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ABSTRACTS
Table of Contents
CT - 10(1) Volume 10, Issue No. 1 Spring 2005
CT - 9(1) • Volume 9, Issue No. 2 Fall 2004
CT - 9(1) • Volume 9, Issue No. 1 Spring 2004
CT - 7(1) Volume 8, Issue No. 2 Fall 2003
CT - 7(1) Volume 8, Issue No. 1 Spring 2003
CT - 7(2) Volume 7, Issue No. 2 Fall 2002
CT - 7(1) Volume 7, Issue No. 1 Spring 2002
CT - 6(2) Volume 6, Issue No. 2 Fall 2001
CT - 6(1) Volume 6, Issue No. 1 Spring 2001
CT - 5(2) Volume 5, Issue No. 2 Fall 2000
CT - 5(1) Volume 5, Issue No. 1 Spring 2000
CT - 4(2) Volume 4, Issue No. 2 Fall 1999
CT - 4(1) Volume 4, Issue No. 1 Spring 1999
CT - 3(2) Volume 3, Issue No. 2 Fall 1998
CT- 3(1) Volume 3, Issue No. 1 Spring 1998
CT - 2(2) Volume 2, Issue No. 2 Fall 1997
CT - 2(1) Volume 2, Issue No. 1 Spring 1997
CT - 1(1) Volume 1, Issue No. 1 Fall 1996
CT - 10(1) Volume 10, Issue No. 1 Spring 2005
4 The Self-Monitoring Approach for Effective Learning
John Dunlosky, Ph.D., Christopher Hertzog, Ph.D., Mary Kennedy, Ph.D. and Keith Thiede, Ph.D.
12 Evolution, Culture and the Processes of Learning and Memory
Kathleen Heath, Ph.D. and Larry Gant, Ph.D.
15 What Aspects of Their Memories do People Most Want to Improve?
Kenneth Higbee, Ph.D.
18 Distributed Artificial Neural Network (DANN) Models of Cognitive Functioning Glenn Gettinger, M.Div., Eric Anderson, M.A., Torsten Alvager, Ph.D., David Beach, Ph.D., W. Tad Foster, Ed.D. and Folajimi Fayemi, M.S.
24 Advertising as Information or Misinformation?
Sven van de Wetering, Ph.D., Daniel Bernstein, Ph.D. and Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D.
29 Using the Self-report Free Recall Technique to Explore Everyday Memory Failures in the Aging Adult.
Gabrielle Osborne, M.A.
38 Articulatory Suppression in Bilingual and Second Language Speakers
Mary Flaherty, Ph.D. and Aidan Moran, Ph.D.
47 Pain Assessment Based on a Fixed Resource Method
Rebecca Burfeind, M.D., Gilbert Fanciullo M.D. Robert Jamison, Ph.D. and John Baird, Ph.D
The Self-Monitoring Approach for Effective Learning
John Dunlosky, Ph.D.
Kent State U niversity
Christopher Hertzog, Ph.D.
Georgia Institute of T echnology
Mary Kennedy, Ph.D.
University of Minnesota
Keith Thiede, Ph.D.
University of Illinois at Chicago.
People often seek techniques that can enhance their learning and retention of important materials. Whereas popular techniques focus on how to increase the effectiveness of memorization by using mnemonics, the self-monitoring approach attempts to enhance people’s learning vis-à-vis the use of accurate monitoring to regulate study. As such, this approach may complement existing mnemonic techniques by helping students to identify which materials have not been well learned and hence require further study. The promise of this self-monitoring approach is illustrated by evidence from three independent lines of research, which demonstrate that the use of accurate monitoring can improve learning for individuals with varying abilities and across different kinds of material.
Evolution, Culture and the Processes of Learning and Memory
Kathleen Heath, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Larry Gant, Ph.D.
University of Michigan
Methods and technologies for enhancing cognitive learning and memory abilities have exploded in the last ten years. However, the potential benefits of cognitive aids may exceed the actual outcome because of a lack of under-standing about how people learn and remember based on our evolutionary adaptation to a hunter-gatherer way of life and our adaptations to particular cultures. Here we discuss the value of understanding our adaptive ancestral self and the role of culture in developing an agenda for individual learning and memory strategies.
What Aspects of Their Memories do People Most Want to Improve?
Kenneth Higbee, Ph.D.
Brigham Young University
There has been much research on how often people experience specified memory problems. This research investigated the importance, rather than the frequency of occurrence, of everyday memory problems by asking people in memory-improvement classes what aspects of their memories they most want to improve. Remembering people’s names was the most important aspect and remembering everyday tasks was more important for females than for males. Other aspects of memory also showed gender and age differences.
Distributed Artificial Neural Network (DANN) Models of Cognitive Functioning
Glenn Gettinger, M.Div.
Eric Anderson, M.A.
Torsten Alvager, Ph.D.
David Beach, Ph.D.
W. Tad Foster, Ed.D.
Folajimi Fayemi, M.S.
Indiana State University
This article proposes a new approach for the use of artificial neural net-works in the modeling of cognitive brain functioning. Early artificial neural network models began modeling cognitive function at the neural level using one computer to process all algorithms. The complexity of the neural system in most species suggests that a more realistic approach to modeling cognitive function would be to design a system with multiple artificial neural networks distributed over multiple computers. In this approach each computer in the distributed network would serve a particular function. The goal of this research is to determine a preferable configuration of computer hardware resources and will eventually enable tests of rival theories of cognition and of treatments for neurological disorders.
Advertising as Information or Misinformation?
Sven van de Wetering, Ph.D.
Simon Fraser University
Daniel Bernstein, Ph.D.
University of Washington
Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D.
University of California , Irvine
Defenders of advertising often insist that advertisements serve an in-formational function. The present work explores the use of misinformation in advertising as a means of distorting memory. We review recent work on memory and advertising that demonstrates the malleability of memory after exposure to advertisements containing misleading in-formation. Memory distortion can readily occur for products whose features are hard to verbalize (e.g., the taste of orange juice or wine, the smell of coffee, a theme park vacation). Such memory distortion may compromise one's ability to effectively evaluate products, especially in cases where memory is vital to the evaluation. We argue that misinformation in advertising can distort memory, possibly undermining the informational value of such advertising.
Using the Self-report Free Recall Technique to Explore Everyday Memory Failures in the Aging Adult.
Gabrielle Osborne, M.A.
Claremont Graduate University
Memory failures are lapses in cognitive performance that occur in everyday life. In a laboratory setting, older adults show a decline in memory skills (e.g., Burke & Light, 1981; Park et al., 1996) and therefore they may experience more memory failures in a non-laboratory environment. Self-report questionnaire assessments, however, have shown that older adults experience fewer memory failures. The current study used a self-report free recall interview to gather data on the types and reasons for memory failures participants experienced in everyday life. This technique also allowed an observation of any autobiographical reminiscence bump in the recall of memory failures.
Articulatory Suppression in Bilingual and Second Language Speakers
Mary Flaherty, Ph.D.
Aidan Moran, Ph.D.
University College Dublin
There is variation in the literature as to the effect of articulatory suppression on numeral span performance in bilinguals. This study attempts to address these differences by considering the influence of the different definitions of bilingualism and the effect of orthographic variables. The language proficiency in English and Japanese of 39 participants was assessed by measuring their reading rate for both numerals and digit words in the two languages. Those who had learned both languages as children and who spoke both languages daily were “bi-lingual” (n=20), and the others (n=19) who were native English-speaking learners of Japanese were “second-language learners” (L2). Memory span was obtained for numerals and digit words in both languages, under normal and articulatory suppression conditions. The bilinguals’ numeral span advantage in English was eliminated under suppression. L2s showed a superior performance in English in both numerals and digit words in the normal and suppression memory tasks. Memory span on Arabic numerals and Japanese digit words (written in kanji) were similar for both groups of participants, thus suggesting the importance of orthographic features on memory span
Pain Assessment Based on a Fixed Resource Method
Rebecca Burfeind, M.D.
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
Gilbert Fanciullo M.D.
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and Dartmouth Medical School
Robert Jamison, Ph.D.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School
John Baird, Ph.D
Psychological Applications and Dartmouth Medical School
We evaluated a new rating method that allows patients to express their recalled pain as a profile of percentages over different intensity levels rather than by using more traditional category scaling methods. Patients in chronic pain generated percent-ages of time they experienced pain by adjusting the heights of four bars, displayed on the computer, representing four levels of pain intensity (none, some, moderate, extreme). The bars were dynamically linked to each other so that changing the height of any one of them simultaneously changed the heights of all the remaining ones in the opposite direction. Cluster analysis identified and separated the patients into three groups, each characterized by a distinct pain profile.
CT - 9(2) • Volume 9, Issue No. 2 Fall 2004
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 The Focus on Cognition in the Psychopathology Literature: A Bibliometric Analysis
June Sprock, Ph.D. and Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Preface to Special Section
20 Science and Security: Human-centered Research for Keeping our Nation Safe
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D., Florian Jentsch, Ph.D. and Joshua Rubinstein, Ph.D.
22 Search efficiency for multiple targets
Tammy Menneer, Ph.D., Luke Phillips, M.S., Nick Donnelly, Ph.D., Doug J. K.
Barrett, Ph.D. and Kyle R. Cave , Ph.D.
26 Oculomotor Scanning and Target Recognition in Luggage X-Ray Screening
Jason S. McCarley, Ph.D. and Daniel W. Carruth, B.S.
30 Individual Differences in Sustained Attention and Threat Detection
David A. Washburn, Ph.D., Lauren A. Taglialatela, Ph.D., Pamela R. Rice, M.A. and J. David Smith, Ph.D.
34 Stimulus Competition During Perceptual Learning: Training and Aptitude Considerations in the X-ray Security Process
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D., Sondro Scielzo, B.S. and Florian Jentsch, Ph.D.
40 Considering Science and Security from a Broader Research Perspective Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D., Joshua Rubinstein, Ph.D. and Florian Jentsch, Ph.D.
43 The Effects of Computer-Mediated Communication on Knowledge Structures in Problem-Solving Situations
Ami L. Barile-Spears, Ph.D., Suzanne Booher, M.S. and Francis T. Durso, Ph.D.
49 Adding Voice to the Lineup and the Confidence-Accuracy Relationship: Tests Using the MSL Lineup
Avraham M. Levi, Ph.D. and Kobi Wimisberg, M.S.
The Focus on Cognition in the Psychopathology Literature: A Bibliometric Analysis
June Sprock, Ph.D.
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
The present review assessed the degree to which cognitive psychology has been applied to the study of psychopathology. Two studies were conducted using bibliometric analyses (i.e., keyword searches) to review the psychopathology literature (1991-1997; 1998-1999). In both, the name of each disorder in the DSM-IV was combined with terms from cognitive psychology in keyword searches of the abstracts provided in the APA’s electronic databases. The cognitive terms were selected to represent basic topic areas in cognitive psychology. Most of the articles referring to the cognitive terms were limited to the literature on certain diagnostic groups and disorders (i.e., cognitive, psychotic, mood, eating, anxiety, and childhood disorders), and there were very few articles that cited some of the cognitive terms (i.e., problem solving, decision making, and reasoning). The second study added an examination of different cognitive approaches in the psychopathology literature. Although neuropsychology and cognitive therapy were mentioned with some frequency in the literature, references to cognitive neuropsychology, cognitive psychology, cognitive theory, or cognitive rehabilitation were rare. Despite limitations of the bibliometric method, the results suggest that some basic topics and some approaches in cognitive psychology have received little attention within the psychopathology literature. Reasons for these findings are discussed and recommendations are made for a systematic evaluation of cognitive functioning associated with specific mental disorders in order to bring about a more complete understanding of these disorders and their treatment.
Preface to Special Section
Science and Security: Human-centered Research for Keeping our Nation Safe
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D.
Florian Jentsch, Ph.D.
University of Central Florida
Joshua Rubinstein, Ph.D.
Transportation Security Administration
Critical to meeting the needs arising from the government’s evolving role in our nation’s security is a broader understanding of how to guide, and even change, the interaction between science practice and science policy. From a practical standpoint, it is important that technologies be investigated for their potential applicability to national security. From a theoretical standpoint, the concepts that drive the investigation and development of new technologies and the refinement of emerging technologies must also be identified.
Search Efficiency for Multiple Targets
Tammy Menneer, Ph.D.
Luke Phillips, M.S.
Nick Donnelly, Ph.D.
University of Southampton, UK.
Doug J. K. Barrett, Ph.D.
University of Nottingham, UK.
Kyle R. Cave, Ph.D.
University of Massasschusetts
In most visual search experiments, there is only one possible target object or class of objects. The experiment reported here compares performance in these single-target searches against performance when the target can be either of two different stimuli. The targets used in this experiment were color squares. Results showed that conducting two single-target searches is more efficient than carrying out a dual target search. If visual search is driven by a mental template of the object to be found, then searches for two targets may require a very general template, or a pair of templates that are active simultaneously, which apparently produces less efficient search. Many real world search tasks, such as searches of X-ray images by baggage screeners, require simultaneous search for very different targets (“Find any guns or knives or explosive devices.”). This need for generality could result in search that is less directed and therefore less efficient.
Oculomotor Scanning and Target Recognition in Luggage X-Ray Screening
Jason S. McCarley, Ph.D.
Daniel W. Carruth, B.S.
Mississippi State University
Visual search for a camouflaged target requires effective oculomotor scanning and object recognition. Our studies of eye movement behavior show that as subjects practice a simulated luggage screening task, increases in sensitivity arise from improvements in the ability to recognize targets, not from changes in the effectiveness of visual scanning. Improvements in recognition, however, show only partial transfer following the introduction of novel targets. Results carry implications for the design of screener training and support systems.
Individual Differences in Sustained Attention and Threat Detection
David A. Washburn, Ph.D.
Lauren A. Taglialatela, Ph.D.
Pamela R. Rice, M.A.
Georgia State University
J. David Smith, Ph.D.
University at Buffalo
When one asks a question such as, “What is the effect of time-on-task on performance?” the answer (e.g., a vigilance decrement) is likely to describe the results for a group of participants without necessarily characterizing the data from any particular participant. We examined the effects of time-on-task on participants who were searching for guns, knives and scissors in X-ray images of suitcases. Although performance did change across the 25-minute test session, the characteristics of this change varied as a function of the sustained-attention skills brought to the task by participants, as measured with a continuous-performance task. These data have implications for selection and training of airport security personnel, for the ways in which scientists address basic questions about the variables influencing performance in dynamic environments, and for the ways in which administrators frame research policy pertaining to complex applied settings.
Stimulus Competition During Perceptual Learning: Training and Aptitude Considerations in the X-ray Security Process
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D.
Sondro Scielzo, B.S.
Florian Jentsch, Ph.D.
University of Central Florida
In this paper, we describe an effort designed to understand some of the fundamental perceptual learning processes associated with X-ray security screening. We manipulated the learning environment by varying amount of “clutter” in the training stimuli. We then explored the differential benefits of training threat item detection based upon spatial aptitudes by using test items varying in “occlusion” (X-ray images with/without overlapping items) and “difficulty” (X-ray images varying in amount of distracting clutter). Spatial aptitude differentially influenced learning dependent upon both clutter in the training environment and the nature of the test items. Results are discussed in the context of aptitude-treatment interactions in perceptual learning. Implications for training in the security screener task are drawn.
Considering Science and Security from a Broader Research Perspective
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D.
University of Central Florida
Joshua Rubinstein, Ph.D.
Transportation Security Administration
Florian Jentsch, Ph.D.
University of Central Florida
In this paper we discuss some of the broader research issues surrounding science and society and how to potentially conceptualize some of the research policy decisions related to national security. We describe recent publications on science policy and the practice of science and how it is that the scientific and policy communities must recognize that fundamental scientific research and applied research are not mutually exclusive. We discuss how the framework of use-inspired basic research fits well with current needs associated with science and security and how it is that policy can be devised to support efforts that simultaneously pursue theoretical and practical goals.
