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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Basic psychological processes, including perception, attention, memory, thinking, problem-solving, language processing, and experimental methods in psychology

15 papers

Papers

Your Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt when Using an Al Assistant for Essay Writing Task

This study investigated the cognitive impact of using Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT for essay writing compared to traditional search engines and unaided writing. The study found that LLM use led to lower neural connectivity during essay writing and poorer performance in recalling and quoting from their own essays, potentially indicating decreased deep learning and increased reliance on the tool.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Sep 20, 05:55 PM

The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus

This study found that viewing "kawaii" (cute) images, like pictures of puppies and kittens, can improve performance on tasks requiring focus, like a game of "Operation" or a visual search. However, pictures of tasty food didn't have the same effect. The researchers think cute images narrow our attention, making us concentrate better, but not on everything.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Sep 13, 04:25 PM

Solitary silence and social sounds: music can influence mental imagery, inducing thoughts of social interactions

This study found that listening to music, compared to silence, increased the imagined social content in participants' mental imagery. This effect was observed across different languages and persisted even without lyrics or when participants didn't understand the language. The use of stable diffusion to visualize imagined content provides an interesting avenue for future research on mental imagery.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Aug 30, 08:02 PM

Mental representation of the locations and identities of multiple hidden agents or objects by a bonobo

This study found that Kanzi, a language-trained bonobo, could track the locations of two hidden people simultaneously, even after their hiding places were switched. He also identified individuals based solely on their voices. He struggled somewhat with a very similar object tracking task, suggesting the possibility of distinct mechanisms, but further research is necessary.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Aug 21, 12:45 AM

The association of caffeine consumption with positive affect but not with negative affect changes across the day

This experience sampling methodology (ESM) study in young adults found that caffeinated beverages are linked to increased positive affect, especially shortly after waking and when tired, with weaker effects when around others. The study investigated the role of caffeine sensitivity, time of day, individual differences, and contextual factors, finding inconsistent results for negative affect.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Aug 10, 01:32 PM

Contrasting Guilty Minds: Exposure to Contrast Concepts Narrows Conceptions of Acting Knowingly and Recklessly

This study found that people's judgments of whether someone acted "knowingly" or "recklessly" are influenced by the other options presented. Participants were more likely to say someone acted "knowingly" when that was the only culpable option, and less likely when "recklessly" was also available. This suggests that these terms are contrast-sensitive, similar to "intentionally".

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Aug 05, 04:50 PM

Quantifying uncert-Al-nty: Testing the accuracy of LLMs' confidence judgments

Across five different tasks, LLMs demonstrated mixed metacognitive accuracy in their confidence judgments, sometimes outperforming and sometimes underperforming humans, but generally performing slightly *better*. A key finding is that several LLMs were less likely than humans to improve their metacognitive calibration after completing a task, suggesting a limitation in learning from experience. Overall, LLM confidence isn't uniformly better or worse than human confidence, varying considerably by the specific model and task.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Jul 22, 06:21 PM

Fine-tuning the details: post-encoding music differentially impacts general and detailed memory

This study investigated how music listening after learning affects memory. While music increased emotional arousal, it only led to memory improvements when considering individual differences in arousal responses, highlighting the importance of personalized responses. Those with large arousal increases or moderate decreases performed better on general memory, while moderate arousal increases benefited detailed memory.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Jul 20, 04:49 PM

Blue light influences negative thoughts of self

In a study involving 35 young adults, blue-enriched light was associated with a slightly decreased tendency to endorse negative self-descriptors. A drift diffusion model suggested that this effect may arise from a faster accumulation of evidence when rejecting negative descriptors under blue-enriched light. However, the effect size is small and the study does not control for menstrual cycle effects on mood regulation.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Jul 20, 01:39 PM

The Process of Replication Target Selection in Psychology: What to Consider?

This study developed a 13-item checklist for transparently reporting the rationale behind replication target selection in psychology. Based on surveys and a Delphi study, researchers identified 'interest', 'doubt', 'impact', 'methodology', and 'feasibility' as key considerations when choosing a study to replicate, emphasizing the importance of clear communication over prescriptive guidelines.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Jul 14, 05:14 PM

Husserl on Minimal Mind and the Origins of Consciousness in the Natural World

This paper explores Husserl's concept of "minimal mind," the lowest level of consciousness in living beings, focusing on invertebrates like jellyfish and embryos as potential candidates. It argues that even minimal minds must possess an ego-cogito-cogitatum structure, phenomenality, and embodiment, with rudimentary nervous systems and instinctive behaviors potentially reflecting basic consciousness.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Jul 08, 01:07 PM

Your Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt when Using an Al Assistant for Essay Writing Task

Using LLMs for essay writing decreased brain connectivity compared to writing without assistance, especially in areas associated with semantic processing and memory. Participants who used LLMs had more difficulty quoting from their essays and felt less ownership over their work, suggesting a potential cognitive offloading effect.

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Experimental and Cognitive Psychology Jul 08, 12:02 PM