Relations as transformations: implications for analogical reasoning.
We present two experiments assessing whether the size of a transformation instantiating a relation between two states of the world (e.g., shrinks) is a performance factor affecting analogical reasoning. The first experiment finds evidence of transformation size as a significant factor in adolescent analogical problem solving while the second experiment finds a similar effect on adult analogical reasoning using a markedly different analogical completion paradigm. The results are interpreted as providing evidence for the more general framework that cognitive representations of relations are best understood as mental transformations.
Leech
Robert
R
School of Psychology, Birbeck, University of London, London, UK. r.leech@bbk.ac.uk
Mareschal
Denis
D
Cooper
Richard P
RP
D003071:Cognition; D006801:Humans; D011340:Problem Solving