Expecting the unexpected: how people prioritise predictability. This project aims to investigate how people represent and use information about unpredictability in their environment. Seeing too much predictability is problematic, but seeing too little can also be a problem, for example inappropriate "learned helplessness" can occur, whereby people feel disempowered because the world is seen as random. Recent findings demonstrated a bias in fundamental learning that may maintain these inappropria ....Expecting the unexpected: how people prioritise predictability. This project aims to investigate how people represent and use information about unpredictability in their environment. Seeing too much predictability is problematic, but seeing too little can also be a problem, for example inappropriate "learned helplessness" can occur, whereby people feel disempowered because the world is seen as random. Recent findings demonstrated a bias in fundamental learning that may maintain these inappropriate beliefs about unpredictability. This bias is not anticipated by formal theories of learning. The project will investigate how this bias is brought about by first formalising a novel theory of fundamental learning and then systematically testing its assumptions.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210100292
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$380,868.00
Summary
From known to unknown: Individual differences in associative generalisation. This project aims to investigate how and why individuals differ in the way that they generalise from past experiences to novel situations. The goal of the project is to develop an innovative and formal model capable of predicting how a given individual will generalise based on their beliefs and personal traits, and to better understand how people behave when there are multiple conflicting ways to generalise. The expecte ....From known to unknown: Individual differences in associative generalisation. This project aims to investigate how and why individuals differ in the way that they generalise from past experiences to novel situations. The goal of the project is to develop an innovative and formal model capable of predicting how a given individual will generalise based on their beliefs and personal traits, and to better understand how people behave when there are multiple conflicting ways to generalise. The expected outcomes of the project are a better understanding and measurement of generalisation, a fundamental psychological process. The outcomes of this project can be used to benefit the development of clinical treatment for anxiety disorders, of which overgeneralisation of fear responses is a defining feature. Read moreRead less
The role of inductive reasoning in generalization of associative learning. This project seeks to develop a better understanding of how learning is generalised to novel stimuli. Learning about associations around us helps us to obtain resources and minimise threat. A critical task for the learner is how far to extrapolate this knowledge: too little generalisation reduces the benefits of learning and too much risks distraction and maladaptive responding. Recent evidence has shown an important role ....The role of inductive reasoning in generalization of associative learning. This project seeks to develop a better understanding of how learning is generalised to novel stimuli. Learning about associations around us helps us to obtain resources and minimise threat. A critical task for the learner is how far to extrapolate this knowledge: too little generalisation reduces the benefits of learning and too much risks distraction and maladaptive responding. Recent evidence has shown an important role for reasoning processes in human associative learning. This project aims to apply insights from the inductive reasoning literature to study the role of hypothesis and category induction in generalisation of associative learning. The results are expected to have important implications for our understanding of associative learning and generalisation which may inform techniques to promote adaptive generalisation in fields such as education, training and clinical practice.Read moreRead less
Cognitive and neural causes of language impairment in autism. Autism affects around 1 in 200 of the Australian population. The social costs of autism are huge, both for people with the disorder and for their relatives and carers. The cost to the Australian economy is estimated at $5-7 billion each year. The proposed research will lead to better understanding of the causes of autism, from brain structure and functioning through to cognitive mechanisms and symptoms. This will in turn inform geneti ....Cognitive and neural causes of language impairment in autism. Autism affects around 1 in 200 of the Australian population. The social costs of autism are huge, both for people with the disorder and for their relatives and carers. The cost to the Australian economy is estimated at $5-7 billion each year. The proposed research will lead to better understanding of the causes of autism, from brain structure and functioning through to cognitive mechanisms and symptoms. This will in turn inform genetic research. The comparison of autism and specific language impairment (SLI) will help determine whether remediation strategies for SLI are likely to be applicable to autism. The project will establish Macquarie University as Australia's first centre for neuro-cognitive autism research.Read moreRead less
The development of predictive brain function in preschool children. This project aims to track developmental changes in brain activity and connectivity in typically developing three-to-six year-old children. The preschool years are a time of huge change in children's cognitive abilities, but little is known of the corresponding changes in brain function. This work will use child-optimised magnetoencephalography to test the hypothesis that early cognitive development is characterised by refinemen ....The development of predictive brain function in preschool children. This project aims to track developmental changes in brain activity and connectivity in typically developing three-to-six year-old children. The preschool years are a time of huge change in children's cognitive abilities, but little is known of the corresponding changes in brain function. This work will use child-optimised magnetoencephalography to test the hypothesis that early cognitive development is characterised by refinement of the brain's innate ability to generate predictions about the sensory environment. The resulting insights could improve understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.Read moreRead less
Dynamics of word recognition: new insight from the reach-to-touch paradigm. This project will introduce a new behavioural reach-to-touch paradigm for studying basic cognitive processes such as word recognition. The advantage of this paradigm is that it is able to measure cognitive processes moment-by-moment as they unfold over time. This will provide new insights into the temporal dynamics of basic cognitive processing.
Using generalisation to better treat poor spelling. Spelling is an important skill when expressing one's thoughts in writing and an acute challenge for at least ten per cent of Australian students, who can be years behind in their knowledge. This project will help to improve spelling training by establishing how to facilitate generalisation of spelling knowledge from a learned word to new words.
Risky Futures: Toward a Computational Process Model of Risky Inter-Temporal Choice. A lot is known about people’s preferences. People like their rewards now. Most would prefer $10 today than $20 in one month. Risk is also unattractive; a certain $10 is more attractive than a 50 per cent chance of receiving $25. Surprisingly, much less is known about the interaction between delay and risk. That is, relatively little is known about whether people prefer $10 now, or a 50 per cent chance of $50 in ....Risky Futures: Toward a Computational Process Model of Risky Inter-Temporal Choice. A lot is known about people’s preferences. People like their rewards now. Most would prefer $10 today than $20 in one month. Risk is also unattractive; a certain $10 is more attractive than a 50 per cent chance of receiving $25. Surprisingly, much less is known about the interaction between delay and risk. That is, relatively little is known about whether people prefer $10 now, or a 50 per cent chance of $50 in one month. This project will use a combination of experiments and cognitive modelling to examine all three types of choice. The outcome will be a novel computational model that will elucidate the complex interaction between delay and risk, thereby answering an enduring question in the literature: are risk and delay psychologically equivalent?Read moreRead less
How do people make uncertain predictions? Exemplar-based and category-based approaches to inductive inference. This project is an innovative experimental and field study of how people reason under uncertainty. The project will broaden our understanding of human reasoning and enhance the reputation of Australian cognitive science.