Through cultural transmission, repeated learning by new individuals transforms cultural information, which tends to become increasingly compressible . Existing diffusion chain studies include in their design two processes that could be responsible for this tendency: learning and reproducing . This paper manipulates the presence of learning in a simple iterated drawing design experiment. We find that learning seems to be the causal factor behind the increase in compressibility observed in the transmitted information, while reproducing is a source of random heritable (...) innovations. Only a theory invoking these two aspects of cultural learning will be able to explain human culture's fundamental balance between stability and innovation. (shrink)

We investigate the emergence of iconicity, specifically a bouba-kiki effect in miniature artificial languages under different functional constraints: when the languages are reproduced and when they are used communicatively. We ran transmission chains of participant dyads who played an interactive communicative game and individual participants who played a matched learning game. An analysis of the languages over six generations in an iterated learning experiment revealed that in the Communication condition, but not in the Reproduction condition, words for spiky shapes tend (...) to be rated by naive judges as more spiky than the words for round shapes. This suggests that iconicity may not only be the outcome of innovations introduced by individuals, but, crucially, the result of interlocutor negotiation of new communicative conventions. We interpret our results as an illustration of cultural evolution by random mutation and selection. (shrink)

The present study explores the idea that human linguistic communication co-opted a pre-existing population-wide behavioural system that was shared among social group members and whose structure reflected the structure of the environment. This system is hypothesized to have emerged from interactions among individuals who had evolved the capacity to imitate arbitrary, functionless behaviour. A series of agent-based computer simulations test the separate and joint effects of imitation, pattern completion behaviour, environment structure and level of social interaction on such a population-wide (...) behavioural system. The results support the view that a system that could be co-opted for linguistic communication might arise in a population of agents equipped with arbitrary imitation for the purposes of pattern completion interacting in certain kinds of structured environments. Such pre-linguistic behavioural system could have bootstrapped communication and paved the way for biological capacities widely believed to be necessary for communication, such as shared intentionality and symbolicity, to evolve. (shrink)

The present study explores the idea that human linguistic communication co-opted a pre-existing population-wide behavioural system that was shared among social group members and whose structure reflected the structure of the environment. This system is hypothesized to have emerged from interactions among individuals who had evolved the capacity to imitate arbitrary, functionless behaviour. A series of agent-based computer simulations test the separate and joint effects of imitation, pattern completion behaviour, environment structure and level of social interaction on such a population-wide (...) behavioural system. The results support the view that a system that could be co-opted for linguistic communication might arise in a population of agents equipped with arbitrary imitation for the purposes of pattern completion interacting in certain kinds of structured environments. Such pre-linguistic behavioural system could have bootstrapped communication and paved the way for biological capacities widely believed to be necessary for communication, such as shared intentionality and symbolicity, to evolve. (shrink)

Cognitive Science, Volume 45, Issue 11, November 2021.

The distribution of cultural variants in a population is shaped by both neutral evolutionary dynamics and by selection pressures. The temporal dynamics of social network connectivity, that is, the order in which individuals in a population interact with each other, has been largely unexplored. In this paper, we investigate how, in a fully connected social network, connectivity dynamics, alone and in interaction with different cognitive biases, affect the evolution of cultural variants. Using agent‐based computer simulations, we manipulate population connectivity dynamics (...) (early, mid, and late full‐population connectivity); content bias, or a preference for high‐quality variants; coordination bias, or whether agents tend to use self‐produced variants (egocentric bias), or to switch to variants observed in others (allocentric bias); and memory size, or the number of items that agents can store in their memory. We show that connectivity dynamics affect the time‐course of variant spread, with lower connectivity slowing down convergence of the population onto a single cultural variant. We also show that, compared to a neutral evolutionary model, content bias accelerates convergence and amplifies the effects of connectivity dynamics, while larger memory size and coordination bias, especially egocentric bias, slow down convergence. Furthermore, connectivity dynamics affect the frequency of high‐quality variants (adaptiveness), with late connectivity populations showing bursts of rapid change in adaptiveness followed by periods of relatively slower change, and early connectivity populations following a single‐peak evolutionary dynamic. We evaluate our simulations against existing data collected from previous experiments and show how our model reproduces the empirical patterns of convergence. (shrink)

Mónica Tamariz Dept. de Psicología Experimental, Universidad de Granada, España Según estudios recientes, algunas propiedades estructurales fundamentales del lenguaje pueden … Read More →.

