Sense of agency is the sense that one is the cause of an action and controls the events in the outside world. We propose a mathematical model that explains the sense of agency using information theoretic free energy. The model predicts that the prediction error and uncertainty interactively affect the sense of agency. In an experiment in which the prediction error and observation uncertainty were manipulated using response delay and number of sensory signals from different sensory modalities, we observed an interaction between response delay and number of sensory signals. The results support the model prediction suggesting that, when the prediction error is sufficiently small, uncertainty reduces the sense of agency; by contrast, when the prediction error is sufficiently large, uncertainty increases the sense of agency. These model-based findings provide a guide for optimizing operational response to prevent lack of sense of agency when the response delay varies.

Eye tracking can evaluate brand logos, but conventionally it has focused only on overt attention to logos. However, it is necessary to also focus on covert attention. We conducted gaze analysis with fixations in the central visual fields corresponding to the fovea and foveola. A Go/No-go task was utilized to examine whether the target logo was detected behaviorally either within or outside the fixation area. The difference between correct viewings of the logo within the fixation area and those outside it was compared for each logo. The results revealed significant differences among logos in several combinations, suggesting that logos with higher visual recognizability can be correctly recognized even when they are presented outside the fixation area through covert attention. The covert eye-tracking (CovET) system could provide a useful method for evaluating the visual recognizability of logos and possibly other commercial targets of interest, thereby serving as a promising neuromarketing tool.

The noninverted triangle is generally regarded as more stable than the inverted one. The perception of stability/instability may vary when it is moving. Triangles moving in their pointing direction might be perceived as naturally moving and especially stable, which can lead to preferred and facilitated processing. We conducted three experiments in which noninverted and inverted triangles moved upwards or downwards. The results showed that participants preferred triangles moving in their pointing direction over those moving against their pointing direction and were faster in selecting and finding triangles with compatible than incompatible movement. These results can be explained by stimulus-response compatibility, which means that responses to stimuli are faster and more accurate when the properties of the stimulus and response are compatible than when they are not. The results help improve human-object interactions in different contexts like car driving, user interfaces, or virtual reality.

Spatial frequency is the most basic element among all visual constructs and can be quantified as a frequency characteristic. However, it is a parameter that lacks clearly identifiable emotional information. Therefore, this study introduced the Implicit Association Test to assess the potential implicit link between spatial frequency and cognitive functions. To estimate the influence of spatial frequency, we used a dummy target in the form of a square or a rhomboid and placed a spatial frequency of image as the target’s background. The reaction time and the Implicit Association Test scores were measured for a comprehensive overview of how they affect the observer’s subconscious mental processing, based on the spatial frequency of the background. We also used electroencephalogram to measure the neural activity. The association between behavioral indexes-reaction time and the Implicit Association Test score-and neural responses-theta/gamma oscillation-showed that spatial frequency of images placed against the background influenced implicit biases.

A novel visual neurophysiology experimental system, utilizing a single computer and one data acquisition system (DAQ), is introduced. Matlab-PsychToolbox manages visual stimuli and behavioral control, while the DAQ, with its powerful computational capability, handles neural recording and real-time analysis. Additional analysis, such as calculating the peri-stimulus time histogram, is conducted in a second instance of Matlab. Variables are synchronized across these applications within a 1 ms. The parallel execution of two Matlabs allows for precise real-time control and simultaneous resource-consuming analysis. The system exhibited adequate temporal performance for visual neurophysiology experiments, and operated stably for over 2000 hours in experiments involving awake macaque monkeys.

This study investigates the influence of the appearance of UGV delivery robots on Perceived Safety by comparing four variations of robot shapes using slants. The experiment was performed by presenting the robot shapes in a virtual environment by using a Virtual Reality headset (VR) and a computer screen (PC). We analyzed four participant groups: (1) Brazilians and (2) Japanese living in Japan using VR, (3) Brazilians living in Japan and (4) Brazilians living in Brazil using PC. In an exploratory approach, we investigated how Perceived Safety was influenced by nationality, country of residence, gender, field of study, preference for robot shape, and previous contact with robots. Perceived Safety was assessed using Kansei and Magnitude scores. Results indicate that while nationality did not affect perceived safety, living in a different country did. Additionally, both front and back slants positively influenced perceived safety compared to robots without slants.

As tactile evaluation is an important assessment indicator for consumer product developments, the importance of objective tactile evaluation is increasing. However, individual differences among subjects in tactile research has not been sufficiently investigated. This paper focuses on individual differences in tactile perception and proposes a method for quantifying the similarity with a developed index. We compared three representative indicators, Euclidean distance, cosine similarity, and their hybrid index, for measuring the similarity in sensory evaluation data for tactile sensation of aluminum plates. Comparison of the conventional 2 indices revealed that opposite tactile sensations were observed, leading to the misjudgment of similarity between subjects. While, the proposed hybrid index provided better clustering of the subjects, resulting in extracting more accurate tactile factors than those obtained with the conventional indicators.

We examined the relationship between the 10 factors of the Flow-Experience-Checklist (Ishimura, 2014) and the 12 factors of feeling state with regard to the difference between the perceived and actual duration during the execution of a typing game. Twenty participants typed each sentence as quickly but accurately as possible, and answered the duration required at the end of each trial. Flow was experienced in more than half of the trials. Of the trials in which flow was experienced, more than 60% of the underestimation of duration was explained by concentration, goal orientation, and sense of control, and more than 80% of the overestimation of duration was explained by concentration and vigorous feeling. These results suggest that extreme concentration is involved in generating the flow experience, and that goal orientation, sense of control, and vigorous feeling are involved in determining the direction of the duration-length illusion.

This study explored Japanese consumers’ perceptual model of bottled green tea beverages in the fiercely competitive market, exploring the psychological factors leading to behavioral intentions using an extended Mehrabian and Russell Stimulus-Organism-Response model. In Study 1, through an internet-based survey, we identified factors associated with behavioral intentions and built a model via structural equation modeling. In Study 2, we validated the model, analyzing how Japanese consumers form behavioral intentions in a commoditized marketplace. We demonstrated that while a variety of factors would be related to Behavioral Intention, most notable was Reward. It was further affected by Mood, and Perceived Quality. Our findings bring to light the importance of hedonic factors as drivers for consuming green tea beverages. This study can provide practical marketing insight on how bottled green tea, and possibly other beverage products, in a red ocean market, can be positioned and marketed to Japanese consumers.

This study extends our previous research by exploring further into Japanese consumers’ perceptual model of bottled green tea beverages, examining psychological factors that affect behavioral intentions related to the four dominant brands of bottled green tea in the competitive Japanese market. We employed an extended Mehrabian-Russell Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) model to examine the factors. In our first analysis, our objective was to examine whether they are differences in how consumers evaluate individual brands. In our second analysis, we looked at whether Brand Equity or Brand Attachment could be substituted for Behavioral Intentions for the Response variable in the S-O-R model. Our findings demonstrate that the dominant brand in the green tea space is rated lowest across a number of important factors, yet maintains a commanding share of the market. In our second analysis, we show that it is possible to substitute Brand Equity and Brand Attachment for Behavioral Intentions.