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- Creators: Atkinson, Robert
- Creators: School of International Letters and Cultures
- Resource Type: Text
Description
Lots of previous studies have analyzed human tutoring at great depths and have shown expert human tutors to produce effect sizes, which is twice of that produced by an intelligent tutoring system (ITS). However, there has been no consensus on which factor makes them so effective. It is important to know this, so that same phenomena can be replicated in an ITS in order to achieve the same level of proficiency as expert human tutors. Also, to the best of my knowledge no one has looked at student reactions when they are working with a computer based tutor. The answers to both these questions are needed in order to build a highly effective computer-based tutor. My research focuses on the second question. In the first phase of my thesis, I analyzed the behavior of students when they were working with a step-based tutor Andes, using verbal-protocol analysis. The accomplishment of doing this was that I got to know of some ways in which students use a step-based tutor which can pave way for the creation of more effective computer-based tutors. I found from the first phase of the research that students often keep trying to fix errors by guessing repeatedly instead of asking for help by clicking the hint button. This phenomenon is known as hint refusal. Surprisingly, a large portion of the student's foundering was due to hint refusal. The hypothesis tested in the second phase of the research is that hint refusal can be significantly reduced and learning can be significantly increased if Andes uses more unsolicited hints and meta hints. An unsolicited hint is a hint that is given without the student asking for one. A meta-hint is like an unsolicited hint in that it is given without the student asking for it, but it just prompts the student to click on the hint button. Two versions of Andes were compared: the original version and a new version that gave more unsolicited and meta-hints. During a two-hour experiment, there were large, statistically reliable differences in several performance measures suggesting that the new policy was more effective.
ContributorsRanganathan, Rajagopalan (Author) / VanLehn, Kurt (Thesis advisor) / Atkinson, Robert (Committee member) / Burleson, Winslow (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Menopause is reproductive senescence characterized by a loss of ovarian estrogen and progesterone. Women can experience cognitive decline and other negative symptoms with the loss of ovarian hormones (Sherwin, 2006). While hormone therapies (HT) can treat symptoms of menopause and may have neuroprotective properties, such as the potential to decrease the risk of Alzheimer's Disease (Behl & Manthey, 2000), there are many effects of current HTs that are not ideal. Indeed, optimizing conventional HTs has proven complex, indicating a need for alternative therapies. Phytoestrogens are estrogenic compounds found naturally in plants such as soybeans, that could provide new treatment options. Dietary phytoestrogens can benefit memory in the rodent model (Luine, 2006), although the mechanism underlying these effects is unclear. Basal forebrain cholinergic projections have been shown to mediate the cognitive benefits of estrogen (Gibbs, 2010); we hypothesize that phytoestrogens act similarly, via the cholinergic system, to impact memory. We administered varying doses of phytoestrogen-containing diets to ovariectomized female rats, and used the place recognition task to evaluate spatial memory. Brains were then analyzed for choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), the synthesizing enzyme for acetylcholine, in the vertical-diagonal bands (VDB) and the medial septum (MS) of the basal forebrain. Results showed that ChAT cell counts in the VDB were marginally higher with dietary phytoestrogen treatment. Further, VDB ChAT cell counts positively correlated with place recognition performance, indicating that animals with more VDB ChAT neurons exhibited better spatial memory performance. These results suggest that phytoestrogens might act similarly to natural, endogenously circulating estrogens, and identify phytoestrogens as a direction for investigation as a HT.
