Cognitive Psych Exam 3

Conversation is often described as a "give and take" that is generally more effective when people are "on the same page." Explain these concepts from the perspective of cognitive psychology. Provide examples to support your ideas.

When two people are on the same page it means that they are on the same level of knowledge. As for the give and take method, this means that the conversation is mutually beneficial for both parties. From a cognitive psychology standpoint, the give and take method is more beneficial because it allows individuals to have an increase of attention, and enhance their problem solving rather than just a mere conversation. One example of this would be if a person has read the manual instruction to change a tire and another person has changed a tire. Both people are benefiting from the conversation (give and take). If both people have only partially read the manual instruction then they would be on the same page, thus not learning anything.

What is the backfire effect? What cognitive factors are at work in this process? Describe a time when you have experienced the backfire effect with someone else—either exhibiting it or receiving it.

A backfire effect occurs when an evidence-based correction is presented to an individual and they report believing even more in the very misconception the correction is aiming to rectify. Some factors at work during this process would be cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias.

Describe the paper folding test and explain how it is useful for measuring a person's spatial imagery capacity.

A person's spatial imagery capacity involves the inspection and evaluation of spatial features such as distance and configuration and spatial manipulation such as rotation, shifting, etc. When people participate in paper folding, they are shown a line-drawing of paper and either asked to fold the paper or unfold the paper. This is useful to a person's spatial imagery capacity because it is used to manipulate mental representations of images.

Describe the prototype approach to categorization. Define "prototype" and give examples for the category of "clothing." Mention one item that is high and one that is low on prototypicality in the clothing category.

A prototype is a mental representation that serves as a cognitive reference point for the category. Prototypical objects have high family resemblance. High typicality means that a category member closely resembles the category prototype. Low typicality means that the category member does not closely resemble a typical member of a categoryAn example of clothing would be jeans, t-shirt, dress, and socks. A high one would be jeans and a low one would be socks.

Define both deductive and inductive reasoning, and explain how they are different. Give examples of each to support your thinking

Deductive reasoning is based on the idea that if something is true, then specific things must also be true. Inductive reasoning is based on the idea that if something is true, then it is likely that other things are also true. The difference between the two reasoning involves how broad the true statements involve. A common example of deductive reasoning is All dogs are animals, therefore all animals are dogs while an example of inductive reasoning is I have seen many birds fly, therefore it is likely that all birds can fly.

Describe in detail the differences between the way experts and nonexperts go about solving problems. In your answer, highlight the advantages and disadvantages to being an expert in a field.

Experts are very knowledgeable in their field of choice which would make it easier and faster to solve problems (advantage). One disadvantage of being an expert is that they might be less likely to want to look for new ways to solve problems if they have a way that has been working. As for a nonsexpert, they might want to take more time in finding different ways to solve problems (disadvantage). On the other hand, an advantage of being a nonexpert would be that they would be more open to suggestion.

From a cognitive psychology perspective, explain why it might be beneficial for a company to hire recent graduates rather than people who have lengthy experience in the company's field of business.

From a cognitive psychology perspective, it is more beneficial to have a recent graduate because they are more ambitious and just getting started in their career. They also might have more mental processes and have a longer attention span. Another important reason would be that they could have problem solving skills and that knowledge would be fresh on their brain since they just graduated college.

Compare and contrast functional fixedness and mental set. Give examples of each in the context of problem solving to support your thinking.

Functional fixedness refers to solving problems by restricting the use of an object to its familiar functions. An example of this would be using a thumbtack as only something that holds a piece of paper. On the other hand, a mental set refers to solving problems by focusing on things they've done with past experiences. An example of this would be continuously pulling on a door that is a push door. Functional fixedness and mental set deal with solving problems but they differentiate with how they go about solving it.

Explain the meaning of the statement, "Justice is what the judge had for breakfast." What cognitive factors are implicated in this perspective? How might this impact our legal system, and what strategies could be employed to address it?

I have personally heard this statement when watching several shows and it basically inferred that a bad/good breakfast could lead the convictor to make a better or worse conviction depending on what they ate. Some cognitive factors that implicate this perspective would be memory, perception, and attention. This could impact our justice system because it means that some decisions might be impartial, unjust, etc, instead of just and partial. One strategy for fixing this is making sure that our laws and regulations are based on the idea of justice and fairness. Meaning that regardless of what you had for breakfast, you will still put in the same thought when convicting a sentence.

What is the consensus on neural overlap in perception and imagery? Provide descriptions of at least two research efforts to support your answer.

