1. Click your
to advance

13. Thinking, Language and Intelligence

14. Thought
Cognition—mental activities involved in acquiring, retaining, and using knowledge
Thinking—manipulation of mental representations to draw inferences and conclusions
Mental image—representation of objects or events that are not present

15. Concepts
Concept—mental category of objects or ideas based on shared properties
Formal concept—mental category formed by learning rules
Natural concept—mental category formed by everyday experience

16. Examples of Concepts
Formal concept—follows rigid rules, not usually intuitive (A polygon is….)
Natural concept—results from everyday experience (Some mammals are….)

17. Problem Solving Strategies
Discovering Psy p.245
Trial and error

18. Problem Solving Strategies
y + z = r2
Algorithm

19. Problem Solving Strategies
Heuristic—strategy that involves following a general rule of thumb to reduce the number of possible solutions

20. Insight and Intuition
Insight—sudden realization about how a problem can be solved
Intuition—coming to a conclusion without conscious awareness of thought processes involved

21. Functional Fixedness type of mental set
inability to see an object as having a function other than its usual one
key words: functional fixedness; mental set; problem solving
Some examples of overcoming functional fixedness include:
1. Using a dime to unscrew something when a screwdriver cannot be found.
2. Using a book to prop open a door when a doorstop cannot be found.
3. Before a baseball game, a rainstorm occurred. They wanted to dry the field a little before beginning play, so they had a helicopter hover above the field, and the rotating helicopter blades acted as a fan and helped dry up the field.

22. Nine dots problem
Without lifting your pencil or re-tracing any line, draw four straight lines that connect all nine dots
key words: mental sets; problem solving; nine dots problem

23. Nine dots mental set
Most people will not draw lines that extend from the square formed by the nine dots
To solve the problem, you have to break your mental set
key words: mental sets; problem solving; nine dots problem

24. Mounting candle problem
Using only the objects present on the right, attach the candle to the bulletin board in such a way that the candle can be lit and will burn properly
key words: functional fixedness, mental set; problem solving
Although students can work on this problem by simply thinking and visualizing a solution in their heads, this demonstration works better by by bringing the actual materials to class and doing a live demonstration with your students, letting them attemtp to solve the problem through trial and error.
To do this task you need the folllowing materials:
1. a cork bulletin board
2. a book of matches
3. a candle
4. a BOX of thumbtacks
- make sure you keep the thumbtacks in a BOX
- also make sure the thumbtacks aren't too big that they can pass through your candle. The smaller the thumb tack, the better

25. Answer to candle problem
Most people do not think of using the box for anything other than its normal use (to hold the tacks)
To solve the problem, you have to overcome functional fixedness
key words: functional fixedness; mental sets; problem solving

26. Mental Set Q: Why couldn’t you solve the previous problems?
A: Mental set—a well-established habit of perception or thought

27. Decision Making
Single feature model—make a decision by focusing on only one feature
Additive model—systematically evaluate the important features of each alternative
Elimination-by-aspects—rate choices based on features. Eliminate those that do not meet the desired criteria, despite other desirable characteristics.

28. Availability Heuristic
Judge probability of an event by how easily you can recall previous occurrences of that event
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
key words: availability heuristic

29. Representative Heuristic
Judge probability of an event based on how it matches a prototype
Can be good
But can also lead to errors
Most will overuse this strategy
key words: representativeness heuristic

30. Bias Effects
Confirmation bias—only search for information confirming one’s hypothesis
Belief bias—accept only information that conforms to beliefs
Fallacy of positive instances—remember uncommon events that confirm our beliefs
Overestimation—tendency to overestimate rarity of events
key words: inductive reasoning; confirmation bias

31. Strategies for solving problems
1. Break mental sets
2. Find useful analogy
3. Represent information efficiently
4. Find shortcuts
5. Establish sub-goals
6. Turn ill-defined problems into well-defined problems
key words: functional fixedness; mental sets; problem solving; finding analogies; shortcuts; heuristics; subgoals; ill-defined problems; well-defined problems

32. Language Language and thinking Language and social perception
Language and gender bias
Animal communication

33. Language and Thinking
Language is a system for combining arbitrary symbols to produce an infinite number of meaningful statements

34. Characteristics of Language
Connection between word and symbol usually arbitrary
Meaning of symbols is shared among speakers of the language
Has syntax--set of specific structural rules
Is generative--can create infinite number of phrases
Displacement--can communicate meaningfully about things that are not present

35. Animal Communication
Animals clearly communicate with each other, but is that language?
Some primates that have been trained demonstrate the same level of language comprehension as that of an average 2 1/2-year-old child
Non-primates can also acquire some language abilities, i.e., dolphins, parrots

36. Animal cognition—Do animals “think”? Do they have “self-awareness”?
Hockenbury dp3 p272 and 273

37. Intelligence
Global capacity to think rationally, act purposefully, and deal effectively with the environment

38. Measuring Intelligence
Alfred Binet
Mental age
Chronological age
IQ—comparison of people in similar age groups
Hockenbury Discovering psy p257

