Personal hypothesis testing: The role of consistency and self-schema.

We report the results of two experiments that examined the way individuals test hypotheses about themselves. Both experiments were based on the work of Snyder (e.g., Snyder, 1981; Snyder & Skrypnek, 1981), which suggests that individuals have a confirmatory bias when testing hypotheses about others and about themselves. In Experiment 1, we examined the extent to which this bias toward confirmation persists when a negative (e.g., depression) or nonconsistent (not consistent with the individual's evaluation of him- or herself) personal hypothesis is tested. Results suggest that the negative or positive nature of a personal hypothesis does not directly influence the way individuals test their hypothesis. However, the way individuals tested personal hypotheses was influenced by hypothesis consistency. In Experiment 2, we examined the relation of a cognitive schematic variable (i.e., vulnerability for depression) and hypothesis testing. Results suggest that vulnerability is related to the way individuals test a personal hypothesis about depression. Vulnerable, low-depression participants were confirmatory when testing a depression hypothesis, whereas nonvulnerable, low-depression participants were disconfirmatory. We discuss implications for counseling and future directions for research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mood and alcohol consumption: An experience sampling test of the self-medication hypothesis.

In this investigation the authors applied the experience sampling method to prospectively test the self-medication hypothesis. In vivo reports gathered in the context of daily life demonstrated that nervousness was the only negative mood state to predict increases in alcohol consumption later in the course of the day. Further examination of this within-person relationship demonstrated that men were more likely to consume alcohol when nervous than were women, but this association was unrelated to family history of alcoholism, problem drinking patterns, or trait anxiety and depression. Consistent with the self-medication hypothesis, cross-sectional analyses also confirmed that alcohol consumption was generally associated with lower levels of nervousness; this effect varied by several demographic and clinical variables. These findings are discussed in terms of the diversity of reasons for alcohol consumption and their potential for explaining problem drinking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An eye movement analysis of topic-shift effect during repeated reading.

This study replicated previous reading time studies that have observed increased reading times for sentences introducing a new subtopic in a text, compared with sentences that are continuations of a subtopic. This topic-shift effect was obtained for the initial reading but not when the same text was reread. The absence of topic-shift effect was taken to suggest that readers construct a mental representation of the text's topic structure during the initial reading. The topic-shift effect was primarily due to regressive fixations, which tended to land in the first half of sentences. Regressions were typically launched at the end of sentences, with topic-shift sentences also well before the sentence end was reached. These findings are interpreted as evidence for the integrative nature of regressive fixations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An epidemiological test of the hyperinsulinemia-hypertension hypothesis

The association between hyperinsulinemia and hypertension was tested in a population of 421 men and 228 women from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Subjects are white, middle-class, generally healthy, community-dwelling volunteers who ranged in age from 17-95 yr. Those with disease or medications known to influence any of the studied variables were excluded from the analysis. Twenty-five percent of the subjects were borderline or hypertensive [systolic blood pressure (BP) > or = 140 or diastolic BP > or = 90 mm Hg]. Standard oral glucose tolerance tests were performed; the logarithms of the fasting insulin level and insulin area were used in the analyses. In addition, body mass index and percent body fat (from age and skinfold thickness equations) and waist hip ratio were computed. In simple correlations, systolic BP and diastolic BP were statistically significantly related to insulin levels (only 1-4% of the variance was explained). Since age, body fat, fat distribution, insulin levels, and BP were highly intercorrelated, insulin and blood pressure correlations were examined after controlling for the confounding variables. Correlations of BP and insulin levels adjusted for age, body fat, and fat distribution were entirely nonsignificant. In this large noninterventive population study, the hyperinsulinemia-hypertension hypothesis is not confirmed.     

Some problems created by Holt's consistency: A rejoinder.

Replies to R. R. Holt's (see record 1992-27289-001) critique of S. Reisner's (see record 1992-16438-001) article on metapsychology and suggests that the critique is based on fundamental differences in approaches to Freud's studies and their relevance to contemporary psychoanalytic theory and practice. It is argued that Holt underemphasizes the relational, hermeneutic, and epistemological components of Freud's theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Projection: A test of the psychoanalytic hypothesis.

Investigated classical Freudian projection with 83 male and 105 female college students. After completing the Sexual Defensiveness Scale, Ss selected a most unfavorable other from a group of photographs. The experimental Ss then examined a portfolio containing pornographic material. Following this, all Ss described an unfavorable other and themselves according to a standard list of trait rating scales. Results show that higher sexually defensive experimental Ss denied being sexually aroused and, in accordance with the psychoanalytic hypothesis, projected the highest amounts of arousal (the trait lustful) onto an unfavorable other. This effect was significantly increased when the unfavorable other was a male target and was further increased when female Ss rated male targets. Findings offer support for the concept of classical projection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depressive affect: A test of behavioral hypothesis.

