The critical role of group studies in neuropsychology: comprehension regularities in Broca's aphasia

We reexamine the empirical record of the comprehension abilities of Broca's aphasic patients. We establish clear, commonly accepted, selection criteria and obtain a pool of results. We then subject these results to a detailed statistical analysis and show that these patients comprehend certain canonical sentences (actives, subject relatives, and clefts with agentive predicates) at above-chance levels, whereas comprehension of sentences that contain deviations from canonicity (passives, object-gap relatives, and clefts) is distinct and is at chance. That the latter is the case, and patients indeed guess at such structures, we show by comparing the distribution of individual results in passive comprehension to that of a model for such guessing-an analogous series of tosses of an unbiased coin. The two distributions are virtually identical. We conclude that the group's performance is stable, and well-delineated, despite intersubject variation whose source is now identified. This means that certain comprehension tests may not always be used for the diagnosis of individual patients, but they do characterize the group. It also means that group studies are not just a valid option in neuropsychology; they are a must, since demonstrations like ours indiciate very clearly that single-case studies may be misleading. As we show, the findings from any one patient, without the context of a group, may give a distorted picture of the pathological reality. Our conclusions thus promote studies of groups of brain-damaged patients as a central tool for the investigation of brain/behavior relations.     

Studying Sexual Harassment in the Laboratory: Are Egalitarian Women at Higher Risk?

A laboratory experiment is reported in whichmale participants in Northern Italy (N = 120 universitystudents) were given the opportunity to sendpornographic material to a female interaction partner(“computer harassmentparadigm”). The allegedgender-role orientation of the female (traditional vs.egalitarian) and the construal of the interaction aseither intergroup or interpersonal were variedsystematically. Results show that participants molest femaleinteraction partners more when they express egalitarianrather than traditional gender-role attitudes; this isparticularly true for males with a high propensity to harass (high scores on likelihood of sexualharassment scale, Pryor, 1987), with sexist attitudes,with a strong identification as “males,” andfor low self-monitors. Also, males with a highpropensity to harass were more likely to harass theirinteraction partner when they perceived the situation asa male-female inter-group setting (rather than asinterpersonal). Results are interpreted as supporting a social identity account ofmisogyny.     

Personality traits and alcohol consumption in a sample of non-alcoholic women

Many studies have shown the importance of personality traits as factors related to alcohol use and misuse. The relationship between personality traits and alcohol consumption was studied in a sample of 149 non-alcoholic women using the Karolinska Scales of Personality (KSP) and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised (EPQ-R). The results showed positive correlations between alcohol consumption and disinhibitory personality traits (sensation seeking, impulsivity, psychopathy, nonconformity) and dimensions (psychoticism and extraversion). Sensation seeking combined with impulsivity were the strongest predictors of alcohol consumption. Anxiety-related traits and neuroticism were not related to alcohol frequency/amount of alcohol use.     

Discovering Argumentative Patterns in Energy Polylogues: A Macroscope for Argument Mining

A macroscope is proposed and tested here for the discovery of the unique argumentative footprint that characterizes how a collective (e.g., group, online community) manages differences and pursues disagreement through argument in a polylogue. The macroscope addresses broader analytic problems posed by various conceptualizations of large-scale argument, such as fields, spheres, communities, and institutions. The design incorporates a two-tier methodology for detecting argument patterns of the arguments performed in arguing by an interactive collective that produces views, or topographies, of the ways that issues are generated in the making and defending of standpoints. The design premises for the macroscope build on insights about argument patterns from pragma-dialectical theory by incorporating research and theory on disagreement management and the Argumentum Model of Topics. The design reconceptualizes prototypical and stereotypical argument patterns for characterizing large-scale argumentation. A prototype of the macroscope is tested on data drawn from six threads about oil-drilling and fracking from the subreddit Changemyview. The implementation suggests the efficacy of the macroscope’s design and potential for identifying what communities make controversial and how the disagreement space in a polylogue is managed through stereotypical argument patterns in terms of claims/premises, inferential relations, and presentational devices.     

Cognitive structure of writing disorders in Russian: what would Luria say?

