Citizen Science
Citizen science involves nonprofessional volunteers—‘citizens’—in the process of science. Citizens can be involved in many ways, from a contributory role on existing data (e.g., data annotation) to providing their own data or even co-creation of research (e.g., co-design of study protocol). In cogni
Complex Dynamical Systems
A complex dynamical system is one with interdependent parts that evolve nonlinearly over time. As the system evolves, surprising patterns may emerge in the system’s behaviors or structure. These emergent patterns arise from interactions among the system’s parts. Complex dynamical systems are studied
Ecological Validity
Ecological validity refers to the degree to which a given research context is indicative of, or can be generalized to, real-world environments. On the surface, ecological validity is a seemingly simple concept. In the definition above, the notion of research context encompasses the physical setting
Economic Games
Economic games enable the study of individual decisions in a social dilemma in which the interest of the group and the individual are in conflict. The simplest economic game is the prisoner’s dilemma: Two players each decide simultaneously to cooperate or not with the other player. They achieve the
Eugenic Thinking and the Cognitive Sciences
Eugenic thinking involves distinguishing between sorts or kinds of people in terms of the perceived desirable or undesirable traits that those people are likely to transmit to future generations. Although eugenics itself is often thought of as an ideology that generated a social movement of global i
Eye Movements
Eye movements are a necessary component of human visual function because of the variation in acuity across the retina, and humans direct gaze so that locations of interest fall on the high acuity foveal region. Consequently, a person’s direction of gaze typically reveals what they are attending to.
Introspection
Introspection (etymologically, “looking inward”) refers to the ability to access one’s own mental life and the results thereof. It stands in contrast to perception, the ability to connect with the world, as well as to interoception and proprioception, which refer to the knowledge of the state of one
Iterated Learning
Iterated learning describes a process in which individuals acquire a system of knowledge or behavior by observing other individuals who acquired it in the same way. Many systems of human knowledge and behavior are transmitted via iterated learning, including language, music, and social stereotypes.