Defining far transfer via thematic similarity

Abstract

One of the most valuable functions of philosophy within the cognitive sciences and education is to help clarify important concepts, and the transfer of learning—particularly far transfer—is one such concept needing extra clarification. This is for two reasons. First, determining the psychological distance of transfer is a subjective matter depending on how similar the base and target are proposed to be which makes labeling instances of far transfer difficult. Second, current theoretical mechanisms of transfer, based on analogical reasoning structure mapping theories, struggle to explain instances of far transfer because of their commitment to structural similarity. This paper addresses these two issues by proposing an additional level of similarity—called thematic similarity—that people may use when engaging in transfer. Based on the philosophical ideas of Stephen Pepper and Gerald Holton, similarity at the thematic level is distinguished from other previously theorized levels of similarity in that it is prefigurative rather than structural. Furthermore, transfer is defined as near or far depending on the type of similarity that is involved in the transfer process rather than according to the total amount of similarity between the target and base. The paper concludes with a discussion regarding the empirical testability of these ideas.

Keywords:

• transfer of learning
• far transfer
• similarity
• analogical reasoning
• epistemic beliefs

PUBLIC INTEREST STATEMENT

Psychologists and Educators are both interested in a topic called the transfer of learning. Essentially, transfer of learning is what happens when the mind makes a connection to a new topic that is different in some way from what is currently being learned or used. Sometimes, transfer is fairly basic, like noticing that a glove is like a shoe for hands, or using a butter knife as a screwdriver. Other times, however, transfer may lead to very distant connections, like using poetry to help invent a new tool or finding similarities between texts about history and science. Psychologists and educators call this trickier type of transfer far transfer and it is typically harder to explain how this kind of transfer happens. This paper highlights some of the trickier characteristics of far transfer and then suggests a new way to think about how far transfer might happen in the mind.

Competing interests

The author declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Funding

The author received no direct funding for this research.

Notes on contributors

Benjamin Robert Forsyth

Dr. Benjamin Robert Forsyth is an associate professor and Head of the Department of Educational Psychology and Foundations at the University of Northern Iowa. He also currently serves as the Faculty Chair of the University Educator Preparation Program, which comprises nearly 160 faculty across four colleges, 2500 teacher education students majoring and minoring in 44 areas of study, and six graduate programs leading to licensure in education. His areas of research are focused in the cognitive sciences as it relates to learning and includes topics such as the transfer of learning, epistemic beliefs, and eye-tracking methodologies to investigate the interaction between higher and lower level cognitive processes. He teaches courses in learning and motivation, educational research and the philosophy of inquiry. Prior to his work as an educational psychologist, Dr. Forsyth worked as a high school physics teacher.