Psych 134 - Midterm 3

Spreading Activation - Semantic Networks

"activating" a node spreads to all connected concepts - similar nodes are "primed" in order to access the information more easily

Visual Imagery

"seeing" in the absence of a visual stimulus -working memory --> visuospatial sketchpad

memory load influences parsing

"the senator [who spotted the reporter] shouted" subject-relative construction: the senator is the subject of the embedded clause vs. "the senator [who the reporter spotted] shouted" object-relative construction: the senator is the object of the embedded clause

Prototype

"typical" member of a category

Language is characterized by:

-arbitrariness -cultural transmission -discreteness -displacement -duality -productivity

Sequence of Signals - language

-sounds -words -sign (sign language)

it is easier to understand conversation when

-the statements make sense to all participants -participants take turns speaking -given-new contract

Image Debate

Propositional vs. Spatial

Method of Loci

a mnemonic technique that involves associating items on a list with a sequence of familiar physical locations - a common route ex. grocery list - list things relevant to where they are in a grocery store

Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP) model - Connectionist Network

a model of memory in which memory processes are proposed to take place at the same time over a large network of neural connections -circles do not represent concepts, instead categories are explained by the pattern of activity between units -concepts and their properties are represented by patterns of activity across units

Lexical Decision Task

a procedure in which a person is asked to decide as quickly as possible whether a particular stimulus is a word or a nonword

Language

a system of communication using sounds or symbols that enable us to express our feelings, thoughts, ideas, and experiences -verbal -nonverbal -sequence of signals -creates images - being able to imagine a poem -meaningful - letters form together to have different meaning -universal - every culture has a language

Problem #2 to Definitional Approach

a violation of defining features does not change the category

Reasoning and Problem Solving - visual imagery

ability to think centrally, plan, organize, problem solve using visual imagery

Operators

actions that take the problem from one state to another

Categories

all possible examples of a particular concept -can occur automatically -knowing that something is in a category provides a great deal of information about it

Lexicons

all the of the words that we know

Source Problem

another problem that is similar to the target problem and may illustrate a way to solve the problem

Concept Properties - Semantic Network

are revealed at each node and by moving up the network

Analogical Approach

attempting to solve a problem by using a solution to a similar problem ex. multilated checkerboard problem (more difficult) vs. Russian marriage problem

Solitude

avoiding distractions; giving the mind space and time to make new connections and find meaning

What is the most psychologically privileged level of the Hierarchical Organization?

basic level categories are - -most common in adult discourse -learned faster in children category members are - -produced faster -identified faster -remembered better

Nonverbal Communication

being able to interpret and react to the person's gestures, facial expressions, tones of voice, and other cues to meaning -eye contact -facial expression -posture -haptics, touch

Theory of Mind

being able to understand what others feel, think, or believe ex. the way a professor speaks to students vs. the way a professor speak to their peers

Nodes - Semantic Network

category or concept

Rule-Based Nature of Language

components can be arranged in some ways, but not others

Semantic Network Approach

concepts are arranged in the mind as networks that connect related concepts - comprised of interconnected nodes - is also hierarchical organization

Connectionist Network

concepts are represented as activity that is distributed across a network

Intermediate State

conditions after each step is made toward solving a problem

Initial State

conditions at the beginning of a problem

Hierarchical Nature of Language

consist of small components that can be combined to form larger units

Syntactic Coordination

conversation participants coordinate their grammatical constructs ex. me: "the cat is being chased by the dog" you: "the mouse is being chased by the cat" NOT "the cat is chasing the mouse"

Definitional Approach to Categorization

determine category membership based on whether an item meets the definition of the category -sometimes known as Featural Approach - focused on specific features of the category ex. what is the defining feature of a fruit? it has seeds - pumpkins? peas? tomatoes? what is the defining feature of a bachelor? unmarried + human + male

Prototype Approach to Categorization

determine category membership by comparing the item to a prototype that resembles the category - ex. family resemblance

Exemplar Approach to Categorization

determine category membership by comparing the item to exemplars of the category categories are defined by multiple example of actual category members, NOT a single averaged prototype works better for smaller categories

Connection Weights - Connectionist Network

determine how strongly one unit will activate the next level and change as we acquire more knowledge -are adjusted based on experience

