Alle Publikationen
2019
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(2019): Regularity Extraction Across Species: Associative Learning Mechanisms Shared by Human and Non-Human Primates. In: Topics in cognitive science 11 (3), S. 573-586. DOI: 10.1111/tops.12343
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/tops.12343 Abstract: Extracting the regularities of our environment is a core cognitive ability in human and non-human primates. Comparative studies may provide information of strong heuristic value to constrain the elaboration of computational models of regularity learning. This study illustrates this point by testing human and non-human primates (Guinea baboons, Papio papio) with the same experimental paradigm, using a novel online learning measure. For local co-occurrence regularities, we found similar patterns of regularity extraction in baboons and humans. However, only humans extracted the more global sequence structure. It is proposed that only the first result that is common to both species should be used to constrain models of regularity learning. The second result indicates that the extraction of global regularities cannot be accounted for by mere associative learning mechanisms and suggests that humans probably benefit from their language recoding abilities for extracting these regularities. We propose to use a comparative approach to address a series of remaining theoretical questions, which will contribute to the development of a general theory of regularity learning.
2018
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(2018): Do a robot's social skills and its objection discourage interactants from switching the robot off?. In: PLoS one 13 (7). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0201581
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30063750 Abstract: Building on the notion that people respond to media as if they were real, switching off a robot which exhibits lifelike behavior implies an interesting situation. In an experimental lab study with a 2x2 between-subjects-design (N = 85), people were given the choice to switch off a robot with which they had just interacted. The style of the interaction was either social (mimicking human behavior) or functional (displaying machinelike behavior). Additionally, the robot either voiced an objection against being switched off or it remained silent. Results show that participants rather let the robot stay switched on when the robot objected. After the functional interaction, people evaluated the robot as less likeable, which in turn led to a reduced stress experience after the switching off situation. Furthermore, individuals hesitated longest when they had experienced a functional interaction in combination with an objecting robot. This unexpected result might be due to the fact that the impression people had formed based on the task-focused behavior of the robot conflicted with the emotional nature of the objection.
Keywords: Adolescent, Adult, Artificial intelligence, Attitude, Biomimetic Materials, Electrical Equipment and Supplies, Emotions/physiology, Female, Fortschritt, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Mensch-Roboter-Interaktion, Motivation, Object Attachment, Robotics/instrumentation, Social Skills, User-Computer Interface, Young Adult 2017
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(2017): Familiarity with Own Population's Appearance Influences Facial Preferences. In: Human nature (Hawthorne, N.Y.) 28 (3), S. 344-354. DOI: 10.1007/s12110-017-9289-8
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28516361 Abstract: Previous studies have found that individuals from rural areas in Malaysia and in El Salvador prefer heavier women than individuals from urban areas. Several explanations have been proposed to explain these differences in weight preferences but no study has explored familiarity as a possible explanation. We therefore sought to investigate participants' face preferences while also examining the facial characteristics of the actual participants. Our results showed that participants from rural areas preferred heavier-looking female faces than participants from urban areas. We also found that the female faces from the rural areas were rated as looking heavier than the female faces from the urban areas. Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that familiarity may be contributing to the differences found in face preferences between rural and urban areas given that people from rural and urban areas are exposed to different faces.
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(2017): Risky business. When humor increases and decreases status. In: Journal of personality and social psychology 112 (3), S. 431-455. DOI: 10.1037/pspi0000079
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27831701 Abstract: Across 8 experiments, we demonstrate that humor can influence status, but attempting to use humor is risky. The successful use of humor can increase status in both new and existing relationships, but unsuccessful humor attempts (e.g., inappropriate jokes) can harm status. The relationship between the successful use of humor and status is mediated by perceptions of confidence and competence. The successful use of humor signals confidence and competence, which in turn increases the joke teller's status. Interestingly, telling both appropriate and inappropriate jokes, regardless of the outcome, signals confidence. Although signaling confidence typically increases status and power, telling inappropriate jokes signals low competence and the combined effect of high confidence and low competence harms status. Rather than conceptualizing humor as a frivolous or ancillary behavior, we argue that humor plays a fundamental role in shaping interpersonal perceptions and hierarchies within groups.
