Chapter 14/15: Differences In Cognition Flashcards
Gardner’s “Multiple Intelligences”
- Linguistic intelligence
- Logical-mathematical intelligence
- Musical intelligence
- Bodily- kinesthetic intelligence
- Spatial intelligence
- Interpersonal intelligence
- Intrapersonal intelligence
- Naturalist intelligence
- Existential intelligence
Cognitive Style
Habitual and preferred means of approaching cognitive tasks
- Personality and motivating factors that influence the way a person approaches a cognitive task
- Field independence
- Field dependence
Field Independence
Reliance on internal referents in processing information
Field Dependence
Reliance on external referents
Reflexivity/ Impulsivity
Extent to which a child delays response in the course of searching for the correct alternative
- Reflexivity- respond slowly and make few errors - Impulsivity- respond rapidly and make many errors
Aka cognitive tempo
Need for Cognition
Person’s motivation to take an intellectual tasks and challenges
Learning Styles
We have learning preferences but not styles
Younger children
Impulsive and field-dependent
Older children
Reflective and field-independent
Expert/ novice differences
Level of knowledge in domain affects your cognition within that domain
- Perceive more subtle distinctions than novices
- Categorize on basis of deeper principles than novices
- See patterns that novices fail to see
Effects of aging on cognition
Older adults perform less well in
- Divided attention - Speech recognition and speech discrimination - Some memory tasks
Differences depend on
- Intelligence - Health - Years of formal education - Expertise
Gender: Verbal Abilities
- Females better than males on some tests
- Effect size is small
Gender: Visuospatial abilities
- Mental rotation: men outperform women
- Difference is primarily in speed, not accuracy
SES and mental rotation
Gender difference in spatial performance, but only for middle- and high-SES student
Quantitative Abilities
- Boys and girls similar through elementary school
- Boys start outperforming girls at age 12 or 13
- Gifted 7th and 8th grade boys outperform girls on math SAT
Gender differences in cognitive style
Faces with unsolvable task, negative feedback:
- Boys: “mastery orientation” - Girls: “helpless orientation”
Mastery Orientation
Sets goals to challenge themselves and increase competence/ mastery
Helpless Orientation
Fail to set challenging goals and give up easily
Feminist Theories
- Connected knowing: women
- Separate knowing: men
Connected knowing
One discovers “truth” through conscious process of trying to understand
Separate knowing
Mastery of info to be learned (no engagement with)
Cultural Universality
Phenomena believed common to humankind such as the use of language
Cultural Relativism
Certain concepts, process, capacities are only found in certain cultures
People in […] are more susceptible to Muller-Lyer illusion
People in carpentered environments are more susceptible to Muller-Lyer illusion