Bivariate pointing movements on large touch screens: investigating the validity of a refined Fitts' Law

On the basis of three empirical studies Fitts' Law was refined for bivariate pointing tasks on large touch screens. In the first study different target width parameters were investigated. The second study considered the effect of the motion angle. Based on the results of the two studies a refined model for movement time in human-computer interaction was formulated. A third study, which is described here in detail, concerns the validation of the refined model. For the validation study 20 subjects had to execute a bivariate pointing task on a large touch screen. In the experimental task 250 rectangular target objects were displayed at a randomly chosen position on the screen covering a broad range of ID values (ID= [1.01; 4.88]). Compared to existing refinements of Fitts' Law, the new model shows highest predictive validity. A promising field of application of the model is the ergonomic design and evaluation of project management software. By using the refined model, software designers can calculate a priori the appropriate angular position and the size of buttons, menus or icons.     

Neighborhoods in the Network Society the e-Neighbors study

This study examines whether the Internet is increasingly a part of everyday neighborhood interactions, and in what specific contexts Internet use affords the formation of local social ties. Studies of Internet and community have found that information and communication technologies provide new opportunities for social interaction, but that they may also increase privatism by isolating people in their homes. This paper argues that while the Internet may encourage communication across great distances, it may also facilitate interactions near the home. Unlike traditional community networking studies, which focus on bridging the digital divide, this study focuses on bridging the divide between the electronic and parochial realms. Detailed, longitudinal social network surveys were completed with the residents of four contrasting neighborhoods over a period of three years. Three of the four neighborhoods were provided with a neighborhood email discussion list and a neighborhood website. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to model over time the number of strong and weak ties, emailed, met in-person, and talked to on the telephone. The neighborhood email lists were also analyzed for content. The results suggest that with experience using the Internet, the size of local social networks and email communication with local networks increases. The addition of a neighborhood email list further increases the number of weak neighborhood ties, but does not increase communication multiplexity. However, neighborhood effects reduce the influence of everyday Internet use, as well as the experimental intervention, in communities that lack the context to support local tie formation.     

Information search,coherence effects,and their interplay in legal decision making

Legal judgments require one to make sense of a complex set of typically contradicting pieces of information that can easily be interpreted in a biased manner. This systematic judgment bias can be caused by biased information search (i.e., confirmatory search) as well as biased information processing (i.e., coherence effects) in which the interpretation of information is changed to fit the emerging favored option. In four studies, we investigate the complex interplay between both kinds of influences. Participants completed three legal cases in which they could freely search for information. We manipulated between subjects whether systematic search was possible or not and measured the assessment of each selected piece of information. In line with previous studies, we observe strong coherence effects in each study, in that the evidence interpretation strongly depended on the current tendency towards acquittal or conviction. In contrast to our expectation, however, people searched for information that was contrary to their current belief in the given case (i.e., disconfirmatory information search). We also observed a trend towards an interaction between both factors, in that coherence effects were slightly stronger for neutral and pro-guilty evidence when systematic information search was possible. Our results underline an unconscious striving for coherence when making complex judgments that is not easily corrected.     

Imperfect information processing in sequential bargaining games with present biased preferences

This paper studies an alternating-offers bargaining game between a time-consistent player and a time-inconsistent player who processes information on future self-preferences imperfectly. Time-inconsistency and information processing are modeled by using cognitive and mood state approaches, respectively. This model structure allows for the learning of the partially naive time-inconsistent agent. The results characterize the relationship among the level of naivete, the level of learning probability and the equilibrium. We find critical values of the model parameters that specify whether the agreement is delayed and characterize the probabilistic nature of the agreement. In addition, comparative static results are reported with respect to time preferences.     

The influence of contextual variables on interpersonal spacing

Four studies examined the effects of contextual variables on interpersonal spacing. Contextual variables were defined as transitory factors that involved the setting in which an interaction occurs; these variables were delineated from personal and interpersonal characteristics. In each experimental setting, white male subjects were allowed to choose the distance at which they interacted with a stranger. The first study found that subjects who had experienced social isolation prior to the interaction chose greater distances than subjects who had not been isolated. The second study found that subjects chose greater distances when they believed their interaction would be observed by others than when the interaction was private. Results from the third study yielded an interaction between topic of conversation and expected length of conversation with greatest distance being chosen when subjects expected a long conversation to focus on a personal topic. In the final study, room size and shape influenced interpersonal distance; the interaction indicated that room size affected distance only in rectangular rooms. The results are discussed in terms of equilibrium model (Argyle & Dean, 1965). It is argued that contextual variables affect intimacy, and that the equilibrium model can explicate the effects of contextual as well as personal and interpersonal variables.The help of the following people in conducting the research and analyzing the data is gratefully acknowledged: Elizabeth Brown, Brad Reeves, Michael Satir, Sheryl Vaughn, Mary Holland, Quig Lawrence, William Webb, and Kerry Marsh. Thanks are also in order for an unusually thorough reviewer who raised a number of important issues.     

