Diminutives in child-directed speech supplement metric with distributional word segmentation cues

In two experiments, we explored whether diminutives (e.g.,birdie, Patty, bootie), which are characteristic of child-directed speech in many languages, aid word segmentation by regularizing stress patterns and word endings. In an implicit learning task, adult native speakers of English were exposed to a continuous stream of synthesized Dutch nonsense input comprising 300 randomized repetitions of six bisyllabic target nonwords. After exposure, the participants were given a forced choice recognition test to judge which strings had been present in the input. Experiment 1 demonstrated that English speakers used trochaic stress to isolate strings, despite being unfamiliar with Dutch phonotactics. Experiment 2 showed benefits from invariance introduced by affricates, which are typically found at onsets of final syllables in Dutch diminutives. Together, the results demonstrate that diminutives contain prosodic and distributional features that are beneficial for word segmentation.     

Perceptions of present, ideal, and future lives among Chinese adolescents experiencing economic disadvantage

Perceptions of present, ideal, and future lives among 12 Chinese adolescents experiencing economic disadvantage were examined via qualitative interviews. Results showed that most of the adolescents evaluated their present lives positively. In general, they also had positive perceptions of their future lives, although there also were some negative feelings. Although money did not play an important role in their perceptions of present lives, future lives, life goals, and ideal careers, economic sufficiency emerged as a major theme from the perspective of their ideal lives. While adolescents with better psychosocial adjustment appeared to evaluate their present lives more positively than did adolescents with relatively poorer psychosocial adjustment, no differences were found between the two groups in terms of their views on ideal and future lives.     

Wenn ja,wie lange? – Dauer antiandrogener Behandlung von Sexualstraftätern mit paraphilen Störungen

Background

Since 2010 a total of 15 individually justified, therapeutically accompanied treatment-free intervals from antiandrogenic treatment (ADT) have been carried out in the Forensic Therapeutic Outpatient (FTA) department in Berlin.

Material and methods

This article describes the conditions under which a responsible and legally justifiable cessation of ADT can be carried out.

Results

In all 15 of the investigated stable, forensically rehabilitated patients who had been on long-term psychotherapeutic treatment, no criminally prognostic or clinically relevant destabilization has so far occurred, which would have necessitated cessation of the treatment-free interval with resumption of the antiandrogenic depot medication.

Conclusion

The short-term experiences from the clinical aftercare practice have so far shown that in a strictly structered aftercare setting with continuous clinical monitoring, it is possible to withdraw even long-standing antiandrogenic medication. This is important not least to attest the argumentation for a removal of supervision of conduct in case destabilization does occur. Further long-term longitudinal investigations will be the subject of later publications.

     

Priming of pop-out: II. The role of position

In an earlier paper (Maljkovic & Nakayama, 1994) we showed that repetition of an attention-driving feature primes the deployment of attention to the same feature on subsequent trials. Here we show that repetition of the targetposition also primes subsequent trials. Position priming shows a characteristic spatial pattern. Facilitation occurs when the target position is repeated on subsequent trials, and inhibition occurs when the target falls on a position previously occupied by a distractor. Facilitation and inhibition also exist, though somewhat diminished, for positions adjacent to those of the target and distractors. Assessing the effect of a single trial over time, we show that the characteristic memory trace exerts its strongest influence on immediately following trials and decays gradually over the succeeding, approximately five to eight, trials. Throughout this period, target-position facilitation is always stronger than distractor-position inhibition. The characteristics of position priming are also seen under conditions in which the attention-driving feature either stays the same or differs from the previous trial, suggesting that feature and position priming operate independently. In a separate experiment, using the fact that position priming is cumulative over trials, we show that position priming is largely object- or landmark-centered.     

Providing grade one students with multiple spelling strategies: Comparisons between strategy instruction,strategy instruction with metacognitive information,and traditional language arts

The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether providing first-grade students with multiple strategy instruction plus metacognitive information would improve their spelling performances relative to providing them with strategy instruction or traditional language arts activities alone. Students in the strategy conditions received explicit instruction in the use of phonetics, imagery, and analogy. Students in the strategy condition with metacognitive information were also provided with information about when and where to use each spelling strategy. The remaining students completed traditional language arts activities. Students' spelling performances were assessed prior to, immediately after and 14 days after instruction using a dictation test, the Developmental Spelling Test, and a writing sample. For the dictation test, students who received multiple strategy instruction with metacognitive information out-performed those who received strategy instruction alone or completed language arts activities, with no differences between students' performances in the latter conditions. All students' performances improved on the Developmental Spelling Test and writing samples as a function of time. The authors concluded that even young students are able to acquire a repertoire of effective spelling strategies if they are provided with explicit instruction that includes metacognitive information.     

Self-Favoring Biases, Self-Presentation, and the Self-Other Asymmetry in Social Comparison

ABSTRACT The relationship between self-favoring biases in social comparison, favorable self-presentation, and well-being and the self-other asymmetry effect was examined. Participants gave comparative chance estimations and trait ratings for positive and negative future events and traits. One-half of the participants compared themselves to the average other, while the remainder compared the average other to themselves. All participants completed measurements of two types of desirable responding (self-deception and impression management) and of subjective well-being. Participants who compared themselves to another showed stronger unrealistic optimism and illusory superiority effects for positive (but not for negative) future events und traits than participants comparing another to themselves, demonstrating a self-other asymmetry effect. Unrealistic optimism and illusory superiority concerning positive attributes were related to self-deception, while unrealistic optimism and illusory superiority concerning negative attributes were related to impression management. The relative independence of “positive” and “negative” self-favoring biases was further demonstrated by their differential relationship with self-esteem and subjective well-being.     

A retest method of studying partial knowledge and other factors influencing item response

A method of studying the problem of correction for guessing and other problems associated with behavior in the test situation is described and an illustrative example presented. As far as the writers are aware this method of approach is novel but, at the same time, it covers many of the practical and theoretical points raised by other writers as reviewed in the introduction.The authors wish to acknowledge help received during discussions with Dr. Frederic M. Lord and Professor S. S. Wilks.The death of Mrs. Vera T. Brownless on May 16, 1957, is regretfully announced.     

Initial validation of the Portuguese version of the Interpersonal Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ & IBQ-Self) in the context of exercise: Measurement invariance and latent mean differences

Current Psychology - The aim of the present research is to examine the factor structure of the Interpersonal Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ), and the Interpersonal Behavior Questionnaire Self...