The capacity of fine vision of individual object is limited by the "bottleneck" of attention and working memory. Still, at every moment we see large collections of objects. What exactly happens to individual representations when the observer attempts to distribute attention between multiple objects? One view is that a fixed number of objects are represented with good fidelity while others are represented with poor fidelity. Another theory is that attention is evenly distributed among all objects but fidelity decreases as set size grows. This debate is one in the core of a theory of summary representation of multiple objects (Alvarez, 2011; Myczek & Simons, 2008). Here we directly tested how the capacity and fidelity change with set size. Participants were briefly shown sets of 1, 2, 4, or 8 circles of various sizes. Then, one of the circles increased or decreased in size by 2- 20% (change step 2%). The change was synchronized with a global background flash masking the local transient caused by the circle change. Observers had to respond whether they had seen an increment or decrement in any of the circles (2AFC). These manipulations rely on an assumption that one needs attention to the stimulus to spot a change (Rensink et al., 1997). Psychometric functions were fit using normal cumulative density functions. We found that the set size affects the probability of correct response at which the function reaches a plateau: the larger was a set size, the lower was such probability. The standard deviations of the functions typically associated with fidelity were relatively similar across set sizes within each observer. We conclude, therefore, that, when observers perceive multiple objects during a short time, they focus attention on a limited sample of items represented with the same fidelity, rather than evenly distribute it among all the objects.

This book consists of previously unpublished manuscripts by Vygotsky found in the first systematic study of Vygotsky’s family archive. The notebooks and scientific diaries gathered in this volume represent all periods of Vygotsky’s scientific life, beginning with the earliest manuscript, entitled The tragicomedy of strivings (1912), and ending with his last note, entitled Pro domo sua (1934), written shortly before his death. The notes reveal unknown aspects of the eminent psychologist’s personality, show his aspirations and interests, and allow us to gain insights into the development of his thinking and its internal dynamics. Several texts reflect the plans that Vygotsky was unable to realize during his lifetime, such as the creation of a theory of emotions and a theory of consciousness, others reveal Vygotsky’s involvement in activities that were previously unknown, and still others provide outlines of papers and lectures. The notes are presented in chronological order, preceded by brief introductions and accompanied by an extensive set of notes. The result is a book that allows us to obtain a much deeper understanding of Vygotsky’s innovative ideas. 

This book offers a comparative analysis of value and identity changes in several post-Communist countries. In light of the tremendous economic, social and political changes in former communist states, the authors compare the values, attitudes and identities of different generations and cultural groups. Based on extensive empirical data, using quantitative and qualitative methods to study complex social identities, this book examines how intergenerational value and identity changes are linked to socio-economic and political development. Topics include the rise of nationalist sentiments, identity formation of ethnic and religious groups and minorities, youth identity formation and intergenerational value conflicts

The key to the upliftment of the Adivasi community is a deep understanding of their culture, psychological resources and cognitive strengths. Ecology, Culture and Human Development: Lessons for Adivasi Education presents a comparative analysis of the cultural and cognitive dimensions of various communities in Canada, Ghana, China and India, and seeks answers from this analysis for Adivasi education. It debunks the myths of low intelligence and inferior cognitive capacity of the Adivasi community, and emphasizes the remarkable performance of Adivasi children when assessed in terms of their ecological and cultural contexts. Extensively illustrated and containing substantive data on all relevant aspects of human development, this book is a much-desired addition to the literature on this crucial aspect of social development in India. It is a comprehensive resource that aims to contribute substantially towards mitigating the travails of the Adivasi community and ensuring their social empowerment.

The general trend in Afghanistan is clear-cut: the overall security situation has consistently deteriorated since 2009, worsening dramatically since 2014. However, in the provinces of Afghanistan adjacent to Central Asia, the security situation has deteriorated even further than in Afghanistan as a whole. This report considers the range of options available to the Central Asian neighbors of Afghanistan (Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) in responding to this growing threat, both unilaterally and in their bilateral engagement with actors in Afghanistan. Furthermore, it considers how decisionmaking processes in Central Asia will be affected by future developments in Afghanistan by assessing options and likely outcomes under a set of security scenarios in Afghanistan itself.

