Unique Ways in Which the Quality of Friendships Matter for Life Satisfaction

Journal of Happiness Studies - The quality of individuals’ social relationships consistently predicts greater well-being. But little is known about the relative importance of different...     

An attentional-adaptation account of spatial negative priming: Evidence from event-related potentials

Negative priming (NP) refers to a slower response to a target stimulus if it has been previously ignored. To examine theoretical accounts of spatial NP, we recorded behavioral measures and event-related potentials (ERPs) in a target localization task. A target and distractor briefly appeared, and the participant pressed a key corresponding to the target’s location. The probability of the distractor appearing in each of four locations varied, whereas the target appeared with equal probabilities in all locations. We found that response times (RTs) were fastest when the prime distractor appeared in its most probable (frequent) location and when the prime target appeared in the location that never contained a distractor. Moreover, NP effects varied as a function of location: They were smallest when targets followed distractors in the frequent distractor location—a finding not predicted by episodic-retrieval or suppression accounts of NP. The ERP results showed that the P2, an ERP component associated with attentional orientation, was smaller in prime displays when the distractor appeared in its frequent location. Moreover, no differences were apparent between negative-prime and control trials in the N2, which is associated with suppression processes, nor in the P3, which is associated with episodic retrieval processes. These results indicate that the spatial NP effect is caused by both short- and long-term adaptation in preferences based on the history of inspecting unsuccessful locations. This article is dedicated to the memory of Edward E. Smith, and we indicate how this study was inspired by his research career.     

The Temporal Placement of Interpolated Movements in Short-Term Motor Memory,

Directional response biasing as a function of the recency of an interpolated act was examined on a lever device in a within-S design. The temporal occurrence of an interpolated act was systematically varied (5, 30, or 55 sec. after the criterion act) for three retention intervals (15, 40, and 65 sec.), and the location of the interpolated movement was held constant ± 40 deg. from the criterion position. Analysis of constant errors showed significant positive directional biasing for interpolated acts greater than criterion positions. Further analyses at the 40-and 65-sec. retention intervals supported a recency interpretation. As the retention interval increased, the positive constant error was maintained for interpolated acts with the same post-biasing interval, whereas constant error became increasingly negative as the post-biasing interval increased. Examination of variable error revealed a slight increase over time and no significant differences between directional conditions. The recency findings were discussed in terms of the view that reproduction of a criterion act is dependent on the relative decay states between the interpolated and criterion traces.     

An analysis of recent meditation research and suggestions for future directions

Abstract

Meditation offers a rich and complex field of study. Over the past 40 years, several hundred research studies have demonstrated numerous significant findings including changes in psychological, physiological, and transpersonal realms. This paper attempts to summarize these findings, and to review more recent meditation research. We then suggest directions for future research, emphasizing the necessity to continue to expand the paradigm from which meditation research is conducted, from a predominantly re‐ductionistic, biomedical model to one which includes subjective and transpersonal domains and an integral perspective.     

Intolerable Cruelty: A Multilevel Examination of the Impact of Toxic Leadership on U.S. Military Units and Service Members

We examined the effects of toxic leadership on unit and employee outcomes. Based on Bandura’s social learning theory (1977), we predicted that toxic leadership would have a direct impact on unit civility and that unit civility would mediate the relationship between toxic leadership and job satisfaction and organizational commitment. We also predicted that within-unit variability in perceptions of toxic leadership, or toxic leadership congruence, would moderate these effects such that the relationship between toxic leadership and unit and employee outcomes would be stronger when unit members had similar perceptions of their leader’s engagement in toxic behavior. Results indicate that toxic leadership behavior is negatively related to unit civility and that unit civility mediates the relationship between toxic leadership and job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Contrary to expectations, toxic leadership congruence did not moderate any of the effects of toxic leadership behavior. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Hemispheric specialization for emotional word processing is a function of SSRI responsiveness

Vulnerability to depression and non-response to Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) are associated with specific neurophysiological characteristics including greater right hemisphere (RH) relative to left hemisphere (LH) activity. The present study investigated the relationship between hemispheric specialization and processing of emotional words using a divided visual field paradigm administered to never-depressed and previously-depressed individuals, who were subdivided into SSRI responders and non-responders. SSRI responders and never-depressed participants were similar in their left hemispheric lateralization for evaluating emotional words. In contrast, SSRI non-responders showed a relative shift towards RH processing of negative words, and a strong bias toward negative evaluation of words presented to the RH. The results are discussed within the context of a biological-cognitive model of vulnerability to depression.     

Multilevel exemplar theory

This paper presents recent research that provides an overarching model of exemplar theory capable of explaining phenomena across the phonetic and syntactic strata. The model represents a unique exemplar-based account of constituency interactions encompassing both linguistic domains. It yields simulation and experimental results in keeping with experimental findings in the literature on syllable duration variability and offers an exemplar-theoretic account of local grammaticality. In addition, it provides some insights into the nature of exemplar cloud formation and demonstrates experimentally the potential gains that can be enjoyed via the use of rich exemplar representations.