In order to simulate virtual humans more realistically and enable them life-like behaviours, several exploration research on emotion calculation, synthetic perception, and decision making process have been discussed. A series of sub-modules have been designed and simulation results have been presented with discussion. A visual based synthetic perception system has been proposed in this thesis, which allows virtual humans to detect the surrounding virtual environment through a collision-based synthetic vision system. It enables autonomous virtual humans to change their emotion states according to stimuli in real time. The synthetic perception system also allows virtual humans to remember limited information within their own First-in-first-out short-term virtual memory. The new emotion generation method includes a novel hierarchical emotion structure and a group of emotion calculation equations, which enables virtual humans to perform emotionally in real-time according to their internal and external factors. Emotion calculation equations used in this research were derived from psychologic emotion measurements. Virtual humans can utilise the information in virtual memory and emotion calculation equations to generate their own numerical emotion states within the hierarchical emotion structure. Those emotion states are important internal references for virtual humans to adopt appropriate behaviours and also key cues for their decision making. The work introduces a dynamic emotional motion database structure for virtual human modelling. When developing realistic virtual human behaviours, lots of subjects were motion-captured whilst performing emotional motions with or without intent. The captured motions were endowed to virtual characters and implemented in different virtual scenarios to help evoke and verify design ideas, possible consequences of simulation (such as fire evacuation). This work also introduced simple heuristics theory into decision making process in order to make the virtual human’s decision making more like real human. Emotion values are proposed as a group of the key cues for decision making under the simple heuristic structures. A data interface which connects the emotion calculation and the decision making structure together has also been designed for the simulation system.

Background: Alcohol misuse and dependency are major health problems worldwide. Despite the availability of a number of evidence-based treatments for alcohol-dependency, a large proportion of people relapse following detoxification. The costs to society and the individual are vast, not only economically but in terms of social and interpersonal functioning also. There is a recognised need to understand the factors that contribute to poorer outcomes in this population. Cognitive impairment is one factor that has demonstrated considerable associations with poor outcomes in the wider substance-misuse population. Aims: This thesis has two sections. The first comprises a systematic review which aimed to present the objective evidence for emotional decision-making deficits in the alcohol dependent population. The second is an empirical study which aimed to establish whether or not relapse can be predicted in a severely alcohol dependent population in the early stages following inpatient detoxification. In addition, a normative dataset for this clinical population using the ACE-III is presented. Methods: For the systematic review, a structured search of the literature relating to emotional decision-making in alcohol dependent samples was conducted. Iterative application of pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria identified eighteen studies for critical review. Quality assessment of these studies was undertaken and validated by means of calculating inter-rater reliability. For the empirical study, two sub-samples of a cross-sectional group of patients being treated for severe alcohol-dependence were examined; one to collate normative data for the ACE-III (N=73) and one to investigate associations between the ACE-III and relapse (N=20), including covariates of age, mood, anxiety and motivation. Results: The systematic review demonstrated substantial support for a deficit in emotional decision-making ability in alcohol-dependence. Methodological quality of the reviewed papers was moderate to high. Deficits in performance on a task of emotional decision-making compared to healthy controls indicated a reduced learning curve in alcohol dependent samples. Limitations of the studies included failure to report power analyses and effect sizes, insufficient detail regarding methodology and exclusion of common comorbidities in alcohol-dependence. The empirical study demonstrated clinically significant cognitive impairment in a sample of severely alcohol dependent individuals in the early stages following detoxification. In a smaller sample, cognitive functioning was not found to be predictive of relapse at one-month post-detoxification. Associations were identified between age and ACE-III score and between age and relapse status. Age was not predictive of outcome. Conclusions: The available evidence points towards the existence of emotional decision-making deficits in alcohol dependent individuals. These are likely to impact on the ability of individuals make the health behaviour changes required to recover from alcohol dependence. Further research may be helpful in identifying factors associated with increased decision-making deficit in this specific population and investigating the processes underlying such difficulties. The clinical normative dataset presented in the empirical study points towards generalised cognitive impairment during the early stages of abstinence which may negatively impact on ability to engage meaningfully with psychosocial interventions. Performance on the ACE-III was not found to predict relapse in the current sample. Previous research would suggest that the links between cognitive functioning and relapse are less well defined in alcohol-misusing samples than in the wider substance-misuse population. Therefore future research may help to clarify this association in alcohol dependent samples. It is acknowledged that the ACE-III is yet to be validated for use in the alcohol dependent population and is limited in its ability to assess executive functions. Given the high prevalence of executive functioning deficits in the alcohol dependent population, it seems of importance to use cognitive screening tools which place appropriate emphasis on these abilities. Service providers are encouraged to incorporate routine cognitive screening into clinical practice and consider the implications of cognitive impairment at both individual and service delivery levels.

