Contents I. Introduction chapter I. Cognitive aspects of grammar

Leveling and Sharpening
Leveling and sharpening is a cognitive style that represents the way in which an individual uses previous memories when attempting to assimilate new information with prior knowledge. This cognitive style was described in the mid-1950s and was studied by Philip Holzman and George Klein, among others. Prior to the 1990s, the Squares Test, which was developed by the Menninger Foundation, was one of the methods of identifying levelers and sharpeners.
People who are levelers tend to select many memories from the past in an attempt to clarify and categorize newly acquired information. Sharpeners, on the other hand, seem to select fewer memories when processing new knowledge. In his 1997 book Cognitive Styles and Classroom Learning, Harry Morgan contended that, overall, sharpeners tend to have more accurate identifications of new knowledge and can relate recently acquired material to old material with more specificity. This may be due to an ability to selectively sort and store pieces of memories and to carefully differentiate associations between past experiences. By contrast, levelers inaccurately blend features of memories together and then oversimplify the new material or miscategorize it altogether. They can miss distinguishing features among similar, yet not identical, objects. This could result in definitions of later knowledge that are ambiguous.
Field-Dependence and Field-Independence
Another area where individuals show differences in their abilities to discriminate events or visual, auditory, or tactile cues from their surrounding environments is known as field-dependence/field-independence. Herman Witkin conducted much of the original research in this area in the 1950s. A field-dependent person has difficulty finding a geometric shape that is embedded or "hidden" in a background with similar (but not identical) lines and shapes. The conflicting patterns distract the person from identifying the given figure. A person who is field-independent can readily identify the geometric shape, regardless of the background in which it is set. This manner of interpretation, however, is not limited to visual cues. Many researchers are studying auditory and other sensory perception abilities that may vary from person to person.
There is also a strong connection between this cognitive style and social interactions. People who are field-dependent are frequently described as being very interpersonal and having a well-developed ability to read social cues and to openly convey their own feelings. Others describe them as being very warm, friendly, and personable. Interestingly, Witkin and Donald Goodenough, in their 1981 book Cognitive Styles, explained that this may be due to a lack of separation between the self and the environment (or "field") on some level. Field-dependent people notice a lack of structure in the environment (if it exists) and are more affected by it than other people.
By contrast, individuals who are field-independent use an "internal" frame of reference and can easily impose their own sense of order in a situation that is lacking structure. They are also observed to function autonomously in social settings. They are sometimes described as impersonal and task-oriented. These people, however, do have the ability to discern their own identity of self from the field. In addition, a strong correlation has been discovered between gender and field orientation. Women are more likely to be field-dependent, whereas men are frequently field-independent. Career tasks and job descriptions are also closely aligned with field-dependence/field-independence.