Full Idea
The models that people use to reason are more likely to resemble perception or conception of the events (from a God's-eye view) than a string of symbols directly corresponding to the linguistic form of the premises and then applying rules of inference.
Gist of Idea
The models we use in reasoning may be more like perceptions than like language
Source
P. Johnson-Laird (Mental Models [1983], p.53), quoted by Georges Rey - Contemporary Philosophy of Mind 10.1.2
Book Reference
Rey,Georges: 'Contemporary Philosophy of Mind' [Blackwell 1997], p.265
A Reaction
My intuition is that imagination is the single most important faculty in any conscious mind, and that even small animals have an inkling of the God's-eye view. Decisions need 'what-if' scenarios.