Refractoriness in information processing

Two experiments on refractoriness were carried out in which the warning, first and second signals, S₀, S₁ and S₂ respectively, were all single-valued, and the distributions of random intervals between S₀ and S₁, and S₁ and S ₂ were the same. In the first experiment the intervals in a trial were statistically independent: the null hypothesis, that the latencies of the two responses would be similar, was rejected, but the results were also found to agree with no existing alternative hypothesis. In the second experiment the intervals in a trial were conditionally related and the second response was found to be faster than in the first experiment. This is discussed in the context of the issue of serial or parallel processing of information.     

The transfer of information across sensory modalities

Previous research has shown that Ss can recognize, classify, or identify the same nominal stimuli when presented via different sensory modalities. Two hypotheses, the mediational and invariant features, have been forwarded in an attempt to account for this ability. The present study was designed so that the reliable transfer of either specific or conceptual sources of information across sensory modalities would provide support for the invariant-feature hypothesis. Evidence was obtained for the transfer of both sources of information when the stimulus modality was not changed. However, neither source of transfer was evident when the stimulus modality was changed; thus, no support for the invariant features hypothesis was obtained in the present study.     

The relationships between parenting stress,parenting behaviour and preschoolers' social competence and behaviour problems in the classroom

Young children develop social and emotional competence through interactions with others in the two major contexts in which they spend time: home and preschool. This study examined whether parenting stress in the home context is related to the children's behaviour while in preschool. Previous research has suggested that parenting stress negatively influences parenting behaviour, which in turn has been shown to impact children's development. This study examined the direct relationship between parenting stress and children's behaviour in two types of preschool programmes: private day care centres and Head Start. Parenting stress was significantly related to teacher ratings of social competence, internalizing behaviours, and externalizing behaviours, and the effects of parenting behaviour do not appear to mediate this relationship. Parenting stress was most strongly related to children's social competence. Parents' reports of expectations for their child's behaviour appear to weakly moderate the relationship between externalizing behaviour and parenting stress. This study suggests that examination of a parent's level of stress, in addition to parenting practices, may be important in research and interventions with preschool children's behaviour and social competence. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the predictive validity of implicit attitude measures: The moderating effect of perceived group variability

Social psychologists have recently shown great interest in implicit attitudes, but questions remain as to the boundary conditions under which such attitudes can predict subsequent judgments and behavior, including reactions toward single category members. In two experiments, we demonstrate the predictive validity of two priming-based measures of implicit attitudes, using a lexical decision task developed by Wittenbrink, Judd, and Park (1997) as well as a perceptual identification paradigm pioneered by Payne (2001). Moreover, we show that these effects were moderated by perceived group variability, such that implicit attitudes offered much stronger predictive leverage if the members of the target category (Blacks) were perceived to be homogenous than if they were not. The implications of the present research for the “moderator approach” previously employed in the explicit attitude literature are discussed.     

An application of DSM-IV's outline for cultural formulation: Understanding conduct disorder in Latino adolescents

In the established guidelines for providers of services to ethnic, linguistic, and culturally diverse populations, the American Psychological Association addressed the need for practitioners to consider the role that culture and ethnicity plays in the psychosocial development of culturally diverse populations. Currently, there are over 24 million Latinos in the United States, and this population is expected to quadruple in size to over 81 million in the year 2050. This discussion of a case example highlights the appropriateness of utilizing the outline for cultural formulation in working with Latino adolescents diagnosed with Conduct Disorder. As indicated by the DSM-IV's outline for cultural formulation, this discussion addresses the importance of assessing the following: 1) Cultural identity of the individual; 2) Cultural explanations of the individual's illness; 3) Cultural factors related to psychosocial environment and levels of functioning; 4) Cultural elements of the relationship between the individual and the clinician; 5) Overall cultural assessment for diagnosis and care. In particular, the discussion focuses on specific reasons why the utilization of the outline for cultural formulation can greatly assist the clinician in understanding many psychosocial elements unique to treating Conduct Disorder in the Latino adolescent.     

Endorsement of proactively aggressive caregiving strategies moderates the relation between caregiver mental health and potentially harmful caregiving behavior

This research tested the proposition that the oft-reported relation between caregiver mental health outcomes (i.e., resentment, depression) and potentially harmful caregiver behavior (PHB) would be mediated or moderated by caregiver endorsement of proactively aggressive caregiving strategies (PA). Caregiver resentment was the strongest predictor of PHB in the sample of 417 informal caregivers who resided with their care recipients; in fact, resentment mediated the impact of caregiver depression, thus suggesting that depressed affect was associated with PHB only if depressed caregivers resented their caregiving burdens. As predicted, caregiver endorsement of PA moderated the relation between resentment and PHB, such that links between these two constructs were strongest when caregivers were high in both resentment and PA. Endorsement of PA also mediated the relations between demographic or contextual variables (i.e., income, care recipient dementia) and PHB. Implications of these results for research and intervention are discussed.