On the saliency of negative stimuli: Evidence from attentional blink1

Abstract: When people are asked to detect two targets from a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) stream, impairment of recognition of the second target (T2) can be observed if the T2 is presented several hundred milliseconds later than the first target (T1). This phenomenon is known as attentional blink, and is considered to reflect some temporal characteristic of the attentional process. The aim of the present study was to use the attentional blink paradigm to examine whether the affective meaning of the stimuli could affect the magnitude of attentional blink. In Experiment 1, the valence of the T2 (neutral, positive, and negative) was manipulated. Significant T2 detection deficit was observed with neutral and positive T2 but not with negative T2. Experiment 2 demonstrated that non‐significant attentional blink in negative T2 in Experiment 1 could be attributed to the negative affective meaning of T2. Results are discussed in terms of the high saliency of negative information.     

A longitudinal model of executive function development from birth through adolescence in children born very or extremely preterm

Executive function deficits are often reported as a specific weakness in preterm children. Yet, executive function development is still not fully understood. In a prospective longitudinal study, 115 preterm born children, ≤31 weeks of gestation, were recruited at birth and subject to neuropsychological assessments at ages 5.5 and 18 years. By applying Miyake and colleagues’ integrative framework of executive function to our data, two core components of executive function, working memory and cognitive flexibility, were identified through confirmatory factor analysis. Developmental stability was investigated in a serial multiple mediator structural equation model. Biological, medical, and social factors as well as mental development at 10 months were entered as predictors. Both components of executive function were highly stable from 5.5 to 18 years. Gestational age, intrauterine growth, lack of perinatal medical complications, and female sex were positively related to mental development at 10 months, which together with parental education influenced both core executive functions at 5.5 years. Working memory at 5.5 years mediated outcome in working memory at 18 years. In addition to the mediation of cognitive flexibility at 5.5 years, perinatal medical complications and restricted intrauterine growth had a continued direct negative impact on cognitive flexibility at 18 years. The application of a theoretical framework added to our understanding of executive function development in preterm born children. The study supports early identification of executive deficits among children born preterm, as deficits are unlikely to diminish with maturation.     

Mere presence of distractors: Another determining factor for the attentional blink1

Abstract: When two visual targets are presented in rapid succession, perception of the second target is deteriorated if the temporal lag between the two targets is short (0–300 ms). This ‘attentional blink’ (AB) phenomenon has been believed to occur only when the second target is followed by a backward mask or when there is a task switching between two targets. The present study revealed another determining factor for the occurrence of the AB, the presence or absence of a distractor stream. Five experiments examined the effect of possible confounding factors in the extant literature and suggested that the mere presence of a distractor stream affects the processing of targets even when the observers tried to ignore them, resulting in a processing delay. This effect is discussed in a model of AB deficit in terms of decay of the second target's representation.     

The effect of observer's set on the processing of temporally distributed items1,2

Abstract: Perception of the second of two rapidly presented targets is impaired when the temporal lag between them is short (attentional blink, AB). Previous studies showed two types of AB functions. One is that the performance for the second target has been found to be most impaired at the shortest lag (Lag 1), that is, when the second target appeared directly after the ?rst target. The other is that the performance was not impaired at Lag 1 (Lag 1 sparing). The present study examined whether the task set of observers determines the occurrence of Lag 1 sparing. The experiment revealed that Lag 1 sparing occurred only when the observers were informed of the relationships of target locations. The present results extend the explanation of Lag 1 sparing by attentional gating ( Visser, Zuvic, Bischof, & Di Lollo, 1999 b) and suggest that this gating system is not stimulus‐driven but subject to goal‐directed control.     

