Does test-enhanced learning transfer for triple associates?

Test-enhanced learning and transfer for triple-associate word stimuli was assessed in three experiments. In each experiment, training and final-test trials involved the presentation of two words per triple associate (triplet), with the third word having to be retrieved. In agreement with the prior literature on different stimuli, training through testing with feedback yielded markedly better final-test performance than did restudy. However, in contrast to the positive transfer reported for paired associate stimuli, minimal or no positive transfer was observed, relative to a restudy control, from a trained cue combination (e.g., A, B, ?) to other cue combinations from the same triplet that required a different response (e.g., B, C, ?). That result also held when two unique cue combinations per triplet were tested during training, and for triplets with low and high average associative strengths. Supplementary analyses provided insight into the overall transfer effect: An incorrect response during training appears to yield positive transfer relative to restudy, whereas a correct response appears to yield no, or even negative, transfer. Cross-experiment analyses indicated that test-enhanced learning is not diminished when two or three cue combinations are presented during training. Thus, even though learning through testing is highly specific, testing on all possible stimulus-response combinations remains the most efficient strategy for the learning of triple associates.

Task-related and task-unrelated thoughts in runners and equestrians: Measurement issues in evaluations of thought content.

Much of the thought content and mind-wandering literature examines self-reported thought content's relationship with performance criteria in limited ways. Furthermore, retrospective reports about thought content may be influenced by the quality of one's performance. We explored these method issues in a cross-sectional study of individuals competing in a trail race and an equestrian event. Our results demonstrated that self-reports of thought content differed based on the performance context: whereas runners' task-related and task-unrelated thoughts were negatively correlated, equestrians' thought content showed no relationship. Moreover, equestrians in general reported fewer task-related and task-unrelated thoughts than runners. Finally, objective performance predicted task-unrelated thought (but not task-related thought) among runners, and an exploratory mediation test suggested the effect was partially mediated by performance awareness. We discuss the applied implications of this research for human performance practitioners.

Detecting gender as a moderator in meta-analysis: The problem of restricted between-study variance.

Meta-analyses in the psychological sciences typically examine moderators that may explain heterogeneity in effect sizes. One of the most commonly examined moderators is gender. Overall, tests of gender as a moderator are rarely significant, which may be because effects rarely differ substantially between men and women. While this may be true in some cases, we also suggest that the lack of significant findings may be attributable to the way in which gender is examined as a meta-analytic moderator, such that detecting moderating effects is very unlikely even when such effects are substantial in magnitude. More specifically, we suggest that lack of between-primary study variance in gender composition makes it exceedingly difficult to detect moderation. That is, because primary studies tend to have similar male-to-female ratios, there is very little variance in gender composition between primaries, making it nearly impossible to detect between-study differences in the relationship of interest as a function of gender. In the present article, we report results from two studies: (a) a meta-meta-analysis in which we demonstrate the magnitude of this problem by computing the between-study variance in gender composition across 286 meta-analytic moderation tests from 50 meta-analyses, and (b) a Monte Carlo simulation study in which we show that this lack of variance results in near-zero moderator effects even when male-female differences in correlations are quite large. Our simulations are also used to show the value of single-gender studies for detecting moderating effects. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Size dependent elemental composition of road-associated particles.

Stormwater particles often provide transport for metals and other contaminants, however only larger particles are effectively removed by typical best management practices. Fine particles and their associated constituents are more likely to reach receiving waters; this merits further investigation regarding the metal contribution of fine (d(p)<10 microm) and very fine (d(p)<1.5 microm) particles. Road associated particles were collected by vacuuming a road surface and by collecting highway stormwater runoff. A cell sorter was employed to sort road associated particles into four size ranges: 0.1-0.3, 0.3-0.5, 0.5-1.0, and 1.0-1.5 microm. These very fine particles, along with six particle size ranges (total range <2-63 microm) separated using a settling column, were analyzed for Al, Mn, Fe, Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Enrichment factors (EFs), calculated using Al as a basis to represent crustal contributions, were similar for the vacuumed road dust and the stormwater runoff. Fe and Mn were minimally depleted (0.1x) or near unity for all size ranges (Fe EF range 0.01-3.7; Mn EF range 0.02-10.6). Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb were moderately (10x) to considerably (>100x) enriched for most size ranges; these metals were most enriched in the very fine fractions (max EF ~ 4900 in Zn, 0.1-0.3 microm). Based on this preliminary study, a cell sorter is an acceptable means of fractionating aqueous particles of diameter 0.1-1.5 microm. In spite of their minimal relative mass contribution, the very fine particles are environmentally relevant due to their mobility and enrichment in potentially toxic metals.

Job Crafting: Older Workers' Mechanism for Maintaining Person-Job Fit.

Aging at work is a dynamic process. As individuals age, their motives, abilities and values change as suggested by life-span development theories (Lang and Carstensen, 2002; Kanfer and Ackerman, 2004). Their growth and extrinsic motives weaken while intrinsic motives increase (Kooij et al., 2011), which may result in workers investing their resources in different areas accordingly. However, there is significant individual variability in aging trajectories (Hedge et al., 2006). In addition, the changing nature of work, the evolving job demands, as well as the available opportunities at work may no longer be suitable for older workers, increasing the likelihood of person-job misfit. The potential misfit may, in turn, impact how older workers perceive themselves on the job, which leads to conflicting work identities. With the traditional job redesign approach being a top-down process, it is often difficult for organizations to take individual needs and skills into consideration and tailor jobs for every employee (Berg et al., 2010). Therefore, job crafting, being an individualized process initiated by employees themselves, can be a particularly valuable mechanism for older workers to realign and enhance their demands-abilities and needs-supplies fit. Through job crafting, employees can exert personal agency and make changes to the task, social and cognitive aspects of their jobs with the goal of improving their work experience (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). Building on the Life Span Theory of Control (Heckhausen and Schulz, 1995), we posit that job crafting, particularly cognitive crafting, will be of increasing value as employees age. Through reframing how they think of their job and choosing to emphasize job features that are personally meaningful, older workers can optimize their resources to proactively redesign their jobs and maintain congruent, positive work identities.