The aim of this dissertation was to address a theoretical debate on belief bias. Belief bias is the tendency for people to be influenced by their prior beliefs when engaged in deductive reasoning. Deduction is the act of drawing necessary conclusions from premises which are meant to be assumed as true. Given that the logical validity of an argument is independent of its content, being influenced by your prior beliefs in such content is considered a bias. Traditional theories posit there are two belief bias components. Motivated reasoning is the tendency to reason better for arguments with unbelievable conclusions relative to arguments with believable conclusions. Response bias is the tendency to accept believable arguments and to reject unbelievable arguments. Dube et al. (2010) pointed out critical methodological problems that undermine evidence for traditional theories. Using signal detection theory (SDT), they found evidence for response bias only. We adopted the SDT method to compare the viability of the traditional and the response bias accounts. In Chapter 1 the relevant literature is reviewed. In Chapter 2 four experiments which employed a novel SDT-based forced choice reasoning method are presented, showing evidence compatible with motivated reasoning. In Chapter 3 four experiments which used the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) method are presented. Crucially, cognitive ability turned out to be linked to motivated reasoning. In Chapter 4 three experiments are presented in which we investigated the impact of cognitive ability and analytic cognitive style on belief bias, concluding that cognitive style mediated the effects of cognitive ability on motivated reasoning. In Chapter 5 we discuss our findings in light of a novel individual differences account of belief bias. We conclude that using the appropriate measurement method and taking individual differences into account are two key elements to furthering our understanding of belief bias, human reasoning, and cognitive psychology in general.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T20:56:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Gislaine Garcia Gutierres Aprobato.pdf: 892097 bytes, checksum: dfea960b625020966515ecfdcdccf37c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-05-09 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Studies on the early childhood education show that frequents it exerts positive impact on the future life of the individuals, explaining the importance of this stage of education. This study aims to contribute to the research on learning and the development of the child that attends this modality of education. The research was based on the concepts of psychology on the inter-relationship between learning and development and the concepts of cognitive psychology of reading, including the model of word recognition of Ehri. The objective of this research was to verify if there are relations between the different stages of the writing and the reasoning silogistico. It was accepted as a hypothesis that children perform better in writing also show better results in syllogistic reasoning expressed orally. The study included 29 children with a mean age of 6 years and 3 months of age, enrolled in a public school of Sao Paulo in the last stage of early childhood education. To verify our hypothesis the study was a correlational design. Individual applications were made for evidence of written words and syllogistic reasoning. The results showed a positive correlation between writing words and syllogistic reasoning, allowing to conclude that as children get better performance in writing, also demonstrate better performance on syllogisms justify their answers based on the premises. It concludes with considerations about the importance of paying attention in kindergarten, the specificities of small children, favoring both the initial teaching of written language and the development of deductive reasoning / Estudos sobre a educação infantil evidenciam que frequentá-la exerce impacto positivo sobre a vida futura dos indivíduos, explicitando a importância desta etapa da educação. Este estudo busca contribuir com as pesquisas sobre a aprendizagem e o desenvolvimento da criança que frequenta esta modalidade de ensino. A pesquisa baseou-se nos conceitos da psicologia sobre a interrelação entre aprendizagem e desenvolvimento e nos conceitos da psicologia cognitiva da leitura, incluindo o modelo de reconhecimento de palavras de Ehri. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi de verificar se há relações entre as diferentes fases da escrita e o raciocínio silogístico. Nossa hipótese de trabalho era de que crianças que apresentam melhor desempenho na escrita apresentam também melhores resultados no raciocínio silogístico expresso oralmente. Participaram do estudo 29 crianças com média de idade de 6 anos e 3 meses de idade, matriculadas em uma escola pública da cidade de São Paulo no último estágio da educação infantil. Para verificar a nossa hipótese a pesquisa teve um delineamento correlacional. O teste estatístico entre escrita de palavras e raciocínio silogístico demonstrou que há correlação significativa entre as variáveis, ou seja, à medida que as crianças demonstram melhor desempenho na escrita, demonstram também melhor desempenho nos silogismos justificando suas respostas baseando-se nas premissas. O resultado de pesquisa confirma a nossa hipótese inicial. Portanto indica-se que na educação infantil se dê atenção tanto a favorecer o ensino da linguagem escrita tendo em vista as especificidades da criança pequena, quanto a favorecer o desenvolvimento do raciocínio lógico dedutivo

