Awareness is necessary for extracting patterns in working memory but not for directing spatial attention

The contents of working memory (WM) have predominantly been viewed as necessarily conscious. However, recent findings suggest otherwise. Here we investigate whether visual WM can represent subliminal stimuli, such that the positions of an invisible moving object can be extrapolated or learned about in terms of their task-relevant predictive power. We presented a moving cue subliminally and measured subjects' performance on an orientation-discrimination task at the naturally anticipated location on the cue's trajectory and at variably predictable off-trajectory locations. Our data show that orientation discriminability at the on-trajectory location was not significantly different from that at a nearby off-trajectory location. However, orientation discriminability at locations near the final position of the cue was significantly better than that at distal locations. This finding suggests that a moving object can still attract attention when presented subliminally. In contrast, the dynamic trajectory of the object and its task-relevant predictive patterns may not be monitored and maintained in visual WM. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

Perceptual fading without retinal adaptation

A retinally stabilized object readily undergoes perceptual fading and disappears from consciousness. This startling phenomenon is commonly believed to arise from local bottom-up sensory adaptation to edge information that occurs early in the visual pathway, such as in the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus or retinal ganglion cells. Here we use random dot stereograms to generate perceivable contours or shapes that are not present on the retina and ask whether perceptual fading occurs for such "cortical" contours. Our results show that perceptual fading occurs for "cortical" contours and that the time a contour requires to fade increases as a function of its size, suggesting that retinal adaptation is not necessary for the phenomenon and that perceptual fading may be based in the cortex.     

Exploring the Dynamics of Dyadic Interactions via Hierarchical Segmentation

In this article we present an exploratory tool for extracting systematic patterns from multivariate data. The technique, hierarchical segmentation (HS), can be used to group multivariate time series into segments with similar discrete-state recurrence patterns and it is not restricted by the stationarity assumption. We use a simulation study to describe the steps and properties of HS. We then use empirical data on daily affect from one couple to illustrate the use of HS for describing the affective dynamics of the dyad. First, we partition the data into three periods that represent different affective states and show different dynamics between both individuals’ affect. We then examine the synchrony between both individuals’ affective states and identify different patterns of coherence across the periods. Finally, we discuss the possibilities of using results from HS to construct confirmatory dynamic models with multiple change points or regime-specific dynamics.     

Promoting Healing and Restoring Trust: Policy Recommendations for Improving Behavioral Health Care for American Indian/Alaska Native Adolescents

American Indian/Alaska Native youth represent the strength and continued survival of many Nations and Tribes. However, they currently experience numerous health disparities and challenges, including the highest rate of suicide among 15–24 year-olds in the United States. Our comprehensive review of the literature on the mental health of AI/AN youth highlighted seven focal causes of behavioral health disparities: (1) high levels of violence and trauma exposure and traumatic loss, (2) past and current oppression, racism, and discrimination, (3) underfunded systems of care, (4) disregard for effective indigenous practices in service provision, policy, and funding, (5) overreliance on evidence-based practices, (6) lack of cultural competence among systems of care and providers, and (7) barriers to care. Seven policy recommendations that recognize the importance of moving beyond exclusive reliance on western models of care and that seek to foster transformation of individuals, families, communities, behavioral health service systems of care, and social structures are presented, supported, and discussed.     

Exploring the Effects of Anticounterfeiting Strategies on Customer Values and Loyalty

Product counterfeiting, a serious problem throughout the world, is particularly challenging for luxury brands, which often have simple designs and a value that depends largely on buyers' perceptions. This study incorporates the concept of customer value into an investigation of the anticounterfeiting strategies. Both hedonic and utilitarian values positively influence customer loyalty toward luxury brands. As a means to strengthen customer values, legal and product strategies positively influence customers' hedonic value, whereas communication and product strategies positively influence their utilitarian value. The managerial implications of these findings and directions for further research are discussed.     

Analyzing the Dynamics of Affective Dyadic Interactions Using Patterns of Intra- and Interindividual Variability

There are many compelling accounts of the ways in which the emotions of 1 member of a romantic relationship should influence and be influenced by the partner. However, there are relatively few methodological tools available for representing the alleged complexity of dyad level emotional experiences. In this article, we present an algorithm for examining such affective dynamics based on patterns of variability. The algorithm identifies periods of stability based on length of time and amplitude of emotional fluctuations. The patterns of variability and stability are quantified at the individual and dyadic level, and the approach is illustrated using data of the daily emotional experiences of individuals in romantic couples. With this technique, we examine the fluctuations of the emotions for each person and inspect the overlap fluctuations between both individuals in the dyad. The individual and dyadic indices of variability are then used to predict the status of the dyads (i.e., together, apart) 1 year later.     

Information Seeking and Avoiding in Health Contexts

Information management is an important component of coping with illness and illness‐related uncertainty. Normative theory and research on information seeking and avoiding in health contexts can help explain why some information management activities are more adaptive than others. Challenges and dilemmas of information management include relational demands (e.g., the need to coordinate the behaviors and goals of the participants) and contextual features (e.g., cross‐cultural considerations or channels available for information seeking and providing). Issues that need to be addressed in a normative approach include (a) how information management goals can be accomplished while still accounting for other goals (e.g., identity management or relational maintenance), (b) what roles interpreters can play to facilitate effective cross‐cultural information exchange (e.g., as cultural informants), and (c) how information seekers can best manage conflicting or overwhelming information when confronted with messages from multiple channels.     

Treating the Child or Syndrome: Does Context Matter for Treatment Decisions for Antisocially Behaving Youth?

Using a between-subject 3 × 3 design of an experimentally manipulated realistic case vignette of Black, White, and Hispanic youth in a survey mailed to 1540 experienced psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers, the authors examined if clinicians alter their judgments about treatment for antisocially behaving youth based on the symptom’s social context (e.g., life circumstances) and the youth’s race or ethnicity, even among youth who are otherwise identical in terms of behavioral symptoms. Vignettes describe behaviors meeting DSM-IV criteria for conduct disorder, but contain contextual information suggesting either internal dysfunction (ID) or a normal response to a difficult environment [i.e., environmental-reaction (ER)]. Comparison was symptom-only (SO). Judgments of effectiveness of 14 treatments for youth exhibiting antisocial behavior were examined. Frequencies and median scores of perceived effectiveness level (1–9, Likert) were compared in bivariate analyses, stratifying context and youth’s race or ethnicity. The context of the behavior was associated significantly with differences in effectiveness judgments in 13 of 14 treatments. Within ID and ER contexts, clinicians judged three different treatments as effective (median ≥ 7 of 9). In the SO condition, clinicians were less selective, judging six as effective. In the ID context, psychiatric medications, systems oriented family therapy, and residential care were judged more effective for White than for Black or Hispanic youth. Evidence-based practice research may be hampered by inattention to the social context of behavioral symptoms. Context may activate implicit racial assumptions about treatment effectiveness. Implications are for clinical training to improve service delivery, and future clinical research.