Bakgrunden för denna studie är problematiken kring beslutsfattande. Tidigare forskning visar att en individ dagligen fattar en mängd medvetna och omedvetna beslut. Dessa beslut faller sig olika utefter vilka erfarenheter, preferenser och känslor individen har och hur detta påverkar individen vid köp av dyra sällanköpsvaror. Syftet med studien är att identifiera faktorer och personlighetstyper som influerar köparens beslut gällande dyra sällanköpsvaror. / The aim of this study is to identify factors and personality characteristics influencing the buyer's decision regarding expensive durable goods. The findings suggest how to apply knowledge and awareness of the decision process in on-site presentation to improve the efficiency of the selling process from the sellers’ perspective.

This is a review of what the currently dominant theories of moral decision-making are and where they derive from. While the introduction serves as a common ground to explain what moral decision-making is, the earlier parts of the thesis describe older traditionalist theories within the field,  theories of emotional decision-making, in the form of the somatic marker hypothesis, as well as critique of the older traditionalist theories through the social intuitionist model. Both of these two theories are explained as the foundation of the current theories of moral decision-making and after establishing a clear basis on what the currently dominant theories of moral decision-making are built on, said theories are introduced in the form of the dual-processing theory and the event-feature-emotion complexes which are thoroughly reviewed, explained in detail and serves as the core of the text. This is afterward followed by criticism as well as arguments in favor of both theories as well as criticisms from other researchers who disagree with the methodology which the theories of moral decision-making are conducted on. The essay reviews the current state of the field of moral decision-making which has been split up into two different approaches, the locationist approach and the constructionist approach. The essay concludes that there are terms which needs to be clarified in order for the field to move forward and studies to be made regarding the social implications of gut reactions in moral decision-making.

This study investigates if attitudes towards the pandemic recommendations made by the Public Health Agency of Sweden and if the estimation of their duration differ before and after a Covid-19 vaccination. The participants contributed to the study by filling out a questionnaire. A mass vaccination is a rare occurrence and few empirical studies have been conducted. A risk regarding a mass vaccination is that it can result in a premature relaxed mindset towards the recommendations, which can lead to an increased spread of the virus. To investigate this, we compared the responses from the participants who filled out the questionnaire before and after the Covid-19 vaccination. The results showed no differences in the attitudes towards the recommendations in the two groups, however tendencies of differences regarding the estimation of duration of the pandemic recommendations was discovered. Thus, we could not detect any large effects of a more relaxed mindset towards the recommendations, however we cannot exclude smaller effects. The results do not support that stricter recommendations should be introduced in order to counteract a more relaxed attitude. / Studien ämnar undersöka om inställningen till Folkhälsomyndighetens rekommendationer och uppskattningen av pandemirekommendationernas varaktighet skiljer sig åt före respektive efter vaccination mot covid-19. Deltagarna medverkade i studien genom att svara på ett frågeformulär.En massvaccinering är en sällsynt förekomst och få empiriska studier har genomförts. En risk vidgenomförandet av en massvaccinering är att den kan resultera i en för tidigt avslappnad inställning till rekommendationerna, vilket kan leda till en ökad smittspridning i samhället. Resultatet visade inte på några skillnader i inställningen till rekommendationerna mellan de två grupperna, dock fanns det tendenser till skillnader angående uppskattningen av pandemirekommendationernasvaraktighet. Således, utifrån studiens resultat, påvisades inte någon stor effekt av en avslappnad inställning efter en massvaccinering men det går inte att utesluta mindre effekter. Studiens resultatstyrker inte att strängare rekommendationer bör införas i en vaccinationsfas för att motverka en avslappnad inställning.