Thoughts on Expertise

Abstract : Research on tasks in knowledge-rich domains including developmental studies , work in artificial intelligence, studies of expert/novice problem solving, and information-processing analyses of aptitude test tasks have provided increased understanding of the nature of expertise. Particularly evident is the finding that structures of organized knowledge enable the cognitive processes characteristic of high levels of competence. This paper briefly reviews this research and lists a set of propositions that summarize conclusions from research as well as broader inferences and speculations. Keywords: Acquisition of expertise, Aptitude test performance, Artificial intelligence, Cognitive skill acquisition, Domain-specific problem acquisition, Expert/novice problem solving, Heuristics, Metacognitive abilities.