The Effects of Computer-Mediated Communication on Knowledge Structures in Problem-Solving Situations
Ami L. Barile-Spears, Ph.D.
Mercer University
Suzanne Booher, M.S.
University of Central Arkansas
Francis T. Durso, Ph.D.
Texas Tech University
Knowledge structures in problem solving for different modes of communication were examined. Groups solved a murder mystery problem either via computer or in person and then rated concepts for relatedness. Individuals also solved the problem and rated the concepts. Performance scores did not differ among conditions. Ratings were analyzed using the Pathfinder scaling algorithm. The Pathfinder analysis revealed that CMC (computer-mediated communication) groups are not at a disadvantage when communicating distantly. Furthermore, results suggest that, overall; group work may be more individual and less synergistic than is generally believed.
Adding Voice to the Lineup and the Confidence-Accuracy Relationship: Tests Using the MSL Lineup
Avraham M. Levi, Ph.D.
Jerusalem
Kobi Wimisberg, M.S.
Carnegie Mellon University
The jury is still out regarding whether adding voice to a lineup improves its performance. Theory and research are in conflict. The confidence-accuracy relationship is also controversial. This experiment tested the effect of adding voice to the video-clips of lineup members in the MSL (Multiple choice-Sequential- Large) lineup and confidence judgements to choices. The MSL lineup is an enlarged sequential lineup that allows witnesses to choose more than once. The author and one of two confederates recruited the witnesses. The confederate was the “culprit” in a target-present or -absent lineup viewed later. The videoclips were either with or without the voice of the lineup member. Confidence judgments were taken for each lineup choice made. Identification accuracy was no better in the culprit-present voice conditions, nor was there less mistaken choices in the culprit-absent ones. However, if the suspect was chosen with a high degree of confidence, the probability of his guilt was greater.
CT - 9(1) • Volume 9, Issue No. 1 Spring 2004
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4. Beyond the Memory Recall: Why dissociations among memory measures may prove useful to ergonomics
Patrice Terrier, Ph.D., and Jean-Marie Cellier, Ph.D.,
14. Specifying User’s Knowledge – A Cognitive Ergonomic View on Designing I Information Technology
Gerrit C. van der Veer, Ph.D. and Mari Carmen Puerta Melguizo, Ph.D.
25. Effectiveness of CD-ROM Memory Training as a Function of Within-Session Autonomy
Jane S. Saczynski, Ph.D., George W. Rebok, Ph.D., Keith E. Whitfield, Ph.D. and Dana J. Plude, Ph.D.
33. A Cognitive Learning Principle Derived from the Role Acquisition Strategies of Professional Actors
Tony Noice, Ph.D. and Helga Noice, Ph.D.
39. Operationalizing Cognates and False Cognates: Using Translation Elicitation to Generate Stimuli in Six Languages
Brian M. Friel, M.S. and Richard Jackson Harris, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Spring 2004
Beyond the Memory Recall: Why dissociations among memory measures may prove useful to ergonomics
Patrice Terrier, Ph.D.
Jean-Marie Cellier, Ph.D.
Université de Toulouse Le-Mirail
A distinction has now sufficiently entrenched the field of memory research that entire books were devoted to it: the distinction between explicit and implicit memory tasks. We propose that an interesting strategy for task analysis in work settings could emerge from this body of data. In this brief note we suggest that the sort of memory task, that is a test manipulation, can recruit specific processing operations conducted at study. This strategy, which extends the logic of dissociation traditionally used both in ergonomics and in cognitive psychology, does not fall into the selective assumption hypothesis, is non-intrusive, and would allow the study of variations in processing operations induced by natural variations in task conditions. We briefly report some results acquired in the context of process control in order to illustrate the reliability of this strategy relying on the manipulation of memory tests.
Specifying User’s Knowledge – A Cognitive Ergonomic View on Designing Information Technology
Gerrit C. van der Veer, Ph.D.
Mari Carmen Puerta Melguizo, Ph.D.
Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam (The Netherlands)
Whereas, for the human user, the system is a single more or less monolith “thing;” for the designer it is crucial to find out what types of knowledge will be needed and, hence, have to be specified. The aim of DUTCH (designing for users and tasks, from concepts to handles) is to specify all the relevant knowledge a user should possess to use the system. Such a full specification of all aspects of the technology to be (re)designed is what the model calls UVM (users virtual machine) and the main assumption is that it has to be done from the point of view of the prospective user. This paper starts with a brief overview of the DUTCH design approach that focuses on knowledge of the information technology as well as knowledge of the work situation and organization. In the next section we will deal in detail with the types of knowledge users need for adequately working with complex information technology. Next we will show what designers need to consider when focusing on user knowledge and to what extend different user roles make a difference for design. In the last section we will highlight detail design of information technology, which, in the DUTCH approach, means modeling the user’s virtual machine. To this end we will propose a modeling language NUAN (new user action notation) and provide an example of how NUAN captures the specification of technology details as far as relevant for user understanding.
Effectiveness of CD-ROM Memory Training as a Function of Within-Session Autonomy
Jane S. Saczynski, Ph.D.
George W. Rebok, Ph.D.
Department of Mental Health
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Keith E. Whitfield, Ph.D.
Department of Biobehavioral Health
Pennsylvania State University
Dana J. Plude, Ph.D.
Department of Psychology
University of Maryland
This study investigated the acquisition of computer skills in relation to computerized memory training in a sample of middle-aged and older adults. Computer skills included mouse use, navigation through the training CD, and autonomy of the training sessions and were assessed in twelve training sessions. Participant characteristics, including prior computer use, were non-significantly associated with acquisition of computer skills over either the first or second half of the training sessions. Acquisition of computer skills was differentially associated with memory performance within training sessions and cognitive performance assessed at posttest. Skills acquisition and performance relationships also differed between the first and second training intervals. Findings suggest that acquisition of computer skills is not a barrier to computerized learning and that novel interventions can be offered to individuals of various ages and computer skill levels. Additionally, computer learning early in the training is a more salient factor in memory improvement than are skills acquired in the second half of the training. Results offer implications for the design and evaluation of computerized training programs.
A Cognitive Learning Principle Derived from the Role Acquisition Strategies of Professional Actors
Tony Noice, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Helga Noice, Ph.D.
Elmhurst College
In recent years, a wide variety of active learning techniques such as “Cooperative Learning” have been proposed and implemented. This article describes a new active learning device based on the role-acquisition strategies of professional actors. The “Active Experiencing Principle” (AE) bypasses deliberate memorization. In fact, participants are specifically instructed not to memorize but to deeply experience the communication of the to-be-learned material, either in their imaginations or with a partner. The background of the principle is presented, along with evidence of its effectiveness in terms of accurate recall of both words and meaning. Furthermore, the use of the technique to enhance overall cognitive and affective functioning is discussed.
Operationalizing Cognates and False Cognates: Using Translation Elicitation to Generate Stimuli in Six Languages
Brian M. Friel, M.S.
Richard Jackson Harris, Ph.D.
Kansas State University
An empirical method of generating words that were either cognates or false cognates to English in six other languages produced a database of words usable as stimuli in a variety of research paradigms in the study of bilingualism and language learning. The translation elicitation task investigated the guessing of word meaning in six languages (Experiment 1: German, Icelandic, Croatian; Experiment 2: French, Portuguese, Spanish). Native English speakers ( N = 298) guessed the meanings of 100 nouns from a language unknown to them. Guesses for words containing non-English characters (e.g., ß, ç) were less accurate than for other words, although pronunciation guides for each language reduced the differences between conditions in Experiment 1. Data were used to empirically identify words that were cognates or false cognates with English words for possible use in other research. Overlap scores across translations reliably predicted cognate status. Differences across languages were interpreted in terms of etymological distance from English, orthographic depth, and special character prevalence.
CT - 7(1) Volume 8, Issue No. 2 Fall 2003
Bartering Our Attention: The Distraction and Persuasion Effects of On-Line Advertisements
Brad J. Sagarin, M. Anne Britt, Jeremy D. Heider, Sarah E. Wood, and Joel E. Lynch, Northern Illinois University
New marketing models enable consumers to choose between paying money for products for receiving ad-sponsored versions. Two experiments examined whether these ad-sponsored products represent reciprocal exchanges of desired goods for consumer attention, as perceived by marketers, or giveaways of desired goods at no cost whatsoever, as perceived by consumers. Participants solved anagrams on a computer in the presence or absence of small, static, visually peripheral advertisements. Results suggest that although consumers maintain illusory beliefs that they can tune out such ads. The ads have substantial persuasive and subtle distracting effects. Additional results demonstrate that the interference effects of ad competition, recognition and persuasion were reduced by a second ad, but animating the ads partially mitigate this effect. Ads distracted participants by facilitating procrastination (Exp. 2) but also may have aided participants by helping them break mental sets (Exp. 1).
Cognitive Technology and Self-presentation: Perceptions and Self-Perceptions of Users and Non-Users.
Virgil Sheets, Stacy Fox, Carolyn McGuire and Kristy Spindler, Indiana State University
Theoretical models suggest that possessions serve as extensions of the self and are used to communicate a sense of one's self to others. Accordingly, we explored whether technological devices to aid memory are used to reflect the self, one's identity. One hundred forty-one college students served as participants in an experiment and also completed a brief survey. In the experiment, participants viewed someone who recorded a phone number in a planner, a cell phone, or a palm-pilot, and reported their perceptions of him. In the survey, participants reported their own use of these devices and rated themselves on a set of personality traits. The results confirmed that people who use technological devices to aid memory are perceived differently from people who do not use these devices and that some to these differences reflect differences in self-perceptions of users and non-users. These findings support our contention that technological devices such as cell pones and personal digital assistants (PDAs) reveal aspects of the users' identities to others.
When Time Flies: Effects of Skilled Memory on Time Transformation in Rock Climbers.
Matt Canham, University of California, and Jennifer Wiley, University of Illinois at Chicago.
"Flow" is a psychological state in which performers become completely absorbed in their task, actions are performed effortlessly, and the sense of time passage is distorted. A flow state can occur at any level of skill when there is an optimal balance between a perceived challenge and one's skill level. The current research investigates skilled memory, a possible cognitive correlate of time transformation in flow states. Significant differences were found between novice and expert climbers in memory for a climbing route and the probability of experiencing a flow state in the past. Measures taken immediately following climbs also suggested that experts were more likely to experience both flow states in general and time transformation in particular.
A New Telephone Dialer for Severely Motor Impaired Nonverbal Persons and its Psychological and Cognitive Implications.
E. Doherty, S. Ali, D. Baskaradhas, P. Michael, Fairleigh Dickinson University and J. Rizzo, Morris County Family Services
The simple act of making a phone call is impossible for many motor impaired individuals. A device using a sensor switch, electrode and transducer was created which allowed two severely motor impaired subjects to place a call without assistance. The electrode was worn on the forehead and a computer was used to generate an image of a 15 key console (this computer image was then projected on the wall to make it easier to see). The user could select a one button speed dial option or could select numbers individually. Both subjects could operate the phone including the "hang-up" button and the more impaired subject took 30 minutes to make the call and use his voice synthesizer to select groups of text. Although this may sound a bit time intensive, the user was quite motivated as this was the first call he had placed independently in 12 years.
Measuring Invisible Cognitions: A Technique and Applications
Frederick Parenté, Michael Nestor, Eric Stouffer, Jennifer Wingrat, and Tiffany Hiob, Towson University.
Invisible cognitions are perceptions and thought processes that cannot be detected with conventional statistical procedures. These phenomena usually go unnoticed in studies of cognition because the conventional data analyses are insensitive to them. Two experiments investigated the concept of invisible cognitions with a variety of data sets from studies of cognition and memory. In the first experiment, we used data sets where the Pearson correlations among all pairs of variables in the data sets were not significant. This condition insured that the general linear model could not predict any variable from any other. We then analyzed these data with an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) to determine if it could predict one variable from others in the set. The results indicated that the ANN was able to detect relationships among the variables in the data sets that were invisible to the general linear model. In the second experiment, college students rated slides of artwork on five dimensions. Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA) was used to predict one dimension (pleasingness) from the remaining four. Those dimensions that did not predict using the MRA were then used in the ANN model, which produced a significant fit to the data. Predictions of ANN model were validated in a second scaling of the same slides with a different sample of students.
The Influence of Multimodality, Talker Variability and Noise on Immediate Serial Recall
Sonya Sheffert, Megan MacPherson,and Melissa Wilson, Central Michigan University
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mnemonic effects of audiovisual speech. This is a critical issue in areas such as distance education which rely on televised audiovisual speech. Previous research has demonstrated that the ability to see a talker's face can facilitate speech processing. Other research has shown that dual coding may reduce cognitive load and improve memory for verbal information. The experiments reported here were designed to determine if the advantages of audiovisual interfaces extend beyond perception by improving working memory processing. In Experiment 1, participants completed a memory span task in which lists of spoken words were presented either unimodally or multimodally, by one taker or ten talkers, and at a fast rate or a slow rate. The data showed that under clear listening conditions the presence of a talker's face significantly reduced memory span. Talker variability and rate also affected recall. In contrast, when the auditory signal was slightly noisy (Experiment 2), visible speaker information was no longer a liability. Taken together, the results indicate that engaging student's interest through the use of audiovisual talkers does not automatically lead to better retention of the linguistic content. In some situations, there may be cognitive costs associated with multimodal communicative technologies.
Book Review - Multimedia Design Principles: Maximizing the Utility of "Multimodalities" When Implementing "Multi-media"
Sandro Scielzo, and Stephen M. Fiore, University of Central Florida
Review of Multimedia Learning by Richard E. Mayer
With ever-increasing popularity in educational and training settings, multimodal presentations are used to convey instructional material. The advances and availability of modern technology seem to have changed the learning experience radically. However, how well can a multimedia presentation efficiently translate into effective multimedia learning? Richard Mayer methodically explores this question, and with the clarity of a true empiricist, he informs the reader on the most current theory and research. In turn, an important conclusion emerges: Effective multimedia presentation must be based on solid design principles that are modeled after the learner's cognitive abilities. In this review we first summarize the critical points from this important book and then we discuss some remaining issues not explicitly addressed.
CT - 7(1) Volume 8, Issue No. 1 Spring 2003
Design Activities: How to Analyze Cognitive Effort Associate to Cognitive Treatments?
Nathalie Bonnardel and Annie Piolat, University of Provence
Working memory issues are important in many real-life activities. Thus, measuring cognitive effort (or mental load) has been a main research topic for years in cognitive ergonomics, though no consensual method to study this aspect has been proposed, in addition, we argue that cognitive effort has to be related to an analysis of the evolution of cognitive procedss3s (or "time processing"). From this perspective, we present and discuss experimental procedures that have been used for years to study writing activities. In experiments reported in this paper, these procedures are used for studying design activities, in the context of computer graphics and we site design.
Memory of Past Designs: Distinctive Roles in Individual and Collective Design
Françoise Détienne, EIFFEL Research Group "cognition and Cooperation in Design" INRIA
Empirical studies on design have emphasized the role of memory of past solutions. Design involves the use of generic knowledge as well as episodic knowledge about past designs for analogous problems: in this way, it involves the reuse of past designs. We analyze this mechanism of reuse from a socio-cognitive viewpoint. According to a purely cognitive approach, reuse involves cognitive mechanisms linked to the problem solving activity itself. Our socio-cognitive approach accounts for these phenomena as well as reuse mechanisms linked to cooperation, in particular coordination, and confrontation/integration of viewpoints.
Delete Memories: Learning Through Deliberate Forgetting.
