发展中的行为决策研究

行为决策研究人们如何进行判断与选择。该学科希望能在描述决策的过程中帮助人们更好地进行决策,其研究的使命是促进和改善我们对人类决策行为的理解。在过去的1年里,中国科学院心理研究所行为决策课题组在社会与经济决策领域中已开展的研究包括：行为决策与脑、社会互动与决策、决策的文化差异、消费与投资的行为决策、效用最大化与幸福感。该文着重报告并讨论了我们在行为决策及其跨文化比较研究中的一些最新的主要发现     

管理者核心自我评价对下属组织公民行为的影响：道德式领导和集体主义导向的作用

采用配对问卷调查法, 以150位管理者和464位下属为研究对象, 考察了管理者核心自我评价对下属组织指向和人际指向公民行为的影响以及道德式领导和下属集体主义导向在其中的作用。跨层次分析结果表明：管理者核心自我评价对下属公民行为有显著正向影响; 道德式领导在管理者核心自我评价与下属公民行为关系中有中介作用; 下属集体主义导向在道德式领导与公民行为关系中具有调节作用, 表现为道德式领导对公民行为的正向影响对高集体主义导向的员工来说更明显。文章揭示了管理者核心自我评价对下属公民行为的影响效果、内在机制和作用条件, 也在一定程度上支持了领导有效性研究的特质-行为整合视角模型。     

道德情绪：道德行为的中介调节

道德情绪是心理学的一个重要研究主题。道德情绪是个体根据一定的道德标准评价自己或他人的行为和思想时所产生的一种情绪体验。它是一种复合情绪, 主要包括厌恶、移情、内疚, 羞耻等。道德情绪影响下人类会产生某些典型行为, 这主要包括道德洁净行为和道德补偿行为。心理学研究道德情绪的实验范式很多, 主要有行为回忆范式、实物或图片刺激范式、情境设置范式等。有关道德情绪的未来研究主要应注重于探讨正性道德情绪在道德发展中的作用, 探讨道德情绪对群体行为的影响, 以及探讨道德情绪在不同文化背景下的价值意义。     

童年晚期亲社会行为与儿童的心理社会适应

对2097名六年级儿童(平均年龄12.27岁, 男生1093名)的亲社会行为以及多种心理社会适应指标进行测量, 主要运用个体定向的方法考察童年晚期亲社会行为与儿童心理社会适应之间的关系。结果发现:(1)亲社会行为与孤独感、攻击等不良适应呈中等程度负相关, 与同伴接纳、社交自我概念等积极适应呈中等程度正相关;(2)童年晚期儿童的心理社会适应表现为内化问题、外化问题、同伴拒绝与正常发展4种模式;(3)个体亲社会行为水平越高, 越可能属于正常发展组, 越不可能属于不良适应组;在各种不良适应组中, 个体亲社会行为水平越高, 更可能属于内化问题组, 而非外化问题和同伴拒绝组;(4)高亲社会组的儿童有6.8%存在内化问题;低亲社会组的儿童有50.2%适应良好;与普通儿童相比, 低亲社会组的儿童表现出更多的适应不良。     

Human operant performance: Sensitivity and pseudosensitivity to contingencies

Undergraduates' button presses occasionally produced points exchangeable for money. Left and right buttons were initially correlated with multiple random-ratio (RR) and random-interval (RI) components, respectively. During interruptions of the multiple schedule, students filled out sentence-completion guess sheets describing the schedules, and points were contingent upon the accuracy of guesses. To test for sensitivity to schedule contingencies, schedule components were repeatedly reversed between the two buttons. Pressing rates were consistently higher in ratio than in interval components even when feedback for guesses was discontinued, demonstrating sensitivity to the difference between ratio and interval contingencies. The question was whether this sensitivity was based directly on the contingencies or whether it was rule-governed. For two students, when multiple RR RI schedules were changed to multiple RI RI schedules, rates became low in both components of the multiple RI RI schedule; however, subsequent prevention of point deliveries for the first few responses in any component produced high rates in that component. For a third student, response rates became higher in the RI component that provided the lower rate of reinforcement. In each case, performance was inconsistent with typical effects of the respective schedules with nonhuman organisms; it was therefore plausible to conclude that the apparently contingency-governed performances were instead rule-governed.     