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(2017): Social distance influences the outcome evaluation of cooperation and conflict. Evidence from event-related potentials. In: Neuroscience letters 647, S. 78-84. DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2017.03.018
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28315726 Abstract: Previous research shows that social distance plays an important role in promoting cooperation and that subtle cues that reduce social distance increase the tendency to cooperate. However, it is unclear how social distance influences our outcome evaluation of cooperative and conflict feedback. The present study investigated the influence of social distance on cooperative and conflict behavior and the evaluation process of the cooperative and conflict outcomes, using the event-related potentials (ERPs) technique. We recorded ERPs from 14 normal adults playing a social game task against a friend and a stranger. The results showed that the FRN (Feedback Related Negativity) and P300 were affected by the opponent's choice to cooperate or aggress; however, only the P300 was affected by social distance. Specifically, when the opponent chose to cooperate, the feedback elicited a smaller FRN and a larger P300 amplitude; and compared with playing against friends, the P300 had a larger amplitude when participants gaming with strangers. Our results indicate that at the early stage of the evaluation of cooperation and conflict outcomes, individuals may initially and quickly encode the valence of outcomes, judging whether an outcome is consistent with their expectations. However, at the late stage, which involves a top-down cognitive appraisal process, some social factors, such as social distance, may moderate processing of attention resource allocation of feedback about outcomes, and of higher-level motivation/affective appraisal. zitiert von 1
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(2017): Effects of context and individual differences on the processing of taboo words. In: Acta psychologica 178, S. 73-86. DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2017.05.012
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28618300 Abstract: Previous studies suggest that taboo words are special in regards to language processing. Findings from the studies have led to the formation of two theories, global resource theory and binding theory, of taboo word processing. The current study investigates how readers process taboo words embedded in sentences during silent reading. In two experiments, measures collected include eye movement data, accuracy and reaction time measures for recalling probe words within the sentences, and individual differences in likelihood of being offended by taboo words. Although certain aspects of the results support both theories, as the likelihood of a person being offended by a taboo word influenced some measures, neither theory sufficiently predicts or describes the effects observed. The results are interpreted as evidence that processing effects ascribed to taboo words are largely, but not completely, attributable to the context in which they are used and the individual attitudes of the people who hear/read them. The results also demonstrate the importance of investigating taboo words in naturalistic language processing paradigms. A revised theory of taboo word processing is proposed that incorporates both global resource theory and binding theory along with the sociolinguistic factors and individual differences that largely drive the effects observed here.
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(2017): Individual Differences in Verbal and Non-Verbal Affective Responses to Smells. Influence of Odor Label Across Cultures. In: Chemical senses 42 (1), S. 37-46. DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjw098
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27655940 Abstract: Olfactory perception is highly variable from one person to another, as a function of individual and contextual factors. Here, we investigated the influence of 2 important factors of variation: culture and semantic information. More specifically, we tested whether cultural-specific knowledge and presence versus absence of odor names modulate odor perception, by measuring these effects in 2 populations differing in cultural background but not in language. Participants from France and Quebec, Canada, smelled 4 culture-specific and 2 non-specific odorants in 2 conditions: first without label, then with label. Their ratings of pleasantness, familiarity, edibility, and intensity were collected as well as their psychophysiological and olfactomotor responses. The results revealed significant effects of culture and semantic information, both at the verbal and non-verbal level. They also provided evidence that availability of semantic information reduced cultural differences. Semantic information had a unifying action on olfactory perception that overrode the influence of cultural background.
