The DYFRAT package.
DYFRAT is a new methodology for modeling human rating evaluations from a fuzzy-set perspective (Calcagni' & Lombardi, 2014). In particular, DYFRAT captures the fuzziness of human ratings by modeling some real-time biometric events that occur during the cognitive process
of rating in an ecological measurement setting. This methodology records peculiar cognitive information (derived from the motor control of the computer-mouse device) which provide a continuous on-line measure of the cognitive processes involved in the rating task.
In DYFRAT, the process of human rating is described as a temporal and dynamic changing course of data information which is in turn modelled by two physical components: a) the motor activation involved in the process of rating and b) the overall time spent
by the rater to provide h(er/is) final rating outcome. The first component is measured by means of tracking computer-mouse movements whereas the second component is measured in terms of response times (recorded in ms).
DYFRAT implements an original method to
integrate such physical components into a common and comprehensive fuzzy model which allows to express the overall fuzziness of the rating process.
DYFRAT components:
(1) A Data-Capturing Procedure (DCP) which implements a customized computerized interface for collecting the motor and temporal components in the process of rating
(2) a Data-Modeling Procedure (DMP) which provides a fuzzy model for the recorded information
(3) a User's Guide. This guide will provide a detailed description about the functioning of the DYFRAT system.
The DYFRAT package is available on request by contacting the first author (ant.calcagni@gmail.com).
Reference
Calcagni' A. & Lombardi L. (2014). Dynamic Fuzzy Rating Tracker (DYFRAT): A novel methodology for modeling real-time dynamic cognitive processes in rating scales.
Applied Soft Computing, 24, 948-961.
(publisher web site).
