Thinking Vocab

Question 1

Cognition

Answer 1

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

Question 1

Metacognition

Answer 1

cognition about our cognition; keeping track of and evaluating our mental processes

Question 2

Insight

Answer 2

a sudden realization of a problem’s solution; contrasts with strategy-based solutions

Question 3

Algorithm

Answer 3

a methodical, logical rule, or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem

Question 4

Heuristic

Answer 4

a simple thinking strategy—a mental shortcut—that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently

Question 5

Fixation

Answer 5

the inability to see a problem from a new perspective

Question 6

Confirmation Bias

Answer 6

a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence

Question 7

Availability Heuristic

Answer 7

judging the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory

Question 7

Representativeness Heuristic

Answer 7

judging the likelihood of events in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead us to ignore other relevant information

Question 8

Framing

Answer 8

the way an issue is posed

Question 9

Anchoring/Adjustment

Answer 9

under uncertainty (of price/value), default to anchor as estimate (if anchor not accurate, adjust estimate)

Question 10

Mental Set

Answer 10

a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past

Question 11

Functional Fixedness

Answer 11

tendency to view items in terms of most typical function

Question 12

Divergent Thinking

Answer 12

expanding the number of possible problem solution