Grammatical Reasoning
Verbal reasoning is the ability to quickly understand and make valid conclusions about concepts expressed in words. While language comes naturally to most people, understanding complex sentences with multiple negative statements is consistently challenging.
How to take the Grammatical Reasoning Test
A statement appears at the top of the screen, and two objects underneath. The patient’s task is to reason about the relationships among the objects and determine if the statement is true or false. Responding quickly and accurately is required for high scores.
The history of Grammatical Reasoning
Versions of Grammatical Reasoning can be found as early as 1968, when they were developed to study cognitive impairments. For example, one study found that divers were impaired at verbal reasoning when reaching depths of about 30 meters, due to an effect of the pressure on the oxygen being breathed. Luckily, this effect is reversible, but Grammatical Reasoning remains an effective task for temporary or long-term cognitive impairment.
Grammatical Reasoning in the real world
Grammatical reasoning is important for understanding what people are saying—even if they don’t always communicate clearly. One such example is understanding everyday speech that may contain negative statements—for instance, “I didn’t know that he wasn’t going to show up”.