Set 8: Thinking & Language

Question 1

Thinking

Answer 1

Thinking, or cognition, refers to a process that involves knowing, understanding, remembering, and communicating

Question 2

intuition

Answer 2

Thinking is different than intuition, which is effortless immediate and automatic feelings.

Question 3

Executive Functions

Answer 3

We as humans have Executive Functions. These are cognitive skills that work together. They allow us to generate organize, plan, and implement ideas.

Question 4

Concept

Answer 4

The mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people. There are a variety of chairs but their common features define the concept of a chair.

Question 5

Development of Concepts (prototypes)

Answer 5

We form some concepts with definitions. For example, a triangle has three sides. Mostly, we form concepts with a mental image of the best thing that would fit a given concept (prototypes.) For example, a robin is a prototype of a bird, but a penguin is not.

Question 6

Convergent Thinking

Answer 6

Convergent Thinking is the ability to provide a single correct answer.

Question 7

Divergent Thinking

Answer 7

Divergent Thinking is the ability to consider many different options and think in new ways.

Question 8

Algorithms

Answer 8

Try every possible combination until you find the correct answer. (Accurate but time consuming.)

Question 9

Heuristics

Answer 9

Heuristics are mental shortcuts that allow us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently. Heuristics are less time consuming, but can lead to mistakes.

Question 10

Insight

Answer 10

When you just know the answer to a problem immediately.

Question 11

Confirmation Bias

Answer 11

A tendency to search for information that confirms a personal bias.

Question 12

Fixation

Answer 12

An inability to see a problem from a fresh perspective. This impedes problem solving. Two examples of fixation are mental set and functional fixedness.

Question 13

Mental Set

Answer 13

A tendency to keep solving a problem the same way, even if there is a better solution.

Question 14

Functional Fixedness

Answer 14

The tendency to only think of the main purpose of an object.

Question 15

The Gambler’s Fallacy

Answer 15

The Gambler’s Fallacy is the tendency to think what happens previously will affect a future event.

Question 16

Representative Heuristic

Answer 16

Judging the likelihood of things or objects in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, a particular prototype.

Question 17

Availability Heuristic

Answer 17

If an event readily comes to mind, we presume it is common.

States that memorables things seem more common.

Question 18

Overconfidence

Answer 18

Intuitive heuristics, confirmation of beliefs, and the inclination to explain failures increase our overconfidence.

Overconfidence is a tendency to overestimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments.

Question 19

Sunk-Cost Fallacy

Answer 19

The Sunk-Cost Fallacy is our tendency to stick to the original plan because we’ve already invested time or money, when switching would benefit us more.

Question 20

Exaggerated Fear

Answer 20

The opposite of having overconfidence is having an exaggerated fear about what may happen. Such fears may be unfounded.

A fear of something that poses little to no danger.

Question 21

Nudge

Answer 21

$10.50 with a credit card

Example: $10 in cash for a haircut

Question 22

Opposite of nudge?

Answer 22

`

Question 23

Belief Bias

Answer 23

The tendency of one’s preexisting beliefs to distort logical reasoning by making invalid conclusions.

Question 24

Belief Perseverance

Answer 24

Belief perseverance is the tendency to cling to our beliefs in the face of contrary evidence.

Question 25

Language

Answer 25

Language, our spoken, written, or gestured work, is the way we communicate meaning to ourselves and others.

Question 26

Phonemes

Answer 26

The smallest distinct sound unit in a spoken language.

bat, has three phonemes b - a - t
chat, has three phoneme ch- a - t

Question 27

Morpheme

Answer 27

The smallest unit that carries meaning. It may be a word or part of a word. For example:

Milk = milk
Unforgettable = un - for - get - table

Question 28

Grammar

Answer 28

Grammar is the system of rules in a language that enable us to communicate with and understand others.

Question 29

Semantics

Answer 29

Semantics is the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences.

Semantic rules tells us that adding -ed to the word laugh means that it happened in the past.

Question 30

Syntax

Answer 30

Syntax consists of the rules for putting words in the correct order within a sentence.

In English, syntactical rule says that adjectives come before nouns; white house. In spanish, it is reversed; casa blanca.

Question 31

Language development

Answer 31

Children learn language before learning most other things. (Kids learn language at a rapid pace.)

Question 32

When do we learn language

Cooling Stage

Answer 32

The Cooing stage begins at 6-8 weeks, when kids start making basic sounds.

Question 33

When do we learn language

Babbling Stage

Answer 33

Beginning at 4 months, the infant spontaneously utters various sounds, like ah-go. Babbling is not imitation of adult speech.

Question 34

At what time do we start learning language 1?

Answer 34

One-Word Stage: Beginning at or around his first birthday (1 year), a child starts to speak one word at a time and is able to make family members understand him. The word doggy may mean look at the dog out there.

Question 35

At what time do we start to learn language 2?

Answer 35

Two-Word Stage: Before the 2nd year (2 years) a child starts to speak in two-word sentences. This form of speech is called telegraphic speech because the child speaks like a telegram: “Go car” means “I would like to go for a ride in the car.”

Question 36

When do we learn language 3?

Answer 36

Longer phrases: After telegraphic speech (2+ years), children begin uttering longer phrases (Mommy get ball) with syntactical sense, and by early elementary school they are employing humor.

Question 37

Overregularization of Grammar

Answer 37

When kids are first learning grammar then tend to overuse grammar rules, we call this Overregularization of Grammar.

Ex: I Goed to the park
Deers

Question 38

Explaining language development:

Operant Learning

Answer 38

Created by: B.F. Skinner
Explanation: Theory that language is learned by experience through rewards and punishments.
Nature or Nurture: Nurture

Question 39

Explaining language development:

Inborn Universal Grammar

Answer 39

Created by: Noam Chomsky
Explanation: Theory that language is so complicated, and we learn it so much faster than anything else as kids, that the fundamentals of language must already exist in the brain at birth. (He called this part of the brain the Language Acquisition Device.)
Nature or Nurture: Nature

Question 40

Explaining language development:

Critical Period Hypothesis

Answer 40

Created by: N/A
Explanation: Theory that there is a certain time where language is learned easiest (critical period), but you must still be taught language to learn it.
Nature or Nurture: Nature & Nurture

Question 41

Genes, Brain, & Language

Answer 41

Genes design the mechanisms for a language, and experience modifies the brain.

Question 42

Language & Age

Answer 42

Learning new language gets harder with age

Question 43

Language & Thinking

Answer 43

Language and thinking intricately intertwine.

Question 44

Language influences Thinking:

Linguistic Determinism THEORY

Answer 44

Whorf (1956) suggested that language determines the way we think.

Question 45

Language influences Thinking:

Linguistic Relativism

Answer 45

Many psychologists today believe in Linguistic Relativism, which is less extreme. It believes that language just influences the way we think not controls it.

Question 46

Do animals Exhibit Language?

Answer 46

There is no doubt that animals communicate, problem solve, and some even show insight.

Some animals can even go as far as learning sign language to communicate. Yet these animals lack syntax in their speech, which shows that they can only really repeat what they have learned and not create their own original thoughts.

Thus, most psychologist DO NOT believe that animals truely have language.