How great is great ape foresight?

Osvath and Osvath (Anim Cogn 11: 661–674, 2008) report innovative studies with two chimpanzees and one orangutan that suggest some capacity to select and keep a tool for use about an hour later. This is a welcome contribution to a small, but rapidly growing, field. Here we point out some of the weaknesses in the current data and caution the interpretation the authors advance. It is not clear to what extent the apes really engaged in any foresight in these studies. This is an invited response to Osvath and Osvath (2008).     

权力的社会认知研究述评

作为人类古老现象的权力,却是社会心理学的一个崭新课题。近年来,社会心理学家从社会认知的视角对权力心理进行了很多具有启发性的研究。理论和实证研究表明,权力的存在或激发广泛地影响了个体有意和无意的社会认知、情绪和社会行为,这些心理和行为既包含消极的成分,也包含中性和积极的成分。文章指出了权力心理学具有“强调社会认知、基础认知甚至神经机制”等特点和趋势。     

BDNF基因与抑郁

抑郁的发生发展具有重要的遗传基础。随着细胞分子生物学实验方法以及分子遗传技术的进步, 与神经可塑性有关的BDNF基因作为抑郁遗传学研究的候选基因日益受到关注。概观而言, 已有相关研究主要探查了BDNF基因与抑郁的直接关联, BDNF基因与其他基因对抑郁的交互作用, 以及环境因素对BDNF基因与抑郁关系的调节作用。然而, 研究结论尚存在分歧甚至相互矛盾。其原因包括研究设计、环境测量指标、抑郁测量方法与研究对象种族背景等方面的差异。未来研究可通过采用多基因–环境设计, 考察被试种族、性别和年龄的调节作用, 以及探究潜在的作用机制等进一步推进和深化有关BDNF基因与抑郁关系的研究。     

汉语确定性无界否定句模拟加工的时间进程

以往关于否定句理解的心理模拟过程是一步完成的还是两步完成的, 结果并不一致, 这与各个研究使用的实验材料类型有关。本研究以汉语确定性无界否定句为研究对象, 采用句-图匹配范式和2(句子类型：汉语确定性无界肯定句和汉语确定性无界否定句) × 2 (图片描绘事物状态与句子描述的事物状态的匹配类型：匹配与不匹配)被试内实验设计, 以对图片判断的反应时和正确率为指标, 探讨其理解的早期(250 ms)、中期(750 ms)和晚期(1500 ms)的心理模拟过程。研究结果表明：确定性无界否定句理解的心理模拟是分两步进行的, 首先模拟的是否定句的被否定状态, 随着加工时间的推进, 完成了对确定性无界否定句的第二步模拟即对实际状态的模拟。但是, 比其他类型否定句的模拟过程所用的时间要短, 即在阅读理解的中期就完成了心理模拟。     

注意资源、学习方式与年龄因素对协作抑制的影响

本研究在前人研究的基础上,试图探讨不同编码因素对协作抑制效应的制约作用,从协作抑制角度为挖掘集体记忆的作用机制提供证据。实验1结果发现,集中注意条件下,出现协作抑制;分配注意条件下,协作抑制消失。说明学习时注意资源的投入程度,对协作抑制有影响。实验2结果发现不同的学习方式对协作抑制的影响在不同年龄被试身上表现不同。本研究将视角聚焦于编码因素,研究结果证实,协作抑制受到不同编码因素的制约,此外,本结果亦为协作抑制的提取策略破坏假说提供了新的证据。     

Frustration and successful vs. Unsuccessful aggression: A test of Berkowitz' completion hypothesis

Author experiment using a modified version of the Buss' aggression paradigm tested Berkowitz' completion hypothesis, which states unsuccessful aggressive attempts at the frustrator serve as further frustration and intensify aggression. Testing was done by varying the number of successful aggressive attempts for different experimental groups. The experiment indicated first a positive relationship between subjective levels of frustration and aggression, which supports a general frustration-aggression hypothesis, and second that unsuccessful aggressive attempts lead to increased aggression in terms of shock intensity. This was interpreted as supportive of Berkowitz' completion hypothesis, although alternative interpretations in terms of cognitive and behavioral strategies cannot be excluded.     

不同情感强度正性生活事件的情感和行为反应:多模型的检验和整合

3个实验探讨情感强度不同正性生活事件对个体情感和行为反应的影响。发现:(1)面对复合正性生活事件(1高正+1低正),个体会感觉比面对1个单独的高正性情感强度事件的正性感受更低,出现平均效应,2个正性生活事件不如1个好;进一步研究发现:(2)当复合正性生活事件为异类时,出现平均效应;当事件为同类时,出现累加效应;(3)当复合正性生活事件有明显的时间特点时,个体加工符合峰-终定律的解释。     

水平空间与情绪效价联结效应的产生机制

采用词汇效价判断任务,考察水平空间与情绪效价联合效应的产生机制。实验1在被试双手正常放置条件下考察了词汇效价与水平空间联结效应的存在;实验2则要求被试双手交叉放置,以考察当反应手和反应键的空间信息冲突时水平空间与情感效价的关联现象;实验3则进一步考排除反应手的参与,以考察口头报告的反应方式是否对两者的联结效应产生影响。结果表明,不同反应方式下均存在空间情感效价的联结,且此联结更多是反应选择极性编码的结果。     

Communicative functions of directional verbal probabilities: Speaker’s choice,listener’s inference,and reference points

Verbal probabilities have directional communicative functions, and most can be categorized as positive (e.g., “it is likely”) or negative (e.g., “it is doubtful”). We examined the communicative functions of verbal probabilities based on the reference point hypothesis According to this hypothesis, listeners are sensitive to and can infer a speaker’s reference points based on the speaker’s selected directionality. In four experiments (two of which examined speakers’ choice of directionality and two of which examined listeners’ inferences about a speaker’s reference point), we found that listeners could make inferences about speakers’ reference points based on the stated directionality of verbal probability. Thus, the directionality of verbal probabilities serves the communicative function of conveying information about a speaker’s reference point.