EPS mid-career prize lecture 2017: Writing systems, reading, and language.

Skilled reading reflects an accumulation of experience with written language. Written language is typically viewed as an expression of spoken language, and this perspective has motivated approaches to understanding reading and reading acquisition. However, in this article, I develop the proposal that written language has diverged from spoken language in important ways that maximise the transmission of meaningful information, and that this divergence has been central to the development of rapid, skilled reading. I use English as an example to show that weaknesses in the relationship between spelling and sound can give rise to strong regularities between spelling and meaning that are critical for the rapid analysis of printed words. I conclude by arguing that the nature of the reading system is a reflection of the writing system and that a deep understanding of reading can be obtained only through a deep understanding of written language.

Rock influences spatial memory in adult rats, while classical music do not / El rock afecta la memoria espacial en ratas adultas, mientras que la música clásica no

Music can be used as a therapeutic tool and has several effects in cognitive and physiological functions. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of different musical pieces in spatial memory in adult male rats. A T maze was used to investigate spatial memory, with 2h and 6h inter trial interval between training and testing phases. Before training, animals were exposed to an active or relaxing musical stimulus corresponding to rock and classical pieces. It was found that in the experiment with 2h interval, animals explore more the novel arm in comparison with the other arm, which indicated that animals still had a good spatial memory. This was not observed in rats that were exposed to the relaxing rock piece, which could indicate that this stimulus diminished memory. With the 6h interval the rats explored both arms equally, except animals that were exposed to the activating rock piece of music which indicated a slightly enhance in memory. Thus, there were found different effects of music corresponding to the time of interval and the stimulus characteristics. This data provides information to use music as a possible treatment to modulate memory (AU)

La música puede ser usada como una herramienta terapéutica y ha demostrado tener múltiples efectos en las funciones cognitivas y fisiológicas. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar el efecto de diferentes piezas musicales en la memoria espacial de ratas adultas macho. Se utilizó un laberinto en forma de T para evaluar la memoria espacial, con 2 y 6 horas de intervalo entre ensayos entre el entrenamiento y fase de testeo. Antes del entrenamiento los animales fueron expuestos a estímulos sonoros activantes o relajantes correspondientes a piezas de rock y música clásica. Se encontró que en el experimento con 2 horas de intervalo los animales exploraron más el brazo novedoso en comparación con el ya conocido, lo cual indica que los sujetos tenían un buen índice de memoria espacial. Esto no se observó en las ratas que fueron expuestas a la pieza de rock relajante, lo que indicaría que este estímulo disminuyó la memoria. Con el intervalo de 6 horas los animales exploraron ambos brazos por igual, excepto los que fueron expuestos a la pieza activante de rock, lo cual indicaría una mejora en la memoria. Con lo cual, se hallaron diferentes efectos de la música en relación al intervalo de tiempo aplicado entre entrenamiento y test, así como al tipo de estímulo empleado. Estos datos proveen información acerca del uso de la música como un posible tratamiento de modulación de la memoria (AU)

Unpacking insanity defence standards: an experimental study of rationality and control tests in criminal law / Descifrar los criterios de defensa de la vesania: estudio experimental de las pruebas de racionalidad y control en derecho penal

The present study investigated the impact of different legal standards on mock juror decisions concerning whether a defendant was guilty or not guilty by reason of insanity. Undergraduate students (N=477) read a simulated case summary involving a murder case and were asked to make an insanity determination. The cases differed in terms of the condition of the defendant (rationality deficit or control deficit) and the legal standard given to the jurors to make the determination (Model Penal Code, McNaughten or McNaughten plus a separate control determination). The effects of these variables on the insanity determination were investigated. Jurors also completed questionnaires measuring individualism and hierarchy attitudes and perceptions of facts in the case. Results indicate that under current insanity standards jurors do not distinguish between defendants with rationality deficits and defendants with control deficits regardless of whether the legal standard requires them to do so. Even defendants who lacked control were found guilty at equal rates under a legal standard excusing rationality deficits only and a legal standard excluding control and rationality deficits. This was improved by adding a control test as a partial defence, to be determined after a rationality determination. Implications for the insanity defence in the Criminal Justice System are discussed (AU)

