Cognitive Psychology Commons^™

Influence Of Planning Resources On Gait Control In Parkinson’S Disease, Frederico P. Faria

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Movement disturbances in individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD) have been associated with difficulties to plan complex actions. Performance of simple and complex actions overloads resources for individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, it is unclear if central resources required to plan gait adjustments while walking exacerbate gait disturbances of patients with PD. More specifically, it is unclear how gait impairments, sensory processing, and the dopaminergic system influence the load on processing resources (e.g. cognitive load) during the planning of step modifications. In order to investigate the relative influence of these factors on cognitive load and its impact on gait control, …

Connecting To Others: Studying The Relationship Between Social Exclusion And Imitation, Sarah K. Blyth

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Automatic imitation (AI) refers to the subconscious tendency we have to imitate an observed action, even when that action is irrelevant to or interferes with an action we are attempting to execute (Heyes, 2011; Brass et al., 2000). Human beings display a fundamental need to stay meaningfully connected to others, also known as the need to belong. Previous research shows that an experience of rejection can reduce one’s feelings of connectedness to others (Legate et al., 2013), and that behaviours such as non-conscious mimicry (NCM) increase after being excluded as a possible means of re-affiliation (Lakin et al., 2008). It …

An Investigation Of The Increased Reliance On Familiarity In Associative Recognition Of Unitized Compound Word Pairs, Fahad Naveed Ahmad

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Unitization refers to when two components are integrated or combined into a single unit. So the whole is more familiar than the parts (Graf & Schacter, 1989). Previous researchers have shown unitization of unrelated word pairs can occur by the use of compound definition. As support, they have found unitization to increase reliance on familiarity in associative recognition. The purpose of this PhD dissertation was to examine the effects of unitization of preexperimental associations on associative recognition. The effects of associative recognition of unitized compound word (CW) pairs can serve as a useful benchmark to compare to that of other …

Time, Perspectives, Verbs, And Imagining Events, Jeffrey P. Hong

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

During the processing of verbs, readers form internal representations of the events described by those verbs. Two key elements in the construction of event representations are temporal information, given by the verbs that describe the represented events, and the visual perspective from which the events are represented. The current study is composed of two experiments aimed at examining the roles these two factors play in event representation. Specifically, the study aimed to determine how temporal information and visual perspective are represented during event imagination.

Experiment 1 investigated the role of temporal information associated with verbs, given by grammatical aspect (GA) …

A Heart-Based Sufi Mindfulness Spiritual Practice Employing Self-Journeying, Faruk Arslan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Spiritual Psychology is the study and practice of the art and science of the human evolution of consciousness. The heart occupies an important place in Sufism and is considered to contain the divine spark that leads to spiritual realization. Fethullah Gülen’s action-oriented Sufi methods described in his book series “The Emerald Hills of the Heart” provides the basis for a heart-based therapeutic intervention through self-journeying, which is the objective of this thesis. These self-purification and mindfulness-related transpersonal methods generate a form of treatment that is culturally sensitive. Through my reflections in this research, I transformed my personal experiences into …

Neural Mechanisms Of Interference And Storage In Vibrotactile Working Memory, Tyler D. Bancroft

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Vibrotactile working memory has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Substantial research into the neural correlates has been conducted, especially using single-cell paradigms in non-human primates (Romo & Salinas, 2003). The vibrotactile working memory system uses a relatively simple neural code for the representation of stimuli, making it possible to determine when stimulus information is present in the various cortical areas thought to be involved. In humans, vibrotactile working memory displays properties (such as overwriting mechanisms of interference) that make it an ideal system for testing general theories of working memory. In the present study, we demonstrate that vibrotactile working …

The Role Of Auditory Feedback On The Control Of Voice Fundamental Frequency (F0) While Singing, Dwayne Nicholas Keough

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Whether we are learning how to play a new instrument, song, or even learn a second language, the nervous system relies on various forms of sensory feedback to establish task-specific sensorimotor representations. Over time, the plasticity of the nervous system permits neural reorganization and the formation of an ‘internal model’. It has been suggested that internal models represent neural maps of skilled movement that store the relationship between the motor commands, environment and sensory feedback responsible for their production. These internal representations are often investigated by altering a particular aspect of the sensory feedback associated with a given task. Arguably …

Investigating The Relationship Between Motor Resonance And Nonconscious Mimicry, Jeremy Hogeveen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Motor resonance refers to the mirroring of observed actions in one’s own motor system. It is possible that motor resonance is the neural mechanism underlying nonconscious mimicry (NCM)—the ubiquitous phenomenon wherein people mimic the behaviour of interaction partners (Chartrand & Bargh, 1999). Previous research has shown that priming interdependent selfconstrual (interSC) increases mimicry (van Baaren et al., 2003). If motor resonance is the mechanism underlying NCM, then a manipulation known to facilitate mimicry (i.e. interSC) should increase motor resonance. In experiment one, we variably primed independent selfconstrual (indSC)—known to inhibit mimicryv—and interSC in a motor priming paradigm. Participants observed videos …

