Testing architectures of the decision–confidence relation.

Two experiments examined the effect of rendering confidence judgments on the properties of the comparative decision process. In Exp 1, participants worked for 12 sessions that required 2-alternative perceptual, line-length comparisons. For sessions 1–4 and sessions 9–12, confidence judgments were not required. For sessions 5–8, participants provided confidence reports following each comparative judgment. The requirement of confidence judgments significantly increased decisional response time, suggesting that some confidence processing occurs in parallel with the primary decision process. Concomitantly, an examination of the properties of the time to determine confidence during sessions 5–8 revealed clear evidence of postdecisional confidence processing. These results were replicated in a 2nd experiment requiring 2 alternative comparative judgments of Canadian city populations. The authors conclude that confidence processing occurs both during the decision process and postdecisionally, and discuss the implications of the present findings for current theories of confidence in human judgment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnotically induced limb anesthesia and adaptation to displacing prisms: A failure to confirm.

Tested 3 groups of 10 undergraduates for accuracy of pointing at a visual target before and after wearing displacing prisms. One group consisted of highly susceptible Ss given a hypnotic suggestion for limb anesthesia following the pretest, and a 2nd group included low susceptible Ss instructed to fake limb anesthesia. A control group unselected on susceptibility received no special instructions. The high susceptibles reported significantly greater felt anesthesia than Ss in the other 2 treatments. Nevertheless, Ss in all 3 groups showed very large displacement errors (i.e., errors in pointing) following prism removal. Results fail to confirm reports that placement errors were eliminated by hypnotic suggestion in highly susceptible Ss. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moisture management of underwear fabrics and linings of firefighter protective clothing assemblies

Thermal comfort of firefighters is strongly dependent on moisture management of clothing layers closest to the skin. This study centers on liquid moisture and moisture vapor transfer across various types of underwear fabrics and innermost layers of the firefighter intervention jacket (linings). Importance of the underwear neighboring layer in liquid moisture and moisture vapor transfer and hence, in thermal comfort of a firefighter is underlined and discussed. Moisture management tester is employed as an efficient tool in evaluating a transfer of liquid moisture not only through individual underwear fabric but also through bi-layers underwear lining. Moisture vapor transfer properties of mono- and bi-layer fabrics were investigated by evaporative dish method. The results show that moisture management performances of tested mono- and bi-layer fabrics are related to their composition and the general physical properties. Composition of both underwear and lining has a crucial impact on liquid moisture transfer through bi-layers. Transfer of moisture vapor is mainly governed by fabric physical properties. Combination of natural and synthetic fibers results in best performing fabrics with regard to the moisture management.     

On the calibration of knowledge and perception

This study examined confidence judgements (i.e., calibration, resolution, and over/underconfidence) and response times in an intellectual knowledge task and a perceptual task requiring location comparisons. At each of four levels of judgement difficulty (i.e., Easy, Hard, Impossible and Misleading/Illusory), very similar properties were evident in the two tasks. The results are inconsistent with theories that assume a fundamentally different basis for confidence in human knowledge and perception.     

Development and characterization of thermosensitive hydrogels based on poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) and calcium alginate

This work refers to the synthesis and characterization of thermosensitive hydrogels based on interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs) of poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) and calcium alginate in the form of films. The influence of the crosslinking degree of PNIPAAm and alginate content on thermal, swelling, mechanical, and morphological properties of hydrogels is investigated in detail. Characterization of pure PNIPAAm hydrogels and IPN hydrogels was performed by FTIR, DSC, DMA, and SEM. In addition, the studies of equilibrium swelling behavior as well as swelling, deswelling, and reswelling kinetics are performed. The results obtained imply the benefits of synthesizing IPNs based on PNIPAAm and calcium alginate over pure PNIPAAm hydrogels. The presence of calcium alginate contributes to the improvement of mechanical properties, the deswelling rate of hydrogels, and the network porosity, without altering the thermosensitivity of PNIPAAm significantly. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Adaptive decision processes in perceptual comparisons: Effects of changes in global difficulty context.

Adaptive decision processes were investigated in experiments involving an unexpected change in the global ease or difficulty of the task. Under accuracy stress, a shift from an easy to a difficult context induced a marked increase in decision time, but a shift from a difficult to an easy context did not. Under speed stress, a shift to a more difficult context induced lower accuracy and rated confidence, depending on the difficulty of the decisions. A view of caution developed in D. Vickers's (1979) accumulator theory--whereby one seeks to base decisions on more information--is compared with a view based on slow and fast guessing theory (W. M. Petrusic, 1992; W. M. Petrusic & J. V. Baranski, 1989a)--whereby one seeks to base decisions on more diagnostic information. On balance, the findings support the latter view. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Probing the locus of confidence judgments: Experiments on the time to determine confidence.

