Explore the Innovative and Impactful Research Being Conducted on Connect

In the table below, we are compiling an ongoing list of publications, theses, and preprints whose authors have used Connect participants in their research. To have your work included, follow our citation guidelines.

*Note: This page is a work in progress. More papers will be added on an ongoing basis.
Showing 1-10 of 0 papers
Show: per page
Citation Summary Connect Usage Method Tags Field
(). Principles of Human Information Seeking and Exploration (Doctoral dissertation, Columbia University ). Abir's dissertation examined how people seek information to meet different goals, finding that people seek out information in a practical and adaptable way that is mindful of humans' cognitive limitations and different motivational goals.

Abstract

Our tendency to be curious about our environment and our capacity to effectively explore it are central to human intelligence. This dissertation takes a functional approach to investigating curiosity and exploration, examining the systematic, and at times approximate, manner humans seek information in service of their varied goals. In chapter one, I examine exploratory behavior in the service of a prescribed goal using a paradigm that allows for tight experimental control. Comparing participants’ choices to the optimal strategy for this task, I show that humans explore as if balancing seeking goal-relevant information with managing their limited cognitive resources. Chapters two and three focus on epistemic information-seeking driven by curiosity in more naturalistic contexts. In chapter two I chart the relationship between information seeking and motivation, asking how an acute change to motivation impacts information seeking. By measuring the profound changes to motivation affected by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, as well as information seeking behavior and expectations of usefulness, I show that motivation both directs information seeking to goal-relevant information, as well as energizing the seeking of information of any kind. In chapter three, I examine how fine-scale changes to motivation, brought about by previous learning experiences, influence curiosity in a continual manner. I find that learning satisfying information both enhances curiosity for similar information and decreases curiosity for dissimilar information. Combined, these three chapters demonstrate the sophistication of human information-seeking strategies, which are efficient, flexible, and adapted to the constraints of human cognition.
Abir recruited 300 participants from Connect who completed two separate study sessions with 80% of eligible participants returning for session 2. Quantitative, Experiment, Longitudinal Curiosity, Exploration, Information Seeking Psychology
Akcelik, G. N., Choe, K. W., Rosenberg, M. D., Schertz, K. E., Meidenbauer, K. L., Zhang, T., ... & Berman, M. G. (2024). Quantifying Urban Environments: Aesthetic Preference Through the Lens of Prospect-Refuge Theory. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 102344. Full Text Akcelik and colleagues evaluated factors that influence people's preference for urban environments, finding that people preferred urban street scenes that seemed both resource-rich and safe.

Abstract

Prospect-refuge theory suggests that people prefer environments that offer both prospect, the ability to scan for resources, and refuge, a safe place to hide. Urban planners, architects, and researchers alike have tended to use prospect-refuge theory research on natural scenes to inform the design of urban environments. Despite the large body of prospect-refuge theory research, the degree to which prospect and refuge impact preference in urban environments remains unclear.Here, we aim to first evaluate the relationship between prospect, refuge, and preference for urban scene images. Secondly, we aim to evaluate the contributions of visual features and streetscape quality ratings to subjective ratings of prospect and refuge in order to create proxy values of prospect and refuge. Finally, we aim to understand how the proxy values impact preference for urban scenes, and if the proxy values created replicate the relationship between subjective measures of prospect, refuge, and preference.First, we used participant ratings of prospect and refuge to predict participants’ preference for 552 images of urban street scenes. Higher ratings of both prospect and refuge predicted greater image preference. We next used principal components analysis to summarize these images’ low- and high-level visual features as well as participant ratings of streetscape qualities, such as walkability and disorder. Visual feature and streetscape quality principal components predicted prospect and refuge ratings in this first image set, providing “proxy measures” for prospect and refuge.In an independent set of 1119 images from Talen et al. (2022) for which prospect and refuge ratings were not available, we asked whether these proxies for prospect and refuge predicted preference. Findings replicated the effect that more refuge in an image predicts more preference. However, the proxy measure of prospect did not predict preference.In summary, our results show that refuge ratings do relate to preferences in urban environments, which extends prospect-refuge theory to more urban environments. Future work is needed to understand if prospect has different implications in more urban environments.
Connect participants rated a total of 552 Google Street View images, rating them for prospect (how resource-rich they seemed) and refuge (how safe they seemed). Quantitative, Correlational Prospect-Refuge Theory, Aesthetic Preference, Visual Features, Quantification Of Urban Environments, Streetscape Qualities, Urban Design Environmental Psychology
Alt, N. P., & Goh, J. X. (). Pervasive and pernicious underestimation of Asian Americans' support for affirmative action. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy. Alt and Goh explored people’s perceptions of Asian Americans’ support for affirmative action. Across several studies, they found that people consistently underestimate Asian American support for affirmative action, a misperception that affects how Asian Americans themselves support overturning affirmative action.

Abstract

Polling data show that 69% of Asian American voters favor affirmative action. However, Asian Americans were featured prominently by the organization Students for Fair Admissions, which played a central role in the Supreme Court's decision to overturn affirmative action. This may distort people's estimates of Asian Americans’ support for affirmative action. Two studies (N = 695) found that people, even Asian Americans, underestimated Asian Americans’ support for affirmative action. Three follow‐up studies (N = 1,625), where we manipulated perceived Asian Americans’ support for affirmative action or the Supreme Court's decision, found no evidence that such information affected White people's support for affirmative action. In Study 6 (N = 365), however, we found that Asian Americans were more likely to agree with the Supreme Court's decision to overturn affirmative action when they saw that a majority of Asian Americans supported the court ruling (relative to a control condition in which no information was presented). This suggests that the widespread misperception of Asian Americans’ support for affirmative action and their central role in the Supreme Court cases may ultimately create a self‐fulfilling prophecy that could shift individual Asian Americans’ own attitude about affirmative action.
The researchers recruited over 2400 participants from Connect to test their hypothesis, looking only for participants who identified as a part of one racial group (Black American, White American, or Asian American). Quantitative, Survey, Correlational, Experimental Affirmative action, Asian Americans, SCOTUS Social Psychology
Anderson, L. M. (). HOW DO VICTIM-FRAMING AND CELEBRITY STATUS IMPACT SOCIAL JUDGEMENTS?. In her research, Anderson explored how celebrity status and the portrayal of individuals as victims influence public opinion. Participants read about a domestic abuse case featuring either celebrities or non-celebrities. The study found that while victims generally received more support, in cases involving celebrities, there was notably less sympathy for the female accuser than for the victim in non-celebrity scenarios.

Abstract

This study explored the impact of celebrity status and victim framing on social judgments. People are inclined to favor others because appearance, fame, and familiarity (Nayak, 2015). Language can also influence people’s judgements; one study found that people increase their support for someone who is labeled a “victim,” even when they are the alleged perpetrator of a sexual assault (Flusberg et al., 2022). The primary goal of this study was to examine how language and fame interact to shape people’s social evaluations. Six hundred participants across sic conditions, read an article about a domestic abuse case revolving a celebrity couple or a stranger couple. The U.S subjects read an article that either framed the male alleged perpetrator as a victim, the female accuser as a victim or no victim-framed protagonist. Results indicated a main affect for support for each protagonist when framed as the victim compared to the baseline condition. Participants in the celebrity status condition were less likely to support the female accuser across all conditions compared to the stranger condition. The research suggest that people evaluations of others can be based off familiarity and language manipulation.
Anderson sampled 600 participants from Connect for her research. Quantitative, Experiment Social Judgements, Victim-Framing, Language Effect, Celebrity Status Psychology
Andrus, L., & Fait, L. J. (). Peer-to-peer lodging: Burning host questions, answered. Journal of Business Leadership, 31(1), 69. Full Text Andrus and colleagues investigated key considerations for guests in peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodations like Airbnb and VRBO. They found that guests have higher expectations for P2P stays compared to traditional hotels, treating them more like being a guest in someone's home, and expecting high levels of service and amenities.

Abstract

This paper analyzes the concerns of experienced peer-to-peer lodging hosts. There is a growing body of knowledge in the published literature that focuses on the variables related to why consumers choose to stay in other people's houses when selecting travel accommodations. However, the published findings on the concerns of lodging hosts are limited. The Peer-to-Peer (P2P) economy continues to increase with the need for property hosts to understand guests' intentions while staying in their properties. The need to extend the literature focused on Airbnb and VRBO host-guest relationships is necessary to better understand the behaviors and trends of guest stays to improve both business for hosts and, ultimately, the guest experience. The results of this paper will provide P2P lodging hosts with valuable information to improve their guests' stays, protect their investments, and drive revenue.
The researchers recruited Connect participants to respond to survey items and provide open-ended feedback in order to provide insights about peer-to-peer lodging. Quantitative, Qualitative, Survey Hospitality, Peer-to-Peer (P2P), Airbnb, VRBO Hospitality, Business
Auger, E., Thai, S., Birnie-Porter, C., & Lydon, J. E. (). On Creating Deeper Relationship Bonds: Felt Understanding Enhances Relationship Identification. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 01461672241233419. Full Text Auger and colleagues investigated the impact of feeling understood in relationships on self-perception, finding that people identify more with their relationships when they feel their partners understand them.

Abstract

Relational experiences play a critical role in shaping how individuals see themselves. In four studies (N=945) using person-perception, longitudinal, and experimental designs, we demonstrate that feeling understood changes individuals’ self-concept by increasing the centrality of a specific relationship (relationship identification). Study 1 showed that participants perceived an individual to be more identified with their relationship when their partner was high (vs. low) in understanding. Study 2 extended these results by examining individuals in romantic relationships longitudinally. The results of Studies 1 and 2 were distinct for understanding compared to acceptance and caring. Studies 3 and 4 manipulated felt understanding. Recalling many versus few understanding instances (Study 3) and imagining a close other being low versus high in understanding (Study 4) led individuals to feel less understood, which reduced identification in their friendships and romantic relationships. Furthermore, Study 4 suggests that coherence may be one mechanism through which felt understanding increases relationship identification.
In Study 1, the researchers used Connect to recruit participants who read about two people in a relationship and reported their impressions. Quantitative, Longitudinal, Experimental Identity, Interpersonal Relationships, Felt Understanding, Coherence, Meaning-In-Life, Ease-Of-Retrieval Social Psychology
Babij, A. D., Earl, S., Becker, W., Hoyt, C. L., Burnette, J. L., Marston, A., & Crispin, K. (2023). Mindsets of mental illness: What are the implications for stigma?. Stigma and Health. Babij and colleagues investigated whether a belief that mental illness status can change (a growth mindset) might result in both increased and decreased stigma through distinct mechanisms. Contrary to predictions, having a growth mindset about mental illness was only related to less prejudice towards the group.

Abstract

We investigated if the double-edged sword model, which describes the role of growth mindsets in both promoting and reducing stigma, replicates in the context of mental illness. Do stronger growth mindsets relate to more prejudice via increased blame, but less prejudice via reduced social essentialist thinking? In two correlational studies (N = 328; N = 343), stronger growth, relative to fixed mindsets, of mental illness related negatively to prejudice, in large part because they related negatively to social essentialist thinking and, unexpectedly, also negatively to blame. We ran two additional studies, randomly assigning participants (N = 605; N = 397) to a mental illness or obesity condition, to examine links between mindsets and blame across the two contexts. In the obesity condition, growth mindsets were strongly associated with greater blame, perceived controllability, and prejudice but not in the mental illness condition—growth mindsets again were associated with less prejudice. Differences in narratives about controllability are one potential driving force of these disparate findings
The researchers recruited nearly 400 Connect participants in Study 4 to test their hypotheses experimentally by having participants read about mental illness or about obesity before completing measures about their mindsets and prejudice. Quantitative, Experimental Mindsets, Mental Illness, Stigma, Prejudice Psychology
Bai, H., Voelkel, J., Eichstaedt, J., & Willer, R. (). Artificial intelligence can persuade humans on political issues. Bai and team studied the impact of Chat GPT-3 on shaping human opinions on policy issues like assault weapon bans, carbon taxes, and paid parental leave. They compared the persuasiveness of AI-generated text to messages written by humans. The study concluded that participants viewed the AI's messages as more factual and logical but lacking in emotional appeal and narrative quality. This suggests that large language models like GPT-3 have the potential to influence human beliefs on complex and divisive policy topics.

Abstract

The emergence of transformer models that leverage deep learning and web-scale corpora has made it possible for artificial intelligence (AI) to tackle many higher-order cognitive tasks, with critical implications for industry, government, and labor markets in the US and globally. Here, we investigate whether the currently most powerful, openly-available AI model – GPT-3 – is capable of influencing the beliefs of humans, a social behavior recently seen as a unique purview of other humans. Across three preregistered experiments featuring diverse samples of Americans (total N=4,836), we find consistent evidence that messages generated by AI are persuasive across a number of policy issues, including an assault weapon ban, a carbon tax, and a paid parental�leave program. Further, AI-generated messages were as persuasive as messages crafted by lay humans. Compared to the human authors, participants rated the author of AI messages as being more factual and logical, but less angry, unique, and less likely to use story-telling. Our results show the current generation of large language models can persuade humans, even on polarized policy issues. This work raises important implications for regulating AI applications in political contexts, to counter its potential use in misinformation campaigns and other deceptive political activities.
In the second experiment, the researchers recruited over 1000 participants from Connect, who read messages that were either AI-generated or human-generated and were then asked about their support for an assault weapon ban. Quantitative, Experiment AI, Large Language Models, Persuasion, Politics Sociology, Psychology, Political Science, Data Science
Baker, M. N., & Canelo, K. S. (2024, May 29). Judges Behaving Badly: Judicial Misconduct and a Threat to Rights. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/f9yps Full Text Baker and Canelo examine people’s perceptions of US judges who have previously been accused of discriminatory misconduct, finding that people view these judges as more of a threat to their rights and less able to rule fairly on matters related to marginalized people.

Abstract

Unethical behavior among US judges, including sexual misconduct and other forms of discriminatory behavior, is becoming increasingly publicized. These controversies are particularly concerning given the important role judges play in shaping policy pertaining to individual rights. We argue that types of misconduct serve as a signal to the public about potential threats judges may pose to people, particularly groups of people who are marginalized. We use a survey experiment that introduces a judge who has engaged in misconduct to measure if the type of misconduct will influence attitudes on whether the judge poses a threat to the rights of women, racial minorities, and ethnic minorities. Interestingly, we find that judges accused of discriminatory misconduct toward one group are viewed as a threat to rights across the board and are seen as less able to rule fairly on matters pertaining to marginalized people more generally.
The researchers recruited over 2,500 Connect participants who read about judges accused of various types of discriminatory misconduct. Quantitative, Experimental Unethical Behavior, Judges, Law, Misconduct, Discrimination Political Science, Psychology, Social and Behavioral Sciences
Baskentli, S., Hadi, R., & Lee, L. (). How Culture Shapes Consumer Responses to Anthropomorphic Products. International Journal of Research in Marketing. Full Text Baskentli and her team looked into the idea that people from Eastern cultures like products with human-like features more than people from Western cultures. After doing three studies, they found that this idea was partly right. People from Eastern cultures did like products that had human-like traits more than other products. However, people from Western cultures didn't have a strong preference either way.

Abstract

Anecdotal evidence suggests that Eastern consumers respond more favorably to anthropomorphic products than their Western counterparts. In the present work, we examine the validity of this common intuition and uncover the specific cultural dimension underlying this difference in consumer response. Specifically, across a cross-national field study and three controlled experiments, we demonstrate that collectivistic consumers favor anthropomorphic products more than non-anthropomorphic products, whereas non-collectivistic consumers do not display this relative preference. This interactive effect holds across various product categories, regardless of whether collectivistic thinking is measured, manipulated, or operationalized based on nationality or ethnicity. We offer managerial and theoretical implications that stem from our findings.
In order to ensure that the advertisements shown to participants adequately displayed anthropomorphic traits, the researchers first ran a pre-test study with 100 Connect participants who judged whether the intended product resembled a human. Quantitative, Experiment, Field Study Culture, Collectivism, Self-Construal, Anthropomorphism, Product Evaluation Marketing
Berry, S. D. Psychology in a Podcast Context: Do Brand Personality Perceptions and Social Nudges Explain Consumers’ Behavioral Intentions to Subscribe to Breaking Points?. Dissertations. 2173. https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/dissertations/2173 Full Text Berry's dissertation explored how perceived personality traits of a podcast, like sincerity and competence, and strategic suggestions affect subscription decisions, using "Breaking Points" as an example. His findings revealed that these personality traits significantly boost subscription intentions, and that these intentions are further enhanced when viewers are exposed to persuasive nudges.

Abstract

Two psychological variables are of interest in the study of consumers: brand personality perceptions (per social cognition, beliefs that brands exhibit human-like attributes) and nudges (per behavioral economics, an attempt to influence behavioral change that benefits the consumer without taking away their right to choose). However, no known research exists about whether these variables explain behavioral intentions to consume podcasts, specifically. This is relevant because perceptions of mass media brands are historically negative, and consumers increasingly seek out independent media (eg, Breaking Points). Therefore, this dissertation’s purpose was to use Breaking Points as an example to study the influence of brand personality and nudges on behavioral intentions to subscribe to a podcast. In two survey experiments (total N= 486 United States adults recruited via CloudResearch’s Connect), brand personality perceptions (ie, sincerity, competence, status) were hypothesized to explain intentions to subscribe. Likewise, those exposed to the potential nudge were expected to report stronger intentions, compared to those unexposed. All participants viewed a description about and a clip from the podcast. Some were also randomly assigned to view a potential nudge from Breaking Points’ YouTube channel. Then, all participants answered questions about the podcast’s brand personality, about intentions to subscribe, and about psychographics. In both experiments, hierarchical regression revealed that brand personality significantly explained behavioral intentions while controlling for potential confounds (average R2= 40%). The findings provide evidence that brand personality knowledge can expand into podcasts. In contrast, future research should investigate other stimuli that could potentially nudge podcast consumers.
Using Connect for both of studies, Berry recruited 486 US participants to read a description of a podcast before reporting their intentions to subscribe. Quantitative, Experimental Brand Personality Perceptions, Nudge, Behavioral Intentions, Podcasts, Media I/O Psychology, Applied Social Psychology
Boman, L., Lefebvre, S., & Hewage, G. S. U. (). When push comes to shove: How coach versus student athlete misconduct affects event attendance intentions. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 74, 103420. Full Text Boman and colleagues investigated whether consumers are more or less likely to attend college sporting events depending on whether there was a case of misconduct among student athletes or coaches. Across six studies, their findings show that consumers are less likely to attend a game when they read a story about a college-level coach misbehaving compared to student athletes.

Abstract

Though on and off-the-field misconduct is common among U.S. college athletic programs, little is known regarding the ramifications that may result. Drawing on social learning theory, the current research suggests consumers intentions (e.g., likelihood of attending a game) differ depending on violator's team role. Across one qualitative and five experimental studies, we demonstrate that consumers' intentions are influenced by violator's team role, such that likelihood of attending a game is lower when a coach (vs. student athlete) misbehaves, an effect driven by evaluation of the academic institution. This effect is robust across both winning and losing records and moderated by perceived fairness of the university's actions toward the violator.
The researchers were able to replicate and extend their findings with 250 Connect participants using basketball as the focal sport instead of football, allowing the research to generalize across different NCAA sports Quantitative, Experiment, Qualitative Misconduct, Unethical Behavior, Brand Management, Social Learning Theory Marketing, Consumer Behavior
Buckley, C. (). Corporate Conscience: Applying Ethics of Care Informed Crisis Responses to Corporate Social Advocacy Backlash. Full Text This research looks at how companies' responses to criticism can influence public perception, especially when they claim to be socially responsible. Findings show that if companies don't seem caring enough in their responses, people might protest more, and if companies don't respond at all, people might consider boycotting them.

Abstract

The purpose of this study is threefold. First, this study improves practitioners’ and scholars’ understanding of the efficacy of incorporating ethically informed language into crisis responses, specifically the degree of ethics of care. Second, the present study applies the situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) to explore the most effective crisis responses (rebuild-apology x diminish-excuse) to backlash to a corporate social advocacy (CSA) initiative. The tertiary goal of this study is to explore how different ethics-of-care-informed crisis responses, specifically diminish-excuse or rebuild-apology, impact corporate reputation, subsequent supportive or non-supportive behavioral intentions toward the corporation, and activism intentions toward the issue. Methodologically, this study contributes to the growing body of research on CSA and provides an empirically tested example of incorporating ethics of care into experimental research. In addition, this study considers the potential of mitigating or elevating crisis as a result of backlash to CSA and teases out both supportive and non-supportive intentions toward a company, as well as increased activism intentions on behalf of an issue. Results indicate that stakeholders may respond to lower perceived care in diminish-excuse crisis response with greater activism intentions in an attempt to fill a perceived void in the corporations’ CSA efforts. In addition, findings indicate that providing no response to backlash to CSA as a crisis can potentially increase boycott intentions. The practical and theoretical implications of applying SCCT and ethics of care to a CSA context, as well as future research, are posited.
Buckley used Connect participants to pilot her study and validated manipulations. Quantitative, Experiment Piloting, Ethics, Social Advocacy, Dissertation Mass Communication
Castiello, S., Ongchoco, J. D. K., van Buren, B., Scholl, B., Corlett, P. R., & Corlett, P. (2024). The wolf or the sheep? Paranoid and teleological thinking give rise to distinct social hallucinations in vision. Full Text Castiello and colleagues investigated whether paranoia and the tendency to see purposes in random events (teleological thinking) could start with how we visually perceive things. Using simple animations of one shape chasing another, they found that people with high paranoia or teleological thinking often misinterpret what they see.

Abstract

Paranoia (belief that others intend harm) and excessive teleological thinking (ascription of purpose to events) are problematic because they can cause a departure from consensual reality. Aberrant theorizing about other minds has been implicated in these higher-level cognitive processes. But we know that human vision can also detect social agents and extract rich information about their goals and intentions even before higher-level theory-of-mind processes are engaged. Might paranoia and teleological thinking have roots in earlier visual perception? Using simple displays that evoke the impression that one disc (the ‘wolf’) is pursuing another (the ‘sheep’) amongst distractors, we find that human participants with more paranoid and excessive teleological thinking tend to perceive chasing even when there is none (experiments 1 and 2) — errors that might be characterized as “social hallucinations”. However, in both between- (experiment 3) and within-participant designs (experiments 4a and 4b), we find that paranoid people have problems detecting sheep, while those high in teleology have problems detecting wolves — each confidently mis-ascribing that role (the wolf for teleology, the sheep for paranoia) to the wrong discs. Moreover, both types of errors correlate with hallucinatory percepts in the real world. These data demonstrate that different people are prone to hallucinate different kinds of social relationships — each colored by different beliefs about intentions, each with their own phenomenology and cognitive/emotional consequences, yet each operating even in visual detection itself, beyond higher-level reasoning
The researchers recruited participants from Connect in their second experiment to investigate not only how participants perceived the animation but also how confident they were in their interpretation. Quantitative, Experimental Teleology, Paranoia, Animacy Perception, Hallucinations, Intentions Cognitive Psychology, Experimental Psychology
Cen, S.H., Ilyas, A., Li, H., Allen, J., Rand, D. G., & Mądry, A. (). Measuring Strategization in Recommendation: Users Adapt Their Behavior to Shape Future Content. In preparation for submission to Management Science. Full Text Cen and colleagues explored whether or not people strategically interact with recommendation algorithms on platforms (e.g., search engines, social media). They found that instead of just reacting to the content, people use strategies in their interactions. This includes clicking to give feedback and using different methods to actively shape what the algorithms recommend.

Abstract

Recommendation algorithms shape what users see on platforms ranging from search engines to social media to online marketplaces. It is typically assumed that users behave exogenously—that is, their response to a recommendation depends on that recommendation and not on the algorithm that generated it. In this work, we investigate whether users break this assumption; specifically, whether they strategize. For example, a user may not click on a video on YouTube not because they are uninterested, but because they believe YouTube’s algorithm will overfit to the click. To determine whether users strategize, we conduct a lab experiment and survey. We test two hypotheses consistent with user strategization and find strong support for both. Our findings suggest that users strategize; users are able to strategize their explicit feedback (e.g., clicks) moreso than implicit feedback (e.g., dwell time). Our survey further reveals that a large majority of users admit to strategizing. In response to an open-ended question, we also gain insights into why and how users strategizing, surfacing intriguing behaviors (e.g., creating multiple accounts, leaving Spotify playing for days, and searching for content in private browsing mode).
The researchers developed a basic music recommendation platform similar to Spotify or Pandora, where 643 Connect participants interacted with songs and answered questions aimed to understand if they intentionally strategized their interactions with the platform. Quantitative, Experimental, Survey Recommendation Algorithms, User Strategization Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Chen, C. X., Fung, V., & LaViers, L. (). Labor Market Participants’ Reactions to Salary Range Disclosures. Available at SSRN. Full Text Chen and colleagues examined the effect of salary range disclosures on people’s likelihood of applying for a job and negotiating a job offer. Their findings revealed that women were more likely than men to apply for jobs with a narrow salary range than a job with no range or a broad range and that women were more likely to negotiate an offer when the pay range was present vs. absent.

Abstract

Due to increasing calls to reduce the gender pay gap, many US cities and states have passed or are debating laws requiring salary range disclosures in job postings. We use an experiment to examine the effects of such disclosures on labor market participants’ application likelihood and negotiation likelihood if offered the position. We manipulate pay range disclosure at three levels: no pay range, broad pay range, and narrow pay range. We find that female participants are more likely than male participants to apply to positions with a narrow range compared to no range or a broad range. We also find that female participants are more likely to negotiate salary when pay ranges are present than when they are absent, and that this effect is driven by narrow pay ranges. Results of our study are not only useful for policymakers but also for employers who seek to create more equitable workplaces.
The researchers collected a US census-matched sample of 600 Connect participants. Quantitative, Experimental Pay Transparency, Pay Range, Disclosure, Gender, Pay Fairness, Job Postings, Human Capital Business
Chen, Q., Wang, Y., & Zhang, Y. (). EXPRESS: Developing Strengths or Remedying Weaknesses? How Perceived Social Mobility Affects Parents’ Purchase Preferences for Children’s Educational Products. Journal of Marketing, 00222429231224333. Full Text Chen and colleagues' research shows that parents' beliefs about social mobility shape their choices in educational products for their kids. Parents who see equal opportunities for success favor tools that strengthen their child's abilities, while those doubtful about advancement opt for tools that address weaknesses to maintain their status.

