A Brief Group Cognitive-Behavioral Program for the Prevention of Depressive Symptoms in Chinese College Students

Depression is a problem among college students in China. Yet the use of preventative group cognitive-behavioral (CB) intervention is rare. One hundred and eighty Chinese college students who were identified as being at risk for depression were randomly assigned to three groups: 1) a brief group cognitive–behavioral (CB) intervention, 2) a supportive group (SG) intervention, and 3) a wait-list control condition. The Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), and the Chinese College Student Adjustment Scale (CCSAS) were administered at pre-test, post-test, and six-month follow-up. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) conducted among the three groups revealed that the CB group demonstrated significantly less increase in measures of primary symptoms of anxiety and depression than the wait-list controls at post-test and six-month follow-up. The prevention effect of the SG group was significant only at the six-month follow-up. CB participants also showed significantly greater improvements in social adjustment than did SG participants and controls at the post-test and six-month follow-up.     

Perceiving the World Through Group-Colored Glasses: A Perceptual Model of Intergroup Relations

Extensive research has investigated societal and behavioral consequences of social group affiliation and identification but has been relatively silent on the role of perception in intergroup relations. We propose the perceptual model of intergroup relations to conceptualize how intergroup relations are grounded in perception. We review the growing literature on how intergroup dynamics shape perception across different sensory modalities and argue that these perceptual processes mediate intergroup relations. The model provides a starting point for social psychologists to study perception as a function of social group dynamics and for perception researchers to consider social influences. We highlight several gaps in the literature and outline areas for future research. Uncovering the role of perception in intergroup relations offers novel insights into the construction of shared reality and may help devise new and unique interventions targeted at the perceptual level.     

The role of retrieval mode and retrieval orientation in retrieval practice: insights from comparing recognition memory testing formats and restudying

The effectiveness of retrieval practice for aiding long-term memory, referred to as the testing effect, has been widely demonstrated. However, the specific neurocognitive mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain unclear. In the present study, we sought to explore the role of pre-retrieval processes at initial testing on later recognition performance by using event-related potentials (ERPs). Subjects studied two lists of words (Chinese characters) and then performed a recognition task or a source memory task, or restudied the word lists. At the end of the experiment, subjects received a final recognition test based on the remember–know paradigm. Behaviorally, initial testing (active retrieval) enhanced memory retention relative to restudying (passive retrieval). The retrieval mode at initial testing was indexed by more positive-going ERPs for unstudied items in the active-retrieval tasks than in passive retrieval from 300 to 900 ms. Follow-up analyses showed that the magnitude of the early ERP retrieval mode effect (300–500 ms) was predictive of the behavioral testing effect later on. In addition, the ERPs for correctly rejected new items during initial testing differed between the two active-retrieval tasks from 500 to 900 ms, and this ERP retrieval orientation effect predicted differential behavioral testing gains between the two active-retrieval conditions. Our findings confirm that initial testing promotes later retrieval relative to restudying, and they further suggest that adopting pre-retrieval processing in the forms of retrieval mode and retrieval orientation might contribute to these memory enhancements.     

脑激活定律

用物理学的观点在系统水平上讨论脑内功能子系统的脑区激活及相互作用。引入一些参量描述脑功能特性 ,并且根据现有实验事实提出脑激活的四条定律。     

学习困难儿童的问题解决特点研究

本研究选取学习困难儿童和正常儿童各 3 2名 ,设置河内塔问题解决的情境 ,采用临床观察法 ,对学习困难儿童在问题解决中的特点作了初步的探究。研究发现 :1与正常儿童相比 ,学习困难儿童在发现和有效运用策略方面明显不足 ,但当学习困难儿童对问题情境比较熟悉后 ,有明显的进步 ;2一定的提示并不能帮助学习困难儿童最有效地应用策略。     

Openness to Experience Enhances Creativity: The Mediating Role of Intrinsic Motivation and the Creative Process Engagement

Studies indicate that there is a positive relationship between openness to experience and creativity. However, relatively little attention has been given to the mechanism of this relationship. On the basis of previous findings, we hypothesized a conceptual model and tested the mediating role of intrinsic motivation and the creative process engagement in the relationship between openness to experience and creativity. One hundred and ninety‐eight undergraduates in Malaysia participated in the study and completed an online measure of openness to new experience, creativity, intrinsic motivation, and the creative process engagement. Consistent with the hypothesis, people who scored high on openness reported high intrinsic motivation. The high motivation enhanced engagement in creativity‐related activities, which in turn, improved self‐rated creativity. The findings not only shed light on mechanisms that underlie in the openness‐creativity linkage but they also highlight the importance of intrinsic motivation and creative process engagement in the linkage. Together, the study extends the effect of personality trait on creativity and offers a new direction for future studies.     

