A graduate of Indiana University (Ph.D., 2007) and Arizona State University (B.S., 1999), Roger Stanton is a published author and professor. Dr. Stanton has performed a number of in-depth studies on category learning. In the opinion of Roger Stanton, category learning is a fascinating area of study that requires a deliberate commitment to further research.

Categorization involves the process of placing items into groups known as “categories,” explains Roger Stanton. However, this definition merely scratches the surface of what categorization means with regard to the field of cognitive psychology. Roger Stanton says that categorization refers to how people assign events or objects to categories. Further, Roger Stanton describes categorization as a way to structure knowledge and organize it into select categories. Categorization also relates to the various inferences that people draw when determining to what category an event or object belongs, adds Roger Stanton.

The research of Roger Stanton concentrates on the human act of categorizing and how it contributes to a broader understanding of the environment. Roger Stanton performs these studies by collecting data from experiments and then testing the ability of mathematical models to account for the data obtained in the experiments. In this way, Roger Stanton is able to account for the elements of learning behavior that he witnesses throughout the experiments.

The tendency for most individuals to place items into categories is a core aspect of cognition, asserts Roger Stanton. In addition to perceiving a particular object, it is seen as either belonging to one category or another. Roger Stanton contends that humans engage in categorization each time they decide the difference between objects. According to Roger Stanton, a few examples of these category distinctions that people make include calling an object a plate rather than a saucer, a spoon versus a fork, or an apple and not an orange.

Roger Stanton observes that children create and learn new categories frequently as they build their knowledge base, while adults continue to establish new categories at a slower rate. There are many theoretical proposals concerning how category membership is established, notes Roger Stanton. Categorization judgments could be based on checking a list of sufficient and necessary features, or similarity to a prototype or set of exemplars, or a variety of other strategies.

According to Roger Stanton, significant evidence in the academic community suggests that a number of dramatic differences are visible in terms of how people learn and construct these categories. However, Roger Stanton reports that there is little agreement in the exact nature of the processes that underlie category learning.

Given the crucial role that categorization has played in our daily lives, it’s not surprising that a bounty of literature is devoted to the subject, according to Roger Stanton. As research in category learning continues, Roger Stanton predicts that more experts will be placing an emphasis on developments and discoveries in categorization while studying its application in the real world.