Generalized constrained multiple correspondence analysis

A comprehensive approach for imposing both row and column constraints on multivariate discrete data is proposed that may be called generalized constrained multiple correspondence analysis (GCMCA). In this method each set of discrete data is first decomposed into several submatrices according to its row and column constraints, and then multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) is applied to the decomposed submatrices to explore relationships among them. This method subsumes existing constrained and unconstrained MCA methods as special cases and also generalizes various kinds of linearly constrained correspondence analysis methods. An example is given to illustrate the proposed method.Heungsun Hwang is now at Claes Fornell International Group. The work reported in this paper was supported by Grant A6394 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to the second author.     

Is this still called a dog? 18‐month‐olds' generalization of familiar labels to unusual objects

In two experiments the flexibility of 18‐month‐olds' extension of familiar object labels was investigated using the intermodal preferential looking paradigm. The first experiment tested whether infants consider intact and incomplete objects as equally acceptable referents for familiar labels. Infants looked equally long at the intact and incomplete objects whether or not a label was presented. In the second experiment, infants were requested to find the referent of a target word among an incomplete target and an intact distracter or an intact target and an incomplete distracter. The incomplete objects were missing a large or small part. Infants looked longer at the incomplete target, even when large or small parts were deleted. Taken together, these findings suggest that infants do not hold a strong shape bias when generalizing familiar words. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Children of Mothers with Eating Disorders

There is good evidence that children of parents with psychological disorders are themselves at increased risk of disturbances in their development. Although there has been considerable research on a variety of disorders such as depression and alcohol, research on the children of parents with eating disorders has been relatively recent. This paper aims to review the evidence and covers a number of areas, including genetic factors, pregnancy, the perinatal and postpartum period, infancy, and the early years of life, focusing on feeding and mealtimes, general parenting functions, and growth. This is followed by a consideration of psychopathology in the children, parental attitudes to children's weight and shape, and adolescence. What is clear is that although there are numerous case reports and case series, the number of systematic controlled studies is relatively small, and almost nothing has been written about the children of fathers with eating disorders. What is evident from the available evidence is that children of mothers with eating disorders are at increased risk of disturbance, but that the risk depends on a variety of factors, and that difficulties in the children are far from invariable. The paper concludes by summarizing five broad categories of putative mechanisms, based on the evidence to date, by which eating disturbance in parents can influence child development.     

Bounds on variances of estimators for multinomial processing tree models

When there are order constraints among the parameters of a binary, multinomial processing tree (MPT) model, methods have been developed for reparameterizing the constrained MPT into an equivalent unconstrained MPT. This note provides a theorem that is useful in computing bounds on the estimator variances for the parameters of the constrained model in terms of estimator variances of the parameters of the unconstrained model. In particular, we show that if X and Y are random variables taking values in [0,1], then Var[XY]?2(Var[X]+Var[Y]).     

More evidence on size modification in spatial axes systems of varying complexity

Pictorial space can be conceptualized as aggregate space (where figures compete for limited available space) or as axial space (where space is infinite and exists independently of figures). That these two kinds of space concepts follow a developmental sequence was tested by investigating size regulation mechanisms in 7- to 12-year-old children's figure drawings. An earlier longitudinal study had shown that the more figures were drawn and the more complex the spatial axes system, the smaller the figures. Two studies confirmed that object-driven size reduction was the size regulation mechanism in younger children, whereas axes-driven size reduction was the only factor regulating figure size in 12-year-old children. Size reduction occurred in a gradual fashion in younger children, whereas size reduction was more pronounced in crossed axes systems in older children. In addition, 7-year-old children showed a dynamic and fluid interaction between internal and external task demands for size regulation.     

When is search for meaning in life beneficial for well-being? A cross-national study

Previous research has found cross-national variations in the association between search for meaning in life (SMIL) and well-being (i.e. SMIL–WB link). This study extended and tested a “self-improvement hypothesis” that accounts for such cross-national variations based on an international database—the sixth wave of World Values Survey. SMIL represents a self-improvement effort which is more demanded in contexts with stronger external constraints. Thus, we expected a stronger positive SMIL–WB link in such contexts. A series of multilevel analyses was used to verify this hypothesis. The results showed that the SMIL–WB link varied across different societies, with well-being indexed by happiness, life satisfaction and subjective health. Moreover, external constraints from cultural, social-institutional, economic and ecological contexts (collectivism, peace threats, economic scarcity and environmental threats) moderated the SMIL–WB links. We thus call for advancing SMIL theory by considering person–context interaction.     

