Chapter 7 – Cognition: Thinking , Intelligence, and Language

1. Chapter 7 – Cognition: Thinking, Intelligence, and Language Thinking is the mental representation and manipulation of information. It is mental activity. It is processing information involving organizing it, understanding it, and communicating it.

2. Mental Imagery • Mental Image is a mental picture or representation of an object or event. It is not an actual or photographic representation of an object, it is a __________________ of the object or event from memory. • CONCEPTS: Are ideas that represent a class or category of events; *they are mental categories for __________________ events, objects, and ideas on the basis of their common features or properties. Having concepts, helps us develop a sense of order in the world and allows us to distinguish threatening from harmless stimuli.

3. Types of Concepts • Concepts have been classified in two general categories, formal(logical) and natural. • Formal concepts are those that have clearly defined rules for determining membership, e.g., a square. • Natural concepts are *those with poorly defined or fuzzy rules for membership, e.g., furniture, fruit, abstractions etc. These are concepts people form as a result of their experience with them.

4. Hierarchies of Concepts • Researchers say that people order their concepts within hierarchies of broad to narrow categories. One commonly used hierarchy has three levels of concepts: superordinate, basic-level, and subordinate concepts. Superordinate concepts are broad categories, e.g., vehicle, animal, and furniture. Within these categories are basic-level concepts, such as car, dog, an chair and within these categories are subordinate concepts which are even more specific, such as SUV, greyhound, sofa. People are more likely to use basic-level concepts when identifying objects; calling an object a car rather than a vehicle.

5. Refining Concepts • Prototypes – is an example of a concept that closely matches the defining characteristics of a concept. Ex., An apple is a prototype of a _____________. • Positive instance – Is when an object fits a particular concept, e.g., a Pit Bull is a positive instance of dog. • Negative instance – Is when an object that does not fit a particular concept, e.g., a Blue Jay is a negative instance of dog but a positive instance of bird.

6. Problem Solving and Decision Making • Problem solving *is a cognitive process in which we employ mental strategies to solve problems. It occurs when a ______________ must be reached by thinking and behaving in certain ways. • METHODS PEOPLE USE TO SOLVE PROBLEMS: • Trial and Error Solutions – is when one possible solution after another is tried until a successful one is found. • ______________________ is a step-by-step set of rules that will always lead to a correct solution for solving a problem. What’s the algorithm for getting an “A” in this class? • ______________________ is a rule of thumb for solving problems or making judgments or decisions. Heuristics do not guarantee a solution, but they may help you arrive at one more quickly. Backward-working heuristic, we start with a possible solution and then work backward to see if the data support the solution.

7. Representative heuristic – Any object that shares characteristics with the members of a particular category is also a member of that category. Ex. Are all dark skin people from Africa? • Means-end analysis(heuristic)is when you evaluate the current situation and compare it to the end result you want to achieve. You then develop a step-by-step procedure to reduce the distance between the two. • Subgoals heuristic involves breaking the problem down into smaller, more manageable problems. • Analogies in solving a problem is using a strategy based on using similarities between the properties of two things or applying solutions to past problems to the problem at hand.

8. Incubation Periods is a respite from active problem-solving efforts, which may facilitate a solution. It is assumed that the passage of time helps the person develop a fresh perspective on the problem, which may lead to a sudden realization of the solution.

9. Mental Roadblocks/Impediments to Problem Solving- What are they? • Three of the most common barriers to successful problem solving are: 1) functional fixedness, 2)mental sets, and 3)confirmation bias. • Functional fixedness – *Is the inability to see how familiar objects can be used in new ways. A block to problem solving that comes from thinking about objects in terms of only their typical functions. • Mental set – Is the tendency to rely on strategies that worked in similar situations in the past but that may not be appropriate to the present situation, e.g., The Nine-Dot Problem. • Confirmation bias – Is the tendency to search for evidence that fits one’s beliefs while ignoring any evidence to the contrary.

