Comparative Studies of How People Think

An Introduction

Häftad, Engelska, 1986

342 kr

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Beskrivning

The psychology of thinking has traditionally been in the business of making comparisons between different groups of people. On the whole, these comparisons have rendered a substantial body of knowledge; but all too often, they have suffered the pitfalls of faulty organizational logic and unfounded or invidious conclusions. In this extraordinarily clear and critical introduction, Michael Cole and Barbara Means out the problems involved in comparing how people think. They show, for example, how variables confounded with the constitution of two groups can lead to the wrong interpretation of group differences. More subtly, they demonstrate how cognitive differences between groups can destroy the equivalence of the tests used to make comparisons. They also discuss the unfortunate way that observed differences between groups have led to prejudicial interpretations in which mental differences are transformed into mental deficits.Cole and Means illustrate all these problems with a rich variety of examples drawn from the research literature in comparative cognition. Because they use real examples. Cole and Means offer much more than the usual banal remedies for improving research design. Instead of merely telling the student to run the right control groups, for example, they show how theory enters into the selection of appropriate controls and how atheoretic comparative work can easily run amok.It is a rare event when seasoned researchers take time to tell the novice how to avoid the problems of previous research. Comparative Studies of How People Think provides just such an event.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:1986-01-01
Mått:216 x 138 x 15 mm
Vikt:272 g
Format:Häftad
Språk:Engelska
Antal sidor:224
Förlag:Harvard University Press
ISBN:9780674152618

Utforska kategorier

Socialpsykologi och gruppsykologi inom Psykologi och pedagogik

Mer om författaren

Michael Cole is Professor of Communication and Psychology and Director of the Laboratory of Comparative Human Cognition at the University of California, San Diego. Barbara Means is the director of the Center for Technology in Learning at SRI International.

Recensioner i media

Comparative Studies of How People Think has much to teach those who plan or are engaged in comparative research, both experimental and otherwise… The novice and the experienced researcher will benefit from the book's careful reexamination and critique of some of the basic assumptions underlying past experimental studies of cognitive processes among different groups.

Innehållsförteckning

Old Interests and New Demands The Normative Logic of Experimental Design What Happens When All Other Things Are Not Equal? Obtaining Comparable Groups Equivalence of Treatment for Different Groups Limitations of Simple Descriptions of Group Differences Relating Group Differences to Underlying Causes Comparing Tasks and Groups Comparing Patterns of Performance The Group by Tack Interaction Approach Training Studies Cautionary Notes Model-based Approaches Qualitative information-processing Models Computer Simulation Models Mathematical Models Functional Measurement Advantages of Model-based Research Strategies Cautionary Notes From Laboratory to Life Comparing Laboratory and Real-Life Tacks Training Cognitive Processes Training Tacks of Practical Importance Value Judgments in Cognitive Research On the Reference of Basic Research Appendix. Statistical Issues in Comparative Research Attempts to Control for Pre-existing Group Differences Interpreting Group by Task Interactions References Notes Index