Cognitive events in a problem-solving task: a qualitative method for investigating interactivity in the 17 Animals problem

Outside the cognitive psychologist's laboratory, problem-solving is an activity that takes place in a rich web of interactions involving people and artefacts. This interactivity is constituted by fine-grained action–perception cycles, and it allows a reasoner's comprehension of the problem to emerge from a coalition of internal and external resources. Taking an ecological approach to problem-solving, this paper introduces a qualitative method, Cognitive Event Analysis, for studying the fine-grained interactivity between a problem-solving agent and his/her environment. To demonstrate the potential of this method, it is used to study a single subject solving the so-called 17 Animals problem using a material model. The fine-grained procedure allows tracking the solution to a serendipity that was brought about because of the participant's aesthetic considerations and a change in her perceptual figure-ground configuration. While a qualitative single-case method cannot prove specific models of problem-solving, it questions prevalent mentalist models, and it generates new hypotheses on insight problem-solving, because it allows the researcher to attend to outliers and to variability on a fast and fine-grained between-measurement timescale.     

说普通话儿童的语音习得

以说普通话的１２９名一岁半至四岁半儿童的口语资料为基础,首次确定了正常发展的普通话儿童在语音习得过程中各年龄段的音位集合、音位习得的先后顺序、及习得过程中典型的语音简化类型。研究结果可以应用到普通话儿童语音发展水平标准化测试,及对患有语音障碍的儿童的诊断。此外,研究结果还表明在普通话儿童的语音习得中同时体现了各语言共有的“普遍趋势”和普通话独有的语音特征,从而为跨语言语音习得的研究提供了新的证据,进一步发展了儿童语音习得的理论。     

Fitts' Law is Applicable to Trunk Coordination Measurements in a Sitting Position

Trunk coordination is essential for many activities of daily living in wheelchair users. This study investigated whether Fitts' law is applicable to trunk movements in a sitting position. Fourteen healthy adults performed two series of 24 tasks of trunk flexion–extension movements in a sitting position. The results showed significant linear relationships between average group movement time (MT) and index of difficulty (ID) over all tasks (r² = 0.92) and within target distances (0.94 < r² < 1.00). Target distance affected intercept and slope (P < 0.001). Hence, Fitts' law is applicable to the studied trunk movements in a sitting position, indicating these trunk movements tasks could serve as a basis for qualitative trunk coordination tests. Transferability of these conclusions to wheelchair users, and optimal test design should be further investigated.     

Construct validity for the verbal associated pairs screen

The present study introduces the Verbal Associated Pairs Screen (VAPS) as a new measure for assessing performance validity in pediatric populations. This study presents initial data on psychometric properties and establishes construct validity for the VAPS in a sample of 30 adolescent healthy controls and 206 youths with traumatic brain injury (TBI: moderate/severe, N = 30; mild, N = 176). The control group’s age (M = 14.93, SD = 1.8) was significantly higher than the moderate/severe TBI (M = 13.9, SD = 2.8), t(68.508) = ?3.038, p = .003, and mild TBI (mTBI) groups (M = 14, SD = 2.8), t(54.147) = 2.038, p = .046. The TBI groups were administered the VAPS in accord with other established performance validity tests (PVTs) and well-established memory tests as part of routine clinical evaluations. The healthy control group was administered the VAPS only. VAPS score distributions for the control group were negatively skewed and highly kurtotic. VAPS scores from the moderate/severe TBI and control groups were indistinguishable for Trial 2 (U = 274, p < .01) and the Delay (U = 396, p = .218). In the mTBI group, convergent and divergent validity was established with other well-validated PVTs and memory tests, respectively. ROC curve analyses identified optimal cutoff scores for the VAPS Total Score, with acceptable sensitivity (55%) and excellent specificity (100%), as well as strong detectability (AUC = .829, 95% CI: 0.731 – 0.928, p < .001). Clinical applications, limitations, and directions for future research with the VAPS are discussed.     

On the examination couch: the relationship between the egocentric perspective and the attentional focus

Determined by anatomical characteristics, the binocular visual field has an elliptical shape. Whereas the focus of attention – that area of the visual field in which objects can be consciously perceived – is significantly smaller, its shape is not necessarily dependent on the same factors. Indeed, it is yet unknown if the maximum extents of the attentional focus’ meridians are dimensionally stable or adapt to the egocentric perspective. In this study, we intended to measure the expansion up to which peripheral stimuli can still be perceived while participants were sitting and lying on the left and on the right body side. Results demonstrate that contrary to the visual field the maximum extents along the attentional focus’ meridians remain stable across different head positions with a greater horizontal than vertical alignment. This indicates that the expansion ratios of the meridians of the attentional focus are not dependent on the egocentric perspective. Rather, they appear stable in space and gravity-based. Findings are discussed in terms of our visual environment and current as well as alternative interpretations are weighed against each other.     

