Human spatial navigation via a visuo-tactile sensory substitution system

Spatial navigation within a real 3-D maze was investigated to study space perception on the sole basis of tactile information transmitted by means of a 'tactile vision substitution system' (TVSS) allowing the conversion of optical images-collected by a micro camera-into 'tactile images' via a matrix in contact with the skin. The development of such a device is based on concepts of cerebral and functional plasticity, enabling subjective reproduction of visual images from tactile data processing. Blindfolded sighted subjects had to remotely control the movements of a robot on which the TVSS camera was mounted. Once familiarised with the cues in the maze, the subjects were given two exploration sessions. Performance was analysed according to an objective point of view (exploration time, discrimination capacity), as well as a subjective one (speech). The task was successfully carried out from the very first session. As the subjects took a different path during each navigation, a gradual improvement in performance (discrimination and exploration time) was noted, generating a phenomenon of learning. Moreover, subjective analysis revealed an evolution of the spatialisation process towards distal attribution. Finally, some emotional expressions seemed to reflect the genesis of 'qualia' (emotional qualities of stimulation).     

Neuro-cognitive mechanisms of decision making in joint action: a human-robot interaction study

In this paper we present a model for action preparation and decision making in cooperative tasks that is inspired by recent experimental findings about the neuro-cognitive mechanisms supporting joint action in humans. It implements the coordination of actions and goals among the partners as a dynamic process that integrates contextual cues, shared task knowledge and predicted outcome of others’ motor behavior. The control architecture is formalized by a system of coupled dynamic neural fields representing a distributed network of local but connected neural populations. Different pools of neurons encode task-relevant information about action means, task goals and context in the form of self-sustained activation patterns. These patterns are triggered by input from connected populations and evolve continuously in time under the influence of recurrent interactions. The dynamic model of joint action is evaluated in a task in which a robot and a human jointly construct a toy object. We show that the highly context sensitive mapping from action observation onto appropriate complementary actions allows coping with dynamically changing joint action situations.     

Exchange‐based communication training may not consistently facilitate communication in the absence of the requested item

The role of stimulus presence on spontaneous communication was assessed with 3 participants in a nonconcurrent multiple baseline with embedded reversals design. Participants were taught to request 2 highly preferred items. Once mastery criterion was met, test sessions were conducted with stimuli either visible or absent from the room, and request rate was measured. For 2 participants, training produced requests in both the presence and absence of the stimulus. For one participant, however, the presence of the stimulus was necessary to evoke the response. Results suggest that teaching individuals to request items when they are present may not consistently lead to requests when those items are absent.     

The European Early Promotion Project: A new primary health care service to promote children's mental health

The number of children in Europe with significant psychologic and social problems is large and increasing. This article describes an innovative crosscultural method of working with families to promote the psychosocial well being of children and prevent the development of psychologic and social problems. A study designed to evaluate the effects of the service is also presented. Primary health care workers in five European countries have been trained to conduct promotional interviews with all prospective mothers in their area one month before and one month after birth. They have also been taught to work with mothers identified as in need of support as a parent by using a specific counselling model to try to prevent the onset of child mental health difficulties. Effects of the intervention on children's psychologic development and family adaptation are being evaluated at two years in comparison with matched groups not receiving the intervention. ©2002 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.     

Flexibility and variability: Essential to human cognition and the study of human cognition

Traditional theories of cognition concentrate on the problem of stability, how it is that people perform the same cognitive act over and over despite different task pressures and varying circumstances. We suggest a different approach that focuses on the flexible and the inventive. From a dynamic systems perspective, intelligence is the adaptive flexibility that integrates the stability of past experience with the idiosyncrasies of the moment. In this paper we demonstrate the value of this perspective in the context of children's novel noun generalizations. We describe D-ALA, a dynamic systems model that embodies the principles of the account and use this model to explain the findings of three different experiments that show how young children flexibly and smartly adapt to novel circumstances in the task of learning new words.     