The Effects Of Associative Interference, Stimulus Type, And Item Familiarity On Associative Recognition Memory, Fahad Naveed Ahmad

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study investigated whether recognition memory requires two retrieval processes (i.e., familiarity and recognition) as stated by the Dual process theory or requires one retrieval process (i.e., familiarity) as stated by the Single process theory. The first experiment investigated the effects of A-B, A-C, A-D-, A-E interference on both word and picture pair recognition. As expected, it was found that a picture superiority effect was present in the baseline condition, but was reduced in the interference condition. Moreover, in the baseline condition, a non-mirror pattern (i.e., hits higher for picture pairs, but false alarm rates were the same) was present …

Event Syntax And Event Semantics As Constraints On Availability Of Discourse, Raymond B. Becker

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The understanding of how temporal information constrains situation models is far from complete. In tehse two experiments participants read short stories, where the antecedent sentence was manipulated with respect to varying tense, grammatical and lexical verb aspect (Experiment 1), and then by varying grammatical and lexical verb aspect in conjunction with long and short duration events (Experiment 2). We used electrophysiological measures time-locked to the anaphoric referent to investigate how the brain responds to these temporal constraints. The purpose was to investigate teh possibility that these variables have an influence on the availability of discourse concepts in situation models. In …

The Tactile Motion Aftereffect, Peggy Joanne Planetta

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The tactile motion aftereffect (tMAE) is a perceptual phenomenon in which illusory motion is reported following adaptation to a unidirectionally moving tactile stimulus. Unlike its visual counterpart, relatively little is known about the tMAE. For that reason, the purpose of this dissertation was to gain a better understanding of the tMAE using both psychophysical and neuroimaging techniques. In a series of five experiments the skin was adapted using a plastic cylinder with a square-wave patterned surface. Chapter 2 consists of two experiments, both of which adapted the glabrous surface of the right hand. Experiment 1 showed that the prevalence, duration, …

Pigeons’ Memory For Time: Assessment Of The Role Of Subjective Shortening In The Duration Of Comparison Procedure, Patrick Van Rooyen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In Experiment 1, pigeons were trained with a 1-s baseline s-c delay in a duration comparison procedure to peck one key if a comparison duration (c) was 1-s shorter than a standard duration (s), and another key if c was 1-s longer than s. The duration pairs used prevented pigeons from relying on the absolute duration of c on some trials (comparison common) while on other trials they could rely on the absolute duration of c (comparison unique). Pigeons were then tested with equal duration pairs at extended s-c delays of 1, 2, 4, and …

Trips Down Memory Lane: Recall Direction Affects The Subjective Distance Of Past Events, Kent C.H. Lam

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The subjective temporal distance of a past event—how close or far away it feels—is influenced by numerous factors apart from actual time. The present studies extend research on subjective distance by exploring the experience of remembering autobiographical events as part of a stream of related events. It is proposed that a key determinant of subjective distance is the temporal direction in which events are recalled. Five experiments supported the hypothesis that people feel closer to a target event when they recall a stream of related events in a backward direction (i.e., a reverse-chronological order ending with the target event) rather …

Hemispheric Sensitivity To Thematic Role Information Derived From Active And Passive Verbs: An Event Related Brain Potentials Study, Christopher A. Schwint

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Recent research examining differences in the way the left (LH) and right (RH) hemispheres of the brain process language have used the visual half-field (VHF) paradigm to examine whether each hemisphere can independently process information from sentences. The current study expanded upon such work by using event related brain potential (ERP) measures to examine how the comprehension of thematic role knowledge, a process essential to successful sentence comprehension (MacDonald, Pearlmutter, & Seidenbeerg, 1994), is undertaken in each hemisphere. During language comprehension, agents (entities that initiate action in an event) depicted by nouns (e.g., cop) have been shown to be associated …

Pigeons' Memory For Sequences Of Light Flashes When Gap Duration Is Controlled, Dwayne Keough

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In Experiment 1, pigeons were trained at a 1-s dark and a 1-s houselight illuminated delay interval to discriminate between sequences of two and four flashes of light (feeder illumination). These sequences could be discriminated on the basis of the number of flashes, the number of gaps, or the duration of the gap between flashes. A choose-few bias was obtained at extended dark delays, but no biased forgetting was observed at extended illuminated delays. The pigeons may have confused long dark delays with the longer gaps between flashes on few sample trials. In Experiment 2, additional sample sequences were included …

