Telling the difference between deceiving and truth telling: An experiment in a public space

The behavioral experiment presented in this paper investigated deception tasks (both concealment and lying) undertaken in a public space. The degree of risk of deception detection and the demands of self-regulation when deceiving were manipulated. The results showed a significant interaction effect between veracity and risk of deception detection, emerged for the body movement of “hand(s) in pocket(s)”. The incidence of “hand(s) in pocket(s)” was found to increase from truth telling to deceiving conditions when the risk of deception detection was higher, and to decrease from truth telling to deceiving conditions when the risk was lower. Higher risk of deception detection was also found in magnifying the “overall negative and controlled impression” displayed by both deceivers and truth tellers, compared to the lower risk of detection condition. We also discussed the possible effects of risk of deception detection and depletion of self-regulation, on deception behavior. Further studies and the connection between this study and the research community of computer vision and multimodel interaction is also discussed

Expanding Interaction Potentials within Virtual Environments: Investigating the Usability of Speech and Manual Input Modes for Decoupled Interaction

Distributed technologies and ubiquitous computing now support users who may be detached or decoupled from traditional interactions. In order to investigate the potential usability of speech and manual input devices, an evaluation of speech input across different user groups and a usability assessment of independent-user and collaborative-user interactions was conducted. Whilst the primary focus was on a formative usability evaluation, the user group evaluation provided a formal basis to underpin the academic rigor of the exercise. The results illustrate that using a speech interface is important in understanding user acceptance of such technologies. From the usability assessment it was possible to translate interactions and make them compatible with innovative input devices. This approach to interaction is still at an early stage of development, and the potential or validity of this interfacing concept is still under evaluation; however, as a concept demonstrator, the results of these initial evaluations demonstrate the potential usability issues of both input devices as well as highlighting their suitability for advanced virtual applications

Negotiating left-hand and right-hand bends: a motorcycle simulator study to investigate experiential and behaviour differences across rider groups

Why do motorcyclists crash on bends? To address this question we examined the riding styles of three groups of motorcyclists on a motorcycle simulator. Novice, experienced and advanced motorcyclists navigated a series of combined left and right bends while their speed and lane position were recorded. Each rider encountered an unexpected hazard on both a left- and right-hand bend section. Upon seeing the hazards, all riders decreased their speed before steering to avoid the hazard. Experienced riders tended to follow more of a racing line through the bends, which resulted in them having to make the most severe changes to their position to avoid a collision. Advanced riders adopted the safest road positions, choosing a position which offered greater visibility through the bends. As a result, they did not need to alter their road position in response to the hazard. Novice riders adopted similar road positions to experienced riders on the left-hand bends, but their road positions were more similar to advanced riders on right-hand bends, suggesting that they were more aware of the risks associated with right bends. Novice riders also adopted a safer position on post-hazard bends whilst the experienced riders failed to alter their behaviour even though they had performed the greatest evasive manoeuvre in response to the hazards. Advanced riders did not need to alter their position as their approach to the bends was already optimal. The results suggest that non-advanced riders were more likely to choose an inappropriate lane position than an inappropriate speed when entering a bend. Furthermore, the findings support the theory that expertise is achieved as a result of relearning, with advanced training overriding ‘bad habits’ gained through experience alone

Pilot performance and workload whilst using an angle of attack system

Loss of control in flight is the primary category of fatal accidents within all sectors of aviation and failure to maintain adequate airspeed – leading to a stall - is often cited as a causal factor. Stalls occur when the critical angle of the aircraft is exceeded for a given airspeed. Using airspeed as an indicator of the potential to stall is an unreliable proxy. Systems that measure the angle of attack have been routinely used by military aircraft for over 50 years however rigorous academic research with respect to their effectiveness has been limited. Using a fixed-base flight simulator fitted with a simulated, commercially available angle of attack system, 20 pilots performed normal and emergency procedures during the circuit/pattern in a light aircraft. Experimental results have shown that pilot performance was improved when angle of attack was displayed in the cockpit for normal and emergency procedures during the approach phase of flight in the pattern/circuit. In relation to pilot workload, results indicated that during the approach phase of flight, there was a moderate but tolerable increase in pilot workload. The use of such a display may assist pilots to maintain the aircraft within the optimum range and hence reduce occurrences of unstable approaches. Overall, fewer stall events were observed when angle of attack was displayed and appropriate pilot decisions made during emergencies. These results provide a new perspective on pilot workload and aviation safety

Baselining behaviour: driving towards more realistic simulations

Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) allows systems to be operated by speech input and may potentially improve the usability and safety of in-car systems. SPEECH-IDEAS is a LINK IST project investigating the use of ASR interfaces for in-vehicle systems. The success/application of in-car ASR relies on designing interfaces to match the expectations, preferences and abilities of various user groups. Driver workload (underload or overload) is a primary factor affecting the integration of in-car systems. Using multiple measures of workload, it is possible to assess relationships between actual task difficulty (objective measures), perceptions of task difficulty (subjective measures) and how individuals react to their perception of task difficulty (psychophysiological measures). This experiment sought to define a range of baseline driver workload factors in a simulator. Traffic behaviour (density, flow, speed changes, etc) and road layout/conditions (geometry, speed restrictions, fog, etc) were manipulated to assess the validity of different workload levels. Overall, the findings illustrated that increased workload affected driver performance and provide suitable baseline information for proceeding to assess the impact of in-car ASR on driving behaviour

Deception in context: coding nonverbal cues, situational variables and risk of detection

There are many situations in which deception may arise and understanding the behaviors associated with it are compounded by various contexts in which it may occur. This paper sets out a coding protocol for identifying cues to deception and reports on three studies, in which deception was studied in different contexts. The contexts involved manipulating risks (i.e., probability) of being detected and reconnaissance, both of which are related to terrorist activities. Two of the studies examined the impact of changing the risks of deception detection, whilst the third investigated increased cognitive demand of duplex deception tasks including reconnaissance and deception. In all three studies, cues to deception were analyzed in relation to observable body movements and subjective impressions given by participants. In general, the results indicate a pattern of hand movement reduction by deceivers, and suggest the notion that raising the risk of detection influences deceivers’ behaviors. Participants in the higher risk condition displayed increased negative affect (found in deceivers) and tension (found in both deceivers and truth-tellers) than those in lower risk conditions

The effects of self-awareness on body movement indicators of the intention to deceive

A study was conducted to investigate the body movements of participants waiting to be interviewed in one of two conditions: preparing to answer questions truthfully or preparing to lie. The effects of increased self-awareness were also investigated, with half of the participants facing a mirror; the other half facing a blank wall. Analysis of covertly obtained video footage showed a significant interaction for the duration of hand/arm movements between deception level and self-awareness. Without a mirror, participants expecting to lie spent less time moving their hands than those expecting to tell the truth; the opposite was seen in the presence of a mirror. Participants expecting to lie also had higher levels of anxiety and thought that they were left waiting for less time than those expecting to tell the truth. These findings led to the identification of further research areas with the potential to support deception detection in security applications