Este estudio ha investigado la repercusión de los diversos cánones legales en las decisiones simuladas acerca de si un acusado es culpable o no por motivos de vesania. Una muestra de 477 estudiantes universitarios leyeron el resumen de caso relativo a un asesinato, pidiéndoseles luego que determinasen si había enajenación mental. Los casos diferían en cuanto a la condición del acusado (déficit de racionalidad o de control) y el criterio legal proporcionado a los jurados para que tomaran la determinación (Código penal modelo, McNaughten o McNaughten mas una determinación sobre el control). Se investigó el efecto de estas variables en la determinación de vesania. Los jurados rellenaron también cuestionarios que medían actitudes de individualismo y jerarquía y la percepción de los hechos del caso. Los resultados indican que con los criterios de demencia actuales los jurados no distinguen entre acusados con déficit de racionalidad y aquellos con déficit de control, aunque los criterios legales se lo exijan. Incluso los acusados que carecían de control fueron hallados culpables en la misma proporción con un criterio legal que disculpaba el déficit de racionalidad y con otro que excluía los déficit de control y racionalidad. Consiguió mejorarse añadiendo una prueba de control como defensa parcial a determinar tras la decisión sobre la racionalidad. Se comentan las implicaciones para la defensa de la enajenación mental en el sistema de justicia penal (AU)

A review of cognitive inhibition in adults with unipolar depression

Although it is generally accepted that systematic processing biases are associated with depressive episodes, what is less well understood are the mechanisms responsible for such negative cognitive biases. Overall, empirical evidence has suggested that cognitive inhibitory deficits of emotional processing may play a central role in the onset and maintenance of depression. Thus, research has begun to investigate cognitive inhibition, a mechanism proposed to be fundamental to the negative cognitive biases evidenced within depression. These investigations may help to fill these gaps in the literature. The aim of the current paper was to provide a comprehensive review of the literature related to cognitive inhibition and investigate the evidence supporting the role of cognitive inhibition in the development and maintenance of major depressive disorder. Relevant research is reviewed and the current methods for examining cognitive inhibition are discussed. Furthermore, the implications of these results for research examining selective attention within depression are considered (AU)

No disponible

A discussion of alternatives for establishing empirical benchmarks for interpreting single-case effect sizes / Discusión de diferentes maneras de establecer criterios interpretativos empíricos para tamaños del efecto de diseños de caso único

In this paper we reflect on the numerous calls for the development of benchmarks for interpreting effect size indices, reviewing several possibilities. Such benchmarks are aimed to provide criteria so that analysts can judge whether the size of the effect o bserved is rather "small", "medium" or "large". The context of this discussion is single-case experimental designs, for which a great variety of procedures have been proposed, with their different nature (e.g., being based on amount of overlap vs. a standardized mean difference) posing challenges to interpretation. For each of the alternatives discussed we point at their strengths and limitations. We also comment how such empirical benchmarks can be obtained, usually by methodologists, and illustrate how these benchmarks can be used by applied researchers willing to have more evidence on the magnitude of effect observed and not only whether an effect is present or not. One of the alternatives discussed is a proposal we make in the current paper. Although it has certain limitations, as all alternatives do, we consider that it is worth discussing it and the whole set of alternatives in order to advance in interpreting effect sizes, now that computing and reporting their numerical values is (or is expected to be) common practicIn this paper we reflect on the numerous calls for the development of benchmarks for interpreting effect size indices, reviewing several possibilities. Such benchmarks are aimed to provide criteria so that analysts can judge whether the size of the effect o bserved is rather «small», «medium» or «large». The context of this discussion is single-case experimental designs, for which a great variety of procedures have been proposed, with their different nature (e.g., being based on amount of overlap vs. a standardized mean difference) posing challenges to interpretation. For each of the alternatives discussed we point at their strengths and limitations. We also comment how such empirical benchmarks can be obtained, usually by methodologists, and illustrate how these benchmarks can be used by applied researchers willing to have more evidence on the magnitude of effect observed and not only whether an effect is present or not. One of the alternatives discussed is a proposal we make in the current paper. Although it has certain limitations, as all alternatives do, we consider that it is worth discussing it and the whole set of alternatives in order to advance in interpreting effect sizes, now that computing and reporting their numerical values is (or is expected to be) common practice

