Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-01-13DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106434
Mia Radovanovic , Jaemin Hwang , David M. Sobel , Jessica A. Sommerville
Concerns about fair resource exchanges are pervasive across development. However, existing work has focused primarily on resource distributions. The present experiments investigated whether 14- to 17-month-old North American infants demonstrate expectations for fair resource collection events, in contrast to expectations for resource distribution events. We found that infants' expectations for equal resource collections emerged by 16 months of age, whereas infants at all ages tested expected equal resource distributions. These findings suggest infants possess a broader, early-emerging understanding of fairness as it applies across resource exchanges, while highlighting a slight decalage in reasoning about resource collection versus distribution events.
{"title":"Origins of understanding fair resource collection","authors":"Mia Radovanovic , Jaemin Hwang , David M. Sobel , Jessica A. Sommerville","doi":"10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106434","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106434","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Concerns about fair resource exchanges are pervasive across development. However, existing work has focused primarily on resource distributions. The present experiments investigated whether 14- to 17-month-old North American infants demonstrate expectations for fair resource collection events, in contrast to expectations for resource distribution events. We found that infants' expectations for equal resource collections emerged by 16 months of age, whereas infants at all ages tested expected equal resource distributions. These findings suggest infants possess a broader, early-emerging understanding of fairness as it applies across resource exchanges, while highlighting a slight decalage in reasoning about resource collection versus distribution events.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48455,"journal":{"name":"Cognition","volume":"271 ","pages":"Article 106434"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145979900","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-01-21DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2026.108927
Hechang Cai , Jinlai Zhou
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed knowledge production into an interactive process in which user inputs actively influence generative outputs. Yet, little is known about how different forms of input representation affect the complexity of generative. Building on cognitive fit theory, this study examines how the characteristics of user input jointly determine output complexity in human–AI interaction. Using a large corpus of over sixty thousand conversations, we adopt a multimethod approach that combines fixed-effects modeling with interpretable machine learning (XGBoost, SHAP, and time-sensitive pattern analysis). The results reveal a nonlinear and dynamic relationship between input representation fit and output complexity, indicating that both low-fit and high-fit inputs can increase output complexity through distinct mechanisms. We further demonstrate that these effects differ according to interaction depth and temporal context, suggesting that representational alignment is not static but dynamically recalibrated during iterative exchanges. The study enhances the cognitive fit theory by conceptualizing fit as an adaptive alignment process in generative environments instead of a fixed match between human cognition and system representation. The findings highlight the necessity for AI systems that support adaptive prompting and context-aware feedback to enhance collaborative generative improvement.
{"title":"User cognitive fit in human-AI interaction: Exploring the link between input representation and generative output complexity","authors":"Hechang Cai , Jinlai Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108927","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108927","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed knowledge production into an interactive process in which user inputs actively influence generative outputs. Yet, little is known about how different forms of input representation affect the complexity of generative. Building on cognitive fit theory, this study examines how the characteristics of user input jointly determine output complexity in human–AI interaction. Using a large corpus of over sixty thousand conversations, we adopt a multimethod approach that combines fixed-effects modeling with interpretable machine learning (XGBoost, SHAP, and time-sensitive pattern analysis). The results reveal a nonlinear and dynamic relationship between input representation fit and output complexity, indicating that both low-fit and high-fit inputs can increase output complexity through distinct mechanisms. We further demonstrate that these effects differ according to interaction depth and temporal context, suggesting that representational alignment is not static but dynamically recalibrated during iterative exchanges. The study enhances the cognitive fit theory by conceptualizing fit as an adaptive alignment process in generative environments instead of a fixed match between human cognition and system representation. The findings highlight the necessity for AI systems that support adaptive prompting and context-aware feedback to enhance collaborative generative improvement.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48471,"journal":{"name":"Computers in Human Behavior","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 108927"},"PeriodicalIF":8.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146081670","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2026.108946
Gavaa Zanabazar , Qaiser Mohi Ud Din , Tao Hong
Political awareness is widely viewed as a foundation for democratic participation. However, many politically aware citizens remain inactive. Existing research has examined political awareness, civic engagement, and digital literacy separately, with limited attention to how these factors interact to shape participation especially in digital environments. This study addresses that gap by examining digital literacy as a conditional factor in the relationship between political awareness and political participation. This research investigates the comparative effects of political awareness, civic engagement, and digital literacy on political participation in Mongolia and China. Drawing on the Civic Voluntarism Model, the study develops a moderated mediation framework and examines it using two-wave survey data collected from 600 respondents: 295 from Mongolia and 305 from China between October and December 2024. Findings indicate that political awareness is positively associated with political participation primarily through the mediating role of civic engagement in both samples. Digital literacy statistically significantly moderates this indirect pathway in the Mongolian sample; however, no statistically significant moderating effect was observed in the Chinese sample, suggesting that in more digitally integrated contexts, digital literacy may function as a baseline capability rather than a differentiating resource. Overall, the cross-national analysis indicates that while the underlying mechanisms are consistent across both countries, the strength and significance of these effects vary according to the digital and participatory landscape in each context.
