Inference and Imagination
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22428596 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ruth M J Byrne (0000-0003-2240-1211, Trinity College Dublin, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | e70066-e70066 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-19 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Topics in Cognitive Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1756-8757 • E-ISSN: 1756-8765 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/tops.70066 |
| PMID | 42319985 |
| OpenAlex | W7165376341 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 129 |
Our ability to imagine alternatives to reality is central to everyday cognition. Our competence in reasoning depends not only on our capacity to envisage the relevant facts, but also on our proficiency in simulating alternatives to them. I discuss how our skill in making deductive inferences depends on imagining possibilities. To illustrate, I consider evidence on the suppression of inferences, the cognitive processes based on mental models that explain how we make inferences, and corroboration from studies of counterfactual reasoning. I also discuss how our ability to create alternatives to reality depends on identifying mutable aspects of mental simulations. To illustrate, I consider evidence on imagining alternatives to aspects of situations within our control, the cognitive processes based on simulation availability that explain how we create alternatives to reality, and corroboration from studies of moral decision‐making. I conclude with an exploration of the imagination as the engine of the mind.
Cognition · Counterfactual thinking · Inference · Mental model · Mental operations · Mental representation · Child and Animal Learning Development · Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment
The Psychology of Proof
Explanation in artificial intelligence
When ignorance is no excuse
Norm theory
Conditionals
The simulation heuristic
Counterfactual Thought
Action, Outcome, and Value
A Theory of Blame
Witnessing excellence in action
The experience of regret
Extraneous factors in judicial decisions
The emotional dog and its rational tail
An fMRI Investigation of Emotional Engagement in Moral Judgment
Mental Logic
When nomenclature matters
“If only” counterfactual thoughts about cooperative and uncooperative decisions in social dilemmas
Regrets of the Typical American
Understanding Counterfactuality
When being wise after the event results in injustice
Plausibility and Perspective Influence the Processing of Counterfactual Narratives
Conversational comprehension processes are responsible for reasoning fallacies in children as well as adults
It would have been worse under Saddam
Counterfactual thinking, persistence, and performance
Mental Simulation and Causal Attribution
Counterfactual thinking as a prebunking strategy to contrast misinformation on Covid-19
Counterfactual potency
Outcome bias in decision evaluation
Contrastive and counterfactual reasoning in causal judgment
Temporal order and the perceived mutability of events
The undoing of scenarios
Self-handicapping, excuse making, and counterfactual thinking
People systematically update moral judgments of blame
Beliefs in moral luck
Judging probable cause
The Rational Imagination
The Strategic Use of Counterfactual Communication in Politics
The Influence of Causal Conditional Reasoning on the Acceptance of Product Claims
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |