Academic literature on the topic 'Hierarchical framing'

Abstract Since the advent of high-resolution pitch tracking data (PITCHf/x), many in the sabermetrics community have attempted to quantify a Major League Baseball catcher’s ability to “frame” a pitch (i.e. increase the chance that a pitch is a called as a strike). Especially in the last 3 years, there has been an explosion of interest in the “art of pitch framing” in the popular press as well as signs that teams are considering framing when making roster decisions. We introduce a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate each umpire’s probability of calling a strike, adjusting for the pitch participants, pitch location, and contextual information like the count. Using our model, we can estimate each catcher’s effect on an umpire’s chance of calling a strike. We are then able translate these estimated effects into average runs saved across a season. We also introduce a new metric, analogous to Jensen, Shirley, and Wyner’s Spatially Aggregate Fielding Evaluation metric, which provides a more honest assessment of the impact of framing.

The article analyses the hierarchical visual compositions and framing of Marco Calvani’s The View from Up Here and argues that its carefully structured compositions create a metaphorical imbalance in power between the two main characters, an American housewife and a Syrian refugee. The repeated use of low-angle camera positions and the claustrophobic framings adds a connotative layer to the film that emphasizes the subaltern refugee’s inferior status in the view of the American.

Purpose A fundamental aspect of hierarchical loyalty programs is that some consumers get rewards that others do not. Despite the widespread use of such programs, academics have long debated whether these benefits are outweighed by the potential negative impact of the differential treatment of customers. This study aims to extend our understanding, examining the impact of message framing on consumers’ reactions to hierarchical loyalty structures. Design/methodology/approach Three online studies were conducted. Study 1 uses advertisements to manipulate the message frame’s emphasis (benefits vs status). Study 2 manipulates consumers’ frame of thought by directing their attention to either changes in benefits or status. Finally, Study 3 uses the proposed framework to reconcile contradictory findings from past research. Findings Low-frequency customers who do not expect to qualify for a superior customer tier tend to reject hierarchical programs when thinking about status. In contrast, when these customers think about concrete rewards, loyalty program messages produce no negative reactions. High-frequency customers are positively affected by communication regardless of the type of benefits framed. Research limitations/implications All studies were done online, potentially limiting the external validity of the results. Nevertheless, the impact of message framing on perceptions about the loyalty program seems to be quite robust across different studies and manipulations. Practical implications When communicating with low-frequency customers, managers should avoid promising status; customers should instead be motivated based on concrete rewards. High-frequency customers are indifferent to alternative emphasis of communication frames. Originality/value Marketing academics have acknowledged the importance of being able to reward top customers without demotivating light and moderate users. This research is the first to provide a solution to this issue.

While collections of documents are often annotated with hierarchically structured concepts, the benefits of these structures are rarely taken into account by classification techniques. Within this context, hierarchical text classification methods are devised to take advantage of the labels’ organization to boost classification performance. In this work, we aim to deliver an updated overview of the current research in this domain. We begin by defining the task and framing it within the broader text classification area, examining important shared concepts such as text representation. Then, we dive into details regarding the specific task, providing a high-level description of its traditional approaches. We then summarize recently proposed methods, highlighting their main contributions. We also provide statistics for the most commonly used datasets and describe the benefits of using evaluation metrics tailored to hierarchical settings. Finally, a selection of recent proposals is benchmarked against non-hierarchical baselines on five public domain-specific datasets. These datasets, along with our code, are made available for future research.

While there is growing interest in leader–follower relationships in the leadership literature, little is known about how a leader’s framing effect triggers employees’ proactive behaviors. This research aims to extend previous knowledge about the effects of leaders’ goal framing and uncover their potential impacts on followership behaviors. Drawing on social information processing theory, this study proposes that both types of goal framing (gaining and losing) indirectly influence employees’ followership behaviors by mobilizing their sense of work meaning, especially when they have a power dependence on their leaders, using the method of questionnaire measurement, CFA analysis, hierarchical regression analysis, and the bootstrap tested hypotheses. The results show that gain framing indirectly contributes to employees’ followership behaviors by enhancing work meaning. Furthermore, this positive indirect relationship is stronger for employees with high power dependence. Yet another finding reveals that loss framing negatively impacts followership behavior by reducing employees’ sense of work meaning, which is unaffected by power dependence. From the perspective of the framing effect, this study verifies the influence of goal framing on employees’ behaviors and illustrates the effect of work meaning as a mechanism of goal framing on followership behavior.

