Wherein Lies the Normative Dimension in Meaning and Mental Content?

Philosophical Studies -     

A Method for the Measurement of the Self-Concept of Children in the Third Grade

Fifty-five males and 38 females were administered a self-rating scale which allowed self and typical-student estimates of intelligence, motivation, and achievement. Males and females gave similar self-estimates of intelligence, although compared to the males, the females rated their motivation and achievement higher. Both males and females regarded the typical female student as more intelligent, more motivated, and more academically successful than the typical male student. A sex difference was observed on self versus typical-student-of-the-same-sex ratings. On noncollege-related personality dimensions, both males and females continue to share an unfavorable female stereotype.     

The German Adaptation and Standardization of the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI)

An attempt was made to evaluate the relationship between left-handedness and oppositional tendencies through the use of the White Space (S) response on the Rorschach. Right and left-handed males were administered the Rorschach, and it was found that the left-handed subjects gave significantly more S responses than did the right-handed males. It was felt that the results of this study indicated the existence of a relationship between hand-preference and oppositional tendency. Caution was raised concerning the assumption that oppositional tendencies foster left-handedness. It was pointed out that opposition could also be produced by being left-handed.     

Using Neuroimaging to Measure Mental Representations: Finding Color-OpponentNeurons in Visual Cortex

To date, most neuroimaging studies have tried to localize large regions in the brain that are responsible for specific behaviors or mental operations. Psychological theory, however, is more concerned with the nature of mental functions than with the locations of their neural substrates. This article reviews work that moves beyond functional anatomy to measure how color is represented by neurons in visual cortex. The general approach has three basic steps: First, the areas under investigation are localized in the brain. Second, responses of these areas are measured to sets of systematically varying stimuli, designed to uncover the nature of cortical representations. Third, the neuroimaging data are compared with behavioral data measured with the same stimuli. Results obtained using this approach support the hypothesis that primary visual cortex contains color-opponent neurons that support perception.