Inspiration has received little theoretical or empirical attention within psychology. Inspiration is conceptualized herein as a general construct characterized by evocation, motivation, and transcendence. In Studies 1a and 1b, a trait measure of inspiration was developed and was found to have strong psychometric properties. Studies 2a–2c documented a nomological network consistent with the present conceptualization. Study 3 related inspiration to the holding of U.S. patents. Study 4 linked trait inspiration to daily experiences of inspiration, extended the nomological network to the state level, documented antecedents and consequences, and established incremental validity. This research provides a foundation for further study of inspiration, both as a general construct and in specific content domains (e.g., religion, creativity, interpersonal relations). Inspiration is an experience with which we are all familiar. We are inspired when insights or ideas imbue a task with a sense of necessity and excitement. We are inspired when a mentor or role model reveals new possibilities that we would not have recognized on our own. We are inspired when a sense of beauty, truth, or the divine moves us to pursue a goal more important than the mundane concerns that often occupy our minds. Although such experiences of inspiration are no doubt familiar to the psychologist, the topic has received little sustained attention within psychology and has been virtually ignored within personality and motivational psychology. Furthermore, inspiration has typically been conceptualized narrowly within particular content domains (e.g., religious, creative, interpersonal) or theoretical frameworks. We advocate a phenomenon-based approach (Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2001) to inspiration that both embraces the breadth of the inspiration concept understood by the layperson and is informed by diverse theoretical perspectives. Our aims in the present research are to offer a conceptualization of inspiration, to validate the inspiration construct, and to establish its importance in mainstream empirical psychology.

During the 1970s, schema theory gained prominence as reading researchers took up early work by cognitive scientists to explore the role of schemas in reading. In the 1980s and ’90s, the field shifted as researchers increasingly used sociocultural theories, particularly the work of L. S. Vygotsky, to frame investigations of literacy. This article provides a brief review of schema theory as situated in literacy studies. The authors review various conceptions of schema theory to consider how recent social and cultural perspectives might prompt reconsideration of schemas as transactional and embodied constructs. Concomitantly, they explore how earlier conceptions of schema theory may assist researchers in their articulation of concepts such as ideal and material tools and the role of activity in Vygotsky’s work. The article concludes with considerations of implications for future work.

Abstract: This paper begins by presenting an overview of visualization in education, followed by two main theoretical frameworks to guide research: Dual coding theory and mental model theory. These ideas are used to frame design and research questions for educational simulations. Two main areas of simulation research are then reviewed: the use of different feedback representations and challenges faced by learners in discovery learning approaches. Research shows that discovery learning within simulations is very difficult for students, but can be effectively supported with the use of different simulation representations and creative designs to the simulation’s interface. This research suggests that representation matters but is very context sensitive. Over the past 15 years I have studied children and adults using educational simulations based on various pedagogical (e.g. inductive and deductive learning) and philosophical approaches (i.e. constructivist and objectivist). My goal in this short paper is to summarize some of this research and also provide some of the background that frames my research questions. As an instructional technologist, I have been influenced by the use of instruction to shape learning, but as someone who accepts a constructivist orientation to learning, I know that instruction is but one path to learning. When given little or no instructional support, I am interested in the strategies that people use to learn given the opportunities of an interactive simulation. Even more important, I am interested in those times when

Sadoski, M. & Paivio, A. (2004). A dual coding theoretical model of

Abstract: A set of computer-based experiments are reported that investigate the understanding achieved by learners when studying a complex domain (statistics) in a real E-learning environment using three different media combinations – Text only, Text and Diagrams and Spoken Text and Diagrams, and the results agree with earlier work carried out on more limited domains. The work is then extended to examine how student interaction and student learning styles affect the learning outcomes. Different responses to the media combinations are observed and significant differences occur between learners classified as Sensing and Reflective learners. The experiment also identified some important differences in performance with the different media combinations by students registered as Dyslexic. The experiment was therefore repeated with a much larger sample of Dyslexic learners and the earlier effects were found to be significant. The results were surprising and may provide useful guidance for the design of material for Dyslexic students. 1.

Abstract not found

In today’s knowledge economy, technology is utilized more than ever to deliver instructional material to the learner. Nonetheless, information may not always be presented in a manner that maximizes the learning experience, resulting in a negative impact on learning outcomes. Drawing on the Task-Technology Fit model, a research framework was developed to investigate the influence of vividness, interactivity, task complexity, and learning style on performance, satisfaction, interest, and perceived mental effort in the context of learning how to use an office productivity tool via a computer-mediated learning environment. It was hypothesized that vividness and interactivity would increase satisfaction and interest and that the affects of vividness and interactivity on performance and perceived mental effort would vary depending on the complexity of the task. It was also hypothesized that vividness and learning style would interact to influence performance and perceived mental effort when a task was more complex. A laboratory experiment was employed to test the research model. The experiment manipulated two levels of vividness, interactivity, and task complexity, resulting in six unique treatment conditions. In each of these treatment conditions, subjects viewed a computerbased tutorial on how to complete a task using a specific tool in Microsoft Excel. Subjects were

Final Report from Carnegie Corporation of New York’s

Subjects judged the semantic relatedness of word pairs presented to the left or right visual field. The word pairs were presented one below the other. On critical trials, the words' referents had a typical spatial relation, with one referent oriented above the other (e.g. ATTIC/BASEMENT). The spatial relation of the words either matched or mismatched the spatial relation of their referents. When presented to the left hemisphere, the match or mismatch did not have an effect. However, there was a reliable mismatch effect for pairs presented to the right hemisphere. The results are interpreted in the context of perceptual theories of mental representation.