Does non‐destructive earthquake experience affect risk perception and motivate preparedness?

There are thousands of earthquakes every year, but most of them are small and are not disasters. This study explored whether non‐destructive earthquake experience affects public risk perception and motivates preparedness. The study respondents were from the Jiaodong Peninsula, China, where more than 20 small earthquakes have occurred during the past decade. The results show that non‐destructive earthquake experience positively affected public perception of the probability of an earthquake but not the perception of consequences. The relationship between non‐destructive earthquake experience and preparedness intention was not statistically significant. In addition, this study revealed that the perception of consequences was a positive predictor of earthquake preparedness intention, that is people with higher levels of perceived consequences of an earthquake were more likely to be motivated to prepare. However, non‐destructive earthquake experience moderated this relationship, that is weakened the strength of this relationship between perceived consequences and skill preparedness intention. These findings permit the identification of potential pathways to increase levels of disaster preparedness and potential barriers to enhancing disaster resilience in regions experiencing small hazards.     

Does my comment count? Perceptions of political participation in an online environment

Since the infancy of the Internet, scholars have posited that the medium would mobilize and engage citizens, yet the reality has proven it to be more nuanced and complex. This project examines citizens’ motivations to engage in politics online, assessing how people are driven by both a desire to influence government as well as to communicate political ideas to others. We explore the ways these two behaviors are perceived by citizens in online versus offline contexts. We also examine how such perceptions can predict certain behaviors, such as “friending” a candidate and messaging with friends about politics. We find that these behaviors are indeed perceived differently among citizens, and that perceptions predict the likelihood of participating in online political forums.     

Power and politics in requirements engineering: embracing the dark side?

This paper considers the role of power and politics in requirements engineering (RE). It presents a brief working definition of both terms and provides an overview of existing literature both in RE and related disciplines. It argues that, given the increased complexity, uncertainty, and organisational embeddedness faced by RE in practice, power and politics have necessarily become increasingly relevant factors, but that they have not yet been given adequate consideration. A framework for analysis is presented, examining power and politics in turn through the structure of power relations and the process of decision-making. This framework is explored by applying it to a case study of a website development in a publishing company. The use of a case study is intended to demonstrate the proposed framework, perform an initial validation of it, and an assessment of its utility to RE.     

Press,swipe and read: Do interactive features facilitate engagement and learning with e-Books?

Young children are introduced to mobile technology at an early age, with many using touchscreens daily. One appeal of touchscreen technology is that it seems to be intuitive for very young children. As a result, many children's e-books are designed for tablets rather than for e-readers or computers. E-books often contain hotspots—interactive areas children can press to receive immediate auditory or visual feedback. This study assessed whether children's (N = 76, aged 3–5 years) interactions with hotspots increased their engagement with reading when using an e-book independently and how such interactions were related to their learning from the story. Our results suggested that interacting with hotspots enhanced children's emotional engagement and sustained visual attention but not verbal engagement. Interacting with hotspots also benefited children's recall of story elements relevant to the hotspot but not their overall comprehension of the story. These findings inform the design and use of touchscreen media in early childhood.     

Dynamics of opinion formation,social power evolution,and naïve learning in social networks

The past few decades have witnessed a prevalence of applying dynamical models to the study of social networks. This paper reviews recent advances in the investigation of social networks with a predominant focus on agent-based models. Starting from classical models of opinion dynamics, we survey several recently developed models on opinion formation and social power evolution. These models extend the classical models’ cognitive assumption that individuals’ opinions evolve on a single issue by incorporating various sociological or psychological hypotheses to account for the evolution of opinions over multiple or a sequence of interdependent issues. We summarize basic results on the asymptotic behaviors of these models and discuss their sociological interpretations. In addition, we show how these models play a role in the emergence of collective intelligence by applying them to a naïve learning setting. Novel results that reveal how individuals successfully learn an unknown truth over issue sequences are presented. Finally, we conclude the paper and discuss potential directions for future research.     

Does ICT matter for effectiveness and efficiency in mathematics education?

