Cognitive approaches to understanding reading: Implications for instructional practice.

Reviews psychological research on the nature of fluent reading, visual word recognition, and text comprehension. Issues considered include the nature of perceptual processes in reading, sources of individual differences, the interactions among cognitive processes in skilled reading, and the role of background knowledge in constructing the meaning of text. Studies with instructional implications are noted that may stimulate development of programs for enhancing particular skills such as vocabulary, word-recognition efficiency, and inference making. Progress toward the definition of a general model for reading is also considered. (46 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Research on instructional environments: Implications for student achievement and attitudes.

Argues that it is possible to identify individual student preferences for learning environments and modify the environment to match those preferences. It is reported that research reveals that when students are learning or concentrating on difficult material, they exhibit individual learning styles or preferences for noise level, degree of illumination, type of classroom furniture, time of day, degree of mobility, or temperature. Children tend to obtain significantly higher achievement test scores and report better attitudes toward learning under instructional conditions that match their environmental preferences. The Learning Style Questionnaire and Learning Style Inventory are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Objective rules of sequencing applied to instructional material.

Applied objective rules of sequencing to elementary-level instructional material to determine their effect on time, errors made during instruction, and posttest errors. 105 2nd-grade pupils participated in the study, which required them to identify nouns, adjectives, and verbs embedded in sentences which were presented in a programmed instruction format. A multivariate analysis of covariance was performed with a 3-level independent factor of sequence type, using mental age (Otis Quick-Scoring Mental Ability Test) and pretest performance as covariates. The groups differed significantly, with errors made during instruction and time to complete the programs being most affected by the sequence manipulations. Results are discussed in terms of the application of the rules to various types of instructional material. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of differential instructional set on sentence completion responses.

Studied the effects of 4 different instructional sets on Sentence Completion Test (SCT) responses. 4 groups of 25 16-18 yr. old males received different instructions to similar SCT items: (a) stressing the expression of real feeling, (b) asking for immediate response, (c) encouraging both immediate response and real feeling, and (d) neutral instructions. Results suggest that differential instructional set has no significant overall effect on sentence-completion responses, although some item clusters were more susceptible than others to variations in instructional set. While findings demonstrate no difference in mean scores by the authors' method of scoring various types of SCT instructions, the possibility cannot be ruled out that there may be differences in validity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nonverbal cues for depth of depression: Set versus no set.

100 psychology undergraduates and 15 clinical graduates viewed a silent videotape of depressed and nondepressed patients, rated depression on a 10-point scale, and indicated which of 10 body areas conveyed depression. Results show that Ss, even when given no informational set (the depression label), can discriminate depth of depression by nonverbal cues alone, suggesting that it may be an unobtrusive diagnostic technique. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of instructional set on responses to the Geriatric Depression Scale.

A community sample of elderly subjects (M age?=?74 years) was randomly assigned to four variations in reference group instructions on the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). In one condition, subjects received no instructions as to reference group, which is the standard instructional format of the test. In the other three conditions, subjects were asked to compare themselves with one of three reference groups: age group peers, adults in general, or themselves at a younger age. Results indicated that the GDS is robust with respect to variation in reference group instruction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Some data and comments regarding educational set theory.

Educational set theory has suggested that some students prefer to learn concepts before facts while others prefer to learn facts before concepts, and that academic performance can be enhanced by making content presentation sensitive to such individual differences. The Educational Set Scale (ESS), developed to measure this hypothesized construct, has been used to produce support for the theory. However, the reliability and validity of the ESS and its relationships with other indices of performance have not been sufficiently established to support such theorizing. The present investigation provided empirical data, collected from 117 students enrolled in various university psychology classes. Experimental and analytical procedures are described in detail. Theoretical issues regarding the scale and the theory are discussed. Because results indicate possible errors resulting from use of the ESS, an expanded model is proposed, and directions for future research are suggested. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counterfactual thinking and regulatory focus: Implications for action versus inaction and sufficiency versus necessity.

Counterfactual thinking is associated with regulatory focus in a way that explains previous empirical incongruities, such as whether additive counterfactuals (mutations of inactions) occur more or less frequently than subtractive counterfactuals (mutations of actions). In Experiment 1, regulatory focus moderated this pattern, in that additive counterfactuals were activated by promotion failure, whereas subtractive counterfactuals were activated by prevention failure. In Experiment 2, additive counterfactuals evoked a prevention focus and expressed causal necessity. In Experiment 3, dejection activated additive counterfactuals, whereas agitation activated subtractive counterfactuals. These findings illuminate the interconnections among counterfactual thinking, motivation, and goals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Partial reinforcement and instructional set in discrimination conditioning of the eyelid response.

