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Wiseman R, Watt C. Seeing the impossible: the impact of watching magic on positive emotions, optimism, and wellbeing. PeerJ 2024; 12:e17308. [PMID: 38708358 PMCID: PMC11067910 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.17308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Watching a magic trick is a unique experience in which seemingly impossible events appear possible but without any suspension of disbelief. Unfortunately, relatively little work has examined the psychological impact of this fascinating experience. In the current study, participants first completed a measure of the degree to which they disliked magic (Loathing of Legerdemain Scale: LOLS) and then watched a video that either contained a series of magic tricks (magic video) or carefully matched non-magic tricks (control video). Participants then rated the degree to which they experienced positive epistemic emotions (Epistemically Related Emotion Scale: ERES), their belief about impossible events being possible in the future (Modal Judgment Task: MJT), general optimism (State Optimism Measure: SOM) and subjective wellbeing (Satisfaction With Life Scale: SWLS). Compared to participants who watched the control video, those who saw the magic video reported more positive epistemic emotions on the ERES. There were no significant differences on the MJT, SOM and SWLS. Participants' LOLS scores were negatively correlated with the ERES, SOM and SWLS, suggesting that those who like magic are more likely to experience positive epistemic emotions, have higher levels of general optimism, and express greater satisfaction with their lives. These findings are discussed within the context of short-term and long-term exposure to magic, along with recommendations for future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Wiseman
- Department of Psychology, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Caroline Watt
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Midlothian, United Kingdom
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2
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Chen TY. ENIGMA: A Web Application for Running Online Artificial Grammar Learning Experiments. JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLINGUISTIC RESEARCH 2024; 53:38. [PMID: 38656669 DOI: 10.1007/s10936-024-10078-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Artificial grammar learning (AGL) is an experimental paradigm frequently adopted to investigate the unconscious and conscious learning and application of linguistic knowledge. This paper will introduce ENIGMA ( https://enigma-lang.org ) as a free, flexible, and lightweight Web-based tool for running online AGL experiments. The application is optimized for desktop and mobile devices with a user-friendly interface, which can present visual and aural stimuli and elicit judgment responses with RT measures. Without limits in time and space, ENIGMA could help collect more data from participants with diverse personal and language backgrounds and variable cognitive skills. Such data are essential to explain complex factors influencing learners' performance in AGL experiments and answer various research questions regarding L1/L2 acquisition. The introduction of the core features in ENIGMA is followed by an example study that partially replicated Chen (Lang Acquis 27(3):331-361, 2020) to illustrate possible experimental designs and examine the quality of the collected data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tsung-Ying Chen
- Department of Foreign Languages and Literature, National Tsing Hua University, 101, Section 2, Guangfu Road, Hsinchu, 300044, Taiwan.
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3
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Laine M, Jylkkä J, Ritakallio L, Eräste T, Kangas S, Hering A, Zuber S, Kliegel M, Fellman D, Salmi J. Spontaneous memory strategies in a videogame simulating everyday memory tasks. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2024; 77:611-625. [PMID: 37309805 PMCID: PMC10958750 DOI: 10.1177/17470218231183958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2022] [Revised: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/01/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
People can use different internal strategies to manage their daily tasks, but systematic research on these strategies and their significance for actual performance is still quite sparse. Here we examined self-reported internal strategy use with a 10-block version of the videogame EPELI (Executive Performance in Everyday LIving) in a group of 202 neurotypical adults of 18-50 years of age. In the game, participants perform lists of everyday tasks from memory while navigating in a virtual apartment. Open-ended strategy reports were collected after each EPELI task block, and for comparison also after an EPELI Instruction Recall task and a Word List Learning task assessing episodic memory. On average, 45% of the participants reported using some strategy in EPELI, the most common types being grouping (e.g., performing the tasks room by room), utilising a familiar action schema, and condensing information (e.g., memorising only keywords). Our pre-registered hypothesis on the beneficial effect of self-initiated strategy use gained support, as strategy users showed better performance on EPELI as compared with no strategy users. One of the strategies, grouping, was identified as a clearly effective strategy type. Block-by-block transitions suggested gradual stabilisation of strategy use over the 10 EPELI blocks. The proneness to use strategies showed a weak but reliable association between EPELI and Word List Learning. Overall, the present results highlight the importance of internal strategy use for understanding individual differences in memory performance, as well as the potential benefit for internal strategy employment when faced with everyday memory tasks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matti Laine
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Jussi Jylkkä
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Liisa Ritakallio
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Tilda Eräste
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Suvi Kangas
- Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Alexandra Hering
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Sascha Zuber
- Centre for the Interdisciplinary Study of Gerontology and Vulnerability, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research LIVES—Overcoming Vulnerability: Life Course Perspectives, Lausanne & Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Matthias Kliegel
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Centre for the Interdisciplinary Study of Gerontology and Vulnerability, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Daniel Fellman
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Juha Salmi
- Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
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4
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Laine M, Fellman D, Eräste T, Ritakallio L, Salmi J. Strategy use and its evolvement in word list learning: a replication study. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:230651. [PMID: 38356871 PMCID: PMC10864779 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024]
Abstract