This textbook on Instructional Design for Learning is a must for all education and teaching students and specialists. It provides a comprehensive overview about the theoretical foundations of the various models of Instructional Design and Technology from its very beginning to the most recent approaches. It elaborates Instructional Design (ID) as a science of educational planning. The book expands on this general understanding of ID and presents an up-to-date perspective on the theories and models for the creation of detailed and precise blueprints for effective instruction. It integrates different theoretical aspects and practical approaches, such as conceptual ID models, technology-based ID, and research-based ID. In doing so, this book takes a multi-perspective view on the questions that are central for professional ID: How to analyze the relevant characteristics of the learner and the environment? How to create precise goals and adequate instruments of assessment? How to design classroom and technology-supported learning environments? How to ensure effective teaching and learning by employing formative and summative evaluation? Furthermore, this book presents empirical findings on the processes that enable effective instructional designing. Finally, this book demonstrates two different fields of application by addressing ID for teaching and learning at secondary schools and colleges, as well as for higher education.

Most books and articles still treat leadership and ethics as related though separate phenomena. This edited volume is an exception to that rule, and explicitly treats leadership and ethics as a single domain. Clearly, ethics is an aspect of leadership, and not a distinct approach that exists alongside other approaches to leadership. This holds especially true for the for the military, as it is one of the few organizations that can legitimately use violence. Military leaders have to deal with personnel who have either used or experienced violence. This intertwinement of leadership and violence separates military leadership from leadership in other professions. Even in a time that leadership is increasingly questioned, it is still good leadership that keeps soldiers from crossing the thin line between legitimate force and excessive violence

This report presents the results of an ESRC-funded research project that examined the behavioural and attitudinal impacts of the English plastic bag charge that was introduced in October 2015. The project used a mixed-methods longitudinal approach, and included a national survey, a diary-interview study, and supermarket observation study. Overall, the research has shown that the English plastic bag charge has made a strong and positive impact on people’s behaviours and attitudes. The research found that the charge was eff ective at breaking old habits, and that it became more popular as people adapted to the policy. Evidence was also found that the charge increased environmental awareness and the acceptability of other environmental policies. The success of the plastic bag charge in eff ectively changing plastic bag use and increasing support for other charges to reduce waste suggests that similar policies could also be successfully implemented, such as a deposit return scheme on plastic bottles or a charge on disposable coff ee cups.

Background and aims. This research reported here presents findings from an evaluation of the development and implementation of the Healthy Community Challenge Fund (otherwise known as the ‘Healthy Towns’ programme). A key aim of the research has been to inform the development of future environmental and systems‐based ‘whole town’ approaches to obesity prevention. The overall aim of the Healthy Towns programme was to pilot and stimulate novel ‘whole town’ approaches that tackle the ‘obesogenic’ environment in order to reduce obesity, with a particular focus on improving diet and increasing physical activity. Through a competitive tender process, nine towns were selected that represented urban areas across England ranging from small market towns to areas of large cities. The fund provided £30 million over the period 2008‐2011, divided amongst the nine towns. The amounts awarded ranged from £900,000 to £4.85 million. Towns were instructed to be innovative and were given freedom to develop a locally‐specific programme of interventions. This report supplements local process and impact evaluations undertaken by each town (not reported here) by taking an overall view of the programme’s development and implementation. Our evaluation therefore addressed the following research questions: 1. What kinds of interventions were delivered across the Healthy Towns programme? 2. Were environmental and infrastructural interventions equitably delivered? 3. How was the Healthy Towns programme theorised and translated into practice? 4. How was evidence used in the selection and design of interventions? 5. What are the barriers and facilitators to the implementation of a systems approach to obesity prevention?

Crisis is a burning issue; this is not a phenomenon, which can be conquered forever. Current approach to crisis is an optimized collaboration, which allows for manageable, measurable and predictable software development. Crisis is a new reality to live and work with. The current software development crisis dates back to the 1960s. The root cause of crisis is misbalance between resources and options. Understanding the nature of crisis helps to understand the reasons for the future crises.

