Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Adaptive Expertise and Cognitive Readiness: A Perspective from the Expert-Performance Approach

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Teaching and Measuring Cognitive Readiness

Abstract

The concept of cognitive readiness implies the acquisition of mechanisms that can guide performance in complex, unfamiliar and unpredictable environments. This chapter traces the history of previously introduced concepts involving similar mechanisms, such as insightful learning and adaptive expertise. These concepts emerged as criticisms of routine expertise and the associated traditional models of skill acquisition that emphasize the role of matched patterns and extensive experience to lead to effortless habitual performance. More recently research on reproducibly superior performance of experts has demonstrated transfer of skill to new and not previously seen situations within the domain of expertise. This new theoretical framework emphasizes the acquisition of mechanisms for increased cognitive control of performance permitting planning and self-monitoring. The same mechanisms mediate improvements and refinements of performance through the engagement in deliberate practice. This new model is shown to be able to accommodate many characteristics of attained cognitive readiness, such as understanding of new situations, flexible performance, and complex learning.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Anderson, J. R. (1982). Acquisition of cognitive skill. Psychological Review, 89, 369–406.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bloom, B. S. (1985a). Generalizations about talent development. In B. S. Bloom (Ed.), Developing talent in young people (pp. 507–549). New York: Ballantine Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bloom, B. S. (Ed.). (1985b). Developing talent in young people. New York: Ballantine Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bransford, J. D., & Schwartz, D. L. (1999). Rethinking transfer: A simple proposal with multiple implications. Review of Research in Education, 24, 61–100.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bryan, W. L., & Harter, N. (1897). Studies in the physiology and psychology of the telegraphic language. Psychological Review, 4, 27–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bryan, W. L., & Harter, N. (1899). Studies on the telegraphic language: The acquisition of a hierarchy of habits. Psychological Review, 6, 345–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charness, N., Krampe, R., & Mayr, U. (1996). The role of practice and coaching in entrepreneurial skill domains: An international comparison of life-span chess skill acquisition. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The road to excellence: The acquisition of expert performance in the arts and sciences, sports, and games (pp. 51–80). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Charness, N., Tuffiash, M. I., Krampe, R., Reingold, E., & Vasyukova, E. (2005). The role of deliberate practice in chess expertise. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 19, 151–165.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chase, W. G., & Simon, H. A. (1973). The mind’s eye in chess. In W. G. Chase (Ed.), Visual information processing (pp. 215–281). New York: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chi, M. T. H. (2006). Two approaches to experts’ characteristics. In K. A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P. Feltovich, & R. R. Hoffman (Eds.), Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance (pp. 21–38). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Chi, M. T. H., Glaser, R., & Farr, M. J. (Eds.). (1988). The nature of expertise. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Choudhry, N. K., Fletcher, R. H., & Soumerai, S. B. (2005). Systematic review: The relationship between clinical experience and quality of health care. Annals of Internal Medicine, 142, 260–273.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, D. A. (2009). How to help professionals maintain and improve their knowledge and skills: Triangulating best practices in medicine. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The development of professional expertise: Toward measurement of expert performance and design of optimal learning environments (pp. 180–202). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • de Groot, A. (1978). Thought and choice and chess. The Hague: Mouton. (Original work published 1946)