The time marked by the clock hands, the so-called “objective time,” is deeply different from the one perceived by the individual. Starting from this hypothesis, directly connected to the subjective modality of “living” the time and defined as time perspective, we will try to understand how much it affects the various domains of people's lives, attitudes, and experiences. Therefore, the research investigates whether all our decisions can be influenced by one or more time perspectives beyond our awareness. Last, but not (...) least, we will try to understand if some time perspectives in specific contexts are more functional and adaptive than others. (shrink)

BackgroundIn this article, we address questions regarding how people consider what they do or do not consent to and the reasons why. This article presents the findings of a citizen forum study conducted by the University of Geneva in partnership with the Geneva University Hospitals to explore the opinions and concerns of members of the public regarding predictive oncology, genetic sequencing, and cancer. MethodsThis paper presents the results of a citizen forum that included 73 participants. A research tool titled "the (...) mechanics of consent" was designed for this study. This tool is a table encouraging participants to reflect on social and research actors, types of data, and desired levels of control while sharing different types of data with different actors. Participants’ discussion that led to the completion of each table were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis.ResultsThe results are a compilation of responses from the mechanics of consent tool divided into two sections; the first presents quantitative results of collective responses regarding attitudes to consent to donate their data. The second section present qualitative findings emerged from the discussion amongst participants.DiscussionChoice and control of personal data is crucial for the public to be able to decide who and how to trust. Key information to be disclosed to potential research participants shall include information about potential risks and benefits; who will be accessing and using their data; as well as assurances that their choice will be respected. Furthermore, researchers ought to make sure they are trustworthy, by acting in a competent, reliable, and honest manner. Governance systems ought to be better equipped to address ethical issues raise by the growing presence of non-traditional research actors, consent of exchanges of data via digital devices and online activity such as social media and fairness of data trading. Finally, informed consent is one of the various elements that contribute to conducting ethical research. More needs to be done to strengthen governance and ensure adequate protection of research participants, particularly to address issues related to predictive health analytics. (shrink)

In recent years, scholars have sought to investigate the impact that ethical leaders can have within organisations. Yet, only a few theoretical perspectives have been adopted to explain how ethical leaders influence subordinate outcomes. This study therefore draws on social rules theory (SRT) to extend our understanding of the mechanisms linking ethical leadership to employee attitudes. We argue that ethical leaders reduce disengagement, which in turn promotes higher levels of job satisfaction and organisational commitment, as well as lower turnover intentions. (...) Co-worker social undermining is examined as a moderator of the relationship between ethical leadership and disengagement, as we suggest that it is difficult for ethical leaders to be effective when co-worker undermining prevails. To test the proposed model, questionnaires were administered to 460 nurses in Romanian hospital settings over three time points separated by two-week intervals and the hypotheses were tested using generalised multilevel structural equation modeling (GSEM) with STATA. The findings revealed that ethical leadership has a beneficial effect on employee attitudes by reducing disengagement. However, the relationship between ethical leadership and disengagement was moderated by co-worker social undermining, such that when undermining was higher, the significance of the mediated relationships disappeared. These results suggest that while ethical leaders can promote positive employee attitudes, their effectiveness is reduced in situations where co-worker undermining exists. (shrink)

