ORCID Profile
0000-0003-1655-2013
Current Organisations
University of Western Australia
,
University of Bristol
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Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 21-02-2022
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2010
DOI: 10.1037/A0017891
Abstract: Working memory updating (WMU) has been identified as a cognitive function of prime importance for everyday tasks and has also been found to be a significant predictor of higher mental abilities. Yet, little is known about the constituent processes of WMU. We suggest that operations required in a typical WMU task can be decomposed into 3 major component processes: retrieval, transformation, and substitution. We report a large-scale experiment that instantiated all possible combinations of those 3 component processes. Results show that the 3 components make independent contributions to updating performance. We additionally present structural equation models that link WMU task performance and working memory capacity (WMC) measures. These feature the methodological advancement of estimating interin idual covariation and experimental effects on mean updating measures simultaneously. The modeling results imply that WMC is a strong predictor of WMU skills in general, although some component processes-in particular, substitution skills-were independent of WMC. Hence, the reported predictive power of WMU measures may rely largely on common WM functions also measured in typical WMC tasks, although substitution skills may make an independent contribution to predicting higher mental abilities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved).
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-05-2015
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2003
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2009
DOI: 10.1037/A0015902
Abstract: Despite the fact that categories are often composed of correlated features, the evidence that people detect and use these correlations during intentional category learning has been overwhelmingly negative to date. Nonetheless, on other categorization tasks, such as feature prediction, people show evidence of correlational sensitivity. A conventional explanation holds that category learning tasks promote rule use, which discards the correlated-feature information, whereas other types of category learning tasks promote exemplar storage, which preserves correlated-feature information. Contrary to that common belief, the authors report 2 experiments that demonstrate that using probabilistic feedback in an intentional categorization task leads to sensitivity to correlations among nondiagnostic cues. Deterministic feedback eliminates correlational sensitivity by focusing attention on relevant cues. Computational modeling reveals that exemplar storage coupled with selective attention is necessary to explain this effect.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2017
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-02-2015
DOI: 10.3758/S13421-015-0512-8
Abstract: The Hebb repetition effect refers to the finding that immediate serial recall is improved over trials for memory lists that are surreptitiously repeated across trials, relative to new lists. We show in four experiments that the Hebb repetition effect is also observed with a complex-span task, in which encoding or retrieval of list items alternates with an unrelated processing task. The interruption of encoding or retrieval by the processing task did not reduce the size of the Hebb effect, demonstrating that incidental long-term learning forms integrated representations of lists, excluding the interleaved processing events. Contrary to the assumption that complex-span performance relies more on long-term memory than standard immediate serial recall (simple span), the Hebb effect was not larger in complex-span than in simple-span performance. The Hebb effect in complex span was also not modulated by the opportunity for refreshing list items, questioning a role of refreshing for the acquisition of the long-term memory representations underlying the effect.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-07-2009
DOI: 10.1111/J.1551-6709.2009.01045.X
Abstract: Determining the knowledge that guides human judgments is fundamental to understanding how people reason, make decisions, and form predictions. We use an experimental procedure called ''iterated learning,'' in which the responses that people give on one trial are used to generate the data they see on the next, to pinpoint the knowledge that informs people's predictions about everyday events (e.g., predicting the total box office gross of a movie from its current take). In particular, we use this method to discriminate between two models of human judgments: a simple Bayesian model (Griffiths & Tenenbaum, 2006) and a recently proposed alternative model that assumes people store only a few instances of each type of event in memory (MinK Mozer, Pashler, & Homaei, 2008). Although testing these models using standard experimental procedures is difficult due to differences in the number of free parameters and the need to make assumptions about the knowledge of in idual learners, we show that the two models make very different predictions about the outcome of iterated learning. The results of an experiment using this methodology provide a rich picture of how much people know about the distributions of everyday quantities, and they are inconsistent with the predictions of the MinK model. The results suggest that accurate predictions about everyday events reflect relatively sophisticated knowledge on the part of in iduals.
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.150547
Abstract: Openness is one of the central values of science. Open scientific practices such as sharing data, materials and analysis scripts alongside published articles have many benefits, including easier replication and extension studies, increased availability of data for theory-building and meta-analysis, and increased possibility of review and collaboration even after a paper has been published. Although modern information technology makes sharing easier than ever before, uptake of open practices had been slow. We suggest this might be in part due to a social dilemma arising from misaligned incentives and propose a specific, concrete mechanism—reviewers withholding comprehensive review—to achieve the goal of creating the expectation of open practices as a matter of scientific principle.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2014
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2006
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2017
Publisher: Hogrefe Publishing Group
Date: 07-2023
DOI: 10.1027/1016-9040/A000493
Abstract: Abstract: The spread of false and misleading information in online social networks is a global problem in need of urgent solutions. It is also a policy problem because misinformation can harm both the public and democracies. To address the spread of misinformation, policymakers require a successful interface between science and policy, as well as a range of evidence-based solutions that respect fundamental rights while efficiently mitigating the harms of misinformation online. In this article, we discuss how regulatory and nonregulatory instruments can be informed by scientific research and used to reach EU policy objectives. First, we consider what it means to approach misinformation as a policy problem. We then outline four building blocks for cooperation between scientists and policymakers who wish to address the problem of misinformation: understanding the misinformation problem, understanding the psychological drivers and public perceptions of misinformation, finding evidence-based solutions, and co-developing appropriate policy measures. Finally, through the lens of psychological science, we examine policy instruments that have been proposed in the EU, focusing on the strengthened Code of Practice on Disinformation 2022.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2009
DOI: 10.1016/J.TICS.2008.12.003
Abstract: Many models of short-term memory (STM) ascribe an important role to temporal decay and forgetting because of the passage of time alone. We argue against decay as the primary form of forgetting from STM, and suggest that new experimental methodologies and recent models provide new perspectives on the old issue of the causes of forgetting. We show that several classic sources of evidence for time-based forgetting can be re-interpreted in terms of an interference-based view, and that new experiments provide compelling evidence against decay. We conclude that progress requires moving beyond demonstrations of qualitative effects and focusing instead on testing quantitative predictions of models.
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 12-2017
Publisher: Association for Computational Linguistics
Date: 2023
Publisher: Routledge
Date: 02-02-2022
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2002
DOI: 10.3758/BF03196257
Abstract: We introduce a distributed model of memory for serial order, called SOB, that produces ordered serial recall by relying on encoding and retrieval processes that are endogenous to the model. SOB explains the basic shape of the serial position curve, the pattern of errors during recall (including the balance between transpositions, omissions, intrusions, and erroneous repetitions), the effects of list length on the distribution of errors, the overall level of recall and response latency, and the effects of natural language frequency on recall performance. In addition, contrary to several recent suggestions, SOB demonstrates that distributed representations can support unambiguous recall, selective response suppression, and novelty-sensitive encoding.
Publisher: Elsevier
Date: 2008
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Date: 28-06-2012
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2008
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 26-03-2013
Abstract: Although nearly all domain experts agree that carbon dioxide emissions are altering the world’s climate, segments of the public remain unconvinced by the scientific evidence. Internet blogs have become a platform for denial of climate change, and bloggers have taken a prominent role in questioning climate science. We report a survey of climate-blog visitors to identify the variables underlying acceptance and rejection of climate science. Our findings parallel those of previous work and show that endorsement of free-market economics predicted rejection of climate science. Endorsement of free markets also predicted the rejection of other established scientific findings, such as the facts that HIV causes AIDS and that smoking causes lung cancer. We additionally show that, above and beyond endorsement of free markets, endorsement of a cluster of conspiracy theories (e.g., that the Federal Bureau of Investigation killed Martin Luther King, Jr.) predicted rejection of climate science as well as other scientific findings. Our results provide empirical support for previous suggestions that conspiratorial thinking contributes to the rejection of science. Acceptance of science, by contrast, was strongly associated with the perception of a consensus among scientists.
Publisher: Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)
Date: 03-2019
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2012
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 17-09-2008
Abstract: The articles in this theme issue seek to understand the evolutionary bases of social learning and the consequences of cultural transmission for the evolution of human behaviour. In this introductory article, we provide a summary of these articles (seven articles on the experimental exploration of cultural transmission and three articles on the role of gene–culture coevolution in shaping human behaviour) and a personal view of some promising lines of development suggested by the work summarized here.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 21-03-2014
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-08-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-17924-9
Abstract: An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 19-09-2008
Abstract: The question of how much the outcomes of cultural evolution are shaped by the cognitive capacities of human learners has been explored in several disciplines, including psychology, anthropology and linguistics. We address this question through a detailed investigation of transmission chains, in which each person passes information to another along a chain. We review mathematical and empirical evidence that shows that under general conditions, and across experimental paradigms, the information passed along transmission chains will be affected by the inductive biases of the people involved—the constraints on learning and memory, which influence conclusions from limited data. The mathematical analysis considers the case where each person is a rational Bayesian agent. The empirical work consists of behavioural experiments in which human participants are shown to operate in the manner predicted by the Bayesian framework. Specifically, in situations in which each person's response is used to determine the data seen by the next person, people converge on concepts consistent with their inductive biases irrespective of the information seen by the first member of the chain. We then relate the Bayesian analysis of transmission chains to models of biological evolution, clarifying how chains of in iduals correspond to population-level models and how selective forces can be incorporated into our models. Taken together, these results indicate how laboratory studies of transmission chains can provide information about the dynamics of cultural evolution and illustrate that inductive biases can have a significant impact on these dynamics.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2008
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 10-1986
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2015
DOI: 10.1037/A0039684
Abstract: We examine the explanatory roles that have been ascribed to various forms of rehearsal or refreshing in short-term memory (STM) and working memory paradigms, usually in conjunction with the assumption that memories decay over time if they are not rehearsed. Notwithstanding the popularity of the rehearsal notion, there have been few detailed examinations of its underlying mechanisms. We explicitly implemented rehearsal in a decay model and explored its role by simulation in several benchmark paradigms ranging from immediate serial recall to complex span and delayed recall. The results show that articulatory forms of rehearsal often fail to counteract temporal decay. Rapid attentional refreshing performs considerably better, but so far there is scant empirical evidence that people engage in refreshing during STM tasks. Combining articulatory rehearsal and refreshing as 2 independent maintenance processes running in parallel leads to worse performance than refreshing alone. We conclude that theoretical reliance on articulatory rehearsal as a causative agent in memory may be unwise and that explanatory appeals to rehearsal are insufficient unless buttressed by quantitative modeling.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.1037/REV0000342
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-04-2019
DOI: 10.1111/POPS.12586
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2002
DOI: 10.1002/ACP.846
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 17-03-2011
Abstract: Most climate experts agree that human carbon dioxide emissions cause anthropogenic global warming (AGW), reflected in increased global temperatures during every decade since 1970. Nonetheless, some public figures have claimed that AGW stopped in 1998. In a large experiment ( N = 200), participants extrapolated global climate data, presented graphically either as share prices or as temperatures. Irrespective of their attitudes toward AGW, and irrespective of presentation format, people judged the trend to be increasing. These results suggest that presentation of climate data can counter claims that AGW has stopped.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-06-2012
DOI: 10.3758/S13423-012-0272-4
Abstract: This article introduces a new computational model for the complex-span task, the most popular task for studying working memory. SOB-CS is a two-layer neural network that associates distributed item representations with distributed, overlapping position markers. Memory capacity limits are explained by interference from a superposition of associations. Concurrent processing interferes with memory through involuntary encoding of distractors. Free time in-between distractors is used to remove irrelevant representations, thereby reducing interference. The model accounts for benchmark findings in four areas: (1) effects of processing pace, processing difficulty, and number of processing steps (2) effects of serial position and error patterns (3) effects of different kinds of item-distractor similarity and (4) correlations between span tasks. The model makes several new predictions in these areas, which were confirmed experimentally.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-11-2011
DOI: 10.3758/S13423-010-0020-6
Abstract: Working memory is a core concept in cognition, predicting about 50% of the variance in IQ and reasoning tasks. A popular test of working memory is the complex span task, in which encoding of memoranda alternates with processing of distractors. A recent model of complex span performance, the Time-Based-Resource-Sharing (TBRS) model of Barrouillet and colleagues, has seemingly accounted for several crucial findings, in particular the intricate trade-off between deterioration and restoration of memory in the complex span task. According to the TBRS, memory traces decay during processing of the distractors, and they are restored by attentional refreshing during brief pauses in between processing steps. However, to date, the theory has been formulated only at a verbal level, which renders it difficult to test and to be certain of its intuited predictions. We present a computational instantiation of the TBRS and show that it can handle most of the findings on which the verbal model was based. We also show that there are potential challenges to the model that await future resolution. This instantiated model, TBRS*, is the first comprehensive computational model of performance in the complex span paradigm. The Matlab model code is available as a supplementary material of this article.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-09-2023
Publisher: ACM
Date: 08-05-2021
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2014
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 11-12-2020
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291720005188
Abstract: Our aim was to estimate provisional willingness to receive a coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine, identify predictive socio-demographic factors, and, principally, determine potential causes in order to guide information provision. A non-probability online survey was conducted (24th September−17th October 2020) with 5,114 UK adults, quota s led to match the population for age, gender, ethnicity, income, and region. The Oxford COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy scale assessed intent to take an approved vaccine. Structural equation modelling estimated explanatory factor relationships. 71.7% ( n =3,667) were willing to be vaccinated, 16.6% ( n =849) were very unsure, and 11.7% ( n =598) were strongly hesitant. An excellent model fit (RMSEA=0.05/CFI=0.97/TLI=0.97), explaining 86% of variance in hesitancy, was provided by beliefs about the collective importance, efficacy, side-effects, and speed of development of a COVID-19 vaccine. A second model, with reasonable fit (RMSEA=0.03/CFI=0.93/TLI=0.92), explaining 32% of variance, highlighted two higher-order explanatory factors: ‘excessive mistrust’ ( r =0.51), including conspiracy beliefs, negative views of doctors, and need for chaos, and ‘positive healthcare experiences’ ( r =−0.48), including supportive doctor interactions and good NHS care. Hesitancy was associated with younger age, female gender, lower income, and ethnicity, but socio-demographic information explained little variance (9.8%). Hesitancy was associated with lower adherence to social distancing guidelines. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is relatively evenly spread across the population. Willingness to take a vaccine is closely bound to recognition of the collective importance. Vaccine public information that highlights prosocial benefits may be especially effective. Factors such as conspiracy beliefs that foster mistrust and erode social cohesion will lower vaccine up-take.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-2007
