Age-related differences in working memory: ERPs reveal age-related delays in selection- and inhibition-related processes

Faulty inhibition is implicated in age-related working memory decline. ERP signs of selection and inhibition of items in working memory (WM) are, respectively, a cue-locked parietal positivity (～350 ms) and a probe-locked frontal negativity (～520 ms). To determine when in the older age range differences in selective and inhibitory processes might occur, ERPs were recorded in a WM task from 20 young (20–28), 20 young–old (60–70), and 20 old–old (71–82) adults. A 4-digit display was followed by a cue indicating which 2 of 4 digits were relevant. Proactive interference (PI), the reaction time difference between a matching and non-matching to-be-ignored digit was larger, relative to the young, in both older groups. Compared to the young, both the cue- and probe-locked activities were prolonged in the older groups. Although there were no topographic differences among the age groups, the prolonged PI and associated ERPs suggest a relative age-related deficit in inhibition.     

Manipulation of walnuts to facilitate opening by the great spotted woodpecker (Picoides major): is it tool use?

True tool use has been documented in some bird species, but to our knowledge, it has not been shown in woodpeckers. Here, we investigated the ability of Picoides major to open nuts of Juglans mandshurica by consistently inserting walnuts between tree branches in a specific position that facilitated nut opening. As seen in these birds, we showed that woodpeckers removed 96 % of the nuts of J. mandshurica from experimental seed trays and inserted each nut in a precise position that specifically allowed nut cracking. When we inserted nuts in an alternative position, woodpeckers manipulated and repositioned nuts to allow nut opening. In contrast, when we inserted the nuts in positions preferred for nut opening, woodpeckers did not alter their position and instead opened the nuts. We suggest that the origin of this behavior, as in other forms of tool use, likely requires a higher cognitive ability in these birds.     

The contribution of self-compassion in the relationship between social support and posttraumatic growth

IntroductionDespite well-established evidence on the relationship between social support and posttraumatic growth (PTG), there remains a paucity of evidence regarding the mechanism that underlie this relationship.ObjectiveThis study examined the relationship between social support and PTG, while exploring self-compassion as an intermediatory factor in this association.MethodA cross-sectional study with 447 college students was conducted in Trabzon, Turkey. The data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM).ResultsResults indicated that perceived social support and self-compassion were associated with PTG. Furthermore, a significant indirect effect between social support and PTG via self-compassion emerged.ConclusionBased on the study findings, tailored intervention programs targeting self-compassion and perceived social support in trauma-exposed young adults may be useful for promoting posttraumatic growth.     

多元文化经历对领导者能力及发展的影响

随着全球化发展的深入, 越来越多的企业领导者具有多元文化经历。多元文化经历是指个体具有直接或间接与外国文化元素或人群进行交互的经历。拟从领导者发展(leader development)和领导力发展(leadership development)两个层面, 全面地探讨多元文化经历对企业领导者能力形成及发展的影响：第一, 探讨多元文化经历对领导者能力发展(包括个人层面、关系层面和社会层面能力)的影响及内部机制; 第二, 探讨多元文化经历对领导力发展(包括领导力涌现、领导力选拔和领导力效能)的影响及内部机制。项目成果不仅能够丰富领导者能力形成与发展等组织管理相关理论, 还能为企业的全球化管理及国际化人才培养实践提供建议。     

论西方环境伦理学对我国生态文明理论研究的影响

以“人类是否对自然承担直接道德义务”的问题为根据,可以将西方环境伦理学划分为非人类中心主义和人类中心主义两种类型。这两种类型的环境伦理学存在尖锐的分歧和激烈的争论背后却具有理论基础、价值立场的一致性。从理论基础的一致性看,它们都割裂自然观与历史观的辩证统一关系,这使得它们不去探讨一定的社会制度和生产方式下人类和自然之间的实际的物质与能量交换关系是如何断裂的,进而把生态危机的本质归结为生态价值观的危机,秉承的都是一种抽象的文化价值决定论;从价值立场的一致性看,它们不仅都是为资本主义制度和生产方式辩护的伦理学,而且漠视人民群众和发展中国家为了消除贫困追求生存的发展权与环境权,是一种以追求“生活质量为导向”的“西方中心主义”的环境伦理学。我国的生态文明理论研究开始于对西方环境伦理学的引进、评介,由此形成借鉴或认同人类中心主义或非人类中心主义两种类型的生态文明理论。随着学术界对西方环境伦理学在理论基础和价值立场上的缺陷的认识更加深入,学术界提出了环境伦理学本土化的理论主张,这也使得学术界开始运用马克思主义关于人与自然关系的理论,在吸收西方环境伦理学积极成果的基础上,建构中国形态的生态文明理论,并由此形成了不同理论谱系的生态文明理论,并最终形成了习近平生态文明思想。西方环境伦理学关于生态本体论、生态价值观等问题的争论,对我国不同理论谱系的生态文明理论都产生了影响,厘清这种影响不仅有利于促进环境伦理学的本土化,而且有利于我们建构一种能够既维护中国的发展权与环境权,又有利于促进全球环境治理的中国形态的生态文明理论。     