This book is a navigator in lifecycle models, methodologies, principles and practices for predictable and efficient software development in crisis, i.e. under rapid requirement changes, resource deficit and other uncertainties. Therefore, the starting chapters suggest the major approaches to software development and their applicability in crisis. Further narration is case-based; it involves large-scale software implementations in different industries and knowledge transfer processes in IT education. The book suggests a set of principles that potentially marry the client’s and the developer’s views of the future software product in order to avoid or to mitigate the crisis.

The book will be helpful for students, postdocs, theorists and practitioners in software development. It suggests approved principles and practices of crisis management for software development.

The aging of the Russian population and the rapid shrinking of its labor force in coming decades will make the human capital each worker contributes increasingly vital for sustaining economic output and growth. While improvements in general education are necessary to build the foundation for a productive future labor force, a broad-based and effective system of adult education can provide second-chance opportunities for current workers to enhance their productivity and lengthen their working lives and for low-skilled immigrants to be integrated into the workforce. How well the Russian Federation addresses these multiple needs at and beyond the workplace will depend on how effective its adult education system is. This study targeting policymakers outlines the problems of Russia's growing skills gap, especially the shortage of higher-order cognitive and socio-emotional skills, and examines the current state of adult education.

The phenomenon of self-disclosure can be considered at different levels of scientific exploration being approached either from the socio-psychological viewpoint or from the individually determined personal perspective, where the subject of openness may serve as an individual with his personal potential in the field of social communications, and social groups or corporations as well. At the level of communicative dialogue and interpersonal relationships self-disclosure is manifestation of human potential capabilities and his readiness for open and trusting cooperation in society. In practical terms, handling these issues can be referred to as a social order from the part of the representatives of those professions where comfortable social communication appears to be an important factor of communicative competence and professionalism of the person.

Cognitive Control, Communication and Perception: Psychological and Neurobiological Aspects (CCCP 2014) workshop proceedings (Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia, December 4-6, 2014)

The book describes consequnces of culture in Russia.

This study presents the results of empirical research into the relationship between strength and positivity of religious identification and attitudes towards economic behavior in a group of Orthodox Christians and Sunni Muslims in Russia (N = 820). In order to measure strength and positivity of religious identification, we used two components based on the Social Identity Theory. Attitudes toward models of economic behavior were measured through economic attitudes based on a scenario approach. The results revealed that attitudes towards three models of economic behavior can be clustered into a single economic involvement factor. In addition, generalized economic involvement was confirmed by CFA in both religious groups. In our study we found that strength and positivity of religious identification are differently associated with attitudes toward economic involvement in the two groups. Thus, it was concluded that the strength of religious identification negatively related to attitudes reflecting economic involvement. Positivity of religious identification was found to have a positive association with economic involvement. However, the further MGSEM demonstrated that the relationship between positivity of religious identification and economic involvement had interfaith specifics: positivity of religious identification was positively related to the models of economic involvement only in the group of Christians, while in the group of Muslims this relationship was insignificant. The results are discussed in terms of features of religious identification in these two groups

The visual system can represent multiple objects in a compressed form of ensemble summary statistics (such as object numerosity, mean, and variance of their features). Yet, the relationships between the different types of visual statistics remains relatively unclear. Here, we tested whether two summaries (mean and numerosity – Experiment 1, and mean and variance – Experiment 2) are calculated independently from each other and in parallel, that is, without cost of dividing attention. Our participants performed dual tasks requiring report about two summaries in each trial, and single tasks requiring report about only one of the summaries. Observers were briefly shown sample sets of circles of various sizes. At test, they had to report the number of circles, their mean size, or the variance of sizes using the adjustment method. The relative difference between an adjusted value and a correct answer was used as a measure of precision. We estimated trial-by-trial correlations between the precision of reports in dual task separately for each observer, as well as correlations between averaged errors in reporting summaries in different conditions across all observers. Both analyses showed (1) the absence of correlations between different types of ensemble statistics suggesting their independence, (2) strong auto-correlations of same-type statistics in different tasks (dual vs. single) suggesting good between-test consistency. We also found no decrement (except that related to the order of report explained by memory retrieval) in performance in dual compared to single tasks, which suggests that two statistics of one ensemble can be processed in parallel. In an additional experiment, we found that the precision of variance reports did not change even when mean size and spatial density changed substantially between sample and adjustment sets. This finding also says for independence between the ensemble statistics.

