Articles tagged with Decision Making
Researchers found that marketplace literacy education improved psychological wellbeing, consumer confidence, and entrepreneurial behavior among 1,000 people in 34 remote villages. Those with limited access to marketplaces benefited most from the education.
In snowy plover species, females often abandon their broods to mate with new partners, a behavior that may be beneficial for parental reproductive success. The study found that females desert their broods primarily due to poor environmental conditions or when chicks have a good chance of survival without them.
Researchers found that objective and subjective memory can function independently and involve different parts of the brain. People tend to make decisions based on how they feel about a memory rather than its accuracy.
A recent study found that biases arise from unconscious tendencies towards certain decisions, affecting wellbeing. The research used mathematical models and neural recordings in primates to understand how biases are formed, revealing two types of bias: slow and fast, which can be difficult to eradicate.
A new study examines the application of a risk assessment tool in child welfare decision-making and finds drastically different approaches between two states. The 'Goldilocks problem' highlights the challenges of standardizing a complex process, where too much rigidity can lead to inaccurate outcomes.
A study led by Universitat Oberta de Catalunya finds that lockdowns reduce cognitive capacity, leading to poorer choices and decreased altruism. The shock from restrictions impairs decision-making, causing people to prioritize short-term benefits over long-term consequences.
A University of Queensland and Nature Conservancy study reveals that women's voices are critically lacking in conservation, with gender discrimination being systemic and consistent. The research found positive impacts when women were involved in conservation, but existing gender roles and dynamics limit their participation.
Research finds that people's reason for swiping right is primarily based on attractiveness and the race of a potential partner. Decisions are often made quickly, with only personality, approach style, or long-term goals mattering slightly.
A UTA civil engineering assistant professor is developing a multi-level dynamic model to measure the resilience level of transportation infrastructure networks in natural disasters. The project will create a decision-support tool and quantitative models to enhance the resilience of critical infrastructure before disasters occur.
A new study from the University of Washington reveals that people's brains have parallel learning systems for avoiding bad options and finding good ones. The research suggests that being able to 'turn down the volume' on irrelevant signals is critical to complex problem-solving.
The Wellcome Trust, a top funder of health research, holds significant investments in companies producing covid-19 treatments. This has raised questions about the charity's independence and conflicts of interest in pandemic response efforts. Experts weigh in on the implications of private charities' financial interests on global health.
Top managers in Fantasy Premier League showcase consistent skillful play, outperforming others with strategic decisions. The study's findings highlight the importance of skill over luck in fantasy football success.
A new framework allows designers to assess environmental impact early in the design process, reducing costs and increasing sustainability. By rapidly simulating tens of thousands of design iterations, architects can make more informed decisions and achieve greater efficiency.
A new study predicts that the Southeastern United States is at high risk of extreme drought, which could expose its water-supply infrastructure to stress beyond its design limit. The researchers used short-term climate modeling forecasts to highlight the urgency of drought risk and inform policymakers' actions.
Researchers have identified how Physarum polycephalum, a single-celled organism, stores and retrieves information about its environment through its network architecture. The slime mold weaves memories of food encounters into the architecture and uses stored information to make future decisions.
A recent study from Cornell University-led research highlights the risk of overvaluing prototypical leaders and undervaluing management skills. Participants preferred to hire a CEO with strong leadership qualities over those with more managerial expertise, despite the organization's need for management skills.
Researchers at Indiana University Kelley School of Business found that observing others make decisions can help reduce bias and improve decision-making. The study used computer games to decrease bias and showed that watching others solve problems helped observers learn about decision biases and improve their own.
New research suggests that observing others' decision-making can teach people to make better decisions themselves. The study, co-authored by Professor Irene Scopelliti, tested the effectiveness of a new debiasing training strategy and reports first evidence that watching others make decisions can improve our own decision making.
A new study in Frontiers in Communication demonstrates the impact of subtle messaging and cues on encouraging people to show socially desirable behaviors. Travelers were more likely to demonstrate environmentally conscious actions when given a 'nudge' towards the desirable action, whether framed positively or negatively.
