The invisible power and counseling

Pastoral Psychology -     

Prism adaptation changes the subjective proprioceptive localization of the hands

Prism adaptation involves a proprioceptive, a visual and a motor component. As the existing paradigms are not able to distinguish between these three components, the contribution of the proprioceptive component remains unclear. In the current study, a proprioceptive judgement task, in the absence of motor responses, was used to investigate how prism adaptation would specifically influences the felt position of the hands in healthy participants. The task was administered before and after adaptation to left and right displacing prisms using either the left or the right hand during the adaptation procedure. The results appeared to suggest that the prisms induced a drift in the felt position of the hands, although the after‐effect depended on the combination of the pointing hand and the visual deviation induced by prisms. The results are interpreted as in line with the hypothesis of an asymmetrical neural architecture of somatosensory processing. Moreover, the passive proprioception of the hand position revealed different effects of proprioceptive re‐alignment compared to active pointing straight ahead: different mechanisms about how visuo‐proprioceptive discrepancy is resolved were hypothesized.     

Elucidating the Functional Relationship Between Working Memory Capacity and Psychometric Intelligence: A Fixed-Links Modeling Approach for Experimental Repeated-Measures Designs

Numerous studies reported a strong link between working memory capacity (WMC) and fluid intelligence (Gf), although views differ in respect to how close these two constructs are related to each other. In the present study, we used a WMC task with five levels of task demands to assess the relationship between WMC and Gf by means of a new methodological approach referred to as fixed-links modeling. Fixed-links models belong to the family of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and are of particular interest for experimental, repeated-measures designs. With this technique, processes systematically varying across task conditions can be disentangled from processes unaffected by the experimental manipulation. Proceeding from the assumption that experimental manipulation in a WMC task leads to increasing demands on WMC, the processes systematically varying across task conditions can be assumed to be WMC-specific. Processes not varying across task conditions, on the other hand, are probably independent of WMC. Fixed-links models allow for representing these two kinds of processes by two independent latent variables. In contrast to traditional CFA where a common latent variable is derived from the different task conditions, fixed-links models facilitate a more precise or purified representation of the WMC-related processes of interest. By using fixed-links modeling to analyze data of 200 participants, we identified a non-experimental latent variable, representing processes that remained constant irrespective of the WMC task conditions, and an experimental latent variable which reflected processes that varied as a function of experimental manipulation. This latter variable represents the increasing demands on WMC and, hence, was considered a purified measure of WMC controlled for the constant processes. Fixed-links modeling showed that both the purified measure of WMC (β = .48) as well as the constant processes involved in the task (β = .45) were related to Gf. Taken together, these two latent variables explained the same portion of variance of Gf as a single latent variable obtained by traditional CFA (β = .65) indicating that traditional CFA causes an overestimation of the effective relationship between WMC and Gf. Thus, fixed-links modeling provides a feasible method for a more valid investigation of the functional relationship between specific constructs.     

Reserve price and competing bids: Reference points for product evaluations in online auctions?

With an increasing number of products sold in online auctions, the effect of reference points on consumers' product valuations has received much attention in the literature. Two potentially relevant factors affecting bidders' preferences are the sellers' reserve price and the competing bids by other bidders. The current evidence regarding these reference points is mixed. We argue that a focus on studying bids prevents a clear identification of reference point effects. Directly observing product valuations, in two experiments, we find that willingness to pay in online auctions is affected by both reserve prices and competing bids, supporting the constructed values paradigm. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Accurate Judgments of Neuroticism at Zero Acquaintance: A Question of Relevance

Prior studies have consistently found a surprising inaccuracy of people's neuroticism judgments at zero acquaintance. Based on the Realistic Accuracy Model (Funder, 1995), we hypothesize that this is due to a lack of relevance of the situation in which targets are typically observed. Fifty participants were videotaped in a highly trait‐relevant (i.e., socially stressful) situation as well as three less relevant situations. An aggregate of self‐reports and informant reports was used as the accuracy criterion. Four independent groups of unacquainted observers judged participants' neuroticism based on these short video sequences. Results showed that neuroticism judgments were significantly more accurate for the most trait‐relevant situation compared with the other three situations. This finding can be explained using lens model analyses: Only in the most relevant situation did neuroticism predict both visual nervousness and vocal nervousness, both of which in turn predicted neuroticism judgments by lay observers. Our findings show that strangers are sensitive to interindividual differences in neuroticism as long as targets are observed in a trait‐relevant situation.     

The watching eyes phenomenon: The role of a sense of being seen and public self‐awareness

In recent years, a growing number of researchers have examined the watching eyes phenomenon (i.e., increased prosocial and decreased antisocial behavior when subtle watching eyes are present in the environment). Somewhat surprisingly, the questions of how and under what conditions subtle cues of being watched operate have been unanswered so far. The present contribution addresses this research gap. In two studies, we document that (a) subtle cues of being watched induce a sense of being seen and (b) chronic public self‐awareness moderates the watching eyes phenomenon in that specifically individuals with strong chronic public self‐awareness show more prosocial behavior under conditions of watching eyes. The applicability of subtle cues of being watched in research on social presence is discussed.