The capacity to generate alternative ideas is more important than inhibition for logical reasoning in preschool-age children

Abstract

There is little consensus about the nature of logical reasoning and, equally important, about how it develops. To address this, we looked at the early origins of deductive reasoning in preschool children. We examined the contribution of two factors to the reasoning ability of very young children: inhibitory capacity and the capacity to generate alternative ideas. In a first study, a total of 32 preschool children were all given generation, inhibition, and logical reasoning measures. Logical reasoning was measured using knowledge-based premises such as "All dogs have legs," and two different inferences: modus ponens and affirmation of the consequent. Results revealed that correctly reasoning with both inferences is not related to the measure of inhibition, but is rather related to the capacity to generate alternative ideas. In a second study, 32 preschool children were given either the generation or the inhibition task before the logical reasoning measure. Results showed that receiving the generation task beforehand significantly improved logical reasoning compared to the inhibition task given beforehand. Overall, these results provide evidence for the greater importance of idea generation in the early development of logical reasoning.

Elaborating Screening Scales for Early Diagnosis of Developmental Delay in Five- to Six-Year-Old Children in Russia

“…It is believed that the ability to generate ideas is also associated with the development of logical reasoning ( de Chantal, & Markovits, 2017). According to the results of a neuroimaging study of comprehension tasks requiring verbalization, there was high variability in the results for typically developing six-year-olds, while eight-year-old children were much more successful in task processing, and the variability of the results was lower (Rajagopal, Byars, Schapiro, Lee, & Holland, 2014).…”

The use of scaffolding to promote preschool children’s competencies of evidence-based reasoning

“…Results showed that only the group that received adaptive prompts and the explication of answers showed superior performance in subsequent deductive reasoning tasks. Recently, de Chantal and Markovits (2017) found that task contexts in which preschool children were asked to generate alternatives and show divergent (flexible) reasoning were associated with advanced deductive reasoning patterns. Moreover, studies in the context of scientific reasoning deliver evidence on training formats.…”

The Suppression of Inferences From Counterfactual Conditionals

“…There have been many hundreds of experiments carried out on the suppression effect since its first demonstration, to explore the factors that influence its exhibition in adults, including its implications in practical situations such as consumer choices or legal reasoning (e.g., Chandon & Janiszewski, 2008; Gazzo Castañeda & Knauff, 2016), its early emergence in children (e.g., de Chantal & Markovits, 2017; De Neys & Everaerts, 2008; Janveau‐Brennan & Markovits, 1999), and its activation of various areas of the brain such as those associated with expectations (e.g., Bonnefond, Kaliuzhna, Van der Henst, & De Neys, 2014; see also Pijnacker, Geurts, Van Lambalgen, Buitelaar, & Hagoort, 2011). Its disrupted pattern in autistic people is characterized by suppression of inferences by alternatives, but not by additional conditions, perhaps because of differences in synthesizing context to interpret exceptions (e.g., Pijnacker et al, 2009; Pijnacker, Geurts, Van Lambalgen, Buitelaar, & Hagoort, 2010; see also McKenzie, Evans, & Handley, 2011; Stenning & Van Lambalgen, 2019), and it may contribute to delusion formation in schizophrenia (e.g., Sellen, Oaksford, & Gray, 2005; see also Phillips, Howard, & David, 1997).…”