Persons with multiple disabilities often have limited functioning of their lower limbs and tend to spend large amounts of time sitting in a wheelchair. Efforts to enable some of these persons (that is, those who are in better overall physical condition) to make some use of their legs may involve the use of support walkers. The risk may be even…

Conditional directives are used by speakers to instruct hearers which actions are to be taken should certain events occur. The authors demonstrate that conditional directives are distinct from indicative conditionals in which speakers predict what is likely to be observed should certain events occur. The 1st set of experiments shows that goal…

In an associative learning preparation, the participants were given partial reinforcement (PRF) with two different cues. For one of the cues, the nonreinforced presentations consisted of pairings of the cue with a neutral outcome, whereas these presentations consisted of pairings with an aversive outcome for the other cue. The results showed that…

There is considerable evidence that in rats, the insular cortex (IC) and amygdala are involved in the learning and memory of aversively motivated tasks. The present experiments examined the effects of 8-Br-cAMP, an analog of cAMP, and oxotremorine, a muscarinic agonist, infused into the IC after inhibitory avoidance (IA) training and during the…

Although past research has highlighted the involvement of limbic structures such as the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and hippocampus in learning, few have addressed the nature of their interaction. The current study of rabbit jaw movement conditioning used a combination of reversible lesions and electrophysiology to examine the involvement of…

Voltage-gated potassium channels (Kv) are critically involved in learning and memory processes. It is not known, however, whether the expression of the Kv1.1 subunit, constituting Kv1 channels, can be specifically regulated in brain areas important for learning and memory processing. Radioactive in situ hybridization was used to evaluate the…

Applied theories in the development of self-instructional, audio-video courses at Florida Atlantic University are explored in this article. Development of intralanguage and extralanguage associations of "verbal context" is proposed as a means by which the student might achieve a desired verbal-operant repertoire through self-instruction. The…

Stress facilitates memory formation, but only when the stressor is closely linked to the learning context. These effects are, at least in part, mediated by corticosteroid hormones. Here we demonstrate that corticosterone rapidly facilitates synaptic potentiation in the mouse hippocampal CA1 area when high levels of the hormone and high-frequency…

Understanding the function of the distinct amygdaloid nuclei in learning comprises a major challenge. In the two studies described herein, we used c-Fos immunolabeling to compare the engagement of various nuclei of the amygdala in appetitive and aversive instrumental training procedures. In the first experiment, rats that had already acquired a…

FOCUSED HISTORICALLY AND CHOSEN TO STIMULATE RESEARCH IN PSYCHOSOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF ASTHMA, THE COLLECTION CONTAINS 18 PAPERS BY DIFFERENT AUTHORS. AREAS OF PSYCHOSOMATIC MEDICINE COVERED ARE (1) PRINCIPLES OF RESEARCH (ONE ARTICLE), (2) HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS, THEORETICAL MODELS, AND CORE PROBLEMS (THREE ARTICLES), AND (3) THE HYPOTHESIS,…

This study attempts to show that information about one aspect of test rationale affects performance in a predictable manner. (Author/DEP)

A comparison was made between the traditional counterconditioning paradigm and a self-control paradigm of systematic desensitization. College students reporting high test anxiety and indicating interest in receiving treatment were assigned to counterconditioning, self-control, or wait-list control conditions. As predicted, self-control procedures…

Studies the effectiveness of therapeutic modeling using dissimilar or similar models. Pre- and post-measures of fear were taken on behavioral and attitude dimensions. Behaviorally, model similarity in level of fear was unimportant, while similarity in age was. More similar models on either variable produced greater change in attitudes. (Author/SJL)

Three experiments investigating variables related to the assessment and therapeutic functions of self-recording are reported. Monetary reinforcement and subject motivation were variables that enhanced the accuracy of self-monitoring. Varying levels of feedback did not differentially affect accuracy. The implications of the findings are discussed.…

This study examines the modification of smoking behavior resulting from smoking on command of a tape-recorded message. Neither paced groups nor the self-paced control group significantly differed in reductions in smoking at six-month follow-up. Cognitive dissonance is suggested in explanation of initial smoking reductions for self-paced subjects.…