A lateral masking effect in tactile and blurred visual letter recognition

In a letter recognition task in which the letters were presented temporally across two columns of a vibrotactile array, the masking effects of added columns of steady vibrotactile stimulation were investigated. The primary variable studied was the spatial separation between the masking columns and the letter-carrying columns. The results indicate a spatially dependent masking effect which is independent of the tactile masking associated with mask onset. A comparable masking effect was obtained with visual letter recognition using the same relative stimulus configurations viewed under conditions of optical blurring. An interpretation of the tactile masking is offered in terms of the limited spatial resolution of the cutaneous sense.     

On the tangibility of letters and braille

Braille characters and letters were presented to the senses of touch and vision of sighted observers. The optical stimuli were subjected to low-pass spatial filtering to the degree that visual spatial resolution closely matched tactile spatial resolution(re the size of characters presented). In one experiment, three sets of braille characters and five sets of Roman letters, varying in typography, were presented as stimuli. The variations in tangibility and legibility across the eight character sets were highly correlated (r =.98). In a second experiment, braille characters and letters were varied in size. The psychometric functions relating tangibility and legibility to character size were similar in both shape and position along the abscissa. The congruence of tangibility and legibility for these conditions, in which the senses were matched in spatial resolution, supports the idea that braille characters are more tangible by virtue of their greater distinctiveness after the low-pass spatial filtering of cutaneous processing.     

Tactile letter recognition under different modes of stimulus presentation

Block capital letters were displayed to experienced and inexperienced Ss, using a 20 x 20 matrix of vibratory tactors placed against the back. In two separate experiments, a total of five modes of stimulus presentation, three of them employing a linear scanning slit, were studied. The poorest method, stationary flashing of the letter, allows performance that is well above chance, implying that a purely spatial presentation does convey information. Performance is improved when the letter is moved horizontally across the display. The best performance is achieved when the amount of simultaneous stimulation is limited by using a linear scanning slit. In one method, the letter moves behind a stationary slit, with the result that its horizontal dimension is portrayed only in time. In the other two methods, the scanning slit moves across the stationary letter, portraying the letter both in time and in space. The results of all five display modes indicate that Ss can use whichever representation, spatial or temporal, is available, although patternings which most closely approximate sequential tracing by a single moving point lead to the highest recognition accuracy. We interpret these results in terms of the limited spatial resolution of the cutaneous sense. While the perception of a letter presented in either full-field condition is limited by the spatial resolution, the best measure being the two-point limen, the perception of a letter traced sequentially is limited by the localization acuity of the cutaneous sense, the best measure being the “error of localization,” which is known to be considerably smaller than the two-point limen. Inasmuch as the slit methods of presentation are a compromise between simultaneous and sequential display, letter-recognition accuracy is better with slit presentation than with the corresponding full-field mode of display.     

Area-Based Socioeconomic Characteristics of Industries at High Risk for Violence in the Workplace

This study examined socioeconomic factors associated with the presence of workplaces belonging to industries reported to be at high risk for worker homicide. The proportion of 2004 North Carolina workplaces in high-risk industries was computed following spatial linkage of individual workplaces to 2000 United States Census Block Groups (n = 3,925). Thirty census-derived socioeconomic variables (selected a priori as potentially predictive of violence) were summarized using exploratory factor analysis into poverty/deprivation, human/economic capital, and transience/instability. Multinomial logistic regression models indicate associations between higher proportion of workplaces belonging to high-risk industries and Block Groups with more poverty/deprivation or transience/instability and less human/economic capital. The relationship between human/economic capital and Block Groups proportion of high-risk industry workplaces was modified by levels of transience/instability. Community characteristics therefore contribute to the potential for workplace violence, and future research should continue to understand the relationship between social context and workplace violence risk.     

Visual control of posture in real and virtual environments

In two experiments, we investigated the stabilizing influence of vision on human upright posture in real and virtual environments. Visual stabilization was assessed by comparing eyes-open with eyes-closed conditions while subjects attempted to maintain balance in the presence of a stable visual scene. Visual stabilization in the virtual display w as reduced, as compared wit hreal-world viewing. Th is differencewas partially accountedfor by the reduced field of view in the virtual display. When the retinal flow inthe virtual display wasremoved by using dynamic random-dot stereograms with single-frame lifetimes (cyclopean stimuli), vision did notstabilize posture. There was also an overall larger stabilizing influence of vision when more unstable stances were adopted (e.g., one-foot, as compared with side-by-side, stance). Reducing the graphics latency of the virtual display by 63% did not increase visual stabilization in the virtual display. Other visual and psychological differences between real and virtual environments are discussed.     

Visually Controlled Locomotion: Its Dependence on Optic Flow,Three-Dimensional Space Perception,and Cognition

Gibson (1958/this issue) and his followers have emphasized the role of optic flow in the control of locomotion. In recent years much research has been devoted to the visual control of aiming and braking, mainly in connection with terrestrial locomotion. The goal of this article is to broaden the topic empirically and theoretically. At the empirical level, we argue that there are a number of visually controlled maneuvers that need to be addressed for their own sake, for they involve more than can be learned from research on aiming and braking. At the theoretical level, we argue that optic flow needs to be supplemented by other explanatory primitives, including the actor's perception of three-dimensional spatial layout and the actor's cognitive representations of the spatial envelope and plant dynamics of his or her body or vehicle.     

Exploring outcomes through narrative: the long-term impacts of Better Beginnings, Better Futures on the turning point stories of youth at ages 18-19

This study examined the long-term effects of the Better Beginnings, Better Futures project, a community-based early childhood development program, on 18–19 year-old youths’ narratives about turning points in their lives. The sample consisted of youth who participated in Better Beginnings from ages 4–8 (n = 62) and youth from a comparison community who did not participate in Better Beginnings (n = 34). Controlling for covariates, significant differences favoring youth from the Better Beginnings sites were found on several dimensions of the turning point stories: ending resolution, personal growth, meaning-making, coherence, and affect transformation. Effect sizes ranged from .45 to .76 for these outcome dimensions, indicating moderate to large effects. Also, turning point story dimensions were found to be significantly correlated with two standardized measures of well-being: youths’ self-esteem and community involvement. Youths’ self-esteem was directly related to story ending resolution, personal growth, and meaning making, and youths’ community involvement was directly related to story specificity, meaning making, and coherence. Family functioning was also examined in relation to these narrative dimensions but was not found to be significantly related to them. The findings suggest the utility of a narrative approach for the evaluation of the long-term outcomes of early childhood development programs.     

Targeting low career confidence using the career planning confidence scale

The authors describe the development and validation of a test of career planning confidence that makes possible the targeting of specific problem issues in employment counseling. The scale, developed using a rational process and the authors' experience with clients, was tested for criterion‐related validity against 2 other measures. The scale produced a 6‐factor structure that replicates common career planning models: Readiness to Make a Career Decision, Self‐Assessment, Generating Options, Information Seeking, Deciding, and Implementing a Decision. Validity and reliability of the scale are discussed, along with suggestions for employment counseling practice.