Cognitive Modeling

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Overview

The field builds formal accounts of mental processes, from Bayesian inference, reinforcement learning, and memory models to symbolic program induction and cognitive architectures. Researchers test these accounts against human behavior in tasks involving choice, language comprehension, causal learning, and theory of mind, as well as psychometric data and brain responses. Large language models are now studied both as candidate models of cognition and as tools for simulating learners, decision-makers, and social interactions. A central challenge is distinguishing a good behavioral fit from a faithful account of the underlying process, especially across tasks, individuals, and changing contexts.

Latest papers

CardsList

120 papers9 papers in the last four weeks, down 18% on the four weeks before. 0.1% of all new papers.

  1. Opinion polarization from compression-based decision making where agents optimize local complexity and global simplicity

    Apr 20, 2026Alina Dubovskaya, David J. P. O'Sullivan, Michael QuayleOpinion DynamicsCognitive Modeling

    Centre for Social Issues Research, Department of Psychology, University of Limerick, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland · Mathematics Applications Consortium for Science and Industry (MACSI), Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Limerick, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland · Lero, the Research Ireland Centre for Software, University of Limerick, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland

  2. Modeling Multi-Dimensional Cognitive States in Large Language Models under Cognitive Crowding

    Apr 19, 2026Lin Zhong, Siyu Zhu, Zizhen Yuan +5LLM AlignmentCognitive Modeling

    Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, China · City University of Macau, Macao SAR, China · Peng Cheng Laboratory, Shenzhen, China

  3. CogEvolution: A Human-like Generative Educational Agent to Simulate Student's Cognitive Evolution

    Apr 16, 2026Wei Zhang, Yihang Cheng, Zhirong Ye +1Cognitive ModelingHuman Behavior Simulation

    Faculty of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, China · National Engineering Research Center for Educational Big Data, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, China · Central China Normal University Wollongong Joint Institute, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, China

  4. Attention to task structure for cognitive flexibility

    Apr 14, 2026Xiaoyu K. Zhang, Mehdi Senoussi, Tom VergutsMulti-Task LearningCognitive Modeling

    Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan 2, 9000 Gent, Belgium · Univ Toulouse, Université Toulouse Jean Jaurès, CNRS, CLLE, Toulouse, France

  5. The role of System 1 and System 2 semantic memory structure in human and LLM biases

    Apr 14, 2026Katherine Abramski, Giulio Rossetti, Massimo StellaDual-Process ReasoningCognitive Modeling

    Department of Computer Science, University of Pisa, Italy · Institute of Information Science and Technologies - National Research Council, Italy · CogNosco Lab, Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Italy

  6. MCQ Difficulty Prediction via Modeling Learner Heterogeneity Using Data-Driven Cognitive Profiling

    Apr 13, 2026Dhriti Krishnan, Jaromir SavelkaItem Difficulty EstimationEducational Assessment

    Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

  7. "Theater of Mind" for LLMs: A Cognitive Architecture Based on Global Workspace Theory

    Apr 9, 2026Wenlong ShangCognitive Architectures for AI AgentsMulti-Agent LLM Systems

    Beijing Key Laboratory of Computational Intelligence and Intelligent System Beijing University of Technology Beijing, China

  8. CCD-CBT: Multi-Agent Therapeutic Interaction for CBT Guided by Cognitive Conceptualization Diagram

    Apr 8, 2026Chang Liu, Changsheng Ma, Yongfeng Tao +2Conversational AgentsLarge Language Model-Based Role-Play Simulation

    School of Information Science and Engineering, Lanzhou University

  9. Emergent social transmission of model-based representations without inference

    Apr 7, 2026Silja Keßler, Miriam Bautista-Salinero, Claudio Tennie +1Cognitive Modeling

    University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany · Technical University Darmstadt, Darmstadt, Germany · Hessian AI, Darmstadt, Germany

  10. Same World, Differently Given: History-Dependent Perceptual Reorganization in Artificial Agents

    Apr 6, 2026Hongju PaeCognitive Architectures for AI AgentsCognitive Modeling

    Active Inference Institute, Crescent City, CA, USA

  11. Embedding Enhancement via Fine-Tuned Language Models for Learner-Item Cognitive Modeling

    Apr 5, 2026Yuanhao Liu, Zihan Zhou, Kaiying Wu +5Cognitive Diagnostic ModelsComputerized Adaptive Testing

    East China Normal University Shanghai, China · Tencent Inc Shenzhen, China · Shanghai Innovation Institute Shanghai, China

  12. Cognitive Energy Modeling for Neuroadaptive Human-Machine Systems using EEG and WGAN-GP

    Apr 2, 2026Sriram Sattiraju, Vaibhav Gollapalli, Aryan Shah +1EEG Signal GenerationCognitive Modeling

    Department of Computer Science, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA · Department of Learning Technologies, University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203, USA

  13. Grounding Social Perception in Intuitive Physics

    Mar 28, 2026Lance Ying, Aydan Y. Huang, Aviv Netanyahu +4Cognitive ModelingPhysical Reasoning

    Massachusetts Institute of Technology · Harvard University · Johns Hopkins University +1

  14. The Geometry of Forgetting

    Mar 27, 2026Sambartha Ray Barman, Andrey Starenky, Sophia Bodnar +2Associative MemoryCognitive Modeling

    Sentra, 235 2nd Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, USA · Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA

  15. Online library learning in human visual puzzle solving

    Mar 24, 2026Pinzhe Zhao, Emanuele Sansone, Marta Kryven +1Cognitive ModelingVisual Reasoning

