Unitization of route knowledge.

There are many theories that explain how route knowledge is acquired. We examined here if the sequence of elements that are part of a route can become integrated into a single unit, to the extent that the processing of individual transitions may only be relevant in the context of this entire unit. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants learned a route for ten blocks. Subsequently, at test they were intermittently exposed to the same training route along with a novel route which contained partial overlap with the original training route. Results show that the very same stimulus, appearing in the very same location, requiring the very same response (e.g., left turn), was responded to significantly faster in the context of the original training route than in the novel route. In Experiment 3, we employed a modified paradigm containing landmarks and two matched routes which were both substantially longer and contained a greater degree of overlap than the routes in Experiments 1 and 2. Results were replicated, namely, the same overlapping route segment, common to both routes, was performed significantly slower when appearing in the context of a novel than the original route. Furthermore, the difference between the overlapping segments was similar to the difference observed for the non-overlapping segments, i.e., an old route segment in the context of a novel route was processed as if it were an entirely novel segment. We discuss the results in relation to binding, chunking, and transfer effects, as well as potential practical implications.

Risk factors in road crossing among elderly pedestrians and readiness to adopt safe behavior in socio-economic comparison.

This research examines the Health Promotion Behavior (HPB) models regarding elderly pedestrians' behaviors and attitudes. We studied cognitive-psychological variables, such as risk estimation, self-efficacy and demographic variables and compared elderly pedestrians' attitudes and behaviors in a city with higher socio-economic level (Tel Aviv) versus a city with low socio-economic level (Beer Sheva). We expected to find more problematic behaviors among elderly pedestrians in the low socio-economic city compared to the high socio-economic city, and also less feeling of self-efficacy, and lessened awareness of the risks, that leads to lessened willingness to adopt preventive behaviors. The research was conducted in two studies. The first study was based on observations on 2591 pedestrians in six similar crosswalks in both cities. It revealed that pedestrians in the high socio-economic city demonstrated safer road crossing patterns than in the low socio-economic city and that elderly pedestrians reveal safer crossing patterns than younger pedestrians. We found an interaction of location and age due to greater gap of safe behaviors of elderly and young pedestrians in the high socio-economic city than in the low socio-economic city. In Tel Aviv elderly adhere to the crossing rules much more than the young while in Beer Sheva elderly and young people are almost similar in their crossing patterns. The second study used questionnaires that have been completed by 143 elderly in both cities. The questionnaires referred to (a) demographic variables such as gender, age, marital status, education, socio-economic level, (b) variables related to the affiliation to the main culture such as migration, date of migration, knowledge in Hebrew (local language) and connectivity to media and (c) cognitive as well as psychological variables related to the decline to adopt healthy behaviors based on Schwarzer and Fuchs (1995). This part also indicated that elderly in Tel Aviv have higher awareness of risk factors on the road and their limitations as elderly pedestrians. The HPB (Pender, 1996) emphasizes the role of risk perception as a predictor of willingness to adopt preventive strategies. Moreover, elderly pedestrians in Beer Sheva compared to those in Tel Aviv estimated their ability to cross safely the streets as higher.

The notion of contextual locking: Previously learnt items are not accessible as such when appearing in a less common context.

We examined the effect of context on the learning of spatial coding in four experiments. Two partially overlapping sets of stimuli, which had the very same stimulus-response spatial coding, were presented in unique contexts. Results show contextual locking-that is, response times to the very same item in a more common context (80%) were significantly shorter than those in a less common context (20%). Contextual locking was obtained both when the context was more salient (Experiments 1 and 2) and less salient (Experiments 3 and 4). In addition, results were obtained even when contextualization seemed less necessary (Experiments 2 and 4). Binding of information to context is discussed in relation to chunking, transfer effects, and practical applications pertaining to professional training.

Injury Patterns Among Illegal Migrants from Africa in Israel.

In recent years Israel has become a destination for many migrants from Africa that illegally cross the Egyptian-Israeli border. The objective of this paper is to describe the epidemiological characteristics of injuries among illegal migrants in Israel. The study was carried out retrospectively using data from 19 trauma centers that participated in the Israel National Trauma Registry between 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2011. Illegal migrants from Africa were compared to the local population. Migrants were injured more often than the local population from intentional injuries (57.11 %). Migrants were also less likely than the local population (58.38 %) to sustain a minor injury (i.e., injury severity ≤8). The study also shows the hospitalization cost as a result of injuries among migrants from Africa. Preventive measures among illegal migrants from Africa should prioritize intentional injuries and industrial site injuries.