ICT infrastructure investments in educational institutions have been one of the key priorities of education policy during the last decade. Despite the attention, research on the effectiveness and efficiency of ICT is inconclusive. This is mainly due to small-scale research with weak identification strategies which lack a proper control group. Using the 2011 ‘Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study’ (TIMSS) data, we define by a Mahalanobis matching a control group with similar student, teacher, school and regional characteristics. The results indicate that accounting or not accounting for these characteristics, may considerably alter the estimated impact of ICT. This suggests that a correction for characteristics related to the student population, teaching staff, administrative personnel and school management is warranted in the evaluation of the impact of ICT.     

What drives you to check in on Facebook? Motivations,privacy concerns,and mobile phone involvement for location-based information sharing

Given the popularity of checking in at a location via mobile phone, little research has examined the germane motivations tied to location check-in as a form of in-group electronic word-of-mouth and its relation to the concern of privacy. A survey with 255 college students found that the students' privacy concerns – both online and Facebook specific – did not show any relationship with the motivations of location check-in as a means of information sharing. However, the relationship varied among the non-users of location check-in on Facebook. Involvement with mobile phone showed mixed relationships with check-in motivations – commitment to Facebook, self-development and reputation, and promotional viral communication. Findings not only confirm that young Facebook users are relatively free from the concern of privacy during their location-based information sharing, but also suggest different motivational mechanisms to operate for Facebook users’ viral communication depending on the habitualness of their mobile phone use. Implications are discussed for interpersonal marketing strategies on social networking sites.     

Mine,ours, and yours: Whose engagement and prior knowledge affects individual achievement from online collaborative learning?

In computer-supported collaborative learning research, studies examining the combined effects of individual level, group level and within-group differences level measures on individual achievement are scarce. The current study addressed this by examining whether individual, group and within-group differences regarding engagement and prior knowledge predict individual achievement. Engagement was operationalised as group members' exhibited activities in the task space (i.e., discussing domain-content) and social space (i.e., regulating ideas, actions and socioemotional processes). Prior knowledge and achievement were operationalised as group members' performance on a domain-related pre-test and post-test, respectively. Data was collected for 95 triads of secondary education students collaborating on a complex business-economics problem. Subsequently, three different multilevel models were tested to examine the combined effect. First a model with the individual level measures (model 1) was tested and in subsequent models the group level measures (model 2) and within-group levels measures (model 3) were added. Findings indicate model 2 showed the best fit; group members' individual engagement in the social space activities as well as the groups' average prior knowledge positively predicts individual achievement. No effects were found for either group members' or groups' engagement in the task space and for the within-group differences.     

Technologist engagement with risk management practices during systems development? Approaches,effectiveness and challenges

The inability to engage with systems risk during the development of integrated socio-technical systems presents a real threat to global and local socio-economic stability. Current theories on system risk engagement are driven by a functionalist orthodoxy. Accordingly, risk management is either non-existent, done in parallel to other development activity, or used by organisations as an instrument of control. Systems risk management needs to be addressed at the source of the problem: the systems engineering process. This paper addresses the predominant failure to appropriately engage with systems risk during development. It provides, with respect to the theoretical dimensions, a diversity of risk perspectives, complexity and socio-technical systems theory. A broad literature review on different risk concepts, risk management perspectives and organisational paradigms (functionalist, interpretive, radical humanist and radical structuralist) is also presented. In order to overcome a lack of a holistic and reflective risk management approach to systems development, this paper sketches an integrated soft systems methodology approach which can be used for engaging with systems risk during systems development.     

Age and technology innovation in the workplace: Does work context matter?

Two workplace trends will become increasingly important in years to come: reliance on information technology (IT) and workforce aging. This study explores the influence of workplace context on employee reactions to the implementation of a new IT initiative to better understand innovation enhancers and inhibitors. Employees from multiple workplace departments completed a questionnaire that assessed their reactions to the implementation. Age-based differences and contextual influences were estimated to predict satisfaction with the implementation process. Hierarchical linear models indicate that younger workers reported less satisfaction than older workers—an effect that was more pronounced in relatively young departments. These findings challenge ageist notions and emphasize the role of context on attitudes formation. Multi-institutional and multilevel field-setting data are rare making this a unique research contribution.     

