Effects of organizational disequilibrium training on structural elaboration.

100 53-78-mo old children who displayed pretest structural profiles of varying levels of structural elaboration participated in a training condition, based on the organizational disequilibrium model that predicts that the successively alternating application of different partial structures should lead to cognitive advance. Findings show that (a) training was more effective within and between concepts for Ss with structural mix than for those who had no measured structural mix; (b) the number of Ss acquiring an ontogenetically later concept increased as a function of increasing pretest structural elaboration of ontogenetically earlier concepts; (c) structural application disruption for earlier concepts impeded acquisition of later concepts; and (d) acquisition of later developing concepts influenced structural elaboration of earlier developing concepts. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training the elderly on the ability factors of spatial orientation and inductive reasoning.

Examined the effects of cognitive training with 132 female and 97 male Ss (aged 64–95 yrs) who were classified as having remained stable or having declined over the previous 14-yr interval on each of 2 primary abilities, spatial orientation and inductive reasoning. Ss who had declined on one of these abilities received training on that ability; Ss who had declined on both abilities or who had remained stable on both were randomly assigned to the spatial orientation or inductive reasoning training programs. Training outcomes were examined within an ability-measurement framework with empirically determined factorial structure. Significant training effects, at the level of the latent ability constructs, occurred for both spatial orientation and inductive reasoning. These effects were general in that no significant interactions with decline status or gender were found. It is concluded that training interventions were effective both in remediating cognitive decline on the target abilities and in improving the performance of stable Ss. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of time, speed, and distance concepts.

Used the rule-assessment approach to examine understanding of the concepts of time, speed, and distance in 36 5-, 8-, and 11-yr-olds and 12 undergraduates. Parallel tasks were developed for the 3 concepts that allowed specification of whether Ss were relying on time, speed, distance, end point, end time, beginning point, or beginning time cues in making their judgments. It was found that 5-yr-olds understood all 3 concepts in the same way: Whichever train ended farther ahead on the tracks was said to have traveled for the longer time, at the faster speed, and for the greater distance. Undergraduates, at the other extreme, understood all 3 concepts as distinct and separate ideas. The transitional period was marked by specific confusions among the 3 concepts: Time was regularly confused with distance, distance was confused with time, and speed was confused with distance and to some extent with end point. Both speed and distance concepts appeared to be mastered well before the concept of time. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive certainty in children: Effects of concept, developmental level, and method of assessment.

Examined the certainty with which children make their judgments on concrete-operational tasks. Ss were 60 2nd graders and 36 5th graders; the tasks involved various forms of conservation and transitivity. Three methods of assessing certainty were included: a rating scale, a betting game, and a feedback phase in which the child responded to a disconfirmation of his answer. Ss who had given operational answers expressed strong certainty in their judgments on both the rating and betting measures. The certainty expressed during the feedback phase, as measured by challenges to the disconfirmation, was considerably less. Operational answers were accompanied by greater certainty than were nonoperational answers. Developmental changes in certainty among operational Ss were infrequent, as were interconcept differences in certainty. There was evidence, however, that conservation of number was the concept held with greatest certainty. Results are discussed in terms of J. Piaget's (1971) claim that concepts of conservation and transitivity are experienced as logically necessary truths. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Can decline in adult intellectual functioning be reversed?

Examined whether or not cognitive decline in the elderly that has been reliably demonstrated over a 14-yr period can be reversed. 97 male and 132 female participants (aged 64–95 yrs) in a long-term longitudinal study were classified into those who had declined (n?=?122) and those who had remained stable (n?=?107) on the abilities of inductive reasoning and spatial orientation, based on their performances on the Primary Mental Ability Reasoning and Spatial Orientation Tests. Ss were assigned to 5-hr training programs on either ability in a pretest–posttest design that used Ss trained on 1 target ability as controls for those trained on the other. Results show that cognitive training techniques reliably reverse decline in spatial and reasoning ability documented over a 14-yr period in a substantial number of Ss. Training procedures also enhanced the performance of many Ss who had remained stable. Training improvement on spatial orientation was found to be greater for decliners than for those who remained stable and greater for females than for males. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental and individual differences in conditional reasoning: The role of contradiction training and cognitive style.

Examined the development of conditional reasoning from the perspective of the competence-moderator-performance approach discussed by W. F. Overton (1985) and Overton and J. L. Newman (1982). The effects of task interpretation and cognitive style as moderator variables for conditional reasoning were examined, using 36 8th-, 36 10th-, and 36 12th-grade male students as Ss. Ss were given an inference task, and half the Ss at each grade level received training with contradictory evidence to alert them to faulty task interpretations. Generalization of training was assessed with a 2nd conditional reasoning task, and cognitive style was assessed with the Matching Familiar Figures Test. Results indicate that only the 12th graders benefited from contradiction training, and this training generalized to the subsequent task. A reflective style enhanced performance at each grade level for the initial task. However, the beneficial effects of a reflective style were restricted on the generalization task to 12th graders who had received contradiction training. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationships between associative and content structure of physics concepts.

