Abstract: Waste sorting, as an embodiment of behavioral cognition, is regulated by two cognitive processes, namely, Categorization (C) and Category-Based Induction (CBI). This study employed the event-related potential (ERP) technique to assess whether there is a transformation between C and CBI in waste sorting cognition, in order to help individuals establish a correct waste sorting behavior. We reported a case of intervention in waste sorting education with a 58-year-old Chinese woman to discriminate whether such intervention facilitates the transition between C and CBI. The results showed that the waste sorting cognition follows a developmental model as C-CBI-C, where education may help the subject build a cognitive framework for waste sorting by altering inherent misperceptions and filling gaps in classification knowledge. The results also noticed that FN400 is identified as a characteristic waveform in the CBI process, by which it is indicated that the first 4 to 7 days of education is a critical period for establishing the cognitive framework. Through a comparison of the ERP waveforms at different stages of intervention, the results are insightful to help individuals improve their cognition of waste sorting.
Keywords: ERP, education, FN400, waste sorting, categorization, category-based induction