Human generalization of internal representations through prototype learning with goal-directed attention

Pettine, Warren Woodrich; Raman, Dhruva V.; Redish, A. David; Murray, John D.

doi:10.1038/s41562-023-01543-7

Cited by 7 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 78 publications

(68 reference statements)

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“…We found that the majority of participants were fit best by the prototype model, even after paired-associate learning. The dominance of the prototype strategy in this task is consistent with prior work Bowman & Zeithamova, 2018Pettine et al, 2023), here being extended to a situation when the same category structure is learned incidentally. Nevertheless, we also observed a trend towards more reliance on exemplars following paired-associate learning when directly comparing the proportions of exemplarists and prototypists across groups.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Successful generalization of conceptual knowledge after training to remember specific events

Houser,

Resnick,

Zeithamova

2023

Preprint

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Categorization involves grouping information to make inferences and support noveldecisions. In the laboratory, category training commonly involves trial-and-error whereparticipants are instructed to classify stimuli and learn through feedback. Here, wetested across two experiments whether people can acquire category knowledge in anincidental manner by associating category members with other information that itself isstructured. Subjects were trained to remember specific associations consisting ofcartoon animals paired with animal-specific background scenes. Animals presented onforest vs. mountain scenes were members of two prototype-based categories, but thiswas not conveyed to the participants. Spontaneous category learning was tested byasking participants to guess habitat (mountains, forests) for old and new cartoonanimals without feedback. The results showed that participants spontaneously acquiredcategory knowledge, showing high categorization accuracy for new animals,comparable to a group that underwent a traditional feedback-based classificationtraining with the same stimuli. Strategy analysis showed that the majority of participantsin both groups abstracted the central tendency of the categories, albeit a somewhatlarger proportion of subjects relied on memory for specific training exemplars afterpaired-associate learning than classification training. No evidence was found thatcategory learning happened at the expense of memory for specific animal-sceneassociations. Overall, the findings show that despite the goal to remember specificinformation that required differentiation of stimuli within categories, subjects canspontaneously acquire category knowledge, generalizable to novel stimuli in a waycomparable to traditional classification training. This work provides new insights intohow category learning can proceed under more naturalistic demands.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Successful generalization of conceptual knowledge after training to remember specific events

Houser,

Resnick,

Zeithamova

2023

Preprint

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“…Hybrid Concept Learning Using Bayesian Principles. Today, the most prolific theories of concept learning are considered hybrids and have a duality of both rule-and similaritybased interpretations (Pettine et al 2023). One influential example is the Bayesian concept learning framework (Figure 1d; Tenenbaum & Griffiths 2001), which uses a distribution over hypothesized category boundaries (boxes in Figure 1d) to categorize novel stimuli (Sidebar 2.1).…”

Section: Concept Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unifying principles of generalization: past, present, and future

Wu,

Meder,

Schulz

2024

Preprint

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Generalization, defined as applying limited experiences to novel situations, represents a cornerstone of human intelligence. Our review traces the evolution and continuity of psychological theories of generalization, from origins in concept learning (categorizing stimuli) and function learning (learning continuous input-output relationships), to domains such as reinforcement learning and latent structure learning. Historically, there have been fierce debates between rule-based mechanisms, which rely on explicit hypotheses about environmental structure, and similarity-based mechanisms, which leverage comparisons to prior instances. Each approach has unique advantages: rules support rapid knowledge transfer, while similarity is computationally simple and flexible. Today, these debates have culminated in the development of hybrid models grounded in Bayesian principles, effectively marrying the precision of rules with the flexibility of similarity. The ongoing success of hybrid models not only bridges past dichotomies but also underscores the importance of integrating both rules and similarity for a comprehensive understanding of human generalization.

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“…Subjects performed a Context Generalization task that identifies qualitatively unique strategies related to goal-directed attention, learning and short-term memory (Pettine et al, 2023). In the task, subjects encountered a visual stimulus defined by color, shape, texture and size.…”

Section: Task Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Importantly, locations in feature space were associated with unique patters of actions and error (Fig. S2) that reflected distinct cognitive strategies (Pettine et al, 2023).…”

Section: Task Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similar to attention, short-term and working memory are also commonly impacted in psychiatric conditions, such as ASD, ADHD, OCD, and schizotypy (Barch and Ceaser, 2012;Benzina et al, 2016;Craig et al, 2016;Wang et al, 2017). Recently, a computationally-grounded Context Generalization task was introduced that identifies groups with qualitatively distinct attention and learning strategies (Pettine et al, 2023). However, that work did not characterize the association between those strategies and individual traits.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Attention and learning strategies reveal distinct profiles of psychiatric traits

Pettine,

Tseng,

Yang

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Humans presented with the same problem in the same environment commonly adopt wildly different strategies for attention and learning. Indeed, psychiatric conditions are defined by qualitative differences in behavior. However, most tasks measure an individual's deviation from a single expected strategy rather than the utilization of distinct strategies. Measuring diverse strategies is especially important for psychiatry, were conditions are defined by qualitatively distinct patterns of behavior. We paired psychiatric trait questionnaires with a context generalization task whose metrics for goal-directed attention and short-term memory identify qualitatively distinct strategies. Questionnaires assessed for traits associated with ASD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), depression, schizotypy and psychosis. The subject population recruited online was matched for self-reported sex, and the sample was enriched with those reporting a formal diagnosis of ASD. 744 subjects completed the first session of the task, and 584 returned after four to six weeks to complete the second session. We found that a strategy dominated by goal-directed attention was associated with a profile of reduced trait scores relative to other subjects across all measures. During the second session, this strategy was particularly pronounced for those with reduced ADHD traits. In contrast, a strategy of attending to features based on frequency was associated with a profile of increased trait scores relative to other subjects, particularly traits for ASD and OCD. During the second session, this strategy was again associated with elevated traits, particularly those for ASD and ADHD traits. These results provide insight into the relationship between psychiatric traits and qualitatively distinct attention and learning strategies.

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Human generalization of internal representations through prototype learning with goal-directed attention

Cited by 7 publications

References 78 publications

Successful generalization of conceptual knowledge after training to remember specific events

Successful generalization of conceptual knowledge after training to remember specific events

Unifying principles of generalization: past, present, and future

Attention and learning strategies reveal distinct profiles of psychiatric traits

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