Journal of General Psychology最新文献

At present there is little knowledge on whether and how multiple pieces of unconscious information can simultaneously affect a single conscious response. In the present study, we manipulated the congruency relation between a masked prime arrow and the target arrow, as well as that between masked flankers and the target arrow. The results demonstrated that the masked prime and flankers produced independent unconscious priming effects on the response to the target. In the process of studying the above phenomenon, two secondary findings were made. First, although the prime congruency effect was obtained, the flanker congruency effect was smaller when the flankers were displayed simultaneously with the target than when they were displayed sequentially before the target. This suggested that priming stimulation required enough time to be processed to a sufficient extent to produce an unconscious priming effect. Second, when the prime stimulus was removed, leaving only the flankers, the flanker priming effect increased, suggesting that the attention attracted to the prime and its conscious mask could also reduce the flanker congruency effect. These results observed across several experiments were replicated in one within-subjects experiment. We proposed an "independent unconscious influence hypothesis" for the phenomenon. This hypothesis was further integrated into a more comprehensive unconscious information processing model. The possible causes of the observed phenomena were discussed.

Making judgments of learning (JOLs) can directly influence memory, a phenomenon termed the reactivity effect of JOLs. However, controversy surrounds the mechanism behind JOL reactivity. This study employs related and unrelated word pairs as learning materials to compare memory outcomes across different JOL conditions. We contrasted the traditional JOL reactivity paradigm with a covert retrieval induction paradigm to explore whether JOLs impact memory through covert retrieval. In Experiment 1, data from 40 participants (18 females, 22 males) were analyzed, revealed distinct patterns between the two paradigms. When word pairs are presented entirely, the JOL group outperforms the no-JOL group in memorizing related pairs, aligning with traditional JOL reactivity. Conversely, when target words are omitted, the JOL group's memory resembles that of the no-JOL group. This comparison suggested that JOLs may prompt covert retrieval. In Experiment 2, which involved manipulating the retrieval strength, data from 52 participants (46 females, 6 males) were analyzed, yielded results consistent with those of Experiment 1. We conclude that covert retrieval significantly contributes to the JOL reactivity effect, enhancing memory through JOL-induced covert retrieval.

Procrastination is a personality tendency with several deleterious consequences. Trait mindfulness has been found to be associated with procrastination. Nevertheless, the relationship between trait mindfulness and procrastination has yielded inconsistent results in previous studies. Therefore, by utilizing a three-level random-effects meta-analysic model, the present study synthesized previous studies to investigate the relationship between trait mindfulness and procrastination and explore the potential moderators that may affect this relationship. A significant and negative relationship between trait mindfulness and procrastination (r = -0.365; p < 0.0001) was found by analyzing 36 effect sizes from 19 studies with 14,094 participants. The subsequent moderator analysis did not reveal any significant moderators. Overall, the current meta-analysis shed insightful light on information for future research on reducing procrastination by considering utilizing mindfulness-based interventions that make it easier for individuals to maintain a mindfulness state and enhance trait mindfulness, thereby reducing procrastination.

Influential models of fears and phobias suggest that irrational threat beliefs underpin excessive fear. Yet, many fearful individuals recognize their fear is not justified. Drawing on memory competition/multiple representations theory, we developed a novel, fear-relevant procedure, which reveals conflicting representations of threat. In three experiments (Experiment 1, N = 49, Experiment 2, N = 47, Experiment 3, N = 75), fearful and non-fearful participants not only provided Probability Ratings for fear-related outcomes in a fear-relevant exposure task, but placed Bets, with payoffs depending on what happened in reality. Fearful participants displayed much higher Probability Ratings than Low fear participants. However, Bets revealed far less consistent group differences, even when proximal to threat (Experiments 1 and 2), and differences between High and Low fear participants' Bets disappeared when they could not be anchored to previous Probability Ratings (Experiment 3). A Neutral Betting task also showed that general betting strategies were comparable between groups. We suggest that these findings may reflect the multi-representational nature of belief, in which both adaptive and maladaptive representations of a feared object may exist in parallel, with personal and contextual factors determining which form of representation is retrieved or expressed. This perspective can provide insights into the complex interplay of adaptive and maladaptive beliefs that is a central focus of currently dominant therapies.