DOI: 10.3758/BF03194066
Abstract: Cultural transmission of information plays a central role in shaping human knowledge. Some of the most complex knowledge that people acquire, such as languages or cultural norms, can only be learned from other people, who themselves learned from previous generations. The prevalence of this process of "iterated learning" as a mode of cultural transmission raises the question of how it affects the information being transmitted. Analyses of iterated learning utilizing the assumption that the learners are Bayesian agents predict that this process should converge to an equilibrium that reflects the inductive biases of the learners. An experiment in iterated function learning with human participants confirmed this prediction, providing insight into the consequences of intergenerational knowledge transmission and a method for discovering the inductive biases that guide human inferences.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.NEUROIMAGE.2019.03.014
Abstract: Upon receiving a correction, initially presented misinformation often continues to influence people's judgment and reasoning. Whereas some researchers believe that this so-called continued influence effect of misinformation (CIEM) simply arises from the insufficient encoding and integration of corrective claims, others assume that it arises from a competition between the correct information and the initial misinformation in memory. To examine these possibilities, we conducted two functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies. In each study, participants were asked to (a) read a series of brief news reports that contained confirmations or corrections of prior information and (b) evaluate whether subsequently presented memory probes matched the reports' correct facts rather than the initial misinformation. Both studies revealed that following correction-containing news reports, participants struggled to refute mismatching memory probes, especially when they referred to initial misinformation (as opposed to mismatching probes with novel information). We found little evidence, however, that the encoding of confirmations and corrections produced systematic neural processing differences indicative of distinct encoding strategies. Instead, we discovered that following corrections, participants exhibited increased activity in the left angular gyrus and the bilateral precuneus in response to mismatching memory probes that contained prior misinformation, compared to novel mismatch probes. These findings favour the notion that people's susceptibility to the CIEM arises from the concurrent retention of both correct and incorrect information in memory.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-09-2019
DOI: 10.3758/S13423-019-01645-2
Abstract: A worrying number of psychological findings are not replicable. Diagnoses of the causes of this "replication crisis," and recommendations to address it, have nearly exclusively focused on methods of data collection, analysis, and reporting. We argue that a further cause of poor replicability is the often weak logical link between theories and their empirical tests. We propose a distinction between discovery-oriented and theory-testing research. In discovery-oriented research, theories do not strongly imply hypotheses by which they can be tested, but rather define a search space for the discovery of effects that would support them. Failures to find these effects do not question the theory. This endeavor necessarily engenders a high risk of Type I errors-that is, publication of findings that will not replicate. Theory-testing research, by contrast, relies on theories that strongly imply hypotheses, such that disconfirmation of the hypothesis provides evidence against the theory. Theory-testing research engenders a smaller risk of Type I errors. A strong link between theories and hypotheses is best achieved by formalizing theories as computational models. We critically revisit recommendations for addressing the "replication crisis," including the proposal to distinguish exploratory from confirmatory research, and the preregistration of hypotheses and analysis plans.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-10-2013
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE1720
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2005
DOI: 10.1037/0278-7393.31.5.846
Abstract: Knowledge restructuring occurs when people shift to a new strategy or representation during learning. Although knowledge restructuring can frequently be experimentally encouraged, there are instances in which people resist restructuring and continue to use an expedient but imperfect initial strategy. The authors report 3 category learning experiments that reconciled those conflicting outcomes by postulating that, for restructuring to occur, learners must be dissatisfied with their knowledge and a usable alternative must be available. In line with expectation, restructuring was elicited only when an alternative strategy was pointed out and when people's initial expedient strategy entailed performance error. Neither error nor information about the alternative strategy by itself was sufficient to induce restructuring.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-2008
DOI: 10.3758/MC.36.5.957
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date: 18-06-2009
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 1991
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 08-2016
Abstract: Some scientifically well-established results—such as the fact that emission of greenhouse gases produces global warming—are rejected by sizable proportions of the population in the United States and other countries. Rejection of scientific findings is mostly driven by motivated cognition: People tend to reject findings that threaten their core beliefs or worldview. At present, rejection of scientific findings by the U.S. public is more prevalent on the political right than the left. Yet the cognitive mechanisms driving rejection of science, such as the superficial processing of evidence toward the desired interpretation, are found regardless of political orientation. General education and scientific literacy do not mitigate rejection of science but, rather, increase the polarization of opinions along partisan lines. In contrast, specific knowledge about the mechanisms underlying a scientific result—such as human-made climate change—can increase the acceptance of that result.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-01-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-019-14203-0
Abstract: There is a broad agreement that psychology is facing a replication crisis. Even some seemingly well-established findings have failed to replicate. Numerous causes of the crisis have been identified, such as underpowered studies, publication bias, imprecise theories, and inadequate statistical procedures. The replication crisis is real, but it is less clear how it should be resolved. Here we examine potential solutions by modeling a scientific community under various different replication regimes. In one regime, all findings are replicated before publication to guard against subsequent replication failures. In an alternative regime, in idual studies are published and are replicated after publication, but only if they attract the community’s interest. We find that the publication of potentially non-replicable studies minimizes cost and maximizes efficiency of knowledge gain for the scientific community under a variety of assumptions. Provided it is properly managed, our findings suggest that low replicability can support robust and efficient science.
Publisher: No publisher found
Date: 2002
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2022
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1111/TOPS.12186
Abstract: Belief polarization is said to occur when two people respond to the same evidence by updating their beliefs in opposite directions. This response is considered to be "irrational" because it involves contrary updating, a form of belief updating that appears to violate normatively optimal responding, as for ex le dictated by Bayes' theorem. In light of much evidence that people are capable of normatively optimal behavior, belief polarization presents a puzzling exception. We show that Bayesian networks, or Bayes nets, can simulate rational belief updating. When fit to experimental data, Bayes nets can help identify the factors that contribute to polarization. We present a study into belief updating concerning the reality of climate change in response to information about the scientific consensus on anthropogenic global warming (AGW). The study used representative s les of Australian and U.S. Among Australians, consensus information partially neutralized the influence of worldview, with free-market supporters showing a greater increase in acceptance of human-caused global warming relative to free-market opponents. In contrast, while consensus information overall had a positive effect on perceived consensus among U.S. participants, there was a reduction in perceived consensus and acceptance of human-caused global warming for strong supporters of unregulated free markets. Fitting a Bayes net model to the data indicated that under a Bayesian framework, free-market support is a significant driver of beliefs about climate change and trust in climate scientists. Further, active distrust of climate scientists among a small number of U.S. conservatives drives contrary updating in response to consensus information among this particular group.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 10-07-2023
DOI: 10.1177/17456916231180809
Abstract: Most content consumed online is curated by proprietary algorithms deployed by social media platforms and search engines. In this article, we explore the interplay between these algorithms and human agency. Specifically, we consider the extent of entanglement or coupling between humans and algorithms along a continuum from implicit to explicit demand. We emphasize that the interactions people have with algorithms not only shape users’ experiences in that moment but because of the mutually shaping nature of such systems can also have longer-term effects through modifications of the underlying social-network structure. Understanding these mutually shaping systems is challenging given that researchers presently lack access to relevant platform data. We argue that increased transparency, more data sharing, and greater protections for external researchers examining the algorithms are required to help researchers better understand the entanglement between humans and algorithms. This better understanding is essential to support the development of algorithms with greater benefits and fewer risks to the public.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1111/TOPS.12188
Abstract: The 11 articles in this issue explore how people respond to climate change and other global challenges. The articles pursue three broad strands of enquiry that relate (1) to the effects and causes of "skepticism" about climate change, (2) the purely cognitive challenges that are posed by a complex scientific issue, and (3) the ways in which climate change can be communicated to a wider audience. Cognitive science can contribute to understanding people's responses to global challenges in many ways, and it may also contribute to implementing solutions to those problems.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Date: 20-12-2019
DOI: 10.1093/OSO/9780190844073.003.0010
Abstract: Some issues that are uncontroversial within the relevant scientific community, such as the facts that HIV causes AIDS, that childhood vaccinations save countless lives, and that the globe is warming from human greenhouse gas emissions are hotly contested in public. In some cases, the opposition to well-established science crosses the boundary from skepticism to denial. Science denial is characterized by several common attributes that are explored here and that are illustrated with a particular focus on how scientists themselves are affected by denial. The illustration uses the author’s own experience with attempts to suppress and silence his research on the drivers of climate denial. Although this is a personal story, it has implications for the scientific community and scientific institutions.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 31-12-2015
DOI: 10.1111/COGS.12214
Abstract: Is consolidation needed to account for retroactive interference in free recall? Interfering mental activity during the retention interval of a memory task impairs performance, in particular if the interference occurs in temporal proximity to the encoding of the to-be-remembered (TBR) information. There are at least two rival theoretical accounts of this temporal gradient of retroactive interference. The cognitive neuroscience literature has suggested neural consolidation is a pivotal factor determining item recall. According to this account, interfering activity interrupts consolidation processes that would otherwise stabilize the memory representations of TBR items post-encoding. Temporal distinctiveness theory, by contrast, proposes that the retrievability of items depends on their isolation in psychological time. According to this theory, information processed after the encoding of TBR material will reduce the temporal distinctiveness of the TBR information. To test between these accounts, implementations of consolidation were added to the SIMPLE model of memory and learning. We report data from two experiments utilizing a two-list free recall paradigm. Modeling results imply that SIMPLE was able to model the data and did not benefit from the addition of consolidation. It is concluded that the temporal gradient of retroactive interference cannot be taken as evidence for memory consolidation.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-11-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-19644-6
Abstract: Social media has arguably shifted political agenda-setting power away from mainstream media onto politicians. Current U.S. President Trump’s reliance on Twitter is unprecedented, but the underlying implications for agenda setting are poorly understood. Using the president as a case study, we present evidence suggesting that President Trump’s use of Twitter erts crucial media (The New York Times and ABC News) from topics that are potentially harmful to him. We find that increased media coverage of the Mueller investigation is immediately followed by Trump tweeting increasingly about unrelated issues. This increased activity, in turn, is followed by a reduction in coverage of the Mueller investigation—a finding that is consistent with the hypothesis that President Trump’s tweets may also successfully ert the media from topics that he considers threatening. The pattern is absent in placebo analyses involving Brexit coverage and several other topics that do not present a political risk to the president. Our results are robust to the inclusion of numerous control variables and examination of several alternative explanations, although the generality of the successful ersion must be established by further investigation.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2004
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date: 18-06-2009
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 04-2021
DOI: 10.1177/20563051211008817
Abstract: We explore the implications of online social endorsement for the Covid-19 vaccination program in the United Kingdom. Vaccine hesitancy is a long-standing problem, but it has assumed great urgency due to the pandemic. By early 2021, the United Kingdom had the world’s highest Covid-19 mortality per million of population. Our survey of a nationally representative s le of UK adults ( N = 5,114) measured socio-demographics, social and political attitudes, media diet for getting news about Covid-19, and intention to use social media and personal messaging apps to encourage or discourage vaccination against Covid-19. Cluster analysis identified six distinct media diet groups: news avoiders, mainstream/official news s lers, super seekers, omnivores, the social media dependent, and the TV dependent. We assessed whether these media diets, together with key attitudes, including Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy, conspiracy mentality, and the news-finds-me attitude (meaning giving less priority to active monitoring of news and relying more on one’s online networks of friends for information), predict the intention to encourage or discourage vaccination. Overall, super-seeker and omnivorous media diets are more likely than other media diets to be associated with the online encouragement of vaccination. Combinations of (a) news avoidance and high levels of the news-finds-me attitude and (b) social media dependence and high levels of conspiracy mentality are most likely to be associated with online discouragement of vaccination. In the direct statistical model, a TV-dependent media diet is more likely to be associated with online discouragement of vaccination, but the moderation model shows that a TV-dependent diet most strongly attenuates the relationship between vaccine hesitancy and discouraging vaccination. Our findings support public health communication based on four main methods. First, direct contact, through the post, workplace, or community structures, and through phone counseling via local health services, could reach the news avoiders. Second, TV public information advertisements should point to authoritative information sources, such as National Health Service (NHS) and other public health websites, which should then feature clear and simple ways for people to share material among their online social networks. Third, informative social media c aigns will provide super seekers with good resources to share, while also encouraging the social media dependent to browse away from social media platforms and visit reliable and authoritative online sources. Fourth, social media companies should expand and intensify their removal of vaccine disinformation and anti-vax accounts, and such efforts should be monitored by well-resourced, independent organizations.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 14-03-2012
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2004
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 2012
Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Date: 2011
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 12-2020
Abstract: The Internet has evolved into a ubiquitous and indispensable digital environment in which people communicate, seek information, and make decisions. Despite offering various benefits, online environments are also replete with smart, highly adaptive choice architectures designed primarily to maximize commercial interests, capture and sustain users’ attention, monetize user data, and predict and influence future behavior. This online landscape holds multiple negative consequences for society, such as a decline in human autonomy, rising incivility in online conversation, the facilitation of political extremism, and the spread of disinformation. Benevolent choice architects working with regulators may curb the worst excesses of manipulative choice architectures, yet the strategic advantages, resources, and data remain with commercial players. One way to address some of this imbalance is with interventions that empower Internet users to gain some control over their digital environments, in part by boosting their information literacy and their cognitive resistance to manipulation. Our goal is to present a conceptual map of interventions that are based on insights from psychological science. We begin by systematically outlining how online and offline environments differ despite being increasingly inextricable. We then identify four major types of challenges that users encounter in online environments: persuasive and manipulative choice architectures, AI-assisted information architectures, false and misleading information, and distracting environments. Next, we turn to how psychological science can inform interventions to counteract these challenges of the digital world. After distinguishing among three types of behavioral and cognitive interventions—nudges, technocognition, and boosts—we focus on boosts, of which we identify two main groups: (a) those aimed at enhancing people’s agency in their digital environments (e.g., self-nudging, deliberate ignorance) and (b) those aimed at boosting competencies of reasoning and resilience to manipulation (e.g., simple decision aids, inoculation). These cognitive tools are designed to foster the civility of online discourse and protect reason and human autonomy against manipulative choice architectures, attention-grabbing techniques, and the spread of false information.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 11-1989
