Animal innovation defined and operationalized

Innovation is a key component of most definitions of culture and intelligence. Additionally, innovations may affect a species' ecology and evolution. Nonetheless, conceptual and empirical work on innovation has only recently begun. In particular, largely because the existing operational definition (first occurrence in a population) requires long-term studies of populations, there has been no systematic study of innovation in wild animals. To facilitate such study, we have produced a new definition of innovation: Innovation is the process that generates in an individual a novel learned behavior that is not simply a consequence of social learning or environmental induction. Using this definition, we propose a new operational approach for distinguishing innovations in the field. The operational criteria employ information from the following sources: (1) the behavior's geographic and local prevalence and individual frequency; (2) properties of the behavior, such as the social role of the behavior, the context in which the behavior is exhibited, and its similarity to other behaviors; (3) changes in the occurrence of the behavior over time; and (4) knowledge of spontaneous or experimentally induced behavior in captivity. These criteria do not require long-term studies at a single site, but information from multiple populations of a species will generally be needed. These criteria are systematized into a dichotomous key that can be used to assess whether a behavior observed in the field is likely to be an innovation.     

A simple system for the remote detection and analysis of sniffing in explosives detection dogs

In this article, we describe a device that we have developed, for both research and operational purposes, to assist handlers of sniffer dogs and improve efficiency of search. The device transmits sounds from the dog’s muzzle area to a listener, enabling determination of whether the dog is actually sniffing during a search. Both the aural and the computerized sound analyses enable study of the dog’s sniffing behavior under a variety of situations. Correlation of these data with the visually monitored behavior of the working dog contributes additional and important information and leads to a greater under-standing of detector dogs’ behavior and abilities.     

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.     

Discussion

While in no way denying the interest of the study of “Theories of Mind”, the discussion tends to show that, in the tasks described in the papers, the development of abilities to process perceptual and verbal information is sufficient in itself to fully account for changes in observed responses. Whether the issue is false beliefs or the distinction between appearance and reality, children's behavior is highly dependent on their working memory span, their operational efficiency (action coordination) and their current state of knowledge. “Theories of Mind” emerge as indices of cognitive development. Their adaptive value is more problematical.     

操作表征在被试操作效应中的调节作用：ERPs研究

本研究考察操作表征(operational representation)在被试操作效应中的调节作用。选取结构性/功能性操作表征短语各160个,分析再认判断中的脑电差异。结果表明,动作编码比语词编码诱发更显著的P1、N2pb和N400;在500~700ms时间窗,相比于语词编码,对结构性和功能性操作表征短语进行动作编码均可显著诱发了中央区更负的平均波幅;在700~900ms时间窗,仅对于结构性操作表征短语,动作编码比语词编码诱发了前额叶更正的平均波幅。研究为动作编码的语义反馈加工机制提供了数据支撑,也为动作信息再激活与动作表征观点的整合提供解释方向。     

Agreement between teachers' ratings and observations of hyperactivity,inattentiveness, and defiance

The relationship of directly observed classroom behavior and teacher ratings on questionnaires with a judgemental (Conners Teacher Rating Scale) or operational format was examined for 33 boys aged 6 years 5 months to 7 years 7 months. Results showed a high degree of association between observed and rated behavior. This association did not vary with the format of the rating scales but did vary with the nature of the behavior being rated. Defiance was more reliably rated than hyperactivity or inattentiveness. Several behaviors exerted a halo effect on ratings of hyperactivity, inattentiveness, and behavior problems. In particular, defiance toward a teacher increased the likelihood that a child would be rated as hyperactive or inattentive regardless of his observed level of activity or attentiveness. These results support the validity of behavior rating scales as screening measures for hyperactivity, inattentiveness, and defiance and indicate that a child's defiance and disobedience are significant causes of misclassification.     

