Learning and Cognition Lab Facilities
Last Updated: 06/30/2008
The Learning and Cognition Program operates three research laboratories: the Laboratory on Learning and Cognition, the Eye-Tracking Laboratory, and the Psychophysiology Laboratory. These laboratories are are overseen by department faculty and are used by both students and faculty to explore theoretical and applied research questions.
The Laboratory on Learning & Cognition
The Eye-Tracking Laboratory
The Psychophysiology Laboratory
The Laboratory on Learning & Cognition:
The Laboratory on Learning and Cognition is directed by professors Dan J. Woltz and Michael K. Gardner. The Lab features eight (8) IBM PC compatible data collection computers, as well as office space for graduate students and research assistants. Reaction time experiments are programmed using the E-Prime experimental authoring system. Research subjects (for studies approved through the University of Utah's Institutional Review Board) are recruited from the Department's undergraduate educational psychology courses (see Subject Pool). Research conducted in the Laboratory on Learning and Cognition has involved the acquisition of cognitive skills, undetected errors in cognitive skills, and priming processes in memory.
The Eye-Tracking Laboratory:
The Eye-Tracking Laboratory (sometimes called the Reading Laboratory) is directed by professors Anne E. Cook and Douglas J. Hacker. The lab currently has an Applied Sciences Laboratory (ASL) Model 501 head-mounted eye tracker with high speed optics. The eye tracker is interfaced and controlled via a Hewlett-Packard 1.8GHz computer. Another HP 1.8GHz computer, with a 22" monitor (20" viewable) runs the experiments. Participants have free head and eye movement, and their head movements and orientation are recorded using the ASL EyeHead Integration system. The eye tracker has an accuracy range of one to one half degree of visual angle. Students receive extensive training before using the eye-tracker for research projects. Research conducted in the Eye-Tracking Laboratory has involved the psychology of reading, the psychology of writing, and the detection of deception.
The Psychophysiology Lab:
The Psychophysiology Laboratory is directed by John C. Kircher. The Laboratory features a Biopac MP 100 polygraph that allows data collection of up to sixteen channels of psychophysiological data. Software developed by Dr. Kircher is used to extract psychophysiological features from psychophysiological data streams. Dr. Kircher is the nation's leading expert on the computerized detection of deception. Research conducted in the Psychophysiology Laboratory has involved the detection of deception, childhood psychopathology, gambling behavior, and client/counselor interactions.
