Individual differences in preschoolers' physiological and verbal responses to videotaped angry interactions

Individual differences in selection of intensity of angry interactions and physiological and self-reported responses to interadult anger were examined in preschoolers (N=34). Children watched two videotaped angry interactions between adults, while their heart rates and skin conductance responses and levels were monitored; then they were interviewed. Before the second argument, children were given the perceived choice of watching an intense or mild angry exchange. Individual differences in responding to the angry interactions were found. Both (a) children with relatively higher externalizing behavior problems and (b) boys who chose to watch intense anger had lower tonic heart rates; 80% of boys with externalizing problems chose to watch intense anger. Further, children who chose to watch intense anger (a) exhibited lower declines in heart rates upon the presentation of the argument, (b) perceived the actors as more angry, and (c) reported lower amounts of distress during the argument than those who chose mild anger.     

Track-draw: A graphical interface for controlling the parameters of a speech synthesizer

In this report we describe a graphical interface for generating voiced speech using a frequency-domain implementation of the Klatt (1980) cascade formant synthesizer. The input to the synthesizer is a set of parameter vectors, calledtracks, which specify the overall amplitude, fundamental frequency, formant frequencies, and formant bandwidths at specified time intervals. Tracks are drawn with the aid of a computer mouse that can be used either inpoint-draw mode, which selects a parameter value for a single time frame, or inline-draw mode, which uses piecewise linear interpolation to connect two user-selected endpoints. Three versions of the program are described: (1) SYNTH draws tracks on an empty time-frequency grid, (2) SPECSYNTH creates a spectrogram of a recorded signal upon which tracks can be superimposed, and (3) SWSYNTH is similar to SPECSYNTH, except that it generatessine-wave speech (Remez, Rubin, Pisoni, & Carrell, 1981) using a set of time-varying sinusoids rather than cascaded formants. The program is written for MATLAB, an interactive computing environment for matrix computation. Track-Draw provides a useful tool for investigating the perceptually salient properties of voiced speech and other sounds.     

Eye movements in natural behavior

The classic experiments of Yarbus over 50 years ago revealed that saccadic eye movements reflect cognitive processes. But it is only recently that three separate advances have greatly expanded our understanding of the intricate role of eye movements in cognitive function. The first is the demonstration of the pervasive role of the task in guiding where and when to fixate. The second has been the recognition of the role of internal reward in guiding eye and body movements, revealed especially in neurophysiological studies. The third important advance has been the theoretical developments in the fields of reinforcement learning and graphic simulation. All of these advances are proving crucial for understanding how behavioral programs control the selection of visual information.     

Disturbances of consciousness in dementia with Lewy bodies associated with alteration in nicotinic receptor binding in the temporal cortex

Disturbances of consciousness, including fluctuations in attention and awareness, are a common and clinically important symptom in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). In the present study we investigate potential mechanisms of such disturbances of consciousness (DOC) in a clinicopathological study evaluating specific components of the cholinergic system. [3H]Epibatidine binding to the high-affinity nicotinic receptor in the temporal cortex (Brodmann's areas 20 and 36) differentiated DLB cases with and without DOC, being 62-66% higher in those with DOC (F=4.5,p=.025). The were no differences between DLB patients with or without DOC in 125I-labeled alpha-bungaratoxin binding to the low-affinity nicotinic receptor, [3H]pirenzepine binding to the muscarinic M1 receptor, or in choline acetyltransferase activity. These findings provide support for the hypothesis that cholinergic activity is an important neural correlate if consciousness and suggest a mechanism of DOC in DLB involving alterations in the nicotinic receptor, composed of predominantly alpha4 and beta2 subunits.     

Inhalant Abuse: A Call for Attention

The percentage of youth inhaling volatile substances is on the rise in the United States. The professional literature has been critical of the helping professions for not doing enough to address this problem adequately. This article attempts to heighten the awareness of the mental health professional by defining inhalant abuse, its consequences, and strategies for prevention and intervention. Suggestions for further research are also provided.     

The rationality of faith and the benefits of religion

Religions don’t simply make claims about the world; they also offer existential resources, resources for dealing with basic human problems, such as the need for meaning, love, identity, and personal growth. For instance, a Buddhist’s resources for addressing these existential needs are different than a Christian’s. Now, imagine someone who is agnostic but who is deciding whether to put faith in religion A or religion B. Suppose she thinks A and B are evidentially on par, but she regards A as offering much more by way of existential resources. Is it epistemically rational for her to put her faith in A rather than B on this basis? It is natural to answer No. After all, what do the existential resources of a religion have to do with its truth? However, I argue that this attitude is mistaken. My thesis is that the extent to which it is good for a certain religion to be true is relevant to the epistemic (rather than merely pragmatic) rationality of faith in that religion. This is plausible, I’ll argue, on the correct account of the nature of faith, including the ways that emotion and desire can figure into faith and contribute to its epistemic rationality.     

Aging and Alcohol Abuse: Increasing Counselor Awareness

Alcohol abuse in older adulthood is a rapidly growing but often hidden problem. The authors provide an overview of the issues related to older adult alcohol abuse through a discussion of physiological, psychological, and social risk factors; an examination of appropriate assessment procedures; and an overview of factors related to treatment.     

Motor programming in apraxia of speech

Apraxia of Speech (AOS) is an impairment of motor programming. However, the exact nature of this deficit remains unclear. The present study examined motor programming in AOS in the context of a recent two-stage model [Klapp, S. T. (1995). Motor response programming during simple and choice reaction time: The role of practice. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 21, 1015–1027; Klapp, S. T. (2003). Reaction time analysis of two types of motor preparation for speech articulation: Action as a sequence of chunks. Journal of Motor Behavior, 35, 135–150] that proposes a preprogramming stage (INT) and a process that assigns serial order to multiple programs in a sequence (SEQ). The main hypothesis was that AOS involves a process-specific deficit in the INT (preprogramming) stage of processing, rather than in the on-line serial ordering (SEQ) and initiation of movement. In addition, we tested the hypothesis that AOS involves a central (i.e., modality-general) motor programming deficit. We used a reaction time paradigm that provides two dependent measures: study time (the amount of time for participants to ready a motor response; INT), and reaction time (time to initiate movement; SEQ). Two experiments were conducted to examine INT and SEQ in AOS: Experiment 1 involved finger movements, Experiment 2 involved speech movements analogous to the finger movements. Results showed longer preprogramming time for patients with AOS but normal sequencing and initiation times, relative to controls. Together, the findings are consistent with the hypothesis of a process-specific, but central (modality-independent) deficit in AOS; alternative explanations are also discussed.