Objective: Envy and interpersonal curiosity are common emotional and psychological phenomena in relationships that collectively influence our social behavior and experiences. However, there is a research gap regarding the interaction between interpersonal curiosity and envy. Therefore, this study will primarily utilize daily diary methods to investigate the relationship between interpersonal curiosity and envy.

Method: Using the Benign and Malicious Envy Scale and the Chinese Adolescents' Interpersonal Curiosity Questionnaire, Study 1 conducted a preliminary study on 392 middle school students using cross-sectional data. Based on the data from Study 1, we selected the ten items (2 items per variable) with the highest factor load for the daily measurement of Study 2. Study 2 utilized the diary method and recruited 81 adolescents as participants for a 14-day measurement period.

Results: The results of Study 1indicate a significant correlation between malicious envy and interpersonal curiosity, as well as a significant correlation between benign envy and interpersonal curiosity (excluding general interpersonal curiosity). The findings from Study 2 indicate that daily malicious envy can enhance private interpersonal curiosity and general interpersonal curiosity, daily benign envy can enhance curiosity exploration, and daily curiosity exploration can also enhance benign envy.

Discussion: This study enhances comprehension of the two-way relationship between adolescent envy and interpersonal curiosity within the framework of social comparison theory. The findings underscore the significance of adolescents recognizing and respecting others' boundaries to mitigate the adverse effects linked to malicious envy. Furthermore, adolescents are encouraged to channel benign envy into a source of motivation, fostering personal growth and fostering positive relationships through curiosity exploration.

The role of executive functions in long-term memory has been studied. We describe a single-case study, consisting of a 45-year-old male patient, hospitalized for right frontal stroke. After the stroke, the patient had memory alterations in everyday activities. However, performance in short-term memory tests was not significantly altered. Long-term memory assessments included pre- and post-stroke episodic, semantic, and procedural memories. Specific skills involved in the acquisition of new learning (auditory-verbal and visual reproduction) were also evaluated, as well as executive functions. The results evidence that short-term memory was not affected. Regarding long-term memory, significant differences were observed between pre- and post-stroke knowledge, the former being better preserved, which reveals anterograde amnesia. Pre-stroke long-term memory was also affected, but only with respect to episodic knowledge, with semantic and procedural memories preserved (episodic retrograde amnesia). Executive functions were altered as well, which could have been a factor affecting the acquisition and consolidation of new learning, despite the fact that short-term memory was not significantly altered. Therefore, executive functions might be a determinant factor in the acquisition of new learning, regardless of short-term memory processes, at least partially. According to the results of the present study, alterations in these functions might lead to anterograde amnesia. This entails the need to evaluate executive functions as an intrinsic part of memory evaluation.

The authors identity the relationship between the positive and negative aspects of social media and the ideal belief learning and behavior of university students. The cluster sampling method was adopted in the paper, including Guangdong, Shandong, Henan, Sichuan, and Jiangsu provinces. A total of 1014 questionnaires were distributed to a purposive sample of university students between the ages of 16 and 35. The authors applied the uses and gratifications theory to study students' social media behavior. This study identified 18 positive and negative effects of social media. Noteworthy positive outcomes attributed to social media in fostering ideals and beliefs encompass heightened awareness, enhanced communication facilitation, convenient connectivity, reduced expenses on educational materials, improved social and communication proficiencies, as well as diminished stress levels. The negative effects of new media and the Internet include a lack of critical thinking, a waste of time, dysgraphia, disrupted connection to learning, students' laziness, and health risks.

