My word! Interference from reading object names implies a role for competition during picture name retrieval

A related word prime has been found to interfere with picture naming after unrelated intervening trials (word-to-picture interference). Recently, Stroop-type picture–word interference effects have been interpreted in terms of a postlexical response exclusion process rather than a competitive lexical selection process. An experiment is reported that examines whether word-to-picture effects could reflect response exclusion mechanisms and, more generally, strategic processing of the word prime. Forty-eight volunteer university students named aloud sequences of semantically related (and unrelated) word primes and picture targets, separated by two unrelated filler stimuli. On half of the trials, participants were asked to count backwards in threes from a random number presented immediately after naming the prime word. They were also given a surprise recall test at the end of the naming block. Results for naming times and errors indicated a main effect of relatedness; semantic interference effects were not dependent on the unfilled gap following the word prime trial and were also not tied to episodic recall of prime words. The data indicate that slowed picture naming times are more likely to emerge from processes intrinsic to word prime naming rather than controlled processing and do not readily fit the postlexical response exclusion account. The results are considered in relation to two recent accounts of interference over unrelated trials, which refer to some form of competition at, or prior to, lexical access.     

汉语口语句子产生的语法编码计划单元

语法编码的计划单元作为口语句子产生领域的一个重要命题,近年来备受心理语言学者的关注。本研究利用词图干扰范式下的语义效应,通过两个行为实验探讨了汉语口语句子产生中的语法编码计划单元。实验中要求被试用介词短语做主语的句子或者并列名词短语做主语的句子来命名两个竖直排列的图片,并视觉呈现干扰词。结果表明,对于两个句式而言,在第二个名词上都没有潜伏期的语义干扰效应,只有错误率上的语义干扰效应,而且这个结果并没有随着SOA(目标图片和干扰词开始呈现的时间间隔)的改变(0、150或300ms)而改变。当干扰词与图片同时呈现时(SOA=0)在并列名词短语做主语的句子中,第二个名词上出现了潜伏期的语义促进效应。这些结果说明,语法编码的说法较为宽泛,应具体描述为:词汇选择是严格递进的,而概念激活的计划单元可能是功能短语。     

School Effectiveness Findings 1979–2002

The London studies of school effectiveness in the 1970s provided evidence that the qualities of schools made a significant difference to pupil progress, after taking account of the characteristics and backgrounds of the pupils at the time of school entry. The purpose of this article is to review the further evidence that has accumulated since then in order to assess how far the findings have been confirmed or refuted, what new questions have arisen and what key challenges remain. The continuing areas of research and debate include school effects on behavioral outcomes, the effects of class size, the importance of parental involvement, the impact of intake mix, peer influences, and level of resources. There has been greater agreement on the many features fostering school effectiveness. However, questions remain on how to bring about desired changes. The paper concludes by drawing attention to 10 largely unanswered questions that matter for policy and practice.     

Review

Book reviewed in this article:
David Ray Griffin, Religion and Scientific Naturalism: Overcoming the Conflicts     

God and Evolutionary Evil: Theodicy in the Light of Darwinism

Pain, suffering, death, and extinction have been intrinsic to the process of evolution by natural selection. This leads to a real problem of evolutionary theodicy, little addressed up to now in Christian theologies of creation. The problem has ontological, teleological, and soteriological aspects. The recent literature contains efforts to dismiss, disregard, or reframe the problem. The radical proposal that God has no long–term goals for creation, but merely keeps company with its unfolding, is one way forward. An alternative strategy to tackle the problem of evolutionary theodicy is outlined, with an implication for environmental ethics and suggestions for further work.     

New Evolutionary Perspectives on Altruism: Multilevel-Selection and Costly-Signaling Theories

Social psychological theories tend to be primarily concerned with the immediate causes of altruism, whereas evolutionary explanations focus more on the origins and ultimate functions of altruistic behavior. Recent developments in the evolutionary psychology of altruism promise an even richer understanding of this important category of social behaviors. Specifically, new perspectives offered by multilevel-selection theory and costly-signaling theory may help to shed light on some of the more problematic issues in the study of altruism.     

Learning Psychoanalysis: A Classification Based on Students' Learning Trajectories

This study was undertaken in an effort to sharpen selection procedures and improve faculty response to the learning needs of students. Eschewing a traditional anticipatory approach in determining suitability for training, the authors undertook a retrospective study to investigate the learning trajectories of candidates. A learning trajectory is defined as the particular way individuals learn, or fail to learn, as they advance through an Institute's training program. The database of this study grew out of the authors' experience with students in classrooms, in supervision, and from discussions about them in Progression, Selection, and The Evaluation of Learning committees. Realizing the reductionism of categorizing a highly complex and diverse group of individuals, the authors, nonetheless, found that candidates tended to group into five rather distinct categories. This paper discusses in detail the characteristics of these five categories and suggests ways in which this grouping may help in both selection and in planning more effective training for candidates. The authors are fully aware that this study has impressionistic qualities and warrants more rigorous research methods, but hope that it will arouse interest in other psychoanalytic centers and stimulate studies to corroborate, refine, or reject the conclusions reached by this group.     

汉语词汇产生中音、形、义三种信息激活的时间进程

采用图-词干扰范式和图片命名方法,探讨语音、语义、字形在汉语词汇产生中激活的时间进程与特点。选择与目标图片名称(如“羊”)具有同音(“阳”)、语义相联(“牛”)、字形相似(“丰”)或无关控制(“冷”)等四种关系的干扰字,依SOA条件呈现在将要被命名的图片上,发现图片命名时间受干扰字的影响：语义干扰效应存在于较早期的SOA(0ms)条件中,在较晚期SOA(150ms)时有很大的减弱;语音促进效应和字形促进效应同时强烈地存在于早期和晚期SOA。实验发现了词条选择(语义激活)和音位编码(语音提取)在激活时间上的重叠现象,与传统的独立两阶段模型的预期存在明显矛盾,倾向于支持交互作用理论的观点。     

A Biodata Inventory Administered via Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Technology: Predictive Validity, Utility, and Subgroup Differences

Although organizations are increasingly using interactive voice response (IVR) systems to help screen and select job applicants, few if any published studies have investigated the effectiveness of such systems. The current study responded to this need by evaluating a biodata inventory administered via IVR technology. A predictive validity study revealed that both a 42-item biodata measure and a more parsimonious 6-item composite correlated with supervisor ratings of performance and did not result in adverse impact or differential prediction. In addition, a utility analysis indicated that both IVR biodata measures would likely result in considerable financial gains to the hiring organization. The implications of these results for selection research and practice are discussed.     

The capacity to be an analyst: A contribution from attachment research to the study of candidate selection

In this paper the author discusses how the study of candidate selection, once a topic of vibrant research, has unfortunately languished. Certain qualities were thought to characterize the successful candidate. However, they were never successfully operationalized nor empirically tested. Possibly because of this lack of empirical data, selectors today have difficulty articulating their criteria and are relying on intuition. In order to provide a more rational basis for contemporary selection, the author looks to the attachment literature. This makes sense because attachment theory shares some basic assumptions of contemporary psychoanalysis. The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) is a research tool that predicts the ability of a parent to convey attachment security. It is scored by attending to how a person speaks about his early attachment experiences. The AAI appears to tap into similar qualities to those selection researchers have sought in their candidates. Further, the scoring method of the AAI appears to be similar to the last attempt by selection researchers to operationalize them. Given these similarities, the author recommends an empirical study using the AAI to operationalize these qualities in analytic candidates. The study would test their importance for success in the training program, thus offering selectors some empirical grounding for their choices.