Keywords: Adult, Affect, Culture, culture specific, Disziplin, Female, France, Geruch / mikrobiologische Zusammensetzung von Körpersekreten, Humans, Kognitionswissenschaft/Social Sciences/Humanities, kulturspezifisch, Kulturtheorie, Male, Odorants/analysis, Olfactory Perception, Quebec, Semantics, Smell, Status / biologische Marker, Young Adult -
(2017): Perceived differences in social status between speaker and listener affect the speaker's vocal characteristics. In: PLoS one 12 (6). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179407
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28614413 Abstract: Non-verbal behaviours, including voice characteristics during speech, are an important way to communicate social status. Research suggests that individuals can obtain high social status through dominance (using force and intimidation) or through prestige (by being knowledgeable and skilful). However, little is known regarding differences in the vocal behaviour of men and women in response to dominant and prestigious individuals. Here, we tested within-subject differences in vocal parameters of interviewees during simulated job interviews with dominant, prestigious, and neutral employers (targets), while responding to questions which were classified as introductory, personal, and interpersonal. We found that vocal modulations were apparent between responses to the neutral and high-status targets, with participants, especially those who perceived themselves as low in dominance, increasing fundamental frequency (F0) in response to the dominant and prestigious targets relative to the neutral target. Self-perceived prestige, however, was less related to contextual vocal modulations than self-perceived dominance. Finally, we found that differences in the context of the interview questions participants were asked to respond to (introductory, personal, interpersonal), also affected their vocal parameters, being more prominent in responses to personal and interpersonal questions. Overall, our results suggest that people adjust their vocal parameters according to the perceived social status of the listener as well as their own self-perceived social status.
Keywords: Acoustic Stimulation, Adolescent, Adult, Auditory Perception/physiology, Diagnostic Self Evaluation, Female, fundamental frequency, Humans, Interviews as Topic/methods, Macht, Male, Middle Aged, Social Class, Social Perception, Socioeconomic Factors, Soziale Dominanz, Speech Acoustics, Speech/physiology, Status / biologische Marker, Stimme, Stimme / Prosodie, Voice/physiology, Young Adult -
(2017): Choice predicts the feedback negativity. In: Psychophysiology 54 (12), S. 1800-1811. DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12961
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28752549 Abstract: Choosing the appropriate response given the circumstance is integral to all aspects of human behavior. One way of elucidating the mechanisms of choice is to relate behavior to neural correlates. Electrophysiological evidence implicates the ERP feedback-negativity (FN) and the P300 as promising neural correlates of reward processing, an integral component of learning. However, prior research has not adequately addressed how the development of a preference to select one option over another (choice preference) relates to the FN and the P300. We assessed whether variation in choice preference predicted the FN and P300 amplitude within subjects. We used a discrete-trials two-alternative choice procedure, where the reinforcer rate for each option was dependently scheduled by a concurrent variable interval. The reinforcer ratio for selecting each option was varied between sessions. Choice was quantified using both the generalized matching law sensitivity and the log odds of staying on the same versus switching to the other alternative (stay preference). The relationship between stay preference, FN, and P300 amplitudes was assessed using the innovative application of hierarchical Bayesian linear regression. The results demonstrate that stay preference was controlled by the reinforcer ratios and credibly predicted the FN amplitude but not P300 amplitude. The findings are consistent with the view that reinforcers may guide behavior by what they signal about future reinforcement, with the FN related to such a process.
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(2017): "You Need to Be a Good Listener". Recruiters' Use of Relational Communication Behaviors to Enhance Clinical Trial and Research Study Accrual. In: Journal of health communication 22 (2), S. 95-101. DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2016.1256356
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28085636 Abstract: Medical and research professionals who discuss clinical trials and research studies with potential participants face an often daunting challenge, particularly when recruiting from minority and underserved populations. This study reports on findings from a focus group study of 63 research coordinators, study nurses, professional recruiters, and other professionals in Indianapolis, IN and Miami, FL who work to recruit from minority and underserved populations. These professionals discussed the importance of creating a sense of connection with potential participants as part of the recruitment and retention process. Building a relationship, however fleeting, involved a number of concrete behaviors, including listening to personal information, expressing empathy, and then providing reciprocal self-disclosures; having repeated contact, usually by working in the same environment over an extended period of time; demonstrating respect through politeness and the use of honorifics; going the extra mile for participants; offering flexibility in scheduling follow-up appointments; and creating a sense of personal and community trust by being truthful. The implications of these findings for clinical trial and research study accrual are discussed.