DOI: 10.1177/0049124189018002002
Abstract: Graphs have been an essential tool for the analysis and communication of statistical data for about 200 years. Despite widespread use and their importance in science, business, and many other walks of life, relatively little is known about how people perceive and process statistical graphs. This article reviews several empirical studies designed to explore the suitability of various graphs for a variety of purposes, and discusses the relevant theoretical psychological literature. The role of traditional psychophysics is considered, especially in connection with the long-running dispute concerning the relative merits of pie and bar charts. The review also discusses experiments on the perception of scatterplots and the use of multivariate displays, and points out the need for more empirical work.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-2017
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE3323
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 22-01-2021
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0245740
Abstract: The nature of the COVID-19 pandemic may require governments to use privacy-encroaching technologies to help contain its spread. One technology involves co-location tracking through mobile Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth to permit health agencies to monitor people’s contact with each other, thereby triggering targeted social-distancing when a person turns out to be infected. The effectiveness of tracking relies on the willingness of the population to support such privacy encroaching measures. We report the results of two large surveys in the United Kingdom, conducted during the peak of the pandemic, that probe people’s attitudes towards various tracking technologies. The results show that by and large there is widespread acceptance for co-location tracking. Acceptance increases when the measures are explicitly time-limited and come with opt-out clauses or other assurances of privacy. Another possible future technology to control the pandemic involves “immunity passports”, which could be issued to people who carry antibodies for the COVID-19 virus, potentially implying that they are immune and therefore unable to spread the virus to other people. Immunity passports have been considered as a potential future step to manage the pandemic. We probe people’s attitudes towards immunity passports and find considerable support overall, although around 20% of the public strongly oppose passports.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2006
DOI: 10.3758/BF03195930
Abstract: Knowledge partitioning refers to the notion that knowledge can be held in independent and non-overlapping parcels. Partitioned knowledge may cause people to make contradictory decisions for identical problems in different circumstances. We report two experiments that explored the boundary conditions of knowledge partitioning in categorization. The studies examined whether or not people would partition their knowledge (1) when categorization rules were or were not verbalizable and (2) when the to-be-categorized stimuli comprised perceptually separable or integral dimensions. When learning difficulty was controlled, partitioning occurred across all combinations of verbalizability and integrality/separability, underscoring the generality of knowledge partitioning. Partitioning was absent only when the task was rapidly learned and people reached a high level of proficiency, suggesting that task difficulty plays a critical role in the emergence of partitioned knowledge.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2014
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2000
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 11-2019
DOI: 10.1037/REV0000159
Abstract: We introduce a framework for simple measurement models for working memory, and apply it to complex-span and memory-updating tasks. Memory Measurement Models (M3) use the frequency distribution across response categories to measure continuous memory strength along 2 dimensions: Memory for in idual elements, potentially relying on persistent activation of unified representations, and memory for relations, relying on temporary bindings. Experiment 1 provides evidence for the validity of the parameters measuring these two dimensions of strength. The effects of experimental manipulations on these 2 dimensions can be captured by additional model parameters that reflect hypothetical processes affecting memory. Across five further experiments we illustrate how M3 can be used to measure 3 such processes: The continued strengthening of memory representations during the retention interval (extended encoding), the d ening of encoding of irrelevant information (filtering), and the removal of irrelevant information from memory. In one experiment we compare young and old adults on complex-span tasks and working memory updating. In both paradigms, old adults showed impaired memory for relations but no impairment in memory for in idual elements. There was partial evidence for age differences in extended encoding and removal there were no age differences in filtering. We suggest that M3 offer a computationally efficient approach to identifying memory processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 12-2017
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-06-2000
DOI: 10.1007/PL00008175
Abstract: Short-term serial recall performance is strongly affected by the nature of the items to be remembered. For ex le, memory span declines with decreasing speech rate (i.e., increasing pronunciation duration) of the items and, for a given speech rate, memory for non-words is poorer than for words. Similarly, words of high natural language frequency are recalled better than low-frequency words. Existing descriptive models have identified redintegration as underlying many of those effects. Redintegration refers to the process by which partially retrieved memorial information is converted into an overt response. This article presents a process model of redintegration based on a non-linear dynamic network, which is shown to handle the effects of speech rate, lexicality, and word frequency on memory span. Unlike previous descriptive efforts, the redintegration model also predicts the shape of the underlying serial position curves.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 03-2005
DOI: 10.1111/J.0956-7976.2005.00802.X
Abstract: Media coverage of the 2003 Iraq War frequently contained corrections and retractions of earlier information. For ex le, claims that Iraqi forces executed coalition prisoners of war after they surrendered were retracted the day after the claims were made. Similarly, tentative initial reports about the discovery of weapons of mass destruction were all later disconfirmed. We investigated the effects of these retractions and disconfirmations on people's memory for and beliefs about war-related events in two coalition countries (Australia and the United States) and one country that opposed the war (Germany). Participants were queried about (a) true events, (b) events initially presented as fact but subsequently retracted, and (c) fictional events. Participants in the United States did not show sensitivity to the correction of misinformation, whereas participants in Australia and Germany discounted corrected misinformation. Our results are consistent with previous findings in that the differences between s les reflect greater suspicion about the motives underlying the war among people in Australia and Germany than among people in the United States.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-06-2020
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2002
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2005
DOI: 10.1080/09658210344000233
Abstract: Most models of serial recall postulate that recalled items are suppressed and thus temporarily rendered unavailable. Response suppression can explain several results, for ex le the small number of erroneous repetitions and people's reluctance to report repeated items. Although it is clear that response suppression is not permanent (thus permitting renewed recall of an item on the next trial), nothing is known about its time course. We report two experiments that measured the time course of response suppression with a multiple cued-retrieval response-deadline method. Emphasis was on the extent of repetition inhibition for lists that contained a repeated item. Regardless of whether presentation was rapid (Experiment 1 150 ms/item) or slow (Experiment 2 500 ms/item), (a) the standard pattern of repetition inhibition and erroneous repetitions occurred and (b) repetition inhibition remained constant across increasing retrieval time. This suggests that the release from response suppression is a discrete, list-wide effect rather than a continuous, gradual wearing off. The latter conclusion is consistent with the operation of the SOB model (Farrell & Lewandowsky, 2002) but not with models that postulate complete suppression with gradual wearing off.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-2017
DOI: 10.1038/545037A
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2008
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-05-2012
DOI: 10.3758/S13421-012-0212-6
Abstract: Serial recall is often assumed to involve response suppression: the removal or inhibition of items already recalled so that they are not recalled again. Evidence for response suppression includes repetition inhibition and the separation of erroneous repetitions. Some theorists have suggested that response suppression, by eliminating competing responses, also contributes to recency in forward serial recall. We present experiments in which performance on the final item was examined as a function of whether or not the preceding retrievals entailed suppression of potential response competitors. In line with the predictions of response suppression, recency was found to be reduced when the earlier recall errors consisted of intrusion errors (which leave list items unsuppressed) rather than transposition errors (which involve suppression).
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 03-02-2021
Abstract: Bayesian inference offers an optimal means of processing environmental information and so an advantage in natural selection. We consider the apparent, recent trend in increasing dysfunctional disagreement in, for ex le, political debate. This is puzzling because Bayesian inference benefits from powerful convergence theorems, precluding dysfunctional disagreement. Information overload is a plausible factor limiting the applicability of full Bayesian inference, but what is the link with dysfunctional disagreement? In iduals striving to be Bayesian-rational, but challenged by information overload, might simplify by using Bayesian networks or the separation of questions into knowledge partitions, the latter formalized with quantum probability theory. We demonstrate the massive simplification afforded by either approach, but also show how they contribute to dysfunctional disagreement.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-2020
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2010
DOI: 10.3758/MC.38.8.1087
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 09-12-2022
DOI: 10.1017/MEM.2021.7
Abstract: Democracy is in retreat around the globe. Many commentators have blamed the Internet for this development, whereas others have celebrated the Internet as a tool for liberation, with each opinion being buttressed by supporting evidence. We try to resolve this paradox by reviewing some of the pressure points that arise between human cognition and the online information architecture, and their fallout for the well-being of democracy. We focus on the role of the attention economy, which has monetised dwell time on platforms, and the role of algorithms that satisfy users’ presumed preferences. We further note the inherent asymmetry in power between platforms and users that arises from these pressure points, and we conclude by sketching out the principles of a new Internet with democratic credentials.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-08-2020
DOI: 10.1186/S41235-020-00241-6
Abstract: Misinformation often continues to influence inferential reasoning after clear and credible corrections are provided this effect is known as the continued influence effect. It has been theorized that this effect is partly driven by misinformation familiarity. Some researchers have even argued that a correction should avoid repeating the misinformation, as the correction itself could serve to inadvertently enhance misinformation familiarity and may thus backfire, ironically strengthening the very misconception that it aims to correct. While previous research has found little evidence of such familiarity backfire effects, there remains one situation where they may yet arise: when correcting entirely novel misinformation, where corrections could serve to spread misinformation to new audiences who had never heard of it before. This article presents three experiments (total N = 1718) investigating the possibility of familiarity backfire within the context of correcting novel misinformation claims and after a 1-week study-test delay. While there was variation across experiments, overall there was substantial evidence against familiarity backfire. Corrections that exposed participants to novel misinformation did not lead to stronger misconceptions compared to a control group never exposed to the false claims or corrections. This suggests that it is safe to repeat misinformation when correcting it, even when the audience might be unfamiliar with the misinformation.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-2010
DOI: 10.3758/BRM.42.2.571
Publisher: Leibniz Institute for Psychology (ZPID)
Date: 18-08-2016
Abstract: When the scientific method yields discoveries that imperil people’s lifestyle or worldviews or impinge on corporate vested interests, the public and political response can be anything but favorable. Sometimes the response slides into overt denial of scientific facts, although this denial is often claimed to involve “skepticism”. We outline the distinction between true skepticism and denial with several case studies. We propose some guidelines to enable researchers to differentiate legitimate critical engagement from bad-faith harassment, and to enable members of the public to pursue their skeptical engagement and critique without such engagement being mistaken for harassment.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 10-2010
Abstract: Scientists can reason about natural systems, including the mind and brain, in many ways, with each form of reasoning being associated with its own set of limitations. The limitations on human reasoning imply that the process of reasoning about theories and communicating those theories will be error prone we must therefore be concerned about the reproducibility of theories whose very nature is shaped by constraints on human reasoning. The problem of reproducibility can be alleviated by computational modeling, which maximizes correspondence between the actual behavior of a posited system and its behavior inferred through reasoning and increases the fidelity of communication of our theories to others.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2010
DOI: 10.1037/A0019764
Abstract: We investigated the effects of the duration and type of to-be-articulated distractors during encoding of a verbal list into short-term memory (STM). Distractors and to-be-remembered items alternated during list presentation, as in the complex-span task that underlies much of working-memory research. According to an interference model of STM, known as serial order in a box (SOB Farrell & Lewandowsky, 2002), additional repeated articulations of the same word between list items should cause minimal further disruption of encoding into STM even though the retention interval for early list items is increased. SOB also predicts that the articulation of several different distractor items should lead to much enhanced disruption if the distractor interval is increased. Those predictions were qualitatively confirmed in 4 experiments that found that it is the type of distractors, not their total duration, that determines the success of encoding a list into STM. The results pose a challenge to temporal models of complex-span performance, such as the time-based resource sharing model (Barrouillet, Bernardin, & Camos, 2004). The results add to a growing body of evidence that memory for the short term is not exclusively governed by purely temporal processes.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-2006
DOI: 10.3758/BF03193986
Abstract: Is memory temporally organized? According to temporal distinctiveness models of memory, temporally isolated items should be better remembered than temporally crowded items in free recall tasks. Here, we tested this class of model by varying the temporal isolation of items either predictably (Experiment 1) or unpredictably (Experiment 2) in a free recall task. In both experiments, item recall probability increased as a function of the temporal gaps both before and after the item. The results are taken as support for temporal distinctiveness models of memory, in which items are represented and recalled in terms of their positions along a temporal dimension.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-11-2015
DOI: 10.1038/SREP16784
Abstract: Recent public debate and the scientific literature have frequently cited a “pause” or “hiatus” in global warming. Yet, multiple sources of evidence show that climate change continues unabated, raising questions about the status of the “hiatus”. To examine whether the notion of a “hiatus” is justified by the available data, we first document that there are multiple definitions of the “hiatus” in the literature, with its presumed onset spanning a decade. For each of these definitions we compare the associated temperature trend against trends of equivalent length in the entire record of modern global warming. The analysis shows that the “hiatus” trends are encompassed within the overall distribution of observed trends. We next assess the magnitude and significance of all possible trends up to 25 years duration looking backwards from each year over the past 30 years. At every year during the past 30 years, the immediately preceding warming trend was always significant when 17 years (or more) were included in the calculation, alleged “hiatus” periods notwithstanding. If current definitions of the “pause” used in the literature are applied to the historical record, then the climate system “paused” for more than 1/3 of the period during which temperatures rose 0.6 K.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2003
DOI: 10.1037/0278-7393.29.4.663
Abstract: According to the knowledge partitioning framework, people sometimes master complex tasks by creating multiple independent parcels of partial knowledge. Research has shown that knowledge parcels may contain mutually contradictory information, and that each parcel may be used without regard to knowledge that is demonstrably present in other parcels. This article reports 4 experiments that investigated knowledge partitioning in categorization. When component boundaries of a complex categorization were identified by a context cue, a significant proportion of participants learned partial and independent categorization strategies that were chosen on the basis of context. For those participants, a strategy used in one context was unaffected by knowledge demonstrably present in other contexts, suggesting that knowledge partitioning in categorization can be complete.
