Social eye gaze modulates processing of speech and co-speech gesture

In human face-to-face communication, language comprehension is a multi-modal, situated activity. However, little is known about how we combine information from different modalities during comprehension, and how perceived communicative intentions, often signaled through visual signals, influence this process. We explored this question by simulating a multi-party communication context in which a speaker alternated her gaze between two recipients. Participants viewed speech-only or speech + gesture object-related messages when being addressed (direct gaze) or unaddressed (gaze averted to other participant). They were then asked to choose which of two object images matched the speaker’s preceding message. Unaddressed recipients responded significantly more slowly than addressees for speech-only utterances. However, perceiving the same speech accompanied by gestures sped unaddressed recipients up to a level identical to that of addressees. That is, when unaddressed recipients’ speech processing suffers, gestures can enhance the comprehension of a speaker’s message. We discuss our findings with respect to two hypotheses attempting to account for how social eye gaze may modulate multi-modal language comprehension.     

Mind,Machine, and Creativity: An Artist's Perspective

Harold Cohen is a renowned painter who has developed a computer program, AARON, to create art. While AARON has been hailed as one of the most creative AI programs, Cohen consistently rejects the claims of machine creativity. Questioning the possibility for AI to model human creativity, Cohen suggests in so many words that the human mind takes a different route to creativity, a route that privileges the relational, rather than the computational, dimension of cognition. This unique perspective on the tangled web of mind, machine, and creativity is explored by an application of three relational models of the mind to an analysis of Cohen's talks and writings, which are available on his website: www.aaronshome.com .     

Shyness and Psychosocial Functioning in South Korean Children

The purpose of this study was to examine whether anxious shyness and regulated shyness, initially identified in the Chinese culture, is found in South Korean children, and to explore whether these two forms of shyness were differentially related to children's psychosocial functioning. Participants were 544 fourth to sixth grade children (251 girls, M age = 11.38 years old) who were recruited from an elementary school in Bucheon City, South Korea. Children's anxious and regulated shyness were measured using peers' nominations and teachers' ratings, whereas their social preference and social impact were assessed using peers' nominations. Parents rated their children's temperamental shyness and effortful control, and children self‐reported their loneliness and interpersonal concerns. The results of confirmatory factor analysis replicated the two factor model of shyness found in previous studies of Chinese children. Anxious shyness and regulated shyness were positively associated and were similarly related to temperamental shyness. Anxious shyness was negatively related to effortful control and social preference, and positively associated with self‐reported loneliness and interpersonal concerns, whereas regulated shyness was positively related to effortful control and social preference and negatively associated with loneliness and social impact. These results were generally consistent with prior Chinese findings and provided preliminary support for the construct validity of anxious and regulated shyness in another Asian culture that emphasizes interdependence and modesty. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Meaning and Health: A Systematic Review

The research base linking meaning with physical health is significantly underdeveloped in comparison to that linking subjective well-being and physical health. We address this deficit by first providing an overview of the study of meaning, and then examining evidence of its positive relationship to physical health in a systematic review of relevant literature. We searched PsycINFO and PubMed databases for studies of varying design and populations, excluding studies that did not have clear measures of meaning and physical health and/or did not address their relationship. Overall, higher levels of meaning are clearly associated with better physical health, as well as with behavioral factors that decrease the probability of negative health outcomes or increase that of positive health outcomes. Methodological challenges and future directions are discussed.     

Tolerant macaque species are less impulsive and reactive

Animal Cognition - Inhibitory control, the inhibition of impulsive behaviours, is believed to be key in navigating a complex social environment. Species characterised by higher social tolerance,...     

Voices from the Street: How Structural and Individual Factors Influence Homelessness

This study compared structural and individual factors related to persons who are homeless and how these factors affected their ability to utilize and benefit from available services. A qualitative case study design was used to conduct in-depth interviews with two participants receiving hospice care in a residence for the homeless. Results support previous findings that chronic homelessness is the result of multiple structural and individual factors that occur over time. Contrary to the literature on chronic homelessness, however, both participants were unique in their history of employment and strong desire to work, despite having limited work skills. Responses from both participants underscored the value of daily structure and meaningful occupation in residential addiction treatment.     

Swedish adolescents’ experiences of cybervictimization and body-related concerns

The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between cybervictimization and three body-related concerns: body-esteem, self-objectification, and internalization of body ideals. The aim was also to examine these relationships not only to cybervictimization in general but also to appearance-related cybervictimization more specifically. The sample comprised 482 adolescents (233 girls and 247 boys aged 13–15; two participants did not answer the question about gender) from four Swedish schools. The results showed that victims of appearance-related cyberbullying suffered from more body-related concerns: they had a poorer view of their general appearance and of their weight. They also reported more body shame, thin-ideal internalization, and appearance-related pressure from the media. This study shows that cyberbullying that focuses on the victim's appearance is associated with several body-related concerns that have not previously been studied. A novel finding was also that body-related concerns were not related to cyberbullying in general, as has been implied in earlier research, but specifically related to cyberbullying directed at the victim's appearance. The findings suggest that there is a need to include attention to the specific relationships between appearance-related cyberbullying and body-related concerns in future prevention and intervention work.