Children's Ability To Use Time-Lines To Recall The Order And Duration Of Single And Repeated Actions, Leanne Lynn Gosse

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study examined the ability of children aged 4-8 to recall temporal information verbally and using a visual 'time-line'. Forty-five children participated in an activity (making a picture of the sky at night) with the researcher, followed by a series of recall tasks. Children were asked to recall location, duration and sequencing information about single autobiographical events that parents provided, as well as single and repeated events from the activity. Results demonstrated developmental increases in children's ability to provide temporal information. The 7-8 year olds were always more accurate than the 5-6 year olds, followed by the 4 year olds. …

Biased Forgetting Effects In The Assessment Of Memory For Filled And Empty Intervals: Evidence For The Instructional Failure/Confusion Hypothesis, Stephen Gagne

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

According to the instructional failure hypothesis, the contextual similarity of the intertrial interval (ITI) and the delay interval (DI) is responsible for the choose-short bias that occurs when memory for filled intervals is tested. This hypothesis may also explain the choose-long bias for empty intervals, if birds confuse an extended DI with a long empty interval. In the present study, pigeons were trained in a within-subjects design to discriminate durations of a filled interval (2-s and 8-s of light), and durations of an empty interval (2-s and 8-s bound by two 1-s light markers). In order to disambiguate the ITI, …

Event Knowledge And The Subjective Temporal Distance Of Past Events, Travis Mcteer

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Three studies investigated a proposed relation between memory quality for past events and the subjective temporal distance of those events. The findings support the hypothesis that those events that are remembered more vividly and in greater detail tend to feel closer than more poorly remembered events. Studies 1 and 2 establish a correlational link between memory quality and subjective distance. Study 3 uses an experimental design to demonstrate that an individual's memory quality for a past event can affect his/her rating of the subjective distance of that event. The results are discussed in terms of the associations between feelings of …

Improving Preschoolers' Memories For The Sources Of Events: A Comparison Of Two Source-Monitoring Training Techniques, Francine M. Pilon

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Preschoolers have a tendency to confuse the sources of events when recalling information. Two source-monitoring training (SMT) techniques were compared to see whether source confusions can be reduced in 3- to 4-year-old children (N = 37). After watching a puppet-show and story, children were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: two SMT conditions (explicit and implicit) and one control condition (memory training) where they were trained on non-target puppet-show and story events. The explicit method consisted of a clear mention of both sources (story, puppet show) and their modality (hearing and seeing, respectively) during training, specific instruction to utilize …

French And English Word Reading And Word Decoding Performance In Bilingual Children: How Are Phonological Processing Skills Related?, Catherine Adèle Lafrance

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The French (L1) and English (L2) reading development of bilingual children in French schools was examined using measures of oral language proficiency, letter-name and letter-sound knowledge, phonological processing (phonological awareness, naming speed and working memory), and word decoding over an eight month period. At Time 1 (Senior Kindergarten), a series of multiple regressions indicated that, when controlling for oral language proficiency, letter name knowledge and non-verbal reasoning, L1 phonological awareness was the only consistent and unique predictor of French and English word reading and word decoding performance. At Time 2 (Grade 1), French and English phonological awareness were consistent and …

Motivated Prediction Of Future Feelings: The Effects Of Mood And Mood Focus On Affective Forecasts, Vassili Spyropoulos

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

People often predict they will experience more positive or more negative emotional reactions to upcoming pleasant and unpleasant events respectively, than they actually do. Although researchers have identified several cognitive processes underlying this bias in affective forecasting, the present research examined the role of motivational factors. We proposed that people sometimes generate relatively positive affective forecasts to fixture positive events (or less negative affective forecasts to future negative events) as a mood regulation strategy. That is, they may attempt to cope with threatening negative feelings by anticipating pleasant emotions in the future. More specific hypotheses were derived from recent research …

Investigating Interactions Between Search Mechanisms In The Control Of Visual Attention, Brian J. White

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Olds, Cowan and Jolicoeur (2000) showed that although the mechanisms underlying visual search have traditionally been assumed to be independent. in fact they interact. Using coloured disk stimuli, they interrupted pop-out search (target plus Dl distractors) by adding more distractors (D2s) of a different colour to the display before pop-out processes were able to find the target. In short, partially completed pop-out processes facilitated subsequent difficult search processes (“search assistance"). The present study investigated hypotheses for this interaction. In Experiments 1 and 2, we used methods aimed at determining where the bulk of attentional resources are allocated during search of …

Errors In Pigeons' Memory For Number: Effects Of Iti And Di Illumination, Christopher W. Hope

