Showing papers in "Psychological Bulletin in 1999"
TL;DR: Wilson's (1967) review of the area of subjective well-being (SWB) advanced several conclusions regarding those who report high levels of "happiness" A number of his conclusions have been overturned: youth and modest aspirations no longer are seen as prerequisites of SWB as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: W Wilson's (1967) review of the area of subjective well-being (SWB) advanced several conclusions regarding those who report high levels of "happiness" A number of his conclusions have been overturned: youth and modest aspirations no longer are seen as prerequisites of SWB E Diener's (1984) review placed greater emphasis on theories that stressed psychological factors In the current article, the authors review current evidence for Wilson's conclusions and discuss modern theories of SWB that stress dispositional influences, adaptation, goals, and coping strategies The next steps in the evolution of the field are to comprehend the interaction of psychological factors with life circumstances in producing SWB, to understand the causal pathways leading to happiness, understand the processes underlying adaptation to events, and develop theories that explain why certain variables differentially influence the different components of SWB (life satisfaction, pleasant affect, and unpleasant affect) In 1967, Warner Wilson presented a broad review of subjective well-being (SWB) research entitled, "Correlates of Avowed Happiness" Based on the limited data available at that time, Wilson concluded that the happy person is a "young, healthy, welleducated, well-paid, extroverted, optimistic, worry-free, religious, married person with high self-esteem, job morale, modest aspirations, of either sex and of a wide range of intelligence" (p 294) In the three decades since Wilson's review, investigations into SWB have evolved Although researchers now know a great deal more about the correlates of SWB, they are less interested in simply describing the demographic characteristics that correlate with it Instead, they focus their effort on understanding the processes that underlie happiness This trend represents a greater recognition of the central role played by people's goals, coping efforts, and dispositions In this article, we review research on several major theoretical approaches to well-being and then indicate how these theories clarify the findings on demographic correlates of SWB Throughout the review we suggest four directions that researchers should pursue in the decades ahead These are by no means the only questions left to answer, but we believe they are the most interesting issues left to resolve First, the causal direction of the correlates of happiness must be examined through more sophisticated methodologies Although the causal priority of demographic factors such as marriage and income is intuitively appealing, it is by no means certain Second, researchers must focus greater attention on the interaction between internal factors (such as personality traits) and external circumstances As we shall see, demographic factors have surprisingly small effects on SWB, but these effects may depend on the personalities of those individuals being studied Thus, future research must take Person X Situation interactions into account Third, researchers must strive to understand the processes underlying adaptation Considerable adaptation to both good and bad circumstances often occurs, yet the processes responsible for these effects are poorly understood Research that examines how habituation, coping strategies, and changing goals influence adaptation will shed much light on the processes responsible for SWB Finally, theories must be refined to make specific predictions about how input variables differentially influence the components of SWB In the past, many researchers have treated SWB as a monolithic entity, but it is now clear that there are separable components that exhibit unique patterns of relations with different variables In each section of this article we discuss progress and opportunities in these four areas
8,352 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a meta-analysis of 128 studies examined the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation and found that engagement-contingent, completion-contengent, and performance-contagioning rewards significantly undermined free-choice intrinsic motivation, as did all rewards, all tangible rewards and all expected rewards.
Abstract: A meta-analysis of 128 studies examined the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. As predicted, engagement-contingent, completion-contingent, and performance-contingent rewards significantly undermined free-choice intrinsic motivation (d = -0.40, -0.36, and -0.28, respectively), as did all rewards, all tangible rewards, and all expected rewards. Engagement-contingent and completion-contingent rewards also significantly undermined self-reported interest (d = -0.15, and -0.17), as did all tangible rewards and all expected rewards. Positive feedback enhanced both free-choice behavior (d = 0.33) and self-reported interest (d = 0.31). Tangible rewards tended to be more detrimental for children than college students, and verbal rewards tended to be less enhancing for children than college students. The authors review 4 previous meta-analyses of this literature and detail how this study's methods, analyses, and results differed from the previous ones.
5,604 citations
TL;DR: This paper conducted a meta-analysis of 150 studies in which the risk-taking tendencies of male and female participants were compared and found that the average effects for 14 out of 16 types of risk taking were significantly larger than 0 (indicating greater risk taking in male participants).
