Task 4 - Reasoning

Question 1

Inductive Reasoning

Answer 1

• Forming generalisations (which may be probable but not certain) from examples (specific –> general)
• Conclusion can contain new information
• -> Inductive strength – argument has strength if it is improbable (not impossible) for the premises to be true & the conclusion to be false
  - Probable truth

Question 2

Analogical reasoning

Answer 2

in which an individual tries to solve a current problem by retrieving information about a similar problem that was successfully solved in the past

Question 3

Hypothesis Testing

Answer 3

2-4-6 Task (Wason)

• people are given a bunch of numbers and they have to determine the rule only by offering examples, not by asking direct questions about the rule
• confirmation bias – (fallacy of affirming the the consequent)

Question 4

Deductive Reasoning

Answer 4

general –> specific

• Conclusion represents info that was already implicit in the premises (no new info added)
• Allows us to draw conclusions that are definitely valid, assuming that premises are true

Question 5

Deductive validity

Answer 5

argument valid only if it is impossible for the premises to be true and the conclusion to be false
– When premises are true and you reason according to logical principles, your conclusion cannot be wrong

Question 6

Types of Deductive Reasoning

Answer 6

1. Propositional

2. Syllogitic

Question 7

Proposition

Answer 7

claim that can be either true or false

Question 8

compound propositions

Answer 8

more complicated propositions formed by using logical connectives

Question 9

Modus ponen

Answer 9

if A, then B and A is given then we can validly infer B

Question 10

Modus tollens

Answer 10

if A then B and we know B is false we know A is as well

Question 11

Denying the antecedent

Answer 11

fallacy in which the info that the antecedent isn’t true leads to the conclusion that the consequence isn’t either

Question 12

Affirming the consequent

Answer 12

fallacy in which the consequence is thought to be true because the antecedent is said to be true

Question 13

Wason’s selection task

Answer 13

must affirm modus ponies and pollens

Question 14

Categorical syllogism

Answer 14

3 premises that deal with classes of entities (include quantifiers)

Question 15

premises

Answer 15

propositions about which arguments are made

Question 16

belief bias

Answer 16

tendency to accept invalid conclusions that are believable rather than believe valid conclusions that are unbelievable

Question 17

Effects of premise phrasing

– Patterns of Reasoning Performance

Answer 17

• the way information is stated can make a reasoning task easier or harder
• More errors when premises have negatives in them
• Quantifiers such as “all” or “none” are easier to deal with than “some”
• Syntactically complex statements require more processing resources that are then missing for other reasoning processes

Question 18

Alteration of premise meaning

– Patterns of Reasoning Performance

Answer 18

• people often misinterpret premises & fail to think of all possible meanings
• Everyday understanding of words such as some, all & if-then are so powerful that people have difficulties ignoring the fact that in reasoning tasks they’re defined slightly different

Question 19

Content effect

– Patterns of Reasoning Performance

Answer 19

• people reasoning with exactly the same kind of premises will perform differently depending on what the premises are about (e.g. four-card task/ Wason’s selection task with drinking vs. age instead of numbers vs. letters)
• Memory-cueing explanation – own experience lets one think of combinations

Question 20

Believability effect

– Patterns of Reasoning Performance

Answer 20

• people are likely to judge as valid any conclusion that reinforces their initial assumption, regardless of whether the conclusion follows from the premises

Question 21

Approaches to the study of reasoning

Answer 21

• Componential approach (Sternberg)
• Rules / heuristics approach
• Mental models approach (Johnson-Laird)
• Heuristic-Analytic Theory (Dual Systems) (Evans)

Question 22

Componential approach (Sternberg)

Answer 22

• Study reasoning by analysing a task into its component cognitive processes (mental subroutines
• Reasoning as just another mental activity like problem solving & decision making
• Performance components – individual cognitive processes (encode –> recognise infer relationship –> apply relationship
• Meta-components – executive processes used in planning & monitoring (e.g. select which performance components will be used)
• Knowledge acquisition components – used whenever we acquire new information (e.g. elective encoding, combination & comparison)

Question 23

Rules / heuristics approach

& Cheng vs Braine vs Cosmides

Answer 23

treat reasoning as a special mental process –> rely on special-purpose mental rules (like grammar) for inferences

• —> Cheng: people interpret problems in terms of what they are about and based on that use different schemata
• —> Braine: people can & do use the same set of abstract rules in all situations
• —> Cosmides: Social contract theory

