did not support this distinction; however, evidence for the strategic nature of impostorism was again obtained. Although people may experience true feelings of impostorism, these studies suggest that the characteristics attributed to so-called impostors are partly interpersonal, self-presentational behaviors designed to minimize the implications of poor performance.     

Mesothalamic discharge in a chronic pain,allergy and fluid retention syndrome (case report)

A 32-year-old woman was bedridden for a year because of chronic pain and headaches. She had insomnia, depression, suicidal thoughts and a severe chemical allergy. She had been on steroid therapy for two years and became Cushingoid with striae in the arm pits, groins and abdomen. However, she had no hypertension, nor the buffalo fat and hirsutism. She was very edematous, with a weight gain from 112 to 180 lbs. The fluid retention did not conform to the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone. Studies revealed abnormal scalp EEG discharges and high-voltage seizure discharges in the posterior thalamus. Electrothalamic stimulation suppressed the thalamic discharges and relieved the patient’s pelvic pain and headaches. After one month of several thalamic stimulations per day, she was able to get out of bed and ambulate. In addition, the patient no longer was edematous and was tolerating perfumes and floor detergents. Steroids were progressively reduced without complications of withdrawal. She went from a completely steroid dependent state to independent during the first 1-1/2 yrs of thalamic stimulation. With continued thalamic stimulation she has done well for 8-1/2 yrs, weighs 112 lbs, keeps house and drives a car. It’s speculated the illness is a chronic pain multiple system syndrome predominantly due to mesothalamic discharges and body infirmities. The mesothalamic discharge implicated neural networks, which represent biologic systems, i.e. pain, sleep, fluid retention, etc. Therapeutic stimulation attenuates the discharges and the neural networks return to their normal set points of homeostasis.