psych 2

Got it, no quiz—just straight-up preparation. Since you're covering thinking, reasoning, communication, and intelligence, let's break this down into some key areas you should focus on:

### Core Concepts & Definitions:

- Thinking: The process of manipulating information to make decisions, form concepts, and reason through situations.

- Mental images & models: These help visualize and predict how things work. Mental models allow us to problem-solve by imagining solutions.

- Concepts, categorization, & prototypes: Concepts are mental representations, categorization organizes items into groups, and prototypes are typical examples within a category.

- Hierarchy of categories: Basic level (common), subordinate (specific), superordinate (general).

### Decision Making & Problem Solving:

- Decision making happens constantly, often without conscious awareness.

- Two factors: Utility (value of a choice) & Probability (likelihood of success).

- Algorithms (step-by-step solutions) vs. Mental Simulation (imagining steps).

- Common obstacles: Functional fixedness (thinking objects can only be used in one way) and confirmation bias (seeking info that supports preexisting beliefs).

### Reasoning Types:

- Inductive reasoning: Specific → General (probability-based). Example: Seeing an animal with four legs and assuming it's a dog.

- Deductive reasoning: General → Specific (certainty-based). Example: Logical premises (e.g., "All dogs bark. Fido barks. Therefore, Fido is a dog").

- Analogical reasoning: Understanding new situations by comparing them to familiar ones. Example: Comparing the brain to a computer.

### Language & Communication:

- Language structures: Phonemes (basic sounds), Morphemes (smallest meaning units), Syntax (sentence structure), Grammar (rules for acceptable use).

- Nonverbal communication: Facial expressions, gestures, and vocal intonations often communicate more meaning than words.

- Linguistic relativity hypothesis: Language influences thought—cultures with many words for snow might perceive snow differently.

### Intelligence Concepts:

- Intelligence includes reasoning, planning, problem-solving, and learning—not just “being smart.”

- IQ testing history: Binet (mental age concept), Terman (IQ formula), Wechsler (modern IQ tests).

- Spearman’s g-factor: General intelligence, affecting multiple areas.

- Gardner’s multiple intelligences: Various strengths like kinesthetic, verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, etc.

- Emotional Intelligence (EI): Involves perceiving, using, understanding, and managing emotions.

### Nature vs. Nurture:

- Intelligence is influenced by both genetics & environment.

- Twin studies show identical twins raised apart have similar IQs → genetic influence.

- Adoption studies show stronger IQ correlation with adoptive parents early on, but biological parents long-term.

- Environmental impact: Education, nutrition, socioeconomic factors can shift IQ scores.

### How to Prepare for the DBA:

- Review real-world examples (especially for reasoning & intelligence).

- Practice explaining concepts aloud to reinforce memory.

- Be ready to discuss strengths/limits of intelligence testing (validity, reliability, bias).

- Think critically about problem-solving strategies (barriers & solutions).

- Brush up on language’s influence on thought with examples.

If anything feels unclear or tricky, let’s refine it so you go in feeling super confident!