Chapter 7: Thinking, Language, and Intelligence
Cognitive Psychology
The branch of psychology that focuses on such mental processes as thinking, problem solving, decision making, and use of language.
Thinking
The process of mentally representing and manipulating information
Divergent thinking
ability to conceive new ways of viewing situations and new uses for familiar objects
Convergent thinking
attempt to narrow down a range of alternatives to converge on the correct answer to a problem
eugenics
attempts to improve human genetic stock by encouraging breeding among intellectually superior
phonemes
basic units of sound in a language
intelligence
capacity to think and reason clearly and act purposefully and effectively in adapting to the environment and perusing one's goals
conceptual combinations
combinations of 2+ concepts into 1 concept resulting in the creating of a novel idea or application
Logical Concepts
concepts with clearly defined rules for mempership
Natural Concepts
concepts with poorly defined or fuzzy rule for mempership
validity
degree to which a test measures what it purports to measure
heritability
degree to which heredity accounts for variants of a given trait within a population
predictive validity
degree to which test scores accurately predict future behavior or performance
conceptual expansion
expansion of familiar concepts into new users
metaphor
figure of speech used to represent an object or concept by comparing it to another
decision making
form of problem solving in which one must select a course of action from among the available alternatives
problem solving
form of thinking focused on finding a solution to a particular problem
mental retardation
generalized defect or impairment in intellectual and social skills (IQ less than 70)
analogy
in problem solving, a strategy based on using similarities between the properties of 2 things or applying solutions to past problems to the problem at hand
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
measure of intelligence based on performance tests of mental ability, expressed in a ratio of your mental age over your chronological age or derived from deviation of ones scores from norms for those of ones age group
Basic level concepts
middle level of concepts in hierarchy corresponding to categories most often used in grouping objects and events
Subordinate concepts
narrowest level of concepts in hierarchy that are specific
Negative instance
object that does not fit a particular concept
creativity
origionality of thought associated with development of new, workable products or solutions to problems
mainstreaming
practice of placing children with special needs in regular classroom environments
standardization
process of establishing norms for a test by administrating the test to large #'s of people who constitute a standardization sample
linguistic relativity hypothesis
proposition that the language we use determines how we think and perceive the word (WHORFIAN HYPOTHESIS)
mental age
representation of a persons intelligence based on the age of people who are capable of performing at the same level of ability
incubation period
respite from active problem solving efforts, which facilitate a solution
representativeness heuristic
rule of thumb for making a judgement that assumes a given sample is representative of the larger population from which it is drawn
heuristic
rule of thumb for solving or making judgments or solutions
syntax
rules of grammar that determine how words are ordered within sentences or phrases to form meaningful expression
grammar
set of rules governing how symbols in a given language are used to form meaningful expressions
semantics
set of rules governing the meaning of words
morphemes
smallest unit of meaning in a language
reliability
stability of test scores over time
norms
standards used to compare individuals performance on a test with the performance of others
algorithm
step by step set of rules that will always lead to a solution to a problem
language
system of communication composed of symbols (words, hand signs, etc) that are arranged according to a set of rules (grammar) to form meaningful expression
Framing
tendency for decisions to be influenced by how potential outcomes are phrased
confirmation bias
tendency to maintain allegiance to an initial hypothesis despite strong evidence to the contrary
functional fixedness
tendency to perceive objects as limited to the customary functions they serve
mental set
tendency to rely on strategies that worked in similar situations in the past but hat may not be appropriate to the present situation
culture fair tests
tests designed to eliminate cultural biases
Mental Image
- A mental picture or representation of an object or event.
primary mental abilities
7 basic mental abilities that THURSTONE believed constitute intelligence
Brainstorming
A method of promoting divergent thinking by encouraging people to propose as many solutions to a problem as possible without fear of being judged negatively by others, no matter how far-fetched their proposals may be.
Superordinate
Broadest level in 3 level hierarchy of concepts
language acquisition device
CHOMSKY's concept of an innate, pre-wired mechanism in the brain that allows children to acquire language naturally
multiple intelligences
GARDNER'S term for distinct types of intelligence that characterize different forms of intelligent behavior
Concepts
Mental categories for classifying events, objects, and ideas on the basis of their common features or properties
Positive instance
Object that fits a particular concept
Triarchic theory of intelligence
STERNBERG's theory of intelligence that posits 3 aspects of intelligence: analytic, creative, practical