Affective Communication of Map Symbols: A Semantic Differential Analysis

Maps enable us to relate to spatial phenomena and events from viewpoints far beyond direct experience. By employing signs and symbols, maps communicate about near as well as distant geospatial phenomena, events, objects, or ideas. Besides acting as identifiers, map signs and symbols may, however, not only denote but also connote. While most cartographic research has focused on the denoting character of visual variables, research from related disciplines stresses the importance of connotative qualities on affect, cognition, and behavior. Hence, this research focused on the connotative character of map symbols by empirically assessing the affective qualities of shape stimuli. In three stimulus conditions of cartographic and non-cartographic contexts, affective responses towards a set of eight shape stimuli were assessed by employing a semantic differential technique. Overall findings showed that shape symbols lead to, at times, highly distinctive affective responses. Findings further suggest two particular stimulus clusters of affective qualities that prevailed over all stimulus conditions, i.e., a cluster of asymmetric stimuli and a cluster of symmetric stimuli. Between the intersection of psychology, cartography, and semiotics, this paper outlines theoretical perspectives on cartographic semiotics, discusses empirical findings, and addresses implications for future research.

Text Creolization as the Way to Change the Text Perception

The article presents the findings of the psycholinguistic experiments based on the semantic differential technique. The experiments’ objective was to identify the effect of illustration on a verbal text perception. We compared the respondents’ assessment of verbal texts and illustrated texts (with illustrations in major and minor color schemes). The data analysis reveals seven factors: Assessment , Naturalness , Strength , Imagery , Romanticism , Dynamism , Commonality . We identified the illustrations parameters affecting the assessment of creolized texts: adding any illustration, the illustration color scheme matching the verbal text content, the color scheme naturalness, the illustration color scheme matching the text emotional and semantic dominant, the use of minor color scheme. The most pragmatic potential was identified in the parameter “(non)matching the color scheme with the semantic dominant of the text” (it is important for the assessment of five out of seven factors). We found that both conformity ( Strength factor assessment) and inconsistency (for Dynamism , Imagery , Romance , Evaluation factors assessment) can be significant. The text creolization increases its Imagery and changes Romanticism factors. The color scheme matching the image content increases the text Naturalness assessment, and an unnatural color scheme decreases it. There was a decrease in Assessment if a minor color scheme was used.

Using the Semantic Differential Technique to Assess Stereotypes toward Individuals with Disabilities: The Relevance of Warmth and Competence

This study analyzes social perceptions towards groups with different types of disability, as well as the relationship between the judgments towards these groups, oneself and other significant individuals. The assessment was carried out using a Semantic Differential scale completed by181 participants. Results supported the Stereotype Content Model, as the different groups with disabilities were perceived in a more uniform way than those who did not share this label, and people with intellectual disability elicited paternalistic feelings. The results also support a two-factor model to explore the content of the stereotypes. Understanding the factors that contribute to the formation of social judgments is key to the implementation of actions that modify stereotypes and prejudices and promote equity.

Psychosemantic Research into the Phenomenon of Risk

The psychological aspect of risk constitutes one of the most discussed issues of modern interdisciplinary research. The profession of the psychologist implies a range of situations of risk for a specialist at various stages of career development. This article presents the results of a psychosemantics research into perceptions of the phenomenon of risk as seen by the students of the Department of Psychology. The findings clarify the peculiarities of the semantic sphere regarding the risks at the initial stage of acquiring the profession. The research was conducted in 2017. The sample comprised 60 students of the Department of Psychology. This research was based on the semantic differential technique modified by I.L. Solomin. We altered and extendedthe list of objects in accordance with the research goals. The results were processed by means of cluster and factor analysis. The analysis of individual clustering trees revealed rather significant semantic variability between the researched objects. A few subgroups of respondents were distinguished according to the individual peculiarities of semantic fields regarding the object ‘risk’. With the help of factor analysis, thespecifics of the affective attitude toward the object ‘risk’ were determined for both the whole sample and the individual subgroups of respondents. The psychosemantics approach completes the picture of the study into the psychological aspect of risk in professional activity and enables to identify the topics, which clarify the subtle nuances of the meaning of the notion ‘risk’ in the conscience of a specialist. Thus,there are vagueness and ambiguity of the subjective view of risk by psychology students, ambivalence of the affective attitude to risk, and a range of semantic subgroups toward the notion ‘risk’. Keywords: risk, professional risk, psychology of risk, risks of a psychology-related profession, situation of risk, subjective perception of risk, students, psychosemantics approach, semantic differential technique, semantic field