Publisher: No publisher found
Date: 2019
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-09-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-021-98249-5
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has seen one of the first large-scale uses of digital contact tracing to track a chain of infection and contain the spread of a virus. The new technology has posed challenges both for governments aiming at high and effective uptake and for citizens weighing its benefits (e.g., protecting others’ health) against the potential risks (e.g., loss of data privacy). Our cross-sectional survey with repeated measures across four s les in Germany ( $$N = 4357$$ N = 4357 ) focused on psychological factors contributing to the public adoption of digital contact tracing. We found that public acceptance of privacy-encroaching measures (e.g., granting the government emergency access to people’s medical records or location tracking data) decreased over the course of the pandemic. Intentions to use contact tracing apps—hypothetical ones or the Corona-Warn-App launched in Germany in June 2020—were high. Users and non-users of the Corona-Warn-App differed in their assessment of its risks and benefits, in their knowledge of the underlying technology, and in their reasons to download or not to download the app. Trust in the app’s perceived security and belief in its effectiveness emerged as psychological factors playing a key role in its adoption. We incorporate our findings into a behavioral framework for digital contact tracing and provide policy recommendations.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-1993
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-11-2022
DOI: 10.1038/S41562-022-01463-Y
Abstract: Despite over 50 years of messaging about the reality of human-caused climate change, substantial portions of the population remain sceptical. Furthermore, many sceptics remain unmoved by standard science communication strategies, such as myth busting and evidence building. To understand this, we examine psychological and structural reasons why climate change misinformation is prevalent. First, we review research on motivated reasoning: how interpretations of climate science are shaped by vested interests and ideologies. Second, we examine climate scepticism as a form of political followership. Third, we examine infrastructures of disinformation: the funding, lobbying and political operatives that lend climate scepticism its power. Guiding this Review are two principles: (1) to understand scepticism, one must account for the interplay between in idual psychologies and structural forces and (2) global data are required to understand this global problem. In the spirit of optimism, we finish by describing six strategies for reducing the destructive influence of climate scepticism.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 29-10-2021
DOI: 10.1177/13684302211050323
Abstract: Previous research has confirmed the prominent role of group processes in the promotion and endorsement of disinformation. We report three studies on a psychological framework derived from integrated threat theory—a psychological theory which describes how perceived threat leads to group polarization and prejudice—composed of the following constructs: group belongingness, perceived threat, outgroup derogation, and intergroup anxiety. Our pilot study suggested that need to belong and intergroup anxiety predict antiscientific beliefs (pseudoscientific, paranormal, and conspiracy theories), thus justifying the general applicability of integrated threat theory. Study 1 investigates the transition from weak to strong critical thinking regarding pseudoscientific doctrines. Besides greater outgroup derogation and perceived threats among strong critical thinkers, the model does not perform well in this context. Study 2 focuses on the intergroup conflict around anthropogenic global warming, revealing the strong predictive power of the model. These results are discussed in relation to the distinctive psychological profiles of science acceptance and rejection.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 09-1992
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-1989
DOI: 10.1007/BF02294632
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-2008
DOI: 10.3758/PBR.15.5.875
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 07-1993
DOI: 10.1111/J.1467-9280.1993.TB00267.X
Abstract: Although computer simulations and other modeling tools have assumed a pivotal role in cognitive psychology, their utility continues to be questioned by some psychologists. This article presents several ex les that illustrate both rewards and potential hazards associated with the simulation approach. Simulations can provide the formal framework necessary to disambiguate new ideas, they can explore the implications of complex models, and they can predict seemingly counterintuitive findings or uncover hidden relationships. At the same time, care must be taken to avoid pitfalls that may arise when computer code inadvertently differs from the intended specifications of a theory, or when predictions derive not from fundamental properties of a theory but from pragmatic choices made by the modeler.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2020
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 03-2017
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.160802
Abstract: This study investigated the cognitive processing of true and false political information. Specifically, it examined the impact of source credibility on the assessment of veracity when information comes from a polarizing source (Experiment 1), and effectiveness of explanations when they come from one's own political party or an opposition party (Experiment 2). These experiments were conducted prior to the 2016 Presidential election. Participants rated their belief in factual and incorrect statements that President Trump made on the c aign trail facts were subsequently affirmed and misinformation retracted. Participants then re-rated their belief immediately or after a delay. Experiment 1 found that (i) if information was attributed to Trump, Republican supporters of Trump believed it more than if it was presented without attribution, whereas the opposite was true for Democrats and (ii) although Trump supporters reduced their belief in misinformation items following a correction, they did not change their voting preferences. Experiment 2 revealed that the explanation's source had relatively little impact, and belief updating was more influenced by perceived credibility of the in idual initially purporting the information. These findings suggest that people use political figures as a heuristic to guide evaluation of what is true or false, yet do not necessarily insist on veracity as a prerequisite for supporting political candidates.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 09-2023
DOI: 10.1037/MAC0000057
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2015
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 03-2012
DOI: 10.1080/17470218.2011.608854
Abstract: There has been growing interest in the relationship between the capacity of a person's working memory and their ability to learn to categorize stimuli. While there is evidence that working memory capacity (WMC) is related to the speed of category learning, it is unknown whether WMC predicts which strategies people use when there are multiple possible solutions to a categorization problem. To explore the relationship between WMC, category learning, and categorization strategy use, 173 participants completed two categorization tasks and a battery of WMC tasks. WMC predicted the speed of category learning, but it did not predict which strategies participants chose to perform categorization. Thus, WMC does not predict which categorization strategies people use but it predicts how well they will use the strategy they select.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2012
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2005
DOI: 10.1080/09658210344000251
Abstract: According to temporal distinctiveness theories, items that are temporally isolated from their neighbours during presentation are more distinct and thus are recalled better. Event-based theories, which deny that elapsed time plays a role at encoding, explain isolation effects by assuming that temporal isolation provides extra time for rehearsal or consolidation of encoding. The two classes of theories can be differentiated by examining the symmetry of isolation effects: Event-based accounts predict that performance should be affected only by pauses following item presentation (because they allow time for rehearsal or consolidation), whereas distinctiveness predicts that items should also benefit from preceding pauses. The first experiment manipulated inter-item intervals and showed an effect of intervals following but not preceding presentation, in line with event-based accounts. The second experiment showed that the effect of following interval was abolished by articulatory suppression. The data are consistent with event-based theories but can be handled by time-based distinctiveness models if they allow for additional encoding during inter-item pauses.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.COGNITION.2019.01.011
Abstract: Some well-established scientific findings may be rejected by vocal minorities because the evidence is in conflict with political views or economic interests. For ex le, the tobacco industry denied the medical consensus on the harms of smoking for decades, and the clear evidence about human-caused climate change is currently being rejected by many politicians and think tanks that oppose regulatory action. We present an agent-based model of the processes by which denial of climate change can occur, how opinions that run counter to the evidence can affect the scientific community, and how denial can alter the public discourse. The model involves an ensemble of Bayesian agents, representing the scientific community, that are presented with the emerging historical evidence of climate change and that also communicate the evidence to each other. Over time, the scientific community comes to agreement that the climate is changing. When a minority of agents is introduced that is resistant to the evidence, but that enter into the scientific discussion, the simulated scientific community still acquires firm knowledge but consensus formation is delayed. When both types of agents are communicating with the general public, the public remains ambivalent about the reality of climate change. The model captures essential aspects of the actual evolution of scientific and public opinion during the last 4 decades.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1037/A0022473
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 13-08-2015
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 04-2022
DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2022.2046467
Abstract: The lack of validated instruments assessing vaccine hesitancy/confidence among health care professionals (HCPs) for themselves, and their patients led us to develop and validate the Pro-VC-Be instrument to measure vaccine confidence and other psychosocial determinants of HCPs' vaccination behavior among erse HCPs in different countries. Cross-sectional survey in October-November 2020 among 1,249 GPs in France, 432 GPs in French-speaking parts of Belgium, and 1,055 nurses in Quebec (Canada), all participating in general population immunization. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses evaluated the instrument's construct validity. We used HCPs' self-reported vaccine recommendations to patients, general immunization activity, self-vaccination, and future COVID-19 vaccine acceptance to test criterion validity. The final results indicated a 6-factor structure with good fit: vaccine confidence (combining complacency, perceived vaccine risks, perceived benefit-risk balance, perceived collective responsibility), trust in authorities, perceived constraints, proactive efficacy (combining commitment to vaccination and self-efficacy), reluctant trust, and openness to patients. The instrument showed good convergent and criterion validity and adequate discriminant validity. This study found that the Pro-VC-Be is a valid instrument for measuring psychosocial determinants of HCPs' vaccination behaviors in different settings. Its validation is currently underway in Europe among various HCPs in different languages.
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 28-11-2015
Abstract: This issue of Philosophical Transactions examines the relationship between scientific uncertainty about climate change and knowledge. Uncertainty is an inherent feature of the climate system. Considerable effort has therefore been devoted to understanding how to effectively respond to a changing, yet uncertain climate. Politicians and the public often appeal to uncertainty as an argument to delay mitigative action. We argue that the appropriate response to uncertainty is exactly the opposite: uncertainty provides an impetus to be concerned about climate change, because greater uncertainty increases the risks associated with climate change. We therefore suggest that uncertainty can be a source of actionable knowledge. We survey the papers in this issue, which address the relationship between uncertainty and knowledge from physical, economic and social perspectives. We also summarize the pervasive psychological effects of uncertainty, some of which may militate against a meaningful response to climate change, and we provide pointers to how those difficulties may be ameliorated.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 02-10-2013
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2017
DOI: 10.1016/J.NEUROPSYCHOLOGIA.2017.10.003
Abstract: It is well known that information that is initially thought to be correct but then revealed to be false, often continues to influence human judgement and decision making despite people being aware of the retraction. Yet little research has examined the underlying neural substrates of this phenomenon, which is known as the 'continued influence effect of misinformation' (CIEM). It remains unclear how the human brain processes critical information that retracts prior claims. To address this question in further detail, 26 healthy adults underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while listening to brief narratives which either involved a retraction of prior information or not. Following each narrative, subjects' comprehension of the narrative, including their inclination to rely on retracted information, was probed. As expected, it was found that retracted information continued to affect participants' narrative-related reasoning. In addition, the fMRI data indicated that the continued influence of retracted information may be due to a breakdown of narrative-level integration and coherence-building mechanisms implemented by the precuneus and posterior cingulate gyrus.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 31-05-2023
DOI: 10.1093/PNASNEXUS/PGAD191
Abstract: Building on big data from Reddit, we generated two computational text models: (i) Predicting the personality of users from the text they have written and (ii) predicting the personality of users based on the text they have consumed. The second model is novel and without precedent in the literature. We recruited active Reddit users (N=1,105) of fiction-writing communities. The participants completed a Big Five personality questionnaire and consented for their Reddit activity to be scraped and used to create a machine learning model. We trained an natural language processing model [Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT)], predicting personality from produced text (average performance: r=0.33). We then applied this model to a new set of Reddit users (N=10,050), predicted their personality based on their produced text, and trained a second BERT model to predict their predicted-personality scores based on consumed text (average performance: r=0.13). By doing so, we provide the first glimpse into the linguistic markers of personality-congruent consumed content.
Publisher: Shorenstein Center for Media, Politics, and Public Policy
Date: 05-10-2023
DOI: 10.37016/MR-2020-124
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2016
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-09-2018
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-2006
DOI: 10.3758/BF03195905
Abstract: Participants learned to classify seemingly arbitrary words into categories that also corresponded to ad hoc categories (see, e.g., Barsalou, 1983). By adapting experimental mechanisms previously used to study knowledge restructuring in perceptual categorization, we provide a novel account of how experimental and preexperimental knowledge interact. Participants were told of the existence of the ad hoc categories either at the beginning or the end of training. When the ad hoc labels were revealed at the end of training, participants switched from categorization based on experimental learning to categorization based on preexperimental knowledge in some, but not all, circumstances. Important mediators of the extent of that switch were the amount of performance error experienced during prior learning and whether or not prior knowledge was in conflict with experimental learning. We present a computational model of the trade-off between preexperimental knowledge and experimental learning that accounts for the main results.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2021
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 28-11-2015
Abstract: Climate change projections necessarily involve uncertainty. Analysis of the physics and mathematics of the climate system reveals that greater uncertainty about future temperature increases is nearly always associated with greater expected damages from climate change. In contrast to those normative constraints, uncertainty is frequently cited in public discourse as a reason to delay mitigative action. This failure to understand the actual implications of uncertainty may incur notable future costs. It is therefore important to communicate uncertainty in a way that improves people’s understanding of climate change risks. We examined whether responses to projections were influenced by whether the projection emphasized uncertainty in the outcome or in its time of arrival. We presented participants with statements and graphs indicating projected increases in temperature, sea levels, ocean acidification and a decrease in arctic sea ice. In the uncertain-outcome condition, statements reported the upper and lower confidence bounds of the projected outcome at a fixed time point. In the uncertain time-of-arrival condition, statements reported the upper and lower confidence bounds of the projected time of arrival for a fixed outcome. Results suggested that people perceived the threat as more serious and were more likely to encourage mitigative action in the time-uncertain condition than in the outcome-uncertain condition. This finding has implications for effectively communicating the climate change risks to policy-makers and the general public.
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 28-11-2015
Abstract: We examine a series of betting strategies on the transient response of greenhouse warming, expressed by changes in 15-year mean global surface temperature from one 15-year period to the next. Over the last century, these bets are increasingly dominated by positive changes (warming), reflecting increasing greenhouse forcing and its rising contribution to temperature changes on this time scale. The greenhouse contribution to 15-year trends is now of a similar magnitude to typical naturally occurring 15-year trends. Negative 15-year changes (decreases) have not occurred since about 1970, and are still possible, but now rely on large, and therefore infrequent, natural variations. Model projections for even intermediate warming scenarios show very low likelihoods of obtaining negative 15-year changes over the coming century. Betting against greenhouse warming, even on these short time scales, is no longer a rational proposition.
Publisher: Springer New York
Date: 2015
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COGS.12805
Abstract: Algorithms for approximate Bayesian inference, such as those based on s ling (i.e., Monte Carlo methods), provide a natural source of models of how people may deal with uncertainty with limited cognitive resources. Here, we consider the idea that in idual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) may be usefully modeled in terms of the number of s les, or "particles," available to perform inference. To test this idea, we focus on two recent experiments that report positive associations between WMC and two distinct aspects of categorization performance: the ability to learn novel categories, and the ability to switch between different categorization strategies ("knowledge restructuring"). In favor of the idea of modeling WMC as a number of particles, we show that a single model can reproduce both experimental results by varying the number of particles-increasing the number of particles leads to both faster category learning and improved strategy-switching. Furthermore, when we fit the model to in idual participants, we found a positive association between WMC and best-fit number of particles for strategy switching. However, no association between WMC and best-fit number of particles was found for category learning. These results are discussed in the context of the general challenge of disentangling the contributions of different potential sources of behavioral variability.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 10-2022
Publisher: Ubiquity Press, Ltd.
