Abstract
The use of risk maps is widespread and also mentioned in risk management standards. These visualizations display sets of risks by plotting each risk along two axes, representing the probability of occurrence and impact. Using an eye-tracking methodology, data on the cognitive processing of information from such risk maps were collected in order to examine why certain decisions are taken and what may influence their comprehension of this information. Data were collected from German and Indian participants. Those two countries are interesting for this study, as they differ greatly in several relevant domains like uncertainty avoidance or individualism. We found that individuals are generally able to perform a visual search task using a risk map but have more difficulty in making comparisons between two risks based on this type of visualization. The findings suggest that performance was related to cognitive reflection and that participants who reflected more on their decisions had a higher share of their fixations on target regions. In line with existing research, there seems to be evidence to support that cultural influences are at play when people work with risk maps, as Indians paid more attention to the context of the risk map’s target region. The influence of familiarity with working with risk maps was unclear, as there were some differences in eye movements visible but not for all variants.
References
Alotaibi, A., G. Underwood, and A. D. Smith. 2017. “Cultural Differences in Attention: Eye Movement Evidence from a Comparative Visual Search Task.” Consciousness and Cognition 55: 254–65, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2017.09.002.Search in Google Scholar
Ball, D. J., and J. Watt. 2013. “Further Thoughts on the Utility of Risk Matrices.” Risk Analysis: An Official Publication of the Society for Risk Analysis 33 (11): 2068–78, https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.12057.Search in Google Scholar
Bao, C., D. Wu, J. Wan, J. Li, and J. Chen. 2017. “Comparison of Different Methods to Design Risk Matrices from the Perspective of Applicability.” Procedia Computer Science 122: 455–62, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2017.11.393.Search in Google Scholar
Berger, T., and W. Gleissner. 2018. “Integrated Management Systems: Linking Risk Management and Management Control Systems.” IJRAM 21 (3): 215, https://doi.org/10.1504/IJRAM.2018.093751.Search in Google Scholar
Berger, T., and M. Raschke. 2021. “Repetition Effects in Task-Driven Eye Movement Analyses after Longer Time-Spans.” In ACM Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications, edited by A. Bulling, A. Huckauf, H. Gellersen, D. Weiskopf, M. Bace, T. Hirzle, F. Alt, T. Pfeiffer, R. Bednarik, K. Krejtz, T. Blascheck, M. Burch, P. Kiefer, M. Dodd, and B. Sharif, 1–6. New York: ACM.10.1145/3448018.3458005Search in Google Scholar
Blais, C., R. E. Jack, C. Scheepers, D. Fiset, and R. Caldara. 2008. “Culture Shapes How We Look at Faces.” PLoS One 3 (8): e3022.10.1371/journal.pone.0003022Search in Google Scholar
Brañas-Garza, P., P. Kujal, and B. Lenkei. 2015. “Cognitive Reflection Test: Whom, How, When.” In ESI Working Papers, edited by Chapman University, 15–25. ESI Working Papers. Also available at http://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/esi_working_papers/174.10.1016/j.socec.2019.101455Search in Google Scholar
Carpenter, P. A., and P. Shah. 1998. “A Model of the Perceptual and Conceptual Processes in Graph Comprehension.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied 4 (2): 75–100, https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-898X.4.2.75.Search in Google Scholar
Čeněk, J., J.-L. Tsai, and Č. Šašinka. 2020. “Cultural Variations in Global and Local Attention and Eye-Movement Patterns During the Perception of Complex Visual Scenes: Comparison of Czech and Taiwanese University Students.” PLoS One 15 (11): e0242501, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242501.Search in Google Scholar
Chua, H. F., J. E. Boland, and R. E. Nisbett. 2005. “Cultural Variation in Eye Movements during Scene Perception.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 102 (35): 12629–33, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0506162102.Search in Google Scholar
Cohn, A., E. Fehr, and M. A. Maréchal. 2017. “Do Professional Norms in the Banking Industry Favor Risk-Taking?” The Review of Financial Studies 30 (11): 3801–23.10.1093/rfs/hhx003Search in Google Scholar
Cokely, E. T., M. Galesic, E. Schulz, S. Ghazal, and R. García-Retamero. 2012. “Measuring Risk Literacy: The Berlin Numeracy Test.” Judgment and Decision Making 7 (1): 25–47.10.1017/S1930297500001819Search in Google Scholar
Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission [COSO]. 2004. Enterprise risk management – Integrated framework.Search in Google Scholar
