Object localisation and frames of reference

In this paper, we explore which spatial frames of reference, egocentric or allocentric, are used to locate objects either in relation to ourselves (i.e. subject-to-object localisation) or to other objects (i.e. object-to-object localisation). In particular, we wanted to know whether the same or different frames of reference are used in these two different kinds of localisation after learning the environment in an egocentric way. Egocentric frames of reference are determined by the position of the person in relation to the spatial layout, whereas allocentric frames of reference are centred on the environment or on objects, independent of a persons position. We hypothesised that subject-to-object localisation is based on egocentric spatial representations, whereas object-to-object localisation is based on allocentric spatial representations. Participants were asked to study eight common objects, placed in a circle. Next, half of the participants had to point to an object in relation to their imagined position (egocentric condition) and the other half to an object in relation to another object (allocentric condition). The overall results show no difference between subject-to-object and object-to-object localisation. In both cases, access to positions corresponding to the front/back body axis was facilitated, in terms of both latency and error. Moreover, participants were able to retrieve objects positions better from the perspective from which they had learned the spatial array than from new perspectives. These results support the conclusion that egocentric coordinates, which are selected on the basis of our body-centred experience of the environment, define spatial representations underlying both subject-to-object and object-to-object localisation.     

Some Thoughts on Terrorism, Moral Complaint, and the Self-Reflexive and Relational Nature of Morality

The contemporary discussion of terrorism has been dominated by deontological and consequentialist arguments. Building upon my previous work on a paradox concerning moral complaint, I try to broaden the perspectives through which we view the issues. The direction that seems to me as most promising is a self-reflexive, conditional, and, to some extent, relational emphasis. What one is permitted to do to others would depend not so much on some absolute code constraning actions or on the estimate of what would optimize overall the resulting well-being but on the precedents that the past actions of those others provided, on the relationships among the participants, on tacit or explicit offers and possible agreements among them, and on the reciprocity (or lack thereof) that ensues.

Aspiration-Based and Reciprocity-Based Rules in Learning Dynamics for Symmetric Normal-Form Games

Psychologically based rules are important in human behavior and have the potential of explaining equilibrium selection and separatrix crossings to a payoff dominant equilibrium in coordination games. We show how a rule learning theory can easily accommodate behavioral rules such as aspiration-based experimentation and reciprocity-based cooperation and how to test for the significance of additional rules. We confront this enhanced rule learning model with experimental data on games with multiple equilibria and separatrix-crossing behavior. Maximum likelihood results do not support aspiration-based experimentation or anticipated reciprocity as significant explanatory factors, but do support a small propensity for non-aspiration-based experimentation by random belief and non-reciprocity-based cooperation.     

Do rats in a two-action test encode movement egocentrically or allocentrically?

Two-action tests of imitation compare groups that observe topographically different responses to a common manipulandum. The general aim of the two experiments reported here was to find a demonstrator-consistent responding effect in a procedure that could be elaborated to investigate aspects of what was learned about the demonstrated lever response. Experiment 1 was a pilot study with rats of a variant of the two-action method of investigating social learning about observed responses. Groups of observer rats (Rattus norvegicus) saw a demonstrator push a lever up or down for a food reward. When these observers were subsequently given access to the lever and rewarded for responses in both directions, their directional preferences were compared with two 'screen control' groups that were unable to see their demonstrators' behaviour. Demonstrator-consistent responding was found to be restricted to observers that were able to see demonstrator performance, suggesting that scent cues alone were insufficient to cue a preference for the demonstrators' response direction and thereby that the rats learned by observation about body movements (imitation) or lever movement (emulation). Experiment 2 assessed responding on two levers, one that had been manipulated by the demonstrator, and a second, transposed lever positioned some distance away. Demonstrator-consistent responding was abolished when actions were observed and performed in different parts of the apparatus, suggesting that observed movement was encoded allocentrically with respect to the apparatus rather than egocentrically with respect to the actor's body. With particular reference to the influence of scent cues, the results are discussed in relation to the strengths and weaknesses of this and other varieties of the two-action procedure as tests of imitation in animals and human infants. Electronic Publication     

Reflecting on acts of kindness toward the self: Emotions,generosity, and the role of social norms

How do people respond, in terms of emotion and behavior, when prompted to recall an act of kindness from another person? As shown in two studies of undergraduates, responses differ based on whether the kindness is seen as normative – that is, whether it follows social norms related to the relational context and one's past behavior. On the whole, normative kindnesses were linked with more positive emotion and less negative emotion than non-normative kindnesses. Those asked to recall normative kindnesses also donated more money to charity than those who recalled non-normative kindnesses, an effect partly mediated by the greater positivity of the normative stories (Study 2). These results suggest that if the goal is to increase mood or generosity, recalling normative kindnesses is a safer strategy than recalling non-normative kindnesses. Yet, some results also supported an outgroup salience hypothesis, in which recalling non-normative kindnesses increased generous motives toward strangers and enemies.     

