How brains make decisions

This chapter, dedicated to the memory of Mino Freund, summarizes the Quantum Decision Theory (QDT) that we have developed in a series of publications since 2008. We formulate a general mathematical scheme of how decisions are taken, using the point of view of psychological and cognitive sciences, without touching physiological aspects. The basic principles of how intelligence acts are discussed. The human brain processes involved in decisions are argued to be principally different from straightforward computer operations. The difference lies in the conscious-subconscious duality of the decision making process and the role of emotions that compete with utility optimization. The most general approach for characterizing the process of decision making, taking into account the conscious-subconscious duality, uses the framework of functional analysis in Hilbert spaces, similarly to that used in the quantum theory of measurements. This does not imply that the brain is a quantum system, but just allows for the simplest and most general extension of classical decision theory. The resulting theory of quantum decision making, based on the rules of quantum measurements, solves all paradoxes of classical decision making, allowing for quantitative predictions that are in excellent agreement with experiments. Finally, we provide a novel application by comparing the predictions of QDT with experiments on the prisoner dilemma game. The developed theory can serve as a guide for creating artificial intelligence acting by quantum rules.Comment: Latex file, 20 pages, 3 figure

Cluster analysis demonstrates the need to individualize care for cancer survivors

Background. In efforts to inform clinical screening and development of survivorship care services, we sought to characterize patterns of health care needs among cancer survivors by (a) identifying and characterizing subgroups based on self-reportedhealth care needs and (b) assessing sociodemographic, clinical, and psychosocial factors associated with these subgroups. Methods.  We conducted a cross-sectional self-administered survey among patients presenting for routine follow-up care for early-stage cancer at our academic medical center. Latent class cluster analysis was used to identify clusters of survivors based on survivorship care needs within seven domains. Multiplelogistic regression analyses were used to assess factors associatedwith these clusters. Results.  Among 292 respondents, the highest unmet needs were related to the domains of side effects (53%), self-care (51%), and emotional coping (43%). Our analysis identified four clusters of survivors: (a) low needs (n5123, 42%), (b) mainly physical needs (n546, 16%), (c) mainly psychological needs (n557, 20%), and (d) both physical and psychological needs (n566, 23%). Compared with cluster 1, those in clusters 2, 3, and 4 were younger (p < .03), those in clusters3 and 4 had higher levels of psychological distress (p < .05), and those in clusters 2 and 4 reported higher levels of fatigue (p < .05). Conclusion.  Unmet needs among cancer survivors are prevalent; however, a substantial group of survivors report low or no health care needs. The wide variation in health care needs among cancer survivors suggests a need to screen all patients,followed by tailored interventions in clinical care delivery and research

Perceived Employability in Online IT Education

In this paper, we use an online bachelor study program in IT as a case for research on Perceived Employability (PE). Collecting data from alumni through interviews and a survey we find an increase in students’ PE during their bachelor education. We also find a difference between students who had relevant work experience before their studies and those without such experience, the former having higher PE before their education. This gap decreases and is not significant after completion of the bachelor program, except for the aspect of Contact Network. We discuss the results in light of how PE can be used as a construct in the evaluation and development of the specific bachelor program of our study and other study programs. We suggest that PE can be used to measure some important aspects of a study program, but as part of an overall evaluation, it should be combined with questions about competence and satisfaction