Chapter 9: Language and Intelligence Flashcards
language
a system for communicating with others using signals that are combined according to rules of grammar and that convey meaning
grammar
a set of rules that specify how the units of language can be combined to produce meanful messages
phonemes
the smallest unit of sound that are recognizable as speech rather than random noise
phonological rules
indicate how phonemes can be combined to produce speech sounds
morphemes
the smallest meaningful units of language
morphological rules
indicate how morphemes can be combined to form words
content morphemes
refers to things and events
function morphemes
serve grammatical functions
syntactic rules
indicate how words can be combined to form phrases and sentense
fast mapping
the process whereby children map a word onto an underlying concept after only a single exposure
telegraphic speech
sentences that are devoid of function morphemes and consist mostly of content words
nativist theory
language development is best explained as an innate, biological capacity
universal grammar
a collection of processes that facilitate language learnig
genetic dysphasia
a syndrome characterized by an inability to learn the grammatical structure of language despite having otherwise normal intelligence
Broca’s area
located in left frontal lobe; involved with production of sequential patterns in vocal and sign languages
Wernicke’s area
located in the left temporal lobe; involved in language comprehension
aphasia
difficulty in producing or comprehending language
prototype theory
an example that embodies the most common and typical features of the concept
exemplar theory
comparing examples of members from that category to decide if it belongs in the category
category specific deficit
an inability to recognize objects that belong to a particular category, although the ability to recognize objects outside the category is undisturbed
rational choice theory
We make decisions by determining how likely something is to happen, judging the value of the outcome, and then multiplying the two
availability bias
Items that are more readily available in memory are judged as having occurred more frequently.
conjunction fallacy
people think that two events are more likely to occur together than either individual event
framing effects
a bias whereby people give different answers to the same problem depending on how the problem is phrased
sunk-cost fallacy
people make decisions about a current situation on the basis of what they have previously invested in the situation
optimism bias
People believe that compared with other individuals, they are more likely to experience positive events and less likely to experience negative events in the future
prospect theory
people are more willing to take risks to avoid losses than to achieve gains
intelligence
the ability to use one’s mind to solve problems and learn from experience
intelligence deviation quotient (IQ)
a statistic obtained by dividing an adult’s test score by the average adult’s test score and then multiplying the quotient by 100
two-factor theory of intelligence (and who proposed it)
proposed that general intelligence (g) underlies all mental abilities
- Charles Spearman
Crystallized intelligence
the ability to apply knowledge that was acquired through experience
Fluid intelligence
the ability to solve and reason about novel problems
emotional intelligence
the ability to reason about emotions and to use emotions to enhance reasoning
artificial/formal concepts
concepts that have a formal set of properties/defintions
natural concepts
concepts that do not have well defined categories
inductive
from specific to general
deductive
from general to specific
what are the types of problem solving?
trial and error, algorithms, heuristics, insight
heuristics (and what are the types of heuristics)
mental shortcuts or rules of thumb
- analogies
insight
a solution that comes out of the blue
functional fixedness
the failure to use familiar objects in novel ways to solve problems
mental set
we get into a mental rut in our approach to problem solving, continuing to use the same old method even though another approach might be better
Belief perseverance
when confronted with information that contradicts our beliefs, we cling onto our discredited beliefs
illusionary truth effect
repeated exposure to a statement increases the likelihood that it will be accepted as a true statement
representativeness heuristic
the tendency to assume that if an item is similar to members of a particular category, it is probably member of the category itself
anchoring effects
the tendency to use one stimulus as an anchor or reference point in judging a second stimulus
entity theorist
people who believe that intelligence is fixed
incremental theorist
people who believe that intelligence is variable
splitters
people who divide intelligence
lumpers
people who view different aspects of intelligence as part of a general underlying capacity
types of g (and who proposed it)
fluid and crystallized
- Raymond Cattell (lumper)
used factor analysis
correlated analysis
multifactor theory (and who was it proposed by)
There are seven factors of intelligence
- Lois Thurstone (splitter)
frames of mind (and who proposed it)
there are multiple intelligences, each linked to a separate and independent system in the brain
- Howard Gardner
what is g and s?
general intelligence and specific intelligence
triarchic theory (and who proposed it)
three kinds of human intelligence: componential/analytic, experimental/create, and contextual/practical
- Robert Sternberg
mental age (and who created it)
assess children’s intelligence on their mental age
- Binet
intelligence ratio quotient (and who created it)
mental age/chronological age * 100
- William Stern
Wechsler Intelligence scales
a test with 5 scores for the different types of intelligence
how are tests constructed and evaluated?
validity, reliability, standardization
validity
the extent to which a given test accesses what it is supposed to measure
reliability
the dependability or consistency of a measurement instrument
standardization
ensures that the conditions for taking the test are the same for all test-takers
The Heredity-Environment Controversy
to what extent is intelligence is determined by nature and nurture
Stereotype Threat
how cultural stereotypes affect performance
concept
a mental representation that groups or categorizes shared features of related objects, events, or other stimuli
primary mental abilities
stable and independent mental abilities
Flynn effect
average IQ is higher today than a century ago
when do children learn their first words?
10 to 12 months
when do children begin to speak in telegraphic speech?
24 months
In our twenties and thirties, what happens to our crystallized and fluid intelligence?
crystallized intelligence increases and fluid intelligence decreases
contextual intelligence
the ability to quickly recognize what factors influence success on various tasks and is adept at both adapting to and shaping the environment
- street smart
componential intelligence
book smart, analytical intelligence
experiential intelligence
creative intelligence
During your lifetime, your ________ stays relatively stable, whereas your ________ typically changes
relative intelligence; absolute intelligence
cognition
all of the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
Generally speaking, humans excel on cognitive tasks that involve _____ but perform poorly on cognitive tasks that involve _____
frequency; probability
hierarchy of how nature and nurture play a role in intelligence
- identical twins raised together
- identical twins raised apart
- fraternal twins raised together
when does babbling start in children?
4 months of age
what is a subtype of implicit memory?
procedural memory
