Fewer doubts concerning rats' serial position performance: Reply to Gaffan and Gaffan (1992) and Rawlins, Deacon, Chih-Ta, and Aggleton (1992).

It has been suggested by E. A. Gaffan and D. Gaffan (see record 1992-37974-001) that the data on nonspatial memory in rats reported by P. Reed et al (see record 1991-11847-001) displayed less than expected variability. Reanalysis revealed a greater degree of variance than that highlighted by Gaffan and Gaffan. Variance was, however, low at the central positions of the list, and 2 explanations for this effect are considered. The J. N. Rawlins et al (see record 1992-37990-001) explanation, experiment expectation, is rejected. Instead, poor memorial cues for items in the center of the list may have produced a reversion to a win-shift/lose-stay strategy that would account for the low variance. Although it would be prudent to suspend conclusions until adequate replications have been conducted, the present reanalysis of the data shows that the arguments made by Gaffan and Gaffan and Rawlins et al are far from definitive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnotically induced limb anesthesia and adaptation to displacing prisms: Replication requires adherence to critical procedures.

N. P. Spanos et al (see record 1981-27289-001) reported a failure to confirm the results of an experiment on prism adaptation reported by the present authors (see record 1981-06956-001) that required Ss to adapt to a prismatically displaced environment when their adapting limb was hypnotically anesthetized. The present authors argue that the failure of Spanos et al to replicate their findings is due to their failure to duplicate the critical conditions of the experiment. (7 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Scanning and form-contingent color aftereffects.

G. K. Humphrey et al (see record 1994-28172-001) and J. Broerse and P. Grimbeek (see record 1994-28160-001) suggested that the form-contingent color aftereffect reported by S. Siegel et al (see record 1992-22207-001) would not be obtained if Ss were instructed to scan the induction and assessment forms. The authors present data from 10 adult Ss who were instructed to scan the forms. These scanning Ss displayed aftereffects that were no different from those described earlier by Siegel et al. Scanning Ss do display spatiotopic contingent color aftereffects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Alphabetic search: Comment on Klahr, Chase, and Lovelace (1983).

Response time (RT) curves were obtained from Ss who were instructed to search for following or preceding letters in the alphabet with respect to given stimulus letters. To describe the shape of these curves, D. Klahr et al (see record 1984-05777-001) proposed a search model. It was assumed that the alphabet was internally represented by a number of chunks of a few letters. Klahr et al assumed that serial searches occurred along 2 hierarchical levels: (1) a search for the correct chunk and (2) a search of the letters within the chunk. The Klahr et al model predicted an ascending sawtooth-shaped RT curve. However, according to the authors' analysis of the data, the RT curves did not show the expected sawtooth shapes. In order to find out whether the lack of empirical support for the model was an artifact of averaging the data, the experiment was replicated. It was found that individual RT curves did not show the shape characteristics that were predicted by the Klahr et al model either. The data supported the hypothesis that the access of letters was direct without any hierarchy, and that the retrieval of successive letters was determined by the variable associations between subsequent letters. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using cross-modal lexical decision tasks to investigate sentence processing.

Recent investigations of sentence processing have used the cross-modal lexical decision task to show that the antecedent of a phonologically empty noun phrase (specifically, WH-trace) is reactivated at the trace position. G. McKoon et al (see record 1995-04309-001) claimed that (1) a design feature concerning the choice of related and unrelated targets is a possible confound in this work and (2) the conclusions drawn from this previous research are therefore called into question. These claims are considered in light of both the McKoon et al experimental findings and the results of the J. L. Nicol et al experiments in which linguistic materials are tested. Nicol et al argue that their results may be due to the nature of their materials, and that a follow-up experiment reported by McKoon and R. Ratcliff (see record 1995-04308-001) used a technique that is not comparable to the cross-modal lexical decision task. It is concluded that current evidence supports the claim that structural information is used during on-line sentence processing and that the cross-modal technique is sensitive to this. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On sending artifact in search of artifact: Reply to McDonald, Harris, and Maher.

Two studies are reported that show the P. J. McDonald et al (see record 1983-25674-001) critique of the present authors' (see record 1981-25503-001) earlier explanation for the arousal–self-awareness link to be mistaken. In Study 1 with 57 Ss, arousal-induced attention to self was demonstrated in a field setting devoid of any of the artifactual covariates of arousal induction suggested by McDonald et al. In Study 2, a replication of the McDonald et al experiment was conducted in which a crucial manipulation check was included; their study was burdened by the very artifact they claimed might exist in the present authors'. Slow running created self-focus through unusualness and embarrassment, whereas fast running led to self-focus via arousal. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Memory codes and episodes in models of word identification: A reply to Johnston, van Santen, and Hale.