Adolescent aggression and social cognition in the context of personality: impulsivity as a moderator of predictions from social information processing

This study asked how individual differences in social cognition and personality interact in predicting later aggressive behavior. It was hypothesized that the relationship between immediate response evaluations in social information processing (SIP) and later aggressive behavior would be moderated by impulsivity. In particular, the immediate positive evaluations of aggressive responses would be more strongly related to later aggressive behavior for high-impulsive than for low-impulsive individuals, because high-impulsive children would be less likely to integrate peripheral information and consider long-term future consequences of their actions. Participants were 585 adolescents (52% male) and their mothers and teachers from the longitudinal Child Development Project. Structural equation modeling indicated that teacher-reported impulsivity at ages 11-13 moderated the association between adolescents' endorsement of aggressive responses in hypothetical, ambiguous situations and subsequent mother-reported aggressive behavior. Specifically, positive endorsement of aggressive responses at age 13 was significantly related to later aggressive behavior (age 14-17) for participants with high and medium levels of impulsivity, but this association was not significant for participants with low levels of impulsivity. This study provides evidence of personality variables as potential moderators of the link between SIP and behavior.     

Analysing user's reactions in advice-giving dialogues with a socially intelligent ECA

In this paper, we investigate the user's reactions to received suggestion by an Embodied Conversational Agent playing the role of artificial therapist in the healthy eating domain. Specifically, we analyse the behaviour of people who voluntarily requested to receive information from the agent, and we compare it with the results of a previous evaluation experiment in which subjects were not properly motivated to interact with the agent because they were selected for evaluating the system. This study is part of an ongoing research aimed at developing an intelligent virtual agent that applies natural argumentation techniques to persuade the users to improve their eating habits.     

AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION OF PERCEPTIONS OF RATEE BEHAVIOR FREQUENCY AND RATEE BEHAVIOR CHANGE USING BEHAVIORAL EXPECTATION SCALES (BES)

Behavioral Expectation Scales (BES) research has concentrated upon psychometric properties, while evidence for potential operational advantages has been largely anecdotal. This empirical study explored the operational value of BES as a technique for identifying divergent rater-ratee perceptions of ratee behavior frequency and for facilitating subsequent ratee behavior change. Results indicated that ratees perceived desired behaviors as occurring more often and undesired behaviors occurring less often than did raters. Behavior change was demonstrated both after development and after implementation of BES. Such operational advantages of BES are argued as a crucial factor in the choice of an organization's performance appraisal format.     

The persistence of dichotomies in the study of behavioral development

The inadequacies of dichotomous views of behavioral development that oppose learned and innate behavior, or genetic and environmental determinants of behavior, have long been recognized. However, they continue to exert a powerful influence on current thinking about development, often by way of metaphors that simply recast these old ideas in a more modern technical vocabulary. The idea that the information for behavior can be attributed to either genetic or environmental sources was originated by Lorenz and provides the basis for many current dichotomous accounts of behavioral development. Lorenz's “sources of information” metaphor for development is fundamentally flawed, however, as are those more recent accounts that are based on it. The alternative interactionist account of development, most clearly articulated by Lehrman, is a far more powerful and coherent theoretical framework for development, but it has not been broadly assimilated into psychology and continues to be widely misunderstood. In particular, the interactionist account does not involve a radical environmentalism, does not attribute all behavior to the effects of learning, and does not interpret development as a gene-environment interaction. The attractive simplicity of dichotomous thinking encourages its continued application to the study of development despite the fact that it is clearly inadequate to the complexities of developmental analysis.     

Job context, selection decision outcome, and the perceived fairness of selection tests: biodata as an illustrative case

S. W. Gilliland (1993) has proposed a model of perceived selection system fairness to help understand applicants' prehire and posthire behavior. The present study aimed to verify and extend his framework by investigating the role of job context in the formation of fairness perceptions of biodata. A sample of 255 students (108 men, 147 women) completed an operational biodata instrument, believing that it would be used to hire persons for either international, local, or unspecified entry-level managerial positions. Participants were then presented with outcome information (selected or rejected for further consideration). Consistent support was found for the research hypotheses derived from the Gilliland model. Participants' perceptions of the fairness and job relatedness of biodata were affected by the selection context and decision outcome. The importance of considering selection context in assessments of perceived test fairness is discussed.     

