Do Experts and Novices Direct Attention Differently in Examining Physics Diagrams? A Study of Change Detection Using the Flicker Technique

It is known that experts identify or perceive meaningful patterns in visual stimuli related to their domain of expertise. This study explores the speed with which experts and novices detect changes in physics diagrams. Since change detection depends on where individuals direct their attention, diffe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review special topics. Physics education research 2015-08, Vol.11 (2), p.020104, Article 020104
Main Authors: Morphew, Jason W, Mestre, Jose P, Ross, Brian H, Strand, Natalie E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attention
Change detection
Comparative Analysis
Difficulty Level
Educational Psychology
Expertise
Flicker
Hypothesis Testing
Illinois
Introductory Courses
Knowledge Level
Learning Processes
Novices
Physics
Reaction Time
Response time
Science Process Skills
Undergraduate Students
Visual Aids
Visual stimuli
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Summary:It is known that experts identify or perceive meaningful patterns in visual stimuli related to their domain of expertise. This study explores the speed with which experts and novices detect changes in physics diagrams. Since change detection depends on where individuals direct their attention, differences in the speed with which experts and novices detect changes to diagrams would suggest differences in attention allocation between experts and novices. We present data from an experiment using the "flicker technique," in which both physics experts and physics novices viewed nearly identical pairs of diagrams that are representative of typical introductory physics situations. The two diagrams in each pair contain a subtle difference that either does or does not change the underlying physics depicted in the diagram. Findings indicate that experts are faster at detecting physics-relevant changes than physics-irrelevant changes; however, there is no difference in response time for novices, suggesting that expertise guides attention for experts when inspecting physics diagrams. We discuss the cognitive implications of our findings.
ISSN:1554-9178
1554-9178
2469-9896
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.11.020104