The life of p: “Just significant” results are on the rise

Null hypothesis significance testing uses the seemingly arbitrary probability of .05 as a means of objectively determining whether a tested effect is reliable. Within recent psychological articles, research has found an overrepresentation of p values around this cut-off. The present study examined whether this overrepresentation is a product of recent pressure to publish or whether it has existed throughout psychological research. Articles published in 1965 and 2005 from two prominent psychology journals were examined. Like previous research, the frequency of p values at and just below .05 was greater than expected compared to p frequencies in other ranges. While this overrepresentation was found for values published in both 1965 and 2005, it was much greater in 2005. Additionally, p values close to but over .05 were more likely to be rounded down to, or incorrectly reported as, significant in 2005 than in 1965. Modern statistical software and an increased pressure to publish may explain this pattern. The problem may be alleviated by reduced reliance on p values and increased reporting of confidence intervals and effect sizes.     

Influences of credibility of testimony and strength of statistical evidence on children’s and adolescents’ reasoning

According to dual-process models that include analytic and heuristic modes of processing, analytic processing is often expected to become more common with development. Consistent with this view, on reasoning problems, adolescents are more likely than children to select alternatives that are backed by statistical evidence. It is shown here that this pattern depends on the quality of the statistical evidence and the quality of the testimonial that is the typical alternative to statistical evidence. In Experiment 1, 9- and 13-year-olds (N = 64) were presented with scenarios in which solid statistical evidence was contrasted with casual or expert testimonial evidence. When testimony was casual, children relied on it but adolescents did not; when testimony was expert, both children and adolescents relied on it. In Experiment 2, 9- and 13-year-olds (N = 83) were presented with scenarios in which casual testimonial evidence was contrasted with weak or strong statistical evidence. When statistical evidence was weak, children and adolescents relied on both testimonial and statistical evidence; when statistical evidence was strong, most children and adolescents relied on it. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for dual-process accounts of cognitive development.     

Work happiness among teachers: A day reconstruction study on the role of self-concordance

Self-concordant work motivation arises from one's authentic choices, personal values, and interests. In the present study, we investigated whether self-concordant motivation may fluctuate from one work-related task to the next. On the basis of self-determination theory, we hypothesized that momentary self-concordance buffers the negative impact of momentary work demands on momentary happiness. We developed a modified version of the day reconstruction method to investigate self-concordance, work demands, and happiness during specific work-related tasks on a within-person and within-day level. In total, 132 teachers completed a daily diary on three consecutive work days as well as a background questionnaire. The daily diary resulted in 792 reported work activities and activity-related work demands, self-concordance, and happiness scores. Multilevel analysis showed that—for most work activities—state self-concordant motivation buffered the negative association of work demands with happiness. These findings add to the literature on motivation and well-being by showing that the levels of self-concordance and happiness experienced by employees vary significantly on a within-day level and show a predictable pattern. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of the findings to increase employees' well-being.     

Method of Knowledge and the Challenges of the Planetary Society: Edgar Morin's Pedagogical Proposal

Edgar Morin is one of the most important contemporary European philosophers. His name has recently also become well known on the American continent, especially in South America, where his works have given rise to several interesting cultural initiatives. The analysis of his pedagogical proposal can be a stimulating adventure for educators and teachers alike. Morin's proposal to link methodologically what is disjoined suggests re-establishing the connection between thought and action, in order to re-establish on rational and critical bases the ethical principles of solidarity and responsibility and enable us to face the challenges of our times.     

Human preferences are biased towards associative information

There is ample evidence that the brain generates predictions that help interpret sensory input. To build such predictions the brain capitalizes upon learned statistical regularities and associations (e.g., “A” is followed by “B”; “C” appears together with “D”). The centrality of predictions to mental activities gave rise to the hypothesis that associative information with predictive value is perceived as intrinsically valuable. Such value would ensure that this information is proactively searched for, thereby promoting certainty and stability in our environment. We therefore tested here whether, all else being equal, participants would prefer stimuli that contained more rather than less associative information. In Experiments 1 and 2 we used novel, meaningless visual shapes and showed that participants preferred associative shapes over shapes that had not been associated with other shapes during training. In Experiment 3 we used pictures of real-world objects and again demonstrated a preference for stimuli that elicit stronger associations. These results support our proposal that predictive information is affectively tagged, and enhance our understanding of the formation of everyday preferences.     

The uses of humor in life,neurosis and in psychotherapy: Part 1

Abstract

Joy and sadness, the comic and the tragic, making jokes and telling jokes, have been known in life, literature, the theater, and art since the dawn of civilization. Following in the footsteps of classical antiquity, Freud added to the philosophical analysis of humor the insights offered by the psychoanalytic method. The bridge was the cathartic method of treating neuroses, where discharge of affect was one of the foundations of technique, and the cathartic, or discharge, function of humor. Freud's analysis of humor, that “A joke … is the most social of all mental functions that aim at a yield of pleasure” introduces Freud's first explicit formulation of an interpersonal approach to the human situation in health and disorder.     

Defect formation in Nd2Fe14B grains caused by Zn diffusion

Defect formation in Nd₂Fe₁₄B grains, caused by a low-pressure-pack-sublimation Zn coating process, has been investigated. The results indicate that, in the Zn-affected region, low-angle boundaries decorated with precipitates form within the Nd2Fe14B grains. Zn, which is almost insoluble in Nd₂Fe₁₄     

A new type of defect on {1120} planes in ß-Si3N4 produced by neutron irradiation

Measurements of static permittivity, refractive index and density have been carried out to study possible H-bonded complexes in solutions of anisole diluted by benzene together with high-static-permittivity alcohols, i.e. cyclohexanol, n-butanol, tert-butanol, isopropyl alcohol and 1-hexanol. The experiments were performed at 303 K. Dipole moments of the mixtures are calculated from the experimental data and these are used to obtain dipolar increments. The concentration ratio of proton donor to proton acceptor is plotted against a parameter, Ω_B, which is determined from experimental data. From the plot, the dipole moment of the mixture and that of the component B are determined. The order of the complex can be obtained from the nature of the graph. The investigation shows that the interaction between the two components arises solely from a polarization effect.     

Many-body potential for nitrogen in α-iron

N atom is one of the most frequent foreign interstitial atoms in α-iron along with C atoms. The Fe–C potential has been well-developed and can reproduce many significant interactions of C with point defects present in α-iron. However, there exists no satisfactory Fe–N potential to describe the interactions of N with point defects. Here, we develop a many-body potential for N in α-iron. The potential parameters are determined by fitting to ab initio data, which includes energetics, configurations, and relaxations of Fe atoms close to N atom. This potential successfully describes the interactions of Fe–N across a wide range of defect environments. The potential employs the embedded atom method form and hence is appropriate for large-scale molecular dynamics simulation.     

Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin solution of cut-off frequency for horizontal shear (SH) waves in various inhomogeneous thin films

The Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin method is employed to study the cut-off frequencies of the horizontal shear waves in a freestanding functionally graded piezoelectric–piezomagnetic material film with the electrically and magnetically open boundary conditions. An analytical solution, which could be used in analyzing the problems of various functionally graded materials, is proven to have high precision by analytical analysis and a numerical example. The results reveal that the set of cut-off frequencies is a series of approximate arithmetic progressions. A theoretical foundation based on the relationship between the cut-off frequencies and the materials’ gradient property is established for nondestructive evaluation.