Current Search: Psychology (x)
View All Items
Pages
- Title
- THE AVERSIVE PROPERTIES OF TIME-OUT FROM MAXIMAL FIXED-RATIO SCHEDULES OF POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT.
- Creator
- VOSS, TERENCE JEAN, Florida Atlantic University
- Abstract/Description
-
The aversiveness of time-out from maximal FR schedules of water reinforcement was assessed using rats as Ss. In one stimulus condition, S could produce or avoid TOs by lengthening or shortening pauses - after-reinforcement (PARs). In a second stimulus condition, Ss could similarly produce or prevent periods of stimulus change (SC). Results indicated that TO as S[triangle] or as bar retraction were equally aversive. Ss consistently shortened PARs and maintained the FR reinforcement...
Show moreThe aversiveness of time-out from maximal FR schedules of water reinforcement was assessed using rats as Ss. In one stimulus condition, S could produce or avoid TOs by lengthening or shortening pauses - after-reinforcement (PARs). In a second stimulus condition, Ss could similarly produce or prevent periods of stimulus change (SC). Results indicated that TO as S[triangle] or as bar retraction were equally aversive. Ss consistently shortened PARs and maintained the FR reinforcement contingencies, although no differential effects of SC conditions were observed. It was concluded that TO is aversive due to lack of reinforcement availability rather than to any effects specifically linked with extinction or cues associated with non-reinforced responding.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1972
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/13494
- Subject Headings
- Reinforcement (Psychology), Extinction (Psychology)
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Careers in crisis: The relationship between person-environment fit and job satisfaction.
- Creator
- Jackson, Craig Campbell, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Archival data collected from a private-practice career counseling center was analyzed to evaluate the extent to which situational constraint measures can be applied as moderators of person-occupation congruence. Demographic, personality, and career interest inventory responses, particularly those for the Strong Interest Inventory (SII), the 16PF, and the Myers-Briggs Type Inventory, served as the primary units of analyses. Data was collected by career counselors over a ten-year period for 202...
Show moreArchival data collected from a private-practice career counseling center was analyzed to evaluate the extent to which situational constraint measures can be applied as moderators of person-occupation congruence. Demographic, personality, and career interest inventory responses, particularly those for the Strong Interest Inventory (SII), the 16PF, and the Myers-Briggs Type Inventory, served as the primary units of analyses. Data was collected by career counselors over a ten-year period for 202 clients (125 men and 77 women; M age = 36.9). Difference score measures were calculated for clients by comparing SH scores to normative means for the general reference sample of the SH and appropriate occupational samples. Situational constraints such as age, income, marital status, having children, time spent in one's career field, and time spent in one's job were hypothesized to be positively associated with seeking career counseling for less voluntary reasons (i.e., terminations or lay-offs) than those who sought counseling for other reasons (i.e., career change, relocations, reentry, or resignation). Although situational constraint hypotheses were not supported, career counseled clients were highly incongruent with the occupational interests of their occupations. The magnitude of this finding exceeds that of those typical of the career-interest congruence literature. Despite clients' incongruence with the interests most commonly associated with their occupations, clients were more congruent on those interest dimensions when scores were compared to general reference sample means. That is, through selection practices or socialization, clients have achieved a minimal degree of congruence yet do not completely match the characteristics of the majority of others in their occupations. The results of this study suggest there is a maximum level of incongruence expected of interest congruence studies. Career-counseled clients in this sample spent considerable sums of money to find work situations that would improve their level of work satisfaction. Further research is necessary to verify whether the inclusion of career counseled clients provides a ceiling for the measurement of congruence-satisfaction relationships. Although situational constraint measures were not identified as effective moderators, their inclusion in future nonarchival studies may yield more sensitive tests of situational constraint hypotheses.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2001
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/11973
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Industrial, Psychology, Personality
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The Cinderella effect: The psychological bases and mental dynamics of step-parental ambivalence.
- Creator
- Miller, Mandy E., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Cross-cultural empirical data show that stepchildren receive lower levels of parental investment than their genetic counterparts. Beyond economic deprivation, stepchildren are abused, neglected, and murdered at the hands of stepparents at significantly higher rates than their genetic counterparts (the Cinderella Effect). This study was focused on emotional capital as a resource for purposes of parental investment. Using the tools of dynamical systems, this study investigated the affective...
