The effect of methylphenidate on three forms of response inhibition in boys with AD/HD

The current study was aimed at (a) investigating the effect of three doses methylphenidate (MPH) and placebo on inhibition of a prepotent response, inhibition of an ongoing response, and interference control in Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD), and (b) studying dose-response relations for the three forms of response inhibition. To meet these aims, the following tasks were selected: two versions of the Stop Paradigm for inhibition of a prepotent response, a Circle Tracing Task and a recently developed Follow Task for inhibition of an ongoing response, and the Stroop Color-Word Test and an Eriksen Flanker Task for interference control. These tasks were administered to 23 boys with AD/HD during four treatment conditions: 5 mg MPH, 10 mg MPH, 20 mg MPH, and placebo. A pseudorandomized, multiple-blind, placebo-controlled, within-subject design was used. As hypothesized, inhibitory control in children with AD/HD improved under MPH compared to placebo. However, this effect was only significant for inhibition of a prepotent response and inhibition of an ongoing response (as measured by the Follow Task), but not for interference control. The relation between treatment condition and response was linear. However, this linear relation was due to improved inhibitory control under MPH compared to placebo, because no effects of MPH dose were observed for any of the response inhibition measures.     

荣格与《易经》

荣格在《易经》的影响下提出了具有重大理论价值的"同时性原理",这是一种与因果律完全不同的普遍性联系。本文介绍了荣格的这一原理,依据《易传》的相关论述对其作了深入剖析,并进一步用"同气相求"同类相动"的道理,对同时性现象,包括占筮过程作了新的解释。文章认为,荣格在肯定《易经》科学价值的同时,正确地指出了《易经》所代表的中国科学与西方科学在思维方式和认识方法上的根本区别。     

Response-restriction analysis: I. Assessment of activity preferences

We used procedures based on response-restriction (RR) analysis to assess vocational and leisure activity preferences for 3 adults with developmental disabilities. To increase the efficiency of the analysis relative to that reported in previous research, we used criteria that allowed activities to be restricted at the earliest point at which a preference could be determined. Results obtained across two consecutive RR assessments showed some variability in overall preference rankings but a high degree of consistency for highly ranked items. Finally, we compared results of the RR assessment with those of an extended free-operant assessment and found that the RR assessment yielded (a) more differentiated patterns of preference and (b) more complete information about engagement with all of the target activities.     

A preliminary analysis of the effects of response cards on student performance and participation in an upper division university course

We evaluated the effects of response cards on student quiz scores and participation in an upper division undergraduate course at a small, private university. Results showed that response cards increased both quiz scores and student participation. In addition, a measure of the social validity of the response-card procedure suggested that students approved of the use of the cards.     

Effects of task difficulty and type of contingency on students' allocation of responding to math worksheets

This study investigated students' allocation of responding as a function of task difficulty and type of reinforcement contingency (i.e., accuracy based or time based). Four regular education fourth-grade students were presented with two identical stacks of easy and then difficult math worksheets using a reversal design. Regardless of condition, completing problems from each stack of worksheets was reinforced according to a different contingency; one required correct completion of math problems (accuracy based) and one required on-task behavior (time based). Results suggested that 3 of the 4 students preferred the accuracy-based contingency when given easy material and the time-based contingency when given difficult material. One student allocated more responding to the accuracy-based contingency when given easy problems but did not show a clear preference for either contingency with difficult problems. The implications of these findings for designing reinforcement-based programs for tasks of varying difficulty are discussed.     

The placebo response complex

Placebo effects contribute to beneficial therapeutic responses and are common in anxiety and depressive disorders. It is posited that placebo effects are yielded by autonomous feeling-toned complexes capable of re-establishing background self-states of well-being. The relationship between the placebo response complex and modern neurobiological models of self is explored. The psychological roots of the placebo response complex in implicit memories of organized attachment between child and early caretakers and in Sandler's conception of the benign superego are examined. The relationships between the negative placebo (nocebo) response complex, Freud's negative therapeutic reaction, and Fordham's defence of the self are explored. Finally, it is suggested that approaches fundamental to the analytic encounter, e.g., mirroring, affectual exchanges, attunement, and containment are likely to optimize the salutary effects of both psychological and somatic therapeutic interventions.     

Analysis of response class hierarchies with attention-maintained problem behaviors

We replicated a method for clarifying inconclusive functional analysis outcomes via an extinction analysis of separate topographies of problem behavior with 2 participants. Results suggested that both mild and severe problem behaviors belonged to the same response class. An analysis of response latency was consistent with a response class hierarchy hypothesis, indicating that mild problem behavior nearly always occurred prior to severe topographies of problem behavior.     

Sensitivity to relative reinforcer rate in concurrent schedules: independence from relative and absolute reinforcer duration

Twelve pigeons responded on two keys under concurrent variable-interval (VI) schedules. Over several series of conditions, relative and absolute magnitudes of reinforcement were varied. Within each series, relative rate of reinforcement was varied and sensitivity of behavior ratios to reinforcer-rate ratios was assessed. When responding at both alternatives was maintained by equal-sized small reinforcers, sensitivity to variation in reinforcer-rate ratios was the same as when large reinforcers were used. This result was observed when the overall rate of reinforcement was constant over conditions, and also in another series of concurrent schedules in which one schedule was kept constant at VI ached 120 s. Similarly, reinforcer magnitude did not affect the rate at which response allocation approached asymptote within a condition. When reinforcer magnitudes differred between the two responses and reinforcer-rate ratios were varied, sensitivity of behavior allocation was unaffected although response bias favored the schedule that arranged the larger reinforcers. Analysis of absolute response rates ratio sensitivity to reinforcement occurrred on the two keys showed that this invariance of response despite changes in reinforcement interaction that were observed in absolute response rates on the constant VI 120-s schedule. Response rate on the constant VI 120-s schedule was inversely related to reinforcer rate on the varied key and the strength of this relation depended on the relative magnitude of reinforcers arranged on varied key. Independence of sensitivity to reinforcer-rate ratios from relative and absolute reinforcer magnitude is consistent with the relativity and independence assumtions of the matching law.     

高校辅导员胜任力结构模型研究

通过对38位高校辅导员进行行为事件访谈以及开放式问卷调查,初步筛选出47项高校辅导员胜任力特征项目,再以此为依据编制成高校辅导员胜任力评价问卷,对413位高校辅导员进行调查,经过探索性因素分析和验证性因素分析,构建出高校辅导员胜任力结构模型。结果显示,高校辅导员的胜任力结构主要包括工作能力、个性魅力、引导学生、职业态度、个人特质以及专业素养6个维度。该结构模型信效度良好,可以为高校辅导员选拔与培训等提供科学依据。     

How others respond to non‐suicidal self‐injury disclosure: A systematic review

Non‐suicidal self‐injury (NSSI) is an increasing health concern. Despite the potential benefits of disclosing the behaviour, many decide not to do so because of the fear of negative social reactions. In this review, we examined the existing research on reported and perceived reactions to NSSI disclosure with the aim of identifying how an individual who discloses their NSSI perceives others' responses to this disclosure, with the ultimate goal of understanding how these reactions may impact those who disclose their NSSI. Among the initial 275 studies, 10 fit the inclusion criteria. Three studies reported perceived responses by individuals who had disclosed their NSSI; six studies examined self‐reported responses by others; one study focused on disclosures online. Individuals who disclosed their NSSI often received negative responses, which caused them to withdraw from seeking further help. On the other hand, recipients' reactions to NSSI disclosure varied based on NSSI characteristics such as its perceived cause and/or underlying motivation. Results highlight the importance of providing support rather than searching for the underlying drives of NSSI.