How (and Why) Emotion Enhances the Subjective Sense of Recollection

ABSTRACT— A growing body of evidence suggests emotion boosts memory accuracy to an extent but affects the subjective sense of recollection even more. The result is vivid memories for emotional events that are held with confidence but that may be surprisingly inaccurate in their details. We examine the neural circuitry underlying emotion's impact on memory and the subjective sense of recollection to provide insight into this puzzling phenomenon. This research suggests that for emotional stimuli the quality and strength of memory for a few details may mediate judgments of recollection, whereas for neutral stimuli the quantity of contextual details may be more important. Finally, we speculate that the enhanced subjective sense of recollection with emotion, in the absence of absolute veridicality, may have evolved to enable fast and unambiguous decision making in emotional situations.     

The Role of Family and Teacher Support in Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms Among Palestinian Adolescents Exposed to Community Violence

Extensive research has been conducted in recent decades on the mental health consequences of Palestinians’ exposure to military and political violence. Despite the alarming rates of Palestinian youth exposure to community violence (ECV), there is a serious dearth of research on the effects of this pattern of exposure. The current study focused on the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among Palestinian adolescents as a result of their ECV. The study also examines the ability of perceived support from family and teachers to moderate the relationship between ECV and PTSD symptoms, and the involvement of demographic and socioeconomic variables in explaining this development. A sample of 1930 Palestinian secondary school students, aged 12–19, from the West Bank and East Jerusalem, answered questionnaires. Data analysis used univariate, bivariate, and multivariate methods, including SEM. The prevalence of PTSD symptoms was predicted by past year ECV, family support, teacher support, residential density, parents’ education, age, and gender. SEM analysis validated additional relationship paths between variables. Results are discussed, suggesting future research with theoretical and practical implications.     

Time travel through language: Temporal shifts rapidly decrease information accessibility during reading

The present study dissociated the immediate neural costs from the subsequent neural consequences of integrating time shifts into our mental representations of events. Event-related potentials were recorded as participants read scenarios that included words referring to short temporal shifts (e.g., after one second), moderate temporal shifts (e.g., after one hour), or long temporal shifts (e.g., after one year). These words were followed by repeated noun-phrase anaphors, which are preferred as referents for information no longer in attentional focus. The N400 was measured as an index of online conceptual integration. As the discourse unfolded, the N400 was larger for long- (e.g.,year) than for short- (e.g., second) shift words. For the anaphor, the N400 was modulated in the opposite direction. Thus, the introduction of a temporal discontinuity leads to immediate neural integration costs, as well as to decreased accessibility of earlier information.     

Is this problem likely to be solved? A cognitive schema of effective problem solving

The present study tested the existence of a cognitive schema that guides people's evaluations of the likelihood that observed problem-solving processes will succeed. The hypothesised schema consisted of attributes that were found to distinguish between retrospective case reports of successful and unsuccessful real world problem solving (Lipshitz & Bar Ilan, 1996 Lipshitz, R. and Bar Ilan, O. 1996. How problems are solved: Reconsidering the phase theorem. Organisational Behaviour and Human Decision Processes, 45: 48–60.  [Google Scholar]). Participants were asked to evaluate the likelihood of success of identical cases of problem solving that differed in the presence or absence of diagnosis, the selection of appropriate or inappropriate solutions, and the pairing of diagnosis with appropriate or non-appropriate solutions. Consistent with the proposition, diagnosis affected perceived likelihood of success, albeit only when solution quality was held constant, and appropriate diagnosis with a compatible solution produced higher perceived likelihood of success than appropriate diagnosis with incompatible solutions. In addition, results showed that solution quality played a significant role, and that compatibility with a six-phase rational model of problem solving played no role in judging likelihood of success.     

An Anatomy of Political Beliefs: A Study of Their Centrality, Confidence, Contents, and Epistemic Authority

The present study is a simultaneous investigation of the contents of political beliefs and their characteristics among Israeli students. In addition, it examines their perceived use of information sources. The results indicate that political beliefs regarding the Israeli-Arab conflicts are organized systematically around the dove/hawk dimension. Also, a positive relationship was found between centrality of beliefs and confidence in them; between well-defined political identification and centrality and confidence; and between agreement with the beliefs and confidence. Finally, the results show that the perceived use of information sources is related to political identification. The performed investigation demonstrates the importance of combining the study of the contents of beliefs with that of their characteristics, since the latter have important implications for understanding individuals' cognitive, affective, and behavioral reactions.     

Professional Basketball's Unsportsmanlike Fouls in the Eyes of the Beholders

A series of three experiments, based on the method of Functional Measurement, has explored the importance assigned by professional basketball players to relevant dispositions of defense and offense players, as determinants of unsportsmanlike fouls. The 106 participants were leading male players in the premier basketball league in Israel. Experiment 1 was based on a 16 (2⁴)‐cell model. In an individual meeting, each participant estimated the likelihood that a defense player would commit an unsportsmanlike foul on an offense player. In each of the 16 to‐be‐judged incidents, specific information on a specific combination of aggressiveness and susceptibility to victimisation of two imaginary protagonists in an offense–defense on‐the‐court incident was given to the participant. Experiment 2 was a replication of Experiment 1. There, however, names of 16 well‐known players were mentioned, the aggressiveness and susceptibility to victimisation of each fitting the model requirements. In Experiment 3, a partial replication of Experiment 2, likelihood estimations were made from two perspectives—potential perpetrator and potential victim. Overall, meaningful importance was assigned especially to the dispositions of the perpetrator, not the victim. The findings are conceived as reflections of players' cognitive schemata of on‐the‐court violence. Basée sur la méthode de la mesure fonctionnelle, une série de 3 expérimentations a exploré l’importance que des joueurs de basket professionnels attribuent aux dispositions de joueurs attaquant ou défenseur à commettre des fautes anti sportives. Les 106 sujets sont des joueurs de sexe masculin de la ligue 1 de basket israélienne. L'expérience 1 est basée sur un modèle à 16 (2⁴) cases. Lors de passation individuelle, chaque participant estime la probabilité qu'un joueur arrière commette une faute anti sportive sur un joueur avant. Pour chacun des 16 incidents à juger, une information spécifique a été donnée aux participants. Il s'agissait d'une combinaison particulière de l'agressivité et de la propension à la victimisation des deux protagonistes imaginaires dans une situation d'incident soit offensif soit défensif sur le terrain. L'expérimentation 2 est une réplique de la première. Cependant, les noms de 16 joueurs connus sont mentionnés, l'agressivité et la propension à la victimisation étaient appropriées aux exigences du modèle. Dans l'expérience 3, réplique partielle de la deuxième, la probabilité des estimations a été faite selon deux perspectives: auteur potentiel et victime potentielle. Globalement, une importance significative a été assignée aux dispositions de l'auteur et non de la victime. Les résultats sont conçus comme reflétant le schéma cognitif des joueurs lors de violence sur le terrain.