Showing papers on "Perspective (graphical) published in 2015"

Keep Using My Health Apps: Discover Users' Perception of Health and Fitness Apps with the UTAUT2 Model.

Abstract: Background: Health and fitness applications (apps) are one of the major app categories in the current mobile app market. Few studies have examined this area from the users' perspective. This study adopted the Extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) Model to examine the predictors of the users' intention to adopt health and fitness apps. Materials and Methods: A survey (n=317) was conducted with college-aged smartphone users at a Midwestern university in the United States. Results: Performance expectancy, hedonic motivations, price value, and habit were significant predictors of users' intention of continued usage of health and fitness apps. However, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions were not found to predict users' intention of continued usage of health and fitness apps. Conclusions: This study extends the UTATU2 Model to the mobile apps domain and provides health professions, app designers, and marketers with the insights of user experi...

Individual Differences in Environmental Sensitivity

Abstract: A fundamental trait found in most organisms is the ability to register, process, and respond to external factors. Although such environmental sensitivity is critical for adapting successfully to contextual conditions, individuals tend to differ in their sensitivity to the environment, with some more sensitive than others. Such differences in environmental sensitivity can be seen across many species, including humans. Although the notion of variability in environmental sensitivity is reflected indirectly in many traditional concepts of human psychology, several new frameworks address individual differences in environmental sensitivity more directly and from a perspective of developmental and evolutionary theory. In this article, I integrate these perspectives into a broad meta-framework before proposing ideas for research on individual differences in environmental sensitivity. I also emphasize that inter-individual variability in environmental sensitivity be considered in both theoretical and applied work.

Emotional labor actors: A latent profile analysis of emotional labor strategies.

Abstract: Research on emotional labor focuses on how employees utilize 2 main regulation strategies—surface acting (i.e., faking one’s felt emotions) and deep acting (i.e., attempting to feel required emotions)—to adhere to emotional expectations of their jobs. To date, researchers largely have considered how each strategy functions to predict outcomes in isolation. However, this variable-centered perspective ignores the possibility that there are subpopulations of employees who may differ in their combined use of surface and deep acting. To address this issue, we conducted 2 studies that examined surface acting and deep acting from a person-centered perspective. Using latent profile analysis, we identified 5 emotional labor profiles—non-actors, low actors, surface actors, deep actors, and regulators—and found that these actor profiles were distinguished by several emotional labor antecedents (positive affectivity, negative affectivity, display rules, customer orientation, and emotion demands–abilities fit) and differentially predicted employee outcomes (emotional exhaustion, job satisfaction, and felt inauthenticity). Our results reveal new insights into the nature of emotion regulation in emotional labor contexts and how different employees may characteristically use distinct combinations of emotion regulation strategies to manage their emotional expressions at work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved)

Individual response to exercise training - a statistical perspective.

Abstract: In the era of personalized medicine, interindividual differences in the magnitude of response to an exercise training program (subject-by-training interaction; “individual response”) have received ...

Sources of alliance partner trustworthiness: Integrating calculative and relational perspectives

Abstract: Research on the sources of organizational trustworthiness remains bifurcated. Some scholars have adopted a calculative perspective, stressing the primacy of actors' rational calculations, while others have approached trustworthiness from a relational perspective, focusing on its social underpinnings. We help to reconcile these seemingly disparate views by adopting an integrative approach that allows us to clarify the boundaries of both perspectives. Based on dyadic survey data from 171 strategic alliances, we find that the calculative perspective (represented by contractual safeguards) has higher predictive power when the partner lacks a favorable reputation. In contrast, the relational perspective (represented by organizational culture) predicts trustworthiness more strongly when familiarity with the partner organization is high.