Oronzo Parlangeli, Francesca Rizzo, University of Siena and Sebastiano Bagnara, Politecnico di Milano
Failures in memory performances tend to be associated with a negative value, forgetting is thus perceived as something to be avo8ided in order to improve both everyday and working activities. Far from being a common sense interpretation this consideration of forgetting has also characterized most of the scientific literature on forgetting. But, as in everyday life we are frequently unable to process all the information available to us, it seems that some type of forgetting of information is necessary. In fact, most of the time people have to replace old information with new as the contest changes. The present work focuses, through a series of theoretical reflections, on the positive role of forgetting. By doing so the article presents many experimental investigations that might contribute to a new hypothesis of forgetting as a way to better design and implement training activities in contests that are characterized by high levels of uncertainty due to sudden environmental changes.
The Representation of context in the Simulation of complex Systems
Patrizia Marti and Petra Scrivani, University of Siena
This paper moves from the recognition of the importance of the role of context in determining human action. By context we mean social and cultural properties of an environment as defined by activity theory (Kaptelinin, 1996). According to activity theory, human beings live in an environment that is meaningful in itself. This environment consists of entities that combine all kinds of objective features, including the culturally determined ones, which, in turn, determine the way people act on these entities. This notion of context is fundamental for understanding the role of artifacts in mediating human action. In the paper, we adopt the activity theory framework to reflect upon how to represent "the context" for accessing the impact of new technologies in complex systems like air traffic control (ATC)/. Nowadays. The validation of such technologies is mostly performed through the simulation of the operational environment, where controllers perform their activity as if they were in a real situation. We describe an experience we made simulating the activity of an air traffic control tower in managing aerodrome traffic. The simulation was carried out using structured scenarios to represent activities really observed in the control tower and adapted to fit the context of simulation (more advanced control tools, subset of controllers working together). These scenarios offered a valid contribution toward the representation of the context on complex systems like ATC. They successfully contributed to recreate realistic situations where the system components were subject to the full variability of input data and situations that may occur in the real world. Through the description and discussion of the case study, we argue that social and cultural properties of the context need to be represented and analyzed, as well as the physical and cognitive aspects of the human-system interaction. The analysis of these properties can be beneficial in particular for assessing the impact of the introduction of new technology or the application of new operational concepts on safety.
Differential Roles for Visuospatial and Verbal Working Memory in the Construction of Mental Models of Physical Systems.
José Juan Cañas, Ladislao Salmerón, Adoración Antoli, Immaculada Fajardo, University of Granada, Spain, Christiana Chisalita, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, and Juan Tomás Escudero, University of Balearic Islands, Spain.
People use mental models while interacting with physical systems. Designers have been using knowledge elicitation techniques to inf3er user's mental model in order to design interfaces compatible with it. However , to use those techniques correctly we need to define a model that shows how mental models are constructed and simulated during the execution of the elicitation task, Cañas and Antoli (1998) proposes that a mental model is a dynamic representation created in working memory (WM) by combining information stored in long-term memory (the user's conceptual model of the system) and characteristics extracted from the environment. This paper describes an experiment that analyzes the role of the WM components in the construction of mental models. It is concluded that both structure and function information of mental models is processed at the visuospatial component of WM. In addition, data supports the idea the function information is also processed at the verbal component of WE. Finally, some theoretical and practical implications for research on mental models and the use of knowledge elicitation techniques are discussed.
Organizational Memory: The Product of a Reflexive Activity
C. Sauvagnac and P. Falzon, Laboratorie d'ergonmomie du CNAM-41 rue Gay-Lussac, Paris.
Developing an organizational memory (OM) has become a necessity because of the constant and fast evolution of organizations. OM is the result of the process of organizational learning, defined by its temporal characteristics and by way of its circulation. Building of OM requires a reflexive activity. A Field study suggests that during therapeutic decision making. The reflexive use of criteria is a critical issue allotting values to criteria allows one to build knowledge. Decision making mobilizes knowledge for mutual learning, but also changes knowledge. This mechanism needs tools: organizational tools and reports for keeping track of decisions.
CT - 7(2) Volume 7, Issue No. 2 Fall 2002
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 Public Education Against False Memories: A Modest Proposal
Sven van de Wetering, Ph.D., Daniel M. Bernstein, Ph.D., and Elizabeth
F. Loftus, Ph.D.
8 Use of Memory Aids as Cognitive Prostheses in Schizophrenia:
An Untapped Potential?
Paul H. Lysaker, Ph.D., Michael Nees, B.A., and Rebecca S. Lancaster,
M.S.
13 Bartlett's Cognitive Technology
David J. Murray, Ph.D. and Christina A. Bandomir, M.A.
23 The Effects of Story Affect and Story Role on Participants'
Memory for Character Sex in News Stories
Jeffrey A. Gibbons, Ph.D., Nicole M. Traxel, B.A., Rodney J. Vogl,
Ph.D., and Tom Grimes, Ph.D.
34 Memory Failures in Supermarket Shoppers: Evidence for Age and
Gender Differences
Sarah-Jane Williams, B.Sc. and Michael Gruneberg, Ph.D.
39 Up to Forty: Lineup Size, the Modified Sequential Lineup, and
the Sequential Lineup
A.M. Levi, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Fall 2002
Public Education Against False Memories: A Modest Proposal
Sven van de Wetering, Ph.D.
Simon Fraser University
Daniel M. Bernstein, Ph.D.
University of Washington
Elizabeth F. Loftus, Ph.D.
University of California at Irvine
Memory is prone to systematic biases and errors. The present work
outlines a proposal for educating the public about memory's fallibility.
We discuss the formation of false memories and possible theoretical
mechanisms responsible for such errors. We also present some memory
concepts that might prove useful to educators and the public alike.
We conclude by presenting several ways to teach people to be more
skeptical about their own memories.
Use of Memory Aids as Cognitive Prostheses in Schizophrenia:
An Untapped Potential?
Paul H. Lysaker, Ph.D.
Roudebush VA Medical Center and the
Indiana University School of Medicine
Michael Nees, B.A.
Roudebush VA Medical Center
Rebecca S. Lancaster, M.S.
Indiana University - Purdue University of Indianapolis
A considerable body of research has indicated that impairments
in the ability to store and retrieve verbal information are common
features of schizophrenia. The current paper seeks to discuss how
strategies developed for other groups with significant memory loss
might be applied to help persons with schizophrenia. In particular
we concentrate on strategies yet to be applied to schizophrenia
which focus on compensating for memory loss through the use of technologies
or external aids. These approaches, in contrast to remediation approaches
that are already starting to be applied to schizophrenia, do not
aim to repair memory loss but instead seek to help persons live
with their deficits by providing them with devices that function
conceptually as cognitive prostheses. We propose that such devices,
if appropriately configured, could be used to increase medication
adherence, reduce behavioral disturbances, assist with cognitive
self-monitoring and facilitate work function in schizophrenia. Implications
for future research are discussed.
Bartlett's Cognitive Technology
David J. Murray, Ph.D.
Queen's University
Christina A. Bandomir, M.A.
University of Guelph
While Bartlett's Remembering (1932) is well known, his books entitled
The Mind at Work and Play (1951) and Thinking (1958) have received
little publicity. It is shown that, if the three books are considered
as a series, a general overview of cognitive psychology emerges
that, even though it is not mathematical, is both comprehensive
and applicable in practice to tasks ranging in difficulty from simple
sensorimotor skills to the solution of major scientific problems.
The Effects of Story Affect and Story Role on Participants'
Memory for Character Sex in News Stories
Jeffrey A. Gibbons, Ph.D.
Christopher Newport University
Nicole M. Traxel, B.A.
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Rodney J. Vogl, Ph.D.
Christian Brothers University
Tom Grimes, Ph.D.
Kansas State University
The current study examined the effect of story affect and story
role on participants' memory for characters' sex in news stories.
In Experiment 1, participants viewed four nurturing TV news stories,
which crossed the sex of the lead character with story affect, where
the lead character acted positively or negatively. An opposite-sex
supporting character accompanied each lead character. Participants
remembered lead and supporting characters' sex best when female
lead characters acted negatively. Experiments 2 and 3 replicated
the procedure in Experiment 1 using written vignettes with gender-neutral
roles. Experiment 2 used a 2-minute retention interval to assess
memory and Experiment 3 used a 1-week retention interval to assess
schemas. Participants remembered characters' sex best when male
lead characters acted positively. Overall, story affect powerfully
guided participants' memory for the sex of characters, suggesting
a virtuous man gender schema.
Memory Failures in Supermarket Shoppers: Evidence for Age and
Gender Differences
Sarah-Jane Williams, B.Sc.
Michael Gruneberg, Ph.D.
University of Wales
Memory failures are a pervasive aspect of everyday experience.
Recently Hermann and Gruneberg (1999) advocated a recall-reasons
approach to studying memory failures on the grounds that this approach
was more likely to capture the range of reasons that individuals
experienced in their memory failures. This approach is used in the
present study to examine the pattern of memory failures found in
shoppers. Shoppers at two different supermarkets were questioned
on the number and extent of their shopping memory failures. In both
stores it was found that males over 50 years of age reported significantly
fewer memory failures than females of all ages and males under 50
years of age. This paper looks for possible reasons for this age-gender
interaction.
Up to Forty: Lineup Size, the Modified Sequential Lineup, and
the Sequential Lineup
A. M. Levi, Ph.D.
Israel Police Headquarters
Witnesses were recruited by the author and one of seven confederates,
the "culprit" in a target-present or target-absent lineup.
The 40-person lineup conditions included a MSL lineup (Multiple-choice,
Sequential, Large) with the culprit in the 10th, 20th, or 40th position,
and a single-choice sequential lineup. The number of identifications
of the culprit in the MSL lineup was unaffected by lineup size and
culprit position. While mistaken choices in culprit-absent lineups
increased with lineup size, the probability of mistaken identification
decreased. Thus, lineups of at least size 40 should be used with
the MSL. The number of mistaken choices in culprit-absent single-choice
sequential lineups was, however, affected by lineup size. Reasons
for the results are discussed.
CT - 7(1) Volume 7, Issue No. 1 Spring 2002
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 Can a Computer Interface Support Self-explaining?
Robert G.M. Hausmann, M.S. and Michelene T.H. Chi, Ph.D.
15 Three Tiered Technique: A Pyramiding Study Skills Process for
the Cognitively Impaired Student
Sharon R. Menaldino, Ed.D.
20 Memory Overload: The Effects of Amount of Information, Rate
of Presentation, and Reorganization
David Burrows, Ph.D.
31 Evaluating Awareness - A Rating Scale and its Uses
Rebecca Martin-Schull, M.A., CPCRT and Robert Nilsen, B.A.
38 Issues Related to School Re-entry Following Traumatic Brain
Injury
Anju A. Vaidya, M.Ed.
Abstracts - Spring 2002
Can a Computer Interface Support Self-explaining?
Robert G.M. Hausmann, M.S.
Michelene T.H. Chi, Ph.D.
University of Pittsburgh
Previous research has shown that when an experimenter or a tutor
prompts students to self-explain orally, generating such self-explanations
is effective for learning. If self-explanations are readily produced
by prompting, then it would be trivial to implement an automated
prompting system using a computer interface. In an attempt to replicate
previous research using a human prompter with spoken self-explanations,
two experiments were designed using a computer prompter with typed
self-explanations. The first experiment tested the effectiveness
of spontaneously typed self-explaining while using a computer interface
without prompting. The results showed that the amount of self-explaining
was surprisingly low, given the amount observed in past research.
Typing seems to have caused the students to paraphrase the materials
instead. The second experiment tested the effectiveness of an automatic
computer prompter, as compared to a human prompter using the same
interface. Automatic prompting was just as effective as human prompting,
and prompting did increase the amount of typed self-explanations
and learning.
Three Tiered Technique: A Pyramiding Study Skills Process for
the Cognitively Impaired Student
Sharon R. Menaldino, Ed.D.
Moss Rehabilitation Hospital
Title VI of The Civil Rights Act of 1964 became the prototype for
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Scotch, 1984). This
is a comprehensive statute designed to insure that disabled persons
are able to acquire rehabilitation training and education, access
to public buildings and transportation, and employment opportunities
(Kelly, 1982). Congress passed Section 504 in September 1973 to
protect individuals with physical and mental impairments. It restricted
funding to those institutions that supported discriminatory practices.
One result of this legislation was a change in the student enrollment
on college and university campuses. Those with recognizable disabilities
became more visible. Such groups were followed in the late 70s and
into the 80s by students with learning disabilities who required
additional support networks. These cognitively impaired students
matriculated into degree-granting programs as well as non-credit
courses.
Memory Overload: The Effects of Amount of Information, Rate
of Presentation, and Reorganization
David Burrows, Ph.D.
Beloit College
Participants in five experiments were given recognition memory
tasks designed to create performance at levels well below optimum.
In experiments 1, 2, and 3, expansion of memory lists led to gradual
degradations in objective levels of performance and gradual increases
in perceived stress and loss of efficiency. In experiment 4, a rate
of presentation manipulation lowered performance without affecting
the gradual nature of list expansion effects. In experiment 5, reorganization
of memory through a deletion procedure led to severe declines in
performance that rapidly approached chance levels. The results have
implications for understanding which variables lead to rapid onset
of memory dysfunction and which variables lead to more gradual performance
decrements.
Evaluating Awareness - A Rating Scale and its Uses
Rebecca Martin-Schull, M.A., CPCRT
Media Providence Friends School
Robert Nilsen, B.A.
Progressive Living Units and Systems, Inc. (PLUS)
Deficits in awareness are often the sequelae of traumatic brain
injury. Development of awareness is a major key to survivors' continued
gains in rehabilitation. However, tools are needed to measure and
define such development. This paper describes such a tool - the
26-item, untimed Martin Awareness Rating Scale (MARS) used to identify
and quantify survivors' Intellectual, Emergent and Anticipatory
awareness as applied to four areas of function. The use of both
a rating to be completed by clinical team members and a survivor
self-rating is described, as are the Awareness Rating Summary form
and the Graph of Mean Scores which compile and compare these ratings.
Other measures, such as number of "matches," which can
be extracted from the awareness rating data are also discussed.
Issues Related to School Re-entry Following Traumatic Brain
Injury
Anju A. Vaidya, M.Ed.
DuPont Hospital for Children
Every year in the United States, thousands of children sustain
traumatic brain injury (TBI) that result from motor vehicle accidents
(MVA), falls, sports injuries, as pedestrians and abuse (Rosen &
Gerring, 1986). Statistically, the largest group of individuals
with TBI is between the ages of 15 and 24 (Savage, 1991). A major
goal for children and adolescents who have sustained a TBI is to
return to school. By the time moderately or severely brain injured
students return to school they are likely to have endured a lengthy
and arduous hospitalization and/or rehabilitation process. Both
the survivor of TBI and the family may have undergone many life
alterations. Memories, experiences, and expectations may be permanently
disrupted.
CT - 6(2) Volume 6, Issue No. 2 Fall 2001
EDITORIAL
4 Cognitive Technology's Contribution to Cognitive Psychology:
The Optimization of Discovery and Application
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
7 Policy-Driven Research: A Growth Area in Applied Cognition
Graham M Davies, Ph.D.
15 External Memory Aids and the Use of Personal Data Assistants
in Improving Everyday Memory
W. Richard Walker, Ph.D. and Reggie Y. Andrews
26 Expanding Cognition Laboratory Methods to Test Self-Administered
Questionnaires
Susan Schechter, M.A. and Johnny Blair, B.A.
33 Event-based Prospective Memory is Insensitive to Short-term
Memory Load:
Some Observations on Automaticity and Monitoring in Prospective
Remembering
Maria A. Brandimonte, Ph.D., Donatella Ferrante, Ph.D., and Raffaella
Delbello, L.D.
