Norman J. Bregman

Skin Temperature Regulation: The Effects of Suggestion and Feedback

This study focuses on the effects of visual digital feedback and verbal suggestions on an individuals ability to increase hand skin temperature. In this 2 x 2 factorial design, thirty-eight college students were assigned to conditions receiving feedback or no feedback and suggestions or no suggestions. Subjects receiving suggestions heard a tape recorded imagery phrase related to increasing hand temperature; subjects in the no-suggestion condition received neutral phrases of electronic definitions. All subjects participated in three training sessions. Analysis of the third session indicated an interaction effect; post hoc analysis indicated a significant difference between subjects receiving feedback with suggestion and subjects receiving feedback and no suggestion. The results suggest that the ability to increase skin temperature may require the concomitant use of feedback and suggestion.

Eyewitness Testimony: The Role of Commitment in Increasing Reliability

This experiment investigated the role of commitment, conformity pressure, and source credibility in eyewitness testimony. A videotaped auto accident was used as the witnessed event. Eighty subjects were employed in a 2 (commitment vs. no commitment) x 2 (conformity pressure vs. no conformity pressure) x 2 (authority vs. nonauthority) design. As expected, subjects who made a previous commitment were able to resist the pressure to conform to speed estimates.

Plea Bargaining by Defendants: A Decision Theory Approach

Abstract Two experiments investigated the impact of severity of sentence and probability of conviction on plea bargaining decisions. Subjects role-played defendants in Experiment 1 and defense lawyers in Experiment 2. They were administered hypothetical cases containing one of six combinations of severity-of-sentence information (2 or 5 years) and probability-of-conviction information (20%, 50%, or 80%). Defendant subjects were significantly affected by both independent variables. As the probability of conviction and the severity of sentence increased, so did their likelihood of taking a plea bargain. Defense lawyer subjects were affected only by the probability-of-conviction variable.

A Comparison of Spatial Role-Taking in Monolingual and Bilingual Children

Abstract Twenty bilingual first-grade children (10 Vietnamese-English) and 10 Spanish-English) were compared with 20 monolingual children on the WISC-R Block Design and on spatial role-taking tasks of increasing complexity. It was hypothesized that the cognitive flexibility of bilinguals would lead to significantly higher scores than the control groups on both types of tasks. A 2 × 2 analysis of variance on the WISC-R Block Design yielded main effects (ps < .05) for bilingualism and for culture; no significant interaction was found. For all spatial role-taking tasks no significant main effects were found. Significant interactions were found for the two most complex spatial role-taking tasks (p < .05).

An Analysis of Perceived Stress in Elementary and Secondary Student Teachers and Full-Time Teachers.

AbstractTwo hundred and four elementary and secondary public school teachers and student teachers were presented with an inventory of potentially stressful school situations in five categories: discipline and classroom management, personal relations with students, student progress, institutional demands, and facilities and supplies. Subjects rated the situations according to levels of stressfulness and importance. Dependent measures were analyzed employing a 2 (elementary vs. secondary) × 2 (full-time vs. student teacher) MANOVA. Analysis of the data revealed that elementary school teachers reported significantly higher levels of stress than secondary school teachers. Significant univariates were found between these two groups in four of the five categories. The pattern of significant effects supports a conception of two types of stress, structural and conflict, affecting the teacher.

The Effect of Words and Actions on American Children's Prosocial Behavior

Summary Fifty-four kindergarten and 54 sixth grade children participated in an investigation of the relative effects of a models behavior and verbal exhortations on generosity. Following exposure to the model, the children won a nominal, fixed amount of money while playing a game and were given the opportunity to donate to charity. The results indicated that the older children exhibited a higher level of generosity than the young children. The childrens generosity was not significantly affected by the models exhortations or behaviors.

Constraints on the Yerkes-Dodson Law in Skin Temperature Biofeedback

The purpose of the present experiment was to explore the relationship between motivation and task difficulty during temperature biofeedback. A 2 (task difficulty: decreasing vs. increasing) X 3 (motivation: 0 vs. 25 vs. 50 payment) design was employed. It was hypothesized that a curvilinear function would be obtained in the decrease groups following the Yerkes-Dodson law. Sixty-five subjects were randomly assigned to the six experimental conditions and were trained to increase or decrease their finger temperature. Motivation was manipulated by paying subjects 0, 25, or 50 for every 0.1 degree F they increased their finger temperature over baseline for three days. As predicted, the results are quite compatible with the Yerkes-Dodson law on day one in the decrease conditions. However, as training continued the motivational variable no longer played a significant role in influencing performance, although the curvilinear function was still obtained graphically. It would appear that motivation can play a significant role in a subjects ability to control skin temperature.

Effects of Suggestion on Increasing or Decreasing Skin Temperature Control

In a 2 x 3 factorial design, 44 college students were assigned the task of either increasing or decreasing their hand skin temperature, receiving either suggestions, pseudo-suggestions, or no suggestions (response-specific instructions only). Subjects receiving suggestions heard imagery phrases related to increasing or decreasing hand skin temperature; subjects in the pseudo-suggestion condition heard phrases related to electronics; subjects in the response-specific condition were told only to increase or decrease their skin temperature prior to training. All subjects participated in three training sessions. Analyses of the third session indicated a significant main effect for temperature direction and a significant interaction effect. A marginally significant main effect for suggestion was obtained. The results suggest that the ability of a subject to regulate hand skin temperature is influenced by the combination of required direction of change and type of suggestion. The data support the notion that pseudo-suggestions may act as a distractor which disrupts the ability of a subject to control hand skin temperature in both the increase and decrease directions.

Speed estimates by eyewitnesses and earwitnesses: How vulnerable to postevent information?

Abstract Two experiments were conducted to test the impact of postevent information on earwitness and eyewitness testimony. In the first experiment, subjects witnessed an automobile accident, visually, auditorily, or both, and were then exposed to postevent questioning using either marked or unmarked modifiers. There was greater accuracy in the visual than in the auditory condition; the auditory condition was most influenced by the marked modifiers. In the second experiment, subjects witnessed an automobile accident, visually, auditorily, or both, and were then questioned using either the verb hit or smashed. Again, there was greater accuracy in the visual condition, whereas the auditory condition was most vulnerable to postevent information.

Set Size Effects in Self-Disclosure

Abstract Two experiments investigated set size effects in self-disclosure behavior. In Experiment 1, subjects received information about the topics a partner was willing to discuss. Set size was manipulated by giving subjects bogus information that their partner had chosen high intimacy topics (2, 4, or 6 topics). Results show that the larger the set, the greater the partners perceived liking, trust, and intimacy. In Experiment 2, intimacy level (high or low) was crossed with set size (2, 4, or 6 intimate topics chosen). High intimacy data replicated results found in Experiment 1. A set size effect was also found for low intimacy topics but in the opposite direction, in accord with additive model predictions.