Cognitive Psychology Theory Research Articles

Newell and Simon's Logic Theorist: Historical Background and Impact on Cognitive Modeling

Fifty years ago, Newell and Simon (1956) invented a “thinking machine” called the Logic Theorist. The Logic Theorist was a computer program that could prove theorems in symbolic logic from Whitehead and Russell's Principia Mathematica. This was perhaps the first working program that simulated some aspects of peoples' ability to solve complex problems. The Logic Theorist and other cognitive simulations developed by Newell and Simon in the late 1950s had a large impact on the newly developing field of information-processing (or cognitive) psychology. Many of the novel ideas about mental representation and problem solving instantiated in the Logic Theorist are still a central part of the theory of cognitive psychology, and are still used in modeling the complex tasks studied in human factors psychology. This paper presents some of the theoretical precursors of the Logic Theorist, describes the principles and implementation of the program, and discusses its immediate and long-term impacts.

Item Diffficulty Modeling of Paragraph Comprehension Items

Recent assessment research joining cognitive psychology and psychometric theory has introduced a new technology, item generation. In algorithmic item generation, items are systematically created based on specific combinations of features that underlie the processing required to correctly solve a problem. Reading comprehension items have been more difficult to model than other item types due to the complexities of quantifying text. However, recent developments in artificial intelligence for text analysis permit quantitative indices to represent cognitive sources of difficulty. The current study attempts to identify generative components for the Graduate Record Examination paragraph comprehension items through the cognitive decomposition of item difficulty. Text comprehension and decision processes accounted for a significant amount of the variance in item difficulties. The decision model variables contributed significantly to variance in item difficulties, whereas the text representation variables did not. Implications for score interpretation and future possibilities for item generation are discussed. Index terms: difficulty modeling, construct validity, comprehension tests, item generation

Writing Across the Curriculum: A Hermeneutic Study of Students' Experiences in Writing in Food Science Education

ABSTRACT: Writing can enhance learning by helping students put words to their thinking about course material. The purposes of this study were to assess the influence of a structured academic journal writing exercise on student learning in a food science class and to examine student responses to the experience. Hermeneutics, a philosophy of science and qualitative research method, was used to analyze journal data from 48 participating students during a 2-y period and involved 3 steps: (1) describing themes taken from a global reading of student commentaries, (2) reducing or relating themes to specific, verbatim statements found in student writings, and (3) interpreting or imposing meaning on the themes and the statements (Lanigan 1988). Hermeneutic analysis showed that journal writing was difficult at first but became easier and enjoyable over time, allowed students to relate course content to other knowledge, exposed students to course material multiple times allowing for better information retention, enhanced student understanding, helped students think critically, required students to prepare for class, gave students the opportunity to express opinions, and allowed students to experience writing as enjoyable and positive. Several minor themes suggested that most students found the experience useful to their learning. Findings from this study are consistent with neuroscience and cognitive psychology theories regarding learning and the development of reasoning skills.

EvoDevo as Cognitive Psychology

The editor-in-chief of Biological Theory invited me to submit a short paper on the theoretical intersections between evolutionary developmental biology, on the one hand, and behavior and cognition on the other. My first reaction was that I had not thought about such a topic in years. But he had planted the seed (or tweaked the engram) of that relationship. I gradually came to realize that my recent research in the history of evolutionary developmental biology (now called EvoDevo) has produced results that blend in an intriguing way with the research program that began my scholarly career, the history of mid-20 th century experimental psychology, and especially the debates between behaviorist and cognitive psychological theories. The modest insight I will offer here does not concern the current relations between the sciences of biology and psychology, but how we perceive their histories. I will first describe how I came to study the history of EvoDevo and then report on how recent results have taken me back to the beginning. My early study of psychological debates was centered on the correspondences between substantive psychological theories (behaviorist versus cognitivist) and the scientific methodologies with which they were pursued. Behaviorism was allied with a kind of positivist, operationalist, or phenomenalistmethodologicalapproach,andcognitivismwithmethodological realism. Each theory/methodology pair was internally

