Children’s Sensitivity to Difficulty and Reward Probability When Deciding to Take on a Task

IF 1.6 2区 心理学 Q3 PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL
J. Wang, E. Bonawitz
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引用次数: 2

Abstract

ABSTRACT Sometimes we should persist to succeed. But other times it might be wiser to give up on the task at hand and focus our energy on something new. Knowing whether a task is worth the effort potentially requires multiple capacities, including sensitivity to one’s own likelihood to succeed on the current problem, the associated costs with continuing to pursue it, and evaluation of opportunities for reward from the success. But these capacities may be particularly challenging for young children. Here we ask how young children are sensitive to cognitive cost (one’s capacity and the opportunity cost of persisting) and reward probability (how likely they are to receive a reward when succeeding) when making decisions. Using a simple counting task, we showed that 4- to 5-year-old children in the US (N = 40, pre-registered) chose to give up more when the task was more difficult (and therefore cognitively more costly), especially when the probability of reward was low. These results extend previous findings and suggest the ability to consider and evaluate cognitive cost and reward probability may be in place by 4 years of age.
儿童在决定承担任务时对困难的敏感性和奖励概率
有时候我们需要坚持才能成功。但其他时候,放弃手头的任务,把精力集中在新的事情上可能是更明智的。了解一项任务是否值得付出努力可能需要多种能力,包括对自己在当前问题上取得成功的可能性的敏感性,继续追求它的相关成本,以及对成功获得回报的机会的评估。但这些能力对幼儿来说可能尤其具有挑战性。在这里,我们询问幼儿在做决定时对认知成本(一个人的能力和坚持的机会成本)和奖励概率(他们成功后获得奖励的可能性)有多敏感。通过一个简单的计数任务,我们发现美国4- 5岁的儿童(N = 40,预注册)在任务难度更高(因此认知成本更高)时,特别是在获得奖励的可能性较低的情况下,选择放弃的可能性更大。这些结果扩展了先前的研究结果,并表明考虑和评估认知成本和奖励概率的能力可能在4岁之前就已经具备了。
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来源期刊
CiteScore
4.00
自引率
0.00%
发文量
29
期刊介绍: The Journal of Cognition and Development is the official journal of the Cognitive Development Society (CDS). Some CDS members are concerned with basic research or theory; others focus on policy issues and practical applications. The range of interests includes cognitive development during all stages of life, and we seek to understand ontogenetic processes in both humans and nonhumans. Finally, their interests encompass typical as well as atypical development, and we attempt to characterize both biological and cultural influences on cognitive change and continuity.
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