Show or Tell? Demonstration is More Robust to Changes in Shared Perception than Explanation
This research addresses the problem of communication robustness under perceptual misalignment for both human pedagogy and machine learning, offering insights into when to use demonstrations versus explanations.
This paper investigates how misaligned perceptions between a teacher and learner influence communication efficacy. It finds that language-based teaching is more affected by perceptual misalignment, while demonstration-based teaching is more robust but less capable of conveying nuanced information.
Successful teaching entails a complex interaction between a teacher and a learner. The teacher must select and convey information based on what they think the learner perceives and believes. Teaching always involves misaligned beliefs, but studies of pedagogy often focus on situations where teachers and learners share perceptions. Nonetheless, a teacher and learner may not always experience or attend to the same aspects of the environment. Here, we study how misaligned perceptions influence communication. We hypothesize that the efficacy of different forms of communication depends on the shared perceptual state between teacher and learner. We develop a cooperative teaching game to test whether concrete mediums (demonstrations, or "showing") are more robust than abstract ones (language, or "telling") when the teacher and learner are not perceptually aligned. We find evidence that (1) language-based teaching is more affected by perceptual misalignment, but (2) demonstration-based teaching is less likely to convey nuanced information. We discuss implications for human pedagogy and machine learning.