Thinking

Question 1

Thinking

Answer 1

Refers to congnitive thinking

Question 2

Concept

Answer 2

the mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas or people. there are a variety of chairs but their common features define the concept of something (like a chair)

Question 3

Development of concepts

Answer 3

we form some concepts with definitions. Mostly, we form concepts w/ mental images or typical examples (prototype)
EXAMPLE a robin is a prototype of a bird, but a penguin is not
TRIANGLE ( DEFINITION)
BIRD (MENTAL IMAGE

Question 4

Problem solving

Answer 4

There are different ways to solve problems;
EX: Algorithms, Methodical, logical rules or procedures that guarantee solving a particular problem

Question 5

Algorithms

Answer 5

(Very time consuming) exhausts all possibilities before arriving at a solution. Computers use algorithms
E P L O Y O C H Y G
if we were to unscramble these letters to form a word using a algorithmic approach, we would face 907,208 possibilties

Question 6

Heuritstics

Answer 6

simple thinking strategies that allow us to make judgements and solve problems efficiently.
* less time consuming, but MORE error-prone than ALGORITHMS
Make it easier for us to use simple principles to arrive at solutions to problems
*EX if a student needs to decide what subject she will study at university, her intuition will likely be drawn toward the path that she envisions as most satisfying, practical, and interesting

Question 7

Insight

Answer 7

involes a sudden novel realization of a solution to a problem. Humans and animals have insight

chimpanzees show insightful behavior when solving problems (uses to stick to get food)

when an insight strikes, (the “aha” experience) it activates the right temporal cortex. The time between not knowing the solution and realizing it is 0.3 seconds

Question 8

Obstacles in solving problems

Answer 8

Confirmation bias ( a tendency to search for info that confirms a personal bias)

Question 9

Fixation

Answer 9

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

(think of the matchstick problem; how would u arrange six matches to form four equilateral triangles)

Question 10

Mental set

Answer 10

A tendency to approach a problem in a particular way, especially if that way was successful in the past

Question 11

Is making decisions and forming judgements deliberative or automatic?

Answer 11

(more automatic than deliberative)) each day we make hundreds of judgements and decisions based on our intuition, seldom using a systematic reasoning

Question 12

Representativeness heuristic

Answer 12

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

if you meet a slim, short man who wears glasses and likes poetry, what do you think his profession would be? An ivy league professor or a truck driver?

Question 13

Availability Heuristic

Answer 13

why does our availability
heuristic lead us astray?
(info @ the top of our awareness)

whatever increases the ease of retrieving info increases its perceived availability
*when people overestimate the risk of shark attacks because news stories frequently report on them, making shark attacks seem more common than they actually are

Question 14

How is retrieval facilitated?

Answer 14

How recently we have heard about the event?
How distinct is it?

Question 15

Framing decisions

Answer 15

Decisions and judgements may be significantly affected depending upon how an issue is framed
*EXAMPLE what is the best way to market ground beef – as 25% fat or 75% lean? *

Question 16

Kahneman

Answer 16

(wrote Thinking, fast and slow)

Applied his cognitive theory to behavioral economics
* we tend to be lazy thinkers and we make important decisions based on gut reactions and automatic processing rather than deliberate, thoughtful processes.

Question 17

Beleif preserverence

Answer 17

The tendency to cling to our beliefs in the face of contrary evidence.
*If you see that a country is hostile, you are likely to interpret their ambiguous actions as a sign of hostility (jervis 1985) *

Question 18

Perils & Powers of Intuition

Answer 18

Intuition may be perilous if unchecked, but may also be extremely efficient and adaptive
refer to slide 23 for the chart

Question 19

Reliability and Validity

Answer 19

The reliability of a test refers to its consistency

1. Split half reliability: diving the test into two equal halves and assessing how consistent the scores are
2. Reliability using different forms of the test to measure consistency between them
3. Test retest reliability: using the same test on two occasions to measure consistency