Hypothesis theory and the development of conceptual learning.

Examines the assumptions of hypothesis theory and its applicability to current understanding of developmental processes. Research bearing on 5 general issues is examined: types of hypotheses and how they are detected; the acquisition of hypotheses through cognitive or conditioning mechanisms; learning, sampling assumptions, and rule-guided behavior; feedback variables, including types of feedback (e.g., tangible vs symbolic) and consequences of positive vs negative feedback; and S variables, including cognitive style, reading level, and MA. (4 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-hypnosis as a facilitator of self-efficacy: A case example.

Presents a case example of a 20-yr-old female undergraduate who sought counseling when her widowed mother was remarrying. Her father had died suddenly 3 yrs previously. Self-hypnosis was used in a 4-session treatment to facilitate her mourning process. It is suggested that self-hypnosis (rather than enhancing imagery) increases self-efficacy. S's sense that she could perform behaviors that lead to desired outcomes increased by allowing her to choose scenes from her life to be explored through imagery. S imagined events around her father's death and "rewrote history" in an attempt to permit herself the direct expression of emotions. At a 3?-yr follow-up, S reported that the self-hypnosis was used to relax and that she had reentered therapy 6 mo before. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intentional forgetting as a facilitator for recalling new product attributes.

When market changes alter what product attributes are deemed important, consumers may intentionally try to forget old product information in an attempt to remember new product information. In Experiment 1, the authors demonstrated that intentional forgetting of this nature temporarily inhibits retrieval of old product information and leads to a benefit to memory for new product information. The results show that, after a short delay, benefits continue in the absence of costs, which is supportive of a multiple-process account of intentional forgetting. Experiment 2 extends these effects using an advertising message to stimulate forgetting. Across both experiments, results also show that brand preference is based on learning of new attribute information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Friendship as a facilitator of emotional responsiveness and prosocial interventions among young children.

Examined the effects of friendship on children's emotional responsiveness to witnessing others' affective events. 41 children (aged 48–77 mo) watched puppet scenarios in which a target child was either a personal friend or an acquaintance. Children in the friendship condition were more likely to report sympathetic responses to the hypothetical plight of their friend; acquaintances were more likely to be unaffected by the dilemma. Children in the friendship condition also more readily proposed an intervention to alter the peer's negative state than did children in the acquaintance condition. The results demonstrate the importance of friendship for facilitating emotional responsiveness and prosocial interventions in young children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypothesis formation and testing in clinical judgment.

Examined the influence of a counselor characteristic (cognitive complexity), a general client observation (disability status), and a specific client observation (positive, negative, or inconsistent personality test results) on the quality of clinical hypotheses counselors develop about clients' problems and the number of questions they generate to test these hypotheses. 35 graduate students in counselor training completed a measure of cognitive complexity (the Paragraph Completion Method) before being presented with the case folders of 6 hypothetical clients. Ss were asked to read the material and form hypotheses concerning why the clients sought counseling. The case folders had varied client observations. Results show no effect of any of the independent variables on hypothesis quality; however, there was a significant interaction between specific and general client observations on the number of questions developed to test clinical hypotheses. Results suggest that both specific and general observations are important factors in clinical judgment. (7 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The development of a measure of three conceptual models of behavior.

The Beliefs-About-Behavior inventory was constructed to measure the relative extent to which individuals use each of 3 conceptual models of behavior: theological, illness, and psychological. An initial inventory was written, and after a trial with a sample of university students, a final inventory was written and psychometrically analyzed. The final inventory was administered to 329 Ss consisting of undergraduates, nurses, and high school students. A 2nd phase of this study analyzed the inventory scores of a variety of Ss from mental health-related professions. (French summary) (22 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of function in conceptual development.

40 3-, 40 5-, and 40 7-yr-olds were administered a free-sorting task, a directed sorting task, a verbal labeling task, and a conversation task using 4 natural concepts: cup, scissors, money, and musical instrument. Results reveal that almost all Ss had a knowledge of the correct function for cup and scissors, and all but the 3-yr-olds knew similar information for money and musical instrument. However, none of the Ss used all of the knowledge they possessed to guide behavior in the free-sorting task. The 5- and 7-yr-olds could use their knowledge when cued in the directed sort and when forced to use it in the verbal labeling task. In comparison, the 3-yr-olds were relatively unable to use their knowledge to guide behavior in any of these 3 tasks. Inferences are drawn about both the structure of children's concepts and how that structure changes with development. (French abstract) (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The standard object-sorting task as a measure of conceptual organization.

