Presenter: Lillian Isabel Lawlor
Faculty Sponsor: Andrew Cohen
School: UMass Amherst
Research Area: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences
Session: Poster Session 5, 3:15 PM - 4:00 PM, Auditorium, A84
ABSTRACT
Statistical literacy is essential to informed decision making in various fields, such as healthcare. This study investigates an intervention designed to quickly enhance probabilistic reasoning. We specifically targeted the summation error, an error in which people add up conditional probabilities across sets without adjusting for overall set size. Prior research suggests that individuals with low numeracy are particularly susceptible to making this error, pointing to a role for mental effort or cognitive load. To reduce cognitive load, an intervention was designed to implicitly teach participants to notice the critical nested set relations while de-emphasizing the role of numbers, i.e., focusing on concepts. We predict that participants who receive the intervention would make fewer summation errors.
RELATED ABSTRACTS
- Power in Numbers: Impact of Group Size on Female Math Performance in the Context of Gender-Based Stereotype Threat, Goodwin, Rita, UMass Amherst, Poster Session 5, 3:15 PM - 4:00 PM, Auditorium, A40
- Our Money-Driven World: Education as Merchandise, Allendorf, Chloe Maeve, UMass Amherst, Poster Session 1, 10:30 AM - 11:15 AM, Auditorium, A42
- Developing Elementary School Pre-Service Teachers’ Vision of Equitable Science Education, Wallace, MacKenzie Paige, UMass Amherst, Poster Session 6, 4:15 PM - 5:00 PM, Auditorium, A37
- Academics and Athletics: Aiding Access to Higher Education in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Mullen, Ethan, UMass Amherst, Poster Session 1, 10:30 AM - 11:15 AM, Auditorium, A13
- Assessing the Attitudes, Perceptions, and Knowledge of Premedical Students About Disability: Implications for Medical Education and Practice, Horan, Katelyn Mary Helen, UMass Amherst, Poster Session 5, 3:15 PM - 4:00 PM, Auditorium, A25
