Toward a unified theory of similarity and recognition.

A new theory of similarity, rooted in the detection and recognition literatures, is developed. The general recognition theory assumes that the perceptual effect of a stimulus is random but that on any single trial it can be represented as a point in a multidimensional space. Similarity is a function of the overlap of perceptual distributions. It is shown that the general recognition theory contains Euclidean distance models of similarity as a special case but that unlike them, it is not constrained by any distance axioms. Three experiments are reported that test the empirical validity of the theory. In these experiments the general recognition theory accounts for similarity data as well as the currently popular similarity theories do, and it accounts for identification data as well as the longstanding "champion" identification model does. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Holden Psychological Screening Inventory in the prediction of Canadian Forces basic training outcome.

Examined the validity of Holden Psychological Screening Inventory (HPSI) scales for predicting graduation among a sample of 423 noncommissioned recruits in a 10-week Canadian Forces basic military training course. Analyses indicated that (a) recruits differed significantly from civilians in terms of psychological adjustment, (b) military training attritees were more similar to civilians than to course graduates, and (c) the HPSI Depression scale significantly predicted recruit training course release. Results were interpreted as confirming previous findings on the importance of depression in military training outcome and as supporting the validity of using the HPSI as a screening tool within the Canadian Forces. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Case History: Are Lectures and Discussion Methods Mutually Exclusive?

This report concerns the conduct of a one-semester course bearing the title, History and Systems of Psychology, at Southwestern at Memphis in the fall terms of 1954, '55, '56, and '57. Due to discouraging results when the course was presented in a seminar format, the author incorporated a discussion method in lessons presented. Role playing and reversing the order of topic presentation (i.e., beginning with contemporary theory and working backwards in history) were teaching methods also utilized. The author notes that the mean grade went up about a full point following the 1954 session and has remained at that level. Comprehensive examinations convey the general impression that their writers are better able to deal with theory in general as well as with the contents of this course in particular. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Operational thought and the acquisition of taxonomic relations involving figurative dissimilarity.

Atypical exemplars of taxonomic categories (e.g., clothing, furniture) differ from more typical exemplars along figurative dimensions of perceptual and contextual similarity. The advent of operational thought might be expected to facilitate category acquisition because it engenders a competence to suppress figurative dissimilarities and focus on nonfigurative similarities (e.g., common function). Age- and grade-equivalent preoperational and concrete operational groups were given oddity, sort, and category membership tasks with pictorial stimuli. Concrete operational subjects showed a greater appreciation than preoperational subjects for taxonomic relations involving atypical exemplars. Subjects of both cognitive levels could appreciate taxonomic relations involving strictly typical or moderately typical exemplars of a category. Results are interpreted as supporting a contention that meanings become more general with the emergence of operational thought. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A solution to Plato's problem: The latent semantic analysis theory of acquisition, induction, and representation of knowledge.

How do people know as much as they do with as little information as they get? The problem takes many forms; learning vocabulary from text is an especially dramatic and convenient case for research. A new general theory of acquired similarity and knowledge representation, latent semantic analysis (LSA), is presented and used to successfully simulate such learning and several other psycholinguistic phenomena. By inducing global knowledge indirectly from local co-occurrence data in a large body of representative text, LSA acquired knowledge about the full vocabulary of English at a comparable rate to schoolchildren. LSA uses no prior linguistic or perceptual similarity knowledge; it is based solely on a general mathematical learning method that achieves powerful inductive effects by extracting the right number of dimensions (e.g., 300) to represent objects and contexts. Relations to other theories, phenomena and problems are sketched. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental changes in concept utilization among normal and retarded children.

Examined the concepts employed by 100 normal children in kindergarten-Grade 4 (Study 1), and by 48 retarded vs 48 normal children matched for mental ages ranging from 5 to 11 yrs (Study 2). Ss were required to select pairs of pictures from a large array of pictures depicting common objects and to explain the basis for their pairing responses. Factor analysis of the conceptual responses of normal Ss revealed factors for abstraction (nominal and functional concepts as opposed to perceptible concepts) and complimentarity ("go together" responses as opposed to similarity responses). Retarded Ss differed from normals primarily in their use of more complimentary and fewer similarity concepts. The developmental course of concept utilization for normals was characterized as a change from perceptible to nominal and functional concepts, while that for retarded Ss was characterized as a change from complimentary to similarity concepts. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dimensional and componential structure of a hierarchical organization of pain-related anxiety constructs.

