Children's low affective perspective-taking ability is associated with low self-initiated pro-sociality

Children's affective perspective-taking (APT) may provide a basis for efficient social interaction. The APT abilities of 83 children from 46 same-sex sibling pairs (ages 36 to 72 months, M = 52.8; SD = 12.6) were assessed through their reactions to affectively loaded story situations, and children whose APT ability (but not general cognitive abilities) was low relative to other children of their age were designated as Low-APT children. These children were not less pro-social when specific social cues or requests for pro-social behavior were given by experimenters. However, low APT may hinder children's ability to infer the need for pro-social action from relatively subtle social cues. Although 46.9% of nonlow APT children behaved pro-socially in at least two of three opportunities they were given to perform a self-initiated pro-social behavior, none of the children who were low on APT did.     

The effect of an extinction cue on ABA-renewal: Does valence matter?

The present human fear conditioning study examined whether the valence of an extinction cue has a differential effect on attenuating renewal that is induced by removal of the extinction context. Additionally, the study aimed to assess whether such attenuating effect is based on a modulatory or safety-signal role of the cue. In acquisition, extinction, and test stages of the experiment, human participants received pairings of human faces, presented against a particular background color, with the presence or absence of an aversive auditory stimulus. Experimental groups differed in the valence of a cue that was presented during extinction, in whether or not extinction took place against a different background color than present during acquisition and testing, and in whether the extinction cue was present or absent at test. The conditioned response consisted of auditory-stimulus expectancy ratings. It was hypothesized that a positively valued extinction cue yields faster extinction, stronger attenuation of renewal, and better transfer of its inhibitory power to non-extinguished stimuli than a negatively valued cue. All three hypotheses were confirmed, suggesting that the positive, but not the negative, cue had become a safety signal. The results were discussed in the framework of extinction-based exposure treatments.     

Serotonin transporter knockout rats show improved strategy set-shifting and reduced latent inhibition

Behavioral flexibility is a cognitive process depending on prefrontal areas allowing adaptive responses to environmental changes. Serotonin transporter knockout (5-HTT(-/-)) rodents show improved reversal learning in addition to orbitofrontal cortex changes. Another form of behavioral flexibility, extradimensional strategy set-shifting (EDSS), heavily depends on the medial prefrontal cortex. This region shows functional changes in 5-HTT(-/-) rodents as well. Here we subjected 5-HTT(-/-) rats and their wild-type counterparts to an EDSS paradigm and a supplementary latent inhibition task. Results indicate that 5-HTT(-/-) rats also show improved EDSS, and indicate that reduced latent inhibition may contribute as an underlying mechanism.     

Evidence for the Role of Shape in Mental Representations of Similes

People mentally represent the shapes of objects. For instance, the mental representation of an eagle is different when one thinks about a flying or resting eagle. This study examined the role of shape in mental representations of similes (i.e., metaphoric comparisons). We tested the prediction that when people process a simile they will mentally represent the entities of the comparison as having a similar shape. We conducted two experiments in which participants read sentences that either did (experimental sentences) or did not (control sentences) invite comparing two entities. For the experimental sentences, the ground of the comparison was explicit in Experiment 1 (“X has the ability to Z, just like Y”) and implicit in Experiment 2 (“X is like Y”). After having read the sentence, participants were presented with line drawings of the two objects, which were either similarly or dissimilarly shaped. They judged whether both objects were mentioned in the preceding sentence. For the experimental sentences, recognition latencies were shorter for similarly shaped objects than for dissimilarly shaped objects. For the control sentences, we did not find such an effect of similarity in shape. These findings suggest that a perceptual symbol of shape is activated when processing similes.     

The effect of a five-step cognitive learning strategy on the acquisition of a complex motor task

Abstract

Investigated was the effectiveness of the Five-Step Learning Strategy in facilitating the learning of a complex self-paced motor task. Thirty undergraduate students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions, after being stratified as to number and sex: (1) a strategy group, that was administered the Strategy, (2) a preview group, that previewed the location of the targets, and (3) a control group. All subjects performed 48 trials in an attempt to learn a task that required speed and accuracy in mastering a sequence of responses. ANOVA analyses indicated that the Strategy group performed significantly faster than the other two groups, and not at the expense of a greater number of errors. These findings indicate that cognitive processes involved in learning a complex skill are likely to benefit from the utilization of the Five-Step Strategy.     

