34 research outputs found
Imagery-related eye movements in 3D space depend on individual differences in visual object imagery.
During recall of visual information people tend to move their eyes even though there is nothing to see. Previous studies indicated that such eye movements are related to the spatial location of previously seen items on 2D screens, but they also showed that eye movement behavior varies significantly across individuals. The reason for these differences remains unclear. In the present study we used immersive virtual reality to investigate how individual tendencies to process and represent visual information contribute to eye fixation patterns in visual imagery of previously inspected objects in three-dimensional (3D) space. We show that participants also look back to relevant locations when they are free to move in 3D space. Furthermore, we found that looking back to relevant locations depends on individual differences in visual object imagery abilities. We suggest that object visualizers rely less on spatial information because they tend to process and represent the visual information in terms of color and shape rather than in terms of spatial layout. This finding indicates that eye movements during imagery are subject to individual strategies, and the immersive setting in 3D space made individual differences more likely to unfold
Implementing Learning Principles with a Personal AI Tutor: A Case Study
Effective learning strategies based on principles like personalization,
retrieval practice, and spaced repetition are often challenging to implement
due to practical constraints. Here we explore the integration of AI tutors to
complement learning programs in accordance with learning sciences. A
semester-long study was conducted at UniDistance Suisse, where an AI tutor app
was provided to psychology students taking a neuroscience course (N=51). After
automatically generating microlearning questions from existing course materials
using GPT-3, the AI tutor developed a dynamic neural-network model of each
student's grasp of key concepts. This enabled the implementation of distributed
retrieval practice, personalized to each student's individual level and
abilities. The results indicate that students who actively engaged with the AI
tutor achieved significantly higher grades. Moreover, active engagement led to
an average improvement of up to 15 percentile points compared to a parallel
course without AI tutor. Additionally, the grasp strongly correlated with the
exam grade, thus validating the relevance of neural-network predictions. This
research demonstrates the ability of personal AI tutors to model human learning
processes and effectively enhance academic performance. By integrating AI
tutors into their programs, educators can offer students personalized learning
experiences grounded in the principles of learning sciences, thereby addressing
the challenges associated with implementing effective learning strategies.
These findings contribute to the growing body of knowledge on the
transformative potential of AI in education.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figure
Vertical Head Movements Influence Memory Performance for Words With Emotional Content
Numerous studies have found an association between valence and the vertical dimension of space (good-up, bad-down). This association has also been linked to sensorimotor experiences (e.g., body movements). In this study, we investigated whether body movements along the vertical plane play an active role in the retrieval of positive and negative words (as well as words with a more explicit association with up and down). Twenty-five participants were presented with a list of nouns associated with space (e.g., satellite, underground) and a list of nouns associated with emotions (e.g., joy, war). Subsequently, they had to retrieve the words while performing vertical head movements. We found a vertical effect in that participants retrieved more positive words when moving their head upward and more negative words when moving the head downward. These results illustrate that overt body movements are indeed associated with emotional information and can thereby influence what we remember. We conclude that abstract concepts such as emotional representations are inherently linked to motor action and are grounded in space
Time in the eye of the beholder: Gaze position reveals spatial-temporal associations during encoding and memory retrieval of future and past
Time is grounded in various ways, and previous studies point to a mental time line with past associated with the left, and future with the right side. In this study, we investigated whether spontaneous eye movements on a blank screen would follow a mental timeline during encoding, free recall, and recognition of past and future items. In all three stages of processing, gaze position was more rightward during future items compared to past items. Moreover, horizontal gaze position during encoding predicted horizontal gaze position during free recall and recognition. We conclude that mental time line and the stored gaze position during encoding assist memory retrieval of past versus future items. Our findings highlight the spatial nature of temporal representations
UnzugĂ€ngliche Welten fĂŒr das erfahrungsbasierte Lernen erschlieĂen. Immersive Virtuelle RealitĂ€t im naturwissenschaftlichen Sachunterricht
Die Autor*innen befassen sich mit der ErschlieĂung âUnzugĂ€ngliche[r] Welten fĂŒr das erfahrungsbasierte Lernenâ, indem sie Potenziale der Integration Immersiver Virtueller RealitĂ€t (IVR) in den naturwissenschaftlichen Sachunterricht erlĂ€utern. Designprinzipien und Beispiele fĂŒr die Nutzung von Immersiver Virtueller RealitĂ€t im naturwissenschaftlichen Sachunterricht werden anhand einer exemplarischen Sachunterrichtseinheit zum so genannten kleinen Wasserkreislauf aufgezeigt und diskutiert. (DIPF/Orig.)Active experience and manipulation are crucial sources of learning. However, many scientific topics are not accessible to our senses, such as microscopic or macroscopic structures and processes. By combining immersive and interactive elements, virtual reality offers a promising way to connect inaccessible parts of the world to direct sensory experience. This article explores possible guidelines for creating effective learning environments by reviewing opportunities and risks related to the use of virtual reality in science education. These ideas are illustrated with an example of virtual-reality-based teaching about the water cycle in primary school. (DIPF/Orig.
