The role of task-supported language teaching in EFL learner’s writing performance and grammar gains

Recent research in SLA advocates the use of task as a useful class activity claiming that task approximates language use in the context of classroom to the way language is used in the real world. Framed under a cognitive framework to task-based language teaching, this study was set out to investigate whether task-based oriented activities bear any superiority to that of more traditional ones evident in PPP (Presentation-Practice-Production) model. Twenty eight female pre-intermediate participants studying English in one language school in Urmia, Iran, took part in the study. They participated in ten half-an-hour long sessions of instruction during which they were instructed four structural points: simple past, simple present, present continuous, and ‘There is/There are/How much/How many’ structures. PPP group received their treatment through conventional approach and task-based group, through task-oriented activities. The quantitative analysis performed on the post-test (consisting of a grammar recognition test and a writing activity) suggested that participants in the PPP group did significantly better in the grammar recognition section of the post-test. However, their counterparts in the task group gained better scores in the writing section of the test. Further findings and implications are discussed in the paper

A study on text-score disagreement in online reviews

In this paper, we focus on online reviews and employ artificial intelligence tools, taken from the cognitive computing field, to help understanding the relationships between the textual part of the review and the assigned numerical score. We move from the intuitions that 1) a set of textual reviews expressing different sentiments may feature the same score (and vice-versa); and 2) detecting and analyzing the mismatches between the review content and the actual score may benefit both service providers and consumers, by highlighting specific factors of satisfaction (and dissatisfaction) in texts. To prove the intuitions, we adopt sentiment analysis techniques and we concentrate on hotel reviews, to find polarity mismatches therein. In particular, we first train a text classifier with a set of annotated hotel reviews, taken from the Booking website. Then, we analyze a large dataset, with around 160k hotel reviews collected from Tripadvisor, with the aim of detecting a polarity mismatch, indicating if the textual content of the review is in line, or not, with the associated score. Using well established artificial intelligence techniques and analyzing in depth the reviews featuring a mismatch between the text polarity and the score, we find that -on a scale of five stars- those reviews ranked with middle scores include a mixture of positive and negative aspects. The approach proposed here, beside acting as a polarity detector, provides an effective selection of reviews -on an initial very large dataset- that may allow both consumers and providers to focus directly on the review subset featuring a text/score disagreement, which conveniently convey to the user a summary of positive and negative features of the review target.Comment: This is the accepted version of the paper. The final version will be published in the Journal of Cognitive Computation, available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12559-017-9496-

The brain is a prediction machine that cares about good and bad - Any implications for neuropragmatics?

Experimental pragmatics asks how people construct contextualized meaning in communication. So what does it mean for this field to add neuroas a prefix to its name? After analyzing the options for any subfield of cognitive science, I argue that neuropragmatics can and occasionally should go beyond the instrumental use of EEG or fMRI and beyond mapping classic theoretical distinctions onto Brodmann areas. In particular, if experimental pragmatics ‘goes neuro’, it should take into account that the brain evolved as a control system that helps its bearer negotiate a highly complex, rapidly changing and often not so friendly environment. In this context, the ability to predict current unknowns, and to rapidly tell good from bad, are essential ingredients of processing. Using insights from non-linguistic areas of cognitive neuroscience as well as from EEG research on utterance comprehension, I argue that for a balanced development of experimental pragmatics, these two characteristics of the brain cannot be ignored

The Italian version of the Thinking About Life Experiences Questionnaire and its relationship with gender, age, and life events on Facebook

The present study provided a cross-cultural validation of the Thinking About Life Experiences Scale-revised (TALE-R) in an Italian sample of Facebook users (n = 492; female = 378; male = 114; mean age 26.1) to test for replication and universality of the TALE-R three-factor model. Furthermore, it explored the interrelations among gender, age, the scores at the TALE-R and the frequency of posting textual/visual information about individuals' life events on Facebook. Results at exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis gave empirical support to both of a tripartite model for the functions of autobiographical memory (i.e., directive-behavior, social-bonding, and self-continuity) and measurement invariance of this three-factor model across gender and age. Further results at linear correlation and regression analyses showed that directive-behavior and self-continuity functions of autobiographical memory are significantly related to the ways people use Facebook for personal documentation. Age differences more than gender influence this association. Discussion and conclusion reported both theoretical and empirical implications of the findings of the study