Work conditions and employees' self-set goals: goal processes enhance prediction of psychological distress and well-being

Although previous theory and research suggest that employee well-being should be predicted by work conditions (viz., Karasek and colleagues' job demands-control-social support [J-DCS] model), other factors are also likely to be important. In this study, the authors consider correlates of employee psychological distress and well-being using a goal-focused approach grounded in Ford's (1992) motivational systems theory. Specifically, work conditions and midlevel work goal processes (WGP) were examined in a questionnaire study of health care employees. Regarding predictions derived from the J-DCS model, the authors found full support for the iso-strain, partial support for the nonlinearity, and no support for the buffer hypothesis. Of importance, however, WGP (i.e., cognitions and emotions involved in the pursuit of self-set work goals) explained variance in job satisfaction, burnout, depression, and somatic complaints, over and above that of the J-DCS model. This suggests that investigation of WGP can enhance our understanding of employee psychological distress and well-being.     

No sex difference in contextual control over the expression of latent inhibition and extinction in Pavlovian fear conditioning in rats

Three experiments with Wistar rats searched for a sex difference in contextual control over the expression of latent inhibition and extinction. Experiment 1 used a latent inhibition procedure; Experiments 2 and 3 employed an extinction preparation. All experiments used a shock as the unconditioned stimulus, a tone as the conditioned stimulus, and suppression of food magazine visits as the measure of conditioned responding to the tone. Each experiment revealed a reliable context effect on conditioned responding to the tone; after conditioning in a separate context, conditioned responding in the former latent inhibition or extinction context was attenuated relative to conditioned responding in a control context. There was no sex difference in the magnitude of this effect. These results are discussed in the framework of sex differences in the hippocampus and of the putative role of this structure in various instances of contextual learning.     

Training staff to conduct a paired-stimulus preference assessment

Three staff members were trained to conduct stimulus preference assessments using a paired-stimulus format with 8 children with autism. Staff were trained to mastery level using brief instruction, a video model, and rehearsal with verbal feedback. Training took about 80 min per staff member. Results demonstrated that staff rapidly learned to correctly perform paired-stimulus preference assessments with children.     

The motivational bases of right-wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation: relations to values and attitudes in the aftermath of September 11, 2001

Research suggests that different motivational dynamics underlie right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and social dominance orientation (SDO). These differences may be framed in the theory of basic human values. RWA may trace back to conservation versus openness-to-change values, and SDO to self-enhancement versus self-transcendence values. Based on a large-scale German survey, associations of RWA and SDO with personal values and attitudes in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, were analyzed. Results indicated that RWA related more strongly than SDO to conservation values and threat-related attitudes toward Islam as an expression of the motivational goals of social control and security, whereas RWA and SDO related equally to self-enhancement versus self-transcendence values and concern for negative consequences of military action as an expression of the motivational goal of altruistic concern. Thus, the motivational bases of RWA and SDO appear to be only partly different.     

Synergistic person x situation interaction in distributive justice behavior

A person x situation interaction is synergistic when a personality trait amplifies the effect of a situational factor. The present study tested how individuals' justice attitudes and situational factors jointly affect the allocation of financial burdens. Six insurance cases were described to 80 participants. Economic status of client (high, low) and responsibility of client for damage of the insured (high, low) were manipulated between subjects. Participants suggested a percentage of the total costs that they considered a fair contribution by the client. In accordance with the synergistic model, justice attitude (person factor) and responsibility for damage (situation factor) interacted and explained 5% of the variance of the dependent variable. With increasing negativity of attitude toward equality, the effect of responsibility was larger. Several cognitive mechanisms, such as motivated perception, selective attention, and the availability of attitude congruent situation schemas, that may account for synergistic interactions in justice behavior and in other domains were discussed.