Thinking and Intelligence Flashcards
Cognition
- Refers to thinking, and it encompasses the processes associated with perception, knowledge, problem solving, judgement, language, and memory
- Essential feature of human consciousness, yet not aspects of cognition are consciously experienced
Cognitive Psychology
- Dedicated to examining how people think
* Attempts to explain how and why we think the way we do by studying the interaction among humans
Concepts
- Categories or groupings of linguistic information, images, ideas, or memories such as life experiences
- Allow us to see the relationships among the different elements of your experiences and to keep the information in your mind organize and accessible
Prototype
•Best representation of a concept
Natural Concepts
•Created “naturally” through your experiences and can be developed from either direct or indirect experiences
Artificial Concept
- Concept that is defined by a specific set of characteristics
- Enhance the understanding of a topic by building on one another
Schema (plural: schemata)
- A mental construct consisting of a cluster or collection of related concepts
- When a schema is activated, the brain makes immediate assumptions about the person or object being observed
Event Schema or Cognitive Script
- A set of behaviors that can feel like a routine
* May be difficult to change; reason of why many habits are difficult to break once they have been acquired
Language
•A communication system that involves using words and systematic rules to organize those words to transmit information from one individual to another
Other than language, what are the other communication that species use?
- Postures
- Movements
- Odors
- Vocalization
Lexicon
- Refers to the words of a given language
* Vocabulary
Grammar
•Refers to the set of rules that are used to convey meaning through the use of lexicon
Phoneme
- A basic sound unit of a given language (e.g., “ah”, and “eh”)
- Different languages have different phoneme
Morphemes
- Phonemes are combined to form morphemes
* The smallest units of language that convey some type of meaning (e.g., “I” is both a phoneme and a morpheme)
Semantics
•Refers to the process by which we derive meaning from morphemes and words
Syntax
•Refers to the way words are organized into sentences
When is a critical period for language acquisition?
•It was shown that proficiency at acquiring language is maximal early in life; generally, as people age, the ease which they acquire and master new languages diminishes
Over-generalization In Language
•Refers to an extension of a language rule to an exception to the rule
Developmental Language and Communication (Stages)
- 0-3 months: Reflexive communication
- 3-8 months: Reflexive communication; interest in others
- 8-13 months: Intentional communication; sociability
- 12-18 months: First words
- 18-24 months: Simple sentences of two words
- 2-3 years: Sentences of three or more words
- 3-5 years: Complex sentences; has conversations
Linguistic Determination
•The term implies that people who speak different languages as their mother tongues have different thought processes.
Problem-solving Strategies
- Trial and Error – continue trying different solutions until the problem is solved
- Algorithm – step-by-step problem-solving formula
- Heuristics – general problem-solving framework
Mental Set
•Refers to the persistence in approaching a problem in a way that has worked in the past but is clearly not working now
Functional Fixedness
•A type of mental set where you cannot perceive an object being used for something other than what it was designed for
Different Types of Biasness
- Anchoring – tendency to focus on one particular piece of information when making decisions or problem-solving
- Confirmation – focuses on information that confirms existing beliefs
- Hindsight – belief that the event just experienced was predictable
- Representative – unintentional stereotyping of someone or something
- Availability – decision is based upon either on an available precedent or an example that may be faulty
Raymond Cattel
•Proposed a theory of intelligence that divided general intelligence into two components – crystallized and fluid intelligence
Crystallized Intelligence
- Characterized as acquired knowledge and the ability to retrieve it
- When you learn, remember, and recall information
- Helps you overcome concrete, straightforward problems
Fluid Intelligence
- Encompasses the ability to see complex relationships and solve problems
- Helps you tackle complex, abstract challenges in your daily life
Robert Sternberg
•Developed another theory of intelligence, which he titled the triarchic theory of intelligence because it sees intelligence as three parts – practical, creative, and analytical intelligence
Practical Intelligence
•Refers to finding solutions that work in your everyday life by applying knowledge based on your experiences
Analytical Intelligence
- Closely aligned with academic problem solving and computations
