Local pragmatics: reply to Mandy Simons

In response to Mandy Simons’ defence of a classical Gricean approach to pragmatic enrichment in terms of conversational implicature, I emphasize the following contrast. Conversational implicatures are generated by a global inference which uses as a premise the fact that the speaker has said that p, but only the triggering inference is global in cases of pragmatic enrichment. What generates the correct interpretation is a process of reconstrual, which locally maps the literal meaning of a constituent to a modulated meaning and composes that meaning with that of the other constituents. That process is constrained by Gricean considerations (in the broad sense) but that is true of all pragmatic aspects of interpretation, whether pre-propositional or post-propositional. Just as indexical resolution, though pragmatic and constrained by Gricean considerations, does not fit the two-stage model through which Grice accounts for conversational implicatures, so pragmatic modulation can’t be accounted for in terms of that model despite the fact that, like conversational implicatures and unlike indexical resolution, modulation is pragmatically rather than semantically triggered.     

Status Incongruence and Supervisor Gender as Moderators of the Transformational Leadership to Subordinate Affective Organizational Commitment Relationship

Grounded in role congruity theory, we examine how status incongruence (when the subordinate is older, has more education, work experience, and/or organizational tenure than the supervisor) in subordinate–supervisor dyads affects transformational leaders’ ability to foster affective organizational commitment among their subordinates. Across two field studies, our findings show that the relationship between transformational leadership and subordinate affective organizational commitment is less positive when status incongruence is high. Furthermore, in both field studies we found a 3‐way interaction among transformational leadership, status incongruence, and supervisor gender predicting subordinate affective organizational commitment. Specifically, in Study 1 (pink‐collar employees in Turkey), low status incongruence strengthened the positive relationship between transformational leadership and subordinate affective organizational commitment for male leaders. In Study 2 (pink‐collar employees in the United States), low status incongruence strengthened the positive relationship between transformational leadership and subordinate affective organizational commitment for female leaders. Furthermore, Study 2 also revealed that collective identity was a mediator of both the significant 2‐ and 3‐way interaction effects on subordinate affective organizational commitment.     

Psychopathology and behavior problems in children and adolescents with Williams syndrome: Distinctive relationships with cognition

Several studies have documented the high prevalence of psychopathology and behavior problems in Williams syndrome (WS). However, the links between cognitive development and such symptoms need further clarification. Our study aims to expand current knowledge on levels of behavior problems and its links to cognition in a sample of Brazilian individuals with WS. A total of 25 children and adolescents with WS and their parents participated in this study. The participants’ IQs were assessed with the Wechsler Scales of Intelligence (for children or adults) and parental reports of psychopathology/behavior problems were collected using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). The presence of clinically significant attention problems was a main feature in our sample of children and adolescents with WS. In the children, higher IQ scores were found to be significantly associated with less externalizing problems, while in the adolescents cognitive abilities were found to be associated with less internalizing symptoms. These results provide further insight into the links between psychopathology and behavior problems and cognitive abilities in WS, and suggest the need to take age into consideration when analyzing such relationships.     

Gender,Sacrifices, and Variability in Commitment: A Daily Diary Study of Pregnant Heterosexual Cohabitors and their Partners

We use interdependence theory and the inertia model to examine how gender and daily relational sacrifices predict daily variability in relationship commitment across a week in 43 U.S. couples who are unmarried cohabitors expecting their first child together (total of 455 days of data). We examined three variants of daily relational sacrifices: frequency, ease, and awareness for both individuals and partners, and we tested for gender differences. Using an Actor Partner Interdependence Model (APIM), we found that both women and men reported lower variability in commitment when men were perceived as highly aware of the sacrifices made for them. Additionally, women experienced lower variability in commitment when their male partners reported engaging in easier sacrifices. In contrast, women reported higher variability in commitment when they reported greater frequency of sacrifices for their partner. The results can be of practical use for practitioners working with expectant cohabitors and their partners given the unique role gender plays relative to how sacrifices shape variability in daily commitment.     

Heuristic Value of Eclecticism in Theory Development: The Case of Piagetian-Vygotskian <Emphasis Type="Italic">dialogue</Emphasis> about Proportional Reasoning

Køppe’s proposition of four layers in theoretical building are used here in the exploration of a specific case of eclectic combination, the use of Piagetian and Vygotskian general approaches to the analysis of proportional reasoning as a cognitive mathematical ability. It is proposed here that the eclectic consideration of these contributions depends on the consideration of their specificity, in the sense that they highlight different aspects of the phenomenon under scrutiny, and also on the consideration of the coherence between this eclectic convergence and premises in terms of schools of thought under which each contribution is framed. We conclude proposing in accordance to S. Køppe’s proposal that eclecticism can be valuable and heuristic in theory development, but this contribution will depend largely on the effort in establishing careful relations between the four layers of theory-building.     

