Improving eyewitness identification accuracy using free-report lineups. There is major national and community interest in the successful conduct of criminal investigations. This research addresses the accuracy of eyewitness identification tests. Specifically, we investigate whether developing lineup procedures that separate out witnesses who are unsure of their response will prevent erroneous identifications. Progress on this issue makes an important contribution to decisions about the ideal lin ....Improving eyewitness identification accuracy using free-report lineups. There is major national and community interest in the successful conduct of criminal investigations. This research addresses the accuracy of eyewitness identification tests. Specifically, we investigate whether developing lineup procedures that separate out witnesses who are unsure of their response will prevent erroneous identifications. Progress on this issue makes an important contribution to decisions about the ideal lineup procedure, thereby preventing innocent people from being prosecuted and perpetrators being free to re-offend. Additionally the international collaboration on the project will increase the visibility of Australian social science research and provide crucial development opportunities for young Australian scientists.Read moreRead less
Identifying the bad guy with deadlined confidence judgments. There is major interest in the successful conduct of criminal investigations. Identity tests are commonly used in such investigations, but eyewitness decision accuracy is still unacceptably low. While eyewitness memory research has already contributed significantly to the development of procedures that improve the diagnosticity of identification decisions, our proposal offers radical new alternatives that can significantly improve diag ....Identifying the bad guy with deadlined confidence judgments. There is major interest in the successful conduct of criminal investigations. Identity tests are commonly used in such investigations, but eyewitness decision accuracy is still unacceptably low. While eyewitness memory research has already contributed significantly to the development of procedures that improve the diagnosticity of identification decisions, our proposal offers radical new alternatives that can significantly improve diagnosticity. In refining and evaluating these alternatives we will boost the profile of Australian science research and provide rich international training environments for young Australian and overseas scientists.Read moreRead less
Interviewing eyewitnesses: Enhancing output quantity and diagnosing accuracy. Although there has been general international agreement that open-ended police interviews (e.g., the Cognitive Interview) enhance output quantity and accuracy, it is also well documented that police investigators often depart from these procedures in order to probe for additional information. An approach to eyewitness interviewing that allows police to elicit greater detail while able to assess likely accuracy not only ....Interviewing eyewitnesses: Enhancing output quantity and diagnosing accuracy. Although there has been general international agreement that open-ended police interviews (e.g., the Cognitive Interview) enhance output quantity and accuracy, it is also well documented that police investigators often depart from these procedures in order to probe for additional information. An approach to eyewitness interviewing that allows police to elicit greater detail while able to assess likely accuracy not only has the potential to be widely adopted but would also provide a major breakthrough in the investigation of crimes and other incidents where interview data are so critical. This in turn would further enhance the profile of Australian (and UK) forensic science.Read moreRead less
Discrimination learning in humans: Associative and attentional mechanisms. This project offers three major benefits: (1) Australian researchers excel in cognitive neuroscience, learning and psychopharmacology, areas based largely on animal models of human cognition. This project contributes to these areas by specifying the relationship between animal learning and human cognition; (2) the project enhances Australia's international reputation in these areas via its collaboration with a scientist ....Discrimination learning in humans: Associative and attentional mechanisms. This project offers three major benefits: (1) Australian researchers excel in cognitive neuroscience, learning and psychopharmacology, areas based largely on animal models of human cognition. This project contributes to these areas by specifying the relationship between animal learning and human cognition; (2) the project enhances Australia's international reputation in these areas via its collaboration with a scientist of Geoff Hall's stature; it also offers students outstanding research training and international exposure; (3) given Chris Mitchell's industry experience and the relevance of this work to advertising/marketing, this project will generate knowledge relevant to, and possible future collaborations with, Australian industries.Read moreRead less
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
Evaluating models of category learning that use general feature-based representations. Three competing models of human category learning will be evaluated by comparing their behaviour to human performance on an experimental task where each model makes qualitatively different predictions. A series of theoretical and algorithmic advances will be undertaken to ensure each of the category learning models uses the same feature-based representation. Because the three models propose very different lear ....Evaluating models of category learning that use general feature-based representations. Three competing models of human category learning will be evaluated by comparing their behaviour to human performance on an experimental task where each model makes qualitatively different predictions. A series of theoretical and algorithmic advances will be undertaken to ensure each of the category learning models uses the same feature-based representation. Because the three models propose very different learning processes, their comparison will give insight into the basic cognitive process of categorisation. The algorithms for generating feature representations and modelling human category learning will also have potential for application in data visualisation and information handling systems.Read moreRead less
