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