Machiavellianism and Economic Opportunism

This study explores the relationship between 2 defecting strategies based on the manipulation of information; namely, Machiavellianism and economic opportunism. There are 3 main hypotheses that were confirmed in questionnaire investigations among samples of 191 and 113 university students in Athens. Machiavellianism was positively correlated with economic opportunism, shown by a statistically highly significant positive correlation between scores on scales measuring these 2 concepts. In situations of asymmetric information where they held the advantage, high Machs adopted more opportunistic strategies, showing the greatest inclination to maximize their own profit. High Machs showed less trust in potential economic partners, whom they regarded as untrustworthy maximizers.     

Developmental coordination disorder pertains to a deficit in perceptuo-motor synchronization independent of attentional capacities

We investigated from a dynamic pattern perspective to motor coordination whether the deficiency in motor coordination characterizing Developmental Coordination Disorder children pertains to a general disorder in synchronization leading to a lower stability of the performed coordination pattern, and the extent to which the trouble is linked to attentional capacities. Twenty-four DCD children without ADHD aged eight to thirteen and 60 control children were asked (1) to perform a Continuous Performance Test assessing sustained attention; (2) to flex one finger either in synchrony or in syncopation with a visual periodic signal whose frequency was increased stepwise, assessing synchronization abilities. For the attentional task, percentage of exact responses, number of errors and reaction time were recorded. For the synchronization task, we measured relative phase (i.e., the ratio between the stimulus and the response onset and the time separating two successive stimuli). DCD children were significantly more variable than controls in both conditions and the difficulty in synchronization was unrelated to attentional disorders (ANCOVA). These findings support the idea of a general synchronization disorder in DCD children underlying their poor motor coordination. Moreover, this synchronization disorder does not appear to be strictly dependent on the level of sustained attentional capacities.     

Pointing with the left and right hands in congenitally blind children

Congenitally blind and blindfolded sighted children at ages of 6, 8, 10 and 12 years performed a pointing task with their left and right index fingers at an array of three targets on a touch screen to immediate (0 s) and delayed (4 s) instructions. Accuracy was greater for immediate than delayed pointing and there was an effect of delay for the orientation of the main axis of the pointing distribution in both groups, indicating distinct spatial representations with development such as ego- and allocentric frames of reference, respectively. The pointing responses of the blind covered less surface area indicating better overall accuracy as compared to the sighted blindfolded. The hands differed for four of the six precision and accuracy parameters. The right hand performed better and seemed relatively contextually oriented, whereas the responses of the left hand were closer to the body and egocentrically oriented. The elongation of the scatter of the pointing responses was greater for the boys and more allocentrically oriented, indicating gender differences in spatial representation. The study provides a first evidence of ego- and allocentric spatial frames of reference in congenitally blind children and an ability to point at targets with the left and right hands in the total absence of vision.     

Reproducibility of distance and direction errors associated with forward, backward, and sideway walking in the context of blind navigation

The ability to navigate without vision towards a previously seen target has been extensively studied, but its reliability over time has yet to be established. Our aims were to determine distance and direction errors made during blind navigation across four different directions involving three different gait patterns (stepping forward, stepping sideway, and stepping backward), and to establish the test-retest reproducibility of these errors. Twenty young healthy adults participated in two testing sessions separated by 7 days. They were shown targets located, respectively, 8 m ahead, 8 m behind, and 8 m to their right and left. With vision occluded by opaque goggles, they walked forward (target ahead), backward (target behind), and sideway (right and left targets) until they perceived to be on the target. Subjects were not provided with feedback about their performance. Walked distance, angular deviation, and body rotation were measured. The mean estimated distance error was similar across the four walking directions and ranged from 16 to 80 cm with respect to the 8 m target. In contrast, direction errors were significantly larger during sideway navigation (walking in the frontal plane: leftward, 10 degrees +/- 15 degrees deviation; rightward, 18 degrees +/- 13 degrees) than during forward and backward navigation (walking in the sagittal plane). In general, distance and direction errors were only moderately reproducible between the two sessions [intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) ranging from 0.682 to 0.705]. Among the four directions, rightward navigation showed the best reproducibility with ICCs ranging from 0.607 to 0.726, and backward navigation had the worst reliability with ICCs ranging from 0.094 to 0.554. These findings indicate that errors associated with blind navigation across different walking directions and involving different gait patterns are only moderately to poorly reproducible on repeated testing, especially for walking backward. The biomechanical constraints and increased cognitive loading imposed by changing the walking pattern to backward stepping may underlie the poor performance in this direction.     

