Contingent Stimuli Signal Subsequent Reinforcer Ratios

Conditioned reinforcer effects may be due to the stimulus' discriminative rather than its strengthening properties. While this was demonstrated in a frequently‐changing choice procedure, a single attempt to replicate in a relatively static choice environment failed. We contend that this was because the information provided by the stimuli was nonredundant in the frequently‐changing preparation, and redundant in the steady‐state arrangement. In the present experiments, 6 pigeons worked in a steady‐state concurrent schedule procedure with nonredundant informative stimuli (red keylight illuminations). When a response‐contingent red keylight signaled that the next food delivery was more likely on one of the two alternatives, postkeylight choice responding was reliably for that alternative. This effect was enhanced after a history of extended informative red keylight presentation (Experiment 2). These results lend support to recent characterizations of conditioned reinforcer effects as reflective of a discriminative, rather than a reinforcing, property of the stimulus.     

Conceptions of Creativity and Relations with Judges' Intelligence and Personality

The aim of this study is to describe naïve conceptions of creativity and offer some explanation for their variability. Two methods are used to analyze conceptions of creativity. The first one consists of analyzing adjectives that are associated by naïve judges with the notion of creativity of an advertisement. The second one consists of predicting the evaluation of creative level of advertisements by naïve judges, through the assessment of dimensions such as the originality of these advertisements or the quality of their design. Results show that with both methods, originality is always the most characteristic dimension of creativity. Moreover, the results show that the variability of the importance given to the dimensions of creativity is linked to certain characteristics of judges. In particular, factor g is positively related to the weight given to originality in creativity. A personality trait, preference for novelty, is also positively associated with greater weight for originality in creativity judgments.     

ASSESSMENT OF PREFERENCE FOR EDIBLE AND LEISURE ITEMS IN INDIVIDUALS WITH DEMENTIA

We conducted 2 studies on reinforcer preference in patients with dementia. Results of preference assessments yielded differential selections by 14 participants. Unlike prior studies with individuals with intellectual disabilities, all participants showed a noticeable preference for leisure items over edible items. Results of a subsequent analysis with 3 participants showed reinforcement effects when highly preferred items were delivered as consequences.     

Sociosexual Orientation,Commitment, and Infidelity: A Mediation Analysis

ABSTRACT

Individuals with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation (SO) are less committed to their romantic relationships and more likely to engage in infidelity. Furthermore, commitment is negatively associated with tendencies to cheat. However, no previous research has examined the possible mediating role of commitment in the relationship between SO and infidelity. The current study examined whether commitment mediated the relationship between SO and willingness to engage in three types of cheating behaviors (Ambiguous, Deceptive, and Explicit). Results suggested that commitment partially mediated the relationship between SO and infidelity, such that unrestricted individuals had lower commitment, which in turn led to a greater likelihood of cheating. Implications of this association and directions for future research are discussed.     

ALL STIMULI ARE EQUAL,BUT SOME ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS: MEASURING RELATIONAL PREFERENCES WITHIN AN EQUIVALENCE CLASS

Two experiments used post‐class formation within‐class relational assessment test performances to evaluate whether participants demonstrated preference for certain members of an equivalence class based on the type of relation that existed between class members. In Experiment 1, two 5‐node 7‐member equivalence classes, consisting entirely of nonsense syllables, were established using the simultaneous protocol. Only 1 of the 6 participants in Experiment 1 formed classes. After class formation, the effects of the different relations between stimuli were evaluated using within‐class relational assessment tests, and the 1 participant showed an absolute preference for transitive over equivalence relations, and for baseline over symmetrical relations. Experiment 2 was identical to Experiment 1, except that one of the nonsense syllable stimuli in each class was replaced by a pictorial stimulus. Under these conditions, classes were formed by 5 of 13 participants. During the relational assessment tests, the 5 participants who formed classes demonstrated almost exclusive preferences for transitive relations over equivalence relations and for trained baseline relations over symmetrical relations. Thus, this research demonstrates that the members of equivalence classes are differentially related to each other based on relational type.     

