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Different attentional selection modes of object information in the encoding and maintenance stages of visual working memory PANG Chao, CHEN Yanzhang, WANG Li, YANG Xiduan, HE Ya, LI Zhiying, OUYANG Xiaoyu, FU Shimin, NAN Weizhi 2023, 55 (9):  1397-1410.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01397 Abstract ( 245 )   HTML ( 36 )   PDF (393KB) ( 154 )   Visual working memory (VWM) and selective attention are two essential topics of investigation in the field of cognitive psychology. Previous studies have suggested that object-based attention selection modes may be present during the VWM encoding stage, and feature-based attention selection modes may be present during the maintenance stage. Nonetheless, these conclusions are based on different research paradigms, object feature dimensions, and response indicators, so it is prudent to exercise caution when inferring the existence of distinct attention selection modes during different stages of VWM processing. The aim of the present study is to evaluate this hypothesis and provide empirical support. In Experiment 1a, thirty college students were recruited to complete a change-detection task. Participants were instructed to memorize the features of the objects presented in the memory display by means of a pre-cue or retro-cue presented prior to or following the memory display. Specifically, in pre-cue trials, participants were asked to memorize only the cueing task-relevant feature while ignoring the task-irrelevant feature. In retro-cue trials, participants needed to memorize the entire object so that they could select the task-relevant feature according to the retro-cue. The present study examined the “irrelevant-change distracting effect” by comparing memory performance between the condition of task-irrelevant feature changes and no-changes on the memory probe test display. Experiment 1b had a similar procedure, except that the cue types were block designs. Based on the design of Experiment 1b, Experiments 2 and 3 increased the number of memory items to test whether the memory load would modulate the attention selection modes. Twenty-eight participants were recruited for Experiment 1b, Experiment 2, and Experiment 3. All experiments were 2 (cue types: pre-cue, retro-cue) × 2 (change types: irrelevant change, irrelevant no-change) within-subjects designs, participants’ reaction times (RTs) and correct rates were recorded, and the sensitivity and criteria of the participants were calculated by signal detection theory (SDT). The purpose of Experiment 1a and Experiment 1b was to investigate attentional selection modes in the VWM coding and maintenance stages under low memory load. The results of Experiment 1a showed that the main effect of change types in RTs [701 ms vs. 668 ms, F(1, 29) = 34.48, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.54] and criteria [−0.15 vs. 0.15, F(1, 29) = 47.93, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.62] was significant. In addition, the interaction between cue types and change types in criteria was significant, F (1, 29) = 19.98, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.41. Pairwise comparisons showed that in the pre-cue trial, the criteria under the condition of irrelevant change was smaller (−0.19 vs. 0.25), t (29) = 9.62, p = 0.001, Cohen's d = 1.42, 95%CI = [1.12, 1.72]; In retro-cue trials, the criteria under irrelevant changes was also smaller (−0.11 vs. 0.05), t (29) = 2.55, p = 0.016, Cohen's d = 0.50, 95%CI = [0.10, 0.89] (see Table 1 and Figure 1). The results of Experiment 1b showed that the main effect of change types in RTs [739 ms vs. 722 ms, F (1, 27) = 10.14, p = 0.004, η2p = 0.27] and criteria [−0.12 vs. 0.07, F(1, 27) = 27.87, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.51] was significant (see Table 2), but the interaction in RTs [F (1, 27) = 2.55, p = 0.122] and criteria [F (1, 27) = 2.28, p = 0.143] was not significant (see Figure 2 A/B). The purpose of Experiment 2 was to investigate attentional selection modes in the VWM coding and maintenance stages under middle memory load. The results of Experiment 2 showed that the main effect of change types in RTs [956 ms vs. 921 ms, F (1, 27) = 18.18, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.40] and criteria [0.19 vs. 0.33, F(1, 27) = 16.23, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.38] was significant (see Table 3). In addition, the interaction between cue types and change types in RTs was significant, F (1, 27) = 8.29, p = 0.008, η2p = 0.24. Pairwise comparisons showed that in the pre-cue trial, the criteria under the condition of irrelevant change was smaller (915 ms vs. 860 ms), t(27) = −6.07, p < 0.001, Cohen’s d= −0.61, 95% CI = [−0.82, −0.40]; In retro-cue trials, however, there was no significant difference between irrelevant change and no-change conditions (998 ms vs. 983 ms), t(27) = −1.24, p = 0.227, Cohen’s d= −0.17, 95% CI = [−0.45, 0.11] (see Figure 2 C). The interaction between cue types and change types in criteria was significant, F (1, 27) = 14.10, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.34. Pairwise comparisons showed that in the pre-cue trial, the criteria under the condition of irrelevant change was smaller (0.16 vs. 0.42), t(27) = 5.23, p < 0.001, Cohen’s d= 0.95, 95% CI = [0.58, 1.32]; However, there was no significant difference between irrelevant change and no-change condition in retro-cue trials (0.23 vs. 0.24), t(27) = 0.24, p = 0.816, Cohen’s d= 0.04, 95% CI = [−0.30, 0.37] (see Figure 2 D). The purpose of Experiment 3 was to investigate attentional selection modes in the VWM coding and maintenance stages under high memory load. The results of Experiment 3 showed that the main effect of change types in RTs [1044 ms vs. 1009 ms, F (1, 27) = 11.17, p = 0.002, η2p = 0.29] and criteria [0.27 vs. 0.41, F(1, 27) = 20.05, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.43] was significant (see Table 4). In addition, the interaction between cue types and change types in criteria was significant, F (1, 27) = 16.90, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.39. Pairwise comparisons showed that in the pre-cue trial, the criteria under the condition of irrelevant change was smaller (0.31 vs. 0.56), t(27) = 5.71, p < 0.001, Cohen’s d= 0.83, 95% CI = [0.53, 1.12] (see Figure 2 E); However, there was no significant difference between irrelevant change and no-change condition in retro-cue trials (0.23 vs. 0.25), t(27) = 0.38, p = 0.705, Cohen’s d= 0.05, 95% CI = [−0.21, 0.31] (see Figure 2 F). We further conducted a mixed-design analysis of variance on the RTs and criteria of retro-cue in Experiment 1b, Experiment 2, and Experiment 3, combining them into 3 (memory load: low, middle, high) × 2 (change types: irrelevant change, irrelevant no-change) conditions. Memory load was treated as a between-subjects variable and task-irrelevant feature change type was treated as a within-subjects variable. The results revealed a marginally significant interaction effect on criteria, F(2, 81) = 3.10, p = 0.051, η2p = 0.07. Pairwise comparisons showed that under low memory load condition, the difference between the irrelevant change condition and no-change condition was significant (−0.16 vs. −0.01), t(81) = 3.34, p = 0.001, Cohen’s d= 0.64, 95% CI = [0.26, 1.02]; However, under middle memory load (0.23 vs. 0.24), t(81) = 0.25, p = 0.807, Cohen’s d= 0.05, 95% CI = [−0.33, 0.43], and high memory load(0.23 vs. 0.25), t(81) = 0.35, p = 0.728, Cohen’s d= 0.07, 95% CI = [−0.31, 0.45], the difference between the irrelevant change condition and no-change condition was not significant (see Figure 3 A). In addition, we also calculated memory capacity K values for each condition, and conducted a mixed-design analysis of variance on them with 3 (memory load: low, middle, high) × 2 (cue type: pre-cue, retro-cue) conditions. The results indicated a significant interaction effect, F(2, 81) = 23.34, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.37. Pairwise comparisons showed that under low memory load, there was no significant difference between pre-cue trials and retro-cue trials (1.91 vs. 1.92), t(81) = 0.17, p = 0.869. Under middle memory load, K values under pre-cue trials were significantly larger than those under retro-cue trials (2.77 vs. 2.28), t(81) = 4.73, p < 0.001, Cohen’s d= 0.91, 95% CI = [0.53, 1.29]. Under high memory load, K values under pre-cue trials were also significantly larger than those under retro-cue trials (3.00 vs. 2.02), t(81) = 9.50, p < 0.001, Cohen’s d= 1.82, 95% CI = [1.44, 2.20] (see Figure 3 B). The results of the three experiments showed that the change in task-irrelevant features had an impact on task performance in the pre-cue trials, with longer RTs and lower criteria in the task-irrelevant feature change condition than in the no-change condition. This distracting effect was not modulated by the memory load. This suggests the existence of robust object-based attentional selection during the encoding stage in VWM. In contrast, in the retro-cue trials, the distracting effect was present only in the low memory load condition (Experiment 1a/1b) and disappeared when the memory load increased (Experiment 2/3). This suggests that during the maintenance stage, task-irrelevant features are processed only under low memory load conditions, and insufficient resources lead to their inability to be processed as the demand for attentional resources for task-relevant features increases. In summary, the present study provides further evidence for the hypothesis that different modes of attentional selection exist in the encoding and maintenance stages of VWM, specifically that the attention selection mode during the VWM encoding stage is object- based, while the attention selection mode during the maintenance stage is feature-based and regulated by memory load. This study has important implications for resolving the controversy surrounding the attention selection mode of multifeature objects in VWM. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The epistemic trust of 3- to 6-year-olds in digital voice assistants in various domains LI Zhe, LIU Zheyu, MAO Keyu, LI Wanting, LI Tingyu, LI Jing 2023, 55 (9):  1411-1423.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01411 Abstract ( 125 )   HTML ( 24 )   PDF (227KB) ( 69 )   A new generation of interactive models, called digital voice assistants (DVAs), can respond to young children's speech requests automatically and interact with them by voice. Research on the development of young children's epistemic trust in DVAs is scarce. Previous research has concentrated on the development and influencing factors of young children's epistemic trust in human informants or traditional electronic media (e.g., computers, webpages, internet). The semisocial nature of these devices determines the specific theoretical and practical value of investigating young children's epistemic trust in DVAs. Based on this, the purpose of the current study was to investigate the epistemic trust of young children (aged 3-6) and adults in DVAs in various domains and to confirm the significance of accuracy in their trust. The paradigm of dual-informant sources was employed in both experiments. A sample size of 88 children was required for an effect size of w = 0.30, 1− β = 0.8, α = 0.05, according to G*Power 3.1. In Experiment 1, 30 adults and 90 children aged 4-6 were given testimony from distinct information sources (DVAs vs. humans) in either the natural or social domain to investigate the children's willingness to ask questions, explicit trust judgments, and final endorsements. Whereas the natural domain involved a task to label novel things, the social domain involved inquiry into social customs. The accuracy of the informants was manipulated in Experiment 2, which was based on Experiment 1, and 90 children aged 3-5 and 30 adults were exposed to various informants. The research participants were asked questions about their willingness to ask, explicit trust judgments, and final endorsements. Children's and adults’ mean (SD) willingness to ask, explicit trust judgments, and final endorsements scores in each age group and domain in Experiment 1 are presented in Table 1. A GLMM (generalized linear mixed model) model was developed with the willingness to ask as the dependent variable, and the results showed there was a significant main effect of the domain (χ2 = 3.85, df= 1, p = 0.050). Post hoc comparisons showed that children were significantly less likely to choose to ask about DVAs in the social domain than in the natural domain (t= 2.19, p= 0.029 < 0.05, d = 0.14). There was also a main effect of age (χ2 = 60.12, df= 3, p < 0.001). Paired comparisons showed that adults were more likely to ask about DVAs than young children (adults and 4-year-olds: t= 9.39, p< 0.001, d = 0.93; adults and 5-year-olds: t= 7.10, p< 0.001, d = 0.72; adults and 6-year-olds: t= 5.11, p< 0.001, d = 0.54) and children were more likely to ask about DVAs as they get older (5-year-olds and 4-year-olds: t= 2.30, p= 0.022 < 0.05, d = 0.19; 6-year-olds and 4-year-olds: t= 4.28, p< 0.001, d = 0.36; 6-year-olds and 5-year-olds: t= 1.98, p= 0.048 < 0.05, d = 0.17). A GLMM model was developed with explicit trust judgments as the dependent variable, and the results showed there was a significant main effect of age (χ2 = 32.37, df= 3, p < 0.001). Post hoc comparisons showed that adults were more likely to trust DVAs than young children (adults and 4-year-olds: t= 10.48, p< 0.001, d = 1.12; adults and 5-year-olds: t= 10.59, p< 0.001, d = 1.13; adults and 6-year-olds: t= 6.62, p< 0.001, d = 0.79) and 6-year-olds were more likely to trust DVAs than 4- and 5-year-olds (6-year-olds and 4-year-olds: t= 3.86, p< 0.001, d = 0.31; 6-year-olds and 5-year-olds: t= 3.97, p< 0.001, d = 0.32). A GLMM model was developed with final endorsements as the dependent variable, and the results showed there was a significant main effect of age (χ2 = 33.49, df= 3, p < 0.001). Post hoc comparisons showed that adults were more likely to finally trust DVAs than young children (adults and 4-year-olds: t= 10.67, p< 0.001, d = 1.15; adults and 5-year-olds: t= 10.46, p< 0.001, d = 1.13; adults and 6-year-olds: t= 7.41, p< 0.001, d = 0.86) and 6-year-olds were more likely to finally trust DVAs than 4- and 5-year-olds (6-year-olds and 4-year-olds: t= 3.27, p= 0.001, d = 0.26; 6-year-olds and 5-year-olds: t= 3.05, p= 0.002 < 0.01, d = 0.25). The results of Experiment 1 showed that the children preferred to ask the DVAs questions about the natural domain rather than the social domain, with the DVAs being preferred overall. Moreover, the 6-year-old children preferred the DVAs as the information source more than the 4- to 5-year-old children. The adults were more likely to trust the DVAs than the young children. Children's and adults’ mean (SD) willingness to ask, explicit trust judgments, and final endorsements scores in each age group, accuracy condition, and domain in Experiment 2 are presented in Table 2. A GLMM model was developed with the willingness to ask as the dependent variable, and the results showed there was a significant main effect of the accuracy condition (χ2 = 97.57, df= 1, p < 0.001). Post hoc comparisons showed that children were more likely to ask for accurate informants (t= 28.62, p< 0.001, d = 1.85). There was also a significant interaction of accuracy condition and age (χ2 = 25.66, df= 3, p < 0.001) (see Figure 1). A GLMM model was developed with explicit trust judgments as the dependent variable, and the results showed there was a significant main effect of the accuracy condition (χ2 = 103.29, df= 1, p < 0.001). Post hoc comparisons showed that children were more likely to trust accurate informants (t= 41.27, p< 0.001, d = 2.67). A GLMM model was developed with final endorsements as the dependent variable, and the results showed there was a significant main effect of the accuracy condition (χ2 = 88.39, df= 1, p < 0.001). Post hoc comparisons showed that children were more likely to endorse accurate informants finally (t= 42.79, p< 0.001, d = 2.76). The results of Experiment 2 revealed that the children of all ages and adults were more likely to accept correct informant testimony in both the natural and social domains. In other words, the children were more likely to use the current accuracy of informants as a cue to assess and decide which informant to trust, and when the DVAs lost their accuracy, the children's preference disappeared along with their intellectual trust. The preference for accurate informants was more obvious in the adults and 4- to 5-year-olds than in the 3-year-olds, with the 3-year-olds being less sensitive to accuracy. Accuracy was an essential indicator of the DVAs' dependability. Our study is the first to investigate the development of epistemic trust in DVAs among children aged 3-6 in China. The results show that children can use DVAs as a source of information and knowledge. Young children become more likely to believe the testimonies of DVAs as they grow older. Children are more likely to trust DVAs in the natural domain than in the social domain. Furthermore, young children are more likely to accept the testimony of reliable informants. The results of this study may contribute to our understanding of the usability and utility of human interaction with technological systems and offer suggestions for the use of DVAs in homes and classrooms to support early learning. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The preference and development for societal-type cues in 3- to 8-year-olds' perception of groups WANG Yang, WEN Fangfang, ZUO Bin 2023, 55 (9):  1424-1440.