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Jamie DeCoster

Jamie DeCoster

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My original field of study was social cognition, where my work focused on building models of memory, exploring dual-process models, and investigating the role of implicit learning in social phenomena. Although I continue to research these and other psychological topics, I have come to focus more and more on investigating statistical and methodological issues. In an article published in Communication Methods and Measures, DeCoster and Lichtenstein (2007) discussed the benefits of incorporating both quantitative and qualitative methods in research projects and grant applications. We not only promoted the use of multiple methods to investigate research questions, but also emphasized the potential benefits of using quantitative and qualitative techniques interactively and interdependently. We discussed how qualitative methods can be used to better understand and explore results found using quantitative methods, and how quantitative methods can be used to validate and generalize results found using qualitative methods.

In an article published in Psychological Methods, DeCoster, Iselin, and Gallucci (2009) surveyed the justifications that researchers have provided for artificially dichotomizing continuous scales to create categorical variables, and then critically evaluated each of these justifications using Monte Carlo simulations and logical reasoning. Continuous indicators were superior in the majority of the circumstances and never performed substantially worse than the dichotomized indicators, but the simulations did reveal specific situations in which dichotomized indicators performed as well as or slightly better than the original continuous indicators. We conclude that while there are some situations where dichotomization can be justified, continuous indicators should generally be preferred because they usually perform least equivalently to dichotomized indicators and sometimes perform substantially better. As a follow-up to this article, my colleagues and I wrote a paper, recently published in the Journal of Experimental Psychopathology, providing a practical translation of the mathematical and statistical research on dichotomization. After discussing the reasons that clinical researchers might use artificial categorization, DeCoster, Gallucci, and Iselin (2011) summarized the arguments both for and against this procedure. We then provided a number of specific suggestions related to the use of artificial categorization, including our thoughts on when researchers should use artificial categories, how their use can be justified, what continuous alternatives are available, and how the continuous alternatives should be used.

Psychological researchers create a large number of files as part of their work, including study stimuli, assessment forms, data sets, analytic output, and manuscripts. In an article recently accepted at Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, DeCoster, O'Mally, and Iselin (2011) discussed the importance of systematically archiving these files to the research process. A well-designed file archive can greatly improve the efficiency of locating information, the security of stored files, the ability to recover from human and mechanical errors, the generation of future studies, and the sharing of knowledge with other psychologists. We conducted a survey of clinical psychologists demonstrating a need for greater knowledge and training in archiving. To address this issue, we describe the abstract demands that a file archive must meet, focusing on organization, documentation, preservation, and protection. We then provided a large number of concrete suggestions on how to meet these demands.

Finally, in a paper recently published in the Journal of Motor Skills, DeCoster and O'Mally (2011) explores the impact of the specific stimuli used in the Serial Response Task, a method commonly used to examine implicit learning. In this computerized task, participants must respond to stimuli that, unbeknownst to them, follow a fixed sequence. Prior research has shown that participants can adapt their behaviors to take advantage of the consistency even when they do not explicitly recognize the sequence. We wanted to determine whether the specific choice of sequence influenced the strength of implicit learning in this task. We found significantly stronger implicit learning effects when participants were exposed to the most commonly used sequence in the literature (drawn from Reber & Squire, 1998) than when the locations were based on a randomly-determined sequence with similar characteristics. Follow-up analyses showed that the strength of implicit learning can be linked to the presence of particular types of triads within the sequence. We discussed how the results from the literature may be dependent on the specific sequence used, highlighting the need for greater generalizability.

My future plans are to focus my research on these and other methodological issues. Although I have been interested in a number of different psychological topics, I've found that my greatest passion is in thinking about the behavior of the researchers themselves. I find it very interesting to observe how scientists typically do their work, and exploring this has often led me to discover ways to make their methods more accurate, flexible, or efficient. Given the role that scientific methodology has in the quality of knowledge gained from research, I feel that this is one of the best ways that I can contribute to the advancement of science.

Primary Interests:

  • Applied Social Psychology
  • Communication, Language
  • Person Perception
  • Research Methods, Assessment
  • Social Cognition

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Jamie DeCoster
Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning
University of Virginia
350 Old Ivy Way, Suite 100
Charlottesville, Virginia 22903
United States of America

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