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.5334/JOC.99
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2009
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 12-2018
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.180593
Abstract: In the ‘post-truth era’, political fact-checking has become an issue of considerable significance. A recent study in the context of the 2016 US election found that fact-checks of statements by Donald Trump changed participants' beliefs about those statements—regardless of whether participants supported Trump—but not their feelings towards Trump or voting intentions. However, the study balanced corrections of inaccurate statements with an equal number of affirmations of accurate statements. Therefore, the null effect of fact-checks on participants’ voting intentions and feelings may have arisen because of this artificially created balance. Moreover, Trump's statements were not contrasted with statements from an opposing politician, and Trump's perceived veracity was not measured. The present study ( N = 370) examined the issue further, manipulating the ratio of corrections to affirmations, and using Australian politicians (and Australian participants) from both sides of the political spectrum. We hypothesized that fact-checks would correct beliefs and that fact-checks would affect voters’ support (i.e. voting intentions, feelings and perceptions of veracity), but only when corrections outnumbered affirmations. Both hypotheses were supported, suggesting that a politician's veracity does sometimes matter to voters. The effects of fact-checking were similar on both sides of the political spectrum, suggesting little motivated reasoning in the processing of fact-checks.
Publisher: Psychology Press
Date: 10-06-2010
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2012
DOI: 10.1037/A0028943
Abstract: This special section brings together behavioral, computational, mathematical, and neuroimaging approaches to understand the processes underlying category learning. Over the past decade, there has been growing convergence in research on categorization, with computational-mathematical models influencing the interpretation of brain imaging and neuropsychological data, and with cognitive neuroscience findings influencing the development and refinement of models. Classic debates between single-system and multiple-memory-system theories have become more nuanced and focused. Multiple brain areas and cognitive processes contribute to categorization, but theories differ markedly in whether and when those neurocognitive components are recruited for different aspects of categorization. The articles in this special section approach this issue from several erse angles.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-05-2013
DOI: 10.1111/COGS.12045
Abstract: Information changes as it is passed from person to person, with this process of cultural transmission allowing the minds of in iduals to shape the information that they transmit. We present mathematical models of cultural transmission which predict that the amount of information passed from person to person should affect the rate at which that information changes. We tested this prediction using a function-learning task, in which people learn a functional relationship between two variables by observing the values of those variables. We varied the total number of observations and the number of those observations that take unique values. We found an effect of the number of observations, with functions transmitted using fewer observations changing form more quickly. We did not find an effect of the number of unique observations, suggesting that noise in perception or memory may have affected learning.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2009
DOI: 10.1037/A0017010
Abstract: What drives forgetting in working memory? Recent evidence suggests that in a complex-span task in which an irrelevant processing task alternates with presentation of the memoranda, recall declines when the time taken to complete the processing task is extended while holding the time for rehearsal in between processing steps constant (Portrat, Barrouillet, & Camos, 2008). This time-based forgetting was interpreted in support for the role of time-based decay in working memory. In this article, we argue the contrary position by (a) showing in an experiment that the processing task in Portrat et al.'s (2008) study gave rise to uncontrolled post-error processes that occupied the attentional bottleneck, thus preventing restorative rehearsal, and (b) showing that when those post-error processes are statistically controlled, there is no evidence for temporal decay in Portrat et al.'s study. We conclude that currently there exists no direct evidence for temporal decay in the complex-span paradigm.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2012
DOI: 10.1037/A0027298
Abstract: Working memory is crucial for many higher level cognitive functions, ranging from mental arithmetic to reasoning and problem solving. Likewise, the ability to learn and categorize novel concepts forms an indispensable part of human cognition. However, very little is known about the relationship between working memory and categorization. This article reports 2 studies that related people's working memory capacity (WMC) to their learning performance on multiple rule-based and information-integration perceptual categorization tasks. In both studies, structural equation modeling revealed a strong relationship between WMC and category learning irrespective of the requirement to integrate information across multiple perceptual dimensions. WMC was also uniformly related to people's ability to focus on the most task-appropriate strategy, regardless of whether or not that strategy involved information integration. Contrary to the predictions of the multiple systems view of categorization, working memory thus appears to underpin performance in both major classes of perceptual category-learning tasks.
Publisher: Resilience Alliance, Inc.
Date: 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 09-2023
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-07-2014
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2310
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-2006
DOI: 10.3758/BF03193278
Abstract: The notion of a link between time and memory is intuitively appealing and forms the core assumption of temporal distinctiveness models. Distinctiveness models predict that items that are temporally isolated from their neighbors at presentation should be recalled better than items that are temporally crowded. By contrast, event-based theories consider time to be incidental to the processes that govern memory, and such theories would not imply a temporal isolation advantage unless participants engaged in a consolidation process (e.g., rehearsal or selective encoding) that exploited the temporal structure of the list. In this report, we examine two studies that assessed the effect of temporal distinctiveness on memory, using auditory (Experiment 1) and auditory and visual (Experiment 2) presentation with unpredictably varying interitem intervals. The results show that with unpredictable intervals temporal isolation does not benefit memory, regardless of presentation modality.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1037/BUL0000046
Abstract: We review the evidence for the 3 principal theoretical contenders that vie to explain why and how working memory (WM) capacity is limited. We examine the possibility that capacity limitations arise from temporal decay we examine whether they might reflect a limitation in cognitive resources and we ask whether capacity might be limited because of mutual interference of representations in WM. We evaluate each hypothesis against a common set of findings reflecting the capacity limit: The set-size effect and its modulation by domain-specificity and heterogeneity of the memory set the effects of unfilled retention intervals and of distractor processing in the retention interval and the pattern of correlates of WM tests. We conclude that-at least for verbal memoranda-a decay explanation is untenable. A resource-based view remains tenable but has difficulty accommodating several findings. The interference approach has its own set of difficulties but accounts best for the set of findings, and therefore, appears to present the most promising approach for future development. (PsycINFO Database Record
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 09-2018
DOI: 10.1037/BUL0000165
Abstract: We respond to the comments of Logie and Vandierendonck to our article proposing benchmark findings for evaluating theories and models of short-term and working memory. The response focuses on the two main points of criticism: (a) Logie and Vandierendonck argue that the scope of the set of benchmarks is too narrow. We explain why findings on how working memory is used in complex cognition, findings on executive functions, and findings from neuropsychological case studies are currently not included in the benchmarks, and why findings with visual and spatial materials are less prevalent among them. (b) The critics question the usefulness of the benchmarks and their ratings for advancing theory development. We explain why selecting and rating benchmarks is important and justifiable, and acknowledge that the present selection and rating decisions are in need of continuous updating. The usefulness of the benchmarks of all ratings is also enhanced by our concomitant online posting of data for many of these benchmarks. (PsycINFO Database Record
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 02-01-2021
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2022
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 17-09-2012
Abstract: The widespread prevalence and persistence of misinformation in contemporary societies, such as the false belief that there is a link between childhood vaccinations and autism, is a matter of public concern. For ex le, the myths surrounding vaccinations, which prompted some parents to withhold immunization from their children, have led to a marked increase in vaccine-preventable disease, as well as unnecessary public expenditure on research and public-information c aigns aimed at rectifying the situation. We first examine the mechanisms by which such misinformation is disseminated in society, both inadvertently and purposely. Misinformation can originate from rumors but also from works of fiction, governments and politicians, and vested interests. Moreover, changes in the media landscape, including the arrival of the Internet, have fundamentally influenced the ways in which information is communicated and misinformation is spread. We next move to misinformation at the level of the in idual, and review the cognitive factors that often render misinformation resistant to correction. We consider how people assess the truth of statements and what makes people believe certain things but not others. We look at people’s memory for misinformation and answer the questions of why retractions of misinformation are so ineffective in memory updating and why efforts to retract misinformation can even backfire and, ironically, increase misbelief. Though ideology and personal worldviews can be major obstacles for debiasing, there nonetheless are a number of effective techniques for reducing the impact of misinformation, and we pay special attention to these factors that aid in debiasing. We conclude by providing specific recommendations for the debunking of misinformation. These recommendations pertain to the ways in which corrections should be designed, structured, and applied in order to maximize their impact. Grounded in cognitive psychological theory, these recommendations may help practitioners—including journalists, health professionals, educators, and science communicators—design effective misinformation retractions, educational tools, and public-information c aigns.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-06-2019
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 09-1989
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 07-2019
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.180475
Abstract: We report on two independent failures to conceptually replicate findings by Ballard & Lewandowsky (Ballard and Lewandowsky 2015 Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A 373 , 20140464 (doi:10.1098/rsta.2014.0464)), who showed that certainty in, and concern about, projected public health issues (e.g. impacts of climate change) depend on how uncertain information is presented. Specifically, compared to a projected range of outcomes (e.g. a global rise in temperature between 1.6°C and 2.4°C) by a certain point in time (the year 2065), Ballard & Lewandowsky (Ballard and Lewandowsky 2015 Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A 373 , 20140464 (doi:10.1098/rsta.2014.0464)) showed that focusing people on a certain outcome (a global rise in temperature of at least 2°C) by an uncertain time-frame (the years 2054–2083) increases certainty in the outcome, and concern about its implications. Based on two new studies that showed a null effect between the two presentation formats, however, we recommend treating the projection statements featured in these studies as equivalent, and we encourage investigators to find alternative ways to improve on existing formats to communicate uncertain information about future events.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 03-2022
DOI: 10.1177/00027162221084663
Abstract: We explore the common attributes of political conflicts in which scientific findings have a central role, using the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study, but also drawing on long-standing conflicts over climate change and vaccinations. We analyze situations in which the systematic spread of disinformation or conspiracy theories undermines public trust in the work of scientists and prevents policy from being informed by the best available evidence. We also examine instances in which public opposition to scientifically grounded policy arises from legitimate value judgments and lived experience. We argue for the public benefit of quick identification of politically motivated science denial, and inoculation of the public against its ill effects.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2009
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 06-2017
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-08-2016
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 02-02-2021
Abstract: Taiwan has been successful in controlling the spread of SARS-CoV-2 during the COVID-19 pandemic however, without a vaccine the threat of a second outbreak remains. Young adults who show few to no symptoms when infected have been identified in many countries as driving the virus’ spread through unidentifiable community transmission. Mobile tracking technologies register nearby contacts of a user and notifies them if one later tests positive to the virus, potentially solving this issue however, the effectiveness of these technologies depends on their acceptance by the public. The current study assessed attitudes towards three tracking technologies (telecommunication network tracking, a government app, and Apple and Google’s Bluetooth exposure notification system) among four s les of young Taiwanese adults (aged 25 years or younger). Using Bayesian methods, we find high acceptance for all three tracking technologies ( %), with acceptance for each technology surpassing 90% if additional privacy measures were included. We consider the policy implications of these results for Taiwan and similar cultures.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 09-2018
DOI: 10.1037/BUL0000153
Abstract: Any mature field of research in psychology-such as short-term/working memory-is characterized by a wealth of empirical findings. It is currently unrealistic to expect a theory to explain them all theorists must satisfice with explaining a subset of findings. The aim of the present article is to make the choice of that subset less arbitrary and idiosyncratic than is current practice. We propose criteria for identifying benchmark findings that every theory in a field should be able to explain: Benchmarks should be reproducible, generalize across materials and methodological variations, and be theoretically informative. We propose a set of benchmarks for theories and computational models of short-term and working memory. The benchmarks are described in as theory-neutral a way as possible, so that they can serve as empirical common ground for competing theoretical approaches. Benchmarks are rated on three levels according to their priority for explanation. Selection and ratings of the benchmarks is based on consensus among the authors, who jointly represent a broad range of theoretical perspectives on working memory, and they are supported by a survey among other experts on working memory. The article is accompanied by a web page providing an open forum for discussion and for submitting proposals for new benchmarks and a repository for reference data sets for each benchmark. (PsycINFO Database Record
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-03-2011
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 02-2011
DOI: 10.1080/17470218.2010.497927
Abstract: It is well known that people often continue to rely on initial misinformation even if this information is later corrected and even if the correction itself is remembered. This article investigated the impact of emotionality of the material on people's ability to discount corrected misinformation. The focus was on moderate levels of emotionality comparable to those elicited by real-world news reports. Emotionality has frequently been shown to have an impact upon reasoning and memory, but the generality of this influence remains unclear. In three experiments, participants read a report of a fictitious plane crash that was initially associated with either an emotionally laden cause (terrorist attack) or an emotionally more neutral cause (bad weather). This initial attribution was followed by a retraction and presentation of an alternative cause (faulty fuel tank). The scenarios demonstrably affected participants’ self-reported feelings. However, all three experiments showed that emotionality does not affect the continued influence of misinformation.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 31-10-2019
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 08-2023
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 09-10-2018
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 06-2017
DOI: 10.1037/H0101809
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2014
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-1993
DOI: 10.3758/BF03197194
Abstract: This article reports three experiments that investigate the role of context in repetition priming using a lexical decision task. The experiments show that repetition priming is either eliminated or significantly reduced if a change in context also alters the perceived sense of a nonhomographic target word. If perceived sense is not altered, a change in context is inconsequential. This points to the important role played by perceived sense in repetition priming. An explanation within a sense-specific activation framework is proposed in preference to a modified processing view.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2011
DOI: 10.1016/J.COGPSYCH.2010.09.003
Abstract: Knowledge restructuring refers to changes in the strategy with which people solve a given problem. Two types of knowledge restructuring are supported by existing category learning models. The first is a relearning process, which involves incremental updating of knowledge as learning progresses. The second is a recoordination process, which involves novel changes in the way existing knowledge is applied to the task. Whereas relearning is supported by both single- and multiple-module models of category learning, only multiple-module models support recoordination. To date, only relearning has been directly supported empirically. We report two category learning experiments that provide direct evidence of recoordination. People can fluidly alternate between different categorization strategies, and moreover, can reinstate an old strategy even after prolonged use of an alternative. The knowledge restructuring data are not well fit by a single-module model (ALCOVE). By contrast, a multiple-module model (ATRIUM) quantitatively accounts for recoordination. Low-level changes in the distribution of dimensional attention are shown to subsequently affect how ATRIUM coordinates its modular knowledge. We argue that learning about complex tasks occurs at the level of the partial knowledge elements used to generate a response strategy.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2021
