Using the PET microcomputer

This paper describes advantages and disadvantages of the PET microcomputer for use by behavioral scientists. User groups and second-source hardware-software vendors are noted. It is emphasized that the large production volume of the PET is apt to lead to a proliferation of second-source add ons at modest prices.     

Inexpensive microcomputer networking for laboratory research

Described is a low-cost laboratory network that has allowed us to conduct “on-line” animal research for the past 2 years. A Commodore Model 4032 microcomputer is used to download machine language programs to a network of SYM-1 single-board computers, which in turn each drive several operant stations. Data collected by the SYM-1s are then uploaded to the CBM 4032 after the session, and are then processed and stored on disk.     

Using a microcomputer for on-line psychiatric assessment

The on-line computer-assisted psychiatric system has been shown to be effective in bringing about an improvement in mental health service delivery. However, it was initially developed on a computer system that was too costly for most potential users. The present paper describes the approach used to implement the on-line assessment system on an inexpensive microcomputer, the PDP-11 V03.     

Accurate reaction time research with the TRS-80 microcomputer

Procedures for reaction time research with 1-msec accuracy are described using the video display of the TRS-80 microcomputer. The LVB Corporation interface is also employed. Use of the cassette recorder as a voice key in this research is illustrated. A sample assembly language program is presented.     

Using the microcomputer as a visual aid in the statistics classroom

A microcomputer running a spreadsheet program makes an excellent visual aid for demonstrating statistical concepts and procedures. Some advantages of this setup over traditional visual aids are described. Several statistical demonstrations that I have found to work well are presented.     

Using an Apple II microcomputer for real-time control in a behavioral laboratory

This report describes the hardware and software developed to implement an Apple II (48 KB) as a real-time control device for operant experiments. The hardware has a straightforward design, so that it is readily understandable and can be built by individuals with only minimal experience in the use of integrated circuits and other electronic components. The software routines listed below represent an approach to controlling and handling the data generated by an operant experiment. Using these routines, we are able to record each response and experimental event, the time of the occurrence, and the conditions at that time.     

Using the PET microcomputer for collecting and analyzing observational data in the classroom

This report concerns the use of the PET 2001–8 microcomputer (Commodore) for taking observational data on human interactions in a classroom setting. The program enables the observer to record several different types of behavior as they occur in time and provides for calculations of frequency, duration, and latency data for the behaviors observed, using the real-time clock built into the PET. During field testing in a classroom, an observer can accurately record sequential teacher-student interactions. Because of the integration of processor, TV monitor, keyboard, and cassette deck, the PET is very portable, which increases it flexibility for observing behaviors in naturalistic settings.     

Using human inquiry groups in counselling research

The nature of human inquiry groups and their use in counselling research are explored. A key feature of such a group is that the details of what is researched and how it is researched are decided by the group rather than by the researcher alone. Human inquiry groups proceed through a process of cycling. The first stage involves group members gathering together to agree on the nature and the methodology of the research and on the action to be taken. The next two stages involve taking the agreed action and fully experiencing it. Finally, group members reflect together on the research so far, including drawing conclusions and initiating further research cycles. The value of human inquiry as a qualitative methodology for counselling research is considered, including a comparison between the role of the human inquiry researcher and that of the counsellor. The initiator of a human inquiry group may well make use of counselling and group-work skills. Possible problems include role conflict, collusion, how to avoid the human inquiry group turning into a therapy group, and other validity issues. The key question of how to analyse the data produced by such a group is examined. The grounded-theory approach of Glaser and Strauss is considered as one way to analyse human inquiry data. Potential difficulties with such an analysis are explored and the use of a bricolage is presented as one possible solution. Human inquiry is seen to be an important and innovative approach to counselling research which is particularly appropriate for exploratory studies.     

Using microcomputers to control student-designed research in a research methods course

Microcomputers may be used to simulate traditional equipment in the psychology laboratory, such as tachistoscopes, memory drums, and reaction timers. With the diminishing price of microcomputers, such simulation is especially attractive, since it is considerably less expensive than the original special-purpose equipment, and also allows greater versatility. The undergraduate laboratory described here requires only inexpensive microcomputers, simple experimental control programs, and little or no additional peripheral equipment.     

Using word reading time in text processing research

A study that employed a moving-window task was designed to test the paradigm’s sensitivity to different levels of interclause integration. The program that controlled the task, implemented on a Terak 8510/a microcomputer in UCSD Pascal, is described. The results of the study indicate that word reading time is indicative of lower and “midlevel” types of integration, but not higher order domain knowledge considerations.     

