Christopher Hand - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Christopher Hand

Journal of Nonverbal Behavior

Previous studies of emoji effects on text sentiment demonstrate mixed findings. Further, these st... more Previous studies of emoji effects on text sentiment demonstrate mixed findings. Further, these studies are limited by confounds, e.g., underlying text sentiment, lack of ecological validity. We considered emoji effects on the emotional valence of affectively neutral English-language text messages. We additionally considered differences across US-American, British, and Danish participants. 217 participants considered screenshots of question-and-response text message exchanges with/without emoji, in a 4 (emoji type: no emoji, negative, neutral, positive) × 3 (nationality: American, British, Danish) mixed-factors design. Cumulative link mixed-effects models demonstrated that messages + negative emoji were rated more-negatively than any other emoji conditions. Responses + positive emoji were rated more-positively than any other emoji condition. Responses + neutral emoji and responses without emoji were perceived as equally emotive. There was no emoji type × nationality interaction, sugg...

International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction

Emoji are often misinterpreted. This study investigated whether individual differences known to i... more Emoji are often misinterpreted. This study investigated whether individual differences known to impact facial emotion recognition would also affect emoji recognition. Participants completed an online emoji classification task, and then completed questionnaires assessing their autistic traits, attachment style, and alexithymia score. Results showed that Autism Quotient (AQ) scores influenced classification accuracy, but only when considered in conjunction with alexithymia and attachment anxiety. Accuracy was poorer when AQ scores and alexithymia scores were both high, whereas high attachment anxiety boosted emotion recognition in participants with high AQ scores. Results highlight the importance of studying individual differences factors concomitantly, allowing for more accurate identification of individuals who may be at risk of emotional miscommunication online, and are therefore suitable targets for support or intervention. Furthermore, findings will be informative for designers of digital tools that are used to convey emotion.

PLOS ONE

This qualitative exploratory study investigated the embodied experiences and the meanings of Auto... more This qualitative exploratory study investigated the embodied experiences and the meanings of Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) from the viewer’s perspective. ASMR research has been sparse and largely quantitative, assuming it to be a predominantly fixed physiological response of “tingles”, despite the acronym being rooted in pseudoscience. A qualitative research design was adopted to facilitate the exploratory nature of the study in this under-researched area. In contrast to the mostly survey-based research on ASMR, this study employed semi-structured interviews as a means to understand the lived experience of ASMR and to promote participant agency. Six self-identifying ASMR consumers were recruited using a mixture of snowball and opportunity sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted both in person and using Skype to facilitate transnational data collection. Interview transcripts were analysed using an inductive, data-driven approach to thematic analysis. The ana...

This large, international dataset contains survey responses from N = 12,570 students from 100 uni... more This large, international dataset contains survey responses from N = 12,570 students from 100 universities in 35 countries, collected in 21 languages. We measured anxieties (statistics, mathematics, test, trait, social interaction, performance, creativity, intolerance of uncertainty, and fear of negative evaluation), self-efficacy, persistence, and the cognitive reflection test, and collected demographics, previous mathematics grades, self-reported and official statistics grades, and statistics module details. Data reuse potential is broad, including testing links between anxieties and statistics/mathematics education factors, and examining instruments’ psychometric properties across different languages and contexts. Data and metadata are stored on the Open Science Framework website (https://osf.io/mhg94/).

Journal of Open Psychology Data

Globally, everyday life has been restricted – varyingly – to control the COVID-19 pandemic. In Ja... more Globally, everyday life has been restricted – varyingly – to control the COVID-19 pandemic. In January 2021, nationwide “lockdown” was enacted in Scotland with breaches punishable by law. Contrastingly, Japanese restrictions were managed prefecture-by-prefecture, with opportunities for travel and interaction, with citizens requested rather than required to conform. To explore these differential strategies’ impact, we conducted a transnational online survey of health behaviours and wellbeing. In February 2021, 138 Scottish and 139 Japanese participants reported their demographic information, pandemic-induced health behaviour-change (alcohol consumption, diet, perceived sleep quality, physical activity), negative mood scores (NMS), and perceived isolation. Scottish participants’ health behaviours were characterised by change (typically negative), whereas Japanese participants’ behaviours were more-stable. However, Scots were more-likely than Japanese participants to have positively-ch...