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01424 Abstract ( 107 )   HTML ( 18 )   PDF (814KB) ( 98 )   Perception of groups develops from an early age. Previous studies focused on groups with perceptual-salient cues like gender and race. As highlighted in the intuitive theories of social categorization, children perceive social groups as natural kinds or serving functional roles of social obligation. However, the priority of these two aspects affecting children's group perception is yet to be explored. Our current research summarized these two aspects into physical-type and societal-type cues. Physical-type cues are identified by perceptual-salient attributes related to people like color, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES). Societal-type cues reflect shared attitudes, beliefs, and values among group members, such as common interests, group belongings, and norms. It has previously been found that children start to endorse prescriptive norms around age five. Therefore, we assume that children's preferences for societal-type cues will increase across ages 3 to 8, with a critical period of 5 to 6 years of age. Study 1 was tested online. A total of 215 children (108 males) ages 3 to 8 were recruited. Three physical-type and three societal-type cues were paired under nine experimental conditions. Two tasks were conducted in random order between the participants: The Triad Classification Task and the Exclusion Task. Both tasks required participants to categorize targets based on one of the two given cues (each represented by one cue-type). In the Triad Classification Task, children needed to select one target from two peers, and in the Exclusion Task, they needed to exclude one target. Study 2 tested 3- to 8-year-old children offline (3- to 4-year-olds: 32 children; 5- to 6-year-olds: 21 children; 7- to 8-year-olds: 20 children). Six cues were combined into two experimental conditions (gender × color × norm vs. SES × common interest × belonging). Children were tested using the Opening Social Categorization Task, in which they categorized eight targets into two groups, and reported the reasons for categorization. Results of the two studies demonstrated that 3- to 8-year-olds could apply physical-type and societal-type cues to group perception. Specifically, children rely more on societal-type cues than physical-type cues as they grow up. The 3- to 4-year-olds preferred societal-type cues in social categorization tasks with two choices (Study 1), and physical-type cues in tasks offering three choices (Study 2). Children aged 5 to 8 displayed preferences for societal-type cues in the tasks of Study 1, whereas showed no cue preferences in Study 2. Therefore, for young children (3- to 6-year-olds), their preferences for societal-type cues were sensitive to the number of cues provided in the social categorization tasks, and offline versus online measurements. Moreover, children's cue-type preferences differed significantly between 3- to 4-year-olds (preferred physical-type cues) and 7- to 8-year-olds (preferred societal-type cues). Thus, the critical period for developing a preference for societal cues was 5 to 6 years of age. This study constructs a new framework of physical-type and societal-type cues to understand children's social categorization and group perception. These two types of cues reflect children's perceptual and conceptual foundation in their social categorization. Across ages, children's ability to apply physical-type and societal-type cues supports the intuitive theory of social categorization that children are naturally perceived as groups from two aspects. Physical and societal aspects may be the basic dimensions of group perception. Future research could extend the present findings to other social categories, and more importantly, provide more neurobiological evidence for children's biases toward societal-type cues. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The association between transgressor’s remorse and victim’s forgiveness among young children: The activation effect of bystanders CHEN Guanghui, LI Yihan, DING Wen, CHEN Jing, ZHANG Liang, ZHANG Wenxin 2023, 55 (9):  1441-1452.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01441 Abstract ( 153 )   HTML ( 9 )   PDF (620KB) ( 106 )   Transgressors’ remorse and victim’s forgiveness are two key factors in restoring the ruptured interpersonal relationships between them. One hundred and thirty-nine 4- to 5-year-old children (80 girls) were recruited to participate in experiments of the classic paradigm of remorse and forgiveness, aiming to reveal the influence of remorse on forgiveness and to further explore the activation effect of different types of bystanders among the association between remorse and forgiveness. The results showed that both 4-year-old children and 5-year-old children could actually comprehend the intention under transgressors’ expression of remorse, and they showed more forgiveness to a remorseful transgressor than to a transgressor with no remorse. The presence of bystanders significantly influenced the level of forgiveness. Specifically, to remorseful transgressor, child victims were more forgiving in the presence of strangers than in the presence of their teachers or good friends; however, for unremorseful transgressor, child victims showed more forgiveness when being observed by their teachers and good friends than being observed by stranger bystanders. Bystanders onlooking did not significantly increase the level of forgiveness to remorseful transgressor, which may be related to children’s internalized social expectations (such as “requite injury with kindness”) during the socialization process. Based on this, this study tried to propose and discuss a new theoretical hypothesis, the “bystander-activation effect of social expectations”. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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“Attraction of the like”: The influence of peer’s donation choice on prosocial behavior of adolescents and the role of the belief in a just world ZHANG Weiwei, CHEN Yiqun, ZHU Liqi 2023, 55 (9):  1453-1464.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01453 Abstract ( 162 )   HTML ( 6 )   PDF (438KB) ( 77 )   Adolescents are undoubtedly influenced by their peers, but previous research has predominantly focused on the negative aspects of this influence, such as its impact on aggressive, antisocial, and risky behavior. However, the positive effects of peer influence, particularly on prosocial behavior, have not received the same level of attention. Prosocial behavior, which involves actions that benefit others, is a crucial aspect of positive adolescent development and holds significant importance for their overall well-being. While researchers have recently begun exploring the positive influence of peers, there remains a lack of consensus regarding whether adolescents' prosocial behavior is more influenced by selfless or selfish peers, and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Another essential aspect to consider is the influence of different sources of information on adolescents' prosocial behavior. In the context of Chinese culture, where authority and respect hold significant cultural value, adolescents may be more susceptible to the influence of adults than their peers. Comparing the role of authority figures in shaping prosocial behavior can offer valuable cultural insights into social dynamics among Chinese adolescents. Moreover, researchers have identified the belief in a just world (BJW) as a significant factor in moderating the relationship between social cognition and prosocial behavior. However, the specific role of BJW in the context of social influence, especially concerning peer influence on prosocial behavior, remains unexplored. Investigating the interplay between BJW and peer influence can provide a deeper understanding of the psychological processes that drive prosocial behavior in adolescents. In this study, we utilized an adaptive algorithm and the conflicting source paradigm to examine the influence of social information (prosocial, selfish, conflict) provided by peers or adults on adolescents' donation behavior at a real cost. Additionally, we investigated how the belief in a just world (BJW) factors into this context. The research involved a sample of 77 adolescents aged between 12 and 15 years (with a mean age of 14.06 ± 0.74 years, including 32 girls). As illustrated in Figure 1, each participant was presented with 18 different charity scenarios in a random order. In each scenario, they were given 100 tokens, which they could donate to the charity of their choice. Any remaining tokens could be exchanged for real money after completing the donation task. The study was divided into two phases: In the first phase, participants independently made their initial donation decisions. In the second phase, participants were exposed to the donation choices of two peers or adults. The donation amounts displayed by these peers or adults were either higher or lower than the participants' initial donations, depending on the experimental conditions. This setup allowed us to observe prosocial-influence trials, selfish-influence trials, or conflict-influence trials. The direction of social influence (prosocial, selfish, conflict), information provider (peer or adult), and decision-making phase (first decision, second decision) were included as within-subjects independent variables in the analysis. We analyzed how social influences affected individual prosocial behavior. A LMM revealed a significant main effect of decision-making rounds, F(1, 2672) = 25.69, p < 0.001. The main effect of the direction of social influence was not significant, F(2, 12) = 3.44, p = 0.066; while the interaction effect between