Pictures and text in instructions for medical devices: Effects on recall and actual performance

Objective The present study aimed to contribute to the design of effective health education information. Based on cognitive-psychological theory, pictures were expected to improve understanding of two existing textual instructions for using asthma devices (inhaler chamber and peak flow meter). From an analysis of the affordances and constraints of both devices this effect was expected to be stronger with the inhaler chamber than with the peak flow meter. Methods To test this, both instructions were systematically illustrated with seven line-drawings visualizing the actions. In two separate randomized controlled trials with in total 99 participants from the general public, the original text-only versions were compared to the text-picture versions of the same instruction. Dependent variables were participants’ recall of the instructions and the quality of their performance with the instruction observed from video-recordings. Results Conform expectations, the results showed significant positive effects of pictures on recall and performance in both instructions, especially with the inhaler chamber. Conclusion Thus, pictures may contribute to a better comprehension and use of medical devices that are inherently less clear. Practice implications Health educators may optimize instruction design by careful analysis of the device with instruction and observational testing with potential users.

MODEL OF CASE-BASED INDUSTRIAL DESIGN SCENARIO AND ITS APPLICATION

Based on the theories of case-based reasoning(CBR) and cognitive psychology,the concept of design scenario in- cluding problem scenario,solving scenario and solution sce- nario is proposed to depict industrial design in a cognitive ap- proach and a model of case-based industrial design scenario is built and represented as two main parts:industrial design sce- nario organization structure and scenario reasoning model. Based on the model,industrial design knowledge from the three aspects of the model is represented and a case-based computer aided design system is built up-CBID which has been put into industrial design practices.

Trespassing on the tracks: A review of railway pedestrian safety research

Introduction: Train-pedestrian collisions have been shown to be the leading cause of fatality in train-related accidents worldwide, yet there is remarkably little research in this area. Method: In this paper, the major types of railway transportation accident research are briefly highlighted to indicate the general context of research concerning train-pedestrian collisions, which are then reviewed. Themes emerging from the diverse research are identified, the various strategies that have been proposed for prevention of railway pedestrian accidents are discussed, and the empirical evidence for their efficacy examined in the light of the much more extensive literature on road pedestrian accidents. Finally, it is proposed that application of current theory in behavioral and cognitive psychology may usefully inform future research in transportation safety.

Psychologie cognitive et analyse des décisions économiques

Cognitive Psychology and Economic Decision-Making The topic of the paper is to explain how the economic theories of decision- making have been transformed by the recent contributions of the cognitive psychology, through Khaneman and Tversky's prospect theory. A first part, in an historical perspective, reminds the use of German psychophysiolo- gists'discoveries by the British margi- nalists at the end of XIXe century. A second part is devoted to the analysis of prospect theory, as the starting point of a new paradigme and discusses some of its applications, namely in behavioral finance. A last part wonders about the ways for cognitive psychology to penetrate game theory.

OLDER DRIVERS AND ADAS: Which Systems Improve Road Safety?

In the coming decades, the number of older drivers that experiences difficulties in traffic as a result of functional limitations will strongly increase. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) could resolve some of these difficulties, by providing personal assistance in a road environment that does not always allow for the possibilities and limitations of the older road user. As a result, ADAS would extend the older adult's safe mobility as a driver. The aim of this paper is to identify the driver tasks for which assistance is most desirable from a road safety perspective. It is assumed that the most promising ADAS in this respect are those that support the relative weaknesses of the older driver. ADAS should not take over the tasks the older driver is actually quite good at. To identify the strengths and weaknesses of the older driver, a literature review is conducted. Various theoretical perspectives are examined, among wich the human factors approach, cognitive psychology, and game theory. This results in a list of the relative weaknesses of the older driver. To further specify the kinds of support most needed, we look at the relation between the weaknesses identified, the problems that older drivers encounter in traffic as a result of these weaknesses, and the resulting number of crashes. This amounts to a shortlist of desired types of support. Next, based on the available literature, relevant ADAS are discussed in terms of their availability, their effects on safety and the willingness of older drivers to use and buy them. One of the conclusions is that only very few of the types of support that are thought to be most beneficial to the safety of older drivers are provided by the ADAS that are currently available.