41 Effects of Mild Alcohol Intoxication upon Driver's Eye Movements
Kristi Masimore, B.S. and George Spilich, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Fall 2001
Cognitive Technology's Contribution to Cognitive Psychology:
The Optimization of Discovery and Application
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Cognitive Technology is sponsored by the Society for Applied Research
on Memory and Cognition and the Society for Cognitive Rehabilitation.
It is currently published by the Practical Memory Institute, a subsidiary
of Compact Disc, Inc. and printed at Indiana State University, Terre
Haute, Indiana. The article below is essentially the same as was
published in the first issue of Cognitive Technology, with some
revisions to bring the article up to date.
Policy-Driven Research: A Growth Area in Applied Cognition
Graham M. Davies, Ph.D.
Leicester University
United Kingdom
The new political climate has made policy-driven research one of
the major growth areas of applied cognitive psychology. It offers
great opportunities for applying psychology, but it also has pitfalls
and difficulties. The experiences of the author in learning these
lessons the hard way in two major areas of policy-driven research
- eyewitness testimony and children in the courtroom - are described.
In order to provide convincing and reliable answers, cognitively
trained researchers may need to shed their adherence to balanced
experimental designs and an exclusive reliance upon quantitative
methods, but they should be careful not to lose their integrity.
External Memory Aids and the Use of Personal Data Assistants
in Improving Everyday Memory
W. Richard Walker, Ph.D.
Reggie Y. Andrews
Winston-Salem State University
Two experiments investigated the use of external memory aids among
college students. Participants in Experiment 1 reported frequent
use of external memory aids, particularly electronic devices (e.g.,
cell phones, pagers). Experiment 2 tracked two groups of students
for 6 weeks. The first group was given personal data assistants
(PDAs) to use during the 6-week period. The second group served
as controls. The use of PDAs increased memory for telephone numbers
and weekly schedules, but did not affect other memory tests. Course
attendance records indicated that the PDA group missed fewer days
than the control group. These results suggest that students prefer
to use external memory aids and that the use of such devices can
be linked to gains in everyday memory.
Expanding Cognitive Laboratory Methods to Test Self-Administered
Questionnaires
Susan Schechter, M.A.
Office of Management and Budget
Johnny Blair, B.A.
University of Maryland at College Park
Survey Research Center
Using methods adapted from cognitive psychology to develop and
test survey questions seems to be effective in reducing measurement
error associated with questionnaire design problems. Early research
into the cognitive aspects of survey methodology was done using
household surveys administered by personal interviewer visits. This
led to an emphasis on refining and advancing cognitive interview
techniques when conducting personal, face-to-face interviews. To
some, it intuitively makes sense to conduct cognitive interviews
in person (face-to-face) since this mode of administration may lend
itself best to studying the response process. This leads some questionnaire
design researchers to assume that the planned mode of survey interview
(data collection) does not need to match the mode of cognitive interview
pretesting. Thus, the protocols used to design pretests in survey
research often utilize modes that differ from the mode of survey
administration. This paper addresses the theoretical framework underlying
cognitive interviews and examines the effects that mode of survey
administration can have on the selection of pretesting methods.
Emerging laboratory methods used by a variety of statistical agencies
and survey research centers are described. Results are presented
from collaborative investigations which have sought to develop and
demonstrate new laboratory research methods used to design and test
survey instruments that are self-administered.
Event-based Prospective Memory is Insensitive to Short-term
Memory Load: Some Observations on Automaticity and Monitoring
in Prospective Remembering
Maria A. Brandimonte, Ph.D.
Donatella Ferrante, Ph.D.
Raffaella Delbello, Ph.D.
University of Trieste, Italy
In one experiment we investigated the effect of short-term memory
load on an event-based prospective memory task (background task)
and on a letter-matching task (ongoing task). Participants were
presented with strings of five letters and were asked to decide
whether the second and fourth letters in each string were the same
or different (letter-matching task). They were also required to
press the spacebar whenever one or both of these letters was the
letter "B" (prospective memory task). There were eight
blocks of 30 trials each. In addition to the ongoing and prospective
memory task, at the beginning of each block, participants were required
to memorize either 7 digits (high load) or 1 digit (low load) that
were to be reported at the end of each block (short-term memory
task). That is, although the digits were to be kept in mind during
the ongoing task, the STM task (digit recall) was not performed
concurrently with the ongoing and the PM tasks. Results showed no
effects of short-term memory load on prospective memory performance.
However, response times in the ongoing letter-matching task increased
with high memory load only in the absence of the PM task. When the
PM task was present, response times in the ongoing task slowed down,
regardless of memory load. As regards STM performance, digit recall
was equally good regardless of the presence of the prospective memory
task. Finally, participants were slower to respond in the letter-matching
task when the irrelevant letters were Bs (activation of intention
effect). These results are relevant to the question of the role
of automaticity in the retrieval of intentions. They also point
to the importance of determining the nature of the monitoring processes
that support performance in different prospective memory tasks.
Effects of Mild Alcohol Intoxication upon Driver's Eye Movements
Kristi Masimore, B.S.
George Spilich, Ph.D.
Washington College
How much alcohol does it take to meaningfully affect your driving
performance? While high levels of alcoholic intoxication clearly
impair driving performance, what is the effect of consuming an amount
of alcohol that many states consider within the legal limit? In
this study, sober individuals and mildly intoxicated individuals
were shown scenes taken from the perspective of a driver while their
gazepoints were recorded. Subjects with blood alcohol levels between
.06% and .1% BAC showed meaningful changes in how they scanned scenes
when compared with the performance of sober controls. Finally, college-aged
subjects reacted to the demonstration of this impairment with surprise
and an increased awareness of the seriousness of the problem, suggesting
that eyegaze technology not only has relevance to cognitive research
but to drunk-driving fatality prevention efforts as well.
CT - 6(1) Volume 6, Issue No. 1 Spring 2001
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 The Dragonfly Web Pages: Informal Science Education on the World
Wide Web
Christopher R. Wolfe, Ph.D., Christopher A. Myers, Ph.D., and R.
Hays Cummins, Ph.D.
14 The Union of Ethicality and Technology in Cognitive Rehabilitation
Kristin C. Bewick, M.S., CPCRT
20 Evaluation of a Visual Collision Warning in Simulated Driving
Sabrina Plet, M.A., Fulvio Domini, Ph.D., Walter Gerbino, Ph.D.,
and Giuseppe Varalda, M.A.
29 Remediating Abstract Thinking and Flexibility of Thinking Following
Head Injury
Brenda Cheryl Kaplan, Ph.D.
33 Bridging the Gap: Community Integration through Collaboration
between a Community College and a Rehabilitation Program
Tami Guerrier, B.S., C.T.R.S. and Alice Bostic, M.Ed.
38 Aging, Memory Assessment and Self-Reported Memory Function
Dana J. Plude, Ph.D., Tova Benaderet, B.S., and Douglas J. Herrmann,
Ph.D.
PRODUCT REVIEW
41 The InnovatorTM: A System for Improving Group Effectiveness
by Leslie A. Miller, Ph.D. and David Yesford, B.A.
BOOK REVIEW
45 A Review of: Simple Heuristics That Make Us Smart
by Gerd Gigerenzer, Peter M. Todd, and the ABC Research Group
by Randall R. Kleinhesselink, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Fall 2001
The Dragonfly Web Pages: Informal Science Education on the World
Wide Web
Christopher R. Wolfe, Ph.D.
Christopher A. Myers, Ph.D.
R. Hays Cummins, Ph.D.
Miami University
The Dragonfly Web Pages provide informal science education on the
Web, and are among the first educational Web sites guided by cognitive
learning principles. The site consists of about 400 inter-linked
pages composed of brief, illustrated expository text, interactive
decision making games, side bars, links to resources, and instructions
for investigators. Visitors make decisions and receive images, sound,
and text tailored to their responses. Learning is conceptualized
as a process of creating and refining mental representations. The
Dragonfly Web Pages are based on six principles: 1) inquiry facilitates
learning, 2) informal learning is intentional and goal directed,
3) learning is knowledge dependent, 4) intrinsic motivation is the
basis of informal learning, 5) intuitions are educable, and 6) learning
is context sensitive. Data from hit counters, visitor feedback,
and an observational study provide preliminary evidence of effectiveness.
The Dragonfly Web Pages holds promise as a model of informal education
on the Web. However, further research is needed.
The Union of Ethicality and Technology in Cognitive Rehabilitation
Kristin C. Bewick, M.S., CPCRT
The John Heinz Institute of Rehabilitation
Myriad contributions of science have positively impacted the survival
and recovery of individual patients in need of brain injury rehabilitation.
Technology has empowered practitioners to facilitate patient recovery
more quickly and empirically. However, the realities imposed by
reimbursement structures within a managed care culture can sometimes
cause the process to move TOO quickly. This article explores the
concern that managed care urgency is deflecting our attention away
from the individual patient as a human being. References to ethical
principles and hierarchies of personhood are discussed in terms
of rehabilitation as a humanistic endeavor. The argument is made
that the way in which human functionality is defined is crucial
to our battle against complacency and integral to our desire to
promote what is right for each patient as an individual.
Evaluation of a Visual Collision Warning in Simulated Driving
Sabrina Plet, M.A.
University of Trieste
Fulvio Domini, Ph.D.
Brown University
Walter Gerbino, Ph.D.
University of Trieste
Giuseppe Varalda, M.A.
FIAT Research Center,
Orbassano, Torino (Italy)
Two experiments evaluated the influence of a visual collision warning
on overtaking manoeuvres in a simulated driving environment. In
the first experiment we compared two conditions (triangle vs. no
collision warning) when driving was the only task. In the second
experiment we compared three conditions (triangle vs. stop vs. no
collision warning) using a dual task that required participants
to perform overtaking manoeuvres while computing mental additions.
In both experiments participants benefited from collision warning.
The results indicate that collision warning signals may improve
driving and should be investigated in actual driving conditions.
Remediating Abstract Thinking and Flexibility of Thinking Following
Head Injury
Brenda Cheryl Kaplan, Ph.D.
Comprehensive Neuropsychological Services
Private Practice
New York, NY
Many brain injured patients suffer from deficits in executive functions.
Their complaints may include difficulty thinking as quickly as they
had premorbidly, thinking flexibly and abstractly, and readily generating
ideas. Neuropsychological test measures which assess verbal abstraction
(e.g., WAIS-III Similarities subtest) and capacity for flexible
thinking or generating alternative hypotheses when problem solving
(e.g., Wisconsin Card Sort, Category Test) may not necessarily reveal
problems in these areas.
Bridging the Gap: Community Integration through Collaboration
between a Community College and a Rehabilitation Program
Tami Guerrier, B.S., C.T.R.S.
Alice Bostic, M.Ed.
Central Piedmont Community College
Current literature identifies community integration and psychosocial/behavioral
adjustment as two key areas for assessing quality of life for persons
with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Webb, Wrigley, Yoels, and Fine
(1995) noted that "individuals with a positive self concept
had the highest perceived quality of life." Kozloff (1987)
found that individuals with TBI reported a decrease in their social
relationships and a feeling of isolation from their peers. Wheman
et al. (1993) identified interpersonal relationship problems as
one of five categories for job separation for TBI individuals. Finally,
Willer, Ottenbacher, and Coadf (1994) noted that community integration
is a particular priority in treatment and habilitation of persons
with TBI. Consequently, involvement in a community-based intervention
which emphasizes building interpersonal and social interaction skills
is essential for improved quality of life for TBI individuals.
Aging, Memory Assessment and Self-Reported Function
Dana J. Plude, Ph.D.
Tova Benaderet, B.S.
University of Maryland
Douglas J. Herrmann, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Even though most older adults maintain a high level of functioning
and independence in everyday life, increasing age is associated
with poorer performance on many traditional memory tests. Three
computerized memory tasks, a traditional list memory task, a more
ecologically realistic name memory task, and an object recognition
task were used to assess memory functioning within young and older
adult samples. As well, self-reported memory functioning was assessed
with the Memory Functioning Questionnaire (Gilewski & Zelinski,
1986; Gilewski, Zelinski, & Schaie, 1990) and a computerized
Memory Readiness Questionnaire based upon Herrmann's Multimodal
Model of Memory (Herrmann, Plude, Yoder, & Mullin, 1999). Thirty
young adults and thirty older adults completed the memory battery.
Young adults ranged in age from 16 through 27 years of age and older
adults ranged in age from 60 through 87 years of age. The older
adults resided independently in the community and were paid $10
for their participation. Young adults received course credit for
their participation. The demographic characteristics of the young
adults and older adults are provided in Table 1.
The InnovatorTM: A System for Improving Group Effectiveness
Leslie A. Miller, Ph.D.
David Yesford, B.A.
Wilson Learning Worldwide
Increasingly, organizations are turning to groups and teams to
solve problems and make important decisions. While research suggests
that groups/teams can be productive and effectively solve problems
and make decisions (Dennis & Valacich, 1993; Kelley & Thibaut,
1968; Laughlin, VanderStoep, & Hollingshead, 1991; Tjosvold
& Tjosvold, 1995), creating and empowering groups/teams alone
does not ensure their success.
Randall R. Kleinhesselink, Ph.D.
Washington State University Vancouver
A review of: Simple Heuristics That Make Us Smart
by Gerd Gigerenzer, Peter M. Todd, and the ABC Research Group
New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1999
According to Gigerenzer, Todd and others, "The mind can have
it both ways" (p. 365). This is clearly the mantra of the research
program of the Center for Adaptive Behavior at the Max Planck Institute
for Human Development. The book has 18 authors contributing to various
chapters on bounded rationality and accurate decision making in
deadline-driven real-world complexity. Beginning with an interdisciplinary
team including psychologists, sociologists, economists, biologists
and others, the group designed and tested a theory that it is possible
to make optimal decisions rapidly, accurately and easily. Some parts
of the theory can be seen as an extension of Herbert Simon's vision
of the mind as being bounded; that the rationality of the mind is
limited and that the structure of information in the environment
determines what is rational. Other parts of the theory take us into
the new territory of fast and frugal heuristics that increase our
adaptive intelligence. As we enter into this new territory, we must
first slay a dragon. The dragon is the "heuristics-and-biases"
program the authors associate with Tversky and Kahneman (l974).
The argument is made that they "tainted the idea of simple
mental mechanisms by attaching them to the value-laden 'bias' term"
and that, "heuristics were often invoked as the explanation
when errors . . . were found in human reasoning" (p. 27).
CT - 5(2) Volume 5, Issue No. 2 Fall 2000
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 The Relational Nature of Organizational Knowledge
John O'Neill, Ph.D. and Fergus O'Brien, Ph.D.
14 A Case Study of Brain Body Effect on Blood Pressure, Pulse,
and Cognition of an Adult Male with Cerebral Palsy
Eamon Doherty, M.S., Joann Rizzo, M.S., R.P.S., Andrew Junker, Ph.D.,
and John F. Walters, A.A.S.
17 Perceptual and Conceptual Processing in Expert/Novice Cue Pattern
Recognition
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D., Florian Jentsch, Ph.D., Randall L. Oser,
Ph.D., and Janice A. Cannon-Bowers, Ph.D.
27 Age and Education Moderate the Effects of Choice on Performance
Angela S. Eads, Ph.D. and Lawrence C. Perlmuter, Ph.D.
37 Using Pleasantness Ratings to Improve Word Identification
Jeffrey A. Gibbons, Ph.D. and Charles P. Thompson, Ph.D.
PRODUCT REVIEW
45 Memory Works CDs
by Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
Publisher: Compact Disc Incorporated (1997-1998)
BOOK REVIEW
48 Making Cognitive Technology more Effective: Changing the Questions
and Improving the Methods
by Carol Y. Yoder, Ph.D.
