Context and Classification Learning

本项目旨在了解 分类学习和性能。 一个重点是 是什么让一些类别自然，易于学习， 使用，和其他类别不自然，难以学习， 不好用 除了与如何最好地 为了教导某些概念（例如，科学概念）， 自然性问题是评价分类的一个工具 理论 也就是说，不同的理论 预测什么样的概念容易使用， 学习. 几个拟议的实验将测试这些 通过向人们展示不同类型的类别来进行预测 结构，看看理论如何预测的困难， 学习 一个相关的问题是人们如何组织例子 他们可以自由地创建自己的类别。 再次 我想法是看看是什么原则决定了范畴的构造 并将这些原理与 替代理论 该项目的另一个主要方面将是 研究学习策略的实验， 可能是不同的学习模式。 有一些证据表明 直接，明确的尝试学习困难的类别结构 可能不如间接或非分析性学习有效。 几个实验将探讨非外显 学习将导致规则般的表现，即使人们 或许，他们的知识，是无法用言语表达的。 最终该项目 将研究人们如何整合抽象信息， 类别和具体经验的例子。 总体看 该项目的目标是发展更好的理论， 学习、使用和更新概念和类别。

This project aims to understand the processes underlying classification learning and performance. One focus is the question of what makes some categories natural, easy to learn and use, and other categories unnatural, difficult to learn, and awkward to use. Aside from relevance to the problem of how best to teach certain concepts (e.g., scientific concepts), the question of naturalness is a tool for evaluating categorization theories. That is, alternative theories make differing predictions about what kinds of concepts are easy to use and learn. Several of the proposed experiments will test these predictions by presenting people with different types of category structures to see how well the theories can predict difficulty of learning. A related question is how people organize examples when they are free to create their own categories. Again the idea is to see what principles determine category construction and to compare these principles with the predictions of alternative theories. Another major facet of the project will be experiments examining learning strategies and the idea that there may be distinct modes of learning. There is some evidence that direct, explicit attempts to learn difficult category structures may be less effective than indirect or nonanalytic learning. Several experiments will explore the possibility that nonexplicit learning will lead to rule-like performance even though people may be unable to verbalize their knowledge. Finally, the project will examine how people integrate abstract information about categories and concrete experience with examples. Overall, the project has the goal of developing better theories for how people learn about, use, and update concepts and categories.