ContributorsMousa, Abeer Abdul (Author) / Bimonte-Nelson, Heather (Thesis director) / Olive, Foster (Committee member) / Deviche, Pierre (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School for the Science of Health Care Delivery (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Abstract Chess has been a common research topic for expert-novice studies and thus for learning science as a whole because of its limited framework and longevity as a game. One factor is that chess studies are good at measuring how expert chess players use their memory and skills to approach a new chessboard con�guration. Studies have shown that chess skill is based on memory, speci�cally, "chunks" of chess piece positions that have been previously encountered by players. However, debate exists concerning how these chunks are constructed in players' memory. These chunks could be constructed by proximity of pieces on the chessboard as well as their precise location or constructed through attack-defense relations. The primary objective of this study is to support which one is more in line with chess players' actual chess abilities based off their memory, proximity or attack/defense. This study replicates and extends an experiment conducted by McGregor and Howe (2002), which explored the argument that pieces are primed more by attack and defense relations than by proximity. Like their study, the present study examined novice and expert chess players' response times for correct and error responses by showing slides of game configurations. In addition to these metrics, the present study also incorporated an eye-tracker to measure visual attention and EEG to measure affective and cognitive states. They were added to allow the comparison of subtle and unconscious behaviors of both novices and expert chess players. Overall, most McGregor and Howe's (2002) results were replicated supporting their theory on chess expertise. This included statistically significance for skill in the error rates with the mean error rates on the piece recognition tests were 70.1% for novices and 87.9% for experts, as well as significance for the two-way interaction for relatedness and proximity with error rates of 22.4% for unrelated/far, 18.8% for related/far, 15.8% for unrelated
ear, and 29.3% for related
ear. Unfortunately, there were no statistically significance for any of the response time effects, which McGregor and Howe found for the interaction between skill and proximity. Despite eye-tracking and EEG data not either support nor confirm McGregor and Howe's theory on how chess players memorize chessboard configurations, these metrics did help build a secondary theory on how novices typically rely on proximity to approach chess and new visual problems in general. This was exemplified by the statistically significant results for short-term excitement for the two-way interaction of skill and proximity, where the largest short-term excitement score was between novices on near proximity slides. This may indicate that novices, because they may lean toward using proximity to try to recall these pieces, experience a short burst of excitement when the pieces are close to each other because they are more likely to recall these configurations.
ear, and 29.3% for related
ear. Unfortunately, there were no statistically significance for any of the response time effects, which McGregor and Howe found for the interaction between skill and proximity. Despite eye-tracking and EEG data not either support nor confirm McGregor and Howe's theory on how chess players memorize chessboard configurations, these metrics did help build a secondary theory on how novices typically rely on proximity to approach chess and new visual problems in general. This was exemplified by the statistically significant results for short-term excitement for the two-way interaction of skill and proximity, where the largest short-term excitement score was between novices on near proximity slides. This may indicate that novices, because they may lean toward using proximity to try to recall these pieces, experience a short burst of excitement when the pieces are close to each other because they are more likely to recall these configurations.
ContributorsSeto, Christian Paul (Author) / Atkinson, Robert (Thesis director) / Runger, George (Committee member) / Industrial, Systems (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Physical activity is something that everyone engages in at varying levels. It has been linked to positively impacting general wellbeing, as well as preparing the mind and body to learn new skills. However, the significance of physical activity remains under-explored in some areas. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between physical activity levels and emotional intelligence, navigation and planning skills, motor skills, memory capacity, and one’s perception of the ‘value’ of an object or an experience. During sessions, participants were equipped with two physiological sensors: the EEG B-Alert X10 or X24 headset, and the Shimmer GSR3. In addition to these, two external sensors were used: a web camera for recording and evaluating facial expressions, and the Tobii X2-30, X2-60, or Tobii T60XL eye tracking systems, used to monitor visual attention. These sensors were used to collect data while participants completed a series of tasks: the Self-Report of Emotional Intelligence Test, the Tower of London Test, the Motor Speed Test, the Working Memory Capacity Battery, watching product-centered videos, and watching experience-centered videos. Multiple surveys were also conducted, including a demographic survey, a nutritional and health survey, and a sports preference survey. Utilizing these metrics, this study found that those who exercise more experience and express higher levels of emotion, including joy, sadness, contempt, disgust, confusion, frustration, surprise, anger, and fear. This implies a difference in emotional response modulation between those who exercise more and those who exercise less, which in turn implies a difference in perception between the two groups. There were no significant findings related to navigation and planning skills, motor skills, or memory capacity from this analysis.
