Pier Luigi Baldi

ENCODING, METACOGNITIVE, AUTOATTRIBUTIONAL PROCESSES AND MEMORY IN MENTALLY RETARDED ADOLESCENTS

The aim of this study was to evaluate the improvement of the capability to retain sets of names after a training programme administered to 38 (20 men, 18 women) mentally retarded adolescents aged 14–19 years (mean IQ = 57) who underwent training for 31 weeks. A single-case research design was used because the subjects varied in age, IQ, and pathological origin of retardation. Data confirm the results of a 1994 study and demonstrate the utility of systematic, diversified training in improving information-processing strategies on the one hand, and raising meta-mnemonic and autoattributional awareness on the other.

5. Psychophysiological responsivity and conscious appraisal of affective stimuli in non-organic syncope

Transient losses of consciousness and muscular tone that characterize syncope are due to a sudden decrease of blood flow to the brain. Nevertheless, in part of patients reporting syncope episodes, the classic diagnostic process does not lead to a proper organic etiology – e.g. neutrally mediated or cardiac. Psychological non-organic factors like emotional dysregulation or anxiety mechanisms might act as triggers for those clinical manifestations. Given the link between affective experience and sympathetic-parasympathetic autonomic system, this research aims at investigating the hypothesis of a psychogenic etiopathogenesis and at sketching a clearer picture of affective responses in syncope. Control (healthy volunteers) and clinical (syncope patients with no organic etiology) groups were presented with arousing affective visual stimuli and assessed by psychometric tests. In order to explore both automatic and conscious processing of affective information, we recorded participants’ psychophysiological responses (autonomic and EEG) and subjective appraisal ratings (valence and arousal). The comparison of psychometric, electrophysiological and autonomic data across patients and control subjects showed anomalous response profiles, with partially incongruent autonomic automatic psychophysiological responses and conscious appraisal ratings. While the dysregulation of psychophysiological responsivity might characterize syncope profiles, the complexity of clinical pictures suggest that different non-organic syncope subtypes may exist.

Autorità della fonte e credibilità del messaggio pubblicitario: il caso degli alimenti salutistici

Il tema della salute suscita sempre piu interesse negli italiani e molti messaggi pubblicitari vertono su di essa. Lo studio si pone l’obiettivo di indagare quanto questa tipologia di pubblicita risulti essere credibile. A questo scopo e stato somministrato ad un gruppo di 104 partecipanti, di eta compresa tra i 18 e i 61 anni, un questionario atto a valutare la credibilita di sei messaggi pubblicitari salutistici. I risultati mostrano che solamente alcuni messaggi pubblicitari salutistici sono considerati attendibili; appare inoltre una maggiore fiducia nel messaggio nei soggetti di eta superiore.

Addendum to P. L. Baldi (1998).

The aim of this follow-up study was to evaluate the persistence of the memorization strategies of 65 mentally retarded adolescents (M IQ of 53). Mean correct recall was best for drawings for which semantic elaboration was suitable for both immediate and 1-hr. recall.