1. Thinking

2. Concepts Mental grouping of similar things, events, and people that is used to remember and understand what things are, what they mean, and what categories or groups they belong to. For example, if I say to you, "think of a car," the concept, "car" will evoke some ideas in your head about what a car is and what types of characteristics it contains -- does your concept of a car have black tires, two doors, four doors, is it red, white, black, etc.?

3. Types of Concepts: Formal vs. Natural Concepts Formal concept— rigid rules or features that define a particular concept. – Each member of concept has all characteristics; if don’t have all, cannot be member Categories for solid, liquid, or gas A polygon is… Square = 4 equal sides, 4 right angle corners

4. Types of Concepts Natural concept -defined by a general set of features, not all of which must be present for an object to be considered a member of the concept – Birds (birds fly, lay eggs, have feathers, have wings…) ostrich??? Why not snakes? – Define “justice”

5. Problem Solving Thinking and behavior directed toward attaining a goal that is not readily available. Must understand the problem correctly to accurately solve it.

6. Methods of problem solving 1.Algorithms 2.Heuristics

7. Algorithms Benefits Guaranteed solution Drawbacks Inefficient SPLOYOCHYG = 907,200 possible combinations

8. Heuristics Benefits Quicker Simplifies Will probably find solution Drawbacks Not guaranteed solution Potential for errors SPLOYOCHYG = exclude rare letter combinations; YY doesn’t usually happen

9. More Methods of Problem Solving See handout

10. Obstacles to Solving Problems –How Heuristics Can Lead to Errors

11. Representative heuristic Judgments are biased by our assessment of the degree to which the salient (a feature that stands out) features of specific instances resemble general categories.. – Example: Because Ken is 6‘6“, people often mistakenly assume that he must be a member of his college's basketball team Can be good, but can also lead to errors Stereotyping??? – Judge others according to the likelihood that they fit our representation of groups to which we feel they should belong

12. Most will overuse representativeness – i.e. Steve’s description fits our vision of a librarian Most will underuse base rates Base rate - probability that an event will occur or fall into a certain category (base rate fallacy) – Did you stop to consider that there are a lot more salespeople in the world than librarians? – By sheer statistics, there is a greatly likelihood that Steve is a salesperson. But very few take this into account

13. Availability Heuristic Judgment are biased by how easily specific examples are recalled. When instances of an event are easily recalled we consider that event more likely to reoccur. Vivid = more easily recalled Most will overestimate deaths from natural disasters because disasters are frequently on TV Most will underestimate deaths from asthma because they don’t make the local news Rare events can cause us to overestimate the likelihood of reoccurrence. (i.e plane crashes)

14. Overconfidence The tendency to overestimate the accuracy of one’s knowledge and judgments Bias in which someone's subjective confidence in their judgments is reliably greater than their objective accuracy From combination of use of heuristics, eagerness to confirm our beliefs, & tendency to explain away failures (self-serving bias??) How long will it take you to finish your notes & questions?????

15. Anchoring Heuristic Make decisions/judgments by anchoring on an initial value and adjusting their answer from that point – Tend to stay close to initial value; not as great a change as the evidence indicates there should be – Estimates of price, quantity, distance, & likelihood can be altered drastically by manipulating the initial value – If asked whether the population of Turkey was greater or less than 30 million, you might give one or other answer. If then asked what you thought the actual population was, you would very likely guess somewhere around 30 million, because you have been anchored by the previous answer. – Why would the anchoring heuristic be an issue for defense attorneys?

16. More Obstacles to Solving Problems

17. Framing Answer each of the following in writing: What is framing? Create an example which demonstrates the concept of framing. How might framing affect an individual’s decision making? Can you relate framing to any research studies discussed in a previous unit?

18. Framing The way an issue is worded or presented Can influence decisions and judgments – You need surgery. The surgeon tells you the surgery has a 90% success rate. OR – You need surgery. The surgeon tells you the surgery has a 10% death rate. If you couldn’t do it before, can you relate framing to Elizabeth Loftus’ work??