Child maltreatment in Greece: a review of research

Child maltreatment can be traced in Greek mythology, history and literature. Greek society has always used passive or active violence towards its dependent members, including children. In the last 17 years there have been a number of studies describing child maltreatment in contemporary Greece. Most have used small clinical samples; nevertheless, their findings are comparable to those of other countries and their results support the psychopathological causality of child maltreatment. A number of studies on child-rearing practices and on children's socialization have revealed an extensive use of physical punishment related to the child's opposition to parental authority and high parental expectations often linked with the child's school performance. Another small set of studies assessed the effectiveness of social policy and the appropriateness of the child protection system. On the basis of the studies on child maltreatment in Greece, the author proposes firstly the adoption of an operational definition which takes into consideration community attitudes and culture. A second proposal relates to the application of an ecological theoretical model stressing the mutual interaction of different systems and their cumulative effects. Lastly, it is suggested that social policy measures should be introduced in the field of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluability assessment: Reflections on the process

As a formal process, evaluability assessment is 10 years old. In the Cooperative Extension Service (CES), the process is 5 years old. Since 1984, evaluability assessments have been implemented in five states with six different major programs in an effort to define the process in a practical methodological sense and to encourage its adoption in CES. Implementation proceeded iteratively and after each study, procedures were analyzed, clarified, and, wherever possible, simplified to make the process more usable and more “operator robust.” The purpose of this article is to reflect on the process as it evolved in applications in CES. Underlying philosophy and methodological considerations are discussed. To put these in perspective, background information is provided on the evaluability assessment process and on the studies conducted in CES.     

The effect of format and device on the performance and usability of web-based questionnaires

This article explores the comparability of assessment tools under different format conditions. Prior studies have not considered the interaction of format and device on time to complete an assessment and have instead treated each of them separately with conflicting results. This study assesses, by linear regressions using web-based data, the performance of multiple devices under varying formats while controlling for non-device factors such as demographic information. The results of this study add to the growing literature on the equivalence among devices and formats used to collect and interpret performance in a variety of organizational settings.     

The effects of information form and domain-specific knowledge on choice deferral

Three studies examined the effect of information form on choice deferral in consumer choice and explored the moderating role of knowledge about the product domain. Two theoretical approaches were contrasted: (1) The process approach predicting that choice deferral varies as a function of information form, and (2) the communication approach predicting an interaction of information form and domain-specific knowledge. Participants were presented with different laptops described in an absolute (e.g. ‘300 GB hard disc’), evaluative-numerical (e.g. ‘hard disc with 30 out of 100 points in an expert rating’) or evaluative-verbal (e.g. ‘bad hard disc’) information form, and they could choose to buy one of the laptops or defer. Domain-specific knowledge was also assessed. In Study 1, evaluative-numerical and evaluative-verbal values led to more deferral in people with high domain-specific knowledge. The pattern for evaluative-numerical and evaluative-verbal values was replicated for a different information organization in Study 2. Study 3 showed that absolute values led to more deferral the less knowledgeable participants were and demonstrated that domain-specific knowledge and deferral were unrelated when absolute and evaluative-verbal values were presented in combination. In sum, the results support the communication approach and have methodological implications for decision research and theoretical implications for understanding choice deferral in real-life decisions.     

CONSUMER DEMAND FOR VEHICLE SAFETY: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

Although numerous studies on the effects of vehicle safety regulation exist, few are devoted to consumer demands for vehicle safety. This study uses an extensive data set combining vehicle specific information with responses from a national household survey of new car buyers to estimate individual demand for safety. It finds, ceteris paribus, purchase probability rises with an increase in safety features. In particular, an index of vehicle crashworthiness is a strong determinant of purchase decisions. The results favor a policy of posting crash test results and suggest that passive restraint systems enhance the likelihood of purchasing a given model.     

Debt problems and life transitions: a register-based panel study of Finnish young people

This register-based panel study analyzed the impacts of key life events on debt problems among emerging adults using a within-individual design. In this study, 8093 Finnish young people (born 1988–1990) were monitored for 9 years (2005–2013). The data comprised information from administrative registers, including information about debt enforcement, which was used as an indicator of debt problems. Key life events included leaving home, obtaining the first full-time job, and becoming a parent. Debt problems were highly common. They increased after leaving home, especially among those leaving home at a young age. Obtaining the first full-time job was not regarded as a major event in the context of debt problems, although having a job was associated with a lower level of debt problems. Such problems increased after becoming a parent. The results imply that life-changing events can have an impact on economic problems.     

The determinants of strikes over time and across industries

This paper presents a pooled time-series, cross-section analysis of strike activity across 27 major industry groups over the years 1970–1980. While numerous studies have analyzed the time-series behavior of strike activity and fewer studies have analyzed the cross-sectional pattern of strikes, little work has been done to combine both perspectives into one empirical analysis. This paper improves on this by incorporating variables into one regression model that is capable of explaining both dimensions of the variation in strike activity. The regression results suggest that strikes over time and across industries are affected by a wide range of economic, organizational, institutional, occupational, demographic, market structure, political, and other variables.     

