Scalable cognitive modelling: Putting Simon's (1969) ant back on the beach.

A classic goal in cognitive modelling is the integration of process and representation to form complete theories of human cognition (Estes, 1955). This goal is best encapsulated by the seminal work of Simon (1969) who proposed the parable of the ant to describe the importance of understanding the environment that a person is embedded within when constructing theories of cognition. However, typical assumptions in accounting for the role of representation in computational cognitive models do not accurately represent the contents of memory (Johns & Jones, 2010). Recent developments in machine learning and big data approaches to cognition, referred to as scaled cognitive modelling here, offer a potential solution to the integration of process and representation. This article will review standard practices and assumptions that take place in cognitive modelling, how new big data and machine learning approaches modify these practices, and the directions that future research should take. The goal of the article is to ground big data and machine learning approaches that are emerging in the cognitive sciences within classic cognitive theoretical principles to provide a constructive pathway towards the integration of cognitive theory with advanced computational methodology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).