The acquisition of observing.

Pigeons were exposed to stimuli correlated with the presence or absence of a variable-interval 60-second schedule of reinforcement only while they depressed a crossbar or "perch." In the first experiment, the stimuli were different tilts of a line displayed on the key. When the difference in brightness between the line and the background (salience) was maximal, seven of eight birds acquired the discrimination, but when the difference was reduced by 50%, only one succeeded. In the second experiment, wavelength of chamber illumination served as the relevant dimension. Neither experiment showed a large effect attributable to the magnitude of the difference (disparity) between the positive and the negative stimulus. Individual differences in time spent observing were positively correlated with level of discrimination in the presence of the stimuli. All birds produced the positive stimulus for a greater proportion of the available time than they did the negative stimulus. This may be the mechanism that provides selective reinforcement of observing. Finally, the formation of a discrimination was analyzed in terms of changes in the proportion of time spent in contact with the discriminative stimuli.     

JOB ATTRIBUTES PREFERRED BY FEMALE HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, BEFORE AND AFTER ENTERING THE WORK FORCE

A longitudinal study of 125 female health professionals' preferences for 12 job characteristics was carried out at graduation and 20 months later. After employment respondents placed increased importance on skill development and respect received, and less emphasis on security and promotion opportunities. At follow-up the most valued attributes were skill development, chance to accomplish something worthwhile and friendliness of co-workers, while physical surroundings, pay and promotion were ranked as least important. Self concept measures derived from Bern's Sex Role Inventory (1974) had not changed since graduation. In both surveys, a significant association was found between masculinity and the importance attached to taking part in decisions. The results contribute to the debate concerning the intrinsic-extrinsic dichotomy in work motivation.     

Associative facilitation of word recognition as measured from a neutral prime

It is shown that lexical decision times to strong associates with an associative strength of approximately 40% are facilitated relative to targets following a neutral prime, “blank,” whereas very weak associates with an associative strength of less then 3% are neither facilitated nor inhibited. It is also shown that relative to the “blank” baseline time, a row of crosses inhibits processing of the following target. The latter finding has implications for earlier studies that have used crosses as a neutral prime. In these studies, facilitation effects have been overestimated and inhibition effects have been underestimated. Neely 1976 has proposed a predict-and-match strategy according to which subjects are assumed to predict one or more targets from the prime and to match the actual target onto the predicted targets. A part of this theory is not supported by the present data. The results are discussed in terms of the two-process theory of expectancy (Posner & Snyder, 1975). They are also considered in the light of a recent theory by Becker (1980). As an alternative interpretation of part of the reported data, a coherence assumption by the subjects about all reading materials is introduced.     

Premenstrual syndrom

Premenstrual syndrome is a condition with cyclical mood changes occurring in 30 % of the female population of fertile ages. The symptom development is very closely related to the luteal phase indicating the existence of one or more factors during the luteal phase that provoke mental symptoms in sensitive patients. This is further supported by the fact that hysterectomized women with no menstrual bleedings but with the ovarian hormone cycle continue to show cyclical mood changes without having the cycle phase. The nature of the symptom provocating factor is still unknown but the ovarian hormones progesterone and/or estradiol are suspected. This as certain women taking oral contraceptives and sequential postmenopausal estrogen-progestagen treatment achieve mood changes. Psychological and personality factors are probably also involved, at least in the degree of the mood change and the type of mood experienced.     

The role of noradrenaline in learned behaviors: studies using DSP4

DSP4 (N-2-chloroethyl-N-ethyl-2-bromobenzylamine) is a novel noradrenaline (NA) neurotoxin sufficiently selective, following systemic administration, to be a pharmacological tool of much potential; this possibility has warranted the extensive use of DSP4 to study the role of noradrenaline in learned behaviors. Thus, after DSP4 treatment (50 mg/kg) a very robust two-way active avoidance impairment is incurred and this deficit remained over a wide range of stimulus conditions and parameters. On the other hand, the acquisition of relatively simple tasks such as one-way active avoidance, fear conditioning, step-down passive avoidance and taste-aversion conditioning, was only slightly affected or not affected at all. DSP4 administration caused a retardation of the rate of acquisition of a "right-turn" running response for food reward in a modified T-maze, and an attenuation of the exteroceptive context effect in taste-aversion conditioning and extinction. In spite of a few similar results, NA-depletions following DSP4 generally do not produce the same behavioral effects as the 6-Hydroxydopamine lesions but are more akin to the locus coeruleus lesion. An hypothesis of the role of central NA, based mainly upon the shuttle box procedure, incorporates a function in establishing the Signal-Response association, in adapting to situations that require a correct response to stress and in maintaining an adequate span of attention to the range of environmental events presented in any given learning situation.     