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-02-2011
DOI: 10.3758/S13423-011-0065-1
Abstract: Information that is presumed to be true at encoding but later on turns out to be false (i.e., misinformation) often continues to influence memory and reasoning. In the present study, we investigated how the strength of encoding and the strength of a later retraction of the misinformation affect this continued influence effect. Participants read an event report containing misinformation and a subsequent correction. Encoding strength of the misinformation and correction were orthogonally manipulated either via repetition (Experiment 1) or by imposing a cognitive load during reading (Experiment 2). Results suggest that stronger retractions are effective in reducing the continued influence effects associated with strong misinformation encoding, but that even strong retractions fail to eliminate continued influence effects associated with relatively weak encoding. We present a simple computational model based on random s ling that captures this effect pattern, and conclude that the continued influence effect seems to defy most attempts to eliminate it.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 15-07-2022
DOI: 10.2196/32969
Abstract: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, countries are introducing digital passports that allow citizens to return to normal activities if they were previously infected with (immunity passport) or vaccinated against (vaccination passport) SARS-CoV-2. To be effective, policy decision-makers must know whether these passports will be widely accepted by the public and under what conditions. This study focuses attention on immunity passports, as these may prove useful in countries both with and without an existing COVID-19 vaccination program however, our general findings also extend to vaccination passports. We aimed to assess attitudes toward the introduction of immunity passports in six countries, and determine what social, personal, and contextual factors predicted their support. We collected 13,678 participants through online representative s ling across six countries—Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom—during April to May of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, and assessed attitudes and support for the introduction of immunity passports. Immunity passport support was moderate to low, being the highest in Germany (775/1507 participants, 51.43%) and the United Kingdom (759/1484, 51.15%) followed by Taiwan (2841/5989, 47.44%), Australia (963/2086, 46.16%), and Spain (693/1491, 46.48%) and was the lowest in Japan (241/1081, 22.94%). Bayesian generalized linear mixed effects modeling was used to assess predictive factors for immunity passport support across countries. International results showed neoliberal worldviews (odds ratio [OR] 1.17, 95% CI 1.13-1.22), personal concern (OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.00-1.16), perceived virus severity (OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01-1.14), the fairness of immunity passports (OR 2.51, 95% CI 2.36-2.66), liking immunity passports (OR 2.77, 95% CI 2.61-2.94), and a willingness to become infected to gain an immunity passport (OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.51-1.68) were all predictive factors of immunity passport support. By contrast, gender (woman OR 0.9, 95% CI 0.82-0.98), immunity passport concern (OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.57-0.65), and risk of harm to society (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.67-0.76) predicted a decrease in support for immunity passports. Minor differences in predictive factors were found between countries and results were modeled separately to provide national accounts of these data. Our research suggests that support for immunity passports is predicted by the personal benefits and societal risks they confer. These findings generalized across six countries and may also prove informative for the introduction of vaccination passports, helping policymakers to introduce effective COVID-19 passport policies in these six countries and around the world.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 08-11-2022
DOI: 10.1177/09637214221121570
Abstract: Low-quality and misleading information online can hijack people’s attention, often by evoking curiosity, outrage, or anger. Resisting certain types of information and actors online requires people to adopt new mental habits that help them avoid being tempted by attention-grabbing and potentially harmful content. We argue that digital information literacy must include the competence of critical ignoring—choosing what to ignore and where to invest one’s limited attentional capacities. We review three types of cognitive strategies for implementing critical ignoring: self-nudging, in which one ignores temptations by removing them from one’s digital environments lateral reading, in which one vets information by leaving the source and verifying its credibility elsewhere online and the do-not-feed-the-trolls heuristic, which advises one to not reward malicious actors with attention. We argue that these strategies implementing critical ignoring should be part of school curricula on digital information literacy. Teaching the competence of critical ignoring requires a paradigm shift in educators’ thinking, from a sole focus on the power and promise of paying close attention to an additional emphasis on the power of ignoring. Encouraging students and other online users to embrace critical ignoring can empower them to shield themselves from the excesses, traps, and information disorders of today’s attention economy.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
DOI: 10.1016/J.COGNITION.2016.08.007
Abstract: The article reports four experiments with complex-span tasks in which encoding of memory items alternates with processing of distractors. The experiments test two assumptions of a computational model of complex span, SOB-CS: (1) distractor processing impairs memory because distractors are encoded into working memory, thereby interfering with memoranda and (2) free time following distractors is used to remove them from working memory by unbinding their representations from list context. Experiment 1 shows that distractors are erroneously chosen for recall more often than not-presented stimuli, demonstrating that distractors are encoded into memory. Distractor intrusions declined with longer free time, as predicted by distractor removal. Experiment 2 shows these effects even when distractors precede the memory list, ruling out an account based on selective rehearsal of memoranda during free time. Experiments 3 and 4 test the notion that distractors decay over time. Both experiments show that, contrary to the notion of distractor decay, the chance of a distractor intruding at test does not decline with increasing time since encoding of that distractor. Experiment 4 provides additional evidence against the prediction from distractor decay that distractor intrusions decline over an unfilled retention interval. Taken together, the results support SOB-CS and rule out alternative explanations. Data and simulation code are available on Open Science Framework: osf.io/3ewh7.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2021
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-2011
Publisher: American Meteorological Society
Date: 05-2016
DOI: 10.1175/BAMS-D-14-00106.1
Abstract: There has been much recent published research about a putative “pause” or “hiatus” in global warming. We show that there are frequent fluctuations in the rate of warming around a longer-term warming trend, and that there is no evidence that identifies the recent period as unique or particularly unusual. In confirmation, we show that the notion of a pause in warming is considered to be misleading in a blind expert test. Nonetheless, the most recent fluctuation about the longer-term trend has been regarded by many as an explanatory challenge that climate science must resolve. This departs from long-standing practice, insofar as scientists have long recognized that the climate fluctuates, that linear increases in CO2 do not produce linear trends in global warming, and that 15-yr (or shorter) periods are not diagnostic of long-term trends. We suggest that the repetition of the “warming has paused” message by contrarians was adopted by the scientific community in its problem-solving and answer-seeking role and has led to undue focus on, and mislabeling of, a recent fluctuation. We present an alternative framing that could have avoided inadvertently reinforcing a misleading claim.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 03-2022
DOI: 10.1037/XAP0000408
Abstract: Although retractions significantly reduce the number of references people make to misinformation, retracted information nevertheless persists in memory, continuing to influence reasoning. One hundred and twenty-nine lay participants completed an adaptation on the traditional continued influence paradigm, which set out to identify whether it is possible to debunk a piece of common statistical misinformation: inappropriate causal inference based on a correlation. We hypothesized that participants in the correction condition would make fewer causal inferences (misinformation) and more correlational inferences (correction) than those in the no-correction condition. Additional secondary hypotheses were that the number of references made to the misinformation and correction would be moderated by the level of trust in science and scientists, and the amount of television that participants watch. Although the secondary hypotheses were not supported, the data strongly supported the primary hypotheses. This study provides evidence for the efficacy of corrections about misinformation where correlational evidence has been inappropriately reported as causal. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 15-12-2014
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-2019
DOI: 10.1111/DAR.12995
Abstract: To investigate relationships between smoking-related behaviours and knowledge of the disease risks of smoking and the causes of smoking harms, using a four-way ision of 'component causes': nicotine, other substances found in unburned tobacco, combustion products of tobacco and additives. The data were collected using an on-line survey in Australia with 1047 participants in three groups young non-smokers (18 to 25), young smokers (18 to 25) and older smokers (26 and above). Most participants agreed that cancer and heart disease are major risks of smoking but only a quarter accurately quantified the mortality risk of lifetime daily smoking. Very few (two of 1047) correctly estimated the relative contributions of all four component causes. Post-hoc analyses reinterpreting responses as expressions of relative concern about combustion products and nicotine showed that 29% of participants rated combustion products above nicotine. We delineated six relative concern segments, most of which had distinctive patterns of beliefs and actions. However, higher levels of concern about combustion products were only weakly positively associated with harm reducing beliefs and actions. Most smokers do not appear to understand the risks of smoking and their causes well enough to be able to think systematically about the courses of action open to them to reduce their health risk. To facilitate informed decision-making, tobacco control communicators may need to better balance the dual aims of creating fear/negative affect about smoking and imparting knowledge about the health harms and their mechanisms.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 08-2011
DOI: 10.1017/S0140525X11000392
Abstract: The breadth-first search adopted by Bayesian researchers to map out the conceptual space and identify what the framework can do is beneficial for science and reflective of its collaborative and incremental nature. Theoretical pluralism among researchers facilitates refinement of models within various levels of analysis, which ultimately enables effective cross-talk between different levels of analysis.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-09-2014
DOI: 10.3758/S13421-013-0358-X
Abstract: Misinformation-defined as information that is initially assumed to be valid but is later corrected or retracted-often has an ongoing effect on people's memory and reasoning. We tested the hypotheses that (a) reliance on misinformation is affected by people's preexisting attitudes and (b) attitudes determine the effectiveness of retractions. In two experiments, participants scoring higher and lower on a racial prejudice scale read a news report regarding a robbery. In one scenario, the suspects were initially presented as being Australian Aboriginals, whereas in a second scenario, a hero preventing the robbery was introduced as an Aboriginal person. Later, these critical, race-related pieces of information were or were not retracted. We measured participants' reliance on misinformation in response to inferential reasoning questions. The results showed that preexisting attitudes influence people's use of attitude-related information but not the way in which a retraction of that information is processed.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 11-06-2021
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291721002609
Abstract: When vaccination depends on injection, it is plausible that the blood-injection-injury cluster of fears may contribute to hesitancy. Our primary aim was to estimate in the UK adult population the proportion of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy explained by blood-injection-injury fears. In total, 15 014 UK adults, quota s led to match the population for age, gender, ethnicity, income and region, took part (19 January–5 February 2021) in a non-probability online survey. The Oxford COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Scale assessed intent to be vaccinated. Two scales (Specific Phobia Scale-blood-injection-injury phobia and Medical Fear Survey–injections and blood subscale) assessed blood-injection-injury fears. Four items from these scales were used to create a factor score specifically for injection fears. In total, 3927 (26.2%) screened positive for blood-injection-injury phobia. In iduals screening positive (22.0%) were more likely to report COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy compared to in iduals screening negative (11.5%), odds ratio = 2.18, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.97–2.40, p 0.001. The population attributable fraction (PAF) indicated that if blood-injection-injury phobia were absent then this may prevent 11.5% of all instances of vaccine hesitancy, AF = 0.11 95% CI 0.09–0.14, p 0.001. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy was associated with higher scores on the Specific Phobia Scale, r = 0.22, p 0.001, Medical Fear Survey, r = 0.23, p = .001 and injection fears, r = 0.25, p 0.001. Injection fears were higher in youth and in Black and Asian ethnic groups, and explained a small degree of why vaccine hesitancy is higher in these groups. Across the adult population, blood-injection-injury fears may explain approximately 10% of cases of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Addressing such fears will likely improve the effectiveness of vaccination programmes.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 11-1997
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 18-12-2018
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-07-2020
DOI: 10.1057/S41599-020-0518-0
Abstract: Political scientists have conventionally assumed that achieving democracy is a one-way ratchet. Only very recently has the question of “democratic backsliding” attracted any research attention. We argue that democratic instability is best understood with tools from complexity science. The explanatory power of complexity science arises from several features of complex systems. Their relevance in the context of democracy is discussed. Several policy recommendations are offered to help (re)stabilize current systems of representative democracy.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-2008
DOI: 10.3758/MC.36.4.762
Abstract: The processes that determine unsupervised categorization, the task of classifying stimuli without guidance or feedback, are poorly understood. Two experiments examined the emergence and plasticity of unsupervised strategies using perceptual stimuli that varied along two separable dimensions. In the first experiment, participants either classified stimuli into any two categories of their choice or learned identical classifications by supervised categorization. Irrespective of the complexity of classification, supervised and unsupervised learning rates differed little when both modes of learning were maximally comparable. The second experiment examined the plasticity of unsupervised classifications by introducing novel stimuli halfway through training. Whether or not people altered their strategies, they responded to novel stimuli in a gradual manner. The gradual and continuous evolution and adaptation of strategies suggests that unsupervised categorization involves true learning which shares many properties of supervised category learning. We also show that the choice of unsupervised strategy cannot be predicted from the properties of early learning trials, but is best understood as a function of the initial distribution of dimensional attention.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date: 18-06-2009
Abstract: Terrorism and torture are twin evils that have dominated news headlines - particularly since the horrifying events of 9/11. In this thought-provoking volume, scholars from a erse range of disciplines examine the complex motivational and situational factors contributing to terrorist acts and state-sponsored torture, and the potential linkage between those two heinous human behaviors. They also consider the strategies that might reduce the threat of future terrorist acts, and the perceived necessity to engage in morally reprehensible - and often illegal - torture practices. With its integrated synthesis of contemporary theories and research on the complex dynamics of the terrorism-torture link, this is an authoritative source for scholars and students of psychology, criminal justice, law, media, communication studies, and political science. It will also appeal to students of other disciplines with an interest in the study of terrorism and torture.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.1037/A0029588
Publisher: Annual Reviews
Date: 04-2021
DOI: 10.1146/ANNUREV-PUBLHEALTH-090419-102409
Abstract: Climate change presents a challenge at multiple levels: It challenges our cognitive abilities because the effect of the accumulation of emissions is difficult to understand. Climate change also challenges many people's worldview because any climate mitigation regime will have economic and political implications that are incompatible with libertarian ideals of unregulated free markets. These political implications have created an environment of rhetorical adversity in which disinformation abounds, thus compounding the challenges for climate communicators. The existing literature on how to communicate climate change and dispel misinformation converges on several conclusions: First, providing information about climate change, in particular explanations of why it occurs, can enhance people's acceptance of science. Second, highlighting the scientific consensus can be an effective means to counter misinformation and raise public acceptance. Third, culturally aligned messages and messengers are more likely to be successful. Finally, climate misinformation is best defanged, through a process known as inoculation, before it is encountered, although debunking techniques can also be successful.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 09-2022
DOI: 10.1093/PNASNEXUS/PGAC186
Abstract: Increased sharing of untrustworthy information on social media platforms is one of the main challenges of our modern information society. Because information disseminated by political elites is known to shape citizen and media discourse, it is particularly important to examine the quality of information shared by politicians. Here, we show that from 2016 onward, members of the Republican Party in the US Congress have been increasingly sharing links to untrustworthy sources. The proportion of untrustworthy information posted by Republicans versus Democrats is erging at an accelerating rate, and this ergence has worsened since President Biden was elected. This ergence between parties seems to be unique to the United States as it cannot be observed in other western democracies such as Germany and the United Kingdom, where left–right disparities are smaller and have remained largely constant.
