You Are Right, You Are Wrong: The Effect of Feedback on Intuitive Thinking

Dual process theories of decision making distinguish between type 1 processes, which are commonly assumed to be fast and autonomous and related to intuitive thinking, and type 2 processes, which require the involvement of working memory and are closely linked to analytical reasoning. The purpose of this work was to study the role of external information about intuitively made decisions, examining whether type 2 processes engagement is modified by exposure to positive or negative feedback. One hundred six participants completed a set of conditional reasoning tasks, adopting a two-response paradigm. Results showed that participants who expected to receive feedback information took longer to make intuitive decisions, but they took less time to give intuitive responses after the administration of positive feedback and more time after the administration of negative feedback; moreover, time spent by participants to provide their reflected responses progressively decreased throughout the experiment. A significant negative feedback effect also emerged, showing an increase in the accuracy of intuitive responses. Results are discussed from a dual process perspective.