Colloquium with Dr. Andrew Shtulman on ‘The Development of Cognitive Reflection’

DATE
Thursday January 30, 2025
TIME
12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Location
Douglas T. Kenny Building - Room 4001
2136 West Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada

FEATURING

Dr. Andrew Shtulman, Professor of Psychology, Occidental College

TITLE

The Development of Cognitive Reflection

ABSTRACT

What do cows drink? The correct answer is water, but you may have been tempted to say milk. The disposition to override an intuitive response (milk) with an analytic response (water) is known as cognitive reflection. In adults, cognitive reflection predicts a wide range of skills and abilities. I will discuss the construction of a developmental version of the cognitive reflection test, the CRT-D. This test predicts rational thinking and normative thinking dispositions in elementary-school-aged children independent of age, executive function, and cultural context. It also predicts children’s understanding of counterintuitive scientific concepts, as well as their ability to learn such concepts from instruction. These findings suggest that cognitive reflection is an ideal vantage point for studying, and improving, children’s higher-order cognition.

BIO

Dr. Andrew Shtulman is a Professor of Psychology at Occidental College where he directs the Thinking Lab. Dr. Shtulman studies conceptual development, focusing on the development of intuition, imagination, and reflection. He earned a BA in Psychology from Princeton and a PhD in Psychology from Harvard and is the author of Scienceblind (Basic, 2017) and Learning to Imagine (Harvard, 2023).

Annually the Department of Psychology hosts a Colloquia Series throughout the academic year. This exciting program brings us together outside of the classroom to have conversations with the speakers we’ve invited to our campus to share their ideas. You’ll have the chance to hear from international speakers on a wide range of provocative topics.