Work-focused analysis and design

The past decade has seen papers in this journal and other cognitive engineering publications expressing concern about some of our foundational ideas. Cognition, a central construct for this journal, is one that some authors would see banished. Function allocation is another. These commentaries, if taken seriously, have the potential to transform our discipline but whether for benefit or detriment is questionable. I review those commentaries in this paper and conclude that the issues raised have merit but that the proposed solutions would be counterproductive, having the potential, if widely implemented, to cripple our discipline. I argue that these commentaries appear credible only because they appeal to an objectivist paradigm as engendered by a techno-centric world view and that they fail to accommodate the inescapable subjectivity of a scientific enterprise. I further argue that these commentaries do not take full account of the fundamental basis of our discipline; that it is an analysis and design discipline and that it is first and foremost human centric. Our discipline requires a work-focused perspective. We need to think seriously about what that means, and we need to deploy language and methods that are entirely consistent with a work-focused stance.     

Temporal-difference prediction errors and Pavlovian fear conditioning: Role of NMDA and opioid receptors.

Three experiments studied temporal-difference (TD) prediction errors during Pavlovian fear conditioning. In Stage I, rats received conditioned stimulus A (CSA) paired with shock. In Stage II, they received pairings of CSA and CSB with shock that blocked learning to CSB. In Stage III, a serial overlapping compound, CSB 3 CSA, was followed by shock. The change in intratrial durations supported fear learning to CSB but reduced fear of CSA, revealing the operation of TD prediction errors. N-methyl- D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonism prior to Stage III prevented learning, whereas opioid receptor antagonism selectively affected predictive learning. These findings support a role for TD prediction errors in fear conditioning. They suggest that NMDA receptors contribute to fear learning by acting on the product of predictive error, whereas opioid receptors contribute to predictive error. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluation of the MICUR system for quantitative antimicrobial susceptibility testing: a multiphasic comparison with reference methods

Four laboratories participated in a three-phase study to evaluate the MICUR antimicrobial broth microdilution system (Boehringer Mannheim Diagnostics, Inc., Houston, Tex.). The dried-antimicrobial agent MICUR system was compared with a reference broth microdilution method (National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards) by using 304 recently isolated clinical strains and two collections of stock or challenge organisms. Of 7,092 minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) datum pairs derived from the clinical isolates, 96.6% were within an acceptable (+/- 1 log2 dilution) range. MICUR MICs agreed with the reference broth microdilution method MICs in 95.3% of 6,840 MIC pair determinations performed on stock or challenge cultures. The MICUR intralaboratory reproducibility within +/- 1 log2 dilution step for the clinical isolates was 98.4%. The MICUR intralaboratory and interlaboratory reproducibilities for 26 stock cultures were 98.4 and 95.1%, respectively. For 180 challenge cultures (4,199 MIC pairs) which were included in the MICUR testing to provide a wide variety of antimicrobial susceptibility and resistance patterns, the results for 92.5% were in close agreement with the reference broth microdilution results. No specific resistance mechanism went unrecognized by this new commercial system. The MICUR system gives comparable MIC results when evaluated against the reference broth microdilution method, and it would be acceptable for use in clinical microbiology laboratories.     

The effects of nonconsciously priming emotion concepts on behavior.

Current empirical evidence regarding nonconsciously priming emotion concepts is limited to positively versus negatively valenced affect. This article demonstrates that specific, equally valenced emotion concepts can be nonconsciously activated, remain inaccessible to conscious awareness, and still affect behavior in an emotion-specific fashion. In Experiment 1A, participants subliminally primed with guilty emotion adjectives showed lower indulgence than did participants subliminally primed with sad emotion adjectives; even after the addition of a 5-min time delay, these results were replicated in Experiment 1B. Participants in the different priming conditions showed no differences in their subjective emotion ratings and were unaware of the emotion prime or concept activation. Experiments 2A and 2B replicated these findings using a helping measure, demonstrating that individuals primed with guilt adjectives show more helping than do individuals primed with sadness adjectives. In all studies, effects were moderated by individuals' specific emotion-response habits and characteristics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reinstatement of fear to an extinguished conditioned stimulus: Two roles for context.

