Definitionv1DF-195
Self-explanation
the cognitive process of actively generating explanations, connections, and questions about new information in your own words rather than passively consuming it, which leads to deeper understanding and mental model construction through the generation effect and elaborative interrogation mechanisms
Why This Is a Definition
This definition establishes the precise boundary of self-explanation as a specific form of generation that goes beyond simple summarization, emphasizing the active construction of understanding rather than passive reception, and links it to both the generation effect and elaborative interrogation.
Connections
Defines (29)
AxiomExponential Information DecayAxiomGenerative ExternalizationAxiomOpen-Loop Cognitive Cost (Zeigarnik)AxiomExtended Cognition ThesisAxiomAutomatic Narrative Generation Precedes Conscious EvaluationAxiomDirected Attention as Depletable ResourceAxiomHindsight Bias and Calibration NecessityAxiomIllusion of Explanatory DepthAxiomExpertise Transforms Perceptual ChunkingAxiomComplementary Learning Systems ArchitectureAxiomDual Coding Theory: Verbal and Visual ChannelsAxiomConversational Memory Asymmetry From Production PlanningAxiomUltradian and Circadian Cognitive RhythmsAxiomPatterns Exist in Hierarchical Logical LevelsAxiomEncoding Depth Determines RetentionAxiomEmotion as Systematic Cognitive ModulatorAxiomGlucose-Cognition Dependency ThresholdAxiomMeaning as Receiver ConstructionAxiomBias Blind Spot AsymmetryAxiomExternalization Exposes Hidden StructureAxiomExpertise as Domain-Specific Schema OrganizationAxiomMental Models Are Singular by DefaultAxiomCognition Operates Through Dual Processing SystemsAxiomMental States Are Cognitively ImputableAxiomAutomatic Pattern PerceptionAxiomHierarchical Chunking Expands CapacityAxiomPiagetian Equilibration Through Schema DynamicsAxiomFlexible Context-Dependent CategorizationAxiomPeople interpret failure as either evidence about…