A transitive-chain theory of syllogistic reasoning

A new theory of syllogistic reasoning, called the transitive-chain theory, is presented. The transitive-chain theory proposes that information about set relations is represented in memory by pairs of informational components. The theory further proposes that information about set relations is integrated by applying a small set of rules to transitive chains of these set relations. The rules that are applied to these chains are specified in detail. The theory is cast in terms of information-processing models for variants of the syllogistic reasoning task, and then mathematical models that quantify each of these information-processing models are presented. In a series of five experiments, the transitive-chain theory provides a good account of the response-choice data for syllogisms with various types of content, quantifiers, and logical relations (categorical and conditional). The results of these experiments offer tentative answers to four issues in the theory of syllogistic reasoning: (a) representation of premise information; (b) combination of premise information; (c) sources of difficulty in syllogistic reasoning; and (d) generality of the processes used in syllogistic reasoning.     

Speech production mechanisms in aphasia: A delayed auditory feedback study

Data collected from a delayed auditory feedback (DAF) study conducted by F. Boller, P. B. Vrtunski, Y. Kim, and J. L. Mack (1978, Cortex, 14, 212–226) were reanalyzed to determine if speech quality measures which were significantly affected during DAF could be operationalized and to ascertain which type of errors are responsible for the judgement. A second goal of this study was to determine if Conduction aphasics were relatively spared under conditions of DAF, as has been shown in previous studies. Twenty aphasic patients and ten controls were presented with several speech production tasks under two delay conditions and two simultaneous feedback conditions. Results indicated that only the category of vowel length produced a significant number of errors, suggesting that DAF affects articulatory implementation. Conduction aphasics showed the least effect of all the groups. These results support Wernicke's and Geschwind's model, in which Conduction aphasics have a disconnection between the sensory and motor images of words. In contrast, Broca's aphasics were the most affected group under DAF, suggesting that a major component of their disorder is phonetic in nature.     

Some effects of the Edinburgh Masker on stuttering during oral reading and spontaneous speech

This study assessed the effect of a voice-activated masking unit, known as the Edinburgh Masker, on the speech of four stutterers during oral reading and spontaneous speech. The results show that one stutterer reduced stuttering almost completely whenever the masker was activated. Two subjects showed either marginal or temporary reductions of stuttering during one speaking condition but showed no change in the other condition. The other subject reduced stuttering only during spontaneous speech. No reduction in stuttering was associated with reduced speech rate. A perceptual analysis procedure conducted to assess for altered speech quality during masking conditions found changes in speech quality were evident in two subjects. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Novelty-seeking,novelty-finding,and the developmental continuity of intelligence

This article suggests that novelty-seeking and novelty-finding, as well as the ability to learn and reason with novel kinds of concepts, are critical aspects of intelligence at all ages from infancy, onward. The results of studies by Lewis and Brooks-Gunn and by Fagan and McGrath regarding intelligence in infancy are reviewed, and these results are found to be compatible with some of my own results regarding intelligence in adulthood. It is suggested that a major aspect of intelligence, attitude toward and performance with novel kinds of concepts, is continuous in nature throughout the life span, although by necessity, they must be measured in different ways at different times of life.     

Effects of long- and variable-duration signals for food on activity,instrumental responding,and eating

Incentive-motivation theories typically assume that the conditioning of appetitive motivation involves the same parameters as Pavlovian salivary conditioning. In contrast, the Soltysik-Konorski model asserts that drive is inhibited by stimuli closely associated with food (salivary CSs) and augmented by stimuli more loosely associated with food (long and variable CS-US interval). Experiment 1 examined this latter proposition. Sixty-four rats were given extensive exposure to each of four environmental CSs, two while hungry and two while satiated. Within each deprivation condition, food was given 30–300 sec after placement of the rats in one environment, and was not given in the other environment. Performance on three separate measures—activity, lever-pressing, and food consumption—was higher in the environments previously associated with food. Experiment 2 examined the effects of discrete stimuli presented in advance of eating; in accord with the results of Experiment 1, food consumption was greater after a stimulus (1- to 9-min duration) previously paired with food than after no stimulus or after a stimulus unpaired with food. The overall results indicate (a) that stimuli associated with food become capable of facilitating a variety of food-directed behaviors, possibly via the conditioning of a common appetitive system, and (b) that a close association between the stimuli and food is not essential for such conditing to occur.     