Abstract: The authors conducted a meta-analysis of 150 studies in which the risk-taking tendencies of male and female participants were compared. Studies were coded with respect to type of task (e.g., self-reported behaviors vs. observed behaviors), task content (e.g., smoking vs. sex), and 5 age levels. Results showed that the average effects for 14 out of 16 types of risk taking were significantly larger than 0 (indicating greater risk taking in male participants) and that nearly half of the effects were greater than .20. However, certain topics (e.g., intellectual risk taking and physical skills) produced larger gender differences than others (e.g., smoking). In addition, the authors found that (a) there were significant shifts in the size of the gender gap between successive age levels, and (b) the gender gap seems to be growing smaller over time. The discussion focuses on the meaning of the results for theories of risk taking and the need for additional studies to clarify age trends.
3,041 citations
TL;DR: This article reviews the now extensive research literature addressing the impact of accountability on a wide range of social judgments and choices and highlights the utility of treating thought as a process of internalized dialogue and the importance of documenting social and institutional boundary conditions on putative cognitive biases.
Abstract: This article reviews the now extensive research literature addressing the impact of accountabilit y on a wide range of social judgments and choices. It focuses on 4 issues: (a) What impact do various accountability ground rules have on thoughts, feelings, and action? (b) Under what conditions will accountability attenuate, have no effect on, or amplify cognitive biases? (c) Does accountability alter how people think or merely what people say they think? and (d) What goals do accountable decision makers seek to achieve? In addition, this review explores the broader implications of accountability research. It highlights the utility of treating thought as a process of internalized dialogue; the importance of documenting social and institutional boundary conditions on putative cognitive biases; and the potential to craft empirical answers to such applied problems as how to structure accountability relationships in organizations.
2,045 citations
TL;DR: A model of the interruptive function of pain is developed that holds that pain is selected for action from within complex affective and motivational environments to urge escape.
Abstract: Pain interrupts and demands attention. The authors review evidence for how and why this interruption of attention is achieved. The interruptive function of pain depends on the relationship between pain-related characteristics (e.g., the threat value of pain) and the characteristics of the environmental demands (e.g., emotional arousal). A model of the interruptive function of pain is developed that holds that pain is selected for action from within complex affective and motivational environments to urge escape. The implications of this model for research and therapy are outlined with an emphasis on the redefinition of chronic pain as chronic interruption.
1,505 citations
TL;DR: When the actual predictions of a bipolar model are considered and error is taken into account, there is little evidence for independence of what were traditionally thought opposites.
Abstract: Is positive affect (PA) the bipolar opposite of, or is it independent of, negative affect (NA)? Previous analyses of this vexing question have generally labored under the false assumption that bipolarity predicts an invariant latent correlation between PA and NA. The predicted correlation varies with time frame, response format, and items selected to define PA and NA. The observed correlation also varies with errors inherent in measurement. When the actual predictions of a bipolar model are considered and error is taken into account, there is little evidence for independence of what were traditionally thought opposites. Bipolarity provides a parsimonious fit to existing data.
1,347 citations
TL;DR: Evidence is provided that males score higher on standard measures of global self-esteem than females, but the difference is small, and potential reasons for the small yet consistent effect size are discussed.
Abstract: Two analyses were conducted to examine gender differences in global self-esteem In analysis I, a computerized literature search yielded 216 effect sizes, representing the testing of 97,121 respondents The overall effect size was 021, a small difference favoring males A significant quadratic effect of age indicated that the largest effect emerged in late adolescence (d = 033) In Analysis II, gender differences were examined using 3 large, nationally representative data sets from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) All of the NCES effect sizes, which collectively summarize the responses of approximately 48,000 young Americans, indicated higher male self-esteem (ds ranged from 004 to 024) Taken together, the 2 analyses provide evidence that males score higher on standard measures of global self-esteem than females, but the difference is small Potential reasons for the small yet consistent effect size are discussed
1,329 citations
TL;DR: The authors review studies on time use of children and adolescents around the world and discuss developmental implications of population differences and age, gender, and socioeconomic differences in activities and with whom time is spent are considered.