Show moreCross-cultural empirical data show that stepchildren receive lower levels of parental investment than their genetic counterparts. Beyond economic deprivation, stepchildren are abused, neglected, and murdered at the hands of stepparents at significantly higher rates than their genetic counterparts (the Cinderella Effect). This study was focused on emotional capital as a resource for purposes of parental investment. Using the tools of dynamical systems, this study investigated the affective components of the differential levels of parental investment in genetic and step-children in light of predictions derived from evolutionary and personality/synchronization based psychological mechanisms. This was accomplished by defining and comparing the valence and nature of step- and genetic parents' feelings toward genetic and step-children and by tracking the mental dynamics engaged in by such parents as they considered their genetic and step-children under varying commonplace circumstances. As predicted, positive affective parental investment was found to be allocated preferentially in favor of genetic children and parents were found to have consistently more positive, more parental, and less volatile feelings about their genetic children than about their stepchildren. Genetic parents were more attentive to environmental cues at an affective level and tended to resolve situational ambiguity in favor of adopting a positive affective stance, while stepparents were more prone to experience affective shifts between evaluative frames and to express negative affectivity in the face of social uncertainty. The data also revealed that both genetic and step-parents were more likely to express positive feelings for children to whom they felt similar, which similarity provided a basis for personal synchronization. Theoretically grounded in both the evolutionary perspective and personality-based theory, this study employed the methodology and tools of dynamical systems to extract structure from the dynamics inherent in parental evaluation and the expression of affect.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2004
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FADT12119
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Social, Psychology, Developmental
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Children's perceptions of the consequences of aggression toward victimized peers.
- Creator
- Williard, Jean Carlisle, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
In Study 1, fourth--through seventh-grade children (mean age = 11.5 years) were asked to estimate the likelihood that various outcomes would occur following hypothetical acts of aggression by themselves toward victimized and nonvictimized peers. Subjects were also asked to indicate how much they valued the occurrence of the outcomes. When the targets of the aggression were victimized peers, children were more likely to anticipate tangible rewards, more likely to expect signs of victim...
Show moreIn Study 1, fourth--through seventh-grade children (mean age = 11.5 years) were asked to estimate the likelihood that various outcomes would occur following hypothetical acts of aggression by themselves toward victimized and nonvictimized peers. Subjects were also asked to indicate how much they valued the occurrence of the outcomes. When the targets of the aggression were victimized peers, children were more likely to anticipate tangible rewards, more likely to expect signs of victim suffering, and less likely to anticipate retaliation than when aggressing against nonvictimized peers. Also, children placed greater value on securing tangible rewards but were less concerned by the thought of hurting or by the thought of their target retaliating when attacking a victimized peer than attacking a nonvictimized peer. This pattern was stronger for boys than for girls. Study 2 was designed to see what evaluative reactions fourth--through seventh-grade children (mean age = 11.3 years) would expect from themselves, from peers, and from teachers for aggression against victimized and nonvictimized peers. When contemplating aggressing against a victimized peer, children expected less disapproval from self and peers. A second purpose of Study 2 was to determine whether children were more likely to display hostile attributional bias toward victimized peers than toward nonvictimized peers. As predicted, hostile attributional bias was greater toward victimized peers than toward nonvictimized peers. Implications for theories of aggression, future areas of research, and for intervention with victimized children are discussed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1990
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12259
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Developmental, Psychology, Personality
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Behavioral and electroencephalographic analysis of visuomotor coordination.
- Creator
- Taylor, Debra, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences
- Abstract/Description
-
Sensorimotor coordination is used in everyday behavior. This includes discrete reactive behaviors, such as maneuvers made to avoid a predator that was heard in the distance, or continuous rhythmic behaviors, such as riding a bicycle. Researchers have studied the behavioral aspects of sensorimotor coordination for over a century and various models have been proposed to account for these findings in terms of the nervous system. The purpose of this thesis was to use behavioral measures and...
Show moreSensorimotor coordination is used in everyday behavior. This includes discrete reactive behaviors, such as maneuvers made to avoid a predator that was heard in the distance, or continuous rhythmic behaviors, such as riding a bicycle. Researchers have studied the behavioral aspects of sensorimotor coordination for over a century and various models have been proposed to account for these findings in terms of the nervous system. The purpose of this thesis was to use behavioral measures and electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings in humans to address several of the remaining issues regarding the spatiotemporal dynamics of cortical activity involved in continuous sensorimotor coordination. First, are the spatiotemporal patterns of cortical activity different for discrete and continuous coordination behaviors? To investigate discrete coordination, a simple reaction time (RT) task was used: upon each random presentation of the visual stimulus (2.5--3.5 sec ISI), subjects responded with a unimanual index finger flexion. Continuous coordination was studied via a synchronization-continuation paradigm, which used the same visual stimulus (1 sec ISI) and the same unimanual index finger flexion as in the reaction time task. By keeping the stimulus and motor properties constant for the two types of coordination it was hypothesized that differences in cortical activity would relate to an internal timekeeping system responsible for pacing the rhythmic movements made during continuous coordination. Several models postulate that oscillatory activity is used by the brain for maintaining task timing information (see Miall, 1989, and Church and Broadbent, 1991, for example). Frequency analysis revealed phase-locking of the alpha rhythm in the occipital lobe. This rhythm appears to play a role as a neural timekeeper mechanism: it was found that the degree of alpha phase-locking was predictable from the expected dependence on neural timekeeping, i.e. continuation was greater than synchronization, which is in turn was greater than reaction. These results also support the concept of modality specificity in neural timekeeping mechanisms (reviewed in Matell and Meck, 2004). Furthermore, the behavioral and EEG results support the theory that continuous sensorimotor coordination is largely influenced by timekeeping mechanisms, with sensory stimulation being employed occasionally to keep timing relatively accurate (Hary and Moore, 1987).