Extensive attention has been dedicated to studying the influence of others on genuine or false memory during ongoing and post-collaboration. These studies have revealed both detrimental and beneficial effects on episodic memory. Although ongoing effects such as collaborative inhibition have been examined in the semantic situation, the post-collaboration effects have not received the same level of scrutiny To address this gap, the current study instructed participants to either generate or remember idioms during the study phase, which encompassed semantic and episodic encoding. There were three recall sessions, during which four groups were designated: individual (III), preceding collaboration (CII), following collaboration (ICI), and multiple collaboration (CCI). The main results and implications of the study are outlined below. (a) The detrimental effect of collaborative inhibition was found to be sensitive to collaborative frequency, indicating that the contribution of retrieval strategy disruption proposed by the Retrieval Strategy Disruption Hypothesis (RSDH) is conditional. (b) We observed a reliable beneficial effect of error pruning, as evidenced by smaller errors in collaborators compared to individual participants. Furthermore, this beneficial effect was consistently evident in both ongoing and post-collaboration scenarios for the two encoding tasks. (c) The post-collaborative memory benefit was observed in both Recall 2 and Recall 3. This suggests that mechanisms such as relearning, cross-cueing, re-exposure, and pruning errors may have contributed to this effect. (d) The observation of the beneficial effects of picked-up and shared memory indicates the contribution of similar mechanisms as to post-collaborative memory benefit. (e) These effects were observed regardless of the encoding task, but they were influenced by both collaborative frequency and collaborative order. The results are discussed in terms of the RSDH and other relevant theories. Additionally, future research directions are provided.

Background: The MoodWheel app is a newly developed tool that uses experience sampling method (ESM) for assessing negative and positive emotions, based on the circumplex model of emotions and the binary model of distress, and including behavioral and heart rate (HR) measurement via photoplethysmography and the possibility to personalize the application with additional measures. Aims: This study was designed to assess the factorial structure, reliability and validity of the MoodWheel (MW) application for evaluating emotions in children, adolescents.

Methods: A sample of 490 children and adolescents were recruited from the schools. Internal consistency was assessed via Cronbach's alpha test. Concurrent validity was assessed by evaluating the correlations between MW and Profile of Emotional Distress scale (PED) scores, in terms of functional/dysfunctional negative and positive emotions.

Results: Results obtained show that MW has good to excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability, while the convergent validity was also adequate. Moreover, we found support for the organization of the MW based on the binary model of distress, given the predictive value found for the irrational and rational beliefs.

Conclusions: The MW application is a useful and easy to use tool that can be used for the accurate measurement of emotions, which will be complimented in future with additional behavioral parameters to provide a comprehensive and dynamic assessment.

Affective feelings naturally infuse individuals' perceptions, serving as valid windows onto the real world. The affective realism hypothesis further explains how these feelings work: as properties of individuals' perceptual experiences, these feelings influence perception. Notably, this hypothesis based on affective feelings with different valences has been substantiated, whereas the existing evidence is not compelling enough. Moreover, whether specific affective feelings can be experienced as properties of target perception remains unclear. Addressing these two issues deepens our understanding of the nature of emotional representation. Hence, we investigated the affective realism hypothesis based on affective feelings with different valences and specific emotions, comparing it with the affective misattribution hypothesis. In Experiment 1, we examined the effects of affective feelings with various valences on targets' perception through the AM (1a) and CFS paradigms (1b). In Experiment 2, we investigated the effects of affective feelings with anger, sadness, and disgust using similar methods. Results from Experiments 1a and 1b consistently indicated significant differences in valence ratings of neutral faces under emotional contexts with varying valences. Experiment 2a revealed significant differences in specific emotion ratings of neutral faces under different specific emotional contexts in the AM paradigm, whereas such differences were not observed in the CFS paradigm in Experiment 2b. We concluded that affective feelings with different valences, rather than specific emotions, can be experienced as inherent properties of target perception, validating the affective realism hypothesis. These findings supported the view that the nature of emotional representation should be described as affective dimensions.