Riccardo Luccio

CircE: An R implementation of Browne’s circular stochastic process model

In confirmatory analysis of whether data have a circumplex structure, Browne’s (1992) model has played a major role. However, implementation of this model requires a dedicated program, CIRCUM, because the analysis routine is not integrated in any of the most widely used statistical software packages. Hence, data entry and graphical representation of the results require the use of one or more additional programs. We propose a package for the R statistical environment, termed CircE, that can be used to enter or import data, implement Browne’s confirmatory analysis, and graphically represent the results. Using this new software, we put forward a new approach to assess the sustainability of theoretical models when the analysis is carried out at the level of questionnaire items. The CircE package (for either Mac OS X or Windows) and additional files may be downloaded from http://brm.psychonomic-journals.org/content/supplemental.

Organizational versus Geometric Factors in Mental Rotation and Folding Tasks

The criteria used in performing mental rotation or mental folding tasks were studied with a paradigm that did not involve reaction times. The hypothesis was that, when perceptual-organizational factors come into conflict with the geometric features required for the correct execution of such tasks, it is the former that prevail. To verify this hypothesis two experiments were carried out. In experiment 1, subjects were asked to imagine quadrilaterals rotating round a rotation axis at different inclinations. Their responses were dependent both on the degree of tilt of the rotation axis and on the degree of tilt of the quadrilateral with respect to the rotation axis. Experiment 2 consisted of the mental execution of a folding task. In this case too, the responses depended on the degree of tilt of the folding axis and also on the complexity of the stimulus outline. In both experiments responses were divided into two groups: (i) geometrically correct responses and (ii) responses which, although incorrect, were based on perceptual-organizational criteria. In the light of the results, some theoretical implications regarding transformation operations executed by means of mental images are discussed.

Regularity, exposure time and perception of numerosity

Two experiments are described. In Exp. 1, subjects compared the apparent numerosity of two kinds of dot patterns, regular vs irregular, with two different exposures (160 vs 2000 msec). In Exp. 2, the subjects had to estimate the numerosity of the same patterns, presented one at a time. Analysis showed a relative overestimation of the regular patterns in Exp. 1 but not in Exp. 2. In general an overestimation occurred with an increase in exposure. Such results support our hypothesis of two separate processes as the basis of the two kinds of performance (estimating vs comparison).

Separate mechanisms for magnitude and order processing in the spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) effect: The strange case of musical note values.

The spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) effect is considered an evidence of the association between numbers and space, with faster left key-press responses to small numbers and faster right key-press responses to large numbers. We examined whether visually presented note values produce a SNARC-like effect. Differently from numbers, note values are represented as a decreasing left-to-right progression, allowing us to disambiguate the contribution of order and magnitude in determining the direction of the effect. Musicians with formal education performed a note value comparison in Experiment 1 (direct task), a line orientation judgment in Experiment 2 (indirect task), and a detection task in Experiment 3 (indirect task). When note values were task relevant (direct task), participants responded faster to large note values with the left key-press, and vice versa. Conversely, when note values were task irrelevant (indirect tasks), the direction of this association was reversed. This evidence suggests the existence of separate mechanisms underlying the SNARC effect. Namely, an Order-Related Mechanism (ORM) and a Magnitude-Related Mechanism (MRM) that are revealed by different task demands. Indeed, according to a new model we proposed, ordinal and magnitude related information appears to be preferentially involved in direct and indirect tasks, respectively. (PsycINFO Database Record

Assessing the Interpersonal Circumplex Model in Late Childhood The Interpersonal Behavior Questionnaire for Children

The authors developed the Interpersonal Behavior Questionnaire for Children with the aim of assessing the constructs of the interpersonal circumplex model, that is, Dominance and Love and their possible combinations, via third- to fifth-grade children’s self- and peer reports. In the three studies presented herein, the authors examined several psychometric properties of the questionnaire. Results demonstrated that children’s ratings along the questionnaire yielded the hypothesized circumplex structure of the interpersonal variables; that they reached significant association levels with external criteria; and that they were reliable. Specifically, interrater correlations were shown to reach substantive levels when inspected in older children, when scores were aggregated over raters, and when dominant behaviors were evaluated. Overall, the findings demonstrated the tenability of the circumplex model in young ages via children’s ratings. The authors suggest that both personality assessment and personality development research may take advantage from using children’s evaluations, in addition to adults’ ratings of their children’s personality.

Gestalt problems in cognitive psychology: Field theory, invariance and auto-organisation

The Gestalt psychology no longer exists as a school. Nevertheless, still today its lesson cannot be ignored. In this paper the concept of primacy of the whole over parts, of field, and of auto-organisation are identified as the main issues of Gestalt psychology, issues that determined a true turning point in the history of psychology in the present century. It is shown how the Gestalt ideas have deeply influenced the contemporary cognitive psychology, and how such an influence has been particularly evident in the last years. Two examples are presented: the first shows the place of the concept of field in contemporary theorising about perceptual invariants — especially with the so-called geometric psychology developed by Hoffman; the second introduces the theory of dynamic formation and recognition of patterns, as elaborated in the framework of synergetics by Haken; it is shown that such a theory can be seen as a natural development of the Gestalt ideas on auto-organisation.

Visual Thinking: Stability and Self-Organisation

As Ashby and Lee1 recently pointed out, there is a great deal of trial-by-trial variability in all perceptual representations. However, stability is the first apparent visual concept of the world to which we have adjusted. Although proximal stimulation is continuously changing, our phenomenal world is usually stable, made up of objects which usually remain the same size, shape, colour and identity. The second aspect is harmony. Very often, objects in nature keep a specific regular and harmonic structure. It is interesting to note that we are particularly pleased when we find such regularity and harmony. Almost perfect beautiful examples of axial or central symmetry can be found in the inanimate world as well as in the biological world. These are often considered conclusive evidence that natural phenomena conform to natural laws. At the same time, the pleasure that we experience in perceiving regular and harmonic configurations (and the tension that we feel when we face configurations that depart from this regularity and harmony), is considered conclusive evidence of the fact that perceptual organisation is dominated by the tendency to Pragnanz. Therefore, this tendency can be considered the leading principle that governs perception.

Do You Hear More Piano or Drum Sounds? An Auditory Version of the Solitaire Illusion.

The solitaire illusion is an illusion of numerosity proposed by Frith and Frith. In the original version, an apparent number of elements was determined by the spatial arrangement of two kinds of elements (black and white marbles). In our study, an auditory version of the solitaire illusion was demonstrated. Participants were asked to judge if they perceived more drum or piano sounds. When half of the piano tones were perceived as lower in pitch than a drum sound and the other half higher, piano tones appeared to be arranged in small units, leading to numerosity underestimation. Conversely, when all piano tones were perceived to be higher in pitch than the drum sounds, they appeared to be arranged in a single large unit, leading to numerosity overestimation. Comparable to the visual version of the solitaire illusion, the clustering seems to be determined by Gestalt principles. In our auditory version, a clear reversal of the illusion (numerosity overestimation or underestimation) was observed when piano tones appeared to be arranged in a single large cluster or in several small clusters, respectively.