Show less - Date Issued
- 2005
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12143
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Experimental, Psychology, Cognitive
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FUNCTIONAL PRINCIPLES AND WEIGHTED AVERAGE COMPUTATION: COMPARTMENTALIZATION OR INTEGRATION?.
- Creator
- FRANCIS, FRANK SHEPHERD, Florida Atlantic University
- Abstract/Description
-
The present study investigated the relationship between knowledge of functional principles and knowledge of weighted averages. Weighted average knowledge is used in estimating answers to mixture problems, and the present study examined two different methods of training people in estimation proficiency. One training method, the principles method, utilized principles of range, monotonicity, and linearity. Another training method was the formula method. The study compared the effectiveness of...
Show moreThe present study investigated the relationship between knowledge of functional principles and knowledge of weighted averages. Weighted average knowledge is used in estimating answers to mixture problems, and the present study examined two different methods of training people in estimation proficiency. One training method, the principles method, utilized principles of range, monotonicity, and linearity. Another training method was the formula method. The study compared the effectiveness of the two procedures in improving subjects' performance on estimation and graph identification tasks. It was predicted that formula instruction would provide subjects with a more effective means by which to accomplish the estimation task, whereas principles instruction would improve performance on the graph identification task. Results showed formula instruction to be more effective in improving accuracy on the estimation task, but neither method proved helpful on the graph identification task. Knowledge of functional principles and knowledge of weighted averages appeared compartmentalized (i.e., separate).
Show less - Date Issued
- 1987
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/14420
- Subject Headings
- Functionalism (Psychology), Reasoning (Psychology)
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- THE ROLE OF PREDICTABILITY IN THE PREFERENCE FOR CONTROL OVER TIME OUT FROM POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT.
- Creator
- SAWYER, ANN PRESCOTT., Florida Atlantic University
- Abstract/Description
-
The goal of this study was to exaoine the relatively reinforcing properties of predictability (or the absence of it) in human subjects' choice for control and no control presentations of a mildly aversive stimulus (Time Out from positive reinforcement). Subjects, overall, preferred predictability with control significantly more than predictability without control (Experinent I). There was less of a difference in their preference for control in the absence of predictability (Experiment II)....
Show moreThe goal of this study was to exaoine the relatively reinforcing properties of predictability (or the absence of it) in human subjects' choice for control and no control presentations of a mildly aversive stimulus (Time Out from positive reinforcement). Subjects, overall, preferred predictability with control significantly more than predictability without control (Experinent I). There was less of a difference in their preference for control in the absence of predictability (Experiment II). Results demonstrated greater preference for control among males than females and female variability was large. The "motive to avoid success" on the part of female subjects was purported to explain the variability and lesser preference for the control conditions.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1980
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/14037
- Subject Headings
- Control (Psychology), Prediction (Psychology)
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The effect of prior knowledge and metamemory on the acquisition of a reading comprehension strategy.
- Creator
- Gaultney, Jane F., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
This experiment examined the impact of knowledge base and declarative metamemory knowledge on the acquisition of a reading comprehension strategy. Fourth- and fifth-grade boys who were poor readers were tested for their baseball knowledge and declarative metamemory knowledge. Those boys who were designated as baseball experts were included in the experiment. The boys were pretested for strategy use and comprehension, received two days of training in the use of the strategy, and then were...
