Humans depart from optimal computational models of interactive decision-making during competition under partial information

Decision making under uncertainty in multiagent settings is of increasing interest in decision science. The degree to which human agents depart from computationally optimal solutions in socially interactive settings is generally unknown. Such understanding provides insight into how social contexts affect human interaction and the underlying contributions of Theory of Mind. In this paper, we adapt the well-known ‘Tiger Problem’ from artificial-agent research to human participants in solo and interactive settings. Compared to computationally optimal solutions, participants gathered less information before outcome-related decisions when competing than cooperating with others. These departures from optimality were not haphazard but showed evidence of improved performance through learning. Costly errors emerged under conditions of competition, yielding both lower rates of rewarding actions and accuracy in predicting others. Taken together, this work provides a novel approach and insights into studying human social interaction when shared information is partial.

Chapter 10. Explainable Neuro-Symbolic Hierarchical Reinforcement Learning

Human-robot interactive decision-making is increasingly becoming ubiquitous, and explainability is an influential factor in determining the reliance on autonomy. However, it is not reasonable to trust systems beyond our comprehension, and typical machine learning and data-driven decision-making are black-box paradigms that impede explainability. Therefore, it is critical to establish computational efficient decision-making mechanisms enhanced by explainability-aware strategies. To this end, we propose the Trustworthy Decision-Making (TDM), which is an explainable neuro-symbolic approach by integrating symbolic planning into hierarchical reinforcement learning. The framework of TDM enables the subtask-level explainability from the causal relational and understandable subtasks. Besides, TDM also demonstrates the advantage of the integration between symbolic planning and reinforcement learning, reaping the benefits of both worlds. Experimental results validate the effectiveness of proposed method while improving the explainability in the process of decision-making.

Experience and Discussion: Safeguards for People With Disabilities During the COVID-19 Pandemic in China

The special vulnerability of people with disability (PWD) in the COIVD-19 pandemic has been confirmed by many studies, but data shows that the infection rate of PWD in China is lower than for non-disabled people. We believe that this difference can be attributed to the Chinese government's targeted safeguards for the disabled community during the pandemic, including support for disability empowerment, the establishment of a remote interactive decision-making system, fair vaccine distribution and economic protection for PWD. The professionalism of decision-makers and the maintenance of channels of interaction with PWD are also important. All of these changes have benefitted China's public health policy and legal framework. This system, which has six components (governance, prevention, response, knowledge, coordination, and people), enables the country to quickly formulate a series of safeguards for PWD that have a sufficient legal basis. We believe that China's rapidly improving public health policy and legal framework will make a hugely significant impact by alleviating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the PWD community. Countries should pay more attention to discovering the special needs and obstacles of PWD in the COIVD-19 pandemic: in referring to China's experience, they should explore the protection framework for persons with disabilities and adjust it to their own needs on the basis of national conditions.

Dynamics of Trust in Automation and Interactive Decision Making during Driving Simulation Tasks

As technological advancements and lowered costs make self-driving cars available to more people, it becomes important to understand the dynamics of human-automation interactions for safety and efficacy. We used a dynamical approach to examine data from a previous study on simulated driving with an automated driving assistant. To maximize effect size in this preliminary study, we focused the current analysis on the two lowest and two highest-performing participants. Our visual comparisons were the utilization of the automated system and the impact of perturbations. Low-performing participants toggled and maintained reliance either on automation or themselves for longer periods of time. Decision making of high-performing participants was using the automation briefly and consistently throughout the driving task. Participants who displayed an early understanding of automation capabilities opted for tactical use. Further exploration of individual differences and automation usage styles will help to understand the optimal human-automation-team dynamic and increase safety and efficacy.

MULTI-DOMAIN DESIGN ASSESSMENT FOR AEROSPACE COMPONENTS INCLUDING WELD ACCESSIBILITY

Aeroengine manufacturers need to better include assessment of risk and cost for realising the novel products needed to meet the ambitions sustainability driven targets for air transport. Radical technologies are needed that simultaneously require critical manufacturing processes to be assessed already in conceptual design.In this paper, a multi-domain framework for conceptual design and evaluation is proposed that provide the ability to interactively explore the concepts that simultaneously allow a wider range of architectures can be assessed and still include weldability of the concepts.It has been demonstrated how high level, and function driven conceptual design alternatives can be modelled and evaluated to analyse risk and resilience of architectures. Geometrical concepts generated for the most interesting regimes using design of experiments covering a desired design space. For each CAD-model the welding process can be simulated to assess feasibility and lead time for welding, and return quantified results to be included in an integrated results data set for interactive decision making. The paper is the first report from a research project that improve concurrent design of product and production concepts.

2. International Governance and the Formulation of Environmental Law and Policy

This chapter examines the institutions of global governance responsible for formulating and implementing international environmental policy and law. It starts by defining global governance as a continuing process via which conflicting or diverse interests may be accommodated. This provides the environment where cooperative action may be taken. Global governance includes formal institutions and regimes empowered to enforce compliance, as well as informal arrangements. In this situation, there is no single model or form of global governance, nor is there a single structure or set of structures. Global governance, therefor, is a broad, dynamic, complex, process of interactive decision-making. The chapter also looks at the differences in international environmental policy and law today compared to when this book first published twenty-five years previously.

