Ankita Sharma

Bio: Ankita Sharma is an academic researcher from Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur. The author has contributed to research in topics: Information processing & Snowball sampling. The author has an hindex of 2, co-authored 7 publications receiving 16 citations.

Can wisdom be fostered: Time to test the model of wisdom

Abstract: Several psychological theories and models of wisdom have been developed. Despite converging trend from different theories and models in the understanding of wisdom, intervention plans or attempts t...

Indian Socio-Cultural Conception of Wisdom: Does it Follow Universal Understanding?

Abstract: There is growing interest in the concept of wisdom as an ideal end point of development in psychological science. However, in its fourth decade still, the biggest concern is to reach the consensus about its definition and description. The present study focuses on wisdom descriptors from Indian adolescents and adults‟ perspective and comparing it with the global conception. Total 170 participants (87 adolescents and 83 adults) were asked to provide the names that they consider wise and characteristics of their wise nominees. For matching with global conception, twenty-five wisdom descriptors were taken from previous researches and participants were asked to identify them as of the wise person. Results suggested some of the convergence with the global understanding but some very intriguing findings were observed when age and education differences were taken into the consideration. Most importantly, adolescents stressed the value of success led personal growth and societal upliftment, whereas as adults gave more weight to the knowledge bearer and having a vision.

Neurofeedback Training for Social Cognitive Deficits A Systematic Review

Abstract: Orndorff and his colleagues [1] suggested that if a neural activity is considered a treatment variable instead of outcome, it widens the scope of research and has a specific implication for social neuroscience. Given this, the empirical evidence is collected and analyzed where neural activity as self-manipulation design through neurofeedback training specifically for social cognition deficit is done. The objective of the present article is to provide a systematic review of 1) how NFT is utilized to treat social cognitive deficits, 2) how NFT is utilized to target Social Cognition Deficit in ASD, 3) examining the directions, strengths, and quality of evidence to support the use of NFT for ASD. The databases for studies were searched in PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Springer, Science Direct, Psychinfo, and Google Scholar, using combinations of the following keywords: ‘Neurofeedback,’ ‘Autism Spectrum Disorder,’ ‘Mu Rhythm’ and ‘Social Cognition.’ Studies were eligible for inclusion if they were specific to 1) autistic and typically developed population, 2) intervention study, 3) Delivered by NFT, 4) participants showed social cognitive deficit and/or improvement. Total one eighty-seven studies were found of key interest; out of which 17 studies were eligible for inclusion in this review. All studies reported the improvement in different domains of social cognition and were moderately methodologically sound. Eleven out of seventeen studies satisfied the trainability and interpretability criteria suggested by Zoefel and his colleagues [2]. The conclusion from the present review is in line with comments of Marzbani and colleagues [3] that, ‘current research does not provide sufficient conclusive results about its efficacy.’ The patterns and directions concluded from studies related to protocol, methodology and results are discussed in detail in the present review.

Gender difference in information processing limit during online decision making

Abstract: According to the report of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and GSM Association (GSMA), in India, there is a huge gender gap in mobile ownership. The report says (GSM Association) Forty two percent of women in India are aware of the Internet and can use mobile phone; yet women hold 28 percent less likeliness than men to own a mobile phone. Researchers relate this gap in ownership to the differences in socio-economic condition and educational background however it could possibly be due to other psychological factors also. Considering this bigger picture in mind, the study was planned to explore ‘the gender difference in information processing for online mobile purchase decision’. The study was conducted on 300 participants (Female, N = 160, Mean age = 24.07; Male, N = 140, Mean age = 25.81) and data was collected during October 2017- March 2018. The data was collected with the help of questionnaires to measure the psychological tendencies and the online shopping experiment to measure the information processing in online mobile purchase decision making. The results clearly shows that males prefer more information before they make a decision and focus on increasing the control and reducing the uncertainty. On the other hand, females prefer the medium amount of information for decision making, and until they have a high need for order and are impulsive, they may prefer to postpone or cancel their decision making altogether. Keywords: Online decision making, Information load, Gender differences, Psychological tendencies, Information processing limit, Buying behaviour.

