Exploration of Categorization and Category-Based Induction on Waste Sorting: A Follow-Up Observation by NeuroSky MindWave

Rui Zhao; Xinyun Ren; Yan Liu; Yujun Lee

doi:10.2147/PRBM.S414136

Exploration of Categorization and Category-Based Induction on Waste Sorting: A Follow-Up Observation by NeuroSky MindWave

Psychol Res Behav Manag. 2023 Aug 15:16:3237-3245. doi: 10.2147/PRBM.S414136. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Rui Zhao¹, Xinyun Ren¹, Yan Liu¹, Yujun Lee²

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Geoscience and Environmental Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, 611756, People's Republic of China.
² Department of Foreign Language and Culture, North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, 637000, People's Republic of China.

Abstract

Waste sorting, as an embodiment of behavioral cognition, is regulated by two cognitive processes, namely, Categorization (C) and Category-Based Induction (CBI). This study employed the event-related potential (ERP) technique to assess whether there is a transformation between C and CBI in waste sorting cognition, in order to help individuals establish a correct waste sorting behavior. We reported a case of intervention in waste sorting education with a 58-year-old Chinese woman to discriminate whether such intervention facilitates the transition between C and CBI. The results showed that the waste sorting cognition follows a developmental model as C-CBI-C, where education may help the subject build a cognitive framework for waste sorting by altering inherent misperceptions and filling gaps in classification knowledge. The results also noticed that FN400 is identified as a characteristic waveform in the CBI process, by which it is indicated that the first 4 to 7 days of education is a critical period for establishing the cognitive framework. Through a comparison of the ERP waveforms at different stages of intervention, the results are insightful to help individuals improve their cognition of waste sorting.

Keywords: ERP; FN400; categorization; category-based induction; education; waste sorting.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Key Plan for Research and Development of China (2019YFC1905600), National Natural Science Foundation of China (41571520), Sichuan Youth Science and Technology Innovation Team Funding (No. 2022JDTD0005), and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. 2682021ZTPY088).