Tidigare studier har visat att inlärning genom övningstester med direkt feedback, så kallat testbaserat lärande, är effektivare än mer traditionella inlärningmetoder. Dessutom har personlighetsdrag visat sig påverka inlärningsstilar. Den aktuella studiens syfte var att replikera testbaserat lärande som metod och utvärdera personlighetsdragen Grit (uthållighet och passion för att nå sina mål) och Need for Cognition (viljan att kognitivt elaborera) i relation till testbaserat lärande. Vidare undersöktes om och hur testdeltagarnas upplevda ansträngning och svårighetsgrad i förhållande till testbaserat lärande hade något samband med prestationen. En kvasiexperimentell studie genomfördes där 44 gymnasieelever fick lära in och återge 30 ordpar på svenska/swahili. Hälften av deltagarna tilldelades testbaserat lärande som inlärningsmetod medan resterande tilldelades traditionell omläsning som inlärningsmetod. Studiens resultat styrker att testbaserad inlärning är en robust inlärningsteknink som inte påverkas av personlighetsdragen Grit och Need for Cognition. Dessutom framkommer tvetydiga resultat angående huruvida en högre grad av upplevd ansträngning leder till bättre minnesprestation. Framtida forskning med större stickprov behövs för att vidare utforska och eventuellt styrka resultaten. / Previous studies have shown that learning by practice tests with direct feedback, so-called test-enhanced learning, is more effective than traditional methods of learning. Moreover, personality traits have been shown to affect learning styles. The aim of the present study was to evaluate test-enhanced learning and the personality traits Grit (persistence and passion to achieve ones goals) and Need for Cognition (an individual’s tendency to engage in and enjoy effortful thinking) in relation to test-enhanced learning. It was further examined if and how test participants’ perceived exertion and difficulty in relation to test-enhanced learning affected performance. A quasi-experimental study was conducted in which 44 high school students had to learn and reproduce 30 Swedish/Swahili word pairs. Half of the participants were assigned test-enhanced learning as a learning method, while the remainder was assigned traditional rereading as their learning method. The results of the study support the earlier findings in that test-enhanced learning is a robust learning method. The results also indicate that test-enhanced learning is not influenced by the personality traits Grit and Need for Cognition. Furthermore, ambiguous results were found regarding whether a higher degree of perceived exertion leads to better memory performance. Additional research with larger samples is needed to further explore and possibly support these results. / Den lärande hjärnan

The Internet is growing in popularity as a health information sourceespecially among young adults. Interactivity has been pinpointed as the keyfeature that makes the Internet a potentially powerful health communicationtool. It is being heralded as a hybrid channel that has the capacity not only todisseminate health information to mass audiences both asynchronously andsynchronously, but also has the capacity to provide an engaging and stimulatingenvironment that can promote exploratory learning and active processing ofinformation. Despite these exciting claims, there is still a dearth of theoreticallydrivenempirical studies providing support for or against these assumptions. Westill know very little about how interactive technologies actually influenceinformation use, learning and motivational processes.A popular view is that the communicative efficacy of interactivetechnologies is influenced more with their match with comprehension processesand individual differences than with the level of interactivity itself. This studywas designed to tease out the potential effects of different levels of interactivityon comprehension and to determine whether individual differences in need forcognition would moderate such effects. About 441 young adults (ages 18-26)from the University of Kentucky participated in a 2 by 2 factorial experimentdesigned to test the effects of two levels of interactivity and two levels of needfor cognition on the comprehension of a health website on skin cancer.Results showed a significant main effect for level of interactivity oncomprehension scores holding the covariates, time on task and reading style,constant. Those exposed to the high interactivity site had significantly highercomprehension scores than those exposed to the low interactivity site. Therewas, however, no significant main effect for need for cognition, neither was therea significant interaction effect between level of interactivity and need forcognition on comprehension scores. Implications of these results and suggestionsfor future research are also discussed.

Tidigare forskning har visat att kreativt matematiskt grundat resonerande (CMR) är en mer effektiv metod än algoritmiskt resonerande (AR) för att lära sig matematik. Kognitiv förmåga samt personlighet har också visats påverka inlärningen. Syftet med denna studie var att jämföra effekten av två olika matematiska inlärningsmetoder och undersöka deras förhållande till kognitiv förmåga samt personlighetsdraget Need for cognition (viljan att kognitivt elaborera). Två grupper bestående av  gymnasieelever (N = 132) fick öva med två olika metoder, AR eller CMR.. En vecka senare genomförde båda grupperna samma matematiktest. Resultaten visade att de som övat med CMR presterade signifikant bättre än de som övat med AR. Kognitiv förmåga predicerade resultat på matematiktestet i båda grupperna. Resultaten är linje med tidigare forskning. Need for cognition predicerade enbart testresultat i CMR-gruppen. / Previous studies have shown that creative mathematical grounded reasoning (CMR) is a more effective method than algoritmic reasoning (AR) when it comes to learning mathematics. Moreover cognitive ability and personality have been shown to impact on learning. The aim of the present study is to replicate previous studies where CMR, and the relation to cognitive ability, have been investigated, and to examine the impact of the personality trait Need for cognition (an individual’s tendency to engage in and enjoy effortful thinking) for learning. Two groups of upper secondary school pupils (N = 132) practiced with two different methods, CMR and AR. One week later both groups took the same mathematical test. The results showed that the CMR-group performed significantly better than the AR-group. Cognitive ability predicted results on the mathematical test in both groups. The results is in line with previous studies. Need for cognition only predicted test results in the CMR-group.

