Child performance on discrimination tasks: Effects of amount of stimulus variation

Two independently conducted studies investigated stimulus variation effects on children's discrimination learning. The stimuli in the first study were generated by a conjunctive rule and were presented in pairs. Mean trials to criterion was significantly lower for the single-feature change treatment (17.4) than for the multiple-feature change treatment (29.9). Single-feature change-treatment transfer scores were significantly higher only for stimuli that differed in terms of one of the features. The second study not only replicated the initial finding concerning the single-feature change treatment but also found that students made more errors in reaching criterion when stimuli were generated by an exclusive disjunctive rule and were presented singly. For all tasks, the single-feature change treatment with stimuli presented in pairs was accompanied by fewer errors to criterion than the other treatments.     

A theory of intelligence: I. span and the complexity of stimulus control

A theory of intelligence is couched in stimulus-response terms, bridging the gap between S-R and cognitive psychology. The chief theoretical concepts are span ability (a capacity notion), response string (sequentially cued responses), and complexity of stimulus control (task complexity). Span is equated with the ability to respond appropriately when several cues are conjunctively relevant for correct performance (complex stimulus control). So defined, span is consistently and broadly related to many aspects of intelligent behavior.     

Blocking of incidental information in young children

Methods of increasing learning efficiency through a blocking technique were examined in young children. An experimental group of children was trained on an initial task with one relevant dimension, followed by redundancy training in which an incidental dimension also became relevant. A control group given only redundancy training was compared to this group to test how much the experimental subjects blocked or screened out the incidental dimension. In order to increase blocking, three methods were used: a preset transfer problem, an overtraining on the initial task, and a delay following training. The most important finding was increased blocking through the Preset Condition. Overtraining and Delay Conditions had no effect. In addition, more slow learners on the initial task learned about the incidental dimension than fast or intermediate learners. Also, fewer subjects given form on the initial task learned about the incidental dimension than those given color. The Combined Blocking, Delay, and Overtraining group showed partial blocking, while the Preset group demonstrated complete blocking. No developmental differences occurred. The results were interpreted using a modification of Trabasso and Bower's attention model (Attention in learning: Theory and research. New York: Wiley, 1968).     

Infants’ vocalizations at 6 months predict their productive vocabulary at one year

Long before their first words, children communicate by using speech-like vocalizations. These protophones might be indicative of infants’ later language development. We here examined infants’ (n = 56) early vocalizations at 6 months (vocal reactivity scale of the IBQ-R) as a predictor of their expressive and receptive language at 12 months (German version of the CDI). Regression analyses revealed vocalizations to significantly predict expressive, but not receptive language. Our findings in German-learning 6-month-olds extend previous predictive evidence of early vocalizations reported for older infants. Together these findings are informative in light of early assessments monitoring typical and atypical language development.     

Relationships Among Emerging Adult Psychological Problems,Maltreatment, and Parental Psychopathology: Moderation by Parent–Child Relationship Quality

Current research supports clear relationships between parental psychopathology, parental maltreatment, and emerging adult child psychopathology. Less research has examined how the role of the parent–child relationship influences these existing associations. The current study tested two models that examined the moderating effect of parent–child relationship quality on parental psychopathology and emerging adult mental health as well as the effect on parental maltreatment and emerging adult mental health. It was expected that high parent–child relationship quality would buffer against the negative effects of parental psychopathology and maltreatment while enhancing the effects of functional parenting characteristics. Participants included 1,452 emerging adults, predominantly Caucasian (73.3%) college students who completed surveys on their mental health, recent experienced maltreatment, and their parents’ mental health problems. Results suggested lowest rates of mental health problems for emerging adults were associated with higher parent–child relationship quality and lower parental psychological problems, whereas negative outcomes were associated with higher parental psychopathology, regardless of parent–child relationship quality. Additionally, physical maltreatment was associated with lower rates of mental health concerns in the context of higher mother-daughter relationship quality. Results emphasize the continuing impact of the parent–child relationship, particularly the mother-daughter relationship, on emerging adults’ mental health. Moreover, the current study demonstrates the continuing influence of parents on their emerging adult children.     

