Acta Psychologica最新文献

This study examines the processing and interpretation of quantified sentences in the a-every configuration across English and Chinese using self-paced reading, comprehension questions, and large language model (LLM) comparisons. We addressed three research objectives: (1) to determine whether inverse scope interpretations incur greater processing costs than surface scope and whether these costs differ between English and Chinese, (2) to investigate how working memory (WM) influences real-time processing and offline interpretation of quantifier scope, and (3) to evaluate the extent to which surprisal-based measures from autoregressive models, including GPT-2 small (English and Chinese variants), BLOOM-560M, and Qwen2.5-0.5B, align with human processing patterns. Results revealed longer reading times for inverse scope, where inverse scope interpretations were overall less accessible than surface scope in both English and Chinese. Offline comprehension questions indicated a much strong preference for surface scope in Chinese than in English, with WM modulating offline but not real-time processing, suggesting distinct processes involved real-time processing and offline interpretation. Surprisal analyses showed that the LLMs captured the global patterns of scope interpretation, particularly in Chinese, as reflected in whole-sentence surprisal. The strongest correspondence with human data, however, was observed for Qwen2.5-0.5B in English, and overall alignment with human processing varied by model size and training data. Overall, the findings highlight cross-linguistic asymmetries in scope accessibility, differential cognitive demands underlying real-time and offline interpretation, and both the potential and current limitations of LLMs in modeling and predicting human sentence processing.

Objective: To systematically identify barriers and facilitators to self-management in postoperative patients with glioma in early-to-middle adulthood, utilising the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour (COM-B) model.

Methods: Employing purposive sampling, 14 postoperative patients with glioma were recruited from a tertiary hospital in Beijing. Guided by the principle of maximum variation, participants were selected to cover core dimensions, including age and histological grade. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews. Colaizzi's phenomenological analysis method was used to extract themes, with theoretical saturation achieved at the 12th participant.

Results: For the capability dimension, 80% of patients reported postoperative symptom burden (headache, cognitive decline), directly impeding self-management execution. Prevalent knowledge gaps (uncertainty regarding medication management, rehabilitation standards) and barriers to information access (limited channels, information overload) were identified. In the opportunity dimension, financial strain (35%-50% income reduction due to workforce disruption) and difficulties accessing non-local healthcare (challenges in appointment scheduling, bed shortages) constituted primary barriers. Family support (collaborative care) and peer support (informational and emotional support) emerged as key facilitators, although cultural beliefs led some patients to conceal their condition. For the motivation dimension, fear of recurrence ('fear of asymptomatic recurrence') and disease-related stigma ('perceived self as a family burden') inhibited self-management behaviours. Treatment beliefs ('strict adherence to medical advice'), social role identity ('persisting with rehabilitation to care for grandchildren') and self-efficacy ('adopting a pragmatic attitude towards daily life') significantly enhanced management adherence.

Conclusion: Self-management in this population represents a dynamic balancing process constrained by capability limitations, opportunity deficits and motivational conflicts.

This study examined the relationship between students' visual attention and their mathematical reasoning during video-based instruction. Applying a mixed methods contrasting case design, we investigated two undergraduate students' perceptual behaviors using the construct of attentive fidelity, which quantifies the alignment between viewers' gaze patterns and conceptually germane features of a video. We analyzed eye-tracking data to characterize each student's attentive patterns and conducted semi-structured interviews to probe the meanings students constructed from watching the videos. Results indicate that students differed systematically in the extent to which their attention aligned with conceptually critical moments. Episodes of higher attentive fidelity were associated with more integrated and conceptually coherent reasoning across multiple mathematical representations. The findings offer insight into connections between students' attention and learning, suggest implications for the design of instructional videos, and highlight attentive fidelity as an extension to existing eye-tracking methodologies for studying students' cognition in video-based learning contexts.

Research has consistently shown that expertise in tool-use is associated with a phenomenon known as tool embodiment. Additionally, prior research has shown that higher ownership ratings over virtual tools in young adults are predicted by a reduction in perceived tactile distance of the forearm, whereas the sense of agency over virtual tools appears to arise independently of changes in perceptual estimation. In this study, we investigated whether the subjective ratings of ownership and agency over tools of different sizes used for grasping objects in both near and far space can be predicted by forearm tactile distance perception and perceived reaching distance (RDE). Additionally, we tested whether this embodiment process varies across the lifespan. Participants aged 12 to 80 years completed two experimental sessions using a well-established tool-use paradigm to manipulate objects in both near (within arm's reach) and far space (beyond arm's reach). A tactile distance judgment (TDJ) task was administered on the forearm in the proximodistal orientation. Subjective ratings of ownership and agency over the tool were collected through a post-task questionnaire. Results revealed significant effects of age and training space on ownership ratings, along with robust three-way interactions involving residual tactile distance estimation error and perceived reaching distance error. Overall, results revealed higher subjective ratings of ownership over the tool in adolescents and young adults compared to other age groups independent of training space. Results further revealed higher subjective ratings of ownership are significantly predicted by reduced forearm tactile distance estimation error in adolescents and young adults compared to middle-aged group in the far training condition. Higher ratings of agency over the tool were also significantly predicted by perceived forearm tactile distance interactively with training space conditions and age, however, effects were not significantly different dependent on age or training space condition. In addition, perceived reaching distance estimation error significantly predicted higher ratings of ownership and agency over the tool. More specifically, higher ratings of ownership were significantly predicted in adolescents and young adults compared to middle-aged adults in far space. For agency, however, higher ratings were predicted by perceived reaching distance independent of age or training space. Collectively, these results suggest that sensorimotor-based embodiment experiences, especially the extent that the ownership is perceived over the tool, are modulated by both perceived reaching distance and forearm tactile distance perception, with effects being most pronounced in adolescents and young adults.

