A note on the computation of biserialr in item validation

A method of computing biserial coefficients of correlation through the use of punch card tabulating equipment is presented. Each item is assigned a separate column and successes are punched 1. By arranging the cards on the criterion variable and obtaining progressive sums on several columns simultaneously, it is possible to obtain data for several correlations in one run of the cards through the machine.     

A prepunched master deck for the computation of square roots on IBM electrical accounting equipment

This paper presents a prepunched deck of cards to enable the extraction of square roots on standard punch card tabulating equipment. Such a deck is valuable in constructing mathematical tables which involve square roots or in obtaining standard deviations in connection with computing correlation coefficients. By using a deck of reciprocals in conjunction with the deck for square roots, correlations may be solved completely on IBM equipment.The author wishes to acknowledge the help given on machine procedures by Wallace M. Taylor, 1st Lt. A.C., Wright Field, Ohio.     

The rolling totals method of computing sums,sums of squares,and sums of cross-products

The rolling totals method of computing sums, sums of squares, and sums of cross-products appears to have several advantages over usual methods, in that it saves time and requires less equipment. Only an IBM sorter and a tabulator equipped with Card Cycle Total Transfer Device are used. The method provides an immediate independent visual check on the accuracy of the sums of cross-products of each successive variable as it is run. Since controlling is done by sorting, the necessity for re-wiring after each run on the tabulator is eliminated. The wiring, illustrated by a diagram, is simple and straightforward.ABITIBI POWER AND PAPER COMPANY     

Scoring weighted multiple keyed tests on the IBM counting sorter

Tests or personal inventories with differential item response weights may be scored by means of punch card equipment. Detailed instructions are given for preparing the cards and scoring the forms. The scoring speed is approximately four to eight times that attained by manual scoring.The author is indebted to H. M. Cox, University of Nebraska, for certain suggestions on the columnar coding and the method of checking herein presented.     

Computer production of punched paper tapes for controlling experiments

Controlling experiments with paper-tape readers often requires the production of complex paper tapes. A program was written to allow automatic production and checking of complex punched paper tapes using a small computer. The user first defines the punches or punch sets to be used. He then specifies, for each successive block of tape to be punched, the number of punch sets of each type to occur and whether those punch sets should be copied in order or automatically randomized. The specified tape is then produced using a two-pass procedure, after which the tape may be automatically checked for punching errors if desired. The program has facilities for retention or modification of user commands from previous runs, simplifying the production of a large number of tapes with similar characteristics.     

Statistical programs utilizing dynamic allocation of memory on the CDC 6400

Statistical routines written for general use often require large data storage arrays. A program using three n x n arrays, for instance, would require 30,000 words of memory for 100 variables. Usually the number of variables in any analysis is less than the maximum number of variables dimensioned in the program. This generally results in a number of unused data storage locations and a waste of computer resources. It would be advantageous to allocate storage for data arrays at execution time rather than at compile time, thereby minimizing storage requirements and turn around time for each program run. A series of multivariate analysis programs described by Cooley and Lohnes (1971) have been rewritten incorporating a subroutine, CORE, which dynamically allocates memory in blank common during execution according to parameters specified on the first cards preceding the data deck. In multiple problem runs, CORE is capable of either reducing or increasing field length, depending upon the number of variables included in the analysis. As an example, the CORREL program in the Cooley and Lohnes package requires a field length of 43000, words to execute on the CDC 6400 under SCOPE 3.3 without the CORE routine. As few as 16000, words are needed with the CORE routine.     

A semiautomatic system for preparing computer data cards

A system is described which eliminates manual coding and punching of computer data cards in a psychophysical experiment. Conventional relay logic is used to control the operation of a card punch and to enter data in selected card columns.     

Gender bias on the Thematic Apperception Test

Thirty male and 30 female college students generated stories to a set of nine Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) cards with either male or female stimulus characters. The Fine scoring system was factor analyzed to produce seven factor clusters plus three outcome variables. Multiple analysis of variance (MANOVA) revealed a main effect for type of card. The female TAT cards elicited significantly more responses on the General Concerns scale than did the male TAT cards. A main effect for subject gender showed the females gave more responses than males on the Interpersonal Relations scale. No differences were found on the outcome variables.     

