Chapter 9: Language and Thought Flashcards
What is the main point of the Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis?
that language can filter our perception of the world
Name and describe the three aspects of language structure.
phonology: rules for word sounds
syntax: rules for combining words
semantics: rules for communicating meaning
Define phoneme and morpheme.
phoneme: smallest unit of sound in speech
morpheme: smalles units of language that carry meaning
How does top-down knowledge affect our language perception?
Our knowledge of words in a language can help us fill in gaps or locate word boundaries to interpret language.
Syntax has two levels of structure. What are they?
surface: literal order of words in a sentence
deep: underlying meaning of the order of words
Producing sentences requires translation of deep structure to surface structure.
Define pragmatic rules of language comprehension.
Pragmatic rules are how practical knowledge is used to interpret what a speaker is saying.
True or False: Nonhuman animals can communicate, but it may not necessarily be language.
True (Washoe the chimp, Koko the gorilla)
What is a category?
class of objects that most people agree belong together
How are categories defined? (2 possible ways)
(1) by features that all members share, in full or at least in part
(2) by comparing a given object to a representative prototype
What is the hierarchy, in order or increasing specificity, of categories?
basic-level, superordinate, subordinate, individual
What is the usefulness of categories?
(1) allow us to infer properties
(2) allow us to make predictions about the future
What are the three components of problem solving?
initial state
goal state
rules/constraints
What is functional fixedness, and how does it relate to problem solving?
Functional fixedness is seeing an object with only one function in a fixed and typical way.
What are the two strategies for problem solving?
(1) algorithms: step by step procedures that guarantee a solution
(2) heuristics: shortcuts that are efficient but do not guarantee a solution
What is a mental set?
a preconceived notion of how to solve a problem based on experience or what has worked in the past
What are common heuristics for problem solving?
(1) means end analysis - finding ways (means) to reach an established goal (end)
(2) working backward
(3) searching for analogies
Which decision making bias involves how alternatives are presented?
framing
People tend to choose options where gain is emphasized rather than loss. This can lead to irrational choices.
Which decision making bias involves the tendency to seek out evidence that supports our current belief?
confirmation bias
Which decision making bias is described by the tendency to cling to initial beliefs even when confronted with conflicting evidence?
belief persistence
Describe the concept of representative bias.
Representative bias occurs when we compare the similarity of something to other members of its class and generalize it accordingly. An example is Linda, a woman who majored in philosophy and is concerned with social justice being assumed to be involved in the feminist movement.
Describe and give an example of availability bias.
The availability bias occurs when we make choices based on the ease of which other examples come to mind. For example, we may think diseases like ebola kill the most people because their victims are publicized much more than those of the flu, heart disease, etc.
What is anchoring? Where is it most commonly used strategically?
Anchoring is setting a fixed parameter for people to base their assumptions on. For example, asking “what percent of african countries belong to the US?” If people are given the option “more or less than 65%”, they tend to guess a higher percentage. If they are presented with “more or less than 10%”, they tend to guess lower values.
This is commonly used in advertising during promotions like “limit 12 per customer”.
