These meta-analyses of 60+ years of social comparison research focused on 2 issues: the choice of a comparison target (selection) and the effects of comparisons on self-evaluations, affect, and so ...forth (reaction). Selection studies offering 2 options (up or down) showed a strong preference (and no evidence of publication bias) for upward choices when there was no threat; there was no evidence for downward comparison as a dominant choice even when threatened. Selections became less differentiable when a lateral choice was also provided. For reaction studies, contrast was, by far, the dominant response to social comparison, with ability estimates most strongly affected. Moderator analyses, tests and adjustments for publication bias showed that contrast is stronger when the comparison involves varying participants' standing for ability (effect estimates, −0.75 to −0.65) and affect (−0.83 to −0.65). Novel personal attributes were subject to strong contrast for ability (−0.5 to −0.6) and affect (−0.6 to −0.7). Dissimilarity priming was associated with contrast (−0.44 to −0.27; no publication bias), consistent with Mussweiler (2003). Similarity priming provided modest support for Collins (1996) and Mussweiler (2003), with very weak assimilation effects, depending on the publication bias estimator. Studies including control groups indicated effects in response to upward and downward targets were comparable in size and contrastive. Limitations of the literature (e.g., small number of studies including no-comparison control conditions), unresolved issues, and why people choose to compare upward when the most likely result is self-deflating contrast are discussed.
Public Significance Statement
This article summarizes 60+ years of social comparison research and shows that people generally choose to compare with people who are superior to them in some way, even in the presence of threat to self-esteem, and that these comparisons tend to result in worsened mood and lower ability appraisal. Comparisons with proximal persons and on novel dimensions heighten these effects.
Brain-Inspired Search Engine Assistant Based on Knowledge Graph Zhao, Xuejiao; Chen, Huanhuan; Xing, Zhenchang ...
IEEE transaction on neural networks and learning systems,
2023-Aug., 2023-Aug, 2023-8-00, 20230801, Letnik:
34, Številka:
8
Journal Article
Search engines can quickly respond to a hyperlink list according to query keywords. However, when a query is complex, developers need to repeatedly refine search keywords and open a large number of ...web pages to find and summarize answers. Many research works of question and answering (Q&A) system attempt to assist search engines by providing simple, accurate, and understandable answers. However, without original semantic contexts, these answers lack explainability, making them difficult for users to trust and adopt. In this article, a brain-inspired search engine assistant named DeveloperBot based on knowledge graph is proposed, which aligns to the cognitive process of humans and has the capacity to answer complex queries with explainability. Specifically, DeveloperBot first constructs a multilayer query graph by splitting a complex multiconstraint query into several ordered constraints. Then, it models a constraint reasoning process as a subgraph search process inspired by a spreading activation model of cognitive science. In the end, novel features of the subgraph are extracted for decision-making. The corresponding reasoning subgraph and answer confidence are derived as explanations. The results of the decision-making demonstrate that DeveloperBot can estimate answers and answer confidences with high accuracy. We implement a prototype and conduct a user study to evaluate whether and how the direct answers and the explanations provided by DeveloperBot can assist developers' information needs.
The Challenge of Abstract Concepts Borghi, Anna M; Binkofski, Ferdinand; Castelfranchi, Cristiano ...
Psychological bulletin,
03/2017, Letnik:
143, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Abstract concepts ("freedom") differ from concrete ones ("cat"), as they do not have a bounded, identifiable, and clearly perceivable referent. The way in which abstract concepts are represented has ...recently become a topic of intense debate, especially because of the spread of the embodied approach to cognition. Within this framework concepts derive their meaning from the same perception, motor, and emotional systems that are involved in online interaction with the world. Most of the evidence in favor of this view, however, has been gathered with regard to concrete concepts. Given the relevance of abstract concepts for higher-order cognition, we argue that being able to explain how they are represented is a crucial challenge that any theory of cognition needs to address. The aim of this article is to offer a critical review of the latest theories on abstract concepts, focusing on embodied ones. Starting with theories that question the distinction between abstract and concrete concepts, we review theories claiming that abstract concepts are grounded in metaphors, in situations and introspection, and in emotion. We then introduce multiple representation theories, according to which abstract concepts evoke both sensorimotor and linguistic information. We argue that the most promising approach is given by multiple representation views that combine an embodied perspective with the recognition of the importance of linguistic and social experience. We conclude by discussing whether or not a single theoretical framework might be able to explain all different varieties of abstract concepts.
A fundamental question in psychology and neuroscience is the extent to which cognitive and neural processes are specialised for social behaviour, or are shared with other ‘non-social’ cognitive, ...perceptual, and motor faculties. Here we apply the influential framework of Marr (1982) across research in humans, monkeys, and rodents to propose that information processing can be understood as ‘social’ or ‘non-social’ at different levels. We argue that processes can be socially specialised at the implementational and/or the algorithmic level, and that changing the goal of social behaviour can also change social specificity. This framework could provide important new insights into the nature of social behaviour across species, facilitate greater integration, and inspire novel theoretical and empirical approaches.
A central question in psychology and neuroscience is the extent to which social behaviour is subserved by dedicated processes or systems that are ‘socially specific’ or shared with other ‘non-social’ cognitive, perceptual, and motor faculties.We suggest that a process can be socially specific at different levels of explanation. This approach could help to clarify the role of mirror neurons in social contexts and whether social learning is uniquely ‘social’. Experimental design should be guided by an appreciation that social specificity is possible at different levels.Examining social behaviour across species can give unique clues about different implementations and algorithms. For example, converging evidence highlights the anterior cingulate gyrus as crucial for processing social implementations, and that ‘theory of mind’ is a putative social algorithm.