39. Alfred Binet (1857–1911)
Intelligence—collection of higher-order mental abilities loosely related to one another
Did not rank “normal” students according to the scores
Intelligence is nurtured
Binet-Simon Test developed in France, 1905

40. Modern Intelligence Tests
The Stanford-Binet Scale
modification of the original Binet-Simon, bu Lewis Terman at Stanford university
intelligence quotient (IQ)—child’s mental age divided by child’s chronological age

41. Group Intelligence Testing
Began during WWI when the army had to screen millions of army recruits
Army Alpha--given to people who could read
Army Beta--given to people who could not read
Adapted for civilian use, but widely misused

42. Wechsler Intelligence Tests
Used more widely now than Stanford-Binet
Modeled after Binet’s, adult test called WAIS
Consisted of several subtests
Reflected belief that intelligence involves different strengths and weaknesses

43. WAIS Scales Test measured several abilities
Performance scales--nonverbal abilities
Verbal scales--vocabulary, comprehension, and other verbal tasks
Sub-scales gave the WAIS practical and clinical value

44. Types of Tests
Achievement test—designed to measure level of knowledge, skill, or accomplishment in a particular area
Aptitude test—designed to measure capability to benefit from education or training
Interest test—measures self-reported vocational interests and skills

45. Qualities of Good Tests
Standardized—administered to large groups of people under uniform conditions to establish norms
Reliable—ability to produce consistent results when administered on repeated occasions under similar conditions
Valid—ability to measure what the test is intended to measure

46. Standardized Scoring of Wechsler Tests
All raw scores converted to standardized scores
Normal distribution
Mean of 100
Standard deviation of 15
2.14%
13.59%
34.13%
0.13%
95.44%
68.26%
Wechsler IQ score
Number of score
figure taken from CD-ROM, Gray text, pg. 363, figure 10.5

47. How valid are IQ tests?
Validity—test measures what it’s intended to measure
Does test correlate with other measures of same construct?
School achievement
IQ tests (i.e., S-B and the Wechsler) correlate highly
but they were designed to test what you learn in school
Prestigious positions
On-the-job performance & other work-related variables

48. What do IQ tests measure about your mind?
Mental speed and span of working memory
typically use a digit span test to measure this
more recent studies find significant correlations between reaction times and IQ scores
Why is this important?
mental quickness may expand capacity of working memory
I have already used digit span tests in my lectures during the memory chapter, but an instructor who has not done so may choose to include a demonstration of digit span/working memory here.

49. Theories of Intelligence
Charles Spearman—“g” factor
Louis Thurstone—intelligence as a person’s “pattern” of mental abilities
Howard Gardner—multiple intelligences
Sternberg–triarchic theory

50. Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
Discovering Psy Fig 7.7 page 263

51. Robert Sternberg
Analytic intelligence—mental processes used in learning how to solve problems
Creative intelligence—ability to deal with novel situations by drawing on existing skills and knowledge
Practical intelligence—ability to adapt to the environment (street smarts)

52. Nature vs. Nurture in IQ
Are differences between people due to environmental or genetic differences?
Misunderstanding the question
“Is a person’s intelligence due more to genes or to environment?”
both genes & intelligence crucial for any trait
Clearly, IQ is not the only psychological construct for which this debate applies, and instructors may wish to take a moment to name the other areas (i.e., personality, mental disorders, etc.) for which heritability is hotly debated.

53. Heredity and Environment
Heritability
degree to which variation in trait stems from genetic, rather than environmental, differences among individuals
Environment
degree to which variation is due to environmental rather than genetic differences

54. Twin Studies & Family Influence
If trait genetic:
closely related more similar than less closely related
Many close relatives share environments too
Types of studies to separate effects
monozygotic twins reared together
monozygotic twins reared apart
siblings/dizygotic reared together
siblings/dizygotic reared apart
adoptive siblings reared together
MSClip art
Discussion here about the higher correlation between identical twins’ IQ scores than fraternal twins’ and whether siblings were reared together or apart and the genetic role then in intelligence

55. Racial Difference in IQ
Racial difference in average IQ among different racial groups can be measured
More variation in IQ scores within a particular group than between groups

56. Within and Between Group Differences
Each corn field planted from same package of genetically diverse seeds
One field is quite fertile, the other is not
Within each field, differences due to genetics
Between each field, differences due to environment (fertility)

57. What are some of the problems with IQ tests (and other standardized tests)

58. Other Influences on IQ Scores
Cross cultural studies show that average IQ of groups subject to social discrimination are often lower than socially dominant group even if there is no racial difference
Tests reflect the culture in which they are developed; cultural factors also influence test taking behavior (culture bias)

59. Creativity To enhance your creativity Creativity as a goal
Reinforce creative behavior
Engage in problem finding
Acquire relevant knowledge
Try different approaches
Exert effort and expect setbacks
MS Clip art Gallery