Stimulus control of responding by response-reinforcer temporal contiguity

The stimulus properties of brief disruptions in response-reinforcer temporal contiguity were investigated using a discrete trial conditional discrimination procedure. Key pecking (nondelay) or key pecking followed by a brief interval of nonpecking (delay) in the sample component produced a stimulus change (choice component). Pecks in the choice component to one of two alternatives resulted in food or blackout, conditional upon which response requirement was met in producing the choice component. A baseline condition, in which key pecking always produced the choice component and correct choices were arranged randomly, alternated with experimental conditions that included nondelay and delay values of either 0.2, 0.5, or 1.0 sec between the last key peck and the initiation of the choice component. All subjects accurately discriminated brief temporal delays between a response and stimulus change, with choice accuracy increasing for three of four subjects as the temporal disruption in contiguity increase. Implications of the research for the study of delayed reinforcement, response-independent reinforcement, and the discrimination of causality are discussed.     

Working through a group's fantasy of the deceased leader's wish for the group's continuation

This paper reflects the working through of a group's fantasy that the deceased group leader wished the group to continue. As in any defense, the fantasy protected members from the pain of the finality of the leader's death. This article reveals the subjective experience concerning the effect of the leader's death on the group and members' intrapsychic struggle to separate and individuate from the deceased leader, while attending to and striving toward the group's continuation. The group's painful and growing individuation enabled the group to follow its own tasks without the spector of the deceased leader.     

Partitions,probabilistic causal laws,and Simpson's paradox

I wish to thank Elisabeth Lloyd, Samuel Mitchell, Greg Ray, Piers Rollins and two anonymous readers for their insightful criticisms and comments.     

Second-order conditioning of the rabbit’s nictitating membrane response

Second-order conditioning of the rabbit’s nictitating membrane response (NMR) was investigated when second-order trials (CS1-CS2) were intermixed with first-order trials (CS2-US) from the outset of training. Experiment 1 showed that CR acquisition to CS1 was inversely related to the CS1-CS2 interval but nevertheless extended to an interval of 8,400 ms. Experiment 2 revealed that CR acquisition of CS1 was an inverted-U function of the number of CS1-CS2 trials relative to a fixed number of CS2-US trials. Experiment 3 directly contrasted second-order conditioning with a reinforced serial compound procedure (CS1-CS2-US) and a mixed procedure in which second-order trials were intermixed with the reinforced serial compound. Second-order conditioning was about half the strength of either the reinforced serial compound or the mixed procedure, which were similar. The present results are discussed with respect to the relative strength of excitatory and inhibitory processes in second-order conditioning.     

Communicating the reasons for social rejection

Two studies examined the pattern of reasons given for rejecting dates and how they reflect concerns of the rejector. Study One examined retrospective accounts of rejection. Rejectors often reported withholding the reason for rejection from the rejected person. A content analysis of the reasons communicated to rejected persons was performed using Weiner's (Journal of Educational Psychology, 1979, 71, 3–25) attributional dimensions of locus, controllability, and stability. The stated reasons were found to be primarily impersonal, uncontrollable, and unstable. Study Two examined rejectors' willingness to communicate certain types of reasons. The true, privately held reasons for turning down dates were systematically varied as to locus, controllability, and stability. The types of reasons subjects offered to rejected persons were consistent with Study One. Reasons for refusal were less likely to be revealed when they related to the appearance or personality of the rejected person, particularly when the personal reasons were uncontrollable and stable. Rejectors were not as forthright when they controlled the reason for rejection as when they lacked control. The rejectors' actions were interpreted as being self-presentational, reflecting concerns about rejected persons' emotional reactions, expectancies for the future of the relationship, and blame for rejection.     

Remarks on certain unique conditions of human aggression (the hand, speech, and the use of fire).

I have tried to single out for study, from the limitless complexity of human physical and mental life, three decisively fundamental elements, which, individually and synergistically, in biological and psychological spheres, have contributed importantly to the distinctiveness of human aggressive behavior and psychology and their transformations. These are: (1) the remarkable development of the human hand; (2) the primordial role of human speech, especially in drive economy; (3) the purposive utilization of fire. The pervasive dynamic importance of human orality and its vicissitudes, in relation to its phylogenetic background, has been stressed throughout. In this connection, the revolutionary role of fire has been brought into drive-economic relationship with the other two critical human instrumentalities. It is suggested that in its myriad roles, ranging from cooking to the prodigious function of sacrifice in human history and psychology, the decisive position of the role of fire in the emergence and development of homo sapiens may conceivably include a significant "overdetermining" position among the multiple elements conditioning the appearance of human speech and language.     

Comparison of the WISC and WISC-R on a psychiatric adolescent inpatient sample

The present study compared the WISC and WISC-R on a group of psychiatric adolescent inpatients. The results indicated high intercorrelations between the two test versions but with the correlations linearly related to the changes in content and administration rules of the WISC-R. Analyses of variance indicated that, on the basis of the Full Scale IQ, the WISC is an easier test than the WISC-R.The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Ms. Kathleen Lennox for her aid in data analysis and computer programming.     

When Gender Matters in Scientific Communication: The Role of Generic Language

Sex Roles - Prior research has documented gender differences in self-presentation and self-promotion. For example, a recent analysis of scientific publications in the biomedical sciences reveals...