Checkerboard-specific color aftereffects: A failure to find effects of perceptual organization

Two experiments investigated the effects of differing perceptual organizations of reversible figures on McCollough aftereffects. Experiment 1 used colored checkerboard inducing stimuli and achromatic grating test stimuli. While some subjects tended to organize the checkerboards into rows and/or columns and others to organize them into obliques, these variations did not result in differences in aftereffect direction or magnitude. Experiment 2 induced an aftereffect with colored gratings and tested with checkerboards, gratings, and a reversible concentric octagon pattern. Perceptual organization had no effect on results for checkerboards, but was related to aftereffect strength for the octagon pattern. Indirect evidence suggests that, in the latter case, differences in aftereffect strength may have influenced the perceived organization, rather than vice versa. Finally, regardless of the specific organization perceived, spontaneous viewing of all test stimuli produced stronger aftereffects than were found when subjects reorganized the pattern. This may have resulted from a viewing strategy associated with reorganization, since similarly small aftereffects were found when subjects concentrated their attention on a single pattern element.     

Natural anchoring at the neutral point of category rating scales

Contextual theories of judgment assume that the rating of any stimulus depends on its relationship to a context of similar stimuli. For example, any specific act of behavior would be rated less favorably when considered in the context of good behaviors then when considered in the context of bad ones. However, two experiments suggest an absolute anchoring of the natural neutral point, an exception to this generalization. In Experiment 1, morally indifferent acts remained “neutral,” regardless of context; and in Experiment 2 the break-even or zero-point in a simulated game of chance was always rated “neutral.” In both experiments, contextual manipulations had powerful effects upon ratings of other stimuli, though never shifting them across the neutral point. Furthermore, both experiments suggest that neutral-point anchoring also affects the use of the most extreme categories in a manner that is unique to this phenomena. In Experiment 2 for example, the introduction of extremely positive “wins” not only made other wins seem less favorable while leaving ratings of the zero-point unchanged, but also made the most negative losses seem more favorable. It is as if the introduction of an extremely positive “win” also introduces the possibility of an extremely negative “loss.” Taken together these findings contradict the basic adaptation-level premise that the entire scale is determined by the neutral point; they are also inconsistent with the assumption of range theories that the scale is anchored by the endpoints of the range of stimuli actually experienced.     

Analogic and abstraction strategies in synthetic grammar learning: A functionalist interpretation

Subjects learned artificial grammars under two conditions of acquisition: paired-associate learning and observation of exemplars. The former procedure was strongly associated with the establishment of a fairly concrete memorial space consisting of specific items and parts of items and the use of an analogic strategy for making decisions about novel stimuli. The observation procedure was strongly associated with the induction of an abstract representation of the rules of the grammar and the use of a correspondence strategy for decision making. Moreover, this latter procedure led to more robust knowledge and better overall performance. Analyses of both objective response patterns and subjective introspections yielded coordinated data in support of this distinction. The relationships between acquisition condition and cognitive strategy are discussed from a functionalist point of view.     

Sentence repetition in preschoolers: Effects of length,complexity, and word familiarity

Seventy-two sentences presented to ten preschool children for repetition were designed so that three sentence construction factors varied independently. The factors were (1) length in number of words, (2) complexity of personal pronouns and main verbs as scaled by Lee (1974), and (3) word familiarity, defined as common vocabulary or the substitution of a nonsense word in place of a typical noun or verb in the model sentence. Three methods were employed for scoring the children's responses: (1) number of retained words, (2) Developmental Sentence Scoring (Lee, 1974), and (3) Stephens's Categories (Stephens, 1974). Eighteen sentences were re-presented for the assessment of reliability. The results of multiple regression analyses indicated that length was the important contributing factor in the children's responses to the model sentences and that Stephens's Category Scale of response scoring was the most sensitive method for detecting the influence of the three sentence factors on the children's responses.     

Variations in hand position, cerebral lateralization, and reading ability among right-handed children

A group of 121 right-handed children between the ages of 7 and 9 with a range of hand positions between normal and inverted were assessed for verbal and visuospatial lateralization and reading comprehension. Results indicate that (a) children with a normal hand position tended to be more verbally lateralized than children with nonnormal positions, although the effect was not strong or always consistent, (b) the closer the child was to the normal position, the higher the child's reading scores, and (c) poor readers were as lateralized for verbal and visuospatial functions as were good readers. Coupled with the results of previous research, these findings suggest that hand position indexes both maturation and lateralization, and that the relationship between hand position and reading is primarily mediated by the former.     

Selection Criteria for Family Therapy

The patient selection criteria for most modalities of psychotherapy have not yet been clearly articulated. This paper presents a decision-tree model outlining the factors that incline a clinician to perform a family evaluation, then to decide upon family treatment instead of another form of therapy, and finally to settle upon the particular duration and intensity of family treatment. We have compiled screening criteria, based on research and clinical opinion, to be applied in the utilization review of the decisions made at each of these steps. This method can be used to evaluate the appropriateness of care and render decision-making explicit and accountable; it may also have considerable value in training and research.