    Google Scholar 

  • Detterman, D. K. (1993). The case for prosecution: Transfer as an epiphenomenon. In D. K. Detterman & R. J. Sternberg (Eds.), Transfer on trial: Intelligence, cognition, and instruction (pp. 39–67). Stamford, CT: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dreyfus, H. L., & Dreyfus, S. E. (1986). Mind over machine: Power of human intuitive expertise in the era of the computer. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Duffy, L. J., Baluch, B., & Ericsson, K. A. (2004). Dart performance as a function of facets of practice amongst professional and amateur men and women players. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 35, 232–245.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (1996). The acquisition of expert performance: An introduction to some of the issues. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The road to excellence: The acquisition of expert performance in the arts and sciences, sports, and games (pp. 1–50). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (2004). Deliberate practice and the acquisition and maintenance of expert performance in medicine and related domains. Academic Medicine, 10, S1–S12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (2006a). The influence of experience and deliberate practice on the development of superior expert performance. In K. A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P. Feltovich, & R. R. Hoffman (Eds.), Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance (pp. 685–706). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (2006b). Protocol analysis and expert thought: Concurrent verbalizations of thinking during experts’ performance on representative task. In K. A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P. Feltovich, & R. R. Hoffman (Eds.), Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance (pp. 223–242). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (2007a). Deliberate practice and the modifiability of body and mind: Toward a science of the structure and acquisition of expert and elite performance. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 38, 4–34.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (2007b). Deliberate practice and the modifiability of body and mind: A reply to the commentaries. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 38, 109–123.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A. (2009). Enhancing the development of professional performance: Implications from the study of deliberate practice. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The development of professional expertise: Toward measurement of expert performance and design of optimal learning environments (pp. 405–431). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Krampe, R. T., & Tesch-Römer, C. (1993). The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. Psychological Review, 100, 363–406.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., & Lehmann, A. C. (1996). Expert and exceptional performance: Evidence on maximal adaptations on task constraints. Annual Review of Psychology, 47, 273–305.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Nandagopal, K., & Roring, R. W. (2009). An expert-performance approach to the study of giftedness. In L. Shavinina (Ed.), International handbook of giftedness (pp. 129–153). Berlin: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Patel, V. L., & Kintsch, W. (2000). How experts’ adaptations to representative task demands account for the expertise effect in memory recall: Comment on Vicente and Wang (1998). Psychological Review, 107, 578–592.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Perez, R., Eccles, D. W., Lang, L., Baker, E., Bransford, J., et al. (2009). The measurement and development of professional performance: An introduction to the topic and the organization of this book. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The development of professional expertise: Toward measurement of expert performance and design of optimal learning environments (pp. 1–24). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Roring, R. W., & Nandagopal, K. (2007a). Giftedness and evidence for reproducibly superior performance: An account based on the expert-performance framework. High Ability Studies, 18, 3–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Roring, R. W., & Nandagopal, K. (2007b). Misunderstandings, agreements, and disagreements: Toward a cumulative science of reproducibly superior aspects of giftedness. High Ability Studies, 18, 97–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., & Smith, J. (Eds.). (1991a). Toward a general theory of expertise: Prospects and limits. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., & Smith, J. (1991b). Prospects and limits in the empirical study of expertise: An introduction. In K. A. Ericsson & J. Smith (Eds.), Toward a general theory of expertise: Prospects and limits (pp. 1–38). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., & Towne, T. J. (2010). Expertise. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science, 1, 404–416.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K. A., Whyte, J., & Ward, P. (2007). Expert performance in nursing: Reviewing research on expertise in nursing within the framework of the expert-performance approach. Advances in Nursing Science, 30, E58–E71.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fitts, P. (1964). Perceptual-motor skill learning. In A. W. Melton (Ed.), Categories of human learning (pp. 243–285). New York: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fitts, P., & Posner, M. I. (1967). Human performance. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hatano, G., & Inagaki, K. (1986). Two courses of expertise. In H. Stevenson, H. Azuma, & K. Hakuta (Eds.), Child development and education in Japan (pp. 262–272). New York: W.H. Freeman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayes, J. R. (1981). The complete problem solver. Philadelphia, PA: Franklin Institute Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hilgard, E. R., Edgren, R. D., & Irvine, R. P. (1954). Error in transfer following learning with understanding: Further studies with Katona’s card-trick experiments. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 47, 457–464.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holyoak, K. J. (1991). Symbolic connectionism: Toward third-generation theories of expertise. In K. A. Ericsson & J. Smith (Eds.), Toward a general theory of expertise: Prospects and limits (pp. 301–335). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Katona, G. (1940). Organizing and memorizing. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krampe, R. T., & Ericsson, K. A. (1996). Maintaining excellence: Deliberate practice and elite performance in young and older pianists. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 125, 331–359.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKinney, E. H., & Davis, K. J. (2004). Effects of deliberate practice on crisis decision performance. Human Factors, 45, 436–444.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morrison, J. E., & Fletcher, J. D. (2002). Cognitive readiness (IDA Paper P-3735). Alexandria, VA: Institute for Defense Analyses.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raskin, E. (1936). Comparison of scientific and literary ability: A biographical study of eminent scientists and letters of the nineteenth century. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 31, 20–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roth, P. L., & Clarke, R. L. (1998). Meta-analyzing the relation between grades and salary. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 53, 386–400.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salthouse, T. A. (1991). Expertise as the circumvention of human processing limitations. In K. A. Ericsson & J. Smith (Eds.), Toward a general theory of expertise: Prospects and limits (pp. 286–300). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schulz, R., & Curnow, C. (1988). Peak performance and age among superathletes: Track and field, swimming, baseball, tennis, and golf. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 43, 113–120.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shannon, C. E. (1950). Programming a computer for playing chess. Philosophical Magazine, 41, 256–275.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simon, H. A., & Chase, W. G. (1973). Skill in chess. American Scientist, 61, 394–403.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simonton, D. K. (1997). Creative productivity: A predictive and explanatory model of career trajectories and landmarks. Psychological Review, 104, 66–89.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simonton, D. K. (2004). Creativity in science: Chance, logic, genius, and zeitgeist. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Singley, M. K., & Anderson, J. R. (1989). The transfer of cognitive skill. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skirbekk, V. (2008). Age and productivity potential: A new approach based on ability levels and industry-wide task demand. Population and Development Review, 34(Suppl), 191–207.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tetlock, P. E. (2005). Expert political judgment. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • van der Maas, H. L. J., & Wagenmakers, E. J. (2005). A psychometric analysis of chess expertise. The American Journal of Psychology, 118, 29–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • vanLehn, K., & van der Sande, B. (2009). Acquiring conceptual expertise from modeling: The case of elementary physics. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The development of professional expertise: Toward measurement of expert performance and design of optimal learning environments (pp. 356–378). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Wertheimer, M. (1982). Productive thinking. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (Original work published 1945)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the FSCW/Conradi Endowment Fund of Florida State University Foundation. The author wants to thank Len Hill and Jerad Moxley, for the helpful comments on earlier drafts of the chapter. The work reported herein was partially supported by a grant from the Office of Naval Research, Award Number N000140810126. The findings and opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of the Office of Naval Research.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Florida State University, 1107 West Call Street, 3064301, Tallahassee, FL, 32306-1270, USA

    K. Anders Ericsson

Authors
  1. K. Anders Ericsson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to K. Anders Ericsson .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , National Center for Research on Evaluati, University of Southern California, Longbow Drive 15366, Los Angeles, 91403, California, USA

    Harold F. O'Neil

  2. Office of Naval Research, Inglewood Ct. 2431, Arlington, 22043, Virgin Islands, USA

    Ray S. Perez

  3. National Center for Research on Evaluati, Standards, and Student Testing, CRESST/UCLA, Charles E. Young Drive North 301, Los Angeles, 90095-1521, California, USA

    Eva L. Baker

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Ericsson, K.A. (2014). Adaptive Expertise and Cognitive Readiness: A Perspective from the Expert-Performance Approach. In: O'Neil, H., Perez, R., Baker, E. (eds) Teaching and Measuring Cognitive Readiness. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7579-8_10

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation