Personalistic concepts in action: The case of Adolf Hitler

Grounded in his personalistic worldview, William Stern regarded persons as inherently valuable beings who use values to conduct their lives. One might wonder if such a value-laden and idealistic approach can be applied to the case of Adolf Hitler, who clearly was a very destructive and disharmonious figure. In order to deal with this challenging question we will refer to three personalistic principles, namely convergence, introception, and unitas multiplex. As our analysis shows, all three principles can be exemplified in the case of Hitler if a neutralized version of each principle is used. By the demonstration of “iron will” he strived for coherence and unity, and was tremendously successful in managing that his followers introcepted the Nazi ideals. The convergence principle also applies to Hitler since there was unique conjunction of his traits with influences of his era.     

Personal epistemology across cultures: exploring Norwegian and Spanish university students’ epistemic beliefs about climate change

The primary aim was to explore and compare the dimensionality of personal epistemology with respect to climate change across the contexts of Norwegian and Spanish students. A second aim was to examine relationships between topic-specific epistemic beliefs and the variables of gender, topic knowledge, and topic interest in the two contexts. Participants were 225 Norwegian and 217 Spanish undergraduates enrolled in psychology or education courses, and the dimensionality of topic-specific personal epistemology was explored through factor analyses of the scores on a 49-item questionnaire. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to predict scores on the epistemic belief dimensions emerging from the factor analyses with gender, topic knowledge, and topic interest, respectively. Even though considerable cross-cultural generalizability in dimensionality was demonstrated, this research also draws attention to the cultural embeddedness of topic-specific epistemic beliefs. Moreover, differences in the predictability of topic knowledge and topic interest in Norway and Spain, suggest that factors constraining or enhancing adaptive epistemic beliefs concerning particular topics may vary across cultures.     

Learning as change of coordination dynamics: theory and experiment

Learning of coordination patterns was investigated theoretically from the point of view of a dynamic theory of biological coordination and with reference to recent experiments on the learning of relative timing patterns. The theory is based on theoretical and experimental work showing that coordinated movement is characterized not only by the actually performed pattern of coordination but by an entire dynamics of coordination. Theoretically, such dynamics are captured as equations of motion of relevant collective variables. Experimentally, signatures of these underlying dynamics can be found in the temporal stability of coordination patterns, which can be assessed through various stability measures as well as through processes of pattern change. We argue that not only intrinsic coordination tendencies, but also specific behavioral requirements, be they perceived, memorized, or intended, must be expressed in terms of such dynamics. The concept of behavioral information captures such requirements as part of the coordination dynamics. We expound two hypotheses on the nature of learning in this framework. First, we assume that at each point during the learning process the system is governed by a well-defined coordination dynamics. This equation of motion evolves with learning so as to acquire an attractor solution near the to-be-learned pattern. Second, we hypothesize that this change of the coordination dynamics, captured by the time course of memorized behavioral information, can itself be ascribed to an additional layer of dynamics, the slower learning dynamics. Testable consequences of these views are discussed in the light of recent experimental findings on the learning of a relative phase in rhythmic movement: (a) Learning affects dynamic properties of performed coordination patterns, in particular, their stability; (b) the change of the coordination dynamics due to learning leads to specific changes of behavior also under conditions other than the learned condition, namely, to systematic deviation toward the learned patterns; (c) learning may lead to instabilities in the coordination behavior if initial and learned performance differ sufficiently; and (d) the dynamic properties of the performed coordination patterns are distinct on the two time scales of learning and of performance.     

Reference-related inhibition produces enhanced position discrimination and fast repulsion near axes of symmetry

Models proposed to account for reference frame effects in spatial cognition often account for performance in some tasks well, but fail to generalize to other tasks. Here, we demonstrate that a new process account of spatial working memory--the dynamic field theory (DFT)--can bridge the gap between perceptual and memory processes in position discrimination and spatial recall, highlighting that the processes underlying spatial recall also operate in position discrimination. In six experiments, we tested two novel predictions of the DFT: first, that discrimination is enhanced near symmetry axes, especially when the perceptual salience of the axis is increased; and second, that performance far from a reference axis depends on the direction in which the second stimulus is presented. The DFT also predicts the magnitude of this direction-dependent modulation. These effects arise from reference-related inhibition in the theory. We discuss how the processes captured by the DFT relate to existing psychophysical models and operate across a diverse array of spatial tasks.     

In a no-win situation: The employment–health dilemma

Work and organizational psychology (WOP) research has to date mostly focused on people privileged to have the choice between several attractive job options and less on people who are restricted in their job choice (e.g., due to their qualification or personal contingencies) and have to choose from fewer and often less-than-optimal jobs. Often, the jobs available to the latter are characterized by precarious employment and hazardous working conditions which can put them in the difficult situation of having to choose between a health-threatening job and possible unemployment. Building on interdisciplinary literature, we propose the employment–health dilemma (E-H dilemma) as a framework for analyzing this intrapersonal conflict of having to choose between employment (incurring health threats) and health (incurring economic threats) and discuss potential antecedents and consequences of the E-H dilemma at the societal, organizational, and individual level. We outline the implications of the E-H dilemma and make a case for examining the full spectrum of job choice situations in WOP research. In doing so, we demonstrate what WOP can gain by embracing a more inclusive and multidisciplinary approach: uncovering processes in their entirety (e.g., job choice decisions of all people) and strengthening the role and legitimacy of WOP in society.     

An experiment on the theory of visual motion perception

Two classes of theories of motion perception were studied: correlation and gradient models (in the sense of D. Marr). Random-dot kinematograms with a shifted square were presented to subjects, and the 80% threshold for detection of correct direction of movement was determined. Correlation models predict scale invariance, that is, a constant shift measured in units of texture elements of the translated pattern in spite of a geometric magnification. This was refuted for all subjects. The increase of the recognizable translation with the area of the translated form was verified except for the patterns with the largest texture elements (8 minutes of arc). This prediction, however, is not very specific for competing theories. Gradient models are not yet fully specified, and they contain some free parameters. They cannot be tested strictly, but there exist reasonable numerical parameter values by which our data can be satisfactorily explained.