An investigation of the concept of cognitive similarity

Abstract

The study is primarily concerned with the need for effective teacher education. Problems investigated within this area are discusses and it is proposed that communication processes between lecturers and students are a central concern. Problems of effective communication are discussed within the context of research in social psychology which investigates such processes. Within this field research by Runkel (1956) is discussed in detail since his interesting results provide the basis for the investigation. Runkel suggests that cognitive similarity is a facilitating mechanism in communication and that students cognitively similar to a lecturer achieve greater success in courses that students who are cognitively dissimilar. Runkel measures cognitive similarity by means of an index of co-linearith. Runkel’s research is discussed in relation to work by Triandis (1959.1960). Triandis explored other measures of cognitive similarity and suggests that cognitive similarity can be explained in terms of other intrapersonal variables. The possibility of viewing Bartlett’s work (9158) as a exploratory measure is discussed. A critical appraisal of Runkel’s research leads to the following main areas of investigation. investigation of the index of co-linearity over a wide range of subject areas. investigation of “transfer” groups i.e. those who throughout the course changed their position of cognitive similarity. investigation of an exploratory measure of cognitive similarity. The experimental design, statistical methods, sample, methods and measures are described. In general the results showcognative similarity as measured by the index of co-linearity was not significantly related to achievement. The trend of the results showed that “transfer” groups tended to have characteristics in common. The exploratory measure, although in effective as an index of cognitive similarity, has potential as a measure of intelligence. There is discussion of the research findings in relation to effective communication between lecturers and students and further areas of research are suggested.