Abstract

Does parents’ status motivation affect their educational product choices for their children? Across seven studies, we find that when parents believe that society provides enough opportunities for individuals to achieve higher social status through hard work (i.e., high social mobility), they prioritize the status advancement goal and prefer products to help maximize a child’s strengths. However, when parents believe that even if one works hard, the opportunity to climb up the social ladder is limited (i.e., low social mobility), they focus on maintaining their current status and prefer products that help remedy a child’s weaknesses. Moreover, the research demonstrates that this effect diminishes when the strength and weakness are in the domains that have low relevance to status. Finally, we find that when parents believe that children with specialties are more likely to succeed, they prefer products for maximizing strengths; whereas when they believe that well-rounded children are more likely to succeed, they prefer products for remedying weaknesses, regardless of their perception of social mobility.
The researchers recruited 200 Connect participants who were parents of at least one child under 18 years old and whose household income was above $150,000 in the last 12 months. Quantitative, Experimental, Archival Perceived Social Mobility, Status Advancement, Status Maintenance, Children’s Educational Products, Maximizing Strengths, Remedying Weaknesses Marketing
Choi, S. (). Not So Black and Yellow: The Impact of Race and Sexual Identity on Marginalized People’s Experiences with Aggression (Doctoral dissertation, University of Wyoming). Full Text Choi studied how race and sexual identity together can affect experiences of aggression. He expected that men who are both racial minorities and gay might face more aggression because they don't fit typical gender norms and face challenges from both their race and sexuality. But, when he did an experiment where straight men competed in a task against men of different races and sexual identities, the results didn't support his prediction.

Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to explore how the interaction between race (Black vs. Asian) and sexual identity (homosexuality vs. heterosexuality) would impact a marginalized person’s experience with aggressive behavior. Through mechanisms involving gender norm violations and cumulative disadvantage (an intersectionality theory), I predicted that participants would express greater aggression against a counterpart who is gay and Black than a counterpart who is gay and Asian; greater aggression against a counterpart who is gay and Black than a counterpart who is straight and Black; and greater aggression against counterpart who is gay and Asian than a counterpart who is straight and Asian. To test this, I recruited 461 men who were White and heterosexual and had them to engage in a competitive task with a counterpart who was Black and homosexual, Black and heterosexual, Asian and homosexual, or Asian and heterosexual. The task competitive was the subtraction paradigm (PSAP). In the PSAP, participants try to earn as many as points as possible for money, while a “counterpart”(a line of computer code unbeknownst to the participants) purposely sabotages them by taking away their points. I did not find support for my original hypotheses. However, we did find interesting results in my exploratory analyses, which should open up avenues for future research.
Using Connects demographic targeting, Choi was able to recruit 461 White, heterosexual men needed to test his hypotheses. Quantitative, Experiment Intersectionality, Aggression, Gay Men, Race, Gender Roles Experimental Psychology
Chuan, C., Sun, R., Tian, S., & Tsai, W. S. Explainable Artificial Intelligence (Xai) for Facilitating Recognition of Algorithmic Bias: An Experiment from Imposed Users’ Perspectives. Full Text Chuan and colleagues researched how making AI systems more transparent and understandable, especially in facial recognition technology, influences user trust and awareness of bias. Their study showed that when users see AI decisions that align with their experiences, they view the technology as fair. However, if the AI's decisions don't match their experiences, users perceive it as biased and unfair, leading to decreased trust.

Abstract

This study offered empirical insights on the potential of eXplainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) in raising user awareness of algorithmic bias and driving their trust in AI systems. We focus on the context of controversial facial recognition algorithms to examine the popular “explanation by example” approach in XAI, where users receive explanatory examples closely resembling their input. From the perspective of imposed users of AI systems, the experiment results demonstrated that this XAI approach allows users to gauge the congruence between these examples and their circumstances. The congruence between the user and the explanatory example acts as a positive indicator of fairness and inclusiveness of the AI system. Conversely, when a disparity exists between the user and the explanatory examples, it evokes perceptions of unfairness and exclusion, thereby prompting users not to put blind trust in the system and raising users’ awareness of algorithmic bias stemming from non-inclusive datasets. The results further highlight the moderating role of users’ prior experience with discrimination. The study findings thus attest to the instrumental value of XAI in helping users understand the decision-making process of AI, and in the process, raising awareness for potential algorithmic bias.
The researchers recruited female participants from Connect who were willing to interact with an AI-powered skincare recommendation system that offered results either matching or mismatching participants’ skin tone after scanning and analyzing their faces using webcams. Quantitative, Experimental eXplainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI), Algorithmic Bias, Fairness Heuristics, Inclusiveness, Imposed Users, Colorism Interactive Media, Data Science
Chun, J., & North, M. S. People Believe that Morality Particularly Does Not Change. Available at SSRN 4766721. Full Text Chun and North found that people believe morality traits are less likely to change over time compared to competence and warmth traits, especially in individuals perceived to have poor moral character.

Abstract

Although considerable research has explored the extent to which people think individuals’ traits can change over time, it is relatively unclear how people think such change might or might not be possible. To address this issue, we investigate change beliefs concerning three major dimensions in social perception: competence, warmth, and morality. Findings reveal that changeability beliefs are weakest in the domain of morality. People think that morality traits are less likely to change over time within individuals than competence and warmth traits (Study 1). They also believe that individuals who have demonstrated behavior implying morality are less likely to change than those who have demonstrated behavior implying competence or warmth (Study 2), particularly when the behavior implied low morality (Study 3). Moreover, people report the lowest levels of collaborative intentions with colleagues who have demonstrated low morality because those colleagues seem less likely to change compared to colleagues who have demonstrated low competence or warmth (Study 4). This morality-doesn’t-change effect is explained by the belief that morality captures individuals’ fundamental character. We discuss the implications of our findings regarding how people attribute individuals’ behavior and how it shapes their learning processes.
The researchers recruit 1600 Connect participants in two studies: for Study 1 to assess how much traits could change in people in general and in Study 3 to assess how much traits could change in workplace colleagues. Quantitative, Correlational, Experimental Change, Morality, Perception, Implicit Theories Behavioral Science, Social Psychology, Business
Cikanek, E. (). The Emotional Landscape of American Television News: 2000-2020 (Doctoral dissertation). Full Text Cikanek's dissertation investigated whether the intense political polarization in the U.S. might stem from the emotional content in partisan news media. She discovered that from 2000-2008 and 2010-2020, media outlets with clear political leanings expressed higher levels of anger, whereas nonpartisan outlets exhibited more anxiety and enthusiasm.

Abstract

Public opinion is often shaped by elite discourse, with most Americans receiving elite opinions via the media: newspapers, television, and now the Internet. All teach citizens about the world and the preferences and attitudes of political leaders and pundits. Since the mid 1990s, in an increasingly varied and crowded media landscape, these elite cues no longer produce the kind of cross-party political consensus that characterized much of the 20th century. Citizens choose information environments that provide news which is congenial to their political identities and more easily avoid ideas and news in conflict with them. Knowing that Americans opt into congenial news environments, I theorize that the current polarized and energized electorate is the result of differing emotional environments among partisan and nonpartisan news sources. I argue that the emotionality of partisan news media likely drives current upward trends in both political polarization and participation. Anger-driven political behavior, observed in greater voter turnout and out-partisan hostility, is the likely result of exposure to far more anger cues in partisan media than are typically expressed in nonpartisan news media. I find that partisan news is angrier, less anxious, and less enthusiastic than nonpartisan news, because partisan anchors construct an emotional context for politics by expressing anger, assigning blame, and motivating copartisan action. This dissertation explores how media institutions construct the emotional context of politics, focusing on how the partisan identities of news outlets are associated with variation in the emotional landscape of news. This variation is not unique to the contemporary period: the partisan press of the 19th century dominated the pages of political newspapers, where partisan editors and publishers expressed anger, assigned blame, and galvanized copartisans during elections. I theorize that the same emotionality of the 19th century partisan press has reemerged with the rise of cable television news programming over the first two decades of the 21st century. Elite cues from partisan news anchors are likely mobilizing and enraging the American public through increased expressions of anger to their television news audiences. I establish this by mapping emotional landscape of contemporary American news, focusing on two distinct time periods: 2000-2008, in which I analyze the early partisan cable news environment with the establishment of both Fox News and MSNBC alongside the more established CNN; and 2010-2020, in which I test the oft-repeated theory that during the 2016 presidential campaign Donald Trump changed the media environment. To do this, I construct and validate a methodological framework for measuring emotional cues delivered to audiences by xviii the hosts of news programs, enabling me to measure differences in the emotional cues that are delivered to partisan and nonpartisan news viewers. I find that nonpartisan news is more anxious and more enthusiastic than partisan news over both time periods, but that the key difference is that partisan news is more intensely and frequently angry. I also find that while expressions of anger increased in partisan news from 2000-2008 as Fox established itself as a ratings contender, there is no perceptible shift in the emotional environment from 2010-2020. Donald Trump did not cause changes to the media, but rather took advantage of a partisan press that was already conveying anger to the mass public.
Cikanek used Connect to recruit human coders, evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, to evaluate the emotional content in text segments from various news sources. Quantitative, Qualitative, Coding Political Polarization, News Media, Emotion Political Science
Dahunsi, B. (). A Mixed Methods Exploration of Expertise in Aesthetic Judgment of Apparel for Different Body Shapes (Doctoral dissertation, University of Minnesota). Full Text In her dissertation, Dahunsi analyzed whether expert style guidance aids consumers in choosing clothes more wisely, with the goal of lessening the fashion industry's environmental impact. The research revealed that although such advice doesn't completely match the tastes of young adults, it can offer significant input for crafting recommendations that focus on the users' needs and preferences.

Abstract

Waste from the fashion industry continues to be a major source of pollution. At the consumer use phase, this problem is compounded by inefficient purchase decision making that leads to underutilization. While advances in technology can lead to improved decision making, current decision support systems utilize methods that are not effective for the apparel industry as they rely on past purchases or user similarity metrics to make recommendations. Currently, human-assisted expert knowledge is state of the art in apparel purchase decision support. Such knowledge could prove invaluable in computer-supported decision making but has not yet been empirically assessed. This study sought to first explore predictive expert style advice to identify body and garment attributes as well as garment/body attribute-value pairs used to predict subjective aesthetic appeal of garments with regards to body shape using content analysis. Then, based on the attribute-value pairs identified, to develop a theory on dressing advice based on body shapes, and quantitatively assess the extent to which the body/garment attribute-value pairs predict aesthetic judgments of taste. Qualitative content analysis was conducted on n = 5 books containing body-shape based style advice to understand how authors use body and garment relationships to achieve desired appearance. An instrument was then developed and utilized to empirically assess the findings of iv the qualitative study with crowdsourced judgments of outfit aesthetics using workers from CloudResearch. The results of the study suggest that factors identified as predictive of aesthetic preference from authors could be hierarchical in nature with different levels of importance for different attributes. The findings of this research indicate that while authors’ knowledge may not be fully predictive of young adults’ preference, it could form the basis for a better understanding of which factors are most important in design of user-centered apparel recommendation. Further, as one of the first studies to empirically evaluate expert advice in clothing recommendation, it highlights the importance of a validation phase where expertise is assessed prior to integration into computational system design. Finally, the findings offer a novel opportunity for apparel experts to reflect on established (but unvalidated) “rules” or theories in aesthetics.
Dahunsi recruited 250 Connect participants to view 3D images of people in various outfits to see the extent to which their preferences agree with expert style advice. Qualitative, Quantitative, Survey Fashion, Predictive Expert Style Advice, Aesthetic Judgment, Body-Shape Style Advice Design
Dai and colleagues explored how perceptions of cultivated meat eaters influence its acceptance. They discovered that although these eaters are seen as more eco-friendly compared to conventional meat consumers, they are perceived as less pure and healthy than vegetarians, significantly reducing cultivated meat's acceptance.

Abstract

Low consumer acceptance emerges as one important barrier to the introduction of cultivated meat, a novel food which offers an opportunity for more sustainable and ethical meat production. Due to the motives for impression management and self-esteem, one factor that could contribute to people's acceptance of cultivated meat is their perceptions of other individuals who consume cultivated meat. In the current research, two online survey studies with 393 Singaporean undergraduate students and 401 American adults were conducted to explore the perceptions of cultivated meat eaters. In both studies, participants were randomly assigned to read one of three profiles that described a cultivated meat eater, a conventional meat eater, and a vegetarian. Then they rated the target on a list of traits. In Study 1, cultivated meat eaters were evaluated as more eco�friendly than conventional meat eaters, and less pure than vegetarians. In Study 2, cultivated meat eaters were perceived as more eco-friendly than conventional meat eaters, and less healthy than vegetarians; further, the participants tended to believe that others' general perception of cultivated meat eaters is slightly negative, and their belief about others' perception was strongly correlated with their acceptance of cultivated meat. Practical implications and future directions were discussed.
4/18/24 The researchers recruited 400+ American participants from Connect to extend their initial study from Singaporean undergraduates to a broader community sample, aiming to replicate and extend their findings. Quantitative, Experimental Conventional meat, Cultivated meat, Dietary choices, Social perceptions Dai, X., Leung, A. K. Y., & Chong, M. (2024). The link between people's social perceptions of cultivated meat eaters and their acceptance of cultivated meat. Asian Journal of Social Psychology. Full Text
Daldrop, C., Buengeler, C., & Homan, A. C. (). An intersectional lens on young leaders: bias toward young women and young men in leadership positions. Frontiers in psychology, 14, 1204547. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1204547 Full Text Daldrop and colleagues examiend whether young leaders face more criticism than older leaders. They also wanted to see if this negative view was worse for women compared to men. Their results showed that yes, young leaders do face more criticism than middle-aged and older leaders. But, this bias was the same for both men and women.

Abstract

Research has recognized age biases against young leaders, yet understanding of how gender, the most frequently studied demographic leader characteristic, influences this bias remains limited. In this study, we examine the gender-specific age bias toward young female and young male leaders through an intersectional lens. By integrating intersectionality theory with insights on status beliefs associated with age and gender, we test whether young female and male leaders face an interactive rather than an additive form of bias. We conducted two preregistered experimental studies (N1 = 918 and N2 = 985), where participants evaluated leaders based on age, gender, or a combination of both. Our analysis reveals a negative age bias in leader status ascriptions toward young leaders compared to middle-aged and older leaders. This bias persists when gender information is added, as demonstrated in both intersectional categories of young female and young male leaders. This bias pattern does not extend to middle-aged or older female and male leaders, thereby supporting the age bias against young leaders specifically. Interestingly, we also examined whether social dominance orientation strengthens the bias against young (male) leaders, but our results (reported in the SOM) are not as hypothesized. In sum, our results emphasize the importance of young age as a crucial demographic characteristic in leadership perceptions that can even overshadow the role of gender.
In Study 2, Daldrop and colleagues were able to test their hypotheses with a representative sample of 1000 Connect participants by using Connect's census-matching feature. Quantitative, Experiment Leadership, Young Age, Gender, Status, Intersectionality, Ageism, Social Dominance Orientation Social Psychology
Davis, C. G., Wright, G. P., & McMillan, C. (). When secrets come to mind: Preoccupation, suppression and engagement. European Journal of Social Psychology. Full Text Davis and colleagues investigated the stress levels associated with either suppressing or actively confronting a secret. Their findings from two longitudinal studies indicated that both suppressing and engaging with secrets are linked to negative emotions and guilt, suggesting a closer relationship between these two approaches than previously understood.

Abstract

When secrets come to mind, do people try to suppress them or do they engage with them? Whereas earlier research suggested that people try to suppress secrets, recent work suggests that people often engage with their secrets. Although thought suppression tends to be associated with greater distress, engagement may be ameliorative. In two longitudinal studies of 653 adults (55% women; Mage = 41.3, SD = 12.4) keeping a secret from their partner, we show that engagement with and suppression of secrets are highly positively related. Like suppression, the more people engage with secrets, the more negative affect and guilt they report feeling. Longitudinal analyses indicate that whereas changes over time in engagement and suppression both predicted reduced secret preoccupation, reductions in suppression (but not engagement) mediated reductions in guilt and negative affect. These results indicate that suppression and engagement are more intimately connected than previously thought. We found no evidence that engagement was ameliorative.
The researchers recruited 473 adults in romantic relationships from Connect, who were keeping secrets from their partners, and were able to achieve an 86.9% retention rate across two survey waves spaced one month apart. Survey, Longitudinal, Quantitative Guilt, Preoccupation, Secrecy, Suppression Social Psychology
Ding, Y., Jia, L., & Du, N. (2023, October). Designing for Trust and Situational Awareness in Automated Vehicles: Effects of Information Type and Error Type. In Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting (p. 21695067231192406). Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications. Full Text Ding and colleagues looked into how trust and situational awareness impact the use of automated vehicles. Their findings demonstrated that the type of errors made by autonomous vehicles and the type of information given in the explanations can affect drivers' trust and situational awareness.

Abstract

Trust and situational awareness (SA) are crucial to the adoption and safety of automated vehicles (AVs). Appropriate design of AV explanations could promote drivers’ acceptance, trust, and SA, enabling drivers to get more benefits from the technology. This study investigated the effects of error type and information type of AV explanations on drivers’ trust and SA. We recruited 300 participants for an online video study with a 3 (information type) × 2 (error type) mixed design. Linear mixed model analyses showed that compared with false alarms, misses were associated with more trust decrease after the error and more trust decrease after the post-error recovery. Compared with why information, how information was associated with lower SA generally and risked potential over-trust in false alarms. Therefore, we recommend deploying AV decision systems that are less miss-prone and including why information in AV explanations.
The researchers asked 300 Connect participants to watch a series of ten 10-second simulated driving scenarios before answering questions about trust and situational awareness. Quantitative, Experimental Automated Vehicles, Situational Awareness, Human-Machine Interface, Human Factors, Explainable Artificial Intelligence, Trust Computing and Information
Do, S. F., Reimann, M., López, A., & Castaño, R. (). When Brand Narratives are Written in Metaphoric Terms, Can They Weaken Self–Brand Connections?. Full Text Do and colleagues investigated whether brand narratives that use metaphors can strength the connection between consumer and brands. Across three studies, the researchers found that metaphoric narratives can weaken the self-brand connection in contrast to narratives that do not use metaphors.

Abstract

Previous research has established that brand narratives can strengthen the connection between consumers and brands. The present investigation raises the question of whether this finding holds when narratives are written in metaphoric terms. Three studies, including a pilot study of Amazon.com brand reviews (N = 1,000) and two experiments (N = 4,017), illustrate that metaphoric (vs. non-metaphoric) narratives can actually weaken the self–brand connection. The studies illuminate that, while metaphoric narratives are prevalent in consumer reviews, such reviews seem less likely to provide the narrative structure necessary to establish a strong connection with the brand. This work contributes to the novel insight that while consumers often use metaphors as a way to talk about brands, relying on metaphors may actually weaken the review writer’s connection with the brand. This effect remains robust even when considering high levels of brand familiarity and linguistic abilities of the brand review writer.
The researchers recruited over 2000 Connect participants in their first experiment where they were asked to write their own promotional ideas for a headphone brand before completing questionnaires. Quantitative, Experimental Metaphoric Narratives, Metaphors in Cognition, Consumers' Self–Brand Connections, Cognitive Distance, Archival Brand Review Data, Online Lab Experiments Marketing
Dong, X., & Yang, J. Z. (). Conflicted and Relevant: Systematic Processing of Information on PFAS Contamination. Health Communication, 1-9. Full Text Dong and Yang researched how U.S. adults respond to risks from chemical contamination, looking at how useful and consistent the information is. They found that clear and directly relevant information makes people more aware of what they don't know, while information that conflicts or seems less important leads to deeper thinking.

Abstract

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination is an emerging environmental and public health crisis. Thus, it is crucial to understand public risk perception and communication behaviors surrounding this issue. Guided by the heuristic-systematic model of information processing, this study explores the impact of conflicting information and personal relevance on information insufficiency and information processing. Through an online experiment, 1,062 U.S. adults were randomly assigned to one of four conditions as part of a 2 (information type: conflicting vs. consistent) × 2 (personal relevance: high vs. low) between-subjects factorial design. Both main effect and interaction effect were detected. Specifically, information insufficiency was highest among participants in the high personal relevance and consistent information condition. Personal relevance also had a main effect on information processing. Conflicting information indirectly elevated information processing through increased information insufficiency, but only when personal relevance was low. These findings suggest the importance of providing consistent and personally relevant information related to the risk of PFAS contamination.
The researchers recruited over 1000 US participants from Connect who read different vignettes about chemical levels in their drinking water. Quantitative, Experimental PFAS, Public Risk Perception, Communication Behaviors Communications
Eichner, A. A., Lingnau, N. V., Felka, P., Kohn, V., Holten, R., & Hinz, O. (). Dangerous habit or useful routine? Developing theory-based measures for the intended and unintended consequences of state-tracking habits. ECIS 2023 Research Papers, 391. https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2023_rp/391 Full Text Eichner and colleagues created and validated two scales: Problem of Attention (PoA) and Service to Enduring Goal (SEG), to study the impact of frequent digital device use. These tools measure habitual checking and aid in researching how self-control can address problems from excessive smartphone use.

Abstract

According to the theory of IT-mediated state-tracking, the intended and unintended consequences of constantly checking digital devices can be judged by the resulting problem of attention and by whether the checking led to information that served the individual’s enduring goal. While this perspective offers numerous benefits over the common practice of labeling excessive information technology use as addiction, as of yet, the concepts of problem of attention (PoA) and service to enduring goal (SEG) lack empirical measures. Thus, this paper develops measurement scales for the constructs PoA and SEG following an established construct development methodology. We evaluate the measures’ validity and reliability and demonstrate that PoA and SEG differ from existing similar concepts. With the help of our newly developed constructs the quality of constant checking habits can be assessed which enables future studies to scrutinize the theorized preventive role of self-control in the context of smartphone habits.
The researchers conducted a pilot test by administering their scales to participants on the Connect platform. Quantitative, Construct Development, Scale Development, Survey Constant Checking, IT-Mediated State-Tracking, Habits Information Systems
Fulmer, A. G., & Reich, T. Promoting a product without increasing the promotion budget: How chance in promotions can heighten consumer demand. Journal of Consumer Psychology. Fulmer and Reich explored a new promotional method where companies use chance (e.g., spinning a wheel) to select products for promotion. They found that consumers were more likely to purchase products chosen by chance rather than by intentional methods because they perceived the process as more enjoyable.

Abstract

This research proposes a new promotional selection method, showing in seven laboratory studies, one field experiment, and five supplemental studies that consumers prefer promoted hedonic products when a company selects which products to promote using chance rather than more traditional intentional methods. This preference arises because consumers can perceive chance selection as fun and consequently view a company engaging in such chance selection as more fun. We find converging evidence for this preference, demonstrating the effect on consumer intentions, click‐through rates, and real consumption decisions, while ruling out a variety of alternative explanations. Importantly, because this increased preference is driven by heightened hedonic perceptions, we find that this preference emerges for hedonic products but not for utilitarian products, for which more traditional selection methods are preferred.
In their 5th experiment, the researchers recruited Connect participants to test an important boundary condition of their novel findings and demonstrated that chance promotional methods were only effective for products used primarily for enjoyment (hedonic) rather than products used primarily to perform an intended function (utilitarian). Quantitative, Experimental Chance, Company Image, Consumer Preference, Fun, Hedonic Perceptions Consumer Psychology
Gallivan, N. P. (). “What happens next is up to you:” Encouraging Americans’ engagement in and communication about the issue of climate change (Doctoral dissertation, Kansas State University). Full Text Gallivan examined how different ways of talking about climate change influenced people's views and their readiness to act for the environment. The study found that people's willingness to change their views and actions depended on how many changes the messages suggested and how agreeable the individuals were by nature.

Abstract

The purpose of these studies was to examine persuasive methods of climate change (CC) advocacy among Americans who feel strongly about this issue. Specifically, using the Global Warming’s Six Americas (Maibach, et al., 2011) framework, Alarmed and Concerned Americans were recruited to examine different appeals encouraging pro-environmental behaviors that varied by the number of proposed behaviors (seven versus one) and by the proposed actor of these behaviors (the participant themself versus legislators in the U.S. government; Study 1) and to establish the perceived efficacy of tools created to help individuals overcome behavioral barriers to CC opinion leadership (i.e., “Strategies” for initiating conversations about CC, “Counterarguments” to common misinformation and denial claims, and “Posts” that can be easily shared across social media sites; Study 2). In Study 1, participants were randomized to view one of four messages (Single Quantity–Self Actor, Single–Legislator, Multiple–Self, Multiple–Legislator) and completed a battery of attitudinal and behavioral measures related to CC. Against expectation, participants who read either of the two messages highlighting Multiple behaviors and either of the two messages highlighting Self-initiation were the more likely to engage, generally, in future pro-environmental behaviors; furthermore, participants who read the Multiple–Self message were more likely to engage in clean electricity practices and products. In Study 2, participants read four messages encouraging engagement in CC opinion leadership, with three of the messages including additional information to help overcome barriers to initiating difficult conversations. They also completed a personality assessment, which helped determine if participants’ effectiveness ratings of the messages uniquely corresponded with specific aspects of their personality. As projected, Agreeableness was positively related to the effectiveness ratings of the Posts message; additionally, Agreeableness was positively related to the effectiveness ratings of the Strategies message. However, lower Extraversion and higher Neuroticism were not uniquely related to effectiveness ratings for either of the three interventions as hypothesized. Clarification of these results, limitations of the study's methodology, and future research possibilities are also discussed.
Gallivan was able to obtain a sample of 200 Connect participants who recorded having voted in a US government election over the past three years and passed a reading comprehension check. Quantitative, Experiment, Intervention Climate Change, Persuasion, Personality Social Psychology, Environmental Psychology
Garbinsky, E., Blanchard, S. J., & Kim, L. (). FINANCIAL MINDFULNESS. Georgetown McDonough School of Business Research Paper Forthcoming. Full Text Garbinsky and colleagues created an 8-item Financial Mindfulness Scale to assess how mindful individuals are regarding their finances. Through 10 studies, they established that this scale is reliable and distinct from other related scales. Moreover, they found that it effectively predicts people's actual investment choices and credit scores, demonstrating its practical applicability in understanding financial behaviors.