Research has identified several anxiety and fear constructs that contribute directly or indirectly to the chronic course of pain. One way to gain insight into the frequently observed interrelations between these constructs may be by conceptualizing them within a hierarchical structure. In this structure, general and specific constructs are proposed at different levels of a hierarchical tree. The present study sought to find evidence for this idea by exploring the dimensional and componential structure of a hierarchical representation of pain-related anxiety constructs. Small cards describing the individual items of 9 pain-related anxiety measures were presented to undergraduate students (N = 294), who were asked to sort them into piles of what they perceived as items of similar meaning. Cluster analysis (additive tree analyses) revealed cluster groups that could be interpreted along the lines of the proposed hierarchical structure. Multidimensional scaling analysis showed that the similarity data are characterized by a dimension that runs from general affective to pain-specific concerns. This study thus offers empirical support for the postulation of a general and specific hierarchical ordering of these constructs. Furthermore, its results endorse the independent use of various pain-related anxiety measures in research and practice aiming to assess negative emotional constructs that contribute to pain. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The time course of spoken word learning and recognition: Studies with artificial lexicons.

The time course of spoken word recognition depends largely on the frequencies of a word and its competitors, or neighbors (similar-sounding words). However, variability in natural lexicons makes systematic analysis of frequency and neighbor similarity difficult. Artificial lexicons were used to achieve precise control over word frequency and phonological similarity. Eye tracking provided time course measures of lexical activation and competition (during spoken instructions to perform visually guided tasks) both during and after word learning, as a function of word frequency, neighbor type, and neighbor frequency. Apparent shifts from holistic to incremental competitor effects were observed in adults and neural network simulations, suggesting such shifts reflect general properties of learning rather than changes in the nature of lexical representations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

When birds of a feather flock together and when they do not: Status composition, social dominance orientation, and organizational attractiveness.

Although similarity-attraction notions suggest that similarity--for example, in terms of values, personality, and demography--attracts, the authors found that sometimes demographic similarity attracts and sometimes it repels. Consistent with social dominance theory (J. Sidanius & F. Pratto, 1999), they demonstrated in 3 studies that when prospective employees supported group-based social hierarchies (i.e., were high in social dominance orientation), those in high-status groups were attracted to demographic similarity within an organization, whereas those in low-status groups were repelled by it. An important theoretical implication of the findings is that social dominance theory and traditional similarity-attraction notions together help explain a more complex relationship between demographic similarity and attraction than was previously acknowledged in the organizational literature. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The motivation to breastfeed: A fit to the opponent-process theory?

Applied the opponent-process theory, a dynamic model of acquired motivation presented by R. Solomon and J. Corbit (see record 1974-26855-001), to the process of breastfeeding. According to this theory, most acquired motives are developed and maintained in a manner resembling drug addiction; they are evidenced in the phenomena of affective contrast, tolerance, and withdrawal. A mood adjective checklist and a discomfort measure were administered to 21 women (aged 23–42 yrs) who had weaned children in order to assess through recall the affective course predicted by the theory. 21 Ss (aged 22–43 yrs) who had never had children were asked to complete the mood scale as if they had been a breastfeeding mother. Data were analyzed using MANOVA and correlational procedures. Ss who breastfed for relatively long periods recalled positive affective responses while the baby was at breast and a subsequent negative or dysphoric response. The additional characteristics of acquired motivation, habituation, and withdrawal were also evidenced in the data. Little similarity to the breastfeeders was found in the pattern of responses yielded by the childless Ss. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Satisfaction in interpersonal interactions as a function of similarity in level of dysphoria.

This study compared dysphoric and nondysphoric male and female undergraduates as they conversed with dysphoric or nondysphoric undergraduates of the same sex. Subjects rated their satisfaction with the conversation after each turn. The results showed that people in homogeneous dyads (i.e., both partners were dysphoric or both partners were nondysphoric) were most satisfied with the interaction, and their satisfaction increased as the conversation proceeded. People in mixed dyads were less satisfied, perceived each other as colder, and spoke about increasingly negative topics. Thus, in accord with other research showing that similarity leads to liking, the crucial determinant of interactional satisfaction was neither the mood of the subject nor the mood of the partner, but their similarity in mood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of proactive and reactive aggression in the formation and development of boys' friendships.

This study tested the hypothesis that friends are more similar in proactive aggression than in reactive aggression. Interpersonal processes that may account for this similarity (i.e., selection and mutual influence) were also examined. In the fall and spring of the school year, the friendships of 185 4th-, 5th-, and 6th-grade boys were identified. Proactive and reactive aggressive behavior were assessed with a teacher-rating instrument for each boy. The results support the general hypothesis and suggest that proactively aggressive boys tend to select proactively aggressive peers as friends; however, mutual influence between stable friends does not appear to account for similarity. These findings are discussed within the framework of G. R. Patterson, J. B. Reid, and T. J. Dishion's (1992) theory of antisocial behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conceptual maps and simulated teaching episodes as indicators of competence in teaching elementary mathematics.