The Protective Role of Teacher Preference for At‐Risk Children's Social Status

Aggressive behaviors have been associated with social costs (e.g., rejection) and benefits (e.g., popularity) in previous studies. The current study sought to examine the moderating effect of teacher preference on the association between distinct forms of aggressive behavior (i.e., physical aggression and relational aggression) and social status (i.e., rejection and popularity), and to explore whether these associations differed for boys and girls. Fourth and fifth grade students (N = 193) completed peer nomination procedures to assess rejection and aggressive behavior and teachers provided self‐reports of their preferences for their students. Findings indicated that relationally aggressive girls were more likely to be popular with their peers when their teachers also liked them. In addition, both relationally and physically aggressive girls were less likely to be rejected by their peers when their teachers liked them. Although physical aggression was most strongly associated with rejection among boys whose teachers liked them, relational aggression predicted popularity among boys whose teachers disliked them. Results suggest that teacher preferences may be a particularly important factor contributing to both physically and relationally aggressive children's social status (e.g., rejection and popularity), especially for girls. Aggr. Behav. 38:481‐493, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Main and Moderated Effects of Moral Cognition and Status on Bullying and Defending

This study analyzed the relations of two dimensions of moral cognition (i.e., acceptance of moral transgression and moral disengagement) and two forms of status in the peer group (i.e., social preference and perceived popularity) with bullying and defending among 235 primary‐school children and 305 middle‐school early adolescents. Social status was tested as a moderator of the associations between moral cognition and bullying and defending. Participants completed self‐reports assessing the two dimensions of moral cognition and peer nominations for status, bullying, and defending. Both acceptance of moral transgression and moral disengagement were associated to bullying among early adolescents only, whereas in childhood moral disengagement was linked to defending among girls. Social status moderated the associations between morality dimensions and bullying and defending. The moderating effects of status were discussed considering status as a magnifying lens for the relations between individual characteristics and social behavior. The results were also discussed with reference to age and gender differences in the associations. Aggr. Behav. 38:456‐468, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

青年人与老年人网页颜色偏爱研究

前人研究表明：年龄影响颜色偏爱、抽象颜色偏爱不同于具体颜色偏爱。因此本研究在抽象颜色偏爱实验基础上通过设计高保真网页研究青年人、老年人的网页颜色偏爱（包括主题色及其与文本色的搭配）。结果表明：（1）年龄、性别不会影响网页颜色偏爱。（2）浅蓝色、蓝色比较适合作为网页主题色。（3）网页主题采用不同颜色时,被试对文本色偏爱表现出较高的规律性,黑色、蓝色更适合作为网页文本色。     

大学生网络幸福感的特点及其与网络使用偏好的关系

采用自编的大学生网络幸福感问卷、网络使用偏好问卷,对400名大学生进行测试,以探索大学生网络幸福感的特点及其与网络使用偏好的关系。结果表明：（1）大学生的网络幸福感总体处于中等偏上水平,网络使用偏好中休闲娱乐维度的得分最高,网络使用偏好类型中普通型居主导地位;（2）网络幸福感和网络使用偏好类型存在显著正相关,其中与休闲娱乐偏好的相关最高;（3）回归分析结果表明,休闲娱乐偏好对网络幸福感有正向预测作用,游戏偏好对网络幸福感中的便利感、活力感、自由感因子有预测作用。     

文字熟悉度对电影字幕偏好性影响的眼动研究

字幕作为电影和电视节目的重要组成部分,在视频观看过程中起到辅助加工的作用。研究以电影视频作为刺激材料,设置了中文、英文、乱码三种字幕,采用眼动技术探讨了文字熟悉性对电影观看过程中字幕偏好性的影响作用。结果发现:虽然仅凭电影中的声音就完全可以理解电影内容,但是被试仍然对不同熟悉度的字幕表现出了字幕偏好性;字幕的偏好性受到文字熟悉性的影响,随着文字熟悉度的下降,字幕的偏好性也随之降低。