Benjamin A. Clegg, Ph.D.

Department of Psychology Colorado State University

Ben Clegg is a Professor of Cognitive Psychology.

My background: Prior to arriving at Colorado State University, I worked as a post-doc with Professor Neville Moray. Before that I received my PhD from the University of Oregon, where I worked with Professor Michael Posner and Professor Steven Keele.

Current research: My main interests are in skill acquisition and training, as well as the application of principles from cognitive psychology to real-world setting. I have publications related to both basic and applied aspects of human performance (see below for some examples).

I currently collaborate on major projects with Professor Alice Healy of the University of Colorado, Boulder; Professor John Groeger of the University College Cork, in Ireland; Dr. Geoffrey O'Shea of SUNY Oneonta; Dr. Lisa Durrance Blalock of the University of West Florida; and Professor Willem Verwey and Dr. Elger Abrahamse of Universiteit Twente, in the Netherlands. I'm starting to track some of the other people I interact with through my linkedin.com profile -- so please drop me an invitation to connect on there if you know me.

I have two current graduate students, Robert Gutzwiller, and John Blitch. If you are thinking of applying to the Cognitive PhD Program here at Colorado State, and might be interested in working with me, then please send me an email telling me a little bit about your research interests - benjamin.clegg@colostate.edu

Cognitive Faculty: The Cognitive Psychology program at Colorado State includes a number of faculty with interests in human learning and memory - Anne Cleary, Ed DeLosh, Matthew Rhodes, and Carol Seger.

 

Research

I am interested in a variety of aspects of human performance. My research spans both basic research paradigms and applied cognitive psychology. Much of my work has centered on the general topic of skill acquisition, including studies of implicit learning - that is, knowledge acquired without any direct intention to learn it, and with limited subsequent awareness of the information that has been learned. In the lab we are also looking at how automation and technology impact learning and skilled performance, exploring issues like situational awareness, workload, and bias.

 

Teaching

My teaching includes both undergraduate and graduate-level courses. I run courses in my primary areas of interest including Cognitive Psychology and Human Performance, as well as courses in fundamental areas of psychology such as Statistics and Research Methods.

 

Cognitive Psychology PhD at CSU

Cognitive psychology is an active area of study at Colorado State University, as one of five doctoral programs offered by the Department of Psychology.

The Cognitive Section of the Department of Psychology here at CSU consists of a small and highly interactive group of researchers. Our multidisciplinary perspective means we maintain strong links with other sections within the department, as well as other departments throughout the university. The Cognitive Program has a focus on work dealing with Human Learning and Memory, facilitating the ability of students with these research interests to interact with a range of researchers.


Representative publications

Sequence Learning, Implicit Learning, Sequential Movements, Sequential Memory

Abrahamse, E. L., Jimenez, L., Verwey, W. B., & Clegg, B. A. (2010). Representing serial action and perception. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 17(5), 603-623. Online version Abstract

Clegg, B. A. (2005). Stimulus-specific sequence representation in serial reaction time tasks. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology. 58A(6), 1087-1101. Online version Abstract

Clegg, B.A., DiGirolamo, G.J., & Keele, S.W. (1998). Sequence learning. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2, 275-281. Online version Abstract

Clegg, B. A., Wood, J. A., & Bugg, J. M. (2004). Real and imagined movements in older and younger adults. Journal of Mental Imagery, 28(1&2), 1-16. Abstract

Durrance Blalock, L., & Clegg, B. A. (2010). Encoding and representation of simultaneous and sequential arrays in visuospatial working memory. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology. In Press. Online version Abstract

Francis, A. P., Schmidt, G. L., Carr, T. H., & Clegg, B. A. (2009). Incidental learning of abstract rules for non-dominant word orders. Psychological Research, 73(1), 60-74. Online version Abstract

O'Shea, G. & Clegg, B. A. (2006). Stimulus and response chunking in the Hebb Digits task. Psychological Research, 70, 180-192. Online version Abstract

Richard, M. V., Clegg, B. A., & Seger, C. A. (2009). Implicit motor sequence learning is not represented purely in response locations. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 62(8), 1516-1522. Online version Abstract

Verwey, W. B. & Clegg, B. A. (2005). Effector dependent sequence learning in the serial RT task. Psychological Research 69(4), 242-251. Online version Abstract

Applied Cognitive Psychology

Blalock, L. D., Sawyer, B. D., Kiken, A. & Clegg, B. A. (2009). The impact of load on dynamic versus static situational knowledge while driving. Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 53rd Annual Meeting, 1338-1342. Reprint Abstract

Bugg, J. M., DeLosh, E. L., & Clegg, B. A. (2006). Physical activity moderates time-of-day differences in older adults' working memory performance. Experimental Aging Research, 32(4), 431-446. Online version Abstract

Clegg, B. A., Heggestad, E. D., & Durrance Blalock, L. (2010). The influences of automation and trainee aptitude on training effectiveness. Proceedings of 54th Annual Meeting of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 2329-2332. Online version Abstract

Groeger, J. A. & Clegg, B. A. (2007). Systematic changes in the rate of instruction during driver training. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 21(9), 1229-1244. Online Version Abstract

Groeger, J. A., Clegg, B. A., & O'Shea, G. (2005).Conjunction in simulated railway signals: A cautionary note. Applied Cognitive Psychology. 19(8), 973-984. Online version Abstract

Hopp, P. J., Smith, C. A. P., Clegg, B. A., & Heggestad, E. D. (2005). Interruption management: The use of attention-directing tactile cues. Human Factors, 47(1), 1-11. Online version Abstract

Hopp-Levine, P. J., Smith, C. A. P., Clegg, B. A., & Heggestad, E. D. (2006). Tactile interruption management: tactile cues as task-switching reminders. Cognition, Technology & Work, 8(2), 137-145. Online version Abstract

Morett, L. M., Clegg, B. A., Blalock, L. D., & Mong, H. M. (2008). Applying multimedia learning theory to map learning and driving navigation. Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour, 12(1), 40-49. Online version Abstract

Smith, C. A. P., Clegg, B. A., Heggestad, E. D., & Hopp-Levine, P. J. (2009). Interruption management: A comparison of auditory and tactile cue for both alerting and orienting. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 67(9) 777-786. Online version Abstract

Young. P. M., Clegg, B. A., & Smith, C. A. P. (2004). Dynamic models of augmented cognition. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, 17(2), 259-273. Online version Abstract