Do ABC eBooks boost engagement and learning in preschoolers? An experimental study comparing eBooks with paper ABC and storybook controls

Alphabet books are an important instructional text used in early education. Advances in mobile technology have led to alphabet books of an electronic format with accompanying sound, animations, and interactive hot spots. This study investigates the differential effectiveness of paper alphabet books and alphabet eBooks in training alphabetic knowledge in 4-year-olds. Three groups of approximately 30 children were assigned to one of three conditions: paper alphabet book, alphabet eBook, or storybook control. Book reading sessions composed of three to four children were run twice a week over eight weeks, with child-book behaviours coded at each session. Measures of early reading ability were collected pre and post-intervention. Children in all conditions improved over time in emergent literacy but no significant differences between conditions were found. Children using paper alphabet books were more likely to say letter names, and their time oriented to the books predicted post-test letter-name and phonological awareness after controlling for pre-test scores. In contrast, time oriented to the alphabet eBooks made no prediction to post-test sores.     

Does the emotional design of scaffolds enhance learning and motivational outcomes in game-based learning?

Background

In recent years, the importance of emotions in learning has been increasingly recognized. Applying emotional design to induce positive emotions has been considered a means to enhance the instructional effectiveness of digital learning environments. However, only a few studies have examined the specific effects of emotional design in game-based learning.

Objectives

This quasi-experimental study utilized a value-added research approach to investigate whether emotional design applied to scaffolding in a game-based learning environment improves learning and motivational outcomes more than emotionally neutral scaffolding.

Methods

A total of 138 participants, mean age of 11.5 (SD = 0.73) participated in the study. A total of 68 participants played the base version of a fraction learning game (Number Trace), where scaffolding was provided with emotionally neutral mathematical notations, and 70 participants played the value-added version of the game using emotionally designed animated scaffolding agents. Pre-and post-tests were used to measure conceptual fraction knowledge and self-reported measures of situational interest and situational self-efficacy to evaluate motivational outcomes.

Results and Conclusions

Our results indicate that the emotional design applied to scaffolds can improve the educational value of a game-based learning environment by enhancing players' situational interest and situational self-efficacy. However, although the intervention improved the participants' conceptual fraction knowledge, there was no significant difference between the scaffolding conditions in participants' learning outcomes.

Takeaways

The results suggest that emotional design can increase the educational impact of game-based learning by promoting the development of interest, as well as improving self-efficacy.     

Does crew resource management training work? An update, an extension, and some critical needs

OBJECTIVE: This review provides the state of crew resource management (CRM) training evaluations since the E. Salas, C. S. Burke, C. A. Bowers, and K. A. Wilson (2001) review and extends it to areas beyond aviation cockpits. Some critical evaluation needs in CRM training are also covered. BACKGROUND: Because of the purported success of CRM training in aviation, other high-consequence domains have begun to implement CRM training for their workforces. However, the true impact of CRM training in aviation and these other domains has yet to be determined. METHOD: Using D. L. Kirkpatrick's (1976) framework for evaluating training (i.e., reactions, learning, behavior, and organizational impact), we reviewed 28 published accounts of CRM training to determine its effectiveness within aviation, medicine, offshore oil production and maintenance, shipping/maritime, and nuclear power domains. RESULTS: Findings indicate that CRM training generally produced positive reactions from trainees; however, the impact of training on learning and behavioral changes suggest mixed results across and within domains. Furthermore, and as was found by Salas, Burke, et al. in 2001, we cannot ascertain whether CRM has had an impact on the organization's bottom line (i.e., safety). CONCLUSION: Based on the results, there are several critical needs that the CRM training community must address before CRM training can have the desired impact on safety: a mandate, access to data, and resources. APPLICATION: As CRM training expands to organizations beyond aviation, it is critical that its impact be understood such that it can be improved and achieve the intended results.     

How do live-streaming platforms facilitate persuasion in political campaigns? Theory and empirical evidence from the perspective of affordance actualization

Prior research is limited in how live-streaming platforms (LSPs) enable technological features facilitating political persuasion and engagement. Through the theoretical lens of affordance and theory of persuasion and mindfulness, this study (1) identifies persuasion-related affordances on LSPs that afford users with sufficient ability and motivation to process persuasive messages in live streaming, and (2) discovers how the actualization of such affordances fosters political mindfulness and promotes political engagement. We validate the research model using survey data collected from 16 live-streaming campaign rallies for the 2020 presidential election. This study makes significant theoretical contributions to live streaming and e-politics.     

