Subjects: Other Disciplines >> Synthetic discipline submitted time 2023-10-09 Cooperative journals: 《心理学报》
Abstract： Rhythm, as the temporal variation in a sequence of sounds, plays a crucial role in understanding musical melodies and speech patterns. Previous research has shown that musicians exhibit superior abilities in processing music-related and unrelated information and show advantages in executive function. However, the specific component of musical training (pitch or rhythm) that yields these benefits remains unclear, largely due to the intertwined nature of pitch and rhythm training. This study seeks to understand the impact of exclusive rhythmic training on cognitive abilities, leveraging the unique opportunity provided by Zhuang drummers who have undergone bronze drum training without any formal melodic training. The bronze drum is the artistic treasure of Zhuang nation.As a unique form of local instrumental music performance, Donglan bronze drum music pursues the asynchronicity and variability of rhythm, and has more characteristics than the music art synchronized with the collective, which requires a higher level of rhythm perception. The most distinctive feature of Donglan bronze drum music is the rich rhythm changes, which fully reflects the superb skill level of the players. Therefore, long-term bronze drum training may promote the drummer's music perception and higher cognitive function development. We conducted six experiments involving 52 participants from Lan Yang, a small town in Guangxi Donglan County. Among them, 26 individuals Mean age = 49.88 ± 15.98 years had long-term bronze drum training but no other musical training, while the other 26 Mean age = 47.77 ± 12.62 years had no music training at all. Participants underwent tasks in rhythmic and pitch change detection, combined rhythmic-pitch change detection, pitch-based auditory Stroop, auditory n-back tasks, and a cued alternating runs switching task. The results indicated that the Zhuang bronze drummers exhibited superior rhythm perception compared to the control group, with no discernable difference in pitch perception, suggesting the bronze drum training may enhance auditory temporal fine-tuning. Regarding executive functions, the drummers outperformed the control group in inhibitory control and working memory updating. However, rhythm perception was unrelated to switching performance, aligning with the “Unity and Diversity of Executive Functions” hypothesis that expertise in rhythm perception doesn't uniformly improve all cognitive abilities. This study demonstrates that the rhythmic perception ability of Zhuang bronze drummers is an interplay of cognitive factors and Zhuang musical culture exposure. The long-term bronze drum training significantly enhances rhythm perception and certain executive functions, revealing the non-aesthetic value of bronze drum performance. The unique “variation rhythm” style may have originated from the imitation of “frogs clamour”, a feature of the local bronze drum music culture.
Subjects: Psychology >> Social Psychology submitted time 2023-03-28 Cooperative journals: 《心理科学进展》
Abstract： Music has a significant and far-reaching impact on human society. Archaeological evidence shows that music first emerged at least 3.5 billion years (Paleolithic Period) ago. Such evidence is an important indication that humans have the advanced capacity to process complex auditory information. Musicology has gradually formed a relatively complete theoretical system. However, it still has several fundamental problems in the theory and practice of modern music, such as the rationale for simultaneous consonance. The core of this problem is how our brain possesses musical chords composed of several tones and why some tone combinations sound relatively pleasant (consonance) while others sound unpleasant (dissonance). This question has fascinated scholars since the ancient Greeks. Physicists have been trying to find answers to the differences between acoustic features of consonance and dissonance harmony. Biologists argue that consonance perception is the basic emotional experience evoked by sound events in the auditory system. Psychologists are more inclined to examine whether musical consonance perception is nature or nurture. Such different content of disciplines can be summarized from three perspectives: 1) Emphasize the physical acoustics of musical stimulation. It is considered that certain acoustic characteristics cause a particular chord to be perceived as consonant, for instance, the simplicity of the fundamental frequency ratios of combined tones. Therefore, many theoretical explanations of musical consonance in mathematical physics had been advocated. 2) Emphasize the physiological or psychological basis of music processing, holding the sense of consonance is the basic emotional experience. For example, Hermann von Helmholtz proposed that the roughness (dissonant experience) is often generated by the dissonant intervals which contain frequency components that are too closely spaced to be resolved by the auditory system. Therefore, many biologists advocate for using physiological acoustics and psychoacoustics methods to reveal this universal processing mechanism. Both of the two theories consider the perception of music consonance is an innate ability of human being. 3) Emphasize the roles of culture aspects, arguing the musical cultural exposure and music training significantly affect consonance perception. This article reviews these empirical researches from various disciplines to analyze the basis of musical consonance and to systematically sorts out the theoretical debates going on for centuries. We also proposed that nature and nurture interact to shape how we experience musical consonance. Although musical consonance has been researched mainly using western theoretical perspectives, studying musical consonance in Chinese traditional music culture is urgently needed. Music is an advanced activity of human cognition and one of the universal ways of emotional expression in life. As the core element connecting music and emotion, the rationale for simultaneous consonance is still unsolved. We hope our work will facilitate further empirical research on musical consonance, especially in Chinese traditional music culture.
