[pt] Achados recentes sugerem que pistas sociais e contextuais podem moderar respostas a emoções alheias. O presente trabalho investigou cognição sócio-contextual em reações emocionais vicárias. Foi examinado se respostas convergentes e divergentes dependem da afiliação grupal, direção do olhar e a emoção mostrada pelo emissor; e se o grau proximidade modera respostas aversivas e compassivas ao sofrimento alheio. Essas variáveis emocionais foram analisadas por autorrelato, expressões faciais, rastreio ocular e dilatação de pupila. Os achados respaldam teorias de cognição social e seus efeitos sobre emoção e empatia. / [en] Recent findings suggest that social and contextual cues may moderate responses toward other s emotions. Therefore, the current work investigated socio-contextual cognition in vicarious emotional reactions. It was examined if convergent and divergent responses depend on group membership, gaze direction, and the emotion showed by the displayer; and if degrees of closeness moderate aversive and compassionate responses to other s suffering. These emotional variables were assessed by self-report, facial expressions, gaze behavior and pupil dilatation. Findings supports theories of social cognition and its effects on emotion and empathy.

abstract: Research on the psychology of social power has shown how experiences of power tend to promote goal-oriented behavior and sexual perception in individuals. These experiences need not be generated through real-life power dynamics, but can be primed experimentally in the lab. A recent study has explored how power affects even lower level goal-oriented motor movement, showing how increased power facilitates the initiation of goal-oriented motor actions (Maner et al., 2010). However, this research did not explore how these goal-oriented motor movements promoted by power dynamically evolve over time, or can be influenced by sexual perceptual processes. Using an experimental paradigm known as computer mouse-tracking, we designed an experimental task to asses how participants’ – primed with either a High or Low sense of power – motor movements and sexual perceptual processes co-evolved and influenced one another during decision-making. We analyzed four distinct mouse-tracking variables, including traditional reaction time measures and novel measures indexing real-time decision-making processes. Several hypotheses are proposed and discussed. No significant findings emerged, however general trends showed promising signs for future iterations of the study. The study limitations and proposed future directions for studying these phenomena are discussed. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2016

Made available in DSpace on 2015-05-14T12:43:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 805721 bytes, checksum: 0e84ad32bcbf4a4bf23c53b174610561 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-04-02 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The Alzheimer s phatology is understood as a brain disease whose reason for his commitment is not yet known. It deteriorates the cognitive structure and functioning and is characterized by several deficiencies that alter mental and social performance of the individual. The Alzheimer s disease affects neurological functioning, cognitive elements, language, interaction and daily life of individuals affected by the disease. The development of this research aims to investigate how cognitive deficits from Alzheimer s disease alter the use of language in social interaction processes. An integrated study of neurocognitivism and sociocognitivism allows us to understand the language in conjunction with other cognitive elements, and believes that the social use of language has important role in building the knowledge. Three phenomena will be placed for review. The first one investigates the correlation between linguistic and cognitive decline of patients, considering the aspects of neurodegenerative disease, with the social world of the patient, which proven undergoes major changes during the course of the disease, culminating in his/her total isolation in the last phase. Finally, we will perform an analysis of specific linguistic resources used by patients with Alzheimer s and the dynamic interaction of which involved individuals with Alzheimer s. Our results observed in chapter IV (diagnosis, linguistic and cognitive decline and possible ways to categorize patients with Alzheimer s) and in the chapter V (the sociocognitive analysis of ordinations put in use in face to face interaction) revealed that in Alzheimer s disease not only change the internal structures of the individual with brain pathology, but also the language, the cognitive deficits of its constituents, interaction and social practices of everyday individuals. / A patologia Alzheimer é entendida como uma doença cerebral cuja razão de seu comprometimento ainda não é conhecida. Ela deteriora a estrutura e funcionamento cognitivo e é caracterizada por várias deficiências que alteram o desempenho mental e social do sujeito. A patologia Alzheimer afeta o funcionamento neurológico, os elementos cognitivos, a linguagem, a interação e o cotidiano dos indivíduos acometidos pela doença. O desenvolvimento desta pesquisa tem como objetivo a investigação de como os déficits cognitivos oriundos da doença de Alzheimer alteram o uso da linguagem nos processos de interação social. Um estudo integrado do neurocognitivismo e sociocognitivismo permite entender a linguagem conjuntamente com outros elementos cognitivos, assim como, acredita que o uso social da língua possui importante papel na construção do conhecimento. Três fenômenos serão destacados para análise. O primeiro investiga a correlação do declínio linguístico-cognitivo dos portadores, considerando os aspectos neurodegenerativos da doença, com o mundo social do paciente, que comprovadamente passa por grandes alterações no transcorrer da patologia, culminando em seu isolamento total na última fase. Por fim, realizaremos uma análise dos recursos linguísticos específicos utilizados por portadores de Alzheimer e a dinâmica interacional das quais participam os sujeitos portadores de Alzheimer. Nossos resultados, observados nos capítulos IV (diagnóstico, declínio linguísticocognitivo e as maneiras de categorizar possíveis portadores de Alzheimer) e no capítulo V (a análise das ordenações sociocognitiva postas em uso na interação face a face), nos revelaram que a Doença de Alzheimer não apenas altera as estruturas cerebrais internas do indivíduo portador da patologia, mas, também, a linguagem, os déficits cognitivos dela constitutivos, a interação e as práticas sociais rotineiras desses sujeitos.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:37:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 RafaelaCC_DISSERT.pdf: 803401 bytes, checksum: 53c69a283d13c77927ec0912b1db2bc4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-03-30 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / Several studies on nonhuman primates show that the relationships between individuals strongly influence the expression of cooperative behavior, both in natural environment and in captivity settings. Recent studies suggest that cooperative breeders present outstanding performance in tasks involving social cognition, such as cooperative tasks with experimental apparatuses. In experimental research on this subject it is crucial to differentiate between real cooperation (or communicative cooperation, mediated by social attention) and by-product cooperation that results from simultaneous actions of individuals. The present study assessed, in Callithrix jacchus, a cooperative breeder species, if social relationships and social attention between subjects are important factors during performance in cooperative tasks. During the experimental procedure the animals participated in three different cooperative tasks: cooperation task, prosocial task and control task. Diverging from the literature, matrix correlation tests revealed no significant relationship between grooming or proximity and the execution of the tasks, suggesting that other factors such as age or hierarchy may have an effect on the performance in cooperative tasks in this species. There was also no relationship between the execution of the cooperative tasks and social glances, suggesting that there was no social attention during the tasks. Moreover, there were lower rates of social glances in the cooperative tasks as opposed to the control tasks. However, the small number of pulls in prosocial tasks suggests that the animals distinguished between tasks that benefited only a partner and tasks that generated benefits to themselves, choosing the latter. We conclude that, for the tasks presented in this study, we could neither detect the role of social relationships on the cooperative tasks nor assert that there were true cooperation and prosocial behavior / Diversos estudos com primatas n?o humanos mostram que as rela??es entre os indiv?duos t?m forte influ?ncia sobre a express?o de comportamentos cooperativos tanto em ambiente natural como em cativeiro. Trabalhos recentes sugerem que esp?cies com cuidado cooperativo de infantes t?m desempenho destacado em testes que envolvem cogni??o social, como testes cooperativos que utilizam aparatos experimentais. Nas pesquisas experimentais sobre o tema ? fundamental distinguir a coopera??o verdadeira (ou comunicativa, mediada por aten??o) da coopera??o que ocorre como subproduto de atividades coincidentes. O presente trabalho avaliou em Callithrix jacchus, uma esp?cie com cuidado cooperativo da prole, se as rela??es sociais e a aten??o social entre os indiv?duos s?o importantes elementos durante a realiza??o de tarefas cooperativas. No procedimento experimental, os animais participaram de tr?s tarefas cooperativas diferentes: teste de coopera??o, teste de prosocialidade e controle. Diferente do descrito na literatura, os testes de correla??o de matrizes n?o revelaram correla??o significante entre rela??es afiliativas de cata??o e proximidade e a execu??o das tarefas, e sugere-se que outros fatores podem influenciar a ocorr?ncia das mesmas, como a idade ou a hierarquia. Tamb?m n?o foi encontrada rela??o entre a execu??o das tarefas cooperativas e olhares sociais, sugerindo, inicialmente, que n?o houve aten??o social na realiza??o dos testes. Ademais, menores taxas de olhares sociais ocorreram no teste de coopera??o em rela??o ao controle. Entretanto, o reduzido n?mero de puxadas por indiv?duo no teste de prosocialidade, apontou para a possibilidade dos indiv?duos terem percebido a diferen?a entre tarefas que beneficiam somente um parceiro e tarefas que geram benef?cio pr?prio, dando prefer?ncia ? ?ltima. Para as tarefas apresentadas neste trabalho n?o foi poss?vel detectar a influ?ncia das rela??es sociais nas tarefas cooperativas tampouco foi poss?vel afirmar que a coopera??o e o comportamento prosocial s?o verdadeiros

The influence of dog education on their behaviour in maturity was described and documented in this diploma thesis. The dog handling and relationship to other members of family and to other dogs were studied. Questionnaire investigation was made in the area of Trhové Sviny town. It was found, that not only the time of removing the puppies from their mother, but also the way of the care for the dog before the removing play important and primary role. The way and the degree of social cognition by the new owner and the knowledge in field of ethology and in dog communication signals of the new owner are important as well.

