Linking the Levels: Network and Relational Perspectives for Community Psychology

In this article, we assert that relationships and networks are of paramount importance for understanding and improving settings, neighborhoods, communities, and larger social systems. Despite previous acknowledgements of their relevance, relational and social network perspectives and analyses remain underrepresented in community psychological research and action. Here, we claim that network and relational perspectives can provide conceptual and empirical ‘links’ between levels of analysis, more fully reflecting a transactional view. We also describe some of the sophisticated methodologies that can be employed in empirical studies drawing on these perspectives. Additionally, we contend that core concepts in community psychology such as health promotion, empowerment, coalition building, and dissemination and implementation can be better understood when employing relational and network perspectives. As an introduction to this special issue of American Journal of Community Psychology, we draw out themes and key points from the articles in the issue, and offer recommendations for future advancement of these perspectives in the field.     

Short-term meditation induces changes in brain resting EEG theta networks

Many studies have reported meditation training has beneficial effects on brain structure and function. However, very little is known about meditation-induced changes in brain complex networks. We used network analysis of electroencephalography theta activity data at rest before and after 1-week of integrative body–mind training (IBMT) and relaxation training. The results demonstrated the IBMT group (but not the relaxation group) exhibited significantly smaller average path length and larger clustering coefficient of the entire network and two midline electrode nodes (Fz and Pz) after training, indicating enhanced capacity of local specialization and global information integration in the brain. The findings provide the evidence for meditation-induced network plasticity and suggest that IBMT might be helpful for alterations in brain networks.     

Personality Expression and Impression Formation in Online Social Networks: An Integrative Approach to Understanding the Processes of Accuracy,Impression Management and Meta‐accuracy

In this paper, we investigate personality expression and impression formation processes in online social networks (OSNs). We explore whether, when and why people accurately judge others' personalities (accuracy), successfully manage the impressions that others form of them (impression management) and accurately infer others' impressions of them (meta‐accuracy) at zero acquaintance. On the basis of targets' OSN profiles (N = 103), overall perceiver impressions were collected and compared with targets' self‐view, desired impression and meta‐perception. In addition, independent groups of thin‐slice perceivers based their personality impressions solely on one of four kinds of information within the OSN profiles (profile picture, interests field, group list and notice board), and more than 300 OSN cues (e.g. attractive person and number of friends) were coded. Results showed evidence of accuracy, impression management and meta‐accuracy, but their extent was moderated by the trait (e.g. Big Five and self‐esteem), the kind of information and the interplay of trait and information. Findings could be explained by cue expression and cue utilization processes (lens model analyses). Future prospects for studying personality impressions in online and offline environments are discussed. Copyright © 2013 European Association of Personality Psychology.     

语音加工的发展、老化及其神经机制

作为人类语言活动的重要组成成分,语音加工经历着“习得-发展-老化”的变化过程。本文首先综述了婴儿、儿童、成年人及老年人在语音意识、语音提取,语音工作记忆等方面的表现及相应加工机制。其次,分析了不同年龄段个体语音加工发展变化的神经基础。最后,通过比较不同时期个体语音加工发展进程,围绕语音加工发展过程、语音老化有无关键年龄以及如何干预等问题进行展望。     

Linking patterns of infant eye movements to a neural network model of the ventral stream using representational similarity analysis

Little is known about the development of higher-level areas of visual cortex during infancy, and even less is known about how the development of visually guided behavior is related to the different levels of the cortical processing hierarchy. As a first step toward filling these gaps, we used representational similarity analysis (RSA) to assess links between gaze patterns and a neural network model that captures key properties of the ventral visual processing stream. We recorded the eye movements of 4- to 12-month-old infants (N = 54) as they viewed photographs of scenes. For each infant, we calculated the similarity of the gaze patterns for each pair of photographs. We also analyzed the images using a convolutional neural network model in which the successive layers correspond approximately to the sequence of areas along the ventral stream. For each layer of the network, we calculated the similarity of the activation patterns for each pair of photographs, which was then compared with the infant gaze data. We found that the network layers corresponding to lower-level areas of visual cortex accounted for gaze patterns better in younger infants than in older infants, whereas the network layers corresponding to higher-level areas of visual cortex accounted for gaze patterns better in older infants than in younger infants. Thus, between 4 and 12 months, gaze becomes increasingly controlled by more abstract, higher-level representations. These results also demonstrate the feasibility of using RSA to link infant gaze behavior to neural network models. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https://youtu.be/K5mF2Rw98Is     

