HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin)
Newsgroups: sci.psychology,sci.cognitive,misc.education
Subject: Re: Critical Thinking and Education
Date: 26 Jul 92 21:26:48 GMT
Followup-To: sci.psychology
Organization: Purdue University Statistics Department

In article <1992Jul24.194337.29174@Princeton.EDU> mbauer@dae.Princeton.EDU (Malcolm Bauer) writes:
>I've been asked to forward this to the net for a friend. Please respond to
>the e-mail address below and to the list (if a discussion breaks out, I
>can forward the posts to her).
>-------------------------

>I've become involved in a project to develop a curriculum for high school
>students that will help them "think critically."
>I was wondering what researh exists on this subject, especially prescriptive 
>models of the steps students need to follow, with supporting empirical
>evidence of effectivenss? Of course, other references, ideas, and suggestions 
>will be greatly appreciated as well.

What is critical thinking?  Unfortunately, it is not easily defined,
identified, or tested.  It cannot be taught, but only exemplefied.

I suspect that an attempt to algorithmize it is more likely to destroy
the capacity for critical thinking than to help at all.  Critical
thinking involves questioning "authority," applying subject A to
subject B without being told how to do it in the specific type of
situation, inventing methods and reasoning to fit the problem (and
there is generally no single correct answer.)

To teach critical thinking, the student must be continually asked to
handle situations which have not been encountered before, and to 
question teachers and textbooks.
-- 
Herman Rubin, Dept. of Statistics, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette IN47907-1399
Phone: (317)494-6054
hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Internet, bitnet)  
{purdue,pur-ee}!pop.stat!hrubin(UUCP)
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: mccla_d@ceawlin.cs.odu.edu (dennis mcclain-furmanski)
Subject: RE: instant addiction?
Organization: Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, USA
Distribution: sci.psychology
Date: Wed, 22 Jul 1992 06:02:16 GMT

bill@nsma.arizona.edu says:

> dave@bradley.bradley.edu writes:
>
> > To me 'addicted' implies that a certain behavior is conditioned to the
> > point of compulsion...

Addiciton is not a learned response. It's a set of chemical changes in
neurotransmitter breakdown products. Tetrahydro isoquinalone, usually present
in small amounts, is created in abnormal amounts when high levels of
acetaldehyde (first breakdown product of alcohol) interferes with normal
breakdown and uptake; some people have high acetaldehyde levels due to
abnormally low levels of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (that which reduces 
acetaldehyde by breaking it down to acetone). THIQ has been shown, by direct
injection into rats which show innate aversion to alcohol, to cause immediate
drug seeking behavior. Those that survive (having a previous aversion,
they have no tolerance. and therefore often drink themselves to death) show
withdrawl symptoms after this first contact, and go back for more.

Cocaine causes different, but analogous, improper NT breakdown product 
buildups, as does speed.

> it usually requires dozens of exposures

Ice, a methamphetamine analog from Japan, shows addicition acquired after
one use. So does Trashia, a new homemade artificial opiate from Russia.

If addicition were learned, it could be unlearned. It's been long established
that addicitions are active after years of abstinance with no extinction. In
fact, they're often more severe even after abstinance.

[re: alcohol aversion therapy]

The problem was that they trained aversion reactions to a person's prefered
drink. They found the subjects could drink other things without ill effect.
The later evidence that showed the biochemical nature of addiction made the
treatment of alcoholics rather
 improper.
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
Subject: Re: Primate Behavior
From: A.S.Chamove@massey.ac.nz (A.S. Chamove)
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 92 01:12:06 GMT
Organization: Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
X-Reader: NETNEWS/PC Version 2c

Researchers of Primate Learning (do you want E-mail addresses?)

