Squeezing, striking, and vocalizing: Is number representation fundamentally spatial?

Numbers are fundamental entities in mathematics, but their cognitive bases are unclear. Abundant research points to linear space as a natural grounding for number representation. But, is number representation fundamentally spatial? We disentangle number representation from standard number-to-line reporting methods, and compare numerical estimations in educated participants using line-reporting with three nonspatial reporting conditions (squeezing, bell-striking, and vocalizing). All three cases of nonspatial-reporting consistently reproduced well-established results obtained with number-line methods. Furthermore, unlike line-reporting—and congruent with the psychophysical Weber–Fechner law—nonspatial reporting systematically produced logarithmic mappings for all nonsymbolic stimuli. Strikingly, linear mappings were obtained exclusively in conditions with culturally mediated elements (e.g., words). These results suggest that number representation is not fundamentally spatial, but builds on a deeper magnitude sense that manifests spatially and nonspatially mediated by magnitude, stimulus modality, and reporting condition. Number-to-space mappings—although ubiquitous in the modern world—do not seem to be rooted directly in brain evolution but have been culturally privileged and enhanced.     

不同科学创造力个体干扰抑制机制的比较*

选取《科学创造力量表》筛选出高、低科学创造力个体各20名,通过完成经典Stroop色字干扰抑制任务,探讨高、低科学创造力的个体抑制机制的差异。结果发现:在Stroop色字任务上,无论是高科学创造力组还是低科学创造力组,都出现了Stroop干扰效应,但低科学创造力组的Stroop效应更明显;高科学创造力组在字色不一致条件下的错误率显著低于低科学创造力组,但是两组被试在Stroop任务反应时上差异不显著。本研究结果提示高科学创造力个体的认知抑制能力强于低科学创造力个体。     

成败反馈对大学生核心自我评价的影响：任务重要性、外向性的调节作用

该研究以247名大学生为被试,采用2（反馈类型：成功、失败）×2（任务重要性：重要任务、不重要任务）×2（外向性：内向、外向）组间设计探讨成败反馈对大学生核心自我评价的影响,以及任务重要性和外向性在其中的调节作用。结果表明：（1）反馈类型、任务重要性和外向性对核心自我评价变化的主效应及三者的交互作用效应均显著。（2）成败反馈与任务重要性对核心自我评价变化存在显著的交互作用;简单效应分析表明,在失败反馈条件下,执行重要任务被试核心自我评价的下降幅度显著大于执行不重要任务被试核心自我评价的下降幅度。（3）成败反馈与外向性对核心自我评价变化存在显著的交互作用;简单效应分析显示,在失败反馈条件下,外向被试核心自我评价的下降幅度显著小于内向被试。（4）在失败反馈条件下,任务重要性和外向性对核心自我评价的变化存在交互作用。     

模糊决策的认知神经机制

模糊决策是特殊、复杂的风险决策, 还是一种独立的决策类型, 是当前认知神经科学争论的热点问题。一系列的fMRI研究分别得出了不同结论, 但大多数证据支持模糊决策和风险决策之间存在分离, 模糊决策有其独特的决策机制; 模糊决策的认知神经机制也是一个亟待解决的问题。因此本研究拟应用事件相关电位技术、生物反馈技术和基因技术, 采用IGT和GDT任务范式, 通过网络成瘾人群和正常人群的对比研究, 去探索模糊决策和风险决策之间的分离; 应用事件相关电位技术和磁共振技术, 采用IGT范式和选瓶任务范式, 研究模糊决策的认知神经机制; 并从临床角度进一步验证上述结果。该项目的开展, 有助于拓广模糊决策的研究领域和视野, 对理解人类在模糊情境下的决策机制以及模糊决策和风险决策之间的关系, 具有重要的理论意义; 对临床上成瘾人群、脑损伤患者的认知诊断和治疗以及现实中企业和个人的决策, 具有重要的参考价值。     

The role of strategies in deciding advantageously in ambiguous and risky situations