Show moreThis experiment examined the impact of knowledge base and declarative metamemory knowledge on the acquisition of a reading comprehension strategy. Fourth- and fifth-grade boys who were poor readers were tested for their baseball knowledge and declarative metamemory knowledge. Those boys who were designated as baseball experts were included in the experiment. The boys were pretested for strategy use and comprehension, received two days of training in the use of the strategy, and then were later tested twice: once within 3 days of training, then again 2-3 weeks later. The boys were divided into four groups. The T-BB (training, baseball stories) group received training in the use of the strategy using baseball stories. The T-NB (training, nonbaseball) group received equivalent training but used nonbaseball sports stories. Two control groups received equal time with the experimenter and equal reading practice with either baseball or nonbaseball stories, but were not taught the strategy. Because there were no differences in the level of strategy use or comprehension of the two control groups they were later combined into one control group. The target strategy was the asking of "why" questions in response to facts in the text. The asking of "why" questions has been hypothesized to activate relevant schema which are then used to facilitate the memorization of new material. Poor readers often do not utilize their existing knowledge to process new information. Children who received training with baseball stories (T-BB) demonstrated greater strategy acquisition than both other groups when tested both 2-3 days later (near posttest), and also when tested 2-3 weeks later (distant posttest). Group membership (T-BB, T-NB, or Control) did not impact free or cued recall. Declarative metacognitive knowledge impacted strategy acquisition and recall. Higher-metacognitive children asked more "why" questions than did lower-metacognitive children, demonstrated greater free recall, and were more likely to benefit from the strategy training in terms of cued recall. An unexpected finding was that children in the T-BB group asked more "why" questions in response to nonbaseball rather than baseball stories. This was discussed in terms of an appropriate increase of monitoring by the children who were trained within their area of expertise. Overall, children recalled more of the baseball than the nonbaseball stories. While both training groups had significant correlations between strategy use and free recall at the distant posttest, indicating a recall benefit associated with strategy use, only T-BB children had significant correlations at the near posttest.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1992
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12304
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Developmental, Psychology, Experimental
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The dynamics of attitudes: Individual beliefs to cultural norms.
- Creator
- Harton, Helen C., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Dynamic social impact theory (DSIT; Latane, 1996a; 1996b), a macro-level theory of social influence, predicts that discussion will lead to a self-organization of public opinion through decreasing minority sizes, increasing spatial similarity, and emerging correlations. The catastrophe theory of attitudes (CTA; Latane & Nowak, 1994), a micro-level theory, suggests that attitudes are a joint function of issue involvement and information favorability. This paper describes the predictions leading...
Show moreDynamic social impact theory (DSIT; Latane, 1996a; 1996b), a macro-level theory of social influence, predicts that discussion will lead to a self-organization of public opinion through decreasing minority sizes, increasing spatial similarity, and emerging correlations. The catastrophe theory of attitudes (CTA; Latane & Nowak, 1994), a micro-level theory, suggests that attitudes are a joint function of issue involvement and information favorability. This paper describes the predictions leading from these theories separately and as integrated and meta-analytically combines analyses of almost 500 students discussing social and political issues over a computer network with twenty previous studies testing aspects of CTA. The results of an original computer simulation are also described. Involving attitudes are extreme and change nonlinearly, and involvement mediates thought-, information-, and discussion-induced attitude polarization. Involvement also relates to persuasion and the self-organization of opinion. These studies show converging support for CTA and DSIT and suggest that combining these theories may increase our ability to track the evolution of attitudes from individual beliefs to cultural norms.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1998
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12568
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Social, Psychology, Personality
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The dynamic construction of moral judgment.
- Creator
- Rockloff, Matthew Justus, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
The time dynamics of moral judgments were investigated in two studies. In the first, participants recorded verbal recollections of an event in which they had been treated unjustly by another. Listening to their own recordings, participants used a relatively new instrument (the mouse paradigm) to express their moment to moment feelings, attributing "responsibility," "justification" and "intent" to their antagonist. In a second experiment, a different group of participants recorded their...
Show moreThe time dynamics of moral judgments were investigated in two studies. In the first, participants recorded verbal recollections of an event in which they had been treated unjustly by another. Listening to their own recordings, participants used a relatively new instrument (the mouse paradigm) to express their moment to moment feelings, attributing "responsibility," "justification" and "intent" to their antagonist. In a second experiment, a different group of participants recorded their feelings about a scripted academic honor code violation. While listening to their recordings, participants used the computer mouse to indicate their moment to moment feelings about the "actor," "transgression," and "punishment" described in the story. Results from both studies suggest that at any one moment, participants made judgments that uniformly characterized the transgressor in either positive or negative terms. Expressions of moral judgments, however, often changed dramatically from moment to moment between positive or negative modal values. Moreover, the flow of moral judgment resembled the temporal patterns observed in many formal and natural dynamical systems. Despite these changes, moral judgments became more stable over time; demonstrated coherence among the separately measured dimensions; and showed sensitivity to an importance manipulation. By replicating these classic findings in the attitude literature, this research helps validate the utility of the mouse paradigm in measuring moral judgments. The results further suggest that moral judgments are multi modal over time---casting doubt on the usefulness of the (averaged) judgments that are computed with traditional questionnaire instruments.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1999, 1999
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12611
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Social, Psychology, Experimental
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Interaction between surface-based and edge-based motion mechanisms in the perception of apparent motion.
