Syntactic Representations Are Both Abstract and Semantically Constrained: Evidence From Children’s and Adults’ Comprehension and Production/Priming of the English Passive

All accounts of language acquisition agree that, by around age 4, children’s knowledge of grammatical constructions is abstract, rather than tied solely to individual lexical items. The aim of the present research was to investigate, focusing on the passive, whether children’s and adults’ performance is additionally semantically constrained, varying according to the distance between the semantics of the verb and those of the construction. In a forced-choice pointing study (Experiment 1), both 4- to 6-year olds (N = 60) and adults (N = 60) showed support for the prediction of this semantic construction prototype account of an interaction such that the observed disadvantage for passives as compared to actives (i.e., fewer correct points/longer reaction time) was greater for experiencer-theme verbs than for agent-patient and theme-experiencer verbs (e.g., Bob was seen/hit/frightened by Wendy). Similarly, in a production/priming study (Experiment 2), both 4- to 6-year olds (N = 60) and adults (N = 60) produced fewer passives for experiencer-theme verbs than for agent-patient/theme-experiencer verbs. We conclude that these findings are difficult to explain under accounts based on the notion of A(rgument) movement or of a monostratal, semantics-free, level of syntax, and instead necessitate some form of semantic construction prototype account.     

A longitudinal examination of couples' coping strategies as predictors of adjustment to breast cancer

This study's goals were to examine coping strategies of women and their male partners as predictors of change in women's adjustment over the year following breast cancer treatment and to test whether partners' coping processes interact to predict adjustment. In a sample of women who had recently completed breast cancer treatment and were taking part in a psychoeducational intervention trial, the patients' and partners' cancer-specific coping strategies were assessed at study entry (average of 10 months after diagnosis). Assessed at study entry and 20 months after diagnosis (n = 139 couples), dependent variables were women's general (i.e., vitality, depressive symptoms, relationship satisfaction) and cancer-specific adjustment (i.e., cancer-specific distress, perceived benefits). Both patients' and partners' coping strategies at study entry predicted change in women's adjustment at 20 months. Women's use of approach-oriented coping strategies predicted improvement in their vitality and depressive symptoms, men's use of avoidant coping predicted declining marital satisfaction for wives, and men's approach-oriented strategies predicted an increase in women's perception of cancer-related benefits. Patients' and partners' coping strategies also interacted to predict adjustment, such that congruent coping strategy use generally predicted better adaptation than did dissimilar coping. Findings highlight the utility of examining patients' and partners' coping strategies simultaneously.     

Testing effects in mixed- versus pure-list designs

In the present study, we investigated the role of list composition in the testing effect. Across three experiments, participants learned items through study and initial testing or study and restudy. List composition was manipulated, such that tested and restudied items appeared either intermixed in the same lists (mixed lists) or in separate lists (pure lists). In Experiment 1, half of the participants received mixed lists and half received pure lists. In Experiment 2, all participants were given both mixed and pure lists. Experiment 3 followed Erlebacher’s (Psychological Bulletin, 84, 212–219, 1977) method, such that mixed lists, pure tested lists, and pure restudied lists were given to independent groups. Across all three experiments, the final recall results revealed significant testing effects for both mixed and pure lists, with no reliable difference in the magnitude of the testing advantage across list designs. This finding suggests that the testing effect is not subject to a key boundary condition—list design—that impacts other memory phenomena, including the generation effect.     

Monitoring and Control of Learning Own‐Race and Other‐Race Faces

The own‐race bias refers to the finding that individuals are better able to recognize faces of the same race or ethnicity compared with faces of another race or ethnicity. The current study examined whether the own‐race bias was also evident in participants' predictions of memory performance and their self‐regulation of learning. In three experiments, participants studied own‐race and other‐race faces and predicted the likelihood of recognizing each face on a future test. Experiment 1 showed that participants provided similar predictions for own‐race and other‐race faces, despite superior recognition of own‐race faces. Experiments 2 and 3 permitted participants to control their study of faces and revealed better self‐regulation of learning for own‐race relative to other‐race faces. Collectively, these experiments suggest that the own‐race bias may partially reflect a metacognitive deficiency, as participants are less able to effectively self‐regulate learning for other‐race faces. The implications of these findings are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Informing Evidence-Based Assessment of ADHD in Veterans and Service Members

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is diagnosed in approximately 2.5% to 5% of the population, and though epidemiological studies of ADHD in veterans and service members are lacking, available evidence suggests that there may be a higher prevalence of ADHD in service members than in the general population. Assessment of ADHD in military populations is complicated by the higher prevalence rates of many other disorders with symptoms that overlap those of ADHD (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder), making differential diagnosis an important aspect of the evaluation of ADHD. Although the diagnostic interview remains the gold standard for the evaluation and diagnosis of ADHD with adults, several different types of psychological measures have been developed and validated that can aid the evaluation. Future epidemiological research focused on prevalence and comorbidity rates in military samples is warranted to better understand the scope and complexity of the diagnosis. In addition, continued study of diagnostic assessment techniques, including validity testing and neurocognitive performance of veterans and service members with ADHD, particularly postdeployed veterans pursuing higher education, is warranted. This article reviews relevant findings and identifies initial recommendations for clinicians and researchers.     

Virtual Learning in a Socially Digitized World

Contemporary education is awakening from a crisis that has held the development of its potential and its relevance at bay for well over a century. Revolutions in science and spirituality are emerging a new relational intelligence that demands commensurate educational paradigms for its blossoming into daily engagements with life and the world around us. At the same time as people are leading increasingly interconnected lives, aware of and often participating in the narratives of people and ecosystems in other parts of the planet, information and communications technologies are increasingly integrating with and serving to mediate the human experience. This article explores the power of this confluence at the current nexus of civilizational demands in the context of increased planetary stresses and destabilizations. The case is made for a thrivable education praxis that draws on these emergent aspects of our developmental potential and emphasizes the importance of functional conviviality as an operational principle of learning for life.     

Anxiety and the blues after breast cancer: how common are they?

A number of myths exist concerning the psychological impact of breast cancer. Primary among these is the belief that women with breast cancer have greater emotional disability than individuals with other diseases or the population at large. While research has shown that women cope remarkably well with a diagnosis of breast cancer, an understanding of the key periods of anxiety and primary stressors is crucial to the overall psychological and medical management plan. While psychopharmacologic therapy may be indicated for women with breast cancer, it is rarely sufficient and should be combined with effective psychosocial interventions such as group therapy.