Abstract: The authors review studies on time use of children and adolescents around the world and discuss developmental implications of population differences. Industrialization and schooling are linked to dramatic declines in time spent on household and wage labor. This labor is often unchallenging, sometimes hazardous; developmental benefits often do not increase above a limited number of hours; hence, reduction in these activities opens time for activities that may be more developmentally beneficial. Adolescents in East Asian postindustrial societies spend this freed-up time in schoolwork, a use associated with lower intrinsic motivation but high achievement and economic productivity. Adolescents in North America spend more time in leisure, associated with greater self-direction but of an uncertain relation to development. Age, gender, and socioeconomic differences in activities and with whom time is spent are also considered. Language: en
1,119 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the sequence of neurophysiological processes elicited in the auditory system by a sound is analyzed in search of the stage at which the processes carrying sensory information cross the borderline beyond which they directly underlie sound perception.
Abstract: The sequence of neurophysiological processes elicited in the auditory system by a sound is analyzed in search of the stage at which the processes carrying sensory information cross the borderline beyond which they directly underlie sound perception. Neurophysiological data suggest that this transition occurs when the sensory input is mapped onto the physiological basis of sensory memory in the auditory cortex. At this point, the sensory information carried by the stimulus-elicited process corresponds, for the first time, to that contained by the actual sound percept. Before this stage, the sensory stimulus code is fragmentary, lacks the time dimension, cannot enter conscious perception, and is not accessible to top-down processes (voluntary mental operations). On these grounds, 2 distinct stages of auditory sensory processing, prerepresentational and representational, can be distinguished.
1,007 citations
TL;DR: Recently, growing cross-cultural evidence suggests that East Asians are less likely to show the correspondence bias, or a preference for explanations of behavior in terms of traits, dispositions, or other internal attributes of the target.
Abstract: Growing cross-cultural evidence suggests that East Asians are less likely to show the correspondence bias, or a preference for explanations of behavior in terms of traits, dispositions, or other internal attributes of the target. The scope of this evidence spans several research paradigms and diverse methodologies. The cultural difference, however, appears not to be caused by an absence of dispositional thinking in East Asian cultures. Indeed, extensive ethnographic and psychological data indicate that "dispositionism" is a cross-culturally widespread mode of thinking, although East Asians believe dispositions to be more malleable and have a more holistic conception of the person as being situated in a broad social context. The East-West split in attribution thus originates primarily from a stronger "situationism" or belief in the importance of the context of behavior in East Asia. Consequently, East Asians are more likely than Westerners to avoid the correspondence bias as long as situational constraints are salient.
949 citations
TL;DR: Overall, findings support a social psychological model of condom use highlighting the importance of behavior-specific cognitions, social interaction, and preparatory behaviors rather than knowledge and beliefs about the threat of infection.
Abstract: Despite increasing incidence of HIV/AIDS, there has been no systematic review of correlates of condom use among heterosexual samples. To rectify this, the present study used meta-analysis to quantify the relationship between psychosocial variables and self-reported condom use. Six hundred sixty correlations distributed across 44 variables were derived from 121 empirical studies. Variables were organized in terms of the labeling, commitment, and enactment stages of the AIDS Risk Reduction Model (Catania, Kegeles, & Coates, 1990). Findings showed that demographic, personality, and labeling stage variables had small average correlations with condom use. Commitment and enactment stage variables fared better, with attitudes toward condoms, behavioral intentions, and communication about condoms being the most important predictors. Overall, findings support a social psychological model of condom use highlighting the importance of behavior-specific cognitions, social interaction, and preparatory behaviors rather than knowledge and beliefs about the threat of infection.
TL;DR: This paper reviewed evidence that people impute their own knowledge to others and that, although this serves them well in general, they often do so uncritically, with the result of erroneously assuming that other people have the same knowledge.
Abstract: To communicate effectively, people must have a reasonably accurate idea about what specific other people know. An obvious starting point for building a model of what another knows is what one oneself knows, or thinks one knows. This article reviews evidence that people impute their own knowledge to others and that, although this serves them well in general, they often do so uncritically, with the result of erroneously assuming that other people have the same knowledge. Overimputation of one's own knowledge can contribute to communication difficulties. Corrective approaches are considered. A conceptualization of where own-knowledge imputation fits in the process of developing models of other people's knowledge is proposed.