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders is an umbrella term covering several conditions for which alcohol consumption during pregnancy is taken to play a causal role. The benefit of individuals being identified with a condition within FASD remains controversial. The objective of the present study was to identify ethical aspects and consequences of diagnostics, interventions, and family support in relation to FASD. Ethical aspects relating to diagnostics, interventions, and family support regarding FASD were compiled and discussed, drawing on a series of discussions (...) with experts in the field, published literature, and medical ethicists. Several advantages and disadvantages in regards of obtaining a diagnosis or description of the condition were identified. For instance, it provides an explanation and potential preparedness for not yet encountered difficulties, which may play an essential role in acquiring much needed help and support from health care, school, and the social services. There are no interventions specifically evaluated for FASD conditions, but training programs and family support for conditions with symptoms overlapping with FASD, e.g. ADHD, autism, and intellectual disability, are likely to be relevant. Stigmatization, blame, and guilt are potential downsides. There might also be unfortunate prioritization if individuals with equal needs are treated differently depending on whether or not they meet the criteria for a specific condition. The value for the concerned individuals of obtaining a FASD-related description of their condition – for instance, in terms of wellbeing – is not established. Nor is it established that allocating resources based on whether individuals fulfil FASD-related criteria is justified, compared to allocations directed to the most prominent specific needs. (shrink)

By drawing on a selection of interviews from the website Engaged Philosophy, this paper highlights the work of philosopher-activists within their classrooms and communities. These philosophers have stepped out of the ivory towers and work directly with media, community and political groups, people in prison; or they encourage their students to engage in activist projects. The variety of approaches presented here shows the many ways philosophically inspired activism can give voice to those who are marginalized, shine a light on injustices, (...) expose the root of social problems, and empower others to seek solutions. This work shows the relevance of philosophy to practical problems and the powerful effects it can have in the world. (shrink)

O estudo apresenta o resultado da experiência em mediação familiar desenvolvida em um Núcleo de Práticas Judiciárias numa instituição pública de ensino, através de projeto de extensão. O objetivo deste trabalho é compartilhar as vivências do serviço de psicologia inserido em um espaço eminentemente ..

Desde una perspectiva transnacional y comparada, que incorpora la experiencia del exilio, este trabajo analiza las tensiones identitarias que afectaron a la juventud militante de la izquierda revolucionaria española y argentina durante los años setenta. A través de las relaciones familiares y de género, estudia las formas públicas y privadas del compromiso y la transgresión. Aborda cómo la politización de lo privado marcó a hombres y mujeres dentro de un proceso global contestatario, heredero del 68, para destacar las contradicciones que (...) afloraron entre la teoría y la práctica, el deseo y la realidad, que llevaron a los jóvenes militantes a asumir un régimen emocional en constante debate entre el ser y el deber ser. (shrink)

Existing literature indicates that parenting styles affect the development of cyber aggression in offspring differently, depending on the gender of children. The present study investigates whether mothers’ and fathers’ parenting styles show similar gender differences in their associations with a new form of dating violence, i.e., cyber dating abuse. The limited evidence on the issue focuses on the relation that each parenting style has with CDA perpetration, without considering CDA victimization and the joint effects of fathers’ and mothers’ parenting styles. (...) The present study contributes to the research on gender differences in parenting by examining whether young adults’ perceptions of maternal and paternal parenting styles during childhood were independently and/or jointly related to their perpetrated and suffered CDA and whether these relations differed across young adults’ gender. In total, 351 young adults, age between 18 and 35 years and having a romantic relationship, completed online self-reports of the variables of interest that include a bidimensional measure of perpetrated/suffered CDA that assess aggression and control. Results showed that maternal authoritarian parenting was uniquely and positively associated to their children’s perpetration and victimization of cyber dating control, whereas maternal permissive parenting was uniquely and positively related to their children’s perpetration of cyber dating aggression and victimization of cyber dating control. For daughters, these associations were stronger when the father’s style was similar to the mother’s one or when a maternal authoritarian style combined with a paternal permissive style, thus indicating that the two parents’ parenting styles interact in relating to their daughters’ CDA. (shrink)

We propose 4 equity-advancing operational improvements to eligibility and sign-up processes at mass vaccination sites: (1) preregistration using existing information, (2) eligibility rules that recognize the greater burden of COVID-19 in underserved neighborhoods, (3) appointment assignment that prioritizes those with disadvantage, and (4) socioculturally informed outreach to lottery selectees.