Differences in Audiotaped Versus Videotaped Physician-Patient Interactions

Most medical interaction studies have been conducted on audiotaped recordings of physician-patient encounters. Empirical studies have not previously demonstrated whether coders' scores differ on audio-only versus videotaped data. Data from a convenience sample of forty-seven physician-patient interactions were analyzed using the same coding systems to judge audio-only versus video-based data formats. All coding conditions demonstrated acceptable reliability, using intraclass correlation coefficients. However, MANOVA analyses show that ratings of audiotaped physician-patient interactions are not equivalent to ratings of videotaped encounters. Exploratory factor analyses show differences in the underlying structures of the data derived from the audio-only versus the video information. The differences in the video-based factor solutions account for more total variance and are more consistent with theoretical expectations.     

Single Mothers with Custody Following Divorce

The experience of being a single mother with custody following divorce is influenced by many variables across several levels of interaction, such as age of mother and child, potential for remarriage, coping skills, social networks and income changes. Cross-sectional studies have examined additional variables such as time since divorce and level of family religiosity and subsequent impact on individual well-being. Whereas most studies took a cate- gorical approach to examining the experience of divorce, a few refreshing studies were based on an ecological systems model. As divorce also involves building a new life, longitudinal research pro- vides the best picture of how divorced women accomplish this task. Long-term research clearly points to the fact that divorce is an event whose impact is individual and very often life long. Researchers have provided valuable information to build meaningful programs of intervention for divorced mothers. Perhaps the biggest challenge is to design flexible programs which can grow and change with the needs of the divorced mother. Future research will be most beneficial when it addresses the divorced mother family as a healthy family unit.     

How publics respond to crisis communication strategies: The interplay of information form and source

Through an experiment with 162 college students this study empirically evaluates an emerging communication model: the social-mediated crisis communication model (SMCC). As part of a series of studies testing the SMCC model, this study focuses on two of the SMCC model's components: the effects of crisis information form (traditional media, social media, and word-of-mouth) and source (third party and organization) on publics’ acceptance of crisis response strategies and publics’ crisis emotions. The findings clearly indicate the importance of strategically matching crisis information form and source when organizations respond to crises. In addition, the selection of crisis information form and source affects publics’ attribution independent and dependent emotions.     

MONEY AND MIDDLEMEN IN AN ECONOMY WITH PRIVATE INFORMATION

This paper extends the Williamson-Wright model to study interaction between money and middlemen in an economy with qualitative uncertainty concerning the consumption goods. It is shown that with private information as the only trading friction, given that expert middlemen endogenously arise, people may still be willing to adopt indirect exchange involving money. Generally recognizable money improves welfare by promoting useful exchange and economizing on the cost of agents becoming middlemen. In an economy with trading frictions caused by private information and a double coincidence of wants problem, we show that there is room for both intermediary institutions. ( JEL E40, D82)     

Educational technology, reimagined

"Educational technology" is often equated in the popular imagination with "computers in the schools." But technology is much more than merely computers, and education is much more than mere schooling. The landscape of child-accessible technologies is blossoming in all sorts of directions: tools for communication, for physical construction and fabrication, and for human-computer interaction. These new systems and artifacts allow educational designers to think much more creatively about when and where learning takes place in children's lives, both within and outside the classroom.     

Stimulus-Stimulus Pairing to Increase Vocalizations in Children with Language Delays: a Review

Stimulus-stimulus pairing (SSP) is a procedure used to increase vocalizations in children with significant language delays. However, results from studies that have examined the effectiveness of SSP have been discrepant. The following review of the literature summarizes the results from 13 experiments published between 1996 and 2014 that used this procedure with children with language delays. Studies were analyzed across various participant and procedural variables, and an effect size estimate (nonoverlap of all pairs) was calculated for a portion of the participants in the studies reviewed. Results indicated an overall moderate intervention effect for SSP of speech sounds. Recommendations are provided for future researchers about information to report and potential avenues for future studies.     

His,Her, or Their Divorce? Marital Dissolution and Sickness Absence in Norway

The authors analyzed the effects of marital dissolution on sickness absence and discussed the social role, crisis, and social selection models as well as the impact of gender and children. They used administrative data that covers the Norwegian population for the years 1992–2008 and panel methods to investigate lags and leads of the effects of divorce, controlling for time‐varying variables and time‐constant unobserved factors. The results revealed that 6 years before divorce, the sickness absence rate among divorced people was at a level similar to that among those who remained married. The sickness absence rate increased in the year preceding divorce, peaked in the year of divorce, and decreased in the following year, but not to the level before divorce. The authors found strong support for the social role model, and the results show that the gender–parenthood interaction is important. Limited support for the crisis and selection models was found.