Tidying an if.. then statement in E-Prime script for attention capture paradigm

Sun May 16 22:23:39 UTC 2010

On further thought, I don't think I would put everything into one array 
or List.  I was on a better track with my notion of constructing file 
names from the desired image attributes.  So instead, I might make a 
separate List or array for each attribute, and then pick a sample from 
each List or array to construct a file name.  E.g., with a List for 
EyeColor and another List for Orientation, I could again construct a 
file name in inline code with

c.SetAttrib "ImageFile", c.GetAttrib("EyeColor") & "-" _
     & c.GetAttrib("Orientation") & ".bmp"

or as before directly in the File Name property of the appropriate 
object with

[EyeColor]-[Orientation].bmp

In fact, if I drew samples without replacement, and my Lists (or arrays) 
contained only one sample of each value, then the next sample drawn from 
each attribute is guaranteed to differ from the first value drawn, and 
once again I would not need any If...Then.

This still fits my broader theme that many times, when we find ourselves 
in a deep tangle of code, the answer lies not in finding yet another 
knot to add to the tangle, but instead in restructuring the problem in 
such away that the tangle never occurs in the first place.  This sort of 
judgment comes from education in, dedication to, and experience with the 
grand art of computer programming.

-- David McFarlane, Professional Faultfinder

On 14 May 2010 David McFarlane wrote:
> Chloe,
> 
> Wow.  I would like to know how others here feel, but when I see someone 
> post more than about a dozen lines of code I get the feeling that they 
> are so hopelessly lost that they are beyond any help that I can offer.  
> Still, I will hazard a couple of thoughts on this situation.
> 
> If I were to use arrays for this (instead of Lists, which I will come 
> back to), then I would put everything into one array instead of 
> separated into so many arrays as you have done.  Using all those 
> separate arrays just complicates matters and wastes the power of 
> arrays.  With all the file names in one array, I could then use Mid() or 
> InStr() to inspect any string for the presence of tags like "Neut" or 
> "Hap", and I would need only one array name to use in my conditional 
> expressions for the If...Thens.
> 
> Sticking with arrays, I might go a step further and put all this into 
> one mult-dimensional array.  I could use one dimension for eye color, 
> another for orientation, etc.  Now, by a suitable choice of index 
> values, I could immediately single out ranges from any dimensions I like.
> 
> But I would probably not use arrays anyway.  More likely I would put all 
> this into a List.  After all, if you are not going to use the 
> specialized features of E-Prime, why use it at all? -- You could just as 
> well use any general-purpose programming platform, which would both cost 
> less and make more portable programs.  Anyway, my List could contain a 
> column or "attribute" for each, well, attribute, e.g., ID, EyeColor, 
> Orientation, Emotion.  I could then generate my file names simply by 
> concatenating attribute references in my Image or Slide objects, thus: 
> [ID]-[EyeColor]-[Orientation]-[Emotion].bmp (note that I do not have to 
> include the ".bmp" in any of the strings of either arrays or Lists).  I 
> might even go a bit further and use nested Lists to indicate which files 
> may be used with each other file.  With enough care, I might do 
> everything with Lists and not need any If...Thens at all!
> 
> In any case, I think this could all be cleared up with a little more 
> study into elementary computer programming combined with a little more 
> exercise in the specifics of E-Prime.  So I will close with a bit of 
> more general advice that others here are sick of seeing from me:
> 
> 1) First, decide whether you want to be a researcher who dabbles in 
> computer programming, or a computer programmer who dabbles in psychology 
> research.
> 
> 2) If the former, then hire this out to someone who actually enjoys this 
> sort of work and is good at it, while you do something else that you 
> enjoy and are good at.  That's what the division of labor is all about, 
> learn to use it.
> 
> 3) In any case, do take an Introduction to Computer Programming class, 
> if not to make you into a programmer then to help you communicate and 
> collaborate better with any programmer that you hire to shore up the 
> technical needs of your research.
> 
> And if you haven't even done the tutorials that come with E-Prime, then 
> you should really start there.
> 
> -- David McFarlane, Professional Faultfinder
> "For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public 
> relations, for nature cannot be fooled."  (Richard Feynman, Nobel 
> prize-winning physicist)
> 
> 
> At 5/13/2010 06:05 PM Thursday, you wrote:
>> I’m having some problems with scripting an If, then clause in my
>> program. I’ve edited an emotional capture paradigm in which people
>> view 3 faces on the screen, one face has blue eyes (the target) and
>> the other two faces have brown eye (the distractors). When
>> participants find the blue eyed face, they must respond with what
>> direction the face is tilted in (left or right). On 2/3 trials, all
>> faces have a neutral emo expression. However, on 1/3 trials, one face
>> will show a discrepant emotion (either happy or sad) and this
>> discrepant emotion can appear on either the target face or on the
>> distractor faces. The emotion is always irrelevant to the task (find
>> blue eyes).
>>
>> I use four face identities in this task, and the pictures are edited
>> so each face has blue eyes and brown eyes. So, for example, I have a
>> picture of ID1 with blue eyes and a picture of ID1 with brown eyes.
>> Also, the faces can appear in Left or Right orientation. So, the
>> picture files I have are listed in program as thus:
>> LBluNeut(1) = "M1_Bl_L_Neut.bmp"
>> LBluNeut(2) = "M2_Bl_L_Neut.bmp"
>> LBluNeut(3) = "F1_Bl_L_Neut.bmp"
>> LBluNeut(4) = "f2_Bl_L_Neut.bmp"
>>
>> RBluNeut(1) = "M1_Bl_R_Neut.bmp"
>> RBluNeut(2) = "M2_Bl_R_Neut.bmp"
>> RBluNeut(3) = "F1_Bl_R_Neut.bmp"
>> RBluNeut(4) = "F2_Bl_R_Neut.bmp"
>>
>> LBluHap(1) = "M1_Bl_L_Hap.bmp"
>> LBluHap(2) = "M2_Bl_L_Hap.bmp"
>> LBluHap(3) = "F1_Bl_L_Hap.bmp"
>> LBluHap(4) = "F2_Bl_L_Hap.bmp"
>>
>> RBluHap(1) = "M1_Bl_R_Hap.bmp"
>> RBluHap(2) = "M2_Bl_R_Hap.bmp"
>> RBluHap(3) = "F1_Bl_R_Hap.bmp"
>> RBluHap(4) = "F2_Bl_R_Hap.bmp"
>>
>> LBluSad(1) = "M1_Bl_L_Sad.bmp"
>> LBluSad(2) = "M2_Bl_L_Sad.bmp"
>> LBluSad(3) = "F1_Bl_L_Sad.bmp"
>> LBluSad(4) = "F2_Bl_L_Sad.bmp"
>>
>> Etc… and repeated for all the brown eyes.
>>
>> I then have this code:
>>
>> 'position objects
>> 'dim nIndex as integer
>>
>> for fill_loop = 1 to 3          ‘POSITION OF DISPLAY ITEMS
>>  pos(fill_loop) = fill_loop
>> next fill_loop
>>
>> for fill_loop = 1 to 4   'WHICH BROWN EYE (DISTRACTOR) FACE
>>  bro_eye(fill_loop) = fill_loop
>> next fill_loop
>>
>>
>> 'MAKE TARGET NOT SAME AS TARGET ON TRIAL n - 1
>> do
>>  curr_tar = random(1,4)
>> loop while (curr_tar = prev_tar)
>> ‘MAKE DISTRACTOR NOT SAME AS DISTRACTOR ON TRIAL n - 1
>> do
>>  RandomizeArray bro_eye, 1, 4
>> loop while (bro_eye(1) = prev_dis)
>> prev_tar = curr_tar
>> prev_dis = bro_eye(1)
>>
>> /
>> *========================================================================= 
>>
>> ''''Choose target face (blue eyes) as first item in list face
