5. Magnitude Estimation: useful literature
(ISBN: 0-7619-0042-X , 0-7619-0043-8)
Description of the Book's Aims and Contents
http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a18_1/apache_media/69PT9LQEGVJEK14LK69G9UG6N1LJG4.pdf (07/25/10)
Table of Contents
http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a18_1/apache_media/CGBLUQ4IE4JK4IP6XLTTGIRRFSJBE6.pdf (07/25/10)
Focus on Chapter Six 'Response Methods and Scaling Issues'
This chapter presents Magnitude Estimation in the broader context of Ratio Scale Methods (Magnitude Estimation, Line Drawing, Scannable Line Drawing, Laboratory Implementations) which “provide the best prospects for achieving reliable interval measurement of judgements of acceptability” (Cowart 1997:72). Although it constitutes but a very brief introduction, this chapter manages to present the topic in a very structured and comprehensible manner and mentions the methods' advantages as well as disadvantages. Readers who would like to gain a first insight into Magnitude Estimation will certainly find this chapter helpful. However, other books will have to be consulted for further examples or more detailed information.
(ISBN: 3-89586-198-7)
Description of the Book's Aims and Contents
“The present volume addresses the need for an up-to-date, accessible, and comprehensive introduction to the elicitation of linguistic data from native speaker informants. The material, following an introductory chapter surveying the general enterprise of field research, is organized into eight major areas of current linguistic and anthropological interest: Phonetics, Phonology, Morphology, Syntax, Semantics, Sociolinguistics/ Dialectology, Lexicography, and Folklore.
The chapters are designed to be covered at a rate of one per week, based on a sixteen-week semester. Each chapter presents basic structures to be elicited, and provides cautionary tales drawn from the experiences of seasoned field workers who have attempted to elicit these structures.
These, in turn, are followed by suggested readings and illustrative exercises for each chapter. Emphasis is placed not on developing a theory of field work, but rather on providing enlightening suggestions and entertaining anecdotes designed to guide students down their own personal path to linguistic discovery.” (Vaux and Cooper 1999: blurb)
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Transcription
3. Basic Lexicography
4. Semantics
5. Articulatory Phonetics
6. Acoustic Phonetics
7. Segmental Phonology
8. Prosodic Phonology
9. Nominal Morphology
10. Verbal Morphology
11. Syntax I: Collection Techniques and Session Planning
12. Syntax II: Advanced Work in Syntax
13. Pragmatics
14. Sociolinguistics and Dialectology
15. Historical Linguistics
16. Text Collection
Focus on Chapter Eleven 'Syntax I: Collection Techniques and Session Planning'
This chapter's focus lies on face-to-face interviews with informants who are asked to give grammaticality judgements. Linguists are sensitised to assets and shortcomings of this method and the particular challenges of the direct interaction between researcher and informant. Although these kind of interviews are not common for Magnitude Estimation, the first part of the chapter, which deals with grammaticality judgements in general, can be quite helpful for readers who intend to elicit such judgements by means of Magnitude Estimation. Thus, for example, the author points out a common mistake made by many linguists when he mentions that informants cannot be expected to be comfortable with the idea of making grammaticality judgements because, normally, people are taught that a sentence is either grammatical or ungrammatical so that they are not used to making fine distinctions (cf. Vaux and Cooper 1999:122). The chapter is written in a very agreeable and casual tone which will make the reader want to start his or her experiment on the very next day. Exercises at the end of the chapter help to prepare oneself in advance.
Abstract
“We present two magnitude estimation experiments on the role of resumptive pronouns in subject extraction in English and German. In the theoretical literature, resumptives have been claimed to remedy effects of island violations, but our results show that this is not the case. Furthermore, our data also confirm the existence of a that-trace effect for both languages, contrary to theoretical claims that this effect is not present in German. On a methodological level, our study tries to demonstrate the importance of controlled experiments for obtaining theoretically crucial linguistic judgements, and the potential of the magnitude estimation paradigm for crosslinguistic comparisons.
Keywords: grammaticality judgements; magnitude estimation; resumptive pronouns; island constraints; crosslinguistic experiments.” (Keller and Alexopoulou 2005:1120)
Commentary
The usefulness of this article lies in its application of Magnitude Estimation. In addition to the brief explanation of the basic notion of Magnitude Estimation given right at the beginning, the reader can profit from the descriptions concerning experiment design and analysis of data. The concrete example under investigation helps to illustrate what is said on the theoretical level.
Notwithstanding these assets, the article also has its limitations. Readers might not be familiar with the grammatical phenomenon in question so that it could take some time before they understand what the object of investigation is. In addition, basic statistical knowledge is necessary to understand the study's results as well as the authors' conclusion.
