One of the signs of maturity of thinking is the ability to establish logical connections between concepts. It develops in a person gradually, including during schooling. The task of teachers and psychologists is to monitor the development of the child’s thought processes in order to identify the lag behind the age norm. One of the tests for assessing the ability to think logically is the “Complex Analogies” technique.
The essence of the technique
Testing "Complex analogies" is one of the most common ways to study the dynamics of mental activity. This technique was developed by our compatriot E. A. Korobkova, a psychologist who worked with children who have problems in the development of intelligence.
The test is aimed at studying the child’s abilities to build logical conclusions, abstract and establish connections between concepts. Its essence is to discover relationships between 20 pairs of concepts and type them in accordance with the proposed key or “cipher”.
List of concepts for testing using the “Complex analogies” method
- Fright - flight;
- Physics is a science;
- Right - right;
- Garden bed - vegetable garden;
- Pair - two;
- Word - phrase;
- Cheerful - lethargic;
- Freedom is will;
- Country city;
- Praise is scolding;
- Revenge - arson;
- Ten is a number;
- Cry - roar;
- Chapter-novel;
- Rest is movement;
- Courage is heroism;
- Cool - frost;
- Deception - mistrust;
- Singing is an art;
- Bedside table - wardrobe.
The code consists of 6 pairs of words denoting concepts that are related to each other according to a certain principle:
Cipher
- Sheep - herd (part - whole);
- Raspberry - berry (genus - species);
- Sea - ocean (small - large);
- Light - darkness (antonyms);
- Poisoning - death (cause - effect);
- Enemy - enemy (synonyms).
When working with children, it is best to conduct research individually or in small groups of 4–5 people, since explaining the task may require the experimenter’s close attention to each of the participants.
Testing is recommended for children aged 12–14 years, as well as high school students; there is no upper age limit. This technique may be too difficult for younger children, because their logical thinking is not yet sufficiently formed to grasp abstract connections between concepts. Some sources indicate that even educated adults do not always perform well on this test, so testing elementary school children using this program is not recommended.
Carrying out diagnostics among schoolchildren (junior, middle, high school)
To carry out testing you will need:
- assignment form;
- watch or stopwatch;
- protocol for recording the subject's explanations.
At the first stage, the test taker is offered a “cipher” for the task - 6 pairs of words, united by a certain type of logical connection. The teenager needs to establish what relationships exist between the presented concepts. In case of difficulties, the experimenter asks leading questions (which is why it is recommended to test individually).
If a child, due to age or personality characteristics, cannot establish connections between the proposed concepts, further testing does not make sense. However, it should be noted that difficulties in completing the task may be associated not only with disturbances in thought processes, but also with the child’s shyness, when it is difficult for him to get into contact with the experimenter, as well as with a decrease in motivation, when the test taker does not want to cooperate or is lazy to do a task.
After making sure that the subject understands the logical connections between the proposed pairs of concepts, the experimenter opens the second part of the form with 20 pairs of words that are in the same relationships as the words from the first list. The child is asked to establish these relationships and designate them with a letter corresponding to the type of logical connection, or simply indicate a pair of words from the keys that have the same type of connection.
Task form for the methodology
- A. Sheep - flock;
- B. Raspberry - berry;
- B. Sea - ocean;
- G. Light - darkness;
- D. Poisoning - death;
- E. The enemy is the enemy.
| 1. | Fright - flight | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 2. | Physics - science | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 3. | Right - right | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 4. | Garden bed | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 5. | A couple or two | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 6. | Word - phrase | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 7. | Cheerful - lethargic | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 8. | Freedom - will | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 9. | Country city | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 10. | Praise - scolding | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 11. | Revenge - arson | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 12. | Ten is a number | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 13. | Cry - roar | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 14. | Chapter-novel | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 15. | Rest - movement | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 16. | Courage is heroism | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 17. | Cool - frost | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 18. | Deception - mistrust | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 19. | Singing is an art | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
| 20. | Bedside table - wardrobe | A | B | IN | G | D | E |
As an example, you can parse the first two pairs of words together, but the student completes the rest of the tasks independently. The test takes 3–5 minutes depending on the age of the students.
