Psychology Exam 3

Language

our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them as we think and communicate

Structural Units of Language

Phonemes, Morphemes, Grammar (Semantics, syntax)

Phonemes

Smallest distinctive sound unit, English has about 40, but other languages have from 10-141, people who grow up learning one set of these might have difficulty pronouncing those of another language (EX: Spanish speakers pronounce J like English speakers pronounce H)

Morphemes

smallest unit of language that carries meaning, the word TIPS has 2, one is tip and the other is S, used to communicate that the word is plural. These include prefixes and suffixes

Grammar

a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others - have semantics and syntax

semantics

study of the meaning of words, set of rules we use to derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences (adding -ed means happens in the past)

syntax

rules we use to order words into sentences; one rule of English of this says that adjectives usually come before nouns, so we say White House, but in Spanish, they say casa blanca

Stages of language development

babbling stage, one word stage, two word stage, longer phrases,

Babbling stage:

beginning by about 6 months, the infant spontaneously utters various sounds, like ah-goo

One-word Stage

beginning at or around their first birthday, a child starts to speak one word at a time, ex: a child saying DOGGY when they mean look at the dog over there

Two-word stage

by the second year, most toddlers speak in two word sentences, this is called telegraphic speech. all but the essential words are omitted as in old fashioned telegraph messages (“go car”)

Longer phrases

after telegraphic speech, children begin uttering longer phrases (mommy get ball) with syntactical sense, vocab usually increases through adulthood

Operant Learning

skinner (1957) believed that language development may be explained on the basis of learning principles. example: toddlers are rewarded with praise for producing appropriate speech

Built into Our Brain

Noam Chomsky (1964) opposed skinners ideas - suggested that the rate of language acquisition is so fast that it cannot be explained through learning principles. most of it is inborn - language has a biological basis. More proficient if language was learned early - malleability of brain

Left Brain Hemisphere

language production and comprehension centered located in this hemisphere for most people

right brain hemisphere

approximately 5 percent of people have their language centers in this hemisphere

2 areas of the left hemisphere important in speaking and language comprehension are

broca’s area and wernicke’s area

broca’s area

named after neurologist, located in the motor association cortex of the frontal lobe; key component of a complex speech network, interacting with the flow of sensory information from the temporal cortex, devising a plan for speaking and passing that plan along to the motor cortex, which controls the movements of the mouth.

Broca’s aphasia

damage to the Broca’s area, inability to get words out, but when they do get out, it makes sense because of the prober order, just leaves you with limited language

wernike’s area

also named after neurologist, located near the auditory cortex in the upper part of temporal lobe. critical for speech production

wernike’s aphasia

damage to wernike’s area, inability to comprehend speech, fully capable of talking but their speech makes no sense

relationship between language and thought

language provides words for thought, but we also manifest our thoughts with language. language influences thinking.

linguistic relativity hypothesis

when we expand our language, we also expand our ability to think. the proposal that the particular language we speak influences the way we think about reality

The power of imagination

pain sensations, physical activity, mental practice

gestured communication

animals, like humans, communicate using gestures. possible that vocal speech developed from gestures during the course evolution

do you animals have a language?

chimps do not have a vocal appartatus for human-like speech. Gardner and Harder used American Sign Language to train Washoe, a chimp, who learned 182 signs by the age of 32.

concepts

there are mental groupings of similar objects, events, and people - we all form these to communicate effectively. example: Idea of money

prototypes

mental images or best examples that incorporate all the features we associate with a category - thinking of a bird, what images come to mind.

methods of solving problems

algorithms, heuristics, insight

algorithm

step by step procedure that guarantees a solution, example: following logical rule or procedure to solve a math problem

heuristics

mental shortcuts that help us make quick decisions. faster than algorithms but doesn’t guarantee a correct answer. useful when quick action is needed but they may lead to bad decisions. two types: representativeness and availability

representativeness heuristics

judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, a particular mental image or prototype. this may lead us to ignore other relevant information - wearing a suit and tie makes you a lawyer

availability heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory. if instance comes readily to mind, we presume such events are common. - plane crash so im scared of flying

insight

a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem. role of the left hemisphere vs. right hemisphere.

obstacles of problem solving

conformation bias and fixation

intelligence

the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations

g factor

the idea that general intelligence exists, more than just book learning or test taking smarts. it encompasses the ability to catch on, make sense of things, and figure out what to do. Charles spearman

correlation between intelligence and brain size

as brain size decreases, scores on verbal intelligence tests also decrease

intelligence testing

a method for assessing an individuals mental aptitudes and comparing them with others using numerical scores

