Chapter 8: Cognition, Language, and Problem Solving

Cognitive Economy, Heuristics, and Biases

Cognitive economy refers to the mental shortcuts our brains use to process information efficiently. While these shortcuts can be helpful, they can also lead to errors in judgment.

• Heuristics: Simple, efficient rules for making decisions or judgments quickly.

• Representativeness heuristic: Judging the probability of an event by how much it resembles a typical case.

• Availability heuristic: Estimating the likelihood of events based on how easily examples come to mind.

• Base rate: The actual frequency of an event in the general population, often ignored in favor of heuristics.

• Hindsight bias: The tendency to believe, after an event has occurred, that we could have predicted the outcome.

• Confirmation bias: The tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms our preconceptions.

• Top-down processing: Using background knowledge to influence perception.

• Bottom-up processing: Building up to perception from individual sensory information.

• Concepts: Mental groupings of similar objects, events, or people.

• Schemas: Organized knowledge structures or mental models that guide our understanding and expectations.

Example: Using the availability heuristic, a person may overestimate the danger of airplane crashes after seeing news reports, even though car accidents are statistically more common.

Decision Making and Problem Solving

• Framing: The way information is presented can affect decisions and judgments.

• Algorithms: Step-by-step procedures that guarantee a solution.

• Mental sets: The tendency to approach problems using a mindset that has worked previously.

• Functional fixedness: The tendency to see objects as only working in a particular way.

Example: A mental set might prevent someone from seeing a new use for a familiar object, such as using a coin as a screwdriver.

Language

• Phonemes: The smallest units of sound in a language.

• Morphemes: The smallest units of meaning in a language.

• Syntax: The rules for combining words into grammatically correct sentences.

• Extralinguistic information: Nonverbal elements that add meaning to language (e.g., tone, gestures).

• Generativity: The ability to produce an infinite number of sentences using a finite set of elements.

• One-word stage: Early stage of language development where children speak mostly in single words.

• Critical and sensitive periods: Optimal times for language acquisition; after these periods, language learning becomes more difficult.

• Sign language: A fully developed language with its own grammar, similar in complexity to spoken language.

Example: The word 'reframed' has 7 phonemes (r-e-f-r-a-m-d) and 2 morphemes ('re-' and 'framed').

Reading

• Phonetic decomposition: Decoding words by sounding them out.

• Whole-word recognition: Identifying words as a whole without sounding them out.

• Reading automaticity: The ability to read words quickly and effortlessly.

• Stroop effect: The delay in reaction time when the color of a word does not match the name of the color (e.g., the word 'red' printed in blue ink).

Example: In the Stroop task, automatic reading of the word interferes with naming the ink color, demonstrating the power of automaticity in reading.

Chapter 9: Intelligence

Intelligence: Definitions and Theories

• Intelligence: The ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and adapt to new situations.

• Abstract thinking: The capacity to understand complex concepts not tied to concrete objects.

• General intelligence (g): A single factor that underlies overall intellectual ability.

• Specific intelligence (s): Abilities in particular areas (e.g., math, verbal).

• Fluid intelligence: The ability to solve new problems and think logically in novel situations.

• Crystallized intelligence: Accumulated knowledge and skills over time.

• Multiple intelligences: The idea that intelligence is composed of several distinct types (e.g., linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial).

• Triarchic model of intelligence: Proposes three types: analytical, creative, and practical intelligence.

Example: Solving a new type of puzzle uses fluid intelligence, while recalling historical facts uses crystallized intelligence.

IQ Tests

• WAIS (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale): A widely used IQ test for adults, with four main subscales:

  • Verbal Comprehension

  • Perceptual Reasoning

  • Working Memory

  • Processing Speed

• Bias in IQ test questions: Some questions may favor certain cultural or socioeconomic groups.

Example: A question requiring knowledge of a specific cultural reference may disadvantage test-takers from different backgrounds.

Genetic and Environmental Influences on IQ

• Family, twin, and adoption studies: Research designs used to estimate the heritability of intelligence.

• Findings suggest both genetic and environmental factors influence IQ.

• Environmental influences: Factors such as poverty, nutrition, and exposure to toxins (e.g., lead) can affect IQ.

• Flynn effect: The observed rise in average IQ scores over time, likely due to environmental improvements.

Group Differences and Other Dimensions of Intelligence

• Group differences in IQ: Differences are often explained by environmental factors, not innate ability.

• Stereotype threat: The risk of confirming negative stereotypes about one's group, which can impact performance.

• Creativity: The ability to produce novel and valuable ideas.

• Divergent thinking: Generating multiple solutions to a problem.