As testing progresses, the experimenter fills out a protocol: in it he records not only the test subject’s answers, but also the logical conclusions that allowed him to classify this or that pair into a certain category.
Experimenter's protocol for testing using the “Complex Analogies” method
| A couple of concepts | Subject's answer | A comment |
| Fright - flight | ||
| Physics - science | ||
| Right - right | ||
| Garden bed | ||
| A couple or two | ||
| Word - phrase | ||
| Cheerful - lethargic | ||
| Freedom - will | ||
| Country city | ||
| Praise - scolding | ||
| Revenge - arson | ||
| Ten is a number | ||
| Cry - roar | ||
| Chapter-novel | ||
| Rest - movement | ||
| Courage is heroism | ||
| Cool - frost | ||
| Deception - mistrust | ||
| Singing is an art | ||
| Bedside table - wardrobe |
The test taker’s reasoning can be no less useful and indicative for assessing his logical thinking than the answers themselves and their correctness. Justifying the choice of one answer or another makes it possible to identify slippage and spreading of thinking, indicating its immaturity.
Interpretation of results
The experimenter counts the number of correct answers: 1 point is awarded for each correct answer, 0 points for an incorrect answer. 9 points - the line of reasoning is logical, but perhaps the subject was distracted during the testing process;
The “Complex Analogies” technique is a common way to study thinking. However, some critics note that it is quite difficult - even educated adults without mental disorders do not always perform it 100% correctly. Therefore, if a student performs poorly, this cannot be interpreted as a diagnosis of mental retardation, but should be a reason for further examination. The final conclusions and recommendations for completing a correctional training program should be made by a specialist in the field of developmental psychology.
Target: the technique is used to determine how accessible the subject is to understanding logical relationships and identifying abstract connections. Intended for adolescents and adults.
Description. The technique consists of 20 pairs of words - logical problems that the subject is asked to solve. His task is to determine which type of logical connection is contained in each pair of words. The “Cipher” will help him with this - a table that shows examples of the types of communication used and their letter designation: A, B, C, D, D, E.
The test subject must determine the relationship between in a pair, then find an “analogue”, that is, select in the “Cipher” table - a pair of words with the same logical connection, and then mark in a row of letters (A, B, C, D, D, E ) the one that matches the found analogue from the “Cipher” table. execution is limited to three minutes.
Material. Methodology form, response registration form.
Instructions. “On the form in front of you there are 20 pairs consisting of words that are in a logical connection with each other. Opposite each pair are 6 letters that indicate 6 types of logical connections. Examples of all 6 types and their corresponding letters are given in the “Code” table.
You must first determine the relationship between the words in the pair. Then select the pair of words closest to them by analogy (association) from the “Cipher” table. And after that, in the letter row, circle the letter that corresponds to the analogue found in the “Cipher” table. The task completion time is 3 minutes.”
Material for the method Cipher- A. Sheep - flock
- B. Raspberry - berry
- B. Sea - ocean
- D. Light - darkness
- D. Poisoning - death
- E. Enemy - enemy
- Fright - flight A B C D E E
- Physics - science A B C D E E
- Correct – A B C D E E
- Garden bed A B C D E E
- Pair - two A B C D E E
- Word - phrase A B C D E E
- Bodryi – A B C D E E
- Freedom - will A B C D E E
- Country - city A B C D E E
- Praise - scolding A B C D E E
- Revenge - arson A B C D E E
- Ten – A B C D E E
- Cry - roar A B C D E E
- Chapter – A B C D E E
- Rest - movement A B C D E E
- Courage - heroism A B C D E E
- Cool – A B C D E E
- Deception - mistrust A B C D E E
- Singing is an art A B C D E E
- Bedside table - wardrobe A B C D E E
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| D | B | E | A | E | A | G | E | IN | G | D | B | E | A | G | E | IN | D | B | IN |
If the subject correctly, without much difficulty, solved all the tasks and logically explained all the comparisons, this gives the right to conclude that he can understand abstractions and complex logical connections.