Humane Interfaces. Questions of method and practice in cognitive
technology
by J.P. Marsh, B. Gorayska, and J.L. Mey (Eds.)
Abstracts - Fall 2000
The Relational Nature of Organizational Knowledge
John O'Neill, Ph.D.
NASA Ames Research Center
Fergus O'Brien, Ph.D.
Software Engineering Research Center
This paper focuses on how organizations maintain the knowledge
that enables an organization to conduct a paradigm shift to new
conceptual systems of work. There are three types of knowledge that
enable change in organizations, with each type of knowledge being
relational in nature. The first type of knowledge is the relationship
between people in the form of social networks. The second type of
knowledge is understanding the relationships between activity systems,
how these relationships may be realigned to cope with novelty, and
the rhythm of work that maintains the relationships between activity
systems. The third type of knowledge is the strategies that enable
an organization to maintain the knowledge required to change conceptual
systems of work. These three types of knowledge are largely tacit
in nature. The key strategy for maintaining these three types of
knowledge is interweaving career trajectories that periodically
return members to activity systems. Focusing on the knowledge that
enables organizations to change provides new insights into organizational
learning and organizational forgetting within and across conceptual
systems. An area of concern is whether technology is eroding an
organization's ability to sustain and renew its network of minds,
and thus it's ability to change conceptual systems.
A Case Study of Brain Body Effect on Blood Pressure, Pulse,
and Cognition of an Adult Male with Cerebral Palsy
Eamon Doherty, M.S.
University of Sunderland, England
Joann Rizzo, M.A., R.P.S.
Family Services of Morris County, New Jersey
Andrew Junker, Ph.D.
B.A.T. Technologies, USA
John F. Walters, A.A.S.
Cyberlink Participant
An adult male with cerebral palsy and a family history of high
blood pressure took part in a series of longitudinal studies that
used a Cyberlink-Brain-Body-Interface as an assistive technology
device. The study investigated the effect Cyberlink would have on
blood pressure, pulse, and aspects of cognition. Testing took place
at the beginning and end of each Cyberlink recreation and communication
task sessions. Blood pressure measurements showed no consistent
pattern of change between the beginning of the test session and
the end. The pulse showed a consistent decrease during each session.
The participant verbalized a sense of relaxation after each session.
The participant's speech therapist also indicated that the subject
manifested improved quality of speech and decreased stammering.
Perceptual and Conceptual Processing in Expert/Novice Cue Pattern
Recognition
Stephen M. Fiore, Ph.D.
Florian Jentsch, Ph.D.
University of Central Florida
Randall L. Oser, Ph.D.
Janis A. Cannon-Bowers, Ph.D.
Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division
Orlando, Florida
In this paper we describe an investigation of differences in cue-pattern
recognitional strategies among aviators of differing experience
levels. Pilots were presented with meaningful and meaningless configurations
of instrument gauges. Tests of perceptual knowledge (i.e., recognition
memory for the instruments) and conceptual knowledge (i.e., interpretation
of the instruments) resulted in performance differences across the
differing configuration types. Although more experienced pilots
performed better overall, the differences were most pronounced on
recognition of meaningful instrument arrays and interpretation of
meaningless instrument arrays. Results are discussed in relation
to other findings on cue-pattern recognition processes and expertise.
Age and Education Moderate the Effects of Choice on Performance
Angela S. Eads, Ph.D.
Lawrence C. Perlmuter, Ph.D.
Finch University of Health Sciences/ The Chicago Medical School
Enabling individuals to make some choices can enhance their sense
of control. Choice may subsequently enhance motivation to act and
strengthen internal attributions for performance. Using cognitive
and memory tests in Study 1, we examined the notion that choice
enhances performance as well as attributions for performance in
community dwelling young and elderly subjects. Study 2 examined
the effects of choice and control in less autonomous elderly. Results
showed that for choice to be effective, individuals must have attained
a certain level of education and must enjoy a relatively autonomous
life style. Irrespective of its effects on performance, choice enhanced
task involvement and strengthened self attributions for performance.
Because choice enhances task involvement, it remains an important
issue for the elderly.
Using Pleasantness Ratings to Improve Word Identification
Jeffrey A. Gibbons, Ph.D.
Christopher Newport University
Charles P. Thompson, Ph.D.
Kansas State University
The goal of the current research was to statistically combine pleasantness
ratings with recognition judgments in order to improve the accuracy
of identification for words. Recognition judgments and pleasantness
ratings were made separately because previous research and pilot
data suggested that explicit measures (e.g., recognition) might
guide implicit measures (e.g., pleasantness). To account for individual
differences in ratings, a pleasantness deviation score was calculated
for each word rated by each participant, which was used with recognition
judgments and pleasantness ratings to create an adjusted recognition
measure. Adjusted recognition was found to be more accurate than
initial recognition when recognition accuracy was initially low
(e.g., for new words and high-frequency words).
Memory Works CDs
Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
Towson State University
Developer: Practical Memory Institute with support from the National
Institutes of Health
Publisher: Compact Disc Incorporated (1997-1998)
Memory dysfunction is the most commonly reported problem after
traumatic brain injury, stroke, dementia, and old age (Baddelely,
Wilson, & Watts, 1995; Parenté & Herrmann, 1996;
Parenté & Anderson, 1991). The demand for effective therapeutic
interventions with these populations has never been greater. Moreover,
a global economy and international business climate places demands
on memory never before experienced by professionals (Rose &
Nicholl, 1997). This combination of factors has fostered an entire
memory training industry. Many memory-training programs use what
has been called a stimulation therapy model whereby the therapist,
teacher, or memory training provides exercises that are designed
to strengthen the mind or speed up the mental processes (Craine
& Gudemann, 1982). The assumption is that doing these mental
exercises will enhance the person's memory. Further, it is assumed
that the strengthening of the mind will carry over into everyday
life. Neither of these assumptions has been shown to be true (Carney
et al., 1999). The problem is that stimulation therapy alone simply
provides mental exercise. It does not teach the person methods on
how to remember nor does it provide practice using these strategies
in situations that meet individual needs.
Making Cognitive Technology more Effective: Changing the Questions
and Improving the Methods
Carol Y. Yoder, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
by J.P. Marsh, B. Gorayska & J.L. Mey (Eds.)
A review of: Humane Interfaces. Questions of method and practice
in cognitive technology New York: Elsevier, 1999
As part of the Human Factors in Information Technology 13 series,
the edited volume, Humane Interfaces. Questions of method and practice
in cognitive technology, highlights the central importance of the
human factor in all technology endeavors and the necessity of expeditiously
changing technology to better fit its users. Through the selection
of authors, the editors recognize the need for multidisciplinary
approaches and the need for devising approaches that "humanize"
cognitive technology. This text is organized around theoretical
perspectives, issues of implementation, and applications of technology.
However, although the text provides us with a great deal of information,
its most valuable contribution is in challenging us to ask questions,
different from many that have been raised before, about how people
interface with machines.
CT - 5(1) Volume 5, Issue No. 1 Spring 2000
INSTRUCTIONS FOR AUTHORS
THEORETICAL AND RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 Memory Theory and the Cognitive Technology of Spatial Methods
in Information Retrieval Systems
Thom Baguley, Ph.D. and Mark Landsdale, Ph.D.
20 Perceptually-Driven Memory for Intentions: A Study with Children
and Adults
Maria A. Brandimonte, Ph.D., Patrizia Bisiacchi, Ph.D., and Lara
Pelizzon, L.D.
26 Cognitive Technology and Criminal Justice: The Police Composite
A. M. Levi, Ph.D. and Joseph Almog, Ph.D.
35 Computer Technology for Office-Based Psychological Practice:
Applications and Factors Affecting Adoption
Michael J. Murphy, Ph.D., ABPP
42 Some Thoughts on the History of Cognitive Technology And a Little
Known 19th Century Cognitive Device
Thomas C. Cadwallader, Ph.D.
BOOK REVIEW
44 Book, Therapy Material and Test Review
by Sydney Danziger, M.S.
Brainwave-R: Cognitive Strategies and Techniques for Brain Injury
Rehabilitation
by Kit B. Malia, Kristin C. Bewick, Michael J. Raymond, and Thomas
L. Bennett
COMMENTARY
46 Comments on "Why there are Twelve Inches in a Foot?"
John T.E. Richardson, D.Phil.
46 A Rejoinder to Richardson
Raymond Nickerson, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Spring 2000
Memory Theory and the Cognitive Technology of Spatial Methods
in Information Retrieval Systems
Thom Baguley, Ph.D.
Mark Lansdale, Ph.D.
Loughborough University
Electronic archives of images are becoming common and the development
of methods to store and retrieve these images is becoming increasingly
important. This article explores some of the theoretical and applied
issues in the recall of images in memory relevant to the design
of database query methods using spatial depiction. We argue that
a near-vacuum exists in our understanding of how continuous variables
such as location are represented in memory and that theoretical
developments are a necessary precursor to the design of new systems.
We present our recent research in this area and also comment upon
two ancillary issues relevant to this line of research: the question
of how we model user strategy and the significance of process theories
of memory. We argue that insufficient attention is paid in theoretical
psychology to the modelling of strategy and its methodological consequences,
and that this shortfall also has serious consequences for the discipline
of cognitive technology. In the case of process models, with which
our results are consistent, we observe that this model representation
in memory and the end-product of encoding differs, and that this
has implications for the relationship between encoding methods and
query methods in databases.
Perceptually-Driven Memory for Intentions: A Study with Children
and Adults
Maria A. Brandimonte, Ph.D.
University of Trieste
Patrizia Bisiacchi, Ph.D.
University of Padua, Italy
Lara Pelizzon, L.D.
University of Trieste
Children and adults were asked to read aloud words and to name
pictures while at the same time they had to remember to press a
key whenever a particular target word or a target picture appeared
on the computer screen (prospective memory task). At encoding, participants
were shown the prospective memory target either as a picture or
as a word. At retrieval, the target appeared - as a word or as a
picture - among the test items. Results showed that prospective
memory performance is better when the prospective cue presented
at retrieval overlaps with the format of the target presented at
encoding, irrespective of age, indicating that prospective remembering
can be largely data-driven in both age groups. Prospective memory
performance was significantly higher in adults than in children.
Theoretical and practical implications for memory for intentions
are discussed.
Cognitive Technology and Criminal Justice: The Police Composite
A. M. Levi, Ph.D.
Joseph Almog, Ph.D.
Israel Police Headquarters
Jerusalem, Israel
The criminal justice system must be understood if cognitive technology
is to have any impact on police work. The article uses research
on the police composite to illustrate this point. Study 1 is a follow-up
on 243 cases for which police constructed composites in 1992-93.
Fifty-four cases led to conviction, with another 13 still awaiting
trial. The composite aided only five cases. Study 2 compared six
composites that had aided the case to 27 others that were solved
by other means. Research participants attempted to identify each
culprit from among eight photos, with the aid of the appropriate
composite. Their choices were no better than chance. Study 3 surveyed
95 recent cases of composites. The article concludes that supporting
investigative effort is the key to composite effectiveness, but
witness memory for real world crimes is a limiting factor.
Computer Technology for Office-Based Psychological Practice:
Applications and Factors Affecting Adoption
Michael J. Murphy, Ph.D., ABPP
Indiana State University
Select literature on the use of computers in office-based psychology
practice for the support of administration and practice management,
assessment, and treatment is reviewed. Characteristics of successful
applications and the factors that affect adoption are discussed.
While computer applications have been used for business and administrative
activities and psychological assessment, there is little adoption
in office-practice of applications directed at treatment. The task
demands associated with psychological services do not take advantage
of the capabilities of computers and reveal their weakness. Furthermore,
many applications do not fit the task demands of practice or the
cognitive structures employed by clinicians. It is concluded that
practical and economic factors determine adoption of technology-based
applications and that developers of new products should insure that
they accommodate to, rather than change, the current structure of
practice or the cognitive processing of practitioners.
Some Thoughts on the History of Cognitive Technology And a Little
Known 19th Century Cognitive Device
Thomas C. Cadwallader, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Aides to cognition may have begun when the first protohumans used
some sign or action. Perhaps the first signs were sounds - possibly
grunts meaning such things as "Look at me" or "Get
away from me!" or "Come here" or "Here is water."
Those grunts and others, presumably became stylized over time and
developed into language - probably the most important of all cognitive
aides. Similarly, gestures representing such notions as "Look
there!" or "Come here" were possibly among the earliest
cognitive aides.
Book, Therapy Material and Test Review
Sydney Danziger, MS CCC-SLP, CPCRT
Southwest NeuroRehabilitation Institute, Inc.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
A review of: Brainwave-R: Cognitive Strategies and Techniques for
Brain Injury Rehabilitation by Kit B. Malia, Kristin C. Bewick,
Michael J. Raymond, & Thomas L. Bennett
Pro-Ed, Inc. (1997)
Brainwave-R is designed for the treatment of cognitive dysfunction
after brain injury. It is a very practical therapy tool that primarily
uses paper-and-pencil exercises. It can enhance the treatment repertoire,
scope and comprehensiveness of facility-based, neurological rehabilitation
programs. This research-based program can be used effectively by
seasoned professionals and students alike, from any discipline that
provides cognitive rehabilitation to adults with mild to moderate
cognitive deficits. The program can be modified for use with adults
with severe deficits and with children.
Comments on "Why are there Twelve Inches in a Foot?"
John T.E. Richardson, D.Phil.
Brunel University
Nickerson's article in the latest issue of Cognitive Technology
is enjoyable but it should be noted that there is a flaw in Nickerson's
initial argument about feet and thumbs. Nickerson presents (on page
20) normative data from Gordon et al. (1988) on foot length and
thumb width in men and women. He then presents a table of ratios
between these quantities. The text implies that he simply took the
ratios between the relevant measures. My check of the numbers in
the table confirms this. Nickerson's calculations ended up with
ratios that are closer to 11:1 than to 12:1, and so he concluded
that the origins of having 12 inches in a foot lie elsewhere.
A Rejoinder to Richardson
Raymond Nickerson, Ph.D.
The point Richardson (2000) makes is valid. The ratio of the means
of two paired variables is not necessarily the same as the mean
of the ratios of the members of the individual pairs. I suppose
that one should expect thumb and foot sizes to be positively correlated
in the population, although I know of no data on the question and
have no guess as to how strong the correlation is. In any case,
I am relieved that the results of Richardson's simulation do not
show my numbers to be outside the ball park, and that they support
the basic point that the actual ratio is likely to be closer to
11-to-1 than to 12-to-1.
CT - 4(2) Volume 4, Issue No. 2 Fall 1999
THEORETICAL ARTICLES
4 Applied Aspects of Source Monitoring
Elizabeth J. Marsh, Ph.D. and Gordon H. Bower, Ph.D.
18 Why are there Twelve Inches in a Foot?
Raymond S. Nickerson, Ph.D.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
26 The Role of Memory in Aesthetic Responses
John P. McLaughlin, Ph.D., Jessica Dunckle, Ph.D., and Sharon Brown,
Ph.D.
29 Scale Simplification of Expectations for Survival: Cognitive
Ability and the Quality of Survey Responses
Robert F. Belli, Ph.D., A. Regula Herzog, Ph.D., and John Van Hoewyk,
Ph.D.
39 Memory Rehabilitation Strategies and Cognitive Behavioural Techniques
After a Brain Injury
May Caprio-Prevette, Ph.D.
BOOK REVIEW
46 Review of the Nature of Expertise in Professional Acting
by Tony Noice and Helga Noice
Arnold Glass, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Fall 1999
Applied Aspects of Source Monitoring
Elizabeth J. Marsh, Ph.D.
Washington University
Gordon H. Bower, Ph.D.
