Unit 2 Cognition: Thinking and Problem Solving Flashcards
pysch
Concepts
an abstract idea; a general notion.
Prototypes
A mental image or best example of a category
Metacognition
Awareness and understanding of one’s own thought processes
Schemas
a collection of basic knowledge about a concept or entity that serves as a guide to perception, interpretation, imagination, or problem solving. For example, the schema “dorm room” suggests that a bed and a desk are probably part of the scene, that a microwave oven might or might not be, and that expensive Persian rugs probably will not be.
Assimilation
a process in which old or existing schema are used to interpret information
Accommodation
a process in which schema are changed in response to new information
Algorithms
A methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem
Heuristics
A simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgements and solve problems efficiently
Representativeness heuristic
Judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead us to ignore other relevant information
Availability heuristic
Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability on memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common
Mental set
A tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past
Functional fixedness
The tendency to perceive an object only in terms of its most common use.
Priming
The effect in which recent experience of a stimulus facilitates or inhibits later processing of the same or a similar stimulus.
Framing
The way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments
Gambler’s fallacy
The belief that the odds of a chance event increase if the event hasn’t occurred recently
Sunk-cost fallacy
A framing effect in which people make decisions about a current situation based on what they have previously invested in the situation
Executive functions
Higher level cognitive processes of planning, decision making, problem solving, action sequencing, task assignment and organization, flexibility in goal selection, and goal-conflict resolution
Creativity
The ability to produce novel and valuable ideas
Convergent thinking
Narrowing the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution
Divergent thinking
Expanding the number of possible problem solutions; creative thinking that diverges in different directions
