Some components of colour-word interference and their relationship with field dependence

It was suggested that the standard colour-word interference situation involves a number of distinct factors, each of which will contribute to the overall delay. Interference was analysed in terms of the delay associated with particular characteristics of different interfering stimuli; these measures were found to be unrelated, and were thus held to represent distinct components of the interference effect. Field dependence was primarily related to the component which was described as ‘perceptual distraction’.     

On G.E. Moore’S ‘Proof of an External World’

A new reading of G.E. Moore's ‘Proof of an External World’ is offered, on which the Proof is understood as a unique and essential part of an anti‐sceptical strategy that Moore worked out early in his career and developed in various forms, from 1909 until his death in 1958. I begin by ignoring the Proof and by developing a reading of Moore's broader response to scepticism. The bulk of the article is then devoted to understanding what role the Proof plays in Moore's strategy, and how that role is played.     

A Quantitative Trait Locus Associated With Cognitive Ability in Children

Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with general cognitive ability ( g ) were investigated for several groups of children selected for very high or for average cognitive functioning. A DNA marker in the gene for insulin-like growth factor-2 receptor (IGF2R) on Chromosome 6 yielded a significantly greater frequency of a particular form of the gene (allele) in a high- g group (.303; average IQ = 136, N = 51) than in a control group (.156; average IQ = 103, N = 51). This association was replicated in an extremely-high- g group (all estimated IQs > 160, N = 52) as compared with an independent control group (average IQ = 101, N = 50), with allelic frequencies of .340 and .169, respectively. Moreover, a high-mathematics-ability group ( N = 62) and a high-verbal-ability group ( N = 51) yielded results that were in the same direction but only marginally significant ( p = .06 and .08, respectively).     

The Influence of Gender and Parental Attitudes on Preschool Children's Interest in Babies: Observations in Natural Settings

This paper reports on two studies of parents'observations of their preschool children's interactions with infants. In Study 1 parents observed 69 3- and 5-year-old white children with three nonsibling infants whom the children encountered during their daily lives. In Study 2 parents observed 46 3- to 6-year-old primarily white children with three nonsibling infants and completed measures of their own gender-related child-rearing attitudes.Consistent with findings from previous laboratory research, this research in naturalistic settings found girls to show more interest in, more nurturance toward,and more interaction with babies than did boys. In Study 2, children whose parents had traditional gender-stereotyped attitudes were more likely to show this gender difference than children whose parents had more egalitarian child-rearing attitudes.