Longitudinal study of low and high achievers in early mathematics

Background. Longitudinal studies allow us to identify, which specific maths skills are weak in young children, and whether there is a continuing weakness in these areas throughout their school years. Aims. This 2‐year study investigated whether certain socio‐demographic variables affect early mathematical competency in children aged 5–7 years. Sample. A randomly selected sample of 127 students (64 female; 63 male) participated. At the start of the study, the students were approximately 5 years old (M= 5.2; SD= 0.28; range = 4.5–5.8). Method . The students were assessed using the Early Numeracy Test and then allocated to a high (n= 26), middle (n= 76), or low (n= 25) achievers group. The same children were assessed again with the Early Numeracy Test at 6 and 7 years old, respectively. Eight socio‐demographic characteristics were also evaluated: family model, education of the parent(s), job of the parent(s), number of family members, birth order, number of computers at home, frequency of teacher visits, and hours watching television. Results . Early Numeracy Test scores were more consistent for the high‐achievers group than for the low‐achievers group. Approximately 5.5% of low achievers obtained low scores throughout the study. A link between specific socio‐demographic characteristics and early achievement in mathematics was only found for number of computers at home. Conclusions . The level of mathematical ability among students aged 5–7 years remains relatively stable regardless of the initial level of achievement. However, early screening for mathematics learning disabilities could be useful in helping low‐achieving students overcome learning obstacles.     

Internal attribution of outcome moderates the cortisol response to a cooperative task in women

Several ethological reports have indicated that cooperative behaviors play an adaptive role. However, research has focused on competition in men, and there have been few studies on cooperation. This study aims to analyze the cortisol and psychological responses in women to a cooperative situation compared with a competitive situation in a laboratory context. The sample was distributed into four groups depending on the task and the outcome obtained: Positive cooperation, negative cooperation, competition with victory, and competition with defeat. Our results show that, in comparison with competition, cooperation produces different effects in cortisol, but not in psychological states. Nevertheless, these effects occur only when the task outcome and its appraisal are considered. Only the participants who cooperated and obtained a positive outcome and those who competed and lost showed significant decrements of cortisol. Internal attribution was higher in groups with more stable cortisol levels, suggesting a possible modulator effect of controllability in the way the situation was experienced. These results could be generalized to situations in which negotiation, mediation, and cooperative strategies are relevant for making decisions and/or solving problems.     

The cortisol awakening response in caregivers of schizophrenic offspring shows sensitivity to patient status

Abstract

Taking care of offspring during a prolonged period of time is probably one of the most stressful life experiences for parents. The present study compares the cortisol awakening response (CAR) in 38 long-term caregivers (mothers and fathers of schizophrenic relatives) with a control group of 32 non-caregivers. Factors such as general stress, caregiver burden, patient severity, and institutionalization were studied. Although a blunted CAR was observed in caregivers in comparison with controls, this difference was not significant. Among caregivers, the absence of institutionalization for the patient is associated with a lack of CAR in caregivers in comparison with caregivers of institutionally supported patients. General stress, caregiver burden, and patient severity themselves did not favor significant changes in CAR. CAR shows greater sensitivity to institutional support than patient severity and perceived stress. Further research is needed to explain the impact of these factors on health and the psychological factors involved.     

Effects of chronic administration with high doses of testosterone propionate on behavioral and physiological parameters in mice with differing basal aggressiveness

The effects of testosterone propionate, an anabolic‐androgenic steroid, on the behavior displayed during a social encounter by gonadally intact male mice were investigated. Animals were distributed into three groups according to their attack latency in a pre‐screening test (high‐, moderate‐, and low‐ attacking mice) and each group received weekly injections of 60 or 120 mg/kg of testosterone or sesame oil for 10 weeks. Behavioral tests were then carried out. Afterwards, organs were weighed and blood samples collected in order to obtain hormonal data. Treatment had a differential impact on attack in the three groups of animals. Only the high‐attacking testosterone‐treated mice showed lower total duration of attack than their controls. Those that received 60 mg/kg spent more time exhibiting exploratory behaviors. As an index of the anabolic activity of the drug, all testosterone‐treated mice had heavier kidneys and, as an index of the androgenic activity of testosterone propionate, they had heavier seminal vesicles, lighter testes, and showed higher testosterone levels in a dose‐dependent way than their controls. Hence, the effect of treatment on peripheral physiological parameters was similar in all three groups whereas behavioral effects differed depending on basal aggressiveness, considered a characteristic of coping style. Aggr. Behav. 29:173–189, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Can Word Puzzles be Tailored to Improve Different Dimensions of Verbal Fluency? A Report of an Intervention Study

