Familiarity and novelty preferences in infant recognition memory: Implications for information processing.

Investigated the suggestion that young infants show a preference for familiar stimuli that is supplanted by a preference for novel stimuli as they get older and the act of recognition becomes commonplace. In Study 1, 84 Ss (3.5, 4.5, and 6.5 mo old) were tested for visual recognition memory of shapes, using the paired comparison procedure. The 3.5-mo-olds showed a strong preference for the familiar, whereas the older Ss preferred the novel stimulus. In Study 2 with 72 3.5- and 6.5-mo-old Ss, these shifts were found to depend more on familiarization time than on age. Ss of both ages showed a preference for the familiar stimulus after limited exposure to it but shifted to a preference for the novel stimulus after more extended exposure. It is concluded that regardless of age, infants prefer to look at that which is familiar as they begin to process a stimulus; once processing becomes more advanced, their preference shifts to the novel. Findings are therefore contrary to the developmental view investigated. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Target entitativity: Implications for information processing about individual and group targets.

It is hypothesized that perceptions of entitativity (i.e., seeing social targets as possessing unity and coherence) have important implications for how one organizes information about, and forms impressions of, individual and group targets. When perceivers expect entitativity, they should form an integrated impression of the target, resulting in on-line judgments. However, when perceivers expect little entitativity, they should not process target-relevant information in an integrative fashion, resulting in memory-based judgments. Although many factors affect perceptions of entitativity, the current study focused on expectations of similarity and behavioral consistency. It was predicted that in general, perceivers expect greater entitativity for individual than group targets. However, when explicitly provided with similar expectancies of entitativity, information processing would be similar for both individual and group targets. Two experiments supported these predictions, using recall, memory-judgment correlation, and illusory correlation measures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The self in context: Implications for psychopathology and psychotherapy.

Views of the self differ in individualist and collectivist cultures. Independence and uniqueness are valued in the former, whereas interdependence and social context are valued in the latter. When there is more than 1 culture in the same context, the competent individual learns to become bicultural. Intrapersonal influences are more prominent in determining psychopathology in individualist contexts, whereas interpersonal influences are more prominent in collectivist contexts. Psychopathology among persons who are bicultural may be determined by both intrapersonal and interpersonal influences. Western psychotherapy has emphasized intrapersonal bases of psychopathology. However, the intrapersonal and bicultural context of psychopathology must be considered for psychotherapy to be appropriate with persons who have been socialized to be interdependent, including ethnic minority persons. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Temporal limits of human information processing: A developmental study.

Presents a schematic model of the human information processing system, and within this framework discusses differences between adults and children in information processing limits. It is tentatively concluded that some irreducible maturational differences in processing rate are present, along with differences due to nonprocessing factors of incentive, motivation, attentiveness, and practice. The following areas of investigation of rapid information processing are discussed as they relate to reported or potential developmental research: tachistoscopic recognition, visual search, stimulus familiarity, stimulus sequential effects, choice reaction time, and central channel limitations. Tentative conclusions are drawn concerning possible loci in the processing model of age differences in processing rate capacity. (65 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-organized phase transitions in neural networks as a neural mechanism of information processing

Transitions between dynamically stable activity patterns imposed on an associative neural network are shown to be induced by self-organized infinitesimal changes in synaptic connection strength and to be a kind of phase transition. A key event for the neural process of information processing in a population coding scheme is transition between the activity patterns encoding usual entities. We propose that the infinitesimal and short-term synaptic changes based on the Hebbian learning rule are the driving force for the transition. The phase transition between the following two dynamical stable states is studied in detail, the state where the firing pattern is changed temporally so as to itinerate among several patterns and the state where the firing pattern is fixed to one of several patterns. The phase transition from the pattern itinerant state to a pattern fixed state may be induced by the Hebbian learning process under a weak input relevant to the fixed pattern. The reverse transition may be induced by the Hebbian unlearning process without input. The former transition is considered as recognition of the input stimulus, while the latter is considered as clearing of the used input data to get ready for new input. To ensure that information processing based on the phase transition can be made by the infinitesimal and short-term synaptic changes, it is absolutely necessary that the network always stays near the critical state corresponding to the phase transition point.     

Inaccuracy of family health information: Implications for prevention.

Highlights the relevance of family health history information for secondary and possibly primary prevention and discusses the complications of interaction of multiple risk factors, such as the lack of knowledge of family health history for adoptees and inaccurate knowledge of family health history for nonadoptees. Conflicts between the rest of the family's right to medical confidentiality and the individual's need to know about health risks for which he or she may show increased susceptibility are noted. Implications of inaccurate information for self-directed and public health prevention are discussed, and confidentiality and other reasons for maintaining nondisclosure are considered. It is contended that research and progress in prevention will likely accelerate, continuing to alter the traditional view from one of the individual with a personal health history to one in which individuals share a familial (genetic?+?shared environment?+?similar behavior patterns) risk with others, who may also benefit from preventive programs. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A theory of intelligence as processing: Implications for society.

