Implicit Bias Predicts Liking of Ingroup Members Who Are Comfortable With Intergroup Interaction.

We test a novel framework for how ingroup members are perceived during intergroup interaction. Across three experiments, we found that, above and beyond egalitarian attitudes and motivations, White observers' automatic responses to Blacks (i.e., their implicit anti-Black bias) shaped their affiliation toward ingroup targets who appeared comfortable engaging in interracial versus same-race interaction. White observers' implicit anti-Black bias negatively correlated with liking of White targets who were comfortable with Blacks (Experiments 1-3). The relationship between implicit bias and liking varied as a function of targets' nonverbal comfort in interracial interactions (Experiment 1). Specifically, implicit bias negatively correlated with liking of targets when targets' nonverbal behaviors revealed observers felt comfortable with interracial contact, irrespective of the nature of those behaviors (Experiment 2). Finally, the relationship between implicit bias and target liking was mediated by perceived similarity (Experiment 3). Theoretical implications for stigma-by-association, social network homogeneity, and extended contact are discussed

Development of Social Exclusion Detection: Behavioral and Physiological Correlates

The present work aimed to directly test the theoretical claims about how we as human detect social exclusion using both physiological and behavioral methods across different life stages. Because feeling excluded from a group is a common human experience that starts in early childhood, this basic human need to belong or connect with others is argued to be universal and thought to have an evolutionary basis. In fact, it has been argued that the ability to detect being excluded may be present from birth and detecting exclusion occurs rapidly with little cognitive processing. Study 1 tested whether this rapid detection of exclusion is reflected in pupil dilation and how discerning this signal is of the social nature of exclusion. Study 2 tested how social exclusion detection emerges across the preschool years using both verbal and nonverbal measures. Findings from Study 1 indicate that greater pupil dilation occurs when viewing exclusive individuals compared to inclusive individuals, regardless of whether participants were excluded by human players or non-human computerized players. Furthermore, pupil dilation occurred even when viewing third-party social exclusion, suggesting pupil dilation was sensitive to even exclusion that participants did not necessarily experience themselves. The magnitude of pupil dilation to exclusion was not correlated to self-reported distress levels or individual differences in rejection sensitivity. The present study is the first to show that social pain response — as indexed by pupil dilation — occurs even in non-social interactions and is not limited to first-hand experiences. This result supports the hypothesized “quick” and “crude” ostracism detection system: physiological arousal to exclusion appears to be independent of the social nature of exclusion. Thus, social pain from exclusion appears to reflect the high sensitivity to detect any instances of exclusion. Findings from Study 2 indicate that that even 3-year-old children could detect social exclusion, but their ability to detect and respond to social exclusion improves with age. Strikingly, children were able to detect social exclusion occurred regardless of whether exclusion was verbally communicated (explicit) or nonverbally communicated (implicit). Furthermore, contrary to expectations from previous research on social cognitive reasoning in infancy, young children’s nonverbal responses (i.e., preferences and sharing behavior) did not necessarily reflect detection of exclusion at an earlier age than their verbal responses. Children’s preferences closely matched their verbal distinction of exclusive and inclusive agents and both preferences and verbal reasoning appeared to mature at a similar rate across development. Such finding suggests that children show remarkably early emerging ability to notice when one is left out. Taken together, the present body of work clarified the physiological component behind ostracism detection and the developmental trajectory of social exclusion detection in early childhood. Findings from this work have important methodological implications for the field of developmental social cognition as well as practical and clinical implications of bullying and atypical social development