TL;DR: This paper proposed an explanation for the JE/SE reversal based on a principle called the evaluability hypothesis, which posits that it is more difficult to evaluate the desirability of values on some attributes than on others and that difficult-to-evaluate attributes have a greater impact in JE than in SE.
Abstract: Arguably, all judgments and decisions are made in 1 (or some combination) of 2 basic evaluation modes—joint evaluation mode (JE), in which multiple options are presented simultaneously and evaluated comparatively, or separate evaluation mode (SE), in which options are presented in isolation and evaluated separately. This article reviews recent literature showing that people evaluate options differently and exhibit reversals of preferences for options between JE and SE. The authors propose an explanation for the JE/SE reversal based on a principle called the evaluability hypothesis. The hypothesis posits that it is more difficult to evaluate the desirability of values on some attributes than on others and that, compared with easy-to-evaluate attributes, difficult-to-evaluate attributes have a greater impact in JE than in SE.
TL;DR: A rate-amount model is proposed that predicts linear relationships between individuals and that includes global processing parameters based on large-scale group differences in information processing that may be used to linearly transform response latencies from different individuals to a common information-processing scale.
Abstract: Research on group differences in response latency often has as its goal the detection of Group x Treatment interactions. However, accumulating evidence suggests that response latencies for different groups are often linearly related, leading to an increased likelihood of finding spurious overadditive interactions in which the slower group produces a larger treatment effect. The authors propose a rate-amount model that predicts linear relationships between individuals and that includes global processing parameters based on large-scale group differences in information processing. These global processing parameters may be used to linearly transform response latencies from different individuals to a common information-processing scale so that small-scale group differences in information processing may be isolated. The authors recommend linear regression and z-score transformations that may be used to augment traditional analyses of raw response latencies.
TL;DR: Alternative perspectives on bereavement that are based on cognitive stress theory, attachment theory, the social-functional account of emotion, and trauma theory are considered in an attempt to develop an integrative framework to guide future research.
Abstract: For nearly a century, bereavement theorists have assumed that recovery from loss requires a period of grief work in which the ultimate goal is the severing of the attachment bond to the deceased. Reviews appearing in the 1980s noted a surprising absence of empirical support for this view, thus leaving the bereavement field without a guiding theoretical base. In this article, the authors consider alternative perspectives on bereavement that are based on cognitive stress theory, attachment theory, the social-functional account of emotion, and trauma theory. They then elaborate on the most promising features of each theory in an attempt to develop an integrative framework to guide future research. The authors elucidate 4 fundamental components of the grieving process--context, meaning, representations of the lost relationship, and coping and emotion-regulation processes--and suggest ways in which these components may interact over the course of bereavement.
TL;DR: A triage of post-lesion states, depending on the loss of connectivity in particular circuits is proposed, to foster reconnection of damaged neural circuits and clinical recommendations for the practice of rehabilitation following brain damage are made.
Abstract: Rehabilitation of the damaged brain can foster reconnection of damaged neural circuits; Hebbian learning mechanisms play an important part in this. The authors propose a triage of post-lesion states, depending on the loss of connectivity in particular circuits. A small loss of connectivity will tend to lead to autonomous recovery, whereas a major loss of connectivity will lead to permanent loss of function; for such individuals, a compensatory approach to recovery is required. The third group have potentially rescuable lesioned circuits, but guided recovery depends on providing precisely targeted bottom-up and top-down inputs, maintaining adequate levels of arousal, and avoiding activation of competitor circuits that may suppress activity in target circuits. Empirical data are implemented in a neural network model, and clinical recommendations for the practice of rehabilitation following brain damage are made.
TL;DR: Arkes and Blumer as discussed by the authors argued that adults commit an error contrary to the normative cost-benefit rules of choice, whereas children and phylogenetically humble organisms do not, and argued that this paradoxical state of affairs is due to humans' overgeneralization of the "Don't waste" rule.
