PSYC100- Queens Final Exam

communication

information exchanged between the sender and receiver that is mutually understood

language

a socially agreed upon, rule governed system of arbitrary symbols that can be combined in different ways to communicate ideas and feelings about the present time and place and other times and places, real or imagined

semanticity

language conveys meaning

generatively

the ability to combine words or symbols of language using rules of composition and syntax to communicate a nearly infinite variety of ideas using a relatively small vocabulary

displacement

refers to the ability to use language to convey messages that are not tied to the immediate context

phonology

rules governing patterns of sounds used in a language: which sounds are used and how they are combined

phoneme

the basic distinctive speech sounds in a language the distinguish two words

morpheme

combination sof phonemes and the smallest units of meaning in a language

free morpheme

meaningful on their own, can stand alone as words

bound morphemes

only meaningful when combined with other morphemes to form words

semantics

refers to the meanings of word

syntax

grammatical rules of language for combining words to form phrases, clauses, sentences

pragmatics

social rules of language

articulators

Mouth structures that make speech sounds (jaw, tongue, lips, and soft palate).

coarticulation

speech sounds for words are not produced individually

categorical perception

The tendency of perceivers to disregard physical differences between stimuli and perceive them as the same, such that a continuous change in a physical attribute is perceived not as continuous, but as a discrete change at a category boundary.

written language

a visual symbol imposed on top of an auditory symbol system

infant directed talk

the distinctive mode of speech that adults adopt when talking to babies and very young children

language development: crying

0-2 months, only means of verbal communication

language development: cooing

~2 months, starting to make speech like sounds like drawn out vowels, smacking lips

language development: babbling

~7 months, mixing consonants and vowel sounds like "bababa"

language development: words

10-15 months, infants acquire first words + language gradually without any clear divisions between speech and non-speech, they're just sounds confirmed by parent

language development: vocabulary spurt

18 months, they know about 50 words, this is a period of strong language growth in children, they can learn and use large number of words

language development: telegraphic speech

sounds like a telegram, only essential words in pairs to make sense e.g. "I hungry", "more juice"

language development: 5-6 years

full grammatical sentences, about 10,000 words, can hold conversations

nativism

Philosophical view that were born with knowledge already present

interactionist

langue development results from interaction among multiple biological and social influences

multilingualism

societies in which two or more languages are in common use

grammer

property emerging from complexity of growing vocabulary, not biologically endowed universally: size of vocabulary correlates with complexity of grammatical

language is a social process

humans are social creatures and our environment is based on language and therefore helps language development

sensitive periods

time periods when specific skills develop most easily

nicaraguan sign language

improved language, deaf children were brought together and put together a language of their own based on gestures they used to communicate, young children who entered thereafter quickly mastered the sign language

Washoe

The Chimp that was taught sign language by the Gardners

Kanzi

A bonobo who received linguistic attention and consequently developed a remarkable ability to communicate using lexigrams and to understand spoken English.

differential approach

a method of understanding behavior by focusing on individual differences and abilities

factor analysis

a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person's total score.

binet-simon test

a mental age test that compared your score to the score of an average child of that age, used to rank children

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)

the WAIS is the most widely used intelligence test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests

stanford-binet scale

lewis German introduced ratio intelligence quotient (IQ)

Deviation IQ

a statistic obtained by dividing a person's test score by the average test score of people in the same age group and then multiplying the quotient by 100

broca's aphasia

a condition characterized by severe impairments In producing speech/ saying desired words (frontal lobe)

Wernicke's aphasia (fluent aphasia)

is associated with problems producing and understanding words that do not relate to grammar (temporal lobe)

phonetic reading

reading by decoding the phonetic significance of letter strings; "sound reading"

whole-word reading

reading by recognizing a word as a whole; "sight reading"

surface dyslexia

people confuse the visual shapes of letters e.g. b is confused with d

phonological dyslexia

people understand the word but can't sound it out

direct dyslexia

individual can read words but they can't understand the meaning of the words they're reading

nativist theory

the ability to learn language is innate, based on genetic san support the nature argument

behaviourist theory

individuals learn langue through trial and error and teaching through their environment

interactionist theory

a combination of nativist and behavioural theories. it suggest that language is a mixture of innate and environmental