Stanford University
Many everyday activities require people to remember the origin
of information. Remembering the source of information is essential
to such diverse tasks as reciting a poem, composing an argument,
and relating an anecdote at a party. The process of remembering
the origin of one's memories is called Source Monitoring. Using
the Source Monitoring Framework (Johnson, Hashtroudi, & Lindsay,
1993), our aim is to describe how source judgments are involved
explicitly or implicitly in several applied situations. We discuss
source errors that arise in eyewitness testimony, unconscious plagiarism,
false confessions, confabulations, and recovered memories. We argue
that source monitoring is also involved in such diverse applications
as the representation of fiction (versus facts) in memory, the effectiveness
of persuasive communications, and illusory truth effects. For each
problem, we discuss how source monitoring is involved, and when
source errors occur. From knowledge about source monitoring, we
can predict situations which might increase source errors. In some
cases, procedural changes aimed at reducing source errors are recommended.
Why are there Twelve Inches in a Foot?
Raymond S. Nickerson, Ph.D.
Tufts University
Many of the representational systems that are widely used to facilitate
the performance of cognitive tasks were not designed in the usual
sense but have evolved over many centuries. How such systems came
to be what they are, and how well they serve their purposes, are
questions of psychological interest. This paper focuses on the common
system of linear measure - inch, foot, yard - and, in particular,
on the question of why the foot is divided into 12 inches. Factors
that could have contributed to the development of this scheme are
proposed and its utility relative to others that might have been
used is discussed.
The Role of Memory in Aesthetic Response
John P. McLaughlin, Ph.D.
Jessica Dunckle, Ph.D.
Sharon Brown, B.A.
University of Delaware
The contents of memory may affect aesthetic response in multiple
ways. Two such possibilities have received recent attention. One
model predicts that highly typical instances will be better liked
than atypical ones. Conversely, another model predicts that somewhat
novel stimuli will be most attractive. The purpose of this experiment
was to evaluate these two theoretical positions. Two possible measures
of typicality/novelty, degree of realism and similarity to other
paintings, were obtained for 38 paintings, as well as estimates
of tension, complexity, orderliness and activity. Seventy-eight
per cent of the variance in Liking judgments by 43 subjects was
predicted by a linear multiple-regression equation containing Realism,
Tension and Complexity as predictors. Similarity played a minor
role in predicting Liking for one subset of subjects. Only Tension
and Complexity were predictive for another subset. Memorial, perceptual
and emotional factors combined to determine aesthetic pleasure,
although individual differences also played a role.
Scale Simplification of Expectations for Survival: Cognitive
Ability and the Quality of Survey Responses
Robert F. Belli, Ph.D.
A. Regula Herzog, Ph.D.
John Van Hoewyk, Ph.D.
University of Michigan
This paper explores the extent to which the data quality of survey
questions that use response scales designed to measure event probabilities
are affected by the cognitive ability of respondents and the tendency
to simplify responses to the scale's extremes and midpoint. Analyses
focus on an 11-point scale used in the Health and Retirement Study
for estimates about the likelihood to live to 75 and 85 years. Respondents
who are lower in cognitive ability provide simplification responses
more often than respondents higher in cognitive ability. Both lower
levels of cognitive ability and the providing of simplification
responses are associated with the tendency to respond illogically
by not providing a higher probability to live to 75 years than to
85 years. Nevertheless, simplification responses have only limited
effects on other measures of data quality as responses mirror actuarial
life tables in the aggregate, and life expectancy responses covary
with other survey variables that are associated with mortality.
A couple of factors mitigate the observation of poorer data quality
associated with scale simplification: some simplification responses
reflect a careful choice taken after consideration of the entire
range of response options, and that for respondents lower in cognitive
ability, scale simplification may actually assist in providing better
quality data. Implications of the results for improving methodologies
of asking probability-based questions are discussed.
Memory Rehabilitation Strategies and Cognitive Behavioural Techniques
After a Brain Injury
May Caprio-Prevette, Ph.D.
Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Memory deficits are among the most common and persistent problems
following brain injury. Two approaches have been used in the field
of cognitive rehabilitation to address this concern: compensation
of memory using cognitive prosthesis (e.g., tape recorders, day
timers, etc.) and restoration or recuperation of memory abilities
(e.g., via computer generated drills). Irrespective of utilized
approach, recent literature is now acknowledging the importance
of integrating cognitive rehabilitation of memory with learning
theories and principles. This paper makes the case for the application
of cognitive rehabilitation strategies in conjunction with cognitive
behavioural techniques as integral components of effective memory
rehabilitation after a brain injury.
Review of: Nature of Expertise in Professional Acting
Arnold Glass, Ph.D.
Rutgers University
by Tony Noice and Helga Noice
Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
For nearly 25 years expertise has been considered an important
testing ground for theories of cognition. It is therefore surprising,
as the authors of this monograph point out, that except for their
own research, there are virtually no studies on the cognitive processes
of professional actors. Yet actors not only routinely memorize hours
worth of verbal material in a very short time but they retrieve
it verbatim along with the accompanying gestures, movements, thoughts,
and emotions of the characters. For this reason, the report of an
8-year investigation of the learning methods of actors by a husband
and wife team consisting of a professional actor, director, playwright,
and a cognitive psychologist is a most welcome event. The book covers
both previously published and more recent unpublished studies.
CT - 4(1) Volume 4, Issue No. 1 Spring 1999
THEORETICAL ARTICLE
4 Memory Problems for Survey-Based Estimates of Population Activity
Thomas J. Ayres, Ph.D. and Christine T. Wood, Ph.D.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
11 Designing Materials for Efficient Time Management: Segmentation
and Planning Space
Christopher D.B. Burt, Ph.D. and Darryl K. Forsyth, Ph.D.
19 The Effects of Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy Techniques for
Enhancing the Cognitive/Intellectual Functioning of Seventh and
Eighth Grade Children
Odie L. Bracy, Ph.D., Andrea L. Oakes, M.S., ABT, Rebecca S. Cooper,
B.A., Dan Watkins, M.S., Mary Watkins, M.L.S., Daniel E. Brown,
M.A., and Christine Jewell, B.A.
28 Using Computers to Explore the Locus of Expertise in Soccer
Players
Stephen J. Anderson, Ph.D., Michael Beveridge, Ph.D., Martin A.
Conway, Ph.D., and Stephen A. Dewhurst, Ph.D.
PROCEDURES REVIEW
38 25 years of Memory Improvement: The Evolution of a Memory-Skills
Course
Kenneth L. Higbee, Ph.D.
43 Self-Questioning Strategies for Essay Composition
Lorraine C. Peniston, Ph.D., CTRS
Abstracts - Spring 1999
Memory Problems for Survey-Based Estimates of Population Activity
Thomas J. Ayres, Ph.D.
Christine T. Wood, Ph.D.
Exponent Failure Analysis Associates
Social researchers, risk analysts, policy makers and others rely
on survey research as a major source of data on population behavior.
Questionnaires are routinely used for estimates of participation
in activities such as bicycling or drinking. Unfortunately, the
only sure way to find out what people do is to observe them, whether
that be directly or via the effects of their behavior. Self-reports
of behavior are subject to various biases and weaknesses, including
social desirability and inaccurate recall. Examples and problems
are reviewed in order to draw implications of memory failure for
the design and interpretation of exposure surveys.
Designing Materials for Efficient Time Management: Segmentation
and Planning Space
Christopher D.B. Burt, Ph.D.
Darryl K. Forsyth, Ph.D.
University of Canterbury
Christchurch, New Zealand
Two experiments examined the influence of planner design on time
management ability as measured by task time allocation accuracy.
Experiment 1 required four groups of students to complete six tasks.
The groups were differentiated by the size of the time segments
in the time management planner they used to allocate time to each
task. Differentiation in time segment size was achieved by chronological
division (e.g., the 30 minute segmented planner provided a planning
space for 9 - 9.30am, 9.30 - 10.00am and so on). Comparison of 5,
15 and 30 minute segmented planners, and a non-segmented planner
(blank page), indicated participants modified the 15 minute, 30
minute and blank planners such that they had 5 minute planner characteristics.
Experiment 2 manipulated planner time segmentation, but held constant
planning space. A significant effect of planner segment size on
allocated task time was found, with the 5 minute block planner achieving
an average 10 minute saving in planned time per hour compared to
the 15 minute block planner. Implications of planner design for
time management ability are discussed.
The Effects of Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy Techniques for
Enhancing the Cognitive/Intellectual Functioning of Seventh and
Eighth Grade Children
Odie L. Bracy, Ph.D.
Andrea L. Oakes, M.S., ABT
Rebecca S. Cooper, B.A.
NeuroScience Center
Indianapolis, Indiana
Dan Watkins, M.S.
Mary Watkins, M.L.S.
Yorktown Middle School
Yorktown, Indiana
Daniel E. Brown, M.A.
University of Indianapolis
Christine Jewell, B.A.
Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis
Both computer-assisted classroom education and computer-assisted
cognitive rehabilitation are established in learning and rehabilitation
methods. The use of rehabilitation techniques for the development
of foundational cognitive skills in the general population of school
children has gone untested. This experiment demonstrates the utility
of computer-assisted cognitive skills training for improving the
intellectual functioning of 12 to 14 year-old children. Eighty middle
school students participated in a 9-week study. The students were
enrolled in either a computer-assisted cognitive skills training
group (which utilized computerized exercises modified from brain
injury rehabilitation applications) or a study hall control group.
A significant increase in intellectual functioning (p < .01)
was found only in the experimental group for Full Scale and Performance
IQ scores as measured by Jackson's Multidimensional Aptitude Battery.
This is an indication of the possible benefits of a computerized
cognitive skills training program focused on training attentional,
executive, visuospatial and problem solving skills. Replication
of this study could hold far-reaching implications for future educational
curricula.
Using Computers to Explore the Locus of Expertise in Soccer
Players
Stephen J. Anderson, Ph.D.
Osbourne Clarke, England
Michael Beveridge, Ph.D.
Martin A. Conway, Ph.D.
University of Bristol, England
Stephen A. Dewhurst, Ph.D.
University of Lancaster, England
The primary purpose of this present paper is to explore whether
meaningful experimental paradigms could be built which would allow
the locus of expertise in soccer players to be further explored
easily, and without a large investment in special equipment. This
paper reports two novel paradigms that use computers as a tool to
develop knowledge about the locus of expertise in soccer players.
The first assesses whether simple speed of information processing
differences facilitate expertise, while the second manipulates video
footage of soccer matches, using a reaction time task, to examine
whether expertise resides in knowledge of soccer acquired through
playing experience. While the paper focuses on the different methodologies
of the paradigms employed, and reports detailed descriptions of
apparatus including computer hardware and software, the usefulness
of using computers in this arena is evaluated by the partial report
of two experiments. Finally, two potential applications of using
computers in this field are discussed: first, as possible tools
in discriminating between potential professional player candidates,
and second, as training tools for the improvement of existing levels
of skill.
25 Years of Memory Improvement: The Evolution of a Memory-Skills
Course
Kenneth L. Higbee, Ph.D.
Brigham Young University
A memory-improvement course begun in 1973 has grown from a 7-week,
noncredit course into a full-semester academic psychology course.
This article describes changes in structure and content of the course,
as well as the kinds of students who take the course, and some students'
evaluations of the course. Other versions of the course are also
described, including an adult education program, a correspondence
course, and a course for the elderly.
Self-Questioning Strategies for Essay Composition
Lorraine C. Peniston, Ph.D., CTRS
University of New Mexico
In college, students are expected to communicate effectively but
numerous students have problems with expressive written language.
Often the individual has difficulty communicating their ideas and
may discover that ideas do not flow evenly or consistently. In organizing
information for writing an essay, students may experience the following:
o poor arrangement of ideas within the body of the essay and difficulty
formulating a thesis statement;
o fluctuation of subject content (i.e., resulting from poor short-term
memory or attention difficulties);
o constant use of unrelated information in an essay (i.e., supplying
tangential information);
o limited productivity (i.e., poor ability to begin a writing task
and when writing, not supplying sufficient information);
o incorrect information in the body of the essay (i.e., thesis,
introduction or conclusion statement);
o lack of reference to sources used to formulate an opinion; and
difficulty formulating a thesis statement.
CT - 3(2) Volume 3, Issue No. 2 Fall 1998
THEORETICAL ARTICLES
4 Cognitive Theory, Experiments, Applications, and Cognitive Impairment
Herman Buschke, M.D., Martin J. Sliwinski, Ph.D., and Dermot Luddy,
M.A., L.Ph.
9 The Importance of Applied Research to Demonstrating the Utility
of Basic Findings and Theories: Commentary on Buschke, Sliwinski,
and Luddy
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D., Douglas Raybeck, Ph.D., Michael Gruneberg,
Ph.D., Robert Grant, Ph.D., and Carol Yoder, Ph.D.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
13 Utilising Human Cognitive Resources in Browsing Face Recall Systems:
an Exercise in Human Computer Integration
Barbara Gorayska, Ph.D., Kevin Cox, Ph.D., Joseph Ho, M.Sc., and
Tony Roberts, Ph.D.
24 How Necessary Steps in a Task get Omitted: Revising Old Ideas
to Combat a Persistent Problem
James Reason, Ph.D.
33 Retraining Rehearsal After Traumatic Brain Injury
Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
PRODUCT REVIEW
39 Memory Works: A CD Memory Training Program for Older Adults
John M. Rybash, Ph.D.
Abstracts - Fall 1998
Cognitive Theory, Experiments, Applications, and Cognitive Impairment
Herman Buschke, M.D.
Martin J. Sliwinski, Ph.D.
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Dermot Luddy, M.A., L.Ph.
Fordham University
To consider the proposition that cognitive technology may validate
cognitive theory, we discuss the principle of encoding specificity
and its (successful) application in the Double Memory Test as an
illustration of the relationship of experiments and applications
to theory. We conclude that practical applications of cognitive
theories are necessary to determine the utility of cognitive theories,
but will not (usually) assist in evaluating their validity.
The Importance of Applied Research to Demonstrating the Utility
of Basic Findings and Theories: Commentary on Buschke, Sliwinski,
and Luddy
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Douglas Raybeck, Ph.D.
Hamilton College
Michael Gruneberg, Ph.D.
University of Wales
Robert Grant, Ph.D.
Carol Yoder, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Applied research has been said to be crucial to demonstrating the
utility of basic findings and theories. If applied research fails
to demonstrate that basic findings and theories can be applied,
such a failure would suggest that the basic findings and theories
are not valid and/or that the application efforts are invalid. Presently,
the basic research community pays little or no attention to applied
research failures. We propose that the credibility that basic research
attributes to well designed studies which do not support a theory
should be extended to properly executed applications. Like basic
research, applied research may fail to test basic findings and theories
adequately due to weaknesses in the research. Nevertheless, there
are criteria that permit evaluation of the adequacy of applied research.
Our point is that basic researchers have failed to realize that
the vast field of applied research provides an abundance of data
that could help accelerate the development and refinement of basic
research and theories. Buschke, Sliwinski, and Luddy (1998) argue
that the failure to support a prediction derived from a basic theory
cannot be used to reject the theory and accept the null hypothesis
because the null hypothesis cannot be proved. However, sometimes
null findings are credible. For example, a null finding obtained
repeatedly under different conditions by different investigators
contrary to theoretically-based predictions raise serious challenge
to any theory. For basic research to refuse to consider null findings
slows the advance of science and makes irresponsible use of public
funds for research.
Utilising Human Cognitive Resources in Browsing Face Recall Systems:
an Exercise in Human Computer Integration
Barbara Gorayska, Ph.D.
Kevin Cox, Ph.D.
Joseph Ho, M.Sc.
City University of Hong Kong
Tony Roberts, Ph.D.