Abstract: The sunk cost effect is a maladaptive economic behavior that is manifested in a greater tendency to continue an endeavor once an investment in money, effort, or time has been made. The Concorde fallacy is another name for the sunk cost effect, except that the former term has been applied strictly to lower animals, whereas the latter has been applied solely to humans. The authors contend that there are no unambiguous instances of the Concorde fallacy in lower animals and also present evidence that young children, when placed in an economic situation akin to a sunk cost one, exhibit more normatively correct behavior than do adults. These findings pose an enigma: Why do adult humans commit an error contrary to the normative cost-benefit rules of choice, whereas children and phylogenetically humble organisms do not? The authors attempt to show that this paradoxical state of affairs is due to humans' overgeneralization of the "Don't waste" rule. The sunk cost effect is a maladaptive economic behavior that is manifested in a greater tendency to continue an endeavor once an investment in money, effort, or time has been made (Arkes & Blumer, 1985). A prior investment should not influence one's consideration of current options; only the incremental costs and benefits of the current options should influence one's decision. Nevertheless, several researchers have shown that people do attend to prior investments as they consider what course of action to take. For example, Arkes and Blumer (1985, Experiment 2) arranged to have three different types of season tickets sold to persons who approached the Ohio University Theater ticket booth at the beginning of the season. Approximately one third of the patrons purchased season tickets at the full $15 price, one third at $13, and one third at $8. Compared with those who purchased tickets at $15, those who purchased tickets at either of the discounted prices attended fewer plays during the subsequent 6 months. Apparently, those who had "sunk" the most money into the season tickets were most motivated to use the tickets. This is contrary to the maxim that incremental costs and benefits should govern one's decision to attend the plays. Once the tickets had been purchased, all patrons had a license to attend any play. Presumably, the costs and benefits of theater attendance would have been equal for the members of all
TL;DR: For all comparisons, cooperation resulted in greater interpersonal attraction, social support, and self-esteem and it promoted higher achievement for means-independent tasks for unclear competition and individualistic efforts.
Abstract: A meta-analysis was conducted on the relative impact of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts on motor skills performance. Competition was divided into 3 groups: zero sum, appropriate, and unclear. The motor skills tasks were divided into means-interdependent and means-independent tasks. The dependent variables were achievement-performance, interpersonal attraction, social support, and self-esteem. A total of 64 studies met the criteria for inclusion. Effects sizes were computed, and confidence intervals were used to determine their significance. A fail-safe sample size was computed to determine how many additional studies were needed to change the significance of the results. Cooperation resulted in higher achievement for means-interdependent tasks in zero-sum competition, unclear competition, and individualistic efforts, and it promoted higher achievement for means-independent tasks for unclear competition and individualistic efforts. For all comparisons, cooperation resulted in greater interpersonal attraction, social support, and self-esteem.
TL;DR: A review of four major approaches to the study of science, including historical accounts of scientific discoveries, laboratory experiments with nonscientists working on tasks related to scientific discovery, direct observation of ongoing scientific laboratories, and computational modeling of scientific discovery processes, can be found in this paper.
Abstract: This review integrates 4 major approaches to the study of science—histo rical accounts of scientific discoveries, psychological experiments with nonscientists working on tasks related to scientific discoveries, direct observation of ongoing scientific laboratories, and computational modeling of scientific discovery processes—by viewing them through the lens of the theory of human problem solving. The authors provide a brief justification for the study of scientific discovery, a summary of the major approaches, and criteria for comparing and contrasting them. Then, they apply these criteria to the different approaches and indicate their complementarities. Finally, they provide several examples of convergent principles of the process of scientific discovery. The central thesis of this article is that although research on scientific discovery has taken many different paths, these paths show remarkable convergence on key aspects of the discovery processes, allowing one to aspire to a general theory of scientific discovery. This convergence is often obscured by the disparate cultures, research methodologies, and theoretical foundations of the various disciplines that study scientific discovery, including history and sociology as well as those within the cognitive sciences (e.g., psychology, philosophy, and artificial intelligence). Despite these disciplinary differences, common concepts and terminology can express the central ideas and findings about scientific discovery from the various disciplines, treating discovery as a particular species of human problem solving. Moreover, we may be able to use these concepts and this vocabulary over an even broader domain to converge toward a common account of discovery in many areas of human endeavor: practical, scientific, and artistic, occurring both in everyday life and in specialized technical and professional domains. The doing of science has long attracted the attention of philosophers, historians, anthropologists, and sociologists. More recently, psychologists also have begun to turn their attention to the phenomena of scientific thinking, and there is now a large and rapidly growing literature on the psychology of science. (A good description of the field in its infancy can be found in Tweney, Doherty, & Mynatt, 1981, and a recent summary of topics and findings from investigations of the developmental, personality, cognitive, and social psychology of science can be found in Feist & Gorman, 1998). Our review links four major approaches to the study of science—historical accounts of scientific discoveries, laboratory experiments with nonscientists working on tasks related to scientific discoveries, direct observation of ongoing scientific laboratories, and computational modeling of scientific discovery processes—by
TL;DR: In this article, the authors evaluate the evidence for similarity and differences among three types of child-rearing data and include comparisons across time, children, and situations, finding that the most similarity was found in the across-time and across-children domains.
