Psychology
Chapter 9:
Language:
Consists of symbols and rules to generate infinite numbers of meaning and messages
Psycholinguistics is the scientific study of psychological aspects of language to understand how we produce, and acquire language
Adaptive function of language:
Socially oriented lifestyle helped us survive and reproduce
Social environment became more complex and the need to cooperate and develop customs and communicate thoughts to pass knowledge and wisdom became more apparent
Trial and learning - drive and walk all over to find someone’s place
Observational learning - using a gps or a map
Properties of language
Generativity - being able to create infinite messages
Symbols - letters, hand gestures, etc
Syntax/structure - grammar rules
Displacement - conveys stuff that is not in the present
semantics - the meaning
Surface structure
The order the words are in
Deep structure
The actual meaning of the words
Hierarchical Structure of Language
Phoneme
Vowel or consonant sounds
44 in the english language
Smallest unit of speech
Morphemes
Smallest unit of meaning in a given language
Prefixes, suffixes etc.
Understanding and producing language
Bottom-up vs top-down processes in language
Bottom up
Perceptual processing that begins with the analysis of individual elements of the stimulus to work up the brain’s integration of them into a unified perception
Small detail, build up to a bigger picture
Top-down
Big picture, breakdown a big idea and break it down into smaller steps
Speech segmentation
Perceiving where each word within a spoken sentence begins and ends
Programmatics
Social context of language
Context makes a huge difference
What sex differences exist in the brain’s language?
Males left hemisphere is more active
Females is more evenly distributed for language tasks
Females potentially have more flexibility in complex language situation
Acquiring a first language
Biology (nature) and environment (nurture)
How do biological factors influence language acquisition
Universal grammar and syntax of one’s native tongue
Follow the languages
Brain structure, influence the brain’s ability to process and store language
How do social learning factors influence language acquisition
Conversing with your child has showed significant impact with learning
Child directed speech
Pointing out objects and asking the child what’s that?
They correct their child when they say “i have two foot”
Provides opportunities and feedback
Help children learn vocab, grammar and communication skills through real-life conversations social cues
What factors affect the second language learning process
Second languages are learned best and spoken most fluently when it is learned in the sensitive period of a childhood
They learn the syntax, grammar etc.
After seven, it gets progressively more difficult
Superior processing than monolingual children
Children are able to inhibit attention irrelevant feature of an object and pay attention to another feature
Children who are bilingual have greater flexibility in thinking and better performance on standardized intelligence tests
Immigrants perform best when they are taught both their native and immersed language
Learning a second language: is earlier actually better
Early arrived immigrants before 7 performed just as well as their english speaking peers
Late arrival immigrants do not do as well as in the grammar test
Arrival after 16, older immigrants have less opportunities to learn language
Is there a critical or sensitive period?
There may be a sensitive period time to learn their native language rather than a critical period
Extends to mid adolescence
Brain damage
Aphasia from brain trauma found that it could potentially only impact one language, not the other, or both but to different degrees
People who learned before 10, use the same area for language learning and processing but later in life learned will end out using different parts of their brain for language processing
How does language influence thinking?
Sexist language to evoke gender stereotypes
Using terms like he make it less attractive for people's perception of women
Gender neutral terms will not evoke gender stereotypes
English speaking children tend to score lower than children from asian countries
Chinese makes it easier for children to do addition and subtraction
By age 5 children are able to do it quite easily because of the language vs usage of language of eleven, twelve and thirteen
Thinking:
Thought, brain and mind
Propositional thought
I'm hungry, it's almost dinner time
Imaginal thoughts
we can see, hear and feel in our mind
Motoric thought
Solve problems, engage in many forms of behaviour, reason
Concept:
student/intelligent people
proposition, express ideas in a particular way
Deductive reasoning:
Top-down, mathematic and logic reasoning
If x, then y
Inductive reasoning
Science, general principles or laws
Belief bias
Tendency to abandon logical rules in favour of personal beliefs
Emotions and framing
Framing can be presented in a certain way
50% success rate vs 50% failure rate
Summarize the four major stages of problem solving
Interpret the problem
Generate a hypothesis
Test solutions
Evaluate results and revise if needed’
Problem-solving schemas
Step by step scripts for selecting information and solving specialized classes of problems
Sort of like a mental blueprint
Algorithms and heuristics are two important strats
Algos are formulas and procedures that automatically correct solutions
Heuristics
Mental shortcuts, quick and easy
Heuristics might not be always right
Lead to errors in judgment
The availability heuristic
A guideline we use to make likelihood of judgment based on availability
Confirmation Bias and overconfidence bias
Confirming evidence only supports our idea, it does not prove with certainty
Tendency to seek and favour information that reinforces our beliefs rather than to be open to disconfirming information
Overconfidence is the tendency to overestimate one’s correctness in factual knowledge and beliefs
Review:
At the level of the brain, thoughts are patterns of neural activity. At the level of the mind, thoughts can be propositional (the sky is blue, can be true or false), imaginal (picture a scene/mental image) or motoric (riding a bike or playing a piano) mental representation
Concepts are mental categories, or classes, that share certain characteristics. Many concepts are based on prototypes, the most typical and familiar members of class. How much something resembles the prototype determines whether the concept is applied to it. Propositional thoughts involve the use of concepts in the form of statements.
