Differential impact of relevant and irrelevant dimension primes on rule-based and information-integration category learning

Research has identified multiple category-learning systems with each being “tuned” for learning categories with different task demands and each governed by different neurobiological systems. Rule-based (RB) classification involves testing verbalizable rules for category membership while information-integration (II) classification requires the implicit learning of stimulus–response mappings. In the first study to directly test rule priming with RB and II category learning, we investigated the influence of the availability of information presented at the beginning of the task. Participants viewed lines that varied in length, orientation, and position on the screen, and were primed to focus on stimulus dimensions that were relevant or irrelevant to the correct classification rule. In Experiment 1, we used an RB category structure, and in Experiment 2, we used an II category structure. Accuracy and model-based analyses suggested that a focus on relevant dimensions improves RB task performance later in learning while a focus on an irrelevant dimension improves II task performance early in learning.     

Dilemmas in qualitative health research

Abstract

As the use of qualitative methods in health research proliferates, it becomes increasingly necessary to consider how the value of a piece of qualitative research should be assessed. This article discusses the problem posed by the novelty and diversity of qualitative approaches within health psychology and considers the question of what criteria are appropriate for assessing the validity of a qualitative analysis. In keeping with the ethos of much qualitative research, some open-ended, flexible principles are suggested as a guide to the quality of a qualitative study: sensitivity to context; commitment and rigour; transparency and coherence; impact and importance. Examples are given of the very different ways in which various forms of qualitative research can meet these criteria.     

Encompassing experience: Meanings and methods in health psychology

Abstract

Health psychology is limited by its almost exclusive use of a positivist quantitative research paradigm, and the adoption and use of qualitative methods by health psychologists will provide increased understandings of health and illness. Qualitative methods provide a means to incorporate the social world into our research, and furnish ways to investigate the meanings of health and illness experience. We present a brief consideration of the qualitative paradigm and some important underlying issues related to its use. We describe three qualitative approaches - grounded theory, narrative analysis, and discourse analysis - chosen for their relevance and diversity. We provide illustrations of the use of each in health research, and suggest how these approaches could be utilised by health psychologists to enrich understanding in the health field. We conclude that health psychologists have a great deal to gain from joining other social science health researchers in adopting qualitative approaches in their research.     

Health enhancing physical activity as perceived in interviews based on the theory of planned behaviour

Abstract

The perception of behaviours from two categories of health enhancing physical activity (HEPA): outdoor aerobic exercise (OAE) and everyday commuting activity (ECA) was examined in a sample of middle-aged persons (N= 50). A focused semi-standardised interview was constructed on the bases of the components of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). The participants perceived OAE behaviours predominantly from the viewpoint of exercise and those of the ECA from that of the fluency of daily routines. They considered the OAE as sensible and associated it with positive health or fitness outcomes, but only those practising it also attributed positive psychological effects to OAE behaviours. A slightly better congruence with the TPB was found for the OAE behaviours than for those of the ECA. The difference is discussed in the light of the higher degree of decisional control with the OAE behaviours and the greater psychological heterogeneity of the ECA.     

Broadening the application of mixed methods in sales research

Mixed method research designs can be extremely useful in extending knowledge in the sales domain. A bevy of mixed method designs are at the disposal of sales researchers seeking to reap the benefits of this combination of research approaches. However, application of mixed methods in sales research has been rather limited, focusing primarily on exploratory sequential designs. The purpose of this article is to provide an exposition of mixed method research in the sales domain and offer avenues of extension that employ underutilized mixed methodological approaches. Accordingly, a definition of mixed methods along with its benefits and drawbacks is espoused followed by guidance in conducting mixed method research. A review of sales-related mixed method studies is then provided and articles containing both quantitative and qualitative methods are analyzed to glean insight on the state of mixed methods research in sales. Future avenues for mixed method research are then provided focusing on best practices and techniques that have yet to be embraced by sales researchers. This article aims to be a resource for sales scholars in expanding the mixed method research paradigm.     