ContributorsFalls, Tarryn (Author) / Atkinson, Robert (Thesis director) / Chavez-Echeagaray, Maria Elena (Committee member) / Arts, Media and Engineering Sch T (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
The purpose of this instructional design and development study was to describe, evaluate and improve the instructional design process and the work of interdisciplinary design teams. A National Science Foundation (NSF) funded, Transforming Undergraduate Education in Science (TUES) project was the foundation for this study. The project developed new curriculum materials to teach learning content in unsaturated soils in undergraduate geotechnical engineering classes, a subset of the civil engineering. The study describes the instructional design (ID) processes employed by the team members as they assess the need, develop the materials, disseminate the learning unit, and evaluate its effectiveness, along with the impact the instructional design process played in the success of the learning materials with regard to student achievement and faculty and student attitudes. Learning data were collected from undergraduate geotechnical engineering classes from eight partner universities across the country and Puerto Rico over three phases of implementation. Data were collected from students and faculty that included pretest/posttest scores and attitudinal survey questions. The findings indicated a significant growth in the learning with the students of the faculty who were provided all learning materials. The findings also indicated an overall faculty and student satisfaction with the instructional materials. Observational and anecdotal data were also collected in the form of team meeting notes, personal observations, interviews and design logs. Findings of these data indicated a preference with working on an interdisciplinary instructional design team. All these data assisted in the analysis of the ID process, providing a basis for descriptive and inferential data used to provide suggestions for improving the ID process and the work of interdisciplinary instructional design teams.
ContributorsOrnelas, Arthur (Author) / Savenye, Wilhelmina C. (Thesis advisor) / Atkinson, Robert (Committee member) / Bitter, Gary (Committee member) / Houston, Sandra (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate the effects of textual and visual annotations on Spanish listening comprehension and vocabulary acquisition in the context of an online multimedia listening activity. 95 students who were enrolled in different sections of first year Spanish classes at a community college and a large southwestern university were randomly assigned to one of four versions of an online multimedia listening activity that contained textual and visual annotations of several key words. Students then took a comprehension and vocabulary posttest and a survey to measure cognitive load and general attitudes towards the program. Results indicated that textual annotations had a significant positive effect on listening comprehension and that visual annotations had a significant positive effect on how successful students felt. No statistically significant differences were found for other variables. Participants also reported positive attitudes towards vocabulary annotations and expressed a desire to see more annotations during multimedia listening activities of this type. These findings provide further evidence of the impact that multimedia may have on language acquisition. These findings have implications for multimedia design and for future research. Language listening activities should include a variety of vocabulary annotations that may help students to understand what they hear and to help them learn new vocabulary. Further research is needed outside of the laboratory, in the online and increasingly-mobile language learning environment in order to align the research with the environment in which many students currently study. The incorporation of motivation into multimedia learning theory and cognitive load should be explored, as well as new measures of cognitive load.
ContributorsCottam, Michael Evan (Author) / Savenye, Wilhelmina (Thesis advisor) / Klein, James D. (Committee member) / Atkinson, Robert (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description
The relevance of depression in the clinical realm is well known, as it is one of the most common mental disorders in the United States. Clinical depression is the leading cause of disease for women worldwide. The sex difference in depression and anxiety has guided the research of not just recent studies but older studies as well, supporting the theory that gonadal hormones are associated with the mechanisms of emotional cognition. The scientific literature points towards a clear correlative relationship between gonadal hormones, especially estrogens, and emotion regulation. This thesis investigates the neural pathways that have been indicated to regulate mood and anxiety. Currently, the research points to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, which regulates the stress response through its ultimate secretion of cortisol through the adrenal cortex, and its modulated response when exposed to higher levels of estrogen. Another mechanism that has been investigated is the interaction of estrogen and the serotonergic system, which is noteworthy because the serotonergic system is known for its importance in mood regulation. However, it is important to note that the research seeking to determine the neurobiological underpinnings of estrogen and the serotonergic system is not expansive. Future research should focus on determining the direct relationship between cortisol hypersecretion and estrogens, the specific neurobiological effects of serotonergic receptor subtypes on the antidepressant actions of estrogens, and the simultaneous effects of the stress and serotonergic systems on depressive symptoms.