Gender difference in web search perceptions and behavior: Does it vary by task performance?

This study investigates Chinese students' gender differences in their actual use of the web for online information seeking. One hundred and seven Chinese university students responded to questionnaires regarding their perceptions about the use of the web for learning purposes. Afterwards, all the participants were asked to search online to answer two questions about bees' decision for hive location. As they searched, the online system logged participants' search activities during the search, including the type of activities during search, the frequency of each activity and the time spent on each activity. Participants were compared by gender in terms of their web search efficacy, web search anxiety, frequency counts of different web search activities, time spent on each search activity and search task performance. Web search efficacy levels varied by gender but not by performance levels. Anxiety did not vary by gender or performance levels. The interaction effect between gender and performance level was found in several search process variables: significant gender differences were only found in medium-performing students wherein males were engaged in more search activities than females, as seen in the larger number of searches, search queries, and times male students updated the search queries. One factor that could explain the significant gender differences in the medium-level group was their web search efficacy. The more confident medium-performing male students were in web search, the less need they perceived to access information to solve the task. This pattern was reversed for medium-performing females. The high- and low-performing males did not differ much from females in their search activities. It appeared that students' perceptions of their web search ability did not contribute much to their search activities in these two groups. Implications of the findings were also discussed.     

Does internet dependence affect young people's psycho-social status? Intrafamilial and social relations,impulse control,coping ability and body image

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation between internet dependence in university students in late adolescence and self-image. The research group consisted of first year university students studying in various departments of the Karadeniz Technical University Fatih Faculty of Education. The study was performed with 623 students, 454 female and 169 male. The Internet Dependence Questionnaire, the Offer Self-Image Questionnaire and a Personal Data Form were used for data collection. Pearson product moment coefficient and multiple linear regression analysis results showed that students' internet dependence was significantly negatively correlated with the self-image subdimensions intrafamilial and social relations, impulse control, coping ability and body image. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the self-image subdimensions of intrafamilial and social relations and impulse control subdimensions significantly predict internet dependence.     

Who is Who on Twitter–Spammer,Fake or Compromised Account? A Tool to Reveal True Identity in Real-Time

Social networks once being an innoxious platform for sharing pictures and thoughts among a small online community of friends has now transformed into a powerful tool of information, activism, mobilization, and sometimes abuse. Detecting true identity of social network users is an essential step for building social media an efficient channel of communication. This paper targets the microblogging service, Twitter, as the social network of choice for investigation. It has been observed that dissipation of pornographic content and promotion of followers market are actively operational on Twitter. This clearly indicates loopholes in the Twitter’s spam detection techniques. Through this work, five types of spammers-sole spammers, pornographic users, followers market merchants, fake, and compromised profiles have been identified. For the detection purpose, data of around 1 Lakh Twitter users with their 20 million tweets has been collected. Users have been classified based on trust, user and content based features using machine learning techniques such as Bayes Net, Logistic Regression, J48, Random Forest, and AdaBoostM1. The experimental results show that Random Forest classifier is able to predict spammers with an accuracy of 92.1%. Based on these initial classification results, a novel system for real-time streaming of users for spam detection has been developed. We envision that such a system should provide an indication to Twitter users about the identity of users in real-time.     

The dark side of the boon? Credibility,selective exposure and the proliferation of online sources of political information

While the media industry may consider credibility its most valuable asset, scholars suggest there is a potential “dark side” to credibility: Perceptions of credibility of a source lead to selective exposure and selective avoidance, and both lead to increased fragmentation and polarization of social and political views. The link between credibility and selective exposure and avoidance has not received much academic attention, therefore this study employed a survey of politically interested Internet users during the 2008 presidential campaign to test the influence of credibility and reliance on selective exposure and avoidance after controlling for demographic and political factors. This study found little evidence of a dark side to credibility. Respondents who judge blogs as credible search for information that supports their point of view, as well as challenges their opinions.