Lying takes time : a meta-analysis on reaction time measures of deception

Lie detection techniques are frequently used, but most of them have been criticized for the lack of empirical support for their predictive validity and presumed underlying mechanisms. This situation has led to increased efforts to unravel the cognitive mechanisms underlying deception and to develop a comprehensive theory of deception. A cognitive approach to deception has reinvigorated interest in reaction time (RT) measures to differentiate lies from truths and to investigate whether lying is more cognitively demanding than truth telling. Here, we provide the results of a meta-analysis of 114 studies (n = 3307) using computerized RT paradigms to assess the cognitive cost of lying. Results revealed a large standardized RT difference, even after correction for publication bias (d = 1.049; 95% CI [0.930; 1.169]), with a large heterogeneity amongst effect sizes. Moderator analyses revealed that the RT deception effect was smaller, yet still large, in studies in which participants received instructions to avoid detection. The autobiographical Implicit Association Test produced smaller effects than the Concealed Information Test, the Sheffield Lie Test, and the Differentiation of Deception paradigm. An additional meta-analysis (17 studies, n = 348) showed that, like other deception measures, RT deception measures are susceptible to countermeasures. Whereas our meta-analysis corroborates current cognitive approaches to deception, the observed heterogeneity calls for further research on the boundary conditions of the cognitive cost of deception. RT-based measures of deception may have potential in applied settings, but countermeasures remain an important challenge

Anxiety and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in the Context of Human Brain Evolution:A Role for Theory in DSM-V?

The “hypervigilance, escape, struggle, tonic immobility”\ud evolutionarily hardwired acute peritraumatic response\ud sequence is important for clinicians to understand. Our\ud commentary supplements the useful article on human\ud tonic immobility (TI) by Marx, Forsyth, Gallup, Fusé and Lexington (2008). A hallmark sign of TI is peritraumatic\ud tachycardia, which others have documented as a\ud major risk factor for subsequent posttraumatic stress\ud disorder (PTSD). TI is evolutionarily highly conserved\ud (uniform across species) and underscores the need for\ud DSM-V planners to consider the inclusion of evolution\ud theory in the reconceptualization of anxiety and PTSD.\ud We discuss the relevance of evolution theory to the\ud DSM-V reconceptualization of acute dissociativeconversion\ud symptoms and of epidemic sociogenic disorder(epidemic “hysteria”). Both are especially in need of attention in light of the increasing threat of terrorism\ud against civilians. We provide other pertinent examples.\ud Finally, evolution theory is not ideology driven (and\ud makes testable predictions regarding etiology in “both\ud directions”). For instance, it predicted the unexpected\ud finding that some disorders conceptualized in DSM-IV-TR as innate phobias are conditioned responses and thus better conceptualized as mild forms of PTSD. Evolution\ud theory may offer a conceptual framework in\ud DSM-V both for treatment and for research on psychopathology.\u

Enhancing Parent-Child Communication and Parental Self-Esteem With a Video-Feedback Intervention: Outcomes With Prelingual Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

Evidence on best practice for optimizing communication with prelingual deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children is lacking. This study examined the effect of a family-focused psychosocial video intervention program on parent–child communication in the context of childhood hearing loss. Fourteen hearing parents with a prelingual DHH child (Mage = 2 years 8 months) completed three sessions of video interaction guidance intervention. Families were assessed in spontaneous free play interactions at pre and postintervention using the Emotional Availability (EA) Scales. The Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale was also used to assess parental report of self-esteem. Compared with nontreatment baselines, increases were shown in the EA subscales: parental sensitivity, parental structuring, parental nonhostility, child responsiveness, and child involvement, and in reported self-esteem at postintervention. Video-feedback enhances communication in families with prelingual DHH children and encourages more connected parent–child interaction. The results raise implications regarding the focus of early intervention strategies for prelingual DHH children

'I know how I feel': listening to young people with life-limiting conditions who have learning and communication impairments

UK government policy advocates involving children in decisions about their lives. However, disabled children are often marginalized and not consulted, especially those with learning and communication impairments. Drawing on an ongoing English Government funded longitudinal study exploring different groups of service users' choices, this article demonstrates the important contribution that qualitative research methods, especially non-traditional methods, can procure when working with young people who are non-verbal or have limited speech. Working with young people with life-limiting conditions raises some specific challenges for researchers. Here, adapting project wide materials and research methods in order to gain some thematic continuity across different service user groups. Some of these considerations and challenges will be discussed, especially the development of non-verbal forms of communication (talking matsTM). Practical experiences, both positive and negative will be examined. The article concludes by considering some wider implications of using symbols based methods for future research and how these methods can be used across disciplines and by practitioners in their everyday work