2- How do we Categorise?

Question 1

What are the three approaches in suggesting how we categorise?

Answer 1

Definitional approach, prototype approach, exemplar approach

Question 2

What is the definitional approach?

Answer 2

The classical and traditional way of looking at how we categorise

Question 3

What rules is the definitional approach based on?

Answer 3

Rules of necessary and sufficient features

Question 4

What does it mean that the membership of a category is binary in the definitional approach?

Answer 4

It is or is not

Question 5

Who’s research was in the definitional approach?

Answer 5

Shepard, Hovland and Jenkins

Question 6

What did Shepard, Hovland and Jenkins study?

Answer 6

If we can form categories/concepts with necessary and sufficient conditions

Question 7

What were the stimuli used by Shepard, Hovland and Jenkins?

Answer 7

A category from 8 objects determined by size, shape, and colour

Question 8

What did Shepard, Hovland and Jenkins find?

Answer 8

Some category types of easier/harder to learn

Question 9

What are the 4 issues with the definitional approach?

Answer 9

1. Most categories in our memory tend to be loose and fuzzy
2. Graded membership
3. Family resemblance
4. Approach is made by clear rules that can’t apply to everything

Question 10

What is graded membership?

Answer 10

Some are more typical members of a category than others

Question 11

What is family resemblance?

Answer 11

Category members typically share a set of common features, but not all common features are present in ALL members

Question 12

What is the prototype approach based on?

Answer 12

Prototypes

Question 13

How is a prototype defined?

Answer 13

As the average of all members

Question 14

What type of member does a prototype define?

Answer 14

A typical member of a category

Question 15

What does a prototype member look like?

Answer 15

Doesn’t necessarily look like any exact member

Question 16

How is membership of a category determined?

Answer 16

By how the object is compared with the prototype of the category

Question 17

How are there lower memory demands in the prototype approach?

Answer 17

Only a single prototype and characteristic features are stored

Question 18

Why are some more typical examples of a category than others?

Answer 18

Due to their higher similarity to the prototype

Question 19

What is the prototypicality effect?

Answer 19

Prototypical objects are judged faster and named first

Question 20

What may categorisation sometimes depend more on than inherent prototypes?

Answer 20

Context

Question 21

What can’t prototypes explain?

Answer 21

The flexibility in categorisations

Question 22

What is the examplar approach based on?

Answer 22

Exemplars stored in our memory

Question 23

What are exemplars?

Answer 23

Actual members of the category encountered before

Question 24

What are objects compared to in the exemplar approach?

Answer 24

All examplars in our memory

Question 25

Why are more typical objects classified faster?

Answer 25

Because they are similar to more exemplars

Question 26

How can exemplars become more influential?

Answer 26

In different contexts

Question 27

What advantage does the exemplar approach have over the prototype approach?

Answer 27

It keeps variability information that prototype models don’t maintain

Question 28

How can atypical cases still be categorised in the exemplar approach?

Answer 28

Based on their similarity to some exemplars

Question 29

What will be processed more slowly?

Answer 29

Less similar things

Question 30

What is the main issue with the exemplar approach?

Answer 30

There’s a limit in how much we can process

Question 31

Why do we have to sacrifice some information?

Answer 31

For other more important information

Question 32

How are categories organised?

Answer 32

Hierarchical from more general to specific

Question 33

What levels can things still be categorised?

Answer 33

At many levels of abstraction

Question 34

What is stored in semantic memory according to the classic view?

Answer 34

Necessary and sufficient features

Question 35

What is stored in semantic memory according to prototype theories?

Answer 35

The prototype

Question 36

What is stored in semantic memory according to exemplar theories?

Answer 36

The particular exemplar

Question 37

How is a category decision made according to the classic view?

Answer 37

By deciding whether the stimulus has the necessary and sufficient features

Question 38

How is a category decision made according to prototype theories?

Answer 38

By comparing the similarity of the stimulus to the prototype

Question 39

How is a category decision made according to exemplar theories?

Answer 39

By comparing the similarity of the stimulus to the examplar

Question 40

Can the classic view explain graded membership, typicality effect, etc?

Answer 40

No

Question 41

Can prototype theories explain graded membership, typicality effect, etc?

Answer 41

Yes

Question 42

Can exemplar theories explain graded membership, typicality effect, etc?

Answer 42

Yes

Question 43

When may definitions be more useful?

Answer 43

Early in learning of simple, well-defined categories

Question 43

When may prototypes be more useful?

Answer 43

For categories with a clear central tendency or common features

Question 44

When may exemplars be more useful?

Answer 44

Later in learning, and when variability is high within a category