Self-Control in Cyberspace: Applying Dual Systems Theory to a Review of Digital Self-Control Tools

Many people struggle to control their use of digital devices. However, our understanding of the design mechanisms that support user self-control remains limited. In this paper, we make two contributions to HCI research in this space: first, we analyse 367 apps and browser extensions from the Google Play, Chrome Web, and Apple App stores to identify common core design features and intervention strategies afforded by current tools for digital self-control. Second, we adapt and apply an integrative dual systems model of self-regulation as a framework for organising and evaluating the design features found. Our analysis aims to help the design of better tools in two ways: (i) by identifying how, through a well-established model of self-regulation, current tools overlap and differ in how they support self-control; and (ii) by using the model to reveal underexplored cognitive mechanisms that could aid the design of new tools.Comment: 11.5 pages (excl. references), 6 figures, 1 tabl

The impact of fatigue on shipyard welding workers' occupational health and safety and the performance

Welding processes are critical for shipbuilding operations in shipyards. Welders’ performance is critical for the quality and speed of the welding; on the other hand, welding requires awkward and repetitive body postures for long durations, which has a negative impact on the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) of the welding workers. This study, therefore, investigates the long-term impact of welding workload on the body for different age groups and experience levels, as well as the long-term impact on chronic fatigue and inter-shift recovery. In order to determine the impact, this study conducted a comprehensive data collection campaign in the shipyard through observation and questionnaires. Results indicate that the eyes, knee, neck and waist are the most discomforted body parts for investigated welding positions. The age of welders was an important parameter of the most affected body part. Moreover, the short-term fatigue impact on welding performance was also investigated to identify the impact on productivity. The Discrete event simulation (Rockwell ARENA) demonstrated that efficiency loss from short-term daily fatigue is around 22,9% compared to the rested condition. The main contribution of this study was investigating fatigue impact on OHS and productivity for selected shipbuilding tasks. The findings of this study can be utilised for shipyard production capacity and resource planning and OHS improvements. The results can also be used further as a coefficient of performance in the production simulation analysis when studying shipyard efficiency. This is a valuable contribution to the literature on shipyard productivity

Physical activity and on-task behaviour in adolescent classrooms of a Further Education college

Teachers commonly report that high-levels of off-task behaviour hinders learning in their classrooms. Previous research in school children under ~12-years-of-age has demonstrated physical activity(PA) interventions may decrease off-task behaviour. The current thesis planned to extend the literature to UK Further Education College classrooms of 16-19-year-old learners via a mixed-methods design of observations and student interviews. 111college sport and drama students were observed for on-task behaviour via momentary time-sampling (70 male and 41 female, age 17.1+0.8years). In a cross-over design, observations occurred in classroom lessons immediately before and after a PA-based lesson in a sports hall/drama studio, or a seated classroom. Mean on-task behaviour was higher only in the lesson after a PA-based lesson(p<0.001). Individual-level analysis; however, highlighted that a quarter of students saw no change or a decrease in on-task behaviour after the PA-based lesson. To further explore these quantitative outcomes,36 students were questioned on their perceptions of on-task behaviour before and after PA via semi-structured interviews, with responses analysed via thematic analysis (20 male and 16 female, age 17.2+0.6years).Surprisingly, the most common factors for variations in on-task behaviour students mentioned in the interviews were not directly related to PA. For example: coursework deadlines, time-of-day variations and differences in classroom delivery. Themes students directly linked to the PA-based lessons centred on feelings of fatigue, energisation and recovery. Several students specified fatigue could help their ability to be on-task, while other students implied insufficient recovery and/or cool-down opportunities prior to subsequent lessons hindered on-task behaviour. These findings have implications for practice, principally providing empirical evidence that PA in UK FE colleges can improve classroom on-task behaviour but likewise is influenced by a range of other variables that PA may not always mitigate. These factors should be considered alongside PA interventions by teachers and academic planners for optimum on-task classrooms

Negative vaccine voices in Swedish social media

Vaccinations are one of the most significant interventions to public health, but vaccine hesitancy creates concerns for a portion of the population in many countries, including Sweden. Since discussions on vaccine hesitancy are often taken on social networking sites, data from Swedish social media are used to study and quantify the sentiment among the discussants on the vaccination-or-not topic during phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Out of all the posts analyzed a majority showed a stronger negative sentiment, prevailing throughout the whole of the examined period, with some spikes or jumps due to the occurrence of certain vaccine-related events distinguishable in the results. Sentiment analysis can be a valuable tool to track public opinions regarding the use, efficacy, safety, and importance of vaccination

Information-theoretic Bounded Rationality: Timing Laws and Cognitive Costs Emerge from Rational Bounds on Information Coding and Transmission

University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. October 2019. Major: Psychology. Advisors: Paul Schrater, Maria Gini. 1 computer file (PDF); xi, 164 pages.Cognitive models are used to characterize and understand task performance in humans. Human behavior often deviates from predictions made by models that assume perfect rationality. Imposing constraints on cognitive resources, time, and/or information, while still assuming optimal function within those bounds, produces better characterizations of behavior. However, many of the proposed constraints and costs are ad-hoc and are not derived from fundamental limitations on computation. We suggest that behavioral performance is limited by the necessity of encoding and transmitting information about the world in the brain. Encoding information imposes a set of intrinsic bounds, defined by signal power, noise power, and knowledge of environmental statistics, that can be understood and quantified using concepts from information theory. In this dissertation, we investigate the patterns of behavior that should arise if cognition is subject to these bounds. Using an information transmission mechanism built using stochastic processes and Bayesian inference, we show that known `laws' of human behavior, including the Hick-Hyman law and the Power Law of Learning, are direct consequences of unavoidable limitations on the efficiency of information transmission. By instantiating constraints on information transmission in a working system, we are able to quantify transmission costs induced by task performance. This provides a unifying and principled explanation of cognitive costs and mental effort: effort arises in tasks that require expensive information transmission and is reduced through practice as learned task statistics are exploited to improve efficiency. To test the extent to which humans exploit task statistics to improve efficiency, we measured behavior on a version of the N-back task modified to include a predictable structure in target responses. We found that human data closely matches model predictions, suggesting that humans integrate information about both task structure and past images to produce responses. This finding is an experimental validation of our model, and suggests that the N-back task is more complex than is normally assumed. In sum, we show that treating cognition as a process constrained by fundamental bounds on information transmission provides a unified explanation of a wide range of behavioral phenomena

Cognitive science in the era of artificial intelligence: A roadmap for reverse-engineering the infant language-learner

International audienceSpectacular progress in the information processing sciences (machine learning, wearable sensors) promises to revolutionize the study of cognitive development. Here, we analyse the conditions under which ’reverse engineering’ language development, i.e., building an effective system thatmimics infant’s achievements, can contribute to our scientific understanding of early language development. We argue that, on the computational side, it is important to move from toy problems to the full complexity of the learning situation, and take as input as faithful reconstructions of the sensorysignals available to infants as possible. On the data side, accessible but privacy-preserving repositories of home data have to be setup. On the psycholinguistic side, specific tests have to be constructed to benchmark humans and machines at different linguistic levels. We discuss the feasibility of this approach and present an overview of current results

Ethnodrama as a Path to Teacher Euphoria: How Might Ethnodrama Influence Teachers\u27 Perceptions of Themselves and Promote Teacher Euphoria?

This study is intended as a mini-pilot program, exploring the potential of ethnodrama to positively impact the burnout experiences of urban public secondary teachers. The current study holds small sample sizes and limited development time, yet an informant panel of nine teachers met in three sessions to discuss and reveal their personal stories, and to plan an ethnodramatic performance to be shared with the entire school faculty and administration (Mienczakowski, Handbook 468; Saldaña, Anthology 2). Informant panelists’ dispositions toward burnout was measured pre and post experience via the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and a small, non- participant group was also measured for comparison purposes. The research project was essentially Action Research through performance, with the researcher positioned as an insider, working in a joint effort with other insiders in my organization (Mienczakowski and Morgan 219). Qualitative in scope, my research grows from a place of concern and passion for my vocation. The purpose of this study was to determine how interactive theatre, specifically Ethnodrama, might have a positive influence on teachers by promoting teacher euphoria©, thereby increasing self-efficacy, reducing stress, and minimizing the loss of quality human capital in our schools. Results, though statistically insignificant, demonstrated a clear and present need for effective teacher development in the urban public school. Further, the study continues to support the growing research on ethnodrama as a tool for change in a variety of professions. A larger sample size, more time to develop the ethnodrama, and an assessment tool more closely aligned with the specific topic areas dictated by the panel, are among the recommendations for further study. This mini-pilot shows potential for widespread use with teacher groups. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioc.edu/ and Ohio LINK ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.ed

Recent Advances in Motion Analysis

The advances in the technology and methodology for human movement capture and analysis over the last decade have been remarkable. Besides acknowledged approaches for kinematic, dynamic, and electromyographic (EMG) analysis carried out in the laboratory, more recently developed devices, such as wearables, inertial measurement units, ambient sensors, and cameras or depth sensors, have been adopted on a wide scale. Furthermore, computational intelligence (CI) methods, such as artificial neural networks, have recently emerged as promising tools for the development and application of intelligent systems in motion analysis. Thus, the synergy of classic instrumentation and novel smart devices and techniques has created unique capabilities in the continuous monitoring of motor behaviors in different fields, such as clinics, sports, and ergonomics. However, real-time sensing, signal processing, human activity recognition, and characterization and interpretation of motion metrics and behaviors from sensor data still representing a challenging problem not only in laboratories but also at home and in the community. This book addresses open research issues related to the improvement of classic approaches and the development of novel technologies and techniques in the domain of motion analysis in all the various fields of application