Assessing decision thresholds in primary school students using signal detection theory: validating an adapted version...

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Decision Science

Background:

• Decision thresholds influence certainty and decision-making.
• Lower thresholds are linked to superstitious and conspiracy beliefs.
• Existing measures are limited to adults and subjective estimates.

Purpose of the Study:

• Validate a new instrument to measure decision thresholds in children.
• Utilize objective probability values and a signal detection approach.
• Investigate early cognitive biases and decision-making processes.

Main Methods:

• Developed and validated a new instrument for measuring decision thresholds in children.
• Employed a signal detection analytical approach with objective probability values.
• Assessed N = 299 children from an enrichment program.

Main Results:

• Receiver operating characteristic curves demonstrated high sensitivity of the new instrument.
• Construct validity was supported by positive associations with confirmation bias, age, grade, and math performance.
• No significant associations were found with alternation bias, epistemic certainty, self-concept, self-efficacy, or gender.

Conclusions:

• Introduced a novel, valid instrument for assessing children's decision thresholds using objective probabilities.
• Provides insights into the development of cognitive biases and related constructs in early development.
• Highlights the importance of studying decision thresholds in children to understand phenomena like superstition and conspiracy beliefs.