This research note discusses risk perceptions of CO2 storage from a cultural theory perspective. Data for consideration is drawn from several publications by key stakeholders in the CO2 storage risk debate, as well as studies of (lay) public perceptions of risk. Two strands of further research are proposed based on the data, and a claim is made that publications from one stakeholder, the EU Commission, strongly indicate a risk framing that conforms to the hierarchical typology within cultural theory. Suggestions are made for more detailed fieldwork to confirm this finding and to investigate the research questions further.

<p>The goal of this study was to explore the recontextualisation of knowledge in the plant biotechnology lessons at the Copperbelt university in Zambia. The study was aimed at understanding the pedagogic discourse which the biology education students experience during their training. The study used a qualitative approach to collect and analyse the data. Observation method was used to collect the data by video recording three lessons. Bernstein’s framing and classification concepts were the analytic tools in this study. Atlas ti 8 software was used to analyse the data. The study found that the framing was strong in the hierarchical rules, selection, sequencing, pacing and that the evaluation criteria and that the framing was weak in the evaluation criteria. The classification was weak (C-) in the inter-disciplinary relations, inter-discursive relations and in the intra-disciplinary relations. These findings indicate that biology education students were not adequately prepared to teach biology in secondary schools.</p>

Plusieurs modèles soulignent l'importance de la motivation et de la volition pour favoriser le changement comportemental. Cette thèse a pour originalité de combiner certaines stratégies motivationnelles et/ou volitionnelles afin d'identifier les mécanismes générés et les potentiels modérateurs, et in fine, cerner comment maximiser leur efficacité. Cinq stratégies sont considérées : le contraste mental, le soutien à l'autodétermination de la motivation, le cadrage hiérarchique de buts (stratégies motivationnelles), l'entraînement à l'approche-évitement, et l'intention d'implémenter (stratégies volitionnelles). Le programme de recherche se décline en trois axes. L'axe 1 examine l'hypothèse selon laquelle une tâche difficile et stressante (Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test - Computerized) est mieux réussie, et génère plus d'autodétermination (Intrinsic Motivation Inventory) lorsque le but est cadré de manière hiérarchique (focalisation sur l'engagement) ou mixte hiérarchique-conditionnel (focalisation sur l'engagement et le résultat), que de manière conditionnelle (focalisation sur le résultat). Les résultats d'analyses fréquentistes des données de 167 étudiants (Mage = 23,3, SD = 3,7 ; 54,49% de femmes) ne confirment pas l'hypothèse. Le potentiel rôle du décalage entre cadrage de buts spontané et assigné, et d'autres facteurs motivationnels est discuté. L'axe 2 se focalise sur l'intérêt de combiner l'entraînement à l'approche-évitement et l'intention d'implémenter pour aider les patients souffrant de troubles de l'usage de l'alcool à changer une tendance automatique à approcher l'alcool. Des variantes de l'Approach-Avoidance Task sont réalisées dans trois conditions : les entraînements standard et avec intention d'implémenter impliquent d'éviter systématiquement l'alcool, seules les consignes différaient (« Je m'éloigne de l'alcool » vs. « Si je vois de l'alcool, alors je m'en éloigne ») ; la condition contrôle implique autant d'approcher que d'éviter l'alcool. L'hypothèse est que l'entraînement avec intention d'implémenter, et dans une moindre mesure l'entraînement standard (vs. condition contrôle), aident à changer : les tendances à l'approche-évitement (Approach-Avoidance Task) en post-test, et la consommation d'alcool (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test - Consumption), la dépendance (Short Alcohol Dependence Data questionnaire), et les retentissements biopsychosociaux (Short Inventory of Problems - Revised) en suivi à 2 mois. Nous avons validé et publié les questionnaires de dépendance et de retentissements en langue française. En août 2024, 75 patients souffrant de troubles de l'usage de l'alcool ont été recrutés (Mage = 47,5, SD = 11,6 ; 73,33% d'hommes) ; la collecte des données se poursuit actuellement. Les résultats préliminaires d'analyses bayésiennes fournissent des premiers éléments semblant souligner l'efficacité de l'entraînement mais l'absence de plus-value de l'intention d'implémenter. Des explications en termes de caractéristiques de l'intention