Abstract

Financial mindfulness has become a popular term used by practitioners to promote various financial products and services. Despite its industry-wide prevalence, there is still limited conceptual clarity of what financial mindfulness is and how to measure it effectively. In this article, we define financial mindfulness (FM) as “the tendency to be highly aware of one’s objective financial state while possessing a non-judgmental acceptance of that state,” and we develop and validate an 8-item scale to measure individual differences in financial mindfulness. Through 10 studies, we demonstrate that the FM-Scale has strong psychometric properties, is distinct from conceptually related scales, and predicts actual investment preferences and credit scores. Importantly, the FM-Scale is associated with a broad range of known financially detrimental behaviors (i.e., financial withdrawal, impulse buying, and sunk cost bias) above and beyond related scales (i.e., current money management stress and self-control). Our work is the first to introduce and define mindfulness in the context of consumer finance, and to provide a reliable and succinct way to measure it.
The researchers validated and confirmed the reliability of their scale by enlisting approximately 300 Connect participants for each study they conducted. Quantitative, Survey, Scale Development Consumer Finance, Credit Scores, Investment Preferences, Mindfulness, Scale Development Marketing
Gennara, A. K. (). Understanding and Measuring Perceived Productivity (Doctoral dissertation, Carleton University). Full Text In her dissertation, Gennara created and validated a scale to measure perceived productivity. Through four studies, she first defined perceived productivity and then tested the scale's validity and explored its major predictors.

Abstract

The current research aims to define perceived productivity, understand how it is measured, and examine the predictors of perceived productivity. I used topic modelling to create a conceptual definition (Study 1a), which was later validated against people’s own views of productivity (Study 2). I also conducted a rapid review (Study 1b) and evaluated the construct validity of the Subjective Productivity Scale (Study 2). Finally, I investigated predictors of perceived productivity using data from Connect (Studies 3a, 3b) and UpBeing app users (Study 4). Key findings relate perceived goal progress to perceived productivity. While the research provides a comprehensive view of perceived productivity, more research is needed to understand how it relates to objective productivity.
Connect participants played a crucial role in developing Gennara's perceived productivity scale. They first took part in a study to validate the scale, where 135 participants rated how much they agreed with the researcher's definition of productivity and provided feedback. Additionally, in a two-part study, 455 Connect participants first listed up to five personal goals for the day. Then, eight hours later, they completed a second survey rating how much progress they believed they had made towards these goals. Scale Development, Quantitative, Survey Perceived Productivity, Perceived Goal Progress, Scale Development Psychology
Giacona, A. M. (). How Systematically Increasing Estimator Variables Affects the Confidence-Accuracy Relationship (Doctoral dissertation, University of Arkansas). Full Text Giacona's dissertation investigated how various factors impact the "pristine conditions hypothesis," which posits that eyewitnesses confident in their testimony stay accurate under ideal conditions. Her research identified limits to this hypothesis, showing that eyewitness accuracy declines under too many suboptimal conditions, like poor lighting, long distances, long wait times, brief exposure, and racial differences.

Abstract

Researchers have used signal-detection theory-based approach to show that when police use proper practices with eyewitnesses, highly confident witnesses will be highly accurate even when viewing conditions may be suboptimal (Wixted & Wells, 2017). This is referred to as the pristine conditions hypothesis. There have been multiple, and often contradictory, studies that have investigated the relationship between viewing conditions and memory degradation (Giacona et al., 2021; Grabman et al., 2019; Lockamyeir et al, 2020; Semmler et al., 2018). In the current study, I systematically manipulated five estimator variables (lighting, distance, retention interval, exposure duration, and race) as either suboptimal or optimal to further investigate this relationship. I found that, as expected, overall memory strength decreased as the number of suboptimal estimator variables increased. Next, I assessed CAC curves for the number of suboptimal estimator variables and found that the pristine conditions hypothesis holds, except when all five variables are suboptimal, at which point high confidence does not equal high accuracy. Additionally, these results did not hold for when base rates were low. Similarly, when collapsing across viewing type, it was found that under low base rates, high confidence did not equal high accuracy when the conditions were suboptimal. While this research found a lot of support for the pristine conditions hypothesis, it also established important boundary conditions for when this hypothesis is not valid. Further research is still needed to continue to address the confidence-accuracy relationship.
Giacona recruited over 1000 Connect participants to view pictures of White and Black men in order to accurately recall which men appeared in a previously viewed lineup. Quantitative, Experimental Eyewitness, CAC, Pristine Conditions, Estimator Variables Cognitive Psychology
Goh, J. X. (). Are Brenda, Juanita, and Latoya More Feminine than Jia and Neha? Gendered Evaluations of Racialized Names. Goh examined how people perceive the masculinity and femininity of names from five different racial groups. His findings demonstrate that people perceivedChinese and Indian female names as less feminine and more masculine than three other racialized female names (Black, Hispanic, and White), whereas people perceive Chinese and Indian male names as more feminine and less masculine than other racialized male names.

Abstract

Names are frequently used in social science research to manipulate identities such as race and gender. However, names may signal unintended identities or downplay intended identities. Three studies (N= 1,100 US participants) examined the gendered evaluations of names from five racial groups: Chinese, Indian, Black, Hispanic, and White. Studies 1 and 2 consistently found that Chinese and Indian female names were perceived as less feminine and more masculine than the three other racialized female names, which contradicts extant findings using Asian female faces. Chinese and Indian male names, on the other hand, were considered more feminine and less masculine than the other racialized male names. Study 3 found that participants expressed greater uncertainty and lower confidence about the gender of Chinese and Indian names compared to other racialized names. This research raises potential methodological concerns regarding the effectiveness of racialized names in signaling the gender of Asian ethnic groups.
In Study 3, participants from Connect were not only tasked with determining the gender associated with various names but were also asked to rate their confidence in these assessments, revealing an additional finding that people express greater uncertainty about the gender of Chinese and Indian names. Quantitative, Experiment Names, Race, Gender, Meta-science Social Psychology
Guo, F. (). Revisiting Item Semantics in Measurement: A New Perspective Using Modern Natural Language Processing Embedding Technique. Full Text This dissertation explores the use of natural language processing (NLP) embeddings to address challenges in psychological measurement, such as scale development and validation. Two studies showcased the potential of NLP in improving psychological scales, including developing a corporate personality measure and predicting item response relationships, emphasizing NLP's role in advancing social sciences.

Abstract

Language understanding plays a crucial role in psychological measurement and so it is important that semantic cues should be studied for more effective and accurate measurement practices. With advancements in computer science, natural language processing (NLP) techniques have emerged as efficient methods for analyzing textual data and have been used to improve psychological measurement. This dissertation investigates the application of NLP embeddings to address fundamental methodological challenges in psychological measurement, specifically scale development and validation. In Study 1, a word embedding-based approach was used to develop a corporate personality measure, which resulted in a three-factor solution closely mirroring three dimensions out of the Big Five framework (i.e., Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness). This research furthers our conceptual understanding of corporate personality by identifying similarities and differences between human and organizational personality traits. In Study 2, the sentence-based embedding model was applied to predict empirical pairwise item response relationships, comparing its performance with human ratings. This study also demonstrated the effectiveness of fine-tuned NLP models for classifying item pair relationships into trivial/low or moderate/high empirical relationships, which provides preliminary validity evidence without collecting human responses. The research seeks to enhance psychological measurement practices by leveraging NLP techniques, fostering innovation and improved understanding in the field of social sciences.
Using Connect's extensive demographic targeting options, Guo collected 300 full-time, in-person workers with at least one year of experience. Quantitative, Natural Language Processing, Scale Development Demographics, NLP, Dissertation, Quantitative Psychology Quantitative Psychology
Guo, F. (). Revisiting Item Semantics in Measurement: A New Perspective Using Modern Natural Language Processing Embedding Techniques. Bowling Green State University. Full Text Guo's dissertation investigates the application of natural language processing (NLP) techniques to address psychological scale development and validation.

Abstract

Language understanding plays a crucial role in psychological measurement and so it is important that semantic cues should be studied for more effective and accurate measurement practices. With advancements in computer science, natural language processing (NLP) techniques have emerged as efficient methods for analyzing textual data and have been used to improve psychological measurement. This dissertation investigates the application of NLP embeddings to address fundamental methodological challenges in psychological measurement, specifically scale development and validation. In Study 1, a word embedding-based approach was used to develop a corporate personality measure, which resulted in a three-factor solution closely mirroring three dimensions out of the Big Five framework (ie, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness). This research furthers our conceptual understanding of corporate personality by identifying similarities and differences between human and organizational personality traits. In Study 2, the sentence-based embedding model was applied to predict empirical pairwise item response relationships, comparing its performance with human ratings. This study also demonstrated the effectiveness of fine-tuned NLP models for classifying item pair relationships into trivial/low or moderate/high empirical relationships, which provides preliminary validity evidence without collecting human responses. The research seeks to enhance psychological measurement practices by leveraging NLP techniques, fostering innovation and improved understanding in the field of social sciences.
Guo used Connect to recruit 300 Native English speakers who were in-person workers with at least one year of work experience. Quantitative, Survey, Natural Language Processing Natural Language Processing, Psychological Measurement Psychology, Computer Science, Social Science
Haenschen, K., Collier, J. R., & Tedesco, J. C. (). The normatively troubling impact of attitudes toward the role of money in politics on external political efficacy. Social Science Quarterly. Full Text Haenschen and colleagues studied how Americans view campaign spending and corporate influence on government responsiveness., finding that people who see political spending positively also tend to believe the government is more responsive, and this view holds across different political parties.

Abstract

Objective We explore whether Americans’ attitudes about the role of money spent on political campaigns and separately their attitudes about the influence of corporations impact their external political efficacy (EE) or perception that the government is responsive to them. Methods We conduct three independent sample surveys (total N = 2789) to measure individuals’ attitudes toward the role of money in politics (ARMP), attitudes toward corporations, and EE. We also measure political partisanship to test for moderating effects. Results ARMP are strongly and positively associated with EE: those who are more favorable of the role money plays in politics view government as more responsive to them. This finding is specific to ARMP and does not extend to corporations, suggesting that public awareness of campaign spending is shaping individuals' views of government responsiveness. We find no evidence that this relationship is moderated by partisanship, despite differing views of money in politics between Democrats and Republicans. Conclusion Our results are normatively troubling and suggest that as campaign spending continues to rise, individuals will increasingly feel that the government is less responsive to their concerns.
In order to obtain a more experienced sample of participants with high levels of political interest, political knowledge, and education, the researchers recruited participants from Connect for their “experienced” sample to compare to an inexperienced and youth sample. Quantitative, Survey, Correlational Campaign Finance, Citizens United, Corporations, Democracy, Political Campaigns Communication
Ham, C. C., Piorkowski, M., Seybert, N., & Wang, S. (). Executive Narcissism and the Power of Persuasion: Evidence from the Laboratory and Sell-Side Analyst Valuations. Available at SSRN 4506020. Full Text Ham and his team used experiments to see if having a boss with narcissistic traits could be good for companies. They found that people who saw themselves as more narcissistic were more likely to use methods to convince financial experts to give their company a higher value. This was especially true if they believed these experts had a lot of influence over investors.

Abstract

Despite prior research documenting that firms led by narcissistic executives experience numerous detrimental effects, narcissists are more promotable, enjoy longer tenures, and earn higher compensation than their peers. These outcomes suggest firms accrue some benefits from executive narcissism. We provide evidence of one such benefit: the ability to positively influence external stakeholder perceptions of the firm. In a laboratory setting, we find that narcissistic individuals are more likely to engage in persuasion to elicit higher firm valuations from financial analysts, especially when the analyst is more influential with investors. We triangulate this finding with archival evidence from analyst valuations and conference calls. CFO narcissism is associated with overly optimistic analyst valuations, and their valuations are less affected by recent earnings news, particularly when that news is negative. Consistent with attempts at persuasion, conference calls reveal that narcissistic CFOs exhibit greater levels of engagement with analysts, speak more optimistically, and are more likely to use argumentative prose and corporate euphemisms. Collectively, the evidence suggests that narcissistic CFOs use their persuasive skills to positively influence analyst perceptions of the firm.
The researchers were able to conduct their experiment with 162 participants who met the following criteria: lived in the US, were 25 years old, had at least a BA, and had work experience in finance, sales/marketing, and/or business administration. Quantitative, Experiment, Archival Executive Narcissism, Persuasion, Sell-Side Analysts Business, Management
Haran, U., Van Dijk, D., Barina, M., Krief, M., & Rosenzweig, S. (). Winning isn't everything: Guilt proneness and competitive vs. non- competitive motivation. Journal of Personality, 00, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12834 Full Text Haran and colleagues conducted four studies to explore the connections between the tendency to feel guilty, overall motivation, and the drive to compete. They found that individuals who are prone to guilt are indeed motivated to succeed; however, they tend to shy away from competitive avenues and are less inclined to opt for competitive scenarios when seeking achievement.

Abstract

ObjectiveGuilt proneness is associated with both high motivation to succeed and enhanced concern for others. However, in competition, achieving success requires harming others' interests, which demotivates guilt-prone individuals. Given the prevalence of competition in social and professional life, we examine the relation between guilt proneness, general motivation, and competitive motivation.MethodTwo experiments and two laboratory studies (N = 1735) measured guilt proneness, general motivation, and competitive motivation, and their effects on competitive preferences and choices. Study settings included students' choice of playing a game individually vs. competitively (Study 1), physicians' likelihood to seek residency in medical fields characterized by high competitiveness (Study 2), amateur athletes' preferences between inclusive and win-oriented team strategies (Study 3), and online workers' evaluations of a hypothetical scenario (Study 4).ResultsGuilt proneness was related positively to general motivation, but negatively to competitive motivation. Guilt proneness, indirectly through lower competitive motivation, predicted a lower likelihood of pursuing competitive paths and preference for non-competitive strategies. Emphasizing prosocial aspects of competitiveness attenuated these effects.ConclusionsGuilt proneness is related to high general motivation but to a lower desire to win. Guilt-prone individuals strive for excellence, but through non-competitive paths, whereas people with lower guilt proneness prefer competing.
Using 225 Connect participants, the researchers were able to test the causal link between guilt-proneness, competitive motivation, and competitive preference in Study 4. Quantitative, Survey, Experiment Competition, Guilt Proneness, Motivation, Prosociality Management, Personality Psychology
Hartman, R. (). The Implications of Viewing Political Opponents as Sheeple (Doctoral dissertation, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill). Full Text Hartman studied how people from different political groups see each other, especially focusing on the idea that people often think those who don't agree with them are just following the media and aren't smart. Across six studies, she found that if people see the other political group as "sheeple," they have a more negative opinion of them. This seems to be because they see them as unintelligent.

Abstract

Political polarization has been on the rise in recent years, and understanding how partisans view each other is an important step toward bridging divides. A common narrative in political discourse emphasizes the “sheepleness” of the other side—people view outgroup members as being influenced externally by their upbringing and the media they consume. The present studies examine the way partisans use the sheepleness lens to explain how and why their opponents came to identify with the outgroup. Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods across six studies, I investigate the attributions people make to explain their opponents’ political beliefs and behaviors, and the impact of these attributions on their perceptions of outgroup members. I found correlational and causal evidence for the relationship between perceived sheepleness and outgroup favorability, mediated by perceived unintelligence. I also found consistent party differences in perceived sheepleness, perceived unintelligence, and outgroup favorability, with Republicans displaying more positivity toward the outgroup. The findings offer insight into how partisans view each other.
In her research, Hartman was able to obtain 6 distinct samples of participants from Connect, totaling over 2400 participants, with each sample balanced to include nearly equal numbers of people who identified themselves as Democrats and Republicans, ensuring an unbiased exploration of partisan perceptions. Quantitative, Qualitative, Experiment Political Polarization, Sheepleness, Attribution Theory Social Psychology
Hawkins, I., Roden, J., Attal, M., & Aqel, H. (). Race and gender intertwined: why intersecting identities matter for perceptions of incivility and content moderation on social media. Journal of Communication, jqad023. https://doi-org.ezproxy.siena.edu/10.1093/joc/jqad023 Full Text Hawkins and colleagues examined how race and gender identity influence perceptions of a person posting what’s called “counterspeech” (e.g., a tweet opposing ignorance about White privilege) on social media. Their findings demonstrate that White men were most likely to find a tweet uncivil and to report it. They were particularly likely to report the tweet if it came from a Black woman.

Abstract

Social media users often push back against harmful rhetoric with satirical and aggressive counterspeech. How do the interconnected race and gender identities of the person posting counterspeech and the person viewing it impact evaluations of the comment? Across two online experiments, we manipulate the race (Black or White) and gender (man or woman) of an individual whose tweet opposes ignorance about White privilege to examine if identity influences perceptions of incivility and intentions to flag the tweet for removal among Black and White men and women participants. Results demonstrate White men were most likely to find the tweet uncivil and report it, and this was especially the case when the tweet came from a Black woman, regardless of the tone. These studies highlight the importance of recognizing power and intersectionality in social media content moderation and creating policies that counteract the uniquely severe treatment of Black women by White men.
Hawkins and colleagues had over 500 Connect participants view what looked like a real Twitter feed with photo-edited profile pictures to test their hypotheses. Quantitative, Experiment Social Media, Intersectionality, Social Identity, Content Moderation, Incivility, Critical Media Effects Framework Communications
Hildebrand, D., Hadi, R., & Sen, S. (). Showcase the smiles or the tears? How elicited perspectives determine optimal charity appeal content. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 1-15. Full Text Hildebrand and colleagues compared the effectiveness of two types of charity ads: those showing people in need versus those showing people who have been helped. They found that ads depicting people in need generate more donations when they prompt viewers to empathize with the subjects, whereas ads showing helped individuals work better when they encourage viewers to imagine themselves in the same situation.

Abstract

Some charitable communications employ deprived beneficiary (DB) appeals (showcasing the distressing circumstances of suffering victims), while others feature satiated beneficiary (SB) appeals (depicting the improved state of victims after receiving help). We propose and demonstrate that the relative efficacy of these appeals depends on the perspective viewers are prompted to take. Across three incentive-compatible experiments, we demonstrate that while DB appeals are more effective in increasing donation behavior when an ad evokes a beneficiary-perspective (i.e., asking viewers to imagine how a beneficiary feels), SB appeals are more effective when an ad evokes a self-perspective (i.e., asking viewers to imagine how they themselves would feel if they were in the beneficiary’s position). We also provide evidence for the affect-based mechanism theorized to underlie this basic interaction, and proffer a managerially actionable, ad copy-based moderator.
The researchers recruited Connect participants in their second study to help replicate and extend Study 1. Quantitative, Experiment Donation Behavior, Charity Appeal, Deprived Beneficiary Appeal, Satiated Beneficiary Appeal, Perspective Taking, Affect Management Marketing, Behavioral Science
Hoang, B. L. (). Does Race Affect Public Evaluations of Constituent Messages in Local Government Meetings? Results from an Experiment. Political Studies Review, 14789299231187225. Full Text Hoang examined how race influences the way in which constituents at local public meetings might evaluate messages. Her findings suggest that race did not affect how reasonable participants rated the message as.

Abstract

Constituents in the United States have used local public meetings in recent years to shape policy on some of the most high-profile race-related issues. However, public meeting participation remains less studied relative to other modes of participation. This study investigates the extent to which race shapes the way a message is heard and evaluated by the public audience and the degree to which its impact depends on the issue of the message. To carry out the study, I set up a 2 × 3 experiment containing six short treatment videos in which I manipulated the race of the actor/speaker (Black or White) and the message issue (innocuous service request, race-related policy, and race-neutral policy). Subjects were randomly assigned to watch one of the six videos and then asked to evaluate the message in the video. The early results of this study show that unlike previous studies revealing racial bias in a range of political contexts in the United States, race exerts neither independent nor conditional effects on the evaluation of the message as reasonable. I discuss the limitations and implications of these findings and useful considerations to think about in expanding this study.
600 Connect participants watched a series of 3 short videos featuring actors portraying messages typically heard at city council meetings, then answered questions about the videos. Quantitative, Experiment Race, Ethnicity, Politics, Communication, Urban Politics, Public Meetings Political Science
Holte, A. J., Aukerman, K., Padgett, R., & Kenna, M. (). “Let me check my phone just one more time”: Understanding the relationship of obsessive-compulsive disorder severity and problematic smartphone use. Current Psychology, 1-11. Full Text Holt and colleagues investigated how psychological factors like the Fear of Missing Out and a tendency to get bored easily link Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder with Problematic Smartphone Use.

Abstract

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric disorder characterized by a series of symptoms relating to unwanted and distressing thoughts (IE: obsessions) that lead into the development of repetitive and disruptive behaviors (IE: com�pulsions) in order to quell the anxiety that stems from the obsessive thought(s). Problematic smartphone use (PSU) is the use of one’s smartphone that is viewed as being excessive or interferes with their daily activities. Prior research has identified a relationship between OCD and PSU. However, more research is needed to understand factors that mediate this relationship. In our study, we recruited 438 people and had them complete multiple measures assessing various levels of obsessive-compulsive behavior, Fear of Missing Out (FoMO), inhibitory anxiety (IA), boredom proneness, and PSU. With use of Structural Equation Modeling, several key findings were identified, such as OCD predicted boredom proneness, FOMO, and IA. Moreover, while FoMO and boredom proneness predicted PSU, IA did not. It was also discovered that FoMO and boredom proneness mediated the relationship of OCD and PSU, but IA did not. FoMO and boredom prone�ness appear to play an important role in the relationship between OCD and PSU. Though, experimental work is needed to evaluate the causal effects of this relationship
The researchers recruited 438 participants from Connect and retained data from 97% of participants. Survey, Quantitative Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Problematic Smartphone Use, Fear of Missing Out, Inhibitory Anxiety, Boredom Proneness Psychology
Hou, Y., & Poliquin, C. (). CEO Activism and Public Mobilization. Available at SSRN 4627436. Hou and Poliquin studied how CEO activism influences people's likelihood to contact US senators about social issues. They found that CEO activism on abortion rights didn't greatly increase the chance of pro-choice citizens contacting senators compared to a control group. However, CEO activism was more effective when the senators were Democrats.

Abstract

CEOs increasingly engage in activism on issues such as gun control, voting rights, and abortion. Although such activism may benefit their firms, the stated goal is often to mobilize the public and precipitate change. In an experiment with 4,578 respondents, we study the effect of CEO activism on people’s willingness to contact their U.S. senators about abortion. On average, showing a CEO message supporting abortion rights is not more effective at mobilizing pro-choice citizens than showing no message or showing a message from other speakers. Additionally, CEOs do not provoke countermobilization by people who oppose abortion. We explore heterogeneous treatment effects and find that CEO activism is better at motivating pro-choice citizens to engage in politics when their senators are Democrats and thus likely receptive to pro-choice activism, consistent with stakeholder alignment theory. Our findings contribute to research on social movements and mobilization in markets by examining the ability of CEOs and organizations to act as catalysts for social change.
The researchers enlisted the help of over 1000 Connect participants who read one of four statements on abortion before getting the chance to contact their US senator to share their views. Quantitative, Experimental Mobilization, CEO Activism, Nonmarket Strategy, Political Participation, Corporate-Community Relationship Management
Hua, T. T. (). Fox News’s Effect on Social and Moral Preferences. Full Text Hua's study examined the effect of Fox News on viewers' social and moral values. The findings suggest that regular viewers may lean towards more shared moral values, yet show reduced altruism and trust, with no change in their propensity for negative reciprocity. This trend was particularly strong among non-voters of the 1996 presidential election between Clinton and Dole.

Abstract

This paper examines how Fox News influences social and moral preferences: two crucial inputs in people’s decision-making process. I conduct a survey among Ameri�cans aged 45 or older and use the variation in the channel positions of Fox News and MSNBC across different towns and cable providers as instruments. After confirming that these channel positions do not predict voting patterns before Fox started braod�casting, I find evidence that Fox shifted moral values to be more communal, some suggestive evidence that it decreased altruism and trust, and that Fox does not appear to affect negative reciprocity. In addition, these treatment effects are concentrated among those who did not vote for Bill Clinton or Bob Dole in the 1996 election.
Hua sampled 750 Connect participants over 45 years old residing in the US and used Connect tools to oversample Republicans, increasing respondents who watch Fox News. Quantitative, Survey News Media, Fox News, Altruism, Trust, Negative Reciprocity, Universalist Versus Communal Morals Economics
Hutchings, R. J., Freiburger, E., Sim, M., & Hugenberg, K. (). Racial Prejudice Affects Representations of Facial Trustworthiness. Psychological science, 09567976231225094. Full Text Hutchings and colleagues investigated how racial bias affects the way people use race-related features to determine if a face is trustworthy. This research found that people with higher anti-Black prejudice or less interaction with other groups are more likely to judge faces with White features as trustworthy and those with Black features as untrustworthy.

