Prospective Memory

ABSTRACT— An interesting challenge for researchers who study prospective memory is to explain how people recognize environmental events as cues for actions. Whereas some theorists propose that a capacity-consuming monitoring process is the only means by which intentions can be retrieved, we argue that the cognitive system relies on multiple processes, including spontaneous processes that reflexively respond to the presence of target events. We present evidence for the existence of spontaneous retrieval processes and apply the idea of multiple processes to mixed findings on age-related decline in prospective memory.     

The Occipital Cortex in the Blind

ABSTRACT— Studying the brains of blind individuals provides a unique opportunity to investigate how the brain changes and adapts in response to afferent (input) and efferent (output) demands. We discuss evidence suggesting that regions of the brain normally associated with the processing of visual information undergo remarkable dynamic change in response to blindness. These neuroplastic changes implicate not only processing carried out by the remaining senses but also higher cognitive functions such as language and memory. A strong emphasis is placed on evidence obtained from advanced neuroimaging techniques that allow researchers to identify areas of human brain activity, as well as from lesion approaches (both reversible and irreversible) to address the functional relevance and role of these activated areas. A possible mechanism and conceptual framework for these physiological and behavioral changes is proposed.     

Value From Regulatory Fit

Abstract— Where does value come from? I propose a new answer to this classic question. People experience regulatory fit when the manner of their engagement in an activity sustains their goal orientation or interests regarding that activity. When there is fit, people engage more strongly in what they are doing and "feel right" about it. Fit influences the strength of value experiences—how good or how bad one feels about something—independently of the pleasure and pain experiences that are associated with outcomes. It uniquely contributes to people's experience of the value of things. Fit is shown to influence judgments and decision making, attitude and behavior change, and task performance.     

Is positivity a cue or a response option? Warm glow vs evaluative matching in the familiarity for attractive and not-so-attractive faces

Monin (2003) showed that the attractiveness of a face increases its perceived familiarity regardless of prior exposure, and suggested that this beautiful-is-familiar effect was due to the misattribution to familiarity of the positive affect (or “warm glow”) elicited by attractive faces. This research tests the alternative interpretation that an evaluative match between a positive stimulus (an attractive face) and a positive response (“familiar”) accounts for this effect in the absence of any misattribution. In a face recognition task, participants were led to signal their sense of familiarity with previously seen and unseen faces by selecting either a pleasant (affectively congruent) or unpleasant (affectively incongruent) image. Consistent with the warm glow heuristic, higher false alarm rates were obtained for more attractive distracters, and this effect survived (and was, if anything, stronger) when an affectively incongruent response format was used. These findings are discussed in the context of current face memory and perceptual fluency models.     

Between Imposing One’s Will and Protecting Oneself. Narcissism and the Meaning of Life among Dutch Pastors

In contemporary culture, narcissism is an important and common personality trait. This trait is very significant for the meaning people experience in their lives. This article deals with an inquiry into the relationship between narcissism and the meaning of life among pastors. Narcissism is further specified into several dimensions (centripetal narcissism, centrifugal narcissism, isolation and self-satisfaction) and the significance of these dimensions is examined for two central dimensions of the attribution of meaning (frame of reference and fulfilment). The article discusses the significance of the relationship between narcissism and meaning for the professional performance of pastors. Hessel J. Zondag is lecturer in the psychology of religion at the Theologische Faculteit Tilburg in the Netherlands. His teachings and research interests are psychology of religion, cultural psychology, and pastoral psychology. Currently he conducts research to the functions of narcissism in contemporary culture, especially the effects of narcissism on functioning of pastors. Recent publications have appeared in Pastoral Psychology, Journal of Psychology & Theology, and Review of Religious Research.     

认知负荷对小学生工作记忆资源分配策略的影响

以不同认知负荷的连环数认知运算为实验材料,以小学三到六年级175名学生为被试,考察了认知负荷对小学生工作记忆资源分配策略的影响。结果表明:认知负荷的难度明显地影响到了小学生工作记忆资源分配策略。在策略的选择方面,认知负荷对于小学生认知操作成绩的影响力在低年龄段时没有达到显著性差异,而小学六年级则差异显著;在策略的正确率方面,认知负荷难度的影响力随年级的升高而相对减少;在策略的解题速度方面,认知负荷的难度也明显地影响到了小学生工作记忆资源分配策略的解题速度。     

学习动机、元认知对学业成就的影响

以202名大学生为被试,测量研究了学习动机、元认知与学业成就的关系．结果表明,元认知、学习动机与学业成就之间是相关的。认知驱动力、自我提高内驱力与元认知和学业成就呈正相关,而附属内驱力与学业成就呈负相关。认知驱动力和自我提高内驱力对学业成就和元认知存在显著回归效应。     

分散注意条件下前瞻记忆的完成水平及其影响因素初探

本研究试图探讨在分散注意条件下前瞻记忆的完成水平及其影响因素。被试为98名大学生。在实验中,当前任务为数字听写,同时放映一段无声动画短片,将前瞻记忆任务(即看到某一靶线索画面时在相应数字上做记号)嵌入其中,动画片结束后要求被试完成若干与动画片内容有关的问题(事先通过指导语告知)。结果发现：1、前瞻记忆任务的成绩与被试的性别几乎无关,与材料熟悉程度也无显著相关;2、与被试对材料的喜好程度显著相关,提示即使在分散注意条件下,被试在完成前瞻记忆任务时也可能会根据偏好自动调整注意的分配。