Causal Cognitive Architecture 3: A solution to the binding problem

The binding problem is considered in terms of how a brain-inspired cognitive system can recognize multiple sensory features from an object which may be among many objects, process those features individually and then bind the multiple features to the object they belong to. The Causal Cognitive Architecture 3 (CCA3) is a brain-inspired cognitive architecture using a multi-dimensional navigation map as its basic store of information, and capable of pre-causal as well as fully causal behavior. Objects within an input sensory scene are segmented, and sensory features (e.g., visual, auditory, etc.) of each segmented object are spatially mapped onto a variety of navigation maps. It is shown that to provide efficient, flexible, causal solutions to real-world problems, it is not sufficient to bind space (i.e., objects spatially) but it is necessary to also bind time (i.e., change and rate of change of objects within a sensory scene). The CCA3 binds both space and time onto a navigation map as physical features, and is better able to function in real-world environments. As the CCA3 is brain-inspired, the Causal Cognitive Architecture can help to better hypothesize and understand biological mammalian brain function, including solutions to the binding problem. The CCA3 architecture allows it to work in different knowledge domains, possess continual lifelong learning, and demonstrate reasonable explainability.     

人们为什么会羞怯：认知机制及神经基础

羞怯指个体在社交情境下的抑制, 是个体参与社交的阻碍。近年来, 关于羞怯的认知神经科学研究增多, 学者基于元认知模型、社会适应模型、侧化脑-体情绪模型等理论, 探讨了大脑结构和功能以及几种与感知觉和注意相关的ERP成分与羞怯的关系。但当前关于羞怯认知神经科学的理论和实证研究尚处于起步阶段。基于上述提出羞怯的心理发展模型; 未来应从人格和情绪双角度研究羞怯, 并在开发研究范式的基础上, 加大羞怯认知神经机制的探讨。     

Teaching practices and elementary classroom peer ecologies

Teachers and students in 39 1st, 3rd and 5th grade classrooms participated in a study of teaching practices and classroom peer networks. Teachers reported on their attitudes towards aggression and withdrawal, provided rationales for their seating arrangements, and were observed on patterns of emotional and instructional support and classroom organization. Students were surveyed or interviewed for peer nominations of friendship, popularity, being cool, and aggressive and prosocial behavior, and from these nominations classroom-level indices were derived concerning the richness of positive and negative social ties among children, the egalitarian or hierarchical nature of social status hierarchies, and classroom norms for aggressive and prosocial behavior. Preliminary results suggest that teachers' attitudes towards social behavior are associated with the degree of liking and disliking their students express; teachers' grouping patterns are associated with numerous features of classroom social networks; and teachers' observed emotional support was associated with higher rates of friendship reciprocation.     

How Many Mechanisms Are Needed to Analyze Speech? A Connectionist Simulation of Structural Rule Learning in Artificial Language Acquisition

Some empirical evidence in the artificial language acquisition literature has been taken to suggest that statistical learning mechanisms are insufficient for extracting structural information from an artificial language. According to the more than one mechanism (MOM) hypothesis, at least two mechanisms are required in order to acquire language from speech: (a) a statistical mechanism for speech segmentation; and (b) an additional rule-following mechanism in order to induce grammatical regularities. In this article, we present a set of neural network studies demonstrating that a single statistical mechanism can mimic the apparent discovery of structural regularities, beyond the segmentation of speech. We argue that our results undermine one argument for the MOM hypothesis.     

ERP的神经机制：诱发模型还是相位重排模型?

ERP的神经机制问题一直存在争议。诱发模型认为, ERP产生于触发事件诱发的确定性响应电位, 该诱发电位与背景脑电振荡相互独立。相位重排模型认为, 触发事件并不会诱发出一个独立于脑电信号的诱发电位, ERP产生于背景脑电节律振荡的部分相位重排。已有研究提供了各种实验证据以支持诱发模型或/和相位重排模型, 同时也引发了相关学者的诸多质疑。实验记录方式、数据处理及分析方法等方面的提高有利于进一步澄清ERP的神经机制。