the two was significant, F(2, 2672) = 11.99, p < 0.001, R2fixed effect = 0.56. The simple effect test showed that the second donation, after viewing the others’ decisions, was more generous than the initial donation in both the prosocial (M second − M initial = 9.27, p < 0.001) and the conflict conditions (M second − M initial = 4.34, p = 0.003), but not in the selfish condition (p = 0.573). This suggests that adolescents are more likely to be swayed by others’ prosocial rather than selfish behaviors. In other words, adolescents were more sensitive to prosocial influence than selfish influence. In addition, influence magnitude was measured as the extent to which participants altered their donation in line with the observed donations. A LMM showed a main effect of the direction of social influence, F(2, 522) = 30.88, p < 0.001, suggesting that, the change magnitude was largest under the prosocial condition and smallest under the conflict condition (M prosocial condition − M conflict condition = 12.78, p < 0.001; M selfish condition − M conflict condition = 10.72, p < 0.001). The model also showed a main effect of information provider, F(1, 507) = 3.92, p = 0.048, R2fixed effect = 0.33, which indicated that adolescents were more likely to be influenced by information provided by peers than that provided by adults. We took a closer look at the participants' responses in the conflict condition. As shown in Figure 2, under peer influence condition, 33.33% of the participants made more altruistic second decisions, while only 10.39% shifted towards egoism, with significant difference, χ2(1) = 27.81, p < 0.001. Under adult influence condition, the above proportions were 26.84% and 14.72% respectively, with significant difference, χ2(1) = 8.17, p = 0.004. The McNemar test further revealed that when adolescents encountered both prosocial and selfish information, they were more likely to become more altruistic in their second donations under peer influence than under adult influence, χ2(1) = 15.92, p < 0.001, which indicates that adolescents are more influenced by peer role models than by adult role models. Lastly, this study explored the role of the belief in a just world (BJW). We found BJW was significantly positively correlated with prosocial behavior (initial donations; r = 0.08, p = 0.002). We also used a hierarchical regression to analyze the moderating effect of BJW on social influence experienced by adolescents. The results showed that the interaction terms of prosocial condition and BJW and the interaction terms of conflict condition and BJW could significantly predict the outcome of second decisions (the former: Β = 3.55, t = 3.15, p = 0.002, 95% CI = [1.34, 5.76]; the latter: Β = 2.84, t = 2.52, p = 0.012, 95% CI = [0.63, 5.05]). The simple slope test showed that for low-BJW individuals, the direction of social influence could significantly predict second decisions under prosocial condition (Β = 6.90, t = 4.07, p < 0.001, LLCI = 3.57, ULCI = 10.23), but not under conflict condition. While for individuals with high BJW, it was a stronger predictor (the prosocial condition: Β = 14.47, t = 8.52, p < 0.001, LLCI = 11.14, ULCI = 17.79, see Figure 3a; the conflict condition: Β = 8.08, t = 4.76, p < 0.001, LLCI = 4.75, ULCI = 11.40, see Figure 3b). Hence, BJW moderated the prosocial influence on adolescents, with those having a higher belief in a just world being more susceptible to positive social influence. The findings of this study revealed interesting patterns in adolescents' donation behavior under different social influence conditions. Specifically, in both the prosocial and conflict conditions, adolescents exhibited more altruistic second donations compared to their initial donations. Notably, the increase in the amount of the second donation was most significant in the prosocial condition, suggesting that adolescents are particularly receptive to positive influence from their peers. Moreover, the study highlighted that adolescents are more influenced by their peers than by adults. The change in the amount of the second donation was more pronounced when under the influence of peers compared to the influence of adults. This indicates the considerable impact that peer influence can have on adolescents' prosocial behavior. In conclusion, this research sheds light on the significance of social influence, especially from peers, in encouraging prosocial behavior among adolescents. Leveraging positive peer role models and promoting interactions with altruistic peers can be instrumental in fostering a more compassionate and altruistic community of adolescents, benefiting both individuals and society as a whole. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Changes in the network association of Internet addiction among heterogeneous high-risk adolescents CHEN Shiyun, QU Diyang, BU He, LIANG Kaixin, ZHANG Peichao, CHI Xinli 2023, 55 (9):  1465-1476.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01465 Abstract ( 174 )   HTML ( 14 )   PDF (154KB) ( 135 )   The China Internet Information Center reported that the internet addiction rate among Chinese adolescents has reached as high as 10%, indicating that this problem has become a major social health concern among adolescents in China. Previous studies have identified one or more subgroups of adolescents whose trajectory of internet use behaviors puts them at a high risk of addiction, but further research is needed to determine and understand these high-risk groups and fill research gaps. Furthermore, most previous studies have approached the problem from the perspective of the variables of internet addiction, but its symptomatology remains poorly understood. The current study combines a growth mixture model (GMM) with network analysis to identify heterogeneous groups of adolescents at a high risk of internet addiction and to explore the changes in symptomatology in these groups. A three-year longitudinal study followed students from the time they entered junior high school. Three assessments were conducted yearly at identical intervals (T1: October 2016 to November 2016, T2: October 2017 to November 2017, and T3: October to November 2018). Ultimately, 1, 279 adolescents (662 boys and 617 girls) completed the assessments at each time point. Internet addiction was assessed using the 10-item Internet Addiction Test. Mplus 8.0 was used for the descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and the GMM to estimate the development trajectories of various heterogeneous groups. An R package was used to estimate the network structure and core symptoms of internet addiction of each high-risk group at each time point. The GMM showed two class model showed better goodness of fit. The intercept means of the two potential categories were C1: 2.36 (SE = 0.25, t = 9.47, p < 0.001) and C2: 1.48 (SE = 0.05, t = 27.32, p < 0.001) respectively. There was a significant difference between the intercept means of the two potential categories, with the C1 group having a higher initial value of internet addiction score and the C2 group having a relatively lower initial value score. In addition, the mean growth rate of each category was examined by the mean of the slopes. The mean slope values for the two potential categories were C1: 1.62 (SE = 0.14, t = 11.45, p < 0.001); C2: −0.27 (SE = 0.03, t = −8.36, p < 0.001). The level of internet addiction scores changed significantly over time in both groups, with a significant increase over time in group C1 and a decrease in group C2. The analysis of the intercept and slope means showed that the initial levels were higher in group C1 and increased significantly over time. In contrast, the C2 group had a lower initial level and decreased significantly over time. Based on this, the two potential categories were named: C1 as high-risk group, with 11.65% of the sample (n = 149); and C2 as normal group, with 88.35% of the sample (n = 1130). Network analysis revealed that the mean network density at the three time points was 0.25, 0.30 and 0.15, respectively, indicating that the strongest association between symptoms was at T2, while the weakest association between symptoms was at T3. The core symptoms of internet addiction among the adolescents in the high-risk group differed at each time point (See Figure 1). In the first year of junior high school, “Compulsive Internet Use”, “Lack of Satisfaction”, “Emotional Outbursts”, and “Withdrawal Symptoms” were the core symptoms. In the second year, “Lack of Satisfaction” was the core symptom, and in the third year, “Withdrawal Symptoms” became the core symptom. This study enhances the understanding of the symptomatology of internet addiction among high-risk adolescents, indicating that targeted interventions must be developed based on the various stages of adolescence. From the first year of junior high school, strategies should be implemented to prevent the development of internet addiction in high-risk groups. In the second year, adolescents in the high-risk group should be identified by focusing on their satisfaction deficits. In the last year of junior high school, interventions should target adolescents’ withdrawal symptoms of internet addiction. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Combined effects of distal and proximal interpersonal stress and FKBP5 gene on adolescent self-injury behavior: The developmental perspective BAI Rong, GAO Yemiao, LI Jinwen, LIU Xia 2023, 55 (9):  1477-1488.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01477 Abstract ( 96 )   HTML ( 12 )   PDF (336KB) ( 42 )   Self-injury usually emerges in early adolescence and has a high incidence among adolescents worldwide. Self-injury not only damages body tissue but is also associated with depression, anxiety, personality disorders, substance abuse, and a higher-than- average risk of suicide. Given the high incidence of self-injury and the severity of its consequences, it is important to explore its predictors and specific mechanisms. Interpersonal theories of developmental psychopathology maintain that interpersonal stress is a critical risk factor for adolescent self-injury behavior. However, the ways the source and duration of exposure to that stress affect adolescent self-injury behavior are unclear. Adolescents also differ in their sensitivity to interpersonal stress. Stress-related genetic factors may play an important moderating role. The current study selected child abuse and recent peer victimization as distal and proximal interpersonal stress, respectively, and the FKBP5 gene rs3800373 polymorphism as the genetic factor. The purpose of this study was to build upon the results of previous studies by exploring the relative and interactive effects of distal and proximal interpersonal stress on adolescent self-injury behavior. The participants were 436 adolescents (12.84 ± 0.89 years, 49.8% males) recruited from four junior high schools in Guizhou Province. All were tracked from grade 7 to grade 9. At Time 1, adolescents reported child abuse via the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale, peer victimization via the Multidimensional Peer Victimization Scale, and self-injury behavior via the Short Version of the Self-Injury Behavior Scale. At Time 2, adolescents reported peer victimization and self-injury behavior, and saliva samples were collected. Genotyping with respect to the FKBP5 gene was performed with Agena MassArray software, and the corresponding typing results were analyzed using MassARRAY Typer software version 4.0. Table 1 presented the means and standard deviations for all variables of the current study. Primary results in early adolescence were shown in Table 2. T1 child abuse and T1 peer victimization positively predicted T1 self-injury (β = 0.30, t = 4.19, p < 0.001; β = 0.18, t= 2.68, p = 0.008). The main effect of the FKBP5 gene on T1 self-injury was not significant (β = 0.01, t = 0.14, p = 0.886). Additionally, across the entire sample, child abuse and peer victimization had an interactive effect on adolescent self-injury (β = 0.31, t = 4.33, p < 0.001), and the interaction pattern was consistent with the stress amplification model (see Figure 1a). When considering the FKBP5 gene, the three-way interaction was found to be significant (β= −0.45, t = −6.08, p < 0.001). Specifically, among adoles cents with AA homozygous, those who experienced more child abuse were more likely to be affected by recent peer victimization and engage in self-injury compared with those who experienced less child abuse (low-child abuse condition: β = −0.08, t = −1.82, p = 0.070; high-child abuse condition: β = 0.23, t = 6.33, p < 0.001), which was consistent with the stress amplification model (see Figure 1b). However, for adolescents with the AC/CC genotypes, mild recent peer victimization could trigger self-injury in those who experienced more child abuse (low-child abuse condition: β = 0.21, t = 4.60, p < 0.001; high-child abuse condition: β = -0.06, t = -1.41, p = 0.160). These participants showed lower self-injury thresholds and higher scores of self-injury than those who experienced less child abuse, which was consistent with the stress sensitization model (see Figure 1c). These relationships were stable in both early and middle adolescence. Primary results obtained using similar statistical analysis in middle adolescence were presented in Table 3 and Figure 2. These findings showed different patterns of interaction between interpersonal and intrapersonal factors on self-injury behavior in adolescents of different genotypes. Using an integrative, dynamic, and developmental framework, this study provides important insights into the relevant interpersonal theories. It is also valuable for the accurate identification of adolescents at high risk of self-injury and for both prevention and intervention. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Moderating effects of CSF3R and action control between stress and healthy eating: Preliminary evidence for an individual health action against stress model HU Yueqin, WANG Lizhong, CHEN Gang, GAN Yiqun 2023, 55 (9):  1489-1500.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01489 Abstract ( 85 )   HTML ( 6 )   PDF (216KB) ( 45 )   A healthy diet is essential to maintaining a healthy lifestyle, yet many factors may hinder a healthy eating plan. Some studies have found that people tend to consume more unhealthy foods to cope with stress. But the opposite findings also exist. Some people under stress may still maintain a healthy diet. The mechanisms by which people make different dietary choices under stress are not yet clear. This study combined health behavior theories and vagal tone theory and proposed a gene stress interaction model of dietary choice, arguing that different dietary choices under stress may be related to two types of vagal tone: trophotropic or ergotrophic, representing the tendency to regenerate and recover or the tendency to prepare for fight or flight. CSF3R is a granulocyte colony-stimulating factor receptor that is closely associated with chronic psychological stress responses, and its different genotypes may lead to different stress responses, exhibiting the aforementioned tendency toward or away from nutrition. In addition, action control suggested by Health Action Process Approach may also play a critical role in the implementation of healthy eating intentions into healthy eating behaviors. Figure 1 shows the conceptual model proposed in this study, the Individual Health Action Against Stress Model. A sample of 14,675 Chinese adults completed genotyping of their saliva samples, as well as questionnaires on perceived stress, action control, and healthy dietary intentions and behaviors. Their mean age was 28.17 years (SD = 7.09); 6363 (43.4%) were male, 8267 (56.3%) were female, and 45 (0.3%) did not report gender; 3601 (24.5%) had a master's degree or higher, 8614 (58.7%) had a bachelor's degree, 1597 (10.9%) had a college degree, 817 (5.6%) had a high school education, and the remaining 46 (0.3%) had less than high school education. Perceived stress was measured by the Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen et al., 1983). Action control was measured by a questionnaire developed by Sniehotta et al. (2005). And healthy dietary intentions and behaviors were measured by the same items used in Schwarzer & Luszczynska (2008). CSF3R was used as a candidate gene reflecting vagal tone due to its proven impact on stress response. Table 1 shows the descriptive statistics and correlations. Regression analysis was used to test the effect of stress on healthy dietary intentions and behaviors, and the moderating effect of the CSF3R gene and action control. Table 2 shows the regression results. Specifically, Model 1-2 tested the mediating effect of intention between stress and behavior, Model 3-5 tested the moderating effect of gene between stress and intention, and Model 6 tested the moderating effect of action control between intention and behavior. Regression results found that stress predicted a significant reduction in healthy dietary intentions, B = -0.034, SE = 0.002, p <.001, 95% CI = [-0.038, -0.030], and a subsequent reduction in healthy dietary behaviors, with a direct effect of B = -0.008, SE = 0.001, p <.001, 95% CI = [-0.010, -0.006], and an indirect effect of B = -0.022, SE = 0.002, 95% CI = [-0.025, -0.019]. The CSF3R gene rs4076431 and its linked loci rs4498771, rs10752589, rs9660229 moderated the relationship between stress and healthy eating intentions, B = 0.013, SE = 0.004, p <.01, 95% CI = [0.004, 0.021], while action control moderated the relationship between healthy eating intentions and behaviors, B = -0.067, SE = 0.003, p <.001, 95% CI = [-0.073, -0.060]. In rs4076431, for example, the negative relationship between stress and healthy eating intentions was stronger in AA genotype (trophotropic) than the G carriers (ergotrophic). And higher levels of action control were associated with more healthy eating behaviors and less indirect impact of stress on behavior. The moderating effect of gene and action control is illustrated in Figure 2. These results supported the individual health action against stress model, which may be applied to healthy diet education and stress management. Individual's stress levels reflecting environmental influence, dominance of vagal tone (or genotype) and action control reflecting individual physiological and psychological factors may all have an impact on dietary choices. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Autistic traits influence pain empathy: The mediation role of pain-related negative emotion and cognition ZHANG Wenyun, ZHUO Shiwei, ZHENG Qianqian, GUAN Yinglin, PENG Weiwei 2023, 55 (9):  1501-1517.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01501 Abstract ( 214 )   HTML ( 20 )   PDF (1175KB) ( 163 )   Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are typically characterized by impaired social interactions that are thought to be related to deficits in empathy. While cognitive empathy deficit in ASD is widely recognized, it remains controversial whether individuals with ASD have a deficiency in emotional empathy. According to the shared representation theory, psychological and neuronal mechanisms involved in the personal experience of an emotional or somatosensory state are also engaged while empathizing with other individuals in those states. It suggests that the deficits of empathy seen in the ASD population could arise from the atypical experience of first-hand pain. Mild, subclinical forms of the characteristics associated with ASD are referred to as autistic traits. Individuals with high autistic traits exhibit sensory, emotional, and social behaviors similar to those with ASD. Given the relationship between pain empathy and first-hand pain as well as the similarity between autistic traits and ASD, the present study tested the hypothesis that autistic traits in the general population would influence pain empathic responses, which could be contributed by first-hand pain-related profiles. In Experiment 1, we recruited 1131 healthy participants to complete the mandarin version of the Autism-spectrum Quotient (AQ) questionnaire, as a reliable measurement of ASD symptomatology in typically developing adults. The total AQ score ranges from 0 to 50, with higher scores indicating higher levels of autistic traits. According to the overall score distribution (20.08 ± 0.17, M ± SE), we divided participants into HAQ (with high autistic traits, AQ score ≥ 27) and LAQ (with low autistic traits, AQ score ≤ 13) groups by taking the top and bottom 10% of the overall distribution. Then, a subset of participants from both HAQ (n= 30, 15 males, aged 21.30 ± 0.31 years) and LAQ (n= 30, 16 males, aged 20.77 ± 0.34 years) groups were randomly recruited to participate in the EEG experiment. We adopted an ecological pain empathy paradigm and compared behavioral and neural activity between individuals with HAQ and those with LAQ. During the pain empathy paradigm (Figure 1), the participants either perceived the painful electrical stimuli themselves or witnessed the delivery of painful electrical stimuli to their partners in certain and uncertain contexts. When perceiving pain themselves, behavioral responses and brain responses were comparable between HAQ and LAQ groups (all p> 0.05). When witnessing others in pain, participants in the HAQ group had greater amplitudes of the P2 component (5.68 ± 0.74 μV vs. 3.50 ± 0.74 μV, p = 0.041) on the event-related potentials and reported higher ratings of unpleasantness (3.53 ± 0.29 vs. 2.44 ± 0.29, p = 0.009) than those in the LAQ group. HAQ reported higher ratings of fear of pain of predictability cue (2.97 ± 0.33 vs. 1.78 ± 0.33, p = 0.014). The between-group differences in the behavioral and neural responses related to pain empathy were not moderated by certainty of the context (certain or uncertain) (Figure 2 & Figure 3). We further tested the mediating role of fear of pain on the link between autistic traits on emotional empathy for others’ pain. Autistic traits showed a total effect (c = 0.40, SE = 0.12, 95% CI = [0.16, 0.64]) on emotional empathy for others’ pain. Autistic traits showed a direct effect (c’ = 0.29, SE = 0.12, 95% CI = [0.05, 0.53]) on emotional empathy for others’ pain. Autistic traits showed an indirect effect (a×b = 0.11, SE = 0.06, 95% CI = [0.01, 0.25]) on emotional empathy for others’ pain through fear of pain. These results revealed that the between-group differences in the unpleasantness elicited by witnessing others’ pain could be contributed by the greater fear of pain while anticipating the upcoming painful stimuli (Figure 4). In Experiment 2, the relationship among autistic traits, pain-related profiles, and trait empathy was assessed in randomly recruited participants (381 healthy college students; 202 males, aged 20.95 ± 0.12 years). We found that autistic trait levels were negatively correlated with scores on the perspective-taking subscale of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (r(379) = −0.19, p < 0.001) and positively correlated with the personal distress subscale (r(379) = 0.27, p < 0.001) (Table 1). Importantly, pain-related fear and pain catastrophizing mediated the link between autistic traits and personal distress (total effect: c = 0.27, SE= 0.05, 95% CI = [0.17, 0.36], p < 0.001; indirect effect: a×b = 0.11, SE= 0.04, 95% CI = [0.05, 0.19], p < 0.001; direct effect: c’ = 0.16, SE= 0.05, 95% CI = [0.07, 0.25], p = 0.002) (Figure 5). Data from Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrated that autistic traits heighten emotional empathy, which can be explained by the negative emotion and cognition toward pain. Given the similarities between individuals with high autistic traits and ASD, this finding may help to expand the biological mechanisms underlying ASD, such as explaining empathy deficits or other social difficulties seen in the ASD from the perspective of atypical pain-related profiles. Future studies should combine multiple modalities of painful stimulations and multidimensional pain assessments to comprehensively characterize pain-related profiles among individuals with high autistic traits or ASD, and establish linkage between pain-related profiles and empathy or social deficits. This understanding has the potential to provide targets for clinical interventions and treatments of ASD. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Can Cinderella become Snow White? The influence of perceived trustworthiness on the mental representation of faces LI Qinggong, FANG Wei, HU Chao, SHI Dejun, HU Xiaoqing, FU Genyue, WANG Qiandong 2023, 55 (9):  1518-1528.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01518 Abstract ( 152 )   HTML ( 15 )   PDF (222KB) ( 83 )   People often infer others’ social traits, such as trustworthiness, from a glance at their face. Whereas previous studies have focused on how different facial cues influence social perception, the present study examined whether perception of a person’s trustworthiness could influence mental representations of that person’s face, as well as the mechanisms underlying this process. Two experiments were conducted. Experiment 1 was designed to test whether a target person described as trustworthy would be represented in the perceiver’s mind as more attractive than the same person described as untrustworthy. One hundred and fifty-five participants were recruited and randomly assigned into four conditions (Female trustworthy: N = 37, 20 females, Mean age = 19.86 years, SD = 1.60 years; Female untrustworthy: N = 38, 21 females, Mean age = 20.42 years, SD = 1.95 years; Male trustworthy: N = 40, 20 females, Mean age =20.38 years, SD = 1.35 years; Male untrustworthy: N = 40, 20 females, Mean age = 19.68 years, SD = 1.82 years). Participants were instructed to form an impression about a target person’s trustworthiness by viewing the person’s face paired with a description labeling them as trustworthy or untrustworthy. The reverse correlation image classification (RCIC) technique was then used to visualize the participants’ mental representations of the target person’s face (Figure 1). A separate group of participants (N = 50, 27 females, Mean age = 21.32 years, SD = 2.51 years) were recruited to evaluate the attractiveness and other traits (e.g., friendly, intelligent, and positive) of the generated mental representation images. Experiment 2 aimed to determine a possible underlying mechanism by exploring whether the mental representations of the trustworthy (or untrustworthy) target persons’ faces in Experiment 1 shared more similarities with those of the trustworthy (or untrustworthy) faces at a group level (i.e., prototypes of trustworthy or untrustworthy faces). To achieve this goal, we recruited participants (N = 20, 10 females, Mean age = 19.95 years, SD = 1.10 years) to complete an alternate RCIC task in which they selected which of two faces appeared more trustworthy, producing mental representation images for trustworthy and untrustworthy faces at a group level (Figure 2). The features of these prototypical trustworthy and untrustworthy faces were then compared with those of the target person from Experiment 1. In Experiment 1, mental representations of a face described as trustworthy were found to be more attractive than those of the same face described as untrustworthy. Furthermore, raters attributed additional desirable traits, such as friendly, intelligent, and positive, to the representation of the trustworthy person (Table 1). In Experiment 2, we found that the mental representation of the face labeled as trustworthy in Experiment 1 shared more similarities with the prototypical trustworthy face produced in Experiment 2 than with the prototypical untrustworthy face (Table 2). In sum, our findings suggest that the perception of a person’s trustworthiness can influence mental representations of that person’s face. When people perceive an individual as trustworthy (or untrustworthy), they may superimpose the corresponding schema features in their minds onto the physical characteristics of the perceived individual’s face, leading to a reconfiguration of the face representation. Our study underscores the importance of top-down factors in shaping face representations. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Change or procrastination? Employees’ differentiated responses to illegitimate tasks ZOU Yanchun, ZHANG Huimin, PENG Jian, NIE Qi, WANG Zhen 2023, 55 (9):  1529-1541.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01529 Abstract ( 147 )   HTML ( 11 )   PDF (166KB) ( 105 )   Illegitimate tasks refer to tasks that are in violation of what employees feel can reasonably be expected from them. Illegitimate tasks can be differentiated into unreasonable and unnecessary tasks. To date, several empirical studies have revealed the negative effects of illegitimate tasks on employees, such as lower job satisfaction, poor psychological detachment from work, lower self-esteem, and stronger feelings of resentment. Given the detriments of illegitimate tasks, how should employees respond to them? Surprisingly, prior research has mainly focused on employees’ negative responses, such as counterproductive work behaviour and turnover intention. Only one study has found that employees can respond to illegitimate tasks proactively (e.g., task crafting). Integrating these ongoing research streams, we propose a dual model of illegitimate tasks. In doing so, we provide a balanced perspective for understanding differentiated responses for illegitimate tasks. To explore how employees respond to illegitimate tasks, we draw on the approach-avoidance model to hypothesize the following: For employees who have a high level of approach tendency, illegitimate tasks facilitate their taking charge behaviours as a means of improving the work situation. Felt responsibility for constructive change accounted for the above moderating effect. In contrast, for employees who have a high level of avoidance tendency, illegitimate tasks cause their procrastination at work as a means of keeping away from such a situation. Work alienation accounted for the moderating effect. To test our theoretical model, we carried out an experiment. The results of descriptive statistics (see Table 1) suggest that approach tendency is significantly positively related to taking charge behaviour (r = 0.24, p < 0.001), and avoidance tendency is significantly positively related to work procrastination (r = 0.26, p < 0.001). The experiment showed that approach tendency and illegitimate tasks positively interacted to facilitate taking charge behaviour (b = 0.17, p < 0.001), and that avoidance tendency and illegitimate tasks positively interacted to facilitate work procrastination (b = 0.18, p < 0.001) (see Table 2). In addition, we recruited a variety of full-time employees to participate in the survey. The final sample included 207 three-wave data. The results of descriptive statistics (see Table 3) suggest that illegitimate tasks (r = 0.23, p < 0.001) and work alienation (r = 0.26, p < 0.001) both are significantly positively related to work procrastination. Felt responsibility for constructive change is significantly positively related to taking charge behaviour (r = 0.23, p < 0.001). Regression analysis was used to test our hypotheses (see Table 4). The results showed that approach tendency and illegitimate tasks positively interacted to facilitate taking charge behaviour (b = 0.13, p = 0.015), and felt responsibility for constructive change (b = 0.11, p = 0.006). Avoidance tendency and illegitimate tasks positively interacted to facilitate work procrastination (b = 0.23, p = 0.001) and work alienation(b = 0.12, p = 0.019). Moreover, felt responsibility for constructive change played a mediating role in the interaction between approach tendency and illegitimate tasks, the indirect effect is 0.03 (95% CI = [0.002, 0.058]), while work alienation played a mediating role in the interaction between avoidance tendency and illegitimate tasks, the indirect effect is 0.03 (95% CI = [0.003, 0.076]). Our findings demonstrate that approach-oriented employees respond to illegitimate tasks in a positive way, whereas avoidance-oriented employees respond to illegitimate tasks in a negative way. In addition, our findings advance the approach-avoidance model by applying this model on the field of illegitimate tasks. In practice, our research provides implications for managers to manage illegitimate tasks according to employees’ psychological tendencies. If illegitimate tasks are unavoidable, organizations should pay more attention to promoting employees’ approach tendency and felt responsibility for constructive change. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The effect of product traditional cultural load on brand status: Evidence from young consumers* YU Wenhuan, HE Lin, FU Yu, LIU Tao 2023, 55 (9):  1542-1557.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01542 Abstract ( 102 )   HTML ( 11 )   PDF (894KB) ( 162 )   Four behavioral studies and one brain imaging study consistently confirmed that increasing the traditional cultural load of a product can enhance consumers’ perceived brand status of the product. Giving products more traditional cultural content can activate consumers’ social cognitive brain areas and reward brain areas, and enhance consumers’ perceived social value of the product, which in turn affects their perceived brand status evaluation of the product. Product type moderates the effect of traditional cultural load on brand status. The empowering effect of traditional cultural load on brand status is more applicable to utilitarian products, and the effect on the brand status of hedonic products is not significant. This research expands the scope of cultural marketing research and reveals the cognitive neural mechanism of Chinese traditional culture empowerment on brand status. Also, it has important practical implications for the use of Chinese traditional culture in brand status management of utilitarian products. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Like knows like: The effect of social identity conflict on preference for integrated culturally mixed products PANG Jun, LI Menglin 2023, 55 (9):  1558-1572.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01558 Abstract ( 86 )   HTML ( 9 )   PDF (306KB) ( 47 )   Culturally mixed products (CMPs) refer to products embodying components from two or more cultures. These products can be categorized into two distinct categories: intrusive and integrated, depending on the extent of intrusion between the embedded cultures. The present research focuses on integrated CMPs, which are more prevalent than intrusive CMPs in everyday life. Considerable research has examined what factors influence consumer responses to integrated CMPs. This research expands the existing literature by introducing social identity conflict as a contextual factor that may enhance consumer preference for such products. We posit that social identity conflict poses a threat to the self, leading to the activation of a self-verification motivation. Integrated CMPs embody different cultures with conflicting elements, so consumers with conflicting social identities tend to perceive these products as congruent with themselves and thereby helpful for self-verification. As a result, they will show a higher preference for integrated CMPs when experiencing social identify conflict than not. Based on this theorization, we further posit that the positive influence of social identity conflict on preference for integrated CMPs will be attenuated when consumers acquire products for functional rather than symbolic purposes, and when they purchase products for others rather than for themselves. We conducted six studies to test our hypotheses. Study 1a assessed participants' chronic experiences of social identity conflict and their preferences for an integrated CMP or a regular product, with product type as the between-subjects factor. Study 1b manipulated participants' social identity conflict and asked them to choose between an integrated CMP and a regular product. Study 2a was similar to study 1b in the stimuli, measurement and procedure, except for three revisions. First, we added an identity-synergy condition to rule out the focus on the relationships between social identities as an alternative explanation for the focal effect. Second, we used the same stimuli as in study 1b, but asked participants to rate their preferences rather than make a choice regarding the two products. Third, we measured participants’ negative emotions, cognitive flexibility, novelty-seeking, and self-concept