Capacity and contextual constraints on product activation: Evidence from task-irrelevant fact retrieval

Three experiments tested the limiting conditions of multiplication facts retrieval in a number-matching task (LeFevre, Bisanz, & Mrkonjic, 1988). By presenting two digits as cue and by requiring participants to decide whether a subsequent numerical target had been present in the pair, we found interference when the target coincided with the product of the cue digits. This was evidence for obligatory activation of multiplication facts. Also, we showed that multiplication facts retrieval occurred even in the absence of any arithmetic context (i.e., a multiplication sign between the cue digits) and did not require processing resources (i.e., the process met the capacity criterion of automaticity; Jonides, 1981), whereas manipulation of the spatial relation between the two operands (cue digits) negatively affected retrieval. The present work appears to be unique in the context of previous similar studies on mental calculation, which invariably adopted an arithmetic task as the primary demand. We identify this difference as the reason for the failure of all previous studies in revealing independence of multiplication facts from attentional resources. Furthermore, we suggest the application of a contextual definition of automaticity to this kind of retrieval, given the fact that it might depend both on association strength and on contextual setting variables.     

Cultural Differences in Attitudes Toward Smoking: Developing Messages Using the Theory of Reasoned Action1

The theory of reasoned action was used to identify the culturally appropriate beliefs of Hispanic smokers that might be targeted in an anti-smoking campaign. In-depth interviews were conducted with 263 Hispanics and 150 non-Hispanic whites. Intentions to quit smoking were predicted most strongly by the attitudinal rather than the normative component of the model. A pattern of cultural differences between the two ethnic groups was identified. Family-related consequences and concerns about bad smell contributed more to Hispanic attitudes toward quitting than to those of non-Hispanic whites, while the effects of withdrawal from cigarettes contributed more to non-Hispanic whites'attitudes than to Hispanics'. The bad smell of cigarettes, improving relationships with the family, weight gain, breathing more easily, and having a better taste in the mouth were the consequences of smoking and quitting that most strongly discriminated between those Hispanics intending and not intending to quit. These results should be used in the creation of culturally appropriate anti-smoking messages for this group.     

Changes in information as a function of a culturally appropriate smoking cessation community intervention for Hispanics

Tested a 7-month, media-based, community intervention among Hispanics in San Francisco designed to change levels of information on the damaging effects of cigarette smoking and on the availability of culturally appropriate cessation services. Three community-wide surveys of Hispanics were conducted with independent random samples, two as baselines (n = 1,660 and 2,053) and one postintervention (n = 1,965). Results showed that changes in the level of awareness of cessation services had taken place after implementation of the intervention. Furthermore, those changes took place primarily among the less acculturated Spanish-speaking Hispanics who were the target of the intervention. The changes in information reported here demonstrate that a culturally appropriate information dissemination campaign that utilizes multiple channels can produce changes in a community's level of information even when the campaign is implemented for a relatively short period.     

Ms. and the manager: A tale of two stereotypes

Recent research on the Ms. stereotype suggests a potentially important exception to the strong link between gender and managerial stereotypes observed in the 1970s. Specifically, we hypothesized that a woman who prefers “Ms.” as her title of address would be seen by perceivers of both sexes as more similar in the “requisite” traits of a successful, middle manager than would a woman who prefers a traditional title of address for herself. These hypotheses were tested by having respondents rate a “successful, middle manager” or other stimulus persons varying in titles of address, sex, and marital status. Correlational analyses of respondents' ratings of stimulus persons yielded strong support for the hypotheses. That is, a woman preferring Ms. as her title of address was seen by adult perceivers of both sexes as possessing the “requisite” personality characteristics of a successful, middle manager; whereas a traditionally titled woman was not. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

2-Deoxy-d-Galactose Effects on Passive Avoidance Memorization in the Rat

2-Deoxy-d-galactose (do-gal) hinders glycoprotein fucosylation. This compound was intracerebroventricularly administered to male adult Wistar rats in order to assess whether it could exert amnesic effects on a passive avoidance response (PAR) to be learned in the light–dark box apparatus. Three experiments were performed. In the first, do-gal was administered immediately after the acquisition trials at three dosages (2, 4, and 8 μmol). It was found that only the 4-μmol dosage was followed by PAR disruption. In the second, do-gal was administered at the adequate dosage (4 μmol) either 30 min before the acquisition trial or 30 min before retrieval testing. It was found that only the preretrieval administration was followed by PAR impairment. In the third, do-gal (4 μmol) was administered in postacquisition, at increasing postacquisition delays (0.25, 1.5, 4, and 6 h). It was found that there was PAR disruption only after do-gal administration at the shortest (0.25 h) delay. The results confirm that in the rat, glycoprotein fucosylation is involved in some of the phases of memory trace processing, and they are discussed in relation to other findings in the rat and the chick.     