Keywords: Adult, Aufrichtigkeit/Truthfulness, Benutzen von Respektanrede/Honorifics, Bereitschaft zu Termin-Flexibilität, Bereitschaft, für den Interaktionspartner mehr Aufwand auf sich zu nehmen, als erwartet wird, Clinical Trials as Topic, Communication, Demonstration von Respekt gegenüber dem Interaktionspartner, Empathie, Female, Florida, Focus Groups, Häufigkeit des Kontakts mit dem Interaktionspartner, Humans, Indiana, Kommunikations-/Interaktionsprinzipien, Listening to personal information, Male, Middle Aged, Minority Groups, Patient Selection, Research Personnel/psychology/statistics & numerical data, Researcher-Subject Relations, Self-disclosure, time, Übermitteln von Gefühlen/Emotionen, Vulnerable Populations, Young Adult -
(2017): The psychometric properties of the "Reading the Mind in the Eyes" Test: an item response theory (IRT) analysis. In: Cognitive neuropsychiatry 22 (3), S. 233-253. DOI: 10.1080/13546805.2017.1300091
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13546805.2017.1300091 Abstract: INTRODUCTION The "Reading the Mind in the Eyes" Test (hereafter: Eyes Test) is considered an advanced task of the Theory of Mind aimed at assessing the performance of the participant in perspective-takingthat is, the ability to sense or understand other people's cognitive and emotional states. In this study, the item response theory analysis was applied to the adult version of the Eyes Test. METHODS The Italian version of the Eyes Test was administered to 200 undergraduate students of both genders (males = 46%). Modified parallel analysis (MPA) was used to test unidimensionality. Marginal maximum likelihood estimation was used to fit the 1-, 2-, and 3-parameter logistic (PL) model to the data. Differential Item Functioning (DIF) due to gender was explored with five independent methods. RESULTS MPA provided evidence in favour of unidimensionality. The Rasch model (1-PL) was superior to the other two models in explaining participants' responses to the Eyes Test. There was no robust evidence of gender-related DIF in the Eyes Test, although some differences may exist for some items as a reflection of real differences by group. CONCLUSIONS The study results support a one-factor model of the Eyes Test. Performance on the Eyes Test is defined by the participant's ability in perspective-taking. Researchers should cease using arbitrarily selected subscores in assessing the performance of participants to the Eyes Test. Lack of gender-related DIF favours the use of the Eyes Test in the investigation of gender differences concerning empathy and social cognition.
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(2017): Altruistic behavior in cohesive social groups. The role of target identifiability. In: PLoS one 12 (11). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0187903
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29161282 Abstract: People's tendency to be more generous toward identifiable victims than toward unidentifiable or statistical victims is known as the Identifiable Victim Effect. Recent research has called the generality of this effect into question, showing that in cross-national contexts, identifiability mostly affects willingness to help victims of one's own "in-group." Furthermore, in inter-group conflict situations, identifiability increased generosity toward a member of the adversary group, but decreased generosity toward a member of one's own group. In the present research we examine the role of group-cohesiveness as an underlying factor accounting for these divergent findings. In particular, we examined novel groups generated in the lab, using the minimal group paradigm, as well as natural groups of students in regular exercise sections. Allocation decisions in dictator games revealed that a group's cohesiveness affects generosity toward in-group and out-group recipients differently, depending on their identifiability. In particular, in cohesive groups the identification of an in-group recipient decreased, rather than increased generosity.
