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Search in external and internal spaces : evidence for generalized cognitive search processes
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Hills, Thomas Trenholm, Todd, Peter M. and Goldstone, Robert L. (2008) Search in external and internal spaces : evidence for generalized cognitive search processes. Psychological Science, Vol.19 (No.8). pp. 802-808. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02160.x ISSN 0956-7976.
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Official URL: http://www.indiana.edu/~abcwest/pmwiki/pdf/hills.p...
Abstract
There is compelling molecular and behavioral evidence that goal-directed cognition is an evolutionary descendant of spatial-foraging behavior. Across animal species, similar dopaminergic processes modulate between exploratory and exploitative foraging behaviors and control attention. Consequently, we hypothesized that spatialforaging activity could prime attentional cognitive activity.
We examined how searching in physical space influences
subsequent search in abstract cognitive space by presenting
participants with a spatial-foraging task followed by a
repeated Scrabble task involving search for words that
could be made from letter sets. Participants who searched
through clumpier distributions in space behaved as if words
were more densely clumped in the Scrabble task. This was
not a function of arousal, but was consistent with predictions of optimal-foraging theory. Furthermore, individual differences in exploratory search were conserved across the two types of tasks. Along with the biological evidence, our results support the idea that there are generalized cognitive search processes.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
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Alternative Title: | |||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Psychology | ||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Psychological Science | ||||
Publisher: | Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. | ||||
ISSN: | 0956-7976 | ||||
Official Date: | 2008 | ||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | Vol.19 | ||||
Number: | No.8 | ||||
Page Range: | pp. 802-808 | ||||
DOI: | 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02160.x | ||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access |
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