Spontaneous strategy employment is important for memory performance, but systematic research on strategy use and within-task evolvement is limited. This online study aimed to replicate three main findings by Waris and colleagues in Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2021): in word-list learning, spontaneous strategy use (1) predicts better task performance, (2) stabilizes along the task, and (3) increases during the first two task blocks. We administered a shortened version of their original real-word list-learning task to 209 neurotypical adults. Their first finding was partly replicated: manipulation strategies (grouping, visualization, association, narrative, other strategy) but not maintenance strategies (rehearsal/repetition, selective focus) were associated with superior word recall. The second finding on the decrease in strategy changers over task blocks was replicated. The third finding turned out to be misguided: neither our nor the original study showed task-initial increase in strategy use in the real-word learning condition. Our results confirm the important role of spontaneous strategies in understanding memory performance and the existence of task-initial dynamics in strategy employment. They support the general conclusions by Waris and colleagues: task demands can trigger strategy use even in a familiar task like learning a list of common words, and evolution of strategy use during a memory task reflects cognitive skill learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matti Laine
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Daniel Fellman
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Tilda Eräste
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Liisa Ritakallio
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Juha Salmi
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
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5
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Carter GA, Hoffman P. Discourse coherence modulates use of predictive processing during sentence comprehension. Cognition 2024; 242:105637. [PMID: 37857052 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Revised: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Context has been shown to be vitally important for comprehension. Lexical processing is facilitated when words are highly predictable given their local sentence context, suggesting that people pre-activate likely upcoming words to aid comprehension. However, this facilitation is affected by knowledge about the global context in which comprehension takes place: people predict less when in an environment where expectations are frequently violated. The current study investigated whether discourse coherence is an additional cue that comprehenders use to modulate lexical prediction. In a series of online, self-paced reading experiments, participants read target sentences preceded by short contextual preambles. Local facilitation effects were manipulated through the cloze probability of a critical word within the target sentence and discourse coherence was manipulated by varying the degree to which the target sentence was consistent with the information presented in the preamble. In the first two experiments, target sentences were read more slowly when they occurred in less coherent discourses, but no local facilitation effects were observed. In the third experiment, we strengthened the predictability manipulation by using semantically anomalous critical words. In this experiment, predictable words were processed more quickly and anomalous words more slowly when they occurred in highly coherent discourse. Our results suggest that comprehenders are sensitive to shifts in the topic of discourse and that they downregulate predictive processing when they encounter incoherence in the discourse. This is consistent with recent theoretical accounts suggesting that comprehenders flexibly engage in predictive processing, pre-activating semantic and lexical information less when their expectations are less likely to be reliable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia-Ann Carter
- Institute for Language, Cognition and Computation, School of Informatics; University of Edinburgh, UK.
| | - Paul Hoffman
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences; University of Edinburgh, UK
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6
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Uygun S. Vulnerability in processing definiteness: The case of heritage Turkish. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1286407. [PMID: 38187427 PMCID: PMC10768069 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1286407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Definiteness has been argued to be difficult for language learners to acquire because the correct usage of definiteness requires the integration of external interfaces that involve linguistic and non-linguistic information. Previous offline studies with heritage speakers have constantly reported difficulties in the use of pragmatically appropriate definite forms. The current study aims to investigate the processing of definiteness in Turkish heritage speakers via a self-paced reading experiment and to compare heritage speakers' reading times and end-of-sentence acceptance percentage to monolingually-raised Turkish speakers. The results of the experiment indicate significant differences between the heritage and monolingually-raised Turkish speakers only in the end-of-sentence acceptance percentage data but not in the reading time data. This difference between the two groups suggests that Turkish heritage speakers perform differently from the monolingually-raised Turkish speakers only in indefinite-specific sentences when they have to use their metalinguistic knowledge. These results show that heritage speakers experience vulnerability/difficulty when they have to integrate external interfaces in indefinite-specific sentences but not in definite-specific sentences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serkan Uygun
- Faculty of Educational Sciences, Department of English Language Teaching, Bahçeşehir University, Istanbul, Türkiye
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7
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Gong T, Gao X, Jiang T. FAB: A "Dummy's" program for self-paced forward and backward reading. Behav Res Methods 2023; 55:4419-4436. [PMID: 36947356 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-022-02025-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/11/2022] [Indexed: 03/23/2023]
Abstract
The self-paced reading paradigm has been popular and widely used in psycholinguistic research for several decades. The tool described in this paper, FAB (Forward and Backward reading), is a tool created to hopefully and maximally reduce the coding demands and simplify the operation costs for experimental researchers and clinical researchers who are doing experimental work, in their designing, coding, implementing, and analyzing self-paced reading tasks. Its basis in web languages (HTML, JavaScript) also promotes experimental implementation and material sharing in our era of open science. In addition, FAB has a unique forward-and-backward mode that can track regressive-like behaviors that are usually only recordable using eye-tracking or mouse-tracking equipment. In this paper, the specific application and usage of FAB is demonstrated in one laboratory and two online validation experiments. We hope this free and open-sourced tool can benefit research in a diverse range of contexts where self-paced reading is desirable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianwei Gong
- Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Xuefei Gao
- School of Foreign Languages, Fuzhou University of International Studies and Trade, Fuzhou, 350202, China.
