Determinants of estimated face composite quality

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references (p. 142-157 ).This thesis addresses the evaluation of an investigative tool commonly used by police forces around the world, namely a face composite or facial likeness. The process of constructing a composite involves a number of cognitive elements, all of which contribute to the final composite quality. This thesis examines elements of the construction process and assessment of the final composite quality in research and practice. There are three main aspects to the empirical work reported here. The first, consisting of two experimental studies, investigates the possibility of reinstating context as a way of improving composite quality. The second examines composite construction and use within the South African Police Service. The third examined the measurement of composite quality itself

Comparing featural and holistic composite systems with the aid of guided memory techniques

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 138-147)This study compares the effectiveness of two computerised composite construction systems - a holistic, recognition-based system named ID and a featural system that is utilized internationally, namely FACES. The comparison aimed to test whether ID produces better quality composites to FACES, and whether these composites could be improved with the aid of context reinstatement tehcniques, in particular guided memory. Participants (n=64) attended a staged event where they witnessed a female 'numerologist' for 20 minutes. Five weeks later they were asked to return to create a composite of the woman using either FACES or ID. Reconstructions were made in view, from memory after a South African Police interview or from memory after a guided memory interview. In addition, experts for each system constructed composites of each perpetrator. Studies have reported enhanced identification when multiple composites are combined to create a morpho. Hence, the guided memory composites for each perpetrator were morphed to create three ID and three FACES morphs. The complete set of 76 composites was then evaluated by 503 independent judges using matching and rating tasks. The study hypothesised that ID would perform better, but results suggest that the two systems performed equivalently. Results also suggest that the guided memory interview did not have the desired effect of significantly improving participants' memories of the perpetrator, and that contrary to expectations, the morphed composites performed extremely poorly and were rated the worst and identified the least. Related findings and ideas for future research are discussed

What’s in a Photograph? The Perspectives of Composition Experts on Factors Impacting Visual Scene Display Complexity for Augmentative and Alternative Communication and Strategies for Improving Visual Communication

Purpose: Visual scene displays (VSDs) can support augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) success for children and adults with complex communication needs. Static VSDs incorporate contextual photographs that include meaningful events, places, and people. Although the processing of VSDs has been studied, their power as a medium to effectively convey meaning may benefit from the perspective of individuals who regularly engage in visual storytelling. The aim of this study was to evaluate the perspectives of individuals with expertise in photographic and/or artistic composition regarding factors contributing to VSD complexity and how to limit the time and effort required to apply principles of photographic composition. Method: Semistructured interviews were completed with 13 participants with expertise in photographic and/or artistic composition. Results: Four main themes were noted, including (a) factors increasing photographic image complexity and decreasing cohesion, (b) how complexity impacts the viewer, (c) composition strategies to decrease photographic image complexity and increase cohesion, and (d) strategies to support the quick application of composition strategies in a just-in-time setting. Findings both support and extend existing research regarding best practice for VSD design. Conclusions: Findings provide an initial framework for understanding photographic image complexity and how it differs from drawn AAC symbols. Furthermore, findings outline a toolbox of composition principles that may help limit VSD complexity, along with providing recommendations for AAC development to support the quick application of compositional principles to limit burdens associated with capturing photographic images. Includes Supplemental Materials (2

Attention Restraint, Working Memory Capacity, and Mind Wandering: Do Emotional Valence or Intentionality Matter?

Attention restraint appears to mediate the relationship between working memory capacity (WMC) and mind wandering (Kane et al., 2016). Prior work has identifed two dimensions of mind wandering—emotional valence and intentionality. However, less is known about how WMC and attention restraint correlate with these dimensions. Te current study examined the relationship between WMC, attention restraint, and mind wandering by emotional valence and intentionality. A confrmatory factor analysis demonstrated that WMC and attention restraint were strongly correlated, but only attention restraint was related to overall mind wandering, consistent with prior fndings. However, when examining the emotional valence of mind wandering, attention restraint and WMC were related to negatively and positively valenced, but not neutral, mind wandering. Attention restraint was also related to intentional but not unintentional mind wandering. Tese results suggest that WMC and attention restraint predict some, but not all, types of mind wandering

The role of phonology in visual word recognition: evidence from Chinese

Posters - Letter/Word Processing V: abstract no. 5024The hypothesis of bidirectional coupling of orthography and phonology predicts that phonology plays a role in visual word recognition, as observed in the effects of feedforward and feedback spelling to sound consistency on lexical decision. However, because orthography and phonology are closely related in alphabetic languages (homophones in alphabetic languages are usually orthographically similar), it is difficult to exclude an influence of orthography on phonological effects in visual word recognition. Chinese languages contain many written homophones that are orthographically dissimilar, allowing a test of the claim that phonological effects can be independent of orthographic similarity. We report a study of visual word recognition in Chinese based on a mega-analysis of lexical decision performance with 500 characters. The results from multiple regression analyses, after controlling for orthographic frequency, stroke number, and radical frequency, showed main effects of feedforward and feedback consistency, as well as interactions between these variables and phonological frequency and number of homophones. Implications of these results for resonance models of visual word recognition are discussed.postprin

