Lecture 15- Concepts And Categorisation Flashcards
What did William James say in “the principles of psychology” 1890, Without categories and their corresponding concepts
Infants don’t separate their sensory experience into parts, but instead experience “one great blooming, buzzing confusion”
Concepts give a handle on what those types of things have in
Common
Language gives us what for concepts
Labels
What are necessary conditions
Things required to be a member of a category
What is feature theories
We store sets of conditions as lists of features
What is network theories
We store concepts in networks with is and has links
Bird is animal; bird has feathers
What is prototype theory
Not based on features but relation to other things, grouped together
Evaluation for prototype theory
- Conceptual combination- we don’t just use individual concepts, we combine them
- Ad hoc concepts
- Mathematical concepts
What are Ad Hoc Concepts
Concepts and their corresponding categories that are put together spontaneously, not stored in memory
Why are mathematical concepts an evaluation of prototype theory
Show prototypically effects but have clear analytical definitions, not defined by prototypes
What is “theory” theory
Everyday concepts are defined by their place in lay theories about the world and how it works
What are basic level categories (Eleanor Rosch 1976)
- In a hierarchy concepts at one of the levels are easiest to deal with.
- At a basic level the features of one type of object have a strong correlational structure
What are the two main types of nouns
- Natural kinds
- Artefacts
What concepts are less studied in psychology
Abstract concepts
Types of concepts
- Nouns
- Verbs
- Linking words
- Abstract
Lakoff and Johnson 1980 believe abstract concepts are understood via
Networks of metaphorical links to concrete concepts
Example of metaphorical link to concrete concept
She fell into a depression
Fell into
The traditional treatment of concepts is via
Formal analysis
What did pulvermüller et al 2005 find with TMS to motor brain regions
Faster reaction to associated brain regions
E.g Leg related words with leg region stimulation
What is the Action Compatibility Effect (ACE)
Responses are quicker when the action required to respond is not compatible with the action described
(E.g. Pulling lever towards to answer closing a drawer)
What did Pecher et al find when examining embodied cognition: up and down
Responses were slower when the type of word didn’t match the words expected position (sky, bottom of options)
Zwaan and Pecher (2012) did not replicate embodied cognition effect, instead
Found a standard compatibility effect
What did Connell and Lynette (2009) find when examining typical and atypical implied colour
The colour we expect something to be is automatically evoked by language
Is language abstract and modular
No