大学生情绪复杂性对情绪信息注意偏向的影响

为考察大学生情绪复杂性对情绪信息注意偏向的影响,通过情绪体验范围和区分性量表(RDEES)筛选出高低情绪复杂性被试各30名,采用2(情绪复杂性:高、低)×3(效价:正性、中性和负性)×4(呈现条件:0/300/600/900ms)的三因素混合设计要求被试完成视觉搜索任务。结果显示:(1)高、低情绪复杂性组在情绪条件(正性、负性)下的正确率显著低于中性图片、反应时显著高于中性图片,均表现出对情绪图片的注意偏向;(2)高分组在正性图片0ms呈现的条件下的正确率显著高于低分组,在负性图片300ms和900ms呈现和正性图片900ms呈现条件下的反应时显著低于低分组。     

赌博障碍的认知功能缺陷及神经基础

赌博障碍是指持续且反复的赌博行为,给个人、家庭和社会都带来了严重后果,近年来受到越来越多研究者的关注。本研究总结了赌博障碍的认知功能缺陷及其神经基础,主要集中在如下四个方面：①认知扭曲、②奖赏和惩罚敏感性、③注意偏向和④决策。未来研究应多从认知神经科学角度深入探究赌博障碍的发生机制和发展过程,关注大脑结构变化及功能网络改变,并将其整合到一个统一的神经生物机制框架中,找到更加有效的干预和治疗手段。     

情绪启动对低自尊个体注意偏向的影响

研究通过两个实验来探讨情绪启动对低自尊个体注意偏向的影响。实验一采用点探测实验范式考察高、低自尊个体的注意偏向特点。实验二将重复启动范式和点探测实验范式相结合,进一步探讨情绪启动如何影响低自尊水平个体注意偏向。结果表明：低自尊个体对负性信息存在注意偏向;情绪启动对低自尊个体注意偏向有显著的影响。正性情绪启动对低自尊个体负性注意偏向有显著的调节作用,负性情绪启动加重了低自尊个体的负性注意偏向。     

运算动量效应的理论解释及其发展性预测因素

了解运算偏差的形成与发展对探索算数运算系统的内在机制具有重要意义,早期的算数运算能力是儿童理解和进行复杂数学运算的基础。运算动量偏差是指个体在进行基本数学运算时倾向于高估加法运算结果而低估减法运算结果的一种运算偏差,主要包括三种理论解释,即注意转移假说、启发式解释和压缩解释。鉴于运算动量效应在成年群体中相对稳定却在不同发展阶段儿童中存在不一致的证据,数学能力的提高与空间注意的成熟可结合不同的理论解释来阐明儿童发展过程中运算动量效应的变化趋势。未来可以进一步整合多种研究任务以揭示运算动量效应的发展轨迹,考察数量表征系统与运算动量效应间的关联,探究运算动量效应在不同运算符号中的稳定性,探讨不同因素共同作用对运算动量效应的影响,并设计有关数学能力的干预措施以减少运算动量效应这一运算偏差。     

Attentional bias toward waiting time information among individuals with high and low trait self-control when making intertemporal choices

ABSTRACT

The present study aimed to explore whether the modulation effects of attentional biases toward time information representing immediate rewards and delayed rewards differ between individuals with high and low trait self-control. Forty participants with high trait self-control and 40 with low trait self-control were selected based on their responses to the Chinese version of the self-control scale, and they were asked to complete an intertemporal choice task and dot probe task first and then a cue-target task a week later. The results showed that the participants with low trait self-control were more likely to choose immediate rewards than participants with high trait self-control. Furthermore, facilitated attention and difficulty in attention disengagement toward present-related words were found among participants with low trait self-control with higher frequency than among those with high trait self-control. Finally, facilitated attention toward present-related words moderated the indifference points among the participants with low trait self-control.     

The competitive reaction time task: The development and scientific utility of a flexible laboratory aggression paradigm

Laboratory measures play an important role in the study of aggression because they allow researchers to make causal inferences. However, these measures have also been criticized. In particular, the competitive reaction time task (CRTT) has been criticized for allowing aggression to be operationalized in multiple ways, leaving it susceptible to “p-hacking.” This article describes the development of the CRTT and the ways in which its paradigm flexibility and analytic flexibility allows it to test a wide range of hypotheses and research questions. This flexibility gives the CRTT significant scientific utility, but as with any research paradigm, comes with the obligation that it has to be used with integrity. Although safeguards exist and there is little evidence of misuse, study preregistration can increase confidence in CRTT findings. The importance of findings such as those of Hyatt et al. (in press), which provide further evidence for the validity of the CRTT, are also noted.