Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1703-1717 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology |
| Volume | 73 |
| Issue number | 10 |
| Publication status | Published - 2020 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Abstract
Sequential abductive reasoning is the process of finding the best explanation for a set of observations. Explanations can be multicausal and require the retrieval of previously found ones from memory. The theory of abductive reasoning (TAR) allows detailed predictions on what information is stored and retrieved from memory during reasoning. In the research to date, however, these predictions have never been directly tested. In this study, we tested process assumptions such as the construction of a mental representation from TAR using memory indexing, an eye-tracking method that makes it possible to trace the retrieval of explanations currently held in working memory. Gaze analysis revealed that participants encode the presented evidence (i.e., observations) together with possible explanations into memory. When new observations are presented, the previously presented evidence and explanations are retrieved. Observations that are not explained immediately are encoded as abstractly explained. Abstract explanations enter a refinement process in which they become concrete before they enter the situation model. With the memory indexing method, we were able to assess the process of information retrieval in abductive reasoning, which was previously believed to be unobservable. We discuss the results in the light of TAR and other current theories on the diagnostic reasoning process.
Keywords
- eye movements, memory indexing, mental representation, process tracing, Sequential abductive reasoning
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Psychology(all)
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Psychology(all)
- Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology
- Psychology(all)
- Medicine(all)
- Physiology (medical)
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- Physiology
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In: Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, Vol. 73, No. 10, 2020, p. 1703-1717.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Tracing current explanations in memory: A process analysis based on eye-tracking
AU - Klichowicz, Anja
AU - Strehlau, Sascha
AU - Baumann, Martin R. K.
AU - Krems, Josef F.
AU - Rosner, Agnes
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © Experimental Psychology Society 2020.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - Sequential abductive reasoning is the process of finding the best explanation for a set of observations. Explanations can be multicausal and require the retrieval of previously found ones from memory. The theory of abductive reasoning (TAR) allows detailed predictions on what information is stored and retrieved from memory during reasoning. In the research to date, however, these predictions have never been directly tested. In this study, we tested process assumptions such as the construction of a mental representation from TAR using memory indexing, an eye-tracking method that makes it possible to trace the retrieval of explanations currently held in working memory. Gaze analysis revealed that participants encode the presented evidence (i.e., observations) together with possible explanations into memory. When new observations are presented, the previously presented evidence and explanations are retrieved. Observations that are not explained immediately are encoded as abstractly explained. Abstract explanations enter a refinement process in which they become concrete before they enter the situation model. With the memory indexing method, we were able to assess the process of information retrieval in abductive reasoning, which was previously believed to be unobservable. We discuss the results in the light of TAR and other current theories on the diagnostic reasoning process.
AB - Sequential abductive reasoning is the process of finding the best explanation for a set of observations. Explanations can be multicausal and require the retrieval of previously found ones from memory. The theory of abductive reasoning (TAR) allows detailed predictions on what information is stored and retrieved from memory during reasoning. In the research to date, however, these predictions have never been directly tested. In this study, we tested process assumptions such as the construction of a mental representation from TAR using memory indexing, an eye-tracking method that makes it possible to trace the retrieval of explanations currently held in working memory. Gaze analysis revealed that participants encode the presented evidence (i.e., observations) together with possible explanations into memory. When new observations are presented, the previously presented evidence and explanations are retrieved. Observations that are not explained immediately are encoded as abstractly explained. Abstract explanations enter a refinement process in which they become concrete before they enter the situation model. With the memory indexing method, we were able to assess the process of information retrieval in abductive reasoning, which was previously believed to be unobservable. We discuss the results in the light of TAR and other current theories on the diagnostic reasoning process.
KW - eye movements
KW - memory indexing
KW - mental representation
KW - process tracing
KW - Sequential abductive reasoning
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85091741718&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/1747021820922509
DO - 10.1177/1747021820922509
M3 - Article
VL - 73
SP - 1703
EP - 1717
JO - Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology
JF - Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology
SN - 0033-555X
IS - 10
ER -