@article{YangWangYanetal.2012, author = {Yang, Jiongjiong and Wang, Aobing and Yan, Ming and Zhu, Zijian and Chen, Cheng and Wang, Yizhou}, title = {Distinct processing for pictures of animals and objects Evidence from eye movements}, series = {Emotion : a new journal from the American Psychological Association}, volume = {12}, journal = {Emotion : a new journal from the American Psychological Association}, number = {3}, publisher = {American Psychological Association}, address = {Washington}, issn = {1528-3542}, doi = {10.1037/a0026848}, pages = {540 -- 551}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Many studies have suggested that emotional stimuli orient and engage attention. There is also evidence that animate stimuli, such as those from humans and animals, cause attentional bias. However, categorical and emotional factors are usually mixed, and it is unclear to what extent human context influences attentional allocation. To address this issue, we tracked participants' eye movements while they viewed pictures with animals and inanimate images (i.e., category) as focal objects. These pictures had either negative or neutral emotional valence, and either human body parts or nonhuman parts were near the focal objects (i.e., context). The picture's valence, arousal, position, size, and most of the low-level visual features were matched across categories. The results showed that nonhuman animals were more likely to be attended to and to be attended to for longer times than inanimate objects. The same pattern held for the human contexts (vs. nonhuman contexts). The effects of emotional valence, category, and context interacted. Specifically, in images with a negative valence, focal animals and objects with human context had comparable numbers of gaze fixations and gaze duration. These results highlighted the attentional bias to animate parts of a picture and clarified that the effects of category, valence, and picture context interacted to influence attentional allocation.}, language = {en} } @article{YanZhouShuetal.2012, author = {Yan, Ming and Zhou, Wei and Shu, Hua and Kliegl, Reinhold}, title = {Lexical and sublexical semantic preview benefits in chinese reading}, series = {Journal of experimental psychology : Learning, memory, and cognition}, volume = {38}, journal = {Journal of experimental psychology : Learning, memory, and cognition}, number = {4}, publisher = {American Psychological Association}, address = {Washington}, issn = {0278-7393}, doi = {10.1037/a0026935}, pages = {1069 -- 1075}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Semantic processing from parafoveal words is an elusive phenomenon in alphabetic languages, but it has been demonstrated only for a restricted set of noncompound Chinese characters. Using the gaze-contingent boundary paradigm, this experiment examined whether parafoveal lexical and sublexical semantic information was extracted from compound preview characters. Results generalized parafoveal semantic processing to this representative set of Chinese characters and extended the parafoveal processing to radical (sublexical) level semantic information extraction. Implications for notions of parafoveal information extraction during Chinese reading are discussed.}, language = {en} } @article{YanRisseZhouetal.2012, author = {Yan, Ming and Risse, Sarah and Zhou, Xiaolin and Kliegl, Reinhold}, title = {Preview fixation duration modulates identical and semantic preview benefit in Chinese reading}, series = {Reading and writing : an interdisciplinary journal}, volume = {25}, journal = {Reading and writing : an interdisciplinary journal}, number = {5}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Dordrecht}, issn = {0922-4777}, doi = {10.1007/s11145-010-9274-7}, pages = {1093 -- 1111}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Semantic preview benefit from parafoveal words is critical for proposals of distributed lexical processing during reading. Semantic preview benefit has been demonstrated for Chinese reading with the boundary paradigm in which unrelated or semantically related previews of a target word N + 1 are replaced by the target word once the eyes cross an invisible boundary located after word N (Yan et al., 2009); for the target word in position N + 2, only identical compared to unrelated-word preview led to shorter fixation times on the target word (Yan et al., in press). A reanalysis of these data reveals that identical and semantic preview benefits depend on preview duration (i.e., the fixation duration on the preboundary word). Identical preview benefit from word N + 1 increased with preview duration. The identical preview benefit was also significant for N + 2, but did not significantly interact with preview duration. The previously reported semantic preview benefit from word N + 1 was mainly due to single- or first-fixation durations following short previews. We discuss implications for notions of serial attention shifts and parallel distributed processing of words during reading.}, language = {en} } @article{WarschburgerKroeller2012, author = {Warschburger, Petra and Kr{\"o}ller, Katja}, title = {Childhood overweight and obesity: maternal perceptions of the time for engaging in child weight management}, doi = {10.1186/1471-2458-12-295}, year = {2012}, language = {en} } @article{WarschburgerKroeller2012, author = {Warschburger, Petra and Kr{\"o}ller, Katja}, title = {"Childhood overweight and obesity maternal perceptions of the time for engaging in child weight management"}, series = {BMC public health}, volume = {12}, journal = {BMC public health}, number = {12}, publisher = {BioMed Central}, address = {London}, issn = {1471-2458}, doi = {10.1186/1471-2458-12-295}, pages = {8}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Background: There is an increasing awareness of the impact of parental risk perception on the weight course of the child and the parent's readiness to engage in preventive efforts, but only less is known about factors related to the parental perception of the right time for the implementation of preventive activities. The aim of this study was to examine parental perceptions of the appropriate time to engage in child weight management strategies, and the factors associated with different weight points at which mothers recognize the need for preventive actions. Methods: 352 mothers with children aged 2-10 years took part in the study. We assessed mothers' perceptions of the actual and preferred weight status of their child, their ability to identify overweight and knowledge of its associated health risks, as well as perceptions of the right time for action to prevent overweight in their child. A regression analysis was conducted to examine whether demographic and weight related factors as well as the maternal general risk perception were associated with recognizing the need to implement prevention strategies. Results: Although most of the parents considered a BMI in the 75th to 90th percentile a valid reason to engage in the prevention of overweight, 19\% of the mothers were not willing to engage in prevention until their child reached the 97th percentile. Whereas the child's sex and the identification of an elevated BMI were significant predictors for parents' recognition of the 75th percentile as right point to engage in prevention efforts, an inability to recognize physical health risks associated with overweight silhouettes emerged as a significant factor predicting which parents would delay prevention efforts until a child's BMI reached the 97th percentile. Conclusion: Parental misperceptions of overweight and associated health risks constitute unfavorable conditions for preventive actions. Feedback on the health risks associated with overweight could help increase maternal readiness for change.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Urbach2012, author = {Urbach, Tina}, title = {What makes or breaks proactivity at work : how personal motives affect the evaluation of improvement suggestions}, address = {Potsdam}, pages = {226 S.}, year = {2012}, language = {en} } @article{TschentscherHaukFischeretal.2012, author = {Tschentscher, Nadja and Hauk, Olaf and Fischer, Martin H. and Pulverm{\"u}ller, Friedemann}, title = {You can count on the motor cortex finger counting habits modulate motor cortex activation evoked by numbers}, series = {NeuroImage : a journal of brain function}, volume = {59}, journal = {NeuroImage : a journal of brain function}, number = {4}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {San Diego}, issn = {1053-8119}, doi = {10.1016/j.neuroimage.2011.11.037}, pages = {3139 -- 3148}, year = {2012}, abstract = {The embodied cognition framework suggests that neural systems for perception and action are engaged during higher cognitive processes. In an event-related fMRI study, we tested this claim for the abstract domain of numerical symbol processing: is the human cortical motor system part of the representation of numbers, and is organization of numerical knowledge influenced by individual finger counting habits? Developmental studies suggest a link between numerals and finger counting habits due to the acquisition of numerical skills through finger counting in childhood. In the present study, digits 1 to 9 and the corresponding number words were presented visually to adults with different finger counting habits, i.e. left- and right-starters who reported that they usually start counting small numbers with their left and right hand, respectively. Despite the absence of overt hand movements, the hemisphere contralateral to the hand used for counting small numbers was activated when small numbers were presented. The correspondence between finger counting habits and hemispheric motor activation is consistent with an intrinsic functional link between finger counting and number processing.