Reference-related inhibition produces enhanced position discrimination and fast repulsion near axes of symmetry

Models proposed to account for reference frame effects in spatial cognition often account for performance in some tasks well, but fail to generalize to other tasks. Here, we demonstrate that a new process account of spatial working memory--the dynamic field theory (DFT)--can bridge the gap between perceptual and memory processes in position discrimination and spatial recall, highlighting that the processes underlying spatial recall also operate in position discrimination. In six experiments, we tested two novel predictions of the DFT: first, that discrimination is enhanced near symmetry axes, especially when the perceptual salience of the axis is increased; and second, that performance far from a reference axis depends on the direction in which the second stimulus is presented. The DFT also predicts the magnitude of this direction-dependent modulation. These effects arise from reference-related inhibition in the theory. We discuss how the processes captured by the DFT relate to existing psychophysical models and operate across a diverse array of spatial tasks.     

Coping responses of Asian, Black, and Latino/Latina New York City residents following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States

This study examined mechanisms for coping with adversity in a sample of 24 Asian, Black, and Latino/Latina residents of New York City following the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center (WTC) terrorist attacks. Using consensual qualitative research methodology (C. E. Hill, B. J. Thompson, & E. N. Williams, 1997), the authors identified 7 broad coping domains used by the participants: (a) sought additional information about the WTC tragedy, (b) expressed a range of emotions, (c) sought or gave support, (d) engaged in religious or spiritual activities, (e) avoidance, (f) forbearance, and (g) used indigenous healing techniques. Although there were similarities across racial or cultural groups and genders with regard to the coping responses used, there also were unique coping strategies by racial or cultural background and gender.     

Evaluating parent-implemented behavioral skills training for teaching firearm safety skills

Research shows that behavioral skills training (BST) and in situ training (IST) are effective interventions for teaching safety skills to children. In addition, the efficiency of these interventions can be increased when parents, teachers, or peers are taught to implement them. The purpose of this study was to replicate Novotny et al. (2020) and evaluate a web-based program for teaching parents to conduct BST to teach safety skills to prevent gunplay. We randomly assigned 18 children to the parent-conducted BST group or a control group and evaluated the intervention in a posttest only control group design. Children in the control group or treatment group who did not score a three in the in situ assessment (do not touch, get away, and tell an adult) received IST from their parents and were assessed again. Results showed that safety skill scores were statistically significantly higher in the treatment group than in the control group. Furthermore, there was a statistically significant increase in safety skills scores following IST for children who received it.     

How does coping help people resist lapses during smoking cessation?

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether types of coping strategies have differential effects on preventing lapses and lowering urge levels and to investigate mechanisms by which coping strategies prevent lapses during smoking cessation. DESIGN: Sixty-one respondents performed ecological momentary assessment using palm-top computers and tape recorders to report their coping strategies and urge levels before and after temptations to smoke. Multilevel linear regression models were used to compare the effects of individual strategy types with the average strategy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Lapses versus resisted temptations and changes in urge levels. RESULTS: Number of strategies significantly predicted resisting smoking and change in urge levels. Compared with the effect of the average strategy, movement/exercise was marginally worse at preventing lapses, and food/drink was marginally related to higher postcoping urge levels. CONCLUSION: Although using multiple coping strategies helps people resist the urge to smoke, no particular coping strategy works better than any other. Coping strategies prevent lapses by reducing high urge levels during temptations.     

Conditioned stimulus informativeness governs conditioned stimulus-unconditioned stimulus associability

In a conditioning protocol, the onset of the conditioned stimulus ([CS]) provides information about when to expect reinforcement (unconditioned stimulus [US]). There are two sources of information from the CS in a delay conditioning paradigm in which the CS-US interval is fixed. The first depends on the informativeness, the degree to which CS onset reduces the average expected time to onset of the next US. The second depends only on how precisely a subject can represent a fixed-duration interval (the temporal Weber fraction). In three experiments with mice, we tested the differential impact of these two sources of information on rate of acquisition of conditioned responding (CS-US associability). In Experiment 1, we showed that associability (the inverse of trials to acquisition) increased in proportion to informativeness. In Experiment 2, we showed that fixing the duration of the US-US interval or the CS-US interval or both had no effect on associability. In Experiment 3, we equated the increase in information produced by varying the C/T ratio with the increase produced by fixing the duration of the CS-US interval. Associability increased with increased informativeness, but, as in Experiment 2, fixing the CS-US duration had no effect on associability. These results are consistent with the view that CS-US associability depends on the increased rate of reward signaled by CS onset. The results also provide further evidence that conditioned responding is temporally controlled when it emerges.     

