Re-parameterized regression models may enable tests of crucial theoretical predictions involving interactive effects of predictors that cannot be tested directly using standard approaches. First, we present a re-parameterized regression model for the linear X linear interaction of two quantitative predictors that yields point and interval estimates of one key parameter – the cross-over point of predicted values – and leaves certain other parameters unchanged. We explain how resulting parameter estimates provide direct evidence for distinguishing ordinal from disordinal interactions. We generalize the re-parameterized model to linear X qualitative interactions, where the qualitative variable may have two or three categories, and then describe how to modify the re-parameterized model to test moderating effects. To illustrate our new approach, we fit alternate models to social skills data on 438 participants in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care. The re-parameterized regression model had point and interval estimates of the cross-over point that fell near the mean on the continuous environment measure. The disordinal form of the interaction supported one theoretical model – differential susceptibility – over a competing model that predicted an ordinal interaction.

A host of theoretical frameworks suggest associations of physiological signals between two individuals within a romantic relationship. However, few studies have provided empirical evidence of such associations using physiological reactivity from both partners in the dyad. In this study we use measures of respiration and heart rate from romantic partners recorded across three laboratory tasks. We examine the interrelations of each measure between both dyad members using coupled linear oscillators (Boker & Nesselroade, 2002). These models were used to capture oscillations in respiration and heart rate, and to examine interdependence in the physiological signals between both partners. Results show that associations were detectable within all three tasks, with different patterns of coupling within each task. Discussion centers on ways to investigate the synchrony of physiological responses across within relationships, including the promises of and obstacles for doing so.

Questions surrounding physiological interdependence in romantic relationships are gaining increased attention in the research literature. One specific form of interdependence, coregulation, can be defined as the bidirectional linkage of oscillating signals within optimal bounds. Conceptual and theoretical work suggests that physiological coregulation should be instantiated in romantic couples. Although these ideas are appealing, the central tenets of most coregulatory models await empirical evaluation. In the current study, we evaluate the covariation of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) in 32 romantic couples during a series of laboratory tasks using a cross-lagged panel model. During the tasks, men's and women's RSA were associated with their partners' previous RSA responses, and this pattern was stronger for those couples with higher relationship satisfaction. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for attachment theory, as well as the association between relationships and health.

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Theories of attention commonly refer to the "attentional template" as the collection of features in working memory that represent the target of visual search. Many models of attention assume that the template contains a veridical representation of target features, but recent studies have shown that the target representation is "shifted" away from distractor features in order to optimize their distinctiveness and facilitate visual search. Here, we manipulated the probability of target-similar distractors during a visual search task in 2 groups, and separately measured the contents of the attentional template. We hypothesized that having a high probability of target-similar distractors would increase pressure to shift and/or sharpen the target representation in order to increase the distinctiveness of targets from distractors. We found that the high-similarity group experienced less distractor interference during visual search, but only for highly target-similar distractors. Additionally, while both groups shifted the target representation away from the actual target color, the high-similarity group also had a sharper representation of the target color. We conclude that the contents of the attentional template in working memory can be flexibly adjusted with multiple mechanisms to increase target-to-distractor distinctiveness and optimize attentional selection. (PsycINFO Database Record