Proposes that the activation model of identification benefits for repeated words and pseudowords proposed by J. C. Johnston et al (see record 1986-11005-001) is a variant of the present authors' (see record 1986-03032-001) code/episode model, which was used to explain the temporary and long-lasting effects of repetitions. The X and Y factors of Johnston et al may reflect the operation of episodic memory traces and codification, respectively. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Separable effects of factors on activation functions in discrete and continuous models: d′ and evoked potentials.

This article derives tests for partial-output models of information processing. A process in a partial-output model sends output, while executing, to its successors. In a stage model a process sends output to its successors only when it stops. Both models can be analyzed by manipulating factors, each affecting a different process. In discrete serial models, such factors have additive effects on reaction time (Sternberg, 1969) and sometimes on log percent correct (Schweickert, 1985). In partial-output models, such factors produce a simple pattern, the rectangle condition, in performance curves. Conditions for a partial-output representation are based on decomposable structures (Krantz et al., 1971). Tests of discrete and partial-output models are simultaneously satisfied only if performance is a linear function of time. Evoked potentials (Coles et al., 1985) and d′ (Dosher, 1981) illustrate results. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

When selective adaptation and contrast effects are distinct: A reply to Diehl, Kluender, and Parker.

Two alternative conceptualizations of selective adaptation with speech have recently received attention: the adaptation level theory (AL) outlined by R. L. Diehl (see record 1981-05067-001) and a 2-stage model outlined by the 1st author and P. Jusczyk (see record 1982-00351-001). Diehl et al (see record 1986-05428-001) reported evidence of streaming in selective adaptation and claimed that their results provide a counterdemonstration to recent studies that have argued against the AL approach. It is shown how the Diehl et al results can be accounted for by both the 2-stage model and AL theory. Results are presented from a study with 74 undergraduates that compared adaptation and paired-comparison procedures. These results are precisely as predicted by the 2-stage model, but they cannot be accounted for by AL theory. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Implicit learning of unique and ambiguous serial transitions in the presence and absence of a distractor task.

Three experiments investigated the effects of task load, time of secondary task onset, and response-stimulus time interval on direct and indirect measures of learning in the M. J. Nissen and P. Bullemer (see record 1987-13436-001) task. Exp 1 demonstrated that both unique and ambiguous serial transitions can be learned in the absence and presence of an attentional distractor task. Exp 2 showed that the time of secondary task onset affects the degree to which unique and ambiguous serial transitions are learned. Exp 3 demonstrated that the learning of a sequential transition is affected by the length of the time interval between the response to a stimulus and the presentation of the next stimulus. The findings replicate and extend results reported by A. Cohen et al (see record 1990-08941-001) and provide important empirical constraints for a process model of implicit serial learning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distractibility, circadian arousal, and aging: A boundary condition?

Two studies assessed the presence of a synchrony effect between peak circadian arousal and time of testing for both older and younger adults. Participants performed a reading aloud task that included distracting words that were either present or absent and, if present, were either thematically related or unrelated to the target text. As well, the distracting material was presented in either spatially predictable or unpredictable locations. In each experiment, older and younger adults were tested at optimal versus nonoptimal times. Both experiments showed age differences in susceptibility to distraction, replicating earlier findings (e.g., M. C. Carlson, et al; see record 1996-00890-001). Neither showed differences due to time of testing, suggesting a boundary condition for cognitive disruptions associated with circadian arousal patterns. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How much does guessing influence recall? Comment on Erdelyi, Finks, and Feigin-Pfau.

M. H. Erdelyi et al (see record 1989-38884-001) present evidence that variations in recall criteria can affect the number of items correctly recalled. In this comment, we (a) describe some procedural differences between their work and the earlier experiments of H. L. Roediger and D. G. Payne (see record 1986-13690-001), (b) note that their large manipulations of recall criteria produced only small effects on the amount recalled, and (c) describe recent research complementing that of Erdelyi et al. We observe that variations in recall criteria have larger effects after a 1-week delay than on an immediate test. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Destination compatibility, affordances, and coding rules: A reply to Proctor, Van Zandt, Lu, and Weeks.

