Overconfidence happens to all of us. Ever have a plan that just couldn’t go wrong? And then you get a kick in the butt. Ever know that something must be true, only to find out later that you had it backwards? Overconfidence is when you think you are more likely to be right than you actually … [Read more...] about Why Overconfidence Occurs and How to Overcome It
Critical Thinking and the Internet: Skills for a New Era
Learning has gotten complicated. We often need to answer challenging technical and scientific questions to get by in our everyday life. The web has become the default means to get those answers. Yet learning from the internet is fraught with difficulty. Searching, sorting, and synthesizing … [Read more...] about Critical Thinking and the Internet: Skills for a New Era
Metacognition is Knowing Your Mind
Metacognition refers to what you know about your own thinking and learning. It is the part of cognition that monitors other cognitive processes, and makes adjustments to them. Cognition and metacognition are closely connected. Cognitive scientists study metacognition as an essential aspect of … [Read more...] about Metacognition is Knowing Your Mind
Respect for Arab Crowds
Direct displays of respect can reduce conflict in Arab protests, where a premium is placed on honor. Such displays enable people in potentially volatile crowd situations to accrue honor while avoiding risks associated with violent confrontation. These conclusions are based on studies of Arab … [Read more...] about Respect for Arab Crowds
Critical Thinking in Decision Making
Critical thinking is often talked about as a stand-alone activity. Like some other individual activities, thinking critically may just feel good. Yet, critical thinking seems most useful when it aids other cognitive processes, such as applying critical thinking in decision making. Anne Helsdingen … [Read more...] about Critical Thinking in Decision Making
Using Students’ Questions to Check for Understanding
You'd like a quick way to check for understanding without a formal test. Something formative. Different. And maybe a little fun. As it turns out, Art Graesser and Brent Olde at the University of Memphis have discovered a great way to tell whether a person really understands … [Read more...] about Using Students’ Questions to Check for Understanding