Psychological User Profiling in the Telecommunications Industry. Recording user behaviour allows businesses to learn about their customers. This is particularly important in telecommunications, since the core business involves a large number of users who vary considerably from one another. This project combines psychological insights with modern statistical methods to develop a psychologically plausible user profiling framework, accounting for the idiosyncratic usage patterns of customers, and t ....Psychological User Profiling in the Telecommunications Industry. Recording user behaviour allows businesses to learn about their customers. This is particularly important in telecommunications, since the core business involves a large number of users who vary considerably from one another. This project combines psychological insights with modern statistical methods to develop a psychologically plausible user profiling framework, accounting for the idiosyncratic usage patterns of customers, and the way in which they change over time. The profiles will be tied to marketing prospects through interviews and surveys. Applied benefits include the ability to predict, understand and act upon user behaviour. The project also adds substantially to theories of memory, individual differences and decision-making.Read moreRead less
'As-if thinking': an experimental analysis of human reasoning and decision-making. The failure to respond adequately to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 highlighted the difficulty of sequential decision-making. Responses to such emergencies require detailed contingency plans, necessitating a consideration of all possible outcomes of a situation regardless of their objective probability. This project takes an innovative approach to the experimental analysis of human reasoning and de ....'As-if thinking': an experimental analysis of human reasoning and decision-making. The failure to respond adequately to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 highlighted the difficulty of sequential decision-making. Responses to such emergencies require detailed contingency plans, necessitating a consideration of all possible outcomes of a situation regardless of their objective probability. This project takes an innovative approach to the experimental analysis of human reasoning and decision-making, with the aim of identifying the mechanisms, factors, and boundary conditions affecting inferences and decisions about uncertain alternatives. The research will inform planning for Australia's readiness to respond to unpredictable events with uncertain outcomes and enhance the reputation of Australian science.Read moreRead less
Integrating Models of Memory for Serial Order. This research aims to compare and integrate computational models of memory for serial order. The applicants have independently developed theoretically novel models, and this collaboration will enable them to combine and strengthen their complementary perspectives.
Much psychologically important processing, for example speech perception and spelling, requires the representation and reproduction of serial order information. Existing models account ....Integrating Models of Memory for Serial Order. This research aims to compare and integrate computational models of memory for serial order. The applicants have independently developed theoretically novel models, and this collaboration will enable them to combine and strengthen their complementary perspectives.
Much psychologically important processing, for example speech perception and spelling, requires the representation and reproduction of serial order information. Existing models account for a wide range of data and collectively represent exciting progress in the understanding of basic mechanisms of memory. Can these models be unified and reconciled? To date, detailed comparisons of models are lacking. This proposal is for the applicants to elaborate and unify their contrasting theoretical approaches.
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Music cognition in infants, children and adults. Music is an important tool for the expression of emotion and transmission of culture. One approach to understanding why music is a human universal is to examine how people process musical structure - the simultaneous and sequential pitch relations among tones of musical pieces. We investigate the way humans acquire implicit and explicit knowledge of such relations and the way exposure to music influences acquisition. Three experiments involving in ....Music cognition in infants, children and adults. Music is an important tool for the expression of emotion and transmission of culture. One approach to understanding why music is a human universal is to examine how people process musical structure - the simultaneous and sequential pitch relations among tones of musical pieces. We investigate the way humans acquire implicit and explicit knowledge of such relations and the way exposure to music influences acquisition. Three experiments involving infants, children and adults will compare formal musical training with incidental learning. Results will increase knowledge of the development of auditory perception and music cognition. Infant perceptual predispositions hold implications for music education.Read moreRead less