Arbetets syfte är att undersöka hur högstadieelever för matematiskt resonemang. De frågeställningar som studien inriktas på är vilka lösningsstrategier elever väljer då de resonerar matematiskt såväl som vad  det finns för skillnader och likheter mellan de yngre elevernas lösningar och de äldre elevernas lösningar. Undersökningen genomfördes i två klasser, den ena i årskurs 8 och den andra i årskurs 9, på en grundskola. Eleverna fick lösa uppgifter, vilka uppmanade dem att föra matematiskt resonemang, individuellt. Resultatet av studien visar att majoriteten av undersökta elever har valt att resonera deduktivt. Jämförelsen av elevers lösningar i två årskurser visar att årskurs 9 elevers resonemangsföring präglas av större förtrogenhet med den algebraiska demonstrationen. Resultatet visar även att elever med högre kunskaper om algebra oftare visar benägenheter till att vidaregeneralisera de givna påståendena. / The purpose of this study is to examine secondary school students’ strategies of reasoning. The study inquires into which strategies students choose when reasoning mathematically as well as differences and similarities between the younger students’ solutions and the older students’ solutions. The study was conducted in two classes, in years 8 and 9 respectively, at a secondary school. The students were asked to solve tasks, which encouraged them to reason mathematically, on individual basis. The study revealed that the majority of students had chosen to reason deductively. The comparison of students’ presented answers in two years showed that the ninth-graders’ solutions are characterized of greater skill when it comes to algebraic demonstrations. The results of the study also reveal that students with stronger algebraic abilities attempt more often to generalize the given mathematical statements further.

This thesis investigates the correlation between the grammatical gender of generic nouns denoting animals and the perceived biological sex of their referents. Based upon an approach by Imai et al. (2014), a reaction task experiment was conducted in which participants had to make inferences about the biological sex of specific animals. Four languages with differing grammatical gender systems were tested: Spanish, French, German and English. The experiment was conducted with native speakers in their respective languages. The results showed that Spanish, French and German speakers were influenced by grammatical gender when completing the task, while results in the English test group remained unaffected by this factor. In the Spanish and French sample there were several test conditions where gender effects were significant, whereas for the German sample significant effects could only be found in one test condition. Furthermore, in the French and German test groups, significant gender effects were found only when the target words were accompanied by gender-marked definite articles. For Spanish, effects were significant even when the stimuli were presented in the plural form without articles. These results imply that structural features, such as gender marking articles and the transparency of the Spanish gender system, seem to facilitate the projection of sex-specific properties onto grammatical gender. This study can be taken as weak support for linguistic relativity.

「Wason選擇作業」是推理心理學領域中相當經典的作業，由於原版的 「Wason 選擇作業」正確率相當低，引發許多學者相繼投入研究，並形成了各種理論。例如「實用推理基模理論」、「社會契約理論」、「相配偏誤理論」、「訊息獲得量理論」、「關聯性理論」等等。歷經約四十年的研究，「Wason選擇作業」從經典的推理作業至今則被許多研究者質疑其成為研究推理歷程作業的 適當性，有些研究者則認為「Wason選擇作業」應被視為決策作業而非推理作業，並認為參與者在這個作業上不會表現出合於邏輯的推理能力。本研究重新以「規範性理性」的角度探究參與者在這個作業上的表現。研究一以「命題解讀作業」做為輔助，發現至少三成的參與者在傳統抽象型式的「Wason選擇作業」中的選擇行為是符合邏輯對應的，這樣的比例並不低於「命題解讀作業」本身的「正確」率。由於在傳統「Wason選擇作業」上要有「正確」表現須正確解讀命題且無其他形式誤解題意再加上符合邏輯的選擇歷程，低正確率可能僅是各歷程「正確」率相乘的效果，而非「選擇歷程」不具邏輯性所致。研究二則以「雙思考系統理論」的觀點設計有利於「系統二」(即分析性系統)歷程表現的評估型「Wason選擇作業」，實驗一與實驗二分別有約四成及五成七的參與者表現符合「規範性理性」的預期。本研究認為過去多數「Wason選擇作業」的研究著重在研究「系統一」(即聯結性系統)的歷程，故未能觀察到參與者高程度的邏輯表現。本研究結果顯示「規範性理性」在「Wason選擇作業」仍扮演重要角色。本研究最後提出新的研究取向並討論「理性爭議」的課題。

The subject of teacher competencies or knowledge has been a key issue in mathematics education reform. This study attempts to identify and analyze teacher competencies necessary in the orchestration of a problem-centred approach to dynamic geometry teaching and learning. The advent of dynamic geometry environments into classrooms has placed new demands and expectations on mathematics teachers. In this study the Teacher Development Experiment was used as the main method of investigation. Twenty third-year mathematics major teachers participated in workshop and microteaching sessions involving the use of the Geometer's Sketchpad dynamic geometry software in the teaching and learning of the geometry of triangles and quadrilaterals. Five intersecting categories of teacher competencies were identified: mathematical/geometrical competencies. pedagogical competencies. computer and software competences, language and assessment competencies. / Mathematical Sciences / M. Ed. (Mathematical Education)