{"title":"How digital literacy shapes the conversion of political awareness into participation: A cross-national comparative study of Mongolia and China","authors":"Gavaa Zanabazar , Qaiser Mohi Ud Din , Tao Hong","doi":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108946","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108946","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Political awareness is widely viewed as a foundation for democratic participation. However, many politically aware citizens remain inactive. Existing research has examined political awareness, civic engagement, and digital literacy separately, with limited attention to how these factors interact to shape participation especially in digital environments. This study addresses that gap by examining digital literacy as a conditional factor in the relationship between political awareness and political participation. This research investigates the comparative effects of political awareness, civic engagement, and digital literacy on political participation in Mongolia and China. Drawing on the Civic Voluntarism Model, the study develops a moderated mediation framework and examines it using two-wave survey data collected from 600 respondents: 295 from Mongolia and 305 from China between October and December 2024. Findings indicate that political awareness is positively associated with political participation primarily through the mediating role of civic engagement in both samples. Digital literacy statistically significantly moderates this indirect pathway in the Mongolian sample; however, no statistically significant moderating effect was observed in the Chinese sample, suggesting that in more digitally integrated contexts, digital literacy may function as a baseline capability rather than a differentiating resource. Overall, the cross-national analysis indicates that while the underlying mechanisms are consistent across both countries, the strength and significance of these effects vary according to the digital and participatory landscape in each context.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48471,"journal":{"name":"Computers in Human Behavior","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 108946"},"PeriodicalIF":8.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385740","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-01-29DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2026.108926
Hippolyte Fournier , Arnaud Fournel , François Osiurak , Olivier Koenig , Flora Pâris , Vivien Gaujoux , Fabien Ringeval
Digital notifications are ubiquitous in modern life, yet their impact on cognitive performance remains poorly understood. Here, we introduce an ecologically valid paradigm to examine how social media notifications disrupt ongoing task performance. Participants completed a Stroop task while receiving smartphone-style notifications, allowing us to track both behavioral and physiological responses. Notifications triggered a transient slowdown in cognitive processing lasting approximately seven seconds, driven by the combined influence of perceptual salience, learned associations, and relevance appraisal. The magnitude of this disruption was predicted by the inferred relevance of notifications and by individual patterns of smartphone use—specifically, the frequency of interaction (notification volume and checking behavior) rather than total time spent on the device. These findings were mirrored in changes in pupil dilation, a physiological marker of arousal, confirming the convergent impact of notification relevance and smartphone habits. Together, our results show that modern digital cues can hijack attentional resources, even in the absence of explicit personal relevance. They underscore the need to account for notification frequency — not merely screen time — when evaluating the cognitive cost of pervasive digital environments, and raise broader concerns about the long-term impact of habitual device interaction on attentional functioning.