Metacognition in monkeys during an oculomotor task

This study investigated whether rhesus monkeys show evidence of metacognition in a reduced, visual oculomotor task that is particularly suitable for use in fMRI and electrophysiology. The 2-stage task involved punctate visual stimulation and saccadic eye movement responses. In each trial, monkeys made a decision and then made a bet. To earn maximum reward, they had to monitor their decision and use that information to bet advantageously. Two monkeys learned to base their bets on their decisions within a few weeks. We implemented an operational definition of metacognitive behavior that relied on trial-by-trial analyses and signal detection theory. Both monkeys exhibited metacognition according to these quantitative criteria. Neither external visual cues nor potential reaction time cues explained the betting behavior; the animals seemed to rely exclusively on internal traces of their decisions. We documented the learning process of one monkey. During a 10-session transition phase, betting switched from random to a decision-based strategy. The results reinforce previous findings of metacognitive ability in monkeys and may facilitate the neurophysiological investigation of metacognitive functions.     

Information Needs and Behavior of Catholic Priests in Croatia

This article presents a segment of the results gathered in a doctoral study that investigated information needs and behavior of Catholic priests in Croatia. The study focused on parish priests in particular and their information needs and behavior in the liturgy and care-giving role. The research was conducted with the help of quantitative and qualitative methodology. Print questionnaires were filled out by 327 respondents, while in the follow-up interviews 20 respondents took part. Research results show that respondents, in the care-giving role and liturgy, require information about theology, general culture, psychology, and pedagogy. More than half of respondents find information for liturgy on religious websites and in their personal parish libraries. However, in their care-giving role they seek information most often from their parishers, members in parish pastoral and economic boards, and from colleagues at their regular meetings organized by the (arch)diocese. Both in liturgy and care-giving role, respondents use religious publications to a much larger degree than secular books, magazines, or newspapers. The respondents explained that in liturgy they consult colleagues and parishers in order to exchange advices and ideas, while in the care-giving role some respondents also prefer to seek an advice from an expert in specific field. The results of this study can help Catholic Church and theological faculties when preparing the information literacy courses for future parish priests.     

A data–information–knowledge cycle for modeling driving behavior

When talking about automation, “autonomous vehicles”, often abbreviated as AVs, come to mind. In transitioning from the “driver” mode to the different automation levels, there is an inevitable need for modeling driving behavior. This often happens through data collection from experiments and studies, but also information extraction, a key step in behavioral modeling. Particularly, naturalistic driving studies and field operational trials are used to collect meaningful data on drivers’ interactions in real–world conditions. On the other hand, information extraction methods allow to predict or mimic driving behavior, by using a set of statistical learning methods. In simple words, the way to understand drivers’ needs and wants in the era of automation can be represented in a data–information cycle, starting from data collection, and ending with information extraction. To develop this cycle, this research reviews studies with keywords “data collection”, “information extraction”, “AVs”, while keeping the focus on driving behavior. The resulting review led to a screening of about 161 papers, out of which about 30 were selected for a detailed analysis. The analysis included an investigation of the methods and equipment used for data collection, the features collected, the size and frequency of the data along with the main problems associated with the different sensory equipment; the studies also looked at the models used to extract information, including various statistical techniques used in AV studies. This paved the way to the development of a framework for data analytics and fusion, allowing the use of highly heterogeneous data to reach the defined objectives; for this paper, the example of impacts of AVs on a network level and AV acceptance is given. The authors suggest that such a framework could be extended and transferred across the various transportation sectors.     