Jim King (u. arizona psychology)
Carl Thompson (hershey med centre)
Joan Lockart
Alan Kamel (downstate)

What sort of learning do you want info on.
-- 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Arnold Chamove
Massey University Psychology
Palmerston North, New Zealand
From: ls2o+@andrew.cmu.edu (Lael Schooler)
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
Subject: SAM Code
Date: 21 Jul 92 11:04:34 GMT
Article-I.D.: andrew.EeP5z2W00UhW84pVEa
Organization: Doctoral student, Psychology, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA



In the notes to Gillund and Shiffrin's  Psychological Review paper
describing SAM, they mention that it is possible to get the source code
to their
SAM simulations. If you have a copy of this code, could you send it to me?

thanks in advance,

Lael

ls2o@andrew.cmu.edu
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: jpk@Ingres.COM (Jon Krueger)
Subject: RE: instant addiction?
Reply-To: jpk@Ingres.COM (Jon Krueger)
Organization: Ingres Division, ASK Computer Systems.
Distribution: sci.psychology
Date: 23 Jul 92 03:53:06 GMT

dennis mcclain-furmanski writes:
> Addiction is...a set of chemical changes in neurotransmitter
> breakdown products.

No, that's an explanation of addiction that refers to internal mechanisms.
Addiction itself refers to tolerance, withdrawal, change of organism's
physiology and chemistry from normal state, as well as behaviors that
seek the substance.  If you change neurotransmitters and get none of those,
you don't have addiction.

> Tetrahydro isoquinalone, usually present in small amounts, is created
> in abnormal amounts when high levels of acetaldehyde (first breakdown
> product of alcohol) interferes with normal breakdown and uptake; some
> people have high acetaldehyde levels due to abnormally low levels of
> acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (that which reduces acetaldehyde by breaking
> it down to acetone). THIS has been shown, by direct injection into rats
> which show innate aversion to alcohol, to cause immediate drug seeking
> behavior. Those that survive (having a previous aversion, they have no
> tolerance. and therefore often drink themselves to death) show
> withdrawl symptoms after this first contact, and go back for more.

Interesting stuff but don't see how this applies to the neurotransmitter
explanation of addiction.  Rats with "innate aversion to alcohol" aren't
comparable to rats that can take it or leave it, i.e. are not addicted.
We're interested in how the latter become addicted, not the former.

> If addiction were learned, it could be unlearned. It's been long established
> that addictions are active after years of abstinance with no extinction. In
> fact, they're often more severe even after abstinance.

Well, you could argue that one both ways.  You can trigger conditioned
aversions years after learning, years after exposure, no extinction.
It's also hard to say that an addiction is severe during abstinence,
what's the state of something that we can't measure right now?  Perhaps
you can measure it across subjects by expressing level of addiction
after lapses as a function of length of abstinence before.

> The problem was that they trained aversion reactions to a person's prefered
> drink. They found the subjects could drink other things without ill effect.
> The later evidence that showed the biochemical nature of addiction made the
> treatment of alcoholics rather improper.

I'd say what it showed is that alcohol comes in a variety of flavors
and can be delivered in an even larger variety.  This may make taste
aversion impractical for alcohol.  It may be practical for substances
that always have a certain taste, smell, or proprioceptive effect.

-- Jon

Jon Krueger  jpk@ingres.com  
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: tom@cs.su.oz.au (Thomas James Jones)
Subject: Re: Critical Thinking and Education
Organization: Basser Department of Computer Science
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 1992 00:56:56 GMT

In article <55139@mentor.cc.purdue.edu>, hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin) writes:
|> In article <1992Jul24.194337.29174@Princeton.EDU> mbauer@dae.Princeton.EDU (Malcolm Bauer) writes:
|> >I've been asked to forward this to the net for a friend. Please respond to
|> >the e-mail address below and to the list (if a discussion breaks out, I
|> >can forward the posts to her).
|> >-------------------------
|> 
|> >I've become involved in a project to develop a curriculum for high school
|> >students that will help them "think critically."
|> >I was wondering what researh exists on this subject, especially prescriptive 
|> >models of the steps students need to follow, with supporting empirical
|> >evidence of effectivenss? Of course, other references, ideas, and suggestions 
|> >will be greatly appreciated as well.
|> 
|> What is critical thinking?  Unfortunately, it is not easily defined,
|> identified, or tested.  It cannot be taught, but only exemplefied.
|> 
|> I suspect that an attempt to algorithmize it is more likely to destroy
|> the capacity for critical thinking than to help at all.