Probe similarity and recognition of set membership: A parallel-processing serial-feature-matching model

A model for memory scanning is proposed in which the encoded representation of a probe is compared in parallel with encoded representations of each item in the positive set. The within item matches are serial feature by feature comparisons that terminate when either a positive or negative criterion is reached. This model is shown to predict the results of a probe similarity experiment. The serial location of a similarity within an item affects negative reaction times, but the number of items in the positive set to which the probe is similar has no main effect. The model is also shown to yield predictions consonant with existing data on the relation between reaction times and set size and speed-accuracy trade offs.     

A theory of careers encounters sex: Reply to Holland (1976)

This paper is the third in a series beginning with a report (by the authors) of research on the application of Holland's theory of careers to women and men. Holland's response, “The Virtues of the SDS …” is considered, in particular, research he cites on the effect of the Self-Directed Search (SDS) on counselees and his advocacy of raw score reports of personality patterns. The widely divergent career options suggested to men and women by SDS raw scores are noted and misunderstandings concerning the implications of Holland's assessment procedures for his theory are discussed. Holland's defense of raw score reports of personality characteristics is found wanting, especially in light of the support provided for his theory by normed scores.     

Validity of sex-balanced interest inventory scales

The purpose of this study was to examine the relative effectiveness of sex-balanced and sex-restrictive raw score interest scales in discriminating among vocational preference groups. Analyses were conducted separately for 502 males in six vocational preference groups and 878 females in five vocational preference groups. The degree and nature of the discrimination among groups were highly similar for the two types of scales for both males and females. Centour scores derived from sex-balanced and sex-restrictive raw scores resulted in essentially the same percentages of correct classifications of group membership. The results of this study suggest that the large sex differences traditionally found in interest inventory items may not be a necessary concomitant of validity. Hence, interest inventory reports that reflect these differences may unnecessarily restrict the career suggestions they provide to women and men.     

Attending and processing broadened within children's concept learning

In a reviewed series of spontaneous and learning-set studies of adults and children, we have monitored active-touch overt attending during concept learning. Adults solved the problems even if they attended to four dimensions in the same trial; however, young children failed when attending so broadly but solved when attending to a single dimension. In the present training study, 18 6-year-olds solved all problems when restricted to attend to anly one dimension. After a special pretraining program proceeding through the subprocesses of stimulus familiarization, discrimination, labeling, “attentional broadening,” and memorization, 13 of the children managed to attend to all four dimensions in one trial and solve faster than adults. Findings suggest a developmental hypothesis that learning grows with spontaneous “tailoring” of attention to memory capacity.     

Facilitative effects of forgetting from short-term memory on growth of long-term memory in retardates

Competing explanations of the beneficial effect of spacing in retardate discrimination learning were tested. Three-trial multidimensional (“junk”) problems were presented concurrently to educable retardates with MAs over 8 years. The spacing interval spearating Trials 1 and 2 was filled with either zero, four, or eight interpolations, the interpolations being either trials on similar junk problems or repetitions of a single, well-learned dot-pattern discrimination. The principal findings were that: (1) while short-term retention of junk problems (as measured by Trial 2 performance) suffered greater interference from similar junk interpolations than from dot-pattern interpolations, long-term learning (as measured by a delayed Trial 3) was superior following the highly interfering junk problems; and (2) spacing facilitated learning only following highly interfering interpolations. These results are inconsistent with consolidation and rehearsal theories but support the prediction of the Sperber. Greenfield, and House (Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1973, 99) spacing model that forgetting from short-term memory facilitates retardate learning.