Subjects: Psychology >> Social Psychology submitted time 2023-03-27 Cooperative journals: 《心理学报》
Abstract： In our complex social environments, life situations are ever-changing. When dealing with these changes, there is no one-size-fits-all response or regulatory strategy suitable for all situations. Emotion regulation flexibility (ERF)—a framework for understanding individual differences in adaptive responding to ever-changing life contexts—emphasizes that individuals can flexibly deploy and adjust emotion regulation strategies according to specific characteristics of stressful situations in daily life. To achieve regulatory efficacy, it is important that one can utilize a balanced profile of ER strategies and select strategies that fit well with particular stressful situations. Specifically, using multiple ER strategies in daily life, rather than relying on only single-strategies, would indicate higher ERF. Additionally, based on leading models of strategy-situation fit, certain ER strategies are more appropriate for high versus low intensity stressful events. For instance, distraction involves with shielding oneself from negative stimuli and replacing them with irrelevant things, which may have a greater regulatory effect in high-intensity negative situations. Conversely, strategies such as reappraisal, which involves the processing of negative situations through deep cognitive change, may be more effective in lower-intensity negative situations and as a cornerstone of longer-term ER. We used the experience-sampling method (ESM) to quantify individual’s ERF; more specifically we assess participants for 1) having more or less balanced ER strategy profiles and 2) showing greater strategy-situation fit, in regard to the use of distraction versus reappraisal in the regulation of high-intensity versus low-intensity negative life events. To test the adaptive value of ERF on negative emotions and mental health, we investigated the influence of ERF on depressive and anxiety symptoms in two samples. We hypothesized that individuals with a more balanced profile of ER strategy use and a great level of strategy-situation fit would have higher levels of mental health, indicated by low levels of anxiety and depressive feelings. In sample 1, two hundred eight college students finished the ESM procedure (2859 beeps). Intensity of negative situations was measured by self-reported negative feelings for the time points where participants reported an adverse event. Simultaneously, we assessed participants’ use of two ER strategies (i.e., distraction and reappraisal). Considering the negative impact of COVID-19 on people’s daily life, we collected another sample (sample 2, 3462 beeps) with one hundred people who lived in Hubei Province, where Wuhan was in lockdown during the severe phase of COVID-19 (March 7-13, 2020). We measured intensity of negative situations (by averaging individuals’ negative feelings), as well as the use of two ER strategies at corresponding time points. After completing the ESM procedure, the participants were asked to fill out a series of emotional health questionnaires, including Beck Depression Inventory-II, Beck Anxiety Inventory and Spielberger State Anxiety Scale. Multilevel models were used to fit the covariation between the use of distraction versus reappraisal ER strategies and the intensity of negative events. Additionally, we used multiple level regression models to test whether high level of strategy-situation fit would result in lower negative feelings. To test whether a single-strategy preference would lead to higher levels of anxiety and depressive feelings compared to a multiple-strategy preference, latent profile analyses (LPA) was used. Results from the LPA indicated that individuals with preferences for rumination and express suppression reported higher levels depression and anxiety than individuals with a multi-strategy preference. In the multilevel models, results of the two independent samples both suggested individuals who were more inclined to use a higher level of distraction in response to high-intensity negative situations (e.g., adverse events or during COVID-19) and use higher levels of reappraisal during low-intensity situations (i.e., high level of ERF) reported lower levels of anxiety and depressive feelings. On the converse, individuals who tended to use more distraction in low intensity situations and more reappraisal in high intensity situations, (i.e., those showing lower ERF) reported a higher level of negative feelings. Together, our findings revealed a negative relationship between ERF and mental health problems in two samples, suggesting that having balanced ER profiles and flexibly deploying strategies in specific life contexts may have adaptive value in facilitating positive mental health. This work deepens our understanding of the interaction between ER strategies and situational demands, paving the way for future intervention research to help alleviate negative emotions associated with affective disorders or the experience of major traumatic events (such as epidemics, earthquakes, etc.).
