Set size,assertion form,thematic content and sampling in the selection task

Participants attempted to solve a modified version of Wason's (1966) selection task. Variables were: (1) sizes of the sets referenced by a specified assertion, (2) form of the assertion (conditional or categorical), (3) thematic content of the assertion (letters and numbers or makes and owners of taxicabs), and (4) the need for sampling or not. In Experiment 1, participants were given enough information to determine the truth or falsity of the specified assertion with certainty; in Experiment 2, they had to rely on sampling and could not determine the assertion's truth or falsity with certainty. Performance was better in Experiment 1 than in Experiment 2, but in both cases much better than what is typically obtained with the conventional selection task. The results support the hypothesis that performance of the selection task is sensitive to the sizes of the sets involved, add credence to the conclusion that framing the task in a thematically meaningful way can facilitate performance, and demonstrate that facilitation does not require deontic reasoning or a well-known convention being involved. The relationship between expressed confidence and level of performance is consistent with other studies showing the former to be a good predictor of the latter.     

Re-framing the characteristics of concepts and their relation to learning and cognition in artificial agents

In this work, the problems of knowledge acquisition and information processing are explored in relation to the definitions of concepts and conceptual processing, and their implications for artificial agents.The discussion focuses on views of cognition as a dynamic property in which the world is actively represented in grounded mental states which only have meaning in the action context. Reasoning is understood as an emerging property consequence of actions-environment couplings achieved through experience, and concepts as situated and dynamic phenomena enabling behaviours.Re-framing the characteristics of concepts is considered crucial to overcoming settled beliefs and reinterpreting new understandings in artificial systems.The first part presents a review of concepts from cognitive sciences. Support is found for views on grounded and embodied cognition, describing concepts as dynamic, flexible, context-dependent, and distributedly coded.That is argued to contrast with many technical implementations assuming concepts as categories, whilst explains limitations when grounding amodal symbols, or in unifying learning, perception and reasoning.The characteristics of concepts are linked to methods of active inference, self-organization, and deep learning to address challenges posed and to reinterpret emerging techniques.In a second part, an architecture based on deep generative models is presented to illustrate arguments elaborated. It is evaluated in a navigation task, showing that sufficient representations are created regarding situated behaviours with no semantics imposed on data. Moreover, adequate behaviours are achieved through a dynamic integration of perception and action in a single representational domain and process.     

多维计算机化自适应测验选题策略的开发及比较

本研究提出一种新的多维计算机化自适应测验(MCAT)选题策略,并将现有及本研究新提出的MCAT选题策略归纳为三类进行了较为系统全面的Monte Carlo模拟实验比较。结果表明:A-优化方法、后验期望KL信息方法 (KB)和本文提出的修正的连续熵方法 (MCEM)在各自类别中估计精度最高;结合题库安全性来看,MCEM综合表现最好。     

The Effect of Intergroup Conflict on Ingroup Cooperation and Conformity: An Experimental Vignette Study

In this study, we aimed to test the hypothesis that intergroup conflict would enhance not only ingroup cooperation, but also conformity (frequency‐dependent tendency). One hundred and eighty undergraduate students participated in a vignette experiment. They read four scenarios describing daily intergroup conflict situations, and rated behavioral intention for ingroup cooperation and frequency‐dependent tendency of ingroup members. In each vignette, level of intergroup conflict (weak/moderate) was manipulated by costs of defeat. The results supported the hypothesis in part that intergroup conflict enhanced both ingroup cooperation and conformity.     

The evolution of aggression and the level of selection controversy

This paper has two objectives. The first is to examine the “level of selection” controversy in an historical light, particularly as it relates to the evolution and function of aggressive behaviors. Individual and kin selection, on the one hand, and group selection, on the other, are viewed as alternative scientific paradigms for interpreting aggression and other behaviors. It is suggested that the crux of the conflict between these positions involves different ways of explaining altruism. Often, restraints in fighting are tacitly assumed to function first and foremost for the good of the group or species to the detriment of the actor – ie, to be altruistic and to have evolved by group selection. The frequent use of the group level “good for the species” explanations in various disciplines is noted. A second and overlapping objective of this paper is to present evidence against group selection level interpretations and to propose instead that individual level selection and inclusive fitness theory explain better and provide a heuristically more useful way of examining aggressive behavior. Toward these ends, ritualized aggressive behaviors, formerly assumed to exist for species preservation, are reinterpreted along individualistic lines. Next, the concept of inclusive fitness [Hamilton, 1964] is discussed as a theoretical breakthrough which adds support to an individual level approach. In short, the argument is set forth that animals, by and large, do not kill or seriously injure members of their own species because it usually is not in their genetic self-interest to do so; social patterns of interaction such as aggressive encounters should be examined in terms of their effects on the fitness of the individuals engaging in the behaviors before group adaptations are simply assumed. In illustration, data from several animal behavior studies are discussed. Consideration is also given to instances of intraspecific killing and wounding, which in fact occur much more frequently than has been suggested by members of a group selectionist school of thought. Infant killing reported in lions and various primate species is examined and shown to be explicable through individual selection and inclusive fitness theory. It is concluded that this approach represents a more viable theoretical framework for the evolutionary and functional study of both ritualized and other forms of limited animal aggression as well as more violent incidents of intraspecific wounding and killing.     

