Theoretical Perspectives, Methodological Approaches, and Trends in the Study of Expertise

This chapter begins by briefly overviewing the early approaches, perspectives, and findings in the expertise research. Basically, the approaches have first focused on exceptional experts, then studies evolved into studying expert performance relative to novices, with emphases on differences in their strategies of searching for a solution, the structure of knowledge, and finally in representation. Then three constructs emphasized in current research on expertise are described. These constructs are ideas about deliberate practice, adaptive expertise, and team expertise. The last section of the chapter proposes a new perspective for understanding the acquisition of expertise, which is the idea of a perspective shift. Interleaved throughout the chapter is discussion of how the acquisition of expertise can be facilitated and/or accelerated.