In object-sorting tasks, which are designed to assess developmental differences in conceptual organization, children are shown a variety of objects and told to put the things that are alike together. It was hypothesized that younger children construct designs, alignments, and scenes not necessarily because they have different principles of conceptual organization but because they are distracted by the task of spatial arrangement. This hypothesis was tested by having 60 3- and 4-yr-olds sort identical objects 2 times, once onto sheets of paper and once into transparent plastic bags, which do not readily allow for spatial arrangement. As predicted, when the salience of the spatial configuration was reduced, Ss' classifications improved. Since no feedback, modeling, or training of any type was given, Ss must have capitalized on an already existing conceptual system that is more like an adult's than their typical sorting would suggest. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modelling and instructional effects as a function of conceptual level.

Investigated the effects of conceptual level (CL) and training mode (modeling and instructions) on 3 problem-solving skills: problem definition, generation of alternatives, and choice behavior. 32 high and 32 low CL Ss (female undergraduates) were randomly assigned to 4 training conditions: instructions, modeling, instructions plus modeling, and control. Data indicate minimal support for the matching model. Modeling was an effective method in facilitating alternative generation. All 3 training conditions were effective in choice selection. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of including task variables in a matching model paradigm. Recommendations concerning future matching model studies are made. (French summary) (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship of counselor conceptual level to clinical hypothesis formation.

37 counseling students completed the Paragraph Completion Method, a measure of conceptual level (CL). All Ss then viewed a videotape of a client in a counseling session and completed the Clinical Assessment Questionnaire, which is designed to assess counselors' hypotheses about a client's problem. Questionnaire responses were scored on 7 categories relevant to clinical judgment and information processing. Two factors were considered in a multiple regression analysis—CL and clinical experience. Results indicate that experience level was not significantly related to the characteristics of the students' clinical hypothesis formation. CL was significantly related to the overall quality and clarity of expression in clinical hypotheses and the number of divergent questions asked about the client's problems. Methodological and counselor-training implications are discussed. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group decision making in hidden profile situations: Dissent as a facilitator for decision quality.

The effect of diversity in individual prediscussion preferences on group decision quality was examined in an experiment in which 135 three-person groups worked on a personnel selection case with 4 alternatives. The information distribution among group members constituted a hidden profile (i.e., the correct solution was not identifiable on the basis of the members' individual information and could be detected only by pooling and integrating the members' unique information). Whereas groups with homogeneous suboptimal prediscussion preferences (no dissent) hardly ever solved the hidden profile, solution rates were significantly higher in groups with prediscussion dissent, even if none of these individual prediscussion preferences were correct. If dissent came from a proponent of the correct solution, solution rates were even higher than in dissent groups without such a proponent. The magnitude of dissent (i.e., minority dissent or full diversity of individual preferences) did not affect decision quality. The beneficial effect of dissent on group decision quality was mediated primarily by greater discussion intensity and to some extent also by less discussion bias in dissent groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceptual boundedness and perceptual support in conceptual development.

A theoretical framework for describing the role of perceptual information in early conceptual development is presented. In the main section of the article, a general operationalization of perceptual boundedness is introduced, 3 causes of this limitation are identified, the conditions under which infants and children seem to be perceptually bound are formulated, and the mechanisms by which this limitation declines are described. Traditional claims that young children are perceptually bound, as well as contemporary objections to these claims, are often based on the assumption that perceptual information is generally unveridical or insufficient. Recent doubts about this assumption are evaluated in the final section of the article. It is concluded that although realist arguments are untenable, there are limited forms of perceptual support for conceptual development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential effects of discovery learning as a function of student conceptual level.

Attempted to extend the construct validity of D. E. Hunt's (see record 1971-27828-001) conceptual level (CL) model for matching students' learning style with appropriate teaching methods. 64 11th graders with high or low CL (as measured by Hunt's paragraph completion test) were taught to analyze the components of a famous painting by 1 of 2 teaching methods that varied in degree of structure: discovery (low structure) and lecture (high structure). Ss then completed an art interpretation essay measuring their comprehension, integration, and recall of the theme of the painting. Integration scores support the prediction that low-CL Ss would perform significantly better with the lecture method than with the discovery method. Teaching method was not significant for high-CL Ss. Results are discussed in terms of the role of compensatory factors (i.e., what a student requires) and preferential factors (i.e., what a student likes). (French summary) (18 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential effects of rule-example order as a function of learner conceptual level.

