Effect Of Presentation Format Research Articles

The impact of sequential and simultaneous presentation of evidence on diversity-based reasoning in preschoolers and adults

Diversity-based reasoning (DBR), the tendency to generalize from diverse samples rather than homogenous samples, is a hallmark of sophisticated inductive reasoning. However, the developmental origins of DBR remain unclear. Results from the studies reported in this paper reveal that the method by which evidence is presented plays an integral role in determining whether preschoolers (N = 117, Mage = 4;4, range 3;11–5;2) engage in DBR. In a sample comparison task (Experiments 1b and 3), young children engaged in DBR when evidence exemplars were presented sequentially, but not when these same exemplars were presented simultaneously. Experiment 1a revealed a similar effect of presentation format on adults (N = 40, Mage = 21;2). Performance across several manipulations indicates that these presentation effects are robust in children. Children generalized from diverse samples whether the contents of samples included biological properties of animals (Experiment 1) or the preferences of social actors (Experiment 2). Also, the effect remained when the inductive problem involved generalization from a single sample (Experiment 3). Overall, these results indicate that diversity-based reasoning is utilized early in development and is facilitated by specific task features that govern the processes used to make inductive generalizations.

Does serving vegetables in partitioned portions promote vegetable consumption?

Fruit and vegetable consumption in the United States is below the recommended level for two reasons: lack of access and low preference. In this work, we identify lack of preference for vegetables as a public health issue and apply theories from psychology and marketing literature to study the effect of partitioned presentation of vegetables on consumption of vegetables. Separating items into single units with clear partitions generally reduces consumption of relatively appealing foods by making the eater more aware of the amount consumed. For relatively less appealing foods (typically but not exclusively those lower in sugar/fat), a partitioned presentation format might operate to increase consumption. This expectation draws on two complementary theoretical perspectives. First, partitioning of relatively unappealing foods involve initiation rather than inhibition, and thus, fewer decision points may promote consumption. Second, because people have an intrinsic desire for completion, they may be more likely to finish a partitioned portion, even if these are made of relatively unappealing options. After conducting a pilot experiment to verify experimental procedures, we conducted two experiments (total N = 342) in which we randomly presented cauliflower (a relatively less appealing food) in either a whole presentation format (i.e., all pieces on one plate) or a partitioned presentation format (i.e., groups of cauliflower pieces arranged into subgroups with clear divisions) and measured consumption. We observed no effects of presentation format on total consumption, but we did observe an increase in minimal consumption in the partitioned format.

Effect of Presentation Format on Judgment of Long-Range Time Intervals.

Investigations in the temporal estimation domain are quite vast in the range of milliseconds, seconds, and minutes. This study aimed to determine the psychophysical function that best describes long-range time interval estimation and evaluate the effect of numerals in duration presentation on the form of this function. Participants indicated on a line the magnitude of time intervals presented either as a number + time-unit (e.g., “9 months”; Group I), unitless numerals (e.g., “9”; Group II), or tagged future personal events (e.g., “Wedding”; Group III). The horizontal line was labeled rightward (“Very short” = >“Very long”) or leftward (“Very long” = >“Very short”) for Group I and II, but only rightward for Group III. None of the linear, power, logistic or logarithmic functions provided the best fit to the individual participant data in more than 50% of participants for any group. Individual power exponents were different only between the tagged personal events (Group III) and the other two groups. When the same analysis was repeated for the aggregated data, power functions provided a better fit than other tested functions in all groups with a difference in the power function parameters again between the tagged personal events and the other groups. A non-linear mixed effects analysis indicated a difference in the power function exponent between Group III and the other groups, but not between Group I and II. No effect of scale directionality was found in neither of the experiments in which scale direction was included as independent variable. These results suggest that the judgment of intervals in a number + time-unit presentation invoke, at least in part, processing mechanisms other than those used for time-domain. Consequently, we propose the use of event-tagged assessment for characterizing long-range interval representation. We also recommend that analyses in this field should not be restricted to aggregated data given the qualitative variation between participants.

