Effects of irrelevant object structure on early attention deployment

Event-related potential (ERP) studies have suggested that Gestalt principles or grouping factors in a visual scene modulate attention deployment in early visual processing. The present study examined the effects of an extrinsic grouping factor, region commonality, on early ERP spatial attention. Effects of sex were also explored, since the processing of task-irrelvant objects may differ between the sexes. Twenty-four participants were required to discriminate one side of rapidly-presented bilateral letters, and attention effects were indexed by hemispheric lateralization accroding to attended visual fields. In results, an early P1 attention effect (70–110 ms) increased when the letters were surrounded by an object, compared to the control stimulus without a complete object, and this result was more prominent in women than in men. The present study demonstrates that visual object and sex differences play a novel role at very early cortical stages of processing in attention deployment to a task-irrelevant visual structure.     

Evaluating the effectiveness of employee assistance programmes: a systematic review

The rapid growth of employee assistance Programmes (EAPs) has not been matched by the accompanying research base of their efficacy. Given the inconsistent information relating to the effectiveness of EAPs in enhancing employee and organizational outcomes, the present review systematically appraised available evidence from organizational psychology and business databases and grey literature sources. A total of 17 studies examining the impact of EAPs, met the inclusion criteria. These were mostly from North America and utilized quantitative methodology and pre- and post-intervention designs. The majority of studies focused on EAPs offered by external providers and the counselling service, with the most common limitations being discrepancies in variable definitions and an absent comparable control group. Overall, this review found that utilizing EAPs enhanced employee outcomes, specifically improving levels of presenteeism and functioning. Absenteeism was most commonly investigated but produced mixed results. Presenteeism demonstrated a stronger effect size and greater improvement than absenteeism, suggesting presenteeism as a better variable for assessing EAP effectiveness. This review clarified parameters of existing evidence and highlighted the narrow range of measures used to date, omitting important constructs such as health and well-being and productivity. A broader evaluation capturing a wider range of variables is urgently needed.     

Gender role attitudes,relationship efficacy,and self-disclosure in intimate relationships

Drawing from the intimacy process model and data from 5,042 individuals who remained partnered across Waves 1 and 2 of the German Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics (pairfam), this study examined the contributions of traditional gender role attitudes and relationship efficacy in predicting levels of self-disclosure within an intimate relationship. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated females scored higher than males on self-disclosure and relationship efficacy measures but lower on traditional gender role attitudes. An ordinary least squares regression analysis revealed relationship efficacy was a stronger predictor of self-disclosure compared to traditional gender role attitudes, which were not associated with self-disclosure. The findings suggest attitudes with an interpersonal motivational system may be especially important for setting the intimacy process into motion within an intimate union.     

Edgar Morin: From Vicious Circles to Virtuous Circles

Morin stresses the danger of the tendency to apply the method of natural sciences to human disciplines, considering the latter a natural object, and seeking one great explicative and definitive mathematical cosmological form by means of the reduction of the anthropological aspect to the biological one, of the biological to the physical–chemical aspect and the physical to the mathematical aspect. Hence the need to find a new way of organizing knowledge based on the concept of “circularity,” which is fundamental both in Morin's thought and in the philosophy of complexity in general. We must therefore establish a circular relation among the various spheres of knowledge: physics–biology–anthropology–sociology. The classical vision of a hierarchized-mechanic world is substituted by the vision of a reticulated world.     

工作家庭间跨界增益:逻辑主线与模型

已有工作家庭界面研究主要立足于冲突视角,近年来部分研究开始从积极视角揭示工作家庭关系的本质。工作家庭增益强调角色资源的跨界渗溢有助提升个体另一角色表现和生活品质的程度。工作家庭资源会增强个体心理资源,进而影响体验工作家庭间的跨界增益,资源的累积循环与工作家庭增益互为持续保障,跨界增益的程度受到工作家庭边界特征的调节影响。论证和提出了"角色资源累积-个体心理因素改变-跨界增益-角色评价与投入"的逻辑主线,以此构建工作家庭间角色资源跨界增益模型。     

“Oh Events” for the Professor: Studies and Stories of Religious Studies Abroad

This response explains three ways in which the preceding essays are a significant contribution to the study of study abroad, explores three additional issues, and makes three suggestions for future work on religious studies and study abroad. This response is published alongside of six other essays, comprising a special section of the journal (see Teaching Theology and Religion 18:1, January 2015).     

Change deafness for simultaneous voices

Apparent changes in auditory scenes are often unnoticed. This change deafness phenomenon was examined in auditory scenes that comprise human voices. In two experiments, listeners were required to detect changes between two auditory scenes comprising two, three, and four talkers who voiced four‐syllable words. One of the voices in the first scene was randomly selected and was replaced with a new word in change trials. The rationale was that higher stimulus familiarity conferred by human voices compared to other everyday sounds, together with encoding and memory advantages for verbal stimuli and the modular processing of speech in auditory processing, should positively influence the change detection efficiency, and the change deafness phenomenon should not be observed when listeners are explicitly required to detect the obvious changes. Contrary to the prediction, change deafness was significantly observed in three‐ and four‐talker conditions. This indicates that change deafness occurs in listeners even for highly familiar stimuli. This suggests the limited ability for perceptual organization of auditory scenes comprising even a relatively small number of voices (three or four).     

准医务工作者角色定位目标与角色教育

准医务工作者能否准确把握自己的角色定位,实现角色目标,直接关系到将来能否更好的为患者服务,为社会服务。对准医务工作者角色定位目标及角色教育特征、教育体系构建进行研究探讨。     

创新管理理念对于我国创新型医药企业发展的启示

近年来我国医药工业取得了突出成绩,但医药企业面临复杂的内外部环境,需尽快打破同质化严重、竞争力不足的格局,向创新驱动转型。创新管理的理论观点对于创新型医药企业有借鉴意义,分析了尚处于发展阶段的创新型医药企业在文化、组织和创新能力建设等方面的一些问题,参考创新理论的一些观点,认为创新型医药企业可在不断追求技术、产品创新的同时,思考对企业文化、组织管理、创新能力方面的变革,从而有效地推进创新战略实施。