	An attempt may do so, but it would be short-sighted to suggest
	that no such algorithm exists.  I mean, what is the alternative?
	If humans are not following some sort of system that could
	be encompassed in a (v. complex!) algorithm then what are we 
	doing???

	tom


  Critical
|> thinking involves questioning "authority," applying subject A to
|> subject B without being told how to do it in the specific type of
|> situation, inventing methods and reasoning to fit the problem (and
|> there is generally no single correct answer.)
|> 
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: thayne@unislc.uucp (Thayne Forbes)
Subject: Re: When is it time to fire your shrink??
Organization: Unisys Corporation SLC
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1992 15:40:00 GMT

From article <14kjmqINNdkr@agate.berkeley.edu>, by templin@grayling.CS.Berkeley.EDU (Fred Templin):
> 
> So, my question is, what questions do I need to ask myself
> to make an informed decision as to whether it's time to
> fire my shrink? Do I trust the part of myself that's yelling:
> "This doesn't feel good to me, and it hasn't felt good since
> I've started". 

Yes, case closed.

For me it is more important to feel good about the therapist than
it is to feel good about (or even understand) the therapy.  That
has been my experience.

-- 
           "If we don't succeed, we run the risk of failure."
                            -U.S. Vice President J. Danforth Quayl[e]
Thayne Forbes
thayne@unislc.slc.unisys.com
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: rsb2@ellis.uchicago.edu (ronan surtida bernas)
Subject: Conceptual Change and Moral Reasoning
Reply-To: rsb2@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1992 22:38:44 GMT

Here two sets of studies on conceptual change and
moral reasoning that I am looking for:

1.  Most of the literature on conceptual change dwell on
the restructuring of conceptual systems that involve
physical or biological concepts (e.g.,  Susan Carey on
the biological concept "animal", or William Brewer on
children's concept of the "shape of the earth").  
Is there any work done on social concepts?

2.  I am also looking for studies done on the cognitive
tools (schemas, knowledge structures, etc.) involved
in moral reasoning, or in reasoning and discourse 
concerning social issues like capital punishment, 
euthanasia or abortion.

I would prefer to receive replies on my e-mail
address since I don't get to check the news on a daily
basis.  Thanks a lot.

Ronan Bernas (rsb2@midway.uchicago.edu)



Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: shl@ais.org (Stephen Landman)
Subject: Re: Is TA real science?
Organization: UMCC
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1992 05:01:36 GMT

In article <1992Jul12.144158.4061@news.larc.nasa.gov> claudio@nmsb.larc.nasa.gov (Claudio Egalon) writes:
>I am sorry if the answer for this question is to obvious for people with 
>a background in psychology but, since my background is in Physics, it 
>may not be too obvious for me so, here it goes: 
>
>	Is Transactional Analysis, TA, a real science?
>
>I read a bunch of books about TA (Eric Bern et al.) and I got very 
>excited about it *however* I noticed thatthe program of psychology at 
>Old Dominion University does not have any course entitled 
>Transactional Analyses.
>
>Claudio@nmsb.larc.nasa.gov 
>
>
>


TA is little more than a form of "pop psychology"; it is not
scientific.  It combines some loose psychodynamic concepts
(ego states) with an emphasis on the nature of a person's
interactions with other people.  While this may help some
people identify, undertand better, and modify some of their
own interpersonal behaviors, most of a person's behaviors,
feelings, conflicts, etc. are not represented in the TA
model.  TA is inadequate as a form of psychotherapy, as are
most simplistic approaches (such as rational-emotive or
strict behavioral models).

Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: layng@vaxr.sscl.uwo.ca
Subject: epistemological orientation
Organization: Social Science Computing Laboratory
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 1992 18:41:40 GMT

	I am a new graduate student interested in doing a study on changes in
post-formal operations.  My literature search has revealed that publication of
research using Perry-based instruments seems to have dried up lately.  I would
appreciate knowing the latest on instrumentation for determination of Perry's
epistemological orientation and contact with those who have work in progress or
in press.
From: mccla_d@aethelbehrt.cs.odu.edu (dennis mcclain-furmanski)
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
Subject: Addictions
Date: 30 Jul 92 05:27:15 GMT
Distribution: sci.psychology
Organization: Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, USA

jpk@Ingres.COM says:

>>> Last I checked, the addictive power ("potential for abuse") of
>>> substances was measured by operant methods.

>>Please explain operant methods? I'm clashing operant conditioning with
>>something different which you seem to be saying.

[excellent description of operant testing deleted]

Thank you.

>Guess which substances are on this list.