{"title":"Attention hijacked: How social media notifications disrupt cognitive processing","authors":"Hippolyte Fournier , Arnaud Fournel , François Osiurak , Olivier Koenig , Flora Pâris , Vivien Gaujoux , Fabien Ringeval","doi":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108926","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108926","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Digital notifications are ubiquitous in modern life, yet their impact on cognitive performance remains poorly understood. Here, we introduce an ecologically valid paradigm to examine how social media notifications disrupt ongoing task performance. Participants completed a Stroop task while receiving smartphone-style notifications, allowing us to track both behavioral and physiological responses. Notifications triggered a transient slowdown in cognitive processing lasting approximately seven seconds, driven by the combined influence of perceptual salience, learned associations, and relevance appraisal. The magnitude of this disruption was predicted by the inferred relevance of notifications and by individual patterns of smartphone use—specifically, the frequency of interaction (notification volume and checking behavior) rather than total time spent on the device. These findings were mirrored in changes in pupil dilation, a physiological marker of arousal, confirming the convergent impact of notification relevance and smartphone habits. Together, our results show that modern digital cues can hijack attentional resources, even in the absence of explicit personal relevance. They underscore the need to account for notification frequency — not merely screen time — when evaluating the cognitive cost of pervasive digital environments, and raise broader concerns about the long-term impact of habitual device interaction on attentional functioning.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48471,"journal":{"name":"Computers in Human Behavior","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 108926"},"PeriodicalIF":8.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-02-05DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2026.108932
Yongjae Kim , Jin Woo Ahn
The rise of augmented reality (AR) in sport broadcasting represents a promising strategy to counter declining interest among young adult consumers, a demographic characterized by digital fluency yet reduced engagement with traditional sports. This study examines how exposure to AR-enhanced highlights influence young adult's cognitive, affective, behavioral responses, particularly in relation to hedonic innovativeness, sport involvement, and repeated exposure. Two mixed-factorial experimental designs with 156 college students compare AR and non-AR NFL highlights, employing biometric measures (eye-tracking, galvanic skin response, facial expression analysis), self-reports, and Post-Experience Eye-Tracked Protocol (PEEP) interviews. Results show that AR heightened cognitive engagement by directing attention to digital overlays but did not directly enhance affective engagement or behavioral intention. Moderation analyses revealed that sport involvement increased AR's effect on affective engagement, while hedonic innovativeness predicted stronger behavioral intentions. Repeated-exposure analyses further showed clear habituation effects, with both affective and cognitive engagement declining across successive AR sequences, though hedonic innovators maintained relatively higher engagement levels. Heatmaps confirmed novelty decay, as visual attention shifted from AR graphics to core gameplay over time. Findings extend theories of consumer innovation and habituation while offering practical guidance for tailoring AR to young sport audiences.
{"title":"Stimulated or saturated? Biometric analysis of augmented sport experiences among young adults: The role of hedonic innovativeness and repeated exposure","authors":"Yongjae Kim , Jin Woo Ahn","doi":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108932","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.chb.2026.108932","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The rise of augmented reality (AR) in sport broadcasting represents a promising strategy to counter declining interest among young adult consumers, a demographic characterized by digital fluency yet reduced engagement with traditional sports. This study examines how exposure to AR-enhanced highlights influence young adult's cognitive, affective, behavioral responses, particularly in relation to hedonic innovativeness, sport involvement, and repeated exposure. Two mixed-factorial experimental designs with 156 college students compare AR and non-AR NFL highlights, employing biometric measures (eye-tracking, galvanic skin response, facial expression analysis), self-reports, and Post-Experience Eye-Tracked Protocol (PEEP) interviews. Results show that AR heightened cognitive engagement by directing attention to digital overlays but did not directly enhance affective engagement or behavioral intention. Moderation analyses revealed that sport involvement increased AR's effect on affective engagement, while hedonic innovativeness predicted stronger behavioral intentions. Repeated-exposure analyses further showed clear habituation effects, with both affective and cognitive engagement declining across successive AR sequences, though hedonic innovators maintained relatively higher engagement levels. Heatmaps confirmed novelty decay, as visual attention shifted from AR graphics to core gameplay over time. Findings extend theories of consumer innovation and habituation while offering practical guidance for tailoring AR to young sport audiences.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48471,"journal":{"name":"Computers in Human Behavior","volume":"179 ","pages":"Article 108932"},"PeriodicalIF":8.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385747","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-01-08DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106411
Ponrawee Prasertsom, Kenny Smith, Jennifer Culbertson
Languages appear limited in the range of concepts that are grammatically encoded. For example, person, number, and animacy distinctions are regularly found in e.g., grammatical agreement systems. But, despite their visual salience, colour distinctions are completely absent from such systems. Some have taken this to indicate domain-specific constraints on what can and cannot be part of grammars. Here, we test an alternative possibility, that domain-general cognitive capacities can explain these regularities. Using animacy- and colour-based agreement as our test cases, we show that a bias for animacy over colour indeed exists during learning of a miniature artificial agreement system. We then show that a parallel animacy-over-colour bias is found in a non-linguistic sorting task. Finally, we explore the cognitive roots of the animacy bias. Specifically, we ask whether it is driven by a domain-general categorisation principle favouring categorisation based on features that are highly predictive of other features. Using natural language corpus data, we find that animacy-based classification produces distinct and more compact categories, which are more easily learnable. We also find preliminary causal evidence for this explanation: when animacy is less predictive of other object features than colour, learners who notice this novel predictive structure learn animacy-based noun classes worse. Taken together, our results support the idea that domain-general principles may be responsible for the prevalence of certain semantic distinctions over others in grammar.