• Convergent thinking: Narrowing down to the single best solution.

• Emotional intelligence (EQ): The ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions effectively.

• Curiosity, grit, wisdom: Other traits related to success and adaptation.

Chapter 10: Developmental Psychology

Research Methods and Fallacies

• Post-hoc fallacy: Mistakenly assuming that because one event follows another, the first caused the second.

• Cohort effects: Differences between age groups due to historical or social factors, not age itself.

• Cross-sectional design: Compares different age groups at one point in time.

• Longitudinal design: Follows the same group over time.

• Strengths/weaknesses: Cross-sectional is quicker but may have cohort effects; longitudinal tracks change but is time-consuming.

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

• Assimilation: Incorporating new experiences into existing schemas.

• Accommodation: Modifying schemas to fit new information.

• Sensorimotor stage (0-2 years): Learning through senses and actions; object permanence develops.

• Preoperational stage (2-7 years): Symbolic thinking, egocentrism (difficulty seeing others' perspectives).

• Concrete operational stage (7-11 years): Logical thinking about concrete events; conservation of mass/volume/number understood.

• Formal operational stage (12+ years): Abstract and hypothetical reasoning.

Example: Conservation of liquid quantity is understood in the concrete operational stage.

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory

• Scaffolding: Support provided by adults or peers to help a child learn a new skill.

• Zone of proximal development: The range of tasks a child can perform with guidance but not alone.

Example: A parent helps a child solve a puzzle by giving hints, gradually reducing help as the child learns.

Theory of Mind and Temperament

• Theory of mind: Understanding that others have thoughts, beliefs, and perspectives different from one's own.

• False belief task: Used to assess theory of mind; relates to Piaget’s preoperational stage.

• Temperament: Basic emotional style; includes easy, difficult, slow-to-warm-up, and behavioral inhibition types.

Attachment and Morality

• The Strange Situation: A procedure to assess attachment styles in children.

• Attachment styles:

  • Secure: Comfortable with caregiver, distressed when they leave, comforted on return.

  • Insecure-avoidant: Indifferent to caregiver's presence or absence.

  • Insecure-anxious: Clingy, very distressed when caregiver leaves, not easily comforted.

  • Disorganized: Inconsistent or confused behavior.

• Kohlberg’s levels of morality:

  • Preconventional: Morality based on consequences (punishment/reward).

  • Conventional: Morality based on social rules and approval.

  • Postconventional: Morality based on abstract principles and justice.

Chapter 12: Stress, Coping, and Health

Understanding Stress

• Stress as stimuli: Events or situations that cause stress.

• Stress as response: Physical and psychological reactions to stressors.

• Stress as transaction: The interaction between a person and their environment.

• Primary appraisal: Assessing whether an event is threatening.

• Secondary appraisal: Evaluating one's ability to cope with the threat.

Coping Strategies

• Problem-focused coping: Tackling the problem directly to reduce stress.

• Emotion-focused coping: Managing emotional responses to stress.

• Proactive coping: Anticipating and preparing for potential stressors.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

• Alarm: Initial reaction to stress, activating the body's resources.

• Resistance: Body adapts and copes with the stressor.

• Exhaustion: Resources are depleted, leading to decreased resistance to stress.

Example: Facing a major exam, a student first feels anxious (alarm), then studies intensively (resistance), and may feel burnt out if stress continues (exhaustion).

Responses to Stress and Control Strategies

• Fight-or-flight response: Physiological reaction to perceived threat, preparing for action.

• Tend and befriend response: Seeking social support and nurturing others in response to stress (more common in females).

• Control strategies:

  • Behavioral: Taking action to reduce stress.

  • Cognitive: Changing thoughts about the stressor.

  • Decisional: Choosing among options to reduce stress.

  • Informational: Seeking information to reduce uncertainty.

  • Emotional: Managing emotional responses.

Health, Medicine, and Placebo Effects

• Risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD): Include stress, poor diet, lack of exercise, and smoking.

• Alternative medicine: Used instead of conventional medicine.

• Complementary medicine: Used alongside conventional medicine.

• Placebo effect: Improvement due to the expectation of improvement, not the treatment itself.

• Importance in CAM (Complementary and Alternative Medicine): Placebo effects must be controlled for to determine if a treatment is truly effective.

Sample Table: Comparison of Research Designs

Additional Info

• For each key term, be able to define it and provide an example.

• Practice applying concepts to real-life scenarios, as in the sample questions provided.

• Review the differences between similar concepts (e.g., assimilation vs. accommodation, problem-focused vs. emotion-focused coping).