This book gathers together novel essays on the state-of-the-art research into the logic and practice of abduction. In many ways, abduction has become established and essential to several fields, such as logic, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, philosophy of science, and methodology. In recent years this interest in abduction's many aspects and functions has accelerated. There are evidently several different interpretations and uses for abduction. Many fundamental questions on abduction remain open. How is abduction manifested in human cognition and intelligence? What kinds or types of abduction can be discerned? What is the role for abduction in inquiry and mathematical discovery? The chapters aim at providing answer to these and other current questions. Their contributors have been at the forefront of discussions on abduction, and offer here their updated approaches to the issues that they consider central to abduction's contemporary relevance. The book is an essential reading for any scholar or professional keeping up with disciplines impacted by the study of abductive reasoning, and its novel development and applications in various fields.

Parenting and Theory of Mind represents the conjunction of two major research literatures in child psychology. One is longstanding. The question of how best to rear children has been a central topic for psychology ever since psychology began to develop as a science. The other research literature is a good deal younger, though quickly expanding. Theory of mind (ToM) has to do with understanding of the mental world-what people (children in particular) know or think about mental phenomena such as beliefs, desires, and emotions. An important question that research on TOM addresses is where do children's ToM abilities come from? In particular, how do children's experiences shape their development? If we know the formative experiences that underlie ToM, then we may be able to optimize this important aspect of development for all children. The last 15 or so years have seen a rapid expansion of the literature on the social contributors to ToM, including hundreds of studies directed to various aspects of parenting. These studies have made clear that parents can be important contributors to what their children understand about the mental world. This is the first book to comprehensively bring together the literature on ToM and parenting, summarizing what we know about how parenting contributes to one of the most important outcomes in cognitive development and outlining future directions for research in this growing area.

This book presents a theoretical critical appraisal of the Mechanistic Theory of Human Cognition (MTHC), which is one of the most popular major theories in the contemporary field of cognitive science. It analyses and evaluates whether MTHC provides a unifying account of human cognition and its explanation. The book presents a systematic investigation of the internal and external consistency of the theory, as well as a systematic comparison with other contemporary major theories in the field. In this sense, it provides a fresh look at more recent major theoretical debates in this area of scientific research and a rigorous analysis of one of its most central major theories. Rigorous theoretical work is integrated with objective consideration of relevant empirical evidence, making the discussions robust and clear. As a result, the book shows that MTHC provides a significant theoretical contribution for the field of cognitive science. The content is useful for those interested in theoretical and empirical issues concerning major theories in the contemporary field of cognitive science.

The purpose of this book is to educate readers regarding the efficacy of cognitive rehabilitation across a variety of neurological conditions, with specific emphasis on rehabilitation-related change detectable via neuroimaging. For ease of reference, this information is divided into separate chapters by neurological condition, since the nature of cognitive impairment and mechanism of rehabilitation may differ across populations. Also included are discussions of the use of neuroimaging in cognitive rehabilitation trials, rigorous design of cognitive rehabilitation trials to have greater scientific impact (e.g., obtaining Class I evidence), and future directions for the field. As such, the book is designed to be useful to both clinicians and researchers involved in the rehabilitation of such conditions so that they can make informed decisions regarding evidence-based treatment to deploy in clinical settings or to further study in research endeavors.

Memory loss is not always viewed purely as a contingent neurobiological process present in an ageing population; rather, it is frequently related to larger societal issues and political debates. This edited volume examines how different media and genres - novels, auto/biographical writings, documentary as well as fictional films and graphic memoirs - represent dementia for the sake of critical explorations of memory, trauma and contested truths. In ten analytical chapters and one piece of graphic art, the contributors examine the ways in which what might seem to be the individual, ahistorical diseases of dementia are used in contemporary cultural texts to represent and respond to violent historical and political events - ranging from the Holocaust to postcolonial conditions - all of which can prove difficult to remember. Combining approaches from literary studies with insights from memory studies, trauma studies, anthropology, the critical medical humanities and media, film and comics studies, this volume explores the politics of dementia and incites new debates on cultures of remembrance, while remaining attentive to the lived reality of dementia.

Parent’s Quick Start Guide to Dyslexia provides parents and caregivers with an immediate overview of dyslexia and steps they can take to support and encourage their child. Each chapter is packed with detailed and helpful information, covering identification, public schools versus private settings, and how (and when) to seek professional help. Summary and resource sections at the end of each chapter give quick guidance to busy readers. Topics include a wealth of research-backed activities, nurturing talent and creativity, motivating your child to read, and more. Offering straightforward, easy to understand, and evidence-based information, this book is a go-to resource for caregivers parenting a child with dyslexia.