{"title":"Domain-general categorisation explains constrained cross-linguistic variation in noun classification","authors":"Ponrawee Prasertsom, Kenny Smith, Jennifer Culbertson","doi":"10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106411","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106411","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Languages appear limited in the range of concepts that are grammatically encoded. For example, person, number, and animacy distinctions are regularly found in e.g., grammatical agreement systems. But, despite their visual salience, colour distinctions are completely absent from such systems. Some have taken this to indicate domain-specific constraints on what can and cannot be part of grammars. Here, we test an alternative possibility, that domain-general cognitive capacities can explain these regularities. Using animacy- and colour-based agreement as our test cases, we show that a bias for animacy over colour indeed exists during learning of a miniature artificial agreement system. We then show that a parallel animacy-over-colour bias is found in a non-linguistic sorting task. Finally, we explore the cognitive roots of the animacy bias. Specifically, we ask whether it is driven by a domain-general categorisation principle favouring categorisation based on features that are highly predictive of other features. Using natural language corpus data, we find that animacy-based classification produces distinct and more compact categories, which are more easily learnable. We also find preliminary causal evidence for this explanation: when animacy is less predictive of other object features than colour, learners who notice this novel predictive structure learn animacy-based noun classes worse. Taken together, our results support the idea that domain-general principles may be responsible for the prevalence of certain semantic distinctions over others in grammar.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48455,"journal":{"name":"Cognition","volume":"271 ","pages":"Article 106411"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145928639","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-01-07DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106432
Long Ni, Alan A. Stocker
Ensemble coding creates compressed representations of a stimulus array. However, not all items in the array necessarily contribute equally to the ensemble code. For example, when discriminating the ensemble average against a reference, items whose feature values lie closer to the reference are typically weighted more strongly. We have recently shown that this inhomogeneous weighting can be explained as a form of efficient coding, by which the precision of the sensory representation is dynamically adapted according to the array’s overall statistics relative to a variable reference. However, the specific process underlying the formation of such a relative efficient ensemble code remains unknown. Here, we probed the dynamic interplay between the presentation of the ensemble and the reference stimuli. We found that the relative timing between the presentation of the reference and the stimulus ensemble has a strong effect on participants’ decision behavior. Model analysis showed that efficient ensemble coding is established only when reference and ensemble are simultaneously presented. It is much weaker when the ensemble preceded the reference, and is largely absent when the ensemble followed the reference. As captured by our model, reduced efficient ensemble coding coincides with decreased decision accuracy in those asynchronous conditions. Our results indicate that any temporal offset between the ensemble and reference stimuli substantially disrupts the dynamic reallocation of coding resource. This suggests that efficient ensemble coding is not the result of a preparatory attentional process nor is it due to evidence selection at the decision stage. Rather, it arises from a fast interaction between the simultaneously evoked, sensory representations of reference and ensemble stimuli.