Overgeneralization

when an individual uses a broad concept or rule in language when it is not appropriate

underextension

when a child fails to include something in a category it should belong to

overextension

occur when a child includes something that shouldn't belong in a category

specific intelligence

referred ti skills that applied directly to the problem being solved

general intelligence

was a factor that correlated positively with the results of all tests

general fluid intelligence

refers to the ability for intelligence to adapt and change over time

general crystallized intelligence

refers to the ability to gain knowledge and tackle problems based on a past experience or exposure

multiple intelligence theory

Gardner's theory of intellect, based on the view that people possess at least eight types of intelligence (logic mathematics, verbal linguistic, visual spatial, naturalist, bodily kinaesthetic, musical, interpersonal, interpersonal)

efficient use of neural resources

relates to higher levels of intelligence/ processing are relegated as lower activity in the brain bveacsue the brain is efficient- it doesn't have to work hard to process that information

high degree of synchronization

between different parts of the brain that help process at multiple levels and in parallel

adaptation of cortical networks

whereby high intelligence is associated with rapid increases in the metabolism of glucose/ sugar/ energy in response to new cognitive demands

ratio IQ (defined as IQ)

comparison of ones mental age compared to physical age

deviation IQ

is based on a Childs IQ score compared to other children of the same age

heritability

the degree to which the difference between individuals on a specific trait are due to genetic variation

heritability coefficient (h2)

refer to the proportion of variation in a trait accounted for by genetic variation (within a population)

environmentally

refers to the degree to which the difference between individuals on a as-civic trait are due to environmental variation

algorithms

solutions that attempt to sort through all possible outcomes/ permutations of a given problem

heuristics

follows a rule, but the rule is generally aimed at reducing the possible number of alternate approaches to a problem (unlike an algorithm that explores all of the different approaches)

representativeness heuristics

when an individual makes a conclusion about something based on what they believe fits into a particular category or stereotype

availability heuristic

refers to the preference for people to settle on whatever conclusion, is recalled from memory most easily or based on past presented information

confirmation bias

where individuals tend to try and confirm their hypotheses rather than disprove them. this is an import bias for scientists to avoid, as it is impossible to conclusively support the hypothesis, while it is possible to conclusively reject the hypothesis

belief perservance

where a person believes they are correct and don't even bother trying to gather further evidence for their argument or still believe they're correct when presented with counter argument

anchoring

when previous knowledge limits how far one is willing to go in accepting new thoughts

framing

refers to how a particular question or item is phrased or imagined that could cause influence in a response

cross sectional design

compares different people of different ages to understand changes overtime

longitudinal design

one follows a group of individuals over time

zygote

is a single cell and is a combination of the 2 parental gametes, the egg and the sprem

morula

when the embryo divides into at least 16 other cells. usually 5 days after fertilization

blastocysts

a double layer of membrane and is formed between 5-8 days after fertilization

neural tube differentiation

the basic stem cells of the spinal chord (neural tubes) differentiates into the different parts of the brain (neurogenesis is the genesis/ creation of neutrons)

androgens

must be released during this period for the fetus to begin male development if its a boy

stem cells

basic undifferentiated cells awaiting genetic and environmental instructions about what they should become (aka neurogenesis)

neural migration

leads them to the right place in the Boyd

synaptogenesis

creates synapses- connections to other neutrons that allow the neutron to communicate with its neighbours

plasticity/flexibility

describes the actively changing brain function in response to stimuli

myelination

wraps around a neuron in fat to speed it up allowing for a faster response

teratogens

Agents that damage the process of development, such as drugs and viruses

rooting reflex

try to suck objects that brush near their mouth

moro reflex

aka startle reflex; when dropped the infant flares out its arms and legs and tries to grasp with its hands and feet

grasping reflex

try to grab onto objects that brush the palm of the hand

babinski reflex

similar to grasping but for the feet. stroking the sole of the feet causes the toes to curl

Sensorimotor Schemes (0-2)

during this stage, the child does much exploring using its senses and newfound mobility. knowledge obtained primarily during this stage is primarily related to basic traits and events f the world

object permanence

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

preoperational schemes (2-7)

children are able t express their knowledge verbally, and begin to understand more complicated sensorimotor stimuli

concrete-operational schemes (7-12 years)

child is now able to understand cause and effect relationships and thus reversibility. capable of understanding the reason how things happen

formal-operational schemes (12+ years)

child/ teenager is now able to think theoretically, and apply specific knowledge to general rules and vice versa. this is the final stage

Lev Vygotsky

child development; investigated how culture & interpersonal communication guide development; zone of proximal development; play research

actual developmental level

represented their maximum current cognitive capacity

zone of proximal development

where the experience and guidance of the teacher could help the child tackle tougher mental tasks than they could alone

B.F. Skinner

operant conditioning