Vigilant Self‐regulation and Costly Punishment in Public Goods Situations

Applying regulatory focus theory to the context of social dilemma situations, the present research demonstrates that individual differences in vigilant, prevention‐focused self‐regulation predict the tendency to invest private resources to punish uncooperative interaction partners (costly punishment), a behaviour that typically has strong positive effects on the collective level of cooperation. Analyses further support the distinctiveness of the vigilance system proposed in regulatory focus theory (prevention focus) in comparison with general defensive inhibitory tendencies (measured with Carver and White's Behavioral Inhibition System scale). Results document that individual differences in prevention‐focused self‐regulation but not differences in general defensive inhibitory tendencies are positively related to costly punishment. In sum, the findings indicate that vigilant, prevention‐focused self‐regulation plays a crucial role in the context of sanctions that enforce cooperation. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Career Plateauing and Institutional/Occupational Intention for Taiwanese Career Officers

This study examines regulatory focus as a mediator between the perception of reaching a career plateau and institutional/occupational (I/O) intention in the Taiwanese military. Empirical data were collected from 632 career officers receiving full-time training at the National Defense University. For the identification of military value, we found that Taiwanese career officers’ occupational intentions were higher than their institutional intentions. Additionally, the results indicate that prevention focus completely mediated occupational intention and that promotion focus partially mediating institutional intention. Practical management and research implications are discussed and a direction for future research is suggested.     

消费行为领域中的调节定向

调节定向理论(Higgins,1997)超越传统享乐主义动机,区分出“促进”和“预防”两种调节性动机系统,近年已成为消费行为领域的研究热点之一.调节定向影响着消费者购物决策整个过程,受被试因素(文化背景、自我建构)、刺激因素(信息框架、解释水平、非言语线索、商品属性)和情境因素(决策时间距离、任务操纵)的影响,通过直接作用、调节关联效应和调节匹配效应三种途径决定信息的说服效果,并且受到精细加工可能性的调节.管理者应特别注意具体营销情境中的调节定向,合理利用调节匹配效应.未来研究应关注调节投入理论、调节定向的前因变量以及同网络购物情境相结合,并探索如何削弱预防定向对营销的不利影响.     

Identification and Testing of Modes in Beliefs

Characterizing diversity in beliefs is of paramount importance in empirical research on human behavior. In game theory, the focus is on the hypothesis formation. We present a data set with ideal properties for characterizing such diversity. The data consist of hypotheses on the empirical distribution of opponent choices. Using nonparametric techniques, we identify modes in the data corresponding to subpopulations of behavioral types and find the statistical significance of these modes in the underlying population distribution.     

试论《周易》的原初意义与现代意义

文章首先阐述了考察《周易》价值的方法,然后运用这一方法全面考察了《周易》的原初意义与现代意义。作者认为,《周易》的产生标志着中华民族抽象思维能力的关键性跃迁;《周易》的内容折射着当时的自然、社会和人文状况,记载着古代先民对于当时复杂的自然、社会和人生问题的特别关注与初步思考;《周易》的人生智慧和行为原则,反映着趋利避害和预见未来的价值取向;《周易》的思维方式汇集着当时的思维工具和认识方法,表达着最初的终极关怀和哲学意识。而《周易》所提供的始源性材料,有助于我们从根源性上来把握中华文化及其当代特点;易学史的演变与发展则为我们更好地把握历史文化发展进程提供了重要的思想资料;《周易》所表达的人生智慧和思维方式对于当今人类把握现实与面向未来也具有极为重要的启示和借鉴意义。     

Emotions help memory for faces: Role of whole and parts

The role of holistic or parts-based processing in face identification has been explored mostly with neutral faces. In the current study, we investigated the nature of processing (holistic vs. parts) in recognition memory for faces with emotional expressions. There were two phases in this experiment: learning phase and test phase. In the learning phase participants learned face–name associations of happy, neutral, and sad faces. The test phase consisted of a two-choice recognition test (whole face, eyes, or mouth) given either immediately or after a 24-hour delay. Results indicate that emotional faces were remembered better than neutral faces and performance was better with whole faces as compared to isolated parts. The performance in immediate and delayed recognition interacted with emotional information. Sad eyes and happy mouth were remembered better in the delayed recognition condition. These results suggest that in addition to holistic processing, specific parts–emotion combinations play a critical role in delayed recognition memory.     

