Mind Genomics: Origins, Evolution, Inner-Workings
摘要
This chapter presents an overview of the emerging science of Mind Genomics. Mind Genomics is a particular survey philosophy different from traditional yes/no surveys. This approach uses an experimental design called the four-by-four (4 × 4) model. Researchers select four aspects or silos of a topic to become the pillars of the study. The silo is presented in the form of a question that must be answered. For each question (viz., aspect or silo), the researcher selects four answers (also called elements). The elements reflect different aspects of the question. Thus, for a specific question or silo, the four elements or answers present a variety of views For purposes of the actual experiment the elements are “fleshed out” into stand-alone phrases that can convey a word picture. Rather than working with single elements, the Mind Genomics process prescribes that the elements be combined into small, easy to read vignettes. A vignette may comprise two, three, or all four of the elements, but may only have one element or answer from a question. The underlying design prescribes that all 16 elements be statistically independent of each other, and that each element appear exactly five times in the design-set, comprising 24 such vignettes. A unique property of the Mind Genomics system is that each person evaluates a unique set of 24 vignettes. The mathematical structure of the 24 vignettes is the same for all respondents. The only change is that the elements are permuted within a question. The analysis of the Mind Genomics data is done by linear regression, cluster analysis, with the capability of data mining.