Interactive effects of orthography and semantics in Chinese picture naming

Posters - Language Production/Writing: abstract no. 4035Picture-naming performance in English and Dutch is enhanced by presentation of a word that is similar in form to the picture name. However, it is unclear whether facilitation has an orthographic or a phonological locus. We investigated the loci of the facilitation effect in Cantonese Chinese speakers by manipulating—at three SOAs (2100, 0, and 1100 msec)—semantic, orthographic, and phonological similarity. We identified an effect of orthographic facilitation that was independent of and larger than phonological facilitation across all SOAs. Semantic interference was also found at SOAs of 2100 and 0 msec. Critically, an interaction of semantics and orthography was observed at an SOA of 1100 msec. This interaction suggests that independent effects of orthographic facilitation on picture naming are located either at the level of semantic processing or at the lemma level and are not due to the activation of picture name segments at the level of phonological retrieval.postprin

Tennessee Highway Safety Office Highway Safety Plan FFY 2022

https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/govpubs-tn-safety-homeland-security-highway-safety-office/1001/thumbnail.jp

Psychological Engagement in Choice and Judgment Under Risk and Uncertainty

Theories of choice and judgment assume that agents behave rationally, choose the higher expected value option, and evaluate the choice consistently (Expected Utility Theory, Von Neumann, & Morgenstern, 1947). However, researchers in decision-making showed that human behaviour is different in choice and judgement tasks (Slovic & Lichtenstein, 1968; 1971; 1973). In this research, we propose that psychological engagement and control deprivation predict behavioural inconsistencies and utilitarian performance with judgment and choice. Moreover, we explore the influences of engagement and control deprivation on agent’s behaviours, while manipulating content of utility (Kusev et al., 2011, Hertwig & Gigerenzer 1999, Tversky & Khaneman, 1996) and decision reward (Kusev et al, 2013, Shafir et al., 2002)

Tennessee Highway Safety Office Highway Safety Plan FFY 2021

https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/govpubs-tn-safety-homeland-security-highway-safety-office/1003/thumbnail.jp

The treatment of criminal recidivism : corpus-based analyses

The dehumanization of Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) and marginalized communities does not end once an individual is released from an institution. The dehumanization process is kept alive with ineffective community supervision and the stigma associated with an individual’s incarnation history. Evidence of this continual dehumanization process is reflected in the tens of millions of annual arrests in the U.S. Mass incarceration and dehumanization impinge on civil rights and perpetuate ongoing disparity and recidivism by the criminal justice system, as evidenced in the disproportionate number of racial and ethnic groups compared to the general population. The findings of these studies have the potential to assist helping professionals in two ways: (a) by providing a greater understanding of language and culture in clinical practices for individuals involved with the criminal justice system and (b) by determining recommendations for future targeted areas of research to address recidivism more effectively. There are two studies. The first used a corpus linguistic design to analyze the keyness and collocation of two recidivism prevention program manuals: the Cognitive Behavioral Interventions for Offenders Core Adult (CBI-CA) and Thinking for a Change (T4C). The level of measure for keyness and collocation were continuous and nominal. The unit of analysis was single words. The words occurring with greater frequency in CBI-CA were “module” and “success,” and the words with less frequency were “lesson” and “supplement.” The word network of the strongest positive keyword “module” in CBI-CA were “session” and “worksheet.” The strongest collocates of the word stem “crim*” in CBI-CA were “people” and “mental.” The strongest collocates of the word stem “crim*” T4C were “systems” and “justice.” The second study used Latent Dirichlet Allocation and topic modeling to identify the historical foci of the academic literature on recidivism. These topics were (a) legal framework and governance, (b) mental health and substance abuse interventions in correctional systems, (c) risk assessment and predictive factors in violent offenders, (d) gender disparities in the prison system, (e) criminal sentencing in sexual offense cases, and (f) behavioral experiments and interventions in correctional settings. The topics were grouped into half decades. A linear or quadratic regression model was selected depending on which best represented the trends by half-decade. The selection between models was made with the use of the Bayesian information criterion BIC. The data identified trends and the increase and decrease of research topics. The study identified gaps in the literature and the need for additional multiculturalism and social justice efforts. The study also highlights the need for increased trauma-informed practices, consideration for the social determinants of health, and clinical therapeutic interventions in the criminal justice system