{"title":"Dynamics of efficient ensemble coding","authors":"Long Ni, Alan A. Stocker","doi":"10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106432","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106432","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ensemble coding creates compressed representations of a stimulus array. However, not all items in the array necessarily contribute equally to the ensemble code. For example, when discriminating the ensemble average against a reference, items whose feature values lie closer to the reference are typically weighted more strongly. We have recently shown that this inhomogeneous weighting can be explained as a form of efficient coding, by which the precision of the sensory representation is dynamically adapted according to the array’s overall statistics relative to a variable reference. However, the specific process underlying the formation of such a relative efficient ensemble code remains unknown. Here, we probed the dynamic interplay between the presentation of the ensemble and the reference stimuli. We found that the relative timing between the presentation of the reference and the stimulus ensemble has a strong effect on participants’ decision behavior. Model analysis showed that efficient ensemble coding is established only when reference and ensemble are simultaneously presented. It is much weaker when the ensemble preceded the reference, and is largely absent when the ensemble followed the reference. As captured by our model, reduced efficient ensemble coding coincides with decreased decision accuracy in those asynchronous conditions. Our results indicate that any temporal offset between the ensemble and reference stimuli substantially disrupts the dynamic reallocation of coding resource. This suggests that efficient ensemble coding is not the result of a preparatory attentional process nor is it due to evidence selection at the decision stage. Rather, it arises from a fast interaction between the simultaneously evoked, sensory representations of reference and ensemble stimuli.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48455,"journal":{"name":"Cognition","volume":"271 ","pages":"Article 106432"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145928642","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-02-11DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2026.106459
Isabel Gauthier, Conor J.R. Smithson
Ensemble perception refers to the ability to extract summary statistics (e.g., mean, variance) from groups of similar objects. In some ensemble perception tasks, participants must select specific items from a set before calculating a summary statistic (e.g., the average size of red circles among blue ones). It is generally assumed that this selection process does not alter the ability being measured. However, research in working memory suggests that introducing selection into tasks can shift the focus of what is measured—from working memory capacity to attention control. In this study, we examined whether selection alters ensemble perception's role in mean discrimination tasks using a latent variable approach. We found that ensemble perception and attention control are correlated at a construct level and that both contribute approximately equally to performance in mean discrimination tasks, irrespective of task format. We found no support for the idea that selective ensemble perception tasks are more strongly predicted by attention control than nonselective ensemble tasks.
Public significance statement
We find that ensemble perception—the ability to gauge collective properties of a group of objects—relies on attention control, even in tasks designed to measure ensemble perception alone. This suggests that when people assess group characteristics, like the average size or color of items, they also use mental resources to focus selectively on specific items. Understanding interactions between perception and attention could improve the design of tasks that measure cognitive abilities, helping researchers better distinguish between different types of mental skills.
{"title":"Attention control contributes to ensemble perception regardless of selection demands","authors":"Isabel Gauthier, Conor J.R. Smithson","doi":"10.1016/j.cognition.2026.106459","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cognition.2026.106459","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ensemble perception refers to the ability to extract summary statistics (e.g., mean, variance) from groups of similar objects. In some ensemble perception tasks, participants must select specific items from a set before calculating a summary statistic (e.g., the average size of red circles among blue ones). It is generally assumed that this selection process does not alter the ability being measured. However, research in working memory suggests that introducing selection into tasks can shift the focus of what is measured—from working memory capacity to attention control. In this study, we examined whether selection alters ensemble perception's role in mean discrimination tasks using a latent variable approach. We found that ensemble perception and attention control are correlated at a construct level and that both contribute approximately equally to performance in mean discrimination tasks, irrespective of task format. We found no support for the idea that selective ensemble perception tasks are more strongly predicted by attention control than nonselective ensemble tasks.</div></div><div><h3>Public significance statement</h3><div>We find that ensemble perception—the ability to gauge collective properties of a group of objects—relies on attention control, even in tasks designed to measure ensemble perception alone. This suggests that when people assess group characteristics, like the average size or color of items, they also use mental resources to focus selectively on specific items. Understanding interactions between perception and attention could improve the design of tasks that measure cognitive abilities, helping researchers better distinguish between different types of mental skills.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48455,"journal":{"name":"Cognition","volume":"271 ","pages":"Article 106459"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146173586","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-03-04DOI: 10.1016/j.jsp.2025.101521
Qingqing Du , Marjolein Zee , Helma M.Y. Koomen , Debora L. Roorda
In the present study, we investigated the unique role of teachers' and students' personality traits as well as the personality (dis)similarity between personality traits of both partners in the affective quality of dyadic student–teacher relationships (i.e., closeness and conflict). To explore these associations, we used a Chinese sample of 4638 upper elementary students and their 104 class teachers who reported about their own personality traits and the quality of their mutual relationship. Using multilevel polynomial regression modeling with response surface analysis, we found that both students' and teachers' agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness were generally positively associated with closeness and negatively associated with conflict. Neuroticism was found to be negatively associated with closeness and positively associated with conflict. In particular, for agreeableness and openness, these associations held true regardless of the informant (i.e., who reported about the levels of closeness and conflict). Regarding personality similarity, relationships were found to be closer and less conflictual when both relationship partners were similarly high in agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness, and low in neuroticism, compared to when both teacher and student were similarly low in agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness, and high in neuroticism. These results were evident both in student-reported and teacher-reported relationship quality. Regarding dissimilarity, we only found that a higher level of personality dissimilarity in openness was associated with less teacher-perceived conflict. Together, these findings provide a more comprehensive understanding of the role of personality traits and personality (dis)similarity in student–teacher relationships, and suggest that a focus on personality may be a promising avenue for understanding students' affective relationships with teachers.
