Psychology Chapter 8 Thinking, Language, and intelligence

Cognition

The mental activities involved in acquiring, storing, retrieving, and using knowledge.

Prototype

A mental image or best example that embodies the most typical features of a concept or category.

Algorithm

A logical, step-by-step procedure that, if followed correctly, will always eventually solve the problem.

Heuristic

An educated guess, or “rule of thumb,” often used as a shortcut for problem solving; it does not guarantee a solution to a problem but does narrow the alternatives.

Mental set

A fixed-thinking approach to problem solving that sees only solutions that have worked in the past.

Functional fixedness

A barrier to problem solving that comes from thinking about objects as functioning only in their usual or customary way.

Availability heuristic

A cognitive strategy (or shortcut) that involves estimating the frequency or likelihood of an event based on information that is readily available in our memory.

Representativeness heuristic

A cognitive strategy (or shortcut) that involves making judgments based on how well something matches (represents) an existing prototype or stereotype.

Cognitive offloading

The use of external resources to decrease the information processing requirements of a task in order to reduce the cognitive demand.

Confirmation bias

The tendency to prefer information that confirms our preexisting positions or beliefs and to ignore or discount contradictory evidence; also known as remembering the “hits” and ignoring the “misses.”

Creativity

The ability to produce original, appropriate, and valued outcomes in a novel way; it has three characteristics—originality, fluency, and flexibility.

Divergent thinking

A type of thinking that produces many solutions to the same problem.

Convergent thinking

A type of thinking that seeks the single best solution to a problem.

Language

A form of communication using sounds or symbols combined according to specified rules.

Phoneme

The smallest basic unit of speech or sound in any given language.

Morpheme

The smallest meaningful unit of language, formed from a combination of phonemes.

Grammar

The set of rules (syntax and semantics) governing the use and structure of language.

Language acquisition device (LAD)

According to Chomsky, an innate mechanism within the brain that enables a child to analyze language and extract the basic rule of grammar.

Intelligence

The global capacity to think rationally, act purposefully, profit from experience, and deal effectively with the environment.

General intelligence (g)

Spearman’s term for a common skill set that underlies all intellectual behavior.

Fluid intelligence (gf)

The ability to think speedily and abstractly and to solve novel problems; it tends to decrease over the life span.

Crystallized intelligence (gc)

The store of knowledge and skills gained through experience and education; it tends to increase over the life span.

Normal distribution

A statistical term used to describe how traits are distributed within a population; IQ scores usually form a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve, with most scores falling near the average, and fewer scores near the extremes.

Mental age (MA)

An individual’s level of mental development relative to that of others; it was initially compared to chronological age (CA) to calculate IQ.

Intelligence quotient (IQ)

An index of intelligence initially derived from standardized tests, computed by dividing mental age (MA) by chronological age (CA) and then multiplying by 100; it is now derived by comparing individual scores with the scores of others of the same age.

Standardization

Establishing a set of uniform procedures for administering and scoring a test; also, establishing norms based on the scores of a pretested group.

Reliability

The degree to which a test produces similar scores each time it is used; stability or consistency of the scores produced by an instrument.

Validity

The degree to which a test measures what it is intended to measure.

The degree to which a test measures what it is intended to measure.

Stereotype threat

The awareness of a negative stereotype directed toward a group, which leads members of that group to respond in a self-fulfilling way that impairs their performance.

Triarchic theory of intelligence

Sternberg’s theory that intelligence involves three forms: analytical, creative, and practical.

Artificial intelligence (AI)

The scientific field concerned with creating machines that can simulate human thought processes and performance.

Emotional Intelligence (EI)

The ability to perceive, understand, manage, and utilize emotions accurately and appropriately.