A computerized simulation for investigating gambling behavior during roulette play.

The present paper describes a computerized roulette program for the conducting of psychological research on gambling behavior. The program was designed to simulate an actual roulette game found in casinos and gambling riverboats throughout North America. The roulette program collects detailed trial-by-trial data on player/participant behavior that can easily be transferred into data analysis and graphics programs. This multimedia simulation was designed in the Visual Basic programming language, and it is capable of running on any IBM-compatible personal computer running the Windows 2000 or higher operating system.     

A computerized simulation for investigating gambling behavior during roulette play

The present paper describes a computerized roulette program for the conducting of psychological research on gambling behavior. The program was designed to simulate an actual roulette game found in casinos and gambling riverboats throughout North America. The roulette program collects detailed trial-by-trial data on player/participant behavior that can easily be transferred into data analysis and graphics programs. This multimedia simulation was designed in the Visual Basic programming language, and it is capable of running on any IBM-compatible personal computer running the Windows 2000 or higher operating system.     

A computerized slot machine simulation to investigate the variables involved in gambling behavior

The present paper describes a computerized slot machine simulation designed to examine many of the potential variables involved in gambling behavior. This program was created in Visual Basic Version 6.0 and is designed to run on any Windows 95 or higher equipped computer. The program allows for experimenter manipulation of probabilities of payoffs, visual display of potential winning symbols, exact sequences of wins and losses, as well as pose run time questions to the subject on prespecified trials. The program records data on a trial-bytrial basis to a text file for easy importation into many data analysis and statistical programs. Conceptual and experimental questions that may be addressed with the described program are also discussed.     

WINDSORT: A fully automated technique for collecting sort data for multidimensional scaling analysis

WINDSORT is a microcomputer program that uses an automated sorting procedure to collect the preprocess proximity data commonly analyzed using multidimensional scaling. The traditional manual sorting task is less tedious, more enjoyable, and far easier for subjects to perform than the tasks that are used in alternative data-collection techniques. However, complete automation of the sorting task has not previously been fully successful WINDSORT uses a form of the hierarchical sorting technique which is reputed to yield richer data than single-sort techniques A maximum of 45 stimuli can be scaled using WINDSORT. Resulting output includes dissimilarity matrices which are ready to analyze using MDS.     

INFOBITS: A Visual Basic program for calculating information theoretic statistics from behavior sequences

We describe a Visual Basic add-in macro program for Microsoft Excel 5 and 7 (and later versions) that calculates basic, first-order, information theoretic statistics from matrices based on behavior sequences, such as those from animal or human interaction studies. Information theoretic statistics measure association between behavioral events in bits, a unit that is independent of the particular system under study. A sample size bias correction of the value for the mean information transmission (Ht) is included in the program. A normalization of Ht reports the efficiency of information transmission relative to the amount of information in the system. The program incorporates an iterative pseudo-random resampling algorithm that reports a confidence level (P) for Ht. Mean information transmission is partialized, to determine the relative contribution of each behavior category to Ht. An algorithm for calculating confidence intervals allows comparison among different matrices. The program runs in a common spreadsheet, and is therefore useful to researchers or students who only have access to desktop or laptop microcomputers.     

Software for recording observational files

We offer the new software Codex, written in Visual Basic 3.0. It is a tool adequate in observational methodology. Its fundamental objective is to record motor and verbal behavior using the data types proposed by Bakeman and Quera (1995, 1996), together with the field formats proposed by Hall (1963), Weick (1968), Hutt and Hutt (1974), and Anguera (1979). It is designed to allow for data interchange between specific programs in use in observational methodology (SDIS-GSEQ, The Observer, and Theme) and other general programs (spread sheets, statistics applications, word processing programs, sound cards, etc.).     

Computerized procedure for analyzing hand kinematics with a peg-moving task (Sarah-Pegworks)

This article describes Sarah-Pegworks, a computerized procedure for analyzing hand kinematics based on the peg-moving task. The procedure, developed in Visual Basic 6 programming language, includes (1) processing raw data from an infrared motion-tracking system, (2) identifying movement components, and (3) analyzing and presenting hand kinematic information in numerical and graphic outputs. Fifty-five normal adults set the parameters relative to filtering and movement identification. A case was presented to illustrate the clinical value of this procedure.     

