Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society

The majority of conceptual change studies have investigated either manipulations of the learning environment or examinedthe effect of individual differences on conceptual change (Cordova, et al. 2014; Taasoobshirazi & Sinatra, 2011). In eithercase, the importance of interactions is left out. The present study investigates whether individual differences in hot andcold cognitive ability and task scaffolding interact with each other in their effect on conceptual change. Participants(n = 299) were tasked with determining how best to categorize whether a fictitious bacteria is oxygen resistant acrossthree learning conditions. The results suggest that a refutational text produces better learning gains than an expositorytext, which outperforms feedback alone. Moreover, hot and cold cognitive factors were found to interact with learnerscaffolding differentially. The results of this research project can be used to improve instructional practices, which, inturn, should aid learners understanding of scientific conceptions.