Abstract

What makes faces seem trustworthy? We investigated how racial prejudice predicts the extent to which perceivers employ racially prototypical cues to infer trustworthiness from faces. We constructed participant-level computational models of trustworthiness and White-to-Black prototypicality from U.S. college students’ judgments of White (Study 1, N = 206) and Black–White morphed (Study 3, N = 386) synthetic faces. Although the average relationships between models differed across stimuli, both studies revealed that as participants’ anti-Black prejudice increased and/or intergroup contact decreased, so too did participants’ tendency to conflate White prototypical features with trustworthiness and Black prototypical features with untrustworthiness. Study 2 (N = 324) and Study 4 (N = 397) corroborated that untrustworthy faces constructed from participants with pro-White preferences appeared more Black prototypical to naive U.S. adults, relative to untrustworthy faces modeled from other participants. This work highlights the important role of racial biases in shaping impressions of facial trustworthiness.
Over 600 Connect participants rated Black and White faces on how trustworthy and typical of a White/Black person their facial features seemed. Quantitative, Experiment Person Perception, Face Perception, Reverse Correlation, Prejudice/Stereotyping, Social Cognition Social Psychology
Jia, C., Lam, M. S., Mai, M. C., Hancock, J., & Bernstein, M. S. (). Embedding Democratic Values into Social Media AIs via Societal Objective Functions. arXiv preprint arXiv:2307.13912. Jia and colleagues examined whether they could use artificial intelligence (AI) to reduce partisan animosity by considering democratic values on social media feeds. Across three studies, the findings demonstrate that removing and downranking anti-democratic attitudes from social media posts reduced partisan animosity without affecting participants’ experience or engagement on social media.

Abstract

This dissertation contributes to retailing and marketing research by exploring how retailer channel decisions (i.e., physical store closures) due to the changes in the retail environment impact consumers’ shopping behaviors. The pandemic caused many retailers to remove physical stores and move online rapidly (e.g., Brooks Brothers and Neiman Marcus) (Pacheco, 2020). As the retail environment changes, understanding consumers’ shopping behaviors is critical for retailers to stay competitive, maintain, and attract new customers. Thus, Essay 1 studies how consumers’ emotions toward the changing retail environment affect their desire to return to their pre-pandemic shopping routine. Using scenario-based experiments, I explored the effects of consumers' emotions (hope and fear) on their likelihood of shopping in-store, the moderating role of subjective norms, and the mediating roles of internal locus of control and coping (problem- and emotion-focused). Essay 2 studies how multichannel consumer segments have changed their channel shopping behaviors across two store elimination phases. Using Latent Profile Analysis, I identified up-to-date multichannel consumer segments based on the segments' in-store and online channel usage pre- and during-COVID-19, the factors that described segment membership, and channel switching intentions by segment membership.
Using almost 2000 Connect participants, Jia and colleagues develop and replicate a novel strategy to help reduce some social media harm. Quantitative, Experiment Social Media, Politics, HCI, AI, Algorithms, Affective Polarization, Partisan Animosity Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction
Karell, D., Sachs, J., & Barrett, R. (2023, November 8). Synthetic Duality: A Framework for Analyzing Natural Language Generation's Representation of Social Reality. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/htxa4 Full Text Karell and colleagues explored the impact of large language models on our understanding of social reality by developing a framework called "synthetic duality." They found that these models can create realistic portrayals of actors and affect readers' perceptions of social reality.

Abstract

The development of large language models (LLMs) has caused concern about their potential risks, including how their ability to generate texts plausibly written by a person could affect our shared perception of the social world. Yet, it remains unclear how best to assess and understand the models’ influence on our understanding of social reality. Building on insights into how social worlds are represented within texts, we take initial steps towards developing a framework for analyzing natural language generation’s (NLG) content, as well as its consequences for perceptions of social reality. We demonstrate our “synthetic duality” framework in two parts. First, we show that advanced LLMs can create, with minimal guidance, reasonable portrayals of actors and ascribe relational meaning to those actors – virtual social worlds within texts, or “Mondo-Breigers”. Second, we examine how these synthetic documents with interior social worlds affect readers’ view of social reality. We find that they change individuals’ perceptions of the ideas and rhetoric of actors depicted in the documents, likely by updating individuals’ expectations about the actors and their meanings. However, additional exploratory analyses suggest it is models’ style, not their construction of “Mondo-Breigers”, that might be affecting people’s perceptions. We end by discussing how our study illustrates a methodological approach for using generative AI to conduct sociological research, as well as how NLG may unsettle structural notions of individuality. Namely, reimagining the duality of individuals and groups could help theorize growing homogeneity in an increasingly NLG-informed world.
The researchers recruited 252 Connect participants to read and respond to scripts created by large language models in order to demonstrate how they can alter people’s social reality. Quantitative, Experimental Duality, Socio-Semantic Networks, Mondo-Breiger, Large Language Models, Natural Language Generation Sociology, Science and Technology Studies, Political Science, Social and Behavioral Sciences
Kaveladze, B. T. (). Using Brief Internet Interventions to Challenge Loneliness at Scale (Doctoral dissertation, University of California, Irvine). Full Text Kaveladze found that single-session interventions (SSIs) for loneliness, lasting either 20 minutes or 1 hour, did not significantly reduce loneliness compared to a control group. However, they were preferred by participants. He also discovered that SSIs with researcher-created content were better at lessening depression and loneliness than those using generic online content, suggesting a need for more tailored SSIs.

Abstract

Loneliness is an enduring global health issue. Effective evidence-based loneliness interventions exist but lack sufficient scale to reach many who might benefit from them. Single-session interventions (SSIs), which aim to condense the core elements of evidence-based treatments into brief and broadly acceptable self-guided experiences, offer an opportunity to make robust guidance for overcoming loneliness much more accessible. This dissertation’s objective was to inform the development of effective and broadly-appealing SSIs for loneliness. Study 1 (n = 908) showed that neither a 20-minute SSI version (p = 0.22) nor a 1-hour 3-session version of a self-guided online loneliness intervention (p = 0.23) changed loneliness over four weeks more than an active control SSI did. However, participants reported finding both loneliness interventions more appealing and valuable than the control (ps < 0.02). While some participants reported that the loneliness interventions had a lasting positive impact, the interventions did not appear to be more useful on average than an active control among lonely people aged 16 and older with internet access. Study 2 explored if popular online content was more effective at reducing distress than typical researcher-created SSI content among a sample of mostly crowdworkers struggling with psychological distress. The study (n = 916) showed that a popular online content-centered mental health SSI did not affect participants’ distress over four weeks differently than a mental health SSI with researcher-created content (p = 0.09) or finding content independently on the web (p = 0.42). On the contrary, participants assigned to the researcher-created SSI reported greater improvement than those assigned to the popular online content-based SSI in depressive symptoms (b = -0.44, p = 0.03) and loneliness (b = 0.29, p = 0.04), on average. Future work should aim to improve SSIs’ effectiveness, identify populations for which SSIs are most effective, and implement SSIs in accessible and appealing ways
For the second study of his dissertation, Kaveladze recruited over 600 participants from Connect for a longitudinal study spanning 8-weeks. Quantitative, Experimental, Intervention, Longitudinal Loneliness, Intervention, Depression Psychology
Keller, L., Hazelaar, F., Gollwitzer, P. M., & Oettingen, G. (). Political ideology and environmentalism impair logical reasoning. Thinking & Reasoning, 1-30. Keller and colleagues examined the effect of personal beliefs, such as political and environmental stances, on individuals' logical reasoning. Their four studies revealed that people's evaluations of logical statements are biased by their beliefs, even when offered financial incentives for accuracy. This demonstrates how deeply ideology can influence logical reasoning.

Abstract

People are more likely to think statements are valid when they agree with them than when they do not. We conducted four studies analyzing the interference of self-reported ideologies with performance in a syllogistic reasoning task. Study 1 established the task paradigm and demonstrated that participants’ political ideology affects syllogistic reasoning for syllogisms with political content but not politically irrelevant syllogisms. The preregistered Study 2 replicated the effect and showed that incentivizing accuracy did not alleviate these differences. Study 3 revealed that syllogistic reasoning is affected by ideology in the presence and absence of such bonus payments for correctly judging the conclusions’ logical validity. In Study 4, we observed similar effects regarding a different ideological orientation: environmentalism. Again, monetary bonuses did not attenuate these effects. Taken together, the results of four studies highlight the harm of ideology regarding people’s logical reasoning.
Keller and colleagues used Connect in their 3rd study to obtain a balanced sample based on political ideology, recruiting 120 participants for each of the five levels of their political ideology measure. Quantitative, Experiment Political Ideology, Logical Reasoning, Motivated Reasoning, Environmentalism, Monetary Incentives Psychology
Kelly, Brad, "Identifying public perceptions towards precision dairy technology use" (2024). Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences. 150. Full Text Kelly's research examines public perceptions of precision dairy technologies (PDT) to help the dairy industry address sustainability and animal welfare concerns. He found that PDT is generally viewed positively, particularly by those from rural backgrounds, with higher incomes, who consume dairy, or who have fewer concerns about animal welfare.

Abstract

To remain sustainable, the dairy industry must demonstrate commitment to addressing concerns from the public, such as sustainability and animal welfare. Precision dairy technologies (PDT) are a potential solution to ameliorate this issue, but public perceptions towards PDT are currently underinvestigated. This thesis aims to describe public perceptions towards PDT. Specifically, the objectives are to 1) describe baseline perceptions of the U.S. public towards PDT, 2) determine the effects of framing information about human-animal bond, data transparency, and animal welfare on PDT perceptions, and 3) evaluate how demographic characteristics mediate these perceptions. An online survey was used to measure baseline perceptions towards PDT and the effects of information framing vignettes on changing those perceptions. Baseline PDT perceptions were generally positive prior to the provision of additional information. More positive baseline perceptions were associated with being from a rural background, higher income, consuming dairy, and expressing less concern regarding animal welfare. Negative information about animal welfare and human-animal bond resulted in more negative perceptions, while positive information led to more positive perceptions. Knowing how the public perceives technology use, and how to engage society in conversations about technology use on farms, is integral to improving social sustainability of the dairy industry.
Kelly recruited over 2500 Connect participants to read information about precision dairy technologies and provide their perceptions about sustainability and animal welfare. Quantitative, Experimental Concern, Animal Welfare, Trust Toward Farmers, Likelihood To Purchase, Social Science Animal and Food Sciences, Social Sciences
Khan, A. (). The Effects of Multiple Metaphors on Framing. Full Text Khan's research focused on the influence of metaphors on understanding societal issues. Participants read vignettes under two conditions: one with a single repeated metaphor (One Metaphor Condition), and another with two different metaphors (Two Metaphor Condition). Responses aligned more with the metaphor introduced first, irrespective of condition, validating Khan's hypothesis that the initial metaphor frames the subsequent perception and decision-making more than a later one.

Abstract

Metaphors are frequently utilized to frame discussions of complicated societal issues, which has been shown to influence decision-making. However, no studies have examined the effects of using multiple metaphors. Specifically, it is unclear how people will react when they read a report framed with two different metaphors that have different entailments. Will the metaphor introduced at the beginning of the report or the one added at the end make more of an impact? Or would the effects of the two metaphors cancel each other out? We hypothesized that participants would be more affected by the metaphor that was presented first. In the present study, participants read a series of four metaphorically framed vignettes. They were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: (1) One Metaphor Condition: where each vignette was framed using two instantiations of a single metaphor, or (2) Two Metaphor Condition: where each vignette was framed using a single instantiation of each of two different metaphors. After reading each vignette, participants answered a question about the vignette with two possible response options, one of which was conceptually consistent with the first metaphor frame. Results supported our hypothesis: overall, participants responded in a manner congruent with the first metaphor they read significantly above chance levels. While metaphor-congruent responding was higher in the One Metaphor Condition, there was not a significant difference between the two conditions on this measure. The implications of these results and the limitations of the current study are discussed.
Khan was able to recruit 400 participants from Connect with gender evenly distributed in order to meet the sample size used in previous metaphor research of 200 participants per condition. Quantitative, Experiment Metaphor, Framing, Mixed Metaphor Psychology
Kim, B., Kwon, P., Lee, K., Lee, M., Han, S., Kim, D., & Joo, H. (). Chupa: Carving 3D Clothed Humans from Skinned Shape Priors using 2D Diffusion Probabilistic Models. arXiv preprint arXiv:2305.11870. Kim and colleagues proposed a 3D generation pipeline, Chupa, to create realistic human digital avatars, overcoming challenges posed by the diversity in human forms. Their new method results in a high-quality, varied, and realistic 3D representations of clothed humans.

Abstract

We propose a 3D generation pipeline that uses diffusion models to generate realistic human digital avatars. Due to the wide variety of human identities, poses, and stochastic details, the generation of 3D human meshes has been a challenging problem. To address this, we decompose the problem into 2D normal map generation and normal map-based 3D reconstruction. Specifically, we first simultaneously generate realistic normal maps for the front and backside of a clothed human, dubbed dual normal maps, using a pose-conditional diffusion model. For 3D reconstruction, we "carve" the prior SMPL-X mesh to a detailed 3D mesh according to the normal maps through mesh optimization. To further enhance the high-frequency details, we present a diffusion resampling scheme on both body and facial regions, thus encouraging the generation of realistic digital avatars. We also seamlessly incorporate a recent text-to-image diffusion model to support text-based human identity control. Our method, namely, Chupa, is capable of generating realistic 3D clothed humans with better perceptual quality and identity variety.
In order to test the user preference for this model, Kim and his team carried out a perceptual study where 100 Connect participants were tasked with determining which images were more realistic for a series of images. Quantitative, Experiment Computer Vision, Pattern Recognition, UX Study Computer Science, Data Science
Kim, J. S., Kim, M., & Baek, T. H. (). Enhancing User Experience With a Generative AI Chatbot. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 1-13. Full Text Kim and colleagues explored the impact of reported enjoyment and usability on user satisfaction with ChatGPT, and participants' intention to keep using it. Their results showed that users' enjoyment and usability perceptions positively influenced their satisfaction, but responsiveness did not have a significant effect on satisfaction.

Abstract

With the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI), this study aims to examine the interplay among the perceived usability, perceived enjoyment, perceived responsiveness, and intention to continue using ChatGPT. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to investigate our proposed model. We recruited 446 ChatGPT users through an online survey conducted on the Connect platform, powered by CloudResearch. Perceived usability (β = 0.254) and enjoyment (β = 0.438) significantly influence satisfaction with ChatGPT. However, perceived responsiveness is not significantly related to perceived attachment or satisfaction. Furthermore, we established that perceived attachment (β = 0.405) and satisfaction (β = 0.447) are pivotal in shaping users’ intentions to continue using ChatGPT, providing insights into human–AI interactions. The practical implications of our findings suggest that generative AI chatbots should be crafted with a focus on enjoyable, user-centered interfaces that foster long-term user satisfaction and engagement. AI developers should design AI conversation flows and chatbot personas to optimize the user experience.
The researchers recruited 446 ChatGPT users on Connect who answered survey questions about their perceptions of ChatGPT. Quantitative, Survey ChatGPT, Perceived Usability, Perceived Enjoyment, Perceived Responsiveness, Perceived Attachment, Satisfaction, Continued Usage Intention Media and Communication
Kim, M., Baek, T. H., & Kim, J. S. When Branded Memes Go Viral: The Mediating Role of Perceived Fun. Available at SSRN 4785605. Full Text Kim and colleagues discovered that brands using memes on social media boost consumer engagement, as people find the memes fun and engaging.

Abstract

Brands increasingly leverage memes to connect with consumers on social media. This study aims to explore the dynamics between branded meme relatedness and its effects on perceived novelty, social connectedness, spontaneity, perceived fun, and subsequently, social media engagement. Using an online survey approach, we demonstrate that branded meme relatedness significantly influences perceived novelty, enhances social connectedness, and fosters perceived spontaneity. Furthermore, the impact of branded meme relatedness on social media engagement is mediated by perceived fun. These findings not only contribute valuable insights to the marketing literature by suggesting the complex mechanisms through which branded memes facilitate consumer engagement but also offer actionable strategies for brand managers aiming to effectively harness memes for social media marketing campaigns
The researchers used Connect’s demographic targeting feature to recruit 479 Facebook users to complete their survey on their perceptions of branded memes that they’ve come across on Facebook. Quantitative, Survey, Correlational Branded Meme Relatedness, Perceived Novelty, Social Connectedness, Spontaneity, Perceived Fun, Social Media Engagement Marketing, Media, Communications
Kim, T., Saito, S., & Joo, H. (). NCHO: Unsupervised Learning for Neural 3D Composition of Humans and Objects. arXiv preprint arXiv:2305.14345. Full Text Kim and colleagues introduced a new method to synthesize 3D models of humans with clothing and accessories from real-world scans. Their system can separate and then naturally combine humans and objects, offering a more flexible way to create diverse and realistic 3D avatars with various items and poses.

Abstract

Deep generative models have been recently extended to synthesizing 3D digital humans. However, previous approaches treat clothed humans as a single chunk of geometry without considering the compositionality of clothing and accessories. As a result, individual items cannot be naturally composed into novel identities, leading to limited expressiveness and controllability of generative 3D avatars. While several methods attempt to address this by leveraging synthetic data, the interaction between humans and objects is not authentic due to the domain gap, and manual asset creation is difficult to scale for a wide variety of objects. In this work, we present a novel framework for learning a compositional generative model of humans and objects (backpacks, coats, scarves, and more) from real-world 3D scans. Our compositional model is interaction-aware, meaning the spatial relationship between humans and objects, and the mutual shape change by physical contact is fully incorporated. The key challenge is that, since humans and objects are in contact, their 3D scans are merged into a single piece. To decompose them without manual annotations, we propose to leverage two sets of 3D scans of a single person with and without objects. Our approach learns to decompose objects and naturally compose them back into a generative human model in an unsupervised manner. Despite our simple setup requiring only the capture of a single subject with objects, our experiments demonstrate the strong generalization of our model by enabling the natural composition of objects to diverse identities in various poses and the composition of multiple objects, which is unseen in training data.
The researchers carried out two user preference evaluations (A/B tests) using Connect participants to verify their distinct approaches. Quantitative, Experiment Computer Vision, Pattern Recognition, UX Study Computer Science, Data Science
Knaplund, T. J. (). Attitudes in Memory: Investigating the Hierarchical Model of Attitude Structure in Indirect Attitude Change (Doctoral dissertation, Iowa State University). Full Text Knaplund investigated different methods of changing people's attitudes. His findings demonstrate that changing an attitude indirectly (by influencing a related attitude) is easier if the connection between the two attitudes is clear and easily accessible.

Abstract

Attitudes are summary evaluations of objects in memory, and much has been done to understand how they are formed and changed. There are two broad approaches to attitude change: direct and indirect. Direct change involves changing an attitude by targeting the attitude itself, while indirect change involves modifying one attitude by targeting another related one with a persuasive attempt. Additionally, there are two broad perspectives on the mechanism of indirect change: linkage models, in which attitude change spreads from the targeted attitude to similar attitudes to varying degrees based on the strength of the associations, and hierarchical models, in which attitude change is more likely to spread from more abstract categorical targets to less abstract category member attitudes than in reverse. In this project, I proposed two studies to serve as the first to demonstrate evidence of the varying contexts in which the different models of indirect attitude change are better or worse predictors of change in attitudes. Study 1 conceptually replicated previous work and found no evidence of hierarchical organization, as change in attitudes showed no directional difference based on hypotheses drawn from a hierarchical perspective. Study 2 examined the contribution of hierarchy accessibility to the effects within the hierarchical structure and found that accessibility does play a role in indirect attitude change. Indirect attitude change is stronger when relations among objects are more accessible. Results have implications for furthering our understanding of how to produce the most significant changes in attitudes in more varied contexts and further our understanding of the distinction between direct and indirect attitude change.
Knaplund recruited over 1000 Connect participants across two studies. Quantitative, Experiment Attitudes, Memory, Knowledge-Structures Social Psychology
Kushnir, C. N. (). Racial Differences in Non Pathological Dissociation. UC Santa Barbara: Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Journal. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2rg3862x Full Text Kushnir examined whether racial trauma explains racial differences in unhealthy dissociative coping. She found that Black participants showed much higher dissociation rates than White participants, with less definitive proof that racism caused this difference.

Abstract

Past literature examining dissociation beyond white populations is sparse. The few studies that have diversified their sampling report higher rates of dissociative symptomatology amongst black participants as compared to other racial groups. However, much of this research has failed to extend their findings beyond the general conclusion of an observable racial discrepancy in experienced dissociation. The present study incorporates theoretical models of racial traumatic stress and maladaptive dissociative coping in its investigation of perceived exposure to racial abuse as a potential factor for racial differences in dissociation—specifically of the nonpathological variety. Findings reveal a significantly higher rate of nonpathological dissociation amongst black individuals as compared to white individuals. Less statistically conclusive results were obtained regarding the degree of exposure to racial abuse and related dissociative tendencies. Yet, intrinsic limitations within the study were largely due to the difficulty in quantifying the vast complexities of experienced racism, suggesting the tentative importance of the findings. Discussions on racial trauma, dissociative phenomena, and hierarchical networks—as well as suggested directions for future research—are included.
With demographic targeting on Connect, Kushnir obtained a balanced sample of White and Black participants to test her hypothesis. Quantitative, Survey Dissociation, Racial Differences, Prejudice, Discrimination, Racial Trauma, Coping Clinical Psychology
Landry, A., Druckman, J., & Willer, R. (). Need for Chaos and Dehumanization Are Robustly Associated with Support for Partisan Violence. Full Text Landry and colleagues investigated factors linked to backing partisan violence, finding that a "need for chaos" and holding dehumanizing views towards members of the opposing political party were the most strongly and consistently associated with support for partisan violence.

Abstract

Recent, high-profile acts of partisan violence have stimulated interest among academics and the general public in the etiology of support for such violence. Here, we report results of an exploratory study that (1) measures support for partisan violence with both abstract items (e.g., general support for partisan violence) and support for more specific acts (e.g., support for a partisan motivated shooting), (2) follows recently-established best practices by including attention checks to attenuate response bias, and (3) incorporates measures of a wide range of potential confounders as control variables. Across three data collections (total N = 2,003), including two with nationally representative samples, and tracking seven unique operationalizations of support for the use of violence against out-partisans, we find the most consistent and typically largest relationships with an individuals’ reported “need for chaos” (e.g., agreement with statements like: “Sometimes I just feel like destroying beautiful things”) and the extent to which they dehumanize supporters of the opposing party. We speculate this reflects a motivation to use extreme methods (need for chaos) toward one’s political rivals, liberated from the moral restraints that inhibit harming fellow human beings (dehumanization). System justification and social dominance orientation were also both positively related to support for partisan violence, which may reflect partisans’ desire to protect their preferred social order from out-partisans deemed to threaten it. Collectively, these results offer a framework for future research on support for partisan violence, highlighting the role of extreme orientations toward society and rival partisans.
For Study 1, the researchers recruited 300 participants from Connect who identified themselves as partisans (i.e., leaning towards Democrat or Republican), excluding only two participants who failed an attention check. Survey, Quantitative Affective Polarization, Dehumanization, Ideological Extremity, Need for Chaos, Partisan Animosity, Political Psychology, Social Dominance Orientation, System Justification, Trait Aggression Social Psychology, Personality Psychology, Political Psychology
Lee, I. P., & Jilke, S. Sector Attraction and the Role of Job Information: Evidence from a Conjoint Experiment. Public Administration Review. Full Text Lee and Jilke investigated whether certain people prefer public or private sector jobs. They discovered that those highly motivated for public service are attracted to public sector job ads with minimal information. Yet, when more job details are given, this interest lessens.

Abstract

Are public and private employees different? And is this difference due to the fact that different people are attracted to work for government rather than companies? It has been proposed that individuals with certain characteristics, such as having high levels of risk aversion or public service motivation (PSM), are more likely to self-select into public service. This study argues that this sector attraction effect depends on the amount of job-related information available to job seekers at different stages of the job search process. We test our hypotheses using a three-stage conjoint experimental design. The employment sector only matters to job seekers when little direct information is provided. Once more job-related information is available to them, it diminishes. This effect is especially strong for people with high levels of PSM. These findings suggest that the sector attraction effect is situational, which has important implications for theory and practice of public sector attraction.
The researchers conducted a study with a US census-matched quota sample of 98 participants from Connect examining whether participants wanted to learn more about each job instead of asking if they would apply for the job. Quantitative, Experimental Public Sector, Private Sector, Employees, Public Service Motivation Public Affairs, Public Policy
Lee, J. J. (). Cheap Talk with the Bayesian Truth Serum. Available at SSRN 4450528. In three separate experiments, Lee explores the efficacy of merging two methods aimed at prompting participants to provide more honest answers in surveys, compared to using each method individually. The results reveal that integrating these techniques enhances the accuracy of participants' responses in various survey contexts and formats.

Abstract

Biased responses in survey studies could seriously harm and mislead our economic decision-making. To mitigate survey response bias, we suggest an alternative way of combining two existing strategies, cheap talk and the Bayesian Truth Serum (BTS). In our three proof-of-concept experiments, we found that our alternative approach, named the C-BTS, helps elicit more truthful survey responses even in situations where neither the BTS nor cheap talk alone works well enough, especially in the context of economic valuation of goods. By applying the C-BTS, we have also confirmed that AI-powered services are already significantly enhancing the well-being of our citizens.
Lee opted for Connect to recruit participants for his experiments on survey response bias due to its high data quality and utilized its automatic census-matched template to select individuals based on criteria like U.S. citizenship, gender, age, ethnicity, race, income, and education level. Quantitative, Experiment Hypothetical Bias, Willingness to Pay, Willingness to Accept Economics
Loureiro, S. M. C., Jiménez‐Barreto, J., Bilro, R. G., & Romero, J. Me and my AI: Exploring the effects of consumer self‐construal and AI‐based experience on avoiding similarity and willingness to pay. Psychology & Marketing. Full Text Loureiro and colleagues explored how AI tools with branding affect consumers, particularly looking at their feelings of uniqueness, their experiences, and how they spend. They found that individuals with an independent mindset felt more unique and had better experiences using branded AI, which in turn made them more likely to spend on products suggested by the AI. Additionally, these consumers tended to steer clear of products that appeared to be too common or popular.