The effect of presentation format and encoding strategy on associative memory distortion

IntroductionPrevious studies using semantically related words revealed more accurate memory when the items were encoded visually rather than auditorily and when mental images were created during encoding. However, how the level of memory distortion is affected by the creation of different mental imagery formats or by techniques that should suppress generation of mental images has rarely been investigated. ObjectiveThe aim of the present studies was to investigate the ways in which the encoding strategy affects the accuracy of memory reports for two presentation formats of semantically related words: verbal and pictorial. MethodIn experiment 1, the participants were asked to memorize either pictures or their verbal equivalents (words) from the same category, using one of two encoding strategies: uttering the words or counting backwards. In experiment 2, pictorially or auditory presented material was encoded together with the creation of either visual or auditory mental images of the items. The results of the experimental groups were compared to control groups that received no specific instruction. ResultsHigher levels of false recognition, together with lower rates of correct recognition, were observed for words, presented either visually or auditory, relative to pictures. Moreover, self-generation of additional code during the processing of information favored the reduction of false recognitions. ConclusionEncoding strategies that engaged dual coding reduced false recognition. The results are discussed within the distinctiveness heuristic phenomenon.

Says Who? The Effects of Presentation Format and Source Rating on Fake News in Social Media

News—real or fake—is now abundant on social media. News posts on social media focus users’ attention on the headlines, but does it matter who wrote the article? We investigate whether changing the presentation format to highlight the source of the article affects its believability and how social media users choose to engage with it. We conducted two experiments and found that nudging users to think about who wrote the article influenced the extent to which they believed it. The presentation format of highlighting the source had a main effect; it made users more skeptical of all articles, regardless of the source’s credibility. For unknown sources, low source ratings had a direct effect on believability. Believability, in turn, influenced the extent to which users would engage with the article (e.g., read, like, comment, and share). We also found confirmation bias to be rampant: users were more likely to believe articles that aligned with their beliefs, over and above the effects of other factors.

Effects of presentation formats on consumers’ performance and perceptions in the use of personal health records among older and young adults

ObjectiveTo examine the effects of presentation formats on consumers’ performance and perceptions in the use of personal health records (PHRs) and to compare the effects between older and young adults. MethodsA two-factor, mixed design experiment was conducted, where 36 older and 36 young participants were presented with hypothetical PHRs. The PHRs were randomly presented by six presentation formats: three tables and three line graphs, varying by visual cues. Participants’ performance and perceptions in the use of PHRs were measured. ResultsPresentation formats affected participants’ performance and perceptions. Visual cue-enhanced line graphs and tables yielded less time and fewer errors, were considered easier and more useful in information comprehension, and resulted in higher confidence in correct comprehension of PHRs (all p's < 0.01), compared with their basic counterparts. There were age-related differences in task performance (all p's < 0.05), while young and older adults had similar perceptions for the six formats. Line graph with colored background was most preferred by both groups. ConclusionVisual cue-enhanced presentation formats appear effective in facilitating comprehension and eliciting favorable perceptions of PHRs for both young and older adults. Practice implicationsConsumer-facing displays of PHRs could use visual cue-enhanced presentation formats to facilitate comprehension.

The effects of presentation format on multiple document notetaking

The effects of presentation format on multiple document notetaking

Reversing the similarity effect: The effect of presentation format

A context effect is a change in preference that occurs when alternatives are added to a choice set. Models of preferential choice that account for context effects largely assume a within-dimension comparison process. It has been shown, however, that the format in which a choice set is presented can influence comparison strategies. That is, a by-alternative or by-dimension grouping of the dimension values encourage within-alternative or within-dimension comparisons, respectively. For example, one classic context effect, the compromise effect, is strengthened by a by-dimension presentation format. Extrapolation from this result suggests that a second context effect, the similarity effect, will actually reverse when stimuli are presented in a by-dimension format. In the current study, we presented participants with a series of apartment choice sets designed to elicit the similarity effect, with either a by-alternative or by-dimension presentation format. Participants in the by-alternative condition demonstrated a standard similarity effect; however, participants in the by-dimension condition demonstrated a strong reverse similarity effect. The present data can be accounted for by Multialternative Decision Field Theory (MDFT) and the Multiattribute Linear Ballistic Accumulator (MLBA), but not Elimination by Aspects (EBA). Indeed, when some weak assumptions of within-dimension processes are met, MDFT and the MLBA predict the reverse similarity effect. These modeling results suggest that the similarity effect is governed by either forgetting and inhibition (MDFT), or attention to positive or negative differences (MLBA). These results demonstrate that flexibility in the comparison process needs to be incorporated into theories of preferential choice.

