Auditory list memory and interference processes in monkeys.

Memory of 2 rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) was tested in a serial probe recognition task with lists of 4 natural or environmental sounds, different retention intervals, and different manipulations of interference. At short retention intervals, increasing the separation of list items reduced the primacy effect and produced a recency effect. Similar results were shown by increasing interference across lists through item repetitions or making the first 2 list items high-interference items. These results indicated that decreasing first-item performance reduced proactive interference on memory of the last list items. At long (20 s) retention intervals, making the last list items of high interference reduced the recency effect, reduced retroactive interference, and produced a primacy effect. Taken together, interference plays a role in determining the primacy and recency effects of the serial-position function.     

How young children spend their time: television and other activities.

Time-use diaries were collected over a 3-year period for 2 cohorts of 2- and 4-year-old children. TV viewing declined with age. Time spent in reading and educational activities increased with age on weekdays but declined on weekends. Time-use patterns were sex-stereotyped, and sex differences increased with age. As individuals' time in educational activities, social interaction, and video games increased, their time watching entertainment TV declined, but time spent playing covaried positively with entertainment TV. Educational TV viewing was not related to time spent in non-TV activities. Maternal education and home environment quality predicted frequent viewing of educational TV programs and infrequent viewing of entertainment TV. The results do not support a simple displacement hypothesis; the relations of TV viewing to other activities depend on the program content, the nature of the competing activity, and the environmental context.     

Is Therapeutic Alliance Influenced by a Feminist Approach to Therapy?

Although the feminist critique of marriage and family therapy has been a significant part of the literature for many years, its impact has been blunted by two criticisms. The first suggests that the feminist critique lacks empirical support. The second suggests that the feminist critique promotes an alliance with women clients at the expense of men. The first criticism has been addressed in recent years. The present study examined the relationship between feminist principles and therapeutic alliance. Results suggest that feminist principles actually enhance therapeutic relationship for men clients but has no effect on therapeutic relationship for women clients.of the Marriage and Family Therapy Program     

Team effectiveness: beyond skills and cognitive ability.

On the basis of job analysis results, the validity of using measures of general cognitive ability, job-specific skills, and personality traits jointly at both the individual level and the group level to predict the performance of 79 four-person, human resource work teams was evaluated. Team member trait and job skill scores were aggregated with a conjunctive model of task performance. At the individual level of analysis, measures of personality (i.e., Agreeableness and Conscientiousness) predicted peer ratings of team member performance beyond measures of job-specific skills and general cognitive ability. Similarly, at the group level of analysis, both Agreeableness and Conscientiousness predicted supervisor ratings of work team performance, objective measures of work team accuracy, and work completed. At both the individual and group levels, the trait of Agreeableness predicted Interpersonal Skills.     

Production uncertainty as a contextual moderator of employee reactions to job design.

A number of authors in the job design field have proposed production uncertainty, the degree to which a qualified incumbent faces unexpected problems in the course of job performance, as a possible moderator of the effectiveness of job design. However, empirical support for this view is limited and has not been explicitly recognized within mainstream job design theory. This study of production operators in a waste water treatment setting provides further empirical support for production uncertainty as a contextual variable influencing job design outcomes, demonstrating that the relationship between job control and affective outcomes (job satisfaction and intrinsic motivation) varies with the level of production uncertainty.     

COMPETITION BETWEEN POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT IN THE TREATMENT OF ESCAPE BEHAVIOR

We compared the effects of reinforcing compliance with either positive reinforcement (edible items) or negative reinforcement (a break) on 5 participants' escape-maintained problem behavior. Both procedures were assessed with or without extinction. Results showed that compliance was higher and problem behavior was lower for all participants when compliance produced an edible item rather than a break. Treatment gains were achieved without the use of extinction. Results are discussed regarding the use of positive reinforcement to treat escape behavior.     

Wisdom at the end of life: Hospice patients’ reflections on the meaning of life and death

The processes of aging and confronting mortality are often accompanied by unique psychological challenges. From the perspective of positive psychology, such challenges can yield opportunities for growth, including increased wisdom. This qualitative study explored 15 terminally ill hospice patients’ perspectives on wisdom, the dying process, and the meaning of life using consensual qualitative research methods. Most participants cited humility as a key component of wisdom, emphasizing that “Wisdom is when we realize ‘I don’t really know much’.” Other components of wisdom included self-knowledge, rationality, experiential learning, listening to and learning from others, and sharing knowledge with others. Participants also suggested that the process of facing illness and death presents opportunities for positive growth, including changing priorities and learning to appreciate life more fully in the present moment. In considering the sources of meaning in their lives, participants emphasized relational connections, personal growth, spirituality, vocational fulfilment, and living a full life. Participants also shared their reflections on important past experiences and regrets. Lastly, participants offered advice to others based on their experiences facing illness and mortality. Implications for psychological care of the dying and future research are discussed.     

Memory conformity affects inaccurate memories more than accurate memories

After controlling for initial confidence, inaccurate memories were shown to be more easily distorted than accurate memories. In two experiments groups of participants viewed 50 stimuli and were then presented with these stimuli plus 50 fillers. During this test phase participants reported their confidence that each stimulus was originally shown. This was followed by computer-generated responses from a bogus participant. After being exposed to this response participants again rated the confidence of their memory. The computer-generated responses systematically distorted participants' responses. Memory distortion depended on initial memory confidence, with uncertain memories being more malleable than confident memories. This effect was moderated by whether the participant's memory was initially accurate or inaccurate. Inaccurate memories were more malleable than accurate memories. The data were consistent with a model describing two types of memory (i.e., recollective and non-recollective memories), which differ in how susceptible these memories are to memory distortion.     

Enacted support during stressful life events in middle and older adulthood: An examination of the interpersonal context

Individuals often turn to their close social ties for support during stressful life events. Although a great deal of work examines perceived support (i.e., support believed to be available should an event occur), less is known about enacted support (i.e., support actually provided during stressful events), especially among middle-aged and older people. The present study investigated whether enacted support (emotional or instrumental) varies by relationship quality and stress appraisals. Participants included 152 adults (principal respondents; aged 50 to 69 years, 63% women) who had experienced three or more stressful life events in the last year and 180 of their identified supportive ties (core network members). Multilevel models revealed that higher quality relationships enact high levels of support irrespective of high or low stress appraisals. In contrast, lower quality relationships enact greater support under conditions of higher stress but less support under conditions of lower stress, suggesting that lower quality relationships are mobilized only under higher levels of stress. Findings are consistent with the support provision process model and highlight the importance of considering relationship context and the stress continuum in studies of enacted support among older adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).