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Thinking & Language

Mental activities

  1. Mental images

  2. Concepts: mental grouping of things that have similar features

  3. Prototype: typical example of concept

  • Ex) Professor vs. truck driver

  1. Creativity: come up with something that is unique and useful

  • Divergent thinking: expanding number of possible solutions

  1. Problem solving

  2. Making judgements

  3. Making decisions

Problem solving strategies

  • Trial and error

  • Algorithms: step-by-step formula with guaranteed solution

  • Heuristics: shortcuts to solve problem, less time consuming than algorithm but more prone to error

  • Insight: aha!

Impediments to problem solving

  • Confirmation bias: looking for/remembering information that agrees with what they already believe but not searching for opposing evidence

  • Belief perseverance: maintaining beliefs even with contradictory evidence

  • Mental set: approaching a problem using a method that worked in the past

  • Functional fixedness: only thinking of familiar functions of an object

  • Misuses of heuristics

    • Representative heuristic: making quick judgment based on how well something matches prototype for the thing

    • Availability heuristic: making judgment based on what comes to mind first

  • Overconfidence

  • Framing: decisions are influenced by how problem is framed (presented)

Elements of language

  1. Phonemes: smallest unit of sound

  • Babies can recognize all phonemes of all languages until about 10 months

  1. Morphemes: smallest unit of meaningful sound

  2. Grammar

  • Syntax: structure

  • Semantics: meaning

  1. Prosody: tone

Language acquisition stages

  1. Babbling (4-12 months)

  2. One-word stage (12-18 months)

  3. Two-word stage  (18-24 months)

  4. Sentences (24 months)

Overgeneralization: applying grammar rules inappropriately

How language is acquired

  • Behavioral perspective:

    • Reinforcement

    • Observational learning

  • Cognitive perspective:

    • Biologically programmed

    • Language Acquisition Device (Noam Chomsky)

Critical period: if child is not exposed to language before age of 7, they will never acquire language

Linguistic Determination Hypothesis (Benjamin Whorf): languages determines how you think (wrong)

  • Actually is language influences thought

SZ

Thinking & Language

Mental activities

  1. Mental images

  2. Concepts: mental grouping of things that have similar features

  3. Prototype: typical example of concept

  • Ex) Professor vs. truck driver

  1. Creativity: come up with something that is unique and useful

  • Divergent thinking: expanding number of possible solutions

  1. Problem solving

  2. Making judgements

  3. Making decisions

Problem solving strategies

  • Trial and error

  • Algorithms: step-by-step formula with guaranteed solution

  • Heuristics: shortcuts to solve problem, less time consuming than algorithm but more prone to error

  • Insight: aha!

Impediments to problem solving

  • Confirmation bias: looking for/remembering information that agrees with what they already believe but not searching for opposing evidence

  • Belief perseverance: maintaining beliefs even with contradictory evidence

  • Mental set: approaching a problem using a method that worked in the past

  • Functional fixedness: only thinking of familiar functions of an object

  • Misuses of heuristics

    • Representative heuristic: making quick judgment based on how well something matches prototype for the thing

    • Availability heuristic: making judgment based on what comes to mind first

  • Overconfidence

  • Framing: decisions are influenced by how problem is framed (presented)

Elements of language

  1. Phonemes: smallest unit of sound

  • Babies can recognize all phonemes of all languages until about 10 months

  1. Morphemes: smallest unit of meaningful sound

  2. Grammar

  • Syntax: structure

  • Semantics: meaning

  1. Prosody: tone

Language acquisition stages

  1. Babbling (4-12 months)

  2. One-word stage (12-18 months)

  3. Two-word stage  (18-24 months)

  4. Sentences (24 months)

Overgeneralization: applying grammar rules inappropriately

How language is acquired

  • Behavioral perspective:

    • Reinforcement

    • Observational learning

  • Cognitive perspective:

    • Biologically programmed

    • Language Acquisition Device (Noam Chomsky)

Critical period: if child is not exposed to language before age of 7, they will never acquire language

Linguistic Determination Hypothesis (Benjamin Whorf): languages determines how you think (wrong)

  • Actually is language influences thought