The effect of presentation format for consumer responses: Evidence from eye movements

The effect of presentation format for consumer responses: Evidence from eye movements

Does a presentation's medium affect its message? PowerPoint, Prezi, and oral presentations.

Despite the prevalence of PowerPoint in professional and educational presentations, surprisingly little is known about how effective such presentations are. All else being equal, are PowerPoint presentations better than purely oral presentations or those that use alternative software tools? To address this question we recreated a real-world business scenario in which individuals presented to a corporate board. Participants (playing the role of the presenter) were randomly assigned to create PowerPoint, Prezi, or oral presentations, and then actually delivered the presentation live to other participants (playing the role of corporate executives). Across two experiments and on a variety of dimensions, participants evaluated PowerPoint presentations comparably to oral presentations, but evaluated Prezi presentations more favorably than both PowerPoint and oral presentations. There was some evidence that participants who viewed different types of presentations came to different conclusions about the business scenario, but no evidence that they remembered or comprehended the scenario differently. We conclude that the observed effects of presentation format are not merely the result of novelty, bias, experimenter-, or software-specific characteristics, but instead reveal a communication preference for using the panning-and-zooming animations that characterize Prezi presentations.

COP21 climate negotiators’ responses to climate model forecasts

Communicating climate science requires depicting uncertainty. This study shows that the tendency for COP21 policymakers to assign model forecasts less weight than their prior beliefs when making predictions is mitigated by presenting individual model forecasts with the statistical range. Policymakers involved in climate change negotiations are key users of climate science. It is therefore vital to understand how to communicate scientific information most effectively to this group1. We tested how a unique sample of policymakers and negotiators at the Paris COP21 conference update their beliefs on year 2100 global mean temperature increases in response to a statistical summary of climate models’ forecasts. We randomized the way information was provided across participants using three different formats similar to those used in Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports2,3. In spite of having received all available relevant scientific information, policymakers adopted such information very conservatively, assigning it less weight than their own prior beliefs. However, providing individual model estimates in addition to the statistical range was more effective in mitigating such inertia. The experiment was repeated with a population of European MBA students who, despite starting from similar priors, reported conditional probabilities closer to the provided models’ forecasts than policymakers. There was also no effect of presentation format in the MBA sample. These results highlight the importance of testing visualization tools directly on the population of interest.

Problematic internet usage self-regulation dilemmas: Effects of presentation format on perceived value of behavior

A model of the dynamics of self-regulation describes two patterns of commitment or progress that individuals may follow when selecting goal directed behaviors. In the commitment pattern, individuals are more likely to highlight congruent goal behavior choices while in the progress pattern individuals are more likely to balance between incongruent and congruent goal behavior choices. This study set out to test the model in the context of problematic Internet usage. After being primed about problematic Internet usage, a sample of 97 undergraduate university students completed an online survey rating the value of Internet, academic and social-related behaviors across three conditions. The three conditions paired behaviors so that they appeared to complement each other, appeared to compete against each other, and presented them individually. Results showed that Internet behaviors were rated more highly when presented as complementary than when presented as competing, supporting the prediction that presentation format primes progress and commitment frameworks and leads to higher ratings of incongruent goal behavior in the progress condition. While results did not fully support the model’s predictions regarding congruent goal behavior, they were in the predicted direction with small to moderate effect sizes. This study may inform clinical interventions by suggesting that individuals experiencing issues with problematic Internet usage would benefit from framing self-regulatory dilemmas in a competing format.

The reversed description-experience gap: Disentangling sources of presentation format effects in risky choice.