El presente trabajo responde a la necesidad expresada de desarrollar criterios interpretativos para los índices de tamaño del efecto, repasando diferentes maneras para conseguirlo. El objetivo de los criterios es proporcionar herramientas a los analistas para que éstos puedan valorar si el efecto observado en su estudio es más bien «pequeño», «mediano» o «grande». El contexto en el cual tiene lugar la discusión son los diseños de caso único, para los cuales se ha propuesto una gran variedad de técnicas analíticas cuya base diferente (e.g., grado de solapamiento versus diferencia de medias estandarizada) supone un reto para la interpretación. Para cada una de las alternativas que se comentan, se destacan las ventajas e inconvenientes. Adicionalmente, se comenta cómo estos criterios pueden ser obtenidos, una tarea propia de los metodólogos, y cómo pueden ser utilizados por investigadores aplicados que desean disponer de más evidencias sobre la magnitud del efecto observado, más allá de decidir si el efecto existe o no. Una de las alternativas es una propuesta que se realiza en el marco del presente artículo. A pesar de que también presenta desventajas, como todas las alternativas, consideramos que es necesario discutir esta alternativa y todas las demás con la finalidad de avanzar en la interpretación de tamaños del efecto, en un momento en el cual el hecho de calcular y reportar sus valores numéricos es (o se supone) habitual

Focus on your breathing: does meditation help lower rumination and depressive symptoms?

The present study examines the relationships between meditation, rumination and depressive symptoms. Research to date has found that individuals who meditate experience less ruminative thinking and have lower depressive symptoms than individuals who do not meditate. While most psychological studies in this area examined the influence of controlled attention focused therapies on rumination and depression, this study describes the relationships between these indices in a non-clinical population. We hypothesize that: 1) The longer meditators practice meditation, the less they will experience ruminative thinking and depressive symptoms; 2) Meditators will have less ruminative thinking and depressive symptoms than non-meditators; 3) Different measures of meditation and ruminative thinking will negatively predict depressive symptoms; and 4) The relation between ruminative thinking and depressive symptoms will be positive and stronger among non-meditators than among meditators. 150 participants, about half of them practicing meditation, were sampled via social networks and answered questions pertaining to ruminative thinking, depressive symptoms and their meditation practice. Participants who practiced meditation for a longer period of time reported less rumination and depressive symptoms. Furthermore, meditators experienced significantly less ruminative thinking (but not depressive symptoms) than non-meditators. Moreover, rumination was found to positively predict depressive symptoms, while meditation measures did not. Finally, the relationship between ruminative thinking and depressive symptoms was found to be positive, significant and stronger among non-meditators than among meditators. Persistent meditation may have long lasting effects on lowering ruminative thinking and depressive symptoms (AU)

No disponible

Discriminaciones condicionales con estímulos contextuales versus complejos: implicaciones en la transferencia del aprendizaje / Conditional discriminations using contextual versus complex stimuli: implication for learning transfer

No disponible

This study sought to determine the effect of two conditional discrimination procedures involving contextual vs complex stimuli, on two types of learning transfer. For this purpose, three experiments were carried out. The first experiment used a contextual control procedure and the second a complex control procedure. The third experiment compared the two procedures using an inter-group design. The first two experiments aimed to determine the effect of the teaching procedure used on the transfer of learning to new stimulus relations (first type of transfer). The third experiment sought to determine the effect of teaching conditional discriminations using wither contextual or complex stimuli on the other discrimination (second type of transfer). In the first experiment, four out of six subjects displayed transfer of learning to new stimulus relations; in the second, only two subjects displayed that transfer. In the third experiment, statistically-significant differences were recorded for the dependent variable: successful attempts in the test using contextual stimuli. The teaching of tasks using contextual stimuli appears to favour the transfer of learning to conditional discriminations involving complex stimuli; the reverse, however, is not true to the same extent. These findings may be useful for the teaching of complex discriminations to intellectually-disabled or autistic children (AU)

Does the relative strength of grouping principles modulate the interactions between them?