Publisher: Internet Policy Review, Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society
Date: 31-03-2022
DOI: 10.14763/2022.1.1652
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-11-2021
DOI: 10.1057/S41599-021-00961-0
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused immense distress but also created opportunity for radical change. Two main avenues for recovery from the pandemic have been discussed: A “back to normal” that foregrounds economic recovery, and a sustainable and progressive “build back better” approach that seeks to address global problems such as inequality and climate change. The article reports two experiments conducted on representative British and American s les ( N = 600 and N = 800, respectively, for the two experiments) that show that people in both countries overall prefer a progressive future to a return to normal, although that preference is stronger on the political left and center-left with ambivalence prevailing on the right. However, irrespective of political leanings, people consider a return to normal more likely than a progressive future. People also mistakenly believe that others want the progressive scenarios less, and the return to normal more, than they actually do. The ergence between what people want and what they think others want represents an instance of pluralistic ignorance, which arises when public discourse is not reflecting people’s actual opinions. Publicizing public opinion is thus crucial to facilitate a future with broad support. In additional open-ended items, participants cited working from home, reduced commuting, and a collective sense of civility as worth retaining post pandemic.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2016
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 15-04-2020
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2004
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 08-2023
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 08-2013
DOI: 10.1080/17470218.2013.818703
Abstract: Recent research has found a positive relationship between people's working memory capacity (WMC) and their speed of category learning. To date, only classification-learning tasks have been considered, in which people learn to assign category labels to objects. It is unknown whether learning to make inferences about category features might also be related to WMC. We report data from a study in which 119 participants undertook classification learning and inference learning, and completed a series of WMC tasks. Working memory capacity was positively related to people's classification and inference learning performance.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 2013
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 17-08-2023
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-08-2021
DOI: 10.1186/S41235-021-00323-Z
Abstract: We report the results of a preregistered study that tested the effectiveness of inoculating participants against Islamophobic and radical-Islamist disinformation. Participants in the experimental (inoculation) condition watched a video that explained common rhetorical markers of radical-Islamist and Islamophobic disinformation that had been identified in an analysis of YouTube content. The information was presented in a neutral context not involving Islam and focused on analysis of the misleading argumentation. The control group watched a video about an unrelated topic. Participants were then exposed to target videos with “gateway” content that constituted an entry point to potential Islamist or Islamophobic radicalization. Both videos contained numerous items of disinformation. Participants then answered a variety of questions such as how likely they were to share the video, their level of agreement, and their perceived accuracy of the video. Participants who had received the inoculation displayed less agreement with the video content, perceived the video as less reliable, and were less likely to share it in comparison with participants in the control group. The study provides support for the use of argument-based inoculation in combatting extremist messages.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-07-2023
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 19-07-2020
DOI: 10.1111/BJOP.12468
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 03-2019
DOI: 10.1037/H0101834
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 04-03-2022
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 22-03-2013
DOI: 10.3758/S13421-013-0310-0
Abstract: Sequential dependencies can provide valuable information about the processes supporting memory, particularly memory for serial order. Earlier analyses have suggested that anticipation errors-reporting items ahead of their correct position in the sequence-tend to be followed by recall of the displaced item, consistent with primacy gradient models of serial recall. However, a more recent analysis instead suggests that anticipation errors are followed by further anticipation errors, consistent with chaining models. We report analyses of 21 conditions from published serial recall data sets, in which we observed a systematic pattern whereby anticipations tended to be followed by the "filling in" of displaced items. We note that cases where a different pattern held tended to apply to recall of longer lists under serial learning conditions or to conditions where participants were free to skip over items. Although the different patterns that can be observed might imply a dissociation (e.g., between short- and long-term memory), we show that these different patterns are naturally predicted by Farrell's (Psychological Review 119:223-271, 2012) model of short-term and episodic memory and relate to whether or not spontaneously formed groups of items can be skipped over during recall.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2009
DOI: 10.1037/0096-1523.35.2.530
Abstract: In probabilistic categorization, also known as multiple cue probability learning (MCPL), people learn to predict a discrete outcome on the basis of imperfectly valid cues. In MCPL, normatively irrelevant cues are usually ignored, which stands in apparent conflict with recent research in deterministic categorization that has shown that people sometimes use irrelevant cues to gate access to partial knowledge encapsulated in independent partitions. The authors report 2 experiments that sought support for the existence of such knowledge partitioning in probabilistic categorization. The results indicate that, as in other areas of concept acquisition (such as function learning and deterministic categorization), a significant proportion of participants partitioned their knowledge on the basis of an irrelevant cue. The authors show by computational modeling that knowledge partitioning cannot be accommodated by 2 exemplar models (Generalized Context Model and Rapid Attention Shifts 'N Learning), whereas a rule-based model (General Recognition Theory) can capture partitioned performance. The authors conclude by pointing to the necessity of a mixture-of-experts approach to capture performance in MCPL and by identifying reduction of complexity as a possible explanation for partitioning.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2012
DOI: 10.1037/A0026560
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 26-03-2019
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-04-2021
DOI: 10.1186/S12889-021-10643-W
Abstract: We investigated if people’s response to the official recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with conspiracy beliefs related to COVID-19, a distrust in the sources providing information on COVID-19, and an endorsement of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). The s le consisted of 1325 Finnish adults who filled out an online survey marketed on Facebook. Structural regression analysis was used to investigate whether: 1) conspiracy beliefs, a distrust in information sources, and endorsement of CAM predict people’s response to the non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) implemented by the government during the COVID-19 pandemic, and 2) conspiracy beliefs, a distrust in information sources, and endorsement of CAM are related to people’s willingness to take a COVID-19 vaccine. In iduals with more conspiracy beliefs and a lower trust in information sources were less likely to have a positive response to the NPIs. In iduals with less trust in information sources and more endorsement of CAM were more unwilling to take a COVID-19 vaccine. Distrust in information sources was the strongest and most consistent predictor in all models. Our analyses also revealed that some of the people who respond negatively to the NPIs also have a lower likelihood to take the vaccine. This association was partly related to a lower trust in information sources. Distrusting the establishment to provide accurate information, believing in conspiracy theories, and endorsing treatments and substances that are not part of conventional medicine, are all associated with a more negative response to the official guidelines during COVID-19. How people respond to the guidelines, however, is more strongly and consistently related to the degree of trust they feel in the information sources, than to their tendency to hold conspiracy beliefs or endorse CAM. These findings highlight the need for governments and health authorities to create communication strategies that build public trust.
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 07-02-2023
Abstract: In online content moderation, two key values may come into conflict: protecting freedom of expression and preventing harm. Robust rules based in part on how citizens think about these moral dilemmas are necessary to deal with this conflict in a principled way, yet little is known about people’s judgments and preferences around content moderation. We examined such moral dilemmas in a conjoint survey experiment where US respondents ( N = 2, 564) indicated whether they would remove problematic social media posts on election denial, antivaccination, Holocaust denial, and climate change denial and whether they would take punitive action against the accounts. Respondents were shown key information about the user and their post as well as the consequences of the misinformation. The majority preferred quashing harmful misinformation over protecting free speech. Respondents were more reluctant to suspend accounts than to remove posts and more likely to do either if the harmful consequences of the misinformation were severe or if sharing it was a repeated offense. Features related to the account itself (the person behind the account, their partisanship, and number of followers) had little to no effect on respondents’ decisions. Content moderation of harmful misinformation was a partisan issue: Across all four scenarios, Republicans were consistently less willing than Democrats or independents to remove posts or penalize the accounts that posted them. Our results can inform the design of transparent rules for content moderation of harmful misinformation.
Publisher: Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Date: 29-06-2021
Abstract: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a heterogeneous disorder and many women are dissatisfied with their healthcare under the current fragmented health services. Here, we review existing literature on PCOS healthcare services and qualitatively evaluate an integrated PCOS service based on experiences of women with PCOS. Limited prior PCOS-dedicated services have been studied and their quantitative and efficacy-focused evaluations are summarized. Here, we also provide a broader PCOS service evaluation via semistructured interviews and surveys, with thematic analysis based on a predetermined evaluation framework. Fifteen women completed interviews and surveys. Overall the integrated, evidence-based PCOS service was well-received and women were generally satisfied with appropriateness, effectiveness, and reported positive health impact resulting from the service. Integrated care, tailored treatments, education, lifestyle support, and laser therapy were highly valued. Patients reported improvements on symptoms, understanding and confidence in managing PCOS, and emotional well-being. Elements of efficiency in the initial stages, awareness and communication, and the need for service expansion and tensions between evidence-based treatments and patient preferences were also captured to guide improvement. Further research into models of care is recommended to meet the needs of women with PCOS.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 12-2014
DOI: 10.1037/XAP0000028
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 12-2017
DOI: 10.1037/XLM0000422
Abstract: People frequently continue to use inaccurate information in their reasoning even after a credible retraction has been presented. This phenomenon is often referred to as the continued influence effect of misinformation. The repetition of the original misconception within a retraction could contribute to this phenomenon, as it could inadvertently make the "myth" more familiar-and familiar information is more likely to be accepted as true. From a dual-process perspective, familiarity-based acceptance of myths is most likely to occur in the absence of strategic memory processes. Thus, we examined factors known to affect whether strategic memory processes can be utilized: age, detail, and time. Participants rated their belief in various statements of unclear veracity, and facts were subsequently affirmed and myths were retracted. Participants then rerated their belief either immediately or after a delay. We compared groups of young and older participants, and we manipulated the amount of detail presented in the affirmative or corrective explanations, as well as the retention interval between encoding and a retrieval attempt. We found that (a) older adults over the age of 65 were worse at sustaining their postcorrection belief that myths were inaccurate, (b) a greater level of explanatory detail promoted more sustained belief change, and (c) fact affirmations promoted more sustained belief change in comparison with myth retractions over the course of 1 week (but not over 3 weeks), This supports the notion that familiarity is indeed a driver of continued influence effects. (PsycINFO Database Record
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 05-05-2017
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 15-07-2022
DOI: 10.1177/17470218221111750
Abstract: Misinformed beliefs are difficult to change. Refutations that target false claims typically reduce false beliefs, but tend to be only partially effective. In this study, a social norming approach was explored to test whether provision of peer norms could provide an alternative or complementary approach to refutation. Three experiments investigated whether a descriptive norm—by itself or in combination with a refutation—could reduce the endorsement of worldview-congruent claims. Experiment 1 found that using a single-point estimate to communicate a norm affected belief but had less impact than a refutation. Experiment 2 used a verbally presented distribution of four values to communicate a norm, which was largely ineffective. Experiment 3 used a graphically presented social norm with 25 values, which was found to be as effective at reducing claim belief as a refutation, with the combination of both interventions being most impactful. These results provide a proof of concept that normative information can aid in the debunking of false or equivocal claims, and suggests that theories of misinformation processing should take social factors into account.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 04-04-2023
DOI: 10.1177/10755470231162634
Abstract: Effective science communication is challenging when scientific messages are informed by a continually updating evidence base and must often compete against misinformation. We argue that we need a new program of science communication as collective intelligence—a collaborative approach, supported by technology. This would have four key advantages over the typical model where scientists communicate as in iduals: scientific messages would be informed by (a) a wider base of aggregated knowledge, (b) contributions from a erse scientific community, (c) participatory input from stakeholders, and (d) better responsiveness to ongoing changes in the state of knowledge.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2021
DOI: 10.1186/S41235-021-00346-6
Abstract: Given that being misinformed can have negative ramifications, finding optimal corrective techniques has become a key focus of research. In recent years, several ergent correction formats have been proposed as superior based on distinct theoretical frameworks. However, these correction formats have not been compared in controlled settings, so the suggested superiority of each format remains speculative. Across four experiments, the current paper investigated how altering the format of corrections influences people’s subsequent reliance on misinformation. We examined whether myth-first, fact-first, fact-only, or myth-only correction formats were most effective, using a range of different materials and participant pools. Experiments 1 and 2 focused on climate change misconceptions participants were Qualtrics online panel members and students taking part in a massive open online course, respectively. Experiments 3 and 4 used misconceptions from a erse set of topics, with Amazon Mechanical Turk crowdworkers and university student participants. We found that the impact of a correction on beliefs and inferential reasoning was largely independent of the specific format used. The clearest evidence for any potential relative superiority emerged in Experiment 4, which found that the myth-first format was more effective at myth correction than the fact-first format after a delayed retention interval. However, in general it appeared that as long as the key ingredients of a correction were presented, format did not make a considerable difference. This suggests that simply providing corrective information, regardless of format, is far more important than how the correction is presented.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 03-2019
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date: 05-02-2018
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 10-2013
DOI: 10.1037/A0034515
Abstract: The dissemination and control of information are indispensable ingredients of violent conflict, with all parties involved in a conflict or at war seeking to frame the discussion on their own terms. Those attempts at information control often involve the dissemination of misinformation or disinformation (i.e., information that is incorrect by accident or intent, respectively). We review the way in which misinformation can facilitate violent conflicts and, conversely, how the successful refutation of misinformation can contribute to peace. We illustrate the relevant cognitive principles by examining two case studies. The first, a retrospective case, involves the Iraq War of 2003 and the "War on Terror." The second, a prospective case, points to likely future sources of conflict arising from climate change and its likely consequences.