Behavioral hypotheses about depression suggest that depression is a function of rate of reinforcement. Initial level of depression and locus of control were hypothesized to enhance this effect. 96 normal volunteer female Ss (62 nursing students and 34 high school students) were separated into groups on the basis of median splits on MMPI D and Rotter's Internal-External Control Scale scores, and were given either 80 or 20% positive reinforcement on a pseudosocial intelligence task. The lower rate of reinforcement resulted in more depressive behavior as measured by the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List, self-confidence ratings, and response latencies. Partial support was obtained for the enhancement of the reinforcement effect with initially more depressed Ss. No locus of control effects were found. Ss who were more depressed initially underestimated the amount of positive feedback they received. Results are discussed in terms of behavioral accounts of depression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Biases in visual orienting to negative and positive scenes in dysphoria: An eye movement study.

The study investigated biases for negative information in component processes of visual attention (initial shift vs. maintenance of gaze) in dysphoric and nondysphoric individuals. Eye movements were recorded while participants viewed a series of picture pairs depicting negative, positive, and neutral scenes (each pair presented for 3 s). Biases in initial orienting were assessed from the direction and latency of the initial shift in gaze, whereas biases in the maintenance of attention were assessed from the duration of gaze on the picture that was initially fixated. Results indicated that the dysphoric group showed a significantly greater bias to maintain gaze longer on negative pictures, relative to control pictures, compared with the nondysphoric group. There was no evidence of a dysphoria-related bias in initial shift of orienting to negative cues. Results are consistent with a depression-related bias that operates in the maintenance of attention on negative material. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Imagery and suggestibility: a test of the Arnold hypothesis.

Two hypotheses were tested: (1) Sway test scores secured when S is asked to imagine falling should show a higher correlation with scores of hypnotizability then sway test scores obtained with the standard Hull "falling" instructions; and (2) there should be a positive correlation between imagery ability and susceptibility to hypnosis. Evidence is presented to contradict the first hypothesis and to support the second hypothesis. 21 references. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The word grouping hypothesis and eye movements during reading.

The distribution of landing positions and durations of first fixations in a region containing a noun preceded by either an article (e.g., the soldiers) or a high-frequency 3-letter word (e.g., all soldiers) were compared. Although there were fewer first fixations on the blank space between the high-frequency 3-letter word and the noun than on the surrounding letters (and the fixations on the blank space were shorter), this pattern did not occur when the noun was preceded by an article. R. Radach (1996) inferred from a similar experiment that did not manipulate the type of short word that 2 words could be processed as a perceptual unit during reading when the first word is a short word. As this different pattern of fixations is restricted to article-noun pairs, it indicates that word grouping does not occur purely on the basis of word length during reading; moreover, as the authors demonstrate, one can explain the observed patterns in both conditions more parsimoniously without adopting a word-grouping mechanism in eye movement control during reading. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The menstrual cycle and typing skill: An ecologically-valid test of the "raging hormones" hypothesis.

Tested the "raging hormones" hypothesis, which states that the performance of women is periodically impaired during the perimenstruum. The typing skill of 9 female professional typists (aged 24–40 yrs) was evaluated at work with the use of typing tests administered at intervals throughout the menstrual cycle. There was no variation in typing performance as a function of the menstrual cycle for errors or rate of typing. Moreover, no variation of self-reported mood with the menstrual cycle was observed. Findings refute the view that work performance, at least for a skilled perceptual-motor task, is impaired at any phase of the menstrual cycle. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aging and movement: Variability of force pulses for saccadic eye movements.

Age-related differences in the trajectories of saccadic eye movements were examined. Younger and older adult subjects produced saccades to predictable target locations. Detailed features of the movements were examined such as the time of peak acceleration and the variability in the magnitude of the peak velocity. These and other measures reveal important details of the force pulses underlying the eye movements and the mental mechanisms that control them. Although minor differences were apparent between the eye movements of younger and older adults, the general patterns were the same across age groups. These results suggest that fundamental details of the brain mechanisms involved in the control of movement are the same for younger and older adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Solving arithmetic word problems: Role of reading and computational skills.

Investigated how children cope with some of the demands imposed on them by arithmetic word problems by administering problems modeled after those used by the National Assessment of Educational Progress to 200 6th-graders. A computational demand was imposed on the Ss by adding extraneous information to the problems, whereas a reading demand was imposed on them by increasing the syntactic complexity of the problems. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the Ss' computational ability and reading ability together accounted for 54% of the variance in solution accuracy: Eight and 14%, respectively, of this variance was unique, whereas 32% was common to the abilities. In addition, the analyses indicated that the presence of extraneous information in the problems reduced the accuracy of Ss' solutions. The use of complex syntax had no significant effect on accuracy. The findings suggest that reading ability and computational ability both play important roles in children's successful solution of word problems. The findings also suggest that the presence of extraneous information in word problems can impose a formidable demand on children's limited processing capacities. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Resolving interpersonal conflicts: An analysis of stylistic consistency.

In three experiments, we examined people's consistency in their styles of resolving interpersonal conflicts. In Experiment 1, 40 Yale undergraduates described recent significant interpersonal conflicts with a same-sex peer, an opposite-sex peer, and a parent, and their methods of resolving these conflicts. They then rated the extent to which each of seven styles of conflict resolution characterized their actual and ideal styles of conflict resolution. In Experiment 2, 40 Yale summer school subjects again described and rated their own methods for resolving recent significant interpersonal conflicts with a parent, a teacher, a roommate, and a romantic partner. They also rated styles of conflict resolution for hypothetical conflicts involving these same significant others. In Experiment 3, 40 Yale undergraduates rated actual and ideal styles of conflict resolution as they pertained to both sides of two real conflicts: one regarding a contract dispute between Yale University and Local 34, the union for clerical and technical workers, and the other between the United States and the Soviet Union over arms negotiations. Strong consistencies in styles of conflict resolution were observed within individuals across various interpersonal conflicts, and at the same time widespread differences were observed across individuals in preferred styles of conflict resolution. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality and organizations: A test of the homogeneity of personality hypothesis.

A central proposition of attraction-selection-attrition theory (B. Schneider, 1987) and of the literature on organizational socialization was tested. Support for the hypothesis that organizations are relatively homogeneous with respect to the personality attributes of their managers was found. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) conducted on a sample of approximately 13,000 managers from 142 organizations representing a broad cross-sample of U.S. industries revealed a significant effect for organizational membership on the personality characteristics of managers. Results of a 2nd MANOVA, nesting organizations within industries, revealed a significant effect for both organization and industry on the personality characteristics of managers. Some implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Smooth pursuit eye movement and schizotypy in the community.

Deficits in smooth pursuit eye movements are well documented in schizophrenia and schizotypic psychopathology. The status of eye tracking dysfunction (ETD) as an endophenotype for schizophrenia liability is relatively robust. However, the relation of ETD to schizophrenia-related deviance in the general population has not been confirmed. This study examined smooth pursuit eye tracking and schizotypal personality features in the general population. Smooth pursuit eye movement and schizotypal features were measured in 300 adult community subjects. The sample included both sexes, subjects with a wide age and educational range, and subjects with no prior history of psychosis. Primary outcome measures were peak gain (eye velocity/target velocity), catch-up saccade rate, and schizotypal feature scores. Total schizotypal features were significantly associated with decreased peak gain and were associated at the trend level with increased catch-up saccade rate. These associations were essentially unchanged after controlling for age, sex, and intellectual level effects. These data confirm a hypothesized association between schizotypal features and poorer eye tracking performance (principally, peak gain) in the general population as well as support the conceptualization of ETD as an endophenotype for schizophrenia liability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A test of the declining interest hypothesis.

Responds to the comment by A. Rowan and K. J. Shapiro (see record 1997-07159-001) on H. A. Herzog's (see record 1996-13937-001) examination of media coverage of the animal rights movement. Herzog agrees with Rowan and Shapiro's assessment of the movement's impact on popular culture and contemporary attitudes toward the treatment of animals. Herzog states that the amount of coverage in print media represents a fairly crude reflection of the cultural status of a grassroots social movement. However, he offers the meager turnout for the 1996 "March for the Animals" as an excellent test of the "declining interest hypothesis." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Eye movement during skill acquisition: More evidence for the information-reduction hypothesis.

Two experiments tested H. Haider and P. A. Frensch's (1996) information-reduction hypothesis that people learn, with practice, to distinguish between task-relevant and task-redundant information and to limit their processing to task-relevant information. Participants verified alphabetic strings (e.g., "E [4] J K U") containing task-relevant and task-redundant information. In Experiment 1, the positioning of task-relevant information within the strings and the consistency of positioning were manipulated. Degree of information reduction as reflected in reduced reaction times was not affected by the positioning of the relevant information and was only slightly affected by consistency of the positioning. In Experiment 2, eye movements were recorded. Results suggest that task-redundant information is ignored at a perceptual rather than a conceptual level of processing. Thus, existing theories of skill acquisition should include mechanisms that capture the practice-related increase in the selective use of information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)