This study examines the influence of the relative strength of grouping principles on interactions between the intrinsic principle of proximity and the extrinsic principle of common region in the process of perceptual organization. Cooperation and competition between intrinsic and extrinsic principles were examined by presenting the principle either alone or conjoined with another principle. The relative grouping strength of the principles operating alone was varied in two different groups of participants so that it was similar for one group and very different for the other group. Results showed that, when principles acting alone had different strengths, the grouping effect of the strongest principle was similar to that of the cooperation condition, and the effect of the weakest principle was similar to that of competing conjoined principles. In contrast, when the strength of principles acting alone was similar, the effect of conjoined cooperating principles was greater than that of either principle acting alone. Moreover, the effect of conjoined competing principles was smaller than that of either principle operating alone. Results show that cooperation and competition between intrinsic and extrinsic principles are modulated by the relative grouping strength of principles acting alone. Furthermore, performance in these conditions could be predicted on the basis of performance in single-principle conditions (AU)

No disponible

The role of derivative suffix productivity in the visual word recognition of complex words / El papel de la productividad de los sufijos derivativos en el reconocimiento visual de palabras complejas

In this article we present two lexical decision experiments that examine the role of base frequency and of derivative suffix productivity in visual recognition of Spanish words. In the first experiment we find that complex words with productive derivative suffixes result in lower response times than those with unproductive derivative suffixes. There is no significant effect for base frequency, however. In experiment two, the same procedure was undertaken with pseudowords, showing that when they are composed by productive derivative suffixes they take longer to be rejected than when they are composed by unproductive derivative suffixes. Again, the role of base frequency fails to reach significance. These results endorse the view that derivative suffixes have a relevant role in visual recognition of complex words. According to our results, derivative suffixes create the conditions for taking a lexical candidate as a legal lexical entry and therefore they contribute decisively to the lexical decision (AU)

En este artículo presentamos dos experimentos de decisión léxica que examinan el rol de las variables de frecuencia de base y de la productividad de los sufijos derivativos en el reconocimiento visual de las palabras. En el primer experimento encontramos que las palabras complejas con sufijos derivativos productivos tardan menos tiempo en ser respondidas que aquellas otras con sufijos derivativos improductivos. Se observa también la falta de significación para la frecuencia de base. En el experimento dos se lleva a cabo la misma metodología pero con pseudopalabras, mostrando que cuando éstas están compuestas por sufijos derivativos productivos tardan más tiempo en ser rechazadas que cuando están compuestas por sufijos derivativos improductivos. De nuevo la variable de frecuencia de base no alcanza valor significativo. Estos resultados respaldan la visión de que los sufijos derivativos tienen un rol relevante en el reconocimiento visual de las palabras complejas. De acuerdo a nuestros resultados, los sufijos derivativos crean las condiciones para tomar un candidato como una entrada léxica legal y por lo tanto contribuyen decisivamente a la decisión léxica. Estos resultados se interpretan finalmente a la luz de estudios previos centrados en las mismas variables (AU)

Spontaneous recovery of human spatial memory in a virtual water maze / Recuperación espontánea de la memoria espacial en humanos en un laberinto virtual de agua

The occurrence of spontaneous recovery in human spatial memory was assessed using a virtual environment. In Experiment 1, spatial memory was established by training participants to locate a hidden platform in a virtual water maze using a set of four distal landmarks. In Experiment 2, after learning about the location of a hidden platform, the platform was placed in new position within the virtual water maze in order to extinguish the original learning. An immediate test showed that participants searched for the platform at its most recent location. In contrast, on a delayed test (24 h), participants tended to seek the platform at the original location. These findings are consistent with the spontaneous recovery effect on spatial memory and are discussed in relation to the cognitive map theory and associative approach of spatial memory (AU)

