Duration-reduction of avoidance sessions as negative reinforcement

Five rats were exposed to a shock-postponement procedure in which responses on each of two levers initially had equivalent effects. After an initial training sequence that ensured at least some responding on each lever, an additional consequence was made conjointly operative on the previously less-preferred lever for each animal. Each response on this lever continued to postpone shock, but also reduced the session duration by one minute. The conjoint contingencies were operative until, through session-shortening responses and the passage of time, the session was scheduled to end in two minutes; during the final two minutes the session-shortening contingency was disabled while the shock-postponement contingency continued to be operative on both levers. When responding shifted to a predominance on the session-shortening lever, the conjoint contingency was shifted to the other lever; for four of the five rats this reversal was followed by two additional reversals. Two of the rats' responding showed clear, strong, and unambiguous sensitivity to the session-shortening contingency. The responding of two others was also systematically controlled by that contingency, but the effects were less clearcut. The fifth animal showed an initial shift when session-shortening was introduced, but its subsequent behavior proved insensitive to reversals of procedure. The results clearly indicate a sensitivity of behavior to events on a time scale quite distinct from that of immediate consequences. They also support an interpretation of avoidance sessions, considered in their entirety, as events whose contingent relationship to behavior can affect that behavior—even in the absence of stimuli that delineate those relationships. Finally, these results support an interpretation of aversively based conditioning within a broader context, analogous to the “open versus closed economy” interpretation of appetitively controlled behavior.     

Personal values and unsanctioned aggression inherent in contact sports: The role of self-regulatory mechanisms,aggressiveness, and demographic variables

IntroductionTo date, research-examining factors related to the sociocognitive self-regulatory mechanisms governing unsanctioned aggression have received scant attention in applied sport psychology.ObjectiveA mediating model as influenced by various demographic variables was applied to explore the relationships between athletes’ personal values and their unsanctioned aggression directly and indirectly through the mediating role of resistive self-regulatory efficacy, moral disengagement, and aggressiveness.MethodA sample of 301 French competitors of different age (young: n = 200 and adult: n = 101), gender (male: n = 172 and female: n = 129), type of sport (high: n = 131 and low contact: n = 170), level of competition (beginner: n = 115, intermediate: n = 110, and advanced: n = 76), and length of practice (brief: n = 109, intermediate: n = 49, and extensive: n = 143) completed a questionnaire assessing the aforementioned variables.ResultsStructural equation modelling demonstrates that self-transcendence and self-enhancement values have only indirect negative and positive effects, respectively, on unsanctioned aggression through the full mediating effect of the mediators. Also, age, gender, and type of sport were predictive only of some personal values and mediators.ConclusionThese findings offer evidence that resistive self-regulatory efficacy, moral disengagement, and aggressiveness are mediators that fully govern the impact of athletes’ personal values and certain demographic variables on their unsanctioned aggression. Several limitations, implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.     

Evaluation of antecedent stimulus parameters for the treatment of escape-maintained aberrant behavior

We evaluated a methodology for identifying the range of stimulus features of antecedent stimuli associated with aberrant behavior in demand contexts in natural settings. For each participant, an experimental analysis of antecedents (Phase 1) was conducted to confirm the hypothesis that task instructions occasioned increases in aberrant behavior. During Phase 2, specific stimulus features associated with the presentation of task instructions were assessed by evaluating the child's behavior across two distinct settings, therapists, and types of tasks in a sequential fashion. Aberrant behavior occurred immediately across settings and therapists, presumably because the presence of a discriminative stimulus for escape-maintained behavior (the delivery of a task instruction) occasioned aberrant behavior. However, aberrant behavior decreased initially across tasks, suggesting that familiarity with the task might be a variable. During Phase 3, an experimental (functional) analysis of consequences was conducted with 2 participants to verify that aberrant behavior was maintained by negative reinforcement. During Phase 4, a treatment package that interspersed play with task instructions was conducted to disrupt the ongoing occurrence of aberrant behavior. Immediate and durable treatment effects occurred for 2 of the 3 participants.     

Confirmatory Factor Analyses of the Full and Short Versions of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale

Abstract

Over the years, researchers have developed various short versions of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (D. P. Crowne & D. Marlowe, 1960). The authors used confirmatory factor analyses (J. L. Arbuckle, 1997) as well as item and scale analyses to evaluate the adequacy of the full version and various short versions. Overall, the results from 232 Canadian undergraduates showed (a) that all the short versions in the present study are a significant improvement in fit over the 33-item full scale and (b) that W. M. Reynolds's (1982) Forms A and B are the best fitting short versions. No gender differences were found for the full scale or any of the short versions. The results show that the full scale could be improved psychometrically and that the psychometrically sound short versions should be available because they require less administration time than the full scale.     

Do physical and relational aggression explain adolescents' friendship selection? The competing roles of network characteristics,gender, and social status

The role of physical and relational aggression in adolescents' friendship selection was examined in a longitudinal sample of 274 Chilean students from 5th and 6th grade followed over 1 year. Longitudinal social network modeling (SIENA) was used to study selection processes for aggression while influence processes were controlled for. Furthermore, the effects of network characteristics (i.e., reciprocity and transitivity), gender, and social status on friendship selection were examined. The starting assumption of this study was that selection effects based on aggression might have been overestimated in previous research as a result of failing to consider influence processes and alternative characteristics that steer friendship formation. The results show that selection effects of both physical and relational aggression disappeared when network effects, gender, and social status were taken into account. Particularly gender and perceived popularity appeared to be far more important determinants of friendship selection over time than aggression. Moreover, a peer influence effect was only found for relational aggression, and not for physical aggression. These findings suggest that similarity in aggression among befriended adolescents can be considered to be mainly a by-product rather than a leading dimension in friendship selection.     