Southampton University, UK
In this paper we discuss the results of a feasibility study for
the design of an adaptive Face Recall System which aids people when
they are called to recognise and recall human faces. The tool uses
human search strategies based on facial similarity when they browse
in a database of faces. The aim of this research is to minimise
the effect of user-system interaction on human face memory and face
perception with a view to establishing a set of guidelines for the
design and development of identikit applications which make possible
system differentiation of the users' idiosyncratic needs in memory
retention and recall.
How Necessary Steps in a Task get Omitted: Reviving Old Ideas to
Combat a Persistent Problem
James Reason, Ph.D.
University of Manchester
Omission errors constitute a serious risk in hazardous technologies,
particularly during maintenance-related activities in nuclear power
generation and aviation engineering organisations. The paper has
two aims. First, to identify the omission-provoking features of
task steps and, second, to examine the use of reminders as a technique
for omission management. The paper begins by developing an action
model that combines the Lewinian concept of task tension with the
TOTE unit. Its purpose is to identify a variety of situations in
which tension-operation discrepancies can lead to the omission of
necessary steps. These assumptions about omission-provoking task
properties were then tested by a questionnaire survey of relative
error frequencies while using a simple photocopier. As predicted,
the single most commonly reported omission was leaving the last
page of the original under the lid. This task step possesses a large
number of omission-provoking properties that appear to work in an
additive fashion. Two other questionnaire studies are also reported.
Both concerned the practical issue of omission management. The first
investigated the use of everyday reminders. The second examined
the relationship between the relative popularity of reminders and
the degree to which they satisfy the criteria for a good reminder.
A close correspondence was observed. The implications of these findings
for omission management are discussed.
Retraining Rehearsal After Traumatic Brain Injury
Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
Towson State University
Stephanie Kolokowsky, M.A.
Medical College of Virginia
Amie Elliott, M.A.
Johns Hopkins Bayview Center
When we have asked persons with acquired brain injuries how they
remember, the usual response is "repetition." Cognitive
Psychologists use a different term, "rehearsal," to describe
the process of repetition (Ericsson & Poulson, 1988; Rundus,
1977; Loisette, 1886). Rehearsal keeps information in working memory
by recycling. It is the mechanism by which we maintain information
in memory so that we can process its features or extract its most
important components for later storage in long_term memory (Baddeley,
1995; Baddeley, Harris, Sunderland, Watts, & Wilson, 1967).
Memory Works: A CD Memory Training Program for Older Adults
John M. Rybash, Ph.D.
Hamilton College
It has been proposed that the most promising approach to the development
of memory training programs for older adults is Compact Disc-interactive
(CD-i) and its successor, CD-ROM technology. Due to the anticipated
strengths of the CD-i approach, Baldi, Plude, and Schwartz (1996)
constructed a memory training program for older adults called Memory
Works. On the positive side, Memory Works is highly interactive,
user friendly, and fun. It possesses a clear set of instructions
and an easy to negotiate set of menus all of which are described
by a likable host. And, it yields gains in memory performance above
and beyond a similar training program engineered in the videotape
format. The most negative feature of Memory Works is finding the
appropriate hardware (i.e., a CD-i player) to run the program. Memory
Works is an excellent vehicle to boost the memory performance of
older adults. It will only have a bright future, however, if low
cost CD-i players are made readily available to the general public.
CT- 3(1) Volume 3, Issue No. 1 Spring 1998
RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 Finding Graphs Useful: Linking Preference to Performance for One
Cognitive Tool
C. Melody Carswell, Ph.D., Justin R. Bates, B.A., Nick R. Pregliasco,
B.A., Andrea Lonon, M.A., and Jennifer Urban, B.A.
19 Modeling Mental Workload
Roger W. Schvaneveldt, Ph.D., Gary B. Reid, M.S., Rebecca L. Gomez,
Ph.D., and Sean Rice, B.A.
32 Source Monitoring in Face-to-Face and Computer-Mediated Environments
Francis T. Durso, Ph.D., Carla A. Hackworth, M.A., Ami L. Barile,
Ph.D., Michael R.P. Dougherty, M.S., and Daryl D. Ohrt, M.S.
39 Conceptural and Spatial Representations in Memory
Kwesi E. Bentum, M.S., M.Ed.
45 A Proposed Resolution of the Remediation-Compensation Controversy
in Brain Injury Rehabilitation
Marilyn M. Bergman, Ph.D.
EDITORIALS
52 Cognitive Technology and Cognitive Rehabilitation: A Merger of
Disciplines
Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
53 Where Research on Cognitive Applications and Cognitive Technology
may be Published
The Editors
Abstracts - Spring 1998
Finding Graphs Useful: Linking Preference to Performance for
One Cognitive Tool
C. Melody Carswell, Ph.D.
Justin R. Bates, B.A.
Nick R. Pregliasco, B.A.
Andrea Lonon, M.A.
Jennifer Urban, B.A.
University of Kentucky
Graphs are cognitive tools that, when well designed, support the
rapid integration of quantitative data to allow classification and
description of patterns and trends. Yet, there are potential users
who claim that they do not find graphs useful and who ignore or
avoid such displays. The present study evaluated the graph-reading
performance of participants who scored in the upper or lower quartiles
of a graph preference questionnaire. Many of the differences found
between high and low preference groups (in cued recall, spontaneous
interpretations and speeded trend classifications) were attributable
to differences in strategies and goals rather than to differences
in efficiency. High preference participants reported using a wider
variety of encoding strategies to aid recall. They were also less
likely to spontaneously devote resources to point reading, concentrating
instead on extracting global and local trends when asked to interpret
graphs. Finally, our high preference participants classified trends
more quickly (if slightly less accurately), and their performance
was more strongly influenced by global patterns. One interpretation
of these data is that the perceived usefulness of graphs is a function
of the match between the user's goals (selected task and performance
criteria) and the display's function. Therefore, managing this match
may be critical for increasing acceptance of graphs and other cognitive
tools.
Modeling Mental Workload
Roger W. Schvaneveldt, Ph.D.
New Mexico State University
Gary B. Reid, M.S.
Armstrong Laboratories, Wright-Patterson AFB
Rebecca L. Gomez, Ph.D.
University of Arizona
Sean Rice, B.A.
New Mexico State University
The primary objective of this research project was to investigate
models for monitoring and predicting subjective workload in the
control of complex systems. Such models would enable systems to
use workload levels to distribute tasks optimally in addition to
identifying levels of workload which could lead to a serious breakdown
in performance. In the aircraft-pilot system, for example, such
capabilities could provide warnings to the pilot of high workload
levels and could also assess ways of reducing the pilot's workload
by offering to assume control of some ongoing tasks. In this initial
project, we tried to determine how well a model can assess workload
using information about task requirements and task performance.
Source Monitoring in Face-to-Face and Computer-Mediated Environments
Francis T. Durso, Ph.D.
Carla A. Hackworth, M.A.
Ami L. Barile, Ph.D.
Michael R.P. Dougherty, M.S.
Daryl D. Ohrt, M.S.
University of Oklahoma
We compared the performance of computer-mediated communication (CMC)
to face-to-face (FF) groups who were attempting to solve a mystery.
Half of the groups received all of the information. The other half
received the same information, but distributed among the members
(Stasser, 1988). After discussion, participants were given a questionnaire
addressing facts of the case. Results indicated that CMC groups
had more difficulty solving the problem than FF groups. Of primary
interest was whether group members could make correct attributions
of intellectual property, that is, could they remember who first
introduced an idea into the discussion. CMC and FF group members
were equally able to discriminate between self-generated and other-generated
memories (i.e., reality monitoring). However, CMC groups were much
more likely than FF groups to confuse the source of information
provided by other group members.
Conceptual and Spatial Representations in Memory
Kwesi E. Bentum, M.S., M.Ed.
The Children's Village, Dobbs Ferry, New York
An experiment tested the effects of spatial representation on memory
and examined the relevance of the three classes of theories on mental
representation of spatial relations. Sophisticated computer users
(experts) and novice computer users (novices) participated in the
experiment. Participants were required to master the layout of 30
stimulus items and locate the position of each icon on the screen
with the mouse. The icons which represented various objects were
divided into the following categories: (a) conceptually related
and clustered, (b) conceptually unrelated and clustered, (c) conceptually
related and spread, (d) conceptually unrelated and spread. The results
indicated that conceptual relations may facilitate the retrieval
process from Short-Term Memory (STM), with broader implications
for learning.
A Proposed Resolution of the Remediation-Compensation Controversy
in Brain Injury Rehabilitation
Marilyn M. Bergman, Ph.D.
MASTERY Rehabilitation Systems®, Inc.
This paper explores the distinction between remediation and compensation
in brain injury rehabilitation, through historical review of the
uses of computers in brain injury rehabilitation. Discussion of
the relative benefits and disadvantages of training repetition,
of training on conventional software, and of automated assessment
tools defines the underlying assumptions and goals of these applications
and approaches. Efficacy of intervention with a specific computer
cognitive orthotic system is also reported and discussed, with illustration
of instances in which the classic distinctions between remediation
and compensation are obscured. The author suggests that a shift
in paradigm could resolve the fundamental tension between the tenets
of remediation and compensation in brain injury rehabilitation.
Cognitive Technology and Cognitive Rehabilitation: A merger of
disciplines
Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
Towson State University
In this issue, we welcome readers from the Society for Cognitive
Rehabilitation (SCR). The SCR is devoted to the advancement of cognitive
technology as a therapeutic medium. Many members of the Practical
Memory Institute or the Society for Applied Research on Memory and
Cognition may not be familiar with the history, purpose, or the
efficacy of Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy (CRT). Likewise, many
members of the SCR may not comprehend the scope of cognitive technology
or its potential value to their disciplines.
Where Research on Cognitive Applications and Cognitive Technology
May Be Published
The Editors
Cognitive Technology is the first journal that attempts to bring
together professionals of all backgrounds who are engaged in developing
applications and/or technologies that enhance cognition. An application
of cognitive psychology is one that has been shown to apply to a
particular situation. A particular cognitive technology is an application
that has been shown to be useful to two or more situations (Gorayska
& Mey, 1996; Herrmann, 1996). The journal has the goal of developing
a body of knowledge about how to improve cognition in a variety
of situations. The journal provides researchers the opportunity
to make the step from applicable research (findings that might be
applied) to applied research (research that shows how applications
may be achieved).
CT - 2(2) Volume 2, Issue No. 2 Fall 1997
RESEARCH ARTICLES
4 How to Doom Yourself to Repeat the Past: Some Reflections on the
History of Cognitive Technology
Robert R. Hoffman, Ph.D.
16 Imagery Training via Videotape: Progress and Potential for Older
Adults
Robin L. West, Ph.D., Monica S. Yassuda, Ph.D., and Duana C. Welch,
Ph.D.
22 Cognitive Impact of Graphical User Interfaces
Kent L. Norman, Ph.D.
31 Improving Survey Design: The Linguistic Complexity of Survey
Questions and the Quality of Responses
Leslie A. Miller, Ph.D., and Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
41 Improving Concentration and Hand/Eye Coordination by Playing
Video Games:
A Short Report
Alexis Parenté
PRODUCT REVIEW
44 Improving Cognition through the Use of Nutrients, Drugs, and
other Cognitive-Enhancing Substances
Stephanie A. Kolakowsky, M.A.
Abstracts - Fall 1997
How to Doom Yourself to Repeat the Past: Some Reflections on
the History of Cognitive Technology
Robert R. Hoffman, Ph.D.
Adelphi University
This article first provides a thumbnail sketch of the history of
cognitive technology, to support some reflections on some trends
across that history using the sundial, the typewriter, and the computer
as case studies. The article focuses on what seems to be an invidious
trend - the trend to build new and complex cognitive systems without
sufficient attention to human factors issues.
Imagery Training via Videotape: Progress and Potential for Older
Adults
Robin L. West, Ph.D.
Monica S. Yassuda, Ph.D.
Duana C. Welch, Ph.D.
University of Florida
An examination of the aging literature suggests that older adults
have memory deficits that are based, in part, on failure to utilize
powerful memory strategies. Mental imagery is widely considered
to be one of the most effective memory strategies. However, this
technique is rarely used by older adults and may pose particular
difficulties for them. Videotaped memory training programs can provide
supportive conditions for older adults to learn new complex, imaginal
strategies because video demonstrations show how to create distinctive,
memorable mental images and because they permit self-paced learning
and regular review.
Cognitive Impact of Graphical User Interfaces
Kent L. Norman, Ph.D.
University of Maryland
Computer systems are rapidly moving from single task, alphanumeric,
command line operating systems to multi-task, graphical, menu-driven
systems. This change invokes a whole new set of cognitive demands
and preferences on the part of the user. This study investigated
cognitive factors involved in the use of graphical user interfaces
(GUIs) to help provide principles for standards and good design.
In the first phase of this study, focus groups were conducted at
the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Results indicated
substantial differences between the perceptions of users and programmers
of GUIs. In the second phase, participants evaluated a set of computer
screens in terms of overall liking, clarity of function, ease of
use, and aesthetic appeal. Participants included undergraduate students
at the University of Maryland and personnel at the NCHS who identified
themselves as either users or programmers..
Results indicated that subjects were sensitive to differences in
the cognitive demands of alternative screens. Furthermore, programmers
tended to prefer and rate higher designs that conformed to GUI systems
with which they were familiar and which optimized the interface
from a programming standpoint (e.g., efficient use of screen real
estate). Other groups tended to prefer designs that were similar
to those that they had used in the past or that make their task
easier.
Improving Survey Design: The Linguistic Complexity of Survey
Questions and the Quality of Responses
Leslie A. Miller, Ph.D.
Rollins College
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
Many educational institutions, agencies, and private organizations
rely on surveys as a fundamental source of data. However, the data
gathered from surveys is only as good as the quality of questions
and answers to survey questions. Two investigations assessed the
relative contributions of the syntax and semantics of survey questions
to the quality of answers to these questions. Investigation 1 observed
the effects of syntactic and semantic complexity on the answering
of questions on a national survey. The results revealed a significant
main effect of semantic complexity and a significant interaction
between syntactic and semantic complexity on answer quality. Although
not significant, syntactically complex questions tended to be more
difficult for respondents than syntactically simple questions. Investigation
2 manipulated the variables observed in Investigation 1 and found
a significant effect of semantic complexity. The investigation also
found a significant main effect of syntactic complexity, but there
was
no interaction. Based on post-hoc analyses, it was concluded that
semantic and syntactic complexity have an independent effect on
answering. The results suggest that survey designers should use
syntactically and semantically simple questions when possible in
lieu of syntactically and semantically complex questions.
Improving Concentration and Hand/Eye Coordination by Playing Video
Games: A Short Report
Alexis Parente
The Maryvale Preparatory School
Twenty participants were tested twice with several measures of attention/concentration
and hand/eye coordination. Ten participants played a video game
between the two tests and another 10 participants conversed with
each other between the two tests. The results showed that the participants
who played the video games improved their scores from the first
to the second test more than the participants who conversed with
each other on every measure of attention/concentration and hand/eye
coordination. Playing video games seemed to have its biggest effect
on measures of concentration and hand/eye coordination.
Improving Cognition Through the Use of Nutrients, Drugs, and
Other Cognitive-Enhancing Substances
Stephanie A. Kolakowsky, M.A.
Towson University
In the past 30 years, literally hundreds of cognitive enhancing
substances (CESs) have been investigated. However, despite the potential
and public interest surrounding CESs, this large body of research
has produced mixed results with no consensus as to whether these
substances enhance cognition. This review summarizes CES findings
of well-controlled clinical studies, and determines which CESs hold
the greatest potential for treating various types of cognitive deficits.