Alcohol and opiates. In fact, most all depressants. I'd say coke wasn't,
because it would tend to make them dead instead of unconscious.

>It's a simple, operant method, allowing tests of substances within
>subjects, across species, grouped by subject background, with
>different latencies between qualifying response and delivery of
>substance, or combinations of all of the above.

Behavioral techniques are well used to measure behavior. But I'm afraid I
can't see that as a justification for using them to alter behaviors when
learning isn't the cause of the behavior. No doubt when addicition occurs,
learning does also. But I see too much evidence that learning doesn't
change addiction -- that they occur simultaneously possibly, but
independently.
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: cuegf@dcatla.uucp
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
Subject: Re: Olympic Freud-bashing (was Re: Self esteem --- ironically :-)
Date: 16 Jul 92 12:59:51 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: Digital Communications Associates, Alpharetta, GA

In article <1992Jul12.125724.27373@newstand.syr.edu>, mdkline@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Mark D. Kline) writes:
> Much of what Freud wrote - whatever we think of his method(s) - 
> has substantial empirical support.  We can't just dismiss his work
> out of hand without revealing our own ignorance - at the very least,
> of the recent research suggesting the validity of many of his core
> ideas. 

Please give examples of this research in detail, please, for those
of us unaware of it. Thank you


Ed Francell
Newsgroups: sci.psychology,sci.environment
From: edmtl@alf.uib.no (Thor Legvold)
Subject: Re: Whale rights - Science and sentimen
Organization: University of Bergen, Norway
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 92 09:30:00 GMT


Interesting that the same people who are interested in comparative anatomy,
research on the brains of whales to answer questions similar to the ones
we've been asking, are denying themselves (and others) the oppourtunity
to do exactly that...

Thor
Graduate program, Psychology
University of Bergen
Norway
edmtl@fiol.uib.no
From: jpk@Ingres.COM (Jon Krueger)
Newsgroups: sci.psychology,misc.education,sci.cognitive
Subject: Re: Critical Thinking and Education
Date: 25 Jul 92 01:45:41 GMT
Reply-To: jpk@Ingres.COM (Jon Krueger)
Organization: Ingres Division, ASK Computer Systems.

Malcolm Bauer) writes:
> I've become involved in a project to develop a curriculum for high school
> students that will help them "think critically."
> I was wondering what researh exists on this subject, especially prescriptive 
> models of the steps students need to follow, with supporting empirical
> evidence of effectivenss? Of course, other references, ideas, and suggestions 
> will be greatly appreciated as well.

Critical thinking is simply the defining goal of a liberal arts education.
If you believe it's a good thing research doesn't add to your support; if
you don't you don't care if it works.  Beyond that it seems outside the
empirical model to assemble evidence for the skill to analyze evidence.
How would you decide when you had increased critical thinking 30%?
Speaking as an unrepentant empiricist, I don't see how objective tests
apply here.

-- Jon
From: rbatt@adam.adelaide.edu.au (Richard Batt)
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
Subject: PC software for oddball stimuli wanted
Date: 26 Jul 92 01:52:08 GMT
Organization: University of Adelaide, South Australia
Originator: rbatt@adam.adelaide.edu.au

Hi!

Does anyone know of any public domain PC based software for presenting
simple auditory stimuli to subjects, for example as in the auditory
oddball paradigm?

More generally does anyone know of any ftp archives of psychology software?

I will summarize if there is general interest.

cheers, Richard


from   Richard Batt                rbatt@adelaide.edu.au
       Psychology Department
       University of Adelaide
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: boehmig@eapds5.tuwien.ac.at (Stephan Boehmig)
Subject: left & right handed
Reply-To: boehmig@eapds5.tuwien.ac.at
Organization: Technical University of Vienna
Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1992 12:04:25 GMT



Hi.


Does anybody know, if there is any research done about left-handed
people having been forced to get right-handed in childhood? And is
there a possibility to check out whether one has originally been left- 
or right-handed? 

