Estimation and visualization of confusability matrices from adaptive measurement data

We present a simple but effective method based on Luce’s choice axiom [Luce, R.D. (1959). Individual choice behavior: A theoretical analysis. New York: John Wiley & Sons] for consistent estimation of the pairwise confusabilities of items in a multiple-choice recognition task with arbitrarily chosen choice-sets. The method combines the exact (non-asymptotic) Bayesian way of assessing uncertainty with the unbiasedness emphasized in the classical frequentist approach.We apply the method to data collected using an adaptive computer game designed for prevention of reading disability. A player’s estimated confusability of phonemes (or more accurately, phoneme-grapheme connections) and larger units of language is visualized in an easily understood way with color cues and explicit indication of the accuracy of the estimates. Visualization of learning-related changes in the player’s performance is considered.The empirical validity of the choice axiom is evaluated using the game data itself. The axiom appears to hold reasonably well although a small systematic violation is observable for the smallest choice-set sizes.     

Selfless giving

In four studies, we show that people who anticipate more personal change over time give more to others. We measure and manipulate participants’ beliefs in the persistence of the defining psychological features of a person (e.g., his or her beliefs, values, and life goals) and measure generosity, finding support for the hypothesis in three studies using incentive-compatible charitable donation decisions and one involving hypothetical choices about sharing with loved ones.     

Prior distributions for random choice structures

We study various axioms of discrete probabilistic choice, measuring how restrictive they are, both alone and in the presence of other axioms, given a specific class of prior distributions over a complete collection of finite choice probabilities. We do this by using Monte Carlo simulation to compute, for a range of prior distributions, probabilities that various simple and compound axioms hold. For example, the probability of the triangle inequality is usually many orders of magnitude higher than the probability of random utility. While neither the triangle inequality nor weak stochastic transitivity imply the other, the conditional probability that one holds given the other holds is greater than the marginal probability, for all priors in the class we consider. The reciprocal of the prior probability that an axiom holds is an upper bound on the Bayes factor in favor of a restricted model, in which the axiom holds, against an unrestricted model. The relatively high prior probability of the triangle inequality limits the degree of support that data from a single decision maker can provide in its favor. The much lower probability of random utility implies that the Bayes factor in favor of it can be much higher, for suitable data.     

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Event-Related Potentials: Evidence for Deficits in Allocating Attentional Resources to Relevant Stimuli

Current research on the nature of attentional deficits in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is reviewed with a focus on studies using event-related potentials (ERPs). A robust effect is the smaller amplitude of the P3 wave to both auditory and visual stimuli for individuals with ADHD than for normal controls. This effect is indicative of deficits in the allocation of attentional resources to task-relevant information. The Nd wave is also smaller for individuals with ADHD, an effect that suggests impairments in the discrimination and preferential processing of task-relevant information, rather than distractibility by irrelevant stimuli. Studies of the effects of methylphenidate on ERPs in ADHD indicate that this stimulant enhances the quality of stimulus evaluation and speeds response time. These specific effects support the view that ADHD involves deficits in energetic processes that are required for processing task-relevant stimuli.     

Behavioral control of exercise in adults: Studies 7 and 8

Abstract

Building on our previous six study series, the current studies 7 and 8 evaluated behavioral methods of improving adherence to exercise in adults. The studies tested the effectiveness of a single exercise modality versus choice of a variety of exercises and were conducted as part of a 12-week extended studies college course in San Diego, CA. Recruitment efforts were targeted to individuals who reported that they were sedentary and/or had experienced difficulty adhering to regular exercise. Participants were 42 adults (32F, 10M; mean age = 42.0) in Study 7 and 48 adults (35F, 8M; mean age = 47.9) in Study 8. In each study, subjects were randomly assigned to a single focus or variety exercise condition. There were no significant group differences in class attendance or out-of-class exercise adherence rates in Studies 7 or 8. In Study 7, significantly lower drop-out rates were detected in the single focus group (19%) than the variety condition (47.6%) (p = 0.04). No significant group differences were detected for drop-out rates in Study 8. Suggestions for further research are offered.     

Wholistic Theology as a Conceptual Foundation for Services for the Oldest Old

SUMMARY

Social service agencies are focusing more and more on the “old-old.” Some organizations have secular missions that address multiple domains (i.e., physiological, economic, social, etc.). Other agencies, developed by the religious community, designate spirituality as a domain to be addressed in serving the “old-old.” This paper examines interfaces between secular social service organizations and those persons (whether staff, board or religious leaders) who attempt to provide a wholistic perspective for service provision to the “old-old.”     

Micro Practice and Faith-Based Initiatives: The Role of Religious Congregations in the Social Service System

SUMMARY

Religious organizations have provided services for older adults for thousands of years. For the sons and daughters of Abraham, this is Biblically mandated. Charitable Choice and the President's Office of Faith-Based Initiatives is only the most recent effort to bring this informal caregiving system into dialogue with the remainder of the formal social service system in the United States. At this time, religious congregations play a gap-filling role in the community service system. Their services range from informal volunteer-driven approaches to a local need, to large formal service systems. From the first draft of the Older American's Act, nutrition sites have specifically named religious congregations in partners with the service system. Today this system continues to be ready to support at least the seniors in their own congregations.     

Directions for judgment and decision making research based on comparison selection: Reply to Arkes,Johnson, and Kardes

Our target article proposed an alternative perspective for studying consumer judgment and decision making, focusing on the types and weights of comparisons consumers select. In this response we consider the major points made by each of the commentators and examine their implications for future work addressing our comparison-focused approach.     

Keep or trade? An experimental study of the exchange paradox

The “exchange paradox”—also referred to in the literature by a variety of other names, notably the “two-envelopes problem”—is notoriously difficult, and experts are not all agreed as to its resolution. Some of the various expressions of the problem are open to more than one interpretation; some are stated in such a way that assumptions are required in order to fill in missing information that is essential to any resolution. In three experiments several versions of the problem were used, in each of which the information given was sufficient to determine an optimal choice strategy when it exists or to justify indifference regarding keeping or trading when such a strategy does not exist. College students who were presented with the various versions of the problem tended to base their choices on simple heuristics and to give little evidence of understanding the probabilistic implications of the differences in the problem statements.     

Choice both affects and reflects preferences

The free-choice paradigm is a widely used paradigm in psychology. It has been used to show that after a choice between two similarly pleasant stimuli, the pleasantness of the chosen one tends to increase, whereas the pleasantness of the rejected one tends to decrease—a spreading of alternatives. However, the methodological validity of the free-choice paradigm to study choice-induced preference change has recently been seriously questioned [Chen, K. M., & Risen, J. L. (2010). How choice affects and reflects preferences: Revisiting the free-choice paradigm. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99, 573–594. doi:10.1037/a0020217]. According to this criticism, the classically reported spreading of alternatives between the first and second rating sessions cannot be unambiguously interpreted to reflect a true change in preferences and can be observed even for completely static preferences. Here, we used two measurement sequences, a classical Rating 1–choice–Rating 2 sequence and a control Rating 1–Rating 2–choice sequence, to disentangle the spreading of alternatives driven by the effect of choice from the artefactual effect highlighted by Chen and Risen. In two studies using different stimulus material (faces and odours), we find that choice has a robust modulatory impact on preferences for rejected odours, but not for chosen odours and not for faces.