Pre-training anandamide infusion within the basolateral amygdala impairs plus-maze discriminative avoidance task in rats

Endocannabinoids (eCBs) modulate a variety of brain functions via activation of the widely expressed CB1 receptor. One site of high density of this receptor is the basolateral amygdala (BLA), a structure involved in the formation of aversive memories. The activation and blockade of CB1 receptors by systemic or hippocampal drug administrations have been shown to modify memory processing. However, little is known about the role of the BLA endocannabinoid system in aversive memories. Additionally, BLA endocannabinoid transmission seems to be related to emotional states, but the relevance of these effects to memory formation is still unknown. In this study we investigated the effects of the eCB anandamide (AEA) and the CB1 antagonist/inverse agonist AM251 infused into the BLA on the acquisition of an aversive memory task, concomitantly evaluating basal anxiety levels in rats. Male rats received pre-training micro-injection of AEA, AM251 or vehicle bilaterally into the BLA, and were studied with the plus-maze discriminative avoidance task (a paradigm that allows concomitant and independent evaluation of anxiety-like behavior and the memory of an aversive task). Our results showed that AEA into the BLA before training prevented memory retrieval 24 h later, as evaluated by exploration of the aversive arm of the maze, while AM251 into the BLA did not interfere with animals' performance. In addition, AEA had no effect on anxiety-like behavior (as evaluated by open arm exploration and risk assessment), while AM251 induced an anxiogenic effect. Our data indicate an important role of BLA CB1 receptors in aversive memory formation, and suggest that this involvement is not necessarily related to a possible modulation of anxiety states.     

I Matter to My Friend,Therefore I am Happy: Friendship,Mattering, and Happiness

Decades of empirical research have shown that friendship experiences are an essential predictor of happiness. However, what might account for the relationship between friendship and happiness? Two studies investigated perceived mattering (Marshall, J Adolesc 24:473–490, 2001) as a mediator of the association between friendship quality and happiness. Study 1 showed that perceived mattering to one’s best friend mediated the relationship between friendship and happiness. Study 2 replicated the findings of the first study and showed that mattering in friendships accounts for the role of friendship quality in happiness across the three closest friendships of the individual. The results are discussed in terms of the theoretical importance of understanding how friendship is related to happiness.     

Personal Values and Well-Being among Europeans,Spanish Natives and Immigrants to Spain: Does the Culture Matter?

The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between personal values and well-being. Two correlational studies are presented with the following random samples: (1) four native samples: two samples from the 2006 European Social Survey (Europe n1 = 28,375, Spain n2 = 1,321) and two Basque samples (n3 = 1,770; n4 = 820); and (2) a sample of immigrants in the Basque Country (quasirandom) (n5 = 1,171). Age range of respondents was 18–60 years. The instruments used were for measuring: (1) personal values (Schwartz’s PVQ-40 or PVQ-21), and (2) well-being (Bradburn’s PNA, Goldberg’s GHQ, and life satisfaction and perceived control items from the World Value Survey). Partial correlation analysis was applied, with PVQ scale response bias controlled. The data supported a positive association of hedonic and psychological well-being with openness to experience and individualist values, and a negative association with power and conservation or collectivist values. Satisfaction with life partially mediated the relationship between personal values and affect. The results support a universal association of healthy values with well-being.     

Territorial gain dynamics regulates success in attacking sub-phases of team sports

Background and objective

Field invasion games, such as rugby union, can be conceptualised as dynamic social systems in which the agents continuously interact to contest ball possession and territorial gain. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify the collective system dynamics of rugby union phases-of-play near the try line by investigating whether ball displacement trajectory on the playing field provides insights on successful team performance.

Methods

Five rugby union matches were videotaped involving teams at a national league performance level. From these matches, 22 second phases-of-play were selected and digitized for analysis. The variable “distance gained” was investigated as a potential coordination variable describing functional coordination between players and teams. This variable concerned the distance between ball initial position and ball current position over time and was used to define the degree of territory gained by an attacking team.

Results

Analysis of distance gained dynamics in attacking sub-phases demonstrated the intermittent character of rugby union performers displacement trajectories on the playing field. Amplitude of ball movements was revealed as a distinguishing feature related to attacking effectiveness. Successful attacking phases displayed lower distances of positional retreat, with the maximum retreat distance achieved sooner in successful compared to unsuccessful phases-of-play. Autocorrelation and ApEn analyses suggested low system variability within time series data concerning both performance outcomes. However, evidence of less regularity and more complexity was found in unsuccessful phases-of-play.

Conclusion

Results suggested that distance gained dynamics manifests a characteristic collective behaviour pattern that captures the macroscopic functional order of multi-player attack–defence systems in team sports like rugby union.