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(2017): Variations in judgments of intentional action and moral evaluation across eight cultures. In: Cognition 164, S. 22-30. DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2017.02.012
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28364713 Abstract: Individuals tend to judge bad side effects as more intentional than good side effects (the Knobe or sideeffect effect). Here, we assessed how widespread these findings are by testing eleven adult cohorts of eight highly contrasted cultures on their attributions of intentional action as well as ratings of blame and praise. We found limited generalizability of the original side-effect effect, and even a reversal of the effect in two rural, traditional cultures (Samoa and Vanuatu) where participants were more likely to judge the good side effect as intentional. Three follow-up experiments indicate that this reversal of the side-effect effect is not due to semantics and may be linked to the perception of the status of the protagonist. These results highlight the importance of factoring cultural context in our understanding of moral cognition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved) zitiert von: 2
Keywords: 80 and over, Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Costa Rica, Cross-Cultural Comparison, cross-cultural psychology, Culture, Honduras, Humans, Intention, Intentional action, Judgment, Kognitionswissenschaften, Kulturelle Unterschiede, Kulturforschung, Mexico, Middle Aged, Moral, Moral cognition, Moral evaluation, Morals, Republic of Korea, Samoa, Side-effect effect, Social Perception, United States, Vanuatu, Young Adult -
(2017): Pushing boundaries-culture-sensitive care in oncology and palliative care. A qualitative study. In: Psycho-oncology 26 (6), S. 763-769. DOI: 10.1002/pon.4217
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27429221 Abstract: OBJECTIVE In increasingly globalized societies, patient-centered cancer care requires culture-sensitive approaches in order to ensure patients well-being. While migrant patients' needs are frequently reported in the literature, staff members' perception of work with migrant patients, associated challenges, or individual work approaches are largely unknown. This study addresses this research gap through qualitative exploration of experiences of multicultural health care professionals in supportive oncology and palliative care, working with patients from different cultural backgrounds. This study aims to understand staff experience of the impact of culture on cancer care. METHODS This study was conducted at the Medical University of Vienna, including staff from different settings of oncology and palliative care, in different professional positions, and with a range of individual migration backgrounds. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 21 staff members working with patients from different cultural backgrounds. Interviews explored views on the impact of culture on care were audio-taped, transcribed, and analyzed using a rigorous method of thematic analysis, enhanced with grounded theory techniques. RESULTS Interviews revealed 4 key topics: culture-specific differences, assumed reasons for differences, consequences of multicultural care, and tools for culture-sensitive care. Strategies to better deal with migrant patients and their families were suggested to improve work satisfaction amongst staff. CONCLUSIONS This study identifies relevant staff challenges in work with migrant patients. Concrete suggestions for improvement include measures on an organizational level, team level, and personal tools. The suggested measures are applicable to improve work satisfaction and culture-sensitive care not only in cancer care but also in other areas of medicine.
Keywords: Adult, Attitude of Health Personnel, Culturally Competent Care, Culture, culture specific, Female, Gesellschaftsprofit, Health Personnel/psychology/statistics & numerical data, Humans, Interaktion, Job Satisfaction, Kultur, kulturspezifisch, Male, Medical Oncology, Medizin, Middle Aged, Neoplasms/ethnology/therapy, Observablen/Kriterien für sozial angemessenes Verhalten und dessen Bewertung, Palliative Care, Pflege, Qualitative research, Umgangsformen, Young Adult -
(2017): Increased social distance makes people more risk-neutral. In: The Journal of Social Psychology 157 (4), S. 502-512. DOI: 10.1080/00224545.2016.1242471
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27685243 Abstract: Individuals are consistently observed to be risk-averse over gains and risk-seeking over losses. This study examined whether increased social distance would change these behavioral patterns. To test our hypothesis, social distance was manipulated by asking the participants to make decisions either for themselves or for another person (Experiment 1), either for a known person or for an unknown person (Experiment 2), and either for a close friend or for a distant friend (Experiment 3). The results of Experiments 1 and 3 showed that increased social distance made people more risk-neutral, and such an effect was stronger in the gain domain than in the loss domain. However, the effect of social distance was not observed in Experiment 2. These findings suggest that risk preferences are influenced by the social distance between decision makers and beneficiaries. zitiert von 4
Keywords: Adult, Decision Making, distance, Female, Humans, Male, Risk-Taking, Social Distance, Sozialpsychologie, Verhaltensforschung, Young Adult -
(2017): How "ought" exceeds but implies "can". Description and encouragement in moral judgment. In: Cognition 168, S. 267-275. DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2017.07.008
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28755538 Abstract: This paper tests a theory about the relationship between two important topics in moral philosophy and psychology. One topic is the function of normative language, specifically claims that one "ought" to do something. Do these claims function to describe moral responsibilities, encourage specific behavior, or both? The other topic is the relationship between saying that one "ought" to do something and one's ability to do it. In what respect, if any, does what one "ought" to do exceed what one "can" do? The theory tested here has two parts: (1) "ought" claims function to both describe responsibilities and encourage people to fulfill them (the dual-function hypothesis); (2) the two functions relate differently to ability, because the encouragement function is limited by the person's ability, but the descriptive function is not (the interaction hypothesis). If this theory is correct, then in one respect "ought implies can" is false because people have responsibilities that exceed their abilities. But in another respect "ought implies can" is legitimate because it is not worthwhile to encourage people to do things that exceed their ability. Results from two behavioral experiments support the theory that "ought" exceeds but implies "can." Results from a third experiment provide further evidence regarding an "ought" claim's primary function and how contextual features can affect the interpretation of its functions.
