Visual illusions affect both movement planning and on-line control: a multiple cue position on bias and goal-directed action

Over the last decade, there has been an interest in the impact of visual illusions on the control of action. Much of this work has been motivated by Milner and Goodale's two visual system model of visual processing. This model is based on a hypothesized dissociation between cognitive judgments and the visual control of action. It holds that action is immune to the visual context that provides the basis for the illusion-induced bias associated with cognitive judgments. Recently, Glover has challenged this position and has suggested that movement planning, but not movement execution is susceptible to visual illusions. Research from our lab is inconsistent with both models of visual-motor processing. With respect to the planning and control model, kinematic evidence shows that the impact of an illusion on manual aiming increases as the limb approaches the target. For the Ebbinghaus illusion, this involved a decrease in the time after peak velocity to accommodate the 'perceived' size of the target. For the Müller-Lyer illusion, the influence of the figure's tails increased from peak velocity to the end of the movement. Although our findings contradict a strong version of the two visual systems hypothesis, we did find dissociations between perception and action in another experiment. In this Müller-Lyer study, perceptual decisions were influenced by misjudgment of extent, while action was influenced by misjudgment of target position. Overall, our findings are consistent with the idea that it is often necessary to use visual context to make adjustments to ongoing movements.     

Combining speed and accuracy to assess error-free cognitive processes

Both the speed and accuracy of responding are important measures of performance. A well-known interpretive difficulty is that participants may differ in their strategy, trading speed for accuracy, with no change in underlying competence. Another difficulty arises when participants respond slowly and inaccurately (rather than quickly but inaccurately), e.g., due to a lapse of attention. We introduce an approach that combines response time and accuracy information and addresses both situations. The modeling framework assumes two latent competing processes. The first, the error-free process, always produces correct responses. The second, the guessing process, results in all observed errors and some of the correct responses (but does so via non-specific processes, e.g., guessing in compliance with instructions to respond on each trial). Inferential summaries of the speed of the error-free process provide a principled assessment of cognitive performance reducing the influences of both fast and slow guesses. Likelihood analysis is discussed for the basic model and extensions. The approach is applied to a data set on response times in a working memory test. The authors wish to thank Roger Ratcliff, Christopher Chabris, and three anonymous referees for their helpful comments, and Aureliu Lavric for providing the data analyzed in this paper.     

The developmental course of processing speed in children with and without learning disabilities

This study contrasted the development of processing speed in children with and without learning disabilities. We examined whether the same global mechanism presumed to be responsible for the normal developmental improvement in processing speed might also be associated with the processing speed deficiencies observed in children with learning impairments. One hundred and twenty-two children with learning disabilities in reading and/or math and 206 non-disabled community controls participated. There were no differences in relation of age to the development of processing speed for children with and without learning disabilities. We interpreted these results as suggesting that the underlying etiologies for the normal developmental change in processing speed and for the relative deficiencies in processing speed seen among children with learning disabilities were different.     

Sheldon's physical-psychical typology revisited

In order to clarify some of the general findings in the literature with respect to relationships between body type and the personality dimension extraversion/introversion, typical experimental paradigms common to this field were replicated but using the first-order factors (from the R. B. Cattell, H. W. Eber, & M. M. Tatsuoka (1970, Handbook for the sixteen personality factor questionnaire, Windsor: N.F.E.R.) analysis) that load on this continuum rather than the continuum itself. Use was made of standard statistical procedures as well as discriminant analysis. The most noteworthy finding was that subjects were able to utilize the first-order factor structure for the continuum extraversion/introversion in a discriminating manner and to assign such factors in a fairly clear-cut way to three extreme body types. Personality appraisals of the mesomorphic body type and an ideal type (composed by the subjects) were shown to be virtually identical. The most positive extravert characteristics were assigned to the endomorph body build and the most positive introvert characteristics to the ectomorph. No differences in personality appraisals by male (n = 50) and female (n = 50) subjects with the exception of factor Q₂ by the ectomorphic body type were found. Both male and female subjects showed a preference for the (male) mesomorphic body type although significant differences between male and female subjects in the pattern of their distribution of preferences over the three body types were found. While the results confirm previous findings, they also extend them by the use of a first-order factor structure for the continuum extraversion/introversion and by the introduction of the explanatory concepts “extravert of affect” and “extravert of action.”     