}, language = {en} } @article{TsaiKlieglYan2012, author = {Tsai, Jie-Li and Kliegl, Reinhold and Yan, Ming}, title = {Parafoveal semantic information extraction in traditional Chinese reading}, series = {Acta psychologica : international journal of psychonomics}, volume = {141}, journal = {Acta psychologica : international journal of psychonomics}, number = {1}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {0001-6918}, doi = {10.1016/j.actpsy.2012.06.004}, pages = {17 -- 23}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Semantic information extraction from the parafovea has been reported only in simplified Chinese for a special subset of characters and its generalizability has been questioned. This study uses traditional Chinese, which differs from simplified Chinese in visual complexity and in mapping semantic forms, to demonstrate access to parafoveal semantic information during reading of this script. Preview duration modulates various types (identical, phonological, and unrelated) of parafoveal information extraction. Parafoveal semantic extraction is more elusive in English; therefore, we conclude that such effects in Chinese are presumably caused by substantial cross-language differences from alphabetic scripts. The property of Chinese characters carrying rich lexical information in a small region provides the possibility of semantic extraction in the parafovea.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Trukenbrod2012, author = {Trukenbrod, Hans Arne}, title = {Temporal and spatial aspects of eye-movement control : from reading to scanning}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-70206}, school = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Eye movements are a powerful tool to examine cognitive processes. However, in most paradigms little is known about the dynamics present in sequences of saccades and fixations. In particular, the control of fixation durations has been widely neglected in most tasks. As a notable exception, both spatial and temporal aspects of eye-movement control have been thoroughly investigated during reading. There, the scientific discourse was dominated by three controversies, (i), the role of oculomotor vs. cognitive processing on eye-movement control, (ii) the serial vs. parallel processing of words, and, (iii), the control of fixation durations. The main purpose of this thesis was to investigate eye movements in tasks that require sequences of fixations and saccades. While reading phenomena served as a starting point, we examined eye guidance in non-reading tasks with the aim to identify general principles of eye-movement control. In addition, the investigation of eye movements in non-reading tasks helped refine our knowledge about eye-movement control during reading. Our approach included the investigation of eye movements in non-reading experiments as well as the evaluation and development of computational models. I present three main results : First, oculomotor phenomena during reading can also be observed in non-reading tasks (Chapter 2 \& 4). Oculomotor processes determine the fixation position within an object. The fixation position, in turn, modulates both the next saccade target and the current fixation duration. Second, predicitions of eye-movement models based on sequential attention shifts were falsified (Chapter 3). In fact, our results suggest that distributed processing of multiple objects forms the basis of eye-movement control. Third, fixation durations are under asymmetric control (Chapter 4). While increasing processing demands immediately prolong fixation durations, decreasing processing demands reduce fixation durations only with a temporal delay. We propose a computational model ICAT to account for asymmetric control. In this model, an autonomous timer initiates saccades after random time intervals independent of ongoing processing. However, processing demands that are higher than expected inhibit the execution of the next saccade and, thereby, prolong the current fixation. On the other hand, lower processing demands will not affect the duration before the next saccade is executed. Since the autonomous timer adjusts to expected processing demands from fixation to fixation, a decrease in processing demands may lead to a temporally delayed reduction of fixation durations. In an extended version of ICAT, we evaluated its performance while simulating both temporal and spatial aspects of eye-movement control. The eye-movement phenomena investigated in this thesis have now been observed in a number of different tasks, which suggests that they represent general principles of eye guidance. I propose that distributed processing of the visual input forms the basis of eye-movement control, while fixation durations are controlled by the principles outlined in ICAT. In addition, oculomotor control contributes considerably to the variability observed in eye movements. Interpretations for the relation between eye movements and cognition strongly benefit from a precise understanding of this interplay.