The trajectory of counterfactual simulation in development.

ABSTRACT: Young children often struggle to answer the question "what would have happened?" particularly in cases where the adult-like "correct" answer has the same outcome as the event that actually occurred. Previous work has assumed that children fail because they cannot engage in accurate counterfactual simulations. Children have trouble considering what to change and what to keep fixed when comparing counterfactual alternatives to reality. However, most developmental studies on counterfactual reasoning have relied on binary yes/no responses to counterfactual questions about complex narratives and so have only been able to document when these failures occur but not why and how. Here, we investigate counterfactual reasoning in a domain in which specific counterfactual possibilities are very concre

SUBMITTER: Kominsky JF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8262369 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature