Clarifying System 1 & 2 through the Common Model of Cognition

TL;DR

This paper uses the Common Model of Cognition to clarify the distinctions and overlaps between System-1 and System-2, challenging traditional dual-system views and providing a unified framework for understanding their mechanisms.

Contribution

It introduces a unified perspective on System-1 and System-2 by grounding them in the Common Model of Cognition, addressing misconceptions and clarifying their cognitive properties.

Findings

System-1 and System-2 characteristics form a spectrum.

Grounding in the Common Model clarifies underlying mechanisms.

Challenges dual-system misconceptions.

Abstract

There have been increasing challenges to dual-system descriptions of System-1 and System-2, critiquing them as imprecise and fostering misconceptions. We address these issues here by way of Dennett's appeal to use computational thinking as an analytical tool, specifically we employ the Common Model of Cognition. Results show that the characteristics thought to be distinctive of System-1 and System-2 instead form a spectrum of cognitive properties. By grounding System-1 and System-2 in the Common Model we aim to clarify their underlying mechanisms, persisting misconceptions, and implications for metacognition.