D. Stephen Lindsay

Raymond S. Nickerson

Durso

Roger W. Schvaneveldt

Susan T. Dumais

Michelene T. H. Chi

Cognitive psychology is the basis of many applications in almost every area of technology, business, industry, and education. This book provides workers in applied arenas with presentations of research aimed directly at the problems and issues that confront them. It will cover key areas including business and industry, computers and technology, education and information, and health and law.

Handbook of Applied Cognition

What does it mean to be rational – to reason well and effectively? How does rationality, broadly conceived, relate to the knowledge one acquires, the beliefs one forms, the explanations one constructs or appropriates, the judgments and decisions one makes, the values one adopts? What is the character of human reasoning and, in particular, does it tend to be rational? Much has been written about human rationality – or lack thereof. In recent years, some writers have focused attention on the numerous ways in which people appear not to be rational, at least if being rational is taken to mean always thinking or behaving in accordance with some normative standard. Others have argued that, if human reasoning is as flawed as this work suggests, it is a wonder that we, as a species, are around to notice the fact. This book examines much of the experimental research on reasoning as it relates to a variety of conceptions of rationality, not limited to conformity of thought and behavior or to the dictates of one or another normative system. The discussion focuses on specific topics that represent essential aspects of any adequately inclusive conception of rationality: intelligence and knowledge; beliefs; goals, values and affect; explanations; judgment and choice; understanding and wisdom.

Reflections on What It Means To Be Rational and Whether We Are

Aspects of Rationality

This book addresses two questions: what makes an argument persuasive and what makes a claims that support them plausible?

The Art of Persuasion

Argumentation

Conditional reasoning is reasoning that involves statements of the sort If A (Antecedent) then C (Consequent). This type of reasoning is ubiquitous; everyone engages in it. Indeed, the ability to do so may be considered a defining human characteristic. Without this ability, human cognition would be greatly impoverished. "What-if" thinking could not occur. There would be no retrospective efforts to understand history by imagining how it could have taken a different course. Decisions that take possible contingencies into account could not be made; there could be no attempts to influence the future by selecting actions on the basis of their expected effects. Despite the commonness and importance of conditional reasoning and the considerable attention it has received from scholars, it remains the subject of much continuing debate. Unsettled questions, both normative and empirical, continue to be asked. What constitutes normative conditional reasoning? How do people engage in it? Does what people do match what would be expected of a rational agent with the abilities and limitations of human beings? If not, how does it deviate and how might people's ability to engage in it be improved? This book reviews the work of prominent psychologists and philosophers on conditional reasoning. It describes empirical research on how people deal with conditional arguments and on how conditional statements are used and interpreted in everyday communication. It examines philosophical and theoretical treatments of the mental processes that support conditional reasoning. Its extensive coverage of the subject makes it an ideal resource for students, teachers, and researchers with a focus on cognition across disciplines.

Raymond S. Nickerson

About

Books

Join the club