Defining intelligence as processing allows one to predict intelligence from infancy, discover causes of mental retardation, test the intelligence of people with disabilities, develop culture-fair tests of intelligence, and demonstrate that groups that differ in IQ do not necessarily differ in intelligence. An early estimate of intellectual disability allows a child to qualify quickly for remedial programs. Economic and emotional benefits would ensue from discovering and eliminating the causes of a small percentage of cases of mental retardation. The measurement of intelligence as processing reveals intellectual strengths that may otherwise be masked by physical or emotional disability or by cultural circumstances. Cultures may differ in the types of knowledge their members have but not in how well they process. Cultures may account for racial differences in IQ. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of fathers in child and adolescent psychopathology: Make room for daddy.

Summarizes research concerning the relation between paternal factors and child and adolescent psychopathology. When compared with mothers, fathers continue to be dramatically underrepresented in developmental research on psychopathology. However, findings from studies of children of clinically referred fathers and nonreferred samples of children and their fathers indicate that there is substantial association between paternal characteristics and child and adolescent psychopathology. Findings from studies of fathers of clinically referred children are stronger for fathers' effects on children's externalizing than internalizing problems. In most cases the degree of risk associated with paternal psychopathology is comparable to that associated with maternal psychopathology. Evidence indicates that the presence of paternal psychopathology is a sufficient but not necessary condition for child or adolescent psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Test anxiety: Deficits in information processing.

Compared 194 high, medium, and low test-anxious undergraduates (Worry and Emotionality Questionnaire) on the retrieval deficit hypothesis. The hypothesis was supported by results showing that high test-anxious Ss did poorly on essay and short-answer questions but did well on multiple choice questions that involved less active retrieval. Specifically, results show that high test-anxious Ss (a) did poorly on a take-home examination that did not emphasize retrieval, (b) reported problems in learning material throughout the course, (c) had problems picking important points in the reading assignments, and (d) encoded information at a more superficial level. Results imply that the worry reported by high test-anxious Ss may not simply be a personality characteristic but may rather be due to their inadequate knowledge of the subject matter. Results also imply that programs for helping such Ss should emphasize developing learning strategies and coping techniques for the test situation. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Anxiety disorders of childhood, Implications for adult psychopathology

Although the exact path of acquisition remains incompletely understood, research supports the association between anxiety disorders in children and psychopathologic conditions in adults. This article addresses this relationship; reviews findings on the temperamental profile and behavioral inhibition, which may be an early identifiable childhood predictor of later anxiety disorders; and discusses the importance of early intervention.     

Patterns of perceptual asymmetry in depression and anxiety: Implications for neuropsychological models of emotion and psychopathology.

More than 1,000 university undergraduates were simultaneously classified as either high or low depressed and high or low anxious and given a face-processing task that typically elicits a left hemispatial bias. Depression and anxiety were associated with opposing biases in perceptual asymmetry scores. In particular, high-depressed students had smaller left hemispatial biases than low-depressed students, whereas high-anxious students had larger left hemispatial biases than low-anxious students. The results suggest that depression and anxiety may be associated with different patterns of asymmetric hemispheric function. Because the rate of comorbidity of depression and anxiety in the population is high, these findings confirm the importance of separating anxiety and depression when examining the relationship among patterns of brain activity, emotion, and psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dissociating the role of the parietal cortex and dorsal hippocampus for spatial information processing.

Dorsal hippocampus, parietal cortex, and control lesioned rats were tested on both a metric and topological task. The metric task consisted of 2 different objects placed 68 cm apart on a cheese board. After habituation, the objects were moved to a separation of 38 cm on Day 1 and to a separation of 98 cm on Day 2. The topological task consisted of 4 different objects placed in a square orientation. After habituation, the first 2 objects were switched, and after the rats habituated to that change, the back 2 objects were switched. This was repeated on a different day with 4 new objects. The data suggest that the hippocampus is necessary for metric representations, whereas the parietal cortex is necessary for topological representations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The stimulus in information processing.

Argues that the nature of the stimulus is an important variable determining how information is processed. 2 major stimulus concepts are discussed: dimensional integrality vs. separability, and state vs. process limited stimuli. These concepts relate to the effects of stimulus redundancy on discrimination. There will be a gain with redundancy: (a) if the need for redundancy is due to a process limitation and the redundant dimensions are integral, or (b) if the need for redundancy is due to state limitation and the redundant dimensions are separable. Redundancy can also lead to improvement in discrimination if the stimulus elements can be integrated into a gestalt whole. (28 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Continuous versus discrete information processing: Modeling accumulation of partial information.

