Our lab focuses on rational thinking and cognitive abilities based on the cognitive science literature on reasoning, judgment and decision-making. We are interested in defining and measuring rational thinking by using individual difference approaches, developmental perspectives, and the inclusion of special populations. We also study the relationship between rational thinking and cognitive abilities, such as intelligence and performance-based measures of executive function.
Rational thinking has to do with how well we accomplish our goals and how well we can track what is true in the world. Cognitive abilities refer to measures primarily used to assess cognitive capacities, such as measures of intelligence and performance-based measures of executive function. Our lab spans the study of these constructs across neurotypical samples of adults, developmental samples, and special populations, such as ADHD, pathological gamblers, and young offenders.
We published the Rationality Quotient: Toward a Test of Rational Thinking (Stanovich, West & Toplak, 2016) to provide a prototype measure to assess rational thinking in adults based on the cognitive science literature on reasoning, judgment and decision-making.
The prototype measure was called the Comprehensive Assessment of Rational Thinking (CART). This measure is composed of 20 subtests and 4 thinking dispositions. The theory, empirical research and sample items are described in this book. The complete set of subtests and thinking dispositions from the CART are available and downloadable at the following websites: https://therqtest.com/wp/ and http://keithstanovich.com/Site/Home.html
We have also developed the Assessment of Rational Thinking for Youth (ARTY) 13-18 years of age, which is based on the CART. The ARTY is composed of 5 subtests and 2 thinking dispositions. The publication for the ARTY, the complete set of subtests and thinking dispositions and qsf file that can be imported into Qualtrics can be downloaded from the following links:
Our research on reasoning and decision-making is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). Our collaborators on this work are Keith Stanovich and Richard West.
Our research group is also affiliated with the LaMarsh Centre for Child and Youth Research at York University.
In 2008, our paper with pathological gamblers (“The Reasoning Skills and Thinking Dispositions of Problem Gamblers: A Dual-Process Taxonomy”, published in Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 2007) was selected as one of the 50 best articles published in 2007 in management and won an Emerald Management Reviews Citation of Excellence.