The effects of type of instruction,animacy cues,and dimensionality of objects on the shape bias in 3‐ to 6‐year‐old children

Robust evidence exists for the shape bias, or children's tendency to extend novel names and categorize objects more readily on the basis of shape than on other object features. However, issues remain about the conditions that affect the shape bias and its importance as a linguistic device. In this research, we examined how type of instruction (common noun naming, proper noun naming, same kind, and goes with), animacy of objects (animate, inanimate), and dimensionality of objects (two‐dimensional, three‐dimensional) affect the shape bias in 3‐ to 6‐year‐old children. Overall, all children showed strong use of the shape bias with categorization (same kind, goes with) instructions, the former in line with the shape‐as‐cue theory. Additionally, the shape bias was quite robust in the inanimate condition, regardless of type of instruction or dimensionality of objects. However, in the animate condition, a proper noun naming instruction coupled with an animate object cue reduced the shape bias across both two‐ and three‐dimensional objects. Implications of these findings are presented.

Highlights

• This study assessed the “shape bias,” a linguistic strategy young children routinely use when confronted with the task of extending a novel name from one object to another.
• Novel name extension and categorization tasks were used in this study.
• Shape bias was affected by the type of instructions, animacy of objects, and dimensionality of objects.

     

Learning What to Remember: Vocabulary Knowledge and Children's Memory for Object Names and Features

Although young children can map a novel name to a novel object, it remains unclear what they actually remember about objects when they initially make such a name–object association. In the current study we investigated (1) what children remembered after they were initially introduced to name–object associations and (2) how their vocabulary size and vocabulary structure influenced what they remembered. As a group, children had difficulty remembering each of the features of the original novel objects. Further analyses revealed that differences in vocabulary structure predicted children's ability to remember object features. Specifically, children who produced many names for categories organized by similarity in shape (e.g. ball, cup) had the best memory for newly‐learned objects' features—especially their shapes. In addition, the more features children remembered, the more likely they were to retain the newly learned name–object associations. Vocabulary size, however, was not predictive of children's feature memory or retention. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that children's existing vocabulary structure, rather than simply vocabulary size, influences what they attend to when encountering a new object and subsequently their ability to remember new name–object associations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The relative importance of different perceptual-cognitive skills during anticipation

We examined whether anticipation is underpinned by perceiving structured patterns or postural cues and whether the relative importance of these processes varied as a function of task constraints. Skilled and less-skilled soccer players completed anticipation paradigms in video-film and point light display (PLD) format. Skilled players anticipated more accurately regardless of display condition, indicating that both perception of structured patterns between players and postural cues contribute to anticipation. However, the Skill × Display interaction showed skilled players’ advantage was enhanced in the video-film condition, suggesting that they make better use of postural cues when available during anticipation. We also examined anticipation as a function of proximity to the ball. When participants were near the ball, anticipation was more accurate for video-film than PLD clips, whereas when the ball was far away there was no difference between viewing conditions. Perceiving advance postural cues appears more important than structured patterns when the ball is closer to the observer, whereas the reverse is true when the ball is far away. Various perceptual-cognitive skills contribute to anticipation with the relative importance of perceiving structured patterns and advance postural cues being determined by task constraints and the availability of perceptual information.     

婴幼儿词语习得中的社会性认知加工过程

有关婴幼儿词语习得的研究主要有三种理论假设:联想学习理论、制约限制理论和社会语用理论.本文将从以下四个方面着重介绍社会语用理论的相关研究:婴幼儿词语习得过程涉及哪些社会性认知加工过程,社会语用理论如何应对来自前两种理论的质疑和挑战,社会性认知加工过程的相对权重如何以及自闲症儿童词语习得存在怎样的社会性认知加工障碍.相关研究结果表明社会性认知加工过程在婴幼儿词语习得中具有基础性作用.最后对今后在该领域的研究中需要进一步深入探讨的问题提出了一些思考.