Psychology of Reasoning
Title | Psychology of Reasoning PDF eBook |
Author | Peter Cathcart Wason |
Publisher | Harvard University Press |
Pages | 280 |
Release | 1972 |
Genre | Philosophy |
ISBN | 9780674721272 |
At the core of the "Psychology of Reasoning" is a vigorous discussion that incorporates various illustrations--some of them humorous, all of them fascinating--of the use of reason under a wide variety of different conditions. Particular emphasis is placed on the difficulties involved in dealing with negatively marked information that must be combined and used with other information for reaching conclusions. Thorough treatment is given as well to the search for plausible contexts that will render anomalous or ambiguous statements "sensible."
Psychology of Reasoning
Title | Psychology of Reasoning PDF eBook |
Author | Ken Manktelow |
Publisher | Psychology Press |
Pages | 400 |
Release | 2004-09-02 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 113542568X |
This collection brings together a set of specially commissioned chapters from leading international researchers in the psychology of reasoning. Its purpose is to explore the historical, philosophical and theoretical implications of the development of this field. Taking the unusual approach of engaging not only with empirical data but also with the ideas and concepts underpinning the psychology of reasoning, this volume has important implications both for psychologists and other students of cognition, including philosophers. Sub-fields covered include mental logic, mental models, rational analysis, social judgement theory, game theory and evolutionary theory. There are also specific chapters dedicated to the history of syllogistic reasoning, the psychology of reasoning as it operates in scientific theory and practice, Brunswickian approaches to reasoning and task environments, and the implications of Popper's philosophy for models of behaviour testing. This cross-disciplinary dialogue and the range of material covered makes this an invaluable reference for students and researchers into the psychology and philosophy of reasoning.
The Psychology of Thinking
Title | The Psychology of Thinking PDF eBook |
Author | John Paul Minda |
Publisher | SAGE |
Pages | 364 |
Release | 2015-09-26 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1473933943 |
How do we define thinking? Is it simply memory, perception and motor activity or perhaps something more complex such as reasoning and decision making? This book argues that thinking is an intricate mix of all these things and a very specific coordination of cognitive resources. Divided into three key sections, there are chapters on the organization of human thought, general reasoning and thinking and behavioural outcomes of thinking. These three overarching themes provide a broad theoretical framework with which to explore wider issues in cognition and cognitive psychology and there are chapters on motivation and language plus a strong focus on problem solving, reasoning and decision making – all of which are central to a solid understanding of this field. The book also explores the cognitive processes behind perception and memory, how we might differentiate expertise from skilled, competent performance and the interaction between language, culture and thought.
The Psychology of Proof
Title | The Psychology of Proof PDF eBook |
Author | Lance J. Rips |
Publisher | MIT Press |
Pages | 465 |
Release | 2003-01-01 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 0262517213 |
Lance Rips describes a unified theory of natural deductive reasoning and fashions a working model of deduction, with strong experimental support, that is capable of playing a central role in mental life. In this provocative book, Lance Rips describes a unified theory of natural deductive reasoning and fashions a working model of deduction, with strong experimental support, that is capable of playing a central role in mental life. Rips argues that certain inference principles are so central to our notion of intelligence and rationality that they deserve serious psychological investigation to determine their role in individuals' beliefs and conjectures. Asserting that cognitive scientists should consider deductive reasoning as a basis for thinking, Rips develops a theory of natural reasoning abilities and shows how it predicts mental successes and failures in a range of cognitive tasks. In parts I and II of the book, Rips builds insights from cognitive psychology, logic, and artificial intelligence into a unified theoretical structure. He defends the idea that deduction depends on the ability to construct mental proofs—actual memory units that link given information to conclusions it warrants. From this base Rips develops a computational model of deduction based on two cognitive skills: the ability to make suppositions or assumptions and the ability to posit sub-goals for conclusions. A wide variety of original experiments support this model, including studies of human subjects evaluating logical arguments as well as following and remembering proofs. Unlike previous theories of mental proof, this one handles names and variables in a general way. This capability enables deduction to play a crucial role in other thought processes, such as classifying and problem solving. In part III, Rips compares the theory to earlier approaches in psychology which confined the study of deduction to a small group of tasks, and examines whether the theory is too rational or too irrational in its mode of thought.
New Paradigm Psychology of Reasoning
Title | New Paradigm Psychology of Reasoning PDF eBook |
Author | Shira Elqayam |
Publisher | Routledge |
Pages | 363 |
Release | 2018-02-02 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1317202864 |
In recent years the psychology of reasoning has undergone radical change, which can only be seen as a Kuhn-style scientific revolution. This shift has been dubbed ‘New Paradigm’. For years, psychologists of reasoning focused on binary truth values and regarded the influence of belief as a bias. In contrast to this, the new paradigm puts probabilities, and subjective degrees of belief, centre stage. It also emphasises subjective psychological value, or utility; the way we reason within our own social environment (‘social pragmatics’); and the crucial role of dual process theories. Such theories distinguish between fast, intuitive processes, and effortful processes which enable hypothetical thinking. The new paradigm aims to integrate the psychology of reasoning with the study of judgement and decision making, leading to a much more unified field of higher mental processing. This collection showcases these recent developments, with chapters on topics such as the difference between deduction and induction, a Bayesian formulation of faint praise, the role of emotion in reasoning, and the relevance of psychology of reasoning to moral judgement. This book was originally published as a special issue of Thinking & Reasoning.
The Psychology of Deductive Reasoning (Psychology Revivals)
Title | The Psychology of Deductive Reasoning (Psychology Revivals) PDF eBook |
Author | Jonathan St. B. T. Evans |
Publisher | Psychology Press |
Pages | 271 |
Release | 2013-12-19 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1317820452 |
Originally published in 1982, this was an extensive and up-to-date review of research into the psychology of deductive reasoning, Jonathan Evans presents an alternative theoretical framework to the rationalist approach which had dominated much of the published work in this field at the time. The review falls into three sections. The first is concerned with elementary reasoning tasks, in which response latency is the prime measure of interest. The second and third sections are concerned with syllogistic and propositional reasoning respectively, in which interest has focused on the explanation of frequently observed logical errors. In an extended discussion it is argued that reasoning processes are content specific, and give little indication of the operation of any underlying system of logical competence. Finally, a dual process theory of reasoning, with broad implications and connections with other fields of psychology, is elaborated and assessed in the light of recent evidence.
The New Reflectionism in Cognitive Psychology
Title | The New Reflectionism in Cognitive Psychology PDF eBook |
Author | Gordon Pennycook |
Publisher | Routledge |
Pages | 306 |
Release | 2018-04-09 |
Genre | Psychology |
ISBN | 1315460157 |
This volume presents detailed reviews and will be of use to anyone interested in the strengths and weaknesses of human reason. This volume will also be of use to both proponents and skeptics of dual-process theory as it represents a strong case for the wide theoretical significance of the distinction between intuition and reflection. The empirical evidence indicates that analytic thinking plays a significant role in everyday life. Reason does, in fact, matter.