When congruence breeds preference: the influence of selective attention processes on evaluative conditioning

We investigated in two experiments whether selective attention processes modulate evaluative conditioning (EC). Based on the fact that the typical stimuli in an EC paradigm involve an affect-laden unconditioned stimulus (US) and a neutral conditioned stimulus (CS), we started from the assumption that learning might depend in part upon selective attention to the US. Attention to the US was manipulated by including a variant of the Eriksen flanker task in the EC paradigm. Similarly to the original Flanker paradigm, we implemented a target-distracter logic by introducing the CS as the task-relevant stimulus (i.e. the target) to which the participants had to respond and the US as a task-irrelevant distracter. Experiment 1 showed that CS–US congruence modulated EC if the CS had to be selected against the US. Specifically, EC was more pronounced for congruent CS–US pairs as compared to incongruent CS–US pairs. Experiment 2 disentangled CS–US congruence and CS–US compatibility and suggested that it is indeed CS–US stimulus congruence rather than CS–US response compatibility that modulates EC.     

Emotional influences on perception and working memory

Although there has been steady progress elucidating the influence of emotion on cognition, it remains unclear precisely when and why emotion impairs or facilitates cognition. The present study investigated the mechanisms involved in the influence of emotion on perception and working memory (WM), using modified 0-back and 2-back tasks, respectively. First, results showed that attentional focus modulated the impact of emotion on perception. Specifically, emotion facilitated perceptual task performance when it was relevant to the task, but it impaired performance when it was irrelevant to the task. The differential behavioural effect of emotion on perception as a function of attentional focus diminished under high WM load. Second, attentional focus did not directly modulate the impact of emotion on WM, but rather its influence depended on the dynamic relationship between internal representations. Specifically, WM performance was worse when the material already being held online and the new input were of matching emotions (e.g. both were negative), compared to when they were not. We propose that the competition between “bottom-up” and “top-down” processing for limited cognitive resources explains the nature of the influence of emotion on both perception and WM.     

Calibration of phase field parameters demonstrated on kinetics of a shrinking single grain

The phase field method is frequently employed to simulate evolution of rather complex microstructures. In order to accurately describe the real kinetics of a specific material system, the phase field parameters must be calibrated to standard thermodynamic quantities such as interface mobilities or interface energies. This letter presents a convenient method, based on thermodynamic modelling of shrinking of a single grain embedded in single crystal (matrix), how to calibrate the phase field parameters. It also shows, how the required thermodynamic quantities can be met by proper rescaling of a phase field simulation carried out for given phase field parameters.     

Context-specific adjustment of cognitive control: Transfer of adaptive control sets

Cognitive control protects processing of relevant information from interference by irrelevant information. The level of this processing selectivity can be flexibly adjusted to different control demands (e.g., frequency of conflict) associated with a certain context, leading to the formation of specific context–control associations. In the present study we investigated the robustness and transferability of the acquired context–control demands to new situations. In three experiments, we used a version of the context-specific proportion congruence (CSPC) paradigm, in which each context (e.g., location) is associated with a specific conflict frequency, determining high and low control demands. In a learning phase, associations between context and control demands were established. In a subsequent transfer block, stimulus–response mappings, whole task sets, or context–control demands changed. Results showed an impressive robustness of context–control associations, as context-specific adjustments of control from the learning phase were virtually unaffected by new stimuli and tasks in the transfer block. Only a change of the context–control demand eliminated the context-specific adjustment of control. These findings suggest that context–control associations that have proven to be adaptive in the past are continuously applied despite major changes in the task structure as long as the context–control associations remain the same.     