Using Automated Learning Devices for Monkeys (ALDM) to study social networks

Social network analysis has become a prominent tool to study animal social life, and there is an increasing need to develop new systems to collect social information automatically, systematically, and reliably. Here we explore the use of a freely accessible Automated Learning Device for Monkeys (ALDM) to collect such social information on a group of 22 captive baboons (Papio papio). We compared the social network obtained from the co-presence of the baboons in ten ALDM testing booths to the social network obtained through standard behavioral observation techniques. The results show that the co-presence network accurately reflects the social organization of the group, and also indicate under which conditions the co-presence network is most informative. In particular, the best correlation between the two networks was obtained with a minimum of 40 days of computer records and for individuals with at least 500 records per day. We also show through random permutation tests that the observed correlations go beyond what would be observed by simple synchronous activity, to reflect a preferential choice of closely located testing booths. The use of automatized cognitive testing therefore presents a new way of obtaining a large and regular amount of social information that is necessary to develop social network analysis. It also opens the possibility of studying dynamic changes in network structure with time and in relation to the cognitive performance of individuals.     

Human classifier: Observers can deduce task solely from eye movements

Computer classifiers have been successful at classifying various tasks using eye movement statistics. However, the question of human classification of task from eye movements has rarely been studied. Across two experiments, we examined whether humans could classify task based solely on the eye movements of other individuals. In Experiment 1, human classifiers were shown one of three sets of eye movements: Fixations, which were displayed as blue circles, with larger circles meaning longer fixation durations; Scanpaths, which were displayed as yellow arrows; and Videos, in which a neon green dot moved around the screen. There was an additional Scene manipulation in which eye movement properties were displayed either on the original scene where the task (Search, Memory, or Rating) was performed or on a black background in which no scene information was available. Experiment 2 used similar methods but only displayed Fixations and Videos with the same Scene manipulation. The results of both experiments showed successful classification of Search. Interestingly, Search was best classified in the absence of the original scene, particularly in the Fixation condition. Memory also was classified above chance with the strongest classification occurring with Videos in the presence of the scene. Additional analyses on the pattern of correct responses in these two conditions demonstrated which eye movement properties successful classifiers were using. These findings demonstrate conditions under which humans can extract information from eye movement characteristics in addition to providing insight into the relative success/failure of previous computer classifiers.     

Group and individual stereotype threat and identity management strategies: An investigation of rugby women

The aim of this study was to test the gender identification effect on the stereotype threat (ST) experience felt, and whether the individual or group ST experience influenced the identity management strategies. Ninety‐six French rugby women were asked to imagine a training situation in which they practiced rugby in the presence of men. Results showed that the group identification did not affect Individual or Group ST and that the more women feel an individual ST the more they assess men's ability positively, and the less they assesses women's ability positively and that the more they feel a group ST the more they assess the ability of women positively. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.     

The role of pain behaviour and family caregiver responses in the link between pain catastrophising and pain intensity: A moderated mediation model

Objectives: This study investigated the mediating role of pain behaviours in the association between pain catastrophising and pain intensity and explored the moderating role of family caregivers’ responses to pain in the link between pain behaviours and pain intensity.

Methods: The sample consisted of 154 chronic pain patients and their family caregivers. Patients completed questionnaires regarding pain intensity, pain catastrophising, pain behaviours and their caregivers’ responses to their pain. Family caregivers reported their responses to the patients’ pain.

Results: Pain catastrophising was associated with pain intensity (r = 0.37) and pain behaviours partly mediated this association. The positive association between pain behaviours and pain intensity was significant only if patients reported that their family caregivers showed high levels of solicitous (effect = .49) and distracting responses (effect = .58), and if caregivers reported to show high levels of solicitous responses (effect = .51). No support was found for negative responses as a moderator neither based on patients’ perception of negative responses nor based on caregivers’ perception of negative responses.

Conclusions: The findings are in line with the idea that family caregivers’ solicitous and distracting responses convey to patients that their condition is serious, which may reinforce patients’ pain and pain behaviours, especially in those who catastrophise.     

Child-Oriented or Parent-Oriented Focused Intervention: Which is the Better Way to Decrease Children’s Externalizing Behaviors?

Research has tried to identify risk factors that increase the likelihood of difficulties with externalizing behavior. The relations between individual or environmental factors and externalizing behavior have been especially documented. Child-oriented and parent-oriented interventions have been designed in order to decrease externalizing behavior in preschoolers. To date, however, research has largely been compartmentalized. It is therefore not known whether child-oriented or parent-oriented intervention is more effective in reducing externalizing behavior. The aim of the current study was to answer this question by comparing two 8-week child with two 8-week parent-oriented group programs sharing a common experimental design. This was done in a pseudo-randomized trial conducted with 73 3–6-year-old children displaying clinically relevant levels of externalizing behavior who were assigned to one of the four interventions and 20 control participants who were allocated to a waiting list. The results indicate that the four programs focusing on a specific target variable, i.e., social cognition, inhibition, parental self-efficacy beliefs, or parental verbal responsiveness, are all effective in reducing externalizing behavior among preschoolers. Their effectiveness was moderated neither by their orientation toward the child or the parent nor by their content, suggesting that several effective solutions exist to improve behavioral adaptation in preschoolers. A second important highlight of this study is that, thanks to comparable effect sizes, brief focused programs appear to be a reasonable alternative to long multimodal programs, and may be more cost-effective for children and their families.