Retardation of autoshaping following pretraining with unpredictable food: Effects of changing the context between pretraining and testing

In Experiment 1, pigeons exposed to US ONLY pretraining were observed to be retarded in the acquisition of autoshaping relative to naive controls; however, gross changes in contextual stimuli between pretraining and testing alleviated the retardation effect. In Experiment 2, groups of pigeons exposed to CS ONLY, US ONLY, or random CS-US presentations (TRC) were tested for the acquisition of autoshaping. The US ONLY and TRC groups were retarded relative to naive controls. The context change manipulation eliminated the US ONLY retardation effect and attenuated, but did not eliminate, the TRC retardation effect. Context blocking accounts for the US ONLY effect and contributes to the TRC effect; however, context-independent retardation following TRC pretraining suggests the operation of the learned irrelevance cognition.     

Locus of control and the perception of freedom in an agent of reinforcement

Internals and externals observed a staged videotape presentation that portrayed a “teacher” and a “learner” engaging in a 20-item anagrams task. For externals, any variability (10, 50, and 90% schedule) in the reinforcing behavior of the “teacher” (agent of reinforcement) resulted in significantly greater perceived freedom than when no variability (0 and 100% schedule) occurred in behavior. For internals, perceived freedom was a negative linear function of the amount of reinforcement administered. Internals indicated that they could influence the behavior of the “teacher” in all reinforcement conditions, whereas externals indicated that they could influence only the “teachers” in the variable reinforcement conditions. It was concluded that greater freedom is attributed to a person whose behavior is perceived as congruent with the person's inner disposition.     

Structural characteristics of clause-containing sentences and imitation by children and adults

Children of ages 4, 6, and 8 years and college students attempted to imitate sentences containing combinations of nested and self-embedded relative clauses. Asymmetries in performance predicted from extensions of previous research were obtained at all ages. The hypothesis that these differences might be attributable to two structural characteristics of clause-containing sentences was supported by correlational analyses.This report is based on a doctoral dissertation submitted to the University of Washington.     

On timing events in computer-controlled experiments

This paper considers the problem of timing events in computer-controlled experiments. A digital clock is defined as a time-mark generator or “ticker” and a counter. A discussion of time-mark generators commonly used in computers is followed by a consideration of several ways in which computer clocks are implemented and used. A framework for the latter discussion is provided by a classification of clocks in terms of whether the ticker or the counter (either or both) is internal or external to the computer.     

THE STRUCTURE OF DEPRESSION, BY FACTORING Q-DATA, IN RELATION TO GENERAL PERSONALITY SOURCE TRAITS

The factor structure of a wide, representative sample of questionnaire items was determined across the domain of depression, and their relation to normal personality factors was fixed. The depression items were administered, along with personality marker items from the 16 P.F. Test (or HSPQ), to a mixed group of 139 patients and controls and to 169 younger adults. Eight meaningful simple structure factors were found, 7 replicating across samples. Second order analysis showed no general factor in depression, but rather 4 distinct second orders.     

The estimation of the discriminal dispersion in the method of successive intervals

A new algebraic formula is derived for estimation of the discriminal dispersion in the method of successive intervals. The legitimate use of the formula requires that as many normal deviates as possible be present in the matrix. For this reason, it is recommended that deviates corresponding to the interval (0.01, 0.99) of the cumulative proportions be used, instead of those corresponding to (0.05, 0.95), the interval used by Edwards and Thurstone. Computations on data published by Edwards and Thurstone showed that when adjustment was made for variability in dispersions calculated by the formula of this paper, a reduction of fifty per cent in mean absolute discrepancy was produced. Since the formula is easy to use and avoids the disadvantages of its predecessors, it should have fairly wide applicability in psychological research.This research was supported in part by the United States Air Force under Contract No. AF 33(038)-25726 monitored by Air Force Personnel and Training Research Center. Permission is granted for reproduction, translation, publication, use and disposal in whole and in part by or for the United States Government. The writer is grateful to Dr. A. L. Edwards for a critical reading of an earlier version of this paper, and to Dr. L. H. Lanier and Dr. L. M. Stolurow for editorial advice on the present version, which was written at the University of Illinois. The editors ofPsychometrika have informed the writer that H. J. A. Rimoldi and M. Hormaeche (7) have independently derived the same formula for the discriminal dispersion from a different set of postulates using the law of comparative judgment.     

A solution for case iii of the law of comparative judgment

A solution for Case III of the Law of Comparative Judgment, modeled after Thurstone's solution for Case IV but eliminating the restrictive assumption of relatively equal discriminal dispersions, is developed.