Avaliação de sistemas de informação e frames tecnológicos (estruturas cognitivas compartilhadas em relação à tecnologia) constituem-se as temáticas focais desta pesquisa cujo objetivo foi compreender como se estabelece a relação entre processos de avaliação formais e informais de um sistema de informação e frames tecnológicos. A estrutura de avaliação conteúdo-contexto-processo e o arcabouço teórico de frames tecnológicos, especialmente seus elementos constitutivos - conhecimentos, pressupostos e expectativas - foram associados visando a esta compreensão. A pesquisa foi realizada em uma instituição de ensino superior e o objeto de estudo tratou-se de um sistema de informação acadêmico (Peoplesoft), implementado e em uso nesta instituição. Especificamente analisaram-se: avaliações formais e informais do sistema acadêmico em relação à estrutura conteúdo-contexto-processo; a natureza e extensão de diferenças em frames tecnológicos de grupos sociais distintos; e como frames tecnológicos moldam e são moldados por avaliações formais e informais de um sistema de informação. Com pressupostos epistemológicos sustentados pela perspectiva interpretativista, metodologicamente o estudo caracterizou-se por uma abordagem qualitativa do tipo estudo de caso único e incorporado (grupos sociais como sub-unidades de análise). Entrevistas em profundidade, observação participante, revisão documental e artefato físico constituíram-se as fontes de dados empíricos. Adotaram-se os fundamentos do método hermenêutico-dialético para a análise e interpretação dos dados coletados. O estudo propiciou identificar que: frames tecnológicos e avaliações do sistema de informação, sejam formais ou informais, influenciam-se reciprocamente; características pessoais, contextuais e tecnológicas integram-se criando, reforçando e modificando frames tecnológicos; diferentes avaliações sobre o sistema acadêmico são socialmente construídas pelos indivíduos inseridos em grupos sociais e fortemente afetadas pelo que acreditam, conhecem e esperam deste sistema; frames tecnológicos manifestam-se tanto no conteúdo da avaliação quanto no processo avaliativo, influenciando a identificação de fatores do conteúdo assim como o teor do julgamento destes fatores, o modo pelo qual se avalia e o próprio contexto da avaliação; em contrapartida, processos de avaliações informais, decorrentes da interação social, afetam frames tecnológicos; nestes processos, conhecimentos prévios são validados, ampliados ou refutados, pressupostos e expectativas criados e recriados; igualmente, o modo como avaliações formais são configuradas desencadeia conhecimentos, pressupostos e expectativas sobre a tecnologia. / Information systems evaluation and technological frames (shared cognitive structures that relate to technology) are the main themes of this research. Its general goal has been to establish how the relationship between formal and informal processes of information systems evaluation and technological frames operates. The structure of evaluation (content-context-process) and the theoretical stance of the technological frames, especially in respect to its constitutive elements, have been analyzed and linked to each other. The research has been conducted in a graduate institution and its object of analysis, a software called \"Peoplesoft\", which was already implemented and that is in use nowadays. Specific analysis deal with the following topics: a) both formal and informal evaluations of the information system in relation to the \"content-context-process\" structure; the nature and extension of the differences that sustain technological frames for different groups as well how these technological frames are molded and formed by formal and informal assessment (evaluations) of such system. Epistemological suppositions were held by an interpretative perspective while, methodologically, this study is characterized by a qualitative perspective of a unique case in which social groups act as sub-units of analysis. In-depth interviews, paticipative observations, documental review and physical artifacts have been the sources of empirical data. Data analysis and interpretation has been backed up by a dialectic-hermeneutic method. The results point to reciprocal influences between technological frames and information systems evaluations (both formal and informal ones). Personal and contextual characteristics as well as technological ones are integrated creating, reinforcing and modifying technological frames. Thus, different evaluations of the academic information system are socially constructed by the individuals and become greatly affected by their prior knowledge of the system, their assumptions and expectations towards it. Technological frames manifest themselves in relation to both the content and processes of evaluation, thus influencing the identification of generating factors of such judgments, as well as their substance; frames also influence the manners how evaluations are made and the context where they take place. On the other hand, informal evaluation processes, the product of social interaction, affect technological frames. In these processes, previous knowledge is validated, amplified or refuted; assumptions and expectations are created and/or recreated. At the same time, the ways in which formal evaluations are proposed trigger certain knowledges, expectations and assumptions about technology.