Se investigó la ocurrencia de recuperación espontánea de l memoria espacial en humanos expuestos a un entorno virtual. En el Experimento 1 la memoria espacial fue establecida por entrenar a los participantes a localizar una plataforma oculta en un laberinto virtual de agua empleando un conjunto de cuatro claves distales. En el Experimento 2,tras el aprendizaje sobre la localización de la plataforma, ésta se ocultó en un sitio novedoso dentro del laberinto virtual de agua a fin de extinguir el aprendizaje original. Una prueba inmediata mostró que los participantes buscaron la plataforma en sumás reciente ubicación. En cambio, en una prueba demorada (24 h), los participantes tendieron a buscar la plataforma en el sitio en el que originalmente se colocó. Estos resultados son consistentes con un efecto de recuperación espontánea de la memoria espacial y son discutidos en relación a la teoría del mapa cognitivo y a la aproximación asociativa de la memoria espacial (AU)

Ignoring facial emotion expressions does not eliminate their influence on cooperation decisions / Ignorar las emociones de otros no evita su efecto en nuestras decisiones cooperativas

Whereas the automaticity of emotion processing has been investigated in several cognitive domains, its mandatory influence on cooperative decision-making is still unexplored. We employed an interference-task to evaluate whether explicit instructions to ignore the emotions of others during alleged interpersonal interactions override their behavioral effects. Participants played a Trust Game multiple times with eight cooperative or non-cooperative partners, who displayed facial expressions of happiness or anger. Emotions were non-predictive regarding the partners’ cooperation. In Experiments 1 and 2 participants were explicitly asked to ignore the emotions, and the uncertainty about the partners’ behavior varied. We found an effect of emotional interference; whereas happy partners speeded cooperative decisions, angry ones speeded non-cooperative choices. This was replicated in Experiment 3, where the request of ignoring emotions was removed. Our results show the inevitable influence of the emotional displays of others during cooperation decisions, which fits with theories that contend for a tight link between emotions and social context (AU)

Pese a que la influencia ejercida por el procesamiento de las emociones ha sido estudiada en diferentes dominios cognitivos, el papel de estas durante la toma decisiones en contextos sociales queda aún por explorar. Utilizamos una tarea de interferencia con el fin de estudiar en qué grado es posible evitar la influencia de las emociones de otras personas cuando nos encontramos en interacción con ellas. Los participantes jugaron, en múltiples rondas, al Juego de la Confianza con ocho compañeros que podían ser de tipo cooperativo o no cooperativo, y cuya expresión facial podía ser de felicidad o de enfado. Las emociones de los compañeros de juego no eran predictivas, en ningún caso, de su grado de cooperación. Tanto en el Experimento 1 como en el Experimento 2 los participantes fueron instruidos de manera explícita que debían ignorar las expresiones emocionales de sus compañeros. La validez de la información personal (el grado de cooperación) fue manipulada entre ambos expresultados revelaron un efecto de interferencia emocional; las expresiones de felicidad redujeron el tiempo necesario para tomar la decisión de cooperación, mientras que las expresiones de enfado acortaron las decisiones de no cooperación. Este efecto de interferencia fue replicado en el Experimento 3, en el que la instrucción explícita de ignorar las emociones de los compañeros había sido eliminada.Nuestros resultados muestran que las emociones de otros nos influyen de manera inevitable durante nuestra interacción con ellos. Esta evidencia es coherente con las teorías que defienden la existencia de un estrecho vínculo entre emociones y contexto social (AU)

Context specificity of extinguished schedule-induced drinking within an ABA renewal design in rats / Especificidad contextual de la extinción de la bebida inducida por programa en un diseño de renovación ABA en ratas

The main goal of this study was to explore whether extinction of schedule-induced adjunctive drinking (polydipsia) may become under contextual control. Drinking was induced by a Fixed-Time 30 sec food delivery schedule (FT30). Experiment 1 used a 2 x 2 factorial design with Schedule (FT30 vs. food a the start of the session), and Stimulus (Presenceor absence of a 10 sec tone at the end of each 30 sec period within a session) as factors. Acquisition and extinction were conducted in two different contexts, returning to the acquisition context at testing. Experiment 2 tested contextual control of extinction against a control that remained in the extinction context at testing. Recovery from extinction was observed as an increase in water intake (as well as in magazine entries) during the test, regardless of the presence of the tone. Implications for theunderstanding of schedule-induced drinking as a conditioned response are discusse (AU)