Determinants of instrumental extinction in terrestrial toads (Bufo arenarum)

Previous research in a water-reinforced instrumental training situation with toads (Bufo arenarum) has shown that performance in both acquisition and extinction is poorer after partial, rather than continuous reinforcement training. In Experiment 1, the performance of a group receiving 24 trials on a 50% partial reinforcement schedule was poorer in acquisition and extinction than that of continuously reinforced groups matched for trials or reinforcements. However, partially reinforced toads extinguished at the same rapid rate as a continuously reinforced group that received training only on the days in which the partial toads received water reinforcement. In Experiment 2, extinction was faster after 10 reinforced acquisition trials than after 30 trials. This evidence suggests that the deleterious effects of partial reinforcement in toads can be explained by a combination of two factors, namely, the distribution of reinforced trials across days and the total number of reinforcements.     

The stability of function of automatically reinforced vocal stereotypy over time

Although prior research has suggested the function of socially reinforced problem behavior can change across time, the stability of the function of automatically reinforced behavior is largely unknown. Further, some authors have suggested automatically reinforced behavior is likely to enter into socially mediated contingencies. The present study compared 2 functional analyses conducted on the same target behavior at least 1 year apart. Participants were 6 individuals diagnosed with an intellectual or developmental disability displaying automatically reinforced vocal stereotypy. Results indicated the function of each participant's vocal stereotypy remained stable over time (i.e., no new functions were acquired); however, future research on functional stability for automatically reinforced behavior of other topographies is needed.     

The Emotion Regulation Strategies of Adolescents and their Parents: An Experience Sampling Study

Parents are the main socialization agents in the development of emotion regulation (ER). In this study, we evaluated adolescents’ and their respective parents’ perspectives about their use of two ER strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression) in daily life. In addition, we evaluated the within-family associations between adolescents’ and their parents’ use of strategies. We controlled for adolescents’ gender and age and the perceived quality of their relationships with their parents (mothers and fathers). The sample consisted of 33 12- to 18-year-old adolescent–father–mother triads, totaling 99 participants. Parents and adolescents reported their use of ER strategies in response to eight random prompts throughout the day, by means of the experience sampling method for 1 week. Participants provided 4082 reports on their momentary experiences. The data were analyzed using multilevel modeling to account for the hierarchical structure of the repeated daily assessments. The significant association between parents’ and adolescents’ use of ER strategies was specific to mother–adolescent dyads. The significant association between adolescents’ and their mothers’ ER strategies varied as a function of the adolescents’ age and the quality of their relationship with their mothers according to adolescents’ reports, but not as a function of adolescent gender. These findings suggest that mothers have a role in their adolescents’ emotion regulation in a developmental period characterized by autonomy from parental guidance.     

Psychological Treatments for Mental Disorders in Children and Adolescents: A Review of the Evidence of Leading International Organizations

In recent decades, the evidence on psychological treatments for children and adolescents has increased considerably. Several organizations have proposed different criteria to evaluate the evidence of psychological treatment in this age group. The aim of this study was to analyze evidence-based treatments drawn from RCTs, reviews, meta-analyses, guides and lists provided by four leading international organizations. The institutions reviewed were the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (Division 53) of the American Psychological Association, Cochrane Collaboration and the Australian Psychological Society in relation to mental disorders in children and adolescents. A total of 137 treatments were analyzed for 17 mental disorders and compared to determine the level of agreement among the organizations. The results indicate that, in most cases, there is little agreement among organizations and that there are several discrepancies within certain disorders. These results require reflection on the meaning attributed to evidence-based treatments with regard to psychological treatments in children and adolescents. The possible reasons for these differences could be explained by a combination of different issues: the procedures or committees may be biased, different studies were reviewed, different criteria are used by the organizations or the reviews of existing evidence were conducted in different time periods.     

From the lexicon to expectations about kinds: a role for associative learning

In the novel noun generalization task, 2 1/2-year-old children display generalized expectations about how solid and nonsolid things are named, extending names for never-before-encountered solids by shape and for never-before-encountered nonsolids by material. This distinction between solids and nonsolids has been interpreted in terms of an ontological distinction between objects and substances. Nine simulations and behavioral experiments tested the hypothesis that these expectations arise from the correlations characterizing early learned noun categories. In the simulation studies, connectionist networks were trained on noun vocabularies modeled after those of children. These networks formed generalized expectations about solids and nonsolids that match children's performances in the novel noun generalization task in the very different languages of English and Japanese. The simulations also generate new predictions supported by new experiments with children. Implications are discussed in terms of children's development of distinctions between kinds of categories and in terms of the nature of this knowledge.