Close to me: multisensory space representations for action and pre-reflexive consciousness of oneself-in-the-world

Philosophical considerations as well as several recent studies from neurophysiology, neuropsychology, and psychophysics converged in showing that the peripersonal space (i.e. closely surrounding the body-parts) is structured in a body-centred manner and represented through integrated sensory inputs. Multisensory representations may deserve the function of coding peripersonal space for avoiding or interacting with objects. Neuropsychological evidence is reviewed for dynamic interactions between space representations and action execution, as revealed by the behavioural effects that the use of a tool, as a physical extension of the reachable space, produces on visual-tactile extinction. In particular, tool-use transiently modifies action space representation in a functionally effective way. The possibility is discussed that the investigation of multisensory space representations for action provides an empirical way to consider in its specificity pre-reflexive self-consciousness by considering the intertwining of self-relatedness and object-directness of spatial experience shaped by multisensory and sensorimotor integrations.     

Insensitivity of visual short-term memory to irrelevant visual information

Several authors have hypothesized that visuo-spatial working memory is functionally analogous to verbal working memory. Irrelevant background speech impairs verbal short-term memory. We investigated whether irrelevant visual information has an analogous effect on visual short-term memory, using a dynamic visual noise (DVN) technique known to disrupt visual imagery (Quinn & McConnell, 1996b). Experiment 1 replicated the effect of DVN on pegword imagery. Experiments 2 and 3 showed no effect of DVN on recall of static matrix patterns, despite a significant effect of a concurrent spatial tapping task. Experiment 4 showed no effect of DVN on encoding or maintenance of arrays of matrix patterns, despite testing memory by a recognition procedure to encourage visual rather than spatial processing. Serial position curves showed a one-item recency effect typical of visual short-term memory. Experiment 5 showed no effect of DVN on short-term recognition of Chinese characters, despite effects of visual similarity and a concurrent colour memory task that confirmed visual processing of the characters. We conclude that irrelevant visual noise does not impair visual short-term memory. Visual working memory may not be functionally analogous to verbal working memory, and different cognitive processes may underlie visual short-term memory and visual imagery.     

Detecting concealed information with reaction times: Validity and comparison with the polygraph

The Concealed Information Test is used to assess recognition of information that the examinee cannot or does not want to reveal. Physiological measures recorded with the polygraph have shown to be highly valid measures of concealed information. Research suggests that a reaction‐time (RT) based test may also successfully reveal concealed information. Due to its simplicity, an RT‐based test has great advantages for applied testing. In the present study, we assessed the validity of the RT‐based test for concealed information detection, and compared its discriminative power with the polygraph. Thirty two participants in a feigned amnesia study were promised a financial reward when successfully concealing autobiographical information. Participants performed an RT‐based test, and a polygraph test. The data support the validity of the RT‐based test for concealed information detection, and indicate its discriminative power is similar to the polygraph. Our data confirm the potential of the RT‐based test. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Expanded Version of the Inferential Confusion Questionnaire: Further Development and Validation in Clinical and Non-Clinical Samples

The current study represents the further development and validation of an expanded version of the Inferential Confusion Questionnaire (ICQ-EV) in non-clinical and clinical samples. Inferential confusion seems to be particularly relevant to Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and is defined as a failure to recognize the unrealistic nature of obsessions due to a subjective form of reasoning. Factor analysis of the item-set of the ICQ-EV indicated a one-dimensional solution in non-clinical and clinical samples. It was hypothesized that inferential confusion as measured by the ICQ-EV would be particularly relevant to participants with OCD. Results confirmed convergent validity with strong relationships between the ICQ-EV and obsessive-compulsive symptoms in all samples independent of other cognitive domains and general distress. In addition, those with OCD scored higher on the ICQ-EV than non-clinical controls and a mixed anxiety disorder group so confirming group-criterion validity. Finally, the ICQ-EV also showed clinical validity with change in ICQ-EV scores during treatment significantly related to successful treatment outcome.     

Expanding MEL response box to accommodate up to 16 external buttons

Micro Experimental Laboratory (MEL) is a widely used software package developed for the automation of psychological experiments. This report presents a simple way to implement and use an expanded MEL response box that accommodates up to 16 external switches. Hardware and software considerations are reviewed, and relevant MEL code is provided. This includes a simple algorithm that permits the reading of multiple responses within a single trial.