Patterns of Responding on a Balloon Analogue Task Reveal Individual Differences in Overall Risk-Taking: Choice Between Guaranteed and Uncertain Cash

ABSTRACT. We explored the utility of analyzing within- and between-balloon response patterns on a balloon analogue task (BAT) in relation to overall risk scores, and to a choice between a small guaranteed cash reward and an uncertain reward of the same expected value. Young adults (n = 61) played a BAT, and then were offered a choice between $5 in cash and betting to win $0 to $15. Between groups, pumping was differentially influenced by explosions and by the number of successive unexploded balloons, with risk takers responding increasingly on successive balloons after an explosion. Within-balloons, risk takers showed a characteristic pattern of constant high rate, while non-risk takers showed a characteristic variable lower rate. Overall, results show that the higher number of pumps and explosions that characterize risk takers at a molar level, result from particular forms of adaptation to the positive and negative outcomes of choices seen at a molecular level.

Color versions of one or more of the figures in the article can be found online at www.tandfonline.com/vgen.     

Leveraged Resources and Systems Changes in Community Collaboration

Most models of community collaboration emphasize the ability of diverse partners to come together to enact systematic changes that improve the health of individuals and communities. The ability of these groups to leverage resources is thought to be an important marker of successful collaboration and eventual improvements in community health. However, there is a paucity of research addressing linkages between systems change activities and leveraged resources. This study used a sample of collaboratives (N = 157) that received technical assistance and funding through the Georgia Family Connection Partnership (GaFCP) between 2006 and 2007. Data were collected from collaborative report of activities and funding, member ratings of collaborative functioning, and characteristics of the communities served by the collaboratives drawn from US Census data. Cross-lagged regression models tested longitudinal associations between systems change activities and leveraged dollars. The results indicated that systems change activities predict increased leveraging of resources from state/federal and private partners. However, there was no evidence that systems changes were linked with leveraging resources from local groups and agencies. These findings have important implications for providing technical assistance and training to health partnerships. Furthermore, future research should consider the relative strength of different systems change activities in relation to the ability of coalitions to leverage resources.     

What Does Children's Spatial Language Reveal About Spatial Concepts? Evidence From the Use of Containment Expressions

Children's overextensions of spatial language are often taken to reveal spatial biases. However, it is unclear whether extension patterns should be attributed to children's overly general spatial concepts or to a narrower notion of conceptual similarity allowing metaphor‐like extensions. We describe a previously unnoticed extension of spatial expressions and use a novel method to determine its origins. English‐ and Greek‐speaking 4‐ and 5‐year‐olds used containment expressions (e.g., English into, Greek mesa) for events where an object moved into another object but extended such expressions to events where the object moved behind or under another object. The pattern emerged in adult speakers of both languages and also in speakers of 10 additional languages. We conclude that learners do not have an overly general concept of Containment. Nevertheless, children (and adults) perceive similarities across Containment and other types of spatial scenes, even when these similarities are obscured by the conventional forms of the language.     

Measurement invariance of the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) by gender and age in Angola

Subjective well-being is a research arena that has grown almost exponentially: over the last 20 years, the number of publications on subjective well-being has increased approximately 16-fold (Diener, 2009). The cognitive aspect of subjective well-being or life satisfaction is referred to a conscious cognitive judgment of life (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin 1985), in which person’s quality of life is globally assessed (Shin & Johnson, 1978). The Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS, Diener et al., 1985) is the most widely used instrument for its measurement. A reliable, valid and invariant measurement is critical for meaningful comparisons. The aim of this study is to examine the configural, metric and scalar invariance across age in the Portuguese version of the SWLS with a sample of 5630 Angolans. A standard measurement invariance procedure has been applied both across gender and age. Results shown that scalar invariance of the SWLS held across gender and age. This strong invariance allowed for meaningful latent mean comparisons. There were latent mean differences due to gender and age, but while gender differences were modest, the age differences were larger. Results are discussed in their relation with existing literature.     

Do Bettors Correctly Perceive Odds? Three Studies of How Bettors Interpret Betting Odds as Probabilistic Information

This paper reports on three studies investigating how accurately bettors (=people who regularly bet on sports events) interpret the probabilistic information implied by betting odds. All studies were based on data collected by web surveys prompting a total of 186 experienced bettors to convert sets of representative odds into frequency judgments. Bayesian statistical methods were used to analyze the data. From the results, the following conclusions were made: (i) On the whole, the bettors produced well‐calibrated judgments, indicating that they have realistic perceptions of odds. (ii) Bettors were unable to consciously adjust judgments for different margins. (iii) Although their interval judgments often covered the estimates implied by the odds, the bettors tended to overestimate the variation of expected profitable bets between months. The results are consistent with prior research showing that people tend to make accurate probability judgments when faced with tasks characterized by constant and clear feedback. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.