Clinical Supervision of Couple and Family Therapy during COVID-19

This paper addresses the need for a swift transition from in-person clinical supervision to telesupervision during the time of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Five specific areas will be discussed in the effort to enhance the quality of clinical supervision provided to couple and family therapists in training at this time including the following: (1) COVID-19 and the structural changes and technological adaptation of supervision; (2) culturally and contextually sensitive guidelines for clinical supervision during COVID-19; (3) the supervisee’s competence and the clinical supervisory process; (4) the new set of boundaries and the supervisory role; (5) and the supervisory alliance and supervisees’ vulnerabilities in the face of COVID-19.     

Effects of training and display content on Level 2 driving automation interface usability

IntroductionLevel 2 driving automation features, such as adaptive cruise control (ACC) combined with lane centering, primarily communicate their operating statuses through the instrument cluster. It remains unclear how interface-specific training and display content influence the ability to understand Level 2 activity in production vehicles.MethodsEighty participants viewed videos recorded from the driver’s point of view in a variety of driving scenarios with Level 2 activity displayed in the instrument cluster of a 2017 Mercedes-Benz E-Class. Half viewed one of two instrument cluster layouts (simple or complex), and half received an orientation to the interface before the experiment. After each video, they were asked about the scenario they had just seen. We then examined what information in the displays participants used to identify Level 2 activity and the usability of the displays.ResultsTraining improved recognition accuracy of when lane centering was temporarily inactive and understanding of why it was inactive. Neither training nor display content affected the ability to recognize when ACC had adjusted the vehicle’s speed or detected a vehicle ahead, or when ACC initially did not detect a lead vehicle and understanding of why it had not detected it. Both factors influenced which sources of information participants used to determine Level 2 activity. Recognition accuracy of system activity improved when participants used valid sources of information. Training, but not display content, improved lane centering usability, but not ACC usability.DiscussionBasic training improves detection of notifications that potentially require further driver action, but not of those that display persistent status information. Training does not result in full understanding of all system notifications or functional limitations, which reinforces the need for intuitive, salient communication about system behavior and its limitations.     

Topics and cases for online education in engineering

When considering offering online education for engineering ethics instruction, making choices necessary for the effective development and delivery of an engineering ethics curriculum is an important first step. Selecting the topics and types of cases for the most effective ethics education of engineering students is a vital step in preparing an effective program. Examples are presented for topics which are considered good candidates for online presentation, and the adaptability of these topics for web-based instruction is discussed. Types of cases which are useful in engineering ethics education are presented. Methods of teaching applied ethics, as well as ideas for web-based ethics course design are suggested. The market for web-based instruction is discussed.     

The Associations between Mothers’ and Grandmothers’ Depressive Symptoms,Parenting Stress,and Relationship with Children: An Actor–Partner Interdependence Mediation Model

Three-generation households that include parents and grandparents raising children together have become increasingly common in China. This study examined the relations among depressive symptoms, parenting stress, and caregiver–child relationships in the mother–grandmother dyadic context. Participants were mothers and grandmothers from 136 three-generation households. Results from Actor–Partner Interdependence Mediation Modeling indicated that mothers’ depressive symptoms were indirectly related to mother–child conflict/closeness through own parenting stress; grandmothers’ depressive symptoms were indirectly related to grandmother–child conflict through own parenting stress. Mothers’ depressive symptoms were indirectly related to grandmothers’ conflict with children through grandmothers’ parenting stress, and grandmothers’ depressive symptoms were indirectly related to mothers’ conflict/closeness with children through mothers’ parenting stress. The relation between mothers’ parenting stress and mother–child closeness was stronger than the relation between grandmothers’ parenting stress and grandmother–child closeness. Findings highlight the implications of using a family system perspective and the dyadic approach in understanding and improving family functioning in Chinese three-generation households.