Showing papers in "Psychological Review in 1967"

Self-perception: An alternative interpretation of cognitive dissonance phenomena

Abstract: A theory of self-percepti on is proposed to provide an alternative interpretation for several of the major phenomena embraced by Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance and to explicate some of the secondary patterns of data that have appeared in dissonance experiments. It is suggested that the attitude statements which comprise the major dependent variables in dissonance experiments may be regarded as interpersonal judgments in which the observer and the observed happen to be the same individual and that it is unnecessary to postulate an aversive motivational drive toward consistency to account for the attitude change phenomena observed. Supporting experiments are presented, and metatheoretical contrasts between the "radical" behavioral approach utilized and the phenomenological approach typified by dissonance theory are discussed.

Two-process learning theory: Relationships between Pavlovian conditioning and instrumental learning

Abstract: The history of 2-process learning theory is described, and the logical and empirical validity of its major postulates is examined. The assumption of 2 acquisition processes requires the demonstration of an empirical interaction between 2 types of reinforcement contingencies and (a) response classes, (b) reinforcing stimulus classes, or (c) characteristics of the learned behavior itself. The mediation postulates of 2-process theory which argue that CRs are intimately involved in the control of instrumental responding are emphasized, and 2 major lines of evidence that stem uniquely from these postulates are examined : (a) the concurrent development and maintenance of instrumental responses and conditioned reflexes, and (b) the interaction between separately conducted Pavlovian conditioning contingencies and instrumental training contingencies in the control of instrumental behavior. The evidence from concurrent measurement studies provides, at the very best, only weak support for the mediational hypotheses of 2-process theory. In contrast, the evidence from interaction studies shows the strong mediating control of instrumental responses by Pavlovian conditioning procedures, and demonstrates the surprising power of Pavlovian concepts in predicting the outcomes of many kinds of interaction experiments.

Motivational and emotional controls of cognition.

Abstract: The central nervous System is a serial information processor that must serve an organism endowed with multiple needs, and living in an environment that presents unpredictable threats and opportunities. These requirements aie met by 2 mechanisms: (a) goal-terminating mechanisms, permitting goals to be processed serially without any 1 monopolizing the processor, (b) interruption mechanism, having the properties usually ascribed to emotion, allowing the processor to respond to urgent needs in real time. Mechanisms of these kinds, to control the direction of attention and activity, have been incorporated in some information-processing theories of human cognition, and their further elaboration will permit these theories to explain wider ranges of behavior.

Pavlovian Conditioning and Its Proper Control Procedures

Abstract: The traditional control procedures for Pavlovian conditioning are examined and each is found wanting. Some procedures introduce nonassociative factors not present in the experimental procedure while others transform the excitatory, experimental CS-US contingency into an inhibitory contingency. An alternative control procedure is suggested in which there is no contingency whatsoever between CS and US. This \"truly random\" control procedure leads to a new conception of Pavlovian conditioning postulating that the contingency between CS and US, rather than the pairing of CS and US, is the important event in conditioning. The fruitfulness of this new conception of Pavlovian conditioning is illustrated by 2 experimental results.

Chronometric analysis of classification.

Abstract: This series of studies represents an effort to extend the subtractive method of Bonders to the analysis of depth of processing in simple classification tasks. The stimuli are always pairs of items (letters, nonsense forms, digits) to which S must respond "same" or "different" as quickly as possible. Levels of instruction are physical identity (e.g., AA), name identity (e.g., Aa), and rule identity (e.g., both vowels). By use of the subtractive method, times for matches at each level are analyzed. The emphasis is not placed upon the times themselves but upon their relevance for understanding the operations and mechanisms involved in perceptual matching, naming, and classifying. Nearly 100 years ago the Dutch physiologist Donders presented a paper (Bonders, 1868) on the time for simple cognitive operations. This wellknown paper initiated the use of the subtractive method of latency analysis to measure the time for internal mental processes such as recognition and choice. Although the subtractive method has received a good deal of criticism (Boring, 1950), there is once again active interest in pursuing it. Recent work includes detailed analysis of successive stages in simple reaction time (McGill, 1963), separation of recognition from choice time (Taylor, 1966), effect of task variables such as S-R compatibility upon the component times (Broadbent & Gregory, 1965), and development of dynamic decision models to predict and explain various components of choice time (Fitts, 1966; Stone, 1960).

