7.02 Problem solving Flashcards
mental activity that occurs in the brain when a person is processing information–organizing it, understanding it, and communicating it
cognition
cognition is another word for __
thinking
representations that stand in for objects or events and have a picture-like quality
mental images
pathway for a real image into the brain
eye –> visual cortex in occipital lobe –> memory
pathway for a mental image in the brain
memory –> visual cortex in occipital lobe
type of imaging technique that revealed that many of the same brain areas are activated during perceiving and imagining
fMRI
ideas that represent a class or category of things
concepts
concepts defined by specific rules or features
formal concepts
a concept based more on our experiences in the real world, than on strict sets of rules
natural concept
a “best example” of a concept
prototype
a mental generalization about things, used to organize information
schema
a kind of schema that involves a sequence of activities involved in a particular process
script
process that involves thinking and behaving in certain ways in order to reach a goal
problem solving
process that involves identifying, evaluating, and choosing among several alternatives
decision making
attempting one solution after another until finding one that works
trial and error / mechanical solution
specific, step-by-step procedures for solving certain types of problems
algorithms
a simple rule that can often be applied to many situations; a “mental shortcut”
heuristic
a heuristic used to categorize things by assuming that, if they share characteristics with other things in a category, then they, too, belong to that category
representative heuristic
a heuristic that relies on immediate examples that come to a given person’s mind when evaluating a specific topic, concept, method or decision
availability heuristic
the aha! moment that occurs when the mind reorganizes a problem
insight
three common barriers to problem solving
- functional fixedness
- mental set
- confirmation bias
thinking about objects only in terms of their typical uses
functional fixedness
a tendency to persist in using problem-solving patterns that have worked in the past
mental set
a tendency to search for evidence that fits one’s beliefs, while ignoring contrary evidence
confirmation bias
the ability to solve problems by combining ideas or behaviors in new ways
creativity
type of thinking according to which a problem is believed to have only one answer, and all lines of thinking should lead to that answer
convergent thinking
type of thinking that starts at one point, then branches out from it; associated with creativity
divergent thinking
five characteristics of creative people, according to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
- broad range of knowledge
- good at using mental imagery
- not afraid to be different
- value independence
- unconventional in how they work