Imagery neurons respond to both perceiving and imagining an object, while mirror neurons deal with how to respond and perform actions when we see someone else perform that same action.

Explain how learning occurs in a connectionist network. Describe the process of back propagation. How is the pattern of output activity in a network adjusted so that the output signal matches the correct signal for a given stimulus?

Learning occurs in the connectionist network in three different ways. It responds to a stimulus, it is provided with a correct response, and it modifies responding to match the correct response. Back propagation occurs when an error signal is transmitted back through the circuit. The network is adjusted by indicators that show how much weight should be changed to allow the output signal to match the correct signal. This process repeats until the error signal is zero.

Identify the types of meaning dominance in language. Give examples of each to support your thinking.

Meaning dominance occurs when words are said more often than others. An example of this would be just any word said more frequently such as I. Biased dominance occurs when a word has more than one meaning and one is used more often. An example of this would be the word tin. It can be talked about in reference to a type of metal or a type of container. Balanced dominance occurs when a word has more than one meaning, but each meaning is used equally. An example of this would be the word cast; we have a cast in a musical or when we cast out when fishing.

Explain how language and music are both similar and different.

Music and language are similar in their uses of emotion and they both have a writing system. We write the alphabet and we write notes. As for emotions, we express how we feel through our words but also music can be happy, sad, angry, etc. The most basic difference is how language and music are communicated. With language, one person speaks and the other person listens. With music, it is much more complicated because of the notes, chords, and other things that have specific meanings.

What did Newell and Simon mean when stating that problem solving is a search? Be sure to use concepts and terms from the text to support your answer.

Newell and Simon described problem solving as a search that occurs between the problem and the solution. They have to decipher between the information that is relevant vs the information that is irrelevant. It involves a concept which is known as problem space. This involves problem states, problem operators, and problem space graphs. Each one of these terms have their own task. For example, problem states involve the knowledge available at the given time while problem space graph involves moving from one state to another.

Describe methods a person can use to increase his or her creativity. If you use any of these methods, give an example of how it has been helpful. If not, which method do you think would be most useful for you and why

One way that I think a person can increase their creativity is using riddles which involve convergent thinking. This type of thinking occurs when a problem is fixed using rules and logical reasoning. Another method would be using divergent thinking. This allows people to look for new ways to solve problems or in this case it allows them to create something new. One method that I use is convergent thinking. An example of this would be when I need to build something, I follow the steps (rules) and use logic to build something new.

Discuss how a person's judgments are affected by the way choices are framed. Give an example of a choice framed in terms of gains and an example of a choice framed in terms of losses. Which decision-making strategy is likely to be used in each case? Why?

One way that a person's choices can be affected is by the principle of least effort. This occurs when a person is more likely to choose the option that requires the least amount of effort. An example of this could occur when someone is deciding to change their eating habits and eat healthier. This person may not want to eat healthy because it would require them to grocery shop and cook food that they may not like. On the other hand, if they eat unhealthy then they have to exercise to work the unhealthy food off. As a result this person would be more likely to eat unhealthy food.

Explain how personal knowledge impacts the basic level of categorization under Rosch's approach. Give examples comparing two individuals' knowledge of a concept to support your thinking.

Rosch's approach says that natural concepts are prototype based. This means that the more attributes new items share, the most likely we will include it with the concept. For example, we have all this basic concept of a cat and we have gathered concepts from our daily experiences. However, if we see a different type of cat then we will compare it to our imaginative picture. This will cause us to form differences in appearances, shapes, sizes, etc.

Compare and contrast Skinner's and Chomsky's views on language acquisition. Give examples of each perspective to support your ideas.

Skinner viewed language as being learned through reinforcement. An example of this would be when a dog learns to sit for the first time, it is continuously rewarded with a treat until that behavior is learned. Chomsky viewed language as being encoded in our genes. An example of this would be a kid saying a sentence that they may have never heard.

Compare and contrast spatial and propositional representation. Give an example of each based on the same stimulus.

Spatial representation occurs when different parts of an image are described as corresponding to specific locations in space. Propositional representation occurs when relationships are shown by symbols or language. An example of propositional representation is "the cat is under the table" while with spatial representation you actually have an image of a cat under the table.

Compare and contrast the "system" and "type" approaches to thinking. Why do professionals generally favor one perspective over the other? Give examples of situations from each perspective to support your thinking.