- Creator
- Nichols, David F., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
The motion of an object may be perceived based on a change in location of either its surface or edges. By isolating the luminance changes produced by a moving object from the physical displacement of its surface and edges, it was found that a static object appears to move when the luminance changes are restricted to a narrow area adjacent to it. Therefore, changes in the luminance contrast of edges are sufficient for the perception of object motion. However, the existence of different motion...
Show moreThe motion of an object may be perceived based on a change in location of either its surface or edges. By isolating the luminance changes produced by a moving object from the physical displacement of its surface and edges, it was found that a static object appears to move when the luminance changes are restricted to a narrow area adjacent to it. Therefore, changes in the luminance contrast of edges are sufficient for the perception of object motion. However, the existence of different motion signals based on luminance changes of edges and surfaces was confirmed by the occurrence of different motion percepts for the same stimulus configuration. As the width of the region which changed in luminance was increased, edge-based motion percepts were replaced by a surface-based motion percept. This study was primarily concerned with the interaction between the mechanisms that signal edge-based motion and surface-based motion. It was found that surface-based motion mechanisms inhibit edge-based motion mechanisms, even when the different motion patterns were in the same direction. Modulating the effects of this inhibition was facilitation between edge-based motion mechanisms when two sliding-edge motions were possible in the same direction. Less facilitation, and possibly inhibition, occurred when the sliding-edge motions were in the opposite compared with the same direction. Finally, there was even greater inhibition from surface-based motion mechanisms ado edge-based motion mechanisms when the different motion patterns were specified in the opposite compared with the same direction. It is concluded that much of the observed inhibition results from high-level perceptual processes that distinguish between whether particular luminance changes are caused by the disappearance and reappearance of one object or by the local movement of multiple objects. Assuming that jumping-object motion is perceived naturally when there is an interruption in the visual processing of a moving object, such as with blinking, the nature of the inhibition would serve to, reduce the inappropriate perception of motion for ether objects adjacent to the previously and newly occupied locations of the moving object.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2006
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12235
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Experimental, Psychology, Cognitive
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Influences of child temperament and maternal childrearing behavior on victimization in the peer group.
- Creator
- Malone, Maurice James, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Possible contributions of child temperamental styles and maternal parenting behaviors to the prediction of victimization in the peer group were examined. 106 middle-class boys and girls in the 4th through 7th grades and their mothers participated in the study. Children reported on the parenting behavior of their mothers, male and female same grade classmates nominated subjects on victimization and other social behaviors, and mothers of the children reported on their child's temperament....
Show morePossible contributions of child temperamental styles and maternal parenting behaviors to the prediction of victimization in the peer group were examined. 106 middle-class boys and girls in the 4th through 7th grades and their mothers participated in the study. Children reported on the parenting behavior of their mothers, male and female same grade classmates nominated subjects on victimization and other social behaviors, and mothers of the children reported on their child's temperament. Results indicated no moderator or mediator roles, for child temperament or maternal parenting, in the prediction of victimization. However, for boys, maternal overprotective parenting was associated with peer victimization. Maternal overprotectiveness also predicted boys' internalizing problems among peers. For girls, maternal hostility was associated with peer victimization and internalizing problems. For both sexes, hostile parenting predicted externalizing problems in the peer group. An impulsive temperamental style also predicted externalizing problems for both sexes. A unifying theory explaining gender differences in the relation between maternal behaviors and peer victimization was given. Suggestions for future research were also advanced.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1996
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12484
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Developmental, Psychology, Personality
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- A transient mechanism for the perception of apparent motion.
- Creator
- Gilroy, Lee Alan, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
This study investigated the viability of a transient mechanism for the detection of counter-changing luminance, argued by Hock, et al. (2002) to be the informational basis for the perception of apparent motion. A series of experiments verified assumptions of the proposed mechanism and provided additional support for counter-changing luminance as the basis for apparent motion perception. It was found that: (1) The likelihood of perceiving apparent motion is best predicted by the product of...
Show moreThis study investigated the viability of a transient mechanism for the detection of counter-changing luminance, argued by Hock, et al. (2002) to be the informational basis for the perception of apparent motion. A series of experiments verified assumptions of the proposed mechanism and provided additional support for counter-changing luminance as the basis for apparent motion perception. It was found that: (1) The likelihood of perceiving apparent motion is best predicted by the product of local changes in luminance. This provided the basis for the multiplicative combination of subunit responses in the proposed mechanism (i.e. there is no motion signaled without coincident activation of both subunits). (2) When a brief interval of time separates a sequence of luminance onsets and offsets, or a sequence of luminance offsets, at a single element location, subunits exhibit summation of excitatory/inhibitory and excitatory/excitatory responses, respectively. This was consistent with the output of each subunit being determined by its biphasic temporal impulse response. (3) Apparent motion is specified only when there is a luminance offset at one location accompanied by a luminance onset at another location, and the likelihood of perceiving motion decreases with increases in the interval of time (ISI) separating the luminance offset from the luminance onset. Evidence that motion is not perceived beyond a limited range of ISI values indicated that the subunits respond transiently to luminance change. Accordingly, the effects of (ISI) are attributed to a reduction in the temporal coincidence of transient responses. This was supported by evidence that motion can be perceived when a luminance onset (indicating the end of the motion path) occurs before a luminance offset (indicating the start of the motion path). Computational simulations based on the product of transient responses to luminance offsets and onsets provide good qualitative matches to the experimental findings.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2002
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12004
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Experimental, Psychology, Cognitive
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The relations of gender identity to preadolescents' adjustment and friendship patterns.
