The Effects of Cultural Transmission Are Modulated by the Amount of Information Transmitted

Information changes as it is passed from person to person, with this process of cultural transmission allowing the minds of individuals to shape the information that they transmit. We present mathematical models of cultural transmission which predict that the amount of information passed from person to person should affect the rate at which that information changes. We tested this prediction using a function‐learning task, in which people learn a functional relationship between two variables by observing the values of those variables. We varied the total number of observations and the number of those observations that take unique values. We found an effect of the number of observations, with functions transmitted using fewer observations changing form more quickly. We did not find an effect of the number of unique observations, suggesting that noise in perception or memory may have affected learning.     

Cognitive determinants of the success of inventors: Complex problem solving and deliberate use of divergent and convergent thinking

With reference to Henderson's (2004) assumption that inventors are “expert problem solvers”, we studied the ability of inventors to solve complex problems (CPS) using a sample of 46 German inventors. The participants had to use FSYS 2.0, a computer-simulated microworld. Additionally, we assessed metacognition, in particular the participants' ability to make deliberate use of divergent and convergent thinking. This ability was expected to be an important skill involved in solving complex problems (Dörner, Kreuzig, Reither, & Stäudel, 1983). We assumed a positive correlation between the individual success of inventors (number of granted and marketed patents) and CPS abilities. Controllability of divergent and convergent thinking turned out to be a predictor of the success of inventors and allowed us to identify the top 10% performers. Oddly however, the best problem solvers were inventors with exactly one granted patent. Data from a posteriori conducted interviews help explaining the results.     

Naming regular and exception words: Further examination of the effect of phonological dissension among lexical neighbours

Abstract

It is generally assumed that visual word recognition is accompanied by the activation of lexical representations corresponding to words orthographically similar to the target (neighbours). With regard to the pronunciation of their constituent units, these words can either converge with or diverge from the target pronunciation. The role of the frequency of the divergent pronunciations in print-to-sound conversion was examined in a naming experiment in which subjects pronounced regular and exception words. The results showed that naming latencies for exception words were affected by the orthographic similarity of the target with frequent phonologically divergent words (enemies). In a similar vein, regular words which include the letters G or C (whose pronunciations are contextually determined) and which are orthographically similar to words favouring an incorrect pronunciation of the letter took longer to pronounce than regular controls. A delayed naming experiment indicated that these differences were not attributable to the articulatory characteristics of the items. Finally, it also appeared that enemy frequency influenced naming latencies but not regularisation rates and regularisation latencies. The results are discussed within the framework of current dual-route and parallel distributed processing models of reading.     

Students' complex problem-solving abilities: Their structure and relations to reasoning ability and educational success

Complex Problem Solving (CPS) is considered to be a promising candidate for capturing higher order thinking skills that are emphasized in new educational curricula but are not adequately measured by traditional intelligence tests. However, little is known about its psychometric structure and its exact relation to intelligence and educational success—especially in student populations. This study is among the first to use a large and representative sample of secondary school students (N = 563) to examine different measurement models of CPS—that conceptualize the construct as either faceted or hierarchical—and their implications for the construct's validity. Results showed that no matter which way it was conceptualized, CPS was substantially related to reasoning and to different indicators of educational success. Controlling for reasoning within a joint hierarchical measurement model, however, revealed that the impressive external validity was largely attributable to the variance that CPS shares with reasoning, suggesting that CPS has only negligible incremental validity over and above traditional intelligence scales. On the basis of these results, the value of assessing CPS within the educational context is discussed.     

Context and culture in the socialization and development of personal achievement values: Comparing Latino immigrant families,European American families,and elementary school teachers

We documented cross-cultural similarities and differences in values concerning personal achievement between Latino immigrant parents, a group of multiethnic teachers, and European American parents. We also explored intergenerational similarities and differences between parents and their fifth-grade children. The theoretical premise was that sociodemographic factors, such as education, drive cultural values, with more formal education associated with individualistic values and less formal education associated with collectivistic/familistic values. Responding to open-ended social dilemmas relevant to family life, Latino immigrant parents, averaging a fifth-grade education, responded more familistically than the more highly educated multiethnic teachers or European American parents. In contrast, no group differences in values showed up in situations where school practices do not directly impact family life. Intergenerational differences were few; but, in family-centered scenarios, European American fifth graders were significantly more collectivistic than European American parents, a finding that suggested the possibility that, in an individualistic culture, individualism is socialized with age.     

Two Cultures Revisited: New Widening Gaps

Aristotle continues to be a highly cited author in cultural sciences (human and social sciences) and humanities. In the last two decades, his work attracted up to a hundred times more attention than the work of Konrad Lorenz or Edward O. Wilson, who have attempted to synthesize new knowledge on behavior and society and proposed alternatives to traditional, intuitively appealing, explanations. Aristotle's interpretations of the world, which appear to be intuitive to the human mind, were abandoned in natural sciences upon introduction of the experimental method. Human intuition may have been appropriate in conditions under which it was originally selected: for life of small non-anonymous groups of hunters and gatherers in the savannah. Intuition confines human understanding to a simple reality circumscribed by a boundary that can be called Aristotle's barrier. The barrier may only be crossed by experimentation, which is largely missing in cultural sciences. Snow's concept of two cultures may be revisited to characterize a splitting of natural sciences versus cultural sciences. It may also be applied to a widening gulf between science and technoscience. Diverging of the two cultures may have far-reaching consequences for prospects of humankind's survival.     

ON SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST AND OTHER CORPORATE MYTHS

Although the doctrine of “survival of the fittest” is central to the Modern paradigm, it is not, as most Modernists would claim, the unvarnished truth. Indeed if we begin to think of the marketplace as a model of dynamic complexity then the logic of cooperation is inescapable. The point is that if business leaders refuse to accept that cooperation is a defining principle, not merely an abstract altruistic ideal but an essential strategy for the sustainable, long-term success of the businesses they are building, then they will continue to undermine their own best interests in the name of competitive dominance.     

Transnationalism and Its Personal and Social Consequences for Chinese Transmigrants

In this essay, I investigate the origins of Chinese migrant transnationalism and its personal and social consequences. I propose a theoretical perspective that turns on a synthesis that I shall call “cultural functionalism,” a synthesis that attempts to reconcile functionalism and postmodernism. My argument is that Chinese transmigrants overcome (post)modern alienation through a two-way approach: first, a strong participation in and full commitment to community development and connectivity within the Chinese diaspora; and, second, a religio-cultural renaissance—both being conceived of as constituting a putative “cultural contract” and “social capital” nexus.     

Complex working memory span tasks and higher-order cognition: A latent-variable analysis of the relationship between processing and storage

Complex span tasks, assumed by many to measure an individual's working memory capacity, are predictive of several aspects of higher-order cognition. However, the underlying cause of the relationships between “processing-and-storage” tasks and cognitive abilities is still hotly debated nearly 30 years after the tasks were first introduced. The current study utilised latent constructs across verbal, numerical, and spatial content domains to examine a number of questions regarding the predictive power of complex span tasks. In particular, the relations among processing time, processing accuracy, and storage accuracy from the complex span tasks were examined, in combination with their respective relationships with fluid intelligence. The results point to a complicated pattern of unique and shared variance among the constructs. Implications for various theories of working memory are discussed.