How great apes perform on a modified trap-tube task

To date, neither primates nor birds have shown clear evidence of causal knowledge when attempting to solve the trap tube task. One factor that may have contributed to mask the knowledge that subjects may have about the task is that subjects were only allowed to push the reward away from them, which is a particularly difficult action for primates in certain problem solving situations. We presented five orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus), two chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), two bonobos (Pan paniscus), and one gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) with a modified trap tube that allowed subjects to push or rake the reward with the tool. In two additional follow-up tests, we inverted the tube 180° rendering the trap nonfunctional and also presented subjects with the original task in which they were required to push the reward out of the tube. Results showed that all but one of the subjects preferred to rake the reward. Two orangutans and one chimpanzee (all of whom preferred to rake the reward), consistently avoided the trap only when it was functional but failed the original task. These findings suggest that some great apes may have some causal knowledge about the trap-tube task. Their success, however, depended on whether they were allowed to choose certain tool-using actions. Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at     

Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Self‐Administered Interview© for Witnesses with Autism Spectrum Disorder

The widely used evidence‐based police interviewing technique, the Cognitive Interview, is not effective for witnesses with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The present study examined whether a modification of the Cognitive Interview that removes the social element, the Self‐Administered Interview^©, is more useful in facilitating recall by ASD witnesses. One of the main components of the Cognitive Interview is context reinstatement, where the witness follows verbal instructions from the interviewer to mentally recreate the personal and physical context that they experienced during the event. The present findings showed that this procedure is not effective for witnesses with ASD in SAI format in which the social component of its administration is removed. However, the SAI sketch plan component did elicit more correct details from the ASD group, although to a lesser degree than for the comparison group. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The development and content of an interpersonal psychotherapy group for postnatal depression

Postnatal depression (PND) usually causes distressing symptoms for sufferers and significant impairments in relationships. Group Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT-G) provides the experienced therapist with a brief, focused, and manualized approach to helping women recover from the debilitating effects of PND. This paper describes the background and development of IPT-G for PND. The evidence for the effectiveness of individual and group IPT formats with this population is summarized. The triad of theories underpinning IPT are discussed with an emphasis on the important role of attachment styles during the transition to parenthood. Its strengths, which include its unique package of targets, tactics, and techniques, are highlighted. The benefits and challenges of IPT-G are also explored, and the results of a randomized controlled trial are summarized. Finally, a case study illustrates how IPT-G specifically addresses the social role transitions, conflicts, losses, and social isolation that mothers commonly experience.     

Heart rate, recall, and reaction-time measures of levels of processing

A problem of circularity emerges in any attempt to index depth by retention alone. In the present study, reaction time (RT), and heart-rate response were used to index the three qualitatively distinct levels of physical, phonemic, and semantic processing. An additional objective was to distinguish between the three levels under incidental vs intentional learning conditions. Subjects were 46 male undergraduates who were given 30 trials. A trial consisted of the presentation of an orienting question and an imperative word-stimulus separated by a 6-sec. interval. There were three types of questions in order to induce processing to one of the three target levels. The results indicated that recall as well as heart-rate acceleration distinguished between two (physical vs phonemic and semantic) rather than three levels of processing in the incidental condition. Heart-rate change differentiated between incidental and intentional, the intentional condition showing a smaller change. Semantic and phonemic RTs were faster than physical RT, but there were no differences between semantic and phonemic RTs. Intentional recall was superior to incidental recall. It is suggested that psychophysiological indices can provide independent evidence for 'levels of processing.'     

An obedient orangutan (Pongo abelii) performs perfectly in peripheral object-choice tasks but fails the standard centrally presented versions

Mulcahy and Call (2009) found that bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) but not orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) perform significantly better in a peripheral version of the object-choice task compared to the original central version. Orangutans may have failed because they avoided direct eye contact with the experimenter when the cue was given. We investigated this possibility by conducting peripheral and central object choice tasks with an obedient orangutan (Pongo abelii) whom the experimenter could elicit eye contact with in each trial. In contrast to Mulcahy and Call's findings, the subject only failed the object choice task when tested with the central and not the peripheral version. We investigated whether success was because of the greater distance the subject was required to move in order to make a choice in peripheral trials. Results show that this was an unlikely factor in the subject's success. We discuss our findings in relation to previous and future object-choice research.     

Gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) encode relevant problem features in a tool-using task

Two important elements in problem solving are the abilities to encode relevant task features and to combine multiple actions to achieve the goal. The authors investigated these 2 elements in a task in which gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) had to use a tool to retrieve an out-of-reach reward. Subjects were able to select tools of an appropriate length to reach the reward even when the position of the reward and tools were not simultaneously visible. When presented with tools that were too short to retrieve the reward, subjects were more likely to refuse to use them than when tools were the appropriate length. Subjects were proficient at using tools in sequence to retrieve the reward.     

Can orangutans (Pongo abelii) infer tool functionality?

It is debatable whether apes can reason about the unobservable properties of tools. We tested orangutans for this ability with a range of tool tasks that they could solve by using observational cues to infer tool functionality. In experiment 1, subjects successfully chose an unbroken tool over a broken one when each tool’s middle section was hidden. This prevented seeing which tool was functional but it could be inferred by noting the tools’ visible ends that were either disjointed (broken tool) or aligned (unbroken tool). We investigated whether success in experiment 1 was best explained by inferential reasoning or by having a preference per se for a hidden tool with an aligned configuration. We conducted a similar task to experiment 1 and included a functional bent tool that could be arranged to have the same disjointed configuration as the broken tool. The results suggested that subjects had a preference per se for the aligned tool by choosing it regardless of whether it was paired with the broken tool or the functional bent tool. However, further experiments with the bent tool task suggested this preference was a result of additional demands of having to attend to and remember the properties of the tools from the beginning of the task. In our last experiment, we removed these task demands and found evidence that subjects could infer the functionality of a broken tool and an unbroken tool that both looked identical at the time of choice.     

Inter-professional learning: initial observations of the art psychotherapy tools used in the post-qualifying postgraduate training in counselling children and young people

ABSTRACT

Children and young people (C&YP) counselling training and art psychotherapy training lead to two distinctive psychological therapy approaches; one is informed by British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy’s Competences for work with children and young people (4–18 years) [BACP. (2019a). Competences for work with children and young people (4–18 years). Retrieved from https://www.bacp.co.uk/media/5863/bacp-cyp-competence-framework.pdf], the other by Health and Care Professions Council’s Standards of Proficiency for Arts Therapists [HCPC. (2013). Standards of proficiency - Arts therapists. Retrieved from http://www.hpc-uk.org/publications/index.asp?id=39#publicationSearchResults]. In this article we outline the training methods utilised on the Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling C&YP at a British University and share initial observations of how creative and arts-based therapeutic tools form an important part of the curriculum delivery. The aim of this paper is also to outline the role of intentionality application in the use of creative interventions in therapeutic practice.