Network representation was used to assess knowledge obtained during a teaching methodology course in elementary mathematics. Participants were the course instructor, 4 teacher educators, and 53 prospective teachers. Relatedness ratings on key terms were used to construct associative networks. Teacher educator networks shared significant similarities to the course instructor's network, and similarities between the teacher educator and prospective teacher networks were as predictive of course grades as similarity to the course instructor. Fourteen of the prospective teachers participated in a simulated teaching task. Network similarity predicted teaching for conceptual understanding, as did final course grade, and was more predictive than were either exams or lab scores. The advantage of associative networks may be in representing patterns of concept relations underlying mental models of teaching. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Matchmaker, matchmaker, can you make me a match? Predicting liking between two unacquainted persons.

This research examined liking predictions for 2 unacquainted persons made by a 3rd person who was acquainted with both targets. Both the process by which these predictions were made and the accuracy of these predictions were explored. A total of 120 women in 24 five-person groups was studied. Using a Social Relations Model (SRM) analysis (D. A. Kenny and L. La Voie, 1984), it was found that Ss relied on their own liking for the 2 targets, balance, and reciprocity to predict the targets' liking for each other. Evidence from notes taken about the interactions and justifications for Ss' predictions indicated that Ss used perceived similarity of the targets as a basis for liking predictions. Although Ss were somewhat accurate at predicting general popularity levels, little accuracy was found at the dyadic level. The process by which these predictions are made is discussed in terms of person perception, balance theory, and the use of similarity as a determinant of liking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Decision rules in the perception and categorization of multidimensional stimuli.

This article examines decision processes in the perception and categorization of stimuli constructed from one or more components. First, a general perceptual theory is used to formally characterize large classes of existing decision models according to the type of decision boundary they predict in a multidimensional perceptual space. A new experimental paradigm is developed that makes it possible to accurately estimate a subject's decision boundary in a categorization task. Three experiments using this paradigm are reported. Three conclusions stand out: (a) Subjects adopted deterministic decision rules, that is, for a given location in the perceptual space, most subjects always gave the same response; (b) subjects used decision rules that were nearly optimal; and (c) the only constraint on the type of decision bound that subjects used was the amount of cognitive capacity it required to implement. Subjects were not constrained to make independent decisions on each component or to attend to the distance to each prototype. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measuring exposure to racism: Development and validation of a Race-Related Stressor Scale (RRSS) for Asian American Vietnam veterans.

This article describes the development and validation of the Race-Related Stressor Scale (RRSS), a questionnaire that assesses exposure to race-related stressors in the military and war zone. Validated on a sample of 300 Asian American Vietnam veterans, the RRSS has high internal consistency and adequate temporal stability. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that exposure to race-related stressors accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and general psychiatric symptoms, over and above (by 20% and 19%, respectively) that accounted for by combat exposure and military rank. The RRSS appears to be a psychometrically sound measure of exposure to race-related stressors for this population. Race-related stressors as measured by the RRSS appear to contribute uniquely and substantially to PTSD symptoms and generalized psychiatric distress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parental bonding and mental health in adolescence

Attachment between parent and child plays a crucial role in the healthy development of the child. Accordingly disturbances in parental bonding will be linked with the development of mental disorders later in life. The present study examines the relationship between parental bonding and mental health in healthy adolescents. Participants were 847 Israeli high school students who completed the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), the General Well-Being (GWB), the Perceived Social Support (PSS), and the Social Desirability scale (SDS). In general, Israeli adolescents reported more parental care and less control than did Australian adolescents and adults. Female subjects reported more maternal care than did males. Subjects who reported high care and low control (optimal bonding) reported less distress, better general well-being and better social support that did all other groups. In contrast, those who reported low care and high control (affectionless control bonding) had the highest BSI scores and the lowest GWB and PSS scores. These results are in line with Bowlby's theory of attachment. They also show that specific configuration of parental bonding are linked with distress and isolation in adolescents.     

Time course of comparison.

Presents similarity as interactive activation and mapping (SIAM), a model of the dynamic course of similarity comparisons. According to SIAM, when structured scenes are compared, the parts of one scene must be aligned, or placed in correspondence, with the parts from the other scene. Emerging correspondences influence each other in a manner such that, with sufficient time, the strongest correspondences are those that are globally consistent with other correspondences. Relative to globally inconsistent feature matches, globally consistent feature matches influence similarity more when greater amounts of time are given for a comparison. A common underlying process model of scene alignment accounts for commonalities between different task conditions. Differences between task conditions are accounted for by principled parametric variation within the model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of instruction on the cognitive structure of statistical and psychometric concepts.

Administered a questionnaire made up of pairs of concepts to be judged for similarity to 39 graduate students before and after they had taken a course on educational testing and measurement. The judgment of all possible pairs of 13 concepts was analyzed using an individual differences model for multidimensional scaling. Instruction produced a more highly organized and smaller cognitive structure than had existed previously. This result appeared to be due, at least in part, to the fact that many concept pairs were judged to be more dissimilar after the course than before. (French summary) (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)