Parental Practices and Theory of Mind Development

In the past three decades, psychologists have become increasingly interested in the study of theory of mind. This ability involves an understanding of different components of the mind (e.g., emotions, thoughts, beliefs) and of how they are related to human behavior. Several parents’ characteristics (e.g., attachment, mental-state talk) have been associated to children’s theory-of-mind development, but the variables and methods adopted are diverse and at times lead to inconsistent findings. The goal of the present paper, therefore, is to provide a literature review that can point both to possible ways in which discrepancies might be overcome and to promising research directions. Our review covers 78 research reports published in English between 1980 and 2011. Only empirical studies, using children as participants, were included in the review. Three main suggestions are offered for researchers, parents and practitioners on how to nurture young children’s understanding of mind: (a) to treat children as intentional agents, acting in a sensitive and responsive fashion to their mental states; (b) to speak to children about mental states in an elaborate and connected way, pointing out their causes and consequences, and explaining that these may be different for different people; and (c) to expose children to a wide range of emotions while being careful to not express over-frequent and inconsistent negative affect. One limitation of the present review, however, is that we do not look into how parental practices interact with certain individual characteristics of the child (e.g., personality, IQ and language skills). Future research should explore the multifaceted nature of these relationships and interactions.     

Evidence of precurrent responses expanding equivalence classes in a delayed matching-to-sample task

Delayed matching to sample (DMTS) increases the probability of equivalence class formation. Precurrent responses can mediate the retention interval in DMTS trials and control the selection of comparisons. In human participants, precurrent responses usually consist of naming the experimental stimuli based on their similarities to meaningful stimuli with preexperimental history. We tested whether precurrents expand classes by serving as nodes between experimental and meaningful stimuli. A DMTS (2 s) was used throughout the entire experiment. Eleven undergraduates learned A1B1 and A2B2 relations and then were submitted to ArC trials that required them to answer math problems presented during the DMTS interval: when the sample was A1, the problems resulted in 12 and C1 was correct; when the sample was A2, they resulted in 9 and C2 was correct. Response-as-node tests assessed whether participants would relate B1 and C1 to the printed number 12 and B2 and C2 to the printed number 9. Ten participants responded accordingly to this pattern, showing that the responses to the problems expanded the classes. Parity tests using the words “even” and “odd” further confirmed this hypothesis. These results contribute to understanding why DMTS enhances equivalence performances. Implications of using this procedure in stimulus-equivalence studies are discussed.     

Verbal categories for classification of spinal postures and their respective angular values registered by photographs and electrogoniometry.

The perception of posture may allow workers to discern sensations associated with physical overload and potential tissue damage. In an occupational context, the classification of body postures in ranges of amplitude has been useful for researchers and ergonomists interested in evaluating the exposure of workers to uncomfortable and potentially harmful postures. In this paper we describe measurements, using photographs and electrogoniometry of the angle of flexion of the trunk and of the thoracolumbar segment, respectively, adopted according to the verbal categories of mild, moderate, and severe flexion, as requested by the experimenter. The results showed no differences between the groups of subjects, but significant differences occurred in the classification of the movement amplitude per verbal categories.     

Evaluation of arm dominance by using the mechanomyographic signal

The authors collected and compared mechanomyo-graphic (MMG) signal behavior from the biceps brachii of left and right arms of right-handed men (n = 19) and women (n = 20) who performed isometric contractions at 5 contraction levels. Mean frequency (MF) and RMS values were calculated from the MMG signals that arose from lateral oscillations of muscle fibers. Across genders and arms, RMS values increased with contraction level and MF values decreased with increase in muscle contraction. The authors found no significant difference in those parameters between dominant and nondominant arms. Therefore, summation of muscle twitches obtained from the MMG signal collected in biceps brachii muscle does not reveal any difference between dominant and nondominant arms.     

Relational learning in children with deafness and cochlear implants

This four-experiment series sought to evaluate the potential of children with neurosensory deafness and cochlear implants to exhibit auditory-visual and visual-visual stimulus equivalence relations within a matching-to-sample format. Twelve children who became deaf prior to acquiring language (prelingual) and four who became deaf afterwards (postlingual) were studied. All children learned auditory-visual conditional discriminations and nearly all showed emergent equivalence relations. Naming tests, conducted with a subset of the children, showed no consistent relationship to the equivalence-test outcomes. This study makes several contributions to the literature on stimulus equivalence. First, it demonstrates that both pre- and postlingually deaf children can acquire auditory-visual equivalence relations after cochlear implantation, thus demonstrating symbolic functioning. Second, it directs attention to a population that may be especially interesting for researchers seeking to analyze the relationship between speaker and listener repertoires. Third, it demonstrates the feasibility of conducting experimental studies of stimulus control processes within the limitations of a hospital, which these children must visit routinely for the maintenance of their cochlear implants.     

Instructional Control with Preschoolers and Stimulus Equivalence

The Psychological Record - The stimulus equivalence paradigm is a behavioral model to study meaning. This study extends work that has used the equivalence paradigm to study the meaning of...     

Perspectives on Increasing Positive Attitudes Toward Larger Members in Fitness Centers

Physical activity (PA) attenuates weight-associated morbidity and mortality but PA-based weight bias dissuades many people from engaging in and enjoying physical activity. Guided by self-determination theory, we implemented concept mapping with current and past members and employees of fitness centers. One hundred ideas were generated, representing the concepts of programming, fitness culture, code of conduct, professional development, and physical environment/amenities. The ideas can help design interventions that increase positive attitudes that are autonomous, shared throughout a fitness center, and promote inclusivity.     

Human variable ratio performance

The generality of the mathematical principles of reinforcement (MPR) was tested with humans. In Experiment 1A, participants’ mouse clicks were reinforced according to a series of variable-ratio (VR) values. In one condition, a situated task was used (searching for treasure on a map presented via a PC monitor); in the other, abstract version of the task, participants clicked on a white screen. Under the “map” condition, response rates increased with increasing ratio value before decreasing with further ratio increases; under the “no-map” condition, response rates decreased linearly from a peak at the smallest ratio. In Experiment 1B, the pattern of responding was confirmed under the “map” conditions using a different set of ratio values. In Experiment 2, reinforcer magnitude was manipulated using the “map” context. Response rates did not differ significantly when large rather than small cash reinforcers were delivered according to a VR 30 but were significantly higher when large rather than small cash reinforcers were delivered according to a VR 120. Together these experiments offer qualified support for extending MPR to the behavior of human participants.