}, language = {en} } @article{StreblowSchiefeleRiedel2012, author = {Streblow, Lilian and Schiefele, Ulrich and Riedel, Stefanie}, title = {Evaluation of the Revised Reading Competence and Reading Motivation Training (LEKOLEMO) for the lower secondary school level}, series = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Entwicklungspsychologie und p{\"a}dagogische Psychologie}, volume = {44}, journal = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Entwicklungspsychologie und p{\"a}dagogische Psychologie}, number = {1}, publisher = {Hogrefe}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {0049-8637}, doi = {10.1026/0049-8637/a000058}, pages = {12 -- 26}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Inspired by the results from the PISA study and based on previous intervention programs, the reading competence training LEKOLEMO (Program for Fostering Reading Literacy and Reading Motivation) for 7th-grade students was developed. The training differs from existing programs in two aspects: (1) It comprises tasks pertaining to the PISA reading dimensions retrieving information, text-related interpretation, and reflection and evaluation, and (2) explicitly aims at fostering reading motivation. The present study examined the revised version of LEKOLEMO in a sample of 235 seventh graders. The results confirmed the effectiveness of LEKOLEMO and showed significant effects of medium size on reading competence at the follow-up test. However, effects on intrinsic reading motivation and on self-concept of reading were small and unstable.}, language = {de} } @article{StadlerOttSpringeretal.2012, author = {Stadler, Waltraud and Ott, Derek V. M. and Springer, Anne and Schubotz, Ricarda I. and Sch{\"u}tz-Bosbach, Simone and Prinz, Wolfgang}, title = {Repetitive TMS suggests a role of the human dorsal premotor cortex in action prediction}, series = {Frontiers in human neuroscienc}, volume = {6}, journal = {Frontiers in human neuroscienc}, number = {2}, publisher = {Frontiers Research Foundation}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {1662-5161}, doi = {10.3389/fnhum.2012.00020}, pages = {11}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Predicting the actions of other individuals is crucial for our daily interactions. Recent evidence suggests that the prediction of object-directed arm and full-body actions employs the dorsal premotor cortex (PMd). Thus, the neural substrate involved in action control may also be essential for action prediction. Here, we aimed to address this issue and hypothesized that disrupting the PMd impairs action prediction. Using fMRI-guided coil navigation, rTMS (five pulses, 10Hz) was applied over the left PMd and over the vertex (control region) while participants observed everyday actions in video clips that were transiently occluded for 1s. The participants detected manipulations in the time course of occluded actions, which required them to internally predict the actions during occlusion. To differentiate between functional roles that the PMd could play in prediction, rTMS was either delivered at occluder-onset (TMS-early), affecting the initiation of action prediction, or 300 ms later during occlusion(TMS-late), affecting the maintenance of anongoing prediction. TMS-early over the left PMd produced more prediction errors than TMS-early over the vertex. TMS-late had no effect on prediction performance, suggesting that the left PMd might be involved particularly during the initiation of internally guided action prediction but may play a subordinate role in maintaining ongoing prediction. These findings open a new perspective on the role of the left PMd in action prediction which is in line with its functions in action control and in cognitive tasks. In the discussion, there levance of the left PMd for integrating external action parameters with the observer's motor repertoire is emphasized. Overall, the results are in line with the notion that premotor functions are employed in both action control and action observation.}, language = {en} } @article{ShakiFischerGoebel2012, author = {Shaki, Samuel and Fischer, Martin H. and Goebel, Silke M.}, title = {Direction counts A comparative study of spatially directional counting biases in cultures with different reading directions}, series = {Journal of experimental child psychology}, volume = {112}, journal = {Journal of experimental child psychology}, number = {2}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {San Diego}, issn = {0022-0965}, doi = {10.1016/j.jecp.2011.12.005}, pages = {275 -- 281}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Western adults associate small numbers with left space and large numbers with right space. Where does this pervasive spatial-numerical association come from? In this study, we first recorded directional counting preferences in adults with different reading experiences (left to right, right to left, mixed, and illiterate) and observed a clear relationship between reading and counting directions. We then recorded directional counting preferences in pre-schoolers and elementary school children from three of these reading cultures (left to right, right to left, and mixed). Culture-specific counting biases existed before reading acquisition in children as young as 3 years and were subsequently modified by early reading experience. Together, our results suggest that both directional counting and scanning activities contribute to number-space associations.}, language = {en} } @article{ShakiFischer2012, author = {Shaki, Samuel and Fischer, Martin H.