A Cognitive Processing Account of Individual Differences in Novice Logo Programmers' Conceptualisation and Use of Recursion

1995 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela Gibbons
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Mental Models ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Mental Activity ◽  
Cognitive Profiles ◽  
Progressive Development ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Processing Abilities ◽  
Logo Programming ◽  
Problem Solving Behavior

This article describes a study which investigated individual differences in the construction of mental models of recursion in Logo programming. It was hypothesized that differences in individuals' cognitive profiles would be reflected in differences in their computer programming problem solving behavior. The learning process was investigated from the perspective of Norman's mental models theory and employed diSessa's ontology regarding distributed, functional, and surrogate mental models. Analysis of the processes underlying mental model construction and of individual differences in these processes was based on the Luria model of brain function with particular regard to the relative contribution of simultaneous and successive cognitive processing abilities to conscious mental activity. Results generally confirmed predictions regarding the involvement of these abilities in the manifestation of individual differences in the stages of conscious mental activity contributing to the progressive development of mental models of recursion.

Individual differences in white and grey matter structure associated with verbal habits of thought

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin C. Hayes ◽  
Katherine L Alfred ◽  
Rachel Pizzie ◽  
Joshua S. Cetron ◽  
David J. M. Kraemer
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Diffusion Tensor ◽  
Self Report ◽  
White Matter Tracts

Modality specific encoding habits account for a significant portion of individual differences reflected in functional activation during cognitive processing. Yet, little is known about how these habits of thought influence long-term structural changes in the brain. Traditionally, habits of thought have been assessed using self-report questionnaires such as the visualizer-verbalizer questionnaire. Here, rather than relying on subjective reports, we measured habits of thought using a novel behavioral task assessing attentional biases toward picture and word stimuli. Hypothesizing that verbal habits of thought are reflected in the structural integrity of white matter tracts and cortical regions of interest, we used diffusion tensor imaging and volumetric analyses to assess this prediction. Using a whole-brain approach, we show that word bias is associated with increased volume in several bilateral language regions, in both white and grey matter parcels. Additionally, connectivity within white matter tracts within an a priori speech production network increased as a function of word bias. These results demonstrate long-term structural and morphological differences associated with verbal habits of thought.

Sensory Processing Sensitivity Predicts Individual Differences in Resting-State Functional Connectivity Associated with Depth of Processing

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Bianca P. Acevedo ◽  
Tyler Santander ◽  
Robert Marhenke ◽  
Arthur Aron ◽  
Elaine Aron
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Sensory Processing ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Brain Connectivity ◽  
Region Of Interest ◽  
Central Feature ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Depth Of Processing ◽  
Sensory Processing Sensitivity

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Sensory processing sensitivity (SPS) is a biologically based temperament trait associated with enhanced awareness and responsivity to environmental and social stimuli. Individuals with high SPS are more affected by their environments, which may result in overarousal, cognitive depletion, and fatigue. <b><i>Method:</i></b> We examined individual differences in resting-state (rs) brain connectivity (using functional MRI) as a function of SPS among a group of adults (<i>M</i> age = 66.13 ± 11.44 years) immediately after they completed a social affective “empathy” task. SPS was measured with the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) Scale and correlated with rs brain connectivity. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Results showed enhanced rs brain connectivity within the ventral attention, dorsal attention, and limbic networks as a function of greater SPS. Region of interest analyses showed increased rs brain connectivity between the hippocampus and the precuneus (implicated in episodic memory); while weaker connectivity was shown between the amygdala and the periaqueductal gray (important for anxiety), and the hippocampus and insula (implicated in habitual cognitive processing). <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> The present study showed that SPS is associated with rs brain connectivity implicated in attentional control, consolidation of memory, physiological homeostasis, and deliberative cognition. These results support theories proposing “depth of processing” as a central feature of SPS and highlight the neural processes underlying this cardinal feature of the trait.

Towards the Personalization of CAPTCHA Mechanisms Based on Individual Differences in Cognitive Processing

2013 ◽  
pp. 409-426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marios Belk ◽  
Panagiotis Germanakos ◽  
Christos Fidas ◽  
Andreas Holzinger ◽  
George Samaras
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Cognitive Processing

scholarly journals Know Your Cognitive Environment! Mental Models as Crucial Determinant of Offloading Preferences

2020 ◽  
pp. 001872082095686
Author(s):  
Patrick P. Weis ◽  
Eva Wiese
Keyword(s):  
Mental Models ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Cognitive Tools ◽  
Smartphone Apps ◽  
Model Adjustment ◽  
Problem Solvers ◽  
Cognitive Environment ◽  
Human Problem ◽  
Specific Expertise

Objective Human problem solvers possess the ability to outsource parts of their mental processing onto cognitive “helpers” ( cognitive offloading). However, suboptimal decisions regarding which helper to recruit for which task occur frequently. Here, we investigate if understanding and adjusting a specific subcomponent of mental models—beliefs about task-specific expertise—regarding these helpers could provide a comparatively easy way to improve offloading decisions. Background Mental models afford the storage of beliefs about a helper that can be retrieved when needed. Methods Arithmetic and social problems were solved by 192 participants. Participants could, in addition to solving a task on their own, offload cognitive processing onto a human, a robot, or one of two smartphone apps. These helpers were introduced with either task-specific (e.g., stating that an app would use machine learning to “recognize faces” and “read emotions”) or task-unspecific (e.g., stating that an app was built for solving “complex cognitive tasks”) descriptions of their expertise. Results Providing task-specific expertise information heavily altered offloading behavior for apps but much less so for humans or robots. This suggests (1) strong preexisting mental models of human and robot helpers and (2) a strong impact of mental model adjustment for novel helpers like unfamiliar smartphone apps. Conclusion Creating and refining mental models is an easy approach to adjust offloading preferences and thus improve interactions with cognitive environments. Application To efficiently work in environments in which problem-solving includes consulting other people or cognitive tools (“helpers”), accurate mental models—especially regarding task-relevant expertise—are a crucial prerequisite.

Learning Mental Models of Human Cognitive Processing by Creating Cognitive Models

2015 ◽  
pp. 287-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuhisa Miwa ◽  
Nana Kanzaki ◽  
Hitoshi Terai ◽  
Kazuaki Kojima ◽  
Ryuichi Nakaike ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Models ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Cognitive Models

scholarly journals Genetic Influences on Individual Differences in Nicotine Glucuronidation

2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 507-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina N. Lessov-Schlaggar ◽  
Neal L. Benowitz ◽  
Peyton Jacob ◽  
Gary E. Swan
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Renal Clearance ◽  
Parent Drug ◽  
Individual Variability ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Nicotine Pharmacokinetics ◽  
Oxidative Metabolites ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Genetically Determined

AbstractNicotine and its primary oxidative metabolites are metabolized in part by glucuronidation. Genetic variation in UGT isoenzymes that catalyze glucuronidation activity suggests that variation in glucuronidation rate is in part genetically determined. The relative contribution of genetic and environmental sources to individual differences in the rate of glucuronidation of nicotine, cotinine, and trans-3'-hydroxycotinine was estimated in a twin study of nicotine pharmacokinetics. Glucuronidation rate was defined using measures that either accounted for variability in renal clearance or assumed the same relative renal clearance of parent drug and glucuronide conjugate across individuals. The former definition resulted in highly correlated nicotine and cotinine glucuronidation measures that were substantially influenced by the combined effect of additive (heritable) and non-additive (dominant and epistatic) genetic effects. These findings suggest that genetic variation in UGT isoenzymes that act in additive and interactive ways is an important determinant of individual variability in nicotine and cotinine metabolism via glucuronidation pathways.

scholarly journals Trait-like vulnerability of higher-order cognition and ability to maintain wakefulness during combined sleep restriction and circadian misalignment

SLEEP ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate E Sprecher ◽  
Hannah K Ritchie ◽  
Tina M Burke ◽  
Christopher M Depner ◽  
Alexandra N Smits ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Sleep Restriction ◽  
Performance Tasks ◽  
Circadian Misalignment ◽  
Selective Visual Attention ◽  
Individual Vulnerability ◽  
At Home

Abstract Study Objectives Determine stability of individual differences in executive function, cognitive processing speed, selective visual attention, and maintenance of wakefulness during simulated sustained operations with combined sleep restriction and circadian misalignment. Methods Twenty healthy adults (eight female), aged 25.7 (±4.2 SD), body mass index (BMI) 22.3 (±2.1) kg/m2 completed an 18-day protocol twice. Participants maintained habitual self-selected 8-hour sleep schedules for 2 weeks at home prior to a 4-day laboratory visit that included one sleep opportunity per day: 8 hours on night 1, 3 hours on night 2, and 3 hours on mornings 3 and 4. After 3 days of unscheduled sleep at home, participants repeated the entire protocol. Stability and task dependency of individual differences in performance were quantified by intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and Kendall’s Tau, respectively. Results Performance on Stroop, Visual Search, and the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test were highly consistent within individuals during combined sleep restriction and circadian misalignment. Individual differences were trait-like as indicated by ICCs (0.54–0.96) classified according to standard criteria as moderate to almost perfect. Individual differences on other performance tasks commonly reported in sleep studies showed fair to almost perfect ICCs (0.22–0.94). Kendall’s rank correlations showed that individual vulnerability to sleep restriction and circadian misalignment varied by task and by metric within a task. Conclusions Consistent vulnerability of higher-order cognition and maintenance of wakefulness to combined sleep restriction and circadian misalignment has implications for the development of precision countermeasure strategies for workers performing safety-critical tasks, e.g. military, police, health care workers and emergency responders.

The Relationship between Mental Workload and Situation Awareness

2000 ◽  
Vol 44 (21) ◽  
pp. 3-460-3-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Vidulich
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Situation Awareness ◽  
Mental Workload ◽  
Processing Abilities ◽  
Common Goals ◽  
Two Measures ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Simple Fashion ◽  
Empirical Database

Mental workload and situation awareness are both outgrowths of the practical need to assess operators' performing and managing dynamic complex tasks. Mental workload refers to the cost placed on the human operator's cognitive processing abilities by performing the required task-related mental processing. Situation awareness is the operator's apprehension of the current situation. Common goals of designing a new system or modifying an existing one are often to reduce the operator's mental workload while increasing the operator's situation awareness. However, the empirical database obtained from concurrent evaluation of mental workload and situation awareness demonstrates that the two measures generally do not co-vary in such a simple fashion. The lack of a single straightforward correlation could be interpreted as an indication that mental workload and situation awareness must be considered independent of each other. However, parsing the available studies into sub-categories based on the type of manipulation that was investigated allows some possible relationships between mental workload and situation awareness to emerge. This suggests that researchers should continue to examine the relationship between these concepts and system evaluators should not consider mental workload or situation awareness in isolation from the other.

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