I thank you all who responded and shared your knowledge, views, class exercise, etc., on reflexes. After speaking to a couple of speech pathologists who admitted not having expertise with dementia groups, my sense is that they interpret Schwarz' use of reflex in the same way that Ken had described. As such, it seems that in the presence of the right cues, even when the swallow/gag reflex is normally 'lost', there can remain some conscious ability to swallow food that can be triggered with enough coaxing. That said, this explanation is not entirely satisfying to me, so if I find out more about this issue I will post it here.
Miguel, hoping none of you were in the path of Michael. ________________________________________ From: Joan Warmbold Boggs [jwarm...@oakton.edu] Sent: Sunday, October 7, 2018 5:45 PM To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) Subject: Re: [tips] A question and a comment I define a reflex as an inborn response to certain stimuli--and then immediately give examples of such. I then explain that these "inborn response-stimulus associations" all serve some type of survival mechanism so became wired into our nervous system. Only after 35 years of teaching have I begun to describe classical conditioning as the "acquisition of a new stimulus--response association." This is the most accurate definition as clearly a new reflex has not been learned but, instead, an inborn reflex has been conditioned to be elicited by a new stimulus event. I developed a new class exercise to accommodate this new definition and attached a copy for those who might be interested. If it doesn't come through, feel free to ask for a copy--and feedback always welcomed. Joan On 2018-10-07 2:39 pm, Miguel Roig wrote: Ken, I admit to have always (and I mean always) understood and explained reflexes using Hall's definition and I usually cover the topic in the chapters of development and also in the chapter of learning/conditioning, especially with respect to distinguishing reflexes from fixed action patterns. I suppose that such a simplistic definition may be, arguably, acceptable and even desirable in an introductory textbook but perhaps not for a more advanced learning course (I have not taught the latter in decades!). If, as you point out, this confusion still exists in the textbook literature, especially in learning texts, and no one has clarified it in recent years, I would think that an essay on the subject targeted to, say, Teaching of Psychology (ToP) would be welcomed and might even lead to desired changes in how authors address this important concept. Then, again, as the cases of Kitty Genovese and of Little Albert have shown over the years, some textbook authors don't seem to read ToP or similarly relevant literature! And I have now reached my quota of posts for today. Sigh ... Miguel ________________________________________ From: Kenneth Steele [steel...@appstate.edu<mailto:steel...@appstate.edu>] Sent: Sunday, October 7, 2018 1:04 PM To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) Subject: Re: [tips] A question and a comment Hi Miguel: But here are some of the conundrums that you encounter with following the Marshall Hall pathway. If a reflex is a simple, unlearned response to a stimulus then why do we talk about conditioned reflexes as learned responses to a stimulus? Is a reflex unlearned or learned? This position leads to the proposition that there are two kinds of reflexes: learned and unlearned. Which leads to several questions. Isn't a learned reflex an oxymoron? How do you discriminate between the two type of reflexes? How do you know that your unlearned reflex isn't really a learned reflex, since you can't see the history of its development? (This issue was a favorite of the American Functionalists - the TC Schneirla crowd.) I see learning textbooks (and students) trap themselves in contradictory statements, leaving everybody confused. I can point to specific paragraphs in learning textbooks which define a reflex as unlearned and then in the next sentence define a conditioned reflex as learned. It is no wonder that students find classical conditioning as a confusing topic. You are correct that Hall's definition is the most popular. I send grad students on a hunt through their subfields to find the most common definition of a reflex and the Hall definition is the most popular, although Marshall Hall is almost unknown as a name in psychology. I am not saying that Skinner's solution is the best but that textbooks have left students (and a bunch of faculty) feeling very confused. I am glad that you were able to find the article. Google can be so helpful at times. Best regards, Ken On Oct 7, 2018, at 12:33 PM, Miguel Roig <ro...@stjohns.edu<mailto:ro...@stjohns.edu>> wrote: But, I like Hall's definition! And it is the definition for reflex that most introductory, and even some advanced textbooks, provide: A simple unlearned response to a stimulus. >From the description provided by Schwarz, it seems as if he is using a >'looser' definition a la Skinner. But, yes, if you've already lost the ability >to swallow ... WTH ... The quote is confusing!!! And thanks for the reference! Found it online via a simple Google search. ;-) Miguel ________________________________________ From: Kenneth Steele [steel...@appstate.edu<mailto:steel...@appstate.edu>] Sent: Sunday, October 7, 2018 10:20 AM To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) Subject: Re: [tips] A question and a comment Hi Miguel: Few people understand that one reason that people have so much difficulty with the term 'reflex' is that there are several definitions of the term in use. Most people seem to be using Marshall Hall's definition (unconscious, unlearned, involuntary behavior). I recommend Skinner (1931) 'The concept of the reflex in the description of behavior' J. Gen. Psych., 5, 427-458, to help unravel some of these uses. Read his summary for the Cliff Notes version of the history. (There are other histories, too.) Back to your original question, the quote makes no sense. If someone has a dysfunctional swallowing reflex then putting food into that person's mouth is the worst thing you can do. The likely outcome is that the person will aspirate the food or liquid and choke. Ken --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kenneth M. Steele, Ph.D. steel...@appstate.edu<mailto:steel...@appstate.edu><mailto:steel...@appstate.edu<mailto:steel...@appstate.edu>> Professor Department of Psychology http://www.psych.appstate.edu Appalachian State University Boone, NC 28608 USA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On Oct 7, 2018, at 9:39 AM, Miguel Roig <ro...@stjohns.edu<mailto:ro...@stjohns.edu><mailto:ro...@stjohns.edu<mailto:ro...@stjohns.edu>>> wrote: Good morning, here is question for your: I was reading this article on the lack of coverage of dementia situations in advance directives, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/30/well/live/an-advance-directive-for-patients-with-dementia.html (an interesting read in its own right) when I came upon the following quote: "People should at least understand what the normal process of advanced dementia is about," Dr. Schwarz said. "Feeding tubes are not the issue — they're not done when dementia is terminal. Instead, a caregiver will stand patiently at the bedside and spoon food into your mouth as long as you open it. Opening your mouth when a spoon approaches is a primitive reflex that persists long after you've lost the ability to swallow and know what to do with what's put in your mouth." My question: Is Schwarz referring to the rooting reflex? If so, isn't touching the cheek necessary for the reflex to be triggered and, if that is the case then, isn't what he is describing a learned behavior, even if its strength lies in it being grounded on an earlier reflex or something to that effect? I would appreciate any clarification on this. And now a comment or, really, a heads-up that is unrelated to the above question and perhaps not even real news to most of us: It concerns an article and a documentary about the high price of academic publishing. The article by Richard Smith, former editor of the BMJ is freely available from the latest issue of the Lancet, though you need to register to get it, https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)32353-5/fulltext. The article is based, in part on the documentary "Paywall". The video is over an hour long, but just the first 10 minutes will likely outrage even those who are already aware of the current state of academic publishing. You can check it out for free at: https://paywallthemovie.com/. Miguel This email may contain proprietary, confidential and/or privileged material for the sole use of the intended recipient(s). Any review, use, distribution or disclosure by others is strictly prohibited. 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