Digital technologies have gained much popularity in education thanks to the cost efficiency they gain through scalability. While the acceptance of some of these new digital technologies has been investigated, there are few direct comparisons. The most established model for measuring acceptance is the technology acceptance model, which can predict the behavioral intention to use the technology. We compared four digital learning technologies (e-lectures, classroom response system, classroom chat, and mobile virtual reality) in terms of their technology acceptance. The classroom response system had the highest level of acceptance. It was closely followed by e-lectures, then the classroom chat and then mobile virtual reality. The students evaluated all tools favorably before and after usage, except for mobile virtual reality, which saw a substantial drop in perceived usefulness and behavioral intention after 3 months’ usage.

The growing threat of terrorism has increased the importance of aviation security and the work of airport security officers (screeners). Nonetheless, airport security research has yet to focus on emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction as major determinants of screeners’ job performance. The present study bridges this research gap by applying the job demands–resources (JD–R) model and using work–family conflict (WFC) as an intervening variable to study relationships between work characteristics (workload and supervisor support), emotional exhaustion, and job satisfaction in 1,127 screeners at a European airport. Results of structural equation modeling revealed that (a) supervisor support as a major job resource predicted job satisfaction among screeners; (b) workload as a major job demand predicted their emotional exhaustion; and (c) WFC proved to be a promising extension to the JD–R model that partially mediated the impact of supervisor support and workload on job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

X-ray screening of passenger bags is an essential component of airport security. However, the most expensive equipment is of limited value, if the humans who operate it are not selected and trained appropriately. Scientific studies have shown that human performance in X-ray image interpretation depends critically on individual abilities and visual knowledge acquired through experience on the job and training. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of adaptive computer-based training for increasing the detection of guns, knives, improvised explosive devices (lEDs), and other prohibited items. 97 airport security screeners of a European airport participated in this study. At the beginning of the project all airport security screeners conducted the X-ray competency assessment test (X-ray CAT). Thereupon they received adaptive computer-based training (CBT) for about 4 months. Then they conducted the X-ray CAT the second time in the middle of the project This was followed by about 4 months of CBT and a third test with X-ray CAT at the end of the project. The goal was that each screener conducts at least one 20 minute training session per week. Substantial increases of detection performance were found as a result of training, which depended on the threat category (guns, lEDs, knives and other prohibited items). The largest training effects were found for lEDs. Additional analyses showed that training not only leads to an increase of detection performance but also results in faster response times when an X-ray image contains a threat object. Thus, recurrent CBT can be a powerful tool to increase efficiency in X-ray image interpretation by airport security screeners.

For automatic or context-aware systems a major issue is user trust, which is to a large extent determined by system reliability. For systems based on sensor input which are inherently uncertain or even uncomplete there is little hope that they will ever be perfectly reliable. In this paper we test the hypothesis if explicitly displaying the current confidence of the system increases the usability of such systems. For the example of a context-aware mobile phone, the experiments show that displaying confidence information increases the user's trust in the system

In a retrospective study, we compared school performance of 53 children practicing music (group 1) with 67 controls not practicing music (group 2). Overall average marks as well as average marks of all school subjects except sports were significantly higher in children who do (group 1) than in those who do not practice music (group 2). In a multiple regression analysis, musical training, parent’s income, and educational level (grades) correlated significantly with overall average marks. A slight decrease of overall average marks over 4 years from grades 3 to 6 was found in the control group only. Musical training evidently correlates with children’s better performance at school, but is obviously part of a multifactorial dependence. Continuous musical training appears to help achieve and maintain school performance at a high level over time.