Previous literature has suggested that risky choice patterns in general--and probability weighting in particular--are strikingly different in experience-based as compared with description-based formats. In 2 reanalyses and 3 new experiments, we investigate differences between experience-based and description-based decisions using a parametric approach based on cumulative prospect theory (CPT). Once controlling for sampling biases, we consistently find a reversal of the typical description-experience gap, that is, a reduced sensitivity to probabilities and increased overweighting of small probabilities in decisions from experience as compared with decisions from descriptions. This finding supports the hypothesis that regression to the mean effects in probability estimation are a crucial source of differences between both presentation formats. Further analyses identified task specific information asymmetry prevalent in gambles involving certainty as a third source of differences. We present a novel conceptualization of multiple independent sources of bias that contribute to the description-experience gap, namely sampling biases and task specific information asymmetry on the one hand, and regression to the mean effects in probability estimation on the other hand.

Generalizing screen inferiority - does the medium, screen versus paper, affect performance even with brief tasks?

Screen inferiority in performance and metacognitive processes has been repeatedly found with text learning. Common explanations for screen inferiority relate to technological and physiological disadvantages associated with extensive reading on screen. However, recent studies point to lesser recruitment of mental effort on screen than on paper. Learning tasks involving a heavy reading burden confound technological and physiological media differences with potential media effects on recruitment of mental effort. The present study focused on media effects on effort recruitment. We examined whether screen inferiority remains even with a brief task that nevertheless requires effort recruitment. In two experiments, participants faced three short math problems that require systematic processing to solve correctly. We examined media effect on solving these problems, and the potential of disturbed perceptual fluency (i.e., disfluent versus fluent fonts) to induce effort investment. Overall, there were no performance differences between the media. However, when collecting confidence ratings, disfluency improved performance on screen and hindered it on paper. Only on paper confidence ratings were sensitive to performance differences associated with fluency, and resolution was better with the disfluent font than with the fluent font. Correspondingly, another sample reported on their preference of media for solving the problems. They expressed a clear reluctance to working on screen despite the task being brief. This preference is suggestive of reliable meta-metacognitive judgments reflecting the general lower quality of metacognitive processes on screen. The findings call for considering medium and presentation format effects on metacognitive processing when designing computerized environments, even for brief tasks.

Information presentation format moderates the unconscious-thought effect: The role of recollection

ABSTRACTThe unconscious-thought effect occurs when distraction improves complex decision-making. In two experiments using the unconscious-thought paradigm, we investigated the effect of presentation format of decision information (i) on memory for decision-relevant information and (ii) on the quality of decisions made after distraction, conscious deliberation or immediately. We used the process-dissociation procedure to measure recollection and familiarity. The two studies showed that presenting information blocked per criterion led participants to recollect more decision-relevant details compared to a presentation by option. Moreover, a Bayesian meta-analysis of the two studies provided strong evidence that conscious deliberation resulted in better decisions when the information was presented blocked per criterion and substantial evidence that distraction improved decision quality when the information was presented blocked per option. Finally, Study 2 revealed that the recollection of decision-relevant details mediated the effect of presentation format on decision quality in the deliberation condition. This suggests that recollection contributes to conscious deliberation efficacy.

Will video be the next generation of e-commerce product reviews? Presentation format and the role of product type

Researchers have systematically investigated the influence of online reviews on consumer perceptions and decisions to purchase products, but hitherto have not attended to the presentation format. Increasingly, video reviews are making their way into various websites, and their impact on consumer perceptions is not yet known. While prior research has investigated the impact of video presentation of vendor supplied product information, the effects of video presentation formats of online reviews posted by consumers, in relation to other commonly used formats such as text, are not known. The conditions of effectiveness of these presentation formats should also to be investigated so that guidelines for appropriate use can be developed. Hence, in this study, using theoretical foundations anchored on elaboration likelihood model and cognitive fit theory, we conducted a laboratory experiment comparing the impact of online reviews displayed in three presentation formats—text, image, and video—on three products—a digital camera, backpack, and videogame.We find that the presentation format of online reviews has a substantive and nuanced impact on consumer perceptions. Product type significantly moderates the effect of presentation format on consumer perceptions. Highlighting the role of presentation format and product type, our findings indicate that more research on presentation format is warranted, and vendors should make efforts to manage the presentation of online reviews. We discuss these findings, and theoretical and practical implications of the study.