Age Peculiarities of Perceiving Advertisements with Antisocial Narrative

The article substantiates the judgment on scientific significance and socially induced importance of psychological analysis of advertising messages, of their potential violating the psychological safety. It describes the algorithm of the psychological analysis of the media-narrative, presents the analysis of the advertising clip «Pepsi» and gives the data of its perception by the users of different age groups. The research of the semantic evaluation of the advertising video is carried out using a modified version of the semantic differential technique. Subjects of two age groups participate in it: adolescent and juvenile. The article reveals and describes four meaningful factors of advertising evaluation based on the data obtained. It makes the comparison of advertising semantics in different age groups and present its results. The article reveals that the degree of criticality in advertising video perception is different for the subjects of different groups, the media content with violation of moral norms constitutes the psychological danger for adolescents and can provoke destructive forms of behaviour.

Fairytale Semantic Differential Technique: Diagnostic Possibilities

The method “Fairy Semantic Differential”, during which a respondent should assess a number of fairy-tale characters according to a set of personal characteristics, is designed for the individual work of a psychologist with children 4—10 years old.Personality characteristics, according to which the characters are evaluated, are formulated by words that adults use when dealing with children of this age.An analysis of the child’s attitude to characters allows us to determine the specificity of his/her moral-value sphere.Quantitative indicators that can be calculated using the data of the answering the questionnaire are discussed.These indicators characterize the child’s attitudes toward oneself and others, dimension of categorial space of interpersonal perception, content and hierarchy of these categories, the level of cognitive development in this area, the degree of socialization.The results of an empirical study are presented.Age/sex differences in the cognitive complexity of interpersonal perception and socialization were shown.For each indicator normative intervals are calculated.Examples of individual semantic space are presented.

The optimum colour temperature for illumination of Japanese-style gardens in summer and winter

Japanese-style gardens offer a wealth of spiritual and cultural value. In this study, we attempt to determine the optimum colour temperature for lighting Japanese-style gardens at night. We analyse the influence of a change in light source colour temperature on image recognition using digitalization and quantification with the semantic differential technique. In addition, we propose a new evaluation methodology for the semantic differential technique and examine the statistical significance of the results. We find that in summer, impressions of the optimum colour temperature for each element (vegetation, water, stone and structure) differ significantly, but in winter, because of the effects of snow, differences in the impression of each colour temperature are not as distinct. Moreover, the colour of the natural environment or overall season affects peoples’ preferred light source colour temperature.

The Influence of Teaching Methods on Learners’ Perception of E-safety

Aim/Purpose: The traditional method of teaching e-safety by lecturing is not very effective. Despite learners often being equipped with the right knowledge, they reject the need to act accordingly. There is a need to improve the way digital e-safety is taught. Background: The study compares four different teaching styles, examining how each affected the way students perceive a range of e-safety keywords and consequently the way they approach this issue. Methodology: The semantic differential technique was used to carry out the research. Students completed a semantic differential questionnaire before and after lessons. A total of 405 first year undergraduates took part in the study. Contribution: The paper contributes to the debate on appropriate methods for teaching e-safety, with an aim to influence learners’ attitudes. Findings: Experience-based learning seems to be very effective, confronting students with an e-safety situation and providing them with a negative experience. This teaching method had the biggest influence on students who were deceived by the prepared e-safety risk situation. Recommendations for Practitioners: E-safety instruction can be enhanced by ensuring that lessons provide students with a personal experience. Recommendation for Researchers: The semantic differential technique can be used to measure changes in learners’ attitudes during the teaching process. Impact on Society: Our findings may bring improvements to the way e-safety topics are taught, which could, in turn, evoke in learners a more positive e-safety attitude and a desire to improve their e-safety behavior. Future Research: More research needs to be carried out to examine how the experiential learning method affects the attitudes of younger learners (primary, middle, and high school students).

Dominant values of family purposefulness depending on some socio-demographic factors

The article presents the data of the empirical study of the dominant values of family purposefulness, depending on several socio-demographic factors (sex, and the presence / absence of his family according to the age). 50 girls and 50 boys of 15—18 age participated in the research; 50 women of 21—44 age and 45 men of 20—42 age, who are married and have children. Computer program Osgood of semantic differential technique modified by I.L. Solomina was applied. According to the purpose of the study there are chosen: 1) category of concepts related to the family life (people and groups, events, activities and ideal representation); 2) the concept of markers defining the basic values, stages of life, people, groups of people and attitude to them, gender concepts, activities, emotional feelings and events. It is brought out the dependence of the dominant values from sex factor. So, the girls have the dominance of the value concept “my future family”, the young men — “my future wife”. “The birth of a child” is the general dominant value for male and female, who are married and have children.