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Relationships Among Twitter Conversation Networks, Language Use, and Congressional Voting
Title
Relationships Among Twitter Conversation Networks, Language Use, and Congressional Voting
Creator
Hemphill, Libby, Otterbacher, Jahna, Shapiro, Matthew A.
Date
2012-12-20, 2012
Description
As Twitter becomes a more common means for officials to communicate with their constituents, it becomes more important that we understand just...
Show moreAs Twitter becomes a more common means for officials to communicate with their constituents, it becomes more important that we understand just how that communication relates to other political activities. Using data from 411 members of Congress' Twitter activity during the summer of 2011, we examine relationships among the resulting conversation networks, language use, and political behavior. The social networks that result from their communications have surprisingly low density and high diameter, indicating a level of independence that is surprising for a group so tightly connected offline. Our findings also indicate that officials frequently use Twitter to advertise their political positions and to provide information but rarely to request political action from their constituents or to recognize the good work of others. Our analysis suggests strong relationships between anti-social behaviors indicated by the loosely connected network and low incidence of pro-social conversations and polarized or extreme Congressional voting records.
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Understanding Construction Workers’ Risk Decisions Using Cognitive Continuum Theory
Title
Understanding Construction Workers’ Risk Decisions Using Cognitive Continuum Theory
Creator
Menches, Cindy L., Saxena, Jaya
Date
2013-09-19, 2013-09-19
Description
The goal of the research presented in this article was to construct a theory about the influence of decision cues on intuitive and...
Show moreThe goal of the research presented in this article was to construct a theory about the influence of decision cues on intuitive and deliberative decision-making in high-hazard construction environments. Drawing from Cognitive Continuum Theory, the article specifies a framework for understanding why and how construction workers make decisions that lead to taking or avoiding physical risks when they encounter daily hazards. A secondary aim of the research was to construct a set of hypotheses about how specific decision cues influence whether a worker is more likely to engage their intuitive impulses or to use careful deliberation when responding to a hazard. These hypotheses are described in this article, and the efficacy of the hypotheses was evaluated using cross-tabulations and nonparametric measures of association. While most of the associations between decision cues and decision mode (i.e., intuition or deliberation) identified in this data set were generally modest, none of the associations were statistically zero, thus indicating that further research is warranted based on theoretical grounds. A rigorous program of theory testing is the next logical step to the research, and the article thus concludes with numerous suggestions for extending the research and testing the proposed hypotheses.
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Jobsite Characteristics that Influence Improvised Decision-making on Construction Sites
Title
Jobsite Characteristics that Influence Improvised Decision-making on Construction Sites
Creator
Kleps, Stephen M., Menches, Cindy
Date
2013-10-07, 2013-10-07
Description
This article examines the relationship between specific construction project characteristics and the degree and speed that the foremen are...
Show moreThis article examines the relationship between specific construction project characteristics and the degree and speed that the foremen are able to improvise in response to disruptive events on the jobsite. Specifically, characteristics such as the number of crew members working under the supervision of a foreman, the occupancy status of the project (i.e., occupied or unoccupied) during construction, the stage of completion of the project, and the levels of turbulence, time pressure, cooperation, collaboration, and organization, were examined. Using a multilevel regression modeling approach, an analysis of 244 disruptions reported by 50 foremen was conducted to determine whether the construction project characteristics could predict more or less improvisation and faster or slower improvisation by the foreman. The findings indicate that on construction projects that are rated by the foremen as more organized, the foremen can make more modest improvised decisions to resolve a disruption, but that on construction projects that were rated by the foremen as more collaborative (i.e., involved joint decision-making), a greater degree of improvisation was deployed. In addition, it was found that on sites that were rated by the foremen as more cooperative (i.e., involved greater willingness to help each other), the foremen required more time to improvise their decisions.
Sponsorship: National Science Foundation
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Survey Instruments for Flexible Decision-making in Response to Disruptions on Construction Sites
Title
Survey Instruments for Flexible Decision-making in Response to Disruptions on Construction Sites
Creator
Menches, Cindy
Date
2012, 2012
Description
The document is a compilation of the Baseline Assessment, Foreman Survey, and Exit Interview documents for National Science Foundation...
Show moreThe document is a compilation of the Baseline Assessment, Foreman Survey, and Exit Interview documents for National Science Foundation research project, CMMI-1100514, Flexible Decision-making in Response to Disruptive Events on Construction Sites.
Sponsorship: National Science Foundation, CMMI-1100514, Flexible Decision-making in Response to Disruptive Events on Construction Sites.
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