International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 2022

Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 2018

Contextual constraint is a key factor affecting a word’s fixation duration and its likelihood of ... more Contextual constraint is a key factor affecting a word’s fixation duration and its likelihood of being fixated during reading. Previous research has generally demonstrated additive effects of predictability and frequency in fixation times. Studies examining the role of parafoveal preview have shown that greater preview benefit is obtained from more predictable and higher frequency words versus less predictable and lower frequency words. In two experiments, we investigated effects of target word predictability, frequency and parafoveal preview. A 3 (Predictability: low, medium, high) × 2 (Frequency: low, high) design was used with Preview (valid, invalid) manipulated between experiments. With valid previews, we found main effects of Predictability and Frequency in both fixation time and fixation probability measures, including an interaction in early fixation measures. With invalid preview, we again found main effects of Predictability and Frequency in fixation times, but no evidence...

International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 2021

Approximately half of stalking victims were previously in an intimate relationship with the perpe... more Approximately half of stalking victims were previously in an intimate relationship with the perpetrator, and attachment style is strongly correlated with intimate partner stalking (IPS). In the first study to investigate polyvagal theory in IPS, we examined 58 adult participants’ attachment style, sex, history of IPS, vagal tone activity (i.e., heart rate variability; HRV), and cognitive processing disruptions (i.e., Stroop performance) in either participants who wished a relationship or in those who wished to maintain a relationship post-break-up. Results showed that males were more likely to perpetrate IPS than females. Anxious-style participants were more likely to have perpetrated IPS, showed greater cognitive disruption and HRV than avoidant-style participants. Our results support theories that attachment is a biological imperative with neurobiological implications that can be indexed physiologically and cognitively. This study is the first to demonstrate a pathophysiology of a...

Support Team A team of students serves as volunteers. They are there for you to answer questions,... more Support Team A team of students serves as volunteers. They are there for you to answer questions, show you the way, and support you in case you should face any technical issues or problems during the conference. The support team members will be wearing green ECEM-t-shirts, so you can easily spot them at all times.

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2022

We investigated ASD-diagnosed adults' and neurotypical (NT) controls' processing of emoji and emo... more We investigated ASD-diagnosed adults' and neurotypical (NT) controls' processing of emoji and emoji influence on the emotionality of otherwise-neutral sentences. Study 1 participants categorised emoji representing the six basic emotions using a fixed-set of emotional adjectives. Results showed that ASD-diagnosed participants' classifications of fearful, sad, and surprised emoji were more diverse and less 'typical' than NT controls' responses. Study 2 participants read emotionally-neutral sentences; half paired with sentence-final happy emoji, half with sad emoji. Participants rated sentence + emoji stimuli for emotional valence. ASD-diagnosed and NT participants rated sentences + happy emoji as equally-positive, however, ASDdiagnosed participants rated sentences + sad emoji as more-negative than NT participants. We must acknowledge differential perceptions and effects of emoji, and emoji-text interrelationships , when working with neurodiverse stakeholders.

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders

We investigated ASD-diagnosed adults’ and neurotypical (NT) controls’ processing of emoji and emo... more We investigated ASD-diagnosed adults’ and neurotypical (NT) controls’ processing of emoji and emoji influence on the emotionality of otherwise-neutral sentences. Study 1 participants categorised emoji representing the six basic emotions using a fixed-set of emotional adjectives. Results showed that ASD-diagnosed participants’ classifications of fearful, sad, and surprised emoji were more diverse and less ‘typical’ than NT controls’ responses. Study 2 participants read emotionally-neutral sentences; half paired with sentence-final happy emoji, half with sad emoji. Participants rated sentence + emoji stimuli for emotional valence. ASD-diagnosed and NT participants rated sentences + happy emoji as equally-positive, however, ASD-diagnosed participants rated sentences + sad emoji as more-negative than NT participants. We must acknowledge differential perceptions and effects of emoji, and emoji-text inter-relationships, when working with neurodiverse stakeholders.