This study examined whether social skills mediate and moderate the relationship between frustration tolerance and group cohesion in Physical Education. A total of 1092 Spanish students (32.5% primary; 67.5% secondary; M_age = 13.2) participated. Validated instruments assessed frustration tolerance, communication, assertiveness, conflict resolution, and group cohesion. Statistical analyses included group comparisons, correlations, and mediation and moderation models. Primary students scored higher than secondary students across most variables. Social skills moderated the association between frustration tolerance and group cohesion, showing a positive relationship when skills were high and a negative one when skills were low. Mediation analyses indicated that communication skills fully mediated the relationship (82.4%), while conflict resolution showed partial mediation (57.3%). Communication skills were negatively correlated with cohesion, suggesting that unregulated or low-quality communicative behaviors may hinder group functioning in Physical Education contexts. Overall, effect sizes ranged from small to moderate. These findings highlight the need to strengthen emotion-regulation and interpersonal skills within Physical Education. Practical implications include integrating structured cooperative tasks, explicit communication training, and motivational strategies tailored to students' developmental stages. Future research should adopt longitudinal and observational designs to clarify causal pathways and refine intervention approaches.

The proliferation of online learning platforms has sparked a surge in research on the determinants of online learning continuance intention. Despite this, empirical studies focusing on the personal traits and emotional dimensions of learners in the context of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) are notably scarce. Addressing this gap, this study examines the predictors of online learning continuance intention among Chinese EFL learners by testing a sequential mediation model that includes second language (L2) grit, self-efficacy, and satisfaction as key constructs. Data were collected via questionnaires from 303 Chinese EFL online learners, and structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze the relationships among the variables. The results revealed that L2 grit, self-efficacy, and satisfaction significantly predict online learning continuance intention. Notably, L2 grit exerts an indirect influence on this intention through both self-efficacy and satisfaction, while self-efficacy similarly mediates the relationship between L2 grit and continuance intention via satisfaction. This study not only validates the proposed sequential mediation model but also enhances the current understanding of the psychological and emotional factors influencing online learners. It provides pedagogical insights for online learning platforms and educators, emphasizing the importance of fostering learner interest and persistence for sustainable educational engagement.

Organisations across the globe are deliberating on the future of work, whether to call employees back to the office, enable remote working, or offer flexibility through hybrid options. In this context, we studied two job demands-techno-invasion and electronic monitoring-that could influence employee performance. We surveyed knowledge workers (n = 1446) in two waves, separated by 25 days, to explore these dynamics. Using PLS-SEM, we empirically examined the relationships between job demands and job performance, with cyberslacking as the mediating variable and Information Technology (IT) support as the moderating variable. We further conducted robustness checks using Hayes PROCESS macro in SPSS. This study introduces the concept of 'failure of neutralization' to show how techno-invasion operates as a hindrance stressor and can become intrusive to the extent that employees may be unable to justify or engage in cyberslacking. This specifies a boundary condition for neutralization, where a norm of perpetual availability can suppress even brief digital detachment. Techno-invasion is negatively related to cyberslacking and job performance. Our findings also reveal that cyberslacking positively influences job performance and mediates the relationship between job demands and performance. Additionally, IT support moderates the positive relationship between electronic monitoring and cyberslacking, which intensifies when IT support is low. It also emphasises the importance of sustainable work environments, where interventions such as IT support, clear boundaries for work-related ICT use, and policies promoting responsible internet behaviour can mitigate the adverse effects of job demands.

By providing a thorough systematic evaluation of more than three decades of academic contribution on social comparison in decision-making, this paper fills a significant need in the synthesis and integration of this imminent topic. The literature has grown but is still fragmented, with multiple theoretical perspectives and methodological heterogeneity. Festinger's groundbreaking social comparison theory is the main foundation of this field, which holds that people assess their skills and opinions in relation to others in situations of risk and uncertainty (Festinger, 1954). Through a thorough bibliometric and systematic evaluation of 307 peer-reviewed papers from the Scopus database, this study maps significant academic contributions, outlines changing publishing trends, and uses theme analysis to reveal the domain's intellectual structure. Its comprehensive approach, which blends quantitative bibliometric mapping with qualitative content analysis, is what makes this work novel. It goes beyond traditional individual-level decision models to emphasize the ubiquitous impact of social preferences, peer effects, and contextual moderators in management, economics, and consumer behavior. This review offers fresh perspectives on the evolution of the field by pointing out understudied theoretical dimensions like prospect theory, social cognition, and fear affiliation as well as the widespread reliance on lab experiments that restrict external validity. It also suggests a research agenda that prioritizes methodological pluralism, context-specific inquiry, and multidimensional theory expansion. Hence, this study provides a key, integrative basis to drive further research into the intricate processes by which social comparison influences decision-making paradigms.