Lecture 18

Question 1

3 factors in decision making

Answer 1

Individual differences, decision architecture, situational factors

Question 2

Individual differences due to gender

Answer 2

Risk perception, academics (may be related to fear of failure and stereotype threat). There are probably some gender differences due to evolution, but many beliefs in differences in thinking/cognition likely invalid.

Question 3

Negating academic gender effects

Answer 3

Reducing stereotype threat by telling participants there are no gender differences and making participants write self-affirmations before tests

Question 4

The brain as it ages

Answer 4

Brain weight declines as brain cells die and dendrites increase. Some areas, such as the prefrontal cortex, shrink more than others (this is related to decrease in working memory but not vocabulary)

Question 5

Intelligence and aging

Answer 5

Intelligence is multidimensional, so there is multi-directionality in change

Question 6

Flynn Effect

Answer 6

IQ scores around world have increased in last several decades - richer environment. Longitudinal vs. cross sectional studies show more consistent inductive reasoning

Question 7

What elements of intelligences degrade over time?

Answer 7

Speed of processing, working memory, long-term memory. However, performance is preserved for World Knowledge. Fluid knowledge (hardware of the mind) declines white crystallized intelligence (software of the mind) remains the same or improves

Question 8

Raven’s Progressive Matrices Task

Answer 8

Test for fluid intelligence

Question 9

Protective Lifetime Exposure Model

Answer 9

Even as fluid intelligence declines, increasing crystallized intelligence will help to maintain equivalent levels of decisionmaking in fields such as financial decision making

Question 10

The Nun Study

Answer 10

Provides proof that there is still some level of plasticity in late adulthood - mental exercise reduces cognitive decline

Question 11

Aging and affective forecasting

Answer 11

Older adults are usually happier as they focus on emotional goals and are better at regulating emotional experience and expression. Positivity bias, better perspective. Less extreme affective forecasting, more confirmation bias

Question 12

Expert vs. lay perceptions of risk

Answer 12

Experts are often better at judging specific risks but not necessarily better at judging risk in general. However, still make be vulnerable to law of small numbers, hindsight bias, confirmation bias. Don’t always make better judgments than laypeople.

Question 13

1000 laypeople vs. 1 expert

Answer 13

1000 laypeople can predict world events better than experts. The more diverse and gender-balanced the group, the better the prediction.

Question 14

Feedback and expertise

Answer 14

Experts who get frequent feedback such as weather forecasters are better at risk perception

Question 15

Political beliefs and goal framing

Answer 15

Goal framing can change decisions: for example, framing emissions as having either public health or environmental consequences.

Question 16

Individual differences and decision frames

Answer 16

Frames have strong effects, but not every frame works the same on everyone - depends on characteristics. There may be an interaction between the two.

Question 17

Experiments and individual differences

Answer 17

When studying effect in isolation, must either control for identities or have large sample. IDs may influence the way that effects impact people