情绪面孔搜索不对称性：情绪观与知觉观的争议

情绪面孔搜索不对称性是指当负性情绪面孔作为目标, 正性情绪面孔作为分心物时, 其搜索速度比正性情绪面孔作为目标时(负性情绪面孔作为分心物)更快。对于这一现象的解释存在争议, 研究者主要从不同情绪面孔在情绪因素和知觉因素两个方面的差异进行解释。来自行为研究和认知神经科学的证据对情绪面孔搜索不对称性效应的解释主要有威胁性刺激捕获假设和情绪摆脱假设的情绪观, 以及嘴部差异说、闭合结构说、知觉组群说以及其他面部特征假设的知觉观。经过对比评价两类观点的理论异同和实验证据认为未来的研究可以整合情绪因素和知觉因素来解释该效应。     

左侧额下回在句子语义整合加工中的作用

语义整合帮助人们在阅读理解中将小信息块整合成一个完整、连贯的句子意义表达, 是阅读理解中非常重要的认知过程。通过对比40多篇句子加工相关的脑机制研究, 发现左侧额下回在fMRI研究中是参与语义整合加工激活概率最高的区域, 而颞叶及后部是MEG研究中激活概率最高的区域。另外, 左侧额下回是如何参与语义整合、它在内隐和外显语义整合中的机制是否相同、以及这种整合加工与一般的控制性加工、词汇启动的关系都是研究者广泛关注的问题。本文对上述问题进行了详细的综述和讨论。     

内隐与外显记忆的编码与提取非对称性关系

实验采用“学习-测验”范式, 考察在编码或提取中分别附加的干扰任务对内隐测验或外显测验中获得的ERP新旧效应产生的影响。结果表明, 在内隐测验中, 编码干扰对随后测验中的ERP新旧效应没有产生影响, 而提取干扰却改变了300~500ms新旧效应的脑区位置, 破坏了500~700ms新旧效应; 与之相反, 在外显测验中, 编码干扰破坏了500~700ms新旧效应, 而提取干扰对这一效应没有产生影响, 即编码与提取干扰对内隐或外显测验中的ERP新旧效应都产生了非对称性的影响, 但又存在着差异, 从而为两种记忆在编码与提取加工的关系上存在的分离现象提供了神经生理方面的证据。     

Sad, thus true: Negativity bias in judgments of truth

An effect observable across many different domains is that negative instances tend to be more influential than comparably positive ones. This phenomenon has been termed the negativity bias. In the current work, it was investigated whether this effect pertains to judgments of truth. That is, it was hypothesized that information valence and perceived validity should be associated such that more negative information is deemed more true. This claim was derived from the findings that negative instances tend to demand more attentional resources and that more elaborate processing can render messages more persuasive. In three experiments, manipulating information valence through framing - and assessing judgments of truth - the hypothesized negativity bias was corroborated. Potential explanations and implications for further research are discussed.     

A choice reaction time index of callosal anatomical homotopy

Tachistoscopically presented bilateral stimulus pairs not parallel to the meridian produced significantly longer RTs on a task requiring discrimination of shapes (Go/no-Go) than pairs emplaced symmetrically on each side of the meridian in Desjardins and Braun [Desjardins, S., & Braun, C. M. J. (2006). Homotopy and heterotopy and the bilateral field advantage in the Dimond paradigm. Acta Psychologica, 121,  125–136]. This was explained by the fact that there are more homotopic than heterotopic fibers in the corpus callosum. However: (1) different parts of the visual field were not equiprobably stimulated, possibly causing subtle biases, (2) the predicted cost of vertical asymmetry was tested only with bilateral stimuli, and (3) interstimulus distance was at the outer limit of callosal midline fusion (10.6°). Here, a tachistoscopic experiment with 24 normal participants replicated the between-field vertical symmetry advantage [Desjardins, S., & Braun, C. M. J. (2006). Homotopy and heterotopy and the bilateral field advantage in the Dimond paradigm. Acta Psychologica, 121, 125–136.], but without irrelevant stimulation conditions and with more proximal stimuli. In addition, a significant specific cost of vertical asymmetry of 7 ms was found for between-field integration over within-field integration. As far as we know, this is the first demonstration of an effect of callosal anatomical homotopy with reaction time.     