A multidimensional scaling analysis of vowel discrimination in humans and monkeys

Multidimensional scaling (MDS) was used to compare perceptual maps for 10 synthetic English vowels in humans and Old World monkeys (Macaca fuscata andCercopithecus albogularis). Subjects discriminated among the vowels using a repeating background procedure, and reaction times were submitted to an MDS analysis to derive measures of perceived similarity. The dimensions that emerged related to the frequencies of the first(F1), second(F2), and third(F3) formants. Human data indicated a good match to previous MDS studies using rating procedures or confusion matrices: The dominant dimension mapped onto vowelF2, the phonetically most important formant, and the second and third dimensions mapped ontoF1 andF3, respectively.For monkeys, equal weightings occurred forF1 andF2, andF3 was not clearly represented. Monkey sensitivity to the formants appeared to relate to formant amplitudes. If monkeys are giving an accurate representation of the psychoacoustic relations among the formants, then our human results suggest that species-specific mechanisms, reflecting the salience of the phonetic feature of advancement, may contribute to vowel coding in humans.     

Jurors' Decisions in Trials of Battered Women Who Kill: The Role of Prior Beliefs and Expert Testimony1

The present research explored the influence of four factors on mock jurors' decisions in a homicide trial involving a battered woman who killed her abusive husband: (a) jurors' preexisting beliefs about wife abuse, (b) the presence of expert testimony on the battered woman syndrome, (c) jurors' beliefs in a just world, and (d) gender. Mock jurors listened to a trial involving a woman who had killed her abuser, which either contained expert testimony or did not, and then rendered various judgments about the case. Results indicated that those individuals who were more informed about the dynamics of abuse and those exposed to the expert testimony, compared to their respective counterparts, were more believing of the battered woman's account of what occurred. In general, weak believers in a just world were more lenient in their judgments, with verdicts of not guilty being associated with weaker beliefs in a just world than guilty verdicts. Weak believers in a just world also felt that the expert testimony applied more to the defendant than did strong believers. Finally, women who were weak believers in a just world were less likely to hold the defendant responsible for the events and to be more informed about the dynamics of abuse following the experiment.     

Learning capacities during sleep: A preliminary study in a group of schizophrenic inpatients

The relationship between sleep and learning processes is analysed in a sample of schizophrenic patients, starting from more recent hypotheses about the function of REM sleep in learning and memory processes. This is done by means of two experiments: in the first AA. evaluate the possibility to elicit a simple motor conditional reflex acquired during daytime in different sleep stages. With the second experiment daytime learning performances are evaluated with and without a reinforcement administered during REM sleep. Results for the first experiment underline a qualitative difference between REM and nREM sleep in a reflexological perspective. In nREM sleep the conditional response is better maintained than in REM sleep. The second experiment confirms the possibility to improve daytime learning performances after an additional presentation of learning material in REM. The joint study of sleep abnormalities and learning and cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients is finally suggested.     

Selective deficit of conceptual structures in aphasia: Class versus thematic relations

Conceptual structures in aphasia were investigated by means of a nonverbal test. The understanding of class and thematic relationships was demonstrated to be selectively impaired according to varieties of aphasic deficit. Broca's aphasics showed difficulty evaluating a thematic relationship and did not differ from normal controls as far as class relationships were concerned. The opposite happened for Wernicke's aphasics whose defect seems to be selectively restricted to class relationships.     

Selective semantic-lexical impairment of language comprehension in right-brain-damaged patients

Fifty right-brain-damaged patients and thirty-nine normal controls were given two tests of semantic-lexical discrimination (auditory language comprehension and reading comprehension) and a test of phoneme discrimination. The aims of the research consisted in checking: (A) if right-brain-damaged patients are significantly more impaired than normal controls on the tasks of semantic discrimination even when the influence of associated variables (such as unilateral spatial neglect or general mental impairment) is ruled out; and (B) if semantic-lexical disorders of right-brain-damaged patients are selective or if they are associated with disorders of phoneme discrimination. Results have shown that right hemispheric lesions consistently impair semantic-lexical discrimination but do not hamper phoneme discrimination. Some implications of these results are discussed.