A theory of learning and transfer: I

A rational theory of discrimination learning is developed for the special case in which the subject must discriminate between two stimuli which differ with respect to one variable such as size or brightness. It is shown that the previous equations developed by Gulliksen and Thurstone are special cases of the present one. It is predicted that the ultimate level of accuracy of the discrimination is inversely related to the difference, as determined psychophysically, between the two stimuli. Other implications of the theory for experimental work are presented.We are grateful to the members of Professor Thurstone's Seminar in Mathematical Psychology for criticism of this paper and particularly to Mr. John Reiner for assistance in the derivations involved.     

Response cost effects during extinction following fixed-interval reinforcement in humans

This study examined the effects of response-produced cost upon human observer responses during extinction following FI reinforcement. Relative to a no-cost condition, cost produced marked and rapid response attenuation.     

Investigating the Effects of Applicant Justice Perceptions on Job Offer Acceptance

Drawing on extant recruitment and organizational justice theory, this research examines the effects of justice perceptions on job acceptance decisions across 2 samples (n = 332 and 2,974) of applicants to jobs within the U.S. military. More specifically, we examine justice–job offer acceptance relations relative to other pertinent recruitment predictors including, organizational image, familiarity, person–organization (P–O) fit perceptions, and recruiter behaviors. Findings from both studies support the importance of justice perceptions in influencing job offer acceptance. Fairness perceptions accounted for 29.37% and 19.22% of the unique variance in job offer acceptance, in Studies 1 and 2, respectively. The results of this research provide much needed empirical evidence to the scant literature on actual job acceptance and highlight important practical implications for employers.     

The Deterrent Effects of Punishments for Noncompliance and Rewards for Compliance: A Comparison of Hospital Employees in Japan and the United States

We integrate social learning theory into Grasmick’s extended model of deterrence to propose that rational actors, in their decision of workplace deviance, consider not only possible costs of noncompliance but possible rewards of compliance. A review of the literature on cultural differences between Japan and the United States leads to the hypotheses that although perceived costs of noncompliance and rewards of compliance operate as deterrents across the two cultures, the deterrent effects of the costs and rewards are stronger and weaker, respectively, in Japan than the U.S. Analysis of survey data from hospital employees provides mixed support for our arguments.     

A Social Priming Data Set With Troubling Oddities

A recent paper by Chatterjee, Rose, and Sinha (2013) reported impressively large “money priming” effects: incidental exposure to concepts relating to cash or credit cards made participants much less generous with their time and money (after cash primes) or much more generous (after credit card primes ). Primes also altered participants’ choices in a word-stem completion task. To explore these effects, we carried out re-analyses of the raw data. A number of strange oddities were brought to light, including a dramatic similarity of the filler word-stem completion responses produced by the 20 subjects who contributed most to the priming effects. We suggest that these oddities undermine the credibility of the paper and require further investigation.     

The Future of Training and Credentialing in Group Psychotherapy

High-quality group psychotherapy training is seen as more important than ever in the current health care environment. The training opportunities available at present are assessed. It is argued that there is a body of knowledge about generic group psychotherapy that can and should be taught, and that there are appropriate people to teach it. Credentialing is discussed, and it is suggested that the assessment of actual work in clinical situations must be emphasized if such efforts are to be meaningful.     

Imitation of Gestures in Children is Goal-directed

The view that the motor program activated during imitation is organized by goals was investigated by asking pre-school children to imitate a set of hand gestures of varying complexity that were made by an experimenter sitting in front of them. In Experiments 1 and 3, children reached for the correct object (one of their own ears or one of two dots on a table) but preferred to use the ipsilateral hand. This ipsilateral preference was not observed when hand movements were made to only one ear (Experiment 2), or when movements were diercted at space rather than physical objects (Experiment 3). The results are consistent with the notion that imitation is guided by goals and provide insights about how these goals are organized.