Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2025-11-29DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01318-0
Jiaxin Wang, Peng Liu, Siyun Liu, Qingbai Zhao
{"title":"The impact of object affordance activation level on cognitive processing of tools.","authors":"Jiaxin Wang, Peng Liu, Siyun Liu, Qingbai Zhao","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01318-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01318-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Previous studies have identified different outcomes in the cognitive processing of tools but have overlooked the role of the activation level of object affordances. To address this issue, the present study conducted four behavioral experiments. Experiment 1 employed a color judgment task under low affordance activation and revealed a significant tip-dominance effect, with faster responses in stimulus-response incompatible than compatible conditions (t (29) = 3.35, p = 0.002, d = 0.61). In Experiment 2, we increased affordance activation by using typical color but observed no significant compatibility effects (all ps > 0.05). Experiment 3 adopted a Go/NoGo paradigm and introduced semantic attributes, yielding a significant stimulus-response compatibility (SRC) effect (F (1, 27) = 9.22, p = 0.005, η²<sub>p</sub> = 0.25). Experiment 4, focusing on atypical colors, showed a reversed compatibility effect for power-grasp tools (t (29) = 3.19, p = 0.003, d = 0.58), but not for precision-grasp tools. Together, these findings indicate that (1) the activation level of object affordances modulates tool-related cognitive processing; (2) low activation leads to dominance of functional-end responses, whereas higher activation elicits SRC effects; and (3) both perceptual and semantic attributes contribute to affordance activation, with semantic effects emerging only when perceptual attributes are present.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"301-316"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145641102","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The effect of interpersonal trust on trustees' deception: the moderating role of the need for cognitive closure.","authors":"Mengqi Xu, Xiaofang Zhang, Xiaoshuang Wu, Qiuling Luo, Tong Yue, Wen-Qiao Li, Qinggong Li","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01315-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01315-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Deception, as pervasive unethical behavior, has a wide range of destructive impacts on society. From an interpersonal interaction perspective, this study investigates whether interpersonal trust would inhibit trustees' deception and whether trustees' Need for Cognitive Closure (NFCC) would moderate the effect of interpersonal trust. Study 1 (N = 53) employed a between-subjects design, focusing on interpersonal trust as the independent variable, categorized into high-trust and low-trust groups. The experiment began with the manipulation of interpersonal trust levels, followed by the measure of deception using a dice-rolling task. Study 2 (N = 66) concentrated on individual differences, specifically examining how NFCC moderates the relationship between interpersonal trust and deception. The findings indicated that interpersonal trust significantly inhibited deception. Moreover, NFCC was found to play a crucial moderating role. Those with a lower NFCC exhibited an enhanced inhibitory effect of interpersonal trust on deception. These results highlight the complex interplay between interpersonal trust and deception, offering important insights for the development of targeted interventions aimed at preventing deceptive practices.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"291-300"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145439732","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2025-11-11DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01314-4
Elena Kazali
{"title":"Parents and children's executive functions: the role of parental technoference.","authors":"Elena Kazali","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01314-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01314-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study examined the associations between parents' and children's executive functions and parental technoference during preschool and school age. Participants were 621 parents of children aged 3-12 years. Parental technoference was measured by two indices: parent-child technology interference and parental problematic smartphone use. Parental technoference, parents' executive functions, and children's executive functions were measured via parental report. Results indicated that parental technoference is highly correlated with both parents' and children's executive functions. Furthermore, parental technoference influences children's executive functions indirectly, with this effect being mediated by parents' executive functions.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"351-364"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145490625","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Testing the common resource competition hypothesis for inhibition-induced forgetting: direct evidence from lexical materials.","authors":"Yue Shen, Conghui Wang, Xue Zhang, Fang Song, Yiyun Zhang","doi":"10.1007/s10339-026-01329-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-026-01329-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Previous studies have revealed the phenomenon of inhibition-induced forgetting in face materials and hypothesized that the mechanism behind it involves the competition of limited cognitive resources between response inhibition and memory encoding (i.e., the common resource competition hypothesis). The present study attempts to further test the common resource competition hypothesis of inhibition-induced forgetting using lexical materials that can directly manipulate cognitive resource demand. One hundred and thirty participants were recruited and randomly assigned to high-frequency and low-frequency word groups. Participants were required to sequentially complete the “word Go/No-go task” to induce inhibition, the “filler task” to provide encoding-retrieval delay, and the “surprise word recognition task” to measure incidental memory levels. The results showed that in the surprise word recognition task with low-frequency word groups, the recognition level of the no-go cues was significantly lower than that of the go cues, whereas in the high- frequency word groups, the difference in the recognition level of the go and no-go cues was not significant. The results suggest that inhibition-induced forgetting occurs when response inhibition and memory encoding compete for common resources (in low-frequency words), but not when there is no common resource competition (in high-frequency words), further testing the common resource competition hypothesis of inhibition-induced forgetting.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"463-471"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146087684","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2025-12-02DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01322-4