Gender Bias on the Thematic Apperception Test

Thirty male and 30 female college students generated stories to a set of nine Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) cards with either male or female stimulus characters. The Fine scoring system was factor analyzed to produce seven factor clusters plus three outcome variables. Multiple analysis of variance (MANOVA) revealed a main effect for type of card. The female TAT cards elicited significantly more responses on the General Concerns scale than did the male TAT cards. A main effect for subject gender showed the females gave more responses than males on the Interpersonal Relations scale. No differences were found on the outcome variables.     

An efficient punched-card method of computing epsilonX,epsilonX2, epsilonXY,and higher moments

A method of computing X, X ², XY and higher moments on IBM equipment is described. The basic method is that of successively summary punching, collating a variable number of blank cards behind these summary cards, gang-punching the data from the summary cards into the blank cards, and totalling the entries on these summary cards. The method appears to have several advantages over those previously described, especially if coded data are used.     

Probability estimation in poker: A qualified success for unaided judgment

Poker players make strategic decisions on the basis of imperfect information, which are informed by their assessment of the probability they will hold the best set of cards among all players at the conclusion of the hand. Exact mental calculations of this probability are impossible—therefore, players must use judgment to estimate their chances. In three studies, 69 moderately experienced poker players estimated the probability of obtaining the best cards among all players, based on the limited information that is known in the early stages of a hand. Although several of the conditions typically associated with well‐calibrated judgment did not apply, players' judgments were generally accurate. The correlation between judged and true probabilities was r > .8 for over five‐sixths of the participants, and when judgments were averaged across players and within hands this correlation was .96. Players slightly overestimated their chance of obtaining the best cards, mainly where this probability was low to moderate (<.7). Probability estimates were slightly too strongly related to the strength of the two cards that a player holds (known only to themselves), and insufficiently influenced by the number of opponents. Seemingly, players show somewhat insufficient regard for the cards that other players could be holding and the potential for opponents to acquire a strong hand. The results show that even when judgment heuristics are used to good effect in a complex probability estimation task, predictable errors can still be observed at the margins of performance. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigating the illusion of control in mildly depressed and nondepressed individuals during video-poker play

Cognitive fallacies, such as the illusion of control, and psychological disorders, such as depression, may perpetuate gambling and thus contribute to problem gambling (e.g., R. Ladouceur, C. Sylvan, C. Boutin, & C. Doucet, 2002). Gender differences may exist across these variables (e.g., N. M. Petry, 2005). The authors investigated these possibilities by recruiting mildly depressed and nondepressed individuals to play jacks or better, 5-card draw, video poker. Across three poker sessions, participants were given (a) no choice of which cards to play, (b) information on the best cards to play but control over which cards were played, or (c) no information and complete control over which cards were played. The total amount of money gambled increased as control over the game decreased, but this result correlated with an increase in the rate of play. Depressed and nondepressed participants did not differ in how they gambled, but men gambled significantly more and sometimes made more mistakes during play than did women. These results question the role of the illusion of control and depression in perpetuating gambling. They also suggest that providing players information about which cards to play may indirectly promote gambling and provide insight as to why men are more prone to suffer from gambling problems than are women.     

Brief Report: Some Possible Uses Of Factor Analysis In Multivariate Studies

Factor analysis is used in item selection in the hopes of producing a small number of factors each of which will represent a unidimensional sub- scale. If item analysis has been successful in producing truly independent subscales, it might be hoped that the number of factors would equal the number of subscales and that each factor would be highly defined by a single subscale. Factor analysis when used in studies of organization, is not assumed to produce factors that represent unidimensional scales. Rather, factor analysis is used to reveal various substructures that exist within an organization. If several variables are loaded on a single factor, the variables can be regarded as nodes of interaction between measured dimensions of organization.     