Compliance with traffic laws by traffic police officers, non-traffic police officers, and civilian drivers.

OBJECTIVE: The policy of a public organization, such as police, may shape the norms and the behavior of the citizens. In line with this, police officers are expected by the public to comply with traffic laws and serve as an example for the citizenry. This study used on-site observations of civilian and police driver, comparing police officers' compliance with traffic laws to that of civilians. METHODS: We compared driver compliance with traffic laws for drivers in 3 groups of vehicles: traffic police cars, non-traffic police cars, and civilian cars. Four hundred sixty-six vehicles were observed and compared by vehicle type and whether a uniform was worn by the driver. We observed safety belt usage, signaling before turning, cellular phone usage, and giving way to traffic (measured by merging time). RESULTS: We found evidence that generally drivers in police cars use seat belts while driving more that drivers in civilian cars do. In particular, more traffic police car drivers used seat belts than non-traffic police car drivers do. In addition, drivers in civilian cars and non-traffic police cars waited longer periods of time before merging right into traffic compared to traffic police car drivers. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings supported the notion that on-duty police officers, and traffic police officers in particular, adhere more closely to traffic laws compared to civilian drivers. As the general public compliance with traffic laws is affected by the police perceived legitimacy, the publication of these results can both boost public cooperation with the police and encourage police officers to continue providing positive role models to the public.

Are all changes equal? comparing early and late changes in sequence learning.

Although it is known that a change in a learned motor sequence slows performance down, it is yet unknown if this impairment varies depending on whether the changed element is early or late in the sequence. In Experiment 1, we showed greater impairment in performance when changing the third vs. the sixth element in a 7-element sequence. The impairment was greater for the deviant and the following elements than for the preceding ones. In Experiment 2, we replicated the results of Experiment 1 and expanded them by showing that a change in the third element of a 4-element sequence produced similar results to those of the late change condition in the long 7-element sequence. It is proposed that during practice, associative relations between the sequence elements are formed together with the representation of the whole chunk. Following the change in sequence, the chunk representation is impaired and performance mainly reflects the associative links between the elements. An early change hampers these associative relations to a greater extent than a late change, and as a consequence slows performance down more than a late change does. The implications and advantages of such a mechanism are discussed.

Unsupervised Categorization in a sample of children with autism spectrum disorders.

Studies of supervised Categorization have demonstrated limited Categorization performance in participants with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), however little research has been conducted regarding unsupervised Categorization in this population. This study explored unsupervised Categorization using two stimulus sets that differed in their difficulty of Categorization according to the simplicity model. ASD participants displayed a greater tendency to categorise according to one dimension as compared with mental-aged matched participants in the easily categorised sets, but both ASD and Control groups became more prone to one-dimensional sorting as the difficulty of the Categorization task increased. These results are discussed in terms of the processes underlying over-selective responding.

Relational versus absolute representation in categorization.

This study explores relational-like and absolute-like representations in categorization. Although there is much evidence that categorization processes can involve information about both the particular physical properties of studied instances and abstract (relational) properties, there has been little work on the factors that lead to one kind of representation as opposed to the other. We tested 370 participants in 6 experiments, in which participants had to classify new items into predefined artificial categories. In 4 experiments, we observed a predominantly relational-like mode of classification, and in 2 experiments we observed a shift toward an absolute-like mode of classification. These results suggest 3 factors that promote a relational-like mode of classification: fewer items per group, more training groups, and the presence of a time delay. Overall, we propose that less information about the distributional properties of a category or weaker memory traces for the category exemplars (induced, e.g., by having smaller categories or a time delay) can encourage relational-like categorization.

Supervised versus unsupervised categorization: two sides of the same coin?

Supervised and unsupervised categorization have been studied in separate research traditions. A handful of studies have attempted to explore a possible convergence between the two. The present research builds on these studies, by comparing the unsupervised categorization results of Pothos et al. ( 2011 ; Pothos et al., 2008 ) with the results from two procedures of supervised categorization. In two experiments, we tested 375 participants with nine different stimulus sets and examined the relation between ease of learning of a classification, memory for a classification, and spontaneous preference for a classification. After taking into account the role of the number of category labels (clusters) in supervised learning, we found the three variables to be closely associated with each other. Our results provide encouragement for researchers seeking unified theoretical explanations for supervised and unsupervised categorization, but raise a range of challenging theoretical questions.