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping consumer interaction with brands, but little is known about how brands can implement AI tools effectively. Drawing on consumer uniqueness and self-construal theories, the authors examine the implementation of branded AI tools and their influence on consumers' experience, sense of uniqueness, and spending behavior. Across five studies, this research examines consumers' narratives about interacting with a branded AI tool (Study 1); tests the relationships between self-construal, AI-enabled consumer experiences, and avoidance of similarity (Studies 2A and 2B); evaluates in situ experience with a branded AI tool and its implications for spending behavior (Study 3); and delineates consumer preferences about the attributes of branded AI tools (Study 4). The findings reveal that individuals characterized by independent self-construal are prone toward perceiving higher recognition and hedonic values during their experience with branded AI tools, partially enhancing consumer avoidance of similarity and influencing their willingness to pay for products that the AI tool recommends. For practitioners, the findings suggest developing a two-fold value proposition strategy for consumers by generating personal and psychological value together with product and service recommendations.
The researchers recruited 250 Connect participants in Study 2b to replicate their initial findings from Study 2a with a gender-balanced sample of mostly full-time workers. Qualitative, Quantitative, Survey AI, Consumer Experience, Avoidance of Similarity, Hedonic, Recognition, Self‐Construal, Willingness to Pay Marketing, Consumer Behavior
Lu, Z. Y., Hsee, C. K., & Wu, K. (). Short-Asking with Long-Encouraging (SALE): A simple method to increase purchase quantity. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 1-19. Full Text Lu and colleagues investigated the SALE marketing approach, which merges a long-term suggestion ("Stock up for two weeks") with a short-term question ("Think about how many you will consume in one day") to see if it encourages increased purchasing. They confirmed the effectiveness of SALE through two field studies, four lab experiments, and a survey of sales professionals, offering a detailed look at its mechanics, boundaries, and optimal conditions for success.

Abstract

Marketers often use messages such as “Stock up and save” to encourage consumers to buy more units of a product. Governments use messages such as “Store at least a two-week supply of water and food” to encourage consumers to stock up on essentials for emergencies. This research finds that these messages may not work as effectively as hoped and introduces a method that can increase consumers' purchase quantity in these situations. Dubbed as SALE (“Short-Asking with Long-Encouraging”), this method couples a “long-encouraging” statement (e.g., “Stock up for two weeks”) with a “short-asking” statement (e.g., “Think about how many you will consume in one day”) in an advertisement. Two field studies, four lab experiments and a survey with salespeople demonstrated the effectiveness and novelty of SALE and identified the mechanism, moderators and boundary conditions of the effect.
For their various experiments and pretests, the researchers utilized Connect’s demographic targeting feature to effectively recruit specific participant samples, such people who were actual consumers of a product in Study 3 and other who had sales experience in Study 6b. Quantitative, Experiment Sales Promotion, Unit-Asking, Emergency Preparation, Field Experiments, Scope Sensitivity Marketing
Ludwig, J. M., & Schumann, K. (2023, August 20). How and Why the Omission Bias Affects Victims’ Responses to Interpersonal Transgressions. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/dc2wh Ludwig and Schumann investigated whether people are willing to forgive others’ transgressions. Across two studies, they found that participants were less willing to forgive someone for a commission transgression (actively doing something wrong) vs. an omission transgression (passively misleading by failing to disclose information), but that overall, apologies are effective for both types of transgressions.

Abstract

We examined how and why commission and omission transgressions differentially affect victims’ forgiveness, and whether apologies are differentially effective at eliciting forgiveness for these transgressions. In Study 1 (N = 376), using online vignettes, victims perceived commission (vs. omission) transgressions as higher in responsibility and intent, and these offense perceptions in turn predicted reduced forgiveness, both on their own and serially through perceptions of immoral behavior and immoral character. However, apologizing (vs. not apologizing) predicted greater forgiveness for both types of offenses. In Study 2 (N = 593), using recalled offenses, forgiveness was lower for commission (vs. omission) transgressions. Study 2 also replicated the mediating roles of offense perceptions and moral judgments, as well as the benefits of apologies for forgiveness across both types of offenses. These studies demonstrate how and why forgiveness might be less forthcoming for commissions, but suggest that apologies are effective for both commissions and omissions.
Ludwig and Schumann used the census-matched option on Connect to collect a representative sample of 600 participants in their second study. Quantitative, Experiment Apologies, Forgiveness, Morality, Offense, Perceptions, Omission Bias Social Psychology
Lute, S. M. (). Testing Age-Based Stereotype Threat on Environment Learning (Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron). Full Text Lute explored how age influences environment learning, with a focus on age-based stereotype threat (ABST). She found that while older adults take longer to complete tasks, they are just as accurate as younger adults, and exposure to negative stereotypes did not significantly worsen their performance.

Abstract

The aim for this study was to broaden the current understanding of age differences in environment learning by taking a social cognitive lens. This new take on age differences in environment learning stemmed from the age-based stereotype threat (ABST) literature. ABST was explored by testing for interactions between Condition (Neutral and Stereotype Threat) and Age Group (young, middle-aged, older) from 244 participants. Participants were randomly assigned to a neutral condition or a stereotype threat condition that included negative old age stereotype exposure. A significant main effect for Age Group for time taken in allocentric sections and time taken overall was found, with older adults taking longer to complete the task. All of the interactions, for all sections of the task, were nonsignificant. Additional analyses revealed significant main effects for Age Group and Condition on perceived threat and revealed that perceived threat was higher in threat conditions for all age groups. This study adds to the literature by testing ABST effects on a new domain and across various types of environment learning. Furthermore, these findings highlight that older adults may take longer to complete environment learning tasks but may be just as accurate, depending on the task type. The main takeaways from this study were, when exposed to negative old age stereotypes older adults did not perform significantly worse. This suggests that the combination of blatant and subtle stereotypes do not result in ABST effects on environment learning. These findings should be further explored by testing subtle and blatant threat manipulations separately, measuring self-efficacy, and including a task that resembles everyday environment learning.
By setting age quotas on Connect, Lute recruited equal groups of participants who were young adults, middle-aged adults, and older adults. Quantitative, Experimental Stereotype Threat, Age-Based Stereotype Threat, Self-Concept Threat Developmental Psychology
Ma, A. (). The Influence of Error on Perceptions of Machine Learning vs. Clinician-Based Risk Assessments (Doctoral dissertation, Arizona State University). Ma's dissertation investigates how people view the trustworthiness of risk assessments made by human clinicians compared to those produced by machine learning algorithms for legal decisions. The findings show that more people tend to have greater faith in assessments made by clinicians rather than those created by machines.

Abstract

Risk assessments are key legal tools that can inform a number of legal decisions regarding parole sentencing and predict recidivism rates. Due to assessments being historically performed by humans, they can be prone to bias and have come under various amounts of scrutiny. The increased capability and application of machine learning technology has lead the justice system to incorporate algorithms and codes to increase accuracy and reliability. This study researched laypersons’ attitudes towards these algorithms and how they would change when exposed to an algorithm that made errors in the risk assessment process. Participants were tasked with reading two vignettes and answering a series of questions to assess the differences in their perceptions towards machine learning and clinician-based risk assessments. The research findings showed that individuals lent more trust to clinicians and had more confidence in their assessments when compared to machines, but were not significantly more punitive when it came to attributing blame and judgement for the consequences of an incorrect risk assessment. Participants had a significantly more positive attitude towards clinician-based risk assessments, noting their assessments as being more reliable, informed, and trustworthy. Participants were also asked to come to a parole decision using the assessment of either a clinician or machine learning algorithm at the end of the study and rate their own confidence in their decision. Results found that participants were only significantly less confident in their decision when exposed to previous instances of risk assessments with error, but that there was no significant difference in their confidence based solely on who conducted the assessment.
Ma successfully recruited 383 Connect participants for her study. These participants read a pretend article that described a defendant's parole decision, either determined by a machine learning assessment or a clinician. Afterward, they answered questions about how reliable and trustworthy they found the assessment to be. Quantitative, Experiment Risk Assessment, Legal Decision Making, AI Behavioral Science
Maedge, K. (). Gendered burnout: How emotional labor, work-family conflict, and social support contribute to occupational burnout in men and women [Doctoral dissertation, Southern Illinois University Carbondale]. https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/dissertations/2180/ Full Text In her dissertation, Maedge investigated how emotional labor, work-family conflict, and social support influence burnout among U.S. workers of different genders. She discovered that difficulties in balancing work and family intensify the impact of emotional labor and inadequate support from supervisors on burnout for both men and women.

Abstract

Occupational burnout has many consequences for individuals and organizations. Previous research has identified gender differences in experiences of burnout. For instance, while women tend to feel burnout through exhaustion, men tend to feel burnout through cynicism, perhaps due to traditional gender roles (Houkes et al., 2011; Purvanova & Muros, 2010). Emotional labor, which contributes to burnout, may also explain gender differences in burnout, as women perform more emotional labor than men (Hochschild, 1983; Johnson & Spector, 2007; Simpson & Stroh, 2004). Work-family conflict and social support, and their interactions with gender, also impact the relationship between emotional labor and burnout (Grzywacz & Marks, 2000; Karatepe, 2010; Montgomery et al., 2006; Noor & Zainuddin, 2011; Thompson et al., 2005; Yaseen et al., 2020; Zhang et al., 2020). However, many models explaining these relationships are not comprehensive and have only been tested on samples of non-US employees in specific occupations. The present research built on this previous work by exploring models of gendered burnout that included emotional labor, work-family conflict, and social support. United States residents employed full-time in a variety of occupations were recruited through CloudResearch Connect. Participants completed a survey measuring occupational burnout, emotional labor, work-family conflict, social support, and demographics. The data was split into halves for exploratory and confirmatory analyses. Exploratory analyses attempted to replicate previously identified models and test new ones. Exploratory analyses that partially or completely supported hypotheses or otherwise identified significant results were repeated in confirmatory analyses. Nine moderation and mediation models (ie, 6 models derived from prior research and 3 new models) were examined along with gender differences on key variables. In both exploratory and confirmatory results, work-to-family conflict partially mediated the relationship between surface acting and exhaustion, the relationship between surface acting and cynicism, and the relationship between supervisor social support and burnout. However, little to no gender differences were found on key variables. Overall, emotional labor, work-family conflict, and unsupportive supervisors contributed to burnout in participants from a variety of occupations, regardless of their gender.
Using Connect, the researcher was able to build upon previous research by looking at burnout in US employees (as opposed to non-US samples) across a variety of occupations. Quantitative, Survey Occupational Burnout, Gender, Work-Family Conflict, Social Support, Emotional Labor I/O Psychology, Applied Social Psychology
Malekshah, N. N., Kamran‐Disfani, O., Mousavi, J., & Aghaie, S. Customers' political ideology and Self‐Service Technologies: Do political leanings predict usage of Self‐Service Technologies?. Psychology & Marketing. Full Text Malekshah and colleagues examine political ideology as a significant predictor of customer use of Self-Service Technologies, finding that liberals are more likely to use these technologies than conservatives. Additionally, this effect is even stronger when the Self-Serving Technologies are more complex, and the overall effect is driven by both participants’ perceived control and need for interaction.

Abstract

Self-service technologies are widely used in business, and retailers and service firms invest significant resources to obtain and improve their Self-Service Technology capabilities. To allocate resources efficiently, it is crucial for firms to predict Self-Service Technology usage by their customers. However, predictors in the extant literature (e.g., customers' perceptions and personality traits) are not easy to objectively measure or obtain secondary data about. This research proposes and examines political ideology, for which fairly accurate and objective data can be obtained, as a novel predictor of customer Self-Service Technology usage. In four studies in different contexts, the authors consistently find that political ideology is significantly related to customers' intention to use and actual use of Self-Service Technologies; Liberals, on average, are found to be significantly more likely to use Self-Service Technologies compared to conservatives. Moreover, process complexity is identified as a moderator of this effect. In addition, two mediators, customers' need for interaction and customers' perceived control, through which political ideology affects intention to use Self-Service Technologies are uncovered. The manuscript concludes with a discussion of contributions and practical implications for managers and practitioners as well as avenues for future research.
The researchers replicated and extended their findings with a sample of participants from Connect, asking participants to report their actual use of Self-Service Technologies during recent visits to stores, instead of their intention to use these technologies as in previous studies. Quantitative, Correlational, Experimental Conservative, Liberal, Political Ideology, Self‐Service Technology, Technology Usage Psychology, Marketing
Martel, C., & Rand, D. G. (2023, November 11). Fact-checker warning labels are effective even for those who distrust fact-checkers. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/t2pmb Full Text Martel and Rand researched whether skepticism towards fact-checkers lessens the impact of warning labels in countering online misinformation. They found that despite people on the political right generally having less trust in fact-checkers, warning labels still notably decrease belief in and sharing of false news. This indicates that warning labels are an effective method in combating misinformation.

Abstract

Warning labels from professional fact-checkers are one of the most widely used interventions against online misinformation. Prior work suggests that such warning labels are effective at reducing the belief and spread of false content on average. However, there is substantial distrust of fact-checkers, particularly among those on the political right. Does this distrust undermine the effectiveness of fact-checks? In the current work, we investigate this question empirically. In a first correlational study (N=1,000), we establish and validate a measure of trust in fact-checkers. We confirm that more Republican-favoring participants are less trusting of fact-checkers, and also find that skill-based traits such as procedural news knowledge and analytic thinking exacerbate this partisan asymmetry. Next, we conduct meta-analyses across 21 experiments (total N=14,133) in which participants evaluated actual true and false news posts and were randomized to either see no warning labels (control) or to see warning labels on a high proportion of the false posts. We find that warning labels were on average effective at reducing belief in (27.6% reduction), and sharing of (24.7% reduction), false headlines. While warning effects were somewhat smaller for participants with less trust in fact-checkers, warning labels nonetheless significantly reduced belief in, and sharing of, false news even for those most distrusting of fact-checkers. Together, these results suggest that fact-checker warning labels are a broadly effective tool for combatting misinformation.
The researchers recruited 487 Connect participants as a part of their larger internal meta-analysis of results from 21 experiments from various online participant platforms, making it possible for researchers to generalize their findings and recruit participants across the political spectrum. Quantitative, Survey, Experiment, Meta-Analysis Misinformation, Trust, Fact-Checkers, Warning Labels, Political Psychology Social Psychology
Meckes, S. J. (). Does Racial Bias Influence Affective and Behavioral Responses to Trauma Disclosure? (Doctoral dissertation, University of Nevada, Reno). Full Text Meckes looked at how a woman's racial identity affected her reaction to videos of female victims talking about their experiences with sexual assault. The results showed that Black women watching the videos reacted differently based on the victim's race. They showed more sadness when watching a white victim compared to a Black victim. But, they showed more disgust when the victim was Black than when she was white.

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of survivor and participant racial identity on the behavioral and affective responses to sexual assault disclosures. I implemented a novel approach to measuring disclosure recipient social reactions, measuring participants’ facial expressions of emotion while watching a sexual assault disclosure video. The present study used a 2 (participant racial identity: Black vs white) x 3 (survivor racial identity: Black, white, Asian American) design to examine the impact of intergroup and inter�racial biases on facial expressions, empathy, and positive and negative social reactions, such as offering aid or support versus blaming or distancing. Contrary to hypotheses, I found little evidence for affiliative facial mimicry of survivors, which may have been associated with participants’ motivation to socially distance themselves from the survivor. However, preliminary evidence for intergroup bias was observed for overall facial expressions of disgust and sadness. Notably, most differences in reactions were observed among Black-white dyads, providing some initial evidence for the specificity of this effect. These findings emphasize the importance of considering intergroup dynamics in the context of sexual assault disclosures and the impact of these dynamics on implicit reactions during the disclosure.
Meckes was able to recruit 190 women, identifying as either white or Black, who were willing to participate in studies that required video recording and could participate using a computer. Quantitative, Experiment Trauma Disclosure, Sexual Assault Disclosure, Racial Bias Clinical Psychology
Miller, D. R. & Piper, C.. “Acting(s) Without Consequence: The (Lack of) Public Costs for Vacancy Appointments.” Working paper. Full Text Miller and Piper investigated how the public views the growing practice of U.S. presidents appointing acting officials to lead federal agencies, using President Joe Biden's administration as a case study. After conducting three experiments, they found minimal public opposition to this trend, indicating that public opinion may not strongly influence this aspect of presidential decision-making.

Abstract

While acting officials in federal agencies have become more common in recent years, presidents still utilize the traditional nomination process, which constrains presidents’ choices, for most executive branch appointments. Recent work emphasizes presidents’ incentives for using acting officials, but few scholars have considered what keeps presidents from using them even more often. We argue presidents’ use of acting officials, like other forms of unilateral action, is constrained by public opinion; while actings may be expeditious policy tools for presidents,the public perceives them to undermine the executive branch’s legitimacy and competence and punishes presidents accordingly. Through three survey experiments leveraging real-world instances of President Joe Biden’s usage of acting officials, we find little evidence the public reacts negatively to acting officials in agency leadership. While some institutional forces must encourage presidents to seek senatorial advise and consent for their nominees, our evidence does not indicate public opinion provides that constraint.
The researchers sampled over 1000 Connect participants, using Connect's census-matching to ensure representativeness Quantitative, Experiment Public Opinion, President Biden Political Science
Milli, S., Carroll, M., Pandey, S., Wang, Y., & Dragan, A. D. (). Twitter's Algorithm: Amplifying Anger, Animosity, and Affective Polarization. arXiv preprint arXiv:2305.16941. Milli and colleagues looked at how the algorithms on Twitter, which show content based on how much people interact with the app, affect what people see and how they feel about different political groups. Their research showed that when people saw a Twitter feed based on their interactions, they saw more posts that were emotional and showed anger towards political groups they didn't belong to, compared to a regular Twitter feed.

Abstract

In a pre-registered randomized experiment, we found that, relative to a reverse-chronological baseline, Twitter's engagement-based ranking algorithm may amplify emotionally charged, out-group hostile content and contribute to affective polarization. Furthermore, we critically examine the claim that the algorithm shows users what they want to see, discovering that users do *not* prefer the political tweets selected by the algorithm. Finally, we explore the implications of an alternative approach to ranking content based on users' stated preferences and find a reduction in angry, partisan, and out-group hostile content but also a potential reinforcement of echo chambers. The evidence underscores the necessity for a more nuanced approach to content ranking that balances engagement, users' stated preferences, and sociopolitical outcomes.
Using Connect, the researchers were able to recruit over 800 active Twitter users who were able and willing to download a Chrome extension necessary to complete this experiment. Quantitative, Experiment Twitter, Social Media, Computers and Society, Political Polarization Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction
Mo, R., & Andiappan, M. The brothers are watching: The peer monitoring mechanism of rivalry in reducing cheating behavior at work. Journal of Organizational Behavior. Mo and Andiappan examined how rivalry affects unethical behavior at work, showing that rivalry makes employees feel more watched by their coworkers, leading to less cheating. This effect is even stronger when the relationship between the employee and their supervisor is weak.

Abstract

The consensus of the literature has suggested that competition prompts individuals to act unethically. However, prior research that explored the ethical implication of competition has largely ignored the role of contexts within its examination—studying competition generally independent of other social relationships/actors. Drawing on the relational perspective of competition (i.e., rivalry), we propose that broader social relationships in which rivalry relationships are embedded will give rise to alternative psychological processes that can account for a curbing effect of rivalry on workplace cheating behavior. Results from one pre-registered experiment and three surveys on working professionals suggest that exposure to rivalry leads to a heightened perception of peer monitoring, which in turn is associated with lower cheating behavior at work. We further find that the effect of rivalry on the perception of peer monitoring is stronger (weaker) when employees' leader–member exchange (LMX) relationship with their supervisor is lower (higher), highlighting the significance of other social actors in the rivalry process. This research complements the literature with a balanced perspective regarding the ethical implication of competition and contributes to the theory building of rivalry by providing an interpersonal lens to the psychology of rivalry.
The researchers used Connect to recruit full-time professionals with current residences in the United States. Quantitative, Experimental, Survey, Longitudinal Cheating Behavior, LMX, Peer Monitoring, Rivalry Organizational Behavior
Mokricky, S. A. (). Exploring the Impact of Public Health Messaging on Maternal Health Engagement in the US: A Focus on Racial Disparities and Persuasive Evidence, Honors Thesis 1739. https://scholarship.richmond.edu/honors-theses/1739 Full Text Mokricky examined how persuasive evidence in maternal health campaigns impacts motivation to act against maternal mortality. She found anecdotal stories more effective than statistics for prompting people to demand change and donate money, while statistics on racial disparities had little impact.

Abstract

With the current rise of maternal mortality rates in the United States, particularly among Black women, this project aimed to understand more about how the content of maternal health campaigns affects participants' desire to create action and change. We examined two factors, the type of persuasive evidence presented, anecdotal stories or statistical information, and whether the message discussed the racial disparities in maternal mortality or not. Using Cloud Research’s Connect Platform 500 survey participants were randomly assigned to read one of four public health campaigns, then asked to complete a series of questions relating to their support of combating maternal mortality, their emotions towards the issue, their (potential) actions they would take towards the reduction of maternal mortality, and what they demand of their leaders. The findings indicate that anecdotal evidence has a larger impact than statistical evidence on participants’ demanding change from their leaders and willingness to donate money towards this issue. The effectiveness of the anecdotal persuasive evidence is consistent with previous research. Additionally, the manipulation of the salience of racial disparities within the campaigns did not have strong effects. Future research should explore the role of heuristic thinking and developing connections with the audience in the observed effects of anecdotal evidence on participants’ demands for their leaders to take action on this issue and increased donations. Moving forward, health campaigns might consider featuring more anecdotal stories.
Mokricky recruited a Connect sample that had an equal gender distribution and was racially diverse. Quantitative, Experimental Maternal Mortality, Public Health Campaign Messages, Anecdotal Supportive Evidence Psychology
Moncrieff, M., & Lienard, P. (). Radicalization and violent extremism depend on envy; conspiracy ideation, sometimes. Frontiers in psychology, 14, 1111354. Full Text Moncrieff and Lienard's research delves into how envy contributes to radicalization, violent extremism, and the belief in conspiracies. They discovered that envy intensifies both the endorsement of extremist views and the justification of violence. Additionally, their work suggests that the process of becoming radicalized precedes and potentially leads to conspiracy ideation, rather than conspiracy ideation leading to radicalization.

Abstract

Emotions are conspicuous components of radicalization, violent extremism, and conspiracy ideation. Of the emotions studied for their contribution to those social pathologies, envy has been relatively unexplored. We investigate the relationship between envy, radicalization, and conspiracy ideation. Envy appears to affect core aspects of radicalization, particularly the endorsement of extremism and the acceptance of violent means to achieve one’s ends, while radicalization facilitates the adoption of conspiracy ideation, rather than the latter being a cause of radicalization. Implications for future research on radicalization and violent extremism are discussed.
The researchers successfully enlisted 447 participants from Connect, whose average political beliefs were near the mid-point of their scale, a crucial factor for ensuring balanced and representative insights in political research. Quantitative, Survey Envy, Radicalization, Extremism, Violence, Conspiracy Ideation Social Psychology, Political Psychology
Moon, N. A. (). Am I committed or conflicted? Examining implications of self-concept structure for self-regulation, well-being, and performance. Full Text Moon's dissertation looked at how our self-awareness links to our ability to manage our actions, such as achieving goals. His results indicate that having a clear understanding of ourselves and our various characteristics can impact how we control our actions, our emotions, and our overall performance.

Abstract

Although research on self-concept is extensive, few studies have examined the relationship between specific aspects of self-concept structure (e.g., self-concept clarity) and self-regulation constructs (e.g., goal commitment). In addition, research has linked aspects of self-concept structure with well-being outcomes, but less is known about the mechanisms involved in these relationships. This research addresses these two issues by examining self-concept structure (self-concept clarity and self-concept differentiation) as antecedents of key self-regulatory mechanisms (goal commitment and goal conflict) and how these linkages may help explain connections between self-concept structure and well-being and performance. More specifically, two studies examined these relationships, with Study 1 investigating these variables in individuals’ lives in general and Study 2 focusing on these variables in the work context. Regarding self-regulatory mechanisms, SCC was related to goal commitment and SCD was related to both goal commitment and goal conflict. For psychological well-being, SCC was related to eudaimonic, hedonic, and work engagement, whereas SCD was related to eudaimonic and hedonic well-being. In addition, goal commitment was related to work engagement and goal conflict was related to eudaimonic well-being and positive affect. Finally, for performance-related outcomes, SCC was positively related to in-role job performance. In addition, goal commitment was related to goal progress and in-role job performance. However, results for the indirect effects were mixed. Taken together, these results suggest that aspects of self-concept structure may have notable implications for self-regulatory mechanisms, psychological well-being, and performance outcomes.
Moon collected responses from 200 participants in Connect over 5 working days, resulting in a total of 779 observations for his logitudinal study. Quantitative, Longitudinal, Survey Self-concept structure, Self-regulation, Well-being, Performance, Goal Commitment, Psychological Wellbeing I/O Psychology
Moravec, P. L., Collis, A., & Wolczynski, N. (). Countering State-Controlled Media Propaganda Through Labeling: Evidence from Facebook. Information Systems Research. Moravec and their team carried out two experiments to study how Facebook's "state-controlled media" labels, which identify content from government sources, affected users' interaction with such content. The findings showed that users were less likely to engage with this content when they saw these labels, especially when they were associated with countries that had a negative reputation.

Abstract

Manipulative content and propaganda are an information quality concern on social media. Although attention has been turned toward mis- and disinformation, government-controlled social media pages have been able to quietly share information to encourage users toward beliefs without sharing content that may be clearly labeled as false. To combat the effect of quiet foreign government persuasion attempts, Facebook debuted a “state-controlled media” label in June 2020 to alert users that a post originates from a page associated with selected governments, including Russia and China. We conduct two online randomized experiments to better understand the causal impact of these labels on intentions to engage with content on Facebook. We augment our experiments by analyzing field data from Facebook before and after these labels were implemented and studying actual engagement. We find that labels are effective in reducing engagement on social media if users notice the labels and if the label is associated with a country that is perceived negatively. More users notice the label if trained. The combination of these studies suggests that these labels can successfully reduce engagement with posts by Russian and Chinese state-controlled pages but may even increase engagement for other countries perceived positively like Canada.
In their second experiment, the researchers succesfully recruited 2,200 Connect participants who had a Facebook account in the US. Quantitative, Experiment Social Media, Computational propaganda, Credibility, State-controlled media, Labels Business, Information Systems
Moss, A. J., Budd, R. D., Blanchard, M. A., & O'Brien, L. T. (). The upside of acknowledging prejudiced behavior. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 104, 104401. Full Text Moss and colleagues explored how people perceive others who acknowledge their own prejudiced behavior. Across six experiments, they found that people who acknowledged their prejudiced behavior after being confronted for it were viewed as warmer, more moral, and ironically, less prejudiced than those who denied such behavior.

Abstract

What do people think of those who respond to confrontation by acknowledging personally prejudiced behavior? In six experiments (N = 3344), people judged a man who made a prejudiced comment and responded to confrontation by acknowledging, denying, or, in some cases, saying nothing about his prejudice. Participants consistently evaluated someone who acknowledged prejudice as warmer, more moral, and ironically, less prejudiced than someone who denied. People also perceived acknowledging as more appropriate and less typical than denying regardless of whether the prejudice was racism or sexism. Moreover, men and women, White, Black, and Asian people alike evaluated acknowledgements more positively than denials. Evidence from multiple experiments suggests that people form more positive impressions of those who acknowledge than deny because acknowledgment signals more of a learning orientation to prejudice and intergroup relations. Although people frequently respond to confrontation by denying prejudiced behavior, there appears to be an upside to acknowledging.
In Experiment 5, the researchers successfully recruited an equal number of Black (N = 178) and White (N = 177) participants from Connect, enabling them to examine if both racial majority and minority groups perceived acknowledgment of prejudice as an indication of learning. Quantitative, Experiment Acknowledging Prejudice, Intergroup Interactions, Confronting Prejudice, Performance, Learning-Oriented Behaviors Social Psychology
Ngoh, C.-L. (). The Effect of Retailer Channel Decisions on Consumer Channel Shopping Behavior [Doctoral dissertation, Kent State University]. Full Text For her dissertation research, Ngoh studied how the shift from physical retail stores to online shopping during the pandemic affected consumers' behaviors. The results suggest that consumers who are optimistic about the future of retail are more inclined to shop in physical stores compared to those who are anxious. Additionally, the influence of other people's opinions made fearful consumers even less likely to shop in physical stores.

Abstract

This dissertation contributes to retailing and marketing research by exploring how retailer channel decisions (i.e., physical store closures) due to the changes in the retail environment impact consumers’ shopping behaviors. The pandemic caused many retailers to remove physical stores and move online rapidly (e.g., Brooks Brothers and Neiman Marcus) (Pacheco, 2020). As the retail environment changes, understanding consumers’ shopping behaviors is critical for retailers to stay competitive, maintain, and attract new customers. Thus, Essay 1 studies how consumers’ emotions toward the changing retail environment affect their desire to return to their pre-pandemic shopping routine. Using scenario-based experiments, I explored the effects of consumers' emotions (hope and fear) on their likelihood of shopping in-store, the moderating role of subjective norms, and the mediating roles of internal locus of control and coping (problem- and emotion-focused). Essay 2 studies how multichannel consumer segments have changed their channel shopping behaviors across two store elimination phases. Using Latent Profile Analysis, I identified up-to-date multichannel consumer segments based on the segments' in-store and online channel usage pre- and during-COVID-19, the factors that described segment membership, and channel switching intentions by segment membership.
In the initial study of her dissertation, Ngoh assigned 320 Connect participants to either feel hope or fear to explore how emotions impact in-store shopping behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. Experiment, Quantitative, Latent Profile Analysis Shopping Behavior, COVID-19, Emotion, Norms Marketing, Consumer Behavior
Paley, A., Smith, R. W., Teeny, J. D., & Zane, D. M. (). EXPRESS: Production Enjoyment Asymmetrically Impacts Buyers’ Willingness to Pay and Sellers’ Willingness to Charge. Journal of Marketing, 0(ja). https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429241257913 Full Text Paley and colleagues investigated the influence of sellers’ production enjoyment on buyer outcomes. Across 9 studies, they find that buyers are willing to pay more, click on more ads, and choose a product more often when sellers signal that they enjoyed producing it.

Abstract

With the rise of social media and the peer-to-peer economy, sellers can easily tell potential buyers about themselves and their process of producing products and services. This research investigates the influence of a central aspect of the production process that sellers can communicate—their production enjoyment. Buyers are willing to pay a higher price, are more likely to click on ads, and are more likely to choose a product or service when the seller signals that they enjoy producing it. In contrast, sellers are willing to accept lower prices, and actually charge less, for products and services they enjoy producing. Both buyers and sellers make the inference that production enjoyment leads to higher quality products/services, but only buyers rely on this inference when forming their pricing judgments relative to sellers. Nine studies illustrate these effects across a wide variety of products and services, participant samples, and operationalizations of production enjoyment. They show that signals of production enjoyment can influence buyers more than other established signals (e.g., effort) and demonstrate contexts where these effects are more and less likely to occur. These findings offer practical recommendations for both buyers and sellers as well as a variety of theoretical contributions.
The researchers illustrate this effect with nearly 2000 Connect participants across various different products and services. Experimental, Quantitative Enjoyment, Willingness to Pay, Willingness to Accept, Pricing, Inference Making, Peer-To-Peer Markets, Marketplace Cues Marketing
Pantesco, E. J., & Kan, I. P. (). Racial and ethnic disparities in self-reported sleep duration: Roles of subjective socioeconomic status and sleep norms. Sleep Medicine. Full Text Pantesco and Kan explored racial and ethnic differences in sleep duration, noting that Hispanic individuals reported less sleep on weeknights compared to White individuals. They found that subjective social status (SSS) influenced these disparities, especially for Black and Asian individuals with medium to high SSS. Additionally, differing norms about the ideal amount of sleep helped to account for the sleep duration discrepancies between Black and White adults.

Abstract

Objectives: There are racial and ethnic disparities in sleep duration, with members of historically marginalized groups typically reporting shorter sleep than White Americans. This study examines subjective social status (SSS) as a moderator, and variation in ideal sleep norms as a mediator, of differences in sleep duration between racial/ ethnic groups. Methods: Asian, Black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White respondents in an online survey reported their typical weeknight and weekend-night sleep duration, along with estimates of ideal sleep duration norms. Objective and subjective indicators of socioeconomic status were also assessed. A conditional process analysis was used to examine whether racial or ethnic differences in sleep duration were a) moderated by SSS and b) mediated by ideal sleep duration norms. Results: Racial/ethnic disparities in sleep duration varied by group. Hispanic participants reported shorter weeknight sleep than White participants. In Asian and Black participants, shorter weeknight sleep relative to White participants was only observed at medium (Black) or high (Black and Asian) levels of SSS. Shorter norms for ideal sleep duration partially mediated differences in sleep duration between Black and White adults, but not the other racial/ethnic groups. There was no evidence of moderated mediation. Neither income nor education moderated racial/ethnic disparities in sleep duration. Conclusions: Racial and ethnic disparities in sleep duration may partially depend on SSS. Continued research into moderators and mediators of racial/ethnic differences in sleep duration is warranted.
The researchers recruited over 1000 participants from Connect which allowed them to target their sample’s racial and ethnic demographics. Survey, Quantitative Race, Ethnicity, Socioeconomic Status, Social status, Norms, Sleep duration Psychology
Pena Marin, J., Isaac, M., & Blanchard, S. J. (). Reducing Expenses to Face the Future: The Role of Lay Theories About Wealth Creation in Retirement Allocations. Georgetown McDonough School of Business Research Paper Forthcoming. Full Text Marin and colleagues looked into two popular ideas about how to grow wealth: one is to earn more money, and the other is to spend less. They found that when people focus more on spending less, whether that's their usual way of thinking or because of certain situations, they usually save more for their retirement.

Abstract

This research shows that people hold two distinct lay theories, or common-sense explanations, about how wealth is created. Specifically, people may adopt an income lay theory (i.e., that earning more money is the major driver of wealth) or an expense lay theory (i.e., that spending less money is the major driver of wealth). When the expense lay theory is more accessible, either dispositionally or situationally, people are likely to allocate more money to retirement accounts. Ten studies (including four in the web appendix) collectively offer triangulating evidence for this effect and suggest that it arises because the greater accessibility of an expense lay theory is associated with a future financial orientation. Overall, this work contributes to research on lay theories, intertemporal choice, retirement planning, and financial decision-making.
In one of their ten studies, the researchers enlisted 402 participants from Connect, with 400 passing attention checks, who were tasked with envisioning a $500 monthly raise and determining their retirement investment amount. Quantitative , Survey Lay Theories, Wealth, Retirement, Investments, Financial Decision-Making, Personal Finances, Intertemporal Choice. Business
Peterson, M. (). Experiencing Uncertainty as a Challenge or a Threat: Impact on Attraction to Entitative Groups (Doctoral dissertation, The Claremont Graduate University). Full Text Peterson investigated how feeling unsure or feeling threatened impacts people's desire to join a close-knit group. The findings demonstrated that the more uncertain people felt about themselves, the more threatened they felt, and the more they wanted to be part of such groups.

Abstract

This study examined the impact of self-uncertainty and challenge or threat appraisals on entitative group appeal. Predictions were based on uncertainty-identity theory’s findings regarding uncertainty and entitativity (Hogg, 2021), and on studies of challenge and threat appraisals in intergroup relations (Scheepers, 2009). Participants (N = 167) from CloudResearch Connect were primed with a sense of either challenge or threat as a cognitive/affective demand and their level of self-uncertainty was measured. Participants then responded to a series of questions regarding their attraction to entitative group characteristics. Hypothesis 1 predicted that there would be a positive relationship between self-uncertainty and attraction to entitative group characteristics. Hypothesis 2 predicted that challenge/threat appraisal state would moderate the relationship between self-uncertainty and attraction to entitative characteristics. Hierarchical linear regression of the main and interaction effects did not find support for Hypotheses 1 and 2. However, a significant relationship was found between self-uncertainty and reported threat appraisal, indicating that there may be a relationship between self-uncertainty and individuals’ appraisals of performance-motivated situations.
Peterson ran her study with 167 Connect participants and manipulated emotion by priming participants to experience threat or challenge during the experiment. Quantitative, Experiment Self-Uncertainty, Threat, Entitativity, Groups Social Psychology
Pillai, R. M., & Fazio, L. K. (). Repeated by many versus repeated by one: Examining the role of social consensus in the relationship between repetition and belief. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/mac0000166 Full Text Pillai and Fazio studied how repeating statements, either exactly or in paraphrased form, and from one or multiple sources, influences people's belief in them. They found that repetition typically makes people more likely to believe statements, confirming that easier processing of familiar information boosts its perceived truthfulness, no matter how it's worded or where it comes from.

Abstract

Repetition makes statements seem more true. Studies of this illusory truth effect typically focus on verbatim repetition of claims without a specific source. However, in real life, we often encounter claims with different wordings from multiple sources. Prominent cognitive theories suggest this variation should not matter. Repetition should increase belief by making statements easier to process—regardless of its wording or source. However, theories of social influence suggest that repetition should be most influential when it reflects a consensus, like when it is paraphrased or repeated by different people. We evaluate these perspectives across three experiments (N = 718 U.S.-based Mechanical Turk/Connect participants). Participants saw repeated claims that varied in their phrasing (verbatim vs. paraphrased) and/or number of unique sources (one vs. multiple), then rated the truth of these claims along with new ones. In line with cognitive theories, repetition increased belief, regardless of variation in the wording or source.
Using Connect participants in Experiment 3, the researchers replicated their previous findings from Experiments 1 and 2. Experimental, Quantitative Belief, Social Consensus, Fluency, Illusory Truth, Repetition Cognitive Psychology
Powell, D., & Mikell, J. (2023, August 22). Illusory Implications: Mere exposure to ideas can induce beliefs. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/qzag8 Full Text Mikell and Powell examined whether merely being exposed to statements briefly results in people really believing those statements as facts. Their findings support what they call the “illusory implication” effect: exposure to statements influenced how truthful participants rated new statements.

Abstract

Numerous psychological findings have shown that mere exposure to ideas makes those ideas seem more true, a finding commonly referred to as the “illusory truth” effect (e.g. Hasher, Goldstein, & Toppino, 1977). In the presence of pervasive misinformation, this basic feature of cognition may undermine the functioning of a democratic society (Pennycook, Cannon, & Rand, 2018). However, genuine beliefs do not only affect judgments about individual statements, they also imply other beliefs and drive decision-making. Here, we sought to examine whether mere exposure to statements produces genuine beliefs by examining whether people draw inferences from statements after mere exposure. Surprisingly, and in contrast to fluency or familiarity-based accounts of the illusory truth effect (e.g. Dechêne, Stahl, Hansen, & Wänke, 2010), we found that exposure to “premise” statements affected participants’ truth ratings for novel “implied” statements. This “illusory implication” effect suggests that the consequences of exposure to false statements reach further than previously thought and calls for a new mechanistic account of these effects.
Mikell and Powell used Connect to replicate and extend their findings in Experiment 3 with 540 additional participants. Quantitative, Experiment Illusory Truth, Metacognition, Misinformation Cognitive Psychology
Preston, M. C., Boyd, T. L., Leigh, A., Burgess, R., & Marsh, V. (). An ally by any other name: Examining the effects of racial minority leaders as allies for advancing racial justice. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 181, 104321. Preston and colleagues studied employee perceptions of racial minority leaders who promote racial equality. They found that leaders are seen as biased and less effective when they focus support on their own racial group, but this view improves when leaders highlight the contributions of all employees.

Abstract

We investigate employee evaluations of racial minority leaders who engage in allyship behaviors aimed at advancing racial equity. We argue that when racial minority leaders engage in racial allyship, perceptions of them as effective allies and leaders vary based on the target beneficiary group (i.e., who the allyship benefits) and the language utilized to explain their allyship (i.e., how the allyship is framed). We hypothesize and find empirical evidence across three experimental studies that suggests that when racial minority leaders engage in allyship behaviors that benefit their own racial group (i.e., same-race allyship), as opposed to another racial minority group (i.e., cross-race allyship), employees view them as displaying more ingroup favoritism, which lowers perceptions of allyship effectiveness. Additionally, we find that decreased perceptions of allyship effectiveness results in reduced employee perceptions of overall leader effectiveness and employee intentions to support racial equity efforts. Finally, we introduce voice amplification framing—a novel framing tactic in which racial minority leaders publicly highlight the ideas and voices of lower-level employees within their allyship—and we show that using this framing reduces the negative effects of same-race allyship. Our theory and findings have several implications for literature on allyship, message framing, and leadership.
The researchers recruited participants from Connect for Study 1 using demographic targeting to ensure participants were full-time employees in the United States who currently, or previously, worked in an organization with racial minority leaders (i.e., Asian, Black, Latinx/Hispanic, or Native American Quantitative, Experimental Allyship, Race, Leadership, Intergroup relations Organizational Behavior
Prochnow, T. and Patterson, M.S. (), "It’s not just a game: social networks, isolation and mental health in online gamers", Journal of Public Mental Health, Vol. 23 No. 2, pp. 140-153. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPMH-11-2023-0099 Full Text Prochnow and Patterson examined how social capital from online and in-person networks affects mental health among gamers. They found that in-person social connections more effectively reduce depressive symptoms and social isolation than online networks, though online connections still offer some social support.

Abstract

Abstract Purpose – Online gaming has emerged as a popular activity providing a social outlet for millions. However, implications of online game networks for mental health remain disputed. Concepts of bridging social capital and bonding social capital may help characterize protective factors within social networks. This study aims to examine the associations between social capital derived from online versus in-person networks and mental health indicators among gamers. Design/methodology/approach – Online gamers (n ¼ 301) completed an online survey assessing their social networks (both in-person and through online gaming) and mental health indicators (depressive symptoms, anxiety, social isolation, perceived social support). Social network analysis was used to analyze bridging (network size, effective size, heterogeneity, weak ties) and bonding (closeness, frequent contact, confiding, connection quality) social capital. Separate linear regression models evaluated associations between bridging and bonding social capital for both online and in-person networks and depressive symptoms, anxiety, social support and social isolation. Findings – In-person network characteristics showed the strongest associations with mental health outcomes. Greater average closeness and frequent confiding in the in-person network predicted lower isolation and fewer depressive symptoms. More diverse relationship types also correlated with lower depression. For online networks, closeness and confiding ties associated only with less isolation and greater support, not depressive symptoms, or anxiety. Originality/value – While online gaming networks provide some degree of social support, in-person social capital exhibited stronger associations with mental health. This reinforces the importance of face�to-face relationships for emotional well-being. Findings suggest helping gamers cultivate close bonds offline. However, online connections still matter and should not be discounted.
Using Connect’s demographic targeting, the researchers recruited 300 participants who were currently engaging in online gaming activities. Quantitative, Correlational Social Network Analysis, Social Capital, Online Gaming Psychology, Health
Pryor, C. (). The Normalization and Destigmatization of Raves (Doctoral dissertation, Bowling Green State University). Full Text Pryor investigated rave-related stigma from 2005-2019 and found that while it has decreased over the years, it still persists to some extent.

Abstract

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, raves were engulfed in a moral panic about ecstasy use. As a result, they were the subject of some of the harshest criminal legislation in US history and were fully stigmatized as a drug subculture. Since then, however, literature—like the broader moral panic—about raves has decreased significantly. And yet, in the last 10 years, electronic dance music (EDM), raves primary cultural product (Anderson 2009a), has become incredibly popular. Raves and EDM events have garnered hundreds of thousands of attendees and billions of dollars. EDM DJs, once marginalized, are now part of mainstream popular culture. Using both original and secondary datasets that draw on different populations, I explore six research questions: 1) Do ravers still experience stigma?, 2) what predicts experiencing rave-related stigma?, 3) are raves considered normal among the public?, 4) does rave-related stigma still exist?, 5) what is associated with perceptions of raves as normalized and destigmatized?, and 6) how have the predictors of rave attendance changed year to year from 2005-2019? Overall, this project finds evidence that rave-related stigma has decreased over the years, though it still exists to an extent. Further, experiencing rave-related stigma and having destigmatized and normalized perceptions of ravers varies by certain characteristics. For instance, ravers who mostly go to non-mainstream events have higher odds of experiencing rave-related stigma. Respondents in the public sample have more stigmatized views of ravers if they have confidence in the press and if they report more agreement with stigmatizing statements about the LGBTQIA+ community. Respondents report stronger agreement with statements describing raves/ravers as normal if they also report stronger disagreement with stigmatizing statements about the LGBTQIA+ community, if they more strongly agree with statements describing club drugs as acceptable, and if they have ever gone to a dance club. Finally, there is no consistent, clear evidence of change in the relationship between doing club drugs and rave attendance or between race and rave attendance. However, there is some mixed evidence for the hypothesis that the relationship between gender and rave attendance would weaken throughout the years.
Pryor recruited 300 participants from Connect to complete the survey. Quantitative, Correlational, Experimental Raves, Normalization, Destigmatization, Deviance, Stigma Sociology
Radtke, V., Martarelli, C., & Wolff, W. (). How Effortful is Boredom? Studying Self-Control Demands Through Pupillometry (Registered Report Stage 1). Full Text This study investigates how boredom affects self-control, looking at whether pupil size, a marker of cognitive effort, correlates more with overall effort (including boredom) than just task difficulty.

Abstract

Self-control is essential for managing our actions, yet its exertion is perceived as effortful. Performing a task may require effort not only because of its inherent difficulty but also due to its potential for inducing boredom, as boredom has been shown to be self-control demanding by itself. So far, the extent of self-control demands during boredom and its temporal dynamics remain elusive. We will employ a multimethod approach to address this knowledge gap. Ninety-five participants will take part in an easy and difficult version of the Stroop task. During both tasks, they will indicate several times their current sensation of task difficulty, boredom, boredom-related effort, and difficulty-related effort. We will test if pupil size, as a physiological indicator for cognitive effort, is predicted more accurately by overall cognitive effort (difficulty- and boredom-related) than by task-difficulty-related effort alone. This research will uncover the level of effort in experiencing boredom which is pertinent not only for self-control research but also to any research area dealing with boredom or the performance of repetitive tasks.
Before conducting their main study, the researchers conducted a pilot test with 210 Connect participants who completed four versions of the Stroop task over four different study sessions in order to ensure that the different Stroop task conditions induced high and low cognitive control, respectively. Quantitative, Experimental Boredom, Effort, Self-control, Pupillometry, Stroop Psychology
Radulovic, N., Bifet, A., & Suchanek, F. (). BELLA: Black box model Explanations by Local Linear Approximations. arXiv preprint arXiv:2305.11311. Full Text Radulovic and colleagues introduce BELLA, a deterministic, model-agnostic post-hoc method designed to explain individual predictions of regression black-box models. BELLA aims to address the limitations of current state-of-the-art approaches that rely on synthetic data and offer narrow, unverifiable explanations.

Abstract

In recent years, understanding the decision-making process of black-box models has become not only a legal requirement but also an additional way to assess their performance. However, the state of the art post-hoc interpretation approaches rely on synthetic data generation. This introduces uncertainty and can hurt the reliability of the interpretations. Furthermore, they tend to produce explanations that apply to only very few data points. This makes the explanations brittle and limited in scope. Finally, they provide scores that have no direct verifiable meaning. In this paper, we present BELLA, a deterministic model-agnostic post-hoc approach for explaining the individual predictions of regression black-box models. BELLA provides explanations in the form of a linear model trained in the feature space. Thus, its coefficients can be used directly to compute the predicted value from the feature values. Furthermore, BELLA maximizes the size of the neighborhood to which the linear model applies, so that the explanations are accurate, simple, general, and robust. BELLA can produce both factual and counterfactual explanations. Our user study confirms the importance of the desiderata we optimize, and our experiments show that BELLA outperforms the state-of-the-art approaches on these desiderata.
In order to evaluate which black box model explanations people prefer, the researchers ran a user study with Connect participants who were asked how satisfactory the explanations were from 3 different models, including BELLA. Quantitative, Experiment Machine Learning, AI, Black Box Model Data Science, Computer Science
Rau, Katherine Naomi, "The Dark Side of Engagement: An Organizational Fairness Perspective" (2024). Theses and Dissertations. 1441. Full Text Lau's research revealed that employee engagement can lead to emotional exhaustion and turnover intentions when employees feel they are giving more than they receive from their employer.

Abstract

Employee engagement has long been regarded as a positive phenomenon for organizations and individuals. However, recent investigations into unintended, negative consequences of engagement have illuminated the potential “dark side” of engagement. This research applied an organizational fairness lens by investigating the relationship between engagement and psychological contract fulfillment to explain why engaged employees may experience emotional exhaustion and turnover intentions. Additionally, autotelic personality and job crafting were explored as potential mitigating factors in weakening the relationships between psychological contract breach and emotional exhaustion and turnover intention. While findings across two studies did not support the assertion that engagement was related to psychological contract fulfillment in a curvilinear (i.e., inverted U-shaped) fashion, psychological contract fulfillment did partially mediate the relationships between engagement and turnover intention and engagement and emotional exhaustion. Neither autotelic personality nor job crafting behaviors were found to mitigate the effect of psychological contract breach on the outcomes in question. This research contributed to the exploration of the dark side of engagement by investigating a novel perspective to explain and predict the phenomenon and proposing accessible means to lessen negative consequences of engagement. While ultimately this research did not yield evidence of the dark side of engagement, future research is proposed to expand researchers’ understanding of the dark side of engagement.
To add onto her archival study of organizations, Lau recruited Connect participants in her second and third studies, using demographic targeting to ensure all of her participants were full-time employees. Quantitative, Survey Employee Engagement, Organizational Fairness, Psychological Contract Fulfillment, Turnover Intention, Emotional Exhaustion Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Robbins, C., Brunelli, A., Casto, J., Coty, A., Louis, A., Major, B., ... & Rainey, C. Overt Consequences of Covert Actions: Success, Failure, and Voters’ Preferences for Legislative Oversight. Robbins and colleagues explored how covert foreign operations impact elections, finding that voters prefer investigating these operations only when they fail, not when they succeed. This study underscores the nuanced relationship between government secrecy, public accountability, and the success or failure of foreign missions.

Abstract

A growing literature in political science examines the tension between secrecy and accountability as democratic leaders conduct foreign affairs. However, this literature presents a puzzle: while observational work shows that leaders make efforts to avoid getting caught, experimental work demonstrates that the public does not have an aversion to leaders acting secretly. What, then, are the electoral costs of acting covertly? To demonstrate the electoral costs of covert operations, we study voters’ reactions to legislative oversight of covert operations, not their reactions to the operation itself. Using a preregistered and well-powered survey experiment with a 2× 2 factorial design, we show that the legislators’ audience (their in-party voters) overwhelmingly prefers public investigations into covert operations when the operation fails. When the operation succeeds, though, their preferences are much weaker. This dynamic has important implications for foreign policy—the president cannot take necessary risks in protecting the national interest and the investigations harm the country’s international reputation.
The researchers successfully enlisted 1500 Connect participants, diverse across the political spectrum, with 97% successfully passing the attention check. Experimental, Quantitative Audience, Costs, Covert, Operations, Legislative, Oversight, Secrecy, Survey, Experiment American Politics, International Relations, Political Science, Social and Behavioral Sciences
Röder, Andreas; Bohnen, Eva; Züllig, Kilian; Kupfer, Alexander; and Zimmermann, Steffen, "Dynamic Pricing on Two-Sided Platforms: Consequences on Customers’ Fairness Perceptions and Purchase Intentions" (2023). Rising like a Phoenix: Emerging from the Pandemic and Reshaping Human Endeavors with Digital Technologies ICIS 2023. 7. https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2023/sharing_econ/sharing_econ/7 Full Text Röder and team studied how changing prices based on demand affects what customers think is fair and their desire to buy. They found that when prices change frequently, customers feel it's less fair and are less likely to buy something.

