Control of CRT intensity via Apple II software

An inexpensive, easy-to-build device for the Apple II microprocessor is described. The modification permits software control of four levels of relative screen intensity (contrast) settings for any video monitor. The relationship of the technology to choice reaction time and perception research is briefly indicated. Principles governing operation of the modification are also discussed. Finally, a set of step-by-step instructions for building the device is provided.     

Recognition and Ratings of Television Music Videos: Age, Gender, and Sociocultural Effects

High school, younger college, and older college subjects rated explicit, neutral, or Christian television music videos according to theme clarity/recognition and whether the respective videos were liked/disliked. Subjects of each age group were able to recognize the themes of each music-video category with a high degree of accuracy. Younger subjects and males were found to rate the music videos, especially those selected for explicitness, more favorably than older or female subjects. Sociocultural background factors were also found to be related to recognition and ratings of the television music videos. In particular, working class background subjects. subjects who watched music videos regularly, and those that seldom or never attended church rated the music videos, especially the explicit ones, more favorably than subjects from a college town background, subjects who seldom or never watched music videos, and subjects who regularly attended church. These findings were interpreted in terms of media-based social influence processes and reciprocal determinism.     

The spiritual well-being and need of parishioners

In this study we compare the spiritual well-being and need of healthy and ill parishioners, creating data that pastors can use as background in assessing pastoral need within their parishes. Three questionnaires generate the data, and the results demonstrate increased need of parishioners in the hospital. Specifically, women hospitalized for problem pregnancies demonstrate statistically more need than healthy parishioners, and these data suggest that pastors should assess their needs carefully. A group of patients who fight their metastasized cancer create scores statistically similar to healthy parishioners. Demographic variables also have an impact on spiritual well-being and need, particularity the parishioner's age and level of education.This research was supported in part by the Section of Graduate Education and Research, the Department of Family Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.The PIL and SONG were obtained through the Institute of Logotherapy in Saratoga, California. The Spiritual Well-Being Scale was used with permission of Craig W. Ellison.     

An eye fixation analysis of choice and judgment with multiattribute stimuli

The present paper examined the selection of processing heuristics for choice and judgment across a range of stimuli. Eye fixations were monitored while six subjects made choices or judgments of pairs of gambles, vacations, or gifts. Each stimulus was represented by three attributes that varied in the amount of dimensional interdependency. The two heuristics of interest were dimensional and holistic evaluation. Each manifested a characteristic pattern of eye fixations. Dimensional evaluation required alternating fixations from a single attribute of one stimulus to the same attribute of the other stimulus. Holistic evaluation was characterized by transitions from attribute to attribute within a single stimulus. The results demonstrated that when the stimulus attributes were either interdependent (gambles) or dissimilar (gifts), the processing heuristic was determined by stimulus characteristics. When the stimulus dimensions were neither interdependent nor dissimilar (vacations), the selection of a processing strategy was determined by the prescribed task. This study suggests that any global theory of choice or judgment must be validated over a wide range of stimuli.     

Lump detection in simulated human breasts

Sixteen observers palpated silicone models of human breasts containing lumps 1.6-12.1 mm in diameter. Detectability depended on the size of the lump, producing a systematic psychometric function. In eight observers who participated in three or more sessions, performance improved with practice, with most improvement occurring within one or two 26-trial sessions. Three-week retention measures disclosed no appreciable decrease in performance, but a significant correlation was found between the number of lumps detected and duration of trial (p < .01). There was no difference in performance between four observers who used their preferred hands and four observers who used their nonpreferred hands. These data establish that examination of breast models for the detection of lumps simulating cancer is a task amenable to experimental analysis.