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
| | - Ting Jiang
- Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China.
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8
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Speed LJ, Iravani B, Lundström JN, Majid A. Losing the sense of smell does not disrupt processing of odor words. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2022; 235:105200. [PMID: 36347207 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2022.105200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2022] [Revised: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Whether language is grounded in action and perception has been a key question in cognitive science, yet little attention has been given to the sense of smell. We directly test whether smell is necessary for comprehension of odor language, by comparing language processing in a group of participants with no sense of smell (anosmics) to a group of control participants. We found no evidence for a difference in online comprehension of odor and taste language between anosmics and controls using a lexical decision task and a semantic similarity judgment task, suggesting olfaction is not critical to the comprehension of odor language. Contrary to predictions, anosmics were better at remembering odor words, and rated odor and taste words as more positively valenced than control participants. This study finds no detriment to odor language after losing the sense of smell, supporting the proposal that odor language is not grounded in odor perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura J Speed
- Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
| | - Behzad Iravani
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Johan N Lundström
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Stockholm University Brain Imaging Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Asifa Majid
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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9
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Kim N, Oh J. Learning From Mistakes: Impact of Careless Responses on Counseling Research Using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION IN COUNSELING AND DEVELOPMENT 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/07481756.2022.2073895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nayoung Kim
- New York Institute of Technology, New York, NY, USA
| | - JungSu Oh
- Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, IL, USA
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10
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Crible L. Negation Cancels Discourse-Level Processing Differences: Evidence from Reading Times in Concession and Result Relations. JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLINGUISTIC RESEARCH 2021; 50:1283-1308. [PMID: 34363178 DOI: 10.1007/s10936-021-09802-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Seminal studies on negation revealed that negative sentences are difficult to process, as they require an extra mental step. Similarly, at the discourse level, concession has been repeatedly shown to be more complex than other relations such as result because it implies the denial of an inference. The affinity between negation and concession prompted the present study to test whether overt verb polarity would affect the processing of upcoming discourse relations. In particular, it investigated whether negation can act as a cue to help process concessive relations. Results from four self-paced reading experiments indeed show a robust facilitation effect of negation on concession that cancels the baseline difference between concessive and result relations, thus nuancing existing context-blind categorizations of concession as a highly complex relation. This study furthers our understanding of how various types of cues interact in discourse processing and switches the focus from "what makes negation easier to process" to "what is made easier thanks to negation".
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludivine Crible
- Psychology Department, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK.
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11
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LaPlume AA, Paterson TSE, Gardner S, Stokes KA, Freedman M, Levine B, Troyer AK, Anderson ND. Interindividual and intraindividual variability in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) measured with an online cognitive assessment. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2021; 43:796-812. [PMID: 34556008 DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2021.1982867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Mean cognitive performance is worse in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) compared to control groups. However, studies on variability of cognitive performance in aMCI have yielded inconclusive results, with many differences in variability measures and samples from one study to another. METHODS We examined variability in aMCI using an existing older adult sample (n = 91; 51 with aMCI, 40 with normal cognition for age), measured with an online self-administered computerized cognitive assessment (Cogniciti's Brain Health Assessment). Our methodology extended past findings by using pure measures of variability (controlling for confounding effects of group performance or practice), and a clinically representative aMCI sample (reflecting the continuum of cognitive performance between normal cognition and aMCI). RESULTS Between-group t-tests showed significantly greater between-person variability (interindividual variability or diversity) in overall cognitive performance in aMCI than controls, although the effect size was with a small to moderate effect size, d = 0.44. No significant group differences were found in within-person variability (intraindividual variability) across cognitive tasks (dispersion) or across trials of a response time task (inconsistency), which may be because we used a sample measuring the continuum of cognitive performance. Exploratory correlation analyses showed that a worse overall score was associated with greater inter- and intraindividual variability, and that variability measures were correlated with each other, indicating people with worse cognitive performance were more variable. DISCUSSION The current study demonstrates that self-administered online tests can be used to remotely assess different types of variability in people at risk of Alzheimer`s. Our findings show small but significantly more interindividual differences in people with aMCI. This diversity is considered as "noise" in standard assessments of mean performance, but offers an interesting and cognitively informative "signal" in itself.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annalise A LaPlume
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest (Fully Affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada
| | - Theone S E Paterson
- Department of Psychology, University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada.,Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health Program, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada
| | - Sandra Gardner
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest (Fully Affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada.,Biostatistics Division, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kathryn A Stokes
- Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health Program, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada
| | - Morris Freedman
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest (Fully Affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada.,Division of Neurology, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, Mt. Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Medicine (Neurology), University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Brian Levine