The value of believing in free will: encouraging a belief in determinism increases cheating

Does moral behavior draw on a belief in free will? Two experiments examined whether inducing participants to believe that human behavior is predetermined would encourage cheating. In Experiment 1, participants read either text that encouraged a belief in determinism (i.e., that portrayed behavior as the consequence of environmental and genetic factors) or neutral text. Exposure to the deterministic message increased cheating on a task in which participants could passively allow a flawed computer program to reveal answers to mathematical problems that they had been instructed to solve themselves. Moreover, increased cheating behavior was mediated by decreased belief in free will. In Experiment 2, participants who read deterministic statements cheated by overpaying themselves for performance on a cognitive task; participants who read statements endorsing free will did not. These findings suggest that the debate over free will has societal, as well as scientific and theoretical, implications.     

Clinical and experimental utility of refundable deposits

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a refund system on court-referred clients' adherence to the attendance and data-collection requirements of a program contract. Male and female clients admitted to a group treatment program for driving under the influence of alcohol were or were not required to place a $50 refundable deposit at the beginning of treatment. The results showed that subjects in the refundable deposit groups had fewer unexcused absences and were more efficient in returning data-collection forms, suggesting that deposits have considerable utility in a clinical/research setting.     

A COMPARISON OF INDIRECT MEASURES FOR LONG-DURATION BEHAVIORS1

A computer program was developed to simulate long-duration behavior. The program generated data by using two time-series models linked together by a covariance parameter. By varying the parameters of the program, the characteristics of the simulated behavior were altered, including the mean and variance of the durations of behavior, the mean and variance of the interresponse time, and the degree of relationship within and between durations of behavior and interresponse times. Four data-collection methods were applied to the simulated data: whole interval, partial interval, momentary time-sampling, and continuous measures. The accuracies of the first three recording measures were judged by comparing them to the continuous measure. The results indicated that only the momentary time-sampling approach yielded unbiased results. The degree of bias for the whole and partial interval measures was a function of the ratio of the interval recording length to the sum of the mean duration of behavior and the mean interresponse time. Unfortunately, it was concluded that researchers cannot estimate the magnitudes of these latter two parameters for most behaviors of interest and, consequently, are unable to choose an appropriate interval length. Therefore, it was recommended that the use of interval recording approaches be greatly restricted and that momentary time-sampling be substituted where possible.     

STIVID: A VBSCRIPT-based program for adding visual and auditory stimuli on videotapes

Some psychological experiments require placement of visual and auditory stimuli on predefined frames in a videotape. We introduce STIVID (STImuli on VIDeo) as a method of performing this task. STIVID can add images, words, simple shapes, and audio tones to specific frames of existing video files created in AVI format. STIVID is written in Visual Basic and uses VBScripts to modify the AVI files. Three applications of this program are discussed: adding stimuli for reaction time experiments with couples watching a relational conflict, use of distractors in ADHD experiments, and placing eye masks on actors in existing videotapes to manipulate perceptibility of the target’s facial expression during the mind-reading process.     

An evaluation of response allocations to concurrently available slot machine simulations

Gambling behavior often involves making choices between concurrently available game options. With regard to slot machine gambling, multiple games allow for choices to be made with respect to which game to play. The authors of the present study used a slot machine simulation created in Visual Basic. NET to examine gambling preference. The specific question addressed was whether gamblers prefer a smaller payout more often (averaging around every 10 spins) over a larger payout less often (averaging around every 50 spins). Two types of reinforcement were examined during the study: frequency of payouts and the amount of credits won. The results indicate that participants had a preference for a slot machine with the more frequent payout as opposed to one with more intermittent payout. These results support existing literature on theories of choice and provide a step toward understanding human gambling behavior.     