Question 24

Social contract theory

Answer 24

evolutionary adaptive mechanism for reasoning
- especially good at tasks when content is construed in terms of social costs & benefits

• people have rules maximizing ability to achieve goals in social situations
  Deontic rules: easier to understand (rule more explicit)

Question 25

Mental models approach (Johnson-Laird)

Answer 25

Use deductive reasoning that may be affected by real-world knowledge

• -> Deductive reasoning problems requiring the construction of several mental models are harder to solve because of the increasing demands on working memory
• Principle of truth – people minimise the load on working memory by tending to construct mental models that represent explicitly only what is true & not what is false
• —- Common source of error: failure to construct relevant models, failure to assess the implications of all the models found, failure to construct enough models

Question 26

Limitations

Mental models approach (Johnson-Laird)

Answer 26

• Ignores individual differences & dual systems

- Doesn’t explain which pieces of background knowledge are used

Question 27

Heuristic-Analytic Theory (Dual Systems) (Evans)

Answer 27

• Initially use real-world knowledge that may be affected by deductive reasoning through system 2

The theory assumes that reasoning and judgment are facilitated by the formation of epistemic mental models that are generated one at a time (singularity principle) by preconscious heuristic processes that contextualize problems in such a way as to maximize relevance to current goals (relevance principle). Analytic processes evaluate these models but tend to accept them unless there is good reason to reject them (satisficing principle)

• System 1: heuristic processes (implicit)
• -> Makes use of task features, goals & background knowledge to construct a single hypothetical possibility/ mental model
• System 2: analytic processes (explicit)(time consuming, effortful)
• -> May intervene to revise/ replace model
• -> Likely when instructed to use abstract/ logical thinking, participants are highly intelligent, sufficient time available

Question 28

Principles

Heuristic-Analytic Theory (Dual Systems) (Evans)

Answer 28

• Singularity principle: only a single mental is considered at any given time
• Relevance principle: the most relevant mental model based on prior knowledge & current context is considered
• Satisfying principle: current model is evaluated by system 2 and accepted if adequate (often leads people to accept conclusions that could be true but aren’t necessarily)

Question 29

Limitations

Heuristic-Analytic Theory (Dual Systems) (Evans)

Answer 29

• Oversimplification to make a distinction between the systems as in implicit vs. explicit –> both can be both
• Says they are various analytical processes but doesn’t elaborate

Question 30

Brain

Answer 30

Prefrontal cortex (esp. left) -- plays a role in a person's ability to integrate relations (to build mental representations that that incorporate multiple propositions / relationships)
- left inferior frontal gyrus (Broca's area!) --> deductive reasoning
left dorsolateral prefrontal gyrus --> inductive reasoning

Question 31

natural explanations

Answer 31

appeal to “observable & empirically verifiable phenomena of the physical/ material world”

Question 32

supernatural explanations

Answer 32

appeal to phenomena that “operate outside of/ are distinct from the natural world”

Question 33

supernatural explanations

Answer 33

appeal to phenomena that “operate outside of/ are distinct from the natural world”

Question 34

Explanatory coexistence

Answer 34

when natural & supernatural explanations are generated to interpret the same events

• Synthetic thinking: loose integration of natural & supernatural frameworks without in-depth consideration of how they might interact
• Target-depending thinking: the 2 explanations are used to account for distinct aspects of a given phenomenon & involves different kinds of causality
• Integrated thinking: explanations become well-coordinated, use both explanations to interpret multiple levels of causality

Question 35

Human origins

Results of study

Answer 35

no participant provided evidence of explanatory coexistence

Question 36

Death

Results of study

Answer 36

mostly natural processes as reasons for death and what happens to the body after

• Some target-dependent thinking – supernatural explanation for what happens after death (spirit & soul life) seen as distinct process from cause of death
• Causes of death are much more observable thus more natural explanations

Question 37

Illness

Results of study

Answer 37

explanatory coexistence in 77% of the cases

• Synthetic thinking: generally natural explanations but also said people can get sick from their behaviour & the way they treat others but couldn’t explain how
• Given greater access to info about proximate causes for illness + the influence of Christianity

Question 38

Discussion

of the study

Answer 38

Death & Illness: people are often unsatisfied with natural explanations of death & illness and seek to understand why these things happen to them or their loved ones which explains why death & illness show more explanatory coexistence

Question 39

Base rate effect

Answer 39

Biased through the probability that following statements could be false or true