Syntax and Semantics of Music: Preface

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Introduction to the Volume Linking Senses: Cross-Modality in the Perceptual Domains

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Simple Configuration Effects on Eye Movements in Horizontal Scanning Tasks

When reading text, observers alternate periods of stable gaze (fixations) and shifts of gaze (saccades). An important debate in the literature concerns the processes that drive the control of these eye movements. Past studies using strings of letters rather than meaningful text ('z-reading') suggest that eye movement control during reading is, to a large extent, controlled by low-level image properties. These studies, however, have failed to take into account perceptual grouping processes that could drive these low-level effects. We here study the role of various grouping factors in horizontal scanning eye movements, and compare these to reading meaningful text. The results show that sequential horizontal scanning of meaningless and visually distinctive stimuli is slower than for meaningful stimuli (e.g. letters instead of dots). Moreover, we found strong evidence for anticipatory processes in saccadic processing during horizontal scanning tasks. These results suggest a strong role of perceptual grouping in oculomotor control in reading

Institutions, Civil Society, Trust and Quality of Life: A Social Capital- And Social Identity-Based Approach. Evidence from the Russian Federation

Many scholars, since the early 2000s, advocate for the integration of institutionalist and communitarian views of social capital generation in order to explain civil society dynamics, in particular in countries ? such as former communist states - characterized by transitional processes, with a relevant impact on the structure of societies, and by peculiar features of social networking. According to such a view, the civil society is the resultant of a combination of factors related to the social structure of the social community and the institutional environment, and the ways in which such levels interact. This view is, in a broader sense, an attempt at investigating in a more effective way the way in which social assets in society are generated, and their relation with socio-economic and sustainable development. However, attempted empirical analysis on the basis of such an approach have been mainly carried out at macro level, this way overlooking, to a large extent, the individual determinants of social capital and civic engagement, and the interplay of perceptions of community and institutions and social attitudes. The present paper is an attempt at conciliating the institutionalist and communitarian frameworks through a micro level-focused model, able to investigate the linkage between institutional climate and civic engagement and trust with the support of social psychology theories (in particular, social identity theory). In detail, the proposed approach emphasizes the linkages existing between perceptions of institutional behaviour and civil society empowerment on the one hand, and individual engagement and trust in the society and civil identity on the other; it also focuses on the way in which perceptions and attitudes are related to quality of life (measured in terms of well-being and job-related satisfaction). The analysis is based on over 2000 observations from two macrodistricts of the Russian Federation (Central and North Caucasus okrugs) and over 1000 from the Republic of Latvia. The proposed model investigates the possible causal chain existing between perceptions of civil society empowerment, trust towards institutions, civic engagement, trust and tolerance in the society, and quality of life perception, through a structural equation modelling-based quantitative approach for ordinal variables. Socio-demographic and socio-cultural features (e.g. ethno-religious self-identification, level of education, political affiliation, profession) are accounted for as control variables

Factors impacting the low usage of e-services in Latvia

Despite the availability and technological flexibility of many pubic e-services in Latvia provided by both public and private organizations, users do not choose to use those services as frequently as their developers might wish. There are several possible causes for that: (1) e-services eventually do not meet users’ needs, (2) users have socio-cognitive barriers discouraging them from using e-services. These barriers can be related to technological problems (such as data security) or cognitive factors (such as fear of making mistakes in virtual environments lacking direct human interaction). The aim of the current research was to find out, which e-services users prefer and why, on the contrary, they do not choose to use some e-services. Further we wanted to explore what are the possible factors impacting this behaviour. To answer those questions, a large-scale representative (n = 1005) survey was used to collect data on how users perceive the information that is gained from various digital sources and what are their habits and choices of using information and communication technologies (ICT). The results of the research indicate some core habits of using ICT in e-service environments, reasons of the reluctance regarding the usage of e-services, and provide some clues for facilitating the usage of e-services. Our results indicate that the reason of hesitation to use e-services is data security and inconvenient and complicated interface system. In our study, we also discuss the differences between the general use of the internet and the use of e-services.peer-reviewe

Knowledge exchange in hybrid communities: a social capital-based approach. Evidence from Latvia

The role of ICT accessibility in enhancing regional innovation through knowledge and information exchange is a recently popular and controversial topic in regional science. Opposing views exist, related to the bigger or lesser importance of geographical proximity in knowledge exchange in an age dominated by virtual global channels. Existing studies primarily focus on regions (macro level) as units of analysis, without investigating socio-cognitive dynamics in detail, and rely on doubtful epistemological assumptions (i.e. the equation of information with knowledge). It may be hypothesized that the debate would benefit from: a) analyses focused on the micro (individual) level; b) a more complex formalization of social dynamics, by means of adequate sociological frameworks; and c) a deeper reflection on the nature of cognitive factors at stake. The present paper is aimed at investigating the effectiveness of physical (geographical) and virtual communities on information and knowledge sharing and enrichment in the republic of Latvia. Which kind of links – physical or virtual ones – are more efficient and psychologically real and important is additionally analyzed. The theoretical framework draws on social and cognitive science, combining social capital theory and cognitively oriented semantics. The theoretical model to be tested empirically relies on a complex taxonomy of social capital and a complex epistemology of shareable knowledge. The former takes into account both physical / virtual structural (network) assets and social resources which are embedded in such networks; the latter encompasses relevant dichotomies in applied epistemology history (description / experience; information / belief). Causal links between social capital dimensions (related to physical / virtual channels) and forms of knowledge are hypothesized. The empirical analysis is based on a methodological approach relying on advanced econometrics (structural equation modelling), able to encompass both measurement problems related to the intangible nature of variables under exam, and an assessment of complex cause-effect dynamics. The analysis, which is carried out at the individual level, helps to compare the effect of physical vs virtual networks in enhancing social resources and hence knowledge exchange and enrichment. The obtained results are tested against control variables accounting for social and cultural differences within the national community, in order to verify the sensitivity of results according to intra-society gaps. Such clusters are identified on the basis of considerations related to community and identity views among the citizenship

The Impact Of Hybrid Infrastructure On Trust, Motivation And Knowledge Sharing In An Intentional Community: A Latvian Case Study

The role of ICT infrastructure in enhancing innovation processes through fostering knowledge and information exchange is a controversial topic in regional science. Opposing views exist, in particular, with regard to two topics: a) the persistence of a specific role of geographical proximity in knowledge exchange processes in the age of global virtual networking; b) the capability of virtual networking to recreate the social assets of a physical community (trust, solidarity?). Existing studies primarily focus on aggregated data, rely on doubtful epistemological assumptions (e.g. the equation of information with knowledge), and neglect several epistemological principles of social cognition (e.g. collective and collaborative agency of communities). It may be hypothesized that the debate would benefit from: a) analyses focused on the micro (individual) level; b) a more complex formalization of social dynamics; and c) a deeper reflection on the nature of cognitive factors at stake. The paper is aimed at investigating the effect that the co-existence of physical and virtual networking has on social assets building and knowledge sharing among members of an intentional community (in our study: the National Library of Latvia users? community). The theoretical framework draws on social and cognitive science, combining social capital theory, social learning theory, and theories of collective and collaborative action in cognitive social science. The theoretical model to be tested empirically relies on a complex taxonomy of social capital and shareable knowledge. The former takes into account both physical / virtual structural (network) assets and social resources which are embedded in such networks; the latter encompasses relevant dichotomies in applied and cognitive epistemology. Indirect positive effects of social capital on individual knowledge growth ? through the empowerment of community-oriented motivation and quality of knowledge exchange - are hypothesized. The empirical analysis is based on the collection of psychometric data at the micro (individual) level and on a methodological approach relying on advanced econometrics (structural equation modelling), able to encompass both measurement problems related to the intangible nature of variables, and an assessment of complex cause-effect dynamics. The analysis helps to compare the effect of physical and virtual networking in enhancing social resources and hence knowledge exchange and enrichment. In order to grasp such effects in a better way, the model is tested for clusters of community members stating preferences for either physical or virtual networking. The sensitivity of results is also tested against control variables accounting for socio-economic, demographic, ethno-cultural differences within the community

Similarity and Dissimilarity in Perceptual Organization: On the Complexity of the Gestalt Principle of Similarity

The main purpose of this work is to explore the Gestalt principle of similarity and to demonstrate that the use of this term alone is not sufficient to understand the dynamics of grouping fully and correctly. More generally, this work aims to show that the Gestalt principle of similarity alone is not sufficient for a full understanding of perceptual organization occurring both in the classical and mostly in the new phenomena here presented. Limits and incompleteness of the similarity principle have suggested the basic, more general and stronger role of dissimilarity in perceptual grouping under a large variety of conditions. Dissimilarity was shown as a basic principle of figure–ground segregation, as a tool useful to create at will new groups and visual objects within patterns where they are totally invisible, as an attribute that is able to accentuate different shape components within the same object, as a way to distort shapes and create visual illusions, but also to reduce or annul them and, finally, to decompose, ungroup and reshape single objects. The results demonstrated the necessity to introduce a principle of dissimilarity that is complementary to similarity as already studied by Gestalt psychologists

The impact of interface alignment structure on aesthetic appreciation and usability rating

Although interacting with visual displays of websites is a central part of our everyday online practices, little is known about the impact of geometric principles on users’ perceptions. In an exploratory study, canonical interface layout structures were extracted from websites for different purposes, such as education, medicine or finance, amongst others. Preference for the obtained prototypes was then rated in a quasi-experiment (n=65) following aesthetic and usability criteria (Lavie & Tractinsky, 2004). Our results indicate that vertical and horizontal alignment properties, such as different degrees of symmetry and complexity, shape the rating of expressive and creative aesthetics, as well as perceived usability. This contribution aims at shedding light on geometric constraints in UX analysis and giving an outlook on potential impacts of preference on content comprehension in an ecological setting