Convergent functional architecture of the superior parietal lobule unraveled with multimodal neuroimaging approaches

Abstract: The superior parietal lobule (SPL) plays a pivotal role in many cognitive, perceptive, and motor-related processes. This implies that a mosaic of distinct functional and structural subregions may exist in this area. Recent studies have demonstrated that the ongoing spontaneous fluctuations in the brain at rest are highly structured and, like coactivation patterns, reflect the integration of cortical locations into long-distance networks. This suggests that the internal differentiation of a complex brain region may be revealed by interaction patterns that are reflected in different neuroimaging modalities. On the basis of this perspective, we aimed to identify a convergent functional organization of the SPL using multimodal neuroimaging approaches. The SPL was first parcellated based on its structural connections as well as on its resting-state connectivity and coactivation patterns. Then, post hoc functional characterizations and connectivity analyses were performed for each subregion. The three types of connectivity-based parcellations consistently identified five subregions in the SPL of each hemisphere. The two anterior subregions were found to be primarily involved in action processes and in visually guided visuomotor functions, whereas the three posterior subregions were primarily associated with visual perception, spatial cognition, reasoning, working memory, and attention. This parcellation scheme for the SPL was further supported by revealing distinct connectivity patterns for each subregion in all the used modalities. These results thus indicate a convergent functional architecture of the SPL that can be revealed based on different types of connectivity and is reflected by different functions and interactions.

Shaped by the Past: The Default Mode Network Supports Cognition that Is Independent of Immediate Perceptual Input

Abstract: Although many different accounts of the functions of the default mode network (DMN) have been proposed, few can adequately account for the spectrum of different cognitive functions that utilize this network. The current study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore the hypothesis that the role of the DMN in higher order cognition is to allow cognition to be shaped by information from stored representations rather than information in the immediate environment. Using a novel task paradigm, we observed increased BOLD activity in regions of the medial prefrontal cortex and posterior cingulate cortex when individuals made decisions on the location of shapes from the prior trial and decreased BOLD activity when individuals made decisions on the location of shapes on the current trial. These data are inconsistent with views of the DMN as a task-negative system or one that is sensitive only to stimuli with strong personal or emotional ties. Instead the involvement of the DMN when people make decisions about where a shape was, rather than where it is now, supports the hypothesis that the core hubs of the DMN allow cognition to be guided by information other than the immediate perceptual input. We propose that a variety of different forms of higher order thought (such as imagining the future or considering the perspective of another person) engage the DMN because these more complex introspective forms of higher order thought all depend on the capacity for cognition to be shaped by representations that are not present in the external environment.

Why Don’t More History Teachers Engage Students in Interpretation?

Abstract: Over the past fifteen years, a great deal of attention has been devoted to the reform of history teaching. Although advocates of reform come from a variety of backgrounds, most share a belief that students' encounters with history should center on the process of historical interpretation. From this perspective, there is little point in simply transmitting a story of the past to students in hopes they will remember and repeat it. Instead, students should learn how such stories are developed in the first place: They should be involved in historical investigations, they should analyze and interpret primary sources, and they should understand the relationship between historical evidence and the construction of accounts--both their own and those of others. This process necessarily involves consideration of multiple perspectives, not only so that students understand how the same evidence can lead to divergent interpretations, but also so they recognize that people in the past held different outlooks than we do today and may have perceived events differently than we do. (1) Many history teachers adhere closely to this vision: Their students develop questions about the past, consult a variety of primary and secondary sources to answer those questions, compare perspectives, and share conclusions through discussion, debate, presentations, artwork, and essays. One need only read works such as James Percocco's A Passion for the Past: Creative Teaching of US. History and Divided We Stand: Teaching about Conflict in U.S. History, or David Kobrin's Beyond the Textbook: Teaching History Using Documents and Primary Sources to see stimulating examples of this approach in secondary classrooms. At the elementary and middle school levels, we have portrayed students and teachers engaged in interpretive, evidence-based inquiry in our own Doing History: Investigating with Children in Elementary and Middle Schools. (2) But we also know that many experienced teachers remain unfazed by these concerns, and that many new teachers have no intention of giving their students the chance to analyze sources or develop interpretations. Instead, they require students to read textbook chapters, listen to lectures (which they often refer to as "discussion"), locate answers to questions at the end of chapters, and then repeat the information on tests or in essays. At times, these teachers may introduce more engaging or hands-on activities (videos, field trips, games), but they still do not focus on the key characteristics of history as advocated by reformers--investigation, interpretation, and perspective. A critical issue for those of us concerned with history education is why these differences exist: Why do some teachers engage students in historical investigations, while others expect them to reproduce a story of the past? It would be misleading to think that some teachers are simply "better" than others, or that they care more about their students. Many teachers in our second category are excellent lecturers, and many develop exciting games or activities to help students learn historical content. They may also care deeply about students and devote a great deal of time to helping them develop into mature and responsible adults. What we need to know is why some good, caring teachers follow one approach, and other good, caring teachers follow another. Conveying the Process of Historical Knowledge The most widely accepted answer is that some teachers know more about teaching history; they have more pedagogical content knowledge, as it is usually called. (3) This does not just mean that they know more about the past (more facts, dates, and sources) or that they are more familiar with effective teaching techniques (using wait time, advance organizers, and so on). Rather, it means that they have a deep and accurate understanding of how historical knowledge is constructed, and they know how to represent that process to students. …