The Impact of Perceived Discrimination on Mental Health Among Chinese Migrant and Left-Behind Children: A Meta-analysis

In China, rural–urban migration is one of major influences on the mental health of migrant and left-behind children. Literature suggests that the perception of discrimination is an important factor that influences the mental health of these children. The present research explores (1) whether migrant children and left-behind children are different in the relationship between the perception of discrimination and mental health, and (2) whether the relationship between the perception of discrimination and mental health of these children is moderated by gender and age. Using a meta-analytic technique, the authors included 26 studies (generating 48 independent samples) with a total sample size of 28,883 participants. Results showed that the perception of discrimination of migrant children was negatively correlated with positive indicators of mental health, and it has a stronger effect than left-behind children; the perception of discrimination of migrant children was positively correlated with negative indicators of mental health, and it has a weaker effect than left-behind children. Additionally, gender moderated the relationship between the perception of discrimination and the positive indicators of mental health among left-behind children, while age moderated such relationship among migrant children.

     

A Life Domains Perspective on Acculturation and Psychological Adjustment: A Study of Refugees from the Former Soviet Union

The study articulates a contextual approach to research on acculturation of immigrants, suggesting that the relationship between acculturation and adjustment is dependent on the cultural demands of the life domains considered. Specifically, the study investigated the mediating effects of adjustment in occupational and social life domains on the relationship between acculturation and psychological adjustment for 391 refugees from the former Soviet Union. The study used bilinear measures of acculturation to the host (American) and heritage (Russian) cultures. Using Structural Equation Modeling, the study confirmed the hypothesized relationships, such that the positive effects of American acculturation on psychological adjustment were mediated by occupational adjustment, and the effects of Russian acculturation on psychological adjustment were mediated by satisfaction with co-ethnic social support. Psychological adjustment was measured in two ways, as psychological well-being, using a measure of life satisfaction, and as symptoms of depression and anxiety, using the Hopkins symptom checklist (HSCL). Life satisfaction served as a mediator between adjustment in occupational and social domains and HSCL, suggesting that it may be an intervening variable through which environmental stress associated with immigration contributes to the development of symptoms of mental disorder.     

Visual attribute modulates the time course of iconic memory decay

Studies on iconic memory demonstrate that rich information from a visual scene quickly becomes unavailable with the passage of time. The decay rate of iconic memory refers to the dynamics of memory availability. The present study investigated the iconic memory decay of different stimulus attributes that comprised an object. Specifically, in Experiment 1, participants were presented with eight coloured numbers (e.g., red 4) and required to remember only one attribute, either colour or number, over different blocks of trials. The participants then reported the cued attribute in which the cue Stimulus Onset Asynchrony (SOA) from the memory array onset was varied (0, 100, 200, 300, 500, and 1000?ms). We found that numerical information became unavailable more quickly than colour information, despite the fact that the memory accuracies at 0 and 1000?ms SOAs were comparable between the two attributes. In Experiment 2, we replicated the finding that a numerical representation was lost more quickly than a colour representation when visual masks followed the target stimulus. These results suggest that the various visual attributes comprising an object are lost over time at different rates in iconic memory. We discuss this finding in relation to how perceptual representation is transferred to the capacity-limited visual working memory.     

Are Decisions Made by Group Representatives More Risk Averse? The Effect of Sense of Responsibility

We tested the hypothesis that a sense of responsibility drives group representatives' decisions to be more risk averse compared with decisions made by individuals. The hypothesis was supported when the monetary considerations (i.e., payoff inequality and the magnitude effect) were controlled for in the potential gain domain as well as in the potential loss domain. Evidence showed that this is because the group representatives were concerned about how they would view themselves (e.g., guilt and self‐blame) and also how they would be viewed by others (i.e., to avoid being blamed and looked down upon by others). This study provided new insights into understanding group representatives' decision making under risk. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.