Recognizing faces in and out of context

Two experiments are reported which examined the influence of context on face recognition accuracy for novel and familiar faces respectively. Context was manipulated by varying the physical background against which the faces appeared. In Experiment I, 80 student subjects observed 18 faces before attempting to recognize them in a sequence of 36 alternatives. For half the subjects, the backgrounds changed from study to test, while for the remainder they stayed the same. In addition, for half the subjects, both the pose and expression of the face also changed, while for the others it remained constant. Changes in pose plus expression and context significantly reduced recognition accuracy for the target faces. Experiment II used an identical design, except that the faces of celebrities replaced the novel faces. The influence of context was eliminated but the effects of pose and expression were maintained. However, when only faces which were actually identified by subjects were considered, the effects of pose and expression, too, were eliminated. The significance of these findings for theories of contextual memory are discussed.     

Identification of familiar and unfamiliar faces from internal and external features: some implications for theories of face recognition

Three experiments are reported in which recognition of faces from whole faces or internal or external features was compared. In the first experiment, where the faces were of famous people, an advantage was found for identification from internal features. In the second experiment involving unfamiliar faces, however, no difference was found in recognition rates when subjects were given the internal or the external features. In a third experiment famous faces were presented and mixed with other famous faces for a recognition test. As in experiment 1, better recognition occurred from internals as compared with external features. It is argued that the internal representation for familiar faces may be qualitatively different from that for face seen just once. In particular some advantage in feature saliency may accrue to the internal or 'expressive' features of familiar faces. The implications of these results are considered in relation to general theories of face perception and recognition.     

Salt taste detection: an R-index approach to signal-detection measurements

The R-index approach to the signal-detection P(A) index of sensitivity was used to measure taste sensitivity to NaCl solutions. The R-index is the predicted probability of the correct choice of a signal, for a given signal-noise pair. For flow-wise and sipwise presentation, R-indices did not fluctuate significantly, provided subjects could not see the stimuli yet to be presented, indicating a lack of systematic sensitivity drift. The simultaneous measurement of more than one signal strength with reference to a common noise stimulus was seen to be a viable and sensitive procedure. Comparison of flow-wise and sipwise presentation of stimuli using R-indices, indicated that the former elicited greater subject sensitivity to NaCl taste.     

Brief Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Suicidal Inpatients

Suicide risk is elevated in psychiatric patients following discharge from inpatient care. Despite this vulnerability, there has been limited research investigating suicide prevention protocols that take into account the unique system characteristics of this setting (e.g., short lengths of stay, crisis stabilization treatment model, multidisciplinary team coordination). Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) has demonstrated efficacy for improving suicide risk in outpatients, but has not been validated with inpatients. The current study was a treatment development and pilot feasibility open trial that modified brief cognitive-behavioral therapy (BCBT) for an inpatient setting (BCBT-I). Key treatment modifications included administering up to 10 sessions (depending on patient length of stay), daily, and in a standardized order, with core crisis management skills introduced during the first three sessions. In addition, coordination with the inpatient treatment team was included in BCBT-I implementation. Six adult inpatients with a recent suicide attempt enrolled and completed an average of 4.67 BCBT-I sessions (SD = 1.36). The treatment was highly acceptable (Client Satisfaction Questionnaire total score M = 3.49, SD = 0.73). Pre- to posttreatment effect sizes demonstrated improvements in suicidal ideation (d = 0.97), depression (d = 1.33), and suicidal implicit associations (d = 1.28). All but one of the participants (83%) completed follow-up assessments 1-, 2-, and 3-months postdischarge. Over follow-up, two participants reported suicidal ideation (both without intent), and none reported suicide attempts, preparatory acts or behaviors, or nonsuicidal self-injury. This study provided preliminary evidence supporting the feasibility of CBT to treat suicidal inpatients. Future research is needed to validate BCBT-I in a larger, randomized controlled trial to determine whether BCBT-I reduces suicide risk beyond that afforded by inpatient treatment alone.     

Adults with dyslexia demonstrate space-based and object-based covert attention deficits: shifting attention to the periphery and shifting attention between objects in the left visual field

Performance on a covert visual attention task is compared between a group of adults with developmental dyslexia (specifically phonological difficulties) and a group of age and IQ matched controls. The group with dyslexia were generally slower to detect validly-cued targets. Costs of shifting attention toward the periphery when the target was invalidly cued were significantly higher for the group with dyslexia, while costs associated with shifts toward the fovea tended to be lower. Higher costs were also shown by the group with dyslexia for up-down shifts of attention in the periphery. A visual field processing difference was found, in that the group with dyslexia showed higher costs associated with shifting attention between objects in they LVF. These findings indicate that these adults with dyslexia have difficulty in both the space-based and the object-based components of covert visual attention, and more specifically to stimuli located in the periphery.     

Classification of Antisocial Behaviors Along Severity and Frequency Parameters

Antisocial behaviors were systematically classified along a hierarchy of seriousness or severity that also accounted for frequency of occurrence and heterogeneity of behaviors. Items from the CD and ODD schedules of the NIMH DISC-IV and from the Elliot Delinquency Scales were listed at specified frequencies. Nine mental health clinicians rated the level of seriousness of each alternative on a scale from 0 (trivial) to 5 (very serious). Reliability of the ratings was assessed. Over two thirds of the items showed excellent agreement among the raters, 8% showed poor agreement and 21% showed fair to moderate agreement. The overall reliability of a single rater’s score was 0.56 and the reliability of the average was 0.84. The classification meets high psychometric standards for reliability and has face validity. The final output provides a classification along a spectrum that takes into account severity, frequency of occurrence during the previous year, and presence of multiple behaviors. It is useful for classification purposes and for longitudinal tracking of antisocial behavior.     

The development of color categories in two languages: a longitudinal study

This study unites investigations into the linguistic relativity of color categories with research on children's category acquisition. Naming, comprehension, and memory for colors were tracked in 2 populations over a 3-year period. Children from a seminomadic equatorial African culture, whose language contains 5 color terms, were compared with a group of English children. Despite differences in visual environment, language, and education, they showed similar patterns of term acquisition. Both groups acquired color vocabulary slowly and with great individual variation. Those knowing no color terms made recognition errors based on perceptual distance, and the influence of naming on memory increased with age. An initial perceptually driven color continuum appears to be progressively organized into sets appropriate to each culture and language.