Test of Relational Reasoning—Junior (TORRjr): Measuring Relational Reasoning in Children and Adolescents

• In Event: 29.083 - Poster Session 4
  In Poster Session: 29.083-4 - Poster Session 3: Cognitive Processes

Abstract

Relational reasoning, the ability to discern meaningful patterns within any informational lies at the heart of critical, analytical, and higher-order thinking. However, relational reasoning has rarely been the focus of formal assessment, and to our knowledge, has never dealt with the measurement of the construct in children and adolescents. TORRjr., a thirty-two item visuospatial test with four scales, corresponding to analogy, anomaly, antinomy, and antithesis, was created to measure relational reasoning in this population. Data from 455 Israeli students demonstrated significant differences between and within subjects’ relational reasoning. Further, a confirmatory factor analysis showed that the underlying structure of relational reasoning is the same for children and adolescents as it is for adults.

Authors

• Sophie Jablansky, University of Maryland - College Park

• Patricia A. Alexander, University of Maryland - College Park

• Billie Eilam, University of Haifa

• Irit Aharon, The Hebrew Reali School in Haifa

• Yuting Sun, University of Maryland - College Park