Agreement of parent and teacher rating scales with comprehensive clinical assessments of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity

Forty-one clinic-referred children were given the DSM-III diagnosis of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADD/H) based on structured diagnostic interviews of the child and mother and on two teacher and two parent rating scales. The degree of agreement between diagnostic classification of ADD/H based solely on criterion scores on each rating scale and classification based on the comprehensive clinical assessments that included use of the same rating scaleswas assessed by comparing the ratings of the 41 children with ADD/H to those of 47 clinic-referred children given other diagnoses or no diagnosis. The accuracy of classification was highly similar across scales. Increasing the cutoff score increased the acing true positives. Using the point of intersection of these two curves to choose the optimal cutoff scores resulted in 70–75% accurate classification and 25–30% misclassification of children given clinical diagnoses of ADD/H. This rate of misclassification suggests that rating scales alone should not be used to classify ADD/H for most clinical and research purposes, especially because the method of comparison used in this study favored finding a high degree of correspondence.     

Assessing control by elements of complex stimuli in delayed matching to sample.

A series of six experiments examined delayed identity matching-to-sample performances of subjects with mental retardation. The stimuli were either one or two simultaneously displayed forms. When the reinforcement contingencies required that only one form exert discriminative control, all subjects achieved high accuracy scores. However, accuracy scores were substantially lower when the contingencies required discriminative control by two forms, suggesting restricted stimulus control. The decline in matching accuracy appeared to reflect selective losses of conditional control by sample stimuli and shifts in control to features of the comparison stimulus displays. The experiments suggest improved techniques for assessing control by complex stimuli and for evaluating the effects of procedures that seek to broaden restricted stimulus control. The results challenge interpretations based on stimulus-generalization decrement or shared attention.     

Focal attention and the perception of pattern structure in extrafoveal vision

Several studies have shown that visual attention enhances the encoding of the positional relationships between pattern elements, i.e., the perception of pattern structure. This theoretical note discusses the possibility that the inferiority of extrafoveal vision in the perception of pattern structure results, at least partially, from less effective focal attention in the periphery. Hence, there may exist higher level differences between foveal and extrafoveal vision in information processing which cannot be explained by the spatial inhomogeneity of the retino-striate system.     

Modality-repetition and attentional effects on reflex blinking in infants and adults

The ability of a brief prepulse to inhibit reflexively elicited startle is a robust phenomenon in adults of several species but is weak or absent in infants. The possibility that afferent processing of the prepulse is inadequate in infants was tested by assessing the integrity of two other types of reflex modulation that occur in modality-specific paths, that is, attenuation by repetition of same-modality stimuli and enhancement by modality-selective attention. The reflex, measured by electromyographic activity of the muscle controlling blink, was elicited by intense light flashes or noise bursts preceded by brief acoustic or visual prepulses and delivered during attention-directing acoustic or visual foregrounds that evoked cardiac deceleration. Modality-repetition effects were evidenced by smaller peak blink magnitude and longer latency of blinking to same than to different modality pairs and did not differ as a function of age (4-month-old infants or college students). Attention effects were also seen in both infants and adults and, in accord with previous findings, were evident in magnitude for infants and latency for adults. Thus, immaturity in paths mediating these effects could not explain delayed development of prepulse inhibition. Other possibilities include delayed maturation of extrinsic inhibition or of transient-processing systems.     

Jury simulation studies: To exclude or not to exclude participants based on a lack of comprehension of the case?

Jury simulation research has been the subject of longstanding criticism in regards to ecological validity. One additional factor that has received little attention that may also impact the generalizability of this research relates to excluding participants based on their memory of, or their attention paid to, the case. In order to determine how common this exclusion is, the authors conducted a scoping review of jury simulation studies within the last 10 years across three major legal psychology journals. The review revealed variability in if and how studies excluded on the basis of poor attention or for failing manipulation or general memory checks. In addition, studies that did exclude on this basis varied greatly in the proportion of the sample that was excluded. Recommendations are provided in order to assist jury researchers in future with how best to manage exclusions on the basis of juror memory and attention.     

友伴网络结构与中学生的吸烟行为

运用社会网络理论和分析技术考察友伴网络结构与中学生吸烟行为的关系。被试选自北京两所中学1091名初一至高三学生,要求他们最多提名10名友伴,并报告自己及其友伴的吸烟行为。然后,使用NEGOPY社会网络分析软件对中学生的友伴网络结构进行分析。研究结果表明,中学生的友伴网络结构存在团体成员、团体联系者和孤立者三种类型,团体成员所占比例超过团体联系者和孤立者,但随年级升高,团体成员有下降趋势。此外,团体成员的吸烟率显著低于孤立者和团体联系者,即使排除性别、年龄和学校类型的影响后,友伴网络结构与中学生的吸烟行为仍然有非常明显的关系。     

情绪的自动加工与控制加工

由于人类注意资源有限,对相关刺激的加工经常以抑制对其它刺激的加工为代价。大量的研究表明,情绪的加工是注意加工过程的一个特例。通常认为情绪信息的加工是自动的,不需要注意资源的调节。但最近的研究结果倾向于支持对立的观点,即情绪信息的加工需要注意的控制。该文结合认知神经科学研究证据,对情绪的自动加工的观点提出质疑。主要的证据来自对情绪的皮层和皮层下通路的研究以及对盲视病人的研究。