Duan, Z., F. Wang, and J. Hong. 2016. “Culture Shapes How We Look: Comparison Between Chinese and African University Students.” Journal of Eye Movement Research 9 (6): 1–10, https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.9.6.1.Search in Google Scholar
Duclos, R. 2015. “The Psychology of Investment Behavior: (De)Biasing Financial Decision-Making One Graph at a Time.” Journal of Consumer Psychology 25 (2): 317–25, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2014.11.005.Search in Google Scholar
Erceg, N., Z. Galic, and M. Ruzojcic. 2020. “A Reflection on Cognitive Reflection – Testing Convergent/Divergent Validity of Two Measures of Cognitive Reflection.” Judgment and Decision Making 15 (5): 741–55.10.1017/S1930297500007907Search in Google Scholar
Evans, K., C. M. Rotello, X. Li, and K. Rayner. 20092006. “Scene Perception and Memory Revealed by Eye Movements and Receiver-Operating Characteristic Analyses: Does a Cultural Difference Truly Exist?” Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology 62 (2): 276–85, https://doi.org/10.1080/17470210802373720.Search in Google Scholar
Fraser, J. 2010. “How to Prepare a Risk Profile.” In Enterprise Risk Management: Today’s Leading Research and Best Practices for Tomorrow’s Executives, edited by J. Fraser, and B. J. Simkins, 171–88. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.10.1002/9781118267080.ch11Search in Google Scholar
Frederick, S. 2005. “Cognitive Reflection and Decision Making.” Journal of Economic Perspectives 19 (4): 25–42, https://doi.org/10.1257/089533005775196732.Search in Google Scholar
Gaganis, C., I. Hasan, P. Papadimitri, and M. Tasiou. 2019. “National Culture and Risk-Taking: Evidence from the Insurance Industry.” Journal of Business Research 97: 104–16, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.12.037.Search in Google Scholar
Garcia-Retamero, R., and E. T. Cokely. 2013. “Communicating Health Risks with Visual Aids.” Current Directions in Psychological Science 22 (5): 392–9, https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721413491570.Search in Google Scholar
Gegenfurtner, A., E. Lehtinen, and S. Roger. 2011. “Expertise Differences in the Comprehension of Visualizations: A Meta-Analysis of Eye-Tracking Research in Professional Domains.” Educational Psychology Review 23 (4): 523–52, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-011-9174-7.Search in Google Scholar
Gendron, Y., A. Samsonova-Taddei, and H. Guénin. 2020. “Making Sense of Risk Management as a (Dis)Comfort-Inducing Practice.” Behavioral Research in Accounting 33 (1): 1–20, https://doi.org/10.2308/BRIA-18-016.Search in Google Scholar
Gillan, D. J., C. D. Wickens, J. G. Hollands, and C. Melody Carswell. 1998. “Guidelines for Presenting Quantitative Data in HFES Publications.” Human Factors 40 (1): 28–41, https://doi.org/10.1518/001872098779480640.Search in Google Scholar
Greenberg, R. A. 2014. Graph Comprehension: Difficulties, Individual Differences, and Instruction. Dissertation, University of Michigan. https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/108915/ronitg_1.pdf%3Bsequence=1 (accessed July 01, 2020).Search in Google Scholar
Haider and Frensch. 1996. “The Role of Information Reduction in Skill Acquisition.” Cognitive Psychology 30 (3): 304–37, https://doi.org/10.1006/cogp.1996.0009.Search in Google Scholar
Hofstede, G. 2001. Culture’s Consequences – Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions and Organizations across Nations, 2nd ed. London: Sage.Search in Google Scholar
Holmqvist, K., M. Nystrom, R. Andersson, R. Dewhurst, H. Jarodzka, and J. van de Weijer . 2011. Eye Tracking: A Comprehensive Guide to Methods and Measures. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Hooge, I., and G. Camps. 2013. “Scan Path Entropy and Arrow Plots: Capturing Scanning Behavior of Multiple Observers.” Frontiers in Psychology 4: 996, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00996.Search in Google Scholar
IBCS. 2017. International Business Communication Standards. Charleston: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.Search in Google Scholar
Kaspar, K., and P. König. 2011. “Overt Attention and Context Factors: The Impact of Repeated Presentations, Image Type, and Individual Motivation.” PLoS One 6 (7): e21719, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0021719.Search in Google Scholar
Kelly, D. J., S. Miellet, and R. Caldara. 2010. “Culture Shapes Eye Movements for Visually Homogeneous Objects.” Frontiers in Psychology 1: 6, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2010.00006.Search in Google Scholar
Kosslyn, S. M. 1989. “Understanding Charts and Graphs.” Applied Cognitive Psychology 3 (3): 185–225, https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2350030302.Search in Google Scholar