d'implémenter utilisée et de dynamique de changement sont avancées. Le confirmatory report de cette étude est accepté à l'International Review of Social Psychology. L'axe 3 examine l'hypothèse d'une efficacité du contraste mental et de l'intention d'implémenter (vs. condition contrôle) pour favoriser l'activité physique (Godin Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire) lors d'un suivi à 1 mois, qui serait augmentée en les combinant ensemble. Nous supposions également que le contraste mental agirait surtout sur l'engagement tandis que l'intention d'implémenter agirait surtout sur l'automaticité comportementale (Self-Report Behavioral Automaticity Index). Six cents adultes insuffisamment actifs seront recrutés. Les résultats d'analyses bayésiennes fourniront probablement des éléments de preuve pour statuer sur l'efficacité des stratégies et leur fonctionnement. Le confirmatory report de cette étude est accepté à l'International Review of Social Psychology
Several models emphasize the importance of motivation and volition for promoting behavior change. The original aim of this thesis is to combine some motivational and/or volitional strategies to identify the generated mechanisms and potential moderators, and ultimately to determine how to maximize their effectiveness. Five strategies are considered: mental contrasting, motivational self-determination support, hierarchical goal framing (motivational strategies), approach-avoidance training, and implementation intentions (volitional strategies). The research program is divided into three axes. Axis 1 examines the hypothesis that a difficult and stressful task (Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test - Computerized) is better performed, and generates more self-determination (Intrinsic Motivation Inventory) when the goal is framed hierarchically (focus on commitment) or mixed hierarchically-conditionally (focus on commitment and outcome), than conditionally (focus on outcome). The results of frequentist analyses of data from 167 students (Mage = 23.3, SD = 3.7; 54.49% female) do not support the hypothesis. The potential role of the mismatch between spontaneous and assigned goal framing, as well as other motivational factors, is discussed. Axis 2 focuses on the interest of combining approach-avoidance training and implementation intentions to help patients with alcohol use disorders changing an automatic tendency to approach alcohol. Variants of the Approach-Avoidance Task were performed in three conditions: standard training and training with implementation intentions involved systematic avoidance of alcohol, with only the instructions differing (“I move away from alcohol” vs. “If I see alcohol, then I move away from it”); the control condition involves approaching and avoiding alcohol equally. The hypothesis is that training with implementation intentions, and to a lesser extent standard training (vs. control condition), helps to change: approach-avoidance tendencies (Approach-Avoidance Task) at post-test, and alcohol consumption (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test - Consumption), dependence (Short Alcohol Dependence Data questionnaire), and biopsychosocial repercussions (Short Inventory of Problems - Revised) at 2-month follow-up. We have validated and published the dependence and repercussions questionnaires in French. In August 2024, 75 patients with alcohol use disorders were recruited (Mage = 47.5, SD = 11.6; 73.33% male); data collection is currently ongoing. Preliminary results from Bayesian analyses provide initial evidence suggesting that training is effective, but that the implementation intentions has no added value. Explanations in terms of the characteristics of the implementation intentions used and the dynamics of change are put forward. A confirmatory report focusing on this study has been accepted by the International Review of Social Psychology. Axis 3 examined the hypothesis of an effectiveness of mental contrast and implementation intentions (vs. control condition) in promoting physical activity (Godin Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire) at 1-month follow-up, and its enhancement by combining them together. It was also hypothesized that mental contrast would act primarily on engagement, while implementation intentions would act primarily on behavioral automaticity (Self-Report Behavioral Automaticity Index). Six hundred insufficiently active adults will be recruited. The results of Bayesian analyses are likely to provide evidence on the effectiveness of the strategies and how they work. A confirmatory report focusing on this study has been accepted by the International Review of Social Psychology

