Intelligence and thinking

algorithm

Problem-solving strategy characterized by a specific set of instructions.

analytical intelligence

Aligned with academic problem solving and computations.

anchoring bias

Faulty heuristic in which you fixate on a single aspect of a problem to find a solution.

artificial concept

Concept defined by a very specific set of characteristics.

audience design

Constructing utterances to suit the audience’s knowledge.

availability heuristic

Faulty heuristic where a decision is made based on information readily available.

choice blindness

Failure to recall a choice immediately after making it.

cognition

Thinking, including perception, learning, problem solving, judgment, and memory.

cognitive psychology

Field dedicated to studying every aspect of how people think.

common ground

Information shared by individuals engaged in a conversation.

concept

Category or grouping of linguistic information, objects, ideas, or life experiences.

confirmation bias

Faulty heuristic focusing on information that confirms beliefs.

convergent thinking

Capacity to narrow in on the single correct answer to a problem.

creative intelligence

Ability to produce new products, ideas, or solutions.

creativity

Ability to generate, create, or discover new ideas, solutions, and possibilities.

crystallized intelligence

Characterized by acquired knowledge and retrieval ability.

cultural intelligence

Ability to understand and relate to people in another culture.

divergent thinking

Capacity for exploring multiple potential answers to a given question.

dyscalculia

Learning disability causing difficulty in learning arithmetic.

dysgraphia

Learning disability causing extreme difficulty in writing legibly.

dyslexia

Common learning disability where letters are not processed properly by the brain.

emotional intelligence

Ability to understand emotions and motivations in oneself and others.

event schema

Set of behaviors performed the same way each time; cognitive script.

fluid intelligence

Ability to see complex relationships and solve problems.

Flynn effect

Observation that each generation has a significantly higher IQ than the previous.

functional fixedness

Inability to see an object as useful for any other purpose than its intended use.

grammar

Rules used to convey meaning through a lexicon.

heuristic

Mental shortcut that saves time when solving a problem.

hindsight bias

Belief that an event just experienced was predictable.

ingroup

Group to which a person belongs.

intelligence quotient (IQ)

Score on a test designed to measure intelligence.

language

Communication system using words to transmit information.

learning disabilities

Cognitive disorders affecting language or reading.

lexicon

The words of a given language.

linguistic intergroup bias

Tendency to characterize positive ingroup traits abstractly and negative outgroup traits concretely.

mental set

Continually using an old solution to a problem without results.

morpheme

Smallest unit of language that conveys meaning.

Multiple Intelligences Theory

Gardner’s theory that each person has at least eight types of intelligence.

natural concept

Mental groupings created through experiences.

norming

Administering a test to a large population to reference normal scores.

outgroup

Group to which a person does not belong.

overgeneralization

Extension of a rule to an exception to the rule.

phoneme

Basic sound unit of a language.

practical intelligence

Also known as “street smarts.”

priming

Thinking about one concept reminds you of related concepts.

problem-solving strategy

Method for solving problems.

prototype

Best representation of a concept.

range of reaction

Unique response to the environment based on genetic make-up.

representative sample

Subset of the population that accurately represents the whole.

representative bias

Faulty heuristic in which one stereotypes without valid basis.

role schema

Set of expectations defining behaviors of a person in a specific role.

Sapir-Whorf hypothesis

Hypothesis that language determines thoughts.

schema

Mental construct consisting of a cluster of related concepts.

semantics

Process of deriving meaning from morphemes and words.

situation models

Representations of the topic of a conversation.

social brain hypothesis

Hypothesis that the human brain evolved to maintain larger ingroups.

social networks

Networks of social relationships through which information travels.

standard deviation

Measure of variability describing differences from the mean.

standardization

Method of consistent test administration, scoring, and interpretation.

syntax

Rules for strung together words to form sentences.

theory of cognitive abilities

Abilities arranged in a hierarchy from general to narrow.

trial and error

Problem-solving strategy using multiple solutions to find the correct one.

triarchic theory of intelligence

Sternberg’s theory including practical, creative, and analytical facets.

working backwards

Heuristic beginning at the end result to solve a problem.