Teachers’ Beliefs of Creative Children

Teachers’ beliefs about characteristics of creative children do not always align with how creative children actually behave. Understanding these misaligned beliefs—defined as misconceptions—is important because teachers’ misconceptions can undermine efforts to foster children's creative development. This study aimed to identify teachers’ beliefs about the characteristics of creative children with an emphasis on their misconceptions about characteristics as either indicative or contraindicative of creative children. We analyzed responses of 136 teachers to 29 characteristics, indicating or contraindicating creative children, on Gough's (1979). Creative Personality Scale using the Rating Scale Model. Results revealed that teachers tended to have more misconceptions about characteristics contraindicative of creative children than characteristics indicative of creative children while teachers were able to accurately recognize certain characteristics when compared with explicit theories of creativity. In both the indicative and contraindicative characteristics, misconceptions appeared to increase if characteristics were desirable in the classroom. Teachers’ misconceptions may conceal creative potential in children who do not manage their undesirable characteristics in constructive ways. Findings provide practical implications to aid teachers and teacher educators in correcting misconceptions about the characteristics of creative children.     

Personality and coping in life challenge narratives

BackgroundSelf-reported personality traits are known to correlate with self-reported coping strategies. However, these correlations may be inflated by common method variance. The current study examined personality traits and coping strategies in autobiographical narratives.MethodIn open-ended interviews, 122 late-midlife participants described their single greatest life challenge. Participants’ responses were content coded for various coping strategies. We examined correlations between narrated coping strategies and self-reported personality traits assessed by the NEO-Five Factor Inventory.ResultsExtraversion was associated with narrated engagement coping. Neuroticism was associated with narrated disengagement coping. A trend suggested that conscientiousness was negatively associated with narrated disengagement coping. Surprisingly, openness was negatively associated with narrated problem-solving.ConclusionsThe current study replicates and extends the personality and coping literature into the domain of life narrative. Associations between extraversion, neuroticism, and coping styles appear to be robust outside the context of self-report coping questionnaires.     

Compiling Measurement Invariant Short Scales in Cross-Cultural Personality Assessment Using Ant Colony Optimization

Examining the influence of culture on personality and its unbiased assessment is the main subject of cross-cultural personality research. Recent large-scale studies exploring personality differences across cultures share substantial methodological and psychometric shortcomings that render it difficult to differentiate between method and trait variance. One prominent example is the implicit assumption of cross-cultural measurement invariance in personality questionnaires. In the rare instances where measurement invariance across cultures was tested, scalar measurement invariance—which is required for unbiased mean-level comparisons of personality traits—did not hold. In this article, we present an item sampling procedure, ant colony optimization, which can be used to select item sets that satisfy multiple psychometric requirements including model fit, reliability, and measurement invariance. We constructed short scales of the IPIP-NEO-300 for a group of countries that are culturally similar (USA, Australia, Canada, and UK) as well as a group of countries with distinct cultures (USA, India, Singapore, and Sweden). In addition to examining factor mean differences across countries, we provide recommendations for cross-cultural research in general. From a methodological perspective, we demonstrate ant colony optimization's versatility and flexibility as an item sampling procedure to derive measurement invariant scales for cross-cultural research. © 2020 The Authors. European Journal of Personality published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Association of Personality Psychology     

A review of applicant faking in selection interviews

Interviews are commonly used for selection but research on interview faking only gained momentum relatively recently. We review both theoretical and empirical work on prevalence, antecedents, processes, and effects of interview faking. Most applicants fake at least to some degree. Personality (e.g., Conscientiousness, Honesty‐humility, the Dark Triad) and attitudes toward faking substantially correlate with faking behaviors. Research concerning applicants' ability, interview structure components, or contextual factors is limited. Furthermore, the impact of faking on interview ratings is mixed and effects on criterion‐related validity are not consistently negative. Finally, the detection of faking seems hardly possible and there are limited options available to reduce interview faking. Throughout our review, we describe important gaps and derive suggestions and propositions for future research.     

Selection of gender‐incongruent applicants: No gender bias with structured interviews

Research suggests that the use of structured interviews can reduce gender bias in hiring. However, studies have been limited to gender‐neutral professions or laboratory simulations. The current study evaluated two components of the structured interview in a field sample of 691 applicants interviewing for a male‐dominated position of public transit operator. Multilevel modeling results show no significant differences in ratings across applicant gender with this highly structured interview. This relation was found in individual interviewer ratings and consensus panel ratings, as well as irrespective of interviewer gender and interviewer participation in comprehensive versus minimal training in structured interviewing. This study provided a conservative test in a male‐dominated profession to further validate the value of the structured interview for promoting equal hiring practices.