Impulse and Constraint: Perspectives From Personality Psychology, Convergence With Theory in Other Areas, and Potential for Integration

A behavioral dimension of impulse versus constraint has long been observed by personality psychologists. This article begins by reviewing processes underlying this dimension from the perspectives of several personality theories. Some cases of constraint reflect inhibition due to anxiety, but some theories suggest other roots for constraint. Theories from developmental psychology accommodate both possibilities by positing 2 sorts of control over action. These modes of influence strongly resemble those predicated in some personality theories and also 2 modes of function that are asserted by some cognitive and social psychological theories. Several further literatures are considered, to which 2-mode models seem to contribute meaningfully. The article closes by addressing questions raised by these ideas, including whether the issue of impulse versus constraint applies to avoidance as well as to approach.

Role of distress in delusion formation

Contemporary cognitive psychological theories suggest that distress plays a mediating role in delusion formation. To study the amplifying role of distress from early perceptual intrusions to delusion formation. A general population sample of 7076 individuals was interviewed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) in 1996 (baseline), 1997 (T1) and 1999 (T2). At T2, clinicians also scored the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) item "unusual thought content". Analyses compared hallucinatory experiences with and without subjective distress at baseline for risk of delusion formation at follow-up. Individuals experiencing hallucinations with distress, compared with those without distress had a fourfold increased risk of subsequent delusion formation. This finding corroborates the hypothesis that distress associated with early perceptual intrusions serves as a catalyst in the development of delusions.

What Children Have in Mind: A Study of Early Representational Development in Paint

This article examines the process of graphic representational development in paint in the context of the theoretical assumptions of traditional developmental stage theory. Consistent with current theory and research in art education and cognitive psychology, a model of painting development is proposed that is multidimensional rather than unitary, and “bottom up” rather than “top down.” Specifically, changes in children's paintings are accounted for in terms of parallel movement along three functionally independent dimensions: representational intention, mastery of visual/graphic concepts, and the expressive use of the mediating properties of paint.

Human-Computer Interaction: The Effect of Application Domain Knowledge on Icon Visualization

Iconic interfaces are now the de facto interface for most computer systems. Despite the popularity of iconic interfaces and the widespread belief that iconic interfaces are easier to comprehend than non-iconic interfaces, we have not come across any published study that has examined the effect of application domain knowledge on end users' interpretation of icons. An understanding of the relationship between application domain knowledge and its effect on interpretation will enable us to design better iconic interface to not only facilitate end users' interpretation, but to also reduce the misinterpretations of icons. This paper reports on an experimental study that investigates the effect of application domain knowledge on icons interpretation. The hypotheses for this study are derived from theories in cognitive psychology and are empirically tested in a laboratory experiment. The results indicate that application domain knowledge has no significant effect on the accuracy of interpretation. Application domain knowledge, however, significantly affects the time taken to interpret icons and the confidence level of subjects. The implication of the results on theories and practice are also discussed.

Increasing Readers’ Comprehension of Health Education Brochures: A Qualitative Study Into How Professional Writers Make Texts Coherent

The aim of this study was to gain insight into the extent to which health education text writers apply writing principles derived from cognitive psychological theory. Seventeen professional text writers of health education materials participated in a qualitative study, consisting of a rewriting task combined with a think-aloud procedure and a semistructured interview. The verbal data were explored carefully in light of seven text coherence principles that have proven effective in cognitive psychological research to increase text comprehension. Findings indicate text writers vary in their ideas and use of coherence principles to make a text comprehensible. It is argued that the health education profession can benefit greatly from knowledge about cognitive text processing and cognitive coherence principles for realizing effective comprehension of written health education messages.