Constituents of response rates

Response rate and the proportion of time pigeons allocated to a key-pecking activity were measured on several basic types of reinforcement schedules. Reinforcement frequency was varied within each type of basic schedule, and the effects on two constituents of response rate were noted. Propensity, the proportion of time the birds spent on a platform in front of the key, showed very consistent effects as reinforcement frequency varied: in general, it decreased when reinforcement frequency markedly decreased and it increased when reinforcement frequency increased. Speed, key pecks per unit of time spent on the platform, showed inconsistent effects when reinforcement frequency varied. Consequently, response rate showed less consistent effects than did propensity. Cumulative response records demonstrated the existence of several different types of transitions or boundary states between the key-pecking activity and other activities. The types of transitions that occurred between activities depended on both the type of reinforcement schedule and the frequency of reinforcement. The propensity data support the position that general laws of behavior can be based on temporal measures of behavior. The speed data suggest that, if a complete assessment of the dynamic properties of behavior is to be achieved, measures of behavior must incorporate the structural variations in the operant unit.     

驾驶员的动态反应时研究

本研究应用DFY-1型动态反应时测试仪,以解放CA10B 型卡车为实验用车,结合日常运输任务,对三种年龄组(20—29岁、30—39岁、40—49岁)的30名驾驶员,在三种车速(静态,30公里/小时及50公里/小时)条件下的反应时、动作时及制动反应时进行了测试。结果表明:车速对驾驶员的反应时及制动反应时有显著影响,而对动作时则无显著影响;驾驶员的年龄对反应时、动作时及制动反应时均无显著影响.本研究结果为加强驾驶员的安全教育与管理,控制车速提供了佐证。更高车速条件下驾驶员的反应时特点尚待进一步研究。     

In search of a measure to investigate mental performance among children: Development of the mental speed test

Processing speed is a component of general intelligence and an indicator of learning potential. There is a need for robust measures of mental speed based on contemporary theoretical developments. The current study addressed this need by proposing a mental speed test for children aged 60 to 96 months (5 to 8 years) and examining its psychometric properties. The test included indicators of perceptual speed, memory speed, reasoning speed, and fluency-flexibility speed presented through nonverbal items administered individually using touchscreen tablets. After establishing gender non-bias and concurrent validity with a contemporary intelligence test (i.e., ASIS, r = .59) with 107 children, the next administration included 373 children. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with subtest scores revealed a single-factor structure accounting for 45% of the total variance. Additional data from 212 children were used to assess structural validity and gender bias, which showed acceptable goodness of fit, providing evidence of the validity and reliability of the new measure for further use.     

The equilibrium-point hypothesis is still doing fine

Within the present paper we provide the arguments that contradict Gottlieb's conclusions regarding the theoretical implications of kinematics of movements performed with unexpectedly changed inertial loads. First, the load associated changes in movement velocity presented by Gottlieb may be caused by apparent methodological differences, when compared to our earlier results. Moreover, the present data can be interpreted by the equilibrium-point hypothesis as well as by Gottlieb's hypothesis. Second, Gottlieb remains silent on findings related to the movement time and symmetry ratio that contradict predictions based on either torque control or Gottlieb's hypothesis. Therefore, we conclude that the data obtained on rapid movements performed with unexpected changes in inertial load support equilibrium-point hypothesis, rather that any of the torque control based models.     

Single Session Treatment of Test Anxiety with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

One session of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) appeared to be an effective treatment for test anxiety, reducing reported physiological distress, worry, and fears of negative evaluation. The research design included two components: a comparison study, comparing Immediate Treatment and Wait List groups, and a replication study, comparing the treatment response of Immediate and Delayed (Treated Wait List) groups. Seventeen test anxious university students were randomly assigned to one session of EMDR or Wait List. At post-test, the Immediate group demonstrated significant improvement, compared to the Wait List group, on the Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI) and Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale. Treatment effects were maintained at follow-up. The Wait List group received treatment after post-measures were taken. Treatment of the Delayed group replicated effects. Improvement was reflected by large treatment effect sizes and a decrease in percentile ranking on the TAI from the 90th to the 50th percentile.     

6—12岁儿童脑波超慢涨落功率与计算速度的关系

对176名6-12岁认知功能正常小学生进行脑波超慢涨落平均功率分布与计算速度关系的研究。结果表明：(1)计算速度快组和计算速度慢组中各年龄组的脑区平均功率符合额低枕高的前后梯度。计算速度慢组的逆转百分率高于计算速度快组。(2)在各年龄组中,计算速度快组和慢组功率前后逆转百分率的差异主要反映在右脑,右脑功率前后梯度逆转在不同计算组之间差异较大。(3)在计算速度快组和慢组中,左脑平均功率都小于右脑平均功率。计算速度快组和慢组脑波功率左右逆转百分率的差异主要反映在后脑,后脑功率左右逆转在逆转总数上计算速度快组多于计算速度慢组。