Support for exclusionism as an independent dimension of social dominance orientation in mainland China

Three studies using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided consistent evidence for a three-factor model of the social dominance orientation (SDO) in Mainland China. Support for exclusionism, which was not found in previous research, emerged as an independent SDO factor (Studies 1, 2, and 3). In Study 2, this factor predicted SDO difference between a high status group (managers) and a low status group (entry-level employees). In Study 3, this factor correlated positively with authoritarianism and negatively with altruism. These results provided evidence for the validity of this new SDO factor. The findings are discussed in terms of their relations to China's cultural tradition and contemporary economic development.     

4岁幼儿线条偏好实验研究

本研究采用对偶比较法,对4岁幼儿进行6类常见线条的偏好调查研究,得出以下结果:4岁幼儿线条偏好的顺序依次是:漩涡线、曲线、弧形线、波浪线、折线、直线;男生和女生对线条的偏好没有明显差异;4岁幼儿对不同方向的漩涡线的偏好有明显差异,对不同方向的直线、波浪线、折线、曲线和弧形线的偏好没有明显差异。     

儿童同伴关系对孤独感的影响

以571名小学三、四、五、六年级的儿童为被试,考察了儿童社会喜好、友谊质量、消极退缩、社交自我知觉与孤独感的关系,检验了不同水平同伴关系变量对孤独感的影响。结果表明,儿童的同伴关系(同伴接纳、友谊质量、社交自我知觉)能显著预测其孤独感体验,其中,处于同伴关系个体水平的社交自我知觉对孤独感的预测作用最大,其次分别为双向关系水平的友谊质量和群体接纳水平的同伴接纳,而处于人际交互水平的消极退缩在控制了其他水平同伴关系变量的影响下,并不能显著预测其孤独感体验。     

How to find what's in a name: Scrutinizing the optimality of five scoring algorithms for the name‐letter task

Although the name‐letter task (NLT) has become an increasingly popular technique to measure implicit self‐esteem (ISE), researchers have relied on different algorithms to compute NLT scores and the psychometric properties of these differently computed scores have never been thoroughly investigated. Based on 18 independent samples, including 2690 participants, the current research examined the optimality of five scoring algorithms based on the following criteria: reliability; variability in reliability estimates across samples; types of systematic error variance controlled for; systematic production of outliers and shape of the distribution of scores. Overall, an ipsatized version of the original algorithm exhibited the most optimal psychometric properties, which is recommended for future research using the NLT. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thresholds for color discrimination in English and Korean speakers

Categorical perception (CP) is said to occur when a continuum of equally spaced physical changes is perceived as unequally spaced as a function of category membership (Harnad, S. (Ed.) (1987). Psychophysical and cognitive aspects of categorical perception: A critical overview. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press). A common suggestion is that CP for color arises because perception is qualitatively distorted when we learn to categorize a dimension. Contrary to this view, we here report that English speakers show no evidence of lowered discrimination thresholds at the boundaries between blue and green categories even though CP is found at these boundaries in a supra-threshold task. Furthermore, there is no evidence of different discrimination thresholds between individuals from two language groups (English and Korean) who use different color terminology in the blue-green region and have different supra-threshold boundaries. Our participants’ just noticeable difference (JND) thresholds suggest that they retain a smooth continuum of perceptual space that is not warped by stretching at category boundaries or by within-category compression. At least for the domain of color, categorical perception appears to be a categorical, but not a perceptual phenomenon.     

INFLUENCING PRESCHOOLERS' FREE‐PLAY ACTIVITY PREFERENCES: AN EVALUATION OF SATIATION AND EMBEDDED REINFORCEMENT

The present study evaluated the effects of classwide satiation and embedded reinforcement procedures on preschoolers' activity preferences during scheduled free‐play periods. The goal of the study was to increase time allocation to originally nonpreferred, but important, activities (instructional zone, library, and science) while continuing to provide access to all free‐play activities. The satiation intervention applied to preferred activities resulted in increased time allocation to the instructional and science activities, the customized embedded reinforcement interventions resulted in increased time allocation to all three target activities, and high levels of attendance to the instructional and library activities were maintained during follow‐up observations. Implications for the design of preschool free‐play periods are discussed.     

DO CHILDREN PREFER CONTINGENCIES? AN EVALUATION OF THE EFFICACY OF AND PREFERENCE FOR CONTINGENT VERSUS NONCONTINGENT SOCIAL REINFORCEMENT DURING PLAY

Discovering whether children prefer reinforcement via a contingency or independent of their behavior is important considering the ubiquity of these programmed schedules of reinforcement. The current study evaluated the efficacy of and preference for social interaction within differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) and noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) schedules with typically developing children. Results showed that 7 of the 8 children preferred the DRA schedule; 1 child was indifferent. We also demonstrated a high degree of procedural fidelity, which suggested that preference is influenced by the presence of a contingency under which reinforcement can be obtained. These findings are discussed in terms of (a) the selection of reinforcement schedules in practice, (b) variables that influence children's preferences for contexts, and (c) the selection of experimental control procedures when evaluating the effects of reinforcement.     

Two are better than one: comparison influences infants' visual recognition memory

Despite a large literature on infants’ memory for visually presented stimuli, the processes underlying visual memory are not well understood. Two studies with 4-month-olds (N = 60) examined the effects of providing opportunities for comparison of items on infants’ memory for those items. Experiment 1 revealed that 4-month-olds failed to show evidence of memory for an item presented during familiarization in a standard task (i.e., when only one item was presented during familiarization). In Experiment 2, infants showed robust memory for one of two different items presented during familiarization. Thus, infants’ memory for the distinctive features of individual items was enhanced when they could compare items.     

婴儿面孔偏好理论模型述评

在婴儿早期的视觉经验中,面孔是最特殊的一类刺激,小婴儿从出生开始就喜欢看面孔,这种现象称为面孔偏好。面孔偏好的发展反映了婴儿知觉能力的发展规律,具有重要的社会化意义。该文系统介绍了线性系统模型、右脑优势模型、CONSPEC理论、视觉模块理论和非特异化识别理论5种最主要的婴儿面孔偏好理论,并对这些理论的区别和联系进行了探讨。最后,对面孔偏好研究的新趋势和未来方向进行了评价和展望     

刺激呈现次数和位置对纯粹接触效应的影响研究

纯粹接触效应是指个体接触一个刺激的次数越频繁,个体对该刺激就越喜欢的现象。本文通过两个实验考察刺激的呈现次数与位置对纯粹接触效应的影响。实验1讨论了纯粹接触效应与刺激呈现次数之间的关系,发现刺激的偏好程度和再认成绩在不同的刺激呈现次数水平上都具有显著性差异。实验2讨论了纯粹接触效应与刺激呈现位置之间的关系,结果发现不同呈现位置上刺激的偏好程度不具有显著性差异,而再认成绩之间具有显著性差异。