}, title = {Multiple spatial mappings in numerical cognition}, series = {Journal of experimental psychology : Human perception and performance}, volume = {38}, journal = {Journal of experimental psychology : Human perception and performance}, number = {3}, publisher = {American Psychological Association}, address = {Washington}, issn = {0096-1523}, doi = {10.1037/a0027562}, pages = {804 -- 809}, year = {2012}, abstract = {A recent cross-cultural comparison (Shaki, Fischer, \& Petrusic, 2009) suggested that spatially consistent processing habits for words and numbers are a necessary condition for the spatial representation of numbers (Spatial-Numerical Association of Response Codes; SNARC effect). Here we reexamine the SNARC in Israelis who read text from right to left but numbers from left to right. We show that, despite these spatially inconsistent processing habits, a SNARC effect still emerges when the response dimension is spatially orthogonal to the conflicting processing dimension. These results clarify the cognitive conditions for spatial-numerical mappings.}, language = {en} } @misc{SchwarzMiller2012, author = {Schwarz, Wolfgang and Miller, Jeff}, title = {Response time models of delta plots with negative-going slopes}, series = {Psychonomic bulletin \& review : a journal of the Psychonomic Society}, volume = {19}, journal = {Psychonomic bulletin \& review : a journal of the Psychonomic Society}, number = {4}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {New York}, issn = {1069-9384}, doi = {10.3758/s13423-012-0254-6}, pages = {555 -- 574}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Delta plots (DPs) graphically compare reaction time (RT) quantiles obtained under two experimental conditions. In some research areas (e.g., Simon effects), decreasing delta plots (nDPs) have consistently been found, indicating that the experimental effect is largest at low quantiles and decreases for higher quantiles. nDPs are unusual and intriguing: They imply that RT in the faster condition is more variable, a pattern predicted by few standard RT models. We describe and analyze five classes of well-established latency mechanisms that are consistent with nDPs-exhaustive processing models, correlated stage models, mixture models, cascade models, and parallel channels models-and discuss the implications of our analyses for the interpretation of DPs. DPs generally do not imply any specific processing model; therefore, it is more fruitful to start from a specific quantitative model and to compare the DP it predicts with empirical data.}, language = {en} } @article{SchwarzEiselt2012, author = {Schwarz, Wolfgang and Eiselt, Anne-Kathrin}, title = {Numerical distance effects in visual search}, series = {Attention, perception, \& psychophysics : AP\&P ; a journal of the Psychonomic Society, Inc.}, volume = {74}, journal = {Attention, perception, \& psychophysics : AP\&P ; a journal of the Psychonomic Society, Inc.}, number = {6}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {New York}, issn = {1943-3921}, doi = {10.3758/s13414-012-0342-8}, pages = {1098 -- 1103}, year = {2012}, abstract = {We present three experiments in which observers searched for a target digit among distractor digits in displays in which the mean numerical target-distractor distance was varied. Search speed and accuracy increased with numerical distance in both target-present and target-absent trials (Exp. 1A). In Experiment 1B, the target 5 was replaced with the letter S. The results suggest that the findings of Experiment 1A do not simply reflect the fact that digits that were numerically closer to the target coincidentally also shared more physical features with it. In Experiment 2, the numerical distance effect increased with set size in both target-present and target-absent trials. These findings are consistent with the view that increasing numerical target-distractor distance affords faster nontarget rejection and target identification times. Recent neurobiological findings (e.g., Nieder, 2011) on the neuronal coding of numerosity have reported a width of tuning curves of numerosity-selective neurons that suggests graded, distance-dependent coactivation of the representations of adjacent numbers, which in visual search would make it harder to reject numerically closer distractors as nontargets.}, language = {en} } @misc{SchiefeleSchaffnerMoelleretal.2012, author = {Schiefele, Ulrich and Schaffner, Ellen and M{\"o}ller, Jens and Wigfield, Allan}, title = {Dimensions of reading motivation and their relation to reading behavior and competence}, series = {Reading research quarterly}, volume = {47}, journal = {Reading research quarterly}, number = {4}, publisher = {Wiley-Blackwell}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {0034-0553}, doi = {10.1002/RRQ.030}, pages = {427 -- 463}, year = {2012}, abstract = {This review of research examines the constructs of reading motivation and synthesizes research findings of the past 20 years on the relationship between reading motivation and reading behavior (amount, strategies, and preferences), and the relationship