Are there two kinds of reasoning? Informally, people often make a distinction between reasoning by intuition versus reasoning by logical deliberation. Intuition generates a "quick and dirty" answer, whereas logical deliberation takes time and effort but yields a more justifiable answer. Despite the appeal of this distinction, the scientific evidence for it is lacking. Most psychological theories of reasoning either focus on only one kind of reasoning, or assume that there are two kinds but do not spell out the details of how they are applied in different situations. However, in other areas of psychology such as memory research, the hypothesis of complementary slow and fast systems has been pursued in depth with considerable success.
With support of the National Science Foundation, Dr. Heit and Dr. Rotello will study reasoning using techniques that have been adapted from memory research. For example, participants in experiments will solve reasoning problems with different time deadlines: The intuitive system is expected to dominate quicker judgments and the deliberative system is expected to dominate slower judgments. The program of empirical research is complemented by the development of mathematical models of reasoning processes. These models will help in designing reasoning problems that can be used to test the underlying theories, as well as assess reasoning skills. For instance, the problems will be administered to undergraduate students at the beginning and end of a course on critical thinking. The models will be used to identify which aspects of reasoning skill are improved by course instruction. This project will help to establish research partnerships between the psychology departments at the University of Massachusetts and the newest research university in the US, the University of California, Merced, which has a high proportion of first generation college students and other under-represented groups.
