British journal of psychology最新文献

This study investigated how social (faces and eyes) and non-social (arrows) stimuli modulate attentional orienting in a spatial Stroop task, using a distributional approach. Data from 11 studies (N = 705) were analysed through cumulative distribution functions (CDF), delta functions, and polynomial trend analyses. Three models were applied: (1) a reaction time (RT) model comparing social (faces and eyes) vs. non-social stimuli under congruent and incongruent conditions, (2) a delta model assessing conflict effects across quantiles, and (3) a trend model identifying specific delta function patterns. Non-social targets produced a standard congruency effect (SCE), with faster responses in congruent trials but no consistent conflict reduction across the distribution. In contrast, social stimuli exhibited a reversed congruency effect (RCE), with faster responses in incongruent trials, emerging from the second quantile onward and minimal conflict among the fastest responses. Social targets exhibited comparable reaction times in the RT model and similar early delta plot patterns, suggesting shared initial perceptual and attentional mechanisms between faces and eyes. However, faces eventually induced a larger RCE, possibly due to their more complex configuration. These findings highlight distinctive patterns between social and non-social processing in the spatial Stroop task.

To better understand how inconsistent beliefs persist and whether the tendency to endorse them (labelled doublethink) is malleable, we conducted five preregistered studies and a qualitative follow-up (total N = 1635 Serbian participants). We first found and replicated that doublethink was robustly related to both a more intuitive, superficial information processing style and a lack of ability to spot contradictions (r = .20 and r = .21, ps < .001). We next tested three progressively more direct interventions to reduce doublethink, all unsuccessful – the first one tried to increase sensitivity to contradictions in irrelevant material, the second pushed respondents to reconcile pairs of newly provided inconsistent beliefs and the third made them cross-reference their own inconsistent beliefs. When asked to elaborate on their inconsistencies in semi-structured interviews, respondents did not evaluate them negatively, but instead employed circumvention strategies – attributing incompatibility to the response format or diluting the content of the claims. The most commonly used strategy was to rely on adding additional logical conditions to the beliefs (in 34% of the cases). Although these strategies could reflect rational belief safeguarding mechanisms, they also might allow for moral relativization, double standards or incompatible expectations from others (e.g. posing irreconcilable standards for minority groups).

This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate (1) the effectiveness of the method of loci (MoL) in enhancing recall in adults, (2) its underlying cognitive mechanisms, and (3) its neurobiological correlates. Studies on adult populations were included from multiple databases. Risk of bias was assessed, and the GRADE approach and RoBMA_PSMA were used for qualitative and quantitative synthesis. The MoL showed strong evidence for a large effect on immediate serial recall compared with rehearsal (d = 0.88, 95% CI [0.47, 1.25], P(M|data) = 0.994, BF = 161.94) in adult populations. Its general effectiveness is supported by multiple cognitive mechanisms, all of which align with the levels of processing framework. Neuroimaging studies have shown consistent activation of brain regions primarily associated with spatial memory and navigation – namely, the hippocampus, parahippocampus, and retrosplenial cortex. MoL training also induces structural and functional brain changes. However, the evidence is rated as low to very low quality, mainly due to the high risk of bias and other limitations. The MoL is a powerful mnemonic for enhancing recall in adults, grounded in robust cognitive and neural mechanisms, though more rigorous studies are needed.

The perceived similarity between objects has often been attributed to their physical and conceptual features, such as appearance and animacy, and the theoretical framework of object space is accordingly conceived. Here, we extend this framework by proposing that subjective object space may also be defined by embodied features, specifically action possibilities that objects afford to an agent (i.e. affordance) and their spatial relation with the agent (i.e. situatedness). To test this proposal, we quantified the embodied features with a set of action atoms. We found that embodied features explained the subjective similarity among familiar objects along with the objects' visual features. This observation was further replicated with a separate set of novel objects. Our study demonstrates that embodied features, which place objects within an ecological context, are essential in constructing object space in the human visual system, emphasizing the importance of incorporating embodiment as a fundamental dimension in our understanding of the visual world.

Previous research is mixed as to whether listeners perceive higher- or lower-pitched voices as more financially trustworthy. These mixed results may be owing to variation in the degree of risk implied in the scenarios used to measure perceptions of financial trustworthiness. I tested whether the degree of risk in the type of trust game used to elicit such perceptions (i.e., potential profit/loss versus equal/unequal division of money) and/or perceptions of financial risk-taking clarifies the influence of voice pitch on perceptions of financial trustworthiness. I found that listeners preferred partners with higher- rather than lower-pitched voices, regardless of the degree of risk involved in the trust game. Listeners also sent more money to both proposers and responders with higher-pitched voices. In contrast, listeners perceived lower-pitched voices as more likely to take financial risks and as more generally trustworthy. Perceptions of financial trustworthiness were positively associated with perceptions of general trustworthiness but were not related to perceptions of financial risk-taking. These findings suggest that speakers with higher-pitched voices are perceived as relatively financially trustworthy, independently of implied or perceived financial risk.