熵增原理对构建心理和谐的理论探讨

创建社会主义和谐社会是我国目前一项重大战略决策,而构建社会成员的心理和谐是实现其目标的基本要求和重要基础。系统阐述了熵概念、熵增原理及耗散结构理论,分析了心理系统作为一种耗散结构所应具备的必要条件;通过对心理系统进行熵分析,初步探讨了构建心理和谐的方法与途径,并在森田疗法的实际案例中进行剖析,为研究和谐心理提供了新的理论视角。     

自立人格与心身症状：特质-应激-症状相符中介模型的检验

自立人格是新近提出的一种新的心身症状的保护性人格因素。为了探索自立人格抵御心身症状的机制, 提出了特质-应激-症状相符中介模型。该模型涉及应激中介模型假设、特质-应激相符假设、特质-症状相符假设三个理论假设。使用青少年学生自立人格量表、青少年生活事件量表和症状自评量表3种问卷对674名有效被试进行了调查, 以检验该模型。结果发现：①应激调节模型不被支持, 自立人格特质是通过应激的中介作用来负向预测心身症状; ②人际自立对心身症状的负向预测能力明显大于个人自立, 人际自立对人际性和个人性症状均有独立的预测能力, 个人自立则对人际性症状没有独立的预测能力; ③个人自立对应激的预测能力大于人际自立, 个人自立对人际和个人应激均有独立的预测能力, 人际自立则对个人应激没有独立的预测能力; ④修正后的自立人格的特质-应激-症状相符中介模型能够获得支持。总之, 本研究的结果显示：人际自立主要通过人际应激的中介作用负向预测心身症状总分; 个人自立则通过应激(包括人际与个人应激)的中介作用负向预测个人性症状。     

不同分类水平自然类概念的实例效应

采用Heit和Barsalou的实验范式,以不同分类水平的中文语义自然类概念为实验材料验证实例效应。研究包括2个实验,被试为180名全日制在校大学生。实验1为无修饰词概念的典型性研究．结果表明人们不仅在抽象的水平上表征概念,也在具体的实例水平上表征概念。实验2用不同分类水平的自然类概念检验了在更广泛的概念范围内的实例效应,结果表明,不同分类水平的下位概念和下位概念实例在上位概念中的平均典型性大多显著相关,而且下位概念的实例在不同分类水平上位概念中（如：动物、小动物）的变化趋势和下位概念在不同分类水平上位概念中的变化趋势一致。实验1和实验2的结果均支持了Heit和Barsalou提出的实例效应。     

A behavior-analytic account of cognitive bias in clinical populations

Cognitive bias refers to a well-established finding that individuals who suffer from certain clinical problems (e.g., depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, etc.) selectively attend to, remember, and interpret events relevant to their condition. Although a body of literature exists that has tried to examine this phenomenon, most existing explanations are mentalistic and mediational. In this paper we offer a behavior-analytic account of cognitive bias, its development, and how it may contribute to maintenance of clinical problems. This account is based on establishing operations or motivating events, verbal processes, and relational responding. Clinical and future research implications are also discussed.     

个体化降压的临床意义

高血压是由多种病因和发病机制引起的一种慢性疾病,可以导致多种靶器官功能损害,并最终导致严重的心、脑血管并发症,危及人类的健康和生命。如何做到有效的预防和治疗是目前面,临的问题。本文分析了高血压控制的现状,以矛盾的特殊性原理为指导,从高血压的病因和发病机制、临床特点以及药物对个体的敏感性等诸多方面出发,阐述了高血压患者个体差异性。高血压患者个体差异性决定每一个个体综合控制策略的不同,运用“具体问题具体分析”的方法,为每一个个体制定个体化的血压控制方案,以期达到理想的高血压整体控制水平。     

Mental Institutions

We propose to extend Clark and Chalmer’s concept of the extended mind to consider the possibility that social institutions (e.g., legal systems, museums) may operate in ways similar to the hand-held conveniences (notebooks, calculators) that are often used as examples of extended mind. The inspiration for this suggestion can be found in the writings of Hegel on “objective spirit” which involves the mind in a constant process of externalizing and internalizing. For Hegel, social institutions are pieces of the mind, externalized in their specific time and place. These institutions are the products of shared mental processes. We then use these institutions instrumentally to do further cognitive work, for example, to solve problems or to control behavior.