Obligatory and optional personal life investments in old and very old age: Validation and functional relations

Personal life investment (PLI) measures motivational energy invested in central life domains. We distinguished between obligatory PLIs, that is, required investments, and optional PLIs, that is, investments that are possible but not necessary. Data from the Berlin Aging Study (N = 516; 70–103 years) were employed to investigate the validity of this distinction. We further explored how both PLI types relate to aging satisfaction and whether associations with validation variables and satisfaction differed depending on resource limitations (poor health). As expected based on conceptual affinities between the distinctions of obligatory-optional PLI and approach-avoidance tendencies, both PLI types showed positive relations with extraversion (a correlate of approach), but only obligatory PLI was positively related to neuroticism (a correlate of avoidance). Optional PLI (not obligatory PLI) was related to higher aging satisfaction, but only in fairly healthy people. This underscores differential functional relations of optional PLI depending on resource availability.

Asymmetrical attention allocation to dissimilar and similar attitudes

Evaluations of others are sometimes influenced more by their dissimilar than similar attitudes. The authors investigated this similarity–dissimilarity asymmetry at the level of stimulus processing. In a variant of the Stroop task in Experiment 1 (N = 50), dissimilar attitudes of the participants interfered more with their color-naming performance than did similar attitudes. In a dual-task paradigm of Experiment 2 (N = 92), a greater attention allocation to dissimilar than similar attitudes disappeared when the cognitive load was low, but not when it was high. Findings illustrated the similarity–dissimilarity asymmetry at the level of stimulus processing, and presented the asymmetry as another case of the fundamental positive–negative asymmetry. Implications and alternative interpretations of these findings are discussed.     

The evaluation-behavior link: Direct and beyond valence

The present research tests the hypothesis that affective stimuli automatically trigger approach/avoidance tendencies. A first experiment showed that in a vigilance task participants responded faster with an approach behavior (i.e., arm flexion) to happy words than to sad words and faster with an avoidance behavior (i.e., arm extension) to sad than to happy words that were presented outside of conscious awareness. These findings were replicated and extended in a second experiment. In this experiment, emotion words presented outside of conscious awareness were responded faster by arm flexion when they were associated with approach than when they were associated with avoidance, irrespective of their valence. Conversely, emotion words associated with avoidance were responded faster by arm extension. Globally, these findings suggest that the implicit perception of affective stimuli automatically triggers the behavioral responses that are associated with them.     

Positive intergroup contact decreases the likelihood that prejudicial attitudes become avoidant behavioral tendencies

We investigated whether existing intergroup contact experiences moderated the associations between prejudicial attitudes and behavioral tendencies towards outgroups across five studies in Turkey (total N = 1,281). Findings showed that among Turks who reported higher levels of cross-group friendship quantity (Study 1) and greater positive (but not negative) contact (Study 2) with Kurds, prejudicial attitudes did not predict negative outgroup behavioral tendencies. Confirming these studies, Study 3 indicated that the association between homophobic attitudes and outgroup avoidance/approach tendencies was weaker among individuals who reported more LGBTI friends. Study 4 replicated the latter finding among children using Syrians as the target outgroup. Study 5 further showed that the buffering role of intergroup contact occurred only among participants who held less certain attitudes towards Syrian refugees. Findings provide insights into how existing contact experiences shape the relationship between negative attitudes towards outgroups and relevant behavioral intentions.     

Collective decision making reduces metacognitive control and increases error rates,particularly for overconfident individuals

This research aimed to investigate the changes in judgment accuracy, confidence, control thresholds, and decision outcomes when people act in two-person groups (dyads) compared with acting individually. First, we used interacting dyads to determine the metacognitive and behavioral outcomes of collective decision making and compared them with those of individuals. Second, we examined whether these changes were related to the trait-confidence and bias of individuals working together. Using a within-person design, undergraduate psychology students (N = 116) completed a General-knowledge Test individually, then together as a dyad. Each question was accompanied by a confidence rating and a decision to bet $10 on the answer. Dyads had significantly higher confidence and lower control thresholds than individuals. They were also significantly more decisive (made more bets) and reckless (lost a higher rate of bets) than when working alone. Thus, we observed a higher rate of decision errors for groups than individuals. The results also demonstrated the important role of individual differences: Overconfident individuals became even more confident, decisive, and reckless when working together compared with less confident or underconfident individuals working together. These findings have important theoretical and applied implications for collective decision making; metacognitive bias and potentially control thresholds may be targeted to alleviate the larger error rates and guide the formation of more effective groups.     