- Creator
- Carver, Priscilla Rouse, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
The purpose of this study was twofold: first, this research was conducted in order to replicate and extend Egan and Perry's (2001) work linking four components of gender identity to adjustment; second, this research was intended to extend knowledge of the relation between gender identity and affiliational patterns in the peer group. Measures of gender identity were (a) feelings of gender typicality, (b) contentment with one's gender assignment, (c) felt pressure for gender conformity, and (d)...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was twofold: first, this research was conducted in order to replicate and extend Egan and Perry's (2001) work linking four components of gender identity to adjustment; second, this research was intended to extend knowledge of the relation between gender identity and affiliational patterns in the peer group. Measures of gender identity were (a) feelings of gender typicality, (b) contentment with one's gender assignment, (c) felt pressure for gender conformity, and (d) intergroup bias (feeling that one's own sex is superior to the other). Measures of adjustment included self-esteem, peer rejection, victimization by peers, and specific social behaviors. Participants were 206 children in Grades 3 through 8. Low gender typicality, low gender contentedness, and high felt pressure were all associated with maladjustment. Furthermore, children were especially likely to be at risk for poor adjustment when two of these factors occurred together (e.g., low gender typicality in combination with high felt pressure, low gender contentedness in combination with high felt pressure, or low gender typicality in combination with low gender contentedness). Intergroup bias was unrelated to adjustment. Analyses relating gender identity to characteristics of reciprocated friends and disliked peers indicated that children tend to choose friends with similar clusters of gender identity-linked characteristics and avoid children who do not possess those characteristics. Interpretations and directions for future research are offered.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2002
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/11978
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Social, Psychology, Developmental
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- THE DISCRIMINATIVE PROPERTIES OF RESPONSE-CONTINGENT FEEDBACK IN THE MAINTENANCE OF SHUTTLE-BOX AVOIDANCE.
- Creator
- BURGHARDT, WALTER FRANCIS, JR., Florida Atlantic University, Scheuer, Cynthia
- Abstract/Description
-
Thirty-six rats were used to study the effects of manipulating both the density and response contingency of feedback during the extinction (OE) of discriminated shuttle-box avoidance. Three operant groups had the opportunity to receive response-produced feedback on either 100, 60, or 30 per cent of the extinction trials. Three yoked groups received the' same number and pattern of feedback stimuli as the operant groups, but independently of their own behavior. Significant ordering was obtained...
Show moreThirty-six rats were used to study the effects of manipulating both the density and response contingency of feedback during the extinction (OE) of discriminated shuttle-box avoidance. Three operant groups had the opportunity to receive response-produced feedback on either 100, 60, or 30 per cent of the extinction trials. Three yoked groups received the' same number and pattern of feedback stimuli as the operant groups, but independently of their own behavior. Significant ordering was obtained between all operant and all yoked groups, and between operant and yoked groups at all three feedback percentage levels. An ordering trend was obtained for the feedback percentage dimension, which was, however, not significant. The results, however, clearly supported the discrimination hypothesis and upheld the importance of response produced stimulus change in the maintenance of avoidance behavior.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1974
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/13661
- Subject Headings
- Feedback (Psychology), Extinction (Psychology), Avoidance (Psychology)
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Developmental differences in the source monitoring of efficient and inefficient inhibitors.
- Creator
- Kennedy, Elizabeth Carol, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Source monitoring capabilities in children four, five, and six years of age classified along high and low inhibition abilities were investigated in three different conditions of source monitoring: reality monitoring, internal source monitoring, and external source monitoring. Specifically, children's misattribution errors in internal and reality source monitoring conditions with regard to their inhibition status was investigated. During one testing session, children were randomly assigned to...