{"title":"The more similar the better? Investigating the role of personality traits and personality similarity in student–teacher relationships in upper elementary schools","authors":"Qingqing Du , Marjolein Zee , Helma M.Y. Koomen , Debora L. Roorda","doi":"10.1016/j.jsp.2025.101521","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jsp.2025.101521","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the present study, we investigated the unique role of teachers' and students' personality traits as well as the personality (dis)similarity between personality traits of both partners in the affective quality of dyadic student–teacher relationships (i.e., closeness and conflict). To explore these associations, we used a Chinese sample of 4638 upper elementary students and their 104 class teachers who reported about their own personality traits and the quality of their mutual relationship. Using multilevel polynomial regression modeling with response surface analysis, we found that both students' and teachers' agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness were generally positively associated with closeness and negatively associated with conflict. Neuroticism was found to be negatively associated with closeness and positively associated with conflict. In particular, for agreeableness and openness, these associations held true regardless of the informant (i.e., who reported about the levels of closeness and conflict). Regarding personality similarity, relationships were found to be closer and less conflictual when both relationship partners were similarly high in agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness, and low in neuroticism, compared to when both teacher and student were similarly low in agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness, and high in neuroticism. These results were evident both in student-reported and teacher-reported relationship quality. Regarding dissimilarity, we only found that a higher level of personality dissimilarity in openness was associated with less teacher-perceived conflict. Together, these findings provide a more comprehensive understanding of the role of personality traits and personality (dis)similarity in student–teacher relationships, and suggest that a focus on personality may be a promising avenue for understanding students' affective relationships with teachers.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48232,"journal":{"name":"Journal of School Psychology","volume":"116 ","pages":"Article 101521"},"PeriodicalIF":4.1,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147388153","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-06-01Epub Date: 2026-01-27DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2026.113681
Huiyong Fan , Shengli Guo , Jianzhong Xu
Critical thinking among mainland Chinese students has drawn widespread scholarly attention. However, how students' critical thinking dispositions evolved over time – and the factors influencing these changes – remains unclear. To address these gaps, we conducted a cross-temporal meta-analysis of 487 studies, comprising 681 independent samples and a total of 145,487 participants. The results revealed that: (a) the total dimension of critical thinking disposition, analyticity, systematicity, self-confidence, inquisitiveness, and maturity dimensions among mainland Chinese students declined significantly from 2000 to 2025; (b) the temporal effects on the truth-seeking and open-mindedness dimensions of critical thinking disposition are not significant; (c) annual college admission rates, time spent on mathematics homework, and time spent on English homework in a given year significantly negatively predicted the variances of critical thinking disposition in the same year. In contrast, the student–teacher ratio in the current year significantly and positively predicted the total score of critical thinking dispositions; (d) The student–teacher ratio and the educational expenditure (proportion of GDP) of five years prior significantly and positively predicted critical thinking dispositions. The theoretical and educational implications are discussed, along with directions for future research.
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