Measuring category intuitiveness in unconstrained categorization tasks.

What makes a category seem natural or intuitive? In this paper, an unsupervised categorization task was employed to examine observer agreement concerning the categorization of nine different stimulus sets. The stimulus sets were designed to capture different intuitions about classification structure. The main empirical index of category intuitiveness was the frequency of the preferred classification, for different stimulus sets. With 169 participants, and a within participants design, with some stimulus sets the most frequent classification was produced over 50 times and with others not more than two or three times. The main empirical finding was that cluster tightness was more important in determining category intuitiveness, than cluster separation. The results were considered in relation to the following models of unsupervised categorization: DIVA, the rational model, the simplicity model, SUSTAIN, an Unsupervised version of the Generalized Context Model (UGCM), and a simple geometric model based on similarity. DIVA, the geometric approach, SUSTAIN, and the UGCM provided good, though not perfect, fits. Overall, the present work highlights several theoretical and practical issues regarding unsupervised categorization and reveals weaknesses in some of the corresponding formal models.

Hazard perception of motorcyclists and car drivers.

The current study compares hazard perception (HP) performance of 50 male drivers with and without a motorcycle license in order to generalize results. A video-based HP test, measuring reaction times to traffic scenes, was administered to these two groups of drivers. Participants with a motorcycle license performed better than participants without a motorcycle license. ANOVA indicated that learning improved linearly for participants with a motorcycle license but not for participants without a motorcycle license. No evidence that HP was predicted by age was found. HP scores for drivers who reported previous involvement in an accident were lower than for those who reported not being involved in an accident. The results are discussed in the context of sensitivity and response bias models.

Parental and offspring assessment of driving capability under the influence of drugs or alcohol: gender and inter-generational differences.

The current study set to examine whether there are inter-generational and gender-based differences between family members self-assessing their ability to drive under normal conditions and while under the influence of either alcohol or drugs. Participants were 135 young-adults and both their parents, consisting 45 family triads, who received self-assessment questionnaires relating to their driving skills in various road scenarios. Each family triad was randomly assigned to one of three groups: either requested to base the assessments on normal driving conditions, or under the influence of either drugs or alcohol, thus forming a control group, and two experimental groups (alcohol and drugs), respectively. The findings indicate the assessments of both the alcohol and drugs groups were more severe than those of the control group. The alcohol group assessments were less strict than the drug group assessment (non-significantly). Inter-generational differences indicated that the parents' driving-skills assessments were lower than those of their offspring, corresponding with previous findings (Elkind, 1967; Finn and Bragg, 1986). A significant within-subject interaction has been found between the respondent's gender and familial relations regarding the self-assessment of driving skills: male respondents assessed better driving skills compared to the self estimates of both parents (which did not significantly differ). In contrast, female respondents' estimates did not differ from their fathers' and both fathers' and daughters' estimates were significantly higher than that of the mothers in each family.

Task-relevant chunking in sequence learning.

In the present study, we investigated possible influences on the unitization of responses. In Experiments 1, 2, 3, and 6, we found that when the same small fragment (i.e., a few consecutive responses in a sequence) was presented as part of two larger sequences, participants responded to it faster when it was part of the sequence that was presented more often. This indicates that chunking can be driven by task-relevant considerations, as opposed to co-occurrence. The results are discussed in the context of chunking theories and the relevant motor learning literature.

Committing driving violations: an observational study comparing city, town and village.

INTRODUCTION: This article compares observed driving behavior in a city, a town, and a village. METHOD: Unobtrusive observations were made at intersections in each residential type. Five violation types were observed: (a) not wearing a seat belt (seat belt violation); (b) not using a safety seat for a child (safety seat violation for children); (c) not using a speaker while speaking on the phone (on-phone violation); (d) failing to comply with a 'give way' sign ('give way' sign violation); and (e) stopping in an undesignated area (undesignated stop violation). It was expected that in accordance with the anonymity hypothesis that the bigger residential areas' rate of traffic violations would be higher. The effects of the residential type, drivers' gender, and age were assessed using the multiple regression model. The stepwise method of evaluation was employed. The model converged on step 3 (Adjusted R square=0.039). Residential type and gender contributed significantly to the model. RESULTS: Consistent with prior research, male drivers committed more violations than female drivers. Chi-square analyses were used to test the distribution of violations by the settlement types. Overall, more drivers committed violations in the two small residential areas than in the city, with 30% of city drivers, 43% of town drivers, and 51% of village drivers committing at least one violation (chi2 (2)=37.65, p<0.001). Moreover, in the town and the village, a combination of one or more violations was committed more often than in the city(chi2 (1)=34.645, p<0.001). Accordingly, more drivers committed violations in the two small settlements (48.4%) than in the city (30.6%). Possible explanations for the observed results were provided in the Discussion section. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: The conclusions of this paper are that drivers in small villages tend to disobey traffic laws. Therefore, efforts have to be made in companies to take this issue in consideration while running fleets in companies located in small places far from the center.