Show moreSource monitoring capabilities in children four, five, and six years of age classified along high and low inhibition abilities were investigated in three different conditions of source monitoring: reality monitoring, internal source monitoring, and external source monitoring. Specifically, children's misattribution errors in internal and reality source monitoring conditions with regard to their inhibition status was investigated. During one testing session, children were randomly assigned to the three source monitoring conditions and invited to participate in puzzle completion tasks. In the reality source monitoring condition, children and experimenters took turns placing the puzzle pieces on a puzzle board. In the internal source monitoring condition, children were requested to actually place half of the puzzle pieces of their choice and to pretend to place the other half on the board. In the external source monitoring condition, children were requested to watch two different experimenters taking turns placing puzzle pieces on the board. After a short retention interval, children were surprised with a puzzle piece recall test. Children's inhibition abilities were assessed with three different inhibition tasks during a subsequent testing session and consisted of a tapping test, Simon Says test, and response compatibility test. Median splits determined children's inhibition abilities as either high (efficient) or low (inefficient). Sets of analysis of variance tests compared participants' general recall performance abilities among the three conditions of source monitoring and evaluated participants' reality and internal performance abilities with regard to inhibition status. The first set of analyses indicated that children made the most recall errors in the external source monitoring condition and the fewest in the reality source monitoring condition. The second set of analyses revealed that 4-year-old boys, compared to 5- and 6-year-old boys, committed more errors toward the misattribution bias in the internal condition, while 4-year-old girls, compared to 5- and 6-year-old girls, committed more errors against the bias. The third set of analyses supported the hypothesis that inefficient inhibitors on the tapping task committed more errors toward the misattribution bias in the internal source monitoring condition than those in the reality condition.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1998, 1998
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12556
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Developmental, Psychology, Experimental, Psychology, Cognitive
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Risk factors in peer victimization: Concurrent and longitudinal findings.
- Creator
- Hodges, Ernest Van Every, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
This dissertation involved two studies The first evaluated the hypothesis that the behavior problems which place children at risk for victimization by peers are likely to lead to victimization primarily when children are also at "social risk" for victimization. Social risk was defined as lacking supportive friends or as being rejected by the peer group. Subjects were 229 boys and girls in the third through seventh grades (M age = 11.2 years). Sociometric and peer nomination instruments were...
Show moreThis dissertation involved two studies The first evaluated the hypothesis that the behavior problems which place children at risk for victimization by peers are likely to lead to victimization primarily when children are also at "social risk" for victimization. Social risk was defined as lacking supportive friends or as being rejected by the peer group. Subjects were 229 boys and girls in the third through seventh grades (M age = 11.2 years). Sociometric and peer nomination instruments were used to measure behavior problems, friendship variables, peer rejection, and victimization. As predicted, behavior problems (internalizing problems, externalizing problems, and physical weakness) related more strongly to victimization when children had few friends, had friends who were incapable of fulfilling a protective function (e.g., were physically weak), or were rejected by peers than when children had more friends, had friends capable of defending them, or were better liked by peers. Results support the theory that social risk conditions invite and permit abuse of vulnerable children. Study 2 was a one-year longitudinal investigation designed to evaluate whether the behavioral and social problems that characterize victimized children are antecedents of victimization, consequences of victimization, or both. To examine these issues, 173 children from Study 1 were assessed one year later on the same variables that were measured in Study 1. Results provide information about both the antecedents and the outcomes of victimization.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1996
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12469
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Behavioral, Psychology, Social, Psychology, Developmental
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The effects of dispositional perspective taking, cognitive busyness, and situational information on retaliative aggression: An attributional interpretation.
- Creator
- Jones, Charles Eric, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Previous research has concluded that individuals high in perspective taking respond less aggressively to provocation than do those low in perspective taking. Whether the perspective-taking effect is automatic or not and many other process-related questions remain largely unanswered. One hundred sixteen female college students participated in a competitive reaction-time task, received escalatory negative feedback purportedly from another participant. In addition to being categorized as either...
Show morePrevious research has concluded that individuals high in perspective taking respond less aggressively to provocation than do those low in perspective taking. Whether the perspective-taking effect is automatic or not and many other process-related questions remain largely unanswered. One hundred sixteen female college students participated in a competitive reaction-time task, received escalatory negative feedback purportedly from another participant. In addition to being categorized as either high or low perspective takers, participants also received either high or low levels of situational information about the other and high or low levels of cognitive busyness. Participants high in perspective taking who were under high cognitive load responded significantly less aggressively than did participants low in perspective taking. Results suggest that perspective taking is an automatic process. The findings are discussed in terms of attribution theory, complexity-extremity theory, and in terms of an arousal-dominant response model.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2000
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12657
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Behavioral, Psychology, Social, Psychology, Experimental
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Structure and function in the developing brain: Effects of early frontal and cerebellar lesions on activity, learning, social and emotional behavior in the rat.
- Creator
- Stevenson, Bernadette Mietus, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Autism, characterized by disrupted social interaction and communication skills, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), characterized by hyperactivity and inattention, are two neurodevelopmental disorders that have recently been linked to common dysfunctions in the frontal lobes and cerebellum. The present study was designed to evaluate the neonatal rat as an animal model for neurodevelopmental disorders. The behavior of rats with early Frontal (FR), Cerebellar (CB), or Frontal +...