clarity, as well as perceived product value in self-verification to investigate the underlying process. Study 2b sought further evidence for the underlying process using a 2 (social identity conflict: activated vs. not) × 2 (alternative means to self-verification: provided vs. not) between-subjects design. For participants provided with an alternative means to self-verification, they were asked to recall and write down a person who could accept their conflicting social identities. Studies 3 and 4 employed a 2 × 2 between-subjects design to examine the moderating effect of purchase goal and purchase recipient, respectively. Confirming our hypothesis, study 1 demonstrated a positive relationship between social identity conflict and preference for integrated CMPs. Specifically, study 1a revealed a significant social identity conflict × product type interaction on consumer preference (B = 0.28, SE = 0.13; t(296) = 2.23, p = 0.027, Cohen's d = 0.26). As predicted, social identity conflict heightened the preference for the integrated CMP (index = 0.28, 95% CI = 0.1015 ~ 0.4638, Cohen's d = 0.37), but had no effect on the preference for the regular product (index = -0.002, 95% CI = -0.1756 ~ 0.1720). Study 1b confirmed the causality of the proposed relationship by showing that manipulated social identity conflict increased the likelihood of choosing the integrated CMP (45.6% vs. 32.8%; χ2 (1) = 4.30, p = 0.038, φ = 0.13). Study 2 corroborated self-verification as the underlying mechanism. Specifically, study 2a showed significant differences among the three conditions (F(2, 397) = 3.75, p = 0.024, η2 = 0.01), with those in the identity-conflict condition (M = 4.61, SD = 2.15) showing a higher preference for the integrated CMP than those in the control condition (M = 3.92, SD = 2.25, p =0.010) and those in the identity-synergy condition (M = 4.07, SD = 2.11, p = 0.042). The mediation process analyses further confirmed that the effect of social identity conflict (vs. control) on preference for the integrated CMP was mediated by perceived value of the product in self-verification (index = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.1595 ~ 1.0138), but not by participants’ negative emotions, cognitive flexibility, novelty-seeking or self-concept clarity (see Figure 1). Study 2b showed a significant interaction between social identity conflict and alternative means to self-verification, F(1, 570) = 8.22, p = 0.004, η2 = 0.01; see Figure 2. When the alternative means to self-verification were not provided, the focal effect was replicated such that participants in the social identity conflict condition indicated a greater preference for the integrated CMP (M = 4.38, SD = 2.22) than those in the control condition (M = 3.85, SD = 2.23), F (1, 570) = 4.13, p = 0.043, η2 = 0.01. When the alternative means to self-verification was provided, however, the effect was reversed (Mconflict = 3.74, SDconflict = 2.20; Mcontrol = 4.27, SDcontrol = 2.27), F(1, 570) = 4.09, p = 0.044, η2 = 0.01. These results provide further evidence for self-verification as the underlying process of the focal effect. Study 3 corroborated the moderating effect of purchase goal by revealing a significant interaction between social identity conflict and purchase goal, F(1, 296) = 8.54, p = 0.004, η2 = 0.03. As shown in Figure 3, participants in the social identity conflict condition preferred the integrated CMP (M = 2.84, SD = 1.93) more than those in the control condition (M = 2.28, SD = 1.40; F (1, 296) = 3.98, p = 0.047, η2 = 0.01) when they bought products for symbolic purposes. However, this effect was flipped when participants bought products for functional purposes (Mconflict = 2.25, SDconflict = 1.59; Mcontrol = 2.85, SDcontrol = 1.91), F(1, 296) = 4.57, p = 0.033, η2 = 0.02. The moderated mediation process analyses further confirmed perceived product value in self-verification as the underlying process to account for the moderation effect (for the symbolic-purchase condition, index = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.3015 ~ 1.3042; for the functional-purchase condition, index = −0.58, 95% CI = −1.0410 ~ −0.1077). Study 4 demonstrated the moderating role of purchase recipients in the focal effect (B = -0.72, SE =0.37, Z = -1.98, p =0.048). We found that participants in the social identity conflict condition were more likely to choose the integrated CMP (P = 60.2%) than those in the control condition (P = 43.1%; β = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.1828 ~ 1.1981) when they purchased the product for themselves. However, this effect disappeared when they purchased the product for others (Pconflict =49.6%, Pcontrol =50.4%; β =−0.03, 95% CI = −0.5374 ~ 0.4712). Our research contributes to the CMP literature by recognizing a novel antecedent of consumer preference for integrated CMPs and elucidating the role of self-verification in this relationship. More broadly, this research advances the knowledge of how social identity conflicts shape consumer behavior. In practical terms, our findings provide managers with actionable suggestions on how to market integrated CMPs. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Joint cognitive diagnostic modeling for probabilistic attributes incorporating item responses and response times TIAN Yashu, ZHAN Peida, WANG Lijun 2023, 55 (9):  1573-1586.  doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1041.2023.01573 Abstract ( 101 )   HTML ( 9 )   PDF (311KB) ( 59 )   Compared with the conventional CDM with deterministic or binary attributes, the CDM with probabilistic attributes (probabilistic-CDM) can achieve a more refined diagnosis of attribute mastery status, which helps distinguish individual differences between students and provides more reference information for teacher feedback. However, existing probabilistic CDMs can only analyze a single modal of data—item response accuracy (RA), ignoring other modals of data such as item response times (RTs). RTs reflect the cognitive processing speed of the participant. With the popularity of computerized testing, recording RT data has become routine. However, how to use RTs in probabilistic CDM to further improve parameter estimation accuracy and enrich the diagnostic feedback information is still an unsolved methodological problem. To this end, the current study proposes three joint probabilistic CDMs based on the joint-hierarchical and joint-cross-loading cognitive diagnostic modeling approaches (see Figure 1). First, based on joint-hierarchical modeling, the joint-hierarchical probabilistic CDM (JRT-PINC) was proposed in Study 1, see Figure 1(a), which achieved the purpose of using RT to improve diagnostic accuracy. A simulation study was conducted to investigate the psychometric performance of the JRT-PINC under various simulated testing conditions, in which three independent variables, including sample size, test length, and the correlation between person parameters, were manipulated. Second, two joint-cross-loading probabilistic CDMs (CJRT-PINC-θ and CJRT-PINC-m) were proposed based on the joint-cross-loading modeling, see Figure 1(b) and 1(c). In contrast to the JRT-PINC model, two CJRT-PINC models directly used RTs to provide information for latent abilities or attributes by introducing item-level cross-loading parameters. Two CJRT-PINC models released some conditional independence assumptions in JRT-PINC, increasing their application scope. Two simulation studies were conducted to explore their performance under different simulated conditions with different degrees of cross-loading. Third, Study 3 aims to explore the relative merits of the JRT-PINC and two CJRT-PINC models, that is, the necessity of considering cross-loading in the joint analysis of RA and RT. Finally, an empirical example was conducted to illustrate the practical applicability of the proposed models and to compare them with existing CDMs (e.g., CDMs with deterministic attributes). The simulation results mainly indicated that: (1) all three proposed models can be well recovered under different simulated conditions (see Tables 1-6); (2) CJRT-PINC-θ makes fuller use of the information contained in RTs and thus improves the accuracy of the parameter estimation of the core constructs (e.g., latent ability and attributes) than CJRT-PINC-m; and (3) the adverse effects of ignoring the possible cross-loadings are more severe than redundantly considering them (see Table 7). The results of the empirical example indicated that: (1) probabilistic attributes provide more refined feedback on participants' mastery of attributes than deterministic attributes; and (2) two CJRT-PINC models fit this data better than the JRT-PINC model (see Table 8). Overall, this paper introduced RTs in probabilistic CDM for the first time and proposed three joint probabilistic CDMs based on two joint cognitive diagnostic modeling approaches. This study enriched the scope of application of probabilistic CDMS and provided methodological guidance for further refined and comprehensive diagnosis by jointly analyzing multi-modal data in technology-enhanced assessment systems. Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics