scholarly journals Wheel of fortune: A cross-cultural examination of how expertise shapes the mental representations of familiar and unfamiliar numerals

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Michael Garrett ◽  
Murray Scott Bennett ◽  
Yu-Tzu Hsieh ◽  
Zachary L Howard ◽  
Cheng-Ta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multidimensional Scaling ◽  
Response Bias ◽  
Choice Model ◽  
Mental Representations ◽  
First Language ◽  
External World ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Mental Space ◽  
Scaling Analyses ◽  
The Cost

Numerals are part of our everyday lives and are regularly viewed in less-than ideal conditions. Mistaking one numeral for another is almost an inevitability, and the cost of these confusions could be insignificant or hugely expensive! Numeral confusions can be explained by distances between our mental representations — how we internally represent the external world — resulting from their perceived similarities; yet, how expertise interacts with the mental space of numerals is largely unexplored. We used an identification paradigm to investigate the mental representations of familiar and unfamiliar numerals (4 sets: Arabic, Chinese, Thai, and non-symbolic dots) in a first-language English and a first-language Chinese speaking cohort. Using Luce's choice model, we removed the undesired effect of response bias and conducted multidimensional scaling analyses. Results showed that expertise with numerals alters distances in the mental space, that unfamiliar numerals are represented identically across cultures, that non-symbolic numerals (dots) may be represented both perceptually and numerically in the mental space, and that Arabic, Thai and Chinese numerals are represented by their perceptual similarities. The findings and methods of this study provide a principled foundation for future investigations into how expertise shapes people's mental representations.

scholarly journals The cost of errors: confusion analysis and the mental representation of familiar and unfamiliar digits

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Michael Garrett ◽  
Murray Bennett ◽  
Zachary L Howard ◽  
Cheng-Ta ◽  
Daniel R. Little ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representation ◽  
Choice Model ◽  
Mental Representations ◽  
Dimensional Scaling ◽  
Small Set ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Mental Space ◽  
And Cluster Analysis ◽  
The Cost ◽  
External Stimuli

People express quantities using a remarkably small set of units – digits. Confusing digits could be costly, and not all confusions are equal; confusing a price tag of 2 dollars with 9 dollars is naturally more costly than confusing 2 with 3. Confusion patterns are intimately related to the distances between mental representations, which are hypothetical internal symbols said to stand for, or represent, ‘real’ external stimuli. The distance between the mental representations of two digits could be determined by their numerical distance. Alternatively, it could be driven by visual similarity. In an English speaking cohort, we investigated the mental representations of familiar and unfamiliar numbers (4 sets: Arabic, Chinese, Thai, and non-symbolic dots) through a set of identification experiments, using multi-dimensional scaling and cluster analysis. We controlled for undesired effects of response bias using Luce’s choice model. Our findings show Arabic, Chinese and Thai numerals were represented in the mental space by perceptual similarities. We also find non-symbolic dots were represented by perceptual and numerical similarities. This work is a novel contribution to the literature and lays the foundation for further investigations into the mental representation of numerals across cultures.

scholarly journals Do arthropod assemblages fit the grassland and savanna biomes of South Africa?

2016 ◽  
Vol Volume 112 (Number 9/10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Monique Botha ◽  
Stefan J. Siebert ◽  
Johnnie van den Berg ◽  
◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Multidimensional Scaling ◽  
Vegetation Structure ◽  
Species Assemblages ◽  
Trophic Groups ◽  
Arthropod Communities ◽  
Arthropod Species ◽  
Scaling Analyses ◽  
Suction Sampling ◽  
Functional Assemblages

Abstract The long-standing tradition of classifying South Africa’s biogeographical area into biomes is commonly linked to vegetation structure and climate. Because arthropod communities are often governed by both these factors, it can be expected that arthropod communities would fit the biomes. To test this hypothesis, we considered how well arthropod species assemblages fit South Africa’s grassy biomes. Arthropod assemblages were sampled from six localities across the grassland and savanna biomes by means of suction sampling, to determine whether the two biomes have distinctive arthropod assemblages. Arthropod samples of these biomes clustered separately in multidimensional scaling analyses. Within biomes, arthropod assemblages were more distinctive for savanna localities than grassland. Arthropod samples of the two biomes clustered together when trophic groups were considered separately, suggesting some similarity in functional assemblages. Dissimilarity was greatest between biomes for phytophagous and predacious trophic groups, with most pronounced differentiation between biomes at sub-escarpment localities. Our results indicate that different arthropod assemblages do fit the grassy biomes to some extent, but the pattern is not as clear as it is for plant species.

