@article{5a32aa7440784ac3807711e550977b32,
title = "Effects of explanation on children's question asking",
abstract = "The capacity to search for information effectively by asking informative questions is crucial for self-directed learning and develops throughout the preschool years and beyond. We tested the hypothesis that explaining observations in a given domain prepares children to ask more informative questions in that domain, and that it does so by promoting the identification of features that apply to multiple objects, thus supporting more effective questions. Across two experiments, 4- to 7-year-old children (N = 168) were prompted to explain observed evidence or to complete a control task prior to a 20-questions game. We found that prior prompts to explain led to a decrease in the number of questions needed to complete the game, but only for older children (ages 6–7). Moreover, we found that effects of explanation manifested as a shift away from questions that targeted single objects. These findings shed light on the development of question asking in childhood and on the role of explanation in learning.",
keywords = "Active learning, Cognitive development, Explanation, Question asking",
author = "Azzurra Ruggeri and Fei Xu and Tania Lombrozo",
note = "Funding Information: We would like to thank Mandana Mostofi, Susana Herrera, Minh-Thy Nguyen, Lara Bertram and Eva Kell for assistance in recruiting, data collection and coding. We would also like to thank all the children from the Laurence Hall of Science, in Berkeley, California, the Bay Area Discovery Museum, in Sausalito, California, and the Natural History Museum, Labyrinth Museum and Forscherwelt Blossin, in Berlin for providing research space. This research was supported by a Seventh European Community Framework Programme Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship awarded to A. Ruggeri. T. Lombrozo was supported by a McDonnell Scholar Award on Understanding Cognition. F. Xu was supported by an NSF grant (SMA-1640816). Funding Information: We would like to thank Mandana Mostofi, Susana Herrera, Minh-Thy Nguyen, Lara Bertram and Eva Kell for assistance in recruiting, data collection and coding. We would also like to thank all the children from the Laurence Hall of Science, in Berkeley, California, the Bay Area Discovery Museum, in Sausalito, California, and the Natural History Museum, Labyrinth Museum and Forscherwelt Blossin, in Berlin for providing research space. This research was supported by a Seventh European Community Framework Programme Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship awarded to A. Ruggeri. T. Lombrozo was supported by a McDonnell Scholar Award on Understanding Cognition . F. Xu was supported by an NSF grant ( SMA-1640816 ). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019 Elsevier B.V.",
year = "2019",
month = oct,
doi = "10.1016/j.cognition.2019.05.003",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "191",
journal = "Cognition",
issn = "0010-0277",
publisher = "Elsevier",
}