ContributorsArroyo, Mariana (Author) / Bimonte-Nelson, Heather (Thesis director) / Jurutka, Peter (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
The current study investigated emotional language use in middle aged and older adults in interviews in which they were asked questions relating to Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Participants were split into two groups, one that attended Memory Clinic to have their cognition assessed, representing information seekers, and those who did not attend. These interviews were then transcribed and run through LIWC2015 software to determine linguistic differences between the two groups. Results did not indicate statistically significant differences between language use in those who attended Memory Clinic compared with those who did not. Further study with a sample that has higher levels of anxiety related to Alzheimer's disease and related dementias may produce statistically significant results.
ContributorsKalman, Talya (Author) / Maxfield, Molly (Thesis director) / Updegraff, Kimberly (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Hugh Downs School of Human Communication (Contributor) / Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics (Contributor)
Created2022-05
Description
There are currently no disease-modifying treatments to halt or attenuate the progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Transgenic rodent models have provided researchers the ability to recapitulate particular pathological and symptomological events in disease progression. Complete reproduction of all features of AD in a rodent model has not been achieved, potentially lending to the inconclusive treatment results at the clinical level. Recently, the TgF344-AD transgenic rat model has started to be evaluated; however, it has not been well characterized in terms of its cognition, which is fundamental to understanding the trajectory of aging relative to pathology and learning and memory changes. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to identify cognitive outcomes at 6, 9, and 12 months of age in the TgF344-AD rat model. Sixty female transgenic (Tg) and wildtype (WT) rats were tested on the water radial arm maze, Morris water maze, and visible platform task to evaluate cognition. Results from the asymptotic phase of the water radial arm maze showed that the 6 mo-Tg animals had marginally impaired working memory compared to 6 mo-WT rats, and 12 mo-Tg rats had significantly impaired working memory compared to 12 mo-WT rats. The 9 mo-Tg animals did not demonstrate a significant difference in working memory errors compared to the 9 mo-WT animals. This pattern of impairment, wherein Tg animals made more working memory errors compared to WT animals at the 6 and 12 month time points, but not at the 9 month time point, may be indicative of an inflammatory response that proves helpful at incipient stages of disease progression but eventually leads to further cognitive impairment. These results provide insight into the potential earliest time point that prodromal cognitive symptoms of AD exist, and how they progress with aging. Brain tissue was collected at sacrifice for future analyses of pathology, which will be used to glean insight into the temporal progression of pathological and cognitive outcomes.
ContributorsBulen, Haidyn Leigh (Co-author) / Bulen, Haidyn (Co-author) / Bimonte-Nelson, Heather (Thesis director) / Presson, Clark (Committee member) / Conrad, Cheryl (Committee member) / Woner, Victoria (Committee member) / Peña, Veronica (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
Histology, the microscopic examination of tissues, is a pivotal tool in research. By providing a detailed view of cellular structures and their organization, this technique allows researchers to advance knowledge in many different disciplines including women’s health and ovarian studies. Studying the female reproductive system is of utmost importance due to its multifaceted effects on aspects such as biological functions, cellular mechanisms, and complex behavioral patterns in women. Therefore, the aim of this honors thesis is to refine and adapt a set of protocols from the Mayer-Dyer Laboratory for ovarian and follicular processing so that they are optimal to use in the Bimonte-Nelson Laboratory of Memory and Aging in the Department of Psychology at Arizona State University. The subsequent aim for the thesis is to replicate and extend the new protocols to complete histology of the ovaries from an interdisciplinary study that evaluated the consequences of hysterectomy with and without estrogen replacement for brain and cognition. This dual-pronged approach will not only contribute to the ongoing discussion regarding the effects of hysterectomy, but also provides a valuable framework for future research endeavors in the field.
ContributorsMitbander, Avantika (Author) / Bimonte-Nelson, Heather (Thesis director) / Mayer, Loretta (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Public Affairs (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2024-05