Keywords: Adult, Aged, Female, Humans, Judgment, Kognitionswissenschaften, Male, Middle Aged, Moral, Morals, science direct, Social Behavior, Social Norms, Sprachwissenschaften, Young Adult -
(2017): Towards a social functional account of laughter. Acoustic features convey reward, affiliation, and dominance. In: PLoS one 12 (8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0183811
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28850589 Abstract: Recent work has identified the physical features of smiles that accomplish three tasks fundamental to human social living: rewarding behavior, establishing and managing affiliative bonds, and negotiating social status. The current work extends the social functional account to laughter. Participants (N = 762) rated the degree to which reward, affiliation, or dominance (between-subjects) was conveyed by 400 laughter samples acquired from a commercial sound effects website. Inclusion of a fourth rating dimension, spontaneity, allowed us to situate the current approach in the context of existing laughter research, which emphasizes the distinction between spontaneous and volitional laughter. We used 11 acoustic properties extracted from the laugh samples to predict participants' ratings. Actor sex moderated, and sometimes even reversed, the relation between acoustics and participants' judgments. Spontaneous laughter appears to serve the reward function in the current framework, as similar acoustic properties guided perceiver judgments of spontaneity and reward: reduced voicing and increased pitch, increased duration for female actors, and increased pitch slope, center of gravity, first formant, and noisiness for male actors. Affiliation ratings diverged from reward in their sex-dependent relationship to intensity and, for females, reduced pitch range and raised second formant. Dominance displayed the most distinct pattern of acoustic predictors, including increased pitch range, reduced second formant in females, and decreased pitch variability in males. We relate the current findings to existing findings on laughter and human and non-human vocalizations, concluding laughter can signal much more that felt or faked amusement.
Keywords: Acoustics, Adult, Aged, Art der Beziehung zum Interaktionspartner, Belohnung, center of gravity, Dauer, Female, formant, Gender, Gestik/Mimik, Humans, Klanghöhe (pitch), Kommunikations-/Interaktionsprinzipien, Lächeln, Lachen, Laughter/psychology, Male, Middle Aged, noisiness, pitch slope, Reward, Sanktionierung, Sex Factors, Social Dominance, Social Identification, Soziale Distanz, Soziale Dominanz, Spontaneität beim Lachen, Status / biologische Marker, Stimmhaftigkeit (voicing), Young Adult, Zugehörigkeit (affiliation) -
(2017): Individual Differences in Good Manners Rather Than Compassion Predict Fair Allocations of Wealth in the Dictator Game. In: Journal of personality 85 (2), S. 244-256. DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12237
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26691600 Abstract: One of the most common tools for studying pro-sociality is the dictator game, in which allocations to one's partner are often described in terms of altruism. However, the motivations driving these allocations may represent either emotional concern for others (compassion), adherence to social norms regarding fairness (politeness), or both. In this article, we apply personality psychology to the study of behavior in the dictator game, in which we examine the discriminant validity of distinct pro-social constructs from the Big Five and HEXACO models in relation to allocations of wealth. Across four studies (Study 1: N = 192; Study 2: N = 212; Study 3: N = 304; Study 4: N = 90) utilizing both hypothetical and incentivized designs, we found that the politeness-but not compassion-aspect of Big Five Agreeableness, as well as HEXACO Honesty-Humility, uniquely predicted dictator allocations within their respective personality models. These findings contribute to a growing literature indicating that the standard dictator game measures "good manners" or adherence to norms concerning fairness, rather than pure emotional concern or compassionate motives, and have important implications for how this paradigm is used and interpreted in psychological research.
