1. Area of psychology that refers broadly to mental processes or thinking
COGNITION
Area of psychology that refers broadly to mental processes or thinking

2. Problem Solving
Refers to the active efforts to discover what must be done to achieve a goal that is not readily attainable
Must go beyond given information to overcome obstacles to reach goal/solution

3. Types of Problems Problems of Inducing Structure
Must discover relations among parts of problem
Analogy
Merchant:Sell::Customer: ___
Series Completion
+-XX++-X++--X++-??X

4. Problems of Arrangement
Arrange parts in a way that satisfies some criterion
Often solved w/burst of insight
Anagrams:
elsnsmea = salesmen
String Problem p.

5. Problems of Transformation
Must carry out a sequence of transformations in order to reach a goal
Hobbits & Orcs
Water Jar Problem

6. Barriers to Problem Solving
Irrelevant Information: trying to use all info. to solve a problem/numerical
Functional Fixedness: a tendency to perceive only a limited number of uses for an object, thus interfering with the process of problem solving
Mental Set: the tendency to perceive and to approach problems in certain ways---especially ones that worked in the past

7. Try to figure this out… What is the pattern of the following numbers:

8. More barriers…
Unnecessary Constraints: perceiving barriers that don’t exist
People usually make assumptions that impose unnecessary constraints on problem-solving
Nine-dot problem

9. Producing Strategies & Evaluating Progress
Trial & Error: works best with limited choices
Algorithm: step-by-step problem-solving method that guarantees a solution
Heuristics: short cuts to problem solving; called “rule of thumb” used to simplify problem
Forming subgoals
Analogy
Changing representation of problem-good to use when your initial attempts were unsuccessful

10. Unscramble the following letters…
G S P L O Y O C H Y
Algorithm
All 90, 208 combinations
Heuristic
Throw out all YY combinations

11. Decision Making
Involves evaluating alternatives and making choices among them
Simon’s theory of bounded rationality: asserts people frequently make irrational decisions that are less than optimal
We tend to use simple strategies that only give us a few options where more are available

12. Making Choices Additive Strategy: list/weigh options (p. 231)
Elimination by Aspects: alternatives are eliminated by evaluating attributes
We tend to use additive more often, however, as more options/factors are added we switch to elimination by aspects.

13. Decision Making Heuristics
Availability: easily retrieved information from LTM sways decision
KLNRV: Do these letters appear more often in the 1st or 3rd letter position?
Is flying more dangerous than driving?
People tend to overestimate the likelihood of improbable events
Representativeness: resemblance to a stereotypic model used to judge a new situation
Steven is articulate, outgoing, artistic, and politically liberal. Is it more likely that he:
A) is an engineering major, or
B) started out as an engineering major and switched to journalism?
Illustrates conjunction fallacy

14. Confirmation Bias: seeking evidence in support of our beliefs; ignoring evidence that is not
Overconfidence Effect: people put too much faith in their estimates, beliefs, and decisions
We tend to be more confident than accurate!
The more confident we are about our predictions, the more likely we are overconfident. (p. 237)