Concurrent task demands and individual differences in the architecture of reading: Discriminating artifacts from real McCoys.

K. R. Paap and R. W. Noel (1991) observed a striking effect in which low-frequency exception words were pronounced faster under a larger memory load although other types of words slowed down. This effect strongly favored dual-route models of pronunciation. S. E. Bernstein and T. H. Carr (1996) reported that only certain selected readers produced Paap and Noel's effect, suggesting individual differences in reading-system architecture. P. M. Pexman and S. J. Lupker (1998) criticized Bernstein and Carr's finding as artifactual and failed to replicate it with a different way of selecting readers. They also failed to support an alternative individual-difference hypothesis of their own. In the current article, the authors developed a new approach to identifying individual differences and applied the approach to a variety of data. They found little evidence of systematic individual differences in the occurrence of Paap and Noel's effect, and indeed, they found little evidence that the effect could be replicated at all. Therefore, they gave up. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does self-regulation require cognitive resources? Evaluation of resource allocation models of goal setting.

The resource allocation model of goal setting (R. Kanfer & P. L. Ackerman, 1989) maintains that self-regulation initiated through goal setting requires attentional resources that could be more productively applied to skill acquisition and complex task performance. The current study questioned this hypothesis because attentional resources had not been directly manipulated or measured in studies supporting the model. Thus, alternative explanations that are based on other complex task goal-setting models cannot be excluded. As a direct test of the resource allocation hypothesis, dual task methodology was used to measure the attentional resource requirements of self-regulation. Even at the limits of human information processing, participants who were assigned difficult, specific goals performed at least as well on the secondary task as did individuals with do-your-best goals. These findings suggest that self-regulation does not necessarily require attentional resources. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Understanding pretest and posttest reactions to cognitive ability and personality tests

Recent progress in identifying tumor antigens and understanding the host-tumor relationship have catalyzed a dramatic expansion of efforts to develop cancer vaccines. Gene transfer technologies have figured prominently in the design of many of these novel immunization schemes. This article highlights some of the key principles and controversies raised by experiments involving genetically modified tumor vaccines and speculates about future directions for investigators in this field.     

Reactions to cognitive ability tests: The relationships between race, test performance, face validity perceptions, and test-taking motivation.

The relationships among race, face validity perceptions, test-taking motivation, and test performance on a cognitive ability test were examined. Undergraduates completed 2 parallel cognitive ability tests and a test reactions measure. Results showed that test-taking motivation was related positively to subsequent performance on a parallel test even after the effects of race and performance on the first test were controlled. The effect of race on subsequent test performance was found to be mediated partially by motivation that provided evidence that some portion of the Black–White difference in test performance may be explained through differences in test-taking motivation. Results also indicated that Black–White differences in face validity perceptions of the test may be a function of Black–White differences in test performance. Face validity perceptions of the test affected subsequent performance on the parallel test but only indirectly through test-taking motivation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of error variance heterogeneity on the power of tests for regression slope differences.

In moderated regression analysis with both a continuous predictor and nominal-level (group membership) variables, there are conditions in which the hypothesis of equal slopes of the regression of Y onto X across groups is equivalent to the hypothesis of equality of X–Y correlations across groups. This research uses those conditions to investgate the impact of heterogeneity of error variance on the power accuracy of the F test for equality of regression slopes. The results show that even when sample sizes are equal, the test is not robust and, under unequal sample sizes, the pattern of excessively high or excessively low rejection rates can be severe. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

A cautionary note on measurement error corrections in structural equation models.

It is commonly thought that structural equation modeling corrects estimated relationships among latent variables for the biasing effects of measurement error. The purpose of this article is to review the manner in which structural equation models control for measurement error and to demonstrate the conditions in which structural equation models do and do not correct for unreliability. Generalizability theory is used to demonstrate that there are multiple sources of error in most measurement systems and that applications of structural equation modeling rarely account for more than a single source of error. As a result, the parameter estimates in a structural equation model may be severely biased by unassessed sources of measurement error. Recommendations for modeling multiple sources of error in structural equation models are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A multilevel model of minority opinion expression and team decision-making effectiveness.

The consideration of minority opinions when making team decisions is an important factor that contributes to team effectiveness. A multilevel model of minority opinion influence in decision-making teams is developed to address the conditions that relate to adequate consideration of minority opinions. Using a sample of 57 teams working on a simulated airport security-screening task, we demonstrate that team learning goal orientation influences the confidence of minority opinion holders and team discussion. Team discussion, in turn, relates to minority influence, greater decision quality, and team satisfaction. Implications for managing decision-making teams in organizations are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Combining effect size estimates in meta-analysis with repeated measures and independent-groups designs.

When a meta-analysis on results from experimental studies is conducted, differences in the study design must be taken into consideration. A method for combining results across independent-groups and repeated measures designs is described, and the conditions under which such an analysis is appropriate are discussed. Combining results across designs requires that (a) all effect sizes be transformed into a common metric, (b) effect sizes from each design estimate the same treatment effect, and (c) meta-analysis procedures use design-specific estimates of sampling variance to reflect the precision of the effect size estimates. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correcting effect sizes computed from factor analysis of variance for use in meta-analysis.

In meta-analysis, it is possible to average results across multiple studies because the effect sizes estimated from each study are in the same metric (e.g., the standardized mean difference). However, when effect sizes are computed from a factorial analysis of variance, these estimates are influenced by the other factors in the design. A correction developed by G. V. Glass, B. McGaw, and M. L. Smith (1981) solves this problem; however, it requires information (e.g., sums of squares) that is often not available in published research. A reformulated version of the correction is presented, which requires only F values and degrees of freedom. The impact of the correction on effect size estimates is examined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Can racial differences in cognitive test performance be reduced by presenting problems in a social context?

It is well documented that African Americans tend to score lower on cognitive ability tests than White Americans. The cause of this performance difference is still being hotly debated and actively researched. Recently, J. E. Helms (1992) argued that cognitive ability tests fail to adequately assess African American intelligence because they do not account for the emphasis placed on social relations and the effect of social context on reasoning in the African American culture. To evaluate this argument, racial subgroup performance differences on Wason conditional reasoning items presented in the standard abstract form and in a social relationship form were examined. Contrary to Helms's argument, results indicate that presenting Wason conditional reasoning items in a social context did not reduce the difference between African American and White American Performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)