How do selective attentional processes contribute to maintenance and recall in children's working memory capacity?

The development of working memory capacity is considered from the perspective of the active maintenance of items in primary memory (PM) and a cue-dependent search component, secondary memory (SM). Using free recall, plus a more novel serial interleaved items task, age-related increases in PM estimates were evident in both paradigms. In addition to this, age-related improvements in attentional selectivity were observed, indexed by the recall of target and non-target information respectively. To further characterize PM, presentation modality was varied in the serial interleaved items task (auditory, visual and dual presentation). Developmental differences were found in the effectiveness of presentation formats. Older children’s recall was enhanced by the combination of labeled visual items and enduring auditory information, whilst the same format was detrimental to younger children’s recall of target information. The present results show how estimates of PM and SM in children relate to the development of working memory capacity, but measurement of these constructs in children is not straightforward. Data also points to age-related changes in selective attention, which in turn contributes to children’s ability to process and maintain information in working memory.

Exploring spatial working memory performance in individuals with Williams syndrome: The effect of presentation format and configuration

Williams syndrome (WS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with an impaired capacity for visuospatial representation. Individuals with WS have a specific weakness in spatial processing, while visual components are relatively well preserved. This dissociation is apparent in working memory function too. The present study aimed to further investigate spatial working memory performance in individuals with WS, analyzing whether their impaired WM performance regards both simultaneous and sequential spatial formats, and whether presenting configurations differently might reduce their difficulties. These issues were examined by administering simultaneous and sequential spatial tasks, in which the information to be recalled was presented in random or arranged configurations. Our results showed that individuals with WS performed less well than typically developing (TD) children in the spatial-simultaneous task, but not in the spatial-sequential one. The presence of a pattern enhanced the performance of both groups, but the difference between the two groups' performance in the spatial simultaneous task remained, albeit to a lesser degree.

Fair value accounting for liabilities: Presentation format of credit risk changes and individual information processing

International Accounting Standard 39 (IAS 39) and the Statement of Financial Accounting Standard 159 (SFAS 159) both require a firm to include adjustments to the fair values of its liabilities resulting from changes in its own credit risk in net income. Previous research confirms that including these gains and losses in net income can confuse financial statement users. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) therefore issued a revised standard for financial instruments, International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 9. It requires that credit risk effects be presented in other comprehensive income (OCI) instead of net income. We use an experiment to investigate whether this difference in presentation affects knowledgeable nonprofessional investors and whether the presentation format effect depends on firm profitability. We find that participants are more likely to acquire the information on changes in credit risk if that information is included in OCI. The perceived importance of credit risk information for the evaluation of firm performance is only slightly lower under the OCI presentation format, and the risk of misinterpreting a credit risk gain is unaffected by the presentation format. However, the evaluation of overall firm performance is less biased if fair value gains are included in OCI. Moreover, information acquisition and the interaction of weighting and credit risk evaluation mediate the effect of presentation format on firm performance evaluation. Furthermore, we identify firm profitability as an important factor that influences the processing of information on credit risk changes.

Additional boundary condition for list-method directed forgetting: The effect of presentation format.

The attempt to forget some recently encoded information renders this information difficult to recall in a subsequent memory test. "Forget" instructions are only effective when followed by learning of new material. In the present study, we asked whether the new material needs to match the format of the to-be-forgotten information for forgetting effects to emerge. Participants studied visually presented words or line drawings (L1) and afterward were instructed to remember or forget these items. Then a 2nd conceptually unrelated list (L2) was presented that either matched or mismatched the format of L1. Forgetting effects were observed only when the lists matched in format but not when the formats mismatched. This result establishes an important boundary condition of directed forgetting and suggests that when salient retrieval cues guide retrieval, they eliminate the effect of the "forget" cue. Implications for theories of directed forgetting are discussed.