The interaction of two systems, attention and effort
Chapter 1
So what to do?
The best we can do is compromise and integration. We should learn to recognize the situations in which errors are likely, and then work harder to avoid serious mistakes when the probability of failure is high. And it is always harder to notice our own mistakes than to notice the mistakes of others. p.46
System 1 and System 2 are not like independent agents that simply interact with one another. There is no actual place in the brain that can be called the home of either system. You might ask, "Why introduce fictional characters with such silly names into a serious book?" My answer is that these characters are useful because of several strange features that exist in your head and in mine. Sentences are much easier to understand when they describe what an actor does than when they describe the character and features of an abstract thing. "System 2" is a better grammatical subject than "mental computation." Thinking, especially System 1, fits the narrative style we use to describe active agents with character, habits, and abilities. You judge a butler's theft as bad, assume he may do something worse, and remember him for a while. That is also my hope for the language of the systems.
Why call them "System 1" and "System 2" instead of longer labels such as "the automatic system" and "the deliberate system"? The reason is simple. "Automatic system" takes longer to say than "System 1," and therefore occupies more space in working memory. That matters a great deal, because anything that takes up working-memory space limits our capacity to think. Treat System 1 and System 2 like nicknames, almost like Tom and Jerry, for characters you will come to know over time while reading this book. These fictional systems make judgment and choice easier to understand, and they make the author's explanations easier to follow as well.
"He formed an impression, but part of it came from an illusion."
"That was purely a System 1 reaction. She reacted to the threat before she even recognized it."
"Your System 1 is saying: slow down and let System 2 take control." p.48
Chapter 2
A collaborator, Jackson Beatty, then a graduate student, became a master of cognitive pupillometry. Danny later published Attention and Effort. p.54
Attention and Effort
The more skilled we are at something, the less energy it requires. Many brain studies show that the pattern of activity associated with a particular behavior changes as skill improves, with less involvement from the brain regions originally needed. Talent has a similar effect. When solving the same problem, smart people often expend less effort than others. The law of least effort applies to both cognitive and physical labor. When several methods can achieve the same goal, people tend to choose the least demanding one. From a behavioral economics perspective, effort is a cost, and skill acquisition is driven by a balance of benefits and costs. Laziness is deeply embedded in our nature. p.56
One of System 2's important abilities is the adoption of a task set. It means programming memory to follow instructions that override habitual responses. A new task feels awkward at first, but performance improves with practice.
On the explanation of task sets:
Cognitive psychologists call this executive control: when switching from one task to another, especially under time pressure, more effort is required.
Neuroscientists have identified the major brain regions involved in executive function. These areas intervene whenever conflict must be resolved. In humans, whose prefrontal cortex is much more developed than that of other primates, this frontal region is heavily used in intelligence-related activity.
Time pressure is another factor that produces effort. When you play the "add 3" game, some of the pressure comes from the metronome, and some from the burden on memory. Like a juggler keeping several balls in the air, you cannot simply slow down. The rate at which information decays in memory forces speed. It compels you to refresh and repeat information before it disappears. Any task that makes you hold several thoughts in mind at once takes on an urgent character. Unless you are lucky enough to have an unusually large working memory, this becomes uncomfortably hard work. The most effortful form of "slow thinking" often requires you to think quickly.
In general, we avoid mental overload by breaking work into several easier steps or by storing intermediate results in long-term memory (memory in which large amounts of information, once processed through short-term memory, can be retained for a very long time) or on paper rather than in the easily overloaded working memory. We travel long distances without rushing and conduct our mental lives according to the law of least effort. p.58
Measures of attentional control efficiency even predict the survival and competence of Israeli Air Force pilots.
