ABSTRACT
The reason for studying expert performance in expertise research is similar to that for investigating adult cognition in developmental psychology as stated by Siegler (1986, p. 361): “Knowledge of the adult cognitive system is useful for studying changes in children’s thinking. It is much easier to study development when we know where the development is going.” Likewise, the study of the acquisition and structure of expert performance allows us to investigate the adaptations and changes that appear in individuals who perform in a certain domain at a level that typically exceeds the average level of performance expected from an adult in the population. Rather than emphasising developmental changes, expertise research focuses on formal training and the mechanisms that mediate superior performance.