Eye movements to absent objects during mental imagery and visual memory in immersive virtual reality
The role of eye movements in mental imagery and visual memory is typically investigated by presenting stimuli or scenes on a two-dimensional (2D) computer screen. When questioned about objects that had previously been presented on-screen, people gaze back to the location of the stimuli, even though those regions are blank during retrieval. It remains unclear whether this behavior is limited to a highly controlled experimental setting using 2D screens or whether it also occurs in a more naturalistic setting. The present study aims to overcome this shortcoming. Three-dimensional (3D) objects were presented along a circular path in an immersive virtual room. During retrieval, participants were given two tasks: to visualize the objects, which they had encoded before, and to evaluate a statement about visual details of the object. We observed longer fixation duration in the area, on which the object was previously displayed, when compared to other possible target locations. However, in 89% of the time, participants fixated none of the predefined areas. On the one hand, this shows that looking at nothing may be overestimated in 2D screen-based paradigm, on the other hand, the looking at nothing effect was still present in the 3D immersive virtual reality setting, and thus it extends external validity of previous findings. Eye movements during retrieval reinstate spatial information of previously inspected stimuli
Too bored to bother? : Boredom as a potential threat to the efficacy of pandemic containment measures
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by coronavirus (SARS-nCoV2) is currently spreading across the world. In response, different sets of pandemic containment measures have been employed by several countries. The effectiveness of non-pharmacological measures such as home confinement hinges on adherence by the population. While adherence to these social distancing measures appears to be high in general, adherence might be more challenging for some individuals and complying with these measures might become more difficult the longer they last. Here, we suggest that boredom and self-control are two important psychological concepts for understanding the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic containment measures pose to individuals. To maximize adherence to these measures, we propose to consider the specific and combined effects of boredom and self-control demands elicited by this situation on subsequent behavior.publishe
Bored Into Depletion? : Toward a Tentative Integration of Perceived Self-Control Exertion and Boredom as Guiding Signals for Goal-Directed Behavior
During the past two decades, self-control research has been dominated by the strength model of self-control, which is built on the premise that the capacity for self-control is a limited global resource that can become temporarily depleted, resulting in a state called ego depletion. The foundations of ego depletion have recently been questioned. Thus, although self-control is among the most researched psychological concepts with high societal relevance, an inconsistent body of literature limits our understanding of how self-control operates. Here, we propose that the inconsistencies are partly due to a confound that has unknowingly and systematically been introduced into the ego-depletion research: boredom. We propose that boredom might affect results of self-control research by placing an unwanted demand on self-control and signaling that one should explore behavioral alternatives. To account for boredom in self-controlled behavior, we provide a working model that integrates evidence from reward-based models of self-control and recent theorizing on boredom to explain the effects of both self-control exertion and boredom on subsequent self-control performance. We propose that task-induced boredom should be systematically monitored in self-control research to assess the validity of the ego-depletion effect.publishe
It's all about absorption: Learning by teaching in immersive virtual reality
Immersive virtual reality (IVR) is a methodological enrichment offering innovations and promising applications in education and training. However, there is little empirical evidence of its educational value. Since previous research indicates that learning by teaching is an effective way to improve learning, we investigated the educational outcome of teaching an avatar in IVR and compared it to a less immersive desktop setting and a control condition (writing a summary). Besides the learning outcome, presence and immersive tendency were assessed. We found that teaching an avatar in IVR enhanced learning outcome, but only when the personality trait absorption was high. Moreover, participants in IVR reported higher presence but presence scores did not influence the learning outcome. The findings highlight the crucial role of tendency of absorption by media content. IVR is beneficial, but not per se; a IVR setting may be suitable for one person, but not for another