Group work is commonly recommended as a student-centred instructional strategy which may enhance learning. Research in this area has predominantly used controlled interventions focusing on unproductive teacher assistance or specific strategies of doing group work to be applied by teachers. On the other hand, teachers’ own understanding and uses of group work in classrooms have been under-researched. Drawing on cultural-historical theory, this study scrutinises how and why teachers use group work, and how their enacted understanding is related to the broader contexts of teaching. The present study consists of four teachers of English in two secondary schools in Hong Kong to discern their rationales for and implementation of group work. The analysis delves into the dynamics within the activity of teaching, which comprise the interrelations between teachers' biographies, their purposes for group work in classrooms and what was expected from these teachers within the school practices. The Vygotskian perspective taken by this study entailed an inquiry into the teachers' intentional actions in everyday teaching. Each teacher was interviewed at the outset and end of the school-based fieldwork for their learning backgrounds and beliefs about teaching. In between these interviews each of them was observed in 15 lessons involving group work and undertook five to six stimulated recall (SR) interviews. These lesson video-recordings provided the stimuli for the SR interviews for probing the teacher’s pedagogic decisions while orchestrating students in small groups. The data was analysed by deploying concepts from cultural-historical theory, particularly two organising frameworks developed within the approach. One is a pedagogic sequence proposed by Edwards (1995; in press) as a descriptor to categorise the teachers’ purposes for and actions in group work. The other is an adaptation of Hedegaard's (2012) planes of analysis for identifying the various motives and demands in the multi-layered setting of teaching where group work was located. Group work as a pedagogic tool displayed the intra- and interpersonal dynamics in the activity of teaching. The findings indicate that the teachers' historically-constructed identities as learners of English oriented their intentions for group work and beliefs about teaching the subject. How the schools mediated societal expectations on teaching and learning had a considerable bearing on the teachers enacting their understanding. These institutional objectives and demands in practices created sets of opportunities for group work in the classrooms. The analysis thence was sited at the interface between the teachers' personal pedagogies and the multi-faceted social structure reflected in how education policy was mediated differently in different school contexts. The implications for teacher development are discussed.

Tourism social networking sites (SNSs) are websites that provide users with templates for describing their travel experiences and an infrastructure to share such travel posts with a network of like-minded individuals. Tourism SNSs represent an important advertising channel for the tourism industry, as they may assist travelers in selecting destinations and planning vacations on the basis of other travelers’ experiences, which may further stimulate travel and generate income for the tourism industry (Yazdanifard & Yee, 2014). User-generated content (UGC) in the form of travel posts is the core offering and key success factor of tourism SNSs. Travel posts constitute a valuable resource that attracts users to these websites, and they serve as a key data feed into the data mining process that is used to develop travel products on tourism SNSs. However, one problem with tourism SNSs is that their users, especially the new ones, do not publish their travel experiences on these SNSs as often as they do on traditional SNSs, such as Facebook. This may result in a lack of content and, therefore, a loss of potential consumers and, consequently, revenue. Therefore, a study on self-disclosure behavior in writing travel posts may contribute to understanding the reasons why this problem exists and help tourism SNSs improve their service accordingly. The author used multiple theoretical perspectives (social exchange theory and social cognition theory) to develop a comprehensive self-disclosure framework. The framework was tested by using a partial least squares based structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) approach with data from 443 participants recruited from the two most popular Chinese tourism SNSs: Qyer.com and mafengwo.cn. The findings show that self-disclosure behavior on tourism SNSs was significantly affected by self-benefit, positive feedback from other users, social benefits, rewards, tourism SNSs’ security mechanism, and ease of use. However, habit and motive did not have a statistically significant effect on self-disclosure behavior. Moreover, self-disclosure behavior positively affected electronic word of mouth (EWOM) relating to the tourism SNSs. Finally, the findings have theoretical and practical implications, and the thesis ends with a discussion of the limitations of this study and suggestions for future research.

