Chapter 8

Question 1

News reports often emphasize events that are very rare, like plane crashes or winning the lottery, and that emphasis causes those events to be memorable and pop into our minds easily. Which cognitive bias would be worsened by this sort of media attention?

a.
Hindsight bias

b.
Availability heuristic

c.
Representativeness heuristic

d.
Algorithms

Answer 1

b.
Availability heuristic

Question 2

__________ refers to the process of selecting among a set of possible alternatives.

a.
Decision making

b.
Mental set

c.
Heuristics

d.
Thin slicing

Answer 2

a.
Decision making

Question 3

Basic units of sound are called __________; basic units of meaning are called __________.

a.
phonemes; morphemes

b.
morphemes; syntax

c.
morphemes; phonemes

d.
phonemes; syntax

Answer 3

a.
phonemes; morphemes

Question 4

Days following the championship football game, many “armchair quarterbacks” explain how they knew all along what the final result would be. This example illustrates

a.
confirmation bias.

b.
the representativeness heuristic.

c.
the availability heuristic.

d.
hindsight bias.

Answer 4

d. Hindsight bias.

Question 5

The linguistic relativity hypothesis suggests that

a.
we decide which objects belong to a concept according to what is most probable or sensible, given the facts at hand.

b.
one’s language determines the pattern of one’s thinking and view of the world.

c.
perception of surface structure precedes deep structure in understanding a sentence.

d.
one’s thinking and view of the world determines the structure of one’s language.

Answer 5

b. One’s language determines the pattern of one’s thinking and view of the world.

Question 6

Imagine that you see an advertisement for a new cell phone that gives you coverage across 80 percent of Canada. However, if you reword the offer, you realize that you would have no cellular coverage in 20 percent of Canada. This example highlights how __________ influence(s) our decision making.

a.
heuristics

b.
mental set

c.
algorithms

d.
framing

Answer 6

d.
framing

Question 7

Evidence from brain imaging studies reveals that visual areas of the brain are active when we think about objects and motor areas are active when we think about actions. Which model of the mind does this evidence support?

a.
Linguistic models

b.
Embodiment models

c.
Heuristic models

d.
Computational models

Answer 7

b.
Embodiment models

Question 8

Linguistic determinism reflects an extreme form of which of the following?

a.
Implicit memory

b.
Top-down processing

c.
Sensitive period

d.
Hindsight bias

Answer 8

b.
Top-down processing

Question 9

Recent research using neuroimaging during cognitive tasks has found that __________, as evidenced by patterns of brain activation.

a.
the linguistic relativity approach is incorrect

b.
the linguistic determinism approach is correct

c.
the linguistic determinism approach is incorrect

d.
the linguistic relativity approach is correct

Answer 9

c.
the linguistic determinism approach is incorrect

Question 10

Cassandra has five chapters to read for their upcoming midterm, and they find the thought of sitting down and reading hundreds of pages at once overwhelming. They decide to use the breaks in between their classes to read and take notes from 15 pages at a time to make the task seem more manageable. Cassandra is using what approach to solve their problem?

a.
Algorithms

b.
Heuristics

c.
Subproblems

d.
Mental sets

Answer 10

c.
Subproblems

Question 11

The effects of linguistic relativity are most evident when a task

a.
involves nature.

b.
involves colours.

c.
is difficult.

d.
is automatic.

Answer 11

c.
is difficult.

Question 12

Between the ages of 2 and 3, children start adding _____________ to words, suggesting that their syntax skills are developing.

a.
phonemes

b.
morphological markers

c.
semantics

d.
dialect

Answer 12

b.
morphological markers

Question 13

Camilla is learning French. They learn a lot of French words, but struggle to have a conversation because the word order is different than English and they get confused. Which aspect of the language is difficult for Camilla?

a.
Syntax

b.
Morphemes

c.
Phonemes

d.
Extralinguistic information

Answer 13

a.
Syntax

Question 14

When we use heuristics and other mental short-cuts to save time and energy in decision-making, what term is used for that process?

a.
Cognitive economy

b.
Behaviourism

c.
Comprehension

d.
Cognitivism

Answer 14

a.
Cognitive economy

Question 15

Studies using sign language or lexigram boards to teach chimpanzees language have found that

a.
chimpanzees often focus their communicative efforts on abstract concepts.

b.
chimpanzees can combine words into complex forms but never master syntactic rules.

c.
chimpanzees communicate better using vocal sounds than symbols or pictures.

d.
chimpanzees are able to associate symbols to meaning very quickly.

Answer 15

b.
chimpanzees can combine words into complex forms but never master syntactic rules.

Question 16

When we use the __________ heuristic, we compare an event to some model or prototype.

a.
simulation

b.
algorithm

c.
availability

d.
representativeness

Answer 16

d. Representativeness

Question 17

The level of analysis of language that focuses on how words are combined to form sentences is called

a.
extralinguistic.

b.
phonemes.

c.
morphemes.

d.
syntax.

Answer 17

d.
syntax.

Question 18

Alfred is taking a seven-day ‘Alphanetics’ course that claims it will increase the rate at which they read to approximately 2000 words per minute. Based on the research presented in your text, what will happen to Alfred’s comprehension of the material they are reading so fast?

a.
Their comprehension will be dramatically improved because rate of reading and comprehension are positively correlated.

b.
There is no correlation between speed-reading and reading comprehension, so their comprehension will remain unchanged.

c.
Their comprehension will be low, and they will likely not understand much of what they read.

d.
Their comprehension will be somewhat higher than when they read at normal speeds.

Answer 18

c. Their comprehension will be low, and they will likely not understand much of what they read.

Question 19

By approximately age 2, what stage of language development have most children mastered?

a.
Overextension

b.
Two-word sentences

c.
Appropriate application of morphological markers

d.
Most of the syntactic rules of their language

Answer 19

b. Two-word sentences

Question 20

Honeybees communicate through

a.
touching antennae.

b.
the waggle dance.

c.
the release of pheromones.

d.
changing pitch of buzzing.

Answer 20

b.
the waggle dance.