Acquired disorders of writing in the Russian language have been reported for more than a century. The study of these disorders reflects the history of Russian neuropsychology and is dominated by the syndrome approach most notably by the writings of Luria. Indeed, our understanding of acquired dysgraphia in Russian speakers is conceptualized according to the classical approach in Modern Russia. In this review, we describe the classical approach and compare it to the cognitive neuropsychological models of writing disorders that are developed to explain dysgraphia in English and in other Western European languages. We argue that the basic theoretical assumptions of the two approaches - cognitive and classical or syndrome approach - share similarities. It is therefore proposed that identification of acquired cases of dysgraphia in Russian could potentially benefit from taking the cognitive neuropsychological perspective. We also conclude that adopting elements of the syndrome approach would substantially enrich the understanding of acquired dysgraphia since these offer an insight into processes not described in the cognitive neuropsychological approach.     

Psychometric properties of the questionnaire of sociocultural influences on the aesthetic body shape model (CIMEC-26) in female Spanish adolescents

The purpose of the present study was to analyse the psychometric properties of the 'Questionnaire of Sociocultural Influences on the Aesthetic Body Shape Model' (CIMEC-26) in a Spanish adolescent population. This questionnaire measures the influence of agents and situations that transmit the current aesthetic model, and assesses environmental influences favouring thinness. The CIMEC-26 was administered to a sample of 4031 female primary and secondary school students ranging in age from 10 to 17 years (M?=?14, SD?=?1.34). Results suggested that the CIMEC-26 has acceptable internal consistency (α?=?.93). The oldest group (15-17 years) had the highest scores on all factors and the highest total scores, suggesting greater influence of the aesthetic body shape model and higher vulnerability to social pressure to achieve it. Factor analysis suggested three moderately interrelated components of the scale. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that both the three-factor solution and the original five-factor structure had good fit indices, although the latter showed the best fit. The CIMEC-26 proved to be an effective instrument for research on the social influence on the aesthetic body model in female adolescents.     

Heterosexual romantic relationships, interpersonal needs, and quality of life in prison

The purpose of this study was to investigate the moderating effect of having vs. not having a and quality of life. In-person interviews were conducted with 55 male and 64 female inmates from the Topas Penitentiary (Spain). Higher levels of social loneliness and lower levels of sexual satisfaction were associated with lower levels of quality of life. In addition, the interaction between sexual satisfaction and romantic partner status was significant. Higher levels of sexual satisfaction were associated with higher levels of quality of life only for the group without a partner. These findings support a "bad is stronger than good" principle and indicate the detrimental aspects that can be associated with not having a satisfactory sexual life while incarcerated.     

An explanatory model of academic achievement based on aptitudes, goal orientations, self-concept and learning strategies

As a result of studies examining factors involved in the learning process, various structural models have been developed to explain the direct and indirect effects that occur between the variables in these models. The objective was to evaluate a structural model of cognitive and motivational variables predicting academic achievement, including general intelligence, academic self-concept, goal orientations, effort and learning strategies. The sample comprised of 341 Spanish students in the first year of compulsory secondary education. Different tests and questionnaires were used to evaluate each variable, and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was applied to contrast the relationships of the initial model. The model proposed had a satisfactory fit, and all the hypothesised relationships were significant. General intelligence was the variable most able to explain academic achievement. Also important was the direct influence of academic self-concept on achievement, goal orientations and effort, as well as the mediating ability of effort and learning strategies between academic goals and final achievement.     

Cross-cultural confirmatory factor analysis of the CES-D in Spanish and Mexican dementia caregivers

The Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D) is the most frequently used scale for measuring depressive symptomatology in caregiving research. The aim of this study is to test its construct structure and measurement equivalence between caregivers from two Spanish-speaking countries. Face-to-face interviews were carried out with 595 female dementia caregivers from Madrid, Spain, and from Coahuila, Mexico. The structure of the CES-D was analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (EFA and CFA, respectively). Measurement invariance across samples was analyzed comparing a baseline model with a more restrictive model. Significant differences between means were found for 7 items. The results of the EFA clearly supported a four-factor solution. The CFA for the whole sample with the four factors revealed high and statistically significant loading coefficients for all items (except item number 4). When equality constraints were imposed to test for the invariance between countries, the change in chi-square was significant, indicating that complete invariance could not be assumed. Significant between-countries differences were found for three of the four latent factor mean scores. Although the results provide general support for the original four-factor structure, caution should be exercised on reporting comparisons of depression scores between Spanish-speaking countries.