Asked in a 1966 paperModerate

Which one of the following statements are true of the Wason selection, or four-card problem (Wason,1966)? 1. The Wason Selection Task is a good task because it produces identical results in concrete and abstract forms 2. In general, concrete versions of the task are more difficult to think about than uncluttered abstract versions. 3. Although the task is one of pure reasoning some concrete versions are easier because of how we think in certain social situations. 4. People typically pick one card correctly, but pick an inappropriate one as the second choice in the original version of the task.

Correct answer: B. 3 & 4

  • A. 1 & 2
  • B. 3 & 4
  • C. 1 & 4
  • D. 2 & 3

Explanation

Concrete, socially meaningful versions can be easier than the abstract Wason task, showing that reasoning is influenced by context. In the original task, people commonly choose one correct card but pair it with an inappropriate second card, so statements 3 and 4 are true.

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