The Selfish Gender,or the Reproduction of Gender Asymmetry in Gender Studies

Gender discrimination can be overt anddeliberate. It can be covert and indeliberate.In the latter case it is called `asymmetry'.The gender studies community aims to reveal andeliminate any forms of gender asymmetry.However, insufficient methodological andtheoretical reflection implies the reproductionof gender asymmetry throughout genderstudies.     

额叶在启动效应中的作用机制：对额叶损伤病人颜色命名和词命名任务的分析

以额叶损伤病人为被试,探讨在知觉型联想启动和知觉启动中,额叶的作用及其内在机制。实验任务包括颜色命名和词命名任务,以及相应的再认任务。结果表明,额叶损伤病人在颜色命名和词命名任务中,对旧词和重组颜色词的命名时间都没有明显差别,联想启动和颜色启动效应受损,但轻度记忆损伤病人与正常对照组之间的再认成绩相似。相关分析发现联想启动和颜色启动与额叶的多项功能有中度相关。这表明,额叶参与了知觉型联想启动效应和知觉启动,并且与其抑制和注意等执行功能有关。     

Dual-ranking act-consequentialism

Dual-ranking act-consequentialism (DRAC) is a rather peculiar version of act-consequentialism. Unlike more traditional forms of act-consequentialism, DRAC doesn’t take the deontic status of an action to be a function of some evaluative ranking of outcomes. Rather, it takes the deontic status of an action to be a function of some non-evaluative ranking that is in turn a function of two auxiliary rankings that are evaluative. I argue that DRAC is promising in that it can accommodate certain features of commonsense morality that no single-ranking version of act-consequentialism can: supererogation, agent-centered options, and the self-other asymmetry. I also defend DRAC against three objections: (1) that its dual-ranking structure is ad hoc, (2) that it denies (putatively implausibly) that it is always permissible to make self-sacrifices that don’t make things worse for others, and (3) that it violates certain axioms of expected utility theory, viz., transitivity and independence.

Asymmetry in the detection of shapes from shading in infants1

Abstract: We investigated 3‐ and 4‐month‐old infants’ sensitivity to differences defined by shading using a paired‐comparison familiarity/novelty preference procedure. Infants were familiarized with a pair of displays consisting of homogeneous shaded disks, and then were tested with two displays: the familiar display and a novel one containing shaded disks with reversed polarity (defined as the target). Experiment 1 examined two assumptions on discerning shapes from shading in infants by manipulating the orientations in the shading gradient of stimuli. When the orientation of the shading gradient was vertical, 4‐month‐old infants looked at the novel display for a longer time during the test trial. However, they failed to detect differences when the orientation of shading gradients was horizontal. Three‐month‐old infants did not detect differences in either orientation of the shading gradient. Experiment 2 examined asymmetry in the detection of convex versus concave shapes. Four‐month‐old infants failed to detect the target when the orientation of the shading grating was vertical and the target was convex. Taken with the results of Experiment 1, concave shapes were much easier to detect than convex shapes for 4‐month‐olds. This asymmetry suggests that 4‐month‐old infants process shading information in the same manner as adults.     

Behavioral and ERP measures of holistic face processing in a composite task

Holistic processing of faces is characterized by encoding of the face as a single stimulus. This study employed a composite face task to examine whether holistic processing varies when attention is restricted to the top as compared to the bottom half of the face, and whether evidence of holistic processing would be observed in event-related potentials. Analyses of behavioral data showed that spatial misalignment of the face halves disrupted holistic processing and enhanced detection of repeated attended halves. Effects of misalignment on the N170, VPP and N250 ERP components resembled effects of face inversion. Attention to the top half of the face was associated with faster P1, N170, VPP, and P2 latencies than attending to the bottom, suggesting automatic processing of the eye region. Further, N170 latency effects suggested that structural encoding of the face is facilitated during holistic processing. N250 latency effects reflected task difficulty. Finally, an overall right hemispheric asymmetry was most pronounced when holistic face processing was greatest. Results are discussed in light of recent proposals that holistic face processing is a subtype of configural face processing.