AP Psychology Thinking and Language Terms to Know

belief perseverance

clinging to ones initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited

creativity

the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas

stereotype threat

the apprehension experienced by members of a group that their behavior might confirm a cultural stereotype

one-word stage

the stage in speech development, from about age 1-2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words

(Noam) Chomsky

"father of language research" - humans have a universal grammar device that predisposes us to learn language. [deep structure = true meaning, surface structure = grammar of learned language]

(Lev) Vygotsky

1896-1934; Field: child development; Contributions: investigated how culture & interpersonal communication guide development, zone of proximal development; play research

analogical representation

A mental representation that has some of the physical characteristics of an object; it is analogous to the object.

defining attribute model

The idea that a concept is characterized by a list of features that are necessary to determine if an object is a member of the category.

cognitive dissonance

The theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent. For example, when our awareness of our attitudes and our actions clash, we can reduce the resulting dissonance by changing our attitudes.

linguistic relativism

The worldview of a culture is shaped and reflected by the language its members speak.

linguistic determinism

Whorf's hypothesis that language determines the way we think

concept

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category. provides a quick and easy method for sorting items into categories

algorithm

a methodical, logical rule of procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem; contrast with the usual speedier --but also more error prone - use of heuristics

restructuring

a new way of thinking about a problem that aids its solution

heuristics

a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently: usually speedier but more error prone than algorithms ("rule of thumb")

insight

a sudden, often novel realization of a solution to a problem; it contrasts with a strategy-based solution

confirmation bias

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

mental set

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

cognition

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

symbolic representation

an abstract mental representation that does not correspond to the physical features of an object or idea

Washoe

an ape taught ASL by Allen and Beatrix Gardner; could communicate, but with improper syntax

babbling stage

beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language

two-word stage

beginning at about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly two word statements

Broca's area

controls language experssion - an area of the frontal lobe, usually in left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech

Wernicke's area

controls language reception - a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe

inductive reasoning

deriving general principles from particular facts or instances ("Every cat I have ever seen has four legs; cats are four-legged animals").

availability heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness), we presume such events are common

Koko

gorilla: taught ASL by Francine Patterson. generated sentences

aphasia

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage, either to Broca's area (impairing speech) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding)

grammar

in a language, a system of rules that enable us to communicate with and understand others

morpheme

in a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word, or part of a word (such as a prefix)

phoneme

in language, the smallest distinctive sound unit

representative 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

language

our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning

deductive reasoning

reasoning in which a conclusion is reached by stating a general principle and then applying that principle to a specific case (The sun rises every morning; therefore, the sun will rise on Tuesday morning.)

Nim Chimpsky

taught ASL by Herbert Terrace. knew words but did not generate his own sentences

fixation

the inability to see a problem from a new perspective, by employing a different mental set

syntax

the rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language

semantics

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; also, the study of meaning

belief bias

the tendency for one's preexisting beliefs to distort logical reasoning, sometimes by making invalid conclusions seem valid, or valid conclusions seem invalid

overconfidence

the tendency to be more confident than correct - to overestimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments

functional fixedness

the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual function; the impediment to problem-solving

framing

the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments

critical periods

times during which certain environmental influences can have an impact on the development of the infant