Abstract
This paper explores the role of relational language and inhibitory control in the development of children’s analogical reasoning ability. In two experiments, children were asked to make a relational mapping between two pictures while ignoring a competing object match. Experiment 1 demonstrated that children were more successful at this task when they heard relational language. The performance of children who heard relational language was equally good with and without a distracting object match present. Experiment 2 asks whether children with better inhibitory control are also better at ignoring object matches when mapping relations. Results suggest that the impact of inhibitory control may differ across ages. Future work will address how the factors of relational language and inhibition interact in the development of analogical ability.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Analogy |
| Editors | Boicho Kokinov, Keith Holyoak, Dedre Gentner |
| Publisher | NBU Press |
| Pages | 414-422 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-954-535-580-6 |
| State | Published - 2009 |