Psychological Sketches (Seventh Edition)

Psychological Sketches (Seventh Edition) Edited by John R. Vokey and Scott W. Allen Department of Psychology and Neuroscience The University of Lethbridge Copyright c 1994–2005 Department of Psychology and Neuroscience The University of Lethbridge A PsΨenceTM Ink Book All rights reserved. Produced in LATEX 2ε on Apple MacintoshTM computers PsΨenceTM Ink Department of Psychology and Neuroscience The University of Lethbridge Lethbridge, Alberta ii To our students, past and present; and to future students, Christopher and Blake. In memory of M. G. Vokey (1924–1998) and Wm. B. Allen (1930–1999). iii iv Preface to the Seventh Edition Lord Ronald said nothing; he flung himself from the room, flung himself upon his horse and rode madly off in all directions. – Stephen Leacock In 1912, the Canadian humorist and economist Stephen Leacock introduced the world to the town of Mariposa—a fictional small town (with remarkable similarities to Orillia) in Southern Ontario—in his book Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town. Through a series of short stories, or word sketches, about particular incidents and occasions in the town, Leacock led the reader to an understanding of the town and its people. In this textbook, and in the course that accompanies it, we have used the same strategy; through a series of short sketches of specific incidents or areas within psychology, we lead you to an understanding of the subject matter and methods of experimental psychology. Like Lord Ronald, however, these are sketches that ride off in all directions. Each of the chapters in this book is a short sketch of a particular topic in psychology. They can be read in any order as each chapter is meant to be a self-contained story. By the end of the book, we hope you will have learned what experimental psychology is about, what experimental psychologists do, and more specifically, what experimental psychologists do in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Lethbridge. With both major additions and losses of faculty within the department, this edition of Psychological Sketches is a substantial revision of previous editions. This seventh edition of the book reflects these changes with the necessary, but ultimately sad re- moval of chapters previously contributed by now retired faculty, updates to some chapters from continuing faculty, and the addition of bright, exciting chapters from new members of the department. It also includes expanded subject and author indices to make it easier for the reader to locate specific topics and authors. We hope you enjoy it. John R. Vokey and Scott W. Allen July 6, 2005 v vi The Contributors Scott W. Allen Scott W. Allen was born in Victoria, British Columbia, and lived in Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, and B.C. before re- turning there to attend the University of Victoria and receive an Honours B.A. in Psychology. He received his Ph.D. in Psychology from McMaster University. He teaches cognitive psychology, and research methods and statistics, and has teaching and research interests in cate- gorization and concept learning, memory, the acquisition of diagnostic expertise, and research ethics. Jean Choi Jean Choi was born in Pusan, South Ko- rea, and grew up in Toronto, Ontario. She received her Honours B.A. in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario, and her M.A. and Ph.D. from York University. She teaches child development, social psychology, and sex and cognition. Her research interests include the development of spatial behaviour and its evolutionary basis. vii viii The Contributors Margaret Forgie Margaret Forgie was born in Vancouver, B.C. She received her B.A. from Simon Fraser University and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Concordia University in Mon- treal. She teaches human development, brain plasticity and memory, and hormones, drugs, and behavior. Her research interests include individual differences in brain organization and behaviour, in particular, the influence of hormones on the developing and aging brain. Darren K. Hannesson Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, Darren Hannesson obtained a B.A. from the University of Regina before heading to the Wet Coast. There, at the Uni- versity of Victoria, he obtained an M.A. in Be- havioural Neuroscience before fate drew him back to the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon where he obtained his Ph.D. in Experimental Psy- chology. Following a postdoctoral position at the University of British Columbia, he joined the faculty at the University of Regina before coming to the University of Lethbridge in 2004. His research interests are in the circuits, pharma- cology, and molecular mechanisms of normal and abnormal memory function. Gail Hepburn Gail Hepburn was born in Toronto, Ontario, and grew up in the Ottawa area. She received her Honours B.Sc. in Psychology from Trent University, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Psychology from Queen’s University. After a two year post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Guelph she spent four years in Toronto at the Institute for Work & Health, a not-for-profit research organization. She joined the University of Lethbridge in 2004. Her area of specialization is Organizational Psychol- ogy. Her research interests include the effect of workplace factors—such as perceptions of justice or fair- ness, workplace aggression, and work-family balance— on employee well-being. The Contibutors ix Bryan Kolb A native of Calgary, Alberta, Bryan Kolb received a B.Sc. and M.Sc. from the University of Calgary, and a Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State. He teaches neuroscience, neuropsychology, and brain plasticity. His research interests include brain development, plasticity, and brain behaviour. Among the books he has written is the widely-acclaimed Funda- mentals of Human Neuropsychology. Professor Kolb is a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Martin Lalumiere` Martin Lalumiere` was born in Montreal,´ Quebec´ and received his university degrees from the Universite´ de Montreal´ (B.Sc., M.Ps.) and Queen’s University (Ph.D.). He started his post-graduate research career at the Oak Ridge Division of the Mental Health Cen- tre Penetanguishene (Ontario), a maximum-security institution for violent offenders with serious mental illnesses, and then joined the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (Toronto, Ontario). Before mov- ing to Lethbridge in 2004, he was an Associate Pro- fessor of Psychiatry and Criminology at the Univer- sity of Toronto. When not fly-fishing, he conducts research on the etiology of sexual aggression, the development of atypical sexual preferences, the physiological assessment of sexual arousal, the effect of birth order on development, and the determinants of antisocial behaviour and risk taking. Jennifer Mather Jennifer Mather is a native of Victoria, British Columbia. She received a B.Sc. from the University of British Columbia, an M.Sc. from Florida State, and a Ph.D. from Brandeis. She teaches developmental psychology, perception, animal cognition, aging, schizophrenia, and the university capstone course. Her research interests include the behaviour of oc- topuses and psychopathology. x The Contributors Robert J. McDonald Robert J. McDonald was born in Calgary, Alberta, and received a B.Sc. in Psychology from the University of Leth- bridge, and a M.Sc. and Ph.D. from McGill University in Montral. He currently teaches learning. His research interests include the organization of learning and memory in the mammalian brain, the etiology of Alzheimer disease, stroke and memory impairments, mechanisms of memory consoli- dation, and the link between learning and memory dysfunc- tion and psychiatric disorders. Gerlinde A. Metz Gerlinde A. Metz was born in Kassel, Germany, and received a B.Sc. in Biology from the University of Giessen, and a M.Sc. in Biology and Neuroscience from the Uni- versity of Giessen and the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland. She continued at the Federal Insti- tute of Technology in Zurich to receive a Ph.D. in Neuro- science and came to the University of Lethbridge in 1999 to perform post-doctoral research. She teaches courses on brain and behaviour, clinical neuroscience, and movement disorders. Her present research program focuses on investigating therapeutic strategies and physiological factors that influence recovery after brain damage. Sergio Pellis Sergio Pellis was born in Trieste, Italy. He received his B.Sc., Dip. Ed., and Ph.D. from Monash University in Australia. He teaches statistics, comparative psychology, sex and human ethology, behavioural neuroscience, and behavioural development. His research interests include play and its control, and the organization of movement. The Contibutors xi Glen Prusky Glen Prusky is a native of Calgary, Alberta, and grew up in Claresholm, Alberta. An alumnus of The University of Leth- bridge, he received a B.Sc. from there in 1986, and received an M.Sc. from Dalhousie University the same year, followed by a Ph.D. from Dalhousie University in 1989. Following a research postdoctoral position at Yale University for the years 1990–92, he joined the faculty at The University of Lethbridge in 1992. An avid musician, he is currently the drummer for the acoustic-rock duo, Picks & Sticks. Robert Sutherland Born in Toronto, Rob Sutherland received his B.Sc. from the University of Toronto and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Behavioural Neuroscience from Dalhousie University. He held a postdoctoral position at the University of Lethbridge before joining the faculty in 1981. From 1991 until 2001, he was a professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of New Mexico (in Albuquerque) and rejoined the faculty at Lethbridge to become the University’s first Alberta Heritage Medical Scientist in the new Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience. His interests include neuropsychology, cognitive neuroscience, learning and memory, functional brain imaging, neuropharmacology, and electrophysiology.

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