Investigated the development of the associative structure of physics concepts as a result of the content presented to the learner and the relationship between associative structure (as determined by a series of word association tests) and academic achievement. College students were divided into a treatment group of 19 Ss who received physics instruction and a control group of 11 Ss who did not. Experimental Ss' associative structures indicated significantly greater correlation with the instructor's associative structure after exposure to course content than previously; experimental Ss also were more similar to the instructor than control Ss. Comparison of regression models showed that associative structure itself contributed significantly to the prediction of achievement. Results suggest that assessment of associative structure may allow insight into a learner's progress which complements achievement testing. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intermediate-size transposition and children's operational level.

Three experiments with a total of 170 children aged 4 yrs 8 mo–7 yrs 5 mo examined the relationship between intermediate-size transposition and operational level. In each experiment, concrete and preoperational Ss were identified by Piagetian tasks. In Exp I, half of the Ss received single-problem training and the other half multiple-problem training, followed by a far test of transposition. Exp II was similar to the multiple-training condition, but all Ss could verbalize and understand the concept "middle size." Exp III differed from Exp II in providing a test of near transposition after single-problem training. It was found that logical abilities as well as perceptual factors are involved in transposition performance. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of practice on utilization of information from positive and negative instances in identifying disjunctive concepts.

Previous research by V. Freibergs and E. Tulving has shown that positive instances are used more efficiently than negative instances by naive Ss attempting to solve conjunctive concept problems, and that this difference diminishes with practice. The present study examined practice effects on the identification of disjunctive concepts with either positive or negative instances presented to 60 undergraduates. Results are the opposite of those of Freibergs and Tulving, with Ss who were shown only negative instances having systematically lower solution times than those shown only positive instances, and with the difference diminishing with practice. Data were interpreted in terms of the relative efficiency of strategies appropriate to the 2 types of presentation. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in performance on ability tests as a function of masculinity, femininity, and androgyny.

Examined with 237 undergraduates the hypothesis that differences in performance on sex-typed ability tests may similarly be attributable to sex-role differences. A battery of tests was administered, including the Bem Sex-Role Inventory, the California Psychological Inventory, and the Comrey Personality Scales, in addition to a male-superior mechanical reasoning test and a female-superior perceptual speed and accuracy test. Large sex differences were obtained. Masculine Ss of both sexes performed highest on mechanical reasoning, followed in order by androgynous, undifferentiated, and feminine Ss. No consistent sex-role differences emerged on the speed and accuracy test. As a control on general ability, the difference between standard scores for mechanical reasoning and for speed and accuracy was calculated; sex-role differences obtained here resembled those on the mechanical reasoning test. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-concepts and role concepts in the career orientation of college women.

Examined the relationship of 97 college women's self-concepts and role concepts to 9 career orientation variables. Ss were senior class women representing a variety of majors. Data were collected by mailed questionnaires which included a self- and role concept instrument, Eyde's Desire to Work Scale, and other locally devised career orientation measures. It was expected that (a) women with similar self- and career concepts would be career oriented and (b) women with similar self- and homemaker concepts would not be career oriented. Results support the 2nd expectation but not the 1st. The relationship between self- and career concepts and the 2 most valid career orientation variables was somewhat stronger for women with high levels of self-esteem and women with a high level of role differentiation. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Disruptive school behavior and concepts of social convention in early adolescence.

Studied 22 7th- and 8th-grade students who had engaged in disruptive behaviors that involved violations of classroom regulations and defiance of authorities and 20 nondisruptive students. Both groups were administered an interview assessing concepts of social conventions, within a sequence of developmental levels. Disruptive Ss were reinterviewed 1 yr later, and behavioral records were reassessed. Disruptive school behavior was partially related to thinking (Level 4) characterized by rejection of conventional regulation; this preceded systematic conceptions of the role of conventional regulation in social organization (Level 5). At 1st testing, a greater proportion of disruptive than nondisruptive Ss displayed Level 4 thinking. One year later, 13 of the 20 originally disruptive Ss no longer displayed disruptive behavior. All Ss disruptive at Time 2 had not changed to the next level whereas the majority of those no longer disruptive shifted to the next level. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in cognitive abilities and brain organization: I. Sex and handedness differences in ability.

Analyzed data on cognitive abilities from 3 samples of normal Ss: (1) 195 undergraduates, (2) 215 18–30 yr old newly married couples, and (3) 122 pairs of monozygotic and dizygotic twins (aged 12–38 yrs). Findings reveal a common Sex by Handedness by Reasoning-Ability interaction: For Ss with above-median reasoning ability, spatial scores of left-handed males were reduced but those of left-handed females were raised, relative to their right-handed counterparts; the opposite pattern was found for Ss with below-median reasoning ability. The dependence of handedness effects on reasoning ability level appears to explain some of the inconsistent findings in the literature. Verbal fluency, perceptual speed, and visual memory also showed sex and handedness effects, which often interacted with level of reasoning ability or other cognitive variables. Results strongly suggest that sex and handedness differences in cognitive ability are partly neurological in origin. Variations in the effects of handedness across levels of reasoning ability (or other abilities) may indicate that different trade-offs among structural, and thus cognitive, characteristics will be found in different subsamples: There may be many kinds of normal brain organization. (French abstract) (98 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modification of concept identification performance in older adults.