10. Impediments in Decision Making • Decision Making is a form of problem solving in which you must select a course of action from among the available ______________. • Researchers say that underlying biases in thinking often hamper our ability to make rational choices. An example is the confirmation bias which is the tendency to stick to an initial hypothesis even in the face of strong evidence that is inconsistent with it. The confirmation bias leads us to place greater weight on information confirming our prior beliefs and expectations than on contradictory evidence.

11. Representativeness heuristic is when you assume that a given sample is representative of a larger population. • Availability heuristic is the tendency to base decisions on information that readily comes to mind. Example: You avoid roller coaster, because a very close friend dies while riding on one. • Framing is the tendency for decisions to be influenced by how potential outcomes are phrased/framed.

12. Creativity • *Creativity is thinking in ways that lead to original, practical, and meaningful solutions to problems or that generate new ideas. Is thinking in new ways. • Divergent thinking is a type of thinking in which the person starts from one point and comes up with many different ideas or possibilities based on that point. • *Convergent thinking is the attempt to narrow down a range of alternatives to converge on the one correct answer to a problem.

13. Intelligence • *Intelligence is the ability to adapt to the environment. It is the global capacity of the individual to act purposefully, to think rationally, and to deal effectively with their environment. • Theories of Intelligence: The British psychologist Charles Spearman (1863-1945) reasoned that intelligence is made up of two different abilities. The ability to reason and solve problems was labeled g factor for general intelligence, where as task-specific abilities in certain areas such as business are labeled s factor for specific intelligence. Therefore, Spearman believed that a person’s performance on any given test is a function of both “g” and “s”.

14. Multiple Intelligences • Psychologist Howard Gardner rejected the view that there is a single entity called “intelligence”. He believed there exist different types of intelligence, called multiple intelligences, that vary from person to person. Gardner identifies nine different intelligences: 1) Verbal/linguistic, 2)Musical, 3)Logical/mathematical, 4) Visual/spatial, 5) bodily-kinesthetic (movement), 6)Interpersonal, 7) intrapersonal, 8) Naturalist, and 9) Existentialist.

15. Multiple Intelligences • Psychologist Robert Sternberg emphasizes how we bring together different aspects of our intelligence to meet the demands we face in our daily lives. Sternberg proposes a triarchic theory of intelligence which holds that intelligence has three aspects: Analytic/theoretical; creative/productive, and practical. Sternberg’s analytical intelligence refers to the ability to break problems down into component parts, or analysis, for problem solving. This type of intelligence is measured by traditional intelligence tests. Creative intelligence is the ability to deal with new and different concepts and to come up with new ways of solving problems. Practical intelligence is the ability to apply what we know to everyday life and become successful. It is acting upon your common sense.

16. Measuring Intelligence • Human intelligence consists of multiple abilities. And, the cultural contexts in which intelligent behavior occurs should be considered. Because the abilities a society values determines how it defines and measures intelligence. Our society places a high value on verbal, mathematical, and spatial skills, so it is not surprising that conventional IQ tests measure these abilities and little else.

17. Measuring Intelligence • Binet’s Mental Ability Test – measured a child’s mental age, or the average age at which a child could successfully answer a particular level of questions. • Stanford-Binet and IQ – Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon calculated intelligence by subtracting the child’s mental age from his or her chronological (actual) age. Children whose mental ages sufficiently lagged behind their chronological ages were considered in need of special education. In 1912, a German psychologist, William Stern, suggested a different way of computing intelligence, which Binet and Simon adopted. Stern divided mental age by chronological age, yielding a “mental quotient.” It soon was labeled the intelligence quotient (IQ). A quotient is a number that results from dividing one number by another.

18. Measuring Intelligence • The Wechsler Tests – Developed by David Wechsler, 1981, the WAIS-R was specifically designed for adults as an intelligence test. This test not only provides an overall score of intelligence it provides a verbal and performance scores. The verbal scale measures vocabulary, comprehension, and general knowledge, whereas the performance component scale tests assess intellectual skills without requiring a verbal response, see Table 7.5 p. 281.

19. Standardization is the process of establishing norms for a test by administering the test to large numbers of people who constitute a standardization sample. • Norms are the standards used to compare an individual’s performance on a test with the performance of others. • Reliability is the stability of test scores over time. • Validity refers to the degree to which a test measures what it purports to measure.

20. IQ Tests and Cultural Bias • Most IQ tests will reflect in language, dialect, and content, the culture of the person or persons who designed the test making that test culturally bias to persons raised outside of that culture. • *Hand out the Dove Counterbalance General Intelligence Test. • The one thing that IQ tests do well is predict academic success for those who score at the higher or lower ends of the normal curve, e.g., SAT

21. Mental retardation is a generalized deficit or impairment in intellectual and social skills. Three conditions must exist before a person is diagnosed with mental retardation: 1) The IQ is 70 or below, 2) they have very poor adaptive/social skills and 3) the onset of these problems occurred before they were 18 y.o. • The preferred term is ___________________________ meaning that their behavioral and cognitive skills exist at an earlier developmental stage than the skills of others who are the same chronological age.

22. Diagnosis of Being Developmentally Delayed • The diagnosis of being developmentally delayed should not rest exclusively upon IQ test scores but should also include the strengths and weaknesses of the person in four areas: 1)Intellectual and adaptive behavior skills - ability to use language, reading and writing; hygiene skills; 2) Psychological and emotional considerations - their emotional maturity; 3) Physical and health considerations - If retardation is the result of physical conditions such as severe malnourishment, intervention may be possible yielding a higher assessment of their functioning; and 4) Environmental considerations - Exposure to unhealthy living conditions maybe can be corrected with the proper intervention.

23. Causes of being Developmentally Delayed. • The three most common biological causes of developmental delay are: 1)Down syndrome – Is a chromosomal disorder that results in mental retardation and physical abnormalities. It occurs in about one in every seven hundred live births when three chromosomes are present on the twenty-first pair of chromosomes instead of the normal two. 2) Fetal alcohol syndrome – resulting in a flattened nose, an underdeveloped upper jaw, and widely spaced eyes; and 3) Fragile X syndrome – Is caused by a change (mutation) in a gene on the X chromosome. Genes contain codes, or recipes, for proteins. Proteins are very important biological components (parts) in all forms of life. The gene on the X chromosome that causes FXS is called the Fragile X Mental Retardation 1 (FMR1) gene. The FMR1 gene makes a protein that is needed for normal brain development. In FXS, the protein is not made.

24. Gifted – Those persons that score in the 2% of the population falling on the upper end of the normal curve and typically possessing an IQ of 130 of above. • Emotional Intelligence – Is having the awareness of and ability to manage one’s own emotions as well as the ability to be self-motivated, able to feel what others feel and to be socially skilled.

25. Nature vs Nurture Controversy • Is it nature (heredity or genes) or nurture (environment)? • Language is a system of communication composed of symbols (words, hand signs, etc.) that are arranged according to a set of rules (grammar) to form meaningful expressions. • Phonemes are the basic units of sound in a language. • Morphemes are the smallest units of meaning in a language. • Syntax refers to the rules of grammar that determine how words are ordered within sentences or phrases to form meaningful expressions.

26. Culture and Language • Linguistic relativity hypothesis is the proposition that the language we use determines how we think and how we perceive the world (Whorfian hypothesis). Now researchers are saying that the culture in which we are raised, and the language we use, are important influences on how we think and how we perceive the world. • Cognitive universalism – Is a theory that concepts are universal and influence the development of language.

27. Is Language Unique to Humans? • The question of whether apes can use language depends on how broadly we define language. If our definition hinges on the ability to communicate through the use of symbols, then we can say that apes can indeed use language. However, if our definition hinges on the use of complex syntax and grammatical structures, then the ability to use language may be unique to humans. According to Noam Chomsky, trying to teach animals to use language is as irrational as trying to teach people to flap their arms and fly .

28. Overview of Theories of Intelligence • 1) It is clear that human intelligence consists of multiple abilities, and maybe multiple intelligences. 2) The cultural context in which intelligent behavior occurs needs to be considered, and 3) the abilities a society values determine how it defines and measures intelligence. Our society places a high value on verbal, mathematical, and spatial skills.

29. Cognitive reserve • Cognitive reserve is the ability of the brain to build and maintain new neurons and the connections between them. • THE END • STUDY STUDYSTUDY