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In Experiment 1 all pigeons were trained to discriminate 2 flashes of hopper light in 4 sec from 8 flashes in 4 sec, at a 0 sec delay. One group of pigeons experienced dark lTl’s (Group Dark) while the other experienced an illuminated lTl (Group Light). All birds were then tested with dark delays of 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 sec. Analysis showed a significant bias to respond to the comparison correct for small at extended delays, with no difference between groups. In Experiment 2 training was identical to that in Experiment l except that a 5 sec baseline …

Temporal Response Of The Human Visual System To Suprathreshold Luminance And Opponent Colour Contrast Gratings, Melanie Bucking

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The goal of the present study was to characterize the temporal processing of both suprathreshold luminance and opponent-colour defined contrast in the human visual system. We used a detection task in five experiments; following a 900 Hz, 2-cycle tone, observers were presented with a sinusoidal grating stimulus. The interval separating the waming tone and the presentation of the grating was manipulated to determine the influences of attentional dwell time in a cross-modal task. This theory states that the first of two successive events will interfere with the processing of the second event. In all four luminance experiments the gratings were …

Timing Differences: The Modality Effect And Filled Interval Illusion With Rats And Pigeons, Andrew Miki

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The theoretical implications of the Scalar Timing Theory (STT) and the Mixed Memory Model were used as a paradigm to investigate the effects of stimulus properties on the psychological representation of time. Experiment 1 failed to demonstrate a Modality Effect in two sets of psychophysical tests using filled and empty intervals. Experiment 2 provided no evidence for a Filled Interval Illusion but the results from the acquisition phase and psychophysical tests indicated that, on some trials, rats forgot the presentation of the first marker of an empty interval. In Experiment 3, an Empty Interval Illusion was reliably demonstrated in three …

Psychological Mechanisms Responsible For The Moderating Effects Of Need For Cognition On Attractiveness Stereotyping, Samantha D. Hansen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This thesis focuses on the psychological mechanisms responsible for the moderating role of need for cognition (NFC) in attractiveness stereotyping. Attractiveness stereotyping refers to the tendency to attribute more positive characteristics to attractive than to unattractive individuals. Recent research has found that people high in NFC show less of this attractiveness bias. The present research used two approaches to test the hypothesis that NFC moderates the bias because persons higher in NFC have greater motivation and ability to engage in systematic thought processes. First it included measures to assess the types of thoughts that participants high and low in NFC …

Evaluating Elaborative Interrogation's Efficacy With Expository Text, Rhonda Leah Boudreau

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study investigated whether elaborative interrogation would be an effective learning strategy with lengthy expository text. One hundred undergraduates (65 females and 35 males) comprised the study’s 5 groups: a) naturalistic elaborative interrogation, b) self-study, c) repetition, d) elaborative interrogation with pre-underlined main ideas; and, e) elaborative interrogation with pre-underlined main ideas plus structured ‘why’ questions. The expectation was that elaborative interrogation would prove to be a potent learning strategy relative to lower-order strategies (e.g., repetition); and that, when using expository text, students may require some supports to maximize the strategy’s gains. All students read an eight page passage on …

Assessing The Separate Contributions Of Recollection And Familiarity For The Mirror Effect: A Process Dissociation Approach, Elvin Dobani

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In four separate experiments, we employed Jacoby's (1991) process dissociation procedure (PDP) to evaluate the extent to which the mirror effect in recognition memory can be accounted for by recollection and In the first experiment, participants listened to two study lists of words, one in a female voice and the other in a male voice. Their memory for one set of words was gauged via an inclusion test, while their recognition of the other set was gauged via an exclusion test As predicted, a significant mirror effect was observed for both the inclusion and exclusion conditions, and the PDP recollection …

Changes In Environmental Context And The Mirror Effect In Recognition Memory, Craig Andrew Livermore

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The present study examined the effect of environmental context on the mirror effect in recognition memory. In seven experiments, participants studied either high (HF) and low-frequency (LF) or noun and nonnoun pairs of words followed in a old/new item recognition test by which proportion correct, response time, and confidence judgments were measured. Single item or word pair targets and distractors were presented in same- or different-context conditions. Context was defined as the unique combination of foreground and background colour and position on a computer screen for two experiments while position was removed as a context variable for five experiments due …

Attentional, Instructional, And Depth Effects On Retrieval Estimates, Jennifer Vonk

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Much evidence has been presented in support of the view that deeper levels of processing (DOP) during encoding lead to substantial increases in explicit memory performance. The effects of DOP on implicit memory performance have been much more controversial. We attempted to find evidence to support the idea that deeper processing may influence automatic retrieval processes and that contradictory findings from the process dissociation procedure (PDP) may have resulted from the underestimation of automatic retrieval. This underestimation would result when automatic (A) and conscious retrieval (C) processes are positively correlated rather than independent as the PDP model suggests. We found …