‘Use what God has given me’: Difference and disparity in breast reconstruction

African-American women are significantly less likely to undergo postmastectomy breast reconstruction compared to white women in the USA. These observed differences have been interpreted as evidence of a healthcare disparity. The current study examines breast reconstruction decision-making among African-American women, locating reconstruction decisions in a context of culture, racial inequality and biomedicalisation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 27 African-American women who underwent mastectomy for breast cancer to add patient-centred perspectives to existing conceptualisations of racial/ethnic differences in reconstruction. Participants were socio-demographically diverse, and resided in the New York metropolitan area. Data analysis was informed by grounded theory. Spiritually and culturally informed body ethics often guided surgery decisions. Participants expressed reservations about breast implants, preferring autologous procedures that use ‘what God has given’. For some, breast reconstruction restored a sense of normalcy after cancer; others challenged an imperative to reconstruct. Several participants redirected our focus on access to reconstruction toward access to alternatives, noting the low reimbursement for prostheses, or their unavailability in patients’ skin tones. We suggest that a framework of ‘stratified biomedicalization’ better addresses the complexities of race, class and gender that inform preference, access and recommendations for breast reconstruction, and focuses attention on access to high and low-tech interventions.     

An Ecological Perspective: Therapist Practices with Children who Experienced Abuse and Trauma

This qualitative study explores experiences of psychotherapists working in public settings with children who experienced abuse and trauma. The study sought to investigate and understand factors which intruded upon and or supported the capacity for psychotherapists in a community clinic to cognitively process and understand supportive and constraining aspects of the professional context. An important focus was the organisational context of psychotherapists. Nine psychotherapists were interviewed to gain an understanding of their experiences with and perceptions of the needs of children including factors considered important in therapy, the influences of their organisational context, and challenges and rewards of the work. An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of interview data revealed three broad themes identified as relational, organisational, and systemic. An ecological metaphor was used to conceptualise these themes as they related to psychotherapists and the children with whom they worked. The findings demonstrated the importance of the psychotherapist's organisational context on how they experienced their work. This study also considered the need to conceptualise therapy with children who have experienced trauma within the interaction of the child and therapist's relational, organisational, and systems context.     

A Psychogenic Study of Dark-Adaptation

Skin conductance responses (SCRs), heart rate (HR), and respiration were recorded in various rest, cold pressor (CP), and CP recovery phases in 20 former drug users (DG) and 20 control Ss (CG), matched on sex and age in a repeated measures design. With regard to the abused drugs (barbiturates and narcotic analgesics), the hypothesis was tested that autonomic responses are decreased after long-term use of barbiturates and narcotic analgesics. The results partially supported that hypothesis: (a) SCRs, HR change, and HR deceleration were significantly lower in DG compared to control Ss; (b) HR baseline, respiration rate, and amplitude, however, tended to be increased in DG in the rest and CP phases. A second hypothesis, addressed to different habituation rates of SCRs and HR in both groups, was confirmed for SCRs and partly for HR, indicating that the habituation rates of SCRs, HR change, and HR deceleration were greater in DG than in CG. A third question concerned the consistency of SCR and HR results in both sessions. A trend for consistent results was found as the direction of the group differences was the same in sessions 1 and 2. The CP results were compared with similar findings in the same Ss during visual and auditory stimulation.     

The Value of Research Methods in Psychotherapy Research: A Reply to the Commentary of Dr Norton

Norton's commentary on our article has prompted us to think further about the purpose of psychotherapy research. We agree with his suggestion that researchers have much work to do to understand when and for whom interventions are most efficacious. We hope that our field will make progress in this regard. In this reply, we further describe why we believe careful attention to research methods, such as those highlighted in our article, is key to making progress in psychotherapy research.     

How Distinctive Is Philosophers’ Intuition Talk?

The word “intuition” is one frequently used in philosophy. It is often assumed that the way in which philosophers use the word, and others like it, is very distinctive. This claim has been subjected to little empirical scrutiny, however. This article presents the first steps in a qualitative analysis of the use of intuition talk in the academy. It presents the findings of two preliminary empirical studies. The first study examines the use of intuition talk in spoken academic English. The second examines the use of intuition talk in written academic English. It considers what these studies tell us about the distinctiveness of philosophical language and methods and considers some implications for evaluative and ameliorative methodology.