Computer generation of bivariate normal-curve values

As psychological assessment broadens and becomes increasingly based on multiple sources of data, univariate normal-curve tables become less and less useful in determining the prevalence and severity of clinical disorders. Multivariate normal-curve data are required. The Visual Basic based Bivariate Agreement Program allows users to obtain percentages of the bivariate normal distribution at various correlations and univariatez-score values. This computer program simulates a bivariate distribution of up to 75,000 cases, and reports the percentage of cases above, below, and outside thez-scores. Program function and simulation integrity are discussed, and an application illustrates program use.     

A program for assessing body image disturbance using adjustable partial image distortion

Body image disturbance has been one of the most widely studied areas in the literature on eating disorders. Some of the tasks designed to assess it have been used to estimate the sizes of specific parts of the body, whereas others have served to make estimations of overall body size. In recent years, the introduction of innovative computing procedures has allowed the two approaches to be combined and has made their application more straightforward. The program we describe here (Body Image Assessment Software, or BIAS) evaluates body image distortions and body dissatisfaction via the on-screen presentation of a scale image, the different components of which can be modified by the patient. The program was developed using Microsoft Access 2000 and Visual Basic for applications. It can be run on any computer with Windows and Microsoft Access 2000 or Microsoft Access 2000 RunTime, which makes it particularly easy to use and enables direct analysis of the recorded data through the use of applications such as SPSS.     

An application of interactive voice response (ivr) technology to longitudinal studies of daily behavior

A relatively new technology-an interactive voice response (IVR) system-was used to collect selfreport data from 51 male subjects (21–56 years old) concerning daily tobacco and alcohol consumption over a 112-day period. After resolution of initial technical problems, the Touch-Tone data-entry methodology of the IVR was shown to provide notable advantages over traditional longitudinal self-report methodologies. The high compliance rate (93%) for this study was attributed to (1) implementation of important study design characteristics; (2) an innovative compensation scheme that reinforced consistent daily reporting and incorporated feedback to the subjects on a daily basis; (3) a simple, unobtrusive Touch-Tone data-entry interface with the interview and data-collection system that provided subjects with flexibility and time efficiency; and (4) direct coupling of the automated data-collection system and a relational database-management structure, providing immediate access and analysis of collected data.     

VTLOGANL: Coding and analyzing videotaped data

Researchers using videotape as a primary means of data collection need flexible yet easy-to-use procedures and equipment for the time-consuming task of coding and analysis. The VTLOGANL program (for VideoTape LOGging ANaLysis) slaves a video deck to the computer system, allowing the researcher to code, in real time, video-recorded events of either a pulsed or duration nature. VTLOGANL’s innovative database design frees the researcher to define up to 9,999 different codewords for each project, organizing any combination of up to 30 of those codewords for each elapsed second of logging time. Reporting features, including data export and import, allow the researcher to examine quickly questions of codeword frequency, event duration, sequencing, and overlap, according to the requirements of the research design.     

A Computational Model of the Simplest Motor Program

A computational procedure (program) is defined to generate control signals for the motoneuron pools of agonist and antagonist muscles that will move a limb segment from one stationary position to another. The program accounts for the ability to move different distances with different inertial loads and for the influence of instructions concerning movement speed and accuracy. These motor commands allow the program to produce EMG patterns as well as force and kinematic trajectories that are consistent with much of the data found in the literature of these movements. The program is premised on the notion that kinematically defined tasks are accomplished by programming commands to the motoneuron pools, based on only a few cognitively recognized kinematic and dynamic features of the task. Most of the features found in EMG and kinematic patterns can be considered consequences of the program's algorithmic procedures rather than specifically planned features of those movements.     

Empirical distributions of correlations as a tool for scale reduction

A Visual Basic program for generating a distribution of correlations as a tool for scale reduction is presented; the program is available free from the author and runs on IBM-compatible personal computers under the Windows 95/98/NT operating systems. The program generates a list of item combinations and correlations between the unit weighted sum of the items and a criterion score. The list can be used to locate item combinations that have high correlations with the original full-length test. An example application is presented to illustrate the use of the program. The compiled program and its source code can be downloaded from http://personal.bgsu.edu/~stanton/r_crunch/r_crunch.zip.