The Rationality Quotient: Toward a Test of Rational Thinking
Keith E. Stanovich, Richard F. West, and Maggie E. Toplak
Abstract
This book shows that rational thinking, like intelligence, is a measurable cognitive competence. Drawing on theoretical work and empirical research from the last two decades, The Rationality Quotient presents the first prototype for an assessment of rational thinking analogous to an IQ test: the CART (Comprehensive Assessment of Rational Thinking). The book describes the theoretical underpinnings of the CART, distinguishing the algorithmic mind from the reflective mind. It discusses the logic of the tasks used to measure cognitive biases. The book presents a unique typology of thinking errors. ... More
This book shows that rational thinking, like intelligence, is a measurable cognitive competence. Drawing on theoretical work and empirical research from the last two decades, The Rationality Quotient presents the first prototype for an assessment of rational thinking analogous to an IQ test: the CART (Comprehensive Assessment of Rational Thinking). The book describes the theoretical underpinnings of the CART, distinguishing the algorithmic mind from the reflective mind. It discusses the logic of the tasks used to measure cognitive biases. The book presents a unique typology of thinking errors. The Rationality Quotient explains the components of rational thought assessed by the CART, including probabilistic and scientific reasoning; the avoidance of “miserly” information processing; and the knowledge structures needed for rational thinking. The book discusses studies of the CART and the social and practical implications of such a test. An appendix offers sample items from the test.
Keywords:
rational thinking,
assessment,
cognitive biases,
typology of thinking errors,
miserly processing,
CART components,
probabilistic reasoning,
scientific reasoning
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2016 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780262034845 |
| Published to MIT Press Scholarship Online: May 2017 |
DOI:10.7551/mitpress/9780262034845.001.0001 |
Authors
Affiliations are at time of print publication.
Keith E. Stanovich, author
University of Toronto (emeritus)
Richard F. West, author
James Madison University (emeritus)
Maggie E. Toplak, author
York University
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