The Triad approach: A catalyst for maturing remediation practice

AbstractMany individual scientific and technical disciplines contribute to the multidisciplinary field of remediation science and practice. Because of the relative youth of this enterprise, disciplinary interests sometimes compete and conflict with the primary goal of achieving protective, cost‐effective, efficient projects. Convergence of viewpoints toward a more mature, common vision is needed. In addition, cleanup programs are changing under the influence of Brownfields initiatives and the needs of environmental insurance underwriters. Investigations and cleanups increasingly need to be affordable, yet transparent and defensible. Disciplinary goals and terminology need to better reflect real‐world site conditions while being more supportive of project needs. Yet, technical considerations alone will not ensure project success; better integration of human factors into project management is also required. The Triad approach is well placed to catalyze maturation of the remediation field because it emphasizes (1) a central theme of managing decision uncertainty; (2) unambiguous technical communications; (3) shortened project life‐cycles and multidisciplinary interactions that rapidly build professional expertise and provide feedback to test and perfect programmatic and field practices; and (4) concepts from “softer” sciences (such as economics, cognitive psychology, and decision theory) to capture important human factors. Triad pushes the cleanup industry toward an integrated, practical, second‐generation paradigm that can successfully manage the complexities of today's cleanup projects. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

THE ACCIDENTAL BEHAVIORIST: A REVIEW OF THE NEW BEHAVIORISM BY JOHN STADDON

Staddon contends that behavior analysis may profit from theory, by which he means theory that includes assumed elemental processes allowing derivation of observed patterns of results. Behavior analysts who consider that our field has matured to the point where we are secure in our descriptive grasp of a range of phenomena will tend to agree. Unfortunately, the book's positive message is almost lost in a morass of distracting criticisms of Skinner and behavior analysis in general. Instead of recognizing the growth and maturation of the field, Staddon writes as if the field has stagnated and blames that stagnation on what he takes to be Skinner's antipathy toward theory. Neither has behavior analysis become stagnated, nor should Skinner be blamed for any shortcomings. Instead of acknowledging Skinner's foundational contributions to the field, however, Staddon devotes most of this book to bashing Skinner and fails to distinguish his own view of theory based on internal states from theory in cognitive psychology, treating theoretical models and unseen processes as the “true” subject of inquiry and behavior as only an indicator.

Risk as analysis and risk as feelings: some thoughts about affect, reason, risk, and rationality.

Modern theories in cognitive psychology and neuroscience indicate that there are two fundamental ways in which human beings comprehend risk. The "analytic system" uses algorithms and normative rules, such as probability calculus, formal logic, and risk assessment. It is relatively slow, effortful, and requires conscious control. The "experiential system" is intuitive, fast, mostly automatic, and not very accessible to conscious awareness. The experiential system enabled human beings to survive during their long period of evolution and remains today the most natural and most common way to respond to risk. It relies on images and associations, linked by experience to emotion and affect (a feeling that something is good or bad). This system represents risk as a feeling that tells us whether it is safe to walk down this dark street or drink this strange-smelling water. Proponents of formal risk analysis tend to view affective responses to risk as irrational. Current wisdom disputes this view. The rational and the experiential systems operate in parallel and each seems to depend on the other for guidance. Studies have demonstrated that analytic reasoning cannot be effective unless it is guided by emotion and affect. Rational decision making requires proper integration of both modes of thought. Both systems have their advantages, biases, and limitations. Now that we are beginning to understand the complex interplay between emotion and reason that is essential to rational behavior, the challenge before us is to think creatively about what this means for managing risk. On the one hand, how do we apply reason to temper the strong emotions engendered by some risk events? On the other hand, how do we infuse needed "doses of feeling" into circumstances where lack of experience may otherwise leave us too "coldly rational"? This article addresses these important questions.