This study aims to analyze students' cognitive processes through minimum competency assessment questions. This study uses a qualitative research approach with a descriptive method to describe the ...mental process of students using minimum competency assessment questions that are carried out at the beginning of learning. The results showed that 13 out of 22 students could use previous knowledge and explain how they used it to understand the text, 21 could identify important and relevant ideas, and as many as 9 students were able to make realistic inferences and cite supporting evidence. Most students cannot yet think mathematically and can solve the given problems. This study also found that as many as 19 students were able to define all vocabulary and be able to explain it. Eighteen participants could not understand the multimodal text, and showed that 11 students were quite able to show how to understand the text even though it was incomplete. Teachers can use this data for initial data as a reference for implementing learning strategies for future teaching.
The development of the ability to categorize speech sounds is often viewed as occurring primarily during infancy via perceptual learning mechanisms. However, a number of studies suggest that even ...after infancy, children's categories become more categorical and well defined through about age 12. We investigated the cognitive changes that may be responsible for such development using a visual world paradigm experiment based on (McMurray, Tanenhaus, & Aslin, 2002). Children from 3 age groups (7-8, 12-13, and 17-18 years) heard a token from either a b/p or s/∫ continua spanning 2 words (beach/peach, ship/sip) and selected its referent from a screen containing 4 pictures of potential lexical candidates. Eye movements to each object were monitored as a measure of how strongly children were committing to each candidate as perception unfolds in real-time. Results showed an ongoing sharpening of speech categories through 18, which was particularly apparent during the early stages of real-time perception. When analysis targeted to specifically within-category sensitivity to continuous detail, children exhibited increasingly gradient categories over development, suggesting that increasing sensitivity to fine-grained detail in the signal enables these more discrete categorizations. Together these suggest that speech development is a protracted process in which children's increasing sensitivity to within-category detail in the signal enables increasingly sharp phonetic categories.
People must often wait for important but uncertain outcomes, like medical results or job offers. During such uncertain waiting periods, there is uncertainty around an outcome that people have minimal ...control over. Uncertainty makes these periods emotionally challenging, raising the possibility that emotion regulation strategies may have different effects while people wait for an uncertain outcome versus after they learn that outcome. To test this possibility, we conducted secondary analyses of an experience sampling study following 101 Belgian University students for 9 days as they waited for (uncertain period), and then received (certain period), consequential exam grades. Across 8,275 observations, we tested the effects of six emotion regulation strategies on positive and negative emotions about anticipated, and then actual, grades. Regardless of uncertainty, acceptance was consistently beneficial for short-term emotional well-being, and expressive suppression was consistently detrimental. However, the consequences of rumination, social sharing, and reappraisal differed when the outcome was uncertain versus certain. Rumination was more detrimental to short-term emotional well-being during the uncertain than certain period, while social sharing and reappraisal were detrimental in the uncertain period but beneficial in the certain period. These findings suggest uncertainty moderates the short-term effectiveness of some emotion regulation strategies in an academic context, which may exacerbate the emotional challenges of uncertain waiting periods. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)
The current article addresses the consequences of emotion regulation (ER) for mental health. A large body of research has shown that alterations in ER are related to psychological disorders across ...different diagnostic categories. Because of the apparent ubiquity of ER difficulties in psychopathology, several authors have proposed that ER should be regarded as a transdiagnostic process. This article critically examines evidence regarding alterations in the use of cognitive ER strategies as a transdiagnostic process. Cognitive ER strategies are examined as 1 example of several possible ER-related processes that could be involved in psychopathology. There is consistent evidence showing that a reduced use of cognitive reappraisal and an increased use of negative rumination are present across a number of disorders, whereas increased levels of positive rumination appear to be confined to bipolar disorder. However, there is only preliminary evidence from prospective and/or experimental studies on the causal nature of altered ER strategy use in the development or maintenance of psychopathology. The article concludes by discussing future directions, including methodological and design issues, as well as implications for assessment and treatment when studying alterations in ER from a transdiagnostic perspective.
Spontaneous mind-wandering has been theorized to increase susceptibility for rumination, contributing to risk for major depressive disorder (MDD). Clarifying whether—and under what ...circumstances—mind-wandering leads to rumination could inform the development of targeted interventions to reduce risk for ruminative sequelae. Using intensively sampled data in 44 young adults with remitted MDD and 38 healthy volunteers with 1,558 total observations collected from 2018 to 2022, we conducted multilevel models to investigate temporal relationships between mind-wandering and rumination. Contextual factors (e.g., intensity of negative affect; momentary impulsivity) and individual factors (e.g., MDD history) were examined as moderators of these relationships. Mind-wandering predicted increased rumination, whereas rumination did not predict increased mind-wandering. When individuals experienced greater negative affect or acted more impulsively compared to their usual levels, they showed a stronger relationship between mind-wandering and subsequent rumination. Depression history did not significantly moderate temporal relationships between mind-wandering and rumination. Spontaneous mind-wandering may transition into rumination, particularly during moments when people experience more negative affect or impulsivity compared to usual. Delivering interventions in these moments could reduce risk for ruminative sequelae. The tendency to ruminate in response to mind-wandering is suggested to be consistent regardless of depression history, suggesting the transdiagnostic and dimensional nature of rumination as a possible consequence of mind-wandering. Future work is needed to determine whether these associations are generalizable across the lifespan. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)
PDF
