Metacognition of Auditory Distraction

虽然学习的元认知判断在一段时间和最近的过去受到了很多关注，但关于任务无关刺激对认知表现影响的分心元认知判断却知之甚少。然而，关于任务无关刺激对认知表现影响的元认知判断不仅对理论发展和测试很重要，而且从实践的角度来看也很重要，因为它们可以决定学习和工作环境的设计。该项目的目的是建立一个理论框架，以理解关于听觉干扰对认知表现影响的元认知判断。这需要对听觉干扰的元认知判断进行系统和全面的分析。一个核心问题是，人们是否能直接接触到听觉分心背后的过程，或者是基于简单的启发式判断，比如加工流畅性启发式，或者是基于抽象的元认知信念。为了验证这一点，我们通过一系列的实验来操纵感知加工流畅性，在这些实验中，我们考察了刺激逆转、掩蔽和流隔离对感知加工流畅性、元认知判断和认知表现的影响。为了全面了解分心的元认知判断，我们将评估抽象元认知信念、前瞻性刺激特异性判断和回顾性情景性判断。在第一步，该项目将重点放在理论预测测试中特别有趣的案例上。在这些情况下，很可能会发现启发式元认知判断和表现效果之间的差异。在第二步中，该项目区分了抽象元认知信念和基于经验的因素（如感知的处理流畅性）的影响。一半的实验集中于对与任务无关的背景言语的元认知判断；另一半实验的目的是测试这些效果是否可以在音乐中复制。该项目以一种创新的方式扩展了现有的研究路线，将已经在学习判断研究中建立起来的理论和方法应用于分心判断。这个研究问题也具有实际意义：关于听觉干扰对认知表现影响的错误判断可能导致人们在设计学习和工作环境时做出错误的决定。关于任务无关刺激对表现影响的元认知判断中的系统性错误的既定知识可以帮助避免错误的决策。

While metacognitive judgments of learning have received much attention for some time and also in the recent past, metacognitive judgments of distraction about the effects of task-irrelevant stimuli on cognitive performance are less well understood. However, metacognitive judgments about the effects of task-irrelevant stimuli on cognitive performance are important not only for theory development and testing but also from a practical point of view because they can determine decisions about the design of learning and work environments. The aim of the project is to develop a theoretical framework for understanding metacognitive judgments about the effects of auditory distractors on cognitive performance. This requires a systematic and comprehensive analysis of metacognitive judgments about auditory distraction. A central question is whether people have a direct access to the processes underlying auditory distraction or base their judgments on simple heuristics such as the processing fluency heuristic or on abstract metacognitive beliefs. To test this, the perceived processing fluency is manipulated across a series of experiments in which the effects of stimulus reversal, masking, and stream segregation on the perceived processing fluency, on metacognitive judgments, and on cognitive performance are examined. In order to gain a comprehensive understanding of metacognitive judgments of distraction, abstract metacognitive beliefs, prospective stimulus-specific judgments as well as retrospective episodic judgments will be assessed. In a first step, the project focuses on cases which are particularly interesting when it come to tests of theoretical predictions. These are cases in which it is likely to find discrepancies between heuristic-based metacognitive judgments and performance effects. In a second step, the project distinguishes between the influence of abstract metacognitive beliefs and experience-based factors such as the perceived processing fluency. Half of the experiments are focussed on metacognitive judgments about task-irrelevant background speech; the other half of the experiments are designed to test whether these effects can be replicated with music. The project extends existing research lines in an innovative way by using theories and methods that are already well established in research on judgments of learning, and applying them to judgments of distraction. This research question is of practical relevance as well: Incorrect judgments about the effects of auditory distractors on cognitive performance could lead people to make false decisions when designing learning and work environments. Established knowledge about systematic errors in metacognitive judgments about the effects of task-irrelevant stimuli on performance could help to avoid wrong decisions.