Illusory conjunctions (IC) refer to errors in which an observer correctly reports features present in the display, but incorrectly pairs features or parts from multiple objects. There is a long-standing debate in the literature about the nature of ICs; for example, whether they arise from the lack of focused attention (Treisman & Schmidt, 1982) or from lossy peripheral representations (Rosenholtz et al., 2012). Here, we test the hypothesis that the occurrence of ICs relates to spatial uncertainty of features falling within the same noisy “window”. According to this idea, ICs occur when the spatial uncertainty is large compared to the distance between items, causing confusion over which features belong to which item. In Experiment 1, we directly measured the spatial noise at 3°, 6°, 9°, 12° from fixation. A compact “crowd” of four dots briefly appeared, followed by the presentation of a probe circle at various distances from the “crowd”. Observers had to respond whether any dot had fallen within the probed region. The probability of perceiving the dots as outside the probe as a function of distance provides a measure of spatial noise as a function of eccentricity. In Experiment 2, we presented four differently colored and oriented bars, located on an invisible circle with a diameter varying from 1° to 3.5° (the “separation”), and centered at one of three eccentricities (4°, 8°, 12°). Participants had to report the color, orientation, and location of any of the bars. The number of correct answers, guesses (reporting non-presented features), and ICs were estimated. The number of IC increased with eccentricity and decreased with separation. There is good resemblance between the spatial noise and the IC pattern. We conclude that there can be an overlap between the mechanisms of spatial localization and IC in peripheral vision.

Numerous studies report that observers are good at evaluating various ensemble statistics, such as mean or range. Recent studies have shown that, in the perception of mean size, the visual system relies on size information individually rescaled to distance for each item (Utochkin & Tiurina, 2018). Here, we directly tested this rescaling mechanism on the perception of variance. In our experiment, participants were stereoscopically shown a sample set of circles with different sizes and in different apparent depths. Then they had to adjust a test set so that the range of sizes to match the range of the sample. We manipulated the correlation between sizes and depth for both samples and tests. In positive size-depth correlation, bigger circles were presented farther and had to seem larger and small circles were presented closer and had to seem smaller; therefore, the apparent range had to increase. In negative size-depth correlation, the apparent range had to decrease, since bigger circles had to become smaller, and vice versa. We tested all possible couplings of correlation conditions between samples and tests. We found that in general, observers tended to overestimate the range of the sample (over-adjusted it on the test). Yet, the strongest underestimation was shown when the sample had a negative correlation and the test had a positive correlation. This pattern is consistent with the prediction following from the idea of rescaling. As the negative correlation reduced an apparent range, participants had to under-adjust the range of a positively correlated test to compensate for the difference in variance impressions. We conclude, therefore, that multiple sizes are automatically rescaled in accordance with their distances and this rescaling can be used to judge ensemble variance.

Top-down guidance of visual search is an issue of continuous discussions (e.g. Wolfe, Horowitz, 2017). However, it’s still unclear when guidance emerges in the course of individual development, and whether the fronto-parietal brain network, which underpins attentional control, is necessary for the attentional guidance. Although there were a number of experiments studying visual search in children, to our knowledge no study directly confronted conditions, under which adults do and do not demonstrate guided search, in younger populations. In our experiment, we compared feature search, guided conjunction search and unguided conjunction search in 20 young adults (university students, mean age 18.5) and 20 junior schoolchildren (7.5–9.5 years old, mean age 8.5). The two groups performed three randomized blocks of the standard visual search task, searching for a target “fox’s house” among distractor houses and receiving feedback after each trial. The target house differed from distractors only in color (feature search), in color and shape (conjunction search), or was defined as a specific combination of two colors (conjunction search with no possibility of top-down guidance). Set sizes of 4, 7, and 10 stimuli were used, with only a half of the trials containing a target. Our hypothesis was that in adults we would observe top-down regulation of the conjunction search, whereas in children the search besides the feature search condition will be equally inefficient, because of the fron-to-parietal network immaturity (e.g. Astle et al., 2015). Surprisingly, the overall pattern of results in all three conditions was the same in children and adults, with pronouncedly more efficient conjunction search as compared to the unguided search, although children were significantly (and proportionally) slower in all types of search. This allows concluding that top-down attentional guidance is already fully present in junior schoolchildren.