A sequential training procedure combining operant and cumulative learning hierarchy principles was found effective in reducing the decrement in concept identification performance typically observed in older adults. 20 male and 20 female Ss aged 63-83 yrs were given a pretest and posttest, each involving a 3-category unidimensional concept identification problem. The training and reinforced-training Ss were given 3 training sessions between pretest and posttest. Training involved a programmed learning sequence designed to facilitate the development of an effective solution strategy. Control Ss were given only the pretest and posttest, while practice Ss were given 3 additional practice sessions. Substantial improvement was found in both the training and reinforced training groups, but only slight improvement obtained in the practice and control groups. Results are consistent with recent conceptions of cognitive and intellectual development in the older adults in which performance deficits are largely attributed to experiential factors. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of family-role concepts in school-age children.

50 White middle-class 6–13 yr olds were tested for a predicted, 8-step sequence of family role concepts. Dolls representing typical family roles were used as props, and questions were asked of each S concerning role explanations and increasingly abstract family definitions. The sequence was scalable and age-related. At 6 yrs, most Ss could intersect 2 family roles by explaining how 2 family-role relations could occur simultaneously for the same 2 people (e.g., both parental and spousal role relations for a man and a woman). By 9 yrs, most Ss could define a traditional family in terms of family-role intersections across 2 or more generations. By 12 yrs, most Ss could compare a traditional family with a childless couple or a single-parent family in terms of the similarities and differences in spousal and parental-role relations. Only some of the older Ss could generate a general definition for all families. Results demonstrate that the predicted sequence is developmental and that a central aspect to the development of family-role concepts (and possibly other similar social-cognitive concepts) is an addition-construction process such as that described by K. W. Fischer (see record 1981-02339-001). (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Freedom of choice and behavioral change.

Used a 3?×?2 (Treatment?×?Population) factorial design with repeated measures (pretest/posttest) to evaluate the effects of perceived freedom of choice on behavior change in a therapy analog study. 90 Ss were assigned to 3 groups that varied in the amount of perceived choice given to Ss in determining the type of training procedure used for speed-reading enhancement. Experimental conditions were crossed with 2 populations of Ss to examine 2 levels of perceived freedom. Half of the Ss were psychology undergraduates required to participate in psychology experiments, and the remaining half were volunteers. The main dependent variable was the amount of change in reading rate. A marginally significant increase in reading speed was obtained by volunteers in comparison to psychology student participants. Ss who perceived that they were given a choice in training procedures improved significantly more in reading speed than Ss who lost the freedom of choice. No changes in reading comprehension were noted. Findings are discussed in terms of the relationship between freedom of choice and performance in a behavior change program. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of graphic analogies of concepts in chemistry on learning and attitudes.

To test the effects of graphic presentation on learning complex concepts, 2 versions of a lesson on concepts in electrochemistry were designed to elaborate conceptual and topographic information either verbally or pictorially. A PLATO IV computer terminal presented the lesson to 40 undergraduates, who were randomly assigned to the verbal or graphic condition. Tests designed to assess knowledge, comprehension, and application of concepts revealed that external imagery resulted in significantly better learning. Ss also found the graphics versions to be more enjoyable as indicated by semantic differential measures and had a more positive general attitude toward that version. Ss in the external imagery treatment reported experiencing more mental imagery suggesting that the positive effects of pictures may be due to the internal processing that they elicit. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Increasing hypnotic susceptibility by brain wave feedback.

Presents a reanalysis of earlier studies by D. R. Engstrom et al (1970) as well as additional findings which show that successful training to increase alpha rhythm duration raises people's hypnotic susceptibility. Ss in the previous studies were 30 volunteers who had low to moderate hypnotic susceptibility and low alpha production. It was found, subsequent to publication, that some Ss had had previous exposure to alpha training. When they were eliminated in reanalysis, the previous findings were still confirmed; alpha training was more effective for experimental than for control Ss, and hypnotic susceptibility accordingly increased more among experimentals than among controls. In addition, base-rate alpha production in each training session was correlated with feedback alpha output among experimental Ss but not among controls. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Instructional control strategies and content structure as design variables in concept acquisition using computer-based instruction.

Studied 135 undergraduates to investigate 2 instructional design variables directly related to concept learning. The 1st variable, management strategy, tested the hypothesis that advising Ss of their learning need in relationship to acquisition of a task at a given criterion would be more effective than adaptive control or learner control strategies. Data analysis showed that the advisement condition resulted in better performance than the learner control condition and needed less instructional time and fewer instructional instances than the adaptive control condition. The 2nd variable contrasted 2 forms of content structure used in learning coordinate concepts. Ss given concepts simultaneously performed better on the posttest and needed less instruction than those who received concepts successively. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interdependence of formal reasoning.

Administered a concept attainment task, a logic test, and an identity status interview to female undergraduates. Performance on the 2 reasoning measures was unrelated, and identity crisis Ss did not perform better than noncrisis Ss. Results support Piaget's (1972) speculation that formal reasoning may be used selectively rather than being all-pervasive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)