Kazem Haghnejae Azar
{"title":"Foundations of cognitive systems: exploring the architecture of mind and intelligence.","authors":"Kazem Haghnejae Azar","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01322-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01322-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This article investigates the emergence of cognitive systems as properties arising from chemical processes, elucidating how cognitive capabilities evolve through the dynamic progression of these systems. Employing the Dynamic Kinetic Stability (DKS) framework, the study traces the evolutionary trajectory from simple chemical reactions to complex cognitive behaviors, emphasizing the emergence of self-organization, adaptability, and information processing within molecular networks. The research examines the transition from non-living chemical systems to living organisms, offering insights into how basic cognitive mechanisms evolve into advanced neural networks and, ultimately, give rise to human consciousness. The interplay between sensory input and cognitive processes in shaping awareness is analyzed, providing a comprehensive understanding of how experiences are formed and interpreted. By integrating perspectives from evolutionary biology, cognitive science, and philosophy, this study addresses both the \"hard problem\" and \"easy problems\" of consciousness, shedding light on the intricate relationship between neurochemical processes and mental phenomena.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"255-274"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145655873","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2026-01-07DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01327-z
Jing Li, Qing Wang, Ning Xie, Pei Qi
{"title":"Multi-perspective spatial memory representation in the presence of others.","authors":"Jing Li, Qing Wang, Ning Xie, Pei Qi","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01327-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01327-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In order to better adapt to spatial environments, individuals often establish a spatial frame of reference system to represent objects and their positions within a scene. This study utilized a partial scene recognition paradigm across three experiments (n = 91, 45 men, 46 women) to investigate egocentric spatial memory representation in the presence of others, as well as the conditions that facilitate individuals’ spatial memory representation from the perspectives of others. The aim of Experiment 1 (Exp. 1) was to investigate how people formed the egocentric memory representation in the absence of another person’s perspective. Exp. 2 studied whether the perspective that participants chose to represent the spatial scene changed when there was another person. Exp. 3 was based on Exp. 2, and further explored the role of one-way verbal cues initiated by others in promoting the memory representation of spatial scenes from others’ perspectives. The results indicated that when participants learned the scene alone, they represented the spatial layout solely from their own perspective. This representation did not change significantly with the mere presence of another person. However, when an assistant described the scene from her perspective, participants showed a recognition advantage for both perspectives. This suggest that the mere presence of others did not influence individuals’ egocentric memory representation, but that one-way verbal cues provided by others promoted individuals’ multi-perspective spatial memory representation.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"511-521"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145913456","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2025-12-09DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01316-2
Brechtje E J van Zeijts, Lesya Y Ganushchak, Huib K Tabbers, Björn B de Koning
{"title":"Inference generation in the context of expository texts and videos: A lexical decision task study.","authors":"Brechtje E J van Zeijts, Lesya Y Ganushchak, Huib K Tabbers, Björn B de Koning","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01316-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01316-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The present study directly compared children’s generation of knowledge-based inferences when reading expository texts and when watching videos. We developed a lexical decision task, which allows for measuring automatic inference processes both in a reading context and a video context. We also tested whether potential differences between media formats depend on children’s reading proficiency. Participants were 108 fourth grade children, who were identified as either below-average (n = 49) or above-average (n = 59) readers and then randomly assigned to the text condition or video condition. In the lexical decision task, children were presented with either text or video items, followed by probe words. Half of the words were consistent, and the other half were inconsistent with what should have been inferred from the text or video items. Results showed that overall, children responded significantly faster and more accurately to consistent probes compared to inconsistent probes, indicating that they were successful in making knowledge-based inferences. This was independent of whether children were in the text or video condition. The lack of effect of media format did not differ for below-average and above-average readers, although below-average readers spent more time reading the texts, possibly compensating for their lower text decoding skills. To conclude, children engaged in knowledge-based inferencing when watching videos, similar to how they do this when reading an expository text. Our findings support the theoretical notion of a general inference skill underlying comprehension of different media.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"473-485"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145710063","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2025-11-22DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01306-4