Verbal fluency is commonly used as a proxy measure of executive functioning, as it involves cognitive flexibility, working memory, and inhibitory control. Previous research has demonstrated that crosswords can be a useful means of improving verbal fluency, results consistent with the cognitive reserve hypothesis; the form of verbal fluency affected has, however, differed across studies. The present study sought to assess the extent to which it was possible to target phonemic (PVF) and semantic verbal fluency (SVF) separately through word puzzles designed to focus on semantic/thematic and structural clues respectively. Fifty-three university students were randomly assigned to one of three groups: semantic/thematic, structural, or a daily diary control group. They were assessed on PVF and SVF at baseline, and immediately following a four-week intervention. Age, sex, and depression scores were controlled for. A 2 × 3 mixed ANCOVA showed that the structural group improved significantly more in PVF during the intervention period than did the semantic/thematic or control groups, with the improvement linked to improved switching performance. The effect size was large. No significant difference in improvement in SVF emerged, although the effect size was moderate. The findings support the notion that it is possible to improve specific forms of verbal fluency through tailored brief word-puzzle interventions.     

Age slowing down in detection and visual discrimination under varying presentation times

The reaction time has been described as a measure of perception, decision making, and other cognitive processes. The aim of this work is to examine age‐related changes in executive functions in terms of demand load under varying presentation times. Two tasks were employed where a signal detection and a discrimination task were performed by young and older university students. Furthermore, a characterization of the response time distribution by an ex‐Gaussian fit was carried out. The results indicated that the older participants were slower than the younger ones in signal detection and discrimination. Moreover, the differences between both processes for the older participants were higher, and they also showed a higher distribution average except for the lower and higher presentation time. The results suggest a general slowdown in both tasks for age under different presentation times, except for the cases where presentation times were lower and higher. Moreover, if these parameters are understood to be a reflection of executive functions, these findings are consistent with the common view that age‐related cognitive deficits show a decline in this function.     

La teoría de Piaget sobre el desarrollo del conocimiento espacial

Resumen

Este artículo presenta un resumen de la teoría de Piaget y sus colaboradores sobre el conocimiento del espacio. En primer lugar se analizan los aspectos principales de la teoría del desarrollo de las nociones espaciales en relación con el desarrollo cognitivo; se continúa con la descripción de los tipos de experimentos utilizados para el estudio del espacio topológico, espacio proyectivo y espacio euclidiano; se concluye poniendo de manifiesto la relevancia del trabajo piagetiano sobre las posteriores investigaciones acerca de la cognición espacial.     

Ability emotional intelligence and its relation to aggression across time and age groups

Emotional Intelligence (EI) has been associated with several indicators of psychosocial adjustment, including aggressive behavior, but the relevant research has been mostly cross‐sectional, focused on adults, and limited to trait EI measures (García‐Sancho, Salguero & Fernández‐Berrocal, 2014; Mayer, Roberts & Barsade, 2008 ). The present work explored the relationship between Ability Emotional Intelligence (AEI) and aggression in both adults and adolescents using cross‐sectional and longitudinal designs. We conducted two studies. Study 1 aimed to provide preliminary evidence about the relationship between AEI and aggression in adults. As literature has shown personality traits act as a strong predictor of aggression, study 1 also examined the potential incremental validity of AEI beyond personality traits in 474 undergraduate students (M = 22.76, SD = 5.13). The results indicated AEI explains a significant amount of unique variance for physical aggression, but not for verbal aggression after controlling personality traits. Study 2 aimed a longitudinal analysis of the relationship between EI and aggression in 151 adolescents (M = 14.74, SD = 0.84). AEI predicted physical aggression over time, but it did not predict verbal aggression. Results from both studies suggest a negative and significant relationship between AEI and physical aggression, however contrary our expectations, it did not for verbal aggression. These results highlight the important explanatory role of emotional abilities in physical aggressive conducts and the implications of these findings are discussed.     

Mixing against culture vs mixing against nature: ontologization of prohibited interethnic relationships

In this paper, we develop the theory of ontologization: Social representations that prevent members of minority and majority groups who are living in contact with each other to mingle. The process of ontologization consists of separating some humans from their own species, and anchoring them in another environment, that of an animal, for example. We propose that underlying the famous slogan “equal but separate” is the social representation of interracial mixing as a “counter‐nature” phenomenon. It is predicted that a sexual relationship between people of different “races” leads to a greater degree of ontologization, and, as such, this miscegenation will be explained in terms of biologistic thinking, like an instinctive nature or atavistic animal impulse. An experiment (N = 360) features the case of a woman who, though already in a stable relationship, is unfaithful to her partner. In a 2×3 factor design, the ethnic‐national identity of this woman (in‐group: Spanish/Italian vs out‐group: Senegalese) and the ethnic‐national identity of her lovers (in‐group: Spanish/Italian vs out‐group: Rumanian vs out‐group: Senegalese) were manipulated. In general, results fit the hypothesis of ontologization in interracial conditions better, rather than the customary in‐group favouritism and/or out‐group discrimination bias. We then go on to discuss the way in which a biologistic way of thinking enables a differentiation at the human level, in terms of culture groups and nature groups, in “races,” so that an interracial sexual relationship is seen as evidence of a wild and irrepressible impulse, which stigmatizes the people involved in these relationships.