scholarly journals Railway and road discrete choice model for foreign trade freight between Antioquia and the Port of Cartagena

2016 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Diego Pineda Jaramillo ◽  
Iván Reinaldo Sarmiento Ordosgoitia ◽  
Jorge Eliécer Córdoba Maquilón
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Discrete Choice ◽  
Logit Model ◽  
Choice Model ◽  
Stated Preference ◽  
Revealed Preference ◽  
Freight Transportation ◽  
Multinomial Logit Model ◽  
Discrete Choice Model ◽  
The Cost

Most Colombian freight is transported on roads with barely acceptable conditions, and although there is a speculation about the need for a railway for freight transportation, there is not a study in Colombia showing the variables that influence the modal choice by the companies that generate freight transportation. This article presents the calculation of demand for a hypothetical railway through a discrete choice model. It begins with a qualitative research through focus group techniques to identify the variables that influence the choice of persons responsible for the transportation of large commercial companies in Antioquia (Colombia). The influential variables in the election were the cost and service frequency, and these variables were used to apply a Stated Preference (SP) and Revealed Preference (RP) survey, then to calibrate a Multinomial Logit Model (MNL), and to estimate the influence of each of them. We show that the probability of railway choice by the studied companies varies between 67% and 93%, depending on differences in these variables.

scholarly journals Social desirability and cynicism biases in CSR surveys: an empirical study of hotels

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 567-588
Author(s):  
Henri Kuokkanen ◽  
William Sun
Keyword(s):  
Response Bias ◽  
Social Desirability ◽  
Purchase Intention ◽  
Choice Model ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Hotel Managers

PurposePrevious studies support the notion that corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives can have a positive effect on customers in the hospitality and tourism industry. However, most of these studies have ignored response biases and none have incorporated them into their analyses numerically. This study aims at closing this research gap.Design/methodology/approachThe authors utilized a hybrid choice model to test for the hypothesized effects of social desirability (SD) and cynicism biases on reported purchase intention. The authors further compared the results with those of analyses that ignore these biases to demonstrate their distorting influence.FindingsThe results indicate that SD and cynicism biases have a moderating effect on reported purchase intention. Older generations and frequent travelers seem particularly prone to bias, and the biases have a distorting effect on the overall survey results.Research limitations/implicationsTraditional analyses that exclude biases, incorrectly, suggest several aspects of CSR that are significant (or insignificant) to purchase intention, provide unreliable results. The authors did not generalize bias-prone respondent segments but urge future research to investigate this.Practical implicationsHotel managers aspiring to gain competitive advantage through CSR investment must consider biases in their market research. Otherwise, they risk developing CSR initiatives that do not instigate positive customer behaviors, leading to the failure of the investment.Originality/valueThe authors quantified SD and cynicism as significant causes of response bias, which distorts survey results. Previous studies have conceptualized SD without quantifying its impact, while cynicism has been identified as a novel source of bias in the industry. This study further introduces hybrid choice modeling as a novel approach to address response bias that could extend itself beyond the industry studied here.

Herman Bavinck and Thomas Reid on Perception and Knowing God

2018 ◽  
Vol 111 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel Sutanto
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representations ◽  
External World ◽  
Thomas Reid ◽  
External Reality ◽  
External Objects ◽  
The World ◽  
Triune God ◽  
Reformed Epistemology ◽  
The Way

AbstractNicholas Wolterstorff argues that Kant had erected an epistemological boundary between mental representations and external reality that precipitates an anxiety in modern theologians about whether one can properly refer to God. As a way past this boundary, Wolterstorff's Reformed epistemology retrieves Thomas Reid's account of perception as an alternative to Kant, according to which knowledge of external objects is direct and immediate. Further, Wolterstorff points to the Dutch neo-Calvinist Herman Bavinck as one who bears many “reidian” elements in his epistemology, especially in the way in which Bavinck argues that the epistemic accessibility of the external world ought to be taken for granted. The thesis of this present paper, however, is that a closer investigation of Bavinck's account of perception reveals that he, unlike Reid, accepts the gap between mental representations and external objects, such that representations are those through which we know the world. Bavinck affirms that a correspondence between the two can be obtained by an appeal to the resources found in Christian revelation. In effect, what emerges in a close comparison of Bavinck and Reid is that Bavinck's account is an alternative theological response to the kantian boundary—one according to which mental representations correspond with external objects because both participate in an organically connected cosmos shaped by a Triune God.