The first-perspective alignment effect: The role of environmental complexity and familiarity with surroundings

People often remember relatively novel environments from the first perspective encountered or the first direction of travel. This initial perspective can determine a preferred orientation that facilitates the efficiency of spatial judgements at multiple recalled locations. The present study examined this “first-perspective alignment effect” (FPA effect). In three experiments, university students explored three-path routes through computer-simulated spaces presented on a desktop computer screen. Spatial memory was then tested employing a “judgement of relative direction” task. Contrary to the predictions of a previous account, Experiment 1 found a reliable FPA effect in barren and complex environments. Experiment 2 strongly implicated the importance of complete novelty of the space surrounding the route in producing the effect. Experiment 3 found that, while familiarity with the surrounding space greatly attenuated the FPA effect with immediate testing, the effect reemerged following a 7-day delay to testing. The implications for the encoding and retrieval of spatial reference frames are discussed.     

The Dark Triad and competitive psychological climate at work: A model of reciprocal relationships in dependence of age and organization change

ABSTRACT

Integrating an interactionist model of personality development, the cumulative continuity model of personality development, and selection–evocation–manipulation theory, the present study analysed reciprocal relations of the Dark Triad common core and its sub-traits of narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism with competitive psychological climate. Moreover, within a large (N = 1,185) and longitudinal sample of employees from Germany, latent cross-lagged panel analyses were applied to analyse the moderating roles of age and organization change (i.e., organizational turnover). Overall, results revealed positive reciprocal relations between the Dark Triad common core, its sub-traits, and competitive psychological climate. The Dark Triad common core and Machiavellianism were more stable within the older (50–59 years) compared to the younger (25–34 years) age group. However, we found no age differences for the relation between competitive psychological climate and change in the Dark Triad common core or its sub-traits. Among employees who changed organizations, the Dark Triad common core, narcissism, and psychopathy were more strongly positively related to the change in competitive psychological climate than in the non-change group. This suggests stronger selection compared to evocation–manipulation effects for individuals with high values in the Dark Triad common core, narcissism, and psychopathy, but not for Machiavellianism.     

Changes in Negative Reciprocity as a Function of Age

Standard economic models assume people exclusively pursue material self‐interests in social interactions. However, people exhibit social preferences; that is, they base their choices partly on the outcomes others obtained in a social interaction. People care about fairness, and reciprocity affects behavior. This study examines the differences in negative reciprocity (costly punishment for unfair divisions) as a function of age. Sixty‐one kindergarteners (5‐year‐olds), 53 second graders (8‐year‐olds), and 57 sixth graders (12‐year‐olds) played a dictator game or a mini–ultimatum game either with a human proposer or with a random machine that determined the division between the two players. By keeping the divisions between the players constant and varying the source of the unfair proposal, we were able to differentiate between reciprocity‐based and inequality‐aversion preferences. We found that kindergarteners proposed and accepted unfair divisions regardless of the source of the offer, behaving according to the standard economic model. Children in the sixth grade tended to reject unfair offers from a human proposer but accept unfair divisions from a random device, indicating the emergence of negative reciprocity preferences by age eight (and contrary to inequality aversion). Children at this age also tended to give more fair offers in the ultimatum game than in the dictator game, indicating the emergence of strategic thinking. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

自我惩罚：影响因素、模型与展望

自我惩罚是个体在违反社会规范后,自愿使自己承受伤害或蒙受损失的行为。自我惩罚会受到负性情绪、补救机会、代偿机会和性别的影响。情绪模型和互惠模型分别从情绪和互惠的角度阐述了自我惩罚的认知机制。根据近期的研究结果,可以推测自我惩罚与前扣带回、脑岛、右外侧眶额叶皮层、背内侧前额叶皮层、伏隔核、腹内侧前额叶皮层有关。未来值得研究的方向有：进一步确认自我惩罚涉及的情绪成分、为互惠模型收集更多实验证据、探究自我惩罚对集体合作的影响以及开展跨文化研究。     

Dyadic Cross-Sectional Associations Between Negative Mood,Marital Idealization,and Relationship Quality

This study aimed to evaluate (a) dyadic associations between relationship quality (RQ) and both depressive and anxious mood (DM and AM), (b) reciprocity hypotheses of negative mood within dyadic interactions, and (c) mediational role of marital idealization between negative mood and relationship quality. Actor-partner interdependence models (APIMs) were performed using data from a sample of 198 dyads. Our results showed that (a) these two facets of negative mood did not have the same weight on RQ and that they had a gender-specific effects pattern, and (b) there was no support for the mood transmission hypothesis. Men's DM displayed direct and indirect (via marital idealization) actor as well as partner effects on RQ, whereas women's DM displayed only a direct actor effect on RQ. There were no significant direct actor effects of AM on RQ, meaning that this link is fully mediated by marital idealization. However, only women's AM showed such indirect effects on RQ.