The role of phonemes and syllables in the perceived similarity of speech sounds for children

In two experiments, we investigated the factors that influence the perceived similarity of speech sounds at two developmental levels. Kindergartners and second graders were asked to classify nonsense words, which were related by syllable and phoneme correspondences. The results support the existence of a developmental trend toward increased attention to individual phonemic segments. Moreover, one significant factor in determining the perceived similarity of speech sounds appears to be the position of the component correspondences; attention to the beginning of utterances may have developmental priority. An unexpected finding was that the linguistic status of the unit involved in a correspondence (whether it was a syllable or a phoneme) did not seem particularly important. Apparently, the factors which contribute to the perceived similarity of speech sounds in the classification task are not identical to those which underlie performance in explicit segmentation and manipulation tasks, since in the latter sort of task, syllables are more accessible than phonemes for young children. The present task may tap a level of processing that is closer to the one entailed in word recognition and lexical access.     

Multi-agency family systems

The term 'multi-agency' family is preferred to 'disorganized' family. Multi-agency family systems present special problems of the relationships (a) within the family, (b) between family and professional network, (c) among members of the professional network and (d) between family, network and treatment centre to whom the family is referred. Pressures on the family and professional workers can create a locked system which prevents natural development of the family or effective problem solving by the workers. A systems approach to such problems is presented which includes consultation to the family/professional network system.     

Ordered preference differences without ordered preferences

Axiomatizations of ordered preference differences typically assume that preferences are ordered. However, the mere assumption that preference differences can be ordered says nothing about whether preferences themselves are ordered. Utility representations for ordered differences without ordered preferences are investigated.     

The process of scapegoating in a neonatal nurses' group

This paper reviews the literature on scapegoating, elaborating on the underlying mechanisms before describing the process of scapegoating as it occurred in a neonatal nurse support group. Illustrative vignettes are used to discuss how scapegoating was used by group members to avoid painful feelings arising from their care of extremely ill infants. Group process is related to the stages of the group's development as feelings were addressed more directly and the need to use scapegoating as a defense decreased.     

Building higher-order units in tachistoscopic identification: A test of two models

Summary Subjects were shown eight-letter pseudowords tachistoscopically and were asked to report as many letters as possible. The pseudowords, examples of either first- or fourth-order approximation to English, were printed in normal or reversed spelling and were presented in either normal of mirror-imaged letters. Finally subjects were either free to report in any order they wished, or they were instructed to report from left to right or from right to left. With normal letters, the familiarity effect was controlled by the spelling direction, not by the direction of report or the match between direction of report and spelling direction. With mirrored letters, however, order of approximation to English had no effect. The results contradict two existing theories: Mewhort's theory claims that the familiarity of fourth-order materials aids processing at a postcategorical level; it has trouble explaining why the familiarity effect disappeared with mirrored letters and normal spelling. Wolff's theory claims that familiarity aids processing at the feature level; it has trouble explaining why the familiarity effect disappeared with mirrored letters and reversed spelling.     

A new technique for measuring word processing time in reading

This paper reports some preliminary data on a “window-pointer” technique for measuring word processing time in reading. In this technique, almost all of the letters are masked on a page of text shown on a video monitor. The letters can be seen only through a “window” showing one word on one line. Subjects control the horizontal location of the window by moving a pointer left and right. When subjects want to move the window to the next line, the window is moved off the right end of the current line, and the pointer is moved back to the left. The window then reappears at the beginning of the next line. After some practice, subjects can move the window in approximate synchrony with their eyes, and can read the passage without any difficulty. The length of time the window spends on each word can then be used as a measure of word processing time. An analysis of these window durations indicates that they are similar in many respects to the gaze durations obtained with eye-movement monitoring techniques.     

Midi-level measurement of social anxiety in psychiatric and non-psychiatric samples

This paper reports the development and assessment of midi-level behavioral measures of social anxiety in the context of two experiments, one studying an analog student sample, the other a psychiatric sample. Judgments on nine categories of clinically practical midi-level behaviors (e.g. Facial Expression, Orienting, Sense of Timing), based on a review of the literature on human ethology and on pilot research, were compared to global judgments of social anxiety and social skill and to physiological arousal. Intraclass correlations exceeded 0.80 for judgments of the global and midi-level behavioral ratings on both samples. Results of correlational analyses indicated that while there were several significant predictors of global skill and anxiety among the midis, the magnitude of the relationship between midis and globals was stronger for the patient than the student sample. Further analyses based on S's heart rate (HR) reactivity suggested that while global ratings did not significantly predict H R in a high social anxiety situation, one midi-level behavioral rating (self-manipulations) did. The clinical utility of the newly developed measures is discussed with particular attention to their practicality for behavior therapy.