Multidimensional scaling analysis of psychopathy in male juveniles using the PCL: YV

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 262-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly Ellingwood ◽  
Karla Emeno ◽  
Craig Bennell ◽  
Adelle Forth ◽  
David Kosson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Offenders ◽  
Multidimensional Scaling ◽  
Factor Model ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Scaling Analysis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Psychopathy Checklist ◽  
Juvenile Psychopathy ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Scaling Analyses

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the structure of juvenile psychopathy, as measured by the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV). Design/methodology/approach Using a sample of 2,042 male youths from the USA, Canada, and the UK, the study was a conceptual replication of Bishopp and Hare’s (2008) multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis of adult male offenders assessed with the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised. Findings The scaling analyses generally replicated those obtained by Bishopp and Hare, providing support for a multidimensional, four-factor model of juvenile psychopathy similar to that obtained with adults. However, a small number of items fell outside their predicted regions. Slight differences in the structure of juvenile psychopathy were found for incarcerated and supervised samples of youth, with the four-factor model breaking down slightly for the supervised sample. Item misplacements may indicate that certain items on the PCL: YV are being misinterpreted, reflect different dimensions for different samples, or cannot be reliably measured. Future research should examine these possibilities, with special attention being paid to supervised samples. Originality/value To the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first known attempts to use MDS analysis to examine the psychopathy structures that emerge for male juvenile offenders. The greater nuances afforded by using MDS offer a more comprehensive understanding of psychopathy between incarcerated and supervised youth using the PCL: YV.

Understanding text in a second language: a psychological approach to an SLA problem

1993 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 118-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather Jenkin ◽  
Suzanne Prior ◽  
Richard Rinaldo ◽  
Ann Wainwright-Sharp ◽  
Ellen Bialystok
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Mental Representations ◽  
First Language ◽  
Recognition Task ◽  
Visual Display ◽  
Psychological Approach ◽  
Second Languages ◽  
The Way

The study is an attempt to assess the way in which second language learners form mental representations of information they read. Subjects were asked to read passages in their first and second languages and to demonstrate comprehension of the information by using it to make a judgement of a visual display of the same information. Following this there was a surprise recognition task to determine whether or not they still had access to verbatim representations of the passages. The results showed that information read in a second language is represented differently from the same information read in subjects' first language.

scholarly journals Assessing the Influence of Reversed Items and Force-Choice on the Work and Meaning Inventory [Evaluación de la influencia de los ítems invertidos y de elección forzosa en el Inventario de trabajo significativo]

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 103
Author(s):  
Maria da Glória Lima Leonardo ◽  
Michelle Morelo Pereira ◽  
Felipe Valentini ◽  
Clarissa Pinto Pizarro de Freitas ◽  
Michael F. Steger
Keyword(s):  
Response Bias ◽  
Choice Model ◽  
Organizational Psychology ◽  
Forced Choice ◽  
Model Fit ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Meaning Of Work ◽  
Positive Organizational Psychology ◽  
Latent Dimension

AbstractResponse biases are issues in inventories in positive organizational psychology. The study aims to control the response bias in the assessment of meaning of work through two methods: reversed key items and forced-choice format. The sample consisted of 351 professionals; women constituted 60.0 % of the sample. The participants answered two versions of the instrument for meaning of work: Likert-type items and forced-choice. For both versions, the unifactorial model was the most appropriate for the data available. The results indicate that the random intercepts model fit the Likert data (CFI = .92), as well as the forced-choice model (CFI = .97). Besides, the latent dimension of the forced-choice version did not correlate with acquiescence index (r < .08; p > .05), and approximately 20 % of the variance of the items might be due to the method (Likert or forced-choice). The present study illustrates the importance of response bias control in self-report instruments. ResumenLos sesgos de respuesta son problemas en los inventarios de la psicología organizacional positiva. El estudio tiene como objetivo controlar el sesgo de respuesta en la eva­luación del trabajo significativo a través de dos métodos: ítems clave invertidos y formato de elección forzosa. La muestra estuvo formada por 351 profesionales; las muje­res constituyeron el 60.0 % de la muestra. Los participan­tes respondieron dos versiones del instrumento de signifi­cado del trabajo: ítems tipo Likert y elección forzosa. Para ambas versiones, el modelo unifactorial fue el más apro­piado para los datos disponibles. Los resultados indican que el modelo de intersecciones aleatorias se ajusta a los datos Likert (CFI = .92), así como al modelo de elección forzada (CFI = .97). Además, la dimensión latente de la versión de elección forzada no se correlacionó con el ín­dice de aquiescencia (r < .08; p > .05), y aproximada­mente el 20 % de la varianza de los ítems podría deberse al método (Likert o forzado). elección). El presente estu­dio ilustra la importancia del control del sesgo de res­puesta en los instrumentos de autoinforme.

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