Autocontingencies: Suppressive and accelerative effects of pairs of shocks superimposed on a positively reinforced operant baseline

Previous research has shown that unsignaled shock may accelerate positively reinforced operant responding if each shock signals a subsequent shock-free period. In order to explore the boundary conditions of this effect, two experiments were performed. In Experiment 1, pairs of unsignaled shocks separated by 15, 30, 60, or 120 seconds resulted in suppressed responding during the briefest intershock interval, and in accelerated responding during the longer intervals. When the second shock in each pair signaled a shock-free period of at least 3 minutes, accelerated responding also followed offset of the second shock in all but the 30-second condition. In Experiment 2, the addition of a conditioned stimulus prior to each pair of shocks restored baseline responding, and eliminated accelerative control following the second shock only under the briefest inter-shock interval. The results are discussed in terms of the similarity between autocontingencies (shock/no-shock relations; Davis, Memmott, & Hurwitz, 1975) and recent modifications of the feature-positive procedure (e.g., Reberg & Memmott, 1979), which stress stimulus control by shock/no-shock relationships.     

Are you willing to pay the price? The impact of corporate social (ir)responsibility on consumer behavior towards national and foreign brands

This research examines how the country of origin (national vs. foreign) affects the relation between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and consumers' willingness to pay and purchase intention. In the study, we adopted a first‐price sealed bid auction approach, using money in a “real‐world” setting. The results showed that CSR/corporate social irresponsibility (CSIR) affects consumer behavior and, particularly, consumers' willingness to pay and purchase intention. The study supports both the moderation hypothesis of country of origin in the relationship between CSR/CSIR and willingness to pay and between CSR/CSIR and purchase intention. In the globalization context, these results have important implications for brands' communication and marketing strategy and can stimulate important insights in organizations. Future research directions and limitations are also discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

学困儿童和学优儿童的手书特点比较

取小学生55名,其中25名为学困生,30名为学优生,使用数码写字板测试二者在横线自然手书状态下的速度、加速度、压力、波动和断续5个指标的变化特点。研究结果表明,学困生横线手书的速度超过学优生,特别是中间速度,差异显著。学困生的加速度增长比较快,在短期内维持在高速状态,然后快速下降,学优生增长速度比较慢,但是在很长的时间内保持在高速状态,最后加速度的递减明显比学困生慢,差异显著。学困生的加速度曲线形态趋势类似于一个倒U形,而学优生的曲线形态类似于梯形。学困生和学优生的压力变化呈现开始递增、然后保持在较高的压力状态的态势,但是二者之间没有显著差异。二者的波动都出现于书写的开始阶段,但是波动次数没有显著差异。在书写过程,二者都没有出现断续。     

Examining interrelationships between the Cigarette Purchase Task and delay discounting among pregnant women

Two common behavioral economic simulation tasks used to study cigarette smoking are the Cigarette Purchase Task, a measure of cigarette demand, and delay discounting, a measure of the subjective value of rewards as a function of delays to delivery. Few studies have evaluated whether combining these tasks enhances understanding of smoking beyond either alone. The current study represents an initial evaluation of the intersection between cigarette demand indices and delay discounting among pregnant smokers by examining associations between these measures and whether a woman makes antepartum quit attempts before entering prenatal care (a reliable predictor of eventual quitting). Participants were 159 pregnant women enrolled in a smoking‐cessation trial. Low O _max and shallow discounting were each associated with antepartum quit attempts. Participants were next categorized into four subgroups (low O _max, shallow discounting; low O _max, steep discounting; high O _max, shallow discounting; high O _max, steep discounting) using median splits. Those with shallow discounting and low O _max were more likely to have made quit attempts than each of the other three subgroups. That is, steep discounting appears to undermine the association of low O _max and efforts to quit smoking during pregnancy while high O _max overshadows any protective influence associated with shallow discounting.