Authoritative Parenting, Parenting Stress, and Self-Care in Pre-Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes

Parent involvement in type 1 diabetes (T1DM) care leads to improved adherence; however, the manner in which parents approach illness management interactions with children must also be considered. It was hypothesized that greater use of an authoritative parenting style and less parenting stress would be associated with greater behavioral adherence and better metabolic control. Ninety-five primary caregivers of preadolescents (ages 8-11) with T1DM completed questionnaires assessing parenting style, pediatric parenting stress, and child behavioral adherence. Caregivers primarily self-identified as using an authoritative parenting style. Greater authoritative parenting was associated with greater behavioral adherence and less difficulty with pediatric parenting stress; no differences in metabolic control were observed. Greater engagement in authoritative parenting behaviors may contribute to increased age-appropriate child behavioral adherence and less pediatric parenting stress. Interventions highlighting diabetes-specific authoritative parenting techniques may enhance health outcomes and improve overall family functioning.     

Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the Asian American Racism-Related Stress Inventory

The authors conducted exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the Asian American Racism-Related Stress Inventory (AARRSI) to further examine the underlying factor structure in a total sample of 1,273 Asian American participants. In the first step of analysis, an exploratory factor analysis with 651 participants yielded a 13-item two-factor solution to the data. In the second step, a confirmatory factor analysis with 622 participants supported both the 13-item two-factor model and the original 29-item three-factor model in the cross-validation sample and generational and ethnicity analyses. The two-factor and three-factor models produced internal consistency estimates ranging from .81 to .95. In addition, the authors examined convergent and criterion related evidence for 13-item and 29-item versions of the AARRSI. Given its brief nature and generally good fit across generational status and ethnicity, the authors suggest that the 13-item AARRSI might be advantageous for research and assessment endeavors.     

Minds on the blink: The relationship between inattentional blindness and attentional blink

Failures of conscious visual awareness occur when specific task demands prevent an observer from detecting a stimulus that would otherwise be clearly visible. Two examples are inattentional blindness (IB) and attentional blink (AB). IB is the failure to detect an unexpected stimulus when attention is otherwise engaged. AB describes the inability to detect a second target that is presented within 180-500?ms of the first target. Previous research has suggested that similar cognitive processes underlie both IB and AB; however, they are distinct phenomena, and no evidence has directly linked the two. We tested the same group of observers on an IB task and an AB task. Consistent with our hypotheses, we found that "non-noticers" who failed to detect an unexpected stimulus in the IB task also demonstrated a larger AB effect. This suggests that some observers may be more generally susceptible to failures of conscious visual awareness, regardless of specific context.     

Semantic and phonemic verbal fluency in Parkinson's disease: Influence of clinical and demographic variables

Changes of cognitive function in PD have been extensively documented and defined as a 'frontal' type executive dysfunction. One of the main components of this executive dysfunction is the impairment of verbal fluency. The aim of the present study was to assess semantic and phonemic fluency in a large sample of PD patients and to investigate the effect of clinical and sociodemographic variables on verbal fluency in this patient group. Three hundred patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease who were consecutive referrals to our clinic and 50 age and education matched healthy controls completed the phonemic and semantic verbal fluency tasks. Both phonemic and semantic verbal fluency were significantly impaired in PD patients relative to matched controls. Stage of illness, presence of depression, education and age influenced verbal fluency measures. Regression analyses established that global measures of cognitive ability (MMSE) and executive function (FAB) and side of onset of motor symptoms predicted 36-37% of variance of phonemic or semantic verbal fluency measures. Thus, future studies aimed at assessing cognitive functioning in PD patients treated by deep brain stimulation (DBS) should adequately take into account several factors (stage of illness, depression, executive functioning) which may potentially influence performance on verbal fluency tasks.     

Assessing Working Memory Capacity Through Time-Constrained Elementary Activities

Working memory (WM) capacity measured through complex span tasks is among the best predictors of fluid intelligence (Gf). These tasks usually involve maintaining memoranda while performing complex cognitive activities that require a rather high level of education (e.g., reading comprehension, arithmetic), restricting their range of applicability. Because individual differences in such complex activities are nothing more than the concatenation of small differences in their elementary constituents, complex span tasks involving elementary processes should be as good of predictors of Gf as traditional tasks. The present study showed that two latent variables issued from either traditional or new span tasks involving time-constrained elementary activities were similarly correlated with Gf. Moreover, a model with a single unitary WM factor had a similar fit as a model with two distinct WM factors. Thus, time-constrained elementary activities can be integrated in WM tasks, permitting the assessment of WM in a wider range of populations.