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest (Fully Affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada.,Department of Medicine (Neurology), University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Angela K Troyer
- Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health Program, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Nicole D Anderson
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest (Fully Affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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12
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LaPlume A, Anderson ND, McKetton L, Levine B, Troyer AK. When I'm 64: Age-related variability in over 40,000 online cognitive test takers. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2021; 77:104-117. [PMID: 34329440 PMCID: PMC8755911 DOI: 10.1093/geronb/gbab143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives Age-related differences in cognition are typically assessed by comparing groups of older to younger participants, but little is known about the continuous trajectory of cognitive changes across age, or when a shift to older adulthood occurs. We examined the pattern of mean age differences and variability on episodic memory and executive function measures over the adult life span, in a more fine-grained way than past group or life-span comparisons. Method We used a sample of over 40,000 people aged 18–90 who completed psychometrically validated online tests measuring episodic memory and executive functions (the Cogniciti Brain Health Assessment). Results Cognitive performance declined gradually over adulthood, and rapidly later in life on spatial working memory, processing speed, facilitation (but not interference), associative recognition, and set shifting. Both polynomial and segmented regression fit the data well, indicating a nonlinear pattern. Segmented regression revealed a shift from gradual to rapid decline that occurred in the early 60s. Variability between people (interindividual variability or diversity) and variability within a person across tasks (intraindividual variability or dispersion) also increased gradually until the 60s, and rapidly after. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a single general factor (of variance shared between tasks) offered a good fit for performance across tasks. Discussion Life-span cognitive performance shows a nonlinear pattern, with gradual decline over early and mid-adulthood, followed by a transition in the 60s to notably accelerated, but more variable, decline. Some people show less decline than others, and some cognitive abilities show less within-person decline than others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annalise LaPlume
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Health Sciences (fully affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada
| | - Nicole D Anderson
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Health Sciences (fully affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Larissa McKetton
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Health Sciences (fully affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada
| | - Brian Levine
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Health Sciences (fully affiliated with the University of Toronto), Toronto, Canada.,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Medicine (Neurology), University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Angela K Troyer
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Neuropsychology and Cognitive Health Program, Baycrest Health Sciences, Toronto, Canada
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13
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Crible L, Wetzel M, Zufferey S. Lexical and Structural Cues to Discourse Processing in First and Second Language. Front Psychol 2021; 12:685491. [PMID: 34276509 PMCID: PMC8280496 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.685491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Discourse connectives are lexical items like "but" and "so" that are well-known to influence the online processing of the discourse relations they convey. Yet, discourse relations like causality or contrast can also be signaled by other means than connectives, such as syntactic structures. So far, the influence of these alternative signals for discourse processing has been comparatively under-researched. In particular, their processing in a second language remains entirely unexplored. In a series of three self-paced reading experiments, we compare the reading patterns of contrastive relations by native French-speakers and non-native speakers of French with English as a first language. We focus on the effect of syntactic parallelism and how it interacts with different types of connectives. We test whether native and non-native readers equally recruit parallelism to process contrast in combination with or without a connective (Experiment 1), with a frequent vs. infrequent connective (Experiment 2) and with an ambiguous vs. unambiguous connective (Experiment 3), thus varying the explicitness and ease of retrieval of the contrast relation. Our results indicate that parallelism plays an important role for both groups of readers, but that it is a more prominent cue for non-native speakers, while its effect is modulated by task difficulty for native participants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludivine Crible
- Institut Langage & Communication, Catholic University of Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Mathis Wetzel
- Institut de Langue et de Littérature Françaises, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Sandrine Zufferey
- Institut de Langue et de Littérature Françaises, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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14
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van Schijndel M, Linzen T. Single-Stage Prediction Models Do Not Explain the Magnitude of Syntactic Disambiguation Difficulty. Cogn Sci 2021; 45:e12988. [PMID: 34170031 DOI: 10.1111/cogs.12988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2020] [Revised: 04/21/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The disambiguation of a syntactically ambiguous sentence in favor of a less preferred parse can lead to slower reading at the disambiguation point. This phenomenon, referred to as a garden-path effect, has motivated models in which readers initially maintain only a subset of the possible parses of the sentence, and subsequently require time-consuming reanalysis to reconstruct a discarded parse. A more recent proposal argues that the garden-path effect can be reduced to surprisal arising in a fully parallel parser: words consistent with the initially dispreferred but ultimately correct parse are simply less predictable than those consistent with the incorrect parse. Since predictability has pervasive effects in reading far beyond garden-path sentences, this account, which dispenses with reanalysis mechanisms, is more parsimonious. Crucially, it predicts a linear effect of surprisal: the garden-path effect is expected to be proportional to the difference in word surprisal between the ultimately correct and ultimately incorrect interpretations. To test this prediction, we used recurrent neural network language models to estimate word-by-word surprisal for three temporarily ambiguous constructions. We then estimated the slowdown attributed to each bit of surprisal from human self-paced reading times, and used that quantity to predict syntactic disambiguation difficulty. Surprisal successfully predicted the existence of garden-path effects, but drastically underpredicted their magnitude, and failed to predict their relative severity across constructions. We conclude that a full explanation of syntactic disambiguation difficulty may require recovery mechanisms beyond predictability.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tal Linzen