19. Fixation Inability to see problem from a new, different perspective – Hinders the solution of a problem How are mental sets and functional fixedness examples of fixation?

20. Fixation: Mental Set A tendency to approach a problem in a particular, previously successful way May or may not be helpful in solving a new problem http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfQxZTtbCTg (Die Hard III) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfQxZTtbCTg

21. Fixation: Functional Fixedness Tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual function; inability to see other possible functions Have to unlock the door? Use a credit card. Tighten a screw without a screwdriver? –Use scissors

22. Other sources of error in decision making/judgment Belief perseverance How does belief perseverance differ from confirmation bias???

23. Confirmation Bias search for information confirming one’s belief; ignore or distort contradictory evidence Examples: – A reporter who is writing an article on an important issue may only interview experts that support her or his views on the issue. – An employer who believes that a job applicant is highly intelligent may pay attention to only information that is consistent with the belief that the job applicant is highly intelligent. – I think the current health care bill is terrible. I listen to some conservative talk show and they CONFIRM my belief -I must be right if even Fox Entertainment says so too.:) I confirm my existing belief..looking for evidence to support it.

24. Belief Perseverance When beliefs persist after the evidence for them is shown to be false (new information discredits the basis on which they were formed) Once we have decided that we believe something, we will tend to keep on believing it, even in the face of disconfirming evidence. the best advice to give people who want to avoid belief perseverance is: “Consider the Opposite” Example: I think that the current health care bill is terrible. I actually research it and find out that it is wonderful for all - and that my belief is not valid based on my research - YET I persevere and say - oh no that study is biased I am right.. :) Can you relate belief perseverance to any social psychology concepts?????

25. A merchant owed a large sum of money to a moneylender. The old, ugly moneylender fancied the merchant's beautiful daughter. He proposed that he would forget the debt if he could marry the merchant's daughter. The merchant and his daughter were horrified. The cunning moneylender suggested that they let providence decide the matter. He told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would have to pick a pebble from the bag. If she picked a black pebble she would have to marry the moneylender and the debt would be forgotten. If she picked a white pebble, she need not marry him, and the debt would be forgotten. If she refused to pick a pebble, the merchant would have to go to jail. The moneylender bent over and picked up two pebbles. The sharp- eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick her pebble from the bag. How could the daughter avoid marrying the moneylender and resolve her father’s debt without her or her father going to jail?

26. CREATIVITY Ability to produce new, novel, valuable ideas Convergent vs. divergent thinking: – Which type of thinking does the moneylender problem require you to use? – Why is this so?

27. Kinds of Thinking 1.Convergent (directed) thinking – Systematic, logical attempt to achieve specific goal – Needed for problem for which there is one specific solution – Associated with left parietal lobe Convergent--> One answer

28. Convergent thinking questions usually begin with these words or phrases: Why How In what ways... Examples of convergent thinking questions: How does gravity differ from electrostatic attraction? How was the invasion of Grenada a modern day example of the Monroe Doctrine in action? Why was Richard III considered an evil king? In what ways does Roman drama compare to the heroic epics of Indian literature?

29. Kinds of Thinking 2. Divergent (non-directed) thinking – Creative; no one specific answer – Free flow of thoughts, imagery, feelings – May occur when relaxing; allows unexpected insights – Associated with frontal lobes Divergent----> Many possible answers

30. Divergent thinking questions usually begin with these words or phrases: Imagine... Suppose... Predict... If..., then... How might... Can you create... What are some possible consequences... Examples of divergent thinking questions: Can you imagine ways that soccer typifies Mexican culture? Suppose that Caesar never returned to Rome from Gaul. Would the Empire have existed? What predictions can you make regarding the voting process in Florida? How might life in the year 2100 differ from today? The computer corrects spelling. Is it then unnecessary for third graders to take spelling tests?

31. Kinds of Thinking 3.Metacognition – Thinking about thinking – May involve thinking about your own thinking strategies (e.g., stuck on math problem; consider your strategy)