The Effects of a Flexible Benefits Expert System on Employee Decisions and Satisfaction

Anecdotal reports and recent reviews assert that expert systems are potentially useful decision aids in human resource management. This study examines the effects of an expert system designed to aid employees when they make their choices in a flexible bellcfit program. A four group quasi-field experimental design is used to examine the relative effects of the expert system compared to a conventional spreadsheet decision aid. Eighty employees at an NCR-AT&T facility were randomly selected and assigned to the groups. Employees using the expert system expressed greater benefits satisfaction compared to those using the spreadsheet aid. The spreadsheet did not have any effect on employees\u27 decisions. When the benefit choices recommended by the expert system differed from the employees\u27 current choices, employees are more likely to change their choices. Consequently, the expert system is likely to affect employees\u27 decisions. Implications are discussed and future research needs are suggested

Investigating website usability and behavioural intention for online hotel reservations: a cognitive perspective

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The problem area identified for this research is to define the cognitive factors and Customers’ Critical Information Requirements (CCIRs) that affect the customer decision making process when they book their hotel reservations online. The purpose of this study is to define the CCIRs and the (re)design specifications of the website which will be noticed by the users through to completing the booking, without losing them during the decision making process. A combination of various cognitive analysis and eyetracking techniques were applied in order to understand in real time the customer’s decision making process during their online hotel booking process. This includes methods that identify user’s online previous and present experiences, methods that assess and result in the specification of usability and (re)design guidelines. Techniques for eliciting CCIRs in real time are facilitated through the simultaneous usage of eye tracking technology, think aloud expression and video recording. Finally, a validation study was conducted in order to confirm the research findings. A key outcome of this research is a novel, robust and precision approach that (i) combines cognitive task analysis, eye tracking techniques, statistical and clustering methods in order to facilitate the precise identification of both explicit and tacit CCIRs; (ii) for the first time provides a time frame analysis of CCIRs across each stage of the customer’s decision making process and identifies the concomitant decision points where the customer is most likely to abandon the web site; (iii) elicits the mental model of the customer together with the CCIRs and uses this knowledge as the basis for generating the re-design specification for the website; and, (iv) evaluates whether there is a significant improvement in the usability and cognitive utility of the redesigned website that is of practical value to hotels. A further theoretical contribution is the “CCIRs informed decision making process model” for the (re)design of hotel websites as a result of applying our novel and innovative approach. Moreover, I have demonstrated for the first time how our approach can be applied to theory building of CCIRs-based cognitive task models that explicitly define the customer’s decision making process. The above mentioned methodology and theoretical outputs of this research are generally applicable to other industry sectors beyond the hotel industry. For example, financial trading decision support systems, air traffic control displays, mobile phone apps, i.e. to name a few from the myriad of possible applications

The Cost of Convenience: How Excessive Email Use Impacts Our Health

Email has become a ubiquitous form of communication in the modern workplace. While email enables efficiency and convenience, research suggests that excessive email use can have detrimental impacts on mental and physical health. This paper reviews studies analyzing the effects of high email volume on factors like stress, focus, and work-life balance. A meta-analysis synthesizes findings from 24 studies tracking over 5,000 office workers' email habits. Results indicate that those who received over 100 emails per day had significantly higher stress hormone levels compared to the lowest email volume group. Furthermore, the high email group reported markedly higher rates of neck pain, eye strain, and sleep disturbances. These outcomes were independent of total work hours, suggesting email overuse specifically impairs wellbeing. Proposed mechanisms include constant multitasking and interruptions degrading focus and elevating frustration. The pressure to frequently check and respond to emails also blurs work-life boundaries. However, few organizations have policies around email expectations, and most individuals fail to set healthy email limits. Intervention studies limiting work email to specified times show lowered anxiety and increased engagement during focused work periods. This paper argues that while email enables convenient communication, chronic overload takes a toll on our productivity and health. Organizations should institute "email hygiene" policies that discourage expectations of constant availability. Individuals must also proactively set boundaries and develop mindfulness around email habits. Though more research is needed on long-term physical and mental health impacts, the current evidence suggests a cultural shift toward email mindfulness could substantially improve worker welfare. With email integrated into modern life, we must mitigate its overuse risks through workplace initiatives and personal practices promoting more balanced, focused usage