Abstract: The assessment of child-rearing beliefs and behavior has predominantly focused on qualities and characteristics believed to reflect consistent, enduring qualities of parenting--the similarity in child rearing. This review evaluates the evidence for similarity and differences among 3 types of child-rearing data and includes comparisons across time, children, and situations. Both relative stability and mean level differences were found in all 3 domains. The most similarity was found in the across-time and across-children domains, although it depended on the child-rearing construct and methodology used. It is argued that attention to the variability and change in child rearing must be incorporated into theoretical models of parenting to better understand the nature of child rearing and, in turn, parental influence on children's development.
TL;DR: Experimental findings in this area converge on the conclusion that at the word meaning/conceptual level, both episodic and linguistic memory can be characterized as share at the systems level and at least partly shared at the pairwise translation-equivalent level.
Abstract: Understanding cognitive research on the integration of 2 languages in bilingual memory is difficult because of the different terminology, methodology, analysis, and interpretation strategies that scholars with different backgrounds bring to the research. These studies can be usefully categorized on 2 dimensions: memory for verbal experience versus linguistic knowledge, and systemwise versus pairwise issues. Experimental findings in this area converge on the conclusion that at the word meaning/ conceptual level, both episodic and linguistic memory can be characterized as shared at the systems level and at least partly shared at the pairwise translation-equivalent level. Interpretation problems that stem from weak hypothesis testing structure and from covert translation can be minimized by using appropriate design and analysis techniques. Simply put, bilingualism, or using two languages to communicate, is a tool that allows people with different languages to exchange information. A biblical account of the origin of the world's many languages is given in the Old Testament story of the Tower of Babel, where it is written that God divided the tower's builders by giving them different languages. Without a common language with which to communicate, the builders failed in their goal of constructing the tower. Ironically, a similar situation has arisen in research on bilingualism in that researchers may be lacking a common language. This division has come about not because of any divine intervention but because researchers talk about the phenomena differently or "speak different languages," thereby introducing confusion in the research community. A translator is needed to clarify the links between these different research languages to assist researchers in understanding one another and to facilitate the building of research in this field. Cognitive psychologists, especially those with an informationprocessing perspective, try to clarify the organization of the mental representations and processes involved in thought. These representations and processes are, of course, fundamental to the structure and processes of language as well. An important debate relating to bilingualism focuses on whether two languages access one common or two separate conceptual systems. A cursory reading of the literature would suggest that there is evidence for both views. In this review, however, we see that the preponderance of evidence favors a single conceptual system and that there is little if any evidence to the contrary. Unfortunately, the data from many
TL;DR: The framework of a major form of outperformance-related distress, which is label sensitivity about being the target of a threatening upward comparison (STTUC), unites many previously disconnected findings on topics such as fear of success, envy, self-presentation, and self-evaluation maintenance.
Abstract: Outperforming others, although privately satisfying, can be a source of interpersonal strain. This article presents the framework of a major form of outperformance-related distress, which we label sensitivity about being the target of a threatening upward comparison (STTUC). To become STTUC, an individual must believe that another person is making an upward comparison against the self and feels threatened by the contrast in status. The outperformer must also experience concern about some facet of the other's response, and this concern may be focused on the other, the self, or the relationship. In addition to offering new predictions about outperformance-related distress, the STTUC framework unites many previously disconnected findings on topics such as fear of success, envy, self-presentation, and self-evaluation maintenance.