R. W. Proctor et al (see record 1993-20228-001) argued that the invocation of affordances to explain stimulus-response (S-R) compatibilities in reaction time (RT) is not needed because left–right direction compatibility, from the coding rules approach, explains the apparent "destination compatibility" effects of C. F. Michaels (see record 1988-25385-001). In this reply, an experiment demonstrates that destination compatibility can be shown even when contradicted by relative left-right motion. The 2nd half of the article addresses theoretical issues separating and joining these 2 approaches. It is argued that the domain of the affordance approach in S–R compatibility is the guidance of action by information, whereas the domain of coding rules is S-R incompatibility and noncompatibility, situations in which required responses are not afforded and rules must be invoked. The manipulation of rules can mimic some of the consequences of more fundamental perception-action couplings, but principles of the latter sort are needed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A rejoinder to Notarius.

Responds to C. I. Notarius's (see record 1984-11607-001) rebuttal of the present author's (see record 1984-11616-001) criticisms of a study by Notarius et al (see record 1983-05644-001) which supported the discharge model of the facial expressivity/physiological reactivity relationship. It is concluded that only when all data from the Notarius et al study are examined will one know what their results have shown. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Goal setting: A meta-analytic examination of the empirical evidence.

Conducted meta-analyses to estimate the amount of empirical support for the major postulates of the goal theory of E. A. Locke (see record 1968-11263-001) and Locke et al (see record 1981-27276-001). A technique similar to that described by J. E. Hunter et al (1982) was used to (a) accumulate effect sizes, (b) correct the mean and variance of those effect sizes for the effects of sampling error and attenuation, and (c) determine whether methodological characteristics of the studies have moderated the results. The results of well-controlled studies were generally supportive of the hypotheses. However, sources of variation in findings were discovered, including the setting in which the study took place and the manner in which goal setting factors were operationalized. (89 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the importance of mood intensity and encoding demands in memory: Commentary on Hasher, Rose, Zacks, Sanft, and Doren.

Comments on the failure of L. Hasher et al (see record 1986-03061-001) to find either an overall reduction in story recall or selectivity effects in recall due to mildly depressed mood state. It is suggested that their negative findings may be the result of a weak individual difference mood manipulation and that the story recall task may make insufficient encoding demands to reveal the effects of mood on recall. Although the negative findings of Hasher et al appear valid, the conditions of their experiments are those which appear least likely to produce mood effects on recall. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The empirical claims of maximization theory: A reply to Rachlin and to Kagel, Battalio, and Green.

H. Rachlin (see record 1984-02970-001) and J. H. Kagel et al (see record 1984-02959-001) reported errors in the present author's (see record 1982-22589-001) critique of maximization theory. They presented new evidence that demonstrated that maximization accounts better for equilibrium behavior on schedules of reinforcement than did matching. In this article, Prelec argues that the allegations of mathematical and conceptual errors are without substance and the new data do not differentially favor maximization or matching. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Frequency effects in lexical tasks: Reply to Balota and Chumbley.

In replying to D. A. Balota and J. I. Chumbley's (see record 1990-24407-001) commentary on the article by S. Monsell et al (see record 1989-24836-001), the author addresses four issues. New data show that the effect of frequency on semantic categorization time reported by Monsell et al. was not a disguised typicality effect. An account of the small size of the effect of stress pattern on immediate naming latency observed by Monsell et al. is supplied. Inferences that may and may not be drawn from effects of frequency on delayed naming latency are discussed. The main conclusions and methodological recommendations of Monsell et al. are clarified. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Less-than-expected variability in evidence for primacy and von Restorff effects in rats' nonspatial memory.

P. Reed et al (see record 1991-11847-001) reported primacy and other effects in rats' nonspatial memory for lists. The validity of their findings is questionable, because the unexpectedly low variance of the data indicates that the trials in the experiment were not mutually independent events. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Plasticity, person-context relations, and cognitive training in the aged years: A developmental contextual perspective.

Developmental contextualism focuses on changes in fused relations between developing people and their changing contexts. The presence of these relations means that human development is characterized by the potential for systematic change—for plasticity—across life. Research on training cognitive functioning in the aged years provides evidence about plasticity because such investigations attempt to alter developmental trajectories by introducing a revised regimen of person–context relations into people's lives. Moreover, when research is conducted with people in their advanced adult years, it is often interpreted as constituting a conservative test of plasticity. J. I. Campbell and N. Charness (see record 1991-06940-001), P. Gratzinger et al (see record 1991-07064-001), R. Kliegl et al (see record 1991-06962-001), and S. L. Willis and C. S. Nesselroade (see record 1991-07074-001), in the 4 studies reported in this special section, provide evidence that supports developmental contextual ideas about plasticity and about procedures and policies that might create conditions promoting enhancement of cognitive functioning among the aged. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)