Using internet resources in a research methods course

Internet resources (a WWW home page, a Unix-based Listserv discussion list, and e-mail) were used to supplement traditional materials in a research methods course. The course also included word processing and computerized data analysis, and the student version of MEL was used as a research simulator. A computer usage survey was administered at the beginning and end of the semester. Analysis of the survey results indicated that students were more positive in their attitudes about computers as a helpful tool for psychologists at the end of the course than at the beginning. They did not show an increased appreciation for the usefulness of Internet and e-mail, however, which is probably the result of the text-based Internet browser and the slowness of the e-mail system used.     

Using our best judgment in conducting human research

The federal regulations of human research were written to permit the use of discretion so that research can fit the circumstances under which it is conducted. For example, the researcher and institutional review board (IRB) could waive or alter some informed consent elements if they deem this the morally and scientifically best way to conduct the research. To do so, however, researchers and IRBs would first have to use mature moral and scientific judgment. They might also have to rely on empirical research to discover the most effective way to act on their moral sense (e.g., to discover how best to approach potential research participants and explain the nature and purpose of the research participation for which they are being recruited, to ensure comprehension and competent decision making). On discovering the most ethical way to proceed, they would then need to look to the federal regulations of human research to discover how to document their decision and justify it within that somewhat flexible regulatory structure. Unfortunately, many IRBs and researchers fail to take these sensible steps to solve ethical problems and proceed immediately to a default requirement of the regulations that places science at odds with the regulations and, ostensibly, with ethics. The following articles in this special issue are about the process of learning to engage in ethical problem solving and using the flexibility permitted by the federal regulations. These articles extricate researchers from the mindset that has gotten them into trouble, and, ideally, provoke them to use mature common sense and moral judgment.     

Identifying careless responses in questionnaire research: a serendipitous finding

The present study describes a possible method by which potentially meaningless responses to questionnaires can be easily identified. Given an inadvertent mistake in the design of a questionnaire packet, we found that 10% of respondents provided invalid responses to items.     

Using response times to detect aberrant responses in computerized adaptive testing

A lognormal model for response times is used to check response times for aberrances in examinee behavior on computerized adaptive tests. Both classical procedures and Bayesian posterior predictive checks are presented. For a fixed examinee, responses and response times are independent; checks based on response times offer thus information independent of the results of checks on response patterns. Empirical examples of the use of classical and Bayesian checks for detecting two different types of aberrances in response times are presented. The detection rates for the Bayesian checks outperformed those for the classical checks, but at the cost of higher false-alarm rates. A guideline for the choice between the two types of checks is offered.This study received funding from the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). The opinions and conclusions contained in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the policy and position of LSAC. The authors are most indebted to Wim M. M. Tielen for his computational assistance and to the US Defense Manpower Data Center for the permission to use the ASVAB data set in the empirical examples.     

A pointing technique for rapidly collecting localization responses in auditory research

A technique is described for rapidly collecting responses in auditory-localization experiments. Subjects indicate the perceived direction of the sound by pointing at a 20-cm-diam spherical model. In Experiment 1, the subjects judged the direction of a broadband signal, which could originate from any of 239 directions ranging through 360° of azimuth and between ?45° and +90° of elevation. Using this technique, the subjects responded 2–8 times more rapidly than previous subjects who used either a verbal-reporting technique or a head-pointing technique. Localization judgments were as accurate as they had been with verbal reports, but were not as accurate as judgments collected using the head-pointing technique. In Experiment 2, the signal was turned off and the experimenter read the spherical coordinates of the signal location to the subjects. The subjects pointed to these coordinates more accurately than they had judged the direction of the sounds in Experiment 1, suggesting that the response technique had not been the limiting factor in that experiment. Circumstances relevant to the choice of response techniques for auditory-localization experiments are discussed.     

An Apple microcomputer system in physiological psychology

The use of microcomputers in physiological psychology has allowed many investigators to conduct experiments that previously required more costly devices. We describe some of the research requirements that led to our selection of an Apple II/FIRST microcomputer system (Scandrett & Gormezano, 1980) for investigations of the neurophysiological correlates of classical and instrumental conditioning.     

Evaluating microcomputer interactive survey software

Software packages for microcomputer interactive questionnaires are becoming readily available to a wide group of business researchers. Potential users have a series of interrelated decisions regarding the most appropriate software and hardware for their specific needs. This article outlines important features that researchers must consider in their decisions under five dimensions: Survey research, question presentation, documentation, hardware, and monetary.This project was supported by a faculty grant from the Educational Improvement Fund of the University of Hawaii awarded to the first author. Portions of this paper were presented to the American Marketing Association 3rd Annual Microcomputers in Marketing Education Workshop at the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, California, October 26–28, 1986.