Keywords: Adolescent, Adult, Dictator Game, Disziplin, Empathy/physiology, Entwicklungspsychologie, Female, Games, Experimental, Good manners, HEXACO, Humans, Individuality, Male, Middle Aged, Personality/physiology, Postkasten, Psychologie, Social Behavior, Social Conformity, Soziale Angemessenheit, Spieltheorie, Umgangsformen, Young Adult 2016
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(2016): Developing professional values. Perceptions of francophone occupational therapists in Quebec, Canada. In: Scandinavian journal of occupational therapy 23 (4), S. 286-296. DOI: 10.3109/11038128.2015.1130168
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26824179 Abstract: Objective Recent literature shows growing interest in the values displayed by occupational therapists. Yet, none of these writings has so far examined the factors that contribute to the development of occupational therapists' professional values. These factors are important, since values play a pivotal role in forging professional identity, which in the case of some occupational therapists remains somewhat ambiguous. This article proposes possible answers to the following question: What do Quebec Francophone occupational therapists perceive as the building blocks of their professional values? Methods Using a phenomenological qualitative method, the subjective experience of occupational therapists in Quebec, Canada was examined. Twenty-six occupational therapists took part in the study. Results As intended, their professional experience was varied. According to the participants, four factors contributed significantly to their professional values: professional experience, university training, personal experience, and professional development. However, fewer than 50% of the participants cited six other factors (workplace, family upbringing, personal development, personality and abilities, professional normative framework, and sociocultural background). Conclusions Most of these results are consistent with those documented in existing works. They point to the relevance of discussing professional values during university training and continuing professional development, as well as encouraging occupational therapists to become exemplars for their colleagues and interns. This study constitutes an initial step in understanding how occupational therapists' axiological identity is formed.
Keywords: Adult, Aged, Attitude of Health Personnel, Berufserfahrung/Kompetenz, Culture, Design, Erfahrung, Family, Female, (Grad/Qualität der) Ausbildung, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Normen innerhalb eines Berufsfelds, Occupational Therapists/education/ethics/psychology, Personality, Persönliche Entwicklung, Professionalism, Professionalität, Qualitative research, Quebec, Rolle (Beruf), Workplace, Young Adult -
(2016): Which Basic Rules Underlie Social Judgments? Agency Follows a Zero-Sum Principle and Communion Follows a Non-Zero-Sum Principle. In: Personality & social psychology bulletin 42 (5), S. 677-687. DOI: 10.1177/0146167216640902
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27029579 Abstract: How are people who generally see others positively evaluated themselves? We propose that the answer to this question crucially hinges on the content domain: We hypothesize that Agency follows a "zero-sum principle" and therefore people who see others ashighin Agency are perceived aslowin Agency themselves. In contrast, we hypothesize that Communion follows a "non-zero-sum principle" and therefore people who see others ashighin Communion are perceived ashighin Communion themselves. We tested these hypotheses in a round-robin and a half-block study. Perceiving others as agentic was indeed linked to being perceived as low in Agency. To the contrary, perceiving others as communal was linked to being perceived as high in Communion, but only when people directly interacted with each other. These results help to clarify the nature of Agency and Communion and offer explanations for divergent findings in the literature. zitiert von 6
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(2016): Social learning across psychological distance. In: Journal of personality and social psychology 110 (1), S. 1-19. DOI: 10.1037/pspa0000042
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26727663 Abstract: While those we learn from are often close to us, more and more our learning environments are shifting to include more distant and dissimilar others. The question we examine in 5 studies is how whom we learn from influences what we learn and how what we learn influences from whom we choose to learn it. In Study 1, we show that social learning, in and of itself, promotes higher level (more abstract) learning than does learning based on one's own direct experience. In Studies 2 and 3, we show that when people learn from and emulate others, they tend to do so at a higher level when learning from a distant model than from a near model. Studies 4 and 5 show that thinking about learning at a higher (compared to a lower) level leads individuals to expand the range of others that they will consider learning from. Study 6 shows that when given an actual choice, people prefer to learn low-level information from near sources and high-level information from distant sources. These results demonstrate a basic link between level of learning and psychological distance in social learning processes. zitiert von 18
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(2016): Swears in Context. The Difference Between Casual and Abusive Swearing. In: Journal of psycholinguistic research 45 (2), S. 259-274. DOI: 10.1007/s10936-014-9345-z
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25480107 Abstract: Although swearing is taboo language, it frequently appears in daily conversations. To explain this paradox, two studies examined contextualized swearing in Indian and non-Indian participants. In Study 1, participants assessed the appropriateness of mild, moderate, and severe swears in casual and abusive contexts; in Study 2, participants completed contextual dialogues with mild, moderate, or severe swearwords. Results indicated that mild and moderate swears were more appropriate in casual settings than in abusive scenarios; severe swears were the most inappropriate, regardless of context. Mild and moderate swears were likely to be used to complete casual and abusive dialogues respectively, even though it was expected that severe swears would be compatible with abusive settings. Moreover, gender and nationality differences suggested that assessing appropriateness of swearing behaviour and likelihood of swearword usage provided independent and contrasting findings. Cultural variations in swearing behaviour, particularly contextualized swearing, and suggestions for further research are outlined.