This volume covers the cultural history of race in ‘the long 19th century’ – the age of empire and nation-state, a transformative period during which a modern world had been forged and complex and hierarchical imperial formations were challenged by the emerging national norm. The concept of race emerged as a dominant epistemology in the context of the conflicting entanglement of empire and nation as two alternative but quite compatible forms of social imaginary. It penetrated all spheres of life under the novel conditions of the emerging mass culture and mass society and with the sanction of anthropocentric and positivistic science. Allegedly primeval and parasocial, ‘race’ was seen as a uniquely stable constant in a society in flux amid transforming institutions, economies, and political regimes. But contrary to this perception, there was nothing stable or natural about ‘race.’ The spread of racializing social and political imagination only reinforced the need for constant renegotiation and readjustment of racial boundaries. Therefore, avoiding any structuralist simplifications, this volume looks at specific imperial, nationalizing, and hybrid contexts framing the semantics and politics of race in the course of the long 19th century. In different parts of the globalizing world, various actors were applying their own notions of ‘race’ to others and to themselves, embracing it simultaneously as a language of othering and personal subjectivity. Consequently, the cultural history of race as told in this volume unfolds on many levels, in multiple loci, and in different genres, thus reflecting the qualities of race as an omnipresent and all-embracing discourse of the time.

Adaptation to climate change is not only a technical issue; above all, it is a matter of governance. Governance is more than government and includes the totality of interactions in which public as well as private actors participate, aiming to solve societal problems. Adaptation governance poses some specific, demanding challenges, such as the context of institutional fragmentation, as climate change involves almost all policy domains and governance levels; the persistent uncertainties about the nature and scale of risks and proposed solutions; and the need to make short-term policies based on long-term projections. Furthermore, adaptation is an emerging policy field with, at least for the time being, only weakly defined ambitions, responsibilities, procedures, routines, and solutions. Many scholars have already shown that complex problems, such as adaptation to climate change, cannot be solved in a straightforward way with actions taken by a hierarchic or monocentric form of governance. This raises the question of how to develop governance arrangements that contribute to realizing adaptation options and increasing the adaptive capacity of society. A series of seven basic elements have to be addressed in designing climate adaptation governance arrangements: the framing of the problem, the level(s) at which to act, the alignment across sectoral boundaries, the timing of the policies, the selection of policy instruments, the organization of the science-policy interface, and the most appropriate form of leadership. For each of these elements, this chapter suggests some tentative design principles. In addition to effectiveness and legitimacy, resilience is an important criterion for evaluating these arrangements. The development of governance arrangements is always context- and time-specific, and constrained by the formal and informal rules of existing institutions.

Abstract Private events can have a dominant function in human behavior, especially with regard to the experience of self and selfing behavior. This article presents the building of selfing behavior throughout the early interactions of responding to others` behaviors and discusses the impact of learning to relate (i.e., learning human language). Special focus is on the significant impact of deictic and hierarchical framing in building self-contents, overaching abstract motivations, the abstraction of I, and the subsequent derivation of more self-contents. Also covered are the patterns of responding in coordination with one`s own behavior (psychological inflexibility) and responding hierarchically (psychological flexibility); and hierarchical responding as the final common pathway for the many faces of therapeutic processes towards building psychological flexibility. Finally, the experimental evidence that has been signaling this path for years is summarized.

Chapter one examines images of graphic violence and their effects on viewers through Guillermo del Toro’s film El Laberinto del Fauno (2006), which combines the imagery of dark fairy tales with images of torture and murder in its depiction of the Spanish post-war years and the resistance of anti-Francoist guerrillas. The chapter situates the film within the genre of human rights cinema, by challenging the emphasis on narrative and truthfulness of the Charter of the Human Rights Film Network. Instead, it follows Shohini Chaudhuri’s suggestion to shift from focusing on narrative in favor of addressing aesthetic choices that lead to either moral or ethical confrontation with human rights violations. The film’s graphic images of torture and murder may shock, appall, and stir feelings of hatred and revenge, but they at all times push viewers to reflect on the frames that delimit seeing and not seeing, the subject position and agency of both victims and perpetrators, as well as viewers’ own embodied investment in the scenes of violence. In this way, the film opens up the possibility of an ethical witnessing, challenging the hierarchical object-subject relationship.

This chapter argues for a need for a theory of moral status that can help to provide solutions to practical problems in public policy that take account of the interests of diverse nonhuman animals. To illustrate this need, the chapter briefly describes two contemporary problems, one in science policy and one in food and climate policy. The first section provides a sketch of a way to think about a tiered or hierarchical theory of moral status that could be fit for such work. The second section considers in some depth the problem of human–nonhuman chimeras. This example is used to illustrate how a hierarchical theory of moral status should prove helpful in framing policy responses to this problem.