    University of Edinburgh · MIT CSAIL · KU Leuven +1

  16. The Reasoning Error About Reasoning: Why Different Types of Reasoning Require Different Representational Structures

    Mar 23, 2026Yiling WuStructured ReasoningLogical Reasoning

    BridgeM, Inc. · Department of Philosophy, University of Massachusetts Amherst

  17. CogFormer: Learn All Your Models Once

    Mar 20, 2026Jerry M. Huang, Lukas Schumacher, Niek Stevenson +1Amortized InferenceSimulation-Based Inference

    Center for Modeling, Simulation, and Imaging in Medicine (CeMSIM), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, United States · Center for Economic Psychology, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland · Amsterdam Mathematical Psychology Lab, University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam, Netherlands

  18. Diverging Transformer Predictions for Human Sentence Processing: A Comprehensive Analysis of Agreement Attraction Effects

    Mar 17, 2026Titus von der Malsburg, Sebastian PadóTransformerCognitive Modeling

    University of Stuttgart, Germany

  19. Dynamic Theory of Mind as a Temporal Memory Problem: Evidence from Large Language Models

    Mar 15, 2026Thuy Ngoc Nguyen, Duy Nhat Phan, Cleotilde GonzalezTheory of MindBelief Updating in LLMs

    Department of Computer Science, University of Dayton · University of Dayton Research Institute, University of Dayton · Department of Social and Decision Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University

  20. Modeling Trial-and-Error Navigation With a Sequential Decision Model of Information Scent

    Mar 12, 2026Xiaofu Jin, Yunpeng Bai, Antti OulasvirtaUser ModelingCognitive Modeling

    Aalto University, Finland · National University of Singapore, Singapore

  21. A Dynamic Bayesian and Machine Learning Framework for Quantitative Evaluation and Prediction of Operator Situation Awareness in Nuclear Power Plants

    Mar 11, 2026Shuai Chen, Huiqiao Jia, Tao Qing +2Human Behavior PredictionCognitive Modeling

    Hunan Institute of Technology, Hunan, 421002, China · Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China · National Key Laboratory of Human Factors Engineering, Beijing, 100094, China

  22. A Miniature Brain Transformer: Thalamic Gating, Hippocampal Lateralization, Amygdaloid Salience, and Prefrontal Working Memory in Attention-Coupled Latent Memory

    Mar 7, 2026Hong JeongMemory-Augmented Neural NetworksCognitive Modeling

    Department of Computer Information Engineering, Inha University in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

  23. A Principle-Driven Adaptive Policy for Group Cognitive Stimulation Dialogue for Elderly with Cognitive Impairment

    Mar 1, 2026Jiyue Jiang, Yanyu Chen, Pengan Chen +7Conversational AgentsText Generation

    The Chinese University of Hong Kong · The University of Hong Kong · Guangdong Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Economy (SZ) +1

  24. Exploring Human Behavior During Abstract Rule Inference and Problem Solving with the Cognitive Abstraction and Reasoning Corpus

    Feb 25, 2026Caroline Ahn, Quan Do, Leah Bakst +4Inductive InferenceAbstract Reasoning

    Graduate Program for Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA · Cognitive Neuroimaging Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA · Center for Systems Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA +1

  25. Cognitive networks reconstruct mindsets about STEM subjects and educational contexts in almost 1000 high-schoolers, University students and LLM-based digital twins

    Feb 16, 2026Francesco Gariboldi, Emma Franchino, Edith Haim +3Cognitive ModelingHuman Behavior Simulation

    Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Corso Bettini, 31, Rovereto, 38068, TN, Italy · Department of Physics, University of Trento, Via Sommarive, 14, Povo, 38123, TN, Italy · Department of Psychology and Communication, University of Bari, Via Scipione Crisanzio, 42, Bari, 70122, BA, Italy

  26. LLM surprisal is necessary but not sufficient to capture English garden-path effects: Evidence from joint latent modeling of reading paradigms

    Feb 4, 2026Dario Paape, Tal Linzen, Shravan VasishthLatent Variable ModelsCognitive Modeling

    Department of Linguistics, University of Potsdam · Department Linguistik, Universität Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 24–25, D-14476, Germany. · Center for Data Science/Department of Linguistics, New York University

  27. Superficial Reflection or Genuine Thought? A Fine-Grained Cognitive Analysis of Large Reasoning Models

    Nov 30, 2025Yuxiang Chen, Zuohan Wu, Ziwei Wang +6LLM Self-CorrectionCognitive Modeling

    University College London · AI Lab, the Yangtze River Delta, China · The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) +4

  28. HugAgent: A Human Simulation Benchmark for Individual-Level Reasoning

    Oct 16, 2025Chance Jiajie Li, Zhenze Mo, Yuhan Tang +11Cognitive ModelingHuman Behavior Simulation

    1MIT Media Lab · 8Northeastern University · 5MIT CEE +7

  29. Web-CogReasoner: Towards Multimodal Knowledge-Induced Cognitive Reasoning for Web Agents

    Aug 3, 2025Yuhan Guo, Cong Guo, Aiwen Sun +12Cognitive ModelingMultimodal Reasoning

    Southwestern University of Finance and Economics · Shanghai Jiao Tong University · Central South University +9

  30. Learning in a Small/Big World

    Sep 24, 2020Benson Tsz Kin LeungDecision-Making under UncertaintyBounded Rationality

    Hong Kong Baptist University.