To test D. E. Hunt's conceptual level matching model, the concept of "cognitive dissonance" was taught to 160 11th grade students, matched for sex and school class, but varying in conceptual level (cl). Each s was given the paragraph completion test. Treatments varied in structure from low (example only) to high (rule-example). It was predicted from the model that low cl ss would profit more from increased structure, while high cl ss would show less effect from treatment variations, but would tend to perform best in low structure. These predictions are clearly supported by a significant cl * treatment interaction and mean scores in the predicted pattern. (french summary) (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relation between conceptual development and visual exploration of incongruity.

Investigated the relationship between conceptual development and visual exploratory behavior in 84 3-, 4-, and 8-yr-olds. All Ss were engaged in a picture-sorting task to determine whether they would spontaneously and readily discriminate between animate and inanimate objects. Only the 3-yr-olds failed to use this distinction. Three levels of incongruous stimuli were then constructed by combining elements from (a) 2 conceptually distant objects (Level 3: animate and inanimate), (b) 2 conceptually similar objects (Level 2: 2 animate or 2 inanimate), and by using normal, banal objects (Level 1). Patterns of visual selection were subsequently recorded as the Ss viewed pictures representing the 3 levels of incongruity. Results indicate that 3-yr-olds visually explored all incongruous pictures (Levels 2 and 3) longer than those that were banal, whereas 4-yr-olds viewed pictures of intermediate incongruity (Level 2) the longest. Older Ss displayed greater visual preference for progressively incongruous pictures. Findings are discussed in terms of the development of classificatory behavior and with reference to the schema-discrepancy and the informational-conflict-resolution models of visual selection. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evidence concerning the construct validity of conceptual level as a personality variable.

100 female 12th graders from Southern Ontario, classified as either high, moderate, or low in conceptual level (CL) by the Paragraph Completion Test, were examined for differences in integrative complexity as well as movement toward interpersonal maturity. Ss completed the Wonderlic Intelligence Test, Rasmussen Ego Identity Scale, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. After controlling for intelligence, the higher CL group exhibited significantly superior performance on the more complex aspects of an impression formation task and higher ego identity and lower anxiety scores. Correlational analysis revealed that CL tended to be related to higher level task measures and to ego identity and anxiety, while intelligence tended to be related to less complex aspects of the impression task. Intelligence itself was unrelated to ego identity and anxiety. Findings support the construct validity of CL as outlined by D. E. Hunt at al (1977). (French summary) (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward a conceptual understanding of asexuality.

Asexuality has been the subject of recent academic (A. F. Bogaert, 2004) and public (e.g., New Scientist; CNN) discourse. This has raised questions about the conceptualization and definition of asexuality. Here the author reviews some of these issues, discusses asexuality from a sexual orientation point of view (i.e., as a lack of sexual attraction), and reviews the similarities and differences between this definition and related phenomena (e.g., hypoactive sexual desire disorder). Finally, the author concludes that the term asexuality should not necessarily be used to describe a pathological or health-compromised state. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Risk mechanisms in development: Some conceptual and methodological considerations.

This commentary focuses on several issues concerning research on risk mechanisms that are raised in this special issue. First, we focus on what marks this special issue as distinctive in the ways in which risk research is conducted. Second, several general issues in research are highlighted, including sample characteristics, measurement strategies, specificity of risk factors and risk mechanisms, categorical vs. dimensional approaches to samples and measures, and definitions of development and transitions. Third, the challenges for integrating alternative models of risk are discussed, with special references to research on genetic and environmental influences on developmental psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Combinatorial play, conceptual development, and early multiword speech.

Explored the relations among combinatorial capacities in language, symbolic play, blockbuilding, and nonsemantic action sequences of 30 18–24 mo olds and assessed the developmental level of a selected subset of concepts. Ss' mothers completed a maternal interview, and videotapes of Ss completing a range of extension, symbolic play, nonsemantic, and blockbuilding tasks were coded by 2 independent raters and analyzed. Results show that Ss' multiword performances were predicted by the number of exemplars to which the S extended the target words; the complexity of symbolic play with counterconventional toys, and the number of different block structures the Ss built, some of which were not modeled. Multivariate analyses indicated that these tasks predicted similar variance in language, indicating possible shared abilities. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)