W introduce and test a behavioral model of consumer product search that extends a baseline normative model of sequential search by incorporating nonnormative influences that are local in the sense that they reflect consumers’ undue sensitivity to recently encountered alternatives. We propose two types of such local behavioral influences that, at each stage of a search process, can manifest them...

The aim of this paper is to discuss the "Framework for M&S with Agents" (FMSA) proposed by Zeigler et al. (2000, 2008) in regard to the diverse epistemological aims of agent simulations in social sciences. We first show that there surely are great similitudes, hence that the aim to emulate a universal "automated modeler agent" opens new ways of interactions between these two domains of M&S with...

A modern, decision-theoretic framework can help clarify important practical questions of experimental design. Building on our recent work, this chapter begins by summarizing our framework for understanding the goals of experimenters, and applying this to re-randomization. We then use this framework to shed light on questions related to experimental registries, pre-analysis plans, and most impor...

2015 ii ABSTRACT Selective attention is comprised of two simultaneous processes—the inhibition of distractors and the focus of attention on target stimuli; yet, many existing selective attention measures only measure one aspect of selective attention. This leads to a high possibility of Type I errors as high interference control or high working memory capacity may be mistaken for high selective...

While Holland’s model has been widely tested and found broad support in the West, it has not been tested in Hong Kong. Using a sample of 1813 entering freshmen, we investigated the cross-cultural validity of Holland’s models of six interest or personality types in Hong Kong. Results indicated: (a) Holland’s model as operationalized by UNIACT has considerable external validity; (b) the internal ...

Survey experiments like vignette and conjoint analyses are widely used in the social sciences to elicit stated preferences and study how humans make multidimensional choices. Yet, there is a paucity of research on the external validity of these methods that examines whether the determinants that explain hypothetical choices made by survey respondents match the determinants that explain what sub...

In this work, we examined the surprising value consumers attach to getting a bargain. Past research has largely understood this phenomenon in terms of the impact discounts have on perceptions of fairness. However, the evidence for this explanation is inconclusive due to a number of viable alternatives as well as issues relating to construct and external validity. The experiments we report here ...

The own-children method of fertility estimation tracks temporal changes in fertility patterns. We revisit the Kenyan fertility transition by applying the method to 1979, 1989 and 1999 censuses, and 1989, 1993, 1998 and 2003 Demographic and Health Surveys data. The method's ability to provide yearly fertility rates for periods preceding each data source adds enormous knowledge to fertility patte...

The value of fatal risk reductions is a vital input for road safety cost-benefit analysis. It has been traditionally estimated by means of contingent valuation in spite of growing criticism surrounding this approach. Furthermore, many believe that risk-money trade-offs are not well understood due to the difficulty in internalizing tiny risks. We have succeeded in applying the Stated Choice (SC)...

Prior experiments with Bayesian rule generation produced a scalable anytime learner. At its core, that tool computes the likelihood of new events as the product of frequencies of old events. Orrego and Menzies applied that tool to logs of an F-15 flight simulator and showed that the same tool can detect anomalous events which have not been seen previously. This paper checks the external validit...