Abstract

Technological advancements simplify the application of dynamic pricing, i.e., the flexible and rapid adjustment of prices to changes in demand. Consequently, companies increasingly use dynamic pricing in their business models, although research reports negative consequences on customer fairness perceptions. This holds not only for one-sided businesses, but also for popular two-sided platforms. However, these platforms differ from one-sided businesses in that the total prices paid by customers consist of product prices and platform fees – and both price components can be dynamically adjusted. In an online experiment, we examine customers’ fairness perceptions and purchase intentions when product price and platform fee change dynamically. We find that dynamic price increases reduce fairness perceptions and purchase intentions, while the cause of the price increases is irrelevant to customers. These results indicate an imbalance in the risks and benefits of dynamic pricing between the pricing strategies of the platform and the provider.
The researchers recruited 700 participants from Connect, all who successfully passed attention and manipulation checks. Quantitative, Experimental Dynamic Pricing, Platforms, Fairness, Purchase Intention Information Systems
Sachdeva, A. (). Imposter Phenomenon Mediation and Sexual Orientation Moderation: The Interplay of Solo Status and Benevolent Sexism on Self-Perceived Task Performance in Women. Hofstra University. Full Text Sachdeva studied how straight and lesbian women in male-dominated fields experience a subtle form of sexism that appears positive but is harmful. She found that this sexism is linked to increased feelings of being an impostor and negatively affects their work performance.

Abstract

Organizations across the world have started to recognize the value of a diverse workforce and as a result, have started investing in various diversification efforts to increase the representation of women and other minorities in the fields that have been previously dominated by Caucasian males as a majority. However, women who successfully enter the male dominated fields are often penalized for deviating from society’s idealized vision of how a woman should be portrayed. While conforming to those roles offers rewards and protection for such women, it comes at a cost of facing benevolent sexism in the workplace. These experiences make these women doubt their status in a male dominated environment and begin to question their self-worth and competence. Being exposed to unfavorable contextual cues such as a lower representation of their gender in competitive environments may elicit tendencies of imposter phenomenon in them, despite their academic qualifications. These experiences are further convoluted when the entanglement of sexual orientation and gender are not studied distinctly.
Sachdeva recruited women from Connect who had been full-time employees for at least a year and identified as heterosexual or lesbian to complete surveys over five business days, totaling nine surveys. Daily diary, Survey, Correlational, Longitudinal, Quantitative Solo Status, Benevolent Sexism, Self-perceived Task Performance, Imposter phenomenon Social Psychology, I/O Psychology
San Miguel, C. E. (). Improving Personality Judgement Accuracy Through the Training of Relevant Cues on Instagram and Twitter (Doctoral dissertation, Idaho State University). Full Text San Miguel looked into how well people can judge others' personalities on Twitter compared to Instagram. They trained some participants by providing feedback on their judgments, but these trained participants didn't become better at making accurate personality judgments compared to a control group that didn't receive any training.

Abstract

With the increasing prevalence of social networking sites (SNS), understanding how individuals perceive and judge each other in online contexts is vital. This dissertation investigates the accuracy of personality judgements made based on two popular platforms, Twitter and Instagram. This dissertation builds upon previous research which found Instagram profiles provided for more accurate personality judgements, explores the cues that contribute to accurate perceptions in these online spaces, and evaluates two methods of training individuals to improve personality judgement accuracy based on Twitter profiles. In Study 1, cues were coded on 102 social media profiles, with coders recording a variety of objective and subjective cues both common across platforms and unique to each platform. The Brunswick Lens Model was utilized to identify cues that were valid (actually pertaining to the targets’/profile owners’ personality) and/or utilized (used by judges to form impressions). The hypothesis that higher levels of anonymity on Twitter would explain differences in accuracy between platforms was also assessed. Anonymity was not found to differ significantly between platforms, but was found to influence normative perceptions, with less anonymous targets being perceived with higher normativity. Study 2 evaluated two methods for training and improving judgement accuracy based on Twitter profiles. Utilizing valid yet unutilized cues identified in Study 1, 100 judges received online training about the personality traits of open-mindedness and conscientiousness, and cues on Twitter profiles that are indicative of those traits. Half of these 100 judges also received personalized feedback about the accuracy of their judgements. Fifty judges served as a control group and received no training. It was predicted that judges that received training and feedback would be more accurate than judges that received only training, and that both training groups would be more accurate in their perceptions than the control group. Training was not found to significantly improve judgement accuracy, but valuable insights and avenues for future research were uncovered. This research contributes to the understanding of both the complexities of social relationships online and research on training and improving judgement accuracy.
San Miguel assessed two ways to train 100 Connect participants with the aim of enhancing their ability to accurately judge the personalities of Twitter profiles. Quantitative, Experiment Social Media, Person Perception, Accuracy Experimental Psychology
Santos, D., Requero, B., & Martín-Fernández, M. (). Holism and Causal Responsibility: The Role of Number and Valence of Event Consequences. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672231192827 Full Text Santos et al. examined the effect of holistic vs. analytic thinking styles on causal responsibility. The authors found that holistic thinkers assign more responsibility to a cause when there are mixed positive and negative outcomes and when there are multiple consequences, emphasizing the importance of consequence complexity in their judgments.

Abstract

The present research examines the effect of holistic-analytic thinking style on causal responsibility. Across seven studies (N = 4,103), participants’ thinking style was either measured or manipulated. Then, the valence or number of consequences varied in several scenarios involving a cause–consequence relationship. As a dependent measure, participants indicated the degree of responsibility attributed to the cause mentioned in each scenario. The results revealed that holistic (vs. analytic) participants assigned more responsibility to the cause when the consequences presented were a combination of positive and negative outcomes (vs. univalent), and when multiple (vs. single) consequences were triggered in the scenario. To explore the explanatory factor for these results, a final study manipulated the complexity of the consequences, along with the number. The results of this research suggested that holistic (vs. analytic) individuals consider the degree of complexity of consequences to establish causal attribution.
The authors used Connect to replicate and validate their results with two additional studies (Ns = 503 and 958) Replication, Survey, Experiment, Quantitative Attribution Theory, Consequence, Holism, Thinking Style, Causal Complexity Social Psychology
Schwartz, L. (). Changing the Communication for a Changing Climate: Effects of Climate Change Communication on Identity, Emotions, and Mobilization. Full Text Schwartz investigated whether communicating different emotions (hope vs fear) might be more or less effective for mobilizing people to tackle climate change issues. Regardless of people’s personal environmental attitudes, he found that messages conveying hope were more effective at encouraging people to respond in a pro-environmental manner.

Abstract

What are the most constructive emotions to evoke in climate change communication for diverse groups of people in a way that encourages pro-environmental behavior? A specific communication style and subsequent emotional response may best mobilize people interested in efforts to address climate change compared to people who are less invested in the issue. In this study, 927 valid participants surveyed were randomly assigned to one of three groups: a “fear” condition, a “hope” condition, and a control condition. All participants were asked a series of questions about their demographics, identities, perceptions, values, and environmental attitudes. Following these experimental tasks, they watched a brief video to induce the corresponding treatment emotion. Finally, they indicated their likelihood of doing a range of self-reported behaviors related to tackling climate change. Participants who had higher levels of climate change belief, concern, and motivation were expected to respond with increased pro-environmental behavior under the fear condition. Conversely, those with lower levels were expected to be more likely to respond with pro-environmental behavior under the hope condition. However, with my treatments and sample, only the hope condition seemed to mobilize participants in statistically significant ways. Another important discovery was that when examining public versus private pro-environmental behaviors, distinct indicators used to measure levels of environmental attitudes and identity predicted different classifications of behaviors. Qualitative analyses were also conducted on responses to two open-ended survey questions using a grounded theory approach. My results suggest that scientists, politicians, and other messengers must differentiate between various levels of climate change belief, concern, and motivation within peoples’ identities when communicating the need for action. Finally, I point out some barriers to effective climate change communication and potential interpretations of how people can better harness the power of communication to mobilize the actions necessary to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
Schwartz recruited nearly 1000 participants from Connect to test his hypotheses. Quantitative, Experimental Climate Change Communication, Pro-Environmental Behaviors, Emotion Communications, Environmental Studies, Sociology
Serenko, A. (). Practical Wisdom in the Workplace: Conceptualization, Instrument Development, and Predictive Power. Journal of Knowledge Management. Full Text Serenko introduced a 10-dimensional framework to measure practical wisdom in the workplace. The results from his study demonstrate that practical wisdom not only promotes knowledge sharing but also facilitates knowledge hoarding.

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this Real Impact Research Article is to empirically explore one of the most controversial and elusive concepts in knowledge management research – practical wisdom. It develops a 10-dimensional practical wisdom construct and tests it within the nomological network of counterproductive and productive knowledge behavior. Design/methodology/approach A survey instrument was created based on the extant literature. A model was developed and tested by means of Partial Least Squares with data obtained from 200 experienced employees recruited from CloudResearch Connect crowdsourcing platform. Findings Practical wisdom is a multidimensional construct that may be operationalized and measured like other well-established knowledge management concepts. Practical wisdom guides employee counterproductive and productive knowledge behavior: it suppresses knowledge sabotage and knowledge hiding (whether general, evasive, playing dumb, rationalized or bullying) and promotes knowledge sharing. While all proposed dimensions contribute to employee practical wisdom, particularly salient are subject matter expertise, moral purpose in decision-making, self-reflection in the workplace and external reflection in the workplace. Unexpectedly, practical wisdom facilitates knowledge hoarding instead of reducing it. Practical implications Managers should realize that possessing practical wisdom is not limited to a group of select, high-level executives. Organizations may administer the practical wisdom questionnaire presented in this study to their workers to identify those who score the lowest, and invest in employee training programs that focus on the development of those attributes pertaining to the practical wisdom dimensions. Originality/value The concept of practical wisdom is a controversial topic that has both detractors and supporters. To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first large-scale empirical study of practical wisdom in the knowledge management domain.
The practical wisdom instrument was tested with 200 experienced employees recruited from Connect. Quantitative, Survey Practical Wisdom, Phronesis, Knowledge Sabotage, Knowledge Hiding, Knowledge Hoarding Management
Shah, P., & Yang, J. Using Self-Affirmation to Encourage Recycle and Reuse Behaviors in New York State. Full Text Shah and Yang explored how affirming political values influenced pro-environmental behaviors in New York State. Their findings revealed that attempts to encourage recycling and reuse by aligning them with moral values are not very effective, especially among conservatives who often see such messages as exaggerated and manipulative.

Abstract

The United States produces an exorbitant amount of waste. Recycle and reuse are two ways to manage the waste problem. Since even non-political environmental issues are often polarized in the United States, we attempt to affirm group identity by highlighting the moral values that appeal to conservatives and liberals to examine downstream effects on message derogation and behavioral intention. Specifically, we explore how message derogation is associated with risk perception, self-efficacy, and behavioral willingness to recycle and reuse, as moderated by political ideology. Our findings indicate that linking environmental behaviors to specific moral values may not be the best way to encourage citizens to recycle and reuse. In particular, conservatives tend to view a persuasive message about plastic waste as overblown and manipulative, thus highlighting the need to strategically design environmental communication targeting conservatives. Moreover, to combat message derogation, effective ways to elevate risk perceptions and enhance self-efficacy are needed.
To properly assess how effective using moral values was for both liberals and conservatives, the researchers were able to recruit a sample of participants from Connect that had a balanced mix of political ideologies. Quantitative, Experiment Self-Affirmation, Group Identity, Message Derogation, Risk Perception, Self-Efficacy, Reuse Environmental Psychology
Siev, J. J., & Teeny, J. D. (). Personal Misconduct Elicits Harsher Professional Consequences for Artists (vs. Scientists): A Moral-Decoupling Process. Psychological Science, 09567976231214739. Full Text Siev and Teeny investigated if faculty members in artistic disciplines receive more severe professional repercussions for misconduct than their counterparts in scientific fields. Their research confirmed this hypothesis and additionally showed that the mere portrayal of an individual's work as artistic rather than scientific can reproduce these outcomes.

Abstract

Recent years have brought increased accountability for personal misconduct, yet often, unequal consequences have resulted from similar offenses. Findings from a unique archival data set (N = 619; all university faculty) and three preregistered experiments (N = 2,594) show that the perceived artistic-versus-scientific nature of the offender’s professional contributions influences the professional punishment received. In Study 1, analysis of four decades of university sexual-misconduct cases reveals that faculty in artistic (vs. scientific) fields have on average received more severe professional consequences. Study 2 demonstrates this experimentally, offering mediational evidence that greater difficulty morally decoupling art (vs. science) contributes to the phenomenon. Study 3 provides further evidence for this mechanism through experimental moderation. Finally, Study 4 shows that merely framing an individual’s work as artistic versus scientific results in replication of these effects. Several potential alternative mechanisms to moral decoupling are tested but not supported. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.
Siev and Teeny recruited 100 expert coders from Connect who held advanced degrees (i.e., master’s degrees or PhDs) to validate the ratings given by MTurk participants on academic fields and the severity of professional misconduct consequences, leveraging participants' expertise for more reliable results. Quantitative, Experimental, Archival Morality, Decoupling, Person Perception, Social Judgment, Misconduct, Punishment, Art, Science, Open Data, Open Materials, Preregistration Social Psychology
Smith, A. J. (). Denial in the Anthropocene: Climate Change Beliefs and Self Control [Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University]. Full Text Smith investigated novel psychological predictors of climate change denial, finding that while people’s individual level of self-control did not predict climate change denial, perceived social norms regarding climate change did significantly predict the extent to which people denied climate change being caused by humans.

Abstract

A recent report released by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication found that only 61% of Americans believe that “global warming is mostly human-caused.” Moreover, a recent analysis from the Center for American Progress (2021) uncovered that 139 elected officials in the 117th Congress do not endorse or express concerns about the scientific validity of anthropogenic climate change. However, Powell (2017) examined 11,602 peer-reviewed articles examining anthropogenic climate change and found 100% consensus from the world’s leading scientists. Few studies have applied a theoretical perspective rooted in criminology to quantitatively analyze why individuals deny anthropogenic climate change. To address this gap in the research, I apply Gottfredson and Hirschi’s (1990) theory of self-control to anthropogenic climate change beliefs (ACCB). Additionally, I test whether education moderates the relationship between self-control and ACCB. This exploratory research employed original data collection by sampling respondents from CloudResearch’s Connect platform in 2023 (n = 648). Results from the multivariate analyses show that self-control is not significantly associated with ACCB, nor does education moderate the relationship between self-control and ACCB. However, a significant association (p < .001) between Akers’ (1998) social learning theory and ACCB was uncovered. Further research should analyze the four core elements (i.e., differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement, and imitation) of Akers’ (1998) social learning theory to better understand the intricacies and drivers of these learned beliefs.
The researcher recruited a sample of participants from Connect that was Census-matched on race, ethnicity, sex, and age to improve generalizability of the findings. Quantitative, Correlational Environmental Attitudes, Climate Change, Climate Beliefs, Climate Change Denialism, Theory of Self-Control, Social Learning Theory, Cognitive Deviance Sociology
Sola, J. L., & Pickett, J. T. (). Widespread, bipartisan aversion exists to neighbors owning AR-15s or storing guns insecurely. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 121(16), e2311825121. Full Text Sola and Pickett's research explored if there's a common agreement among Americans on certain gun practices, despite deep divides on gun control issues. They discovered that, regardless of political affiliation, most people prefer not to live near neighbors who own AR-15s or who keep their guns unlocked, indicating broad consensus on these aspects of gun ownership and storage.

Abstract

Over 45,000 gun deaths occur annually in the United States, a country with more than 100 million gun owners and more than 350 million guns. Nevertheless, passing legislation to reduce gun violence is difficult because the issue is intensely polarized. Polls asking about general gun policies (e.g., AR-15 restrictions) demonstrate that, at least in the abstract, Americans disagree vehemently about whether civilians should be able to keep and bear arms. It is possible, however, that a hidden consensus exists in America, which has thus far escaped attention—specifically, that when the focus is on their immediate environments and daily lives, even traditionally pro-gun groups may exhibit aversion to certain types of gun ownership and storage practices. To test this, we conducted two preregistered survey experiments with a large national sample. The first was a conjoint analysis where respondents chose between neighbors (n = 33,596 choices) who randomly varied on seven attributes, including gun ownership (none, pistol, AR-15). No group of respondents, not even traditionally pro-gun groups (e.g., Republicans), exhibited a significant preference for living near gun owners, and every group was averse to AR-15-owning neighbors. The second experiment, per debates about safe-storage laws, was a picture-based factorial vignette that randomized a neighbor’s gun storage practices (n = 2,098). Every group of respondents was averse to interacting with a neighbor who stored guns outside of a locked safe. Our findings demonstrate that there is widespread agreement that certain types of gun ownership and storage practices are undesirable for communities.
Sola and Pickett successfully recruited more than 4,000 participants from Connect, diverse in demographics, politics, socioeconomic status, and geography, and approximately 35% of these participants reported having a gun at home, a figure that aligns closely with the prevalence estimates from the NORC's 2022 General Social Survey. Experimental, Quantitative Firearm Ownership, Social Preferences, Gun Control, Safe Storage, AR-15 Social Sciences, Sociology, Criminal Justice
Springle, M. (). Beyond the background: exploring the influence of socioeconomic status in asynchronous video interviews (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. https://hdl.handle.net/1880/117180 Full Text Springle's dissertation examined if Asynchronous Video Interviews (AVIs) could unintentionally expose an applicant's socioeconomic status (SES) and lead to bias in hiring decisions. The research indicated that while evaluators could detect SES variations, these did not straightforwardly affect their judgments of an applicant's suitability for hire. Nonetheless, under substantial cognitive load, evaluators required more time to assess an applicant, and there were notable associations between the perceived SES and judgments of hireability.

Abstract

Asynchronous Video Interviews (AVIs) have revolutionized the hiring process, offering flexibility, cost-effectiveness, and convenience to both organizations and job applicants. While recent studies have highlighted the potential for background cues in AVIs to inadvertently disclose non-job-related information about job applicants, researchers have yet to explore this with socioeconomic status (SES). This study investigates whether AVIs might reveal cues about an applicant’s SES, which might remain concealed during face-to-face interviews, thereby potentially introducing unique biases in the hiring process. We determined if evaluators could discern SES differences based on a job applicant’s background and whether these cues influenced the perceived hireability of the job applicant. To enhance the realism of our findings and understand when such biases may be exacerbated, we simulated the conditions a hiring manager might face by inducing cognitive load (CL). In a sample of N = 300 American Cloud Research Connect participants, we used a 2 (low; high SES) by 2 (low; high CL) betweensubjects experimental design. We found that although evaluators could identify differences in SES and did experience a difference in CL, these two factors did not directly influence the perceived hireability of the job applicant. However, contrary to our expectations, evaluators under significant CL took longer to decide on a job applicant’s suitability. Furthermore, we also investigated the role of evaluators’ characteristics, such as their own SES, attitude towards poverty (ATP), and social dominance orientation (SDO). Although these did not directly influence their ratings of the job applicant, we identified noteworthy correlations: participants’ perceptions of the SES from the background correlated with the job applicant’s a) perceived hireability, b) perceived SES, and c) perceived competence. These findings emphasize the need for further research into the subtle cues evaluators might use to gauge SES, which could impact a job applicant’s AVI evaluation.
Springle successfully gathered data from 300 participants on Connect who had experience in interviewing applicants, utilizing the platform's internal screening questions to ensure participants were in business management positions or had prior hiring experience. Quantitative, Experiment Asynchronous Video Interviews, Socioeconomic Status, Interviews, Job Applicaants I/O Psychology
Stagnaro, M. N., Druckman, J., Arechar, A. A., Willer, R., & Rand, D. (). Representativeness Versus Attentiveness: A Comparison Across Nine Online Survey Samples. In a comprehensive study comparing 9 different online participant platforms and over 13,000 participants, Stagnaro and colleagues found significant variations in data quality, representativeness, and professionalism. Their findings reveal a tradeoff between the representativeness and data quality of samples: samples with higher data quality tend to be less representative, whereas more representative samples tend to provide lower data quality.

Abstract

Social scientists rely heavily on data collected from human participants via surveys or experiments. To obtain these data, many social scientists recruit study participants from online panels that provide access to large numbers of people willing to do tasks for modest compensation. In a large study (total N= 13,053), we explore nine non-probability samples of American respondents drawn from panels used in social science research, comparing them on three dimensions: data quality (attention, effort, lying, speeding, and attrition), representativeness (demographics, attitude typicality, and responding to experimental treatments), and professionalism (number of studies taken, frequency of taking studies, and modality of device the study is taken on). We document substantial variation across these samples on each dimension. Most notably, there is a clear tradeoff between the representativeness and data quality of samples, such that samples with higher data quality tend to be less representative, and vice versa. Prolific, a Mechanical Turk panel maintained by a research group at Stanford, Cloud Research’s Connect panel, and Cloud Research’s Mechanical Turk panel were highest on data quality, but the least representative. Cloud Research’s Connect panel with demographic quotas and Prolific’s “Nationally representative” quota option maintained the same level of data quality and were somewhat more representative. Bovitz-Forthright and Lucid were the most representative samples but had lower data quality (with data quality on Lucid being particularly low). Interestingly, this tension between data quality and representativeness can be somewhat mitigated by using the most representative samples and screening for attentiveness: filters can allow Bovitz-Forthright and (via much heavier filtering) Lucid to achieve data quality parity comparable with the higher scoring samples, with doing so preserving representativeness on Bovitz-Forthright (but reducing representativeness on Lucid). Finally, recruiting participants directly from Mechanical Turk was the worst sample on all measured dimensions. Our findings provide a guide to help researchers decide which sample is optimal given one’s research question and constraints.
The researchers recruited two samples from Connect to include a representative sample (1000+ participants with age, gender, race, and ethnicity quotas) and convenience sample (1000+ participants with no quotas) in the platform comparison study. Quantitative, Survey Data Quality, Attentiveness, Representativeness, Probability Sample, Convenience Sample Behavioral Science, Political Science
Szabolcsi, V. (). Childhood Stability and Adult Relationship Functioning (Doctoral dissertation, Florida Atlantic University). Full Text Szabolcsi looked at how tough childhoods can make adult relationships harder. She found out that for men, having manipulative tendencies (Machiavellianism) amplified these negative effects, while intelligence didn't play a significant role in the results.

Abstract

Previous research has demonstrated the harmful impacts of adverse childhood circumstances on adult romantic relationships. The current study examines the negative influence of childhood unpredictability on adult relationships and how this effect may be buffered and enhanced, respectively, by cognitive ability and Machiavellianism. A total of 256 participants completed measures of childhood unpredictability, Machiavellianism, cognitive ability, and relationship satisfaction. Individuals who experienced childhood unpredictability reported lower adult romantic relationship satisfaction. Machiavellianism was found to significantly enhance the negative effects of childhood unpredictability on adult relationships for men only. Cognitive ability was not a significant moderator.
Szabolcsi used quota sampling to recruit 256 Connect participants so that the sample would resemble the general population of gender, race/ethnicity, and age in the US. Quantitative, Survey Childhood Unpredictability, Adult Relationships, Cognitive Ability, Machiavellianism Developmental Psychology
Thomas, V. L., Fowler, K., & Taheran, F. (). How social media influencer collaborations are perceived by consumers. Psychology & Marketing. Full Text Thomas and colleagues explore how influencers on social media are perceived when they collaborate with lower-status partners. Their findings support their predictions that influencers who collaborate with lower-status partners are perceived as less self-serving and more altruistic, indicating the effectiveness of such collaborations in improving the influencers' image.

Abstract

Within the social media community, influencers engage in a variety of collaborative practices such as tagging, reposting content from, or forming partnerships with other influencers and brands. While such collaborative efforts are a known practice, less is understood about how influencer collaborations affect consumers' perceptions of the partnering influencers, specifically when a status differential exists within the collaboration. We suggest that such collaborative practices, specifically those where the focal influencer has a higher status than the collaborating partner, may help to weaken consumers' perceptions that the influencer's actions are purely self-focused. A pilot study, analyzing both influencer–influencer collaborations and influencer–brand collaborations, provides evidence that influencers engage in collaborations with other influencers and brands of different status levels. Two studies then support our theorizing that influencers who collaborate with lower-status influencers are perceived as less self-serving and more altruistic, while influencers who collaborate with lower-status brands are only perceived as less self-serving. This suggests that, for influencers who desire to enhance how consumers perceive them, an effective strategy is to engage in collaborations with either a lower-status influencer or brand.
The researchers were able to test their hypotheses by recruiting 200 participants from Connect to see how peoples’ perceptions of influencers differed depending on the influencer’s status and the collaborator’s status. Quantitative, Experiment Altruism, Attribution Theory, Collaborations, Influencer, Partnerships, Self‐Serving, Signaling Theory Psychology, Marketing
Uduehi, E., & Barnes, A. (). Room for Error: The Compensatory Effect of Ownership Awareness on Brand Evaluations. Available at SSRN 4443938. Full Text Uduehi and Barnes investigated how knowing that a brand is owned by a minority affects consumer reactions, especially when the brand messes up. They discovered that when consumers know about the minority ownership, they are more forgiving of the brand's mistakes, trying to balance out the challenges minorities face in the market.

Abstract

The growing use of minority ownership labels (e.g., Black-owned or woman-owned) has effectively increased consumer demand for these businesses. The resulting growth occasionally leads to brand failuresas these businesses encounter growing pains. The current research examines when and why minority ownership awareness influences consumer behavior with special attention given to the context of brand failures. The authors suggest that minority ownership awareness minimizes the negative effect of brand failure because consumers want to compensate for the disadvantages in the marketplace that minorities face (i.e., compensatory assessment). This leads to increased brand evaluations and willingness to pay. Six experiments and analyses of over 40,000 Google reviews for Black-owned restaurants demonstrate the ownership awareness effect, its underlying process, and various boundary conditions. Consistent with a compensatory assessment account, the ownership awareness effect is limited to minority (vs. nonminority) owners, negative (vs. neutral) information, product (vs. moral) failures, upand-coming (vs. established) brands, and people with low (vs. high) social dominance orientation.
For their 4th experiment, the researchers enlisted 400 participants from Connect, enabling them to both replicate and broaden their findings by examining the perception of participants towards Black-owned businesses that are either emerging or already established. Quantitative, Experiment Race, Ethnicity, Labels, Gender, Ownership, Compensatory Assessment, Brand Failure Marketing
van der Sluis, H., Samper, A., Kristofferson, K., & Hlava, T. (). How Do Physical Disability Cues Influence Assumptions about Consumer Tastes? Unpacking the Disability Preference Stereotype. Journal of Consumer Research, ucae031. Full Text van der Sluis and colleagues investigated a “disability preference stereotype” across 10 experimental studies. They find that observers believe disabled consumers prefer utilitarian products (i.e., functional goods) more than nondisabled consumers do and prefer hedonic products (i.e., pleasurable goods) less than nondisabled consumers.

