The Development of Creative Thinking Ability in TAFE Design Students. The aim is to develop an instructional framework as a conceptual basis for instruction aimed at TAFE design student use of imagery in creative thinking. The research addresses the challenges of recent post-compulsory education initiatives, which include a more specific focus on the development of creative problem-solving skills, but provide little guidance on instructional strategies. The research will synthesise the framewo ....The Development of Creative Thinking Ability in TAFE Design Students. The aim is to develop an instructional framework as a conceptual basis for instruction aimed at TAFE design student use of imagery in creative thinking. The research addresses the challenges of recent post-compulsory education initiatives, which include a more specific focus on the development of creative problem-solving skills, but provide little guidance on instructional strategies. The research will synthesise the framework from theories about cognitive processes, creative problem-solving and the use of mental imagery; and the results of an imagery training program and creative problem-solving interventions. The outcome will be an instructional framework for guiding the development of student creative thinking in design-based courses in TAFE.Read moreRead less
The Control of Memory Access. The topic of control processes in memory access is central to most of the big questions about human memory such as; why we forget, what produces spectacular and tragic memory failures (e.g.,lighting a match to check the level of petrol in a tank) and the role of context in familiarity and recollection. Because of the centrality of the problems addressed there will be many applications for the results. The long term results will include better models for human ope ....The Control of Memory Access. The topic of control processes in memory access is central to most of the big questions about human memory such as; why we forget, what produces spectacular and tragic memory failures (e.g.,lighting a match to check the level of petrol in a tank) and the role of context in familiarity and recollection. Because of the centrality of the problems addressed there will be many applications for the results. The long term results will include better models for human operators which can be used in both civilian (e.g., air traffic control) and military applications. Other areas of application will include how we measure memory impairment, why we make errors in industrial settings, and the nature of memory deficits as we age. Read moreRead less
The many faces of threat: An investigation of animal, interpersonal and intergroup threat. Threat to personal safety can take a number of guises, a snake in the grass, an angry neighbour or, increasingly often in our modern world, a stranger who looks different. The present project will investigate the manner in which we respond to these threats, whether these responses can be modulated and what determines the threatening nature of an event. A better understanding of how we react to real or p ....The many faces of threat: An investigation of animal, interpersonal and intergroup threat. Threat to personal safety can take a number of guises, a snake in the grass, an angry neighbour or, increasingly often in our modern world, a stranger who looks different. The present project will investigate the manner in which we respond to these threats, whether these responses can be modulated and what determines the threatening nature of an event. A better understanding of how we react to real or perceived threats, in particular those involving other humans, will aid our understanding of human behaviour in an ever faster changing environment, both in our region and more broadly. Read moreRead less
The recognition of human body shape in infancy. Newborn infants have expectations about human faces and it is hypothesised that this early knowledge allows them to identify and begin to engage with other humans. While faces are central to identification of and communication with others, human bodies are also highly informative and expressive, yet to date there is almost no research on infants? expectations about human bodies. This proposal details six studies that will systematically explore a ....The recognition of human body shape in infancy. Newborn infants have expectations about human faces and it is hypothesised that this early knowledge allows them to identify and begin to engage with other humans. While faces are central to identification of and communication with others, human bodies are also highly informative and expressive, yet to date there is almost no research on infants? expectations about human bodies. This proposal details six studies that will systematically explore and document the development of infants? expectations about human bodies, and will further test the theory that infants? earliest social interactions are dependent upon representations of the human face and body.Read moreRead less
Maternal input and theory of mind development in infancy and early childhood. When parents talk to their children, they influence their development both by what they say and how they say it. Building on previous ARC-funded work, this project will examine how and to what extent parents converse about mental states with their children, as well as investigating the influence of such parental talk on the child's socio-cognitive understanding of others' minds and emotions. Results promise to supply ....Maternal input and theory of mind development in infancy and early childhood. When parents talk to their children, they influence their development both by what they say and how they say it. Building on previous ARC-funded work, this project will examine how and to what extent parents converse about mental states with their children, as well as investigating the influence of such parental talk on the child's socio-cognitive understanding of others' minds and emotions. Results promise to supply important insights into the complex interaction of biology and socialisation in normal development, and will also serve as a foundation for future interventions to help children who are at risk for social problems.Read moreRead less
Social Influences on Five Key Steps in Understanding Mind for Children with Autism, Deafness or Typical Development. Via new knowledge on five crucial steps in the growth of social understanding, our findings will serve the ARC's Research Priority #2 to promote good health and a healthy start in life. We will discover what kinds of parenting, social interaction and conversation foster optimal progress through the steps for typical children, and how the delays discovered in our earlier research ....Social Influences on Five Key Steps in Understanding Mind for Children with Autism, Deafness or Typical Development. Via new knowledge on five crucial steps in the growth of social understanding, our findings will serve the ARC's Research Priority #2 to promote good health and a healthy start in life. We will discover what kinds of parenting, social interaction and conversation foster optimal progress through the steps for typical children, and how the delays discovered in our earlier research among those with autism or deafness can be offset or overcome. Also, Australia's position as a world leader in scientific studies of child social cognition will be further strengthened by our methodological and theoretical contributions.