Abstract One of the obvious effects of the Zhuangzi’s multiplication of vantage points from which to view the world is that it strips human perspectives of their unquestioned weight. Although the anti-anthropocentric streak of the text is undeniable, chapter 4 demonstrates that the Zhuangzi, at times, still concedes the distinctive and exceptional status of the human condition but without introducing an obvious hierarchy between people and other beings. The Zhuangzi brings this about by framing human beings’ exceptional status around their ability to adapt to different value systems, situations, and lifestyles. This sometimes translates into the ability to act and live like nonhuman beings, which thwarts the ability to rank different beings on a hierarchical scale.

This chapter delves into Thomas Smith Grimké's 1834 address in Charleston. Grimke vividly described an imaginary island untouched by civilization and its transformation through the efforts of missionaries, contrasting the view of other visitors who saw no value. It highlights that Grimké's missionaries envisioned the island's wilderness as heathen and ripe for evangelization, reflecting the broader nineteenth-century American Protestant belief that non-Christian lands were barren due to their inhabitants' sinfulness. This perception, coupled with the doctrine of discovery, justified colonialist actions by framing non-Christian territories as wild and their inhabitants as needing Christian intervention. The chapter explores how these ideas informed domestic and global missionary efforts and and how figures like Jedidiah Morse perpetuated hierarchical views of civilizations while seeing all heathen lands as needing Christian oversight to truly flourish.

Using a disability studies/critical race theory (Discrit) lens, the authors reviewed and analyzed specific literature within the pyramid model (PM) framework—a three-tier hierarchical framework for promoting social-emotional competence and reducing challenging behavior among young children—to understand the model's framing of implicit bias and the specific strategies noted in the literature that help teachers to recognize and counteract implicit bias and subsequently reduce disciplinary inequities among Black preschool children. Findings revealed that although the PM literature discussed, defined, and emphasized the importance of cultural responsivity, it did not engage critically with the construct of implicit bias (i.e., racism and ableism), specifically as it relates to the experiences of children most vulnerable to disciplinary sanction. This chapter ends with suggestions to help readers rethink the PM framework as a way to shift practice toward more equitable experiences for Black children in their earliest years of schooling.

Abstract Do animals have a companion in the religion scholar Martin Buber? His earlier work posits a qualitative difference between humans and animals, viewing the human as special, transcending animality. However, this chapter argues, his contact with and reflection on animals, both personal and professional, belie this hierarchical divide. Maurice Friedman, Buber’s biographer, suggests it was Buber’s intimate relationships with other animals that made it impossible for him to cull them entirely from his philosophy of dialogue, even in the face of dogged, collegial discontent (e.g., Bergmann and Levinas). This chapter argues that his rich reflections on animals allow us to read Buber against his own humanist (re)capitulations. Buber’s animals, corralled by a humanist legacy, bite back. Attending to Buber’s animal encounters augments his relational ethics, framing this religious resource for our communities to better understand not only ourselves but the variety of ways animals comport themselves within our more-than-human world.

This chapter reviews approaches used to conceptualize postinternationalism and heterogeneity of actors in world politics: New Medievalism (NM), Spheres of Authority (SOAs), Hybrid Sovereignty (HS) and Heterarchy. All of them are the opposite of the Westphalian ideals of the international politics structured around domestically hierarchic nation-states interacting in the condition of anarchy. In this chapter, the point of departure is NM which is considered the most radical one. The chapter analyses the assumptions and the research praxis of new NM in International Relations (IR) theory, as coined by Hedley Bull (1977). However, the interactions among and between state and non-state actors (NSAs) can be approached and theorized in different ways.