Three experiments investigated the properties of the time to determine confidence to determine the processing locus for the judgment of confidence. Results suggest that when the primary decision is made under speed stress, confidence is determined postdecisionally and involves a memory-based, computational algorithm. This strategy frees the primary decision of processing time and permits the accurate diagnosis of decision errors. When the primary decision is made under accuracy stress, however, the determination of confidence is initiated, or can even be completed, during the primary decision process. This strategy permits confidence to be used in the adaptive regulation of the decisional parameters during the decision process but yields poorer diagnosticity of errors when they occur. The latter finding also implies that primary decision latencies include time to determine confidence, rendering such data difficult, if not impossible, to model empirically. Implications for contemporary decision models that provide a basis for confidence in human judgment are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rare event probabilities unfold.

Surveyed 950 automobile drivers to obtain 2 direct measures of the subjective probability of arrest for drunken driving. Ss were approached at 3 shopping malls and asked to complete a questionnaire if they were at least 18 yrs old, held a valid driver's license, and consumed alcoholic beverages. One measure required Ss to select a probability from a rating scale with logarithmically spaced alternatives ranging from 10–6 to 1. The other, obtained from the set of all binary comparisons on a set of probabilities, established the reliability and validity of the rating scale. Least-square estimates of scale values based on G. Bechtel's (1968) algorithm for C. H. Coombs's (see PA, Vols 25:45 and 33:5568) unfolding theory of unidimensional preferential choice were a logarithmic function of the numerical probabilities. Importantly, this was the case for both the Ss receiving the pairs first and for those receiving the pairs second, showing that the logarithmic psychophysical functions were not an artifact of using the logarithmic rating scale first. Converging behavioral evidence and examining the reported frequency of drunken driving and the estimated probability of arrest reinforced the conclusion that the subjective probability of a rare event, such as arrest for drunken driving, could be assessed directly. (French abstract) (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Context, feedback, and the calibration and resolution of confidence in perceptual judgments

The effects of variations in the global task difficulty context on judgmental confidence and confidence calibration were investigated in two experiments requiring perceptual comparisons. In Experiment 1, target judgments of moderate difficulty were embedded in a larger set of more difficult (hard context) or less difficult (easy context) judgments. Decisional response time on the target items was longer in the hard context condition, but there was no effect of difficulty context on target judgment confidence, accuracy, over/underconfidence, calibration, or resolution. In Experiment 2, each subject was exposed to three levels of local judgment difficulty. The global contextual difficulty manipulation involved varying the frequency with which the hard and easy judgments appeared, and the presence or absence of trial-by-trial response feedback was manipulated between subjects. As in Experiment 1, contextual difficulty affected decisional response times but not mean confidence ratings or accuracy. However, we found that providing feedback on a globally difficult task makes calibration worse. Also, resolution (the ability to differentiate correct from incorrect judgments) was found to be superior for easy judgments in a difficult context and for difficult judgments in an easy context. We discuss the implication of these findings for research on confidence and confidence calibration.     

Die oxidation von butadienstyrolkautschuk und daraus gewonnenem vulkanisat mit salpetersäure

The interaction between butadiene-styrene-rubber Bulex-1500 (a commercial product containing 25 to 30% of styrene links) and a vulcanisate based on it and nitric acid was studied. It was established that a measurable yield of several reaction products may be obtained: Butadiene-styrene-rubber yields oxidized rubber, polyfunctional oligomer, and oxalic acid; the vulcanisate yields oxidized vulcanisate, polyfunctional oligomer, and oxalic acid. The effect of the conditions of oxidation (particle size, time, temperature) on the yield of the reaction products was studied. The conditions needed to obtain optimum yield of a given reaction product were determined. The influence of the styrene links from the molecule of butadienestyrene-rubber on the yield was studied and a comparison with butadiene rubber was made. It was established that oxalic acid is a product of a number of oxidation-decomposition processes in nitric acid medium, and a scheme of its formation was suggested. It was proved that oxidation-decomposition processes and nitration occur simultaneously. It was suggested that the interaction of nitric acid with butadienestyrene-rubber and its vulcanisate may be used to utilize waste products obtained from them.