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