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 04-2016
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 17-08-2021
Abstract: n response to the COVID-19 pandemic, countries are introducing digital passports that allow citizens to return to normal activities if they were previously infected with (immunity passport) or vaccinated against (vaccination passport) SARS-CoV-2. To be effective, policy decision-makers must know whether these passports will be widely accepted by the public and under what conditions. This study focuses attention on immunity passports, as these may prove useful in countries both with and without an existing COVID-19 vaccination program however, our general findings also extend to vaccination passports. e aimed to assess attitudes toward the introduction of immunity passports in six countries, and determine what social, personal, and contextual factors predicted their support. e collected 13,678 participants through online representative s ling across six countries—Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom—during April to May of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, and assessed attitudes and support for the introduction of immunity passports. mmunity passport support was moderate to low, being the highest in Germany (775/1507 participants, 51.43%) and the United Kingdom (759/1484, 51.15%) followed by Taiwan (2841/5989, 47.44%), Australia (963/2086, 46.16%), and Spain (693/1491, 46.48%) and was the lowest in Japan (241/1081, 22.94%). Bayesian generalized linear mixed effects modeling was used to assess predictive factors for immunity passport support across countries. International results showed neoliberal worldviews (odds ratio [OR] 1.17, 95% CI 1.13-1.22), personal concern (OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.00-1.16), perceived virus severity (OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01-1.14), the fairness of immunity passports (OR 2.51, 95% CI 2.36-2.66), liking immunity passports (OR 2.77, 95% CI 2.61-2.94), and a willingness to become infected to gain an immunity passport (OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.51-1.68) were all predictive factors of immunity passport support. By contrast, gender (woman OR 0.9, 95% CI 0.82-0.98), immunity passport concern (OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.57-0.65), and risk of harm to society (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.67-0.76) predicted a decrease in support for immunity passports. Minor differences in predictive factors were found between countries and results were modeled separately to provide national accounts of these data. ur research suggests that support for immunity passports is predicted by the personal benefits and societal risks they confer. These findings generalized across six countries and may also prove informative for the introduction of vaccination passports, helping policymakers to introduce effective COVID-19 passport policies in these six countries and around the world.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-04-2014
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2009
DOI: 10.3758/MC.37.2.181
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 08-2000
DOI: 10.1017/S0140525X00313358
Abstract: We focus on two components of Page's argument in favour of localist representations in connectionist networks: First, we take issue with the claim that localist representations can give rise to generalisation and show that whenever generalisation occurs, distributed representations are involved. Second, we counter the alleged shortcomings of distributed representations and show that their properties are preferable to those of localist approaches.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 22-02-2021
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 18-12-2018
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2023
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 30-07-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-021-94796-Z
Abstract: Online platforms’ data give advertisers the ability to “microtarget” recipients’ personal vulnerabilities by tailoring different messages for the same thing, such as a product or political candidate. One possible response is to raise awareness for and resilience against such manipulative strategies through psychological inoculation. Two online experiments (total $$N= 828$$ N = 828 ) demonstrated that a short, simple intervention prompting participants to reflect on an attribute of their own personality—by completing a short personality questionnaire—boosted their ability to accurately identify ads that were targeted at them by up to 26 percentage points. Accuracy increased even without personalized feedback, but merely providing a description of the targeted personality dimension did not improve accuracy. We argue that such a “boosting approach,” which here aims to improve people’s competence to detect manipulative strategies themselves, should be part of a policy mix aiming to increase platforms’ transparency and user autonomy.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 08-08-2022
DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2022.2108800
Abstract: Vaccine confidence among health care professionals (HCPs) is a key determinant of vaccination behaviors. We validate a short-form version of the 31-item Pro-VC-Be (Health Professionals Vaccine Confidence and Behaviors) questionnaire that measures HCPs' confidence in and commitment to vaccination. A cross-sectional survey among 2,696 HCPs established a long-form tool to measure 10 dimensions of psychosocial determinants of vaccination behaviors. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) models tested the construct validity of 69,984 combinations of items in a 10-item short form tool. The criterion validity of this tool was tested with four behavioral and attitudinal outcomes using weighted modified Poisson regressions. An immunization resource score was constructed from summing the responses of the dimensions that can influence HCPs' pro-vaccination behaviors: vaccine confidence, proactive efficacy, and trust in authorities. The short-form tool showed good construct validity in CFA analyses (RMSEA = 0.035 [0.024 0.045] CFI = 0.956 TLI = 0.918 SRMR 0.027) and comparable criterion validity to the long-form tool. The immunization resource score showed excellent criterion validity. The Pro-VC-Be short-form showed good construct validity and criterion validity similar to the long-form and can therefore be used to measure determinants of vaccination behaviors among HCPs.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-01-2022
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2018
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-06-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41562-020-0906-X
Abstract: Governments around the world have implemented measures to manage the transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). While the majority of these measures are proving effective, they have a high social and economic cost, and response strategies are being adjusted. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that communities should have a voice, be informed and engaged, and participate in this transition phase. We propose ten considerations to support this principle: (1) implement a phased approach to a 'new normal' (2) balance in idual rights with the social good (3) prioritise people at highest risk of negative consequences (4) provide special support for healthcare workers and care staff (5) build, strengthen and maintain trust (6) enlist existing social norms and foster healthy new norms (7) increase resilience and self-efficacy (8) use clear and positive language (9) anticipate and manage misinformation and (10) engage with media outlets. The transition phase should also be informed by real-time data according to which governmental responses should be updated.
Publisher: Association for Computational Linguistics
Date: 2023
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-11-2022
DOI: 10.1038/S41562-022-01460-1
Abstract: One of today's most controversial and consequential issues is whether the global uptake of digital media is causally related to a decline in democracy. We conducted a systematic review of causal and correlational evidence (N = 496 articles) on the link between digital media use and different political variables. Some associations, such as increasing political participation and information consumption, are likely to be beneficial for democracy and were often observed in autocracies and emerging democracies. Other associations, such as declining political trust, increasing populism and growing polarization, are likely to be detrimental to democracy and were more pronounced in established democracies. While the impact of digital media on political systems depends on the specific variable and system in question, several variables show clear directions of associations. The evidence calls for research efforts and vigilance by governments and civil societies to better understand, design and regulate the interplay of digital media and democracy.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 03-2019
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-04-2023
DOI: 10.1186/S12889-023-15653-4
Abstract: The current study sought to determine whether public perceptions of other vaccines and diseases than COVID-19 have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We longitudinally examined whether there had been a change from before the COVID-19 pandemic to during the pandemic in: (a) influenza vaccination behaviour and intentions (b) the perceived benefit of childhood vaccines and influenza vaccines (c) the perceived safety of childhood vaccines and influenza vaccines (d) the perceived severity of measles and influenza and (e) trust in healthcare professionals in two s les of Finnish adults ( N = 205 in Study 1 and N = 197 in Study 2). The findings showed that during the pandemic, more people than before had received or wanted to receive the influenza vaccine. The respondents also believed that influenza was more dangerous during the pandemic and that vaccinations were safer and more beneficial. On the other hand, for childhood vaccines only perceived safety increased. Finally, in one of the studies, people had more confidence in medical professionals during the pandemic than they had before. Together, these findings imply a spillover of the COVID-19 pandemic on how people view other vaccines and illnesses.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-05-2021
DOI: 10.1057/S41599-021-00787-W
Abstract: People rely on data-driven AI technologies nearly every time they go online, whether they are shopping, scrolling through news feeds, or looking for entertainment. Yet despite their ubiquity, personalization algorithms and the associated large-scale collection of personal data have largely escaped public scrutiny. Policy makers who wish to introduce regulations that respect people’s attitudes towards privacy and algorithmic personalization on the Internet would greatly benefit from knowing how people perceive personalization and personal data collection. To contribute to an empirical foundation for this knowledge, we surveyed public attitudes towards key aspects of algorithmic personalization and people’s data privacy concerns and behavior using representative online s les in Germany ( N = 1065), Great Britain ( N = 1092), and the United States ( N = 1059). Our findings show that people object to the collection and use of sensitive personal information and to the personalization of political c aigning and, in Germany and Great Britain, to the personalization of news sources. Encouragingly, attitudes are independent of political preferences: People across the political spectrum share the same concerns about their data privacy and show similar levels of acceptance regarding personalized digital services and the use of private data for personalization. We also found an acceptability gap: People are more accepting of personalized services than of the collection of personal data and information required for these services. A large majority of respondents rated, on average, personalized services as more acceptable than the collection of personal information or data. The acceptability gap can be observed at both the aggregate and the in idual level. Across countries, between 64% and 75% of respondents showed an acceptability gap. Our findings suggest a need for transparent algorithmic personalization that minimizes use of personal data, respects people’s preferences on personalization, is easy to adjust, and does not extend to political advertising.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2008
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 27-11-2018
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 26-03-2015
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-1983
DOI: 10.3758/BF03202448
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2004
Publisher: No publisher found
Date: 2000
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-01-2016
DOI: 10.1038/529459A
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 21-03-2023
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0283030
Abstract: In idually tailored vaccine hesitancy interventions are considered auspicious for decreasing vaccine hesitancy. In two studies, we measured self-reported format preference for statistical vs. anecdotal information in vaccine hesitant in iduals, and experimentally manipulated the format in which COVID-19 and influenza vaccine hesitancy interventions were presented (statistical vs. anecdotal). Regardless of whether people received interventions that were in line with their format preference, the interventions did not influence their vaccine attitudes or vaccination intentions. Instead, a stronger preference for anecdotal information was associated with perceiving the material in both the statistical and the anecdotal interventions as more frustrating, less relevant, and less helpful. However, even if the participants reacted negatively to both intervention formats, the reactions to the statistical interventions were consistently less negative. These results suggest that tailoring COVID-19 and influenza vaccine hesitancy interventions to suit people’s format preference, might not be a viable tool for decreasing vaccine hesitancy. The results further imply that using statistics-only interventions with people who hold anti-vaccination attitudes may be a less risky choice than using only anecdotal testimonies.
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 11-2014
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 23-10-2015
DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE2845
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 22-01-2021
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0244827
Abstract: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many Governments are instituting mobile tracking technologies to perform rapid contact tracing. However, these technologies are only effective if the public is willing to use them, implying that their perceived public health benefits must outweigh personal concerns over privacy and security. The Australian federal government recently launched the ‘COVIDSafe’ app, designed to anonymously register nearby contacts. If a contact later identifies as infected with COVID-19, health department officials can rapidly followup with their registered contacts to stop the virus’ spread. The current study assessed attitudes towards three tracking technologies (telecommunication network tracking, a government app, and Apple and Google’s Bluetooth exposure notification system) in two representative s les of the Australian public prior to the launch of COVIDSafe. We compared these attitudes to usage of the COVIDSafe app after its launch in a further two representative s les of the Australian public. Using Bayesian methods, we find widespread acceptance for all tracking technologies, however, observe a large intention-behaviour gap between people’s stated attitudes and actual uptake of the COVIDSafe app. We consider the policy implications of these results for Australia and the world at large.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 12-2017
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-12-2022
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-07-2023
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-023-30883-7
Abstract: The proliferation of anti-vaccination arguments online can threaten immunisation programmes, including those targeting COVID-19. To effectively refute misinformed views about vaccination, communicators need to go beyond providing correct information and debunking of misconceptions, and must consider the underlying motivations of people who hold contrarian views. Drawing on a taxonomy of anti-vaccination arguments that identified 11 “attitude roots”—i.e., psychological attributes—that motivate an in idual’s vaccine-hesitant attitude, we assessed whether these attitude roots were identifiable in argument endorsements and responses to psychological construct measures corresponding to the presumed attitude roots. In two UK s les (total n = 1250), we found that participants exhibited monological belief patterns in their highly correlated endorsements of anti-vaccination arguments drawn from different attitude roots, and that psychological constructs representing the attitude roots significantly predicted argument endorsement strength and vaccine hesitancy. We identified four different latent anti-vaccination profiles amongst our participants’ responses. We conclude that endorsement of anti-vaccination arguments meaningfully dovetails with attitude roots clustering around anti-scientific beliefs and partisan ideologies, but that the balance between those attitudes differs considerably between people. Communicators must be aware of those in idual differences.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 10-1992
DOI: 10.1207/S15328023TOP1903_7
Abstract: Many students approach psychology in general, and cognitive psychology in particular, with serious misconceptions about the scientific nature of the discipline. In order to address this problem and bring laboratory findings in cognitive psychology into a real world context, we asked students in an introductory cognitive course to make TV commercials using principles learned in class. The success of the approach became evident from analysis of course evaluation forms and the generally high quality of students' productions.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2008
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 27-07-2020
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-04-2014
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1037/A0022639
Abstract: Working memory is crucial for many higher-level cognitive functions, ranging from mental arithmetic to reasoning and problem solving. Likewise, the ability to learn and categorize novel concepts forms an indispensable part of human cognition. However, very little is known about the relationship between working memory and categorization, and modeling in category learning has thus far been largely uninformed by knowledge about people's memory processes. This article reports a large study (N = 113) that related people's working memory capacity (WMC) to their category-learning performance using the 6 problem types of Shepard, Hovland, and Jenkins (1961). Structural equation modeling revealed a strong relationship between WMC and category learning, with a single latent variable accommodating performance on all 6 problems. A model of categorization (the Attention Learning COVEring map, ALCOVE Kruschke, 1992) was fit to the in idual data and a single latent variable was sufficient to capture the variation among associative learning parameters across all problems. The data and modeling suggest that working memory mediates category learning across a broad range of tasks.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 04-1998
DOI: 10.1017/S0140525X98391165
Abstract: We take up two issues discussed by Chow: the claim by critics of hypothesis testing that the null hypothesis (H 0 ) is always false, and the claim that reporting effect sizes is more appropriate than relying on statistical significance. Concerning the former, we agree with Chow's sentiment despite noting serious shortcomings in his discussion. Concerning the latter, we agree with Chow that effect size need not translate into scientific relevance, and furthermore reiterate that with small s les effect size measures cannot substitute for significance.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-2010
DOI: 10.3758/MC.38.7.849
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 02-2023
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.220508
Abstract: In recent years, the UK has become ided along two key dimensions: party affiliation and Brexit position. We explored how ision along these two dimensions interacts with the correction of political misinformation. Participants saw accurate and inaccurate statements (either balanced or mostly inaccurate) from two politicians from opposing parties but the same Brexit position (Experiment 1), or the same party but opposing Brexit positions (Experiment 2). Replicating previous work, fact-checking statements led participants to update their beliefs, increasing belief after fact affirmations and decreasing belief for corrected misinformation, even for politically aligned material. After receiving fact-checks participants had reduced voting intentions and more negative feelings towards party-aligned politicians (likely due to low baseline support for opposing party politicians). For Brexit alignment, the opposite was found: participants reduced their voting intentions and feelings for opposing (but not aligned) politicians following the fact-checks. These changes occurred regardless of the proportion of inaccurate statements, potentially indicating participants expect politicians to be accurate more than half the time. Finally, although we found ision based on both party and Brexit alignment, effects were much stronger for party alignment, highlighting that even though new isions have emerged in UK politics, the old ides remain dominant.
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 26-08-2022
Abstract: Online misinformation continues to have adverse consequences for society. Inoculation theory has been put forward as a way to reduce susceptibility to misinformation by informing people about how they might be misinformed, but its scalability has been elusive both at a theoretical level and a practical level. We developed five short videos that inoculate people against manipulation techniques commonly used in misinformation: emotionally manipulative language, incoherence, false dichotomies, scapegoating, and ad hominem attacks. In seven preregistered studies, i.e., six randomized controlled studies ( n = 6464) and an ecologically valid field study on YouTube ( n = 22,632), we find that these videos improve manipulation technique recognition, boost confidence in spotting these techniques, increase people’s ability to discern trustworthy from untrustworthy content, and improve the quality of their sharing decisions. These effects are robust across the political spectrum and a wide variety of covariates. We show that psychological inoculation c aigns on social media are effective at improving misinformation resilience at scale.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
No related grants have been discovered for Stephan Lewandowsky.