>> =========================================================================*/ 
>>
>>
>> select case c.getattrib("Target_Emotion")
>> case "neutral"
>>
>>  select case c.getattrib("T_Orient")    'READ TARGET FROM TABLE
>>  case "left"
>>   c.setattrib"rc","m"    'SET RESPONSE
>>   stim(1) = LBluNeut(curr_tar)
>>  case "right"
>>   c.setattrib"rc","k"     'SET RESPONSE
>>   stim(1) = RBluNeut(curr_tar)
>>  end select
>>
>> case "happy"
>>  select case c.getattrib("T_Orient")
>>  case "left"
>>   c.setattrib"rc","m"
>>   stim(1) = LBluHap(curr_tar)
>>  case "right"
>>   c.setattrib"rc","k"
>>   stim(1) = RBluHap(curr_tar)
>>  end select
>>
>>
>> case "sad"
>>  select case c.getattrib("T_Orient")
>>  case "left"
>>   c.setattrib"rc","m"
>>   stim(1) = LBluSad(curr_tar)
>>  case "right"
>>   c.setattrib"rc","k"
>>   stim(1) = RBluSad(curr_tar)
>>  end select
>> end select
>>
>> /
>> *============================================================================*/ 
>>
>> /
>> *========================================================================= 
>>
>> ''''Choose brown eyes face for 2nd item in list - CAN be emotional
>> =========================================================================*/ 
>>
>>
>> select case c.getattrib("Distractor_Emotion")
>> case "neutral"
>>
>>  select case c.getattrib("D1_Orient")    'READ DISTRACTOR 1
>> ORIENTATION CONDITION FROM TABLE
>>  case "left"
>>   stim(2) = LBroNeut(bro_eye(1))
>>  case "right"
>>   stim(2) = RBroNeut(bro_eye(1))
>>  end select
>>
>> case "happy"
>>  select case c.getattrib("D1_Orient")
>>  case "left"
>>   stim(2) = LBroHap(bro_eye(1))
>>  case "right"
>>   stim(2) = RBroHap(bro_eye(1))
>>  end select
>>
>>
>> case "sad"
>>  select case c.getattrib("D1_Orient")
>>  case "left"
>>   stim(2) = LBroSad(bro_eye(1))
>>  case "right"
>>   stim(2) = RBroSad(bro_eye(1))
>>  end select
>> end select
>>
>> /
>> *============================================================================== 
>>
>> ''''Choose second brown eye face as distractor item - never the
>> emotional one.
>> ===============================================================================*/ 
>>
>>
>> select case c.getattrib("D2_Orient")
>>  case "left"
>>   stim(3) = LBroNeut(bro_eye(2))
>>  case "right"
>>   stim(3) = RBroNeut(bro_eye(2))
>>  end select
>>
>> /
>> *============================================================================*/ 
>>
>>
>> RandomizeArray pos, 1, 3
>>
>>
>> /*Assign filenames to locations in slide*/
>>
>> c.setattrib "e1", stim(pos(1))
>> c.setattrib "e2", stim(pos(2))
>> c.setattrib "e3", stim(pos(3))
>>
>>
>> strImageFile = c.GetAttrib("e1")
>>  LoadSlideImageFile search.States(search.ActiveState), "image1",
>> strImageFile
>>  strImageFile = c.GetAttrib("e2")
>>  LoadSlideImageFile search.States(search.ActiveState), "image2",
>> strImageFile
>>  strImageFile = c.GetAttrib("e3")
>>  LoadSlideImageFile search.States(search.ActiveState), "image3",
>> strImageFile
>>
>>
>> Okay, so the problem is, I need to insert a clause so that if the
>> target being shown is a picture of person1/ID1 with blue eyes, then
>> none of the distractors show ID1 with brown eyes. So something like:
>>
>> If curr_tarr = LBluNeut(1) or RBluNeut(1) or LBluSad(1) or RBluSad(1)
>> or LBluHap(1) or RBluHap(1)
>> then distractors can’t be LBroNeut(1) or RBroNeut(1) or LBroSad(1) or
>> RBroSad(1) or LBroHap(1) or RBroHap(1)
>> or if curr_tar = LBluNeut(2) or RBluNeut(2) or LBluSad(2) or
>> RBluSad(2) or LBluHap(2) or RBluHap(2)
>> then distractors can’t be LBroNeut(2) or RBroNeut(2) or LBroSad(2) or
>> RBroSad(2) or LBroHap(2) or RBroHap(2)
>>
>> etc. for all four IDs. But 1) this doesn’t work! And 2) there must be
>> a simpler way of doing this?!
>>
>> Please help!

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