材料呈现方式对儿童不同领域问题发现的影响

在概述国内外有关问题发现研究的四种研究模式的基础上,从问题发现的影响因素方面对以往研究进行扩展,探讨了在不同领域里不同的材料呈现方式对儿童问题发现的影响。对262名小学三年级和五年级儿童的研究表明:儿童的问题发现有显著的领域差异,言语呈现可能比实物呈现更能促进儿童发现高质量问题,五年级儿童在问题质量的新颖性方面好于三年级儿童。     

Right hemisphere specialization for color detection

Three experiments were carried out to investigate hemispheric asymmetry in color processing among normal participants. In Experiment 1, it was shown that the reaction times (RTs) of the dominant and non-dominant hands assessed using a visual target presented at the central visual field, were not significantly different. In Experiment 2, RTs of ipsilateral hands to lateralized chromatic stimuli revealed that the processing time was 17 ms shorter in the right hemisphere (RH) than that in the left hemisphere among the right-handed participants, whereas no significant difference was found among the left-handed participants. On the other hand, RTs to lateralized achromatic stimuli showed no such asymmetry among both the right- and left-handed participants (Experiment 3). These findings strongly suggest RH superiority for detection of color among right-handed individuals.     

Semantic asymmetries are modulated by phonological asymmetries: Evidence from the disambiguation of homophonic versus heterophonic homographs

The present study investigated cerebral asymmetries in accessing multiple meanings of two types of homographs: homophonic homographs (e.g., bank) and heterophonic homographs (e.g., tear). Participants read homographs preceded by either a biasing or a non-biasing sentential context and performed a lexical decision on lateralized targets presented 150 ms after onset of the sentence-final ambiguous prime. Targets were either related to the dominant or the subordinate meaning of the preceding homograph or were unrelated to it. In the case of homophonic homographs – our results converge with previous findings: both activation and selection processes are faster in the LH than in the RH. Importantly, however, in the case of heterophonic homographs – opposite asymmetries were found. These results suggest that semantic asymmetries are modulated by phonology. They are discussed in the context of a model of functional architecture of reading in the two hemispheres in which orthography, phonology and semantics are fully interconnected in the LH, whereas in the RH, orthography and phonology are not directly connected, such that phonological processes are mediated by semantics.     

The impact of landmark properties in shaping exploration and navigation

This study was aimed at uncovering physical and geometric properties that make a particular landmark a target of exploration and navigation. Rats were tested in a square open-field arena with additional portable corners featuring the same properties as the arena corners. It was found that the routes of progression converged upon the added corners, whether located at the arena wall or the arena center. Route convergence upon the added corners involved numerous visits to these corners. However, time spent at the added corners was relatively short compared with the arena corners, including that from which rats were introduced into the arena. There was no differential effect of testing rats in light or dark, or with a low versus a high portable corner. It is suggested that the added corners were distinct against the background of the arena enclosure, whereas the four arena corners and walls were encoded by the rats as one geometric module. This distinctness, together with the greater accessibility of the added corners, made them salient landmarks and a target of exploration. Thus, the impact of a landmark extended beyond its specific self-geometry to include accessibility and distinctness, which are contextual properties. In addition to the contextual impact on locomotor behavior there was also a temporal effect, with security initially dominating the rats’ behavior but then declining along with an increased attraction to salient landmarks. These spatiotemporal patterns characterized behavior in both lit and dark arenas, indicating that distal cues were secondary to local proximal cues in shaping routes.     

Transferences Toward the Co-Therapist Couple: Triadic Relationships and Selfobject Needs

This paper examines transferences toward the male/female co-therapists within a developmental context, using concepts from self psychology, intersubjectivity, and infant research. In addition, it proposes that some individuals have selfobject needs specifically related to the parental unit, so triadic relationships can influence one's development. Clinical examples elucidate the repetitive and selfobject dimensions of the transferences within the intersubjective field formed by the triad of a patient and the male and female co-therapists.     

God as Spirit—and Natural Science

The biblical sentence "God is Spirit" (John 4:24) occasioned the development of the Christian doctrine about God as Spirit. But since patristic times "spirit" was interpreted in the sense of Nus, which rather means "intellect." The biblical concept of spirit (pneuma), however, has its root meaning in referring to "air in movement," as in breath or storm. The similar concept of pneuma in Stoic philosophy has become the "immediate precursor" (Max Jammer) of the field concept in modern physics, so that the conclusion is suggested that God is spirit as something like a field of force rather than as intellect. This essay argues for such a conception by relating the divine eternity and immensity to the concepts of space and time, the basic requirements of any physical field. God's eternity and immensity are interpreted in terms of undivided infinite space (and time) which is presupposed in all concepts of parts of space or time (or space-time), therefore in all mathematical and physical measurement.     

Hyperalgebraic primitive elements for relational algebraic and topological algebraic models

Using nonstandard methods, we generalize the notion of an algebraic primitive element to that of an hyperalgebraic primitive element, and show that under mild restrictions, such elements can be found infinitesimally close to any given element of a topological field.Presented by Robert Goldblatt     

Foveal-to-peripheral priming in letter identification reflects response bias, not enhanced visibility

Several studies have suggested that it might be easier to identify a letter when its replication is simultaneously presented in the visual display. We have measured identification accuracy for a memorized target letter that was shown in the peripheral field in two conditions in which a letter either identical or different in shape was flashed simultaneously at fixation. The results of three forced-choice experiments showed that, contrary to Geiger and Lettvin's (1986) previous findings, an identity prime did not improve the visibility of a temporally backward masked target letter. However, the foveal prime letter could apparently bias the subject's decision so that he/she was much more ready to report the more visible prime letter as the peripheral target.     

Open live supervision in family therapy

This article reviews changes in models of supervision, resulting from technological developments and reflecting a variety of theoretical approaches. The focus is on open live supervision, conducted in the presence of the family. The supervisor and a therapeutic team join the therapist and the family, creating a complex supra-system that opens up several options for therapeutic intervention. Sessions are videotaped, and therapists use recordings for additional supervision and independent study. Therapists may also show recordings to the family as part of the therapeutic process. The advantages and disadvantages of the model are considered, and examples of some of the therapeutic options are described.This model was developed in the course of the author's work teaching and supervising students at the Counseling Department of the School of Education at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and supervising a multi-disciplinary team including physicians, psychologists, and social workers engaged in family therapy at the Municipal Psychological Services for Schools in Jerusalem. A shorter version of this article appeared in Hebrew inSihot 5 1991. Appreciation is expressed to Batya Stein for translating the final version of this article from Hebrew. Reprint requests should be addressed to Katrit Ron, Neve Granot 3-B, Jerusalem 93706, Israel.