An I.B.M. technique for the computation of ΣX 2 and ΣXY

Given I.B.M. cards punched with scores (or any numbers)—but not their squares—a method is presented of tabulating them (on the No. 405 alphameric I.B.M. tabulator) so as to obtain the sum of squares. The technique is also adaptable to summation of cross-products. The principle is an extension of the Mendenhall-Warren-Hollerith technique of vertical progressive digiting, without the necessity of manual addition or summary-punching, and is designed for machines not equipped with the card cycle total transfer device or progressive total device. Use is made of counter rolling. Efficient use of machine capacity is made only when intercorrelations between no more than two variables are requiredin addition to sums of squares. A resumé of some techniques now commonly employed is included.The author is indebted to Dr. Paul Dwyer, Associate Professor of Mathematics, University of Michigan, for valuable criticism of the original draft; and to Mr. Alan Meacham, in charge of the University's Tabulating Station, for testing the method.     

The influence of problem features and individual differences on strategic performance in simple arithmetic

The present study examined the influence of features differing across problems (problem size and operation) and across individuals (gender, amount of daily arithmetic practice, calculator use, and arithmetic skill) on simple arithmetic performance. Regression analyses were used to investigate the role of these variables in both strategy selection and strategy efficiency. Results show that more skilled and highly practiced students used memory retrieval more often and executed their strategies more efficiently than did less skilled and practiced students. Furthermore, calculator use correlated with both retrieval and procedural strategy efficiency but not with strategy selection. Only very small associations with gender were observed, with boys retrieving slightly faster than girls. Implications of the present findings for models of mental arithmetic are discussed.     

Teaching young children how to use a computer-based Teletype as a “desk calculator”

The first stage in the research reported here was to teach students the mechanics of how to use a computer-based Teletype as a “desk calculator” in the solution of arithmetic problems. In the second stage, we examined a specific use for the desk-calculator program: we presented a series of word problems to the students and analyzed the solutions of these problems to determine the variables related to problem difficulty.     

A new iterative method for correcting erroneous communality estimates in factor analysis

A new method for correcting erroneous communality estimates is applicable to any completed orthogonal factor solution. It seeks, by direct correction of factor loadings, to make the residuals conform to the chance error criteria of zero mean and zero skewness for each row separately. Two numerical examples, with one and two factors, respectively, are presented. The method can be used as a short cut for Dwyer's extension in adding variables to a matrix. It can also be used as a short cut in cross-validation factor studies. Successful use on problems with many variables and numerous factors is claimed. Factors can be made oblique,after correction, if desired.     

Repetition priming during the use and recall of numerical keypads

In two experiments, we investigated how repetition priming--a type of implicit memory--may be used to improve recall of the layout of digits on push-button telephones and calculators--an explicit memory task. In Experiment 1, participants were able to use repetition priming by pretending to dial a well-known telephone number in order to recall the telephone layout of digits, improving encoding of the number and preparation of the corresponding motor program. In contrast, no facilitative effect of known numbers on encoding and preparation was found for the calculator layout. Experiment 2 showed that the priming advantage of the telephone layout is not due to a general inadequacy of the calculator layout: Experimentally induced semantic repetition priming and motor repetition priming were observed for both the telephone layout and the calculator layout.     

Programmable calculator as timer,storer, and decision maker in psychology experiments

This paper describes how a portable programmable calculator can be used to time behavior, to store time values from successive trials, and to perform criterial calculations on a trial-by-trial basis. A specific application for visual habituation studies in infants is described and an exemplary program, currently in use, is listed.     

The strategic nature of changing your mind

In two experiments, we studied how people’s strategy choices emerge through an initial and then a more considered evaluation of available strategies. The experiments employed a computer-based paradigm where participants solved multiplication problems using mental and calculator solutions. In addition to recording responses and solution times, we gathered data on mouse cursor movements. Participants’ motor behavior was revealing; although people rapidly initiated movement to the calculator box or the answer input box, they frequently changed their minds and went to the other box. Movement initiation direction depended on problem difficulty and calculator responsiveness. Ultimate strategy selection also depended on these factors, but was further influenced by movement initiation direction. We conclude that strategy selection is iterative, as revealed by these differences between early cursor movement and eventual strategy implementation. After rapidly initiating movement favoring one strategy, people carefully evaluate the applicability of that strategy in the current context.