Propositional Representation

different parts of an image can be represented by language or symbols (equation or a statement)

Spatial Representation

different parts of an image correspond to different locations in space

Knowledge

exists in the form of concepts

Analogical Transfer

experience solving one problem is transferred to another problem includes: -target problem (current problem) -source problem (past problem with a possible solution that can be used) **requires that you notice, happy and apply the analogy

When will Hierarchical organization be different?

experts have a different hierarchical organization - will usually label things at a specific level

Water Jug Problem

given mental set inhibited participants from using simpler solution

Syntactic Priming

hearing a particular grammatical construction increases the chance that you will use it too

Global Levels - Hierarchical Organization

higher level - general category - above basic level - lots of information is lost at the general level ex. tool --> writing instrument

Typicality

how closely a category member resembles the category prototype -high levels are rated as being more representative of the category -high level members are named first within the category -high level members have more overlapping characteristics of the category -high level members are verified more rapidly - faster response -high level members are more affected by priming

Representation

how language is represented in the mind

Word Frequency

how often words occur

Word Pronunciation

how we say words is affected by speech speed, accents, and word "slurring"

Comprehension

how we understand language

Multilated Checkerboard Problem

if we eliminate two corners of a checkerboard, can we cover the remaining squares with dominos? -cannot be explained by information-processing approach

Visual World Paradigm

in experiments on language processing, determining how subjects are processing information in a scene as they respond to specific instructions related to the scene

Analogical Paradox

it can be difficult to apply analogies in the laboratory, but we routinely use analogies in real-world setting airplanes vs. birds cognitive psychologists with brain structure vs. computer structure tv characters vs. self

Family Resemblance

items in a category resemble one another in a number of ways

Common Ground

knowledge and beliefs shared among conversation participants ex. using emojis in a conversation with someone or "medical" talk with a doctor

Hierarchical Organization

larger, more general categories are divided into smaller, more specific categories

Garden Path Model of Parsing

listeners use heuristics (syntax-based rules) to group words into phrases

Constraint-Based Approach to Parsing

listeners use syntax along with other information (word meaning, context, memory load) to group words into phrases

Spatial Navigation

localization of objects or the body in space - mentally mapping efficient path

Words

made up of one or more morphemes

Semantics

meaning of a word, sentence, or passage

Phrasal Semantics

meaning of sentences

Lexical Semantics

meaning of words

Pegword Technique

memory is better for pairs of concrete vs abstract nouns because concrete nouns create images that other words can "hang onto"

Are Semantic Networks mental or physical?

mental (of the mind) - how things might look in our brain

Concepts

mental representations

Parsing

mentally grouping the words into phrases to create meaning ex. After the musician played the piano she left the stage. [after the musician played the piano] [she left the stage] = first she played the piano, then she left the stage

Mondegreens

mishear something "slip of the ear"

Basic Level - Hierarchical Organization

name most often used to identify an object - the most efficient - gives the most information ex. pen

Biased Dominance

one meaning occurs more often than others

Referential Communication Task

one person has to identify something (the reference) being described to them by someone else ex. playing headbands

General Knowledge

organized knowledge about the world - not specifically tied semantic memory for general facts and information

Sentences

organized sequences of words that express a thought or intention

Late Closure

parser assumes each new word is part of the current phrase ex. "After the musician played the piano.. was wheeled off the stage." [After the musician played] [the piano was wheeled off the stage].

Parentese (motherese)

pattern of speech used when talking to infants - clear and simple sentences with higher pitch

Mindfulness

pay attention to what is happening in our mind and in the environment

Graceful Degradation - Connectionist Network

performance disruption occurs gradually as parts of the system are damaged

Mental Set

preconceived notion about how to approach a problem

Exemplar

previously encountered member of a category

Lexical Priming

priming that involves the meaning of words; typically occurs when a word is followed by another word with a similar meaning—for example, when presenting the word ant before the word bug causes a person to respond faster to the word bug than if ant had not preceded it

Information-Processing Approach

problem solving is a search between the posing of a problem and its solution -it cannot explain how the same problem space can vary in difficulty

What is the alternative to visual imagery?

