Causal conditional reasoning and semantic memory retrieval: A test of the semantic memory framework

This study tested and refined a framework that proposes a mechanism for retrieving alternative causes and disabling conditions (Cummins, 1995) during reasoning. Experiment 1 examined the relation between different factors affecting retrieval. The test revealed high correlations between the number of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Memory & cognition 2002-09, Vol.30 (6), p.908-920
Main Authors: DE NEYS, Wim, SCHAEKEN, Walter, D'YDEWALLE, Géry
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Cognition & reasoning
Cognition. Intelligence
Experiments
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Human
Humans
Language Tests
Learning. Memory
Linguistics
Memory
Problem Solving
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Reasoning. Problem solving
Recall
Semantics
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Summary:This study tested and refined a framework that proposes a mechanism for retrieving alternative causes and disabling conditions (Cummins, 1995) during reasoning. Experiment 1 examined the relation between different factors affecting retrieval. The test revealed high correlations between the number of possible alternative causes or disabling conditions and their strength of association and plausibility. Experiment 2 explored the hypothesis that due to a more extended search process, conditional inferences would last longer when many alternative causes or disabling conditions were available. Affirmation of the consequent (AC) and modus ponens (MP) latencies showed the hypothesized pattern. Denial of the antecedent (DA) and modus tollens (MT) inferences did not show latency effects. The experiment also identified an effect of the number of disabling conditions on AC and DA acceptance. Experiment 3 measured efficiency of disabler retrieval by a limited time, disabler generation task. As predicted, better disabler retrieval was related to lower acceptance of the MP and MT inferences.
ISSN:0090-502X
1532-5946
DOI:10.3758/BF03195776