TL;DR: A new class of imaging experimental designs called event-related fMRI is described and critique that exploit the temporal resolution of fMRI by modeling fMRI signal changes associated with behavioral trials as opposed to blocks of behavioral trials.
Abstract: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has rapidly emerged as a powerful technique in cognitive neuroscience. We describe and critique a new class of imaging experimental designs called event-related fMRI that exploit the temporal resolution of fMRI by modeling fMRI signal changes associated with behavioral trials as opposed to blocks of behavioral trials. Advantages of this method over block designs include the ability to (a) randomize trial presentations, (b) test for functional correlates of behavioral measures with greater power, (c) directly examine the neural correlates of temporally dissociable components of behavioral trials (e.g., the delay period of a working memory task), and (d) test for differences in the onset time of neural activity evoked by different trial types. Consequently, event-related fMRI has the potential to address a number of cognitive psychology questions with a degree of inferential and statistical power not previously available.
TL;DR: Group and individual-difference adoption designs lead to opposite conclusions concerning the importance of shared environment (SE) for the child outcomes of IQ and antisocial behavior, which could be due to the range restriction of family environments (FE) that goes with adoption studies.
Abstract: Group and individual-difference adoption designs lead to opposite conclusions concerning the importance of shared environment (SE) for the child outcomes of IQ and antisocial behavior. This paradox could be due to the range restriction (RR) of family environments (FE) that goes with adoption studies. Measures of FE from 2 of the most recent adoption studies indicate that RR is substantial, about 67%, which corresponds to the top half of a normal FE distribution. RR of 67% cuts effect sizes and R2 statistics by factors of 3 and 2-2.5, respectively. Because selection into an adoption study in inherently a between-family process and assuming that comparable restriction of genetic (G) influences are absent, estimates of SE, G, and nonshared influences will be substantially biased, respectively, down, up, and up by RR. Corrections for RR applied to adoption studies indicate that SE could account for as much as 50% of the variance in IQ.
TL;DR: The present authors conclude that Gleaves's analysis underemphasized the cultural manifestations of multiple role enactments and that the history of DID imparts a valuable lesson to contemporary psychotherapists.
Abstract: In a recent article in this journal, D. H. Gleaves (1996) criticized the sociocognitive model (SCM; N. P. Spanos, 1994) of dissociative identity disorder (DID) and argued in favor of a posttraumatic model (PTM) in which DID is conceptualized as a consequence of childhood abuse and other traumatic events. The present authors demonstrate that (a) many of Gleaves's arguments were predicated on misunderstandings of the SCM, (b) scrutiny of the evidence regarding the psychopathology and assessment of DID raises questions concerning the PTM's conceptual and empirical underpinnings, (c) the treatment literature suggests that iatrogenic factors play an important role in the etiology of DID, and (d) the evidence linking child abuse to DID is more problematic than implied by Gleaves. The present authors conclude that Gleaves's analysis underemphasized the cultural manifestations of multiple role enactments and that the history of DID imparts a valuable lesson to contemporary psychotherapists.
TL;DR: This article attempts a synthesis of the range of disorders that have been subsumed under the rubric of retrograde amnesia, pointing to the potential fractionation of retro grade amnesia into component disorders, each with its own neural profile.
Abstract: This article attempts a synthesis of the range of disorders that have been subsumed under the rubric of retrograde amnesia. At a functional level, it is possible to make distinctions between various forms of retrograde amnesia, including a distinction between episodic amnesia for personally experienced events and semantic retrograde amnesia for components of knowledge, such as those relating to people and events. At an anatomical level, discrete lesions to limbic-diencephalic structures usually result in a limited degree of retrograde amnesia. Marked episodic or marked semantic retrograde amnesia is usually associated with significant involvement of cortical and neocortical structures. Retrograde amnesia is a functionally heterogeneous rather than a unitary phenomenon. Discontinuities and dissociations found in published studies point to the potential fractionation of retrograde amnesia into component disorders, each with its own neural profile.