Optimistic attributional style has been shown to be reliably associated with high well-being and low depression (Hu et al. 2015). Via both a meta-analysis and two new studies, we examine the relationship between optimistic attributional style for explaining negative and positive events, and academic performance. In the meta-analysis, dispositions to make stable and global attributions for positive events were more strongly related to academic achievement (d = 0.21, k = 30, N = 6351) than dispositions to make unstable and local attributions regarding negative events (d = 0.11, k = 66, N = 11023). Academic level (primary school vs secondary school vs. university) and type of test (general vs. achievement-specific) were shown to moderate the associations. The two new studies were designed to address remaining questions. In both studies optimistic attributional style for positive events most reliably predicted student academic achievement, including boosted achievement over time. Possible explanations for the moderator effects are discussed, and recommendations for future research as well as practical recommendations are provided.

In this study we examined whether different styles of teachers’ instructions (pro-social vs behavioural) affect the attitudes and beliefs of pre-adolescents towards peers with migrant backgrounds. The research was conducted in two countries: in Italy (N = 93) and in Russia (N = 134) among students in their last year of primary school (M age = 11.27). Teachers provided one in two sets of instructions, highlighting either the welcoming and openness characteristics of the group or its adherence to school-norms.  After receiving this recommendation, pupils read a fictional scenario depicting a fellow student from an undisclosed foreign country, with different cultural features, and who was expected to join that class-group. Children’s opinions were measured through five scales addressing the newcomer's pleasantness, positive and negative attitudes towards the respondents' (ingroup) and the newcomer's group of friends (outgroup). On an individual level, results confirm that pro-social instructions enhance positive traits towards the unknown student at a higher extent. A significant difference was also reported when comparing the two conditions on a group level: favourable characteristics were more prominent in the prosocial condition than in the behavioural one and negative traits, both in the in-group’s and outgroup’s projections, were reduced. We discuss the implications of these results with regard to teachers’ impact in modelling social skills and the development of social processes in the school context

The United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offer an extensive framework for coordinating and shaping government policies, and for engaging the public with sustainability. Public understanding of the SDGs and sustainability can influence this engagement, as people are more likely to accept and share information consistent with their own understanding. We identify public understandings of SDGs through mental maps of how people relate the SDGs to environmental, social and economic sustainability. Using responses from 12 developed/developing countries (n = 2,134), we identified four mental maps that varied mainly on two dimensions, which diverged from some expert models. Some people’s mental maps identified tension between achieving environmental versus social sustainability, whereas for others the tension was between economic sustainability and the other two sustainability elements. Some people related different SDGs to each element of sustainability, whereas others saw all SDGs as targeting the same sustainability element(s). These findings highlight opportunities and challenges to engage the public with sustainability more effectively, especially with wide-ranging initiatives such as a Green New Deal. We observed cultural differences but we also identified a dominant mental map across countries that could serve as a default model for communicating sustainability internationally.

Why are there various personality traits and why are those traits revealed in widely-acclaimed models such as the Big Five?  The Three-Dimensional Trait System (3D-TRASY) states that any personality trait can be defined in terms of three basic sources.  The first source represents traits’ variability with regard to the brain’s functioning in terms of bottom-up and top-down processes.  The second source connects to positive (rewards) and negative (punishments) social reinforcements of the trait.  The third source reflects a multitude of situations in which a trait may unfold.  Thus, Extraversion can be defined as a proximate bottom-up positive while Conscientiousness is a distal top-down positive.  3D-TRASY provides a framework for formal, non-tautological definitions of traits; it provides explanations for various phenomena in trait research including the super-traits of Stability and Plasticity and the maturity principle of lifespan development.  3D-TRASY presumes that some traits can occasionally closely correlate and thus establish an amalgam, which exemplifies itself in Eysenckian Psychoticism and the Big-Five’s Agreeableness.  In the history of trait research, this amalgamation may explain controversies that would have facilitated emergence of novel models such as the Big Five or HEXACO.  The paper contains empirical demonstrations on how 3D-TRASY can explain apparently empirical artifacts.

