Influence of categorical coherence on category-based induction

The present study examined the cause of individual differences in strategy in category-based induction. Possible strategies in category-based induction include the coverage principle and the diversity principle. The present study hypothesized that individual differences in strategy are a result of categorical coherence. The influence of the induction on confirmation judgments was examined by manipulating the coherence of the category by adding a shared attribute or a category label to an artificial category, or by changing the hierarchical level of the category. Participants in the research were college sophomores : 88 in Experiment 1; 102 in Experiment 2;and 126 in Experiment 3. The results indicated that the hierarchical level of an inclusive category influenced confirmation judgments. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants were told that the inclusive category was almost at a basic level; their confirmation judgments were based on the diversity principle. In Experiment 3, participants were told that the inclusive category was higher than the superordinate category, and their confirmation judgments were based on the coverage principle.