Cooperative learning in elementary schools

Abstract: Cooperative learning refers to instructional methods in which students work in small groups to help each other learn. Although cooperative learning methods are used for different age groups, they are particularly popular in elementary (primary) schools. This article discusses methods and theoretical perspectives on cooperative learning for the elementary grades. The article acknowledges the contributions from each of the major theoretical perspectives and places them in a model that depicts the likely role each plays in cooperative learning outcomes. This work explores conditions under which each perspective may operate, and suggests further research needed to advance cooperative learning scholarship.

A survey of approaches to decision making with intuitionistic fuzzy preference relations

Abstract: Intuitionistic fuzzy preference relations (IFPRs) have attracted more and more scholars' attentions in recent years due to their efficiency in representing experts' imprecise cognitions. With IFPRs, people can express their opinions over different pairs of alternatives from positive, negative and hesitative points of view. This paper presents a comprehensive survey on decision making with IFPRs with the aim of providing a clear perspective on the originality, the consistency, the prioritization, and the consensus of IFPRs. Finally, some directions for future research are pointed out.

Using Constructivist Case Study Methodology to Understand Community Development Processes: Proposed Methodological Questions to Guide the Research Process

Abstract: Often, research projects are presented as final products with the methodologies cleanly outlined and little attention paid to the decisionmaking processes that led to the chosen approach. Limited attention paid to these decision-making processes perpetuates a sense of mystery about qualitative approaches, particularly for new researchers who will likely encounterdilemmas and uncertainties in their research. This paper presents a series of questions that assisted one Ph.D. student in making key methodological choices during her research journey. In this study, a collective case study design informed by constructivist grounded theory data analysis methods was used to develop a framework of community development from an occupational therapy perspective. Ten methodological questions are proposed regarding research question development, research paradigm, design and analysis, and trustworthiness. Drawing on examples from this research project, these questions are used to explicate the decisions made “behind the scenes”, with the intention of providing both theoretical and practical guidance to others embarking on similar research journeys. Key Words: Qualitative Research Methodology, Multiple Case Study, Constructivist Grounded Theory, Community Development, Occupational Therapy. This paper describes the research journey of the first author, Heidi, an occupational therapist and a doctoral candidate at the time of the research, who set out with a passion for understanding how community development (CD) occurs in the practice of occupational therapy. Margo and Terry, her thesis co-supervisors, acted as research mentors, providing guidance in relation to key methodological decisions. In this study, a collective case study design was utilized (Stake, 2000; Yin, 2003) informed by constructivist grounded theory data analysis methods (Charmaz, 2006) to develop a framework of CD from an occupational therapy perspective. Following a description of the research design, we describe the researcher stance of the first author, case recruitment and data generation methods, and data analysis approaches. Lastly, we present the strategies employed for enhancing the trustworthiness of this study, including potential criteria for the evaluation of this research. This paper is structured using the main methodological questions raised during the research process (summarized in Table 1) in order to make explicit decision making processes which occur “behind the scenes” when combining methodologies. Often,

The Talking Heads experiment

Abstract: The Talking Heads Experiment, conducted in the years 1999-2001, was the first large-scale experiment in which open populations of situated embodied agents created for the first time ever a new shared vocabulary by playing language games about real world scenes in front of them. The agents could teleport to different physical sites in the world through the Internet. Sites, in Antwerp, Brussels, Paris, Tokyo, London, Cambridge and several other locations were linked into the network. Humans could interact with the robotic agents either on site or remotely through the Internet and thus influence the evolving ontologies and languages of the artificial agents. The present book describes in detail the motivation, the cognitive mechanisms used by the agents, the various installations of the Talking Heads, the experimental results that were obtained, and the interaction with humans. It also provides a perspective on what happened in the field after these initial groundbreaking experiments. The book is invaluable reading for anyone interested in the history of agent-based models of language evolution and the future of Artificial Intelligence.

