Drawn towards what others seem to like: Implicit preference for objects and people looked at with a duchenne smile

People tend to like objects that are looked at by others, especially if the person looking at the object expresses a positive emotion. But not all positive emotions are equal. We investigated the effect of third party gazing while expressing subtle positive emotions on perceivers’ subsequent preferences and evaluations of objects and people. In two studies participants saw faces looking at target objects and people either with a Duchenne, a non-Duchenne smile, or a neural expression. Participants first indicated gaze direction and later reported intuitive target preference and evaluated the targets. Results show a preference for target stimuli that were smiled at with a Duchenne smile as opposed to when they were looked at with a non-Duchenne smile or a neutral expression. More explicit evaluations of the target stimuli were not affected by the type of facial expression.     

A Matlab function to estimate choice model parameters from paired-comparison data

Tversky (1972) has proposed a family of models for paired-comparison data that generalize the Bradley—Terry—Luce (BTL) model and can, therefore, apply to a diversity of situations in which the BTL model is doomed to fail. In this article, we present a Matlab function that makes it easy to specify any of these general models (EBA, Pretree, or BTL) and to estimate their parameters. The program eliminates the time-consuming task of constructing the likelihood function by hand for every single model. The usage of the program is illustratedby several examples. Features of the algorithm are outlined. The purpose of this article is to facilitate the use of probabilistic choice models in the analysis of data resulting from paired comparisons.     

Difference in sensorimotor adaptation to horizontal and vertical mirror distortions during ballistic arm movements

When learning a novel motor task, the sensorimotor system must develop new strategies to efficiently control the limb(s) involved, and this adaptation appears to be developed through the construction of a behavioral map known as an 'internal model'. A common method to uncover the mechanisms of adaptation and reorganization processes is to expose the system to new environmental conditions, typically by introducing visual or mechanical distortions. The present study investigated the adaptation mechanisms of the human sensorimotor system to horizontal and vertical mirror distortions (HMD and VMD) during the execution of fast goal-directed arm movements. Mirror distortions (MDs) were created by means of virtual visual feedback on a computer screen while the movement was executed on a graphics tablet. Twenty healthy adult participants were recruited and assigned to one of two groups of 10 people each. Tests were divided in two subsequent blocks of five trials. The first block consisted of trials with no mirror distortion (NMD), while the second block was recorded when exposing one group to HMD and the other to VMD. Both MDs resulted in kinematic changes: during the tests with the MDs the participants did not reach the performance level found at the NMD test. Motor performance during HMD appeared to be globally better than during VMD and the adaptation process to VMD appeared to be slower than to HMD, but data interpretation was hampered by large within-participant and between-participant variability. In-depth analyses of the data revealed that most of the motor performance information was contained in the direction of movement. The data supported the idea that the internal model for HMD was already partially built.     

Automatic identification of storytelling responses to past-behavior interview questions via machine learning

Structured interviews often feature past-behavior questions, where applicants are asked to tell a story about past work experience. Applicants often experience difficulties producing such stories. Automatic analyses of applicant behavior in responding to past-behavior questions may constitute a basis for delivering feedback and thus helping them improve their performance. We used machine learning algorithms to predict storytelling in transcribed speech of participants responding to past-behavior questions in a simulated selection interview. Responses were coded as to whether they featured a story or not. For each story, utterances were also manually coded as to whether they described the situation, the task/action performed, or results obtained. The algorithms predicted whether a response features a story or not (best accuracy: 78%), as well as the count of situation, task/action, and response utterances. These findings contribute to better automatic identification of verbal responses to past-behavior questions and may support automatic provision of feedback to applicants about their interview performance.     

Individual Differences in Accurately Judging Personality From Text

This research examines correlates of accuracy in judging Big Five traits from first‐person text excerpts. Participants in six studies were recruited from psychology courses or online. In each study, participants performed a task of judging personality from text and performed other ability tasks and/or filled out questionnaires. Participants who were more accurate in judging personality from text were more likely to be female; had personalities that were more agreeable, conscientious, and feminine, and less neurotic and dominant (all controlling for participant gender); scored higher on empathic concern; self‐reported more interest in, and attentiveness to, people's personalities in their daily lives; and reported reading more for pleasure, especially fiction. Accuracy was not associated with SAT scores but had a significant relation to vocabulary knowledge. Accuracy did not correlate with tests of judging personality and emotion based on audiovisual cues. This research is the first to address individual differences in accurate judgment of personality from text, thus adding to the literature on correlates of the good judge of personality.     

Configurations of Young Peoples’ Important Life Goals and Their Associations with Thriving

The aims of this study were to determine whether, and how, young people’s beyond-the-self life goals coexisted with other life goals, and whether having at least one beyond-the-self goal was associated with higher thriving (the Five Cs of Positive Youth Development [PYD]) and volunteering, compared to having either no goals, or goals that were only self-focused. The authors conducted latent class analyses among five school cohort groups using data from five studies (combined using integrative data analysis techniques). Across grade groups, the authors identified classes, which can generally be characterized by (1) low endorsement of goals, (2) prominence of helping others and contributing to community goals, (3) prominence of goals related to a good life (e.g., make money, friends, live an adventurous life), and (4) endorsement of most life goals. In the older two grade groups we identified additional classes: a group with a high endorsement of goals oriented at helping others and serving God/higher power in the undergraduate group, and a group with high endorsement of goals to create something new and make the world a better place in the graduate group. There were differences in the Five Cs of PYD and volunteering between the classes. The authors discuss the implications of these results for future research and practice regarding young people’s life goals.     

Constitution and narrative: peculiarities of rhetoric and genre in the foundational laws of the USSR and the Russian federation

Constitutions are not just legal texts but form a narrative with an engaging plot, a hierarchy of actors and a distinct ideology. They can be read and interpreted as literary texts. The four constitutions in 20th century Russia (1924, 1936, 1977, 1993) can be attributed to specific genres (drama, fairy tale, gospel, performance). Moreover, they interact closely with the official culture of their time (painting, collage, film, literature). The constitutions serve an important task in the cultural self-definition of Russian society which as a rule occurred in moments of ideological crisis. The case of Russia is especially intriguing since the utopian project of a just society needed in every stage of its evolution (revolution, consolidation, “developed socialism”, postcommunism) a new convincing design which was able to guarantee the citizens’ loyalty to the state.