This book provides an overview of the key theoretical and empirical issues relating to autobiographical memory: the extraordinarily complex psychological activity that enables us to retrieve, relive and reappraise our pasts. The first part of the book retraces the genesis and historical development of the psychology of autobiographical memory, from the pioneering contributions of Francis Galton, Victor Henri and Sigmund Freud, to the most recent research in the fields of cognitivism, cognitive science and neuroscience. The author then moves on to two key topics in the contemporary panorama: the content and organisation of autobiographical memory (what we remember from our lives and how we link together specific segments of our personal pasts) and the functions of autobiographical memory (why we remember our pasts). This book will provide a valuable scholarly overview for cognitive psychologists and an authoritative critical introduction to the field for students and scholars from across psychology, philosophy, literary criticism, sociology and law.

This volume brings together trends and their prospects to understand the complexity of metacognitive phenomena, with emphasis on the interactions of metacognition with affect. It discusses the three perspectives in understanding these interactions: the possible mechanisms underlying them, the manifestation of interactions of metacognition with affect in self- and co-regulation in social and educational contexts, and changes during development in young children and older adults. This volume is a tribute to Professor Emerita Anastasia Efklides, who was among the pioneers to investigate and argue the importance of the interactions between metacognition and affect. It serves as a dedication to her contribution in the widening of the scope of research in metacognition and self-regulated learning.

This book brings together ideas from experts in cognitive science, mathematics, and mathematics education to discuss these issues and to present research on how mathematics and its learning and teaching are evolving in the Information Age. Given the ever-broadening trends in Artificial Intelligence and the processing of information generally, the aim is to assess their implications for how math is evolving and how math should now be taught to a generation that has been reared in the Information Age. It will also look at the ever-spreading assumption that human intelligence may not be unique-an idea that dovetails with current philosophies of mind such as posthumanism and transhumanism. The role of technology in human evolution has become critical in the contemporary world. Therefore, a subgoal of this book is to illuminate how humans now use their sophisticated technologies to chart cognitive and social progress. Given the interdisciplinary nature of the chapters, this will be of interest to all kinds of readers, from mathematicians themselves working increasingly with computer scientists, to cognitive scientists who carry out research on mathematics cognition and teachers of mathematics in a classroom.

This book brings together mobilities and possibility studies by arguing that the possible emerges in our experience in and through acts of movement : physical, social and symbolic. The basic premise that mobility begets possibility is supported with evidence covering a wide range of geographic and temporal scales. First, in relation to the evolution of our species and the considerable impact of mobility on the emergence and spread of prehistoric innovations; second, considering the circulation of people, things and creative ideas throughout history; third, in view of migrations that define an individual life course and its numerous (im)possibilities; and fourth, in the 'inner', psychological movements specific for our wandering - and wondering - minds.This is not, however, a romantic account of how more mobility is always better or leads to increased creativity and innovation. After all, movement can fail in opening up new possibilities, and innovations can cause harm or reduce our agency. And yet, at an ontological level, the fact remains that it is only by moving from one position to another that we develop novel perspectives on the world and find alternative ways of acting and being. At this foundational level, mobilities engender possibilities and the latter, in turn, fuel new mobilities. This interplay, examined throughout the book, should be of interest for researchers and practitioners working on mobility, migration, creativity, innovation, cultural diffusion, life course approaches and, more generally, on the possibilities embedded in mobile lives.

In Decision Making and Problem Solving: A Practical Guide for Applied Research, the author utilizes traditional approaches, tools, and techniques adopted to solve current day-to-day, real-life problems. The book offers guidance in identifying and applying accurate methods for designing a strategy as well as implementing these strategies in the real world. The book includes realistic case studies and practical approaches that should help readers understand how the decision making occurs and can be applied to problem solving under deep uncertainty.

This book introduces the reader to the concept of functional synchronization and how it operates on very different levels in psychological and social systems - from the emergence of thought to the formation of social relations and the structure of societies. For years, psychologists have investigated phenomena such as self-concept, social judgment, social relations, group dynamics, and cooperation and conflict, but have discussed these phenomena seoarately.This book shows how synchronization provides a foundational approach to these otherwise distinct and diverse psychological processes.This work shows that there is a basic tendency with many processes to become coordinated and progressively integrated into increasingly larger units through well-defined processes. For these larger units, new and largely adaptive functions emerge. Although synchronization affords progressive integration of system elements to enable correspondingly higher-order functions, the trajectory of synchronization is often characterized by periods of assembly and disassembly of system elements. This occurs when a task is completed and synchronization is no longer essential so that the elements once again operate in an independent fashion. It is argued that the disassembly-resynchronization scenario occurs at all levels of psychological and social reality. The implications of this approach for important issues in interpersonal relations and societal processes are discussed.