Lawrence A. Fehr

Methodological Inconsistencies in the Measurement of Spatial Perspective Taking Ability: A Cause for Concern

A review of the literature pertaining to spatial perspective-taking is presented. Its purpose is to account for the inconsistent findings that have plagued this area of research by focusing on the met

Effects of caffeine withdrawal on motor performance and heart rate changes

Heavy caffeine Users and Non-users were tested twice using a signalled reaction time paradigm, while heart rate was recorded. During the 7-day interval between the two sessions, the User group maintained normal caffeine intake for the first 5 days and abstained from caffeine during the last 2 days, which constituted a withdrawal period. The Non-users abstained from caffeine (as they usually do) during the entire 7-day period. The analyses of the reaction time (RT) data indicated no differences during Session 1 and a significant group difference during Session 2, with the Non-users exhibiting faster RTs. The Users exhibited no change between Sessions 1 and 2, while the Non-users showed a decrease in RTs (increased speed) across Sessions, which may be indicative of a practice effect. The analysis of the heart rate data from the 5-s period prior to the imperative stimulus yielded no differences during Session 1, and a significant group difference in Session 2, with the Non-users exhibiting larger decelerations. Across the two Sessions, the Non-users showed an increase in the magnitude of the heart rate deceleration, while the Users exhibited a decline in the size of the deceleration. Since the magnitude of heart rate deceleration has been interpreted as an index of attention, it appears that the Users were exhibiting less efficient attention during withdrawal from caffeine (Session 2) than were the Non-users. This conclusion is supported by the RT data, showing slower response times for the Users during Session 2, as compared to Non-users.

Mock Trial Jury Decisions as a Function of Adolescent Juror Guilt and Hostility

A fictitious court case involving child abuse was presented to 277 male adolescent jurors (138 college freshmen, means age = 19.25 years, 139 junior high school males, means age = 13.47 years) in an effort to determine if the tendency to deal harshly with alleged criminals is dependent upon certain personality characteristics of adolescent jurors. The Mosher Hostility Guilt Scale and the Siegel Manifest Hostility Scale were used to detect the presence of such trends. The results indicate that older adolescents attributed more of the responsibility for the crime to the defendant and administered less severe sentences than younger adolescent jurors. Hostility guilt and manifest hostility levels were not significantly related to attribution of responsibility for a criminal act; however, Ss scoring high in hostility guilt tended to give significantly shorter sentences, while Ss scoring high in manifest hostility tended to give longer sentences. Implications for adolescent peer practices are discussed.

Differential effects of state and trait anxiety on heart rate responses and reaction time

College students were tested on 10 trials of a reaction time task, using a variable interval warning signal, while heart rate was recorded. Subjects were divided into high and low anxiety groups using a median split based on their scores on a modification of the trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The low anxiety group exhibited faster reaction times, shorter latency heart rate deceleration following warning signal onset, and a more consistent deceleration immediately prior to the respond signal than the high anxiety group. When the same subjects were divided into groups according to state anxiety, no group differences were found in either heart rate or reaction time. In Part II of the study, subjects listened to six 15 s presentations of a 70 dbA, 250 Hz tone. No group differences in heart rate responses to the tones were found for either state or trait anxiety groups.

Coordination of Perspectives: The Importance of Stimulus Dimensionality

An evaluation of the importance of the dimensionality of the spatial stimuli in a coordination of perspectives task is presented. It was hypothesized that using three-dimensional comparison stimuli and two-dimensional choice stimuli might result in the tapping of different cognitive skills than when both sets of stimuli are two-dimensional. Children (N = 96) aged between 5 and 12 years as well as college students (n = 24) were tested with either two-dimensional or three-dimensional comparison stimuli and two-dimensional choice stimuli. The lowest error rates for all except the kindergarten groups were found in the two-dimensional condition. It was concluded that the three-dimensional condition may have created a cognitive overload that lessened the likelihood of making correct perspective-taking judgments.

Defendant characteristics and judgment behaviors of adolescent mock jurors

Fictitious court cases involving child abuse were presented to 140 male undergraduates and 140 male junior high school students to determine if the tendency to deal harshly with alleged criminals is dependent upon certain defendant characteristics. Results indicate that younger adolescent jurors give longer sentences than older adolescent jurors, and male defendants receive longer sentences than female defendants. While no significant main effects for case content were found, younger jurors gave longer sentences and attributed more responsibility to a parent who beat his/her child, while older adolescent jurors attributed more responsibility and prescribed longer sentences to a parent who burned the child. Implications for future research with adolescent jurors are discussed.

GUILT IN ALCOHOLICS: AN EVALUATION OF THE MOSHER GUILT SCALES

The validity of the Mosher Guilt Scales was evaluated by comparing guilt scores of 25 adult males who had voluntarily placed themselves in an alcoholism treatment center with those of a control group of 25 adult males. It was hypothesized that the alcoholic group would demonstrate higher guilt than the control group as the presence of strong guilt feelings should lead one to seek to remove a major source of guilt such as excessive drinking. This hypothesis was substantiated by higher sex guilt and morality guilt in the alcoholic group than in the control group.

Heart Rate Changes and Anxiety: A Methodological Clarification

Abstract Under this heading appear summaries of studies which, in 500 words or less, provide useful data substantiating, not substantiating, or refining what we think we know; additional details concerning the results can be obtained by communicating directly with the investigator or, when indicated, by requesting supplementary material from Microfiche Publications.

Mosher guilt scores and sexual preference

Administered the Mosher Guilt Scales and the Manifest Hostility Scale to groups of male (N = 20) and female (N = 20) homosexuals and heterosexuals in an effort to establish the existence of differences between the personality profiles of homosexuals and heterosexuals. As was hypothesized, homosexuals and males were found to be less guilty and more hostile than heterosexuals and females respectively. In addition, the absence of significant interactions in all but one of the analyses performed indicated that differences in guilt and hostility levels between homosexuals and heterosexuals were similar for males and females. It was concluded that high levels of hostility and low levels of guilt in homosexuals can be attributed in part to the demands of a society that views their behavior as pathological in nature.

The Coordination of Perspectives: An Analysis of the Importance of Methodological Factors

Abstract The ability to coordinate perspectives with two types of choice stimuli was assessed with groups of elementary school and college students. Correct and egocentric response rates were affected by the age of the subject and the type of choice stimuli used; the importance of stimulus characteristics was particularly pronounced for sixth-grade students. It was concluded that the inferences made by researchers concerning spatial development may in part be dependent upon the type of choice stimuli used in coordination of perspectives tasks.