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Objects or agents: Early development of knowledge about human hands. It has long been known that human faces are especially interesting to infants, and our recent ARC-funded work demonstrated that infants' knowledge about human faces emerges long before knowledge of the whole human body shape. Like faces, hands are often the focus of action and communication between infants and their peers or caregivers. The purpose of the proposed studies is therefore to investigate whether human hands are sim ....Objects or agents: Early development of knowledge about human hands. It has long been known that human faces are especially interesting to infants, and our recent ARC-funded work demonstrated that infants' knowledge about human faces emerges long before knowledge of the whole human body shape. Like faces, hands are often the focus of action and communication between infants and their peers or caregivers. The purpose of the proposed studies is therefore to investigate whether human hands are similar to faces in being highly salient and subject to precocious learning in infancy. The proposed studies will test this hypothesis, and will lay the foundation for new techniques that could foster improved social understanding in young children whose developmental disorders make face-to-face interaction aversive. Read moreRead less
Generalised quantum models of complexity with application to cognitive systems. Non-separable systems surround us. Our transportation, taxation, schooling, environmental and social policies are all interrelated, and it is increasingly recognised that we cannot consider them in isolation. Such systems are generally deemed complex, and it is often impossible to separate them from one another. Despite this, many of our most advanced modelling techniques are grounded in principles of separability a ....Generalised quantum models of complexity with application to cognitive systems. Non-separable systems surround us. Our transportation, taxation, schooling, environmental and social policies are all interrelated, and it is increasingly recognised that we cannot consider them in isolation. Such systems are generally deemed complex, and it is often impossible to separate them from one another. Despite this, many of our most advanced modelling techniques are grounded in principles of separability and non-contextuality. This project will develop a new set of models of non-separable systems and complexity that will in turn lead to new frontier technologies and theories.Read moreRead less
Developing and testing a dynamic model of the proximal and distal motivational processes responsible for the regulation of task-directed effort. The project will provide benefits for society, both in terms of its contribution to scientific knowledge and understanding, and potential applications for end users. The question of how people prioritise tasks, set goals, and apply effort is of fundamental importance for understanding human behaviour. Society benefits from basic research into this quest ....Developing and testing a dynamic model of the proximal and distal motivational processes responsible for the regulation of task-directed effort. The project will provide benefits for society, both in terms of its contribution to scientific knowledge and understanding, and potential applications for end users. The question of how people prioritise tasks, set goals, and apply effort is of fundamental importance for understanding human behaviour. Society benefits from basic research into this question, because it allows us to understand the sources of (and limits to) human resilience. The results have wide application in military, industrial and commercial settings. Examples include the development of tools for training people more effectively, managing their workload, and improving their performance.Read moreRead less
How attention and memory for past events interact in determining performance in an air traffic control conflict detection task. This project addresses the priority of safeguarding Australian transportation systems because it concerns failures of attention or memory as sources of human error in aviation. Outcomes will inform the development of training exercises aimed at improving attention management skills critical to safe performance. The research will strengthen Australia's reputation for cut ....How attention and memory for past events interact in determining performance in an air traffic control conflict detection task. This project addresses the priority of safeguarding Australian transportation systems because it concerns failures of attention or memory as sources of human error in aviation. Outcomes will inform the development of training exercises aimed at improving attention management skills critical to safe performance. The research will strengthen Australia's reputation for cutting edge research that extends basic science to applied domains, as this project is one of few world-wide investigating attention and memory processes in multi-item display tasks. More broadly, the project will provide insight into why individuals can make errors when basing decisions on past experience. Read moreRead less