(ISBN: 0-471-82437-2)
Online Version
Product Description on amazon.com
“Psychophysics is a lively account by one of experimental psychology's seminal figures of his lifelong scientific quest for general laws governing human behavior. It is a landmark work that captures the fundamental themes of Steven's experimental research and his vision of what psychophysics and psychology are and can be. The context of this modern classic is detailed by Lawrence Mark's pungent and highly revealing introduction. The search for a general psychophysical law-a mathematical equation relating sensation to stimulus-pervades this work, first published in 1975. Stevens covers methods of measuring human psychophysical behavior; magnitude estimation, magnitude production, and cross-modality matching are used to examine sensory mechanisms, perceptual processes, and social consensus. The wisdom in this volume lies in its exposition of an approach that can apply generally to the study of human behavior” ( http://www.amazon.com, 07/25/10).
Table of Contents
1. The Psychophysical Law
2. Sensation and Measurement
3. Intramodal Matching
4. Cross-Modality Matching
5. Partition Scales and Paradoxes
6. Thresholds and the Neural Quantum
7. Neural Correlates
8. Scaling the Social Consensus
9. Hazards and Remedies
Focus on Chapter One 'The Psychophysical Law'
As Magnitude Estimation is “an experimental paradigm originally employed in psychophysics” (Hoffmann, Chapter 5), it makes sense for linguists to read about psychophysics in order to acquire an understanding of the roots of the method they want to work with. Stevens is well-known for having used Magnitude Estimation and in this chapter, he describes the process of trial and error he underwent “to find out how best to use the procedure” (Stevens 1975:26). Furthermore, he illustrates the use of Magnitude Estimation in the field of loudness functions and gives an example for a possible instruction of informants before the experiment. He concludes his explanations of Magnitude Estimation with the words: “I can think of no circumstance in which magnitude estimation could not be applied” (Stevens 1975:32). Whether this utterance can be understood as a foreshadowing of the use of Magnitude Estimation in other sciences than psychophysics or is simply meant to refer to psychophysical phenomena can not safely be said. However, it shows the great potential Stevens ascribes to Magnitude Estimation.
(ISBN: 0-7619-1221-5)
Table of Contents
http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a18_1/apache_media/MHBVXG2UR6UDXUBQGAUXG2BIF6GJGY.pdf (07/25/10)
Commentary
“Although factorial analysis is widely used in the social sciences, there is some confusion of how to use the techniques and how to evaluate interaction effects. Written to remedy this situation, author James Jaccard clearly describes the issues underlying the effective analysis of interaction in factorial designs. The book begins by describing different ways of characterizing interactions in ANOVA, elucidating both moderator conceptualizations of interactions as well as that of residualized means. After discussing interaction effects using traditional hypothesis testing approaches, he then covers alternative analytic frameworks that focus on effect size methodology and interval estimation. Jaccard summarizes criticisms of classical null hypothesis testing and offers practical guidelines for pursuing magnitude estimation and interval estimation approaches. In addition, Jaccard shows applications of all three approaches to the analysis of interactions using a complete numerical example; discusses strategies for effectively exploring interactions in higher order designs and designs with more than two levels per factor; highlights the central role of single degree of freedom contrasts and provides numerous illustrations for formulating such contrasts; considers simplified approaches to statistical power analysis; describes approaches to consider when statistical assumptions are not met; explicates the case of unequal sample sizes; considers the impact of measurement error; and demonstrates computer applications. Readers who have wanted a book that fully discusses different conceptualizations of interactions as well as one that provides practical guidelines for analyzing complex interactions will find this volume the one that they have been seeking.”
(Commentary provided on http://www.sagepub.com/books/Book7010, 07/11/12)
(ISBN: 978-0-12-373558-4)
Table of Contents
http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a18_1/apache_media/PUDGKLF1RYERPPJGE89TEY88A71F8R.pdf (07/25/10)
Commentary
“Effectively measuring the usability of any product requires choosing the right metric, applying it, and effectively using the information it reveals. Measuring the User Experience provides the first single source of practical information to enable usability professionals and product developers to do just that. The authors Tullis and Albert organize dozens of metrics into six categories: performance, issues-based, self-reported, web navigation, derived, and behavioral/physiological. They explore each metric, considering best methods for collecting, analyzing, and presenting the data. They provide step-by-step guidance for measuring the usability of any type of product using any type of technology. The book presents criteria for selecting the most appropriate metric for every case T akes a product and technology neutral approach P resents in-depth case studies to show how organizations have successfully used the metrics and the information they revealed.”
(Commentary provided on http://books.google.de/books/about/Measuring_the_User_Experience.html?id=KsjpuMJ6T-YC&redir_esc=y, 07/25/2010)
(ISBN: 0-07-070982-3)
Table of Contents
http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/exlibris/aleph/a18_1/apache_media/SXQSX2YFNIC7IU39UE66C5YLH5AMSN.pdf (07/25/2010)
Abstract
“A revision of this classic statistics text for first-year graduate students in psychology, education and related social sciences. The two new authors are former students of Winer's. They have updated, rewritten and reorganized the text to fit the course as it is now taught.”
(Commentary provided on http://books.google.de/books/about/Statistical_principles_in_experimental_d.html?id=OqppAAAAMAAJ&redir_esc=y, 07/25/2010)
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