Unique Variance In Performance Research Articles

Mapping semantic space: Exploring the higher-order structure of word meaning

Multiple representation theories posit that concepts are represented via a combination of properties derived from sensorimotor, affective, and linguistic experiences. Recently, it has been proposed that information derived from social experience, or socialness, represents another key aspect of conceptual representation. How these various dimensions interact to form a coherent conceptual space has yet to be fully explored. To address this, we capitalized on openly available word property norms for 6339 words and conducted a large-scale investigation into the relationships between 18 dimensions. An exploratory factor analysis reduced the dimensions to six higher-order factors: sub-lexical, distributional, visuotactile, body action, affective and social interaction. All these factors explained unique variance in performance on lexical and semantic tasks, demonstrating that they make important contributions to the representation of word meaning. An important and novel finding was that the socialness dimension clustered with the auditory modality and with mouth and head actions. We suggest this reflects experiential learning from verbal interpersonal interactions. Moreover, formally modelling the network structure of semantic space revealed pairwise partial correlations between most dimensions and highlighted the centrality of the interoception dimension. Altogether, these findings provide new insights into the architecture of conceptual space, including the importance of inner and social experience, and highlight promising avenues for future research.

Psychophysiological stress and performance in Jamaican junior track and field athletes

The intents of the study were (i) to investigate changes in psychophysiological responses during different training phases of a Jamaican junior track and field season; (ii) to identify the predictive relationships between salivary cortisol, trait anxiety and performance across a season and (iii) to characterize whether salivary cortisol mediates relationships between trait anxiety and performance. The study was grounded in the Theory of Challenge and Threat State in Athletes (TCTSA). Fifty-one Jamaican junior track and field athletes included 26 females (age: 15.9 ± 1.0 years) and 25 males (age: 16.4 ± 1.7 years) participated in the study. Salivary cortisol and trait anxiety levels were collected before bedtime (between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m.), three times across a season: i.e., during a 12-week preparatory (PREP) phase and twice during a 12-week competitive phase [during an 8-week pre-competition (PRE-COMP) and during a 4-week peak competition (COMP) phase]. Performance data were collected throughout the competitive phase. A main effect emerged for salivary cortisol levels (p < 0.001) and trait anxiety scores (p < 0.001) across the athletic season. The competition phase elicited the highest levels of salivary cortisol, and trait anxiety. A main effect of gender emerged for competitive trait anxiety (female > male). Trait anxiety negatively predicted performance during both PRE-COMP and COMP phases. Salivary cortisol negatively predicted performance during COMP, explaining 15 % of unique variance in performance beyond trait anxiety. Mediation indicated a significant indirect effect (i.e., the effect of trait anxiety through cortisol on performance; R2 = 0.33, p < 0.001) but an insignificant direct effect. Findings suggests cortisol, trait anxiety and performance are related and jointly change with competition demands. The negative relations between psychophysiological responses with performance may have indicated athletes responded to peak competition in terms of threat rather than challenge. The study showed that the TCTSA, may provide a useful framework to guide training tasks helpful for performance.

Cognitive predictors of arithmetic, reading, and spelling in Brazilian Portuguese-speaking children

We examined the contribution of a major predictor of basic literacy ability—phoneme awareness—to individual differences in two arithmetic computation tasks: a speeded task consisting of simple computation problems (arithmetic fluency) and an untimed, more complex computation task involving multi-digit operands (numerical operations). The contribution of phoneme awareness to word-reading fluency, untimed word-reading accuracy, and untimed spelling accuracy also was evaluated. Participants were 134 Brazilian Portuguese-speaking 4th and 5th grade students aged 8.67 to 11.75 years (M = 10.13 years; SD = 0.58). Individual differences in phoneme awareness accounted for significant and unique variance in performance on the arithmetic fluency task even after taking into account individual differences in grade in school, verbal ability, nonverbal ability, rapid naming, and verbal working memory. In contrast, phoneme awareness did not contribute uniquely to variance in performance on the more complex, untimed numerical operations task. In keeping with De Smedt’s (2018) argument regarding the role of phoneme awareness in arithmetic ability, our findings suggest that the contribution of phoneme awareness is primarily restricted to the ability to solve very simple arithmetic problems for which the solution is likely to be retrieved directly and automatically from long-term memory. As expected, phoneme awareness and rapid naming were the two strongest predictors of individual differences in all literacy measures.

Hippocampal and cortical mechanisms at retrieval explain variability in episodic remembering in older adults

Age-related episodic memory decline is characterized by striking heterogeneity across individuals. Hippocampal pattern completion is a fundamental process supporting episodic memory. Yet, the degree to which this mechanism is impaired with age, and contributes to variability in episodic memory, remains unclear. We combine univariate and multivariate analyses of fMRI data from a large cohort of cognitively normal older adults (N=100) to measure hippocampal activity and cortical reinstatement during retrieval of trial-unique associations. Trial-wise analyses revealed that (a) hippocampal activity scaled with reinstatement strength, (b) cortical reinstatement partially mediated the relationship between hippocampal activity and associative retrieval, (c) older age weakened cortical reinstatement and its relationship to memory behaviour. Moreover, individual differences in the strength of hippocampal activity and cortical reinstatement explained unique variance in performance across multiple assays of episodic memory. These results indicate that fMRI indices of hippocampal pattern completion explain within- and across-individual memory variability in older adults.