Abstract

Across ten experimental studies, this research identifies and provides evidence of a disability preference stereotype whereby observers infer that disabled consumers prefer utilitarian products more than nondisabled consumers, and prefer hedonic products less than nondisabled consumers. We show that this stereotype occurs because of societal associations between physical disability and pity. Pity elicits a multidimensional response such that considering the interests of a disabled person increases feelings of personal discomfort, driving both an inclination to help (help-giving orientation) and a tendency to assess the perceived misfortune (misfortune appraisal) in parallel. Thus, when considering the preferences of disabled individuals, the help-giving orientation increases focus on functional (utilitarian) goods, while the misfortune appraisal decreases focus on pleasurable (hedonic) goods. Importantly, this stereotype can be mitigated through increased disability representation. Representation of empowered disabled individuals in media can dampen the help-giving orientation, reducing inferred utilitarian preferences, while representation of disabled people partaking in daily pleasures through increased accessibility can reduce misfortune perceptions, increasing inferred hedonic preferences. This work addresses the paucity of disability-related consumer research, identifies how aspects unique to consumption can limit consumers with disabilities, and highlights opportunities to minimize ableist stereotypes by expanding representation and increasing marketplace inclusion.
The researchers recruited over 1000 participants from Connect in their 4th experiment to help extend their findings, showing that this stereotype can be mitigated by increasing representation of people with disabilities. Quantitative, Experimental Disability, Accessibility, Pity, Medical/Social Models Of Disability, Hedonic/Utilitarian Preferences, Stereotypes Marketing
Velez, Y. (). Crowdsourced Adaptive Surveys. APSA Preprints. doi:10.33774/apsa-2023-r2jzm Full Text In this research, Velez introduced a new method for conducting surveys called crowdsourced adaptive survey methodology (CSAS), which used advanced technology to adapt questions based on what people are currently talking about while taking a survey. This method was shown to be particularly effective for understanding specific groups and rapidly changing topics, making it a valuable tool for getting a better grasp of public opinion.

Abstract

Public opinion surveys are vital for informing democratic decision-making, but responding to rapidly changing information environments and measuring beliefs within niche communities can be challenging for traditional survey methods. This paper introduces a crowdsourced adaptive survey methodology that unites advances in natural language processing and adaptive algorithms to generate question banks that evolve with user input. The CSAS method converts open-ended text provided by participants into Likert items, and applies a multi-armed bandit algorithm to determine user-provided questions that should be prioritized. The method’s adaptive nature allows for the exploration of new survey questions, while imposing minimal costs in survey length. Applications in the domains of Latino information environments and issue importance showcase CSAS’s ability to identify claims or issues that might otherwise be difficult to track using standard approaches. I conclude by discussing the method’s potential for studying topics where participant-generated content might improve our understanding of public opinion.
Velez recruited two key groups using Connect to enhance the CSAS development: 321 self-identified Latinos who responded to open-ended questions about negative perceptions of Republicans and Democrats, as well as a national quota sample of 820 participants, representative in terms of age, race, and gender, who provided insights on eight major issues identified in a Gallup poll. Crowd-Sourced Adaptive Survey Methodology, Qualitative, Survey Adaptive Algorithms, Large Language Models, Natural Language Processing, Latino Politics, Public Opinion Political Science
Velez, Y., & Liu, P. (). Confronting Core Issues: A Critical Test of Attitude Polarization. Full Text Velez and Liu looked at whether people change their minds or become more set in their ways when they hear arguments against their beliefs. Using a special experiment with Chat GPT-3 to give participants information that either supported or opposed their strong beliefs, they found that people's attitudes didn't become more extreme.

Abstract

A long-standing debate in political psychology considers whether individuals update their beliefs and attitudes in the direction of evidence or grow more confident in their convictions when confronted with counter-attitudinal arguments. Though recent studies have shown that instances of the latter tendency, which scholars have termed attitude polarization and belief backfire, are rarely observed in settings involving hot-button issues or viral misinformation, we know surprisingly little about how participants respond to information targeting deeply held attitudes, a key condition for triggering attitude polarization. We develop a tailored experimental design that measures participants' positions regarding their most important issues and randomly assigns them to different mixtures of personalized pro-attitudinal and counter-attitudinal information using the large language model GPT-3. We fail to recover evidence consistent with attitude polarization across three studies. We conclude by discussing implications for the study of political cognition and the measurement of attitudes.
Across 2 experiments, the researchers recruited over 3000 participants from Connect who were asked to respond to an open-ended prompt asking them to think about political issues that they care deeply about and to report their position on that issue before encountering pro or counter attitudinal information created by GPT-3. Quantitative, Experiment Motivated Reasoning, Attitude Polarization, Large Language Models, Persuasion Political Science, Political Psychology, Data Science
Vollmer, M. C. (). Understanding the Complexities, Constructs, and Communication of Sexual Consent (Doctoral dissertation, State University of New York at Buffalo). In his dissertation, Vollmer focused on how individuals communicate consent before engaging in a sexual encounter. He gathered survey responses to understand the varied methods by which people convey and interpret the giving and receiving of sexual consent with their partners.

Abstract

This work seeks to understand the process of sexual consent communication in the moments leading up to a sexual experience between two people. The nature of this research is exploratory and focuses on understanding how people report and perceive giving consent to their sexual partners, as well as how people report and perceive that sexual consent has been given to them. Additionally, the study explores some ways in which miscommunication can happen in the moments leading up to sexual activity. Using the framework of affirmative sexual consent, the research bridges existing scholarship in the field of sexual psychology, sexual education, and sexual violence/assault by introducing the element of sexual communication. Using a latent and manifest content analysis of participant’s survey data, the outcome of the research can help pave the way for future research that will lead to the successful implementation of affirmative sexual consent policies, sexual education curriculum, and communication practices.
Having encountered difficulties in obtaining usable data from Mechanical Turk, Vollmer opted for Connect as a platform for participant recruitment and here, he successfully obtained a sample of 282 participants, all of whom were over 18 years old, had previous sexual experience, and utilized English as their language for discussing sexual consent. Qualitative, Survey Sexual Consent, Affirmative Sexual Consent, Interpersonal Communication, Relational Communication, Sexual Communication, Sexual Scripts, Social Cognition Communications
Whelan, J., & Hingston, S. T. (). The association between consumers' chronic concerns about infectious disease and anthropomorphism. Psychology & Marketing. Full Text Whelan and Hingston test the hypothesis that consumers who are concerned with susceptibility to disease will be more inclined to anthropomorphize consumer products. Across four studies, they find support for their hypothesis, suggesting that people who are chronically concerned with infectious disease may look for relatively pathogen-free opportunities to affiliate (inanimate objects) instead of human connection.

Abstract

Assigning human characteristics to products and brands (i.e., anthropomorphism) is a tactic commonly adopted by marketers. However, researchers have recently highlighted the importance of better understanding which consumers will be more (or less) responsive to these cues. Drawing on the behavioral immune system and anthropomorphism literatures, we hypothesize that consumers who are chronically concerned about their susceptibility to infectious disease will have a greater tendency to anthropomorphize nonhuman entities (e.g., nature, technology, and consumer products) because doing so creates relatively pathogen‐free sources of social connection. Importantly, we also predict that this tendency will be muted when consumers are highly germ averse. To test these predictions, we examined the relationships between perceived infectability and germ aversion, the two subscales of the established Perceived Vulnerability to Disease scale, and three different measures of consumers' tendency to anthropomorphize nonhuman entities. The results of four studies, including a preregistered, high‐powered replication, support our hypotheses and offer the first evidence of a context wherein perceived infectability and germ aversion interact.
The researchers sought to replicate their findings more recently with a sample of participants from Connect to show that the results generalize to a period when COVID-19 concerns were less salient. Quantitative, Correlational Anthropomorphism, Consumer Behavior, Germ Aversion, Perceived Infectability, Perceived Vulnerability to Disease Psychology, Marketing, Consumer Behavior
Wilson, J. R. (). Work-Life Balance in the New Normal: A Study of Performance and Well-Being Post-Pandemic. Full Text Wilson's dissertation research explored the difficulties and consequences of remote work on juggling work and family duties. He looked at how control over one's work (autonomy) and being overseen (monitoring) influence job performance and personal well-being. His results showed that more autonomy is linked to better job performance and greater interference of work with family life. Additionally, the spillover of work into home life impacts both job performance and overall well-being.

Abstract

COVID-19 and the government shelter-in-place forced millions of traditional office employees to work outside their physical location, and instead, work as remote or work-from-home (WFH) employees. Even though the pandemic is over, this novel phenomenon has changed work characteristics and perceptions of employee outcomes moving forward. In addition, the mass exodus from office workers to remote workers has left a gap in the literature. The infrequency of remote workers before the pandemic is disproportionate to the many remote workers today, leaving the generalizability of WFH employee outcomes incomplete. The primary objective of this research is to examine the challenges associated with remote work, and their impact on the ability to balance professional obligations and family responsibilities. Examining the relationship between virtual work characteristics, autonomy and monitoring, and their effects on employee performance and well-being via work-home interference, we surveyed 381 full-time employees who work remotely at least one day a week. We found support for direct relationships between autonomy and performance and autonomy and work interference with family. In addition, we found direct relationships between work-home interference and performance and well-being. This study provides valuable insights into the experiences and perspectives of WFH employees.
Wilson used the targeted demographics feature on Connect in order to collect data from 380 Connect participants who were full-time employees working in the United States. Quantitative, Survey COVID-19, WFH, Work-Life Balance, Work-Life Balance, Autonomy, Well-being, Work-Home Interference, Monitoring, Performance, Work Design, Work Characteristics, Remote Working, Remote Work Business Administration
Ye, X., Jo, W., Ali, A., Bhatti, S., Esterwood, C., Kassie, H., & Robert, L. (). Autonomy Acceptance Model (AAM): The Role of Autonomy and Risk in Security Robot Acceptance. Ye and colleagues studied how people feel about security robots, focusing on how autonomous the robots were and how much risk they posed to humans. They found that ease of use and trust made security robots more acceptable, but higher autonomy and perceived risk can reduce acceptance.

Abstract

The rapid deployment of security robots across our society calls for further examination of their acceptance. This study explored human acceptance of security robots by theoretically extending the technology acceptance model to include the impact of autonomy and risk. To accomplish this, an online experiment involving 236 participants was conducted. Participants were randomly assigned to watch a video introducing a security robot operating at an autonomy level of low, moderate, or high, and presenting either a low or high risk to humans. This resulted in a 3 (autonomy) × 2 (risk) between-subjects design. The findings suggest that increased perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and trust enhance acceptance, while higher robot autonomy tends to decrease acceptance. Additionally, the physical risk associated with security robots moderates the relationship between autonomy and acceptance. Based on these results, this paper offers recommendations for future research on security robots.
Ye and colleagues recruited 240 participants from Connect to watch a 2-minute video about a security robot before indicating their level of acceptance of the robot—all but 4 participants provide high-quality data. Quantitative, Experimental Robot, Human-Robot Interaction, Security Robots, Autonomy, Risk, Human-robot acceptance Human-Robot Interaction
Zhang, Q. (). Shifting Gears: Trust and Expectation Dynamics in Automated Vehicles (Doctoral dissertation). Full Text Zhang's dissertation research delved into how different demographic aspects, such as age, gender, ethnicity, and personality characteristics like extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness, affect initial attitudes towards Automated Vehicles (AVs). She found that these variables significantly determine how people form their expectations and the level of trust they have in AVs from the outset.

Abstract

The research outlined in this dissertation provides a holistic exploration into the intricate factors influencing user expectations and trust in Automated Vehicles (AVs), both of which are central to the acceptance and adoption of such transformative technologies. AVs, with their potential to revolutionize transportation through enhanced safety, efficiency, and convenience, have generated widespread interest. However, persisting apprehensions around AV safety, performance, and reliability create a barrier to their widespread acceptance and utilization, suggesting a discrepancy between the theoretical advantages of AVs and public perceptions thereof. To unravel this discrepancy and effectively accelerate AV adoption, this dissertation undertakes a multifaceted investigation into the factors shaping public perceptions, specifically focusing on the formation of expectations and trust. My research pivots around three core research questions: What individual factors shape people's expectations of AVs? How do these expectations impact their trust in AVs? How does the gender similarity between humans and AV explanation voices affect trust, and how is this moderated by gender-role congruity? The answers to these questions elucidate the intricacies of cognitive and affective trust development in the context of AV adoption. Results from my dissertation highlight three major findings. One, individual characteristics such as demographic factors such as age, gender, and ethnicity, along with personality traits (e.g., extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness), significantly shape people’s preconceived expectations of AVs. Two, expectations significantly mold the level of trust in AVs, influenced by the disconfirmation effect. Three, the study demonstrated that the impact of gender similarity between users and the AV’s explanatory voice could be moderated by the expected role of the vehicle. Overall, this dissertation embarks on a profound exploration of expectations, trust, and design elements, offering critical insights that will shape the forward path for AVs development and implementation. It dissects the intricate dynamics of expectation and trust formation, essential for the user acceptance and adoption of AVs. The study also underscores the powerful role of both user-centric and voice characteristic design in influencing these factors. By bringing these components to light, this research helps navigate the complexities and potentials of AVs, paving the way for an imminent paradigm shift in transportation.
Zhang recruited over 300 participants from Connect where they were asked to watch six videos presenting unique driving scenarios from the perspective of an AV driver’s seat before completing a survey which assessed their perceptions of the AV. Quantitative, Experiment Automated Vehicles, Driver Perceptions, Personality, Expectation, Trust Information Technology
Zhang, T., Desebrock, C., Okajima, K., & Spence, C. (). ‘Hot stuff’: Making food more desirable with animated temperature cues. Food Quality and Preference, 105233. Zhang and colleagues found that adding animated steam to food images increased perceptions of the food's temperature, desirability, and freshness.

Abstract

Nothing beats a comforting image of a bowl of hot soup with whisps of rising steam unless it is the actual soup itself. The current paper investigates the influence of food photography on people’s food expectations. Despite the recognition of the importance of the food temperature depicted in food images, the effectiveness of using visual cues on food photography to indicate temperature and potential managerial outcomes of so doing has barely been researched. This study explored whether the addition of visual temperature cues to food images was effective in activating relevant temperature associations, leading to downstream consequences, including food desirability, freshness perception and willingness to pay (WTP), with a focus on thermal temperature cues. Three online experimental studies were conducted showing that animated traces of steam added to food images not only induced hot temperature perception of the food, but also increased food desirability and freshness perception. Meanwhile, implied animation (i.e., static picture of rising steam) did not produce any such effect. Further, food image appeal was found to be a boundary condition for the effect of hot temperature cues: that is, when the food images is of low appeal, traces of steam which increased hot temperature perception, in turn enhanced freshness perception and food desirability, but not WTP. The effectiveness of animated steam textures crossmodally enhancing thermal temperature perception and food desirability underscores the potential in digital food creation and marketing.
The researchers first tested their predictions with a sample of Connect participants and used Connect’s demographic targeting feature to ensure participants were not color-blind since colorblindness can affect evaluations of food images. Quantitative, Experimental Food Appeal, Sensory Nudging, Digital Marketing, Temperature, Visual Texture Psychology, Marketing
Zhang, Y., & Gosline, R. (). People's Perceptions (and Bias) Toward Creative Content Generated by Ai (ChatGPT-4), Human Experts, and Human-AI Collaboration. Human Experts, and Human-AI Collaboration (May 20, 2023). Full Text Zhang and Gosline explored the perceived quality of advertising content for products and campaigns based on their origin: solely human-produced, purely AI-generated, initiated by AI but refined by humans, and started by humans but improved by AI. Surprisingly, participants rated the AI-generated content as superior in quality, even when compared to content crafted by human experts or further refined by them.

Abstract

With the wide availability of Large Language Models and generative AI, there are four primary paradigms for Human-AI collaboration: human only, AI only (ChatGPT-4), augmented human (where a human making the final decision with AI output as a reference), or augmented AI (where the AI making the final decision with human output as a reference). In partnership with one of the world’s leading consulting firms, we enlist professional content creators and ChatGPT-4 to create advertising content for products and persuasive content for campaigns following the aforementioned paradigms. First, we find that, contrary to the expectations of existing algorithm aversion literature on conventional predictive AI, content generated by generative AI and augmented AI is perceived as of higher quality than that produced by human experts and augmented human experts. Second, revealing the source of content production reduces – but does not reverse – the perceived quality gap between human- and AI-generated content. This bias in evaluation is predominantly driven by human favoritism rather than AI aversion: knowing the same content is created by a human expert increases its (reported) perceived quality, but knowing that AI is involved in the creation process does not affect its perceived quality. Further analysis suggests this bias is not due to a “quality prime” as knowing the content they are about to evaluate comes from competent creators (e.g., industry professionals and state-of-the-art AI) without knowing exactly the creator of each piece of content does not increase participants’ perceived quality.
Out of the 1,212 participants from Connect, 99.26% passed the attention checks, highlighting the data quality and engagement on the platform. Quantitative, Experiment, Large Language Models Large Language Models, AI, Consumer Perception, Consumer Bias Marketing, Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction
Zhang, Y., Awad, E., Frank, M. R., Liu, P., & Du, N. (). Understanding Human-machine Cooperation in Game-theoretical Driving Scenarios amid Mixed Traffic. In Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI ’24). Honolulu, HI. https://doi.org/10.1145/3613904.3642053 Full Text Zhang and colleagues studied how human drivers interact with autonomous vehicles (AVs) in various traffic scenarios and driving styles (aggressive vs. conservative). They found that human drivers were less cooperative with conservative drivers, particularly when dealing with AVs and in "chicken game" scenarios where one driver must yield during a merge.

Abstract

Introducing automated vehicles (AVs) on roads may challenge established norms as drivers of human-driven vehicles (HVs) interact with AVs. Our study explored drivers’ decisions in game-theoretical scenarios amid mixed traffic using an online survey study. We manipulated factors including interaction types (HV-HV vs. HV-AV), scenario types (chicken game vs. public goods game), vehicle driving styles (aggressive vs. conservative), and time constraints (high vs. low). The quantitative results showed that human drivers tended to “defect” more, that is, not cooperate, against vehicles with conservative driving styles. The effect of vehicle driving styles was pronounced when interacting with AVs and in chicken game scenarios. Drivers exhibited more “defection” in public goods game scenarios and the effect of scenario types was weakened under high time constraints. Only drivers with moderate driving styles “defected” more in HV-AV interaction. Our qualitative findings provide essential insights into how drivers perceived conditions and formulated strategies for decision-making.
The researchers tested their predictions with a US census-matched sample of Connect participants who were asked to watch animated traffic scenarios and provide driving decisions. Quantitative, Experimental Automated Vehicles, Mixed-Traffic Environment, Human-Machine Cooperation, Game Theory Human Factors in Computing Systems
Zhang, Y., Ling, S., Awad, E., Frank, M. R., & Du, N. (2023, April). Driving Next to Automated Vehicles: Emergent Human-machine Cooperation in Mixed Traffic. In Extended Abstracts of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-7). Zhang and colleagues' study examined the decision-making of human drivers around automated vehicles (AVs), especially under the influence of driving style and time pressure. They found that aggressive drivers tend to make more aggressive decisions when hurried. The research highlighted that a combination of factors – the driver's own style, the specific driving situation, and the nature of interactions with AVs – all affect how drivers behave.

Abstract

Introducing automated vehicles (AVs) on public roads may challenge established norms as drivers in human-driven vehicles (HVs) learn to interact with AVs. Our study utilizes a game theory framework to investigate how driver and vehicle driving styles (aggressive vs. conservative), interaction types (HV-HV vs. HV-AV), scenario types (chicken game vs. public goods game scenarios), and time constraints (high vs. low) influence human drivers’ decision-making in mixed-traffic environments. According to an online survey study, drivers with aggressive driving styles and high time constraints were more likely to take aggressive actions. More importantly, there were significant interaction effects between vehicle driving styles and scenario types, between scenario types and time constraints, and between driver driving styles and interaction types on driver decision-making. Our findings provide essential insights into the design of AVs and promote the development of related laws and policies to facilitate human-machine cooperation in mixed-traffic environments.
The researchers recruited participants from Connect, ensuring they met specific criteria for their study: Each participant was required to be at least 18 years old, possess a driver’s license, and not be colorblind to ensure the validity and relevance of the experiment's results. Quantitative, Experiment Mixed-Traffic Environment, Automated Vehicles, Human-Machine Cooperation, Game Theory Computer Science
Zhang, Y., Otgaar, H., Nash, R. A., & Rosar, L. (). Time and memory distrust shape the dynamics of recollection and belief-in-occurrence. Memory, 1-18. Full Text Khang and colleagues investigated how people's judgments about their memory's accuracy (metamemory judgments) for specific events change over time, and how these judgments are influenced by their trust in their own memory abilities. Their findings revealed that while people's confidence in their memory for an event (recollection) and their belief that the event occurred (belief-in-occurrence) generally decreased over time, belief declined more slowly than recollection, and this was particularly true for people who had less trust in their memory.

Abstract

The current study examined how people’s metamemory judgments of recollection and belief-in-occurrence change over time. Furthermore, we examined to what extent these judgments are affected by memory distrust – the subjective appraisal of one’s memory functioning – as measured by the Memory Distrust Scale (MDS) and the Squire Subjective Memory Scale (SSMQ). Participants (N = 234) studied pictorial stimuli and were tested on some of these stimuli later in the same session, but were tested on other stimuli 1, 2, 4, 8, and 17 days later. Recollection and belief ratings were correlated highly and followed similar declining patterns over time. However, belief decreased relatively more slowly than recollection, such that the discrepancy between recollection and belief increased over time. Memory distrust moderated the association between recollection and belief, with this association being weaker among people who reported greater (versus lower) memory distrust. Memory distrust also interacted with retention period to predict memory judgments. Two measures of memory distrust diverged in their predictive power. In particular, only the MDS predicted the spontaneous reporting of nonbelieved memories. Our results provide support to the theoretical perspective that belief-in-occurrence is a summative judgment informed not only by recollective phenomenology but also by metamemorial beliefs.
The researchers were able to test Connect participants’ memory over 6 different sessions, maintaining high return rates between 89.45-94.53% using Connect’s internal messaging system to notify participants to sign up for the next session. Quantitative, Longitudinal Recollection Autobiographical, Belief Forgetting, Memory Distrust, Metacognition Cognitive Psychology
Zitek, E. M., Giurge, L. M., & Smith, I. H. (). Recognizing and correcting positive bias: The salient victim effect. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 109, 104522. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2023.104522 Full Text Zitek and colleagues examined whether people fail to notice when they receive a favorable outcome due to preferential treatment. Across seven studies, they found that people recognize this type of positive bias more when the person harmed by one’s own benefit stands out (i.e., the salient victim effect), and people can even be encouraged to take action to correct their own positive bias.

Abstract

People seem to have stronger disapproving reactions when they have unfairly suffered from bias than when they have unfairly benefited from it (i.e., they seem less concerned when they have experienced positive bias). Is this because people do not care about the consequences of bias if it has positively affected them, or is it because they fail to notice positive bias? We argue that it is the latter, and that increasing awareness of a victim who has been harmed can “remove the blinders” of the beneficiary of bias. Across seven pre-registered studies of American participants, we tested the effect of a salient victim on people who have experienced positive bias. Our results show that when a victim has been made salient, beneficiaries of bias are more likely to recognize and condemn the positive bias, and they are also more likely to act to correct it. We found this salient victim effect when people reflected on their own positive treatment in society, when they benefited from favoritism in interpersonal interactions, and when they imagined benefiting from nepotism. The effect emerged with both direct and indirect manipulations of the victim. Moreover, the presence of a salient victim spurred more action in those who experienced positive bias even when there was a personal cost. We discuss the contributions of our research to the fairness, morality, and bias literatures.
Zitek and colleagues used unique experimental designs, such as having participants think they are taking part in an ultimatum game, to test their hypotheses with 1000 Connect participants. Quantitative, Experiment Bias, Unfairness, Victim, Positive Outcome, Favoritism Social Psychology
Züllig, K., Bohnen, E., Hühn, P., &Obermeier, A. A. (). Tell Me Why (I Want It That Way) – Effects of Explanations and Online Customer Reviews on Trust in Recommender Systems. ICIS 2023 Proceedings. 12. https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2023/emobilecomm/emobilecomm/12 Full Text Züllig's team studied how to build trust in review-based recommendation systems. They found that explanations increased trust more than justifications did. Including customer reviews raised the intention to use the system and follow its suggestions, but didn't greatly improve trust in the system itself.

Abstract

Review-based recommender systems (RS) have shown great potential in helping users manage information overload and find suitable items. However, a lack of trust still impedes the widespread acceptance of RS. To increase users’ trust, research proposes various methods to generate justifications or explanations. Furthermore, online customer reviews (OCRs) are found to be a trustworthy and reliable source of information. However, it is still unclear how justifications compare to explanations in their influence on users’ trust and whether basing them on OCRs additionally adds trust. Hence, we conduct an online experiment with 531 participants and find that explanations exceed justifications in increasing users’ trust, while basing them on OCRs directly increases users’ intentions to use the system and adopt recommendations without increasing trust in the RS themselves. Unifying different research streams from review-based RS and Explainable Artificial Intelligence, we provide an overarching, holistic view on the conception of justifications and explanations.
The researchers recruited over 600 Connect participants to use Restauguide, a real recommender system, and subsequently respond to survey questions about their experience with the restaurant recommendations provided. Quantitative, Experimental Recommender Systems, Explainable Artificial Intelligence, Trust, Online Customer Reviews Information Systems