Keywords: Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Female, Humans, India/ethnology, Language, Male, Middle Aged, Taboo, time, Verbal Behavior, Young Adult -
(2016): The Everyday Moral Judge - Autobiographical Recollections of Moral Emotions. In: PLoS one 11 (12). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167224
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0167224 Abstract: Moral emotions are typically elicited in everyday social interactions and regulate social behavior. Previous research in the field of attribution theory identified ought (the moral standard of a given situation or intended goal), goal-attainment (a goal can be attained vs. not attained) and effort (high vs. low effort expenditure) as cognitive antecedents of moral emotions. In contrast to earlier studies, mainly relying on thought experiments, we investigated autobiographical recollections of N = 312 participants by means of an online study. We analyzed a diverse range of moral emotions, i.e., admiration, anger, contempt, indignation, pride, respect, schadenfreude, and sympathy, by using a mixed-method approach. Qualitative and quantitative methods clearly corroborate the important role of ought, goal-attainment, and effort as eliciting conditions of moral emotions. Furthermore, we built categorical systems based on our participants' descriptions of real-life situations, allowing for more fine-grained distinctions between seemingly similar moral emotions. We thus identify additional prerequisites explaining more subtle differences between moral emotion clusters as they emerge from our analyses (i.e., cluster 1: admiration, pride, and respect; cluster 2: anger, contempt, and indignation; cluster 3: schadenfreude and sympathy). Results are discussed in the light of attributional theories of moral emotions, and implications for future research are derived.
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(2016): To Have Control Over or to Be Free From Others? The Desire for Power Reflects a Need for Autonomy. In: Personality & social psychology bulletin 42 (4), S. 498-512. DOI: 10.1177/0146167216634064
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26984014 Abstract: The current research explores why people desire power and how that desire can be satisfied. We propose that a position of power can be subjectively experienced as conferring influence over others or as offering autonomy from the influence of others. Conversely, a low-power position can be experienced as lacking influence or lacking autonomy. Nine studies show that subjectively experiencing one's power as autonomy predicts the desire for power, whereas the experience of influence over others does not. Furthermore, gaining autonomy quenches the desire for power, but gaining influence does not. The studies demonstrated the primacy of autonomy across both experimental and correlational designs, across measured mediation and manipulated mediator approaches, and across three different continents (Europe, United States, India). Together, these studies offer evidence that people desire power not to be a master over others, but to be master of their own domain, to control their own fate. zitiert von 30
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(2016): Sex Differences in Judgments of Social Desirability. In: Journal of personality 84 (4), S. 423-432. DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12169
DOI: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25728192 Abstract: This study evaluates sex differences in the perceived desirability of personality behaviors and beliefs. Men and women (N = 149, Mage = 18.7) judged the social desirability scale values (SDSVs) of 150 personality statements as applied either to a male target or a female target. For comparison, some estimated SDSVs with no target sex specified. A separate sample of 537 respondents endorsed the 150 items via self-report. Raters showed a high consensus in their SDSV judgments within conditions (α = .86 to .90) and no sex-of-rater effects across conditions. Substantial sex-of-target effects (p < .001), however, revealed many behaviors that were viewed as desirable for one sex but not for the other. The behaviors seen as more (less) desirable when applied to men rather than to women were endorsed more (less) by men than by women in the respondent sample. Similar results were found when no target sex was specified for the SDSV ratings, presumably because judges evaluated the behaviors as applied to a target of their own sex. The present results have important implications for the measurement and reporting of SDSVs, the evaluation of substance versus style in self-reports, and the construction of desirability-reduced personality inventories.