Wason Selection Task
Updated 2026-08-13
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
The Wason selection task presents four cards showing a value on each side and asks which must be turned over to test a conditional rule. Performance is poor with abstract rules but improves sharply when the same structure is framed as a social contract or cheating-detection problem. The core proposition is that reasoning performance depends on the content and framing of the task rather than on formal logical ability alone. The key qualification is that the improvement is a well-documented framing effect, not evidence that people are naturally competent at formal logic.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Concrete reframe: when abstract logic defeats you, restate it as a rule someone could cheat on. - Cheat detection: ask who could violate the rule and what evidence would reveal them. - Design rule: present compliance rules in violation-detection form rather than as pure formal statements.
Anchor fast decisions
The abstract version requires applying a truth-table rule that has no counterpart in ordinary experience, so performance depends on formal training. The social-contract version recruits a detection capacity that is highly practised, since identifying someone who takes a benefit without paying the cost matters for survival in groups. The difference in performance is therefore about which cognitive system the framing activates.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wason_selection_taskverified
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