Honesty, social presence, and self-service in retail

Retail self-service checkouts (SCOs) can benefit consumers and retailers, providing control and autonomy to shoppers independent from staff. Recent research indicates that the lack of presence of staff may provide the opportunity for consumers to behave dishonestly. This study examined whether a social presence in the form of visual, humanlike SCO interface agents had an effect on dishonest user behaviour. Using a simulated SCO scenario, participants experienced various dilemmas in which they could financially benefit themselves undeservedly. We hypothesised that a humanlike social presence integrated within the checkout screen would receive more attention and result in fewer instances of dishonesty compared to a less humanlike agent. Our hypotheses were partially supported by the results. We conclude that companies adopting self-service technology may consider the implementation of social presence to support ethical consumer behaviour, but that more research is required to explore the mixed findings in the current study

DSmT Decision-Making Algorithms for Finding Grasping Configurations of Robot Dexterous Hands

In this paper, we present a deciding technique for robotic dexterous hand configurations. This algorithm can be used to decide on how to configure a robotic hand so it can grasp objects in different scenarios. Receiving as input, several sensor signals that provide information on the object’s shape, the DSmT decision-making algorithm passes the information through several steps before deciding what hand configuration should be used for a certain object and task

Toward a second-person neuroscience

LS & BT : equal contributions (shared first-authorship)Peer reviewedPreprin

Challenges for an Ontology of Artificial Intelligence

Of primary importance in formulating a response to the increasing prevalence and power of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in society are questions of ontology. Questions such as: What “are” these systems? How are they to be regarded? How does an algorithm come to be regarded as an agent? We discuss three factors which hinder discussion and obscure attempts to form a clear ontology of AI: (1) the various and evolving definitions of AI, (2) the tendency for pre-existing technologies to be assimilated and regarded as “normal,” and (3) the tendency of human beings to anthropomorphize. This list is not intended as exhaustive, nor is it seen to preclude entirely a clear ontology, however, these challenges are a necessary set of topics for consideration. Each of these factors is seen to present a 'moving target' for discussion, which poses a challenge for both technical specialists and non-practitioners of AI systems development (e.g., philosophers and theologians) to speak meaningfully given that the corpus of AI structures and capabilities evolves at a rapid pace. Finally, we present avenues for moving forward, including opportunities for collaborative synthesis for scholars in philosophy and science

Space Station Human Factors Research Review. Volume 4: Inhouse Advanced Development and Research

A variety of human factors studies related to space station design are presented. Subjects include proximity operations and window design, spatial perceptual issues regarding displays, image management, workload research, spatial cognition, virtual interface, fault diagnosis in orbital refueling, and error tolerance and procedure aids

Effects of Gendered Anthropomorphism and Image Appeal on Moral Norms in the Context of Charity Website Design

As the internet has developed, the barriers to online donations have decreased – in order to effectively differentiate, charities have adopted various interface design innovations to encourage donors. This study examines the efficacy of anthropomorphism and visual/image appeals in increasing willingness to donate to a charity website. This paper reports findings from the first in a series of experiments. Specifically, we test the effect of image type (negative affect vs positive affect) on the variables of image appeal, moral norms, and intentions to donate. Our future experiments will build on the findings presented here, by testing the influence of anthropomorphized vs non- anthropomorphized websites on the same variables. Once finalized, the results of this research will contribute to IS research through suggesting appropriate interface design and to charity donation research through the evaluation of alternative channels for donations

Five dimensions in the communication of design intent

Industries which utilize Computer Aided Design, (CAD), are in a similar situation to the film industry, where the use of Computer Graphics, (CG), has reached such a level of reality that audiences often do not spot where CG has been used. This has resulted in a general attitude among critics of: “CG is what you expect in a film, but what we often lack is a decent plot”. Over a similar period, CAD software has become a powerful tool with proficient users, whilst the marketplace for such services now takes such facilities for granted. The ‘wow factor’ has faded. The special effects used in films has contributed to this dulling of presentation impact, which leads us to question where we stand in relation to a competitive edge, with the realization that: “CAD is what you expect from a firm, but what we often lack is clear intent.” The questioning of competitive edge draws us into some complex issues, concerning the reduction of compromise for design intent, where priorities fight for first place. There is no disputing the importance of time to market, yet the time compression technologies may no longer be providing a sufficient cutting edge. Even if new technologies facilitate even shorter lead-times we will always face the threat of a time management trap and potential loss of design quality. As a high-risk strategy for competitive advantage, contractual agreements for specified short lead-time deliveries, in some cases with penalty clauses written in, have established an expectation among the client base. Such a strategy leads us to effectively burn our bridges, in sacrificing margins for schedule 3 slippage and error compensation, leaving us nowhere to go but back. With such a lean approach to product development we have to improve our focus on the plot and its intent for design quality. The more investment we make at the front end, to enable the decision making process, the more likely we are to avoid pain at the back-end. Presently, decisions are made on a resource of available quality and quantity of data, using a perspective which is based on the experience, tacit knowledge and intuition of those involved. Whilst intuition is a good starting point or fall-back, as with tacit knowledge, it often proves difficult to substantiate. Background experience is the most valuable asset here but proves ineffectual when faced with low quality data, either through ambiguity, error or lack of substance. The improvement of quality standards require that we look closely at the production and presentation of data in the context of decision making and establish a process by which quality decisions can be made quickly and efficiently. This paper focuses on the process of communication between designers and their colleagues and clients, concerning the presentation of CAD models, from a cognitive perspective. It first establishes a context for individual differences in the management of auditory and visual information for decision making. This is followed by a discussion of five approaches to the communication of design intent and concludes with a checklist, to aid selection of an effective approach to communication

Human operator performance of remotely controlled tasks: Teleoperator research conducted at NASA's George C. Marshal Space Flight Center

The capabilities within the teleoperator laboratories to perform remote and teleoperated investigations for a wide variety of applications are described. Three major teleoperator issues are addressed: the human operator, the remote control and effecting subsystems, and the human/machine system performance results for specific teleoperated tasks