Character structure: A Gestalt-cognitive theory.

Most theories of behavior and therapy have tended to focus on why behaviors are present. By contrast, the theory and practice of Gestalt therapy have focused primarily on how behaviors are present. This article describes a Gestalt model of structure and function from the point of view of Gestalt process theory in coordination with E. Tulving' s (1985) concept of procedural memory from cognitive and developmental psychology. Current developmental research is used to clarify how as an operating system is developed. This conceptual framework permits a description of how functions and has implications for creating change in psychotherapy. Examples of the application of this formulation are provided. therapy. While Gestalt therapy has been justly criticized for not having made an adequate effort to research its underlying theory and efficacy, the information from these areas can be useful in enhancing the quality of clinical work in Gestalt therapy as well as psychotherapy in its more generic sense. The genius of the work of Fritz and Laura Perls lay, not in their original ideas, but in the brilliant way in which they went about selecting the concepts from fields as diverse as philosophy to the nascent neurosciences of the time-ideas that would eventually prove useful and effective. So it is no surprise that their concept of character, which for the time was novel, would fit well with research data and theory in cognitive psychology. Their carefully intuited and thought out positions are a good guide to searching the current research literature, and, in turn, the current research is helpful in facilitating our clinical understanding and therapeutic work. For example, Perls, Hefferline, and Goodman (1951, p. 69) would fit quite well into the discussion of current cognitive literature when they write of forms, made relatively stationary in order that something else may move more efficiently. They did not assume that fixedness was unhealthy. To quote Perls et aI., Many such fixed are healthy, mobilizable for the ongoing process, for instance a useful habit, an art, a particular memory that now serves for comparison with another particular to yield an abstraction. Greenberg (1999) reiterated this perspective in her recent commentary on character. Alternately, some fixed forms have been referred to by Perls, Hefferline, and Goodman as character in its neurotic sense. The notion of is a broad one and requires clarification. If you were asked to write an essay on how to tie one's shoes, you would probably produce a confused and useless document. After all, do you know which lace to start The explosive growth in research in cognitive psychology and its relationship to experience, emotion, and behavior has in many ways confirmed many of the basic assumptions of Gestalt

Individual differences in working memory capacity and dual-process theories of the mind.

Dual-process theories of the mind are ubiquitous in psychology. A central principle of these theories is that behavior is determined by the interplay of automatic and controlled processing. In this article, the authors examine individual differences in the capacity to control attention as a major contributor to differences in working memory capacity (WMC). The authors discuss the enormous implications of this individual difference for a host of dual-process theories in social, personality, cognitive, and clinical psychology. In addition, the authors propose several new areas of investigation that derive directly from applying the concept of WMC to dual-process theories of the mind.

Signals, signal devices, and signal space in organisations: a conceptual lens to crisis evasion

Given that warning signs precede all crises, it is surprising that not much attention has been given to understand why these signals disappear and may not appear again until after some avoidable calamity has reoccurred. Disasters are often anecdotally anteceded by stories involving unheeded predictions. It is commonly recognised that the path a signal traverses through has significant bearings on whether the right decision maker will receive the intended information, given the many opportunities the path affords the signal to be lost or rendered useless. This may reflect on the notion that no amount of technology can overcome recognised frailties in the human thought processes. Organisations that are aware of this condition have an advantage. In the following paper, we draw from the literature on electrical engineering, signal processing, information theory, cognitive psychology, and communication theory to explain the crucial reasons signals can be lost in an organisation. To this end, we propose a conceptualisation of signal devices in organisations, the collection of which along with signals makes up the signal space of the organisation. Following this we look at key issues in dealing with signals of impending crises. We also use case studies of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the 9–11 terrorism attacks to ground our model.