ENHANCING THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS OF ELDERLY NURSING HOME RESIDENTS: ARE HIGH RATES OF INTERACTION ENOUGH?

We investigated the social validity of a common intervention (i.e., serving food during a social hour) that has been reported to facilitate social interaction among nursing home residents. Using a group reversal design, rates of interaction were measured. In addition, the vocal content of the interactions was recorded and coded by raters blind to condition. Rates of interaction more than doubled during the treatment phases, but ineffective vocal behavior accounted for the bulk of the increase. Results suggest the need to examine the utility of such programs in nursing homes.     

AN ANALYSIS OF A GROUP TEACHING PROCEDURE FOR PERSONS WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

This study evaluated whether a concurrent group teaching procedure, in which all students respond simultaneously, could be used for persons with moderate or severe mental retardation. The teaching procedure used was the Task Demonstration Model, a program based on stimulus-control research and the fading techniques of behavioral psychology. Three teachers and three groups of students participated. Results showed that the teachers increased their rates of questions and instructions, positive feedback, and use of functional materials, but they reduced their rate of prompts to almost zero. Students increased their percentage and rate of correct responding as well as their engaged time. In addition, maladaptive responding, for which there were never any direct consequences, decreased from 45% to 10% for 8 of the 14 students. Results are discussed primarily in two areas: (a) changing stimulus control from teacher prompts to critical elements of the items being taught, and (b) reasons for the reduction of maladaptive behavior for 8 of the subjects.     

Decomposing coronary-prone behavior: Dimensions of type a behavior in the Videotaped Structured Interview

This study examined the factorial structure of data generated in the Videotaped Structured Interview for assessment of Type A behavior. Based on the literature, it was argued that there are at least three distinct concepts of Type A behavior, focused on competitiveness and pressured drive, speech characteristics, and hostility, respectively. These three concepts were clearly represented among the factors from factor analyses based on data from 282 subjects. Three factors represented speech and psychomotor characteristics, where the first reflected interactions between subject and interviewer (e.g., response latency, interruptions), the second tempo of speech (accelerating, dysrhythmic and rapid speech), and the third oral gestures (e.g., expiratory sighs). Hostility was reflected in two factors, one defined by emotional intensity (e.g., anger when recalling paat event) and the other hostility expressed towards the interviewer. Pressured drive dominated a content factor reflecting self-awareness of Type A behavior. Finally, there was one factor related to psychomotor tension. Through further factor and item analyses, it was possible to combine these factors into three homogeneous and moderately intercorrelated subscales of Type A behavior reflecting Hostility, Speech Characteristics, and Self-Awareness of Type A behavior. These scales showed good interrater agreement and stability over two years. The Self-Awareness Scale was highly correlated with self-report measures of Type A behavior. The Hostility Scale, on the other hand, was moderately related to measures of Type A behavior, anger and hostility, but was unrelated to anxiety. The Speech Characteristic Scale, finally, was virtually unrelated to psychometric measures.     

Evaluating treatment effects in single-subject behavioral experiments using quality-control charts

Quality-control charts can be particularly useful in identifying treatment effects and patterns of behaviors in single-subject behavior-analytic experiments that cannot be determined by visual inspection of their graphs. Using an example from the behavior analysis literature the quality-control charts identified the presence of treatment effects across phases as well as the presence of trends within and between phases. The ease of their calculations suggest use of them by behavior analysts whenever the effects of particular interventions are questionable.     

SEPARATE AND COMBINED EFFECTS OF METHYLPHENIDATE AND A BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION ON DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR IN CHILDREN WITH MENTAL RETARDATION

We investigated the separate and combined effects of a behavioral intervention and methylphenidate (Ritalin®) on disruptive behavior and task engagement in 3 children with severe to profound mental retardation. The behavioral intervention involved differential reinforcement of appropriate behavior and guided compliance. All 3 children demonstrated decreased disruptive behavior and improved task engagement in response to the behavioral intervention. Two of the 3 children demonstrated similar improvement in response to methylphenidate. Although both interventions were highly effective for these 2 participants, the relative efficacy of the interventions varied between the 2 children. There was no evidence of an additive or synergistic effect of the two interventions, but the high efficacy of each intervention alone limited our ability to detect such effects.