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Cognitive Processing of Functional Relationships

Inferences about the binary relationships between variables in systems of three variables were studied. Given three variables, A, B, and C, participants were told the relationship between A and B and the relationship between B and C and then asked to infer the relationship between A and C. The order, the names, and the relationships (increasing, decreasing, and no change) were varied and resulted in 72 problems. The task was presented in the context of judging relationships between the concentrations of chemicals in rocks. Although there were no correct answers as in formal logic studies, the results showed a consistent pattern of inference. For example, positive relationships between A and B and between B and C resulted in the inference that there would be positive relationship between A and C. A number of other consistent inferences were found for mixed relationships. The results of this study are being used to formulate a theory of inference for systems of variables that can be used for further work in how people infer the direction of relationships between variables.

Participants:

Kent L. Norman, Department of Psychology

Ben Smith, Neuroscience and Cognitive Science