Extracting Latent Moral Information from Text Narratives: Relevance,Challenges, and Solutions

ABSTRACT

Moral Foundations Theory (MFT) and the Model of Intuitive Morality and Exemplars (MIME) contend that moral judgments are built on a universal set of basic moral intuitions. A large body of research has supported many of MFT’s and the MIME’s central hypotheses. Yet, an important prerequisite of this research—the ability to extract latent moral content represented in media stimuli with a reliable procedure—has not been systematically studied. In this article, we subject different extraction procedures to rigorous tests, underscore challenges by identifying a range of reliabilities, develop new reliability test and coding procedures employing computational methods, and provide solutions that maximize the reliability and validity of moral intuition extraction. In six content analytical studies, including a large crowd-based study, we demonstrate that: (1) traditional content analytical approaches lead to rather low reliabilities; (2) variation in coding reliabilities can be predicted by both text features and characteristics of the human coders; and (3) reliability is largely unaffected by the detail of coder training. We show that a coding task with simplified training and a coding technique that treats moral foundations as fast, spontaneous intuitions leads to acceptable inter-rater agreement, and potentially to more valid moral intuition extractions. While this study was motivated by issues related to MFT and MIME research, the methods and findings in this study have implications for extracting latent content from text narratives that go beyond moral information. Accordingly, we provide a tool for researchers interested in applying this new approach in their own work.     

Minding the gap: Applying a service marketing model into government policy communications

In order to bolster the emerging but still underdeveloped conceptualization of public communication over potential policies, we apply a framework primarily used in business service marketing to improve service quality (“gap analysis”). We argue that this model has strong heuristic qualities that can alert practitioners who are interested in improving communication regarding potential policies. While we recognize problems implementing the model, we suggest some ways that both practitioners and the public ameliorate the identified issues. Seeing communication about potential policies as a crucial part of the political process, we argue that such efforts have democratic merit.     

Principals in schools with a positive school culture

This study focuses on the profile of principals who seem to be able to shape the school culture to best encourage teaching and learning. Data from a representative sample of primary schools (N = 46) were collected through questionnaires for principals and for teachers (N = 700) and semi‐structured interviews with the principals. Functioning, well‐being and personal characteristics of the principal, structural and cultural characteristics of school, and organisational context are examined. Compared to their opposites, principals in schools with cultures stimulating professional development, combine (1) type A, achievement‐oriented behaviour, (2) transformational leadership, (3) a preference for tasks related to education matters and people management and (4) effective time management allowing them to devote most of their time to their preferred role and task component.     

Transforming student engagement in COVID-19 remote instruction: a research perspective

This paper was developed in response to the article titled, “A design framework for enhancing engagement in student-centered learning: Own it, learn it, share it,” by Eunbae Lee and Michael J. Hannafin (2016). Their work is examined through a research perspective. The authors’ discovery of the lack of a comprehensive framework to guide the design, development, and implementation of student-centered learning prompted them to develop the model. The result advances a three-stage model known as, Own It, Learn It, and Share It. The impact of the model can be understood through the simplicity of the OLSit model by how it affords educators a clear pathway for transforming instructional planning. Given the many uncertainties associated with the “shift to digital” as a result of COVID-19, the OLSit model is very applicable for action research by teachers, student teachers, and teacher educators. A critique of the model is provided along with suggested applications to extend the OLSit research base.

     

A comparison of strategic development for multiplication problem solving in low-, average-, and high-achieving students

The present study investigated the differences of strategy use between low-, average-, and high-achieving students when solving different multiplication problems. Nineteen high-, 48 average-, and 17 low-achieving students participated in this study. All participants were asked to complete three different multiplication tests and to explain how they solved these problems. Results suggested that low achievers used incorrect operation strategies more frequently, indicating a lack of conceptual understanding of multiplication. High-achieving students demonstrated greater flexibility in problem-solving and were more accurate in performing direct retrieval or math algorithm strategies. Results were discussed about improving low achievers’ use of advanced strategies, enhancing their flexibility in choosing strategies and improving students’ accuracy in using direct retrieval or math algorithms.     

The effects of teacher read-alouds and student silent reading on predominantly bilingual high school seniors’ learning and retention of social studies content

Teacher read-alouds (TRA) are common in middle and high school content area classes. Because the practice of reading the textbook out loud to students is often used out of concern about students’ ability to understand and learn from text when reading silently (SR), this randomized controlled trial was designed to experimentally manipulate text reading while blocking on all other instructional elements to determine the relative effects on learning content. Predominantly Spanish–English bilingual twelfth-graders (n = 123) were randomly assigned to either a TRA or SR condition and provided 1 week of high quality instruction in US history. Daily lessons included teaching key terms in the passage, previewing text headings, and conducting comprehension checks. Results of immediate, 1-week delayed, and 1-month delayed assessments of content learning revealed no significant differences between the two groups. Students were also asked to rate the method of reading they believed best helped them understand and remember information. Students in the SR condition more consistently agreed that reading silently was beneficial. Findings suggest low performing adolescents of different linguistic backgrounds can learn content as well when reading appropriately challenging text silently as when the teacher reads the text aloud to them.