Subjects: Psychology >> Social Psychology submitted time 2023-03-27 Cooperative journals: 《心理学报》
Abstract： Social perception research focused on categorization and identity, but most previous studies merely examined the intergroup relations among the perceptually evident and categorically typical groups. The intergroup attitude of the multiethnic individuals is still unclear, including their identity choices and implicit theories. Hence, this study aims to explore these issues with the offspring of interethnic unions in China. Research on mixed race showed that biracial people can flexibly switch between their racial identities, demonstrating that multiracial individuals who grew up in multicultural backgrounds were less likely to hold essentialist views of race. We therefore hypothesize that offspring of Chinese interethnic marriages would have similar implicit theories of ethnicity. Moreover, such offspring would have a less strong identification with their ethnicity and more positive attitudes toward outgroup members compared with their peers of endogamous marriages. A total of 3481 students (ages: 14.38 ± 1.03y) were selected as research participants, among these, the numbers of offspring of exogamous marriage were 1317, and the offspring of endogamous marriage were 2164. The distribution areas of the participants spreading all over the 5 province, and the ethnic types of participants including Han and 14 Chinese minorities (Mongol, Oroqen, Lahu, Dai, Wa, Blang, Maio, Bai, Yao, Dong, Zhuang, Maonan, Tibetan, Daur). The implicit theories, ethnic identity, outgroup attitude, and superordinate identity were measured by using questionnaire method. Descriptive statistics and correlation were analyzed with SPSS 25.0 and the conditional process analysis was using PROCESS 3.3 macro (in SPSS). Based on the hypotheses of Social Identity Theory, the serial mediating role of essentialism and ethnic identity between interethnic marriage types of parents (1: intermarriage, 0: intramarriage) and outgroup attitude of offsprings was investigated. Then, the mediating effect of superordinate identity between parental marriage types and offsprings’ intergroup attitudes was examined based on Common Ingroup Identity Model. Finally, we examine whether the intermarriage is a good indicator of intergroup relation. Results show that offspring of intermarriages (vs. offsprings of intramarriage) are less likely to hold ethnic essentialist beliefs and have a lower sense of their ethnic identity. However, they are reported to have more positive attitudes toward outgroups and higher interest in intergroup contact and are more likely to develop a superordinate level of identity (Chinese nation identity). For the offspring of intermarriages who have successfully built the Chinese Nation identity, the sense of community for the Chinese national identity mediates the impact of parents’ intermarriage on their intergroup attitudes. On the contrary, for those who still hold a subordinate group identity, the ethnic implicit theories (essentialism or social constructionism) and subgroup identity play the chain mediation effect of interethnic marriages on improvement in outgroup perceptions. Additionally, the offspring of intermarriages and intramarriages have more positive interethnic attitudes in ethnicity with higher interethnic marriage rates than with lower interethnic marriage rates. These results demonstrate that the interethnic marriage of parents plays a key role in shaping their children’s ethnic essentialist beliefs and subgroup identity. Moreover, the present finding supports the Common Ingroup Identity Model. The reason is that the offspring of intermarriages are likely to develop a superordinate level of identity, indicating that those multiethnic groups are more flexible in self-identity categorization. In addition, we found that the model of social cognitive theory is unsuitable to the actual ethnic relations in China. That is, the ethnic identity was positive with intergroup attitudes, suggesting that different ethnic groups have unity and harmonious intergroup relations. Finally, we found that social situational factors have an important influence on ethnic essentialist beliefs and intergroup attitudes. Ethnic groups with high levels of inter-ethnic intermarriage can hold relatively high ethnic identities and positive intergroup attitudes, vividly reflecting the pattern of diversity in the unity of the Chinese nation.
Subjects: Psychology >> Social Psychology submitted time 2023-03-27 Cooperative journals: 《心理学报》
Abstract： There are three major dialects in Guangdong: Cantonese, Chaoshan, and Hakka. These dialects mainly formed during the southward migration of the Han people in the Central Plains, but they are different in language source, evolution history, and name. From the perspective of language itself, the Hakka dialect is the smallest variation of Mandarin, Cantonese medium, and Chaoshan the largest. In terms of language-variation completion time, the Hakka dialect occurred most recently, followed by Cantonese, with Chaoshan occurring the earliest. Regarding the dialect names, a morpheme of “Ke” exists in the name Hakka, which always reminds its speakers that their ancestors are from the Central Plains, while Cantonese and Chaoshan are named after each locality. An interesting question has been whether these differences among the three dialects affect the speaker’s information processing of the Central Plains group. Guangdong college students who speak only one dialect of Hakka, Cantonese, and Chaoshan were grouped according to their language background in the present study. One hundred and eighty participants took part in two experiments, 90 per experiment. In experiment 1, the group reference R/K paradigm was used to investigate whether speakers of different dialects had a different memory effect on the Central Plains group compared with that on an unrelated group. Experiment 2 adopted the “starting stroop paradigm”; that is, using different group names as the starting stimulus, and personality adjectives with different valences as target stimuli, the participants were asked to judge the color of the target stimuli. Experiment 1 found that the participants had a superior memory of their own group, but only Hakka dialect speakers experienced a group reference effect on the information processing of the Central Plains group, which resulted in a better memory effect on the Central Plains group than that on the unrelated group. The results of experiment 2 showed that the participants had the longest reaction time under the condition that their own ethnic group name was activated, but only the Hakka participants responded more slowly to the Henan ethnic group than to the unrelated ethnic group. The results of both experiments indicated that all the three dialect groups had processing advantages regarding the information of their own groups that manifested in the obvious referential effect of their own groups and the attention bias of their own information. Moreover, the Hakka participants’ cognition regarding the Central Plains group represented by “Henan people” is significantly different from that of Cantonese and Chaoshan dialect speakers. The research results suggested that language evolution affected ethnic information processing. The identity of ethnic groups with the same ancestry could be enhanced by keeping the characteristics of ancestral language completely and strengthening the relationship between dialect and ancestral language. The results have important implications for the construction of Chinese Community Consciousness.