- Demonstrated by the ability to analyse, evaluate, judge, compare and contrast
Creative Intelligence
•Marked by inventing or imagining a solution to a problem or situation
Howard Gardner
- Developed multiple intelligence theory
- In Gardner’s theory, each person possesses at least 8 intelligence. Among these 8 intelligences, a person typically excels in some and falters in others
Gardner’s 8 Intelligences
- Linguistic Intelligence – perceives different functions of language, different sounds, and meaning of words; may easily learn multiple languages
- Logical-mathematical Intelligence – capable of seeing numerical patterns; strong ability to use reason and logic
- Musical Intelligence – understands and appreciate rhythm, pitch and tone; may play multiple instruments or perform as a vocalist
- Bodily Kinesthetic Intelligence – high ability to control the movements of the body
- Spatial Intelligence – ability to perceive the relationship between objects and how they move in space
- Interpersonal Intelligence – ability to understand and be sensitive to the various emotional states of others
- Intrapersonal Intelligence – ability to access personal feelings and motivation and use them to direct behavior and reach personal goals
- Naturalist Intelligence –high capacity to appreciate the natural world and interact with the species within it
Emotional Intelligence
- Gardner’s inter- and intrapersonal intelligence are often combined
- Encompasses the ability to understand the emotions of yourself and others; show empathy
- Ability to regulate your own emotions and respond to culturally appropriate ways
Creativity
•Ability to generate, create or discover new ideas, solutions, and possibilities
Divergent Thinking
- Described as thinking “outside the box”
* Allows an individual to arrive at unique, multiple solutions to a given problem
Convergent Thinking
•Ability to provide a correct or well-established answer or solution to a problem
Sir Francis Galton
- Believed that many aspects of human nature, including intelligence, could be measured scientifically. In a time before IQ tests
- Attempted to measure intelligence through reaction time tests.
Alfred Binet and Théodore Simon
- Binet – French psychologist who invented the first practical IQ test, the Binet–Simon test
- Simon – worked with Binet to develop the Binet-Simon scale, one of the most widely used scales in the world for measuring intelligence.
David Wechsler
- Developed a new IQ test int the United States; combined several subtests from other intelligence tests used between 1880 and World War I
- Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - fourth edition (WAIS-IV)
- Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V)
- Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence - Revised (WPPSI-III)
Flynn Effect
- Named after James Flynn
- Refers to the observation that each generation has significantly higher IQ than the last; however, increased IQ scores do not neccessarily that the younger generations are more intelligent per se
Bell Curve
•Demonstrates a normal distribution of a trait
Representative Sample
•A subset of the population that accurately represents the general population
Standard Deviation
- Describe how data are dispersed in a population and give context to large data sets
- The bell curve uses the standard deviation to show how all scores are dispersed from the average score
What does IQ score of below 70 indicates?
- Significant cognitive delays
- Major deficits in adaptive functioning
- Difficulty meeting”community standards of personal independence and social responsibility” when compared to the same-aged peers
Different Intellectual Disability Subtypes
- Mild (85%) – 3rd - 6th grade skill level in reading, writing, math; may be employed and live independently
- Moderate (10%) – Basic reading and writing skills; functional self-care skills; require some oversight
- Severe (5%) – Functional self-care skills; require oversight of daily environment and activities
- Profound (<1%) – May be able to communicate verbally or non-verbally; requires intensive oversight
Range of Reaction
- The theory that each person responds to the environment in a unique way based on the individual’s genetic makeup
- According to this idea, your genetic potential is a fixed quantity, but whether you reach your full potential (intellectual) is dependent upon the environment stimulation you experience, especially during childhood
Dysgraphia
- A learning disability that results in a struggle to write legibly
- Extreme difficulties putting their thoughts down on paper
- Require academic accommodations to help them succeed in school – provide students with alternative assessment opportunities to demonstrate what they know
- Treatment – occupational therapy
Dyslexia
- Inability to correctly process letters; unable to understand sound-letter correspondence
- The neurological mechanism for sound processing does not work properly
- Some cope by memorizing the shapes of most words, but they never actually learn to read