This dissertation concerns the relationship between the symptomatology of depression and cognition. The purpose of this study was to investigate the assumptions of Beck's negative cognition theory regarding the relationship between patients' lack of ability to reason and depression. Beck noticed that people with depression failed to consciously examine the basis upon which their negative self-defeating reality is founded. This study examined a relationship between critical thinking skills and the need for cognition (the desire to think about ambiguous information) and levels of depression and education. The participants were 75 postsecondary undergraduate and graduate students from both online and traditional universities. This study used two-way between ANOVAs. The participants completed the Zung Self-Rating Depression scale and the Need for Cognition scale, as well as the Ennis-Weir Critical Thinking Essay test. The findings showed no significant differences in scores between those with symptoms of depression and those without in terms of critical thinking skills and need for cognition. A reanalysis was performed to remove outliers in the data, which resulted in finding significant differences between education level and the need for cognition. These findings may suggest that the participants' desire to apply effort to thinking about ambiguous information or problems is related to education level. These findings might help promote positive social change by suggesting that other researchers examine the relationship between critical thinking skills and depression to add to this conversation.

Previous studies have shown that the FFM factor neuroticism was negatively correlated with Need for Cognition. Anxiety has been shown to be highly correlated with neuroticism. It has also been shown that women tend to score higher on both neuroticism and anxiety. Need for Cognition has been shown to predict long term academic success. This study aims to contribute to the current understanding of anxiety, neuroticism and Need for Cognition by examining these three constructs together. The study will also analyzes how gender can affect the relationships between the constructs. 272 participants responded to three questionnaires measuring the constructs. 86 were men, 183 were women and 3 defined themselves as "other". 246 of the respondents were university students and 26 responded did not currently study at university. Results indicate that anxiety is a negative predictor for Need for Cognition. This is speculated to be because anxiety has an effect on working memory which in turn is associated with Need for Cognition. Gender differences are significant regarding all three constructs. Findings are complicated by a negative suppressor effect. Results, limitations, and future research are discussed. / Tidigare studier har visat att FFM faktorn neuroticism var negativt korrelerad med Need for Cognition. Ångest har visat sig vara starkt korrelerat med neuroticism. Det har också visat sig att kvinnor tenderar att skatta högre på både neuroticism och ångest. Need for Cognition har visat sig förutsäga långsiktig akademisk framgång. Denna studie syftar till att bidra till aktuell kunskap om ångest, neuroticism och Need for Cognition genom att undersöka dessa tre konstrukt tillsammans. Studien analyserar också hur kön påverkar relationerna mellan konstruktionerna. 272 deltagare svarade på tre enkäter som mäter dessa konstrukt. 86 var män, 183 kvinnor och 3 definierade sig som "övrigt". 246 av de svarande var universitetsstuderande och 26 svarande studerade inte för närvarande på universitet. Resultaten tyder på att ångest kan vara en negativ prediktor för Need for Cognition. Detta spekuleras kunna bero på att ångest har en effekt på arbetsminnet, som i sin tur kan påverka Need for Cognition. Det fanns signifikanta könsskillnader gällande alla tre konstrukt. Resultaten kompliceras av en negativ suppressor effekt. Resultat, begränsningar och framtida forskning diskuteras.

The current study looks to examine the possible effects expert witness trustworthiness and testimony quality depending upon participant need for cognition. The study involves 139 participants taken from Amazon's Mechanical Turk and an undergraduate research pool where they were asked to take part in a web-based survey. Participants read a capital sentencing summary and were randomly selected into one of four expert witness conditions that vary in trustworthiness and quality. Participants took the short form Need for Cognition scale and filled out a questionnaire about their perceptions of the expert's trustworthiness and testimony quality. Results indicated a marginal main effect of the trustworthiness condition as well as a marginal three-way interaction. Additionally, significant main effects for the sample and death qualification status of participants were found. Results are discussed in the context of the current study and past research and possible limitations and extensions of the current study are considered.