Concepts as mental categories
Birds, ability to fly, wings, feather
Prototype
You think of the most “ideal”/standard to the proptype
Resemblance to the prototype, deciding whether it fits to the prototype
Propositional thoughts and concepts
Linking two concepts, “a robin is a bird” - robin is linked to a bird
In deductive reasoning, we reason from general principles to a conclusion about a specific case. Inductive reasoning, in contrast, involves reasoning from a set of specific facts or observations to a general principle. Deduction is the strongest and most valid form of reasoning, because the conclusion cannot be false if the premises are true. Inductive reasoning cannot yield certainty.
Deductive reasoning
General principle or a theory and applying to a specific case
All mammals have a heart, a dog is a mammal
Strength of deduction
This is considered the stronger form of reasoning because if the general principles
If the premises/general principle is right, the conclusions cannot be false
Inductive reasoning
On the other hands starts with specific observations or facts
Every dog I have seen has a tail, therefore all dogs must have tails
Theiss is generalization the other one uses a principle or a theory
Probable not guaranteed
Unsuccessful deductive reasoning can result from 3 reasons
Failure to select the appropriate information
Forget irrelevant information
Failure to apply the appropriate deductive reasoning
If a=b and b=c a=c
Incorrectly applying a rule
Belief bias, the tendency to abandon logical rules in favour of personal bias
Reject those that do not, political
4 steps to problem solving
Understanding the nature of the problem,establishing the initial hypotheses or potential solution, testing the solutions to rule out hypotheses and evaluating results/revise
Problem solving schemas are shortcuts methods/solving special problems
They are stored in the long term memory and can help us overcome limitations for working memory
Mental shortcuts that we develop to solve specific types of problems, learned strategies of methods that we store in our long-term memory
Expertise results from acquiring a range of successful problem-solving schemas through training and practical experience
What are components of wisdom?
Rich factual knowledge about life
Human nature, social relationship and major events
Rich procedural knowledge about life
Strategies for making decisions, handling conflict
An understanding of lifespan context
Involves many context in family, friends, work and leisure
An awareness of the relativism of values and priorities
Recognizing that values and priorities differ across people and societies
Ability to recognize and manage uncertainty
Metacognition
A person’s awareness and understanding of their own cognitive abilities
Metacomprehension
Good metacomprehension is accurate in judging what they do or do not know.
Test Questions:
What is the difference between surface structure and deep structure in language?
What are phonemes and morphemes, and how are they different?
Explain the difference between bottom-up and top-down processing in language.
How does gender affect language processing in the brain?
How do social learning factors influence language acquisition?
What is the sensitive period for second language learning, and why is it important?
What is deductive reasoning, and how is it different from inductive reasoning?
What are heuristics, and why might they sometimes lead to errors in judgment?
What are the four major stages of problem-solving?
How does wisdom differ from knowledge, and what are its components?
Define metacognition and explain its importance in learning.
Chapter 11:
Motivation
Term that triggers images of people who preserve/attain their dreams/boundaries/humanachievements
Instinct
An inherited characteristics, common member of a species, that automatically produces a particular response when the organism is exposed to a stimulus
Adaptiveness and human motivation?