The Mediating Role of Creative Process Engagement in the Relationship between Shyness and Self‐Rated Creativity

Shyness has been found to have a negative impact on creativity. However, little attention has been given to the underlying process of the relationship between shyness and creativity. On the basis of literature, we hypothesize that shyness has an indirect impact on creativity through creative process engagement. Two studies were conducted on undergraduate students (Study 1) and working adults (Study 2) to test the hypothetical relationship. Analysis on participants self‐report showed that shyness was negatively associated with self‐reported creativity as well as creative process engagement. There was a positive relationship between creative process engagement and creativity. More importantly, mediation analysis supported that shyness was indirectly linked to creativity via creative process engagement. Specifically, shy people are found to be less involved in creativity‐relevant processes such as information searching and idea generation. The low level of creative process engagement, in turn, hinders their creativity. The findings not only lend support to the detrimental effect of shyness on creativity but also shed light on the underlying mechanism of the relationship.     

Influence of in utero exposure to maternal depression and natural disaster-related stress on infant temperament at 6 months: The children of Superstorm Sandy

This study examined the effects of in utero exposure to maternal depression and Superstorm Sandy, a hurricane that hit metropolitan New York in 2012, on infant temperament at 6 months. Temperament was assessed using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised. Maternal depression was measured by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. The main effects and the interaction of maternal depression and Sandy exposure on infant temperament were examined using a multivariable generalized linear model. Results show that prenatal maternal depression was associated with lower emotion regulation and greater distress. Stratification and interaction analyses suggested that the adverse effects of prenatal maternal depression on problematic temperament were amplified by in utero Sandy exposure. This study underscores the importance of providing prenatal screening and treatment for maternal depression during pregnancy while also identifying high-risk families who may have suffered from disaster-related traumas to provide necessary services. As the frequency of natural disasters may increase due to climate change, it is important to understand the consequences of in utero stress on child development and to formulate plans for early identification.     

多维项目反应理论补偿性模型参数估计:基于广义回归神经网络集合

运用广义回归神经网络(GRNN)方法对小样本多维项目反应理论(MIRT)补偿性模型的项目参数进行估计,尝试解决传统参数估计方法样本数量要求较大的问题。MIRT双参数Logistic补偿模型被设置为二级计分的二维模型。首先,模拟二维能力参数、项目参数值与考生作答矩阵。其次,把通过主成分分析得到的前两个因子在每个题目上的载荷作为区分度的初始值以及题目通过率作为难度的初始值,这两个指标的初始值作为神经网络的输入。集成100个神经网络,其输出值的均值作为MIRT的项目参数估计值。最后,设置2×2种(能力相关水平:0.3和0.7; 两种估计方法:GRNN和MCMC方法)实验处理,对GRNN和MCMC估计方法的返真性进行比较。结果表明,小样本的情况下,基于GRNN集成方法的参数估计结果优于MCMC方法。     

Romantic Crushes Promote Variety‐Seeking Behavior

Consumers making repeat consumption choices often need to decide whether to stick to their favorite option or to select something different. Understanding the situational factors that influence their willingness to seek more or less variety in consumption is of both theoretical and practical importance. The current research proposes that a salient relationship state—romantic crush—can increase consumers' variety‐seeking tendency in unrelated consumption situations. Building on the compensatory consumption literature, we suggest that the lack of reciprocal response in the romantic crush experience may lower consumers' sense of control in the romantic relationship. Therefore, they are motivated to restore their sense of control by making more varied choices in consumption domains. Five studies provide support for this hypothesis. In line with our control‐restoration account, the effect disappears when consumers' sense of control is boosted via other means. Moreover, the effect is specific to the experience of a romantic crush and cannot be generalized to other types of romantic relationship (e.g., initial stage of love).