Comments on D. E. Meyer and colleagues' (see record 1988-28535-001) new technique for examining the time course of information processing, which is a variant of the response signal procedure: On some trials Ss are presented with a signal that requires them to respond, whereas on other trials they respond normally. The accuracy of guesses based on partial information can be determined by using the data from the regular trials and a simple race model to remove the contribution of fast-finishing regular trials from signal trial data. This analysis shows that the accuracy of guesses is relatively low and is either approximately constant or grows slowly over the time course of retrieval. Myers et al argue that this pattern of results rules out most continuous models of information processing. But the analyses presented in the present article show that this pattern is consistent with several stochastic RT models: the simple random walk, the runs, and the continuous diffusion models. The diffusion model is assessed with data from a new experiment using the study–test recognition memory procedure. Fitting the diffusion model to the data from regular trials fixes all parameters of the model except one (the signal encoding and decision parameter). With this one free parameter, the model predicts the observed guessing accuracy. It is concluded that the results obtained from Meyer and colleagues' new technique give qualitative support to some stochastic models and quantitative support to the continuous diffusion model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dual-task information processing in schizotypal personality disorder: Evidence of impaired processing capacity.

Working memory theories heavily rely on the concept of processing resources and the their efficient deployment. Some recent work with schizophrenia-spectrum patients has suggested that many associated cognitive impairments may be reduced to deficits in working memory, possibly related to reductions in information-processing capacity resources. In this study, 38 patients with schizotypal personality disorder (SPD), 22 patients with other personality disorders, and 14 healthy comparison participants performed a dual-task processing assessment that was designed specifically for use in this type of study. Participants recalled lists of digits at their predetermined maximum digit span and performed box-checking tests, first alone and then in a dual-task format. Instructions included equal prioritization of both tasks. SPD patients had significantly shorter digit spans, and they also showed more deterioration on both tasks. Performance operating characteristics curves indicated that SPD patients' reduced performance was not due to abnormal resource allocation strategies leading to strategic failures. The authors discuss the implications of these processing capacity limitations for understanding both the signature of cognitive impairment within the schizophrenia spectrum and general abnormalities in working memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived numerosity: An information processing analysis.

Presented 3 university students with matrices of from 1 to 16 dots and asked them to count the dots they could see. In Condition 1 a visual noise pattern followed the display of dots by one of several intervals in order to control the time available to process them. In Condition 2 no mask was used, but the exposure duration was varied. In the processing time condition, dots were counted at a rate of 4 msec/dot when less than 6 dots were presented, and at a rate of 60 msec/dot for all dots in excess of 6. If enough time was given to process all the dots presented, virtually all were reported, whereas, if enough time was given to count only some of the dots, virtually none of the excess were counted. In the duration condition, in which processing time was not restricted, counting appeared to be a function of the visibility of the dots, as shown by a family of more linear functions between number of dots presented and number counted, with the slope determined by the duration of exposure. Data are consistent with a serial processing interpretation of dot counting occurring at a very early stage of information extraction, in which there is a serial scanning mechanism which extracts information from an initial brief store and transfers it to a 2nd store for actual counting. (French summary) (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of the family in the development of psychopathology.

Psychologists generally make the assumption that the experiences to which the individual is exposed over a period of time lead to the development of learned patterns of behavior. From this, psychologists have reasoned that the experiences the individual has in his early life at home, with his family, in general, and his mother, in particular, are major determinants in the learning of the constellation of behaviors subsumed under the rubric, personality, and in particular, the development of psychopathology. A review of the research of the past 40 yr. failed to support this assumption. No factors were found in the parent-child interaction of schizophrenics, neurotics, or those with behavior disorders which could be identified as unique to them or which could distinguish one group from the other, or any of the groups from the families of the controls. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Morton-Massaro law of information integration: Implications for models of perception.

Information integration may be studied by analyzing the effect of 2 or more sources (e.g., auditory and visual) on participants' responses. Experiments show that ratios of response probabilities often factorize into components selectively influenced by only 1 source (e.g., 1 component affected by the acoustic source and another 1 affected by the visual source). This is called the Morton-Massaro law (MML). This article identifies conditions in which the law is optimal and notes that it reflects an implicit assumption about the statistics of the environment. Adherence to the MML can be used to assess whether the assumption is being made, and analyses of natural stimuli can be used to determine whether the assumption is reasonable. Feed-forward and interactive models subject to a channel separability constraint are consistent with the law. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)