between reading motivation and reading competence (reading skills and comprehension). In addition, evidence relating to the causal role of motivational factors and to the role of reading behavior as a mediator of the effects of motivation on reading competence is examined. We identify seven genuine dimensions of reading motivation: curiosity, involvement, competition, recognition, grades, compliance, and work avoidance. Evidence for these dimensions comes from both quantitative and qualitative research. Moreover, evidence from previous studies confirms the positive contribution of intrinsic reading motivation, and the relatively small or negative contribution of extrinsic reading motivation, to reading behavior and reading competence. The positive contribution of intrinsic motivation is particularly evident in relation to amount of reading for enjoyment and reading competence and holds even when accounting for relevant control variables. However, the causal role of reading motivation and the mediating role of reading behavior remain largely unresolved issues.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Schaefer2012, author = {Schaefer, Christin}, title = {„Gest{\"a}rkt f{\"u}r den Lehrerberuf"}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-63487}, school = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam}, year = {2012}, abstract = {In einer quasiexperimentellen L{\"a}ngsschnittstudie mit 380 Lehramtsstudierenden wurde das Interventionsprogramm „Gest{\"a}rkt f{\"u}r den Lehrerberuf", welches Elemente eines Self-Assessments der berufsrelevanten Kompetenzen mit konkreten Beratungsm{\"o}glichkeiten und einem Zieleffektivit{\"a}tstraining (Dargel, 2006) zur Entwicklung individueller berufsbezogener Kompetenzen verbindet, auf seine Wirksamkeit (Reflexionskompetenz, Lehrerselbstwirksamkeit, berufsbezogene Kompetenzen, Beanspruchungserleben, Widerstandsf{\"a}higkeit) und den Wirkungsprozess (Zielbindung, Zielrealisierbarkeit, Zieleffektivit{\"a}t) hin {\"u}berpr{\"u}ft. In dem Pr{\"a}-Post-Follow-up-Test-Vergleichsgruppen-Design wurden eine Interventionsgruppe, deren Treatment auf dem St{\"a}rkenansatz basiert (1), eine defizitorientierte Interventionsgruppe (2), sowie eine kombinierte Interventionsgruppe, bei der der St{\"a}rkenansatz durch den Defizitansatz erg{\"a}nzt wird (3), einer unbehandelten Kontrollgruppe sowie einer alternativ behandelten Kontrollgruppe, die ausschließlich in ihren sozial-kommunikativer Kompetenzen geschult wurde, gegen{\"u}bergestellt. Es gelang zum Post- und Follow-up-Test, sowohl die individuellen beruflichen Kompetenzen als auch die Reflexionskompetenz von Teilnehmern der Interventionsgruppen im Vergleich zur unbehandelten Kontrollgruppe zu f{\"o}rdern. Die Teilnehmer der kombinierten Intervention profitierten im Vergleich zu den Teilnehmern der anderen beiden Interventionsgruppen st{\"a}rker im Bereich Lehrerselbstwirksamkeit, Widerstandsf{\"a}higkeit und Zieleffektivit{\"a}t. Gegen{\"u}ber der alternativen Kontrollgruppe zeigten sie ebenfalls einen st{\"a}rkeren Zuwachs in der Entwicklung ihrer berufsrelevanten Kompetenzen und in ihrer Widerstandsf{\"a}higkeit. Die Studie liefert erste Hinweise darauf, dass ein Ansatz, welcher St{\"a}rkenfokussierung und Defizitorientierung integriert, besonders effektiv wirkt.}, language = {de} } @article{SchadNuthmannEngbert2012, author = {Schad, Daniel and Nuthmann, Antje and Engbert, Ralf}, title = {Your mind wanders weakly, your mind wanders deeply - objective measures reveal mindless reading at different levels}, series = {Cognition : international journal of cognitive science}, volume = {125}, journal = {Cognition : international journal of cognitive science}, number = {2}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {0010-0277}, doi = {10.1016/j.cognition.2012.07.004}, pages = {179 -- 194}, year = {2012}, abstract = {When the mind wanders, attention turns away from the external environment and cognitive processing is decoupled from perceptual information. Mind wandering is usually treated as a dichotomy (dichotomy-hypothesis), and is often measured using self-reports. Here, we propose the levels of inattention hypothesis, which postulates attentional decoupling to graded degrees at different hierarchical levels of cognitive processing. To measure graded levels of attentional decoupling during reading we introduce the sustained attention to stimulus task (SAST), which is based on psychophysics of error detection. Under experimental conditions likely to induce mind wandering, we found that subjects were less likely to notice errors that required high-level processing for their detection as opposed to errors that only required low-level processing. Eye tracking revealed that before errors were overlooked influences of high- and low-level linguistic variables on eye fixations were reduced in a graded fashion, indicating episodes of mindless reading at weak and deep levels. Individual fixation durations predicted overlooking of lexical errors 5 s before they occurred. Our findings support the levels of inattention hypothesis and suggest that different levels of mindless reading can be measured behaviorally in the SAST. Using eye tracking to detect mind wandering online represents a promising approach for the development of new techniques to study mind wandering and to ameliorate its negative consequences.