At least two fundamental types of evidence feature in attempts to persuade: Anecdotal and generalized (Baesler & Burgoon, 1994). Experimental research has found anecdotal evidence more effective at changing attitudes in issues marked by personal significance and health-relevance (Freling et al., 2020). These apply to marijuana legalization, where a massive shift in American attitudes (from 35% to 67% in favor during 2008-2019; Pew Research Center, 2019) was followed by rapid legalization. However, no research to date has examined whether the movement benefited from anecdotal framing. Since the attitude shift coincided with the rise of social media, we developed the largest corpus of marijuana legalization discussions from Reddit to address this gap (more than 3M comments from 2008-2019, comprising more than 300M words). The dataset is the first to separate marijuana legalization discourse from general mentions of cannabis (e.g., product advertisements) across an entire popular platform. We then developed neural network models to distinguish anecdotal from generalized text in the dataset based on three clause-level features derived from linguistic theory: Whether a clause is about a generic kind rather than specific instances, whether it presents a reliable state or an event, and whether events are bounded in time. Principal Components Analysis provided a reliable composite score of the three features, treated as a measure of the degree to which major themes of discourse are anecdotal versus generalized. We combined topic modeling (Latent Dirichlet Allocation; Blei et al., 2003) with hierarchical clustering and smoothed polynomial regressions to track themes’ prominence over time and bin them into broader categories. Anecdotal themes were less prevalent but present in most comments. We trained separate neural networks on human annotations of attitude and persuasion attempt. Within non-argumentative discourse, anecdotes became more prominent only later in time, presumably as a consequence of softening societal attitudes. But they played a more prominent role throughout in arguments favoring legalization, suggesting that they were actively used to persuade others. Were such anecdotal arguments timed in a way that benefitted legalization ballot initiatives? To answer, we inferred user locations and compared the rate of anecdotal themes before and after legalization in comments from pioneering states. Despite the experimental evidence favoring anecdotal argumentation, we found that the 2012 and 2016 legal milestones followed short-term increases in generalized arguments instead. The particular content, however, varied between the two periods. Character judgments were prominent in 2012, while crime and politics took center-stage in 2016. The generalized precedents of legalization in leading states were argumentative and moralistic but had distinctive clause-level profiles. Meanwhile, legal and medical arguments were sidelined, meaning the novel consensus was not informed by much of the relevant information, anecdotal or otherwise. Together, our results show that while the emerging consensus probably benefited from anecdotal argumentation, the legalization movement’s success happened despite its reliance on less effective generalized discussions with less concrete information content. Addressing this discrepancy between experimental research and the direction of societal discourse may help bring about more informed discussions while better enabling the changing of attitudes.

The Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS) vegetation inventory project classified and mapped vegetation on park-owned lands within the administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. The project began in June 2016. National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory Program provided technical guidance. The overall process included initial planning and scoping, imagery procurement, field data collection, data analysis, imagery interpretation/classification, accuracy assessment (AA), and report writing and database development. Initial planning and scoping meetings took place during May, 2016 in Ocean Springs, Mississippi where representatives gathered from GUIS, the NPS Gulf Coast Inventory and Monitoring Network, and Colorado State University. Primary imagery used for interpretation was 4-band (RGB and CIR) orthoimages from 2014 and 2016 with resolutions of 15 centimeters (cm) (Florida only) and 30 cm. Supplemental imagery with varying coverage across the study area included National Aerial Imagery Program 50 cm imagery for Mississippi (2016) and Florida (2017), 15 and 30 cm true color Digital Earth Model imagery for Mississippi (2016 and 2017), and current and historical true-color Google Earth and Bing Map imagery. National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration National Geodetic Survey 30 cm true color imagery from 2017 (post Hurricane Nate) supported remapping the Mississippi barrier islands after Hurricane Nate. The preliminary vegetation classification included 59 United States National Vegetation Classification (USNVC) associations. Existing vegetation and mapping data combined with vegetation plot data contributed to the final vegetation classification. Quantitative classification using hierarchical clustering and professional expertise was supported by vegetation data collected from 250 plots in 2016 and 29 plots in 2017 and 2018, as well as other observational data. The final vegetation classification includes 39 USNVC associations and 5 park special types; 18 forest and woodland, 7 shrubland, 17 herbaceous, and 2 sparse vegetation types were identified. The final GUIS map consists of 38 map classes. Land cover classes include four types: non-vegetated barren land / borrow pit, developed open space, developed low – high intensity, and water/ocean. Of the 34 vegetation map classes, 26 represent a single USNVC association/park special, six map classes contain two USNVC associations/park specials, and two map classes contain three USNVC associations/park specials. Forest and woodland associations had an abundance of sand pine (Pinus clausa), slash pine (Pinus elliottii), sand live oak (Quercus geminata), yaupon (Ilex vomitoria), wax myrtle (Morella cerifera), and saw palmetto (Serenoa repens). Shrubland associations supported dominant species such as eastern baccharis (Baccharis halimifolia), yaupon (Ilex vomitoria), wax myrtle (Morella cerifera), saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), and sand live oak (Quercus geminata). Herbaceous associations commonly included camphorweed (Heterotheca subaxillaris), needlegrass rush (Juncus roemerianus), bitter seabeach grass (Panicum amarum var. amarum), gulf bluestem (Schizachyrium maritimum), saltmeadow cordgrass (Spartina patens), and sea oats (Uniola paniculata). The final GUIS vegetation map consists of 1,268 polygons totaling 35,769.0 hectares (ha) or 88,387.2 acres (ac). Mean polygon size excluding water is 3.6 ha (8.9 ac). The most abundant land cover class is open water/ocean which accounts for approximately 31,437.7 ha (77,684.2 ac) or 87.9% of the total mapped area. Natural and ruderal vegetation consists of 4,176.8 ha (10,321.1 ac) or 11.6% of the total area. Within the natural and ruderal vegetation types, herbaceous types are the most extensive with 1945.1 ha (4,806.4 ac) or 46.5%, followed by forest and woodland types with 804.9 ha (1,989.0 ac) or 19.3%, sparse vegetation types with 726.9 ha (1,796.1 ac) or 17.4%, and shrubland types with 699.9 ha (1,729.5 ac) or 16.8%. Developed open space, which can include a matrix of roads, parking lots, park-like areas and campgrounds account for 153.8 ha (380.0 ac) or 0.43% of the total mapped area. Artificially non-vegetated barren land is rare and only accounts for 0.74 ha (1.82 ac) or 0.002% of the total area. We collected 701 AA samples to evaluate the thematic accuracy of the vegetation map. Final thematic accuracy, as a simple proportion of correct versus incorrect field calls, is 93.0%. Overall weighted map class accuracy is 93.6%, where the area of each map class was weighted in proportion to the percentage of total park area. This method provides more weight to larger map classes in the park. Each map class had an individual thematic accuracy goal of at least 80%. The hurricane impact area map class was the only class that fell below this target with an accuracy of 73.5%. The vegetation communities impacted by the hurricane are highly dynamic and regenerated quickly following the disturbance event, contributing to map class disagreement during the accuracy assessment phase. No other map classes fell below the 80% accuracy threshold. In addition to the vegetation polygon database and map, several products to support park resource management are provided including the vegetation classification, field key to the associations, local association descriptions, photographic database, project geodatabase, ArcGIS .mxd files for map posters, and aerial imagery acquired for the project. The project geodatabase links the spatial vegetation data layer to vegetation classification, plot photos, project boundary extent, AA points, and the PLOTS database. The geodatabase includes USNVC hierarchy tables allowing for spatial queries of data associated with a vegetation polygon or sample point. All geospatial products are projected using North American Datum 1983 (NAD83) in Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 16 N. The final report includes methods and results, contingency tables showing AA results, field forms, species list, and a guide to imagery interpretation. These products provide useful information to assist with management of park resources and inform future management decisions. Use of standard national vegetation classification and mapping protocols facilitates effective resource stewardship by ensuring the compatibility and widespread use throughout the NPS as well as other federal and state agencies. Products support a wide variety of resource assessments, park management and planning needs. Associated information provides a structure for framing and answering critical scientific questions about vegetation communities and their relationship to environmental processes across the landscape.

