From Theory of Mind to Epistemic Cognition. A Lifespan perspective

Although a sizeable body of research now exists in epistemic cognition, it tends to stand apart to other aspects of cognition and cognitive development.  Here it is proposed situating epistemic cognition in a context of its roots and development as a dimension of cognitive development more generally. The present paper draws a strong continuous link between the earliest understanding of other minds, examined under the Theory of Mind, and the tasks that confront adults throughout the lifespan – that of interpreting evidence and coordinating it with what they already take to be true. The primary focus is the How question of knowledge change. To gain insight into this question, it is proposed focusing on epistemic activity in action. It is suggested here that the standards for knowledge formation and revision, which are closely connected with epistemic understanding of theory-evidence coordination, change developmentally. Another major change, proposed, is that the process increasingly comes under conscious control

The professionalization of cryptology in sixteenth century Venice

This article examines the evolution of cryptology as a business trait and a distinct, state-regulated and controlled profession in sixteenth century Venice. It begins by briefly discussing the systematic development of cryptology in the Renaissance. Following an examination of the amateur use of codes and ciphers by members of the Venetian merchant and ruling class, and subsequently by members of all layers of Venetian society, the article moves on to discuss the professionalization of cryptology in sixteenth century Venice. This was premised on specialist skills formation, a shared professional identity, and an emerging professional ethos. The article explores a potential link between the amateur use of cryptology, especially as it had been instigated by merchants in the form of merchant-style codes, and its professional use by the Venetian authorities, and it adds the profession of the cifrista – the professional cipher secretary – to the list of more “conventional” early modern professions

Developing Epistemological Understanding in Scientific and Social Domains through Argumentation

Wie das Argumentieren die Entwicklung eines epistemologischen Verständnisses in wissenschaftlichen und sozialen Bereichen fördern kann Zusammenfassung. Diese Arbeit untersucht, ob eine Intervention zur Veränderung des Argumentationsverhaltens die Entwicklung eines evaluativen epistemologischen Verständnisses fördern kann. Studierende wurden randomisiert einer von zwei Interventionsbedingungen zugewiesen, die sich entweder mit einem sozialen oder ein wissenschaftlichen Thema beschäftigten. Die epistemologischen Überzeugungen wurden vor und nach der Intervention anhand eines sozialen und eines wissenschaftlichen Themas ermittelt. Zusätzlich wurden die Ansichten der Studierenden über ihre eigenen Wissensprozesse sowie über die von Wissenschaftlern erhoben. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass dialogische Argumentationsaktivitäten die Entwicklung eines evaluativen domänenspezifischen epistemologischen Verständnisses unterstützte. Weitere qualitative Analysen zeigten, dass die Teilnehmer je nach Interventionsbedingung die Evidenz im Prozess des Wissenserwerbs unterschiedlich bewerten. Dies unterstützt die Ansicht, dass es verschiedene Herausforderungen bei der Entwicklung eines epistemologischen Verständnisses in den Domänen gibt. Die Erkenntnisse dieser Studie haben wichtige pädagogische Implikationen und weisen darauf hin, dass argumentative Aktivitäten ein vielversprechender Weg sind, um die Entwicklung eines angemessenen epistemologischen Verständnisses zu unterstützen. Abstract. The present work examines whether engagement in an argument-based intervention can support the development of evaluativist epistemological understanding. Students were randomly assigned to one of two intervention conditions – focusing on either a social or science topic – and their epistemological understanding was assessed before and after the intervention using both a social and a science topic. Students' views about their own and scientists' processes of knowing were also assessed. Results showed that engagement in dialogic argumentative activities supported the development of more evaluativist domain-specific epistemological understanding. Further qualitative analysis showed domain differences in how participants valued evidence in the process of knowing, supporting the view that there are different challenges in the development of epistemological understanding across domains. Overall, the present study's findings have important educational implications and suggest that engagement in argumentative activities is a promising pathway for supporting the development of epistemological understanding

Examining My-Side Bias During and After Reading Controversial Historical Accounts

The present study examines individuals’ thinking during and after reading controversial historical accounts and the possible contribution of epistemic beliefs, emotions, and priorknowledge in this context. Young adults (n = 39) were asked to read two accounts about a recent war in their country, an own-side account – from a historian of their ethnic group – and an other-side account ‒ from a historian from the adversary ethnic group. Participants were asked to think-aloud and report their emotions during reading. After reading, participants were asked to write a summary. Results showed that participants exhibited my-side bias during reading and writing, while there were also interesting individual differences in epistemic beliefs and prior knowledge. Participants with evaluativist epistemic beliefs were less likely to show my-side bias in the writing task. Epistemic beliefs, along with prior knowledge and the emotion of anger, predicted also low-epistemic processing during reading of other-side text. The paper concludes with a discussion of the educational implications in promoting critical thinking about controversial issues in history