Understanding needs and expectations of heart failure patients and their caregivers regarding digital health - the PASSION-HF project

Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – EU funding. Main funding source(s): INTERREG-NWE Background/Introduction Current heart failure (HF) healthcare provision is not sufficient. Due to demographic changes and subsequent increases in comorbidities, along with unequal distribution of medical care in rural areas, alternative approaches need be sought. The use of eHealth applications has potential to enable patients to become more self-sufficient. The "PASSION-HF" project aims to develop an interactive decision-making system – a virtual doctor – that provides solutions based on current guidelines and artificial intelligence. Patient independence is maximized through 24/7 access to personalized HF-management. Furthermore, the application defines decision points, where medical professionals need to be included. Purpose To understand needs and expectations of HF patients and their informal caregivers in regard to a virtual doctor. Methods We conducted an exploratory mixed-methods study within the Netherlands, UK, Ireland and Germany. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were supplemented by a standardized questionnaire. The interviews focused on i) acceptance and motivation to use a virtual doctor and ii) experience and perception of current health care provision. The interviews were analysed using the content analysis according to Mayring (2010) with the help of "ATLAS.TI" software. Additional information about the role of informal caregivers, technology acceptance and decision-making processes was collected via questionnaires. Results A total of 49 patients and 33 informal caregivers were interviewed. Most patients were male (76%), aged between 60 and 69 years (43%). Three key themes were identified in regard to an interactive decision-making system: 1) Reassurance, because patients felt uncertain about their condition and their symptoms, they had a strong desire for an application that could monitor their health 24/7, was able to spot deteriorations, before they occured and gave them instant feedback about their current health status; 2) Personalized advice, e.g. patients wanted the virtual doctor to adapt medication, sport activities and food recommendations to their current health status; and 3) Transparency, e.g. patients wanted to know, where the recommendations are coming from and justifications for management modifications. Interview findings also identified that the HF-nurses play a significant role in the care and management of the condition. Across all countries with HF-nurses, they were the primary point of contact, when patients had any HF related concerns. Conclusion The findings provide valuable information for the development and implementation of eHealth solutions. Patients want reassurance, independently of the availability of healthcare services, combined with personalized advice regarding day-to-day management of their HF. For the next step, we are planning a multicentre clinical trial to test the prototype of the application. Here all decisions are examined by a clinical committee and benefits are evaluated.

Opening the black box of employee entrepreneurship decision-making

PurposeEmployee entrepreneurship has recently become an emerging area of investigation. However, due to the fragmentation of the turnover and entrepreneurship literature, no coherent theoretical framework has been developed to provide an adequate description of the employee entrepreneurial process. The purpose of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of why and how an employee in an established organization progresses toward starting a new venture by exploring the key decision-making processes during the initial stages of employee entrepreneurship.Design/methodology/approachThis study addresses the following research questions: What are the key decision-making processes during the initial stages of employee entrepreneurship? How are these decisions made, and how do they interact? This study employed a multiple case study approach, which enabled the authors to gain valuable insight into these “what” and “how” questions. The data consist of 28 in-depth employee entrepreneurship cases.FindingsBased on an in-depth study of 28 cases, this study constructs a comprehensive model of the dynamic and interactive decision-making processes that lead to employee entrepreneurship. In particular, the findings reveal that rather than being a linear staged activity, employee entrepreneurship is an inherently iterative process that involves a set of interrelated subdecision-making processes related to turnover, team entrepreneurship and partner recruitment that entail multiple iterations and feedback loops based on an individual's cognitive judgment.Originality/valueBy illustrating and clarifying the importance of the effects of different initial motivations and the attributes of the network in the course of the employee entrepreneurship decision-making process, this study integrates the turnover and entrepreneurship literature and makes significant contributions to the current literature on employee entrepreneurship. Moreover, this study complements research investigating entrepreneurial team formation by providing a detailed understanding of how the lead entrepreneur and the prospective partner make mutual choices during the entrepreneurial team formation process.

Determinants of acceptance of patients with heart failure and their informal caregivers regarding an interactive decision-making system: a qualitative study

ObjectiveHeart failure is a growing challenge to healthcare systems worldwide. Technological solutions have the potential to improve the health of patients and help to reduce costs. Acceptability is a prerequisite for the use and a successful implementation of new disruptive technologies. This qualitative study aimed to explore determinants that influence the acceptance of patients and their informal caregivers regarding a patient-oriented digital decision-making solution—a doctor-at-home system.DesignWe applied a semistructured design using an interview guide that was based on a theoretical framework influenced by established acceptance theories. The interviews were analysed using a content analysis.SettingA multicentred study in four European countries.ParticipantsWe interviewed 49 patients and 33 of their informal caregivers. Most of the patients were male (76%) and aged between 60 and 69 years (43%). Informal caregivers were mostly female (85%). The majority of patients (55%) suffered from heart failure with mild symptoms.ResultsFour main categories emerged from the data: needs and expectations, preferences regarding the care process, perceived risk and trust. Participants expressed clear wishes and expectations regarding a doctor-at-home, especially the need for reassurance and support in the management of heart failure. They were receptive to changes to the current healthcare processes. However, trust was identified as an important basis for acceptance and use. Finally, perceived risk for decision-making errors is a crucial topic in need of attention.ConclusionPatients and informal caregivers see clear benefits of digitalisation in healthcare. They perceive that an interactive decision-making system for patients could empower and enable effective self-care. Our results provide important insights for development processes of patient-centred decision-making systems by identifying facilitators and barriers for acceptance. Further research is needed, especially regarding the influence and mitigation of patients and informal caregivers’ perceived risks.