Born to learn or born to win? Birth order effects on achievement goals

Given the widespread use and well-known consequences of achievement goals in different competence-relevant situations, it is important to gain a thorough understanding of how these differences in goal pursuit are formed. Using different analytic approaches, we show that birth order lies at the heart of people’s goal preferences as we consistently found that firstborns have developed a preference for mastery goals (which are based on self-referenced standards of competence), whereas secondborns have developed a preference for performance goals (which are based on other-referenced standards of competence). These findings may help explain why people differently define, experience, and respond to competence-relevant situations, including the workplace, the classroom, and the ball field.     

SHUTTING DRETSKE’S DOOR

Dretske proposes a theory of knowledge in terms of a theory of information, but wishes to deny that empirical knowledge settles the large question of scepticism. This leads him to deny the closure of knowledge under known entailment. In a recent paper J?ger argues that Dretske’s theory of information entails closure for knowledge, ‘at least for the kind of propositions here at issue’ (J?ger 2004:194). If J?ger is right, Dretske is seriously embarrassed and must give something up. In this paper I show that there are two flaws in J?ger’s argument. The principle of informational closure considered by J?ger is incompatible with Dretske’s theory of information, and J?ger’s argument that Dretske is committed to a certain kind of substitution instance of that principle of informational closure is invalid. I propose adequacy conditions on signalled information and use them to motivate a formulation of a general closure principle for signalled information. I show that Dretske’s account of information satisfies the adequacy conditions, but in a way which commits him to an instance of the general closure principle. I argue that Dretske is consequently committed to closure for some cases of knowledge for which he wishes to deny closure. Finally, I sketch how, on the basis of the closure principle to which Dretske is committed, J?ger’s broader argument may yet go through.     

On the Meaning of Screens: Towards a Phenomenological Account of Screenness

This paper presents a Heideggerian phenomenological analysis of screens. In a world and an epoch where screens pervade a great many aspects of human experience, we submit that phenomenology, much in a traditional methodological form, can provide an interesting and novel basis for our understanding of screens. We ground our analysis in the ontology of Martin Heidegger's Being and Time [1927/1962], claiming that screens will only show themselves as they are if taken as screens-in-the-world. Thus, the phenomenon of screen is not investigated in its empirical form or conceptually. It is rather taken as a grounding intentional orientation that conditions our engagement with certain surfaces as we comport ourselves towards them “as screens.” In doing this we claim to have opened up the phenomenon of screen in a new and meaningful way.     

Do Provocateurs’ Emotion Displays Influence Children’s Social Goals and Problem Solving?

The social goals and social problem-solving of children who varied in social adjustment were examined in the context of hypothetical ambiguous provocation situations in which provocateurs’ emotion displays were systematically manipulated. Children rated the importance of six different social goals and explained how they would solve the problems. Social adjustment was measured with rating and nomination sociometric procedures. Rejected-aggressive, rejected-nonaggressive, average-nonaggressive, and popular-nonaggressive children showed both commonalities and differences in rating the six social goals, the relative importance of the six social goals, and social problem-solving depending on the provocateur’s emotion display. When provocateurs were happy, there were few group differences, but when provocateurs were angry or sad, rejected-aggressive children: a) rated hostile/instrumental goals more positively; b) rated prosocial goals less positively; and c) made problem-solving responses that were less friendly than those of other children. Results are discussed in relation to Lemerise and Arsenio’s (2000) model of emotion and social information processing.     

人脸特征信息反转效应的实验研究

结构信息和特征信息的研究是近年来人脸认知的热点,特征信息是否存在反转效应不同的理论对此有不同的看法。通过对平均人脸特征信息阈限的研究,发现:平均人脸特征信息的阈限具有明显的反转效应;特征信息的识别难度是决定特征信息的识别是否出现反转效应的重要因素。研究支持整体假设,认为成人是将人脸作为一个整体进行认知的。     

人脸单维结构信息变化对人脸认知影响研究

本研究采用熟悉人脸和平均人脸照片作为实验材料对人脸结构信息单维变化对人脸认知影响进行了系统的研究。结果表明:(1)随着人脸结构信息的改变,被试对人脸正确辨认的变化趋势可分为不变区、快速增长区、高原区三个区域。(2)熟悉人脸结构信息单维变化的认知阈限值:眼睛移动为0.19°视角;鼻子移动为0.24°视角;嘴巴移动为0.20°视角。平均人脸分别为:眼睛移动为0.15°视角;鼻子移动为0.16°视角;嘴巴移动为0.16°视角。(3)在人脸单维结构信息变化的各维度上,平均人脸的认知阈限值要小于熟悉人脸的认知阈限值。     

启发信息对个体顿悟问题解决影响的眼动研究

本研究以火柴棒算式问题为实验材料,采用2(问题类型:问题A、问题B)×2(启发类型:有、无)×2(认知风格:场独立型、场依存型)×5(兴趣区:第一个加数、加号、第二个加数、等号和结果)实验设计,考察顿悟问题解决时个体的眼动差异。结果发现:相对于场依存型个体,场独立型个体能够更有效地利用启发信息来减小表征变换时的心理加工负荷,进而提高加工效率;启发信息促进问题解决者对问题的表征从数值表征转变到符号表征,从而成功地产生了顿悟。     

印尼语主动句、被动句的命题表征项目顺序特点

采用句子—图形验证任务(sentence-pictureverificationtask)探讨了印尼学生理解印尼语主动句、被动句所形成的命题表征中的项目顺序的特点。实验结果表明,无论是语义水平较高的不可逆句,还是语义水平较低的可逆句,印尼学生理解印尼语主动句和被动句后所建构的命题表征中项目顺序均为“受事→施事”。本研究结果初步表明,印尼学生理解印尼语主动句和被动句时,能根据它们不同的表层结构(印尼语主动句的语言表达顺序为“施事→受事”、印尼语被动句的语言表达顺序为“受事→施事”)建构相同的深层结构(语义内容的命题表征项目顺序“受事→施事”),可能是一个按照“受事→施事”固定方向进行的系列认知心理加工的过程。     

Mother–infant interactions with firstborns and secondborns: A within-family study of European Americans

Given the large numbers of families with more than one child, understanding similarities and differences in siblings’ behaviors and in parents’ interactions with their sibling infants is an important goal for advancing more representative developmental science. This study employed a within-family design to examine mean-level consistency and individual-order agreement in 5-month-old sibling behaviors and maternal parenting practices with their firstborns and secondborns (ns = 61 mothers and 122 infants). Each infant was seen independently with mother. Firstborn infants were more social with their mothers and engaged in more exploration with objects than secondborn infants; firstborn and secondborn infants’ behaviors were correlated for smiling, distress communication, and efficiency of exploration. Mothers engaged in more physical encouragement, social exchange, didactic interaction, material provisioning, and language with their firstborns than with their secondborns. Notably, only maternal nurturing (e.g., feeding, holding) did not differ in mean level when mothers were with their two infants. However, mean differences in mothers’ social exchange and material provisioning with their two children attenuated to nonsignificance when controlling for differences in siblings’ behaviors. Individual-order agreement of mothers’ behaviors with firstborn and secondborn infants (across an average of almost 3 years) was only moderate. These findings suggest that mother–firstborn interactions may differ from mother–secondborn interactions. Future research should move beyond studying mother–firstborn dyads to understand broader family and developmental processes.