-- 

S. Boehmig
Institut fuer Allgemeine Physik
TU-Wien Austria
Internet: boehmig@eapds5.tuwien.ac.at
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: mokaba@binah.cc.brandeis.edu
Subject: Re: Black Gavan Chapter four -what if he dropped out of high school
Reply-To: mokaba@binah.cc.brandeis.edu
Organization: Brandeis University
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 1992 14:54:15 GMT

would people give me a chance to speak... While I welcome the
idea of correct gramma on the net.. I am rather concerned about
the expetent to which readers in this group did not notice that
the posting was not for them. Not bad for people surposedly
interested in the "well mind".  I had not intended to post the 
not in American nor in English, but in a language best understood
in the group that I was positing in.  Is't this embarassing
for the psychology group to be much more concerened with the
liguitics or rather written linguistic problem while total ingnoring
the gist of the message.  It is common descency [bad spelling I am 
sure not as bad as Potatoe] to let the peaker say what he wants said
and not to judge him by the level of his accent, (even when wrtten),
grammatic prowess (another spelling boboo)

Back to psychology .. what do readers of this group think of the
tendency on the part of some readers to attack anything that 
appears on the net even when they cannot understand it. Maybe this
is a phenomenon we may weant to check "maximum propensity to attack"

thanks for listening...
this note, I hope, will be suffient for me to be forgiven for posting
in this group instead of the South African group. 

tata
salang... salni dzwa bothe..
tot siens
Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: mokaba@binah.cc.brandeis.edu
Subject: Perception and market forces in labor research
Reply-To: mokaba@binah.cc.brandeis.edu
Organization: Brandeis University
Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1992 14:53:36 GMT

I am trying to locate readings or research done on role, or the effect of 
perception- a psychological process- and supply and demand of labor.
In essence I am looking into the effects of  "perceived" demand and
supply (as opposed to agregate demand and supply) of particular categories 
of labor on individual behaviour.

Anything will be helpful at this time

Madimetja Mokaba

Newsgroups: sci.psychology
From: adamsr@netcom.com (Rick Adams)
Subject: Re: olympic jung bashing
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 92 19:46:01 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest)
Distribution: sci

In article <1992Jul20.883.5291@dosgate> "mike walker" <mike.walker@canrem.com> writes:
>
>        "...just because he did this..."??? Yes, I find it hard to
>        credit any of the psychological theories of a man who worked
>        for the Third Reich and denounced the "jewish theories" of
>        Freud, his former colleague. Makes me wonder what Jung meant
>        by "collective unconscous"! As for Von Braun, if he offered a
>        theory of human motivation and racial memory I'd be awfully
>        skeptical of him too. In regards to his weapons work, I
>        opposed his doing rocket science for the US fromm the first,
>        would still rather have seen him dealt with justly than get to
>        the moon on the backs of ex-Nazi's. But then, I'm a purist
>        about this sort of thing... . . Mike

	How odd! Having rejected the theories of Freud brands one as a Nazi!

	Hmmmmm. Judging from the number of posts in this newsgroup which
deny the validity of Freud's theories - either the correlation between
rejection of those theories and Nazism is particularly dubious, or there are
a LOT of Nazis here!

	Incidently, if Jung's rejection of Freudian theory marked him as a
Nazi, then he must have been a foresighted one - _Symbols_of_Transformation_
the book which marked Jung's break with Freudian thought, was originally
published in 1911!

	Jung suffered a great deal from his break with Freud. Even the most
cursory examination of their relationship clearly shows that Freud had
become, effectively, a surrogate father to him - one which more nearly met
his ideals than did his own father (a weak and superficial man by
comparison). Jung's break from him was a highly stressful and painful
experience for him - to relate that experience to a hypothesized
anti-semitism is both inaccurate and uncalled for. One need only examine
Jung's "Freud's Theory of Hysteria: A Reply to Aschaffenburg." (1906) to
immediately detect the strength of his bond with that man - to assume that
he would suddenly do a complete about face and turn against him because of
prejudice only five years later is absurd! If you want a valid picture of
Jung's response to Freud (and don't want to spend the time reading the
primary sources in his Collected Works), read
_Memories,_Dreams,_Reflections_ (Jung 1961, Vantage edition 1989), his
autobiography.

	Jung may have had many negative qualities - antisemitism was _not_
among them!


-- 
    Rick Adams | KE8HH    /|\        You are right from your side,         
      adamsr@ais.org    /  |  \        And I am right from mine.           
     adamsr@netcom.com  \ /|\ /  We're both just one too many mornings,    
    rick.adams on GEnie   \|/  And a thousand miles behind. (c Bob Dylan)