Computers in Human Behavior Reports

Tweet valence, volume of abuse, and observers' dark tetrad personality factors influence victim-b... more Tweet valence, volume of abuse, and observers' dark tetrad personality factors influence victim-blaming and the perceived severity of twitter cyberabuse Hand,

Previous research into Twitter cyberabuse has yielded several findings: victim-blaming (VB) was i... more Previous research into Twitter cyberabuse has yielded several findings: victim-blaming (VB) was influenced by victims’ initial tweet-valence; perceived severity (PS) was influenced independently by tweet valence and abuse volume; VB and PS were predicted by observer narcissism and psychopathy. However, this previous research was limited by its narrow focus on celebrity victims, and lack of consideration of observer sadism. The current study investigated 125 observers’ VB and PS perceptions of lay-user cyberabuse, and influence of observers’ Dark Tetrad scores (psychopathy, narcissism, Machiavellianism, sadism). We manipulated initial-tweet valence (negative, neutral, positive) and received abuse volume (low, high). Our results indicated that VB was highest following negative initial tweets; VB was higher following high-volume abuse. PS did not differ across initial-tweet valences; PS was greater following a high abuse volume. Regression analyses revealed that observer sadism predict...

Applied Cognitive Psychology

Studies examining the effect of social isolation on cognitive function typically involve older ad... more Studies examining the effect of social isolation on cognitive function typically involve older adults and/or specialist groups (e.g., expeditions). We considered the effects of COVID-19induced social isolation on cognitive function within a representative sample of the general population. We additionally considered how participants 'shielding' due to underlying health complications, or living alone, performed. We predicted that performance would be poorest under strictest, most-isolating conditions. At five timepoints over 13 weeks, participants (N=342; aged 18-72 years) completed online tasks measuring attention, memory, decisionmaking, time-estimation, and learning. Participants indicated their mood as 'lockdown' was eased. Performance typically improved as opportunities for social contact increased. Interactions between participant subgroups and timepoint demonstrated that performance was shaped by individuals' social isolation levels. Social isolation is linked to cognitive decline in the absence of ageing covariates. The impact of social isolation on cognitive function should be considered when implementing prolonged pandemic-related restrictive conditions.

Aggression and Violent Behavior

Background Rape is underreported, potentially because individuals self-blame and/or are blamed by... more Background Rape is underreported, potentially because individuals self-blame and/or are blamed by others. Research predominantly illustrates male-perpetrated stranger-rape of females; thus, there may be a perception that rape-myth acceptance (RMA) and victim-blaming are most prevalent in males. The purpose of this rapid evidence assessment was to investigate the availability of high-quality research into the effects of Just World Beliefs, perpetrator/victim gender, and stranger-and acquaintance/marital-rape scenarios on victim-blaming and RMA. Methods Several electronic databases were searched for empirical papers using terms including: 'victim blame', 'rape myth acceptance', 'Just World Beliefs', 'type of rape' and 'gender'. Gough's (2007) weight of evidence framework was used to assess quality prior to inclusion. Findings Studies retained after filtering and quality assessment suggested that RMA was predictive of victim-blaming with both male and female 'victims'. Rape-myth acceptance is more prevalent in males even in male 'victim' scenarios, and Just World Belief was positively associated with RMA. Greater victim-blaming was attributed in stranger-vs. acquaintancerape scenarios. Discussion There are no absolute conclusions regarding the role of gender or situational factors and rapesupportive/victim-blaming attitudes. Further empirical research is required to understand the prevalence of RMA in perceptions of marital rape and, particularly, homosexual marital rape.

Journal of experimental psychology. Learning, memory, and cognition, 2020

The influence of domain knowledge on reading behavior has received limited investigation compared... more The influence of domain knowledge on reading behavior has received limited investigation compared to the influence of, for example, context and/or word frequency. The current study tested participants with and without domain knowledge of the Harry Potter (HP) universe. Fans and non-fans read sentences containing HP, high-frequency (HF), or low-frequency target-words. Targets were presented in contexts that were supportive or unsupportive within a 2 (group: fans, non-fans) × 3 (context: HP, HF, LF) × 3 (word type: HP, HF, LF) mixed design. Thirty-two fans and 22 non-fans read 72 two-sentence experimental items while eye-movement behavior was recorded: Initial sentences established context; second sentences contained target-words. Fans processed HP words faster than non-fans. No group difference was observed on HF or LF processing durations, suggesting equivalent reading capabilities. In HP contexts, HP and LF targets were processed equivalently. Processing of HF and LF words was faci...