Discrimination as a Mobbing Behavior

Discrimination is one of the oldest human topics because of human characteristics. From the perspective of last two centuries, it can be supposed that discrimination history is mostly about gender, nationality, race, or skin colour. The topic interested in here is not purely about discrimination in all aspects, but especially about discrimination in the workplace, discriminatory actions, or behaviours in the work-related environment. Discrimination can be considered as a harmful behaviour psychologically in terms of people who are subjected to it. If it occurs in the workplace or in work-related environments, the people who become victim cannot prevent it. At that time, discrimination can be discussed as a mobbing behaviour. Accordingly, the main issue of this chapter is discrimination as a mobbing behaviour.

Ahead of Maturation: Enhanced Speech Envelope Training Boosts Rise Time Discrimination in Pre-Readers at Cognitive Risk for Dyslexia

Dyslexia has frequently been related to atypical auditory temporal processing and speech perception. Results of studies emphasizing speech onset cues and reinforcing the temporal structure of the speech envelope, i.e. envelope enhancement, demonstrated reduced speech perception deficits in individuals with dyslexia. The use of this strategy as an auditory intervention might thus reduce some of the deficits related to dyslexia. Importantly, interventions are most effective when they are provided during kindergarten and first grade. Hence, we provided a tablet-based 12-week preventive auditory and phonics-based intervention to pre-readers at cognitive risk for dyslexia and investigated the effect on auditory temporal processing with a rise time discrimination task. Ninety-one pre-readers at cognitive risk for dyslexia (aged 5-6) were assigned to two groups receiving a phonics-based intervention and playing a story listening game either with (n = 31) or without (n = 31) envelope enhancement or a third group playing control games and listening to non-enhanced stories (n = 29). Rise time discrimination was measured directly before, directly after and one year after the intervention. While the groups listening to non-enhanced stories mainly improved after the intervention during first grade, the group listening to enhanced stories improved during the intervention in kindergarten and subsequently remained stable during first grade. Hence, an envelope enhancement intervention improves auditory processing skills important for the development of phonological skills. This occurred before the onset of reading instruction, preceding the maturational improvement of these skills, hence giving at risk children a head start when learning to read.

Identification of an Age Maturity in Time Discrimination Abilities

The aim of this study was to identify the age at which parameters of timing performance in a temporal bisection task converge on an adult-like stable level. Participants in the three- to 20-year-old range were tested using a temporal bisection task with sub-second and supra-second durations. The data were divided into two samples. In the first sample, all participants were integrated into the analysis regardless of their success. In the second sample, only performers were inserted. The point of subjective equality (PSE) and the Weber Ratio (WR) were analyzed for each participant in each sample. By fitting a mathematical model to these parameters as a function of age, we showed a large inter-individual variability in the PSE, such that it does not stabilize with increasing age, i.e., during the significant period of development. Interestingly, time sensitivity (WR) shows a similar pattern through the two samples as adult-like performance appeared at an earlier age for short than for long durations. For the first sample, the modeling of WR data suggests that the children reached an adult-like time sensitivity at the age of six years for the short durations and 8½ years for the long durations. For the second sample, the developmental curve was stable at about the same age for the long duration (seven years), and at earlier age for the short durations, i.e., before three years.

Toddlers Categorically Perceive Emotional Facial Expressions Along a Happy–Sad Continuum

Adults perceive a continuum of emotional facial expressions categorically rather than continuously. Categorical perception is thought to be adaptive and functional, allowing for inferences that inform behavior. To date, studies have demonstrated categorical perception of some emotional facial expressions in infants. However, a recent study reported that 12-month-olds infants do not perceive facial emotional expressions categorically across a happy–sad continuum. In contrast, toddlers at 3.5 years of age appear to use categorical perception along the happy–sad continuum. Using a novel paradigm that employed the use of a looking-time discrimination task and an explicit identification task, this study measured 26-month-old’s identification of faces and ability to discriminate between faces along a happy–sad continuum. Results suggest that 26-month-olds perceive facial expressions categorically along the happy–sad continuum.

The contribution of orthographic input, phonological skills, and rise time discrimination to the learning of non-native phonemic contrasts

Although learning second language phonology is a difficult task, orthographic input may support the learning of difficult sound contrasts through a process known as orthographic facilitation. We extended this research by examining the effects of orthographic input together with individual differences in three different phonological learning processes, namely, the production of, perception of, and memorization of words containing three Marathi phonemic contrasts (i.e., [k-kh], [], and []) by native English speakers. Moreover, because the [] and [] contrasts were particularly challenging in previous auditory training studies (e.g., Polka, 1991), we used cross-modal training in order to enhance learning by pairing auditory perception tasks with visual orthographic information, the amplification of relevant acoustic cues, and proprioceptive descriptions to the articulation of target phonemes. Results showed significant learning from the pre- to the posttest across tasks and contrasts, supporting the effectiveness of cross-modal training. Furthermore, incongruent orthographic input could inhibit perception, and orthographic input generally supported memory for word pronunciations. Moreover, individual differences regarding phonological skills and nonspeech auditory discrimination predicted participants’ success in different phonological learning processes. These results provide a detailed picture of the complexity between different aspects of second language phonological learning and cross-modal training.

M147. ABERRANT TIMING AND ODDBALL DETECTION IN SCHIZOPHRENIA: FINDINGS FROM A TIME DISCRIMINATION / ODDBALL FMRI STUDY

Background Schizophrenia (SZ) is associated with deficits in both temporal and salience processing. The underlying neurological dysfunctions in both processes, which are interrelated and share neuroanatomical bases, remain poorly understood. Our main objective is to examine the hypothesis that the dysfunction of the brain circuits involved in time and salience processing underlies the cognitive deficit of schizophrenia and, to a lesser extent, in bipolar disorder (BD). Methods 10 schizophrenia patients, 7 bipolar depression patients and 10 healthy volunteers carried out an original experimental test of TD/OD during fMRI brain scanning. All participants performed the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery to assess their cognitive profile. Results We found that SZ patients showed hypoactivation in cortical and subcortical areas related both with time processing and Salience Network. The dysfunction observed during timing tasks partially coincided with deficiencies in Oddball tasks. Discussion A dysfunctional timing/salience detection network underlies the cognitive impairment observed in SZ but not in BD patients.

Bayesian estimation on logarithmic scales as an explanation for spatiotemporal interferences with a tendency of deceleration

Spatial and temporal information processing interfere with each other. Kappa effect is a famous spatiotemporal interference, in which the estimated time between two lights increases as an increase of distance between the lights, showing a tendency of deceleration. A classical model attributes the interference to constant speeds and predicts a linear relation, whereas a slowness model attributes the interference to slow speeds and proposes the tendency is the result of the variance of stimuli locations. The present study developed a logarithmic version of the classical model and asserts that the tendency is the result of the Web-Fechner law. These hypotheses were tested in two time discrimination tasks by manipulating the variance of stimuli locations and distance between stimuli. The results demonstrate that estimated time was not modulated by the variance of stimuli locations, and increased as an increase of distance with a tendency of deceleration. The Bayesian model on logarithmic scales made more accurate behavioral predictions than the linear model; the estimated constant speed of the logarithmic Bayesian model was equal to the absolute threshold of speed; the strength of the Kappa effect positively correlated with the variability of time perception. Findings suggest that the interference in the Kappa effect is driven by slow speeds, the strength of the interference is influenced by the variability of time perception, and the tendency of deceleration is the result of the Weber-Fechner law. This Bayesian framework may be useful when applied in the field of time perception and other types of cross-dimensional interferences.