The authors studied the role of context in reinstatement. Freezing was reinstated when the conditioned stimulus (CS) was extinguished in 1 context and rats moved to another context for reexposure to the shock unconditioned stimulus (US) and test. It was also reinstated (rather than renewed) when rats were shocked in the extinction context and moved to another context for test. This reinstatement was CS specific and reduced by nonreinforced exposures to the extinction context. Rats shocked in the context in which a stimulus had been preexposed froze when tested in another context. These findings suggest 2 roles for context in reinstatement: conditioning of the test context (M. E. Bouton, 1993) and mediated conditioning by the extinction context (P. C. Holland, 1990). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Altered responsivity to central administrations of corticotropin-releasing factor in rats with a history of opiate exposures.

The authors studied the effects of a history of opiate exposures on behavioral responses to intracerebroventricular (ICV) microinjections of the stress-related peptide corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF). Rats were injected for 10 days with morphine (10 mg/kg) or saline, and 1 or 7 days later they received an ICV microinjection of CRF (0.5 μg or 2.5 μg) or artificial cerebrospinal fluid. Microinjections of CRF produced anxiety-like behavior, locomotor activity, and self-grooming. The anxiogenic response was altered so that morphine-treated rats showed reduced responses to 0.5-μg CRF but showed exaggerated responses to 2.5-μg CRF 1 or 7 days after last opiate exposure. These findings suggest that alterations in central CRF circuits may underpin the increased vulnerability to anxiety observed following opiate exposures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Optimized LADAR/RADAR system for detection and tracking

The LADAR (LAser raDAR) is limited in detection and tracking of cooperative targets to less than 30 km range for ground and low altitude systems as has previously been found. This paper addresses the optimized design of a dual mode LADAR/RADAR system with respect to operation ranges. Computational results for specific RADAR Systems show significant improvements for cooperative target detection and tracking ranges beyond 30 km up to 450 km even under severe atmospheric conditions. The price for range improvement is enhanced complexity of the LADAR system and reduced tracking accuracy in the first steps of the detection process.     

Rockfill Modulus and Settlement of Concrete Face Rockfill Dams

A method is presented for estimating the modulus of compacted rockfill in dams based on the particle size, unconfined compressive strength of the rock, compaction layer thickness, compactive effort, and the applied vertical stress. Also presented are methods for predicting the crest settlement and face slab deformation of concrete face rockfill dams during first filling and in the long term. It is demonstrated that the modulus is stress dependent and guidance is provided on how to assess this, as well as effects of construction in narrow valleys where arching may affect the stresses in the dam. These methods are based on analysis of the 35 dams with good quality information on construction materials and placement methods, and good quality internal and surface settlement monitoring records.     

A peripheral, intracerebral, or intrathecal administration of an opioid receptor antagonist blocks illness-induced hyperalgesia in the rat.

We used the tail-flick response of rats to study the role of opioid receptors in illness-induced hyperalgesia. An intraperitoneal injection of lithium chloride (LiCl) produced hyperalgesia that was blocked in a dose-dependent manner by subcutaneous injection of the opioid antagonist naloxone. Neither hyperalgesia nor its blockade by naloxone were due to variations in tail-skin temperature induced by LiCl. Hyperalgesia was also blocked when opioid receptor antagonism was restricted to (a) the periphery, by intraperitoneal administration of the quaternary opioid receptor antagonist naloxone methiodide; (b) the brain, by intracerebroventricular microinjection of naloxone; or (c) the spinal cord, by intrathecal microinjection of naloxone. These results document a pain facilitatory role of opioid receptors in both the peripheral and central nervous systems and are discussed with reference to their analgesic and motivational functions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What makes a good team player? Personality and team effectiveness.

Good team players are often defined in trait terms; that is, they are described as dependable, flexible, or cooperative. Our goal is to examine the relationship between team member personality traits and team effectiveness. However, to understand the effects of personality on team performance requires greater specificity in how personality is described and in how team effectiveness is described. A hierarchical model of team member personality is presented that defines higher-level personality traits and specific facets relevant to team performance. Next, a classification of the core teamwork dimensions underlying effective team performance is presented. Finally, predictions are derived linking team member personality facets to specific teamwork requirements. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)