Decision making in the era of infobesity: a study on interaction of gender and psychological tendencies

Abstract: Purpose: This study examines information processing during consumer decision making on online platforms as influenced by gender differences and psychological tendencies. Further exploration is ‘how much information is too much information; leading to infobesity.’ Methodology: The methodology to address the objective included the questionnaires for assessment of psychological tendencies and naturalistic experiments to measure decision making in online conditions. An online marketplace prototype was created for mobile purchase, named ‘mobile bazaar,’ and another for hotel booking, named ‘backpackers.’ The prototype was designed in such a way that the manipulation of information presented to the participant is possible. Participants were recruited with purposive and snowball sampling method depending upon their willingness and familiarity with online market platforms. Final data were collected from Three hundred sixty-eight participants during the period of October 2017- March 2018. The data from questionnaires and the computerized task was scored and analyzed with SPSS version 21 with t-test, chi-square and logistic regression analysis methods. Main findings: The present study shows the influence of psychological tendencies (i.e., need for closure, exploratory tendencies, and uncertainty avoidance) and gender difference in decision making. Female seems to follow ‘process less to process better’ strategy, whereas, men seem to follow ‘process more to get better’ strategy. The findings also provided input to the debate of information measurement in consumer research. Implications: Understanding decision making features of Indian consumers can not only contribute to the understanding of the naturalistic decision-making process itself but also can provide inputs to the market researchers, designers, and policymakers. Novelty /originality of the study: The study was novel in terms of its use of the online marketplace prototype as a naturalistic decision making study method. This method allowed the researchers to examine participants' behavior (of information processing and decision making) in real like scenarios and yet had the luxury of manipulation of presenting information as per research design. Therefore the findings of present study will have more generalizability.

The Science of Wisdom in a Polarized World: Knowns and Unknowns

Abstract: Interest in wisdom in the cognitive sciences, psychology, and education has been paralleled by conceptual confusions about its nature and assessment. To clarify these issues and promote consensus i...

On K-means data clustering algorithm with genetic algorithm

Abstract: Clustering has been used in various disciplines like software engineering, statistics, data mining, image analysis, machine learning, web cluster engines, and text mining in order to deduce the groups in large volume of data. The notion behind clustering is to ascribe the objects to clusters in such a way that objects in one cluster are more homogeneous to other clusters. There are variegated clustering algorithms available viz k-means clustering, cobweb clustering, db-scan clustering, fartherstfirst clustering, and x-means clustering algorithm but K-means on the whole comprehensively used algorithm for unsupervised clustering dilemma. In this paper k-means clustering is being optimised using genetic algorithm so that the problems of k-means can be overridden. The outcomes of k-means clustering and genetic k-means clustering are evaluated and compared; obtained result shows K-means with GA algorithm suggest new improvements in this research domain.

Can wisdom and psychosocial growth be learned in university courses

Abstract: This study explored whether three-dimensional wisdom and psychosocial growth, defined as increases in psychological well-being (PWB), spirituality, and death acceptance, can be learned in universit

The Examined Life is Wise Living: The Relationship Between Mindfulness, Wisdom, and the Moral Foundations

Abstract: This correlational study of two independent samples (260 college students and 173 Mechanical Turk workers aged 21–74) examined whether and how mindfulness (broadly construed as a manifold of self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence), influences wisdom about the self (Adult Self-Transcendence Inventory and Self-Assessed Wisdom Scale) and wisdom about the (social) world (Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale), and how mindfulness and wisdom impact ethical sensitivities (the five moral foundations). Mindfulness predicted wisdom about the self, and wisdom about the self was linked to an emphasis on the individualizing moral foundations of care/harm avoidance and fairness and, to a lesser degree, on the binding moral foundations of loyalty, authority, and purity. Wisdom about the (social) world was not associated with either mindfulness or the moral foundations. Age was a significant positive predictor for wisdom about the self once the self-awareness component of mindfulness was taken into account.