Big Data Analysis: Apache Storm Perspective

Abstract: the boom in the technology has resulted in emergence of new concepts and challenges. Big data is one of those spoke about terms today. Big data is becoming a synonym for competitive advantages in business rivalries. Despite enormous benefits, big data accompanies some serious challenges and when it comes to analyzing of big data, it requires some serious thought. This study explores Big Data terminology and its analysis concepts using sample from Twitter data with the help of one of the most industry trusted real time processing and fault tolerant tool called Apache Storm. Keywords— Big Data, Apache Storm, real-time processing, open Source.

Trust: An integrative review from a person–situation perspective.

Abstract: Trust is a key aspect of various social interactions. Correspondingly, trust has been heavily studied across different scientific disciplines. However, an integration of the diverse research and li...

A Review of Eye Gaze in Virtual Agents, Social Robotics and HCI: Behaviour Generation, User Interaction and Perception

Abstract: A person's emotions and state of mind are apparent in their face and eyes. As a Latin proverb states: 'The face is the portrait of the mind; the eyes, its informers'. This presents a significant challenge for Computer Graphics researchers who generate artificial entities that aim to replicate the movement and appearance of the human eye, which is so important in human-human interactions. This review article provides an overview of the efforts made on tackling this demanding task. As with many topics in computer graphics, a cross-disciplinary approach is required to fully understand the workings of the eye in the transmission of information to the user. We begin with a discussion of the movement of the eyeballs, eyelids and the head from a physiological perspective and how these movements can be modelled, rendered and animated in computer graphics applications. Furthermore, we present recent research from psychology and sociology that seeks to understand higher level behaviours, such as attention and eye gaze, during the expression of emotion or during conversation. We discuss how these findings are synthesized in computer graphics and can be utilized in the domains of Human-Robot Interaction and Human-Computer Interaction for allowing humans to interact with virtual agents and other artificial entities. We conclude with a summary of guidelines for animating the eye and head from the perspective of a character animator.

Visual Interactions with Strategy Tools: Producing Strategic Knowledge in Workshops*

Abstract: How do managers visually interact with strategy tools during workshops to produce knowledge about strategic issues? Building on the strategy-as-practice perspective and visual organization studies, we conceptualize workshops as arenas where visual interaction with strategy tools takes place. Following this approach, we examine how a top management team creates a strategy tool during a workshop (using primarily video data). Our findings reveal three distinctive patterns of visual interactions: shift, inertia, and assembly. We also show how each of these patterns is enabled by the affordances of the tool used. Our study contributes to theoretical elaborations of how actors visually interact with strategy tools, which offers extensions to the strategy-as-practice and visual organization literatures.

Adapting computational text analysis to social science (and vice versa)

Abstract: Social scientists and computer scientist are divided by small differences in perspective and not by any significant disciplinary divide. In the field of text analysis, several such differences are noted: social scientists often use unsupervised models to explore corpora, whereas many computer scientists employ supervised models to train data; social scientists hold to more conventional causal notions than do most computer scientists, and often favor intense exploitation of existing algorithms, whereas computer scientists focus more on developing new models; and computer scientists tend to trust human judgment more than social scientists do. These differences have implications that potentially can improve the practice of social science.

Embodiment of cognition and emotion

Abstract: The structure of the chapter is roughly as follows. We begin by contrasting embodiment theories with their main competitors—theories that emphasize the amodal, propositional nature of mental representations. We then review some evidence for embodied processing in more cognitive domains. We then move on to a detailed description of research on embodied processing’s role in emotional perception and emotional language comprehension, the role of embodied metaphor in understanding interpersonal relations and morality, and the role of mimicry in social judgment. Finally, we discuss the applicability of embodiment theory to understanding and perhaps helping to ameliorate impairments of social functioning, using autism and depression as two illustrative examples. We conclude with the suggestion that a fully fleshed-out embodied account of information processing is still a work in progress. It may in fact be the case that the embodiment perspective cannot satisfactorily account for some important aspect of cognition and emotion. Still, the embodiment perspective has proved remarkably generative in terms of both producing new findings and explaining major phenomena and is likely to continue being a major force in psychology in general and social psychology in particular.