The Effects of Names on Perception of Intelligence, Popularity, and Competence

Three experiments were conducted to explore the effects of first names on judgments of intelligence, popularity, and competence. In Experiment 1, first names that were used more often in the past than they are now (called Older Generation names) were rated by a sample of college-aged judges as less popular and less intelligent than were first names that are used more often now than in the past (called Younger Generation names). In addition, male first names tended to have higher ratings of these same qualities than did female first names. In Experiments 2 and 3, either resumes or personal ads were used to provide additional information to the raters. Results similar to those found in Experiment 1 were obtained. In general the present experiment used groups of names rather than individual names so as to control for possible irrelevant and idiosyncratic differences that might be found among individual names. Relevance to research in which men and women are compared was discussed.     

Communality of videogame performances with tracking tasks

Performances on three videogames were compared with two different tracking tasks and a third dual tracking task, after stability of performance was achieved by 40 male subjects. The six tasks were performed in succession for three weeks each, and one year separated administration of the tracking tasks from the videogames. Convergence of the cross-correlations among these tasks occurred such that higher correlations were attained for scores obtained late in practice (late/late) of two tasks (even when they were performed a year apart) rather than for scores obtained earlier in training (viz., early/early). High communality between these two types of tasks was observed as indicated by virtual overlap between the videogames and the tracking tasks, even though different control media (joysticks, knobs), control orders (zero/first), and control inputs (displacement/force transducer) were required. Because these tasks apparently index similar abilities, there may be advantages to measuring tracking skills with videogames, which include low cost, wide availability, inherent interest to subjects and motivation, rapid approach to stable levels, and, in many cases greater apparent face validity relative to real world performance requirements.     

Retrospective and Prospective Memory Coding in Humans

The Psychological Record - In two experiments, memory coding strategies of adult humans were investigated. Retrospective coding is the storage and rehearsal of experienced material. Prospective...     

Selectivity in paternal and infanticidal responses by male mice: effects of relatedness, location, and previous sexual partners.

Male mice tend to be infanticidal to unrelated infants but parental to their own offspring. The present study examines three hypotheses that might explain this apparent discrimination. There was no evidence of selective infanticide toward infants encountered for the first time on the basis of kinship, location, or cues associated with previous sexual partners. However, males tended to direct more paternal responses toward their own unfamiliar infants than toward unrelated infants, infants encountered in the male's home cage than those in the cage of another male, and when cues associated with a previous sexual partner were present. Data suggested that the responses of females to male intruders might influence the responses of those males. It was concluded that the infanticidal responses of male mice are mediated by a particular state of the male but that males in a noninfanticidal state may vary their paternal responsiveness on the basis of direct and indirect cues concerning relatedness.     

Individual differences in neonatal “imitation” fail to predict early social cognitive behaviour

The influential hypothesis that humans imitate from birth – and that this capacity is foundational to social cognition – is currently being challenged from several angles. Most prominently, the largest and most comprehensive longitudinal study of neonatal imitation to date failed to find evidence that neonates copied any of nine actions at any of four time points (Oostenbroek et al., [2016] Current Biology, 26, 1334–1338). The authors of an alternative and statistically liberal post‐hoc analysis of these same data (Meltzoff et al., [2017] Developmental Science, 21, e12609), however, concluded that the infants actually did imitate one of the nine actions: tongue protrusion. In line with the original intentions of this longitudinal study, we here report on whether individual differences in neonatal “imitation” predict later‐developing social cognitive behaviours. We measured a variety of social cognitive behaviours in a subset of the original sample of infants (N = 71) during the first 18 months: object‐directed imitation, joint attention, synchronous imitation and mirror self‐recognition. Results show that, even using the liberal operationalization, individual scores for neonatal “imitation” of tongue protrusion failed to predict any of the later‐developing social cognitive behaviours. The average Spearman correlation was close to zero, mean r_s = 0.027, 95% CI [?0.020, 0.075], with all Bonferroni adjusted p values > .999. These results run counter to Meltzoff et al.'s rebuttal, and to the existence of a “like me” mechanism in neonates that is foundational to human social cognition.     

Freud's Deshi: The coming of psychoanalysis to Japan

This paper presents an account of four Japanese men, three of whom had an audience with Freud and who, with differing experiences and ambitions, returned to Japan to practice and develop psychoanalysis. Only two received any formal training, and two were strongly influenced by Buddhist thought. Freud gave no clear sign as to whom to appoint as leader, leaving the situation unsettled. This may have contributed to the continuing split and rivalry between groups, a split which was not resolved until the formation of the Japanese Psychoanalytic Society for trained analysts and the Association for interested laymen in the 1950s. From the beginning the development of psychoanalysis in Japan was informed by a paradox: the need to get Freud's approval and hence appear orthodox, while assimilating some of the concepts to the dictates of the culture. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Homework,stress, and mood disturbance in senior high school students

This study aimed at investigating the relationship between hours of homework, stress, and mood disturbance in senior high school students, 141 boys and 228 girls, recruited from high schools across Victoria, Australia. Participants' ages ranged from 16 to 18 years (M = 16.6, SD = .6). A 1-wk. homework diary, a Self-reported Stress scale, and the Profile of Mood States were administered to students. Analysis showed that the number of hours spent completing homework ranged from 10 to 65 hours per week (M = 37.0, SD = 12.2). Independent samples t-test analyses showed significant sex differences, with female students scoring higher on hours of homework, stress, and mood disturbance compared to male students. Pearson product-moment correlations were significant and positive for hours of homework with stress and for hours of homework with mood disturbance.