Seeing is believing but is hearing? Comparing audio and video communication for young children- https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00064/full

The researchers intended to discover whether the use of telephone and video calls had animpact on the closeness of the children and their parents. Video communication has gained popularity among different individuals. The virtual connection enables people to see each other through cameras from different locations. However, the use of telephones for communication remains viable among the population. Therefore, the two channels of communications create a dilemma for individuals. Which means of communication enhances security and shows proximity? The study was meant to determine whether a sense of security for children was created through the use of video calls for children who were temporarily separated from their parents. The study hypothesized that video communication is a superior means of building and maintaining emotional links among children. The reason for this hypothesis is that children have not developed capacities for telephone communication and visual communication is easier to handle and relate with. Visual cues present in video communication assist the child in interpreting body language easily.

To test the hypothesis, the researchers selected 25 children aged 25-42.5 months and engaged them in a free-play session followed by separation-reunion episodes. During each separation, the children were exposed to audial or visual communication with their parents. The parents were allowed to play freely with their kids and were later withdrawn from the playroom. After separation, contact of the parents with the children wasmaintained through, first, a video call, and then, through a telephone. The parents were also provided with questionnaires which they answered and rated the emotional responses from their kids. The questions were meant to assess the safety of the children by evaluating how they responded to their parents when they were separated. A positive score indicated safety implying that the child was safely attached to the parent.

In the initial phase of the experiment, children remained safe throughout the trial. This was after the parents were separated and the children’s communication with the parents was maintained through video calls. Increasingly, the children showed contentment throughout the entire duration. 88% of the kids showed maximum contentment after video separation was conducted. The contentment levelswere assessed through observation of the kid’s behavior and whether they left the room after separation or not. On the other hand, 64% of the children showed contentment when the audio separation session was conducted.

The children also played more during the video separation session compared to the audio separation session. A Friedman test,which analyzed the children’s interaction during the two sessions, also showed that there was increased interactions among the kids during the videoseparation periods compared to the audio separation session. Besides, a Friedman test, used to compare the affect of the kids after the two periods, showed that there was a positive affect and improved mood during the video session compared to the audio session. Lastly, the Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests revealed that the response ration of the kids was higher in the free-play session compared to the audioperiod. The study confirmed the hypothesis that video communication enhanced proximity and improved emotional links between parents and children. A parental presence is felt.

The results convince me. The study has shown how emotions are affected when people interact through the video and when they communicate through audio. Children feel the closeness of their parents through video calls. With the rise of distant families and schools that are far away from home, video communication can be useful in improving parent-child relationships.

Thinking while walking: experienced high-heel walkers flexibly adjust their gait- https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00316/full

The study aimed to investigate the degree of performance of a second task while motor action is active. The use of high-heels for women was chosen as the motor task. The hypothesis of the study was; experienced high-heel wearers can keep up their cognitive performance more effectively than inexperienced high-heel users. The use of motor skills requires attention, however, increasing performance of the motor tasks creates autonomy of the system such that the experience can sustain the work without the active involvement of the brain. The threat to shift attention is more pronounced if the task executed requires excellent motor skills such as balance. In essence, well-practiced motors kills will demand less attention and the cognition can be shifted to other activities. For example, experienced golf players can easily play and shoot accurately while engaged in other tasks. The use of motor skills repeatedly in one task leads to procedural control of the activity while executing a secondary task without effect to the original motor duty. Predictions for the study were made that women who were experienced high-heel wearers could do other tasks effortless compared to the novice.

To test this hypothesis middle-aged women were recruited for the study. Their experience in wearing high-heels was also diverse. In total, 48 women were recruited aged between 40-50 years. Half of the participants reported wearing the high-heels “frequently”, while the other half reported to “hardly” use the shoes. All the participants were exposed to a motorized threading mill, and they were required to walk on the machine. Their motion was monitored through a computer and they were exposed to a platform in line with their trajectory. A MATLAB script was used to measure their gait. A series of 40 numbers were presented through an audio device. The participants were required to say yes whenever the number projected by the speaker was similar to the number they observed. The study was conducted in two sessions. In the first session, the participants used high-heels and second session they were allowed to use gym shoes.

Three variables were analyzed, sitting, walking in high heels, and walking in gym shoes. In the two set of participants, there was no significant difference between the experienced high-heel wearers and the novice in terms of cognition. They both had the same level of accomplishing secondary tasks. The findings were contrary to the predictions since the experts were not more competent is sustaining their cognitive performance. Moreover, the experts did not show more levels of improved performance in working memory than novices. This was also contrary to the predictions. Increasingly, experts were observed to adjust frequently to the walking gait more than the novices. In essence, there were no cognitive performance differences between the high-heel experts and the novices.

Based on the current study, the predictions that motor cognition is adapted and multi-tasking is possible was negated. I do not agree with the results. The sample size was small, and the participants were allowed to choose the walking speed. Increasingly, in the gym room, there were fewer obstacles that would have made the novices focus attention into maintaining gait and balanced walking. Based on the discussions prior, the expertswere expected to perform better in cognition compared to the beginners. When the motor is automated, the other cognitivefunctions receivemore attention and functioning is improved.

Age-related change in visual working memory: a study of 55,753 participants aged 8–75- https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00012/full

The research objective for this study was to determine whether Visual Working Memory (VWM) was age-related. The hypothesis of the research was; that visual working memory decreases with advancing age. There are different properties whose presence enables visual cognition. These properties include luminance, shape, color, orientation, size, and texture. The association of these features in memory is critical to retaining information regarding the objects observed. Increasingly, the amount of information that an individual acquires from an object is also key to creating a memory of the same substance. Therefore, concerns have been raised as to whether the binding abilities of the components of an object are age-related. As the age advances, the ability to observe the properties of an object and integrate the information into a working memory also decreases. Individuals at the extremes of age, children and the elderly, have challenges that involve the visual working memory. However, teenagers who are in their twenties have better VWM.

To test the hypothesis, the researchers collected data from 55,753 volunteers from 138 different countries who were aged between 8 years to 75 years. The participants were provided with four different shapes ranging from animal forms to geometrical shapes of different colors and sizes. The objects were blue, green, yellow, and red. Colors and shapes were randomly combined. The modified test materials were flashed on top of a computer screen, and the participants were required to recall the color and shape of the object. The test stopped if the participant failed to remember all the features of the objects. The performance was graded from 1-20 based on the number of correct objects that the participants had identified. Graphs were drawn and analysis made on the responses and scores of the participants.

The results, using the ANOVA score script, showed that object memory varied as a function of advancing age. Memory improved from the age of 8 to 20 years and then a decline was observed from 20-75 years. Visual working memory for participants aged from 8-9years was similar to that of participants aged from 45-55 years. However, there were differences in memory between the male and the female participants. Color examinations showed that more memory was retained when color was involved compared to the use of shapes. These findings were parallel to existing literature of color perceptions. However, the perception of color decreased with advancing age. Memory increased with advancing age until the middle age where there was a decline in the amount of recall by the participants. Older adults showed a decreased trend in visual working memory.

The results convince me. The sample size was large and representative of a large population. The ability to retain short term memory is related to the capacity to associate the components of an object and the amount of information. However, the capacity for retaining individual characteristics declines with age. The perception and retention of color are quick. The stimulus from color receives more efferent neuronal attention compared to shape. However, the perception of color is automatic and less processing of stimulus is required to store color in memory. Therefore, the findings of the study are consistent with the literature, and I agree with the results of the research.

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