Alfred Binet Contribution to Intelligence test

developed first widely accepted intelligence test. Stanford-binet intelligence test. goal was to predict student’s likelihood of success in school. he found a strong positive correlation between performance on test and school performance

IQ - intelligence quotient formula

IQ = mental age over chronological age times 100. mental age/cron age x 100

aptitude tests

intended to predict your ability to learn a new skill

achievement tests

intend to reflect what you have already learned

Flynn effect

in the past 70+ years, intelligence scores have risen steadily by an average of 24 points. substantial and consistent rise in average IQ scores observed over the past century in numerous countries, as political scientist James Flynn discovered. This increase is attributed to environmental factors like improved nutrition, education, and reduced exposure to toxins.

stereotype threat

the risk of confirming negative stereotypes about an individual's racial, ethnic, gender, or cultural group which can create high cognitive load and reduce academic focus and performance. stereotype being women are not good at math, asians are good at math

environmental factors that influence intelligence

family/home, schooling: comparing IQ scores of siblings raised apart and together: raised apart = +.22, raised together = +.32 - so raised together is higher

Intellectual disabilities

Mental retardation - individuals with this need constant supervision, but with a supportive family environment and special ed they are now able to care for themselves

effects of schooling

both a consequence and cause of intelligence

Consequence effect of schooling

children with higher intelligence are more likely to be promoted from grade to grade, less likely to drop out of school and more likely to attend college

cause effects of schooling

increase schooling also changes mental abilities, consequently improving intelligence e

1.     Which of the following sequences correctly orders the components of language from the smallest or more specific to the broadest?

Phoneme → morpheme - > syntax

1.     By what age do most normally developing babies begin to babble?

6 months

1.     A “critical period” in language development is a period during which

children must receive stimulation to learn language

1.     How does the critical period for deaf children acquiring sign language compare to the critical period for hearing children acquiring spoken language?

The critical period for deaf children acquiring sign language is essentially the same as the critical period for hearing children acquiring spoken language

1.     Which of the following alternatives best describes gender differences in language development from birth to about age 2?

Both speech and language comprehension develop earlier in girls than in boys.

1.     If you imagine rearranging the furniture in your home and vividly picture the room, which lobe of your brain is likely to be active?

Occipital

1.     Which of the following statements best expresses the linguistic relativity hypothesis?

Language influences thought

1.     A political science professor attempts to facilitate her students’ completion of a term paper assignment by requiring that they first submit a topic statement, then a list of references, then a draft of the introduction, and then, finally, the completed paper. The professor is encouraging her students to use the problem-solving strategy of _____.

Forming subgoals

1.     Although James worked on his chemistry homework for several hours, he still did not understand it. While taking a break to watch television, he gained insight into the processes he had studied. What terms describes his “break”?

Incubation period

1.     We tend to take evidence that is consistent with our beliefs more seriously than evidence inconsistent with our beliefs. This is known as the _____.

confirmation bias

1.     Which of the following areas is not included in the definition of intelligence?

Ability to communicate

1.     Which theory of intelligence could be described as most inclusive (meaning, considers the largest number and range of factors as part of the definition of intelligence)?

Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligence

1.     Emotional intelligence includes which of the following abilities?

Perceiving others’ emotions and our own

1.     A manager at a retail store develops a test and uses it to hire new employees (only people who score high on the test will be offered the job). To examine whether people who do better on the test also perform better on the job, the manager should focus most closely on

The validity coefficient

1.     Binet and Simon’s intelligence test was created with the intention of

Identifying which school placement level was most appropriate for different children

1.     Considering the Stanford-Binet and WAIS intelligence tests, with which two sets of scores are we likely to obtain the highest correlation?

People taking the test today and the same people taking the test 2 weeks from now

1.     According to researchers Bradley and Caldwell which of the following is NOT a suggestion for how parents can improve their children’s intelligence

Set high goals and reward the children for meeting them

1.     Which of the following statements about school and intellectual development is true?

   When children are moved away from financially poor schools to more affluent schools, their intelligence test scores tend to increase

Research using the electroencephalogram (EEG) and measures of nerve conduction velocity (NCV) have shown that

Brain processing tends to be faster in those higher in intelligence

Gifted individuals tend to have all of the following characteristics EXCEPT

IQ scores between 100 and 130