- Department of Linguistics and Center for Data Science, New York University
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15
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Johnson BP, Dayan E, Censor N, Cohen LG. Crowdsourcing in Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience. Neuroscientist 2021; 28:425-437. [PMID: 34032146 DOI: 10.1177/10738584211017018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Behavioral research in cognitive and human systems neuroscience has been largely carried out in-person in laboratory settings. Underpowering and lack of reproducibility due to small sample sizes have weakened conclusions of these investigations. In other disciplines, such as neuroeconomics and social sciences, crowdsourcing has been extensively utilized as a data collection tool, and a means to increase sample sizes. Recent methodological advances allow scientists, for the first time, to test online more complex cognitive, perceptual, and motor tasks. Here we review the nascent literature on the use of online crowdsourcing in cognitive and human systems neuroscience. These investigations take advantage of the ability to reliably track the activity of a participant's computer keyboard, mouse, and eye gaze in the context of large-scale studies online that involve diverse research participant pools. Crowdsourcing allows for testing the generalizability of behavioral hypotheses in real-life environments that are less accessible to lab-designed investigations. Crowdsourcing is further useful when in-laboratory studies are limited, for example during the current COVID-19 pandemic. We also discuss current limitations of crowdsourcing research, and suggest pathways to address them. We conclude that online crowdsourcing is likely to widen the scope and strengthen conclusions of cognitive and human systems neuroscience investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian P Johnson
- Human Cortical Physiology and Neurorehabilitation Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Eran Dayan
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Imaging Center, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Nitzan Censor
- School of Psychological Sciences and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Leonardo G Cohen
- Human Cortical Physiology and Neurorehabilitation Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD, USA
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Waris O, Jylkkä J, Fellman D, Laine M. Spontaneous strategy use during a working memory updating task. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2021; 212:103211. [PMID: 33220613 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2020.103211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2020] [Revised: 09/08/2020] [Accepted: 10/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Cognitive skill learning postulates strategy generation and implementation when people learn to perform new tasks. Here we followed self-reported strategy use and objective performance in a working memory (WM) updating task to reveal strategy development that should take place when faced with this novel task. In two pre-registered online experiments with healthy adults, we examined short-term strategy acquisition in a ca 20-30-minute adaptive n-back WM task with 15 task blocks by collecting participants' strategy reports after each block. Experiment 1 showed that (a) about half of the participants reported using a strategy already during the very first task block, (b) changes in selected strategy were most common during the initial task blocks, and (c) more elaborated strategy descriptions predicted better task performance. Experiment 2 mostly replicated these findings, and it additionally showed that compared to open-ended questions, the use of repeated list-based strategy queries influenced subsequent strategy use and task performance, and also indicated higher rates of strategy implementation and strategy change during the task. Strategy use was also a significant predictor of n-back performance, albeit some of the variance it explained was shared with verbal productivity that was measured with a picture description task. The present results concur with the cognitive skill learning perspective and highlight the dynamics of carrying out a demanding cognitive task.
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17
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Crible L, Pickering MJ. Compensating for processing difficulty in discourse: Effect of parallelism in contrastive relations. DISCOURSE PROCESSES 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/0163853x.2020.1813493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ludivine Crible
- Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Martin J. Pickering
- Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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18
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Wiseman R, Houstoun W, Watt C. Pedagogic prestidigitation: using magic tricks to enhance educational videos. PeerJ 2020; 8:e9610. [PMID: 32742819 PMCID: PMC7380277 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.9610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2020] [Accepted: 07/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous research suggests that magic tricks can be employed within an educational context to enhance attention, engagement, critical thinking and recall. This study builds on this work by examining the impact of incorporating magic tricks into an online educational video. Adult participants (N = 198) completed a need for cognition scale and then watched a video containing either several bespoke card tricks that had been specially devised to help tell the story of the Apollo Moon landings (Magic Video), or an almost identical video that did not contain any magic tricks (Control Video). All participants rated their levels of engagement, absorption and recall. Compared to the Control Video, the Magic Video was rated as significantly more interesting, informative and absorbing. There was no difference between the groups for recall. There was a positive correlation between participants’ need for cognition scores, and the degree to which they found the Magic Video interesting, and were willing to share it with others. The theoretical, methodological and practical implications of these results are discussed, along with recommendations for future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Wiseman
- School of Psychology and Sport Science, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK
| | - William Houstoun
- Centre for Performance Science, Royal College of Music, University of London, London, UK
| | - Caroline Watt
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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19
