Abstract
Rozenblit and Keil show an illusion of explanatory depth: confidence in how a system works is inflated until the person has to teach the mechanism.
Rozenblit, L., & Keil, F. (2002). Cognitive Science, 26(5), 521–562. DOI
Key findings
- Teach-to-drop — Self-ratings of understanding fall when people must generate a causal explanation.
- Folk-science trap — Familiar objects feel known until the parts have to be named in order.
Application
When you have a clean grid and still cannot sell the claim out loud, the missing layer is contact with the mechanism — not another page of notes. Pair Degree of evidence.