Liberali, J. M., V. F. Reyna, S. Furlan, L. M. Stein, and S. T. Pardo. 2012. “Individual Differences in Numeracy and Cognitive Reflection, with Implications for Biases and Fallacies in Probability Judgment.” Journal of Behavioral Decision Making 25 (4): 361–81, https://doi.org/10.1002/bdm.752.Search in Google Scholar
Liu, J., F. Meng, and R. Fellows. 2015. “An Exploratory Study of Understanding Project Risk Management from the Perspective of National Culture.” International Journal of Project Management 33 (3): 564–75, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2014.08.004.Search in Google Scholar
Lynch, E. J., and L. M. Andiola. 2019. “If Eyes are the Window to Our Soul, What Role Does Eye-Tracking Play in Accounting Research?” Behavioral Research in Accounting 31 (2): 107–33, https://doi.org/10.2308/bria-52283.Search in Google Scholar
Mourouzidou-Damtsa, S., A. Milidonis, and K. Stathopoulos. 2019. “National Culture and Bank Risk-Taking.” Journal of Financial Stability 40: 132–43, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfs.2017.08.007.Search in Google Scholar
Nisbett, R. E., and Y. Miyamoto. 2005. “The Influence of Culture: Holistic Versus Analytic Perception.” Trends in Cognitive Sciences 9 (10): 467–73, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2005.08.004.Search in Google Scholar
Okan, Y., M. Galesic, and R. Garcia-Retamero. 2016. “How People with Low and High Graph Literacy Process Health Graphs: Evidence from Eye-Tracking.” Journal of Behavioral Decision Making 29 (2–3): 271–94, https://doi.org/10.1002/bdm.1891.Search in Google Scholar
Orquin, J. L., M. P. Bagger, and S. Mueller Loose. 2013. “Learning Affects Top Down and Bottom up Modulation of Eye Movements in Decision Making.” Judgment and Decision Making 8 (6): 700–16.10.1017/S1930297500004733Search in Google Scholar
Rayner, K. 2009. “Eye Movements and Attention in Reading, Scene Perception, and Visual Search.” Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006) 62 (8): 1457–506, https://doi.org/10.1080/17470210902816461.Search in Google Scholar
Rayner, K., X. Li, C. C. Williams, K. R. Cave, and A. D. Well. 2007. “Eye Movements During Information Processing Tasks: Individual Differences and Cultural Effects.” Vision Research 47 (21): 2714–26, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.visres.2007.05.007.Search in Google Scholar
Sirois, L.-P., B. Jean, and P. Bera. 2018. “The Informational Value of Key Audit Matters in the Auditor’s Report: Evidence from an Eye-Tracking Study.” Accounting Horizons 32 (2): 141–62, https://doi.org/10.2308/acch-52047.Search in Google Scholar
Toplak, M. E., R. F. West, and K. E. Stanovich. 2011. “The Cognitive Reflection Test as a Predictor of Performance on Heuristics-and-Biases Tasks.” Memory & Cognition 39 (7): 1275–89, https://doi.org/10.3758/s13421-011-0104-1.Search in Google Scholar
Tsang, E. W. K. 2001. “Annual Report Disclosure and Corporate Legitimacy Management: A Study of Singapore Companies’ Responses to the Government’s Call for Venturing Abroad.” Asia Pacific Journal of Management 18 (March): 27–43.10.1023/A:1010661105944Search in Google Scholar
Woller-Carter, M. M., Y. Okan, E. T. Cokely, and R. Garcia-Retamero. 2012. “Communicating and Distorting Risks with Graphs: An Eye-Tracking Study.” Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting 56 (1): 1723–7, https://doi.org/10.1177/1071181312561345.Search in Google Scholar
Supplementary Material
The online version of this article offers supplementary material (https://doi.org/10.1515/apjri-2021-0022).
© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Featured Articles (Research Paper)
- Are Stay-at-Home and Face Mask Orders Effective in Slowing Down COVID-19 Transmission? – A Statistical Study of U.S. Case Counts in 2020
- The Impact of GATS on the Insurance Sector: Empirical Evidence from Pakistan
- Processing of Information from Risk Maps in India and Germany: The Influence of Cognitive Reflection, Numeracy, and Experience
- The Determinants of Credit Rating and the Effect of Regulatory Disclosure Requirements: Evidence from an Emerging Market
- Automatic Segmentation of Insurance Rating Classes Under Ordinal Constraints via Group Fused Lasso
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Featured Articles (Research Paper)
- Are Stay-at-Home and Face Mask Orders Effective in Slowing Down COVID-19 Transmission? – A Statistical Study of U.S. Case Counts in 2020
- The Impact of GATS on the Insurance Sector: Empirical Evidence from Pakistan
- Processing of Information from Risk Maps in India and Germany: The Influence of Cognitive Reflection, Numeracy, and Experience
- The Determinants of Credit Rating and the Effect of Regulatory Disclosure Requirements: Evidence from an Emerging Market
- Automatic Segmentation of Insurance Rating Classes Under Ordinal Constraints via Group Fused Lasso