The present study sets out to evaluate the effectiveness of a dynamic approach to aptitude testing. It was proposed that it is not always appropriate to use conventional aptitude tests to predict future academic success in the South African context. The study posited the belief that an alternative testing format could be facilitated by using a test-train-test procedure within a learning potential paradigm. The learning potential paradigm as formulated through Vygotskian and Feuersteinian theory is operationalised in the form of a Newtest Battery. The Newtest procedure is in direct contrast to traditional approaches to aptitude testing. The latter approaches both implicitly and explicitly adopt a static view of ability, whereas the Newtest approach focuses on the learning potential of the testee, as well as consequent performance. However, the assessment of learning potential poses problems of its own. Modifications were introduced to ensure that the Newtest format is both appropriate and psychometrically defensible. The construction and evaluation of the Newtest Battery is described. A sample of both advantaged and disadvantaged students were tested on a battery of traditional aptitude tests. This group of students was contrasted with another sample of both advantaged and disadvantaged students who undertook the Newtest Battery in the modified dynamic testing format. The traditional measures of aptitude were found to be invalid predictors of university success. Matric results showed a relationship with academic success for both groups. The Newtest measures enhanced the prediction of academic success for both advantaged and disadvantaged students. The Deductive Reasoning dynamic measure was found to be a valid predictor of university success for the disadvantaged students. The results thus successfully extend the learning potential paradigm into the realm of group aptitude testing. The validity of traditional aptitude test measures has been brought into question by the findings of the study. The study points the way forward to a more equitable and relevant aptitude testing procedure. Finally, it was shown that the testing environment forms part of the socio-educational context. Personnel involved in the administration of aptitude tests are given guidelines \vi th the aim of equalising the test process. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

The subject of teacher competences or knowledge has been a key issue in mathematics education reform. This study attempts to identify and analyze teacher competences necessary in the orchestration of a problem-centred approach to dynamic geometry teaching and learning. The advent of dynamic geometry environments into classrooms has placed new demands and expectations on mathematics teachers. In this study the Teacher Development Experiment was used as the main method of investigation. Twenty third-year mathematics major teachers participated in workshop and microteaching sessions involving the use of the Geometer’s Sketchpad dynamic geometry software in the teaching and learning of the geometry of triangles and quadrilaterals. Five intersecting categories of teacher competences were identified: mathematical/geometrical competences, pedagogical competences, computer and software competences, language and assessment competencies. / Mathematics Education / M. Ed. (Mathematics Education)

The present study sets out to evaluate the effectiveness of a dynamic approach to aptitude testing. It was proposed that it is not always appropriate to use conventional aptitude tests to predict future academic success in the South African context. The study posited the belief that an alternative testing format could be facilitated by using a test-train-test procedure within a learning potential paradigm. The learning potential paradigm as formulated through Vygotskian and Feuersteinian theory is operationalised in the form of a Newtest Battery. The Newtest procedure is in direct contrast to traditional approaches to aptitude testing. The latter approaches both implicitly and explicitly adopt a static view of ability, whereas the Newtest approach focuses on the learning potential of the testee, as well as consequent performance. However, the assessment of learning potential poses problems of its own. Modifications were introduced to ensure that the Newtest format is both appropriate and psychometrically defensible. The construction and evaluation of the Newtest Battery is described. A sample of both advantaged and disadvantaged students were tested on a battery of traditional aptitude tests. This group of students was contrasted with another sample of both advantaged and disadvantaged students who undertook the Newtest Battery in the modified dynamic testing format. The traditional measures of aptitude were found to be invalid predictors of university success. Matric results showed a relationship with academic success for both groups. The Newtest measures enhanced the prediction of academic success for both advantaged and disadvantaged students. The Deductive Reasoning dynamic measure was found to be a valid predictor of university success for the disadvantaged students. The results thus successfully extend the learning potential paradigm into the realm of group aptitude testing. The validity of traditional aptitude test measures has been brought into question by the findings of the study. The study points the way forward to a more equitable and relevant aptitude testing procedure. Finally, it was shown that the testing environment forms part of the socio-educational context. Personnel involved in the administration of aptitude tests are given guidelines \vi th the aim of equalising the test process. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

Euclidean Geometry is a challenging topic for most of the learners in the secondary schools. A qualitative case study explores the reasoning skills of ninth graders in the proving of congruent triangles in their natural environment. A class of thirty-two learners was conveniently selected to participate in the classroom observations. Two groups of six learners each were purposefully selected from the same class of thirty-two learners to participate in focus group interviews. The teaching documents were analysed. The Van Hiele’s levels of geometric thinking were used to reflect on the reasoning skills of the learners. The findings show that the majority of the learners operated at level 2 of Van Hiele’s geometric thinking. The use of visual aids in the teaching of geometry is important. About 30% of the learners were still operating at level 1 of Van Hiele theory. The analysed books showed that investigation help learners to discover the intended knowledge on their own. Learners need quality experience in order to move from a lower to a higher level of Van Hiele’s geometry thinking levels. The study brings about unique findings which may not be generalised. The results can only provide an insight into the reasoning skills of ninth graders in proving of congruent triangles. I recommend that future researchers should focus on proving of congruent triangles with a bigger sample of learners from different environmental settings. / Mathematics Education / M. Ed. (Mathematics Education)