Whether short-term learning of new words can induce rapid changes in cortical areas involved in distributed neural representation of the lexicon is a hotly debated topic. To answer this question, we examined magnetoencephalographic phase-locked responses elicited in the cerebral cortex by passive presentation of eight novel pseudowords before and immediately after an operant conditioning task. This procedure forced participants to perform an active search for unique meaning of four word-forms that referred to movements of their own body parts. While familiarization with novel word-forms led to bilateral repetition suppression of cortical responses to all eight pseudowords, these reduced responses became more selectively tuned towards newly learned action words in the left hemisphere. Our results suggest that stimulus repetition and active learning of semantic association have separable effects on cortical activity. They also evidence rapid plastic changes in cortical representations of meaningful auditory word-forms after active learning.

In this study, we aimed to estimate the effect of phonological processing in the emergence of specific maths or combined maths and reading difficulties during the first year of schooling. We also estimated whether the high level of phonological processing could be a resource for coping with math difficulties. The study was conducted on a large sample of Russian first-graders (N=3296 pupils, mean age 7.3 years, 49% of them were girls). Pupils were tested twice, at the beginning and at the end of the first grade in their level of maths performance, reading performance, phonological processing, and number recognition skills. In each test, four groups of pupils were identified regarding their level of maths and reading performance: a group with mathematical difficulties only (MD), pupils with reading difficulties only (RD), pupils with both maths and reading difficulties (MDRD) and pupils without difficulties (TD). The probability to move into the MD group, the MDRD group and in the TD group was estimated for pupils regarding their group status at Time 1 and their level of phonological processing. Results revealed that at first grade, phonological processing did not correlate with specific maths difficulties, but associated with both maths and reading difficulties. At the same time, a high level of phonological processing may prevent typically developing pupils from moving into the MD group. Moreover, a high level of phonological processing increases the probability to move into the TD group for pupils who had specific maths difficulties at the start of schooling.

It is commonly believed that the visual system requires oculomotor information to perceive depth from binocular disparity. However, any effect of the oculomotor information on depth perception is too restricted to explain depth perception under natural viewing conditions. In this study, I describe a computational model that can recover depth from a stereo-pair of retinal images without using any oculomotor information. The model shows that, at least from a computational perspective, any oculomotor information is not necessary for perceiving depth from the stereo retinal images.

Psychological studies show the effect of mortality salience (MS) on attitudes and behavioral patterns in different spheres of social life, particularly, in intergroup relationships. This study examines the influence of MS on attitudes toward national outgroups. In line with terror management theory (TMT), previous studies indicate a contradictory impact of death-related thoughts. Reminders of death enhance unfavorable attitudes toward all national outgroups, however, MS reinforces the negative attitudes only toward unfriendly countries or toward those perceived as threatening. To shed light on the influence of MS, we conducted two experimental studies that were differentiated by MS manipulation and the specifics of the outgroups. In Study 1 we actualized the reminders of death through military news, whereas in Study 2 by the presentation of terrorism news (close and distant). In Study 1 (N = 180) we analyzed the impact of MS on attitudes toward Ukraine, Belarus, and Estonia. The results showed that MS mostly reinforced the unfavorable attitudes toward ‘unfriendly’ and ‘neutral’ countries. Study 2 (N = 242) focused on MS and attitudes toward Ukraine, Belarus, the USA, and China. The results indicated that MS enhanced negative attitudes toward Ukraine as an ‘unfriendly’ country. However, the close or distant terrorism-related content did not illustrate the specific influence on attitudes toward national outgroups.

Whether the motor cortex activation accompanying concrete verbs comprehension is necessary for verbs conceptual processing is still a hotly debated topic in the literature. Answering this question, we examined to what extent the more difficult access to verb semantics requires an additional engagement of cortical motor system in verb generation task. Using power suppression of MEG beta oscillations (15-30 Hz) as an index of sensorimotor activation, we presented to our participants the noun cues which either were strongly associated with a single verb and prompted the fast and effortless verb retrieval, or were weakly associated with multiple verbs and were more difficult to respond to. A whole-brain analysis of beta suppression revealed that the only cortical regions sensitive to the difficulty of semantic access were the higher order motor areas on the medial and lateral surfaces of the frontal lobe. This differential activation of cortical motor system accompanied effortful verb retrieval and preceded the preparation of vocal response for more than 500 milliseconds. Since the mid-frontal frontal brain areas are involved in maintaining abstract representations of actions during their initiating and planning, we argue that our finding supports the view that motor associations contribute to retrieval of verb semantics.

This paper investigates the characteristics of the affective component in the structural mere exposure effect (SMEE). Two approaches are considered – fluency attribution approach (FA) and affect as predictive efficiency approach (APE) – within a predictive coding framework. Using the artificial grammar learning and affective priming paradigms, we demonstrate that a violation of implicitly learned regularities elicits an automatic negative affective response. This result suggests that SMEE can be observed without any overtly evaluative judgment. Participants’ decisions on the grammaticality of stimuli did not change this pattern. We conclude that SMEE is based on the affective response to prediction errors made by the cognitive system and may include the fluency attribution process in the later stages of processing.

Expectations of people with high and low intelligence differ considerably. High intelligence is associated with several desirable social outcomes, while low intelligence is associated with low social status and poverty. We assumed that attributing high intelligence to a person could lead to a more positive evaluation of them and, as a result, less negative attitudes toward them. In the experimental study (N = 781) we investigated how levels of perceived intelligence impact the long-term stigmatization of dirty workers. The results show that perceived high intelligence of dirty workers decreases long-term stigmatization towards them, but these findings relate only to people performing moral dirty work. Implicit theories about intelligence were controlled as a covariate and had no significant effect. Results are discussed in terms of the positive effect of perceived high intelligence on everyday perception. Limitations and future directions are also discussed.

The human factor is always decisive in social development. The role of active behavior and above all economic behavior is obvious. However, there are some difficulties: the law regulates predominantly "external" behavior; psychology covers interests, motives, will, emotions.   This paper analyzes individuals’ interests and motives in economics. Coherence and contradictions of the labor interests are investigated on the basis of a survey made in several organizations. The rank of interests (economic, professional, career, group, corporate, territorial, and common civil) in the dependence of labor group type (shareholders, top managers, line managers, employees) is formed.  

This study tests the psychometrics of a Russian version of the Couple Motivation Questionnaire (CMQ), and analyzes the possible distinctions between the Russian and English versions of the instrument. We hypothesize that the adopted version of CMQ repeats the original structure, and a continuum of motivation in romantic relationships will be found as a result of the correlation analysis. We conducted a correlation study on an online sample of (N = 497) using CMQ, the Test of Existential Motivations in Interpersonal Relationships, the Dyadic Adjustment Scale and the Codependency Scale. The theoretical model, which was proposed in the original study (Blais et al., 1990), linked self-determination theory's motivational styles to adaptive relationship behaviors and the general quality of romantic relationships. The model was successfully confirmed for the Russian sample using a reverse translation and the psychometric testing of CMQ. The model revealed resistance to cultural influences, and the new instrument is suggested for studies of the motivational aspects of relationships using Russian samples.

According to the scientific literature on writing, poetry and prose have their own distinct characteristics. We suppose, therefore, that the value-motivational basis for being creatively active is specific and different for poetry and prose writers. On the basis of existing studies on individual values, motivation types and creative behavior, we build hypotheses about their interrelations, specifying the differences between poetry and prose writing. The research was an empirical correlational study using questionnaires for data gathering: the revised PVQ-R of Schwartz, the authors’ questionnaire to measure frequency of creative behavior and a questionnaire on the motivation of creative behavior developed on the basis of Deci and Ryan's CBI questionnaire. The sample includes 240 representatives of “little creativity”, those involved in the non-professional writing of poetry or prose during the previous year (2016). The results show that poets and prose writers have differences in values and their relations to specific creative behavior in micro-domains of literary creativity. We also found a positive relationship between specific motivation types and the main creative behavior. We identified the mediating role of autonomous motivation between values and creativity in the poets’ group. This research demonstrates that there is sense in the division of creativity into domains and micro-domains as there are differences in the values and motivation types related to creative activities in micro-domains. 

Recent geopolitical changes in Crimea initiated the process of massive identity transformation among ethnic majority and minority groups. Current study was aimed at examining the role of multiple identities and acculturation strategies in the psychological well-being of Crimean Tatar minority (N=80). The study revealed high motivation for ethno-cultural continuity among Crimean Tatars. The combination of ethnic, religious and place identities positively predicts both life-satisfaction and self-esteem. These combined identities also positively predict integration strategy and negatively assimilation strategy. Combined national and Russian ethno-linguistic identitiy positively predicts integration and assimilation strategies and negatively predicts separation strategy. The findings indicate the importance of taking historical, political, social context into account in the studies on minority issues.

This research investigates the relation of personality metatraits and negotiation styles, and the role of negotiation self-efficacy in it. This study was interviewed of Russians with negotiation background at the extractive industry (N=119). Participants were given Thomas-Kilmann questionnaire, CPM-Q personality questionnaire and negotiation self-efficacy questionnaire. It was found that some personality metatraits are significant and direct predictors of negotiation styles and, additionally, negotiation self-efficacy. Nevertheless, negotiation self-efficacy does not mediate the influence of personality metatraits on negotiation styles.

The leaky integrate and fire model of neural spiking has been used extensively to simulate saccadic responses in a variety of tasks from visual search to simple reaction times. Although it has been tested for its neural spiking accuracy and its spatial prediction of fixations in visual salience, it has not been well tested for its temporal accuracy. Saccade generation invariably results in a positively skewed distribution of saccadic reaction times over large numbers of samples, yet we show that the LIF algorithm tends to produce a distribution shifted to shorter fixations (in comparison with human data) in its classic implementation. Further, parameter optimization using a genetic algorithm and Nelder–Mead method does improve the fit of the resulting distribution, but is still unable to match temporal distributions of human responses in a simple visual search task. Further analysis revealed, that the LIF algorithm produces discrete reaction times instead of distributions. Aggregated over many pictures they may be treated as a distribution although the form of this distribution depends on the input images used to create it.

Approximately twenty years ago, Laurent Itti and Christof Koch created a model of saliency in visual attention in an attempt to recreate the work of biological pyramidal neurons by mimicking neurons with centre-surround receptive fields. The Saliency Model has launched many studies that contributed to the understanding of layers of vision and the sphere of visual attention. The aim of the current study is to improve this model by using an artificial neural network that generates saccades similar to how humans make saccadic eye movements. The proposed model uses a Leaky Integrate-and-Fire layer for temporal predictions, and replaces parallel feature maps with a deep learning neural network in order to create a generative model that is precise for both spatial and temporal predictions. Our deep neural network was able to predict eye movements based on unsupervised learning from raw image input, as well as supervised learning from fixation maps retrieved during an eye-tracking experiment conducted with 35 participants at later stages in order to train a 2D softmax layer. The results imply that it is possible to match the spatial and temporal distributions of the model to spatial and temporal human distributions.

Cognitive dissonance arises as a reaction to conflict appearing in choices between two equally attractive options. It leads to changes in the desirability of these options. The chosen option becomes more desirable whereas the rejected option is devalued. Despite cognitive dissonance being largely used by social psychologists to explain social conformity and preference reevaluation, little is known about the neural mechanisms of such choice-induced preference changes. In this study, we modulated the activity of the posterior medial frontal cortex (pMFC), which has been found to be involved in cognitive dissonance in neuroimaging studies. We influenced the activity of the pMFC before individual choices using both cathodal and anodal transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) during a revised version of Brehm's free-choice paradigm. Our results showed that cathodal tDCS over the pMFC significantly decreased the typical choice-induced preference change relative to a sham stimulation. On the contrary, no significant effect of anodal tDCS was observed. Our findings of the influence cathodal tDCS on preference re-evaluation highlight the central contribution of the pMFC in cognitive dissonance and provide evidence that pMFC plays a key role in the implementation of subsequent post-decision preference change.

This is a theoretical study. Theoretical understanding of a visual stimulus in a psychophysical experiment is critical for controlling the experiment and for interpreting its results. This fact encourages vision scientists to use “simple” visual stimuli. A triangle in a 3D scene is one of the simplest stimuli for studying 3D perception. In this study, we analyzed geometrical properties of a relation between the triangle and its retinal image using a computer algorithm. Based on the analysis, we discuss validity of results of past studies that used triangles as their visual stimuli.