Independent effects of geometry and landmark in a spontaneous reorientation task: a study of two species of fish

While disoriented humans and animals use both landmarks and environmental geometry to guide their navigation, it is not clear what kinds of cognitive mechanisms underlie these behaviors. Because traditional tests of trained navigation behavior in environments containing both landmarks and geometric information may cloud our insight into the nature of these processes, the present study tested the spontaneous use of landmarks and environmental shape by two species of fish-Redtail Splitfins (Xenotoca eiseni) and Zebrafish (Danio rerio). The results suggest that while geometry is spontaneously used by both species and both sexes to compute relative position or direction, the spontaneous use of landmarks is limited to direct beaconing and complicated by attraction to features and variability across species and sex. These findings support the view that while multiple cues may ultimately guide behavior, the computation of orientation and relative positions is specified by geometric input and is independent from other navigation processes such as beaconing.     

Managing diversity in organizations: An integrative model and agenda for future research

The literature on policies, procedures, and practices of diversity management in organizations is currently fragmented and often contradictory in highlighting what is effective diversity management, and which organizational and societal factors facilitate or hinder its implementation. In order to provide a comprehensive and cohesive view of diversity management in organizations, we develop a multilevel model informed by the social identity approach that explains, on the basis of a work motivation logic, the processes by, and the conditions under which employee dissimilarity within diverse work groups is related to innovation, effectiveness, and well-being. Building on this new model, we then identify those work group factors (e.g., climate for inclusion and supervisory leadership), organizational factors (e.g., diversity management policies and procedures, and top management's diversity beliefs), and societal factors (e.g., legislation, socioeconomic situation, and culture) that are likely to contribute to the effective management of diversity in organizations. In our discussion of the theoretical implications of the proposed model, we offer a set of propositions to serve as a guide for future research. We conclude with a discussion of possible limitations of the model and practical implications for managing diversity in organizations.     

Predictors of life satisfaction in a large representative sample from Italy

Current Psychology - Life Satisfaction is a key indicator of subjective well-being and represents its cognitive component, measuring individuals’ judgment of their own lives. The aim of this...     

A microswitch‐based program for promoting initial ambulation responses: An evaluation with two girls with multiple disabilities

We assessed the use of a microswitch‐based program for promoting ambulation responses by two children with multiple disabilities. The goals of the study were to: (a) evaluate the importance of the contingency between the target behavior (forward step) and the programmed consequence (preferred stimuli), (b) measure effects of the intervention on indices of happiness, and (c) assess the social validation of the procedure using 20 physiotherapists as external raters. The intervention involved the automatic delivery of preferred stimuli contingent on forward steps. Results showed that both participants improved their performance (forward steps and indices of happiness) during contingent reinforcement phases compared to baseline and noncontingent reinforcement phases. Moreover, physiotherapists rated the intervention as socially valid.     

I’d know that face anywhere!

Mandler (1980) provided the classic “butcher on the bus” example illustrating the feeling of familiarity without recollection that may arise when an acquaintance is encountered in an unusual context. We studied this phenomenon by pairing photos of faces with photos of distinctive contexts at study and later testing recognition memory andremember/know judgments for faces presented with studied, switched, or new contexts. Estimates of recollection and familiarity, based on the assumption that these processes are independent, showed that switching contexts significantly lowered recollection while leaving familiarity intact, just as Mandler described. False alarm rates were higher with old contexts, suggesting that subjects tended to misattribute memories of contexts to memories of faces. These results provide the first evidence of context effects on the subjective experience of recognizing faces. One-dimensional signal-detection models fit the data, but such models do not explain the difference in remember responses between studied and switched items, whereas dual-process models (which also fit the data) do while also capturing the phenomenology of the butcher-on-the-bus experience in an intuitively appealing way.     

Health Promotion in International Documents: Strengths and Weaknesses from the Perspective of Community Empowerment

Informed by a community psychology perspective, which takes an integrated and systemic, or holistic view of health and health promotion, this study presents quali‐quantitative analysis of health documents, produced by the World Health Organization (WHO) over the last 30 years. Textual analysis facilitated the identification of the typical specificities of international WHO health promotion documents, highlighting the lexical contexts of health promotion, particularly in relation to responsibilities for health and the concept of community health. Further, this textual analysis demonstrated how these understandings of health and health promotion have evolved over the last 30 years. Drawing on theory from within the field of community psychology, the changes proposed throughout international WHO documentation in conceptualizations of health and health promotion and in defining strategies to achieve the stated goals of health promotion are discussed critically. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.