Overview
Background
I'm a Professor of Cognitive Science at The University of Queensland, originally hailing from Alberta, Canada. I received my BASc in Philosophy and Psychology from The University of Lethbridge, my PhD in Psychology from McMaster University, and held a postdoctoral fellowship at UNSW before joining UQ in 2006.
Much of our work is at the intersection of cognitive science and artificial intelligence, exploring how generative AI can enhance learning and cognition. We're excited about the potential for these tools to provide personalised feedback, correct misconceptions, and create more engaging educational experiences.
But we’re not just focused on AI. We also explore the quirks of human thinking, particularly the biases that shape our judgments in contexts ranging from daily life to high-stakes decision-making. By unraveling these mental shortcuts, we aim to develop strategies that enable clearer thinking, more effective reasoning, and ultimately, wiser choices in the face of complexity and uncertainty.
I've been lucky to work with some truly brilliant students and collaborators over the years. It's a pleasure to come to the lab every day and tackle these fascinating questions together.
Availability
- Professor Jason Tangen is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, McMaster University
Research interests
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AI-Assisted Learning and Cognition
AI technologies — large language models and adaptive tutoring systems — offer promising avenues for enhancing learning outcomes and supporting cognitive processes. Our research explores the potential of personalised AI feedback to correct misconceptions, deepen understanding, and effect lasting changes in beliefs and knowledge. We’re investigating AI-driven dialogues’ efficacy in rectifying misconceptions in cognitive psychology and related fields, with implications for educational settings and public comprehension of complex issues. This work not only advances AI-assisted learning but also informs human cognition. Studying human-AI interactions yields insights into the cognitive mechanisms underpinning knowledge acquisition, belief updating, and conceptual change. Central to our inquiry is AI’s unique persuasive power in educational contexts — we’re examining its learning benefits alongside its implications for critical thinking in an increasingly AI-driven world. This dual focus allows us to harness AI’s potential while remaining mindful of its broader impact on cognitive development.
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Cognitive Biases and Decision-Making
Our research examines the wide range of cognitive biases that shape human judgment and decision-making across various domains. We study visual biases in forensic science and complex cognitive biases in everyday reasoning, exploring how these mental shortcuts influence our thinking. Our work on fingerprint identification revealed how contextual information can influence even expert decision-making, challenging assumptions about objectivity in forensic analysis. Currently, we’re investigating how different types of expertise and cognitive strategies might help overcome biases in critical areas such as financial forecasting, medical diagnosis, and public health policy-making. By combining insights from cognitive science with AI-driven approaches, we aim to improve human reasoning and problem-solving in real-world scenarios. Our goal is to connect theoretical understanding with practical application, promoting more rational decision-making in high-stakes environments where clear thinking is paramount.
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Insight Experiences and Belief Formation
Our team is developing a comprehensive framework to study insight or “Aha!” moments – those sudden realisations that can dramatically shift understanding and shape beliefs. We’re expanding on the Eureka heuristic by examining multiple facets of insight experiences, including their depth, “mystical” qualities, and the challenge of putting them into words. Our research explores how these dimensions relate to an individual’s propensity to experience insights. We’re particularly curious about the role these sudden revelations play in forming and maintaining beliefs, especially those related to conspiracy theories and paranormal phenomena. By measuring various aspects of insight experiences and tracking their influence on belief systems, we aim to uncover the cognitive processes driving belief formation and change. This work not only advances our understanding of how people arrive at new ideas but also offers potential strategies for promoting critical thinking and addressing misinformation. Through our novel methods, we aim to reveal how these “lightbulb moments” shape our worldview and influence our decisions.
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Resilience in High-Stakes Professions
Our collaboration with the Queensland Police Service and Queensland Ambulance Service focuses on understanding resilience in forensic investigators and first responders. This multi-phase project explores how these professionals maintain their well-being and performance despite frequent exposure to traumatic events. We’re combining in-depth qualitative interviews, specially designed cognitive tasks, and advanced physiological measures to pinpoint the traits and skills that contribute to resilience. By examining how these professionals process and respond to challenging stimuli, we’re uncovering the cognitive strategies that allow them to thrive in high-stress environments. This research has far-reaching implications, potentially informing recruitment practices, refining training programs, and developing targeted support strategies for professionals in high-stress fields. Our findings could lead to interventions that not only enhance individual well-being but also improve public safety by ensuring that these critical professionals can perform at their best under challenging circumstances.
Research impacts
Our research team aims to promote rational thinking and counter misinformation across diverse domains. We created one of the world’s largest online courses on critical thinking, now being used in Ukraine to combat Russian disinformation. Our team advises forensic analysts on presenting evidence, lawyers on cross-examination techniques, and judges on excluding unreliable testimony. Additionally, we train senior police managers in high-stakes decision making and bias mitigation, and collaborate with bdna, a tech firm helping law enforcement worldwide reduce cognitive bias in investigations.
Known as “The Australian Study,” our groundbreaking work on fingerprint examiner accuracy and reliability was cited by the U.S. President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, presented to leading international agencies including the FBI, Scotland Yard, and the Dutch Police, and referenced in expert reports by Australian police forces and the FBI. This research was also used to develop the Australian Federal Police’s innovative “Rapid Lab” intelligence process.
Our team is actively working to strengthen forensic science practices and their use in the justice system. We have designed competency tests that all Australia/New Zealand fingerprint experts must pass to testify in court, and developed a global resource promoting empirical studies in forensic science. Our work has been cited in landmark reports by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and President’s Council, and is informing new Victorian and NSW Supreme Court rules on forensic testimony.
We lead research projects helping industry partners solve challenging, high-impact problems, such as testing banknote security features for the Reserve Bank of Australia, developing passport loss reporting incentives for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and providing quarterly command training for Queensland Police Service leaders. In recognition of our collaborative efforts, we received a UQ Award for Excellence in HDR Industry Engagement and Leadership.
Works
Search Professor Jason Tangen’s works on UQ eSpace
2010
Conference Publication
Investigations of print discrimination
Vokey, John and Tangen, Jason (2010). Investigations of print discrimination. AP-LS 2010: American Psychology-Law Society Conference, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 18-20 March 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Using change detection to explore the role of features and context in object recognition
LaPointe, Mitchell, Vokey, John R., Wu, Wen and Tangen, Jason (2010). Using change detection to explore the role of features and context in object recognition. Annual Meeting of the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science (CSBBCS 2010), Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 11-13 June, 2010. Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science (CSBBCS).
2010
Conference Publication
Death by bullet points? On interest and images in slideware presentations
Tangen, J. M., Constable, M. D. and Kim, J. A. (2010). Death by bullet points? On interest and images in slideware presentations. EPC '10 37th Australasian Experimental Psychology Conference, Melbourne, Vic, Australia, 8-10 April, 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
The mark of the instance: Autoassociative neural-nets as exemplars of storage and retrieval in instance theory
Vokey, John Richard and Tangen, Jason Marcus (2010). The mark of the instance: Autoassociative neural-nets as exemplars of storage and retrieval in instance theory. Annual Meeting of the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science (CSBBCS 2010), Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 11-13 June 2010. Ottawa, Canada: Canadian Psychological Association. doi: 10.1037/a0020795
2010
Conference Publication
Object recognition depends on more than just the object
LaPointe, Mitchell, Vokey, John R., Wu, Wen and Tangen, Jason M. (2010). Object recognition depends on more than just the object. Banff Annual Seminar in Cognitive Science BASICS 2010, Banff, AB, Canada, 30 April - 1 May 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Enhancing performance in human decision making: The role of similarity in forensic identification
Thompson, M. B., Tangen, J. M., McCarthy, D. and Tear, M. J. (2010). Enhancing performance in human decision making: The role of similarity in forensic identification. 20th International Symposium on the Forensic Sciences, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 5-9 September, 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
The limits of critter detection: Testing the animate monitoring hypothesis
Wu, W., LaPointe, M., Vokey, J. R. and Tangen, J. M. (2010). The limits of critter detection: Testing the animate monitoring hypothesis. 37th Australasian Experimental Psychology Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 8-10 April 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Humans matching fingerprints: Sequence and size
Thompson, Matthew B., Tangen, Jason M., Treloar, Renee and Ivison, Kathleen (2010). Humans matching fingerprints: Sequence and size. 54th Annual Meeting of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, San Francisco, CA, U.S.A., 27 September-1 October 2010. Santa Monica, CA, U.S.A.: Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. doi: 10.1518/107118110X12829369202718
2010
Conference Publication
Ground truth: On certainty in forensic decision-making research
Tangen, J. M., Thompson, M. B., McCarthy, D. and Tear, M. J. (2010). Ground truth: On certainty in forensic decision-making research. 20th International Symposium on the Forensic Sciences, Sydney , Australia, 5-10 September 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
The implicit learning of style
Loven, Amanda, Tangen, Jason, Wu, Wen and Vokey, John (2010). The implicit learning of style. Banff Annual Seminar in Cognitive Science (BASICS 2010), Banff, AB, Canada, 30 April - 1 May, 2010.
2009
Conference Publication
On the psychophysics of matching latents to ten-print patents
Tangen, J. M. and Vokey, J. R. (2009). On the psychophysics of matching latents to ten-print patents. 36th Australasian Experimental Psychology Conference, Wollongong, NSW, Australia, 17-19 April 2009. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Psychological Society.
2009
Conference Publication
On the psychophysics of matching fingerprints
Tangen, J. M. and Vokey, J. R. (2009). On the psychophysics of matching fingerprints. 50th Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, Boston, MA, USA, 19-22 November 2009.
2009
Conference Publication
Spotting critters in our midst: Context specificity and change detection
Tangen, J. M. and Wu, W. (2009). Spotting critters in our midst: Context specificity and change detection. 36th Australasian Experimental Psychology Conference, Wollongong, NSW, Australia, 17-19 April 2009. Melbourne, VIC, Australia: Australian Psychological Society.
2009
Journal Article
Is Perruchet's Dissociation Between Eyeblink Conditioned Responding and Outcome Expectancy Evidence for Two Learning Systems?
Weidemann, Gabrielle, Tangen, Jason M., Lovibond, Peter F. and Christopher J. Mitchell (2009). Is Perruchet's Dissociation Between Eyeblink Conditioned Responding and Outcome Expectancy Evidence for Two Learning Systems?. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, 35 (2), 169-176. doi: 10.1037/a0013294
2009
Conference Publication
Cognitive load influences multimedia presentation effectiveness
Durrant, E., Teeter, C., Beston, B. and Tangen, J. M. (2009). Cognitive load influences multimedia presentation effectiveness. 50th Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, Boston, MA, U.S.A., 19-22 November, 2009.
2009
Journal Article
On the preliminary psychophysics of fingerprint identification
Vokey, John R., Tangen, Jason M. and Cole, Simon A. (2009). On the preliminary psychophysics of fingerprint identification. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 62 (5), 1023-1040. doi: 10.1080/17470210802372987
2009
Conference Publication
Effect of stimulus detail on the attentional processing of fear-relevant stimuli
Forbes, S., Purkis, H., Lipp, O. and Tangen, J. M. (2009). Effect of stimulus detail on the attentional processing of fear-relevant stimuli. 36th Australasian Experimental Psychology Conference, Wollongong, NSW, Australia, 17–19 April 2009. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Psychological Society.
2008
Conference Publication
Intra- and inter-item similarity in fingerprint matching
Vokey, John and Tangen, Jason (2008). Intra- and inter-item similarity in fingerprint matching. Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science 18th Annual Meeting, London, Ontario, Canada, 19-21 June 2008.
2008
Conference Publication
Perception of fingerprint patterns: What do we really see?
Gee, P. and Tangen, J. M. (2008). Perception of fingerprint patterns: What do we really see?. 19th International Symposium on the Forensic Sciences, Melbourne, Australia, 6-9 October 2008.
2008
Conference Publication
On the preliminary psychophysics of fingerprint identification
Tangen, J. M. and Vokey, J. R. (2008). On the preliminary psychophysics of fingerprint identification. 35th Australasian Experimental Psychology Conference, Freemantle, Australia, 28-30 March 2008. United Kingdom: John Wiley & Sons. doi: 10.1080/17470210802372987
Funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor Jason Tangen is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Available projects
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Tangen Lab Research
If you'd like to join the lab, please read through some of our projects descriptions and papers to see if you're interested in the research questions we're asking.
Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
Reflection Refracted: Why Rationality is More Than Just the Sum of Its Thoughts
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Resilience in traumatic work situations.
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Samuel Pearson
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Doctor Philosophy
Triggering Insights with AI: Using Large Language Models to Revise Beliefs
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Balancing Efficiency with Equity: Exploring the Impact of AI-Driven Tutors on Learning in Higher Education
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Improving adolescents' rationality to improve career decision-making skills and promote wellbeing
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Michael Noetel
Completed supervision
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2024
Doctor Philosophy
Reverse engineering expertise in fingerprint identification
Principal Advisor
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2023
Doctor Philosophy
When "Aha!" moments are wrong: A new paradigm for experimentally induced false insights
Principal Advisor
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2022
Doctor Philosophy
The relationship between visual expertise and learned attention
Principal Advisor
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2020
Doctor Philosophy
Communicating error and expertise in forensic expert testimony
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Blake McKimmie
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2019
Doctor Philosophy
The Phenomenology of Truth: The Psychological Functions of the Insight Experience
Principal Advisor
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2014
Doctor Philosophy
Visual discrimination on the basis of style: Evaluation of low-levels of awareness in human discrimination
Principal Advisor
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2014
Doctor Philosophy
On expertise in fingerprint identification
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Penelope Sanderson
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2024
Doctor Philosophy
The Highs and Lows of Visual Categorisation: Insights from Response Time Modeling
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr David Sewell
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2022
Doctor Philosophy
Rethinking Auditory Alarms: Examining the potential for novel auditory displays to overcome the limitations of conventional alarms
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Penelope Sanderson
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2022
Doctor Philosophy
Understanding the Impact of Schemas on Victim Credibility in Rape Trials
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Barbara Masser, Professor Blake McKimmie
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2015
Doctor Philosophy
Violent video games and prosocial behavior
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Mark Nielsen
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2014
Doctor Philosophy
Examining the utility of visual search tasks in assessing preferential attention to fear-relevant stimuli
Associate Advisor
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2014
Doctor Philosophy
Modelling Dynamic Affective and Decision Making Processes during Approach and Avoidance Goal Striving
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
Media
Enquiries
Contact Professor Jason Tangen directly for media enquiries about:
- Bias
- Categorisation
- Cognition
- Decision Making
- Discrimination
- Education
- Evidence
- Expertise
- Forensics
- Identification
- Insight
- Instruction
- Judgement
- Learning
- Memory
- Metascience
- Misinformation
- Performance
- Problem Solving
- Rationality
- Reasoning
- Thinking
- Training
- Validation
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