Journal

Volume 8, Issue 1 (January 31, 2007)

4 articles

• On Apples and Oranges: Structural Alignment in the Selection of Social Comparison
  by Thomas Mussweiler & Dedre Gentner
  J. CS. 2007, 8(1), 1-38;
  Abstract The selection of social comparison standards is traditionally assumed to be guided by similarity between the self and the comparison standard. Despite the theoretical and empirical prominence of this similarity hypothesis, however, relatively little is known about the determinants of similarity in s... [Read more].
  Abstract The selection of social comparison standards is traditionally assumed to be guided by similarity between the self and the comparison standard. Despite the theoretical and empirical prominence of this similarity hypothesis, however, relatively little is known about the determinants of similarity in standard selection. To remedy this shortcoming we apply recent insights into the role structural alignment?a process of aligning interconnected relational structures of attributes?plays in similarity comparisons to the realm of social comparison. We propose that similarity in relational structures between individual attributes of the target and the standard critically determine which standard is selected for comparison. Consistent with this assumption, Studies 1 and 2 show that inducing a specific relational structure in participants’ accessible self-knowledge leads them to select social comparison standards with similar structures. In addition, Study 3 suggests that similarity in relational structures may be a stronger determinant of standard selection than similarity in isolated features. We suggest that a consideration of structural alignment processes may lead to new insights in social comparison theory. [Collapse]
• Children’s understanding of intentional vs. non-intentional action
  by Livia Colle, Davide Mate, Marco Del Giudice, Chris Ashwin, & Simon Baron-Cohen
  J. CS. 2007, 8(1), 39-68;
  Abstract This study investigates the development of children’s understanding of others’ intentions. We report 3 experiments in which three- and five-year-olds (total sample: N = 120) were tested using 15 videotaped pairs of action sequences excluding social information from the face. In each pair of videos t... [Read more].
  Abstract This study investigates the development of children’s understanding of others’ intentions. We report 3 experiments in which three- and five-year-olds (total sample: N = 120) were tested using 15 videotaped pairs of action sequences excluding social information from the face. In each pair of videos the same action was performed with and without an intention (e.g. John pours water, vs. John spills water). Results showed that five-year-olds were more accurate in distinguishing intentional from non-intentional actions, while threeyear- olds were significantly worse at understanding non-intentional actions. Three year olds tended to judge non-intentional actions as being intentional, suggesting, as Piaget proposed, they over-ascribe intentionality. This effect was found both in a verbal and non-verbal version of the task. Therefore the development of mental state explanations of actions may involve a gradual increase across preschool ages. [Collapse]
• Sentence Processing in Late Bilinguals: Comprehension of Form and Meaning
  by Sara Sepanski & P¡ng Li
  J. CS. 2007, 8(1), 69-89;
  Abstract Research in sentence comprehension has shown that monolingual speakers are able to accurately detect meaning changes but less able to detect structural changes in sentences. In this study we ask whether this monolingual pattern holds for bilingual speakers in reading comprehension in a second langua... [Read more].
  Abstract Research in sentence comprehension has shown that monolingual speakers are able to accurately detect meaning changes but less able to detect structural changes in sentences. In this study we ask whether this monolingual pattern holds for bilingual speakers in reading comprehension in a second language. English-Spanish bilinguals at different proficiency levels participated in a task in which sentences from native and second languages were presented. Recognition was tested on sentences that were either identical to the original sentences, or were changed in meaning or form from the originals. Results confirm a significant main effect of change type and the effects of interaction between language, change type, and proficiency. The results are discussed in light of models of bilingual lexical processing and sentence comprehension. [Collapse]
• Context Effects in Lexical Ambiguity Processing in Chinese: A Meta-Analysis
  by Jia Guo, Hua Shu, & P¡ng Li
  J. CS. 2007, 8(1), 91-107;
  Abstract Context effects in lexical ambiguity processing have been extensively examined in various languages including Chinese. A meta-analysis was performed on seven studies conducted in Chinese in order to determine how the Chinese data as a whole agree or disagree with previous findings in other languages... [Read more].
  Abstract Context effects in lexical ambiguity processing have been extensively examined in various languages including Chinese. A meta-analysis was performed on seven studies conducted in Chinese in order to determine how the Chinese data as a whole agree or disagree with previous findings in other languages. All seven studies reviewed in our analysis used the priming technique to determine the degree of activation of alternative meanings of an ambiguous word in sentence context. The analysis reveals a small but consistent effect of context on lexical access: the contextually appropriate interpretation of a word consistently shows greater priming than the inappropriate interpretation. We further show that sentence contexts interact closely with the meaning frequency of an ambiguous word. We also identify variables in these studies such as length of context and timing of presentation that could influence the strength of the context effect. [Collapse]