高中生解决化学实验问题的心理过程及其影响因素的进一步研究

对中学化学实验问题解决心理机制的前期研究的基础上,本研究进一步采用活动任务分析、心理模拟、现场实验活动观测、学生自我反思问卷调查,以及定量统计相结合的研究方法,对22名高三优秀学生解决化学实验问题的心理活动及其影响因素进行了较深入的探查,对了解我国高中生化学实验问题解决的能力和水平特点,以及如何改革中学化学实验教学具有重要启示.     

日常情绪的社会分享对情绪的影响

日常情绪的社会分享对情绪有怎样的影响,以往研究结论并不一致。本研究从社会分享的信息层面和感受层面以及当天情绪体验等方面收集了47名大学生和研究生被试7天共314份日志记录,使用多层线性模型进行分析,结果表明：（1）积极分享和消极分享都能显著正向预测当日的积极情绪,但是不能预测当日的消极情绪;（2）感受的分享（包括积极感受和消极感受）显著正向预测当日的积极情绪,信息的分享不能预测当日的积极情绪;（3）性别、抑郁水平和消极事件分享倾向会影响分享消极感受的水平对积极情绪的正向预测。结论：无论是积极感受分享还是消极感受分享都能提升积极情绪,但是不能改善负性情绪;消极感受分享对积极情绪的提升作用存在个体差异。     

LEISURE-DANCE INSTRUCTION FOR SEVERELY AND PROFOUNDLY RETARDED PERSONS: TEACHING AN INTERMEDIATE COMMUNITY-LIVING SKILL

We evaluated an approach for teaching an intermediate community living skill via a leisure-dance activity to institutionalized severely and profoundly retarded persons. The targeted skill was considered as intermediate in contrast to a community living skill per se because it was based on successful performances of higher functioning, noninstitutionalized retarded persons as opposed to nonhandicapped individuals. Definitions for appropriate dancing were established and then validated through observations of the performance of retarded persons living in the local community. The dance skills were then taught to four participants through serial training in leg movements, arm movements, and coordinated leg and arm movements, plus follow-up trainer supervision. Generalization was also programmed by way of multiple trainers and training settings. Results during structured assessments showed that all four residents acquired the dance skills and that both serial training and follow-up supervision were necessary for skill acquisition. Generalized increases in appropriate dancing at dances attended by the participants and retarded persons from the community were also demonstrated. However, in most cases some active supervision by caregivers was needed to enhance the generalized improvements. Results are discussed in terms of the applicability of this approach for validating goals when training other community-related skills to low-functioning populations.     

Behavior induced by periodic food delivery: The effects of interfood interval

Pigeons were exposed to fixed-time schedules of food presentation ranging from five to 300 seconds. Although consistent, stereotyped response patterns developed during interfood intervals on all schedules, there were distinct differences in the behavior observed on schedules with short, as opposed to long, intervals. During the shorter intervals, responses were performed quite vigorously, a feeder-directed terminal response was observed, and most activities were localized near the feeder. On the longer schedules, no feeder-directed terminal response developed, although the birds were usually near the feeder at the end of intervals. The predominant response involved moving about the chamber, often pacing along one of the walls. Performance during short intervals is accounted for quite well by the antagonistic-motivational state hypothesis suggested by Staddon (1977); however, performance during longer intervals is not. Behavior during interfood intervals may more accurately be classified as reflecting a single (food) motivational state and described simply in terms of Craig's (1918) appetitive behavior.     

Behaviors observed during S- in a simple discrimination learning task

Key pecking of pigeons was reinforced with food in the presence of a horizontal line and never reinforced in the presence of a vertical line. Highly stereotyped behaviors, as well as key pecking, were observed and recorded in the presence of both stimuli. Results showed that a high proportion of time spent in the presence of the horizontal line was occupied by key pecking, a high proportion of time in the presence of the vertical line was occupied by stereotyped nonkey-pecking behaviors, and intermediate proportions of time spent in the presence of intermediate stimuli were occupied by each class of behavior during generalization tests. Similar running rates (number of key pecks divided by observed key-pecking time) were obtained in the presence of all stimuli, indicating that changes in time rather than tempo accounted for the changes in overall rates of key pecking. An exception occurred in responding to the horizontal line as differential performance was developing. In addition to an increase in time spent key pecking, increased running rates occurred in seven of eight birds, suggesting that both time allocation and tempo play a role in behavioral contrast of overall rates of key pecking.     

The Daily Stress Inventory: Validity and effect of repeated administration

The Daily Stress Inventory (DSI) is a self-report measure of minor stressors which is administered daily. One test of the validity of a measure of daily stress is its sensitivity to the difference between the stressors of workdays and those of weekends. A second concern in establishing the validity of a test administered repeatedly is that self-monitoring may influence the obtained scores. The present study investigated these two issues using a sample of 70 community adults who reported full-time employment. These subjects provided a week of self-monitoring with the DSI. The results indicated that the DSI was sensitive to the difference between weekends and weekdays. The analyses of the effect of repeated administration suggested that the first day of self-monitoring may differ from the other days of self-monitoring. When the first day was eliminated, there was no significant difference among the days of self-monitoring, and the difference between the weekdays and the weekends remained. The data suggest that the DSI is a valid measure of the construct of daily stress and that any influence of repeated self-monitoring with the scale may be easily resolved.     

THE INFLUENCE OF CHILD-PREFERRED ACTIVITIES ON AUTISTIC CHILDREN'S SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

One of the characteristics of autistic children is severe social avoidance behavior. We assessed whether the type of activity (child-preferred vs. activities that were arbitrarily determined by an adult) engaged in during an interaction was correlated with the amount of social avoidance behaviors these children exhibit. Results revealed a negative correlation between appropriate child-preferred activities and social avoidance behavior. Additional analyses revealed that (a) social avoidance behaviors could be manipulated within a reversal design, and would predictably decrease when the children were prompted to initiate appropriate child-preferred activities; and (b) these procedures could be used to teach children to initiate child-preferred activities in community settings, resulting in reductions in social avoidance responses even after the therapist's prompts were completely removed. These data suggest that the manipulation of task variables may influence the severe social unresponsiveness that is characteristic of autistic children.     

INDIRECT FACILITATION OF ON-TASK BEHAVIOR PRODUCED BY CONTINGENT FREE-TIME FOR ACADEMIC PRODUCTIVITY1

This study investigated the relationship between on-task behavior and the academic performance of three low achieving and disruptive children in an elementary school special-education class. A number of researchers have postulated that the direct elimination of off-task or disruptive behavior is a necessary prior requirement when increases in academic performance are sought in special-education classrooms composed of low achievers with below-average socioeconomic environments. The present research program investigated this issue and measured the incidence of on-task behavior and its relationship to changes in the performance of a variety of academic tasks brought about by the opportunity to engage in daily free-time activities. Three children from a class of eight “educably mentally handicapped” students were chosen as target subjects, as their repertoires seemed to be especially defective. These children were observed by the first author for 90-minute sessions three days a week, and data regarding on-task behavior were obtained by the use of an interval recording technique. In conjunction with the teacher, the first author also monitored the academic performance of the children in six structured activities—answer completion from boardwork instructions, task completion from handout assignments, comprehension of reading assignments and vocabulary recognition, accuracy of direction-following to audiotaped instructions, quality of copied handwriting, and the matching of appropriate phonetic sounds to pictured objects and situations. Following baseline sessions during which both on-task and academic performance was measured, several experimental sessions were conducted during which free-time was given noncontingently. During these sessions, no reliable changes in student performance were observed. Subsequently, the teacher and experimenters defined a specified percentage of correct completion of each of the six categories of skill performance as necessary for the achievement of the free-time reinforcer, during each experimental session. As a result, both the academic productivity and the on-task measures of behavior were observed to increase, even though reinforcement was not directly contingent upon on-task behavior. The subsequent reinstitution of noncontingent free-time was followed by lower rates of both output and on-task behavior. The final reintroduction of contingent free-time for academic productivity again produced substantial increases in both work accomplished correctly and on-task behavior. Corresponding increases in productivity were noted for most nontarget children as well. While the present investigation has shown a high correspondence between productivity and on-task behavior, we must keep in mind that on-task behavior can be defined in many different ways. It remains possible that differences in the degree of correlation between outcome measures and the topography of “work” activity may relate to the degree to which the specific on-task behaviors measured are actually required for the outcome behavior. The failure of many researchers to identify a direct relationship between “appearances” and output may be inherently a measurement problem.     

A daily diary study of the relationships among daily self-compassion,perceived stress and health-promoting behaviours

Previous studies consistently found that trait self-compassion is positively associated with health-promoting behaviours, and perceived stress mediates the relationship. The current study primarily aimed at examining whether state self-compassion varying from day to day (daily self-compassion) played the same role as trait self-compassion in improving health-promoting behaviours and whether or not perceived stress would be the mediator in this relationship. Eighty-nine Chinese employees were recruited to finish demographic information and the trait measure of self-compassion first, and then finish daily diaries for seven consecutive days. Daily diary measures included daily self-compassion, perceived stress and health-promoting behaviours including both eating behaviours and exercise behaviours. The results of 1-1-1 multilevel mediation analyses showed that, at both the within- and between-person level, daily self-compassion could positively predict daily eating behaviour through the reduction of perceived stress. However, daily self-compassion did not influence exercise behaviour at both levels. The results of 2-1-1 multilevel mediation analyses cross-validated the between-person relationships in the 1-1-1 multilevel mediation models. These results suggest that, both short-term interventions aiming at increasing state self-compassion and long-term interventions aiming at increasing trait self-compassion can benefit one's eating behaviours through the reduction of stress.