While several recent evaluation studies have shown the efficacy of parent training programs for children with neurodevelopmental disorders, manual-based training in German is still scarce. To address this gap, we developed a specific modularized training program for parents of children from preschool to pre-adolescent age with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The overarching purpose of the FETASS intervention is to enhance social communication behavior and quality of life of the child by coaching parents. As a proximal target, the FETASS training aims to (...) provide families with behavior management and communication strategies. The development of the training was influenced by published behavioral parent trainings and autism-specific interventions. The training comprises eight weekly sessions and targets families whose children have a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder without intellectual and language impairments. As a preliminary pilot study, the purpose was to evaluate the acceptability of the training. Furthermore, the study aimed at initially evaluating social communication behavior, quality of life of the child, parental stress level, and parenting after training in comparison to a treatment as usual group. Exploratively, long-term effects were investigated after 6 months of training as well. In total, 57 families participated. Questionnaires about social communication behavior and quality of life of the child, parental stress, and parenting were administered at three time points. Primary outcome measures were the social communication behavior of the child and the parent’s proxy report on quality of life of the child. Secondary outcome measures were changes in parental stress and parenting behavior. Acceptability of the training was very high and we had almost no dropouts during training. Results for the primary outcome measure of social communication behavior, overall quality of life of the child, and long-term effects on social communication behavior were not significant. While long-term findings for parent stress reduction and for the quality of life of the child are promising, further research has to be done in a future randomized controlled trial. (shrink)

Quality and service improvement (QSI) research employs a broad range of methods to enhance the efficiency of healthcare delivery. QSI research differs from traditional healthcare research and poses unique ethical questions. Since QSI research aims to generate knowledge to enhance quality improvement efforts, should it be considered research for regulatory purposes? Is review by a research ethics committee required? Should healthcare providers be considered research participants? If participation in QSI research entails no more than minimal risk, is consent required? The (...) lack of consensus on answers to these questions highlights the need for ethical guidance. Three distinct approaches to classifying QSI research in accordance with existing ethical principles and regulations can be found in the literature. In the first approach, QSI research is viewed as distinct from other types of healthcare research and does not require regulation. In the second approach, QSI research falls within regulatory guidelines but is exempt from research ethics committee review. In the third approach, QSI research is deemed to be part of the learning healthcare system and, as such, is subject to a different set of ethical principles entirely. In this paper, we critically assess each of these views. While none of these approaches is entirely satisfactory, we argue that use of the ethical principles governing research provides the best means of addressing the numerous questions posed by QSI research. (shrink)

We reconsider the Myerson value and the position value for communication situations. In case the underlying game is a unanimity game, we show that each of these values can be computed using the inclusion--exclusion principle. Linearity of both values permits us to calculate them without needing the dividends of the induced games (graph-restricted game and link game). The expression of these dividends is only derived in the existing literature for special communication situations. Moreover, the associated inclusion--exclusion decomposability property depends on (...) what we have called the graph allocation rule. This rule is the relative degree (relative indicator) for the position value (Myerson value). (shrink)

Despite journalism’s commitment to ethical principles such as accuracy, humanity and diversity, compliance with the gender perspective in content is still minimal in approximately one hundred countries. This inequality reinforces misperceptions, imbalances, and perceived differences between men and women. To address this situation, from 2010 to 2021, eight Spanish media companies appointed a new editorial position responsible for self-regulating gender equality. This qualitative study focused on 10 journalists who currently exercise or have exercised that job, to detect, describe and propose (...) the implementation of this new professional role. This study suggests that gender editing has advanced equality in parity of sourcing and the presence of women in the opinion sections, but implementation of equality in overall content is more difficult. Gender editors’ daily work is hampered by a lack of management support and an absence of independence in editorial decisions. (shrink)

