Deliberate Response Falsification on Corresponding Subtests of Two Tests of Intelligence: Indicators for Simulating Mental Retardation

Among concerns inherent in psychological testing is the possibility that examinees might perform less than accurately or honestly when responding to test items (Lezak, 1983). In context of some legal proceedings, individuals may stand to gain by performing poorly on physiological tests (Anastasti, 1988). For example, defendants could attempt to falsify their answers to impersonate an individual with mental retardation for the purpose of raising issues of incompetence to stand trial, nonresponsibility, or mitigation. In some states, a finding of mental retardation may mean the difference between a life sentence and execution for a defendant convicted of a capital crime. The validity and reliability of intelligence testing instruments are of vital importance in determining the existence of mental retardation. The purpose of this study was to examine the possibility that subjects could deliberately and successfully falsify responses on corresponding subtests of two major intelligence tests, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scalre-Revised (WAIS-R) (Whechsler, 1981) and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (SB:FE) (Thorndike, Hagen, and Sattler, 1986a) to simulate the existence of mental retardation. Subjects were administered and Comprehension subtests from both the WAIS-R and the SB:FE and instructed to perform less accurately and less honestly than their capabilities naturally provide. A control procedure was also administered. Corresponding standardized scores (Normal Curve Equivalency [NCE]) were compared for significant differences using a one-factor, repeated measure ANOVA. Latency periods recorded and analyzed using descriptive statistics an an ANOVA, and qualitative data obtained in debriefing sessions were also reported. Statistical analyses indicated that subjects were unable to score similarly on both tests when simulating mental retardation (

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements