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The Worst Performance Rule, or the Not-Best Performance Rule? Latent-Variable Analyses of Working Memory Capacity, Mind-Wandering Propensity, and Reaction Time

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Title: The Worst Performance Rule, or the Not-Best Performance Rule? Latent-Variable Analyses of Working Memory Capacity, Mind-Wandering Propensity, and Reaction Time
Authors: Welhaf, Matthew S., Smeekens, Bridget A., Meier, Matt E. (ORCID 0000-0003-2002-191X), Silvia, Paul J. (ORCID 0000-0003-4597-328X), Kwapil, Thomas R. (ORCID 0000-0003-1116-5954), Kane, Michael J.
Source: Journal of Intelligence. 2020 8.
Availability: MDPI AG. Klybeckstrasse 64, 4057 Basel, Switzerland. e-mail: indexing@mdpi.com; e-mail: jintelligence@mdpi.com; Web site: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/jintelligence
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 23
Publication Date: 2020
Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (DHHS/NIH)
Contract Number: R15MH093771
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Postsecondary Education
Descriptors: Short Term Memory, Attention, Reaction Time, Performance, Cognitive Ability, Undergraduate Students
Geographic Terms: North Carolina (Greensboro)
ISSN: 2079-3200
Abstract: The worst performance rule (WPR) is a robust empirical finding reflecting that people's worst task performance shows numerically stronger correlations with cognitive ability than their average or best performance. However, recent meta-analytic work has proposed this be renamed the "not-best performance" rule because mean and worst performance seem to predict cognitive ability to similar degrees, with both predicting ability better than best performance. We re-analyzed data from a previously published latent-variable study to test for worst vs. not-best performance across a variety of reaction time tasks in relation to two cognitive ability constructs: working memory capacity (WMC) and propensity for task-unrelated thought (TUT). Using two methods of assessing worst performance--ranked-binning and ex-Gaussian-modeling approaches--we found evidence for both the worst and not-best performance rules. WMC followed the not-best performance rule (correlating equivalently with mean and longest response times (RTs)) but TUT propensity followed the worst performance rule (correlating more strongly with longest RTs). Additionally, we created a mini-multiverse following different outlier exclusion rules to test the robustness of our findings; our findings remained stable across the different multiverse iterations. We provisionally conclude that the worst performance rule may only arise in relation to cognitive abilities closely linked to (failures of) sustained attention.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2022
Accession Number: EJ1322589
Database: ERIC
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  Data: The Worst Performance Rule, or the Not-Best Performance Rule? Latent-Variable Analyses of Working Memory Capacity, Mind-Wandering Propensity, and Reaction Time
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Welhaf%2C+Matthew+S%2E%22">Welhaf, Matthew S.</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Smeekens%2C+Bridget+A%2E%22">Smeekens, Bridget A.</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Meier%2C+Matt+E%2E%22">Meier, Matt E.</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2002-191X">0000-0003-2002-191X</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Silvia%2C+Paul+J%2E%22">Silvia, Paul J.</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4597-328X">0000-0003-4597-328X</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kwapil%2C+Thomas+R%2E%22">Kwapil, Thomas R.</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1116-5954">0000-0003-1116-5954</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kane%2C+Michael+J%2E%22">Kane, Michael J.</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Journal+of+Intelligence%22"><i>Journal of Intelligence</i></searchLink>. 2020 8.
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  Data: MDPI AG. Klybeckstrasse 64, 4057 Basel, Switzerland. e-mail: indexing@mdpi.com; e-mail: jintelligence@mdpi.com; Web site: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/jintelligence
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  Data: 23
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  Data: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (DHHS/NIH)
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  Label: Abstract
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  Data: The worst performance rule (WPR) is a robust empirical finding reflecting that people's worst task performance shows numerically stronger correlations with cognitive ability than their average or best performance. However, recent meta-analytic work has proposed this be renamed the "not-best performance" rule because mean and worst performance seem to predict cognitive ability to similar degrees, with both predicting ability better than best performance. We re-analyzed data from a previously published latent-variable study to test for worst vs. not-best performance across a variety of reaction time tasks in relation to two cognitive ability constructs: working memory capacity (WMC) and propensity for task-unrelated thought (TUT). Using two methods of assessing worst performance--ranked-binning and ex-Gaussian-modeling approaches--we found evidence for both the worst and not-best performance rules. WMC followed the not-best performance rule (correlating equivalently with mean and longest response times (RTs)) but TUT propensity followed the worst performance rule (correlating more strongly with longest RTs). Additionally, we created a mini-multiverse following different outlier exclusion rules to test the robustness of our findings; our findings remained stable across the different multiverse iterations. We provisionally conclude that the worst performance rule may only arise in relation to cognitive abilities closely linked to (failures of) sustained attention.
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  Data: 2022
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  Label: Accession Number
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  Data: EJ1322589
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        PageCount: 23
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      – SubjectFull: Short Term Memory
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Attention
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Reaction Time
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Performance
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      – SubjectFull: Cognitive Ability
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      – SubjectFull: Undergraduate Students
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      – SubjectFull: North Carolina (Greensboro)
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      – TitleFull: The Worst Performance Rule, or the Not-Best Performance Rule? Latent-Variable Analyses of Working Memory Capacity, Mind-Wandering Propensity, and Reaction Time
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