Automatic mode of acquisition of spatial sequences in a serial reaction time paradigm.

In this study, the acquisition of spatial sequences was investigated. It was found that the acquisition of spatial sequence order could be acquired under strictly automatic conditions, namely, when not being part of the task requirement nor when being beneficial to purposive behavior. The results are discussed from the perspective of the difference between spatial versus non-spatial sequence learning.

Compliance of Ultra-Orthodox and secular pedestrians with traffic lights in Ultra-Orthodox and secular locations.

Following a previous study that revealed the disobedience of Ultra-Orthodox citizens, as compared to secular citizens, of traffic lights at crosswalks, the present study examined the road habits of 995 Ultra-Orthodox and secular pedestrians in neighboring Ultra-Orthodox and secular cities. Using an observation grid designed specially for this study, the pedestrians were observed at two crosswalks--one in an Ultra-Orthodox city and one in a secular city--as far as similar traffic parameters, using a logistic regression. The tendency to cross on a red light was assessed as a function of estimated age, gender, religiosity, location (religious/secular), the duration of the red light, the number of vehicles crossing and the number of pedestrians waiting at the curb. Ultra-Orthodox pedestrians committed more violations than secular pedestrians did, and there were more road violations in the Ultra-Orthodox location than there were in the secular location. Fewer traffic violations were committed by "local" pedestrians (Ultra-Orthodox pedestrians in the Ultra-Orthodox location and secular pedestrians in the secular location) than by "foreigners" (Ultra-Orthodox pedestrians in the secular location and secular pedestrians in the Ultra-Orthodox location). The odds of crossing on a red light decreased as a function of both the number of people waiting at the curb and the number of vehicles. Consistent with previous research, males crossed on red much more than females did, regardless of religiosity and location. Our discussion focuses on theoretical and practical explanations of the findings.

Success on a practical driver's license test with and without the presence of another testee.

The present study examined whether performance in practical driving tests differed when individuals were tested with and without the presence of another testee. In addition, this study examined whether such differences were dependent on the sex of the tested person, on that of the observer testee, and on the order of tests. It was found that for both males and females, a greater proportion of drivers who were tested alone passed the test as compared to drivers who were tested in pairs. Additionally, proportionately more males than females passed the driving test. Only for males was performance also dependent on the gender of the other tested individual. A greater proportion of males who were tested with an accompanying female passed the test than males who were tested with an accompanying male. These results are discussed in relation to social facilitation, gender differences in driving performance, and differences in testing procedures.

Women drivers' behavior in well-known versus less familiar locations.

INTRODUCTION: Through observations this study sought to examine the effects of road familiarity on driving performance. METHOD: Severe and minor traffic violations, dangerous behaviors, and speeding were assessed in well known and in less familiar locations. RESULTS: As compared to less known locations, drivers in well known locations performed more severe and minor violations, more dangerous behaviors, and they drove above the speed limit more often. DISCUSSION: The results are discussed in the context of Theory of Risk Homeostasis (later re-labeled as Target Risk Theory), the psychological effect of familiarity on driving performance, and the phenomenon of automatic driving. Presenting the risk of driving in familiar locations would assist to elevate safe driving.

Interactions between encoding and retrieval in the domain of sequence-learning.

In this article, the authors propose to characterize sequence learning in terms of automatic versus non-automatic processing and to apply this contrast independently to knowledge acquisition and retrieval. In several experiments of sequence learning, automaticity of both the acquisition and retrieval of the acquired knowledge was independently assessed. It was found that the sequence learning order can be demonstrated under all combinations of knowledge acquisition and retrieval. In particular, at least in the simple sequences the authors used, this applies in cases in which both the acquisition and the retrieval of knowledge are strictly automatic--that is, when neither is required for the task nor beneficial to deliberate behavior. The proposed framework has implications for the notion of sequence learning and the investigation of learning in general.