BackgroundMinorities are an underrepresented population in clinical trials. A potential explanation for this underrepresentation could be lack of willingness to participate. The aim of our study was to evaluate willingness to participate in different hypothetical clinical research scenarios and to evaluate the role that predictors could have on the willingness of minorities to participate in clinical research studies.MethodsWe conducted a mixed-methods study at the Miami VA Healthcare system and included primary care patients with hypertension. We measured willingness to participate as (...) a survey of four clinical research scenarios that evaluated common study designs encountered in clinical research and that differed in degree of complexity. Our qualitative portion included comments about the scenarios.ResultsWe included 123 patients with hypertension in our study. Of the entire sample, ninety-three patients were minorities. Seventy per cent of the minorities were willing to participate, compared to 60 per cent of the non-minorities. The odds ratio of willingness to participate in simple studies was 0.58; 95 per cent CI 0.18–1.88 p=0.37 and the OR of willingness to participate in complex studies was 5.8; 95 per cent CI 1.10–1.31 p=0.03. In complex studies, minorities with low health literacy cited obtaining benefits as the most common reason to be willing to participate. Minorities who were not willing to participate, cited fear of unintended outcomes as the main reason.ConclusionsMinorities were more likely to be willing to participate in complex studies compared to non-minorities. Low health literacy and therapeutic misconception are important mediators when considering willingness to participate in clinical research. (shrink)

The ethics of the Flexibility In duty hour Requirements for Surgical Trainees trial have been vehemently debated. Views on the ethics of the FIRST trial range from it being completely unethical to wholly unproblematic. The FIRST trial illustrates the complex ethical challenges posed by cluster randomised trials of policy interventions involving healthcare professionals. In what follows, we have three objectives. First, we critically review the FIRST trial controversy, finding that commentators have failed to sufficiently identify and address many of the (...) relevant ethical issues. The 2012 Ottawa Statement on the Ethical Design and Conduct of Cluster Randomized Trials provides researchers and research ethics committees with specific guidance for the ethical design and conduct of CRTs. Second, we aim to demonstrate how the Ottawa Statement provides much-needed clarity to the ethical issues in the FIRST trial, including: research participant identification; consent requirements; gatekeeper roles; benefit-harm analysis and identification of vulnerable participants. We nonetheless also find that the FIRST trial raises ethical issues not adequately addressed by the Ottawa Statement. Hence, third and finally, we raise important questions requiring further ethical analysis and guidance, including: Does clinical equipoise apply to policy interventions with little or no evidence-base? Do healthcare providers have an obligation to participate in research? Does the power-differential in certain healthcare settings render healthcare providers vulnerable to duress and coercion to participant in research? If so, what safeguards might be implemented to protect providers, while allowing important research to proceed? (shrink)

The last decade has seen a slow but steady increase in the number of postdoctoral scholars employed in faculties of education. In this article, seven postdoctoral scholars who worked in the same Ca...

The objective of this study was to address the paradox of citizenship cost by hypothesizing an indirect rather than a direct effect of altruistic citizenship behavior on employee work–family conflict through coworker support. Data were gathered in a three-wave longitudinal survey of employees from private commercial banks. A multiple linear autoregressive longitudinal mediation model was analyzed with partial least squares structural equation modeling. The results indicate that rather than directly, ACB affects indirectly employee WFC through CWS. This indirect effect is (...) negative, which reflects that the costs of citizenship behavior are paradoxical. The present study contributes to the ongoing debate on the positive and negative outcomes of employee citizenship behavior by providing empirical evidence on the beneficial rather than harmful effect of performing such behavior. For organizational managers, promoting a culture of CWS by encouraging altruistic behaviors can be a most viable strategy to reduce WFC among their employees. The study discusses its limitations and provides future research directions. (shrink)

We show that, contrary to long-standing assumptions, syntactic traits, modeled here within the generative biolinguistic framework, provide insights into deep-time language history. To support this claim, we have encoded the diversity of nominal structures using 94 universally definable binary parameters, set in 69 languages spanning across up to 13 traditionally irreducible Eurasian families. We found a phylogenetic signal that distinguishes all such families and matches the family-internal tree topologies that are safely established through classical etymological methods and datasets. We have (...) retrieved “near-perfect” phylogenies, which are essentially immune to homoplastic disruption and only moderately influenced by horizontal convergence, two factors that instead severely affect more externalized linguistic features, like sound inventories. This result allows us to draw some preliminary inferences about plausible/implausible cross-family classifications; it also provides a new source of evidence for testing the representation of diversity in syntactic theories. (shrink)

