Empathy,Awareness of Others,and Action: How Feeling Empathy for One-Among-Others Motivates Helping the Others

Feeling empathy for a member of the group may result in either favoring this individual at the expense of the group or helping the entire group. We explain these intriguing findings by proposing that the combined influence of feeling empathy for one individual and awareness of others enhances willingness to help both the individual and the others (taken as individuals). The results of three experiments showed that inducing empathy for one individual promotes favoring him or her at the expense of the group, whereas inducing empathy for one-among-others leads to helping these others individually, instead of as a group. Furthermore, the awareness of others mediated the proposed one-among-others effect.     

Sex differences in theory of mind: A male advantage on Happé's “cartoon” task

It is a commonly held stereotype that women show superior performance on tests of social cognition such as face processing and theory of mind (ToM) compared to men. However, such purported differences have not been empirically tested. In this study 40 healthy men and 40 women matched for age and years of education completed a well-known experimental ToM test requiring the attribution of either physical or mental states (Happé's cartoon task). Men showed superior performance compared to women, with a medium effect size, on both the mental state and physical state cartoons. It is suggested that men may use a cognitive systemising strategy during these tasks. The results emphasise the task-specific nature of sex differences in social cognition and necessitate future work to elucidate individual differences at the interface of cognitive and affective processes.     

Defensive reactions to slim female images in advertising: The moderating role of mode of exposure

Across three studies, we examined the impact of exposure to idealized female images, blatantly vs. subtly, on females’ self-evaluations, as well as attitude towards brands endorsed by the models with these idealized body images, in marketing communications. We theorized and showed that blatant exposure can elicit defensive coping, leading to a more positive self-evaluation and a lower brand attitude toward a brand endorsed by a model with an idealized body image. When exposure is subtle, however, idealized body images lead to lowered self-evaluations and increased evaluations of endorsed brands.     

A Developmental Investigation of Prospective Memory: Effects of Interruption

The effects of interrupting an event-based prospective memory (PM) task and its associated ongoing task were compared for two groups of children: 8- to 9-year-olds (n?=?35) and 12- to 13-year-olds (n?=?28). Additionally, PM performance was examined as a function of attainment on a battery of tests of executive functioning (viz., Controlled Oral Word Association Test, Letter Number Sequencing Test, Stroop Color and Word Test, and Trail Making Test). A significant main effect of age indicated that the older children correctly carried out intended actions more often than the younger children. Consistent with the prefrontal model of PM, interruption had no impact on PM accuracy in the older group but produced reliable decrements to the accuracy of the younger group. Whereas IQ showed no association with PM performance, reliable relations between PM skills and aspects of their executive functioning were found.     

The brain circuitry of syntactic comprehension

Syntactic comprehension is a fundamental aspect of human language, and has distinct properties from other aspects of language (e.g. semantics). In this article, we aim to identify if there is a specific locus of syntax in the brain by reviewing imaging studies on syntactic processing. We conclude that results from neuroimaging support evidence from neuropsychology that syntactic processing does not recruit one specific area. Instead a network of areas including Broca's area and anterior, middle and superior areas of the temporal lobes is involved. However, none of these areas appears to be syntax specific.     

Development of an instrument for measuring different types of cognitive load

According to cognitive load theory, instructions can impose three types of cognitive load on the learner: intrinsic load, extraneous load, and germane load. Proper measurement of the different types of cognitive load can help us understand why the effectiveness and efficiency of learning environments may differ as a function of instructional formats and learner characteristics. In this article, we present a ten-item instrument for the measurement of the three types of cognitive load. Principal component analysis on data from a lecture in statistics for PhD students (n = 56) in psychology and health sciences revealed a three-component solution, consistent with the types of load that the different items were intended to measure. This solution was confirmed by a confirmatory factor analysis of data from three lectures in statistics for different cohorts of bachelor students in the social and health sciences (ns = 171, 136, and 148), and received further support from a randomized experiment with university freshmen in the health sciences (n = 58).     

When it matters how you pronounce it: the influence of regional accents on job interview outcome

The visual dimension has featured prominently in person perception in the last 25 years. Alone, this dimension cannot give the complete 'picture' of others because language and speech (i.e., the auditory dimension) are also highly informative. Social-cognition research investigates the role of auditory information for impression formation. In a series of experiments, we tested perceived competence, hirability, and socio-intellectual status of different targets based on their regional accents. Given identical content of statements in different conditions of an alleged job interview, regional German accents (Saxon, Bavarian, and Berlin) resulted in lower perceived competence and hirability than standard German, even though the Bavarian accent at the same time resulted in higher ratings of socio-intellectual status compared to other regional accents (Experiment 1). These findings were confirmed when using a broader population sample and a 'matched guise' technique (Experiment 2). Our findings indicate that regional accents, similar to faces, can be very powerful in creating differentiated pictures of individuals.     

Classroom emotional climate as a moderator of anxious solitary children's longitudinal risk for peer exclusion: a child × environment model

This study tests the ability of classroom emotional climate to moderate anxious solitary children's risk for peer exclusion over a 3-year period from 3rd through 5th grade. Six hundred eighty-eight children completed peer nominations for anxious solitude and peer exclusion in the fall and spring semesters of each grade, and observations of classroom emotional climate were conducted at the same time points. Results revealed a positive relation between anxious solitude and peer exclusion in the fall semester of each grade. However, in classrooms with supportive versus unsupportive emotional climates, this relation demonstrated a different pattern of change from fall to spring semesters. In classrooms with supportive emotional climates, children with high versus low levels of anxious solitude experienced relative elevation in fall peer exclusion, but this disappeared by the spring, such that spring peer exclusion levels were equalized among children who differed in anxious solitude. This result is consistent with hypotheses guided by the Child × Environment model. However, in classrooms with unsupportive emotional climates, results did not conform to expectations that children with high anxious solitude would experience stable or increased peer exclusion over time.     

Hangover sensitivity after controlled alcohol administration as predictor of post-college drinking

Predicting continued problematic levels of drinking after the early 20's could help with early identification of persons at risk. This study investigated whether hangover insensitivity could predict postcollege drinking and problems beyond the variance due to drinking patterns. In a preliminary study, 134 college seniors from a laboratory study of hangover (Time 1) were contacted and assessed 1-4 years (M = 2.3) later (Time 2). Hangover severity was studied after controlled alcohol administration to a specific dose while controlling sleep and environmental influences. Hangover severity at Time 1 was used to predict Time 2 drinking volume and problems while controlling for relevant demographics and Time 1 drinking volume. Hangover insensitivity at Time 1 tended to predict a clinical level of alcohol problems with a large statistical effect size. Hangover sensitivity also correlated positively with sensitivity to alcohol intoxication. Hangover severity did not predict future drinking volume. Hangover insensitivity correlates with insensitivity to intoxication and might predict more serious alcohol problems in the future, suggesting that a future larger study is warranted. Hangover insensitivity could result from physiological factors underlying low sensitivity to alcohol or risk for alcoholism.