The Mental Models Theory of Reasoning

Book excerpt: The Mental Models Theory of Reasoning presents theoretical and empirical research on an area of growing interest, the status of mental models in deductive reasoning. As research in the framework of the mental models theory flourishes, this book answers a need to assess the contribution of the notion of training and content. It covers the central issues of propositional, relational, causal and probabilistic reasoning, and argumentation and development. In addition, this work presents data regarding strategies, argumentation, and the development of reasoning. Special features of this text include: *sharp theoretical analyses as well as important new empirical data offered by theorists who work in the framework of the mental models theory; *a critical and empirically driven account of content effects in conditional and linear reasoning; and *an original account on the influence of pragmatics on reasoning. The Mental Models Theory of Reasoning will be of interest to researchers and advanced students of cognitive psychology, and will be valuable to individuals working in Artificial Intelligence, as it highlights theoretical and empirical data on how humans use mental models when tackling deductive puzzles.