El objetivo principal de este estudio fue evaluar si la extinción de la bebida adjuntiva inducida por programa (polidipsia) podía quedar bajo control contextual. La bebida se indujo mediante un programa de administración de comida de tiempo fijo 30 segundos (TF30). El experimento 1 utilizó un diseño factorial 2 x 2 con Programa (TF30 vs. comida al inicio de la sesión) y Estímulo (presencia o ausencia de un sonido de 10s al final de cada periodo de 30s dentro de la sesión)como factores. La adquisición y la extinción se realizaron en contextos diferentes, regresando al contexto de adquisición durante la prueba. El experimento 2 introdujo una condición de control que recibió la prueba en el contexto de extinción. La recuperación de la extinción se observó como un aumento en la ingesta de agua (así como en las entradas en el comedero) durante la prueba, independientemente de la presencia del sonido. Se discuten las implicaciones de estos resultados para la interpretación de la bebida inducida por programa como una respuesta condicionada (AU)

Power and sample size calculations for testing linear combinations of group means under variance heterogeneity with applications to meta and moderation analyses

The general formulation of a linear combination of population means permits a wide range of research questions to be tested within the context of ANOVA. However, it has been stressed in many research areas that the homogeneous variances assumption is frequently violated. To accommodate the heterogeneity of variance structure, the Welch–Satterthwaite procedure is commonly used as an alternative to the t test for detecting the substantive significance of a linear combination of mean effects. This article presents two approaches to power and sample size calculations for the Welch–Satterthwaite test. The usefulness and diversity of the suggested techniques are illustrated with two of the potential applications in meta and moderation analyses. The numerical assessments showed that the proposed approaches outperform the existing methods on the accuracy of power calculations and sample size determinations for meta and moderation studies. Computer algorithms are also developed to implement the recommended procedures in actual research designs (AU)

No disponible

A combined IRT and SEM approach for individual-level assessment in test-retest studies / Un enfoque combinado TRI-MEE para la evaluación individual enestudios test-retest

The standard two-wave multiple-indicator model (2WMIM) commonly used to analyze test-retest data provides information at both the group and item level. Furthermore, when applied to binary and graded item responses, it is related to well-known item response theory (IRT) models. In this article the IRT-2WMIM relations are used to obtain additional information for each individual respondent. Procedures are proposed for (a) obtaining individual estimates of trait levels and amount of change, and (b) assessing whether the main assumptions on which these estimates are based are met. The procedures are organized in a comprehensive approach that can be used with binary, graded, and continuous responses. The relevance of the proposal is discussed and guidelines are given on how to use the approach in applied research. Finally, the approach is illustrated with an empirical data set. It worked well and provided meaningful information (AU)

El modelo longitudinal de medida con múltiples indicadores evaluados en dos ocasiones (MI2O) se utiliza habitualmente en estudios test-retest y proporciona información al nivel de grupo y al nivel de ítems. Además, cuando se aplica a respuestas binarias o graduadas dicho modelo se convierte en una extensión de algunos modelos básicos de teoría de respuesta al ítem (TRI). En este artículo se explotan las relaciones TRI-MI2O para obtener información adicional al nivel de cada individuo. Se proponen procedimientos para (a) obtener estimaciones individuales de niveles en el rasgo y magnitud del cambio, y (b) evaluar si se cumplen o no los supuesto básicos en que dichas estimaciones se fundamentan. Los procedimientos propuestos se organizan en un marco general que puede utilizarse con respuestas binarias, graduadas o continuas. Se discute la relevancia de la propuesta y se proponen recomendaciones para utilizarla en investigación aplicada. Finalmente, la propuesta se ilustra con un ejemplo empírico donde funcionó bien y proporcionó información útil (AU)