}, language = {en} } @article{SchadEngbert2012, author = {Schad, Daniel and Engbert, Ralf}, title = {The zoom lens of attention simulating shuffled versus normal text reading using the SWIFT model}, series = {Visual cognition}, volume = {20}, journal = {Visual cognition}, number = {4-5}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hove}, issn = {1350-6285}, doi = {10.1080/13506285.2012.670143}, pages = {391 -- 421}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Assumptions on the allocation of attention during reading are crucial for theoretical models of eye guidance. The zoom lens model of attention postulates that attentional deployment can vary from a sharp focus to a broad window. The model is closely related to the foveal load hypothesis, i.e., the assumption that the perceptual span is modulated by the difficulty of the fixated word. However, these important theoretical concepts for cognitive research have not been tested quantitatively in eye movement models. Here we show that the zoom lens model, implemented in the SWIFT model of saccade generation, captures many important patterns of eye movements. We compared the model's performance to experimental data from normal and shuffled text reading. Our results demonstrate that the zoom lens of attention might be an important concept for eye movement control in reading.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Schad2012, author = {Schad, Daniel}, title = {Mindless reading and eye movements : theory, experiments and computational modeling}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-70822}, school = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam}, year = {2012}, abstract = {It sometimes happens that we finish reading a passage of text just to realize that we have no idea what we just read. During these episodes of mindless reading our mind is elsewhere yet the eyes still move across the text. The phenomenon of mindless reading is common and seems to be widely recognized in lay psychology. However, the scientific investigation of mindless reading has long been underdeveloped. Recent progress in research on mindless reading has been based on self-report measures and on treating it as an all-or-none phenomenon (dichotomy-hypothesis). Here, we introduce the levels-of-inattention hypothesis proposing that mindless reading is graded and occurs at different levels of cognitive processing. Moreover, we introduce two new behavioral paradigms to study mindless reading at different levels in the eye-tracking laboratory. First (Chapter 2), we introduce shuffled text reading as a paradigm to approximate states of weak mindless reading experimentally and compare it to reading of normal text. Results from statistical analyses of eye movements that subjects perform in this task qualitatively support the 'mindless' hypothesis that cognitive influences on eye movements are reduced and the 'foveal load' hypothesis that the response of the zoom lens of attention to local text difficulty is enhanced when reading shuffled text. We introduce and validate an advanced version of the SWIFT model (SWIFT 3) incorporating the zoom lens of attention (Chapter 3) and use it to explain eye movements during shuffled text reading. Simulations of the SWIFT 3 model provide fully quantitative support for the 'mindless' and the 'foveal load' hypothesis. They moreover demonstrate that the zoom lens is an important concept to explain eye movements across reading and mindless reading tasks. Second (Chapter 4), we introduce the sustained attention to stimulus task (SAST) to catch episodes when external attention spontaneously lapses (i.e., attentional decoupling or mind wandering) via the overlooking of errors in the text and via signal detection analyses of error detection. Analyses of eye movements in the SAST revealed reduced influences from cognitive text processing during mindless reading. Based on these findings, we demonstrate that it is possible to predict states of mindless reading from eye movement recordings online. That cognition is not always needed to move the eyes supports autonomous mechanisms for saccade initiation. Results from analyses of error detection and eye movements provide support to our levels-of-inattention hypothesis that errors at different levels of the text assess different levels of decoupling. Analyses of pupil size in the SAST (Chapter 5) provide further support to the levels of inattention hypothesis and to the decoupling hypothesis that off-line thought is a distinct mode of cognitive functioning that demands cognitive resources and is associated with deep levels of decoupling. The present work demonstrates that the elusive phenomenon of mindless reading can be vigorously investigated in the cognitive laboratory and further incorporated in the theoretical framework of cognitive science.}, language = {en} }