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de-Dios-Flores I. Processing Sentences With Multiple Negations: Grammatical Structures That Are Perceived as Unacceptable. Front Psychol 2019; 10:2346. [PMID: 31695644 PMCID: PMC6817463 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2019] [Accepted: 10/01/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This investigation draws from research on negative polarity item (NPI) illusions in order to explore a new and interesting instance of misalignment observed for grammatical sentences containing two negative markers. Previous research has shown that unlicensed NPIs can be perceived as acceptable when occurring soon after a structurally inaccessible negation (e.g., ever in *The bills that no senators voted for have ever become law). Here we examine the opposite configuration: grammatical sentences created by substituting the NPI ever with the negative adverb never (e.g., The bills that no senators voted for have never become law). The processing and acceptability of these sentences were studied using three tasks: a speeded acceptability judgment (Experiment 1), a self-paced reading task (Experiment 2), and an offline acceptability rating (Experiment 3). The results are consistent across measures in showing that the integration of the adverb never is disrupted by the linearly preceding but structurally inaccessible negative quantifier no in the relative clause. In our view, this pattern of results is in line with Parker and Phillips' (2016) proposal that NPI illusions arise when the context containing the inaccessible negation has not been fully encoded by the time the NPI ever is encountered, making the embedded negative quantifier transparently available as a licensor. In a similar vein, the disruption effects observed for grammatical sentences containing two negative elements could arise if the negative quantifier is still being integrated when never is encountered, forcing the parser to deal with two negative elements simultaneously. This interpretation suggests that the same incomplete encodings that could be ameliorating the online perception of unlicensed NPIs could also be responsible for deteriorating the perception of the sentences under investigation here. This would represent an illusion of ungrammaticality. Furthermore, these results provide evidence against the speculation that NPI illusions are the consequence of misrepresenting ever as its near neighbor never, given that continuations with never are judged as unacceptable in spite of their grammaticality. Together, these findings inform the landscape of hypotheses on NPI illusions and offer valuable insights into the complexity of multiple negations and the relation between processing difficulty and acceptability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iria de-Dios-Flores
- English and German Department, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.,Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, Donostia, Spain
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20
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Petri JM, Weathers FW, Witte TK, Silverstein MW. The Detailed Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress-Second Edition (DAPS-2): Initial Psychometric Evaluation in an MTurk-Recruited, Trauma-Exposed Community Sample. Assessment 2019; 27:1116-1127. [PMID: 31609129 DOI: 10.1177/1073191119880963] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The Detailed Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress (DAPS; Briere, 2001) is a comprehensive questionnaire that assesses posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnostic criteria as well as peritraumatic responses and associated problems such as dissociation, suicidality, and substance abuse. DAPS scores have demonstrated excellent reliability, validity, and clinical utility, performing as well or better than leading PTSD questionnaires. The present study was an initial psychometric evaluation of the unreleased DAPS (DAPS-2), revised for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fifth edition (DSM-5), in an MTurk-recruited mixed trauma sample (N = 367). DAPS-2 PTSD scale and associated features scales demonstrated high internal consistency and strong convergent and discriminant validity. In confirmatory factor analyses, the DSM-5 four-factor model of PTSD provided adequate fit, but the leading seven-factor model provided superior fit. These results indicate the DAPS-2 is a psychometrically sound measure of DSM-5 PTSD symptoms.
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21
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Kim J, Gabriel U, Gygax P. Testing the effectiveness of the Internet-based instrument PsyToolkit: A comparison between web-based (PsyToolkit) and lab-based (E-Prime 3.0) measurements of response choice and response time in a complex psycholinguistic task. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0221802. [PMID: 31483826 PMCID: PMC6726137 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0221802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2018] [Accepted: 08/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
To test the effectiveness of the Internet-based instrument PsyToolkit for use with complex choice tasks, a replicability study was conducted wherein an existing psycholinguistic paradigm was utilised to compare results obtained through the Internet-based implementation of PsyToolkit with those obtained through the laboratory-based implementation of E-Prime 3.0. The results indicated that PsyToolkit is a viable method for conducting both general and psycholinguistic specific experiments that utilise complex response time tasks, with effects found to replicate for both response choice and response time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Kim
- Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- * E-mail:
| | - Ute Gabriel
- Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Pascal Gygax
- Department of Psychology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
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22
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The grammaticality asymmetry in agreement attraction reflects response bias: Experimental and modeling evidence. Cogn Psychol 2019; 110:70-104. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2019.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2018] [Revised: 01/18/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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23
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Assis Neto FR, Santos CA. Understanding crowdsourcing projects: A systematic review of tendencies, workflow, and quality management. Inf Process Manag 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ipm.2018.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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24
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Evaluating Amazon's Mechanical Turk for psychological research on the symbolic control of attention. Behav Res Methods 2018; 49:1969-1983. [PMID: 28127682 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-016-0847-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The use of online crowdsourcing services like Amazon's Mechanical Turk (AMT) as a method of collecting behavioral data online has become increasingly popular in recent years. A growing body of contemporary research has empirically validated the use of AMT as a tool in psychological research by replicating a wide range of well-established effects that have been previously reported in controlled laboratory studies. However, the potential for AMT to be used to conduct spatial cuing experiments has yet to be investigated in depth. Spatial cuing tasks are typically very basic in terms of their stimulus complexity and experimental testing procedures, thus making them ideal for remote testing online that requires minimal task instruction. Studies employing the spatial cuing paradigm are typically aimed at unveiling novel facets of the symbolic control of attention, which occurs whenever observers orient their attention through space in accordance with the meaning of a spatial cue. Ultimately, the present study empirically validated the use of AMT to study the symbolic control of attention by successfully replicating four hallmark effects reported throughout the visual attention literature: the left/right advantage, cue type effect, cued axis effect, and cued endpoint effect. Various recommendations for future endeavors using AMT as a means of remotely collecting behavioral data online are also provided. In sum, the present study provides a crucial first step toward establishing a novel tool for conducting psychological research that can be used to expedite not only our own scientific contributions, but also those of our colleagues.
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25
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Strickland JC, Stoops WW. Feasibility, acceptability, and validity of crowdsourcing for collecting longitudinal alcohol use data. J Exp Anal Behav 2018; 110:136-153. [DOI: 10.1002/jeab.445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2018] [Accepted: 05/09/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - William W. Stoops
- Department of Psychology University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences
- Department of Behavioral Science University of Kentucky College of Medicine
- Department of Psychiatry University of Kentucky College of Medicine
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26
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Villata S, Tabor W, Franck J. Encoding and Retrieval Interference in Sentence Comprehension: Evidence from Agreement. Front Psychol 2018; 9:2. [PMID: 29403414 PMCID: PMC5780450 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2017] [Accepted: 01/03/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Long-distance verb-argument dependencies generally require the integration of a fronted argument when the verb is encountered for sentence interpretation. Under a parsing model that handles long-distance dependencies through a cue-based retrieval mechanism, retrieval is hampered when retrieval cues also resonate with non-target elements (retrieval interference). However, similarity-based interference may also stem from interference arising during the encoding of elements in memory (encoding interference), an effect that is not directly accountable for by a cue-based retrieval mechanism. Although encoding and retrieval interference are clearly distinct at the theoretical level, it is difficult to disentangle the two on empirical grounds, since encoding interference may also manifest at the retrieval region. We report two self-paced reading experiments aimed at teasing apart the role of each component in gender and number subject-verb agreement in Italian and English object relative clauses. In Italian, the verb does not agree in gender with the subject, thus providing no cue for retrieval. In English, although present tense verbs agree in number with the subject, past tense verbs do not, allowing us to test the role of number as a retrieval cue within the same language. Results from both experiments converge, showing similarity-based interference at encoding, and some evidence for an effect at retrieval. After having pointed out the non-negligible role of encoding in sentence comprehension, and noting that Lewis and Vasishth's (2005) ACT-R model of sentence processing, the most fully developed cue-based retrieval approach to sentence processing does not predict encoding effects, we propose an augmentation of this model that predicts these effects. We then also propose a self-organizing sentence processing model (SOSP), which has the advantage of accounting for retrieval and encoding interference with a single mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Villata
- Psycholinguistics Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Whitney Tabor
- Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States
- Haskins Laboratories, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Julie Franck
- Psycholinguistics Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
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27
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Waris O, Soveri A, Ahti M, Hoffing RC, Ventus D, Jaeggi SM, Seitz AR, Laine M. A Latent Factor Analysis of Working Memory Measures Using Large-Scale Data. Front Psychol 2017; 8:1062. [PMID: 28701976 PMCID: PMC5487690 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2017] [Accepted: 06/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Working memory (WM) is a key cognitive system that is strongly related to other cognitive domains and relevant for everyday life. However, the structure of WM is yet to be determined. A number of WM models have been put forth especially by factor analytical studies. In broad terms, these models vary by their emphasis on WM contents (e.g., visuospatial, verbal) vs. WM processes (e.g., maintenance, updating) as critical, dissociable elements. Here we conducted confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses on a broad set of WM tasks, half of them numerical-verbal and half of them visuospatial, representing four commonly used task paradigms: simple span, complex span, running memory, and n-back. The tasks were selected to allow the detection of both content-based (visuospatial, numerical-verbal) and process-based (maintenance, updating) divisions. The data were collected online which allowed the recruitment of a large and demographically diverse sample of adults (n = 711). Both factor analytical methods pointed to a clear division according to task content for all paradigms except n-back, while there was no indication for a process-based division. Besides the content-based division, confirmatory factor analyses supported a model that also included a general WM factor. The n-back tasks had the highest loadings on the general factor, suggesting that this factor reflected high-level cognitive resources such as executive functioning and fluid intelligence that are engaged with all WM tasks, and possibly even more so with the n-back. Together with earlier findings that indicate high variability of process-based WM divisions, we conclude that the most robust division of WM is along its contents (visuospatial vs. numerical-verbal), rather than along its hypothetical subprocesses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Otto Waris
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi UniversityTurku, Finland
| | - Anna Soveri
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi UniversityTurku, Finland
- Turku Brain and Mind Center, University of TurkuTurku, Finland
| | - Miikka Ahti
- Department of Psychology, University of TurkuTurku, Finland
| | - Russell C. Hoffing
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, RiversideCA, United States
| | - Daniel Ventus
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi UniversityTurku, Finland
| | - Susanne M. Jaeggi
- School of Education, University of California, Irvine, IrvineCA, United States
| | - Aaron R. Seitz
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, RiversideCA, United States
| | - Matti Laine
- Department of Psychology, Åbo Akademi UniversityTurku, Finland
- Turku Brain and Mind Center, University of TurkuTurku, Finland
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28
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Morgan E, Levy R. Abstract knowledge versus direct experience in processing of binomial expressions. Cognition 2016; 157:384-402. [PMID: 27776281 PMCID: PMC5143228 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2016.09.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2014] [Revised: 08/17/2016] [Accepted: 09/15/2016] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
We ask whether word order preferences for binomial expressions of the form A and B (e.g. bread and butter) are driven by abstract linguistic knowledge of ordering constraints referencing the semantic, phonological, and lexical properties of the constituent words, or by prior direct experience with the specific items in questions. Using forced-choice and self-paced reading tasks, we demonstrate that online processing of never-before-seen binomials is influenced by abstract knowledge of ordering constraints, which we estimate with a probabilistic model. In contrast, online processing of highly frequent binomials is primarily driven by direct experience, which we estimate from corpus frequency counts. We propose a trade-off wherein processing of novel expressions relies upon abstract knowledge, while reliance upon direct experience increases with increased exposure to an expression. Our findings support theories of language processing in which both compositional generation and direct, holistic reuse of multi-word expressions play crucial roles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Morgan
- Department of Linguistics, University of California at San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0108, United States; Department of Psychology, Tufts University, 490 Boston Ave, Medford, MA 02155, United States.
| | - Roger Levy
- Department of Linguistics, University of California at San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0108, United States; Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139-4307, United States
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29
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Measuring sequences of keystrokes with jsPsych: Reliability of response times and interkeystroke intervals. Behav Res Methods 2016; 49:1163-1176. [DOI: 10.3758/s13428-016-0776-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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30
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Pearson JL, Richardson A, Feirman SP, Villanti AC, Cantrell J, Cohn A, Tacelosky M, Kirchner TR. American Spirit Pack Descriptors and Perceptions of Harm: A Crowdsourced Comparison of Modified Packs. Nicotine Tob Res 2016; 18:1749-56. [PMID: 27170707 DOI: 10.1093/ntr/ntw097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2015] [Accepted: 03/30/2016] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION In 2015, the Food and Drug Administration issued warnings to three tobacco manufacturers who label their cigarettes as "additive-free" and/or "natural" on the grounds that they make unauthorized reduced risk claims. The goal of this study was to examine US adults' perceptions of three American Spirit (AS) pack descriptors ("Made with Organic Tobacco," "100% Additive-Free," and "100% US Grown Tobacco") to assess if they communicate reduced risk. METHODS In September 2012, three cross-sectional surveys were posted on Amazon Mechanical Turk. Adult participants evaluated the relative harm of a Marlboro Red pack versus three different AS packs with the descriptors "Made with Organic Tobacco," "100% Additive-Free," or "100% US Grown Tobacco" (Survey 1; n = 461); a Marlboro Red pack versus these AS packs modified to exclude descriptors (Survey 2; n = 857); and unmodified versus modified AS pack images (Survey 3; n = 1001). RESULTS The majority of Survey 1 participants rated the unmodified AS packs as less harmful than the Marlboro Red pack; 35.4%-58.8% of Survey 2 participants also rated the modified (no claims) packs as less harmful than Marlboro Red. In these surveys, prior use of AS cigarettes was associated with reduced perceptions of risk (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.59-2.40). "Made with Organic Tobacco" and "100% Additive-Free" were associated with reduced perceptions of risk when comparing the modified versus the unmodified AS packs (Survey 3). CONCLUSIONS Data suggest that these AS pack descriptors communicate reduced harm messages to consumers. Findings have implications for regulatory actions related to product labeling and packaging. IMPLICATIONS These findings provide additional evidence that the "Made with Organic Tobacco," "100% Additive-Free," and "100% US Grown" descriptors, as well as other aspects of the AS pack design, communicate reduced harm to non-, current, and former smokers. Additionally, they provide support for the importance of FDA's 2015 warning to Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company on "100% Additive Free" as an unauthorized modified risk claim.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Pearson
- The Schroeder Institute for Tobacco Research and Policy Studies, Truth Initiative, Washington, DC; Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD;
| | - Amanda Richardson
- The Schroeder Institute for Tobacco Research and Policy Studies, Truth Initiative, Washington, DC; Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
| | - Shari P Feirman
- The Schroeder Institute for Tobacco Research and Policy Studies, Truth Initiative, Washington, DC
| | - Andrea C Villanti
- The Schroeder Institute for Tobacco Research and Policy Studies, Truth Initiative, Washington, DC; Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
| | - Jennifer Cantrell
- Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD; Evaluation Science and Research, Truth Initiative, Washington, DC
| | - Amy Cohn
- The Schroeder Institute for Tobacco Research and Policy Studies, Truth Initiative, Washington, DC
| | | | - Thomas R Kirchner
- Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD; College of Global Public Health, New York University, New York, NY
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