Failure to find a syllabic effect in number naming

Experiment I replicated the number-naming studies of Eriksen, Pollack, and Montague (1970) and Klapp (1971) but failed to find consistent evidence of a syllabic effect in naming latencies. Experiment II employed a different set of numbers to investigate sources of confounding in the original stimuli. Again, no syllabic effect was obtained. Both studies provided some evidence that the decades are processed faster.     

A word superiority effect without orthographic assistance

In a binary classification task meaningful but unpronounceable letter strings were compared faster than meaningless strings. This effect obtained when only one member of a pair was meaingful and it increased with number of letters. These results suggest that analysis proceeds in parallel at various levels of the processing hierarchy with interaction between semantic and graphemic processes.     

WPPSI reliability and predictive validity with disadvantaged Mexican-American children

The reliability and predictive validity of the WPPSI was investigated with a sample of lower SES Mexican-American children. Reliability was determined using split-half procedures parallel to those reported in the test manual. Predictive validity was determined by correlating WPPSI scores with scores from the Metropolitan Reading Test. The results revealed that the WPPSI has high reliability, as determined by internal consistency procedures, but validity coefficients were not significant. These results suggest that the WPPSI may be inappropriate for special program placement purposes with this population.     

The relationships among time,distance, and intensity as determinants of motion discrimination

The threshold stimulus for visual motion discrimination was analyzed into the constituent parameters of velocity, i.e., time and distance, with both of these primary variables subject-determined. It was found that, given a constant stimulus luminance, motion threshold was characterized generally by a “trade-off” or inverse power relationship between time and distance of movement. Earlier reports of energy constancy at threshold (R. H. Brown, 1955, 1957, 1958), implying threshold relationships incompatible with these, were confirmed only for the atypical conditions of high-velocity/low-Iuminance stimuli and were attributed to absolute visibility requirements. Under more general and representative conditions, threshold was relatively insensitive to luminance. The present results were also contrasted with earlier findings (Graham. 1968) of distance or “displacement” constancy at threshold, pertaining to movement between stationary start and stop positions.     

Effects of depression upon reading: a case for distinguishing effortful from automatic processes

This study was designed to test the view that depression would have selective effects upon effortful but not automatic aspects of reading. Relationships were determined between 59 fifth graders' depression scores (on the Children's Depression Inventory and a teacher's rating of depression) and their performance on measures of automatic aspects of reading (word recognition and word attack skills) and effortful aspects of reading (comprehension). A stepwise multiple regression, using statistical controls for sex and mental ability, showed expected relationships of depression to over-all comprehension for the 7 teachers' ratings, but not for the inventory. As expected, relationships of depression to word recognition and word attack scores were statistically non-significant.     

Implementation of a token economy by peer tutors to increase on-task physical activity time of autistic children

The data generated in this study were graphed for visual inspection of the raw data and means. Of the 5 subjects, 4 improved their time on task on the balance beam in at least one of the intervention phases. The other subject did not improve during the intervention phases but, there was a positive slope in the final intervention phase which might have continued had the intervention been longer. Further study is required.     

Transcending the "here": the effect of spatial distance on social judgment

Construal level theory proposes that increasing the reported spatial distance of events produces judgments that reflect abstract, schematic representations of the events. Across 4 experiments, the authors examined the impact of spatial distance on construal-dependent social judgments. Participants structured behavior into fewer, broader units (Study 1) and increasingly attributed behavior to enduring dispositions rather than situational constraints (Study 2) when the behavior was spatially distant rather than near. Participants reported that typical events were more likely and atypical events less likely when events were more spatially distant (Study 3). They were also less likely to extrapolate from specific cases that deviated from general trends when making predictions about more spatially distant events (Study 4). Implications for social judgment are discussed.     

Executive functions and ADHD in adults: evidence for selective effects on ADHD symptom domains

Dual-process models of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) suggest that both executive functioning and regulatory functions (e.g., processing speed) are involved and that executive function weaknesses may be associated specifically with symptoms of inattention-disorganization but not hyperactivity-impulsivity. Adults aged 18-37 (105 with ADHD, 90 controls) completed a neuropsychological battery. The ADHD group had weaker performance than did the control group (p<.01) on both executive and speed measures. Symptoms of inattention-disorganization were uniquely related to executive functioning with hyperactivity-impulsivity controlled. Inattention was associated with slower response speed, and hyperactivity-impulsivity with faster output speed. Results were not accounted for by IQ, age, gender, education level, or comorbid disorders. Findings are discussed in terms of developmental and dual-process models of ADHD leading into adulthood.     

Object appearance,disappearance, and attention prioritization in real-world scenes

We examined the prioritization of abruptly appearing and disappearing objects in real-world scenes. These scene changes occurred either during a fixation (transient appearance/disappearance) or during a saccade (nontransient appearance/disappearance). Prioritization was measured by the eyes’ propensity to be directed to the region of the scene change. Object additions and deletions were fixated at rates greater than chance, suggesting that both types of scene change are cues used by the visual system to guide attention during scene exploration, although appearances were fixated twice as often as disappearances, indicating that new objects are more salient than deleted objects. New and deleted objects were prioritized sooner and more frequently if they occurred during a fixation, as compared with during a saccade, indicating an important role of the transient signal that often accompanies sudden changes in scenes. New objects were prioritized regardless of whether they appeared during a fixation or a saccade, whereas prioritization of a deleted object occurred only if (1) a transient signal was present or (2) the removal of the object revealed previously occluded objects.     

A fuzzy trace analysis of categorical inferences and instantial associations as a function of retention interval

Two experiments on children's inferences and associative memory provided a test of predictions from fuzzy-trace theory. Specifically, it was expected that gist-based false recognitions would increase with age and that false recognitions would be uncorrelated with verbatim memory. In Experiment 1, children in Grades 1 through 5 heard lists of category labels, clustered instances from categories, and individual instances. On an immediate test, children indicated whether or not they had previously heard a series of individually presented test words. This list consisted of old words, new words, or words that were categorically or semantically related to the studied word clusters. Children made more false recognition errors for instances than for categories. Verbatim memory and inferences were unrelated. In Experiment 2, the effect of a test delay on categorical inferences and associated instances was examined with children in Grades 1 to 6. With delay, false recognition of associated instances declined for children at all grade levels. In contrast, categorical inferences increased with delay for older children. Verbatim memory and inferences were uncorrelated under immediate and 1-day delay conditions, but there were some low but significant correlations across grades under the 7-day delay. The results of the two experiments are interpreted as supporting fuzzy-trace theory.