Incentive learning and the motivational control of instrumental performance by thirst

The role of incentive learning in instrumental performance following a shift in the degree of water deprivation was analyzed in three experiments. In Experiments 1A and IB, rats trained to perform an instrumental action reinforced with either sucrose or maltodextrin solutions when in a high-deprivation state were subsequently shifted to a low-deprivation state and tested in extinction. This within-state shift in water deprivation reduced instrumental performance only when the animals had been exposed to the reinforcer in the low-deprivation state prior to instrumental training. In Experiment 2, a concurrent training procedure was used to assess whether the change in the value of the reinforcer brought about by preexposurewas mediated by the contingency between the instrumental action and the reinforcer. Preexposure to the reinforcer under the low-deprivation state produced a selective reduction of the performance of the action upon which it was contingent during training when testing was conducted in extinction following a shift from the high- to the low-deprivation state. These experiments provide evidence that animals have to learn about the incentive value of a reinforcer in a particular motivational state through exposure to the reinforcer in that state.     

Auditorysame/different concept learning by monkeys

Two rhesus monkeys learned the auditory abstract concept ofsame/different. They were trained with 38 different environmental and natural sounds, which were arranged in different combinations as training progressed. Upon transfer to 138 different novel stimuli, they performed as well (78.8% correct) on the first exposure to the novel stimuli as they did (77.3%) with their training stimuli. The comparatively large set of training sounds, contact with the sound source, and a special fading procedure are thought to have contributed to the monkeys’ being able to learn this concept. Implications for species’ similarities/differences in cognitive processing are discussed.     

Flavor-evaluative conditioning is unaffected by contingency knowledge during training with color-flavor compounds

In two experiments, participants inspected and drank a series of drinks, half of which contained sugar and half unpalatable Tween20 (tween). Each sugar and tween drink had a particular flavor and color. Following this training, the flavors of the sugar drinks were assigned higher hedonic evaluations than were those of the tween drinks, even though the participants did not reliably report which flavors had been present in the sugar and tween drinks during training. Moreover, the evaluative conditioning of the flavors was unaffected by whether or not the colors alone had been pretrained to predict the presence of sugar or tween in the drinks. In accord with Baeyens, Eelen, van den Bergh, and Crombez (1990), we conclude that flavor-evaluative conditioning is not mediated by contingency learning.     

Childhood neglect and adulthood involvement in HIV-related risk behaviors

OBJECTIVE: Much research has been done to examine the long-term effects of being victimized by sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse in childhood, but much less research has focused on the impact of childhood neglect experiences. This study examines the role that childhood neglect has on adult women's involvement in HIV-related risky behaviors. METHODS: The data come from a study of 250 "at risk" women living in the Atlanta, GA metropolitan area, most of whom were African American. Data were collected in face-to-face interviews between 1997 and 2000. Multiple regression was used to explore the relationship between childhood neglect experiences, self-esteem, attitudes toward condom use, and involvement in HIV-related risky behaviors. RESULTS: Overall, the model tested received strong support by the study data. Childhood neglect led to reduced self-esteem. Neglect was associated with worsened attitudes toward condom use and women who experienced childhood neglect also reported more involvement in HIV risk behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: HIV intervention programs ought to target women who have experienced childhood neglect, as neglect experiences have adverse impacts upon their self-esteem, condom-related attitudes, and HIV risk behavior practices in adulthood.     

Phonological processing and emergent literacy in younger and older preschool children

Phonological awareness, phonological memory, and phonological access to lexical storage play important roles in acquiring literacy. We examined the convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity of these phonological processing abilities (PPA) in 389 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the validity of each PPA as separate from general cognitive ability and separate from each other. Multigroup structural equation modeling (SEM) with mean structure demonstrated that older preschoolers have better developed latent PPA than younger preschoolers but that the structure of PPA is equivalent. RAN was found uniquely associated with letter knowledge and text discrimination in younger preschoolers, and PA was found uniquely associated with word reading skills in older preschoolers. Finally, general cognitive ability was only indirectly associated with emergent literacy via PPA. These results highlight the importance of PPA in the early literacy development of English-speaking preschool children.     

非形式逻辑及其早期历史发展

"非形式逻辑"作为逻辑的子领域,最初出现于1970至1980年代的美国和加拿大,本文意在回顾非形式逻辑发展的早期历史进程.本文假定,当我们从历史的角度来考察时,非形式逻辑的本质能够得以阐明.因此,我将以观念史领域的评论作为出发点.之所以不从理论的要素谈起并把历史留给历史学家,其中一个理由在于"非形式逻辑"这个词并不指示一个理论.非形式逻辑部分地可看作是某个思潮,部分地可当作一种论证研究进路,部分地涉及到对逻辑之本质的看法,这些都可以通过考察非形式逻辑的发展史来加以理解.本文的第一部分追溯了非形式逻辑的兴起,概括了其思想史和社会史,并评述了其早期发展中的主要人物、教科书,以及主要的论旨及其社会化.第二部分简要描述了<逻辑的自我辩护>这本教科书中的一些革新.第三部分简要涉及非形式逻辑与其它领域的早期互动.