Common sense and psychological phenomena: A reply to Smedslund

Smedslund's argument that psycho-social reality is revealed by common sense is shown to be based on a confusion between logical inference and psychological induction. Common sense has no privileged access to psychological reality and is affected profoundly by reasoning errors. Its structure is loose, allowing for post hoc "explanations" of everything and clear-cut predictions of nothing.     

The development of risk acceptance and moral valuation

The relationship between acceptability of risks and moral valuation of risky activities was investigated in children, 10–16 years old. It was found that all age groups exhibited a strong correlation between the two dimensions of risky activities. Older children were more tolerant of risk taking than younger children. Individual actions were judged in a more lenient manner than collective actions. Girls tended to be more morally condemning towards risk taking, but the youngest girls were not less prone to accept risks than boys. General measures of moral development according to Piaget and Kohlberg were not associated with perceived acceptability of risk or the judged morality of risky activities but relations were found between risk taking and assertiveness and perceived freedom, which were the most important factors in accounting for risk and morality attitudes.     

Subitizing and counting processes in young children

Children attending the first grade in school were instructed to tell the number of dots (1–9) presented on a screen. The response latencies were related to the number of dots by two different linear relations for each subject. The first of these had a slope of about 0.1 sec/dot, was applicable for the encoding of 1–3 dots, and was taken as an indication of a subitizing process. The second linear relation was applicable for 5–9 dots and had a slope of about 1.0 sec/dot reflecting the speed of a counting process. The average intersection between the functions was located at 3.22 dots. The results were compared with earlier investigations of adult subjects who on the average subitize 6 dots and count 1 dot in about 0.4 sec. It was subitizing process being higher for adults. If the encoding of a stimulus has not been terminated within about 1.5 sec for children and adults the stimulus has instead to be identified in either a counting or an estimating process.     

Value change and relapse following a decision to quit or reduce smoking

Ainslie (1975) suggested a model according to which values change subsequent to decision and in which the value of a smaller, immediately available, reward increases at a faster rate than that of a later reward. The rank orde between the two rewards may therefore become reversed, leading to impulsive behavior. The assumptions of this model as applied to addition are discussed. As an alternative, it is suggested that values and beliefs may be more indicative of stereotypical, biased thinking during the course of an attempt to quit. A study of 23 smokers who tried to quit or reduce smoking supported the latter view rather than the Ainslie model However, neither approach was successful in accounting of relapses. This may be because action is hard to predict from beliefs and values, and it may more suitably be accounted for by desires and emotional states, the latter most importantly because they affect the ability of self-monitoring.