Show moreAutism, characterized by disrupted social interaction and communication skills, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), characterized by hyperactivity and inattention, are two neurodevelopmental disorders that have recently been linked to common dysfunctions in the frontal lobes and cerebellum. The present study was designed to evaluate the neonatal rat as an animal model for neurodevelopmental disorders. The behavior of rats with early Frontal (FR), Cerebellar (CB), or Frontal + Cerebellar (FR + CB) lesions, performed at either Post-natal Day 2 (PD 2) or 9 (PD 9), was evaluated with regard to activity, learning, social, and emotional behavior between the age of 3--31 days. In Experiment 1, 3 and 10-day-old pups were tested on their ability to habituate to a novel odor. FR lesions increased activity in 3-days-olds while CB, and FR + CB lesions disrupted odor habituation learning in 10-day-olds. In Experiment 2, 17-day-old pups were evaluated on activity in the open-field and ability to habituate to a novel environment. FR lesions resulted in increased locomotor activity while CB lesions resulted in increased grooming, a stereotypical behavior. Pups with PD 9 CB lesions also failed to habituate to the novel environment of the open-field. In Experiment 3, 24-day-old juveniles were evaluated on social behavior in the play test, as measured by frequency of pinning behavior. FR lesions increased levels of play behavior while CB lesions decreased play. In Experiment 4, 31-day-old juveniles were evaluated on emotionality in the elevated plus maze as measured by the number of distal open arms entries. Rats with CB lesions made twice as many distal open arm entries relative to the other lesioned groups; however, this result did not reach statistical significance. In conclusion, the results of the present study suggest that the effects of early frontal and cerebellar lesions can be dissociated on several different behavioral measures in young rats. Furthermore, neonatal rats with frontal and cerebellar lesions exhibit several behaviors during ontogeny that mimic those seen in children with ADHD and autism, such as hyperactivity and disrupted social interaction. The neonatal rat may thus prove to be a useful animal model for childhood neurodevelopmental disorders.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2001
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/11956
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Psychobiology, Psychology, Developmental, Psychology, Physiological
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Social context and sex-typing in young children: Friendship status and peer affect influences.
- Creator
- Sung, Hung-yen Angela, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
- Abstract/Description
-
Social context effects on young children's sex-typing were examined in two studies. In Study 1 sex-typed toy choices of 139 children aged 4 to 8 were assessed first for a solitary-play context, and then for three social contexts distinguished as to friendship status of a specified play partner (represented by a photo): best friend, acquaintance, and an unfamiliar peer. For each context, children selected preferred toys from photographs of a neutral toy paired with either a same- or opposite...
Show moreSocial context effects on young children's sex-typing were examined in two studies. In Study 1 sex-typed toy choices of 139 children aged 4 to 8 were assessed first for a solitary-play context, and then for three social contexts distinguished as to friendship status of a specified play partner (represented by a photo): best friend, acquaintance, and an unfamiliar peer. For each context, children selected preferred toys from photographs of a neutral toy paired with either a same- or opposite-sex toy. Results indicated social context effects for girls but not boys, in that girls tended to display more sex-typed toy choices in the solitary and best-friend than in the acquaintance or unfamiliar peer contexts. In general, however, girls approached same-sex toys less than boys, while both sexes avoided opposite-sex toys to a similar extent. In Study 2 subjects were 68 children aged 4 to 7. They were asked to imitate videotaped masculine, feminine, and neutral actions of a hand puppet. For different children, the puppet was designated (by name and photo display) as either a best friend or acquaintance, and it engaged in the sex-typed activities with either gender-congruent or incongruent affect (happy for same-sex actions and sad for opposite-sex actions, or the reverse). Friendship status and gender-affect congruency effects which varied with age level were evident for several memory measures. Incongruency promoted accurate imitative matching for the acquaintance context in younger children, and for the best-friend context in older children. In addition, best-friends' feminine actions were imitated more accurately than their masculine or neutral actions. Subject age and sex also interacted with activity gender type and gender-affect congruency to influence peer affect recall, with poorer recall of feminine-activity affect by boys in the incongruent condition. While social context had little impact upon boys' reported affect, girls' enjoyment was lower for masculine activity imitation in the best-friend congruent-affect condition. Overall, the two studies demonstrate that young children's gendered behaviors show considerable sensitivity to social context factors, and indicate the important influence of affective factors in early sex-typing.
Show less - Date Issued
- 1996
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12473
- Subject Headings
- Psychology, Social, Psychology, Developmental, Psychology, Experimental
- Format
- Document (PDF)