submitted time 2023-03-16 Cooperative journals: 《心理学报》
Abstract： Social perception research focused on categorization and identity, but most previous studies merely examined the intergroup relations among the perceptually evident and categorically typical groups. The intergroup attitude of the multiethnic individuals is still unclear, including their identity choices and implicit theories. Hence, this study aims to explore these issues with the offspring of interethnic unions in China. Research on mixed race showed that biracial people can flexibly switch between their racial identities, demonstrating that multiracial individuals who grew up in multicultural backgrounds were less likely to hold essentialist views of race. We therefore hypothesize that offspring of Chinese interethnic marriages would have similar implicit theories of ethnicity. Moreover, such offspring would have a less strong identification with their ethnicity and more positive attitudes toward outgroup members compared with their peers of endogamous marriages. A total of 3481 students (ages: 14.38 ± 1.03y) were selected as research participants, among these, the numbers of offspring of exogamous marriage were 1317, and the offspring of endogamous marriage were 2164. The distribution areas of the participants spreading all over the 5 province, and the ethnic types of participants including Han and 14 Chinese minorities (Mongol, Oroqen, Lahu, Dai, Wa, Blang, Maio, Bai, Yao, Dong, Zhuang, Maonan, Tibetan, Daur). The implicit theories, ethnic identity, outgroup attitude, and superordinate identity were measured by using questionnaire method. Descriptive statistics and correlation were analyzed with SPSS 25.0 and the conditional process analysis was using PROCESS 3.3 macro (in SPSS). Based on the hypotheses of Social Identity Theory, the serial mediating role of essentialism and ethnic identity between interethnic marriage types of parents (1: intermarriage, 0: intramarriage) and outgroup attitude of offsprings was investigated. Then, the mediating effect of superordinate identity between parental marriage types and offsprings’ intergroup attitudes was examined based on Common Ingroup Identity Model. Finally, we examine whether the intermarriage is a good indicator of intergroup relation. Results show that offspring of intermarriages (vs. offsprings of intramarriage) are less likely to hold ethnic essentialist beliefs and have a lower sense of their ethnic identity. However, they are reported to have more positive attitudes toward outgroups and higher interest in intergroup contact and are more likely to develop a superordinate level of identity (Chinese nation identity). For the offspring of intermarriages who have successfully built the Chinese Nation identity, the sense of community for the Chinese national identity mediates the impact of parents’ intermarriage on their intergroup attitudes. On the contrary, for those who still hold a subordinate group identity, the ethnic implicit theories (essentialism or social constructionism) and subgroup identity play the chain mediation effect of interethnic marriages on improvement in outgroup perceptions. Additionally, the offspring of intermarriages and intramarriages have more positive interethnic attitudes in ethnicity with higher interethnic marriage rates than with lower interethnic marriage rates. These results demonstrate that the interethnic marriage of parents plays a key role in shaping their children’s ethnic essentialist beliefs and subgroup identity. Moreover, the present finding supports the Common Ingroup Identity Model. The reason is that the offspring of intermarriages are likely to develop a superordinate level of identity, indicating that those multiethnic groups are more flexible in self-identity categorization. In addition, we found that the model of social cognitive theory is unsuitable to the actual ethnic relations in China. That is, the ethnic identity was positive with intergroup attitudes, suggesting that different ethnic groups have unity and harmonious intergroup relations. Finally, we found that social situational factors have an important influence on ethnic essentialist beliefs and intergroup attitudes. Ethnic groups with high levels of inter-ethnic intermarriage can hold relatively high ethnic identities and positive intergroup attitudes, vividly reflecting the pattern of diversity in the unity of the Chinese nation.
Hits
YES
Hits
Downloads
Comment