Texting is ubiquitous; the International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications Industry reported that 4.1 billion text messages were sent per day in the first half of 2009. In isolation, texting does not injure individuals; however, when combined with driving, lives have changed for the worse. The National Safety Council estimates that 1.6 million crashes per year can be attributed to distracted drivers either talking on cell phones or texting while driving and nearly 28 percent of all crashes in the United States can be ascribed to these behaviors. An increasing number of texting while driving fear appeal campaigns are being utilized in the media. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to create and test theoretically-based messages aimed at discouraging texting while driving. Formative research along with the Extended Parallel Process Model was used for guidance in the creation of the fear appeal messages. No low threat message was used for the main study after repeated message validations failed. For the study, three high threat messages varied only by a single paragraph which targeted beliefs about benefits, mastery, and ubiquity of texting while driving. 155 undergraduates at Texas A & M University completed a pretest, read the high threat message, and answered a posttest. Need for cognition and sensation seeking tendencies were measured in order to understand the effects such personality traits have on message perceptions. Five major outcomes were revealed even though numerous hypotheses were unsupported. There was a significant interaction between perceived threat and sensation seeking tendencies on message realism. There was a significant interaction between perceived threat and need for cognition on message realism. There was a significant interaction between perceived threat and need for cognition on message accuracy. There was a significant interaction between perceived threat and need for cognition on attitudes. There was a significant positive correlation between perceived threat and perceived message sensation value. This project provides support that sensation seeking tendencies and need for cognition do interacted with perceived threat on perceptions of message effectiveness and that perceived message sensation value was positively related to perceived threat. Results also revealed the prevalence of texting while driving behavior and relationships between personality traits and texting while driving. Sensation seeking tendencies were positively correlated with initiating text messages while driving. Need for cognition was negatively correlated with reading and replying to text messages while driving.

Tidigare forskning har visat att individer tenderar se sig själva mindre sårbara än genomsnittet, vilket gör att man utsätter sig själv för ett stort risktagande. Syftet med studien var att undersöka om de individer som ser sig mindre sårbara än andra är de som påverkas av reklam och manipulation. I undersökningen deltog 183 studenter, 122 kvinnor och 61 män. Tre olika mätinstrument kombinerades i en enkät. En reklamannons med tillhörande frågor, utarbetad i samarbete med en reklambyrå, ett instrument som mätte en individs Need for Cognition samt ett tredje för att mäta hur sårbar personen såg sig i jämförelse med genomsnittet. Våra hypoteser fick inte stöd men vi lyckades påvisa att det förekom en illusion av osårbarhet och en tredjepersoneffekt bland deltagarna. Förhoppningen är att framtida forskning lyckas ta fram ett mer effektivt mätinstrument som kan visa att illusionen av osårbarhet kan öka en individs manipulationsrisk.

Contemporary consumers are deluged by advertising. Their lack of interest and defense has challenge advertisers to motivate consumers to process ads. From the advertising literature, rhetorical devices can be attention getting, arousing, affect inducing and memorable. Specifically, the use of metaphors expends dimensional thinking and enhances ad responses. This research proposes two types of metaphors (explicit vs. implicit) and examines the effects of product type and need for cognition on metaphor advertising. The present study uses experimental design with a 3(metaphor advertising: non-metaphoric vs. explicit-metaphoric vs. implicit-metaphoric) x 2(product type: utilitarian vs. hedonic) factorial design. Need for cognition is measured. Six different scenarios are established through fictitious product ads, and the ad effects are measures by attitude toward the brand and purchase intention to observe the response under different scenarios. The results indicate that the metaphor advertising is more effective than the non-metaphor advertising, which is consistent with previous studies. There is an interaction effect between the type of metaphor and product type. The explicit metaphor is more effective than implicit metaphor in promoting an utilitarian product. On the contrary, the implicit metaphor is more effective than the explicit metaphor in promoting a hedonic product. High need of cognition enhances the effects of metaphor advertising. Compared with those who have lower level of need for cognition, the individuals who have higher level have more favorable attitudes toward the product and stronger purchase intention, especially on explicit metaphor.

In order to meet our needs, consumer always believe that the more wild of selection, the better to choose the best of us. One such assumption is the regularity principle, which asserts that the addition of a new option to the choice set should not increase the probability of choosing any of the original options (Luce 1977). Clearly, both the attraction and compromise effects reflect an increase in the share of the target option after adding a third option. It implies that a new option added to a given set should take shares from existing options in proportion to their original shares. In fact, not all of the consumers react to these "third option" in the same level, because of the different personality traits , everyone have different thoughts even they get the same message. So, we want to know the impact of personality traits on compromise and attraction effects, and the intensity of those effects. We choose ¡§self-confidence¡¨, ¡§need for cognition¡¨, ¡§need for uniqueness¡¨, ¡§locus of control¡¨, and ¡§self-monitoring¡¨ to test the compromise and attraction effects, and we found that people with ¡§low need for uniqueness¡¨ had the strongest compromise effect; and with ¡§high need for cognition¡¨ had the strongest attraction effect. In addition, ¡§high self-confidence¡¨, ¡§high need for cognition¡¨, ¡§high need for uniqueness¡¨, and ¡§low self-monitoring¡¨ groups only exist attraction effect but compromise effect; ¡§low self-confidence¡¨, ¡§low need for cognition¡¨, ¡§low need for uniqueness¡¨ and ¡§high self-monitoring¡¨ groups react not only on attraction effect, but on compromise effect.