Assets and liabilities in group problem solving: the need for an integrative function.

Abstract: Research on group problem solving reveals that the group has both advantages and disadvantages over individual problem solving. If the potentials for group problem solving can be exploited and if its deficiencies can be avoided, it follows that group problem solving can attain a level of proficiency not ordinarily achieved. The requirement for achieving this level of group performance seems to hinge on developing a style of discussion leadership which maximizes the group's assets and minimizes its liabilities. Since members possess the essential ingredients for the solutions, the deficiencies that appear in group solutions reside in the processes by which group solutions develop. These processes can determine whether the group functions effectively or ineffectively. The critical factor in a group's potential is organization and integration. With training, a leader can supply these functions and serve as the group's central nervous system, thus permitting the group to emerge as a Highly efficient entity.

Behavior therapy and psychotherapy.

Abstract: Weitzman’s article is notable because it represents an early effort on the part of a sophisticated psychologist to reconcile the therapeutic results of systematic desensitization not only with classical psychoanalytic theory; but also with Jungian theory, interpersonal theory; and cognitive decision theory. After effectively demolishing Eysenck’s tendency to talk of “learning theory” as though there were a single theory of learning, when in fact there are many—a point previously made by Estes et al. in 1954 and by Breger and McGaugh in 1965—Weitzman goes on to demonstrate how much more complex Wolpe’s technique of systematic desensitization actually is as compared with the rather simplistic explanation that is usually given (i.e., reduction of anxiety by reciprocal inhibition due to muscular relaxation). In actuality, “a wealth of dynamically rich” fantasy material that has been essentially ignored is conjured up by patients during the silent periods of “relaxation.” Weitzman appropriately insists that the existence of these central processes in behavior therapy must not be ignored, and should be incorporated into a comprehensive theory of the behavioral therapeutic process. He chides dynamic psychotherapists for ignoring this challenge and offers some ingenious explanations of how such a theory might be formulated within the framework of a number of diverse theories. He also presents some tentative examples of how systematic desensitization can be utilized within a framework of dynamic understanding in psychotherapy—techniques that subsequent authors have been able to carry further (see Section III of this volume).

Optimal policies for the Prisoner's Dilemma.

Abstract: An optimal model for the Prisoner’s Dilemma game is suggested. The model is normative in the sense that given few assumptions about the way the game is perceived by the players, an optimal policy is prescribed to each player maximizing his long-run expected gain. The dilemma is “resolved” by restructuring the game as a supergame composed of several component games such that transitions among them are possible. Dynamic programming is used to derive the optimal policy.

Comment on Bem's "self-perception: an alternative interpretation of cognitive dissonance phenomena".

Abstract: Since Ss in Bern's (1967) "interpersonal replication of the Festinger-Carlsmith Experiment" were not informed that the amount the person they observed was paid was independent of his initial attitude, Bern's results are open to the alternative interpretation that Ss assumed the person's attitude determined the amount he was paid. Bern (1967) indicates that his "Interpersonal Replication of the FestingerCarlsmith Experiment" replicates the study by Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) "with the single exception that the observer and the observed are no longer the same individual." However, there is a second, crucial difference between the two studies. In the Festinger and Carlsmith experiment, the amount of money which the subject (S) was paid to say the boring tasks were fun was independent of his initial liking for the tasks. Thus, the differences in liking for the tasks at the end of the experiment can be considered evidence that the amount S1 was paid to say they were fun determined how much he liked the tasks. In Bern's study, Ss were not informed that the amount of money which the person in the recording was paid to say the boring tasks were fun was independent of his initial liking for the tasks. For this reason, the differences in the estimates of the person's liking for the tasks can not be taken as evidence that Ss assumed that the amount the person was paid determined how much he liked the tasks. The differences could just as well have occurred because Ss assumed that the person's liking for the tasks determined the amount he was paid. Bern has not shown that naive observers can accurately predict the changes in liking for the tasks found by Festinger and Carlsmith. Bern's "interpersonal replication of the toy study" suffers from the same flaw. It does not demonstrate that nai've observers can accurately predict the changes in liking for the toys found by Brehm and Cohen (1959).