Contrasting ABA, AAB and ABC renewal in a free operant procedure

One experiment used a free operant procedure with rats to compare ABA, AAB and ABC renewal by using a within-subject testing procedure. All rats were first trained to press a lever for food in context A. Lever pressing was then extinguished in either context A or context B. For rats in the groups ABA and ABC extinction took place in context B, while the rats in group AAB received extinction in the same context in which acquisition took place (context A). Finally, all rats were tested for renewal in two sessions. One extinction session was carried out in the same extinction context and another session in a different context. Rats in the group ABA were tested in context B and in context A; rats in the group AAB were tested in contexts A and B, whereas the group ABC was tested in contexts B and C. The results of the ANOVA showed context renewal since all groups had higher rates of responding when they were tested outside the extinction context, F(2, 21) = 15.32, p = .001, ηp 2 = .59; however, AAB and ABC renewal was lesser than ABA renewal, F(1, 21) = 16.70, p = .0001, ηp 2 = .61 (AU)

No disponible

The effect of the emotive decisions in prospect theory

The main purpose of this paper was to show that the certainty and reflection effects of prospect theory do not occur when stimuli have an affective value. To this end, 160 participants were asked to reply to a series of problems originally designed by Kahneman and Tversky (1979), but modified according to the contributions of Rottenstreich and Hsee (2001). The sample was divided into four experimental conditions, two in a gain situation and two in a loss situation. In both cases, affect-rich and affect-poor stimuli were applied in sure and probable alternatives. The findings showed that, in agreement with our hypotheses, the affective value of the stimuli altered the outcome predicted by prospect theory, showing response patterns contrary to certainty and reflection effects (p ≤ .01 and p ≤ .05 respectively). Therefore, his research supports the influence of the emotions in the decision-making process, and should be extended to other aspects of prospect theory (AU)

No disponible

Recognizing the Bank Robber and spotting the difference: emotional state and global vs. local attentional set

In two experiments (161 participants in total), we investigated how current mood influences processing styles (global vs. local). Participants watched a video of a bank robbery before receiving a positive, negative or neutral induction, and they performed two tasks: a face-recognition task about the bank robber as global processing measure, and a spot-thedifference task using neutral pictures (Experiment-1) or emotional scenes (Experiment-2) as local processing measure. Results showed that positive mood induction favoured a global processing style, enhancing participants’ ability to correctly identify a face even when they watched the video before the mood-induction. This shows that, besides influencing encoding processes, mood state can be also related to retrieval processes. On the contrary, negative mood induction enhanced a local processing style, making easier and faster the detection of differences between nearly identical pictures, independently of their valence. This dissociation supports the hypothesis that current mood modulates processing through activation of different cognitive styles (AU)

No disponible

Advances in the indirect, descriptive, and experimental approaches to the functional analysis of problem behavior / Avances en los enfoques indirecto, descriptivo y experimental del análisis funcional de la conducta problema

BACKGROUND: Experimental functional analysis is an assessment methodology to identify the environmental factors that maintain problem behavior in individuals with developmental disabilities and in other populations. Functional analysis provides the basis for the development of reinforcement-based approaches to treatment. METHODS: This article reviews the procedures, validity, and clinical implementation of the methodological variations of functional analysis and function-based interventions. RESULTS: We present six variations of functional analysis methodology in addition to the typical functional analysis: brief functional analysis, single-function tests, latency-based functional analysis, functional analysis of precursors, and trial-based functional analysis. We also present the three general categories of function-based interventions: extinction, antecedent manipulation, and differential reinforcement. CONCLUSIONS: Functional analysis methodology is a valid and efficient approach to the assessment of problem behavior and the selection of treatment strategies

ANTECEDENTES: el análisis funcional experimental permite identificar los factores del entorno que mantienen y exacerban los problemas de conducta en personas con trastornos del desarrollo y otras poblaciones, siendo esencial para el desarrollo de procedimientos de intervención centrados en el uso de reforzamiento. MÉTODO: en este artículo se revisa el procedimiento, validez y aplicación clínica de las variaciones metodológicas del análisis e intervención funcionales. RESULTADOS: se presenta el análisis funcional típico, breve, de función única, de cribado, de latencia, de precursores y de ensayos, y tres categorías de intervención funcional: retirada del reforzador, alteración de operaciones motivadoras y reforzamiento diferencial. CONCLUSIONES: el análisis funcional es una metodología eficiente y válida para la evaluación de problemas de conducta y para la selección de estrategias de tratamiento