The effects of orthographic neighborhood in reading and laboratory word identification tasks: A review

This paper reviews recent research on the effects of “orthographic neighbors” (i.e., words that can be created by changing one letter of the stimulus item, preserving letter positions, see Coltheart et al., 1977) on reading and laboratory word identification tasks. We begin this paper with a literature review on the two basic “neighborhood” effects (neighborhood size and neighborhood frequency). This review shows that the number of higher frequency neighbors is inhibitory in reading. We also examine the influence of orthographic structure in form- and repetition-priming effects, which again suggests that orthographic neighbors seem to play an inhibitory role in the selection process. Finally, we discuss the empirical evidence in the context of current models of visual word recognition and reading.Psicologí

The frequency effect for pseudowords in the lexical decision task

Four experiments were designed to investigate whether the frequency of words used to create pseudowords plays an important role in lexical decision. Computational models of the lexical decision task (e.g., the dual route cascaded model and the multiple read-out model) predict that latencies to low-frequency pseudowords should be faster than latencies to high-frequency pseudowords. Consistent with this prediction, results showed that when the pseudowords were created by replacing one internal letter of the base word (Experiments 1 and 3), high-frequency pseudowords yielded slower latencies than low-frequency pseudowords. However, this effect occurred only in the leading edge of the response time (RT) distributions. When the pseudowords were created by transposing two adjacent internal letters (Experiment 2), high-frequency pseudowords produced slower latencies in the leading edge and in the bulk of the RT distributions. These results suggest that transposed-letter pseudowords may be more similar to their base words than replacement-letter pseudowords. Finally, when participants performed a go/no-go lexical decision task with one-letter different pseudowords (Experiment 4), high-frequency pseudowords yielded substantially faster latencies than low-frequency pseudowords, which suggests that the lexical entries of high-frequency words can be verified earlier than the lexical entries of low-frequency words. The implications of these results for models of word recognition and lexical decision are discussedPsicologí

Use of Impedance Spectroscopy for the Characterization of the Microstructure of Alkali Activated SiMn Slag: Influence of Activator and Time Evolution

The impedance spectroscopy technique has been used to study the microstructure of the binder resulting from the alkaline activation of SiMn slag. Two alkaline activators were used: waterglass and NaOH. Three different concentrations were analysed for both activators: 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0% Na2O for NaOH; and 4.0, 4.5 and 5.0% Na2O for waterglass with a constant SiO2/Na2O ratio of 1.0. The time evolution of the microstructure has been followed up using the non-destructive technique of impedance spectroscopy. This technique has been proved to be effective describing the microstructural changes in alkali activated pastes, and also can help predicting the mechanical behavior of mortars. The use of the resistivity itself seems to be deficient, but the analysis of the electrical parameters calculated from the impedance spectra measured gives a complete idea of the evolution in the material.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. The paper is founded by the research project granted by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation for project funding (PID2020-118322RB-I00) through the “Programa Estatal de I + D + i Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad” included in the “Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2017–2020”

Religious self-definition, mass attendance, importance of God, and hopelessness among spanish undergraduates.

The aim of this work was to examine the relationship between religious self-definition, attending Mass, the importance of God, and hopelessness under the hy-pothesis that these religious variables and hopelessness are negatively related. The par-ticipants were 273 Spanish undergraduates who were incidentally recruited. and who completed three religious items and the Spanish version of a Hopelessness Scale. The Chi-squared test and Bonferroni test were used in the statistical analysis. The results indicate that there were no statistically significant differences between the religious self-definition and attending Mass groups in relation to hopelessness, whereas there were differences between groups in the variable importance of God; this is not consis-tent with the findings of previous studies. We discuss the limitations of the study, offer suggestions for future research, and indicate the need to distinguish between the diverse aspects of religiosity to better explain their implications regarding hopelessness.El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar la relación entre la autodefinición religiosa, la asistencia a Misa, la importancia de Dios y la desesperanza. La hipótesis afirma que las variables religiosas y la desesperanza están negativamente relacionadas. Participan 273 estudiantes universitarios españoles reclutados incidentalmente, los cuales cumplimentan tres ítems religiosos y una versión española de la Escala de Desesperanza. Se utilizan los estadísticos Chi-Cuadrado y Bonferroni. Los resultados indican que los distintos grupos de autodefinición religiosa y de asistencia a Misa no se relacionan con diferencias significativas en desesperanza, mientras que en la variable importancia de Dios sí existen diferencias entre grupos, diferencias que no se ajustan a lo hallado en estudios anteriores. Se observan las limitaciones del estudio, se ofrecen sugerencias para futuras investigaciones y la necesidad de distinguir entre los distintos aspectos de la religiosidad, con el fin de precisar mejor sus implicaciones sobre la desesperanza.Psicologí

Does narrator variability facilitate incidental word learning in the classroom?

Recent studies have revealed that presenting novel words across various contexts (i.e., contextual diversity) helps to consolidate the meaning of these words both in adults and children. This effect has been typically explained in terms of semantic distinctiveness (e.g., Semantic Distinctiveness Model, Jones et al., Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, 66(2), 115, 2012). However, the relative influence of other, non-semantic, elements of the context is still unclear. In this study, we examined whether incidental learning of new words in children was facilitated when the words were uttered by several individuals rather than when they were uttered by the same individual. In the learning phase, the to-be-learned words were presented through audible fables recorded either by the same voice (low diversity) or by different voices (high diversity). Subsequently, word learning was assessed through two orthographic and semantic integration tasks. Results showed that words uttered by different voices were learned better than those uttered by the same voice. Thus, the benefits of contextual diversity in word learning extend beyond semantic differences among contexts; they also benefit from perceptual differences among contexts.Psicologí

Medida de la integración del conocimiento estadístico y psicológico

En un estudio empírico llevado a cabo en condiciones de clase, tres grupos de universitarios completaron ejercicios de diseño experimental realizados sobre descripciones de investigaciones con contenido psicológico, ejercicios abstractos o ejercicios de cálculo. Los tres grupos recibían la misma clase teórica y eran esencialmente iguales. En este contexto se intentó una comparación entre el escalamiento del conocimiento obtenido por análisis de trayectorias (pathfinder) o por escalamiento multidimensional contra una aplicación nueva consistente en aplicar el modelo politómico de crédito parcial generalizado. Los resultados mostraron que este último era claramente superior a los dos primeros, detectando diferencias significativas antes y después del examen de la asignatura. Los resultados se discuten en relación con la posibilidad de transferencia del conocimiento entre dominios

Parents' Perceptions and Experiences with Their Children's Use of Augmentative/Alternative Communication: A Systematic Review and Qualitative Meta-Synthesis

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) consists of any method of communicating that supplements or completely substitutes oral and/or written language when it is impaired. Therefore, it enables children with complex communication needs to develop their full communicative potential. However, despite the many benefits of AAC and its widespread use, several review studies have underscored the problems faced by parents and children who use AAC in their daily lives. The general objective of this systematic review and qualitative meta-synthesis is to provide a complete overview of parents' experiences and perceptions with their children's use of AAC. Specifically, it aimed to identify common themes and subthemes of interest and to analyze the research quality of the selected studies. An exhaustive literature search was carried out using different electronic databases. Nineteen studies were included, involving 297 parents. A thematic synthesis was undertaken. Three main themes and nine subthemes were identified: service support (accessibility, providers and coordination); characteristics of AAC systems (usability and acceptability, features, cost and funding); and integration of AAC in daily life (family, school, social and community). Findings raise a need for more services that support children with complex communication deficits in different contexts, more functional use of AAC systems at school and in real-world situations, as well as service assistance over an extended time period

Wearables, IoT, and Big Data: The new revolution in cognitive science

A new revolution in cognitive science is now possible thanks to portable devices enabled to measure physiological variables non-intrusively, the Internet of Things that allows information to be collected and stored in real time from different locations, and big data techniques for identifying patterns that can be used to make decisions, predict behavior or create machine learning and artificial intelligence models. Research supported by these technologies will provide valuable insights into the impact that environmental circumstances have on the cognitive processes involved in different tasks, and how this can be detected through biological markers

Sobre la relevancia de la tipografía en la lectura de palabras

La palabra escrita ha marcado la diferencia entre la prehistoria y la historia. En las lenguas alfabéticas, la forma de las letras ha ido evolucionando, desde las mayúsculas a las minúsculas, y desde las fuentes góticas o serif (con ornamentos) a las fuentes sans serif (v.g., letras en las señales de tráfico). Los modelos de reconocimiento de palabras suelen obviar los aspectos de corte tipográfico, a pesar de su notable influencia. En este trabajo presentamos dos estudios que muestran la ventaja del empleo de fuentes sans serif vs. serif, y de las palabras en minúsculas frente a las mayúsculas.Psicologí

Distress intolerance and pain catastrophizing as mediating variables in PTSD and chronic noncancer pain comorbidity.

Objectives: Several studies have demonstrated posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic pain comorbidity. However, there is a lack of research on the psychological variables that might explain their co-occurrence. We investigated the mediating role of distress intolerance and pain catastrophizing in this relationship. Methods: A moderated mediation model was tested. The sample comprised 114 individuals with chronic noncancer pain (90 women and 24 men; mean age, of 60.04 years [SD=9.76]). Results: Catastrophizing had a significant effect on PTSD. Distress intolerance mediated catastrophizing and PTSD, and pain intensity moderated this relationship. Conclusions: New insights are provided into the psychological variables that may explain PTSD and chronic noncancer pain comorbidity