Conducted a discrimination eyelid conditioning experiment with a total of 144 undergraduates in which either 50 or 100% of CS+ trials were reinforced under inhibitory, neutral, or facilitatory instructional sets. Variation in instructional set yielded receiver operating characteristic curves that indicated discrimination by the 100% reinforcement groups superior to that by the 50% groups during conditioning. However, the 50% groups displayed both superior resistance to extinction and superior discrimination in extinction. Discrimination declined during extinction under both reinforcement schedules. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Impact of gender characteristics of instructional materials: An integration of the research literature.

Discusses the influence of gender characteristics of instructional materials on children. Recent reviews indicate that most instructional materials are still sexist. Definitions of sexist and sex equitable that incorporate both language form and gender content are included in the present article. Generalizations synthesized from research regarding the effects of gender characteristics of instructional materials on students are presented. It is suggested that the following generalizations apply to students from preschool through college age: (1) The use of gender-specified language forms explicitly including both sexes yields gender-balanced associations, while use of male generic language frequently results in male associations. (2) Exposure to sex-equitable materials results in more flexible sex role attitudes for both males and females, with degree of attitude change being directly related to the amount of exposure. (3) Students often prefer materials with same-sex main characters but do not reject sex-equitable materials. (4) The patterns for comprehension are not as clear, but sex-equitable materials do not decrease comprehension. (63 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

UCS intensity and instructional set in classical eyelid conditioning: Discrimination conditioning and signal-detection analysis.

Conducted discrimination eyelid conditioning at 2 UCS intensities under inhibitory, neutral, and facilitatory instructional sets, in a experiment involving 144 undergraduates in 6 groups. Instructional set yielded receiver operating characteristic curves that were reasonably straight lines on a normal deviate plot. The tentative conclusion from signal-detection theory of an equal discriminability function across instructional sets was contrasted with 4 indices of discrimination, indicating significant but mutually contradictory changes in discrimination as a function of instructional set. Discrimination differences were produced by UCS intensity, particularly under the neutral instructions. (French summary) (16 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of instructional set and need for social approval on commonality of word association responses.

This study investigated the effect of various instructional sets (speed, relaxed time instructions, and "set popular" instructions) on commonality of word associations. Findings were generally supportive of the hypotheses: significantly more common associations were given under speed as compared to relaxed instructions, Ss were able to significantly increase their commonality scores under a set to give popular responses, and need for social approval was differentially related to commonality under relaxed but not under speed instructions. Contrary to a suggestion of Jenkins, social sensitivity (as reflected in the need for approval measure) was not related to the ability to increase one's commonality score under "set popular" instructions. (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of instructional set on attributions of nonvolition during hypnotic and nonhypnotic analgesia.

Fifty highly hypnotizable subjects were assigned to four treatment groups or a no-treatment control group and then underwent two pain stimulation trials. Half the treated subjects were administered hypnotic analgesia, half waking analgesia. Within hypnotic and nonhypnotic treatments, half the subjects were given actively worded analgesia instructions, half passively worded instructions. Subjects in the four treated groups reported equivalent pain reduction and equivalent use of coping imagery, although hypnotic subjects rated themselves as more deeply hypnotized than did nonhypnotized subjects. Both hypnotic and nonhypnotic subjects given passive instructions rated their pain reduction as occurring involuntarily, whereas those given active instructions reported that their pain was reduced through their active use of coping strategies. These findings support sociocognitive formulations of hypnotic responding that view ratings of involuntariness as reflecting contextually guided interpretations of behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of information, subject age, and instructional set on predictive judgments.

Examined the effects of 3 variables on the accuracy of 120 male undergraduate judges to predict behavior. Variables were: (a) no information about the Ss whose behavior was to be predicted, biographical information, and information considered relevant to the behavior; (b) S age, with Ss being 1 child and 2 adults; and (c) no instructions, and instructions oriented toward furnishing a set regarding how to predict. Significant differences were found between the 2 levels of S age and also among the 3 levels of information. The effect of instruction approached significance. There were some additive effects apparent when all 3 variables were considered at 1 time. (19 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Recall as a function of single versus multiple trials: Implications for rehabilitation.

Objective: To empirically demonstrate that recall based on multiple presentations of material (i.e., "learning") is statistically distinct from recall based on singular presentations of material (i.e., "memory"). Participants: Two hundred ninety-one individuals referred to an outpatient neuropsychology laboratory, including 199 with a primary diagnosis of traumatic brain injury, 13 who experienced a cerebral vascular accident, 3 with progressive dementia, and 76 with an unknown etiology. Main Outcome Measures: Raw-standard scores from the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised Logical Memory and Visual Reproduction subtests, the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), the Tactual Performance Test (TPT), the Category Test, and indices of "learning" based on difference scores: RAVLT Trial 5 minus Trial 1; TPT Trial 3 minus Trial 1. Results: A promax factor analysis of 291 participants with cognitive dysfunction revealed a 4-factor solution (verbal memory, spatial memory, verbal learning, and tactile-motor learning), supporting the distinction between learning and memory constructs. Conclusions: Recall based on multiple presentations of information should be evaluated to provide the most functionally relevant assessments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Therapy and counselling with women: A handbook on educational materials.

Describes a new Handbook developed by Jean Pettifor, Carolyn Larsen and Lorna Cammaert of Calgary. The purpose of this Handbook on Educational Materials is to assist therapists, counsellors, teachers and consumers to promote sex-fair therapy and counselling with women. The Guidelines for Therapy and Counselling with Women, adopted by the Canadian Psychological Association in 1980, are consistent with the Canadian Psychological Association Ethical Standards of Psychologists (1978) and the Canadian Psychological Association Standards for Providers of Psychological Services (1977). The Handbook, as a sequel to the Guidelines, provides information on educational models and content and on workshops and "self-help" exercises which can be used to increase awareness of sex bias and stereotyping and to promote competent and fair practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The repression-sensitization variable and self-reported emotional arousal: effects of stress and instructional set

Investigated the relationship of status on D. Byrne's repression-sensitization dimension to self-reported arousal under stress and nonstress conditions when Ss' perceptions of the appropriateness of appearing emotionally aroused were varied. 56 female and 70 male undergraduates were divided into sensitizer, repressor, and a middle group on the basis of Repression-Sensitization (R-S) scores. Ss viewed either an anxiety-producing industrial accident film or a neutral film. Experimental instructions emphasized either the appropriateness, inappropriateness, or neutrality of emotional expressivity within the experimental context. The 3 * 3 * 2 factorial design enabled the investigation of predictions based on ego-defensive interpretations of repression-sensitization and H. M. Lefcourt's (1966) "attitude toward emotionality" view. Results fail to provide substantive support for either interpretation, even after internal analyses involving social desirability and S sex were performed. The relational fertility of the repression-sensitization construct as defined by status on the R-S Scale is questioned, at least with reference to dependent measures of an objective self-report nature. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Person versus process praise and criticism: Implications for contingent self-worth and coping.

Conventional wisdom suggests that praising a child as a whole or praising his or her traits is beneficial. Two studies tested the hypothesis that both criticism and praise that conveyed person or trait judgments could send a message of contingent worth and undermine subsequent coping. In Study 1, 67 children (ages 5–6 years) role-played tasks involving a setback and received 1 of 3 forms of criticism after each task: person, outcome, or process criticism. In Study 2, 64 children role-played successful tasks and received either person, outcome, or process praise. In both studies, self-assessments, affect, and persistence were measured on a subsequent task involving a setback. Results indicated that children displayed significantly more helpless responses (including self-blame) on all dependent measures after person criticism or praise than after process criticism or praise. Thus person feedback, even when positive, can create vulnerability and a sense of contingent self-worth. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relative versus absolute measures of explicit attitudes: Implications for predicting diverse attitude-relevant criteria.

The authors report 4 studies exploring a self-report strategy for measuring explicit attitudes that uses "relative" ratings, in which respondents indicate how favorable or unfavorable they are compared with other people. Results consistently showed that attitudes measured with relative scales predicted relevant criterion variables (self-report of behavior, measures of knowledge, peer ratings of attitudes, peer ratings of behavior) better than did attitudes measured with more traditional "absolute" scales. The obtained pattern of differences in prediction by relative versus absolute measures of attitudes did not appear to be attributable to differential variability, social desirability effects, the clarity of scale-point meanings, the number of scale points, or overlap with subjective norms. The final study indicated that relative measures induce respondents to consider social comparison information and behavioral information when making their responses more than do absolute measures, which may explain the higher correlations between relative measures of attitudes and relevant criteria. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)