Using Response Times for Joint Modeling of Response and Omission Behavior

Abstract

For adequate modeling of missing responses, a thorough understanding of the nonresponse mechanisms is vital. As a large number of major testing programs are in the process or already have been moving to computer-based assessment, a rich body of additional data on examinee behavior becomes easily accessible. These additional data may contain valuable information on the processes associated with nonresponse. Bringing together research on item omissions with approaches for modeling response time data, we propose a framework for simultaneously modeling response behavior and omission behavior utilizing timing information for both. As such, the proposed model allows (a) to gain a deeper understanding of response and nonresponse behavior in general and, in particular, of the processes underlying item omissions in LSAs, (b) to model the processes determining the time examinees require to generate a response or to omit an item, and (c) to account for nonignorable item omissions. Parameter recovery of the proposed model is studied within a simulation study. An illustration of the model by means of an application to real data is provided.     

Cockpit-cabin communication: II. Shall we tell the pilots?

In a previous article (Chute & Wiener, 1995), we explored the coordination between the "two cultures" in an airliner's crew: cockpit and cabin. In this article, we discuss a particular problem: the dilemma facing the cabin crew when they feel that they have safety-critical information and must decide whether to take it to the cockpit. We explore the reasons for the reluctance of the flight attendant to come forward with the information, such as self-doubt about the accuracy or importance of the information, fear of dismissal or rebuke by the pilots, and misunderstanding of the sterile cockpit rule. Insight into crew attitudes was based on our examination of accident and incident reports and data from questionnaires submitted by pilots and flight attendants at two airlines. The results show confusion and disagreement about what is permissible to take to the cockpit when it is sterile, as well as imbalances in authority and operational knowledge. Possible remedies are proposed.     

Children's decision strategies and their adaptation to task characteristics

Recent research has established decision making as an important type of strategic problem solving. From this perspective, the present paper examines strategic decision behavior in children and, in particular, the ability to adapt decision strategies to task characteristics. Twelve-year-olds' strategies were identified through analyses of information search patterns with different-sized matrices of information. Using a similar procedure, Payne (1976, Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 16, 366–387) found that adults shifted to more efficient (but less “optimal”) strategies as task complexity increased. The present study indicates that, by 12 years of age, children understand many of the basic concepts of strategic decision making, such as compensation and elimination, and, like adults, they modify their strategies appropriately in response to complexity. However, their behavior differs from that reported for adults in that the distinctions among specific decision strategies are not clear cut, and there is frequent use of less demanding, cost-cutting strategies even with smaller decision tasks. Memory capacity and topic interest also affect decision strategy. The results support the feasibility of further developmental study of decision strategies. Analytical techniques developed here for use with children may profitably be applied in studies with adults as well.     

自我是一分为二的吗?——以西方自我图式的研究为例

该文以自我图式的开山之作———Markus的研究为例,从被试视角重新解读其研究结果,挑战了自我的二元构念及行为跨情境稳定性假设,指出Markus在操作过程中将主客观标准偷换,将情境绝对化了。这样分出的积极图式组和消极图式组在自我欺骗上有显著差异,其结果难逃社会赞许的干扰,对中庸自我的研究可能会彻底地解决这一困境。     

Affective influences on self-disclosure: mood effects on the intimacy and reciprocity of disclosing personal information

How does mood influence people's willingness to disclose intimate information about themselves? Based on recent affect-cognition theories and research on interpersonal behavior, 3 experiments predicted and found that people in a positive mood disclosed more intimate, more varied, and more abstract information about themselves. In contrast, people in a negative mood were more attentive to the behavior of others and reciprocated self-disclosure from their partners more accurately. This effect was obtained in hypothetical situations (Experiments 1 and 2) and in realistic computer-mediated interactions as well (Experiment 3). Experiments 2 and 3 confirmed that mood effects on self-disclosure were mediated by information processing style. The role of affect in information processing and relationship behaviors in particular is discussed, and the implications of these findings for everyday interaction strategies and for contemporary affect-cognition theorizing are considered.