Suicide is a public health problem which will require an integrated cross-sector approach to help reduce prevalence rates. One strategy is to include the legal system in a more integrated way with suicide prevention efforts. Caine explored a public health approach to suicide prevention, depicting risk factors across the socio-ecological model. The purpose of this paper is to examine laws that impact suicide prevention at the individual, relational, community, and societal levels. These levels are fluid, and some interventions will fall (...) between two, such as a community-level approach to training that enhances provider-patient relationships. At the individual level, we will review laws to improve screening requirements across systems. At the relational level, we note interventions with couples having conflict, such as protection orders and access to attorney consultations, which have been known to be injury prevention mechanisms. At the community level, we discuss legislation that recommends suicide prevention efforts for key individuals working as frontline providers in the medical and educational systems. At the societal level, we explore public awareness campaigns that target stigma reduction for those suffering from mental health burden and enhance linkage to care. The article closes with the discussion that laws are good, but their implementation is essential. (shrink)

Resumen: Este artículo se propone configurar la trama saber-tropo como estrategia para desvelar ataduras coloniales que aún persisten en las vidas cotidianas de sujetos situados y encarnados, cuyas existencias se desarrollan en condiciones de precariedad material, exclusión, explotación y no reconocimiento. Con un marcado carácter epistémico-metodológico, y tomando como base los postulados de la tropología, se discute sobre la noción de tropo y saber, además de señalar las posibles relaciones que entre ellos se pueden dar, para finalmente, en términos demostrativos, (...) plantear un procedimiento orientado a identificar y analizar los tropos que permiten ir desvelando lastres coloniales en las narraciones cotidianas. La relevancia de esta propuesta se asienta en la necesidad de ir avanzado en construir herramientas metodológicas que permitan comprender los principios que configuran el pensamiento decolonial. Desde allí, se propone al tropo como expresión y discusión figurativa del saber, debido a que este puede ser utilizado persuasivamente para afectar la forma en que se habita el mundo, al tiempo que permite comprender el accionar social y, consecuentemente, las matrices coloniales con las que debemos romper.: This article proposes to configure knowledge-trope plot as a strategy to uncover colonial ties that persist in the daily lives of situated and incarnated subjects, whose existences develop in conditions of material precariousness, exclusion, exploitation and non-recognition. With a marked epistemic-methodological character, and based on the postulates of the tropology, the notion of trope and knowledge is discussed, as well as pointing out the possible relationships that can occur between them, and finally, in demonstrative terms, to propose a procedure aimed at identifying and analysing the tropes that allow us to reveal colonial ballasts in everyday narratives. The relevance of this proposal is based on the need to construct methodological tools that allow us to understand the principles of decolonial thinking. From there, the trope is proposed as an expression and figurative discussion of knowledge, because it can be used persuasively to affect the way in which the world is inhabited, while at the same time it allows us to understand social action and, consequently, colonial matrices with which we must break. (shrink)

Examines traditional sites of binary thinking in ancient Greek texts and culture to demonstrate surprising ambiguity, especially with regard to sexual difference.

The centromere is a specialized chromosomal structure that dictates kinetochore assembly and, thus, is essential for accurate chromosome segregation. Centromere identity is determined epigenetically by the presence of a centromere‐specific histone H3 variant, CENP‐A, that replaces canonical H3 in centromeric chromatin. Here, we discuss recent work by Roulland et al. that identifies structural elements of the nucleosome as essential determinants of centromere function. In particular, CENP‐A nucleosomes have flexible DNA ends due to the short αN helix of CENP‐A. The higher (...) flexibility of the DNA ends of centromeric nucleosomes impairs binding of linker histones H1, while it facilitates binding of other essential centromeric proteins, such as CENP‐C, and is required for mitotic fidelity. This work extends previous observations indicating that the differential structural properties of CENP‐A nucleosomes are on the basis of its contribution to centromere identity and function. Here, we discuss the implications of this work and the questions arising from it. (shrink)