La cognition sociale fait référence à un ensemble de processus cognitifs fonctionnant en interaction permettant de se comporter de manière adaptée dans le monde social. La théorie de l’esprit (TDE) est considérée comme étant l’élément central de la cognition sociale, mais les liens entre les processus sont encore mal connus. Les capacités de TDE se manifestent au quotidien au travers des relations interpersonnelles, mais l’effet du contexte sur la TDE demeure encore mal connu. L’objectif principal de ce travail de thèse consistait à étudier conjointement la TDE et les connaissances sociales ainsi que les liens existant entre ces deux dimensions. Nous résultats mettent en évidence que les capacités à attribuer des états mentaux sont modulées par le contexte et plus précisément par l’intégrité des connaissances sociales dans la maladie d’Alzheimer et dans la démence sémantique. Les troubles des patients pourraient avoir une origine différente, en lien avec l’atteinte cérébrale. La cognition sociale pourrait ainsi être un élément utile dans le cadre du diagnostic différentiel des maladies neurodégénératives. / Social cognition refers to a set of processes working interactively that allows to behave appropriately in the social world. Theory of mind (TOM) is considered to be the central element of social cognition, but the links between its different processes are still poorly understood. TOM’s abilities are used daily through interpersonal relationships, but the effect of the context on TOM remains poorly explored. The main aim of this thesis was to study both TOM and social knowledge, as well as the links between them. Our results highlight how the ability to attribute mental states is modulated by the context and more specifically by the integrity of social knowledge in Alzheimer's disease and semantic dementia. Patients’ disorders may have a different origin depending on their brain lesions. Therefore, social cognition could be a useful element in the differential diagnosis for neurodegenerative diseases.

The aim of this thesis is to provide insights into how previous negative social experiences and/or societal norms concerning body size influence social information processing. The first two studies included in this thesis were conducted in Germany, a society with high level of prejudice towards individuals with obesity. The third study was conducted in American Samoa, a society with low prejudice towards individuals with obesity. Study one (chapter 5.1) investigated potential alterations in social information processing and behavior in individuals with obesity compared to lean individuals by measuring heart rate and reaction times. To identify potential reasons for alterations in the individual’s personal history, the influence of weight-related teasing on social information processing was analyzed. In the second study (chapter 5.2), I examined how individuals with and without obesity respond to social inclusion and social exclusion by measuring affect and heart rate. Of special interest were subjective factors of body dissatisfaction and teasing experiences as potential influencing factors. Following this approach, the second study became a “travelling experiment” and was repeated in a Polynesian group on American Samoa (chapter 5.3), a country with a high obesity rate, but less negative social outcomes for individuals with obesity. It aimed at studying the influence of cultural norms and values related to body size as well as varying weight-related stigmatization on psychophysiological processing in social situations.:1 Introduction 2 Theoretical Background 2.1 Social exclusion and behavior 2.1.1 Evolutionary origins of social exclusion and stigmatization 2.1.2 Adaptive behavioral responses to recurrent negative social feedback 2.2 Social exclusion and affect 2.2.1 General biological aspects of emotions 2.2.2 Cultural aspects of emotions 2.2.3 Affect after social exclusion 2.3 Social exclusion and parasympathetic cardio-regulation 2.3.1 Parasympathetic cardio-regulation in psychological research 2.3.2 Parasympathetic cardio-regulation during negative social feedback 2.3.3 Methodological issues 2.4 Obesity in Western societies 2.4.1 Prevalence and health consequences 2.4.2 Obesity and parasympathetic cardio-regulation 2.4.3 The stigma of obesity 2.4.4 Obesity and social information processing 2.5 Obesity and the Samoan Islands 2.5.1 Geography and population 2.5.2 Traditional diets, modernization, and obesity prevalence 2.5.3 Cultural differences in the perception of body sizes 2.5.4 Body size perception in the Samoan Islands 2.5.5 Affect in Samoa 3 Rationale of the Experimental Work 4 Methods 4.1 Autonomic control of the heart 4.2 Heart rate variability analyses 5 Experimental Work 5.1 Study 1 – Differential heart rate responses to social and monetary reinforcement in women with obesity 5.2 Study 2 – Parasympathetic cardio-regulation during social interactions in individuals with obesity – The influence of negative body image 5.3 Study 3 – Body size-related socio-cultural norms in Westerners and Polynesians and their association with heart rate variability and affect during social interaction 5.3.1 Introduction 5.3.2 Methods 5.3.3 Results 5.3.4 Discussion 6 General Discussion and Implications 7 Summary 7.1 English summary 7.2 German summary 8 References 9 Appendix 9.1 Supplemental material 9.1.1 Participants: recruitment, inclusion and exclusion criteria 9.1.2 Overview procedures in Germany and American Samoa 9.1.3 Study 1 9.1.4 Study 2 9.1.5 Study 3 9.2 Declaration of authenticity 9.3 Authors' contributions 9.3.1 Study 1 9.3.2 Study 2 9.3.3 Study 3