Target
The technique is used to determine how accessible the subject is to understanding complex logical relationships and identifying abstract connections. Intended for adolescents and adults.
Description
The technique consists of 20 pairs of words - logical problems that the subject is asked to solve. His task is to determine which of the six types of logical connections is contained in each pair of words. A “cipher” will help him with this - a table that shows examples of the types of communication used and their letter designation: A, B, C, D, D, E.
The subject must determine the relationship between the words in a pair, then find an “analogue”, that is, select a pair of words with the same logical connection in the “cipher” table, and then answer in a series of letters (A, B, C, D, D, E ) that, | which corresponds to the found analogue from the "cipher" table. The task completion time is limited to three minutes.
Material
Methodology form, response registration form.
Instructions
“On the form in front of you there are 20 pairs consisting of words that are in a logical connection with each other. Opposite each pair there are 6 letters that indicate 6 types of logical connection. Examples of all 6 types and the corresponding letters are given in the “cipher” table.
You must first determine the relationship between the words in the pair. Then select the pair of words closest to them by analogy (association) from the “cipher” table. And after that, in the letter row, circle the letter that corresponds to the analogue found in the “cipher” table. The task completion time is 3 minutes."
Material
Cipher
A. Sheep - flock
B. Raspberry - berry
V. Sea - ocean
G. Light - darkness
D. Poisoning - death
E. Enemy - enemy
Fright - flightA B C D E E
2.Physics - scienceA B C D E E
3.Correct - trueA B C D E E
4. Garden bed A B C D E E
5. Pair - twoA B C D E E
6. Word - phraseA B C D E E
7. Vigorous - lethargicA B C D E E
8.Freedom - willA B C D E E
9.Country - citiesA B C D E E
10. Praise - scoldingA B C D E E
11. Revenge - arson B C D E E
12.Ten is a numberA B C D E E
13. Cry - roarA B C D E E
14.Chapter - novelA B C D E E
15. Rest - movementA B C D E E
16. Courage is heroismA B C D E E
17. Cool - frostA B C D E E
18. Deception - mistrustA B C D E E
19.Singing is an artA B C D E E
20. Bedside table - cabinet A B C D E E
Key
Grade
|
Score in points |
|||||||||
|
Number of correct answers |
12-14 |
10-11 |
8-9 |
Analysis of results
If the subject correctly, without much difficulty, solved all the tasks and logically explained all the comparisons, this gives the right to conclude that he can understand abstractions and complex logical connections.
If the subject has difficulty understanding the instructions and makes mistakes when making comparisons, only after a thorough analysis of errors and reasoning can one draw a conclusion about the slippage of conclusions, the spread of thinking, the arbitrariness, illogicality of reasoning, the diffuseness, vagueness of thought against the background of an understanding of logical connections, and the false understanding of analogy logical connections.
The subject's reasoning has the greatest informative value. Usually the greatest difficulty is caused by the relationship between the concepts “thrift - stinginess”, “coolness - frost”.
Anxiety is a child of evolution
Anxiety is a feeling familiar to absolutely every person. Anxiety is based on the instinct of self-preservation, which we inherited from our distant ancestors and which manifests itself in the form of a defensive reaction “Flight or fight.” In other words, anxiety does not arise out of nowhere, but has an evolutionary basis. If at a time when a person was constantly in danger in the form of an attack by a saber-toothed tiger or an invasion of a hostile tribe, anxiety really helped to survive, then today we live in the safest time in the history of mankind. But our instincts continue to operate at a prehistoric level, creating many problems. Therefore, it is important to understand that anxiety is not your personal flaw, but a mechanism developed by evolution that is no longer relevant in modern conditions. Anxious impulses, once necessary for survival, have now lost their expediency, turning into neurotic manifestations that significantly limit the lives of anxious people.
November 3, 2016In the practice of psychodiagnostics, the study of thinking plays one of the main roles. Diagnosis of this mental process is applicable in a variety of cases - in the work of a school psychologist, in professional selection, in medical, judicial practice and many others. Research methods are divided according to their focus (what characteristic of thinking is being studied) and according to the age of the subjects for which they are suitable. The “Complex analogies” technique is one of the most used in the arsenal of practical psychologists, since not only the test results are informative, but also the research process itself.
What is the technique used for?
The “Complex Analogies” technique is intended for diagnosing thinking and its verbal and logical component. It reveals the extent to which a person has the ability to understand complex logical relationships and identify abstract connections. This verbal test is designed to work with teenagers, young men and adults, i.e. persons over 14 years of age.
The “Complex Analogies” technique is capable of identifying such thinking disorders as diffuseness, slipping of conclusions, illogicality, and spreading. It is also effective for working not only with healthy people, but also with those suffering from reasoning - a thinking disorder, which manifests itself in a tendency to empty, superficial reasoning, verbosity, and the absence of a coherent thought in a statement.
Description of stimulus material
The “Complex Analogies” technique has in its arsenal a stimulus material consisting of twenty pairs of words, united by a certain logical connection. The test subject will have to determine it and solve the problems. There are six types in total; they are presented in a cipher-table with examples of logical connections. The person's job is to determine the encrypted connection in the patterns and correlate the proposed 20 pairs of words with them. For example, in the pair “vigorous-sluggish” there is a contrast; these words are antonyms. In the cipher table, you need to find the same pair with contrasting concepts and mark the corresponding letter of the cipher in the answer form. In this case, the pair corresponds to the “Light-dark” code.
“Complex analogies”, technique: its form consists of two columns: on the left are all 20 pairs of words, on the right are the letters A, B, C, D, D, E, corresponding to one of the codes. To show the connection between the words in the first column, you need to circle the letter of the code.
- Cipher A denotes the logical connection “one-many” or “one-a set of units”, for example, “chapter-novel”.
- In cipher B, the second word shows which class of phenomena or objects the first one belongs to. For example, "singing is an art."
- Cipher B indicates 2 words belonging to the same class, but the second is larger in scale than the first. For example, "Sea-ocean".
- Cipher G is represented by opposite concepts, for example, “praise-scold”.
- In cipher D, the second word is a consequence of the first, for example, “fright-flight.”
- Code E - synonyms, for example, “cry-roar.”
Study procedure
The “Complex analogies” technique involves instructing the test subject before starting testing: “You have in front of you a table with 20 pairs of words that are logically connected. They are in the left column. In the right column there are 6 letters that correspond to the type of logical connection. You need to determine which a connection has been established between the pair, and in the “Cipher” table, find the one most suitable for it. After this, you should circle the letter from the right column, which corresponds to the type of connection you have chosen from the “Cipher” table. You have 3 minutes for all the work.
During the testing process, it is important to pay attention to how the subject reacts to the task, what reasoning he says out loud. If necessary, you can prompt the completion of 1 task in order to monitor whether the instructions were understood correctly and in what direction the person is thinking. Then he does everything on his own.
Methodology "Complex analogies": interpretation of results
After the test taker has completed the test, he must first count the number of correct answers and assign a grade. If less than 6 correct answers were given - 0, 5 correct answers - 12-14, 9 hits - 19-20 points.
If a person has given the majority of correct answers, we can conclude that he has an understanding of logical connections and can operate with abstract concepts.
If the subject experiences difficulties at the instruction stage, has difficulty reasoning out loud about how pairs of words are related to each other, performs most tasks only with the help of a specialist, one can draw conclusions about the low level of development of logical thinking, difficulties in understanding analogies between abstract concepts, illogical reasoning.
It is worth noting that even adults can find it difficult to cope with some pairs of words. The “Complex Analogies” technique is not entirely simple. Therefore, you should be especially careful when explaining the instructions, make sure that the person understands the task correctly, and only then begin to complete it.