The System approach to thinking refers to Kahneman's Appraco of System 1 and System 2. System one involves fast, automatic, nonconscious thinking, while system 2 involves slower, deliberate, conscious thinking. However, the type approach, specifically the second, is associated with subjective experiences. Professionals generally favor it because it reflects the interconnected processes that occur in the brain. Type 1/system 1 would be tying your shoelaces while type 2/system 2 should be solving an algebraic equation when I haven't done one since 8th grade.

Describe the conceptual peg hypothesis. Explain the paired-associate learning task, and provide examples of stimuli that had high recall in the task.

The conceptual peg hypothesis states that concrete nouns create images that other words can hang on to which then enhances our memory for these words. Paivio said that it was easier to remember concrete nouns rather than abstract nouns. An example of a concrete mourn is truck and tree. An example of abstract nouns is truth and justice.

Describe the three steps involved in analogical problem solving. Which step is the most difficult to achieve, and what is the evidence that this is the most difficult step?

The first step involved a relationship between the source story and the target problem. The second step is the mapping in correspondence between the source story and the target problem. The third step would be applying the mapping to generate a different solution to the problem. The first step, noticing the relationship, is the most difficult to achieve.

Describe in detail two techniques that use imagery to improve memory. Explain the underlying principles that define why imagery works successfully as a memory enhancer.

The first technique used to improve memory is the method of loci. This is done by using visualization that involves placing information around the room and visualizing yourself picking it back up. Another technique is pegword technique. This is where you associate words with concrete words. Imagery works as a memory enhancer because it helps you recall several things. This is because you thought of a way to store it in your brain regardless of the technique used.

What are potential drawbacks to group brainstorming? What strategies could be used to address these issues?

There are several different drawbacks to group brainstorming. Some of this involves time-consuming processes, different viewpoints (which can lead to fights), and sometimes it's not always effective. One important strategy to address this issue is using a group passing technique. Everyone sits in a circle and writes down one idea and elaborates on it. This allows the process to be quick because everyone gets a chance, different viewpoints are allowed, and it would be effective in the amount of ideas being brought to the table.

If human speech is just an ongoing stream of sounds, how are computerized voice recognition systems able to function effectively? What "human" capabilities and qualities do they need to be programmed with? Give examples to support your thinking.

These systems are able to function because of their recognition of sound waves and frequencies which are used by artificial intelligence and sound receivers with integrated chips. These programs need to be programmed with human capabilities such as the decodization of sound waves and to understand specific instructions. One very obvious example to me would be Amazon's Alexa. I got one for christmas and it recognized my voice with artificial intelligence and of course internet connection.

Compare and contrast myside bias and confirmation bias. Give an example of each concept to support your thinking.

These two bias' are similar because both myside bias and confirmation bias can lead people to distort or ignore information that contradicts their beliefs. These two are different because myside bias is the tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information in a way that confirms one's preexisting beliefs or hypotheses. Confirmation bias is the tendency to give more weight to information that confirms one's beliefs or hypotheses and to ignore or downplay information that contradicts them. An example of myside bias would be a democrat only watching news that is associated with democrats. An example of confirmation bias would be a person believing that a left-handed person is more creative than a right-handed person.

Explain what is meant by the statement: The concept "cat" is the answer to the question "What is a cat?"

This statement involves concepts which are the mental representation of a class or individual and the meaning of objects, events, and abstract ideas. The answer to this concept would involve anything that describes a cat or puts it into the same category. So a couple different answers would be it meows, its furry, etc.

Why might training in media literacy be important for young people? Ground your argument in cognitive psychology concepts, and provide examples from the current media landscape to support your opinion.

Training in media literacy is important for young people because it helps them to understand how the media works and how to critically evaluate the information that they are presented with. Cognitive psychology concepts such as mental models and heuristics can help young people to understand how the media works and how to critically evaluate the information that they are presented with. For example, mental models can help young people to understand how the media chooses what to present and how this can bias the information that they are given. Heuristics can help young people to identify when they are being presented with information that is not accurate or complete, and this can help them to make more informed decisions.In today's media landscape, there is a lot of information that is presented in a biased or inaccurate way, and it is important for young people to be able to identify these issues so that they can make informed decisions

Explain the difference between validity and truth in deductive reasoning. Provide examples of each concept to support your thinking.

Validity is a measure of how well an argument conforms to the rules of logic. If it is implausible for the grounds to be true while the conclusion is untrue, the argument is valid. For example, All dogs are animals. Sally is a dog. Therefore, Sally is an animal, this would be valid. On the other hand, Truth is a measure of whether the premises and conclusion of an argument are actually true. For example, All dogs are animals. Sally is an animal. Therefore, Sally is a dog, this would be false.