thinking, intelligence, language Flashcards
cognition
the way in which info is processed and manipulated in remembering, thinking, and knowing
thinking
Manipulating info mentally to form concepts, solve problems, and make decisions
cognitive psychology
psych approach that explains observable behavior by investigating mental processes and structures that we cannot directly observe
inductive reasoning
bottom-up reasoning from specific observations to make generalizations
deductive reasoning
top-down reasoning from a general principle that we know to be true to a specific instance
prototype model of thinking concepts
a comparison to the most typical items in a category that reflect a concept
the benefit of thinking concepts
allows for generalization, aids memory, association of experience and objects, gives clues for how to react
steps of problem solving
find and frame problems, develop good problem solving strategies, evaluate solutions, rethink and define problems and solutions over time
functional fixedness
failing to solve a problem as a result of fixation on a things usual functions
ex: not being able to come up with ways to use a brick due to only associating bricks with buidling
fundamental attribution error
tendency for an observer to underestimate a situation and overestimate a personal disposition
ex: we belive someone is a bad person because they did something bad
loss aversion
tendency to strongly prefer to avoid losses compared to acquiring gains
hindsight bias
the tendency to perceive past events as more predictable than they really were
ex: saying that you “knew that was going to happen”
base rate neglect
tendency to ignore statistical info in favor of very specific but unrealistic info
ex: thinking someone is more likely to commit a crime based on their rac
confirmation bias
tendency to search for and use info that only supports our ideas
heuristics
mental shortcuts used to simplify a problem
availbility heuristic
prediction about the probability of an event based on how easily information regarding this topic is avalibile (moments more memorable will have a bigger impact on decisons)
Representativeness heuristic
tendency to make judgements about a member of a group based on physical appearance/a stereotype
familiarity heuristic
the tendency to have more favorable opinions of things, people, or places one has experienced as opposed to new ones
ex: choosing brands of food you have already tried
affect heuristic
people tend to make choices based on emotions they are experiencing in that moment
remembering trick: emotions AFFECT decisions
anchoring heuristic
the tendency to be overly influenced by the first bit of information we hear or learn
scarcity heuristic
we view things that are scarce or less available to us as inherently more valuable
charles spearman
came up with the idea that intelligence is a general ability (nature as opposed to nurture) and measured intelligence by g
stupid remembering trick: spearman is a g
IQ formula
IQ= 100(MA/CA)
MA
mental age of a person relative to development of others in age group
CA
Chronological age from birth
Heritability
the proportion of observable differences in a group that can be explained by differences in the genes of the group members
robert j sternbergs triarchic theory
intelligence comes from 3 forms- analytical, creative, and practical
analytical intelligence (relating to triarchic theory)
ability to analyze, judge, originate, and imagine
creative intelligence (relating to triarchic theory)
ability to create, design, invent, originate, and imagine
practical intelligence (relating to triarchic theory)
ability to use, apply, implement, and put ideas into practice
verbal intelligence (relating to garders Intelligence theory)
ability to think in words and language to express meaning
Mathematical intelligence (gardners)
ability to carry out mathematical operations
Wernickes area
Towards the middle of the left hemisphere- responsible for language comprehension
brocas area
towards the back of the left hemisphere- responsible for speech production
noam chomsky
held the belief that humans enter the world prewired to learn language at a certain time and in a certain way
Bodily kinesthetic intelligence (gardners)
Ability to manipulate objects and to be physically adapt
Musical intelligence (gardners)
Ability to be sensitive to pitch, melody, rhythm, and tone
Interpersonal intelligence (gardners)
Ability to understand and interact effectively with other
Intrapersonal intelligence
Ability to understand yourself
Naturalistic intelligence (gardners)
Ability to observe patterns in nature and understand natural human made systems
Existentialist intelligence (gardners)
Ability to grapple with big questions of human existence
Phonology
Sound system based on phonemes, the basic unit of sound in each language
Morphology
Rules for word formation, the smallest unit of language that carries meaning (ex: help, helper, helped, helping)
Semantics
Meanings of words and phrases in a given language (ex: the coffe cup straddled the barn door that sang to them in green grassroots)- a semantically incorrect sentence
Pragmatics
Useful character of language, ability to communicate more than what is said
Linguistic relativity hypothesis
Words cause ability to think- English speakers cannot see the many different kinds of snow that inuit people have words for
Noam Chomsky
Held the idea that humans enter the world biologically prewired to learn language at a certain time and in a certain way
Executive function
Higher order complex cognitive process that includes thinking, planning, and problem solving (bilingual individuals tend to show an improved executive function)