The Big Thicket National Preserve (BITH) vegetation inventory project classified and mapped vegetation within the administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory Program provided technical guidance. The overall process included initial planning and scoping, imagery procurement, vegetation classification field data collection, data analysis, imagery interpretation/classification, accuracy assessment (AA), and report writing and database development. Initial planning and scoping meetings took place during May, 2016 in Kountze, Texas where representatives gathered from BITH, the NPS Gulf Coast Inventory and Monitoring Network, and Colorado State University. The project acquired new 2014 orthoimagery (30-cm, 4-band (RGB and CIR)) from the Hexagon Imagery Program. Supplemental imagery for the interpretation phase included Texas Natural Resources Information System (TNRIS) 2015 50 cm leaf-off 4-band imagery from the Texas Orthoimagery Program (TOP), Farm Service Agency (FSA) 100-cm (2016) and 60 cm (2018) National Aerial Imagery Program (NAIP) imagery, and current and historical true-color Google Earth and Bing Maps imagery. In addition to aerial and satellite imagery, 2017 Neches River Basin Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data was obtained from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and TNRIS to analyze vegetation structure at BITH. The preliminary vegetation classification included 110 United States National Vegetation Classification (USNVC) associations. Existing vegetation and mapping data combined with vegetation plot data contributed to the final vegetation classification. Quantitative classification using hierarchical clustering and professional expertise was supported by vegetation data collected from 304 plots surveyed between 2016 and 2019 and 110 additional observation plots. The final vegetation classification includes 75 USNVC associations and 27 park special types including 80 forest and woodland, 7 shrubland, 12 herbaceous, and 3 sparse vegetation types. The final BITH map consists of 51 map classes. Land cover classes include five types: pasture / hay ground agricultural vegetation; non ? vegetated / barren land, borrow pit, cut bank; developed, open space; developed, low ? high intensity; and water. The 46 vegetation classes represent 102 associations or park specials. Of these, 75 represent natural vegetation associations within the USNVC, and 27 types represent unpublished park specials. Of the 46 vegetation map classes, 26 represent a single USNVC association/park special, 7 map classes contain two USNVC associations/park specials, 4 map classes contain three USNVC associations/park specials, and 9 map classes contain four or more USNVC associations/park specials. Forest and woodland types had an abundance of Pinus taeda, Liquidambar styraciflua, Ilex opaca, Ilex vomitoria, Quercus nigra, and Vitis rotundifolia. Shrubland types were dominated by Pinus taeda, Ilex vomitoria, Triadica sebifera, Liquidambar styraciflua, and/or Callicarpa americana. Herbaceous types had an abundance of Zizaniopsis miliacea, Juncus effusus, Panicum virgatum, and/or Saccharum giganteum. The final BITH vegetation map consists of 7,271 polygons totaling 45,771.8 ha (113,104.6 ac). Mean polygon size is 6.3 ha (15.6 ac). Of the total area, 43,314.4 ha (107,032.2 ac) or 94.6% represent natural or ruderal vegetation. Developed areas such as roads, parking lots, and campgrounds comprise 421.9 ha (1,042.5 ac) or 0.9% of the total. Open water accounts for approximately 2,034.9 ha (5,028.3 ac) or 4.4% of the total mapped area. Within the natural or ruderal vegetation types, forest and woodland types were the most extensive at 43,022.19 ha (106,310.1 ac) or 94.0%, followed by herbaceous vegetation types at 129.7 ha (320.5 ac) or 0.3%, sparse vegetation types at 119.2 ha (294.5 ac) or 0.3%, and shrubland types at 43.4 ha (107.2 ac) or 0.1%. A total of 784 AA samples were collected to evaluate the map?s thematic accuracy. When each AA sample was evaluated for a variety of potential errors, a number of the disagreements were overturned. It was determined that 182 plot records disagreed due to either an erroneous field call or a change in the vegetation since the imagery date, and 79 disagreed due to a true map classification error. Those records identified as incorrect due to an erroneous field call or changes in vegetation were considered correct for the purpose of the AA. As a simple plot count proportion, the reconciled overall accuracy was 89.9% (705/784). The spatially-weighted overall accuracy was 92.1% with a Kappa statistic of 89.6%. This method provides more weight to larger map classes in the park. Five map classes had accuracies below 80%. After discussing preliminary results with the parl, we retained those map classes because the community was rare, the map classes provided desired detail for management or the accuracy was reasonably close to the 80% target. When the 90% AA confidence intervals were included, an additional eight classes had thematic accruacies that extend below 80%. In addition to the vegetation polygon database and map, several products to support park resource management include the vegetation classification, field key to the associations, local association descriptions, photographic database, project geodatabase, ArcGIS .mxd files for map posters, and aerial imagery acquired for the project. The project geodatabase links the spatial vegetation data layer to vegetation classification, plot photos, project boundary extent, AA points, and PLOTS database sampling data. The geodatabase includes USNVC hierarchy tables allowing for spatial queries of data associated with a vegetation polygon or sample point. All geospatial products are projected using North American Datum 1983 (NAD83) in Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 15 N. The final report includes methods and results, contingency tables showing AA results, field forms, species list, and a guide to imagery interpretation. These products provide useful information to assist with management of park resources and inform future management decisions. Use of standard national vegetation classification and mapping protocols facilitates effective resource stewardship by ensuring the compatibility and widespread use throughout NPS as well as other federal and state agencies. Products support a wide variety of resource assessments, park management and planning needs. Associated information provides a structure for framing and answering critical scientific questions about vegetation communities and their relationship to environmental processes across the landscape.