CT - 2(1) Volume 2, Issue No. 1 Spring 1997
RESEARCH ARTICLES
6 Cognitive Technology: Reflections on a Long History and Promising
Future
Raymond S. Nickerson, Ph.D.
21 The Perceived Value of Mind Maps (spider diagrams) as Learning
and Memory Aids
Michael M. Gruneberg, Ph.D. and Stephen Mathieson
25 10-Minute Interventions for Remembering Peoples' Names, Directions
to Places, and Household Objects' Locations: Computerized Memory
Training for Older Adults
Von O. Leirer, Ph.D., Elizabeth Decker Tanke, Ph.D., Daniel G. Morrow,
Ph.D., and Jack Kahn, M.A.
THEORETICAL ARTICLES
40 Cognitive Technology: What's in a name?
Jonathan Marsh, M.A. and Barbara Gorayska, Ph.D.
44 The Application of Cognitive Theory in Aging Research
Roger W. Morrell, Ph.D.
48 Cognitive Load Theory and Instructional Design
Sharon Tindall-Ford, Ph.D., Paul Chandler, Ph.D., and John Sweller,
Ph.D.
60 A Technologist's Overview of the Development of Cognitive Technology
Peter Wright, Ed.D.
PRODUCT REVIEW
69 Mind Operated Devices
Stacie M. Metz, M.A. and Beth Hoffman, M.A.
BOOK REVIEW
75 Coping with Computers - Revisiting Concerns and Recognizing Opportunities
by M.K. 'Chat' Chatterji, M.S.
The Trouble with Computers by Thomas K. Landauer, Cambridge, MA:
MIT Press.
Abstracts - Spring 1997
Cognitive Technology: Reflections on a Long History and Promising
Future
Raymond S. Nickerson, Ph.D.
Tufts University
Cognitive technology has a very long history. It predates cognitive
science - just as technology predates science more generally - by
many millennia. This essay begins with a discussion of the relationship
between science and technology generally and the relationship between
cognitive science and cognitive technology in particular. Some observations
are then made about the history of technology and of cognitive technology.
The relationship between science and technology today is described
as one of mutual support and interdependence. The current status
and the future of cognitive technology are discussed in relation
to information (computer-communication) technology because of the
far-ranging effects of the latter on all aspects of our lives and
the expectation that these effects are likely to increase.
The point of departure for this essay is recognition that cognitive
technology, in the form of artifacts and procedures intended to
facilitate the performance of cognitive tasks, has a very long history.
Because I believe it is useful to view cognitive technology from
a historical perspective and to see it in relation not only to cognitive
science but to technology and science more generally, I begin with
some observations about the relationship between technology and
science and then consider the relationship between cognitive technology
and cognitive science in the light of those observations. I note
some of the lessons to be learned from the history of technology
in general and from that of cognitive technology in particular.
I then focus on cognitive technology as it relates to information
(computer_communication) technology, because of the far_ranging
effects of the latter on all aspects of our lives and the expectation
that these effects are likely to continue to increase.
The Perceived Value of Mind Maps (spider diagrams) as Learning
and Memory Aids
Michael M. Gruneberg, Ph.D.
Stephen Mathieson
University of Wales Swansea
This paper reports on a survey of 201 undergraduate students attending
a first year psychology class, who were asked to fill in a questionnaire
on their use of mind maps (spider diagrams) for learning and memory
purposes. Results indicate that 58.71% of students had previously
used mind maps, and that 38.71% continued to use mind maps for examination
preparation at a university. 76.61% of users found mind maps very
useful or useful for this purpose. Almost all knowledge of mind
maps was acquired at school, and over a wide range of school subjects.
The results of this survey suggest, therefore, that mind mapping
techniques are widely used by university students in the UK, and
are seen by a substantial number of students to be of value in helping
with the examination process.
10-Minute Interventions for Remembering Peoples' Names, Directions
to Places, and Household Objects' Locations: Computerized Memory
Training for Older Adults
Von O. Leirer, Ph.D.
Elizabeth Decker Tanke, Ph.D.
Daniel G. Morrow, Ph.D.
Jack Kahn, M.A.
Decision Systems
In three studies we investigate whether computer-assisted instruction,
teaching older adults specialized, quick, easy-to-learn, and easy-to-use
mnemonics can improve everyday remembering. Study One found that
older adults liked learning a simple rote rehearsal system and it
improved their recall of people's names by 80% after a two-week
delay. Study Two found that a simple, structured note taking system
reduced errors in recalling directions to places by 67.7% (younger-old)
and 42.9% (older-old). Study Three, a preliminary investigation,
found that a simple to use rule-based mnemonic for remembering the
location of commonly misplaced household and personal objects improved
a self-reported measure of recall from 82.6% to 100%. These and
our earlier medication adherence study suggest that specialized,
easy-to-learn, and easy-to-use mnemonic techniques can improve everyday
remembering. These studies also indicate that inexpensive, self-paced
computer assisted instruction can be used to teach these techniques,
thereby insuring uniformity of instruction and accessibility by
more people from all social economic strata.
Cognitive Technology: What's in a name?
Jonathon Marsh, M.A.
The University of Hong Kong
Barbara Gorayska, Ph.D.
City University of Hong Kong
Catchy title, "Cognitive Technology"! It almost immediately
invokes all kinds of futuristic images. Thinking machines, (smart)
prosthetic devices, learning amplifiers, and intelligent machine
interfaces all possibly spring to mind. However, if you ask the
few people around the world who have been using the term, what it
actually refers to, you are likely to get a common response. "Good
question! I'm not sure." Then they begin a lengthy elaboration
of their own interpretation which often becomes quite fuzzy and
confusing. Comments are usually made to the effect that it is a
form of human computer interface research, or it is another name
for cognitive engineering, or it is similar to engineering psychology,
or a subset of ergonomics. Having often been asked this question
ourselves, we feel the need to establish a more coherent definition
of what the term means as distinct from other related areas of investigation.
The Application of Cognitive Theory in Aging Research
Roger W. Morrell, Ph.D.
University of Michigan
In the present paper, it is demonstrated how findings from basic
laboratory research on aging and the reduced processing hypothesis
have been used to guide particular studies in applied cognitive
aging research. The discussion focuses primarily on how instructions
for operating electronic and other kinds of devices may be designed
to reduce cognitive load and thus, make them more easily understood
by older adults. A brief overview of other studies that have been
conducted in this area is also presented to illustrate the diversity
of this relatively new field. Overall, this paper suggests that
this type of research should be a priority in order to improve the
quality of life for older adults now and in the future.
Cognitive Load Theory and Instructional Design
Sharon Tindall-Ford, Ph.D.
Paul Chandler, Ph.D.
John Sweller, Ph.D.
University of New South Wales
The human cognitive processing system includes an immense long term
memory and a very limited working memory. Schemas, with varying
degrees of automation, are held permanently in long term memory
and when brought down into working memory, are the main instruments
of skilled intellectual performance. Many instructional techniques
often ignore this cognitive architecture and impose an excessive
load on working memory which hinders the learning process. Cognitive
load theory has incorporated known aspects of human cognitive architecture
with its own notions of information complexity to develop a range
of alternative instructional techniques. This paper reviews cognitive
load theory and provides examples of the instructional techniques
generated by the theory.
A Technologist's Overview of the Development of Cognitive Technology
Peter H. Wright, Ed.D.
Indiana State University
As broadly defined, cognitive technology is a field which will grow
rapidly based on a number of reinforcing technological, societal,
and behavioral trends. It is critical that those on the front lines
of research and innovations in cognitive technology confront major
technological issues. These include trends in the development of
technological systems and the multiple overlapping impacts of technological
innovations on such areas as society, politics, economics, and individual
perceptions of reality.
Mind Operated Devices
Stacie M. Metz, M.A.
Beth Hoffman, M.A.
Towson State University
Mind operated devices (MOD) are designed to interface the electrical
activity of the brain with a computer in order to control some external
device. This technology monitors intricate bioelectrical signals
from the brain (EEG), muscle (EMG) or galvanic skin (GSR) activity,
and then transforms these signals into electrical responses that
can be used to activate equipment or to control some aspect of the
environment. For example, the signals can be used to control a video
game, the lighting in the room, or a computer cursor. Unfortunately,
there is limited published research in the area of MOD systems development.
The purpose of this article is to survey this literature, to present
the results of original research in the use of MOD systems, and
to propose a research agenda for the future.
Coping with Computers - Revisiting Concerns and Recognizing Opportunities
M.K. 'Chat' Chatterji, M.S.
Indiana State University
The Trouble with Computers by Thomas K. Landauer
Cambridge, MA: MIT Press
We would probably all have to agree that the modern world has subscribed
to the notion that "computerization" produces speed, efficiency,
productivity and even profit in our daily lives, both at work and
at home. And if we agree with that world view, shouldn't we be full
of praise for the computers we have come to depend upon? Thomas
K. Landauer's book The Trouble with Computers is an insightful observation
into why this is not always the case. His assertion, in fact, is
quite the opposite.
CT - 1(1) Volume 1, Issue No. 1 Fall 1996
EDITORIAL
4 Cognitive Technology's Contributions to Cognitive Psychology:
The Optimization of Discovery and Application
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
THEORETICAL ARTICLE
9 Collaborative Research into Cognitive Technology: The Role of
Shared Commitment, Problem Coherence and Domain Knowledge
Wally Smith, Ph.D., Mark Randell, Ph.D., Steve Lewandowsky, Ph.D.,
Kim Kirsner, Ph.D. and John Dunn, Ph.D.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
19 Improving Reading Rate and Reading Comprehension with Iconic
Memory Training
Mehrunissa S. Hamid, M.A., Ricky Garner, M.A., and Rick Parenté,
Ph.D.
25 New Technologies for Memory Training with Older Adults
Renee A. Baldi, Ph.D., Dana J. Plude, Ph.D., and Lisa K. Schwartz,
M.A.
PRODUCT REVIEW
36 Portable Electronic Scheduling/Reminding Devices
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D., Carol Y. Yoder, Ph.D., Justine Wells, and
Douglas Raybeck, Ph.D.
BOOK REVIEW
45 Will We Ever Agree?
by Leslie A. Miller, Ph.D.
A review of Victims of Memory: Incest Accusations and Shattered
Lives by M. Pendergrast (1995). Vermont: Upper Access, Inc.
Abstracts - Fall 1996
Cognitive Technology's Contribution to Cognitive Psychology: The
Optimization of Discovery and Application
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Indiana State University
The Need for a Forum for Applications of Cognitive Psychology.
In the past three decades, cognitive psychology has grown rapidly
as fast or faster than other areas of psychology. Basic research
programs in cognitive psychology have been developed at almost all
major colleges and universities. Over this period, a sufficient
body of basic cognitive research has accumulated and many applied
researchers have come to apply basic cognitive theories to everyday
problems (Barber, 1998; Berger, Pezdek, & Banks, 1987; Gruneberg,
Morris, & Sykes, 1978, 1988; Herrmann, McEvoy, Hertzog, Hertel,
& Johnson, 1996; Hoffman & Deffenbacher, 1992).
Collaborative Research into Cognitive Technology: The Role of Shared
Commitment, Problem Coherence and Domain Knowledge
Wally Smith, Ph.D.
Mark Randell, Ph.D.
Steve Lewandowsky, Ph.D.
Kim Kirsner, Ph.D.
John Dunn, Ph.D.
University of Western Australia
Collaboration between academics, industry, and domain specialists
is often touted as the key to successful advances in the understanding
and application of cognitive technology. A basic paradigm for research
in this area can be identified as the development of theories and
methods which address the tripartite relationship between cognitive
artifacts, user cognition and task domains. We extend this paradign
to develop a framework, described as the collaboration pyramid,
for how academia, industry, and domain organizations might and should
collaborate in pursuit of cognitive technology. Principles of the
framework are illustrated in a brief case-study of an academic-industrial-military
collaboration concerning the design of geographical information
systems to support naval command and control.
Improving Reading Rate and Reading Comprehension with Iconic
Memory Training
Mehrunissa S. Hamid, M.A.
Ricky Garner, M.A.
Rick Parenté, Ph.D.
Towson State University
Two experiments investigated the effect of different types of iconic
training on various measures of reading skill. The first experiment
indicated that training with a traditional iconic memory partial
report procedure similar to the one used by Sperling (1960) improved
reading rate but not reading comprehension. A modified iconic training
procedure used improved reading comprehension but not reading rate.
The second experiment manipulated the meaningfulness of the iconic
stimuli during training. The results indicated that meaningfulness
was directly related to recall during iconic training. During the
transfer task, subjects who were given high meaningful stumuli during
training did not perform significantly better on tests of reading
comprehension relative to the low meaningful condition. However,
those subjects who received high or low meaningful iconic training
did perform significantly better than the control condition on the
reading comprehension and reading rate measures.
New Technologies for Memory Training with Older Adults
Renee A. Baldi, Ph.D.
Dana J. Plude, Ph.D.
Lisa K. Schwartz, M.A.
University of Maryland
This paper examines the use of new technologies in memory training
with older adults. Older adults are interested in memory training
programs, but traditional programs are labor-intensive and costly
and they are not always successful in producing long-lasting changes
in effective strategy use. Thus there is pressing need to identify
alternative modes of memory training for the elderly. We evaluate
the effectiveness and feasibility of memory training programs based
on three types of technology: videotape, computer-assisted instruction,
and interactive multimedia systems. Videotaped programs have the
advantage of accessibility and affordability but at the cost of
limited interactivity. Computer-aided instruction overcomes the
limited interactivity of videotapes but at the cost of accessibility
and attractiveness to many older adults. Interactive multimedia
programs, such as television-based Compact Disc-interactive (CD-i)
memory training, combine the positive features of videotaped and
computer-based programs and overcome many of the disadvantages of
those technologies. Despite their differences, each of these technologies
offers many advantages over conventional memory improvement programs
based on in vivo training with an instructor or text-based self-help
books. Memory training programs using new technologies hold excellent
promise for aiding older adults in acquiring, maintaining, and reinforcing
mnemonic techniques, and in producing longer term benefits with
conventional modes of memory training.
Portable Electronic Scheduling/Reminding Devices
Douglas Herrmann, Ph.D.
Carol Y. Yoder, Ph.D.
Justine Wells
Indiana State University
Douglas Raybeck, Ph.D.
Hamilton College
A schedule is the mental or physical record of an intention to perform
an act at a certain time. Failure to schedule effectively leads
to oversights, such as missed appointments, unexcused chores, or
redundancies (i.e., planning two of more obligations for the same
time). In the past decade, portable scheduler/reminder devices have
been developed that remind people of things they have to do at a
certain time by pressing a signal such as an audible beep, as well
as a directive that communicates what is to be done. The probability
of remembering is better with a signal and a directive which prompt
memory than if one must rely solely on memory. The purpose of this
article is to analyze the psychological effects of scheduler/reminders
and to discuss different features of scheduler/reminder design.
Will We Ever Agree?
Leslie A. Miller, Ph.D.
Rollins College
A review of: M. Pendergrast (1995)
Victims of Memory: Incest Accusations and Shattered Lives
Vermont: Upper Access, Inc.
I don't remember much about my childhood. Sometimes I am energetic
and excited about my life - other times I feel overwhelmed and depressed.
My husband and I sometimes have relationship problems. I once had
an eating disorder.
Perhaps I was sexually abused as a child. According to several books,
I have many of the symptoms (e.g., see Bass & Davis, 1994; Blume,
1990; Frederickson, 1992; Herman, 1992; Lew, 1988; Maltz, 1991;
Oksana, 1994; Smith & Pazder, 1980; Terr, 1994). Such a thing
could never have happened to me! I don't have any such memories.
But, according to some books, denial is also a symptom of childhood
sexual abuse (e.g., see Bass & Davis, 1994). I must be a survivor!
I will eventually remember - if I want to get well that is.
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