The role of esteem and coping in response to a threat communication

Two experiments examined the relations among self-esteem, perceived competency to cope, and actual coping behaviors following a threat communication. Leventhal's “parallel response model” (in Advances in experimental social psychology, L. Berkowitz (Ed.), New York: Academic Press, 1970, Vol. 5) predicts that low-esteem subjects will show deficits in both competency and coping behaviors. Experiment 1 manipulated threat level of a tetanus communication. Low-esteem subjects showed coping deficits on measures of free associations, free recall, fatalism, and coping. Threat groups differed only on fear and danger measures. Experiment 2 manipulated the fear level of an antismoking film and used false feedback to alter perceived competency. Positive feedback increased perceived competency to quit smoking among low-esteem subjects only. Without feedback, low-esteem subjects reduced smoking less than high-esteem subjects; positive feedback reversed the pattern. The discussion argued that, consistent with Leventhal's model, the low-esteem coping deficit has two independent causes: (1) excessive concern with fear, and (2) inadequate perceived competency.     

Factors affecting entrapment in escalating conflicts: The importance of timing

Entrapping conflicts are those in which individuals continue to invest their resources—even in seemingly losing propositions-in large part to justify previous unfilled expenditures. It has been demonstrated that individuals define their motivation for investing very differently at the various stages of an entrapping conflict. One implication of this motivational dynamic is that various factors may differentially affect degree of entrapment (i.e., amount invested), depending upon the point in time at which they are introduced. The present studies were designed to test this notion. All subjects were given an initial monetary stake and had the opportunity to win more by taking part in an entrapping investment situation. In Experiment 1, half the subjects were provided with a payoff chart that made salient the costs associated with investing (Highcost salience condition) whereas half were not (Low-cost salience condition). Moreover, for half of the subjects the payoff chart was introduced before they were asked to invest (Early condition) whereas for the other half it was introduced after they had invested a considerable portion of their resources (Late condition). Entrapment was lower in the High salience-Early than in the Low salience-Early condition. However, there was no difference between groups in the Late condition. In Experiment 2, the perceived presence of an audience interacted with personality variables related to face-saving to effect entrapment. When the audience was described as “experts in decision making,” subjects high in public self-consciousness (or social anxiety) became less entrapped than those low on these dimensions. When the audience consisted of individuals who “wished simply to observe the experimental procedure,” however, high public self-consciousness (or social anxiety) individuals were significantly more entrapped than lows. Moreover, these interaction effects occurred when the audience was introduced late, but not early, into the entrapment situation. Taken together, these (and other) findings suggest that economic factors are more influential determinants of behavior in the earlier stages of an entrapping conflict, whereas face-saving variables are more potent in the later phases. Alternative explanations are discussed.     

Self-focused attention,facial behavior,autonomic arousal and the experience of emotion

Two experiments examined alternative explanations for the Scheier and Carver(1977) results linking self-focused attention to increased responsivity to emotional stimuli. In both studies autonomic, expressive, and self-report measures of emotional arousal failed to confirm the earlier findings. An individual difference measure reported by others to parallel the effects of situationally manipulated self-attention also failed to confirm the previously reported findings. Though in direct contradiction to Scheier and Carver's results, the results are consistent with a facial feedback hypothesis and with previous findings on the effects of expressive inhibition on self-reports of emotional arousal.This research was supported in part by NSF grant 77-08926 to the first author and by NIMH grant MH 29446 to the third author, as well as by funds from the Lincoln Filene Endowment to Dartmouth College.