The five winners are recognized for their accomplishments in chemistry, physics, and mathematics, as well as their commitment to leading and mentoring young scientists. The awards aim to support the careers of women researchers from developing countries and promote diversity in STEM fields.
A new study found that traffic noise and man-made sounds significantly impact the mating choices of female field crickets. In noisy environments, females are unable to detect differences in male quality, leading to a reduction in offspring viability.
A study found that voters tend to view candidates with disabilities as capable, honest, and caring. The research suggests that increasing support for candidates with disabilities is key to addressing under-representation in politics.
A new model developed by a Washington University mathematician helps estimate the relative risk of different in-person activities, such as traveling or attending events. By breaking down individual factors and adding their contributions to relative risk, the model allows for informed decision-making about participation.
Scientists are using brain recordings, flight analyses, and computational modeling to uncover the neural mechanisms behind insect decision-making. The study aims to inform autonomous robotics, computational neuroscience, and other fields by understanding how insects utilize movement to simplify information sampling.
Seventy experts argue that misunderstandings around attachment research are hampering its accurate implementation in family courts. The group outlines three principles from attachment research to guide decision-making, including the child's need for familiar caregivers and the benefits of networks of familiar relationships.
A study of potential jurors found they are more favorable towards physicians who accept standard AI medical recommendations. The study suggests the threat of legal liability may be smaller than commonly thought, influencing physician behavior and AI adoption.
Researchers developed an online risk-stratification tool to predict COVID-19 patients' likelihood of deterioration, using 11 measurements including age, oxygen levels, and laboratory tests. The '4C Deterioration Score' provides clinicians with a percentage risk score to support decision-making and potentially save lives.
In a recent study, researchers showed that the ability to use social information can depend on an individual's cognitive skills. Female collared flycatchers who mastered a learning task faster were more likely to copy the nest site choices of great and blue tits.
A study found that a traffic light system reduced clinical uncertainty by 70% and improved treatment decisions for doctors. The system, which uses green, yellow, and red lights to indicate risk levels, was shown to decrease pupil dilation and improve treatment outcomes.
A new study from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute found that irrelevant information and unavailable options often lead to poor choices. The researchers discovered that consumers carry cognitive costs when making decisions in environments with excess information.
A special issue of Information Polity explores the transparency challenges of using algorithms in government decision-making, highlighting potential benefits and drawbacks. Experts emphasize the need for regulations, organizational policies, and individual training to ensure transparent and responsible algorithm use.
A new study explores how human decision-making impacts engineered systems. Researchers found that people often overestimate their abilities and succumb to biases, leading to inefficiencies in system design.
Researchers predict soybean maturity date within two days using drone images and artificial intelligence, greatly reducing the need for boots on the ground. The developed model performs well independent of data collection frequency, accounting for variables such as image quality and location.
Researchers used fMRI to study effort-based decision-making and found two distinct regions of the ventral striatum associated with different phases of physical effort. The findings provide new insights into motivation, depression, schizophrenia, and PTSD.
Researchers found that individuals with gambling disorder focus on irrelevant information from previous gambles, rather than considering optimal probabilities and prize sizes. This impaired decision-making can lead to continued gambling despite mounting losses.
Research at Flinders University found that defensiveness increases when people feel stigmatised or rejected, but decreases when they feel valued and included. The study suggests that emphasizing respect and value for the person, even if you disagree with their views or actions, can reduce defensiveness.
Researchers found that people who move their mouse towards a safe option may be more risk-averse than they appear, while those who veer towards a risky option may be more open to risk. The study used mouse tracking to analyze participants' decision-making and found accurate predictions of future behavior.
A neural network has been developed to estimate uncertainty, allowing for safer outcomes in AI-assisted decision-making. The 'deep evidential regression' approach accelerates uncertainty estimation, enabling faster and more accurate confidence levels, reducing the risk of errors.
Researchers from Bar-Ilan University demonstrate the application of physical concepts in physics to solve key challenges in artificial intelligence. By adopting power-law scaling, they show that learning each example once is equivalent to learning examples repeatedly, enabling rapid decision-making and ultrafast learning.
A new Hastings Center project aims to develop an ethics framework for scientists to anticipate and prevent biases in health data models. The framework will consider data use, bias toward white populations, and equitable interventions to address health disparities.