Relationships between climate, process, and performance in continuous quality improvement groups

This study examined relationships between group climate (participants’ learning orientation, feelings of psychological safety, and self-disclosure), process (feedback and conflict), and performance in continuous quality improvement groups. Forty-nine participants in eight hospital groups were surveyed as the groups neared completion. Groups were classified as high or low performing based on interviews with group leaders and facilitators. Ratings of self-disclosure and feelings of psychological safety were related to lower relationship and task conflict and more giving and seeking feedback. Learning orientation was positively related to feedback. Climate and feedback were positively related to creativity of outcomes, while learning orientation and having an active facilitator were related to performance ratings. High performing teams were higher in ratings of learning orientation, facilitation, creativity of outcomes, and overall performance. The results demonstrate the importance of facilitation of learning and interpersonal relationships within structured groups.     

Exploring visuomotor priming following biological and non-biological stimuli

Observation of human actions influences the observer’s own motor system, termed visuomotor priming, and is believed to be caused by automatic activation of mirror neurons. Evidence suggests that priming effects are larger for biological (human) as opposed to non-biological (object) stimuli and enhanced when viewing stimuli in mirror compared to anatomical orientation. However, there is conflicting evidence concerning the extent of differences between biological and non-biological stimuli, which may be due to stimulus related confounds. Over three experiments, we compared how visuomotor priming for biological and non-biological stimuli was affected over views, over time and when attention to the moving stimulus was manipulated. The results indicated that the strength of priming for the two stimulus types was dependent on attentional location and load. This highlights that visuomotor priming is not an automatic process and provides a possible explanation for conflicting evidence regarding the differential effects of biological and non-biological stimuli.     

On the relationship between negative affective priming and prefrontal cognitive control mechanisms

Although several studies have examined inhibition of affective stimuli, valence-dependent cognitive control effects remain poorly understood. Behavioural and functional imaging (functional magnetic resonance imaging) data were collected from 17 healthy participants to examine neural correlates of the Negative Affective Priming (NAP) task. We created relative ratio scores considering the reaction times of prime trials in order to assess the amount of interference after the presentation of negative and positive distracter words. Behavioural results showed an attenuated NAP effect for negative distracters compared to neutral stimuli. Furthermore, priming negative distracters generated more interference by reacting to the probe target than positive distracters. Neuroimaging data revealed a stronger prefrontal activation during negative NAP trials compared to positive NAP and neutral control trials, which was reflected in a heightened activation of superior and middle frontal gyrus as well as parietal cortex. The findings show the impact of negative distracters on prefrontal response, contributing to the understanding of NAP effects in healthy subjects.     

Happier,faster: Developmental changes in the effects of mood and novelty on responses

Positive mood ameliorates several cognitive processes: It can enhance cognitive control, increase flexibility, and promote variety seeking in decision making. These effects of positive mood have been suggested to depend on frontostriatal dopamine, which is also associated with the detection of novelty. This suggests that positive mood could also affect novelty detection. In the present study, children and adults saw either a happy or a neutral movie to induce a positive or neutral mood. After that, they were shown novel and familiar images. On some trials a beep was presented over headphones either at the same time as the image or at a 200-ms stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA), and the task of the participant was to detect these auditory targets. Children were slower in responding than adults. Positive mood, however, speeded responses, especially in children, and induced facilitatory effects of novelty. These effects were consistent with increased arousal. Although effects of novelty were more consistent with an attentional response, in children who had watched a happy movie the novel images evoked a more liberal response criterion, suggestive of increased arousal. This suggests that mood and novelty may affect response behaviour stronger in children than in adults.     

Support for Anti‐Muslim Policies: The Role of Political Traits and Threat Perception

We explored how political beliefs and attitudes predict support for anti‐Muslim policies and extremist behavior in the United States following the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks. A large sample completed measures of authoritarianism, social dominance orientation (SDO), generalized prejudice, identification with all humanity (IWAH), perceptions of Muslim threat, and support for anti‐Muslim policies and behaviors. These measures accounted for 73% of the variance in moderate anti‐Muslim policies and 55% of the variance in extreme anti‐Muslim policies. Authoritarianism and SDO directly and indirectly predicted support for anti‐Muslim policies, with their effects partially mediated by generalized prejudice, IWAH, and perceptions of Muslims as threatening. Threat both mediated and moderated the relationship between authoritarianism and anti‐Muslim policies. A negative interaction between authoritarianism and perceptions of Muslims as threatening predicted moderate anti‐Muslim policies, but a positive interaction predicted extreme anti‐Muslim policies. A tentative explanation is offered. Perceptions of Muslim threat was consistently a powerful predictor of anti‐Muslim policies and willingness to engage in extremist behaviors targeting Muslims. Programs to combat anti‐Muslim prejudice should consider the role of threat‐related stereotypes in expressions of anti‐Muslim prejudice.