Affiliate with people for survival advantages
Homeostasis
For survival
Hot, sweat, cold, shiver
There is a set-point, sensors detect different temps
Drive theory
Produce drive
Lack of food and water
Less influential than previous
reduce states of arousal, skips meals for diet, or going to horror movies
Incentives and expectancy theories
Drives are push, incentives are pulls
Incentives like good grades for studying
Often linked
Food, reduces drive/push to food
Dessert, incentives/pull to food
Expectancy theory
expectancy*incentive value
I expect an A*I need an a for school
Extrinsic motivation
Avoid punishment, or get that aware/grade
Becomes less enjoyable when it is extrinsic
Intrinsic motivation
Internal interest
Psychodynamic vs. humanistic theories
Psychodynamic
Freud: Aggression and sexual drives
Caused other theories to highlight self-esteem and relatedness to people
Maslow’s concept
Deficiency needs - survival
Growth needs - develop are potential
Need hierarchy
Self actualization is vague
This has influenced consumer behaviour
But it's more fluid, and more can change over periods of time
It is not that strict and conclusive
Three needs identified for self determination
Deci and Ryans
Competence
The need for mastery,
Autonomy
The need for self determination and free will
Relatedness
The need to fit in
TA go hand to hand
Hunger and Weight Regulation
Push to eat (need)
Pull to eat (want)
Metabolism is the body’s rate of energy utilization
⅔ basal metabolism is the resting continuous metabolic work
Hunger is not related to immediate energy needs
Designed to give you early signals
Homeostatic can shift to a new weight
If you get skinny, new weight same thing with fatness
Physiological signals that initiate hunger
Stomach contractions correspond to hunger, other signals must signal hunger
Glucose, immediate source of immediate fuel
Our brain automatically monitors glucose, when blood glucose levels decrease, the liver responds by converting stored nutrients back into glucose
In review changes of glucose usage initiates hunger
The hypothalamus and other brain regions play a role in hunger regulation
The expected good taste of food motivates eating, and the thought of food can trigger hunger. Our memory, attitudes, habits and psychological needs affect our food intake
The availability, taste, variety and amount of food regulates eating. Classical conditioning and neutral stimuli can acquire the capacity to trigger hunger
Cultural norms affect our food preferences and eating habits
Heredity and environment affect our susceptibility to being obese, homeostatic mechanism makes it difficult to lose substantial weight
New weight is harder to maintain.
Sex:
Sex is often described as a “reproductive drive” but people do not usually have it to conceive
Typically done with surveys
Single adults who cohabit and are not married are more sexually active compared to married adults
Last half century has witnessed changing patterns of sexual activity such as an increase in premarital sex
During sexual intercourse it is typically four stages: excitement, plateau, orgasm and resolution
Sex hormones have organizational effects that guide prenatal development of internal and external organs along either a male or female typical pattern. Sex hormones also have activational effects that influence sexual desire
Sexual fantasy can trigger arousal, whereas stress and psychological difficulties can interfere with arousal. Cultural norms determine the sexual practices and beliefs are considered moral, proper and desirable
Environmental stimuli affect sexual desire. Viewing sexual violence reinforces men’s belief in rape myths and increases men’s aggression towards women, at least temporarily
Sexual orientation involves dimensions of self identity, sexual attraction and actual sexual behaviour no single biological, social or psychological factor has been fined or clearly identified to sexual orientation
Achievement Motivation
Need for achievement
Thrill of victory, strive of victory
Motive for success +
Fear of failure -
How much anxiety you get from test performance
Anxiety makes it difficult to process information to achieve task
Mastery orientation, personal improvement
Performance orientation, outperform others
High-need achievers seek moderately difficult tasks that are challenging but attainable
Low-need achievers choose easy tasks in which success is assured
master-approach , performance approach, mastery avoidance (fear of not reaching and performance avoidance motivation are four basic achievement goal orientation
Child rearing and cultural factors influence our level and expression of achievement motivation
Motivational conflict
Approach approach conflict
Selecting one means losing the other
Avoidance avoidance conflict means there are two undesirable alternatives
Do i spend all week studying boring material for my test, or do i skip studying and fail the exam
Approach avoidance conflict involves being attracted to and repelled by the same goal
One desirable, one undesirable
Consequences are in the future
Immediate incentive
Delayed incentive
Stronger the closer it gets to it, delay discounting is the decrease in the value of future incentives
Motivational goals may conflict with one another. Approach conflicts when there are two attractive alternatives. Avoidance avoidance goals are two undesirable alternatives
Approach avoidance conflict occurs when we are attracted to and repelled by the same goal. Avoