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Modeling reading comprehension processes is a critical task for Learning Analytics, as accurate models of the reading process can be used to match students to texts, identify appropriate interventions, and predict learning outcomes. This paper introduces an improved version of the Automated Model of Comprehension, namely version 4.0. AMoC has its roots in two theoretical models of the comprehension process (i.e., the Construction-Integration model and the Landscape model), and the new version leverages state-of-the-art Large Language models, more specifically ChatGPT, to have a better contextualization of the text and a simplified construction of the underlying graph model. Besides showcasing the usage of the model, the study introduces three in-depth psychological validations that argue for the model's adequacy in modeling reading comprehension. In these studies, we demonstrated that AMoC is in line with the theoretical background proposed by the Construction-Integration and Landscape models, and it is better at replicating results from previous human psychological experiments than its predecessor. Thus, AMoC v4.0 can be further used as an educational tool to, for example, help teachers design better learning materials personalized for student profiles. Additionally, we release the code from AMoC v4.0 as open source in a Google Collab Notebook and a GitHub repository. • Introduce the Automated Model of Comprehension version 4.0 that integrates state-of-the-art Large Language models - ChatGPT. • Perform 3 in-depth psychological validation studies to support the model's adequacy in modeling reading comprehension. • AMoC v4.0 aligns with theoretical frameworks, namely Construction-Integration and Landscape models. • The model outperforms its predecessor and replicates results from human psychological experiments. • AMoC v4.0 can serve as an educational tool for designing personalized learning materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite assumptions that wearable self-care technologies such as smart wristbands and smart watches help users to monitor and self-manage health in daily life, adherence rates are often quite low. In an effort to better understand what determines adherence to wearable self-care technologies, researchers have started to consider the extent to which a technology is perceived as being part of the user (i.e., technology embodiment) and the extent to which users feel they can influence reaching their health goals (i.e., empowerment). Although both concepts are assumed to determine adherence, few studies have empirically validated their influence. Furthermore, the relationships between technology embodiment, empowerment, and adherence to wearable self-care technology have also not been addressed. Drawing upon embodied theory and embodiment cognition theory, this research paper introduces and empirically validates 'embodied empowerment' as a predictor of adherence to wearable self-care technology. Using partial least squares structural equation modeling and multigroup analysis on a dataset of 317 wearable self-care technology users, we find empirical evidence of the validity of embodied empowerment as a determinant of adherence. We also discuss the implications for research and practice. • We introduce embodied empowerment to explain adherence to self-care wearables. • Embodiment and empowerment reinforce each other and function in conjunction. • Embodied and empowerment predict adherence to wearable self-care technology. • The results are consistent for male versus female and younger versus older users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The present paper seeks to find a notionally neat category for the pragmatic idiom That's what she said. While this may seem like a trivial goal at first glance, this paper will systematically uncarve the internal and contextual complexities of this formula and the challenges entailed in this aim. While That's what she said merges features and functions that have been defined and labelled by scholars of Pragmatics, Cognition and Psychology as well as the highly interdisciplinary field of Humor Studies, these approaches have not been sufficiently aligned. The present discussion thus forms part of a larger-scale issue, i.e. that humor-related utterances on the one hand and aspects and frameworks of formulaic speech on the other hand have so far not explicitly been brought together. The present paper aspires to do exactly that, putting forth an extended formulaic continuum that does not only fit That's what she said in particular, but potentially other similar formulae that may not yet have been assigned their place on e.g. Kecskés's continuum in its present form and scope either (2000, 2003, 2010, 2013). The present paper therefore proposes the new notion of Isolated Formulaic Punchlines for such formulae, acknowledging their supposedly incoherent or isolated occurrence in the discourse, their formulaic makeup and their humorous potential. Highlights • This paper deals with the That's what she said , a pragmatic idiom which has so far hardly received any attention. • An extended formulaic continuum is proposed offering classificational space for That's what she said. • The notion Isolated Formulaic Punchline is introduced as an additional subcategory to pragmatic idioms. • This is done so to ultimately bridge the gap between the state-of-the-art formulaic framework by Kecskés on the one and the wide range of formulaic verbal humor strategies on the other hand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Web personalization has been widely adopted in the mobile shopping context to improve shopping experience and consumer loyalty. Timing is a crucial issue of the implementation of web personalization, a topic not yet adequately investigated in the extant literature. Web personalization could classify into two forms, namely Before-search Web Personalization (BSWP) and After-search Web Personalization (ASWP), in the mobile shopping context. Besides, motivations are the critical factors in mobile shopping, and seldom research has studied the effects of motivation on consumer's use of web personalization in the mobile shopping context. To advance understanding of the timing issue of web personalization, this paper employs the Uses and Gratifications method to investigate how mobile shopping motivations influence consumers' use of BSWP and ASWP, respectively. Furthermore, this paper also investigates the role of an important personal disposition (i.e. need for cognition). Empirical results indicate that shopping motivations could have significant effects on web personalization use; furthermore, BSWP use and ASWP use are predicted by different shopping motivations. Besides, need for cognition is found to positively moderate some effects of mobile shopping motivations on web personalization use. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computerized tests benefit from automated scoring procedures and standardized administration instructions. These methods can reduce the potential for rater error. However, especially in patients with severe mental illnesses, the equivalency of traditional and tablet-based tests cannot be assumed. The Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS) is a pen-and-paper cognitive assessment tool that has been used in hundreds of research studies and clinical trials, and has normative data available for generating age- and gender-corrected standardized scores. A tablet-based version of the BACS called the BAC App has been developed. This study compared performance on the BACS and the BAC App in patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls. Test equivalency was assessed, and the applicability of paper-based normative data was evaluated. Results demonstrated the distributions of standardized composite scores for the tablet-based BAC App and the pen-and-paper BACS were indistinguishable, and the between-methods mean differences were not statistically significant. The discrimination between patients and controls was similarly robust. The between-methods correlations for individual measures in patients were r>0.70 for most subtests. When data from the Token Motor Test was omitted, the between-methods correlation of composite scores was r=0.88 (df=48; p<0.001) in healthy controls and r=0.89 (df=46; p<0.001) in patients, consistent with the test-retest reliability of each measure. Taken together, results indicate that the tablet-based BAC App generates results consistent with the traditional pen-and-paper BACS, and support the notion that the BAC App is appropriate for use in clinical trials and clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review concentrates on the issue of acquisition of abstract words in a cognitive robot with the grounding principle, from relevant theories to practical models of agents and robots. Most cognitive robotics models developed for grounding of language take inspiration from the findings of neuroscience and psychology to get the theoretical skeleton of these models. To better understand these modelling approaches, it is indispensable to work from the base (theoretical accounts) to the top (computational models). Therefore in this paper, succinct definition of abstract words is presented first, and then the symbol grounding issue and accounts of grounded cognition for abstract words are given. The next section discusses the computational modelling approaches for abstract words grounding phenomenon. Finally, important cognitive robotics models are reviewed. This paper also points out the strengths and weaknesses of relevant hypotheses and models for the representation of abstract words in the grounded cognition framework and helps the understanding of issues such as where and why modelling efforts stand to address this problem in comparison with theoretical findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cognitive impairment is a primary feature of schizophrenia, with alterations in several cognitive domains appearing in the pre-morbid phase of the disorder. White matter microstructure is also affected in schizophrenia and considered to be related to cognition, but the relationship of the two is unclear. As interaction between cognition and white matter structure involves the interplay of several brain structures and cognitive abilities, investigative methods which can examine the interaction of multiple variables are preferred. A multiple-groups structural equation model (SEM) was used to assess the relationship between diffusion tension imaging data (fractional anisotropy of selected white matter tracts) and cognitive abilities of 196 subjects - 135 healthy subjects and 61 patients with schizophrenia. It was found that multiple-indicators, multiple-causes model best fitted the data analysed. Schizophrenia moderated the relation of white matter function on cognition with a large effect size. This paper extends previous work on modelling intelligence within a SEM framework by incorporating neurological elements into the model, and shows that white matter microstructure in patients with schizophrenia interacts with cognitive abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organizations are increasingly flooded with large amounts of data on which they base their business decisions. It is thus crucial to visualize relevant data efficiently so that employees are able to extract relevant information most accurately and quickly. However, at present, information visualization research lacks a coherent and evidence based theoretical framework providing clear guidelines on how to design efficient visualizations. When it comes to the use of redundant elements in charts like commonly used data labels, cognitive fit theory and cognitive load theory make different predictions. Whereas the latter assumes that redundant labels generally reduce visualizations’ efficiency due to increased cognitive load, cognitive fit theory predicts increased efficiency for some task types that shall be solved by means of the visualization. In the online experiment presented in this paper, we investigated the effect of data labels in line and bar charts on users’ accuracy and speed in solving chart-related business tasks dependent on different task types. Our results reveal that users perceive charts with redundant labels as significantly more efficient and answer related questions significantly more accurate and faster, which we explain by the help of cognitive fit theory. We provide valuable insights into cognitive processing of charts and encourage graph designers to consider redundant elements as a possible means to increase efficiency under particular circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper outlines the difference between the so-called normal (common) lying and pathological lying. Pathological lying is an intriguing topic, still lacking any strong professional consensus, clear etiology, treatment options and prognoses. The paper explores some possible psychological mechanisms of pathological lying, reviews biological factors in pathological lying, and considers forensic significance of normal and pathological lying. The relationship between pathological lying and mental disorders is also discussed. The authors suggest that lying should be considered as a heterogenic and multidimensional behavioral pattern. The paper highlights how important it is to assess the patient's control over lying, the function of lying, insight into and awareness of lying, as well as the effect of lying on everyday functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the process of proving from a novel theoretical perspective, imported from cognitive psychology research. This perspective highlights the role of hypothetical thinking, mental representations and working memory capacity in proving, in particular the effortful mechanism of cognitive decoupling : problem solvers need to form in their working memory two closely related models of the problem situation – the so-called primary and secondary representations – and to keep the two models decoupled , that is, keep the first fixed while performing various transformations on the second, while constantly struggling to protect the primary representation from being “contaminated” by the secondary one. We first illustrate the framework by analyzing a common scenario of introducing complex numbers to college-level students. The main part of the paper consists of re-analyzing, from the perspective of cognitive decoupling, previously published data of students searching for a non-trivial proof of a theorem in geometry. We suggest alternative (or additional) explanations for some well-documented phenomena, such as the appearance of cycles in repeated proving attempts, and the use of multiple drawings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decision justification provides assurance and reduces negative post-decision emotions, while simultaneously expends decision costs (i.e., cognitive effort). The current paper investigated the function of justification and cognitive effort related to regret, specifically in the online shopping context in two studies. In Study 1, 112 participants reviewed vignettes in a 2 × 2 within-subjects design involving cognitive effort (high versus low) and justification of action (easy versus difficulty), and reported the regret level when their purchase decision yielded subpar consequences. As expected, high cognitive effort and easy justification reduced regret. However, the effect of justification on regret was moderated by cognitive effort. In Study 2, 178 participants were randomly assigned to conditions in a 2 × 2 between-subjects design involving cognitive effort (high versus low) and decision justification (waste versus control). Participants followed a cover story and shopped for a laptop online; then they rated the regret level had they made an unplanned purchase. Results confirmed the hypothesis; regret was greater when justification was wasted. However, wasted justification only worsened regret when more cognitive effort was exerted. The current studies shed light on understanding an intricate dynamic between information processing and justification in relation to regret when shopping online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The neural vehicles of mental representation play an explanatory role in cognitive psychology that their realizers do not. Cognitive psychology individuates neural structures as representational vehicles in terms of the specific causal properties to which cognitive mechanisms are sensitive. Explanations that appeal to properties of vehicles can capture generalisations which are not available at the level of their neural realizers. In this paper, I argue that the individuation of realizers as vehicles restricts the sorts of explanations in which they can participate. I illustrate this with reference to Rupert’s (2011) claim that representational vehicles can play an explanatory role in psychology in virtue of their quantity or proportion. I propose that such quantity-based explanatory claims can apply only to realizers and not to vehicles, in virtue of the particular causal role that vehicles play in psychological explanations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this issue of Cognition, Thompson and her colleagues challenge the results from a paper we published several years ago (Alter, Oppenheimer, Epley, & Eyre, 2007). That paper demonstrated that metacognitive difficulty or disfluency can trigger more analytical thinking as measured by accuracy on several reasoning tasks. In their experiments, Thompson et al. find evidence that people process information more deeply—but not necessarily more accurately—when they experience disfluency. These results are consistent with our original theorizing, but the authors misinterpret it as counter-evidence because they suggest that accuracy (and even confidence) is a measure of deeper processing rather than a contingent outcome of such processing. We further suggest that Thompson et al. err when they discriminate between “perceptual fluency” and “answer fluency,” the former of which is an element of the latter. Thompson et al. advance research by adding reaction time as a measure of deeper cognitive processing, but we caution against misinterpreting the meaning of accuracy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, we explore how visual representations of information in 3D virtual environments (3DVEs) supports both individual and shared understanding, and consequently contribute to group decision making in tasks with a strong visual component. We integrate insights from cognitive fit theory and cognitive load theory in order to formulate hypotheses about how 3DVEs can contribute to individual understanding, shared understanding, and group decision making. We discuss the results of an experiment in which 192 participants, in 3-person teams, were asked to select an apartment. As proposed by cognitive fit theory, our results indicate that 3DVEs are indeed more effective in supporting individual understanding than 2D information presentations. Next, in line with cognitive load theory, the static presentation of 3D information turns out to be more effective in supporting shared understanding and group decision making than an immersive 3DVE. Our results suggest that although the 3DVE capabilities of realism, immersion and interactivity contribute to individual understanding, these capabilities combined with the interaction and negotiation processes required for reaching a shared understanding (and group decision), increases cognitive load and makes group processes inefficient. The implications of this paper for research and practice are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Introduction Energy drinks are popular beverages that are supposed to counteract sleepiness, increase energy, maintain alertness and reduce symptoms of hangover. Cognitive enhancing seems to be related to many compounds such as caffeine, taurine and vitamins. Currently, users mostly combine psychostimulant effects of energy drinks to counteract sedative effects of alcohol. However, recent literature suggests that this combination conducts to feel less intoxicated but still impaired. The goal of the present article is to review cognitive impact and subjective awareness in case of caffeinated alcoholic beverage (CAB) intoxication. Method PubMed (January 1960 to March 2016) database was searched using the following terms: cognitive impairments, alcohol, energy drinks; cognition, alcohol, caffeine. Results 99 papers were found but only 12 randomized controlled studies which explored cognitive disorders and subjective awareness associated with acute CAB or AED (alcohol associated with energy drinks) intoxication were included. Discussion The present literature review confirmed that energy drinks might counteract some cognitive deficits and adverse effects of alcohol i.e. dry mouth, fatigue, headache, weakness, and perception of intoxication due to alcohol alone. This effect depends on alcohol limb but disappears when the complexity of the task increases, when driving for example. Moreover, studies clearly showed that CAB/AEDs increase impulsivity which conducts to an overconsumption of alcohol and enhanced motivation to drink compared to alcohol alone, potentiating the risk of developing addictive behaviors. This is a huge problem in adolescents with high impulsivity and immature decision making processes. Conclusion Although energy drinks counteract some cognitive deficits due to alcohol alone, their association promotes the risk of developing alcohol addiction. As a consequence, it is necessary to better understand the neurobiological mechanisms underlying these interactions in order to better prevent the development of alcohol dependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central thesis of this paper is that Rasmussen framed his approach to Cognitive Systems Engineering from the perspective of a Triadic Semiotic Model. This frame became the context for integrating multiple intellectual threads including Control Theory, Information Theory, Ecological Psychology, and Gestalt Psychology into a coherent theoretical framework. The case is made that the triadic semiotic framework is essential for a complete appreciation of the constructs that were central to Rasmussen's approach: Abstraction Hierarchy, Skill-Rules-Knowledge Model, Ecological Interface Design, and Proactive Risk Management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jens Rasmussen's multifaceted legacy includes cognitive work analysis (CWA), a framework for the analysis, design, and evaluation of complex sociotechnical systems. After considering the framework's origins, this paper reviews its progress, predictably covering experimental research on ecological interface design, case studies of the application of CWA to human factors and engineering problems in industry, and methods and modelling tools for CWA. Emphasis is placed, however, on studying the nexus between some of the recent results obtained with CWA and the original field studies of human problem-solving that motivated the framework's development. Of particular interest is a case study of the use of CWA for military doctrine development, a problem commonly regarded as lying outside the fields of human factors and engineering. It is concluded that the value of CWA, even for such diverse problems, is likely to result from its conceptual grounding in empirical observations of patterns of human reasoning in complex systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Most longitudinal or treatment studies in bipolar disorder have used symptomatic or syndromal status as the primary outcome variable. More recently, psychosocial functioning has been highlighted as a key domain of outcome. Patients with bipolar disorder appear to be impaired in all functional domains, although the factors that cause impairment have not been clearly specified.Methods: This paper reviews cross-sectional and longitudinal studies on functional impairment and its relationship to symptomatic, neurocognitive, personality, and stress variables in bipolar disorder; and the implications of these relationships for defining treatment targets. 93 articles were located through comprehensive MEDLINE, SCOPUS and Web of Science searches.Results and Discussion: Functional recovery following a mood episode consistently lags behind symptomatic and syndromal recovery. Longer term functional impairment is only partly explained by the number of manic/hypomanic episodes. Depression (including subsyndromal states) and persistent neurocognitive impairment are the strongest correlates of functional impairment in bipolar disorder, with personality and psychosocial stressors playing secondary roles. Possible treatment options include: more aggressive treatment of subthreshold depressive states, pharmacotherapies that target cognition (e.g., stimulants), and adjunctive psychotherapies including cognitive remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper began by suggesting that culture might influence how people construe workplace bullying. Referring back to the studies of cultural differences in cognition, it was suggested that people of the Far East might construe workplace bullying differently from the people of Western countries. Taking South Korean culture as an example, this paper explained how historical background and culture shaped Korean''s psyche in relation to workplace bullying. Currently available evidence was discussed including the way Koreans construed workplace bullying and how close social bonding might act as a buffer against a conflict escalating into bullying. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Recent changes in views on cognition underscore its embodied, situated and distributed character. These changes are compatible with the conceptual framework of ecological psychology. However for ecological psychology to propose explanations for a broad range of cognitive phenomena, including language, it needs an account of how to link the dynamics of coupling between the organism and the environment with the apparent symbolicity of informational structures. In this paper it is proposed that a theory of information in biological systems, advocated by Howard Pattee, may help forge this link. By treating informational structures as constraints on dynamics this approach helps to identify which processes, in which systems and on what time-scales are needed for structures to ‘become messages’. I will illustrate how these processes might work on developmental time-scale in the domain of language, building on the work by Edward Reed (1995, 1996) and extending it using the view of linguistic structures as constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Two types of modelling approaches exist to reading an observed person’s emotions: with or without making use of the observing person’s own emotions. This paper focuses on an integrated approach that combines both types of approaches in an adaptive manner. The proposed models were inspired by recent advances in neurological context. Both a neural model and a more abstracted cognitive model are presented. In the first place emotion reading is modelled involving (preparatory) mirroring of body states of the observed person within the observing person. This involves a recursive body loop: a converging positive feedback loop based on reciprocal causation between preparations for body states and emotions felt. Here emotion reading involves the person’s own body states and emotions in reading somebody else’s emotions: first the same feeling is developed by mirroring, and after feeling the emotion, it is imputed to the other person. In the second place, as an extension an adaptive process is modelled based on Hebbian learning of a direct connection between a sensed stimulus concerning another agent’s body state (e.g., face expression) and an emotion imputation state. After this Hebbian learning process the emotion is imputed to the other agent before it is actually felt, or even without it is felt. Both the mirroring and Hebbian learning processes first have been modelled at a neural level, and next, in a more abstracted form at a cognitive level. By means of an interpretation mapping the paper shows the relation between the obtained cognitive model and the neurological model. In addition to specifications of both models and the interpretation mapping, simulation results are shown, and automated verification of relevant emerging properties is discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Time is a fundamental dimension of behavior and as such underlies the perception and production of speech. This paper reviews patient and neuroimaging studies that investigated brain structures that support temporal aspects of speech. The left-frontal cortex, the basal ganglia, and the cerebellum represent structures that have been implicated repeatedly. A comparison with the structures involved in the timing of non-speech events (e.g., tones, lights, finger movements) suggests both commonalities and differences: while the basal ganglia and the cerebellum contribute to the timing of speech and non-speech events, the contribution of left-frontal cortex seems to be specific to speech or rapidly changing acoustic information. Motivated by these commonalities and differences, this paper presents assumptions about the function of basal ganglia, cerebellum, and cortex in the timing of speech. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Knowledge and error flow from the same mental sources, only success can tell the one from the other (Mach, E., 1905. Knowledge and Error. Sketches on the Psychology of Enquiry. D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht (translated into English, 1976). The current paper is concerned with human actions and errors that have accidents with an injury outcome as their consequence. Its aims are to identify and describe the occurrence of risk-triggering and risk-creating human errors, and to analyze the cognitive regulation levels of risk-triggering actions. This provides a basis on which to discuss some difficulties involved in the assigning of regulation levels to actions. The empirical material employed in the paper consists of data from 76 in-depth investigations of accidents in automated production. Risk-creating errors were found in 93% of cases, and were made at various organizational levels in the companies. The amount of and character of the risk-creating errors point to the importance of interventions that promote learning at the levels of the work team and the organization. In 88% of cases there was also a human error that triggered the risk. Risk-triggering errors were made at all cognitive-regulation levels. The conclusions concern methodological issues and theoretical question marks arising. There emerged a need to distinguish between the outcome of an action and its further consequences. Classification of regulation levels involved in human error was found to be fraught with difficulties when drawing boundaries between levels. Actions at different levels appeared to intervene and take over from each other, leaving errors at category interfaces. The structural aspect of action as a composite phenomenon might mean that it is not always possible to assign any particular act to a specific level, and since a task or an action usually is composed of several behavioral components the action could be assigned to several levels simultaneously. This raises questions concerning the applicability of the Skill–Rule–Knowledge (SRK) model to triggering errors in automated production. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In view of the undeniable fact that linguistic–cognitive approaches to pragmatics have focused only on selected elements of the holistic, interactional context in which language users are immersed in their (linguistic) social interactions, there has gradually emerged the necessity to remedy this situation by suggesting more comprehensive frameworks for analyzing language use in its context (such as non-Cartesian pragmatics). The main objective of the present paper is to integrate the study of cognition and emotion within the non-Cartesian paradigm of linguistic research. Such a project is an indispensable step towards the holistic investigation of interpersonal communication. Relational Pragmatics (a version of non-Cartesian pragmatics) is used as a framework for the integrative goal of this project. This paper offers a solution to some perennial controversies and debates in emotion research such as cognition vs. emotion, or rationality vs. emotion, and others. The most important ideas suggested in this article include the view of context as ‘relation’ rather than ‘knowledge’, ‘situation’, or ‘text’; affect is also investigated as ‘relation’ and at the pragmatic-semantic interface as ‘text’. Among a number of new concepts the most crucial are ‘pragmability’ and ‘affectability’, which underlie the language user''s capacity to participate in (verbal) social interaction as a cognizing being, or Ens Cognoscens (EC). Ens Cognoscens is represented by way of the cognitive–affective–conative system, which interacts with its (inherent and acquired) pragmability and affectability; moreover, the defocused EC is socially distributed and socially constructed to a considerable extent. Finally, the notion of ‘affectability’ is analyzed in terms of ‘affective reference’ and ‘affective relational system’. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper reviews evidence, theory, and alternative hypotheses for the worst performance rule (WPR), which states that on multitrial cognitive tasks, worst performance trials predict general intelligence (g) better than best performance trials. A review of the relevant evidence indicates that the WPR has been found for a variety of participants, tasks, and measures. A review of relevant theories reveals that the WPR appears to be related to cognitive factors (e.g., lapses in working memory) as well as biological factors (e.g., individual differences in neural oscillations). A review of alternative hypotheses shows that the WPR cannot be attributed to statistical or data artifacts such as outliers, unreliable measurement, or variance compression. The preponderance of evidence supports the hypothesis that the WPR holds for cognitive tasks high in g saturation but not for cognitive tasks low in g saturation. The paper ends with a call for research on the causes of the WPR and for research on the correlates of best performance. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Reward has repeatedly been shown to influence cognitive control. More precisely, performance contingent reward is known to increase preparatory, proactive control. In comparison, performance non -contingent reward, that is, reward that is not dependent on a pre-specified performance criterion but is given unconditional for any response, even errors, is a rather understudied topic. Recently, Fröber and Dreisbach (2014) compared performance contingent and non-contingent reward in a single experiment. They found that non-contingent reward seems to modulate cognitive control in an oppositional way than contingent reward, namely by reducing proactive control. In the present paper, the authors further investigate this dissociation in two experiments with a reward manipulation that facilitated adaptations to changes in reward availability: reward – with performance contingency varying between subjects – was manipulated not trial-by-trial but in mini-blocks of 20 consecutive trials in an AX-Continuous Performance Task. Performance contingent reward significantly increased proactive control. The repeated experience of non-contingent reward even for errors did not result in increased error rates, but instead was indicative of stable compliance with task rules over time and with less reliance on proactive control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing intensity of operations means that the longstanding safety issue of rail level crossings is likely to become worse in the transport systems of the future. It has been suggested that the failure to prevent collisions may be, in part, due to a lack of systems thinking during design, crash analysis, and countermeasure development. This paper presents a systems analysis of current active rail level crossing systems in Victoria, Australia that was undertaken to identify design requirements to improve safety in future rail level crossing environments. Cognitive work analysis was used to analyse rail level crossing systems using data derived from a range of activities. Overall the analysis identified a range of instances where modification or redesign in line with systems thinking could potentially improve behaviour and safety. A notable finding is that there are opportunities for redesign outside of the physical rail level crossing infrastructure, including improved data systems, in-vehicle warnings and modifications to design processes, standards and guidelines. The implications for future rail level crossing systems are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the fundamental challenges in anti-doping is identifying athletes who use, or are at risk of using, prohibited performance enhancing substances. The growing trend to employ a forensic approach to doping control aims to integrate information from social sciences (e.g., psychology of doping) into organised intelligence to protect clean sport. Beyond the foreseeable consequences of a positive identification as a doping user, this task is further complicated by the discrepancy between what constitutes a doping offence in the World Anti-Doping Code and operationalized in doping research. Whilst psychology plays an important role in developing our understanding of doping behaviour in order to inform intervention and prevention, its contribution to the array of doping diagnostic tools is still in its infancy. In both research and forensic settings, we must acknowledge that (1) socially desirable responding confounds self-reported psychometric test results and (2) that the cognitive complexity surrounding test performance means that the response-time based measures and the lie detector tests for revealing concealed life-events (e.g., doping use) are prone to produce false or non-interpretable outcomes in field settings. Differences in social-cognitive characteristics of doping behaviour that are tested at group level (doping users vs. non-users) cannot be extrapolated to individuals; nor these psychometric measures used for individual diagnostics. In this paper, we present a position statement calling for policy guidance on appropriate use of psychometric assessments in the pursuit of clean sport. We argue that, to date, both self-reported and response-time based psychometric tests for doping have been designed, tested and validated to explore how athletes feel and think about doping in order to develop a better understanding of doping behaviour, not to establish evidence for doping. A false 'positive' psychological profile for doping affects not only the individual 'clean' athlete but also their entourage, their organisation and sport itself. The proposed policy guidance aims to protect the global athletic community against social, ethical and legal consequences from potential misuse of psychological tests, including erroneous or incompetent applications as forensic diagnostic tools in both practice and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a significant public health concern globally with substantial impact on the health of victims. Although research on IPV has increased substantially over the past several decades, effective evidence-based interventions to address IPV behaviors by men remain limited. The IPV field has lacked a comprehensive review of the status of research across the broad areas that have been found to be associated with use of IPV behaviors. This paper reviewed quantitative research studies of the genetic, neurocognitive, neuroendocrine, and selected environmental underpinnings of IPV behavior in men to develop a conceptual model. To date, environmental studies have been the most extensive with focus on early life adversity, trauma, attachment and substance misuse. Head injuries and neuropsychological impacts have indicated deficits in cognitive flexibility and executive functioning related to the prefrontal cortex are common in men who use IPV. Fewer studies have examined neuroendocrine or hormonal factors impacting IPV behavior but there is some evidence that cortisol and testosterone may play a role. Genetics factors have been the least explored, although there is emerging evidence of genetic heritability, and gene by environment interactions. A more comprehensive understanding of biological, psychological, and social factors will advance future IPV research and intervention. • Men who use IPV may have deficits that impact cognitive flexibility, mental organization, impulsivity, and emotion regulation. • Both biological and environmental factors contribute to IPV behaviors in men. • A comprehensive model of IPV that includes genetics, neurobiology and environment will move IPV research and intervention forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides insight into the cognitive and neural mechanisms of personal semantic memory, knowledge that is specific and unique to individuals, by reviewing neuropsychological research on stable amnesia secondary to medial temporal lobe damage. The results reveal that personal semantic memory does not depend on a unitary set of cognitive and neural mechanisms. Findings show that autobiographical fact knowledge reflects an experience-near type of personal semantic memory that relies on the medial temporal lobe for retrieval, albeit less so than personal episodic memory. Additional evidence demonstrates that new autobiographical fact learning likely relies on the medial temporal lobe, but the extent to which remains unclear. Other findings show that retrieval of personal traits/roles and new learning of personal traits/roles and thoughts/beliefs are independent of the medial temporal lobe and thus may represent highly conceptual types of personal semantic memory that are stored in the neocortex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We examine how the declarative-conceptual general pedagogical knowledge (GPK) assessed via a paper-and-pencil test can be understood as a premise for early career teachers' ability to notice and interpret classroom situations assessed via video-vignettes. Longitudinal data from TEDS-M conducted in 2008 at the end of teacher education and a follow-up study in Germany in 2012 is used. Teachers' skills to notice and interpret differ. Interpreting correlates with the current level of GPK, whereas noticing does not. GPK at the end of teacher education neither predicts noticing nor interpreting, which suggests teachers' cognitions are reorganized during the transition into teaching. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Although widely studied in other domains, relatively little is known about the metacognitive processes that monitor and control behaviour during reasoning and decision-making. In this paper, we examined the conditions under which two fluency cues are used to monitor initial reasoning: answer fluency, or the speed with which the initial, intuitive answer is produced (Thompson, Prowse Turner, & Pennycook, 2011), and perceptual fluency, or the ease with which problems can be read (Alter, Oppenheimer, Epley, & Eyre, 2007). The first two experiments demonstrated that answer fluency reliably predicted Feeling of Rightness (FOR) judgments to conditional inferences and base rate problems, which subsequently predicted the amount of deliberate processing as measured by thinking time and answer changes; answer fluency also predicted retrospective confidence judgments (Experiment 3b). Moreover, the effect of answer fluency on reasoning was independent from the effect of perceptual fluency, establishing that these are empirically independent constructs. In five experiments with a variety of reasoning problems similar to those of Alter et al. (2007), we found no effect of perceptual fluency on FOR, retrospective confidence or accuracy; however, we did observe that participants spent more time thinking about hard to read stimuli, although this additional time did not result in answer changes. In our final two experiments, we found that perceptual disfluency increased accuracy on the CRT (Frederick, 2005), but only amongst participants of high cognitive ability. As Alter et al.’s samples were gathered from prestigious universities, collectively, the data to this point suggest that perceptual fluency prompts additional processing in general, but this processing may results in higher accuracy only for the most cognitively able. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Intelligent tutoring systems often make use of students’ answers to adapt instruction or feedback on a task. In this paper, we explore the alternative possibility of adapting a system based on the perceived affective and cognitive state of a student. A system can potentially better adapt to the needs of each individual student by using non-verbal behavior. We used a new experimental paradigm inspired by ‘brain training’ software to collect primary school children’s answers to easy and difficult arithmetic problems and made audiovisual recordings of their answers. Adult observers rated these films on perceived difficulty level. Results showed that adults were able to correctly interpret children’s perceived level of difficulty, especially if they saw their face (compared to hearing their voice). They paid attention to features such as ‘looking away’, and ‘frowning’. Then we checked whether we could also automatically predict if the posed problem was either easy or difficult based on the first second of their response. This ‘thin-slice analysis’ could correctly predict the difficulty level in 71% of all cases. When trained on sufficiently many recordings, Adaptive Tutoring Systems should be able to detect children’s state and adapt the difficulty level of their learning materials accordingly. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: As Kuhn (1970) has noted, most scientific fields go through processes of paradigm change, painful periods in which old theories no longer fit available data and are placed by new theories. Such periods typically create strife and debate as ideological differences emerged between proponents of old and new theoretical approaches. In the current paper, we argue that such a period has been reached within the field of aggression research. Over the past half-century, social cognitive and social learning paradigms of aggression, exemplified in the General Aggression Model (GAM) have retained dominance, particularly in areas such as media violence. We contend that data to support the GAM and social cognitive approaches to aggression have never been conclusive, and newer evidence increasingly suggests that the GAM and social cognitive theories of aggression more generally are not adequate to explain aggressive phenomena. We discuss weaknesses and problematic, sometimes hidden assumptions of the GAM and how these reduce the utility of this paradigm. Current evidence suggests that the GAM and the social cognitive paradigm of aggression should be retired, and approaches which focus on diathesis-stress hold greater promise. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The importance of cognition in the facilitation and reinforcement of criminal behavior has been highlighted and recognized in numerous offender populations. In particular, professionals have theorized that various offender populations hold offense-supportive schemas or implicit theories that require treatment in therapy. However, the role of cognition in deliberate firesetting has received no focused conceptual or theoretical attention. Using current research evidence and theory relating to general cognition and the characteristics of firesetters, this paper outlines a preliminary conceptual framework of the potential cognitions (in the form of implicit theories) that are likely to characterize firesetters. Five implicit theories are proposed that may be associated with firesetting behavior. The content, structure, and etiological functions of these implicit theories are described as well as the cognitive similarities between firesetters and other offender types. Future research implications and practical implications of the proposed implicit theories are also discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The aim of this paper is twofold. First, we provide a methodological pathway from theories of situated, embodied cognition to simulations with an eye to empirical evidence, and suggest a possible cross-fertilization between cognitive robotics and psychology. Psychological theories, in particular those formulated at an abstract level, include models which are often severely underspecified at the level of mechanisms. This is true in the synchronic, constructive perspective (how can the effects observed in experiments be concretely generated by the model''s mechanisms?) and in the diachronic, developmental perspective (how can such mechanisms be learned and developed?). The synthetic method of artificial cognitive systems research, and in particular of cognitive robotics, can complement research in psychology (and neurosciences) by exploring the constructive and developmental aspects of theories. Our second aim is to provide an example of such a methodology by describing simulations aiming at developing a perceptual symbol system (PSS) (). We then describe the two main theoretical constructs of the PSS, perceptual symbols and simulators, illustrate their development in an artificial system, and test the system in prediction, categorization, and abstraction tasks. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: From the perspective of cognitive robotics, this paper presents a modern interpretation of reasoning and suggestions for why and how cognitive psychologists should develop models of cognitive phenomena. We argue that the shortcomings of current cognitive modelling approaches are due in significant part to a lack of exactly the kind of integration required for the development of embodied autonomous robotics. Moreover we suggest that considerations of embodiment, situatedness, and autonomy, intrinsic to cognitive robotics, provide an appropriate basis for the integration and theoretic cumulation that Newell argued was necessary for psychology to mature. From this perspective we analyse the role of embodiment and modes of situatedness in terms of integration, cognition, emotion, and autonomy. Four complementary perspectives on embodied and situated cognitive science are considered in terms of their potential to contribute to cognitive robotics, cognitive science, and psychological theorizing: minimal cognition and organization, enactive perception and sensorimotor contingency, homeostasis and emotion, and social embedding. In combination these perspectives provide a framework for cognitive robotics, not only wholly compatible with the original aims of cognitive modelling, but as a more appropriate methodology than those currently in common use within psychology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Cognitive Robotics can be defined as the study of cognitive phenomena by their modeling in physical artifacts such as robots. This is a very lively and fascinating field which has already given fundamental contributions to our understanding of natural cognition. Nonetheless, robotics has to date addressed mainly very basic, low-level cognitive phenomena like sensory-motor coordination, perception, and navigation, and it is not clear how the current approach might scale up to explain high-level human cognition. In this paper we argue that a promising way to do that is to merge current ideas and methods of ‘embodied cognition’ with the Russian tradition of theoretical psychology which views language not only as a communication system but also as a cognitive tool, that is by developing a Vygotskyan cognitive robotics. We substantiate this idea by discussing several domains in which language can improve basic cognitive abilities and permit the development of high-level cognition: learning, categorization, abstraction, memory, voluntary control, and mental life. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper discusses and illustrates identification problems in personality psychology. The measures used by psychologists to infer traits are based on behaviors, broadly defined. These behaviors are produced from multiple traits interacting with incentives in situations. In general, measures are determined by these multiple traits and do not identify any particular trait unless incentives and other traits are controlled for. Using two data sets, we show, that substantial portions of the variance in achievement test scores and grades, which are often used as measures of cognition, are explained by personality variables. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Chernobyl Forum Report from the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster concluded that mental health effects were the most significant public health consequence of the accident. This paper provides an updated review of research on the psychological impact of the accident during the 25 year period since the catastrophe began. First responders and clean-up workers had the greatest exposure to radiation. Recent studies show that their rates of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder remain elevated two decades later. Very young children and those in utero who lived near the plant when it exploded or in severely contaminated areas have been the subject of considerable research, but the findings are inconsistent. Recent studies of prenatally exposed children conducted in Kiev, Norway and Finland point to specific neuropsychological and psychological impairments associated with radiation exposure, whereas other studies found no significant cognitive or mental health effects in exposed children grown up. General population studies report increased rates of poor self-rated health as well as clinical and subclinical depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Mothers of young children exposed to the disaster remain a high-risk group for these conditions, primarily due to lingering worries about the adverse health effects on their families. Thus, long-term mental health consequences continue to be a concern. The unmet need for mental health care in affected regions remains an important public health challenge 25 years later. Future research is needed that combines physical and mental health outcome measures to complete the clinical picture. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The virtual reality environment can provide an immersive feeling as in the real word. So, using virtual reality technology to construct realistic experimental scenarios, the mechanism of cognitive processing in the human brain could be better studied. In this paper, we have designed an experiment, where through the presentation of traffic signs with correct or incorrect background colors in a virtual reality traffic environment, and studied the cognitive processing in the human brain using event-related potential (ERP) method. The results showed that whether the background colors of traffic signs were correct or not, the degrees of familiarity to these traffic signs in the human brain were similar, and the degree of contrast between the background colors and foreground colors of traffic signs would influence the degree of difficulty in cognitive processing. The degree of complexity in contents of traffic signs appears related to the cognitive speed in the human brain. In sum, simpler contents and larger contrast between the background colors and foreground colors of traffic signs would make the human brain respond faster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Skepticism about the epistemic value of intuition in theoretical and philosophical inquiry has recently been bolstered by empirical research suggesting that people’s concrete-case intuitions are vulnerable to irrational biases (e.g., the order effect). What is more, skeptics argue that we have no way to “calibrate” our intuitions against these biases and no way of anticipating intuitional instability. This paper challenges the skeptical position, introducing data from two studies that suggest not only that people’s concrete-case intuitions are often stable, but also that people have introspective awareness of this stability, providing a promising means by which to assess the epistemic value of our intuitions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Theoretical conceptualizations of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) continue to undergo scrutiny and refinement. The current paper critiques five contemporary models of GAD: the Avoidance Model of Worry and GAD [Borkovec, T. D. (1994). The nature, functions, and origins of worry. In: G. Davey & F. Tallis (Eds.), Worrying: perspectives on theory assessment and treatment (pp. 5–33). Sussex, England: Wiley & Sons; Borkovec, T. D., Alcaine, O. M., & Behar, E. (2004). Avoidance theory of worry and generalized anxiety disorder. In: R. Heimberg, C. Turk, & D. Mennin (Eds.), Generalized anxiety disorder: advances in research and practice (pp. 77–108). New York, NY, US: Guilford Press]; the Intolerance of Uncertainty Model [Dugas, M. J., Letarte, H., Rheaume, J., Freeston, M. H., & Ladouceur, R. (1995). Worry and problem solving: evidence of a specific relationship. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 19, 109–120; Freeston, M. H., Rheaume, J., Letarte, H., Dugas, M. J., & Ladouceur, R. (1994). Why do people worry? Personality and Individual Differences, 17, 791–802]; the Metacognitive Model [Wells, A. (1995). Meta-cognition and worry: a cognitive model of generalized anxiety disorder. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 23, 301–320]; the Emotion Dysregulation Model [Mennin, D. S., Heimberg, R. G., Turk, C. L., & Fresco, D. M. (2002). Applying an emotion regulation framework to integrative approaches to generalized anxiety disorder. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 9, 85–90]; and the Acceptance-based Model of GAD [Roemer, L., & Orsillo, S. M. (2002). Expanding our conceptualization of and treatment for generalized anxiety disorder: integrating mindfulness/acceptance-based approaches with existing cognitive behavioral models. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 9, 54–68]. Evidence in support of each model is critically reviewed, and each model''s corresponding evidence-based therapeutic interventions are discussed. Generally speaking, the models share an emphasis on avoidance of internal affective experiences (i.e., thoughts, beliefs, and emotions). The models cluster into three types: cognitive models (i.e., IUM, MCM), emotional/experiential (i.e., EDM, ABM), and an integrated model (AMW). This clustering offers directions for future research and new treatment strategies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In a phylogenetic perspective, the phenomenal and the functional aspects of consciousness cannot be separated because consciousness, as a phenomenal experience, must be causally effective. The hypothesis I propose is that the fundamental property of consciousness consists of a self-organizing process: the differentiation of a content. The differentiation of a content occurs on the basis of the relations internal to a representational whole, which behaves like a field and tends towards a condition of equilibrium. This hypothesis can be somehow considered an extension of Gestalt visual perceptual theory. Unlike neurocomputational processes, which are non-conscious and extrinsic to the representation, conscious processes are intrinsic to the representational whole. Consciousness, as an intrinsically self-organizing process interwoven with its phenomenal aspects, can be more than epiphenomenal and it can be involved in mental function. The paper then discusses the implications of this hypothesis for subjectivity and the explanatory gap. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The objective of this paper is twofold: (a) to review the current knowledge of cultural, psychological, psychiatric, cognitive, interpersonal, and organizational issues that are relevant to the behavior and performance of astronaut crews and ground support personnel and (b) to make recommendations for future human space missions, including both transit and planetary surface operations involving the Moon or Mars. The focus will be on long-duration missions lasting at least six weeks, when important psychological and interpersonal factors begin to take their toll on crewmembers. This information is designed to provide guidelines for astronaut selection and training, in-flight monitoring and support, and post-flight recovery and re-adaptation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: At what stage in the emotion process do people apprehend the relational meaning of their encounters with the practical or social environment? For many appraisal theorists, meaning (usually or always) comes first, shaping the activation of functional response modes by top-down influence. For transactional theorists, meaning emerges bottom-up in parallel with the real-time consolidation of the response syndrome. For attribution theorists, meaning is applied to emotional episodes after the fact, and is not an intrinsic part of any emotion-generative mechanisms. For communicative theorists, emotions are flexible strategies for conveying meanings to others. This paper reviews arguments and evidence for and against these four approaches and attempts to integrate their insights by sketching out a view of emotions as functional modes of engagement with the practical and social environment (relation alignment), whose operation is transformed by the imposition of societal prescriptions and descriptions. From this perspective, relational meaning is often implicated in the causes, content, and consequences of emotion but its roles in these phases of the transaction do not always coincide. Further, emotions should not be modelled simply as determinate responses to separately defined meanings or as communicative acts driven by internal goals, but also as situated adjustments to unfolding events and as active ways of transforming or producing meaning in collaboration with other people. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: One of the perennially intriguing questions regarding Kant’s approach to the human sciences is the relation between his ‘transcendental psychology’ and empirical cognitive psychology. In this paper I compare his analysis of the a priori conditions of human cognition in the Critique of pure reason with his empirical account of the human cognitive faculties in his Anthropology from a pragmatic point of view. In comparing his approach to self-consciousness, sensibility, imagination, and understanding in these two works, I argue that Kant distinguishes between the transcendental and empirical aspects of the human cognitive faculties, and regards the transcendental functions as configuring the empirical faculties of human consciousness, or as giving them the structure that they require to become faculties of cognition. I then show that the cognitive faculties of human beings may vary in their empirical operation, even while they are configured by the same transcendental structure. Finally, I characterize Kant’s transcendental psychology in the first Critique as an account of the faculties that are required for a mind to be an agent or subject of cognition, corresponding to his account of the conditions that are required universally and necessarily for something to be an object of cognition. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The majority of previous computational models of high-order human cognition incorporate gradient descent algorithms for their learning mechanisms and strict error minimization as the sole objective of learning. Recently, however, the validity of gradient descent as a descriptive model of real human cognitive processes has been criticized. In the present paper, we introduce a new framework for descriptive models of human learning that offers qualitatively plausible interpretations of cognitive behaviors. Specifically, we apply a simple multi-objective evolutionary algorithm as a learning method for modeling human category learning, where the definition of the learning objective is not based solely on the accuracy of knowledge, but also on the subjectively and contextually determined utility of knowledge being acquired. In addition, unlike gradient descent, our model assumes that humans entertain multiple hypotheses and learn not only by modifying a single existing hypothesis but also by combining a set of hypotheses. This learning-by-combination has been empirically supported, but largely overlooked in computational modeling research. Simulation studies show that our new modeling framework successfully replicated important observed psychological phenomena. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The difficulty that observers experience when trying to identify a raised line drawing by touch is still largely unexplained. In this article, we show that observers who are unable to haptically identify a raised line drawing are suddenly able to do so after they have sketched on paper what they have in their mind. We conducted three experiments: first of all we show that this effect is robust; in the second experiment, we show that identification-after-sketching is caused by visual inspection of the sketch, and not caused by feedback in general; and in the third we show that sketches which were identified by the observers who produced them, were also identified by completely naive viewers. These experiments demonstrate that during raised line drawing identification the mental capacities required to interpret the stimulus seem to be inadequate: although enough pictorial information was present to produce a sketch which could even be identified by naive viewers, the stimulus could not be identified by haptic and mental processing alone. Furthermore, we investigated whether increasing the haptic perceptual field by using two hands instead of one hand had an influence on identification performance. We did indeed find that using two hands significantly increased identification. We use both results to discuss the underlying mechanisms of haptic raised line drawing identification. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, we aim to show that the framework of embedded, distributed, or extended cognition offers new perspectives on social cognition by applying it to one specific domain: the psychology of memory. In making our case, first we specify some key social dimensions of cognitive distribution and some basic distinctions between memory cases, and then describe stronger and weaker versions of distributed remembering in the general distributed cognition framework. Next, we examine studies of social influences on memory in cognitive psychology, and identify the valuable concepts and methods to be extended and embedded in our framework; we focus in particular on three related paradigms: transactive memory, collaborative recall, and social contagion. Finally, we sketch our own early studies of individual and group memory developed within our framework of distributed cognition, on social contagion of autobiographical memories, collaborative flashbulb memories, and memories of high school at a high school reunion. We see two reciprocal benefits of this conceptual and empirical framework to social memory phenomena: that ideas about distributed cognition can be honed against and tested with the help of sophisticated methods in the social-cognitive psychology of memory; and conversely, that a range of social memory phenomena that are as yet poorly understood can be approached afresh with theoretically motivated extensions of existing empirical paradigms. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]