In decision situations of everyday life, the potential positive or negative consequences of a decision are often specified and the associated probabilities are known or they are principally calculable ("decisions under risk"). On the basis of correlations reported in patient studies, it has been recently proposed that decisions under risk involve strategic components, i.e. calculation of the risk, as well as emotional processes, i.e. processing feedback from previous decisions. However, the potential impact of calculative strategies on decision-making under risk has not been investigated systematically, so far. In the current study, we examined 42 healthy subjects (21 females) with the Game of Dice Task measuring decisions under risk, and a questionnaire assessing strategy application in items comparable to the choices in the Game of Dice Task. In addition, the subjects performed the Iowa Gambling Task, examining decision-making under ambiguity, and a neuropsychological test battery focusing on executive functions. Results indicate that deciding advantageously in a decision-making task with explicit and stable rules is linked to applying calculative strategies. In contrast, individuals who decide intuitively prefer risky or disadvantageous choices in the Game of Dice Task. Applying calculative strategies was correlated with executive functions but not with performance on the Iowa Gambling Task. The results support the view that calculative processes and strategies may improve decision-making under explicit risk conditions.     

A comparison of backward and forward spatial spans

The standard Corsi blocks task is frequently used to measure the capacity of visuospatial working memory, but the implications of the use of both forward and backward recall are still unclear. In the present study, we showed that the backward Corsi task is particularly powerful in discriminating between low- and high-spatial-ability individuals and involves different processes from those involved in the forward task. From a sample of 425 participants we selected one group of 20 high-spatial-ability participants and one of 20 low-spatial-ability participants. The results demonstrated that a backward spatial span offers specific information not available from a forward spatial span, and that there was no facilitation due to a descending format. In particular, in the low-spatial-ability group, performance was generally poorer, but backward Corsi recall was lower than forward recall, and participants did not show any advantage following the descending presentation format—which in some contexts is considered to reduce proactive interference. We conclude that the backward Corsi task has specific value and that the assumption of fully parallel verbal and visuospatial working-memory systems can lead to a variety of misunderstandings.     

Indispensability and group identification as sources of task motivation

Traditional Instrumentality × Value (I × V) models have attributed gains in performance groups to various conditions affecting the instrumentality of group members’ effort for a variety of valued outcomes. Social identity models have challenged this interpretation, suggesting that the instrumentality of effort may be irrelevant when group identification is high. A laboratory study is reported in which both indispensability and group identification are manipulated, and participants’ effort on a physical persistence task is assessed. Contrary to the social identity predictions but consistent with I × V predictions, the indispensability of effort had a positive effect on participants’ effort. Group identification had no direct or moderating effects on effort.     

自传记忆事件聚集现象中的组织和提取特点

事件聚集是在事件水平上组织自传记忆的结构,是一种反映自传记忆组织的提取现象.在利用矫正后的事件追随任务对62名成人进行测试后发现:①事件之间各种组织信息并不是分离的,而是以整合的方式来组织事件聚集结构,这些信息不仅包含客体的信息,更包含主观的感受.②自我在自传记忆组织中的作用是强化事件聚集本身所具有的联系.③自传记忆的提取中首先要满足当前自我的要求;进行直接提取失败后,被试根据自传记忆的层级关系进行生成搜索;生成提取策略也失败后,个体则会根据事件线索中任何可以利用的细节来完成回忆任务.     

The Separate, relative, and joint effects of employee job performance domains on supervisors’ willingness to mentor

The purpose of our study was to further elucidate how employees should behave at work to increase their chances of being mentored by their immediate supervisor. To that end, we experimentally tested how three domains of employee performance [task performance (TP), organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) targeting the supervisor, and counterproductive work behavior (CWB) targeting coworkers] affect supervisors’ willingness to mentor. Each performance domain affected willingness to mentor. OCB had the weakest of the three main effects. Finally, the positive effect of TP was stronger when employees displayed less CWB.     

Emotionally controlled decision-making and a gene variant related to serotonin synthesis in women with borderline personality disorder

The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) was used to examine (i) social decision-making in women with borderline personality disorder (BPD), and (ii) the relationship between impaired decision-making and the tryptophan hydroxylase-1 (TPH-1) gene, involved in serotonin synthesis. Forty-two women with BPD and a history of suicide attempts were genotyped, and the frequency of a TPH-1 haplotype previously uniquely associated with BPD was calculated. The BPD group scored significantly lower than a control group in the IGT. Furthermore, the TPH-1 haplotype displayed a significantly higher frequency in BPD participants with impaired decision making, compared to BPD participants with normal scores. These findings suggest that impaired decision-making as determined by the IGT is a feature of BPD and may be (i) associated with serotonin dysfunction, and (ii) possibly relevant for suicidal behavior.