propositional representation of stimuli

Daydreaming

purposeful mind wandering

Means-End Analysis

reduce the difference between the initial and goal states by creating sub-goals

Syntax

rules that determine how words combine into sentences

Problem #2 with Semantic Networks

semantic networks can not explain some sentence verification results

Problem #1 with Semantic Networks

semantic networks can not explain the typicality effect what are more prototypical members of sports? basketball and archery would be at the same level and the length of the line would not indicate anything

Garden Path Sentences

sentences that begin by appearing to mean one thing, but then end up meaning something else

Cognitive Economy - Semantic Networks

shared properties are stored just once at a higher-level node - information is processed just once

Grandparentese

slower, clearer, simple sentences, louder

Phonemes

smaller unit of speech sounds

Morphemes

smallest meaningful unit of language

Goal State

solution to a problem

Problem #1 to Definitional Approach

some categories do not readily lend themselves to feature analysis boundaries are fuzzy, any 2 items in a category might not share many features ex. games ring-around-the-rosy - multiple players - outdoor - not competitive solitaire - single player - indoor - competitive board games - multiple players - indoor - competitive

Expert

someone knowledgeable or skilled in a particular field -solve problems in their field more quickly and more often than beginners -possess more knowledge about their field -organize their knowledge differently than novices

Given-New Contract

speaker should constructs sentences that include given information (that the listener already knows) and new information (that the listeners is hearing for the first time) ex. Ed was [given an alligator (new)] for [his birthday (old)]. and.. [The alligator (old)] was [his favorite present (new)].

Conceptual Knowledge

stored in LTM knowledge that enables us to recognize objects and events and to make inferences about their properties

Insight

sudden realization of a solution to a problem; often involves reorganization

Creative Cognition

technique to train people to think creatively

Functional Fixedness

tendency to focus on familiar functions or uses of objects

Key properties of Semantic Networks

the distance between concepts (nodes) is related to the time it takes to access them (retrieval in brain) -if two items are closer on the network (how many nodes away), you will be able to respond more quickly

Psycholinguistics

the field concerned with the psychological study of language

Specific Level - Hierarchical Organization

the most specific you can get from other similar pen - below basic level - little information is gained at the specific level ex. paper mate blue pen

Target Problem

the problem you are trying to solve

Restructuring - "Gestalt Approach"

the process of changing a problem's representation

Kosslyn's Mental Scanning studies

the response time is longer the farther 2 locations are from each other

Problem Space

the set of possible pathways to a solution considered by the problem solver

Creativity

the use of imagination or original ideas

Problem Representation - "Gestalt Approach"

the way a problem is translated or represented in our mind

Divergent Thinking

thinking that is open-ended and involves a large number of potential "solutions"

Generalization of Learning

training a system to recognize properties of one concept provides information about related concepts

What is the difference between visual imagery and perception?

visual imagery - effortful and fragile perception - automatic and stable

How are visual imagery and perception similar?

visual imagery and perception both involve spatial representation of stimuli

Is visual imagery more or less vivid than perception?

visual imagery is less vivid than perception

Visual imagery interacts with perception

visual imagery primes perception

scene context influences parsing

visual stimuli influences the way we break sentences to make meaning visual word paradigm - one-apple scene ex. "place the [apple on the towel] [in the box]" vs. "place the apple that's on the towel in the box"

Mental Scanning

we create mental images and then scan them into our mind

Symbolic Distance Effect

we detect more details when we are closer to a stimulus

Which Categorization Approach is better?

we likely use a combination of prototypes and exemplars to categorize things in everyday life ex. a doctor that sees more patients (exemplars)

story context influences parsing

we need story context to understand the meaning of a sentence "The horse raced past the barn fell." vs. "There were two jockeys who decided to race their horses. One raced his horse along the path that went past the garden. The other raced his horse along the path that went past the barn. The horse raced past the barn fell."

Speech Segmentation

we perceive individual words even though there are often no silences between them

word meaning influences parsing

we rely on what the word means when there is ambiguity in the sentence meaning "They spy saw the man with the binoculars." does the spy have the binoculars? OR does the man have the binoculars?

Word Frequency Effect

we respond faster to words that occur more frequently we fixate less to words that occur more frequency

Mental Rotation

we rotate visual images in the mind

Problem

when there is an obstacle between a present state and a goal -need to be identified before they can be solved

Lexical Ambiguity

words often have more than one meaning