"You're on ten, where can you go from there?" Tufnel problems in repeated experiential judgments.
We describe a set of Tufnel problems that arise when repeated use of a fixed-point scale precipitates failures to assess a full range of subjective experiences. As empirical evidence, participants in Study 1 periodically reported their depth of mind wandering on either 5- or 7-point Likert scales during a sustained attention task. The proportion of participants providing maximum scale ratings increased quickly over time-on-task and did so more quickly for the 5-point than for the 7-point group. Participants in Study 2 completed the same task using a 10-point scale before indicating whether and where they could have used a scale extended to "11" during the task. Slightly more than 20% of participants reported needing a scale extension. This Need for 11 was associated with differences in both reports of mind wandering depth and task performance. We conclude that Tufnel problems warrant methodological consideration and reflect interesting constraints on human judgment.
Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada.
James Allan
JA
Cheyne
Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada. Electronic address: tanor.bonin@uwaterloo.ca.
Tanor
T
Bonin
Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada.
Caitlin
C
Wright
Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada.
Jonathan S A
JSA
Carriere
Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada.
James
J
Danckert
Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada.
Daniel
D
Smilek
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D000072860:Ecological Momentary Assessment / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000592:standards*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult
Experience sampling; Likert scale; Metronome response task; Mind wandering; Sustained attention