Peer Victimization in Youth with Tourette’s Syndrome and Chronic Tic Disorder: Relations with Tic Severity and Internalizing Symptoms

The present study analyzed rates of peer victimization in children with a chronic tic disorder as compared to children with type 1 diabetes and healthy controls. The associations among peer victimization, tic symptom severity, and psychological symptoms, as well as the potential mediating relationship between peer victimization, tic severity, and child internalizing symptoms, were also explored. Children with tics displayed higher rates of peer victimization than control groups, and peer victimization in children with tics was positively correlated with tic symptom severity, loneliness, anxiety symptoms, and parent report of child internalizing symptoms. Results also supported the hypothesis that peer victimization mediates the relationship between tic symptom severity and loneliness. Findings highlight the importance of the assessment and treatment of psychosocial variables in children with chronic tic disorders, including social functioning and peer relationships.     

5～8岁儿童对模糊信息具有多重解释的理解

参照Carpendale和Chandler的实验范式,研究儿童对于“人们可能对同样信息给出不同解释”这一现象的理解,考察5~8岁儿童的解释性心理理论的发展。结果表明,5岁儿童不能理解心理过程的解释性,认为同样的信息只有一种合理的解释。从6岁开始,儿童才认识到,模糊信息可以有多种解释,但6、7岁时的这种理解并不完善,成绩随着任务要求而变化。8岁儿童才有比较稳定的解释性心理理论。     

三段论推理中的个体内在影响因素

推理是人们认知的根本。人们在推理过程中,受到许多因素的影响,大致可以分为内在（个体差异）因素和外在（任务）因素。该文主要针对影响三段论推理的内在因素（个体差异）进行评论,并且讨论了将来的研究方向。     

Overconfidence and underconfidence: When and why people underestimate (and overestimate) the competition

It is commonly held that people believe themselves to be better than others, especially for outcomes under their control. However, such overconfidence is not universal. This paper presents evidence showing that people believe that they are below average on skill-based tasks that are difficult. A simple Bayesian explanation can account for these effects and for their robustness: On skill-based tasks, people generally have better information about themselves than about others, so their beliefs about others’ performances tend to be more regressive (thus less extreme) than their beliefs about their own performances. This explanation is tested in two experiments that examine these effects’ robustness to experience, feedback, and market forces. The discussion explores the implications for strategic planning in general and entrepreneurial entry in particular.     

How to turn a hawk into a dove and vice versa: Interactions between emotions and goals in a give-some dilemma game

The present study investigated emotional influences on behavior in a one-shot, simultaneous, give-some dilemma game. In accordance with functional perspectives on the role of discrete emotions, we found fear to reduce, and guilt to increase levels of cooperation. Moreover, we showed individual differences in the effect of induced emotional states. Specifically, results indicated that inducing fear reduced cooperation only for individuals with a pro-social value orientation, and that guilt induction increased cooperation only for individuals with a pro-self value orientation. We also established that both social value orientations could be adequately described in terms of differences in chronically accessible goals (as assessed by value-importance ratings). These results, therefore, seem to support our hypothesis that individual differences in the behavioral consequences of induced emotional states are related to variation in chronic accessibility of general goals associated with a particular emotional state.     

Local contrast and maintained generalization.

Pigeons received variable-interval reinforcement for key pecking during presentations of horizontal and vertical line-orientation stimuli, while pecks during five intermediate orientations were extinguished. Lowest peck rates were observed during presentations of negative stimuli adjacent to the positive orientations while peck rate during 45 degrees (the intermediate negative orientation) was relatively high, i.e., there were negative contrast shoulders. When peck rates were manipulated in the positive orientations, peck rate in neithboring orientations changed in the opposite direction. Contrast shoulders faded after prolonged training. A second type of contrast, local contrast, was correlated with similarity of preceding stimulus and different average peck rates during different stages of the discrimination process. The data suggest that sequential local contrast accompanying the formation of a discrimination contributes to the form of generalization gradients. Blough's model of stimulus control predicts the changes in gradient form described here, but may not accurately depict the underlying process responsible for gradient form.     

A nonparametric approach for assessing latent trait unidimensionality

Assuming a nonparametric family of item response theory models, a theory-based procedure for testing the hypothesis of unidimensionality of the latent space is proposed. The asymptotic distribution of the test statistic is derived assuming unidimensionality, thereby establishing an asymptotically valid statistical test of the unidimensionality of the latent trait. Based upon a new notion of dimensionality, the test is shown to have asymptotic power 1. A 6300 trial Monte Carlo study using published item parameter estimates of widely used standardized tests indicates conservative adherence to the nominal level of significance and statistical power averaging 81 out of 100 rejections for examinee sample sizes and psychological test lengths often incurred in practice.The referees' comments were remarkably detailed and greatly enhanced the writeup and sensitized the author to certain pertinent issues. Discussions with Fritz Drasgow, Lloyd Humphreys, Dennis Jennings, Brian Junker, Robert Linn, Ratna Nandakumar, and Robin Shealy were also very useful.This research was supported by the Office of Naval Research under grant N00014-84-K-0186; NR 150-533, and by the National Science Foundation under grant DMS 85-03321.     

Chisholm's Epistemic Principles

Abstract: An exposition and discussion of Chisholm's “epistemic principles.” These are compared with relevant views of Wilfrid Sellars and Richard Foley. A further comparison, with the approach favored by Descartes, is argued to throw light on the status of such principles.     

Alerting enhances attentional bias for salient stimuli: Evidence from a global/local processing task

The present study examined the role of alerting in modulating attentional bias to salient events. In a global/local processing task, participants were presented with a large arrow (global level) comprised of smaller arrows (local level) pointing in the same or opposite directions and had to indicate the direction of the large or small arrows in different blocks. Saliency of the global and local levels was manipulated, creating global-salient and local-salient conditions. Alerting signals were presented in half of the trials prior to the target. Results revealed a double dissociation in the effects of alerting on global/local interference effects. In a global salient condition, alerting increased global interference and decreased local interference. In a local salient condition, alerting reduced global interference and increased local interference. We demonstrate that within a single task, alerting can increase and reduce conflict based on perceptual saliency. These findings help to better understand disorders like hemispatial neglect in which both arousal and attention to salient events are impaired. These results also challenge previous theories suggesting that alerting acts to increase conflict interference. We argue that alerting is an adaptive mechanism that diverts attention to salient events, but comes at a cost when selective attention to less salient details is required.     

Apprendre à résoudre des problèmes en favorisant la construction d’une représentation alternative chez des élèves scolarisés en éducation prioritaire

In arithmetic problems solving, the representation of the problem spontaneously induced by the content of the statement is not always compatible with the solving strategy. This study evaluates a learning approach designed to lead pupils to build an alternative representation to the one spontaneously induced. In this paper, we evaluate the efficiency of this learning approach with children with learning difficulties enrolled in a priority education network. This learning by semantic recoding is a process based on an analogy between the problems and a comparison of strategies. The results show that after learning, the pupils built alternative representations.