An action-effect temporal contiguity holds essential information for motor control. Emerging accounts suggest that the temporally contiguous action effect is rewarding in and of itself, further ...promoting the development of motor representations and reinforcing the selection of the relevant motor program. The current study follows these theoretical and empirical indications to directly investigate the promoting impact of action effect temporal contiguity on motor performance. In two experiments, participants rapidly moved toward a target location on a computer monitor and clicked on the target with their mouse key as quickly and accurately as possible. Their click response triggered a perceptual effect (a brief flash) on the target. To examine the impact of action-effect delay and its temporal contiguity context, we manipulated action-effect delay in two temporal contiguity contexts-long versus short lag conditions. The findings demonstrate that the temporally contiguous perceptual effect enhances motor performance as indicated by end-point precision and movement speed. In addition, a substantial impact of the temporal contiguity context was observed. Namely, we found enhanced motor performance after an ambiguous (300 ms) action-effect delay sampled from short compared to long lag distributions (Experiment 1). This pattern was inconclusive for an immediate action effect (Experiment 2). We discuss the findings in the context of reinforcement from action effect and movement control.
Mental association of time and valence Ulrich, Rolf; de la Vega, Irmgard; Eikmeier, Verena ...
Memory & cognition,
02/2024, Letnik:
52, Številka:
2
Journal Article
Population-based survey experiments have become an invaluable tool for social scientists struggling to generalize laboratory-based results, and for survey researchers besieged by uncertainties about ...causality. Thanks to technological advances in recent years, experiments can now be administered to random samples of the population to which a theory applies. Yet until now, there was no self-contained resource for social scientists seeking a concise and accessible overview of this methodology, its strengths and weaknesses, and the unique challenges it poses for implementation and analysis.
This unique book is the first comprehensive guide to the discovery, analysis, and evaluation of natural experiments - an increasingly popular methodology in the social sciences. Thad Dunning provides ...an introduction to key issues in causal inference, including model specification, and emphasizes the importance of strong research design over complex statistical analysis. Surveying many examples of standard natural experiments, regression-discontinuity designs, and instrumental-variables designs, Dunning highlights both the strengths and potential weaknesses of these methods, aiding researchers in better harnessing the promise of natural experiments while avoiding the pitfalls. Dunning also demonstrates the contribution of qualitative methods to natural experiments and proposes new ways to integrate qualitative and quantitative techniques. Chapters complete with exercises and appendices covering specialized topics such as cluster-randomized natural experiments, make this an ideal teaching tool as well as a valuable book for professional researchers.
Field Experiments Harrison, Glenn W.; List, John A.
Journal of economic literature,
12/2004, Letnik:
42, Številka:
4
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Experimental economists are leaving the reservation. They are recruiting subjects in the field rather than in the classroom, using field goods rather than induced valuations, and using field context ...rather than abstract terminology in instructions. We argue that there is something methodologically fundamental behind this trend. Field experiments differ from laboratory experiments in many ways. Although it is tempting to view field experiments as simply less controlled variants of laboratory experiments, we argue that to do so would be to seriously mischaracterize them. What passes for “control” in laboratory experiments might in fact be precisely the opposite if it is artificial to the subject or context of the task. We propose six factors that can be used to determine the field context of an experiment: the nature of the subject pool, the nature of the information that the subjects bring to the task, the nature of the commodity, the nature of the task or trading rules applied, the nature of the stakes, and the environment that subjects operate in.
We discuss the contribution of the experimental literature to the understanding of both traditional and previously unexplored dimensions of gender differences and discuss their bearings on labor ...market outcomes. Experiments have offered new findings on gender discrimination, and while they have identified a bias against hiring women in some labor market segments, the discrimination detected in field experiments is less pervasive than that implied by the regression approach. Experiments have also offered new insights into gender differences in preferences: women appear to gain less from negotiation, have lower preferences than men for risk and competition, and may be more sensitive to social cues. These gender differences in preferences also have implications in group settings, whereby the gender composition of a group affects team decisions and performance. Most of the evidence on gender traits comes from the lab, and key open questions remain as to the source of gender preferences—nature versus nurture, or their interaction—and their role, if any, in the workplace.
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