ERIC Number: EJ950373
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Apr
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0959-4752
EISSN: N/A
Epistemic Cognition when Students Read Multiple Documents Containing Conflicting Scientific Evidence: A Think-Aloud Study
Ferguson, Leila E.; Braten, Ivar; Stromso, Helge I.
Learning and Instruction, v22 n2 p103-120 Apr 2012
This study used think-aloud methodology to investigate 51 Norwegian undergraduates' topic-specific epistemic cognition while working with six documents presenting conflicting views on the issue of cell phones and potential health risks. Results showed that students' epistemic cognition was represented by one dimension concerning the certainty and simplicity of knowledge and three dimensions concerning the justification for knowing by different sources. Moreover, components of a mechanism of change, in particular epistemic doubt and resolution strategies, were identified in the think-aloud protocols. Finally, these mechanism of change components seemed to operate within distinct dimensions of epistemic cognition. Three case studies were used to elaborate on and illustrate how epistemic cognition may be differently involved in the reading of multiple conflicting documents over the course of reading. (Contains 7 tables and 1 figure.)
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Evidence, Protocol Analysis, Epistemology, Undergraduate Students, Handheld Devices, Risk, Conflict, Cognitive Processes, Evaluative Thinking, Case Studies, Critical Reading, Physical Health
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Norway
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A