Johannes Wagemann, Leonardo Zapata-Fonseca, Stephen Estelle, Tom Froese
{"title":"Dancing together in virtual space: experiential and agentive dimensions of perceptual crossing support microactivities and dynamic embodiment in social cognition.","authors":"Johannes Wagemann, Leonardo Zapata-Fonseca, Stephen Estelle, Tom Froese","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01306-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01306-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Perceptual Crossing Paradigm (PCP) is one of the most radical settings in social cognition research, as it confines dyadic encounter to one-dimensional movements in a virtual space and haptic feedback via human-computer interfaces. While the PCP has already led to insightful results in different settings and populations, the first-person perspective of participants on their experience and agency has not yet been systematically investigated. However, to understand the precise mechanisms by which test partners interact and identify each other, and the role that embodiment plays in this, behavioral data must be complemented by qualitative first-person data. Therefore, our PCP study (N=54) included open-ended self-reports collected over six trials which were analyzed with a mixed-methods approach using qualitative coding and different forms of quantification and statistical tests. Qualitatively, the 62 codes organized in hierarchical levels provide a fine-grained picture of individual experience (e.g., fourteen emotions) and interindividual aspects of agency (action phases, proactive and receptive microactivities originating from both partners). Unexpectedly, in quantitative regard, code frequencies of all four microactivities were significantly higher in this minimalistic setting compared to other social cognition studies with more natural settings. And their distribution across the action phases (intention, action execution, evaluation) yielded a significant pattern that can be explained by differentiating physical and mental actions as stronger and weaker forms of embodiment, supporting a dynamically embodied concept of social interaction.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"407-431"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13156100/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145582633","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2026-01-14DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01326-0
Neophytos Georgiou, Paul Delfabbro, Ryan P Balzan, Nathan Caruana, Robyn Young
{"title":"The hyper-systemizing hypothesis: how the tendency to systemize influences conspiracy beliefs and belief inflexibility in clinical and general populations.","authors":"Neophytos Georgiou, Paul Delfabbro, Ryan P Balzan, Nathan Caruana, Robyn Young","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01326-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01326-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Endorsing conspiracy beliefs may relate to fixated interests and less flexible thinking—patterns often observed in individuals with higher autistic traits and autism spectrum disorder. This study examines whether systemizing tendencies, measured by the Systemizing Quotient, contribute to conspiracy belief formation. Study 1, in a general population sample, identified two latent profiles with high autistic traits: one with strong systemizing, better scientific reasoning, and greater conspiracy endorsement; another with lower systemizing, weaker scientific reasoning, but similarly high conspiracy beliefs. These contrasting profiles suggest different cognitive pathways to conspiracy beliefs. Study 2, in an autistic sample, found that systemizing moderated the relationship between autistic traits and conspiracy beliefs, with an interaction between belief inflexibility and systemizing. Overall, these findings suggest systemizing shapes distinct cognitive profiles in individuals with high autistic traits, influencing scientific reasoning and conspiracy endorsement. Systemizing emerged as a key predictor, supporting the hyper-systemizing hypothesis as a distinct pathway to conspiracy beliefs.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"433-445"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13156087/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145967364","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive ProcessingPub Date : 2026-05-01Epub Date: 2025-11-25DOI: 10.1007/s10339-025-01320-6
Yasaman Razavian, Motahareh Gholami Hosnaroudi
{"title":"Investigating the mediating role of executive function in the relationship between sleep disturbance and mind wandering.","authors":"Yasaman Razavian, Motahareh Gholami Hosnaroudi","doi":"10.1007/s10339-025-01320-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10339-025-01320-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Mind wandering can interfere with cognitive functions like working memory and reading comprehension. Research shows that mind wandering can lead to perseverative cognition, which can have negative effects on mental health. Previous findings have suggested that sleep disturbance may lead to mind wandering. The present study further investigated the relationship between sleep disturbance and mind wandering, with the mediating role of executive functions (self-organization/problem-solving, self-restraint/inhibition), using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale, and Mind Wandering Questionnaire (n = 227). The results of Structural Equation Modelling indicated that the total effect (p = 0.001) and direct effect (p = 0.006) of sleep disturbance and mind wandering were significant, but the indirect effect (p = 0.536) was not significant; therefore, executive function did not mediate the relationship between sleep disturbance and mind wandering. This finding highlights the importance of addressing sleep disturbance in efforts to reduce maladaptive mind wandering.</p>","PeriodicalId":47638,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Processing","volume":" ","pages":"343-350"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145606875","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}