Experts argue that the US gray wolf population has not fully recovered and that delisting is premature. The authors propose a framework for conservation of adaptive potential to enhance the effectiveness of species recovery.
Researchers found that spoiler reviews can increase box office revenue by providing potential customers with more information. The study used topic modeling to measure the effect of spoiler reviews on box office revenue, and found an inverted-U relationship between ratings and spoiler intensity.
Researchers found that higher health literacy is associated with higher rates of PSA screening, despite guidelines recommending against it. The study also identified a dynamic interplay between health literacy and shared decision-making.
Researchers recommend that healthcare providers discuss cannabis use with patients who have chronic pain and are using opioids. This conversation should be routine and judgment-free. The goal is to understand the patient's priorities and develop a plan based on evidence-based information.
Research found machine learning and statistical techniques have similar performance at the population level but vary substantially in individual-level risk predictions. Machine learning models often ignore censoring, leading to biased predictions.
Researchers discovered a specific brain region monitors food preferences as they change across thirsty and quenched states. By artificially manipulating neurons in the ventral pallidum, researchers were able to shift food choice preferences from a desired treat to a plain staple.
The proportion of caesarean section deliveries carried out under general anaesthesia approximately halved from 7.7% to 3.7% during the first wave of COVID-19, even among women with COVID-19. Regional anaesthesia rates remained high and lower conversion rates were found.
A global study of over 5,000 participants found that age and probability of survival are the top characteristics considered when deciding who should receive scarce COVID-19 treatment. The study showed that people worldwide gave these two characteristics the most weight in their decisions, explaining about 50% of their choices.
As people age, their motivation to learn declines. Researchers identified a brain circuit critical for maintaining this motivation and found that it can be boosted in older mice by reactivating the circuit, which was previously shown to suppress motivation.
Researchers studying COVID-19's impact on US college students aim to understand how the pandemic has disrupted their personal, educational, and economic plans. The study will examine decision-making styles, values orientation, and substance use/mental health patterns.
Thomas McAndrew's novel framework combines computational models with human understanding of social determinants of health to better forecast COVID-19 outbreaks. His research aims to inform public health decision-making and reduce morbidity and mortality, providing actionable predictions for policymakers and the general public.
A recent paper proposes three screening questions to help policymakers choose the best model for their problem, reducing confusion and increasing trust. This approach aims to bring clarity to the decision-making process, especially during times of crisis like Covid-19.
Research finds that focusing on the ending of an experience can lead to undervaluing positive experiences that end poorly. The brain's neural representation of a pleasant ending can overpower information from the amygdala, resulting in poor decision-making.
New research reveals that our brains favor experiences that end well, weighing the final moments more heavily than the rest of the experience. This 'happy ending effect' can lead to bad decisions when choosing whether to repeat an experience.
Assistant professor of civil engineering Mohsen Shahandashti is leading a study to identify challenges in workforce decision-making processes for transportation construction industries during the pandemic. The goal is to learn how managers make decisions balancing public health and worker safety.
LGBTQ+ campus centers are essential resources for LGBTQ+ students, providing counseling, support and student sense of belonging. Research shows that these centers correlate with lower levels of discrimination, less distress and increased self-acceptance among LGBTQ+ students.
A study found that young adults tend to consider both risks and benefits in their sexual behavior, making consistent and thoughtful decisions. The research suggests that even those prone to heuristic decision-making become rational when faced with similar choices framed as sexual decisions.
Researchers recorded real-time changes in dopamine and serotonin levels in patients' brains during tasks, revealing that serotonin levels increased with uncertainty and decreased with confidence. The study provides insight into how dopamine and serotonin regulate perception, decision-making, and cognition, potentially leading to improv...
Researchers identified nerve cells in the brain whose activity indicates decision-making confidence. The frequency of electrical pulses in these neurons increased with increasing decision confidence.
The Global Pandemic App Watch tracks the uptake of COVID-19 contact-tracing and exposure-notification apps worldwide. The website offers maps and country pages detailing app adoption, voluntariness, and privacy concerns, shedding light on the socio-ethical dimensions of these technologies.