Research on perfectionism in graduate school found inconsistent associations between perfectionistic standards and psychological outcomes. Such unanticipated results led to the Model of Excellencism and Perfectionism (MEP), which differentiates between people pursuing excellence and those pursuing perfection. Recent studies with undergraduate students have shown that excellencism and perfectionism are distinct constructs, differentially associated with achievement and psychological outcomes. In this study, we aimed to offer the first empirical test of the MEP in graduate school with a sample of 376 graduate students (i.e. 81% masters, 19% doctoral). Results of confirmatory factor analyses on the Scale of Perfectionism and Excellencism provided evidence for the conceptual separation of excellencism and perfectionism. Results of multiple regression showed that perfection strivers (compared to excellence strivers) reported higher research self-efficacy and satisfaction with their research productivity. When accounting for satisfaction with research productivity, perfection strivers experienced more academic burnout and dropout intentions. Perfectionistic students also used more perfectionistic self-presentation strategies when interacting with their supervisors. Perfectionism was associated with both beneficial and harmful outcomes, which suggests that perfectionism in graduate school is paradoxical and operates like a double-edged sword. These findings are interpreted in light of the need to help graduate students strike a balance between their academic achievements and psychological adjustment.

Time poverty is increasingly prevalent in contemporary society, particularly among working parents. This research, consisting of three studies, investigated the impact of caregivers' time poverty on parenting styles and its subsequent association with children's growth mindset regarding intelligence. Study 1a (N = 149 caregivers) revealed that priming caregivers' perceptions of time poverty resulted in lower autonomy-supportive parenting and higher controlling parenting. Study 1b (N = 224 children) demonstrated that manipulating children's perceptions of low autonomy-supportive and high controlling parenting resulted in a lower growth mindset and more negative mindset meaning system indexes, including higher negative effort belief, performance-avoidance goal, helpless attribution and lower challenge-seeking and resilient attribution. Study 2 (N = 1060 caregiver-child dyads) used a two-wave, multi-source design to test the entire model. Results indicated that caregivers experiencing higher levels of time poverty were more likely to exhibit less autonomy-supportive and more controlling parenting styles, which, in turn, were associated with their children reporting a lower growth mindset and a more negative mindset meaning system. These relationships held after controlling for caregivers' subjective socioeconomic status and their perception of children's math competence. The findings highlight the detrimental effects of caregivers' time poverty on parenting practices and children's developmental outcomes.

Deep learning models trained for facial recognition now surpass the highest performing human participants. Recent evidence suggests that they also model some qualitative aspects of face processing in humans. This review compares the current understanding of deep learning models with psychological models of the face processing system. Psychological models consist of two components that operate on the information encoded when people perceive a face, which we refer to here as 'face codes'. The first component, the core system, extracts face codes from retinal input that encode invariant and changeable properties. The second component, the extended system, links face codes to personal information about a person and their social context. Studies of face codes in existing deep learning models reveal some surprising results. For example, face codes in networks designed for identity recognition also encode expression information, which contrasts with psychological models that separate invariant and changeable properties. Deep learning can also be used to implement candidate models of the face processing system, for example to compare alternative cognitive architectures and codes that might support interchange between core and extended face processing systems. We conclude by summarizing seven key lessons from this research and outlining three open questions for future study.

Intertemporal decision-making is essential in daily life, requiring individuals to evaluate the value of investments over time. This study aimed to assess how well intertemporal choice models explain and predict decision-making behaviours, focusing on subjective time perception across the lifespan. Five models were compared: two basic models (hyperbolic and exponential discounting) and three based on psychophysical principles of time perception (Stevens’ power law exponential, Weber–Fechner exponential and Stevens' power law hyperbolic discounting). Using three datasets, this study identified which model better describes delay discounting and measured each model's predictive accuracy through cross-validation across the lifespan. Findings revealed that Stevens' power law exponential and hyperbolic discounting models provided better fit and predictive capability, suggesting that time perception in intertemporal decision-making follows Stevens' power law. The two models were applied to participants aged 9–82 years, showing nonlinear variations in discounting rates and time perception parameters. In summary, Stevens' power law exponential and hyperbolic models, which account for nonlinear subjective perceptions of time, enhanced understanding of intertemporal choice behaviours, attributing age-related differences in delay discounting to variations in time perception, thus supporting theories regarding age-related changes in delay discounting across the lifespan.

Is someone who says ‘I'm genuinely sorry’ more sorry than someone who says ‘I'm really sorry’? The studies in this paper show that people use longer words when apologizing (Study 1) and interpret apologies with longer words as more apologetic (Study 2). This is in line with signalling accounts that propose that apologizers should incur a cost (greater production effort) to indicate the sincerity of their apologies. This behaviour illustrates a type of iconicity in communication that has not been examined so far: dynamic iconicity – iconicity that is context-dependent rather than inherent to a word's meaning (e.g. producing long words to convey effort). These studies thus have implications for our understanding of the emergence, prevalence and role of iconicity in communication.