PSY190 General Psychology
Introduction Cognitive psychology: the study of the mental
processes by which information from the environment is modified, made meaningful, stored, retrieved, used, and communicated to others. Life depends largely on the proper operation of both thinking and language skills. Two major topics: What thought is and its functions and components How language is acquired and used
The Circle of Thought
Five core functions of human thinking—
describe, elaborate, decide, plan, and guide action Ex: exam scope- important parts- what to study-
when to study- action
Thought is an information-processing system Thinking- the manipulation of mental
representations
The Circle of Thought (con’t)
Measuring Information Processing Mental Chronometry-reaction time
factors influence reaction time: complexity, expectancy, stimulus-response compatibility, and speed-accuracy tradeoff.
Evoked Brain Potentials analyze mental events and timing.
Reactions: changes in voltage on an electroencephalogram (EEG).
Neuroimaging- PET scans and fMRI technologies
Ex: frontal lobe activity is higher when the task is new and difficult- problem solving hippocampus became active when task was well learnedperforming from memory
THE INGREDIENTS OF THOUGHT
What specific form does information take in our mind? Concepts are categories of objects, events, or ideas with common
properties, such as the way they look or the subjects they contain. (ex: cellphone) Have a concept- recognize the properties and features that shared by the members of the category Type of concepts: Formal concept- can be clearly defined (ex: square) Natural concept- has no fixed defining features but has a set of
characteristic features (ex: game) Prototype- a member that possesses all or most features
THE INGREDIENTS OF THOUGHT (con’t) Propositions are the mental representations that
express relationships between concepts
the smallest units of knowledge that can stand as
separate assertions. can be either true or false.
Schemas are our general knowledge about categories
of objects, events, and people.
Help us understand the world (ex: car and brake) and
create expectation (ex: lab)
Scripts- a mental representation of familiar
sequences of activity (ex: restaurant script) Mental model- a representation of particular situations or arrangements of objects. (ex: 3D model of the room)
THINKING STRATEGIES Information-processing system combines, transforms, &
elaborates mental representation. Reasoning is the process by which we generate arguments, evaluate them, and reach conclusions. Formal reasoning- mental procedures that yield a valid conclusion. (ex: volume of a thing) Confirmation bias- pay more attention to consistent evidence
Informal reasoning- inducing a conclusion on the basis of
specific facts or examples. (ex: dogs have 4 legs) Heuristics- a time saving mental shortcut used in reasoning
(ex: where to find your wallet?)
THINKING STRATEGIES (con’t) The Anchoring Heuristic. Judgments are based on existing information Ex: effect of 1st impression, suggesting price The Representativeness Heuristic. Decisions are based on similarity to other members of that class Ex: The Availability Heuristic. Judgments are based on information that is most easily brought to mind Ex: chances of winning a lottery
PROBLEM SOLVING Strategies
Incubation- setting a problem aside for a while and
thinking about other things. Means-end analysis- identify subgoals to solve the main problem step-by-step. Ex: writing assignment: outline- data- draft- review
Working Backward- start with the solution and
determine what you need to generate solution. Ex: finish assignment in 1 month- what to do in
4th ,3rd ,2nd ,1st week
Using Analogies- find similarities between the
present problem and other problems you have encountered before.
Obstacles to Problem Solving Multiple Hypotheses. Testing the incorrect hypothesis first
when more than one hypothesis exists can delay problem solving. Mental Sets. The tendency for old patterns of problem solving to persist, even when better strategies might be available. Functional fixedness, the inability to use objects in new ways,
can also impede problem solving.
Ignoring Negative Evidence. Do not use the lack of evidence
as often as we should when testing a hypothesis. The Confirmation Bias. Once we choose a hypothesis, we tend to interpret available information as confirming it.
DECISION MAKING
Evaluating Options Multiattribute decision making involves choosing between options that have both positive and negative features, or attributes. Ex: further study or working
Comparing Attributes is difficult because of limited
storage capacity of working memory. Utility is the subjective, personal value of each attribute.
Estimating Probabilities- consider the probabilities and
the expected value of certain outcomes. Ex: admission test for Harvard U vs job interview
LANGUAGE A language has two basic elements: symbols (words) and
grammar (rules of combination). The Elements of Language: Phonemes are the smallest unit of sound with meaning.
Ex: T E A vs S E A
Morphemes are the smallest unit of language with meaning.
Most of them are words. (ex: man) Words are made up of one or more morphemes.
Ex: fireman
Rules of syntax determine the ways in which words are
combined to form sentences. (Ex: noun, verb, adjective) Semantics are rules that govern the meanings of words and sentences.
Surface Structure and Deep Structure Surface structure: The order in which words
are arranged in sentences. Deep structure: An abstract representation of the underlying meanings of a given sentence. Ex: The movie is very artistic.
The Development of Language Few months old babies know the different between the
sound of native language and other languages. Early experience with language is vital 4 months of age, babies begin repeating simple syllables, called babblings. At about 9 months, babies stop uttering sounds that are not part of the language to which they are exposed. At 12 to 18 months, babies utter their first real words, which usually are proper names and object words. Ex: daddy, doggy In the one-word stage, children tend to use one word at a
time and overextend its use to mean more than one object. (Ex: use dog for all four-legs animal)
The Development of Language (con’t) About 18 to 24 months of age as two-word pairs. These
first sentences are telegraphic: brief and to the point. Ex: give book
Next are three-word sentences that use subject-verb-
object sequences. Ex: mommy give book Word endings (ex: suffix –ed) begin to appear, but at first are
used incorrectly.
At about age 3, children begin to use auxiliary verbs,
question words, and clauses. By age 5, children have acquired most of the syntax of their native language.
How Is Language Acquired?
Conditioning, imitation, and rules do not fully explain
the development of language in children. However, when adults provide correct revisions of a child’s conversation, the learning process is enhanced. Biological Bases for Language Acquisition. Noam Chomsky suggests that children possess an
innate universal grammar that helps them learn the complexities of language. Specific language impairment runs in family
Bilingualism- Children in a bilingual environment prior
to the end of the critical period show enhanced language performance.
Tutorial question 6 What is heuristic? Why do we need heuristic? Explain the following heuristics and give
example for each of them. The Anchoring Heuristic The Representativeness Heuristic The availability Heuristic