Uncovering the course of analogical mapping using eye tracking

Analogical mapping - the core component of analogical reasoning - consists of establishing the relational structure shared by two analogous situations and inferring the missing elements in a less familiar situation from a more familiar one. Several existing models of analogy predicted that the complete relational structure can be considered in parallel. Other models postulated that mapping can be less or more incremental - it can access only a relatively small part of the structure, and needs to move to its other parts in steps in order to construct the final relational correspondence. However, the precise time course of analogical mapping, especially in sufficiently complex analogies, to date was rarely studied empirically. In two studies, eye tracking was used to assess in a rigorous way the extent to which mapping can be incremental. In a newly designed geometric A:B::C:D task, pattern D was generated from C according to the same shape transformations that generated pattern B from A. The six possible response options differed systematically in the number of correct transformations, from no transformation matching, via partial relational match, up to the full match. In Study 1, the relational match of options fixated on by participants was initially low but increased monotonically over the course of analogy. The number of corresponding eye fixations predicted 68% variance in relational match of the final response. The correct option was chosen only if fixated on for a sufficiently long time. Study 2 replicated the findings using a more ecologically valid and less demanding task variant that required to map the changes in people's appearance. The results support these theoretical models of analogy which postulate strictly incremental mapping.