The Impact of Uncertain Contact Location on Situation Awareness and Performance in Simulated Submarine Track Management.

The aim of these studies was to examine the extent to which uncertainty in contact location in submarine track management affected operator situation awareness (SA), workload, and performance and whether operator SA predicted unique variance in performance. We extend prior research by manipulating uncertainty in contact location and by including a sample of expert track managers in a submarine combat system. In Experiment 1, university students completed a track management task. In Experiment 2, expert submariners were embedded in a real submarine combat system. Uncertainty was manipulated and SA was measured using the situation present assessment method. Increased uncertainty led to higher student workload and moderately impaired SA and performance, and SA predicted incremental variance in performance. Uncertainty had no effect on expert SA or the accuracy of the tactical picture compiled. On average, experts took 20 s to accept SA queries (compared with 2.18 s for students). The time taken for experts to accept SA queries, but not their subsequent response to SA queries, was positively associated with their tactical picture accuracy. Uncertainty can negatively impact SA, workload, and performance. Some key findings from the laboratory were replicated using experts, but the fact that experts took on average 20 s to accept SA queries presents a challenge for using SPAM in submarine control rooms. Contact location is uncertain due to the use of passive sonar and hostile deception. It is essential to measure track manager SA in order to inform work design and training.

Critical Flicker Fusion Predicts Executive Function in Younger and Older Adults.

Critical flicker fusion (CFF), a measure of visual processing speed, has often been regarded as a basic metric underlying a number of higher cognitive functions. To test this, we measured CFF, global cognition, and several cognitive subdomains. Because age is a strong covariate for most of these variables, both younger (n = 72) and older (n = 57) subjects were measured. Consistent with expectations, age was inversely related to CFF and performance on all of the cognitive measures except for visual memory. In contrast, age-adjusted CFF thresholds were only positively related to executive function. Results showed that CFF predicted executive function across both age groups and accounted for unique variance in performance above and beyond age and global cognitive status. The current findings suggest that CFF may be a unique predictor of executive dysfunction.

Preliminary evidence of salivary cortisol predicting performance in a controlled setting

The aims of this study were to examine the influence of salivary cortisol on tennis serve performance in a controlled setting and to investigate if cortisol predicts unique variance in performance beyond a subjective anxiety measure (i.e., Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 [CSAI-2]). Twenty-three tennis players performed two series of second tennis serves separated by an anxiety induction (i.e., arithmetic task). Cortisol was assessed six times during the experiment. Results show that cortisol response and a drop in serving performance are positively correlated (r=.68, p<.001). Cortisol also explains unique variance in performance (i.e., 19%) beyond CSAI-2 measures. Thus, considering cortisol measurements seems warranted in future research aimed at understanding performance.

The Effects of Goal Orientations and Supervisor Concerns on MBA Intern Learning and Performance

Achievement goal orientations provide a useful framework for understanding what motivates MBA intern learning and performance. A study of 508 MBA interns working in over 245 organizations showed learning mediated the relationship of intern learning goal orientations to performance, while intern performance goals only had direct effects on performance. As situational inducements, supervisor concern for learning and performance explained unique variance in performance beyond interns' own goal orientations. Support was found for a supplementary fit perspective between interns with prove-performance goals and supervisor concern for performance. Interns also performed better when they viewed their supervisors as advocating a balance of concerns for both learning and performance during the internship. Implications for interns, business schools, and employers are discussed.

The Role of Hardiness and Grit in Predicting Performance and Retention of USMA Cadets

We examined the relative effectiveness of hardiness and grit as predictors of performance and retention among first year cadets at the USMA. Based on past research and theory, we expected that both hardiness and grit would predict unique variance in performance and retention even after controlling for past performance as measured by the Whole Candidate Score. Results of regression analyses revealed that hardiness and grit predicted unique variance in first year retention, but only hardiness predicted first year performance at USMA. These findings suggest that hardiness assessment and training may prove valuable in enhancing performance and retention within military training environments.

Does It Really Matter? Separating the Effects of Musical Training on Syntax Acquisition

The possible transfer of musical expertise to the acquisition of syntactical structures in first and second language has emerged recently as an intriguing topic in the research of cognitive processes. However, it is unlikely that the benefits of musical training extend equally to the acquisition of all syntactical structures. As cognitive transfer presumably requires overlapping processing components and brain regions involved in these processing components, one can surmise that transfer between musical ability and syntax acquisition would be limited to structural elements that are shared between the two. We propose that musical expertise transfers only to the processing of recursive long-distance dependencies inherent in hierarchical syntactic structures. In this study, we taught fifty-six participants with widely varying degrees of musical expertise the artificial language BROCANTO, which allows the direct comparison of long-distance and local dependencies. We found that the quantity of musical training (measured in accumulated hours of practice and instruction) explained unique variance in performance in the long-distance dependency condition only. These data suggest that musical training facilitates the acquisition specifically of hierarchical syntactic structures.

