Mechanisms of contextual control when contexts are informative to solve the task

An experiment was conducted using a human instrumental learning task with the goal of evaluating the mechanisms underlying the deleterious effect of context-switching on responding to an unambiguous stimulus when contexts are informative to solve the task. Participants were trained in a context-based reversal discrimination in which two discriminative stimuli (X and Y) interchange their meaning across contexts A and B. In context A, discriminative stimulus Z consistently announced that the relationship between a specific instrumental response (RI) and a specific outcome (O1) was in effect. Performance in the presence of stimulus Z was equally deteriorated when the test was conducted outside the training context, regardless of whether the test context was familiar (context B) or new (context C). This result is consistent with the idea that participants code all the information presented in an informative context as context-specific with the context playing a role akin to an occasion setter.     

Shifts in color discrimination during early pregnancy

The present study explores two hypotheses: a) women during early pregnancy should experience increased color discrimination ability, and b) women during early pregnancy should experience shifts in subjective preference away from images of foods that appear either unripe or spoiled. Both of these hypotheses derive from an adaptive view of pregnancy sickness that proposes the function of pregnancy sickness is to decrease the likelihood of ingestion of foods with toxins or teratogens. Changes to color discrimination could be part of a network of perceptual and physiological defenses (e.g., changes to olfaction, nausea, vomiting) that support such a function. Participants included 13 pregnant women and 18 non-pregnant women. Pregnant women scored significantly higher than non-pregnant controls on the Farnsworth-Munsell (FM) 100 Hue Test, an objective test of color discrimination, although no difference was found between groups in preferences for food images at different stages of ripeness or spoilage. These results are the first indication that changes to color discrimination may occur during early pregnancy, and is consistent with the view that pregnancy sickness may function as an adaptive defense mechanism.     

Expatriates and Trade

Using unique cross-sectional data on international bilateral migration stocks, I evaluate the contribution to bilateral trade of expatriates from the OECD countries living in less developed economies, and of immigrants from less developed economies located within the OECD. The expatriates' role in trade differs both quantitatively and qualitatively from the role of immigrants. A 10% increase in the size of expatriate community leads to a 0.6% average increase in its OECD country-of-origin imports, as compared to a notably stronger 2.5% impact of immigrants into the OECD countries. Furthermore, unlike in the case of immigrants located within the OECD, the estimates on expatriates' role in exports are not statistically different from zero. The imports-facilitating role of expatriates' networks is centered in host countries with low institutional quality. In economies lying within the lowest third of the institutional quality distribution, a 10% increase in expatriate stock would lead to a 1.7% increase in imports into their country of origin. The study further addresses the hypothesis that bilateral immigrant-driven trade gains might be offset by lower trade volumes with other trade partners. The estimates suggest that despite the consistency with offsetting immigrant-driven shifts in trade flows, the overall net effect of immigrant networks on aggregate trade is still non-negative.     

Pure versus guided mirror exposure to reduce body dissatisfaction: a preliminary study with university women

While effectiveness of mirror exposure to reduce body dissatisfaction has been demonstrated, the exposure was almost always combined with other interventions. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a pure mirror exposure intervention compared with a guided mirror exposure (participants are guided to describe their body shape in a non-evaluative manner) and an imagery exposure intervention (participants are guided to describe their body through mental representation). Thirty-one women with high body dissatisfaction received five sessions of treatment under one of the three conditions. All interventions reduced body dissatisfaction, but only the mirror exposures successfully reduced the frequency of negative thoughts and feelings of ugliness. Pure mirror exposure was more effective than guided exposure for reducing body discomfort within and between sessions. Pure mirror exposure, based on the traditional extinction paradigm, led to strong emotional activation followed by a fast decrease in emotional reactivity.     

Validation of a Spanish version of the Muscle Appearance Satisfaction Scale: Escala de Satisfacción Muscular

The psychometric properties of a Spanish version of the Muscle Appearance Satisfaction Scale (MASS; Mayville, Williamson, White, Netemeyer, & Drab, 2002) were examined using a sample of five hundred and sixty-one male weightlifters. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses suggested that the 19-item Spanish version of the MASS called the Escala de Satisfacción Muscular (ESM), was represented by five subscales similar to the original MASS. Internal consistency of the measure was good (α=.86-.95), and various measures of construct validity indicated that the ESM may be a useful measure of Muscle Dysmorphia symptoms among Spanish speaking populations.     

Is 26 + 26 smaller than 24 + 28? Estimating the approximate magnitude of repeated versus different numbers

It has recently been suggested that regardless of the dimension at hand (i.e., numerosity, length, time), similar operational mechanisms are involved in the comparison process based on approximate magnitude representation. One piece of evidence for this hypothesis lies in the presence of similar behavioral effects for any comparison (i.e., the distance effect). In the case of length comparison, the comparison process can be biased by summation toward either an underestimation or an overestimation: The sum of equal-size stimuli is underestimated, whereas the sum of different-size stimuli is overestimated. Relying on the hypothesis that similar operational mechanisms underlie the comparison process of any magnitude, we aim at extending these findings to another magnitude dimension. A number comparison task with digit numbers was used in the two experiments reported presently. The objective was to investigate whether summation also biases magnitude representation of numerical and symbolic information. The results provided evidence that the summation bias can also apply to numerical magnitude comparison, since the sum of repeated numbers (26 + 26) was underestimated whereas the sum of different numbers (24 + 28) was overestimated. We propose that these effects could be accounted for by a heuristic linking cognitive effort and magnitude estimation.     

Knowing the Stability of Model Rockets: A Study of Learning in Interest-Based Practices

This article adds to sociocultural theories of learning by investigating knowing and learning in the hobby of model rocketry. Hobbies are paradigmatic of interest-based, long-term pursuits and studying the tailored practices the rocketeers craft for themselves sheds further light on the relationship between the nature of practices and the learning processes that emerge in their enactment. My window into this issue is the core problem of determining the stability of model rockets, across phases of design, construction, and flying. Using ethnographic and experimental data, I catalog the various individual and collective ways of knowing rocket stability and articulate the manners in which they operate to foster and sustain the highly tailored pursuits characteristic of interest-based practices.     

Comment: Starting to Solve the Method Puzzle in Salesperson Self-Report Evaluations

In a recent Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management paper, Jaramillo, Carrillat, and Locander (JCL) further extended our understanding of the errors of salesperson self-report evaluations when compared to managerial evaluations. Our paper provides contrary evidence on three major conclusions drawn in this study. First, we question the assertion by JCL that the correlation between self-report and objective measures of performance is consistently low. Second, we question JCL’s claim that the correlation between managerial evaluations and objective measures of performance is consistently high. Third, we question the key finding of JCL that self-report measures of salesperson performance are less accurate than managerial evaluations. We provide an alternative perspective to these issues by highlighting past research on performance measurement. Moreover, we reanalyze data from a previously published study to examine the issues raised by JCL. Our expectation is that this comment will serve as an impetus for further research in this area.     

Depressive symptoms in outpatients with heart failure: Importance of inflammatory biomarkers,disease severity and personality

Objective: Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent in heart failure (HF) patients, however the underlying etiology of depression in HF patients remains yet unclear. Hence, the goal is to examine the relative importance of inflammation, disease severity and personality as predictors of depression in HF patients. Design: Depressive symptoms (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, depression subscale) were assessed at baseline and one-year follow-up in 268 HF patients (75.6% men; mean age?=?66.7?±?8.7). Markers of inflammation (TNFα, sTNFr1, sTNFr2, IL-6 and IL-10), disease severity (e.g. New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification) and personality (Type D personality, loneliness) were assessed at baseline. Results: At baseline, NYHA class, body mass index, educational level, Type D personality and loneliness were significantly associated with depression. Higher NYHA class (B?=?2.25; SE?=?.83), higher educational level (B?=?1.41; SE?=?.48), Type D personality (B?=?2.56; SE?=?.60) and loneliness (B?=?.19; SE?=?.05) were also independently associated with higher depression levels at one-year follow-up (all p-values?<?.005). Inflammation, brain natriuretic peptide and left ventricular ejection fraction were not related to depression over time. Conclusions: Personality factors, but not inflammation, were independent concomitants of depressive symptoms in patients with HF. Gaining more insight into the etiology of depression in HF patients is important in order to identify potential targets for novel interventions.     

Team Perceived Trustworthiness in a Complex Military Peacekeeping Simulation

Antecedents to trust (propensity to trust, perceived trustworthiness) and trust behaviors were examined in relation to team performance in a complex eight-mission military peacekeeping simulation. Teams were colocated or distributed and stayed in the same or transferred to a different context at task transfer. In Experiment 1, an ability and competence factor accounted for most of the variance in perceived trustworthiness and greater perceptions of teammates' abilities/competences predicted posttransfer performance. One's perception of how others perceived one's ability/competence increased over missions. In Experiment 2, propensity to trust did not predict performance; however, trust in others' and one's own ability/competence and trust behaviors predicted performance. At task and/or context transfer, teams produced more monitoring and less cooperating language in their communication.