Concepts and Categories

Question 1

Rosch said..

Answer 1

categorisation is a reasoned system determined by perceptual abilities and cognitive economy

Question 2

Eysenck and Keene 2010

Answer 2

cognitive economy is not enough: trade off between economy and information –reach middle ground

Question 3

name the 5 types

Answer 3

rule based, prototype, exemplar, cluster, multiple systems

Question 4

Explain rule-based systems

Answer 4

Led by simple logical rules; if first rule doesn’t work the reject and move to next rule- based on hypothesis testing.
Rules are a condensed version of every item in lexicon.

Question 5

example of a rule-based system

Answer 5

RULEX (nosofsky)

Question 6

where do rule-based systems live

Answer 6

in PFC because depend on WM and exec function to maintain hyp testing

Question 7

Evidence for rule based?

Answer 7

Able to verbalise rules and lesion studies show damage to system, good for socially defined categories (love)

Question 8

Criticism for rule-based

Answer 8

not every category can be covered by one rule eg where would ‘game’ go? (Witgenstein)
Some members are not alike but should fit in same category

Question 9

Explain Prototype models (Rosch 78)

Answer 9

average of all members=protoype, relies on family resemblance; bases on most simple level, unless necessary to specify more

Question 10

Evidence for prototype models

Answer 10

• Naming at a basic level is better than subordinate levels (jolicoeur 84)
• using prototype is good for economy
  Cai and nipola 84:
  free recall task –prototypical members of category are quicker to remember

Question 11

what do computational models show about prototype models? (rosch 76b)

Answer 11

natural language is matched on computer

• categories wiht more typicality were quicker
• no info stored on frequency but were sensitive to it

Question 12

criticism of the prototype model

Answer 12

separable categories, context, semantic effect and expertise not accounted for (johnson and mervis 97)

Rosch 99: ‘prototype’ not objective concept more about many not just ‘one’ vary interpersonal level

Question 13

Explain exemplar based models (komatsu 92)

Answer 13

Stores every item of training (good info bad economy), and novel word is compared to every member in history. New item is compare by mathematical pairwise comparisons to work out best fit.

Question 14

evidence for exemplar

Answer 14

• sensitive to correlations, variability and overlap and accounts for typicality.
• works mathematically.
  Anderson 10: new words will affect processing current items as all shift towards it
  Storms 00: explain more than other models

Question 15

criticism for exemplar

Answer 15

people show enhanced recogntion for items which violate key category rules but realistically this would’t change it so doesn’t work (sacamoto and love 04)
Reduced theoretical utility: no constraints on processing so can adapt to fit results

Question 16

where do exemplar models live?

Answer 16

in the triathum and mid brain dopamine areas: for learning and strengthening associations

Question 17

explain cluster models.

Answer 17

intuitive that similar items cluster together in memory.

regular: prototype, irregular: exemplar basis

Question 18

evidence for cluster models:

Answer 18

computer simulations with accurate vocab sizes repeat results of humans (liu and croft 04)

Question 19

What is Anderson’s Rational Model?

Answer 19

eg of a cluster; probability of novel item being from cluster is high - gets assimilated BUT if maths say probability is low then creates own cluster.

Question 20

What is SUSTAIN?

Answer 20

eg of a cluster model; computer simulation, can be inclusive of selective attention– uses a lot of perceptual cues, model can learn which parts are most defining.
Able to direct attention to the optimal parts (active process)

Question 21

general criticism

Answer 21

medial temporal lobes though of as controlling whole thing but actually studies are not convincing. HPC thought to bind whole thing together

Question 22

Explain multiple systems model

Answer 22

no true model- a process supported by a variety of different systems
e.g. one system for selective attention, one for info strategies based on stimulus