Does retrieval intentionality really matter? Similarities and differences between involuntary memories and directly and generatively retrieved voluntary memories

Theories of autobiographical memory distinguish between involuntary and voluntary retrieval as a consequence of conscious intention (i.e., wanting to remember). Another distinction can be made between direct and generative retrieval, which reflects the effort involved (i.e., trying to remember). However, it is unclear how intention and effort interacts. For example, involuntary memories and directly retrieved memories have been used interchangeably in the literature to refer to the same phenomenon of effortless, non‐strategic retrieval. More recent theoretical advances suggest that they are separate types of retrieval, one unintentional (involuntary), another intentional and effortless (direct voluntary retrieval), and a third intentional and effortful (generative voluntary retrieval). Whether this also entails differing phenomenological characteristics, such as vividness, rehearsal, or emotional valence, has not been previously investigated. In the current study, participants reported memories in an experimental paradigm designed to elicit voluntary and involuntary memories and rated them on a number of characteristics. If intention affects the retrieval process, then we should expect differences between the characteristics of involuntary and directly retrieved memories. The results imply that retrieval intention seems to differentiate how a memory appears in a person's mind. Furthermore, we argue that these differences in part could result from differences in encoding and consolidation.     

Chinese are more loss averse than British

This research investigates how culture might influence loss aversion. Chinese were expected to be more loss averse than British because of cultural differences in regulatory focus. Study 1 reveals that compared with British participants, Chinese participants were less likely to give up gifts they had received in exchange for new gifts. In Study 2, Chinese and British participants imagined buying a computer which either had a high specification and a high price tag (high reference), or a basic specification and a low price tag (low reference). Participants were informed that the (reference) computer was unavailable, and they had to choose between two available computers, which were both cheaper and less powerful than the high reference computer, and more expensive and more powerful than the low reference computer. The results reveal that the difference in price tag between the two available computers had a bigger impact on Chinese buying decisions than on British buying decisions when it was viewed as a loss. Furthermore, both promotion focus and prevention focus mediated the influence of culture on buying decisions in the low reference condition. No cross‐cultural difference was found in the high reference condition.     

Cultural transmission through infant signs: Objects and actions in U.S. and Taiwan

Infant signs are intentionally taught/learned symbolic gestures which can be used to represent objects, actions, requests, and mental state. Through infant signs, parents and infants begin to communicate specific concepts earlier than children’s first spoken language. This study examines whether cultural differences in language are reflected in children’s and parents’ use of infant signs. Parents speaking East Asian languages with their children utilize verbs more often than do English-speaking mothers; and compared to their English-learning peers, Chinese children are more likely to learn verbs as they first acquire spoken words. By comparing parents’ and infants’ use of infant signs in the U.S. and Taiwan, we investigate cultural differences of noun/object versus verb/action bias before children’s first language. Parents reported their own and their children's use of first infant signs retrospectively. Results show that cultural differences in parents’ and children’s infant sign use were consistent with research on early words, reflecting cultural differences in communication functions (referential versus regulatory) and child-rearing goals (independent versus interdependent). The current study provides evidence that intergenerational transmission of culture through symbols begins prior to oral language.     

A self-regulatory approach to understanding boredom proneness

We investigated the relationship between self-regulation and two types of boredom proneness (perceived lack of internal stimulation, perceived lack of external stimulation) using a variety of measures of self-regulation. These included a general measure of self-control, measures of both regulatory focus (i.e., promotion or a sensitivity to gains/non-gains vs. prevention or a sensitivity to losses/non-losses) and regulatory mode (i.e., assessment or the tendency to compare means and goals vs. locomotion or the tendency to initiate and maintain commitment to action), and measures of cognitive flexibility (i.e., a perceived sense of control and the tendency to seek alternative solutions). Results identified a unique set of factors related to each boredom proneness component. Trait self-control and prevention focus were associated with lower boredom propensity due to a lack of external stimulation. Locomotion and the tendency to seek alternatives were associated with lower boredom propensity due to a lack of internal stimulation. These findings suggest that effective goal pursuit is associated with reduced likelihood of experiencing boredom.