Predicting Reading Comprehension on the Internet

This study investigated the extent to which new reading comprehension proficiencies may be required when adolescents read for information on the Internet. Seventh graders ( N = 109) selected from a stratified random sample of diverse middle school students completed a survey of topic-specific prior knowledge and parallel scenario-based measures of online reading comprehension. Standardized reading comprehension scores were also collected. Results indicated performance on one measure of online reading comprehension accounted for a significant amount of unique variance in performance on a second measure of online reading comprehension after controlling for standardized test scores of offline reading comprehension and topic-specific prior knowledge. Furthermore, there was an interaction between prior knowledge and online reading comprehension, such that higher levels of online reading comprehension skills may help compensate for lower levels of topic-specific prior knowledge when adolescents are asked to locate, critically evaluate, synthesize, and communicate information using the Internet. The author discusses a series of alternative interpretations of the data as well as their implications for literacy theory and research.

Children's understanding of counterfactual emotions: Age differences, individual differences, and the effects of counterfactual‐information salience

The present study investigated developmental trends in the effects of the salience of counterfactual alternatives on judgments of others' counterfactual-thinking-based emotions. We also examined possible correlates of individual differences in the understanding of these emotions. Thirty-four adults and 102 children, 5-8 years of age, were presented scenarios in which characters would be expected to experience regret. In one version of each scenario, the regret-relevant counterfactual alternative was made more salient than was the case with the other version. Adults consistently judged that a character for whom a counterfactual course of events would have resulted in a better outcome would feel worse than a character for whom an alternative course of events would not have resulted in a more positive outcome. The majority of the children's judgments were not affected by the counterfactual alternatives. However, the judgments of the oldest children (the 8-year-olds) were significantly more adult-like in the high-salience than in the low-salience condition. Although the three predictors examined in the present study (verbal ability, working memory capacity, second-order false belief task performance) together accounted for significant variance in performance on the emotions judgment task, no single predictor alone accounted for significant unique variance in performance. The importance of different social cognitive abilities for understanding people's affective responses is discussed.

Longitudinal Relations Between 2-Year-Olds' Language and 4-Year-Olds' Theory of Mind

Maternal reports of child vocabulary, utterance length, morpheme usage, and sentence complexity and experimenter-assessed receptive and expressive language were obtained at the end of the 2nd year for European American middle-class toddlers (N = 27). Maternal verbal intelligence and socioeconomic status were also measured. At 48 months of age, children's false-belief understanding and verbal intelligence were evaluated. Individual differences in child language at 24 months and child verbal IQ at 48 months predicted unique variance in performance on the false-belief tasks at 48 months, although only the early language factor findings were statistically significant. These findings demonstrate previously unobserved relations between early language and later acquisition of complex concepts related to mind.

The Influence of Print Exposure on Syllogistic Reasoning and Knowledge of Mental-State Verbs

This study examined the influence of print exposure on syllogistic reasoning and knowledge of mental-state verbs. One hundred thirty-three college students completed measures of reading comprehension, knowledge of mental-state verbs, syllogistic reasoning, and print exposure. A series of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the print-exposure measure accounted for significant unique variance in performance on a measure of knowledge or- mental-state verbs, even after years of college completed, grade point average, and reading comprehension were statistically controlled. Print exposure proved to be a less robust predictor of performance on a syllogistic reasoning task when examined with a parallel series of analyses. These findings suggest that even the variation in literacy activity found among college students is associated with the ability to interpret texts by enhancing the ability to deal with subtle distinctions among mental-state terms. However, the view that print exposure fosters decontextualized reasoning, as typified in syllogistic reasoning, received only very modest support from this study.

A FIELD STUDY OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ORGANIZATIONAL FEEDBACK ENVIRONMENT AND PERFORMANCE

This field study used the Job Feedback Survey (Herold &amp; Parsons, 1985) and performance data gathered from multiple sources to examine the relationship between the perceived organizational feedback environment and performance. Regression analyses indicated that, while holding the other feedback variables constant, feedback from supervisory and organizational sources was related to reported job performance while feedback from peers and self was not. Most of the unique variance in performance explained by feedback was also accounted for by feedback from organizational and supervisory sources. Negative expressions from organizational/supervisory sources (e.g., the supervisor expressing anger, the company communicating dissatisfaction with poor performance) were related to lower performance, and positive job changes initiated by these sources (e.g., increasing responsibility, assignment to special jobs) were related to higher performance. Higher performers did not receive more feedback than lower performers but did receive more total positive feedback. Supplemental issues, possible explanations, and implications of the findings are discussed.