[DSRP Evidence](https://dsrpevidence.org/)

# The “Fish Tank” Experiments

Metacognitive Awareness of DSRP Significantly Increases Cognitive Complexity

## Details

**Authors** Cabrera D, Cabrera L, Cabrera E

**Year** 2022

**Publisher** Systems (MDPI)

**Kind of work** article

[Read it at the publisher](https://doi.org/10.3390/systems10020029) 
10.3390/systems10020029

## In authors' words

### Abstract

Four matched treatments, each under a minute, testing whether brief explicit practice of a single pattern changes the structure of subsequent thinking. Four samples of about 350 subjects described the same image before and after a treatment on distinctions, systems, relationships or perspectives.

### What they found (results)

Priming systems, relationships or perspectives produced significantly fewer concepts with more said about each (p < 0.001). Priming distinctions did not reduce the inventory (p = 0.062). Unique-word gains were near-identical across the four (44.59 / 41.59 / 40.13 / 44.47%) while raw-word gains varied between 13 and 32%. Read times were 28.11s for D, 35.19s for S, 51.91s for R and 50.40s for P.

## Commentary

### Response

The dissociation matters more than the effect sizes. Distinctions generate and the other three organize, which is the theory's own division of labour, appearing in a measure nobody set out to test. The paper reports it as a puzzle.

**Patterns it shows** D, S, R, P

## Studies reported in this

- Fish Tank treatments (4 samples of 350)

## Questions it bears on

- Q1. [What is thinking (T)?](https://dsrpevidence.org/question/what-thinking)
- Q25. [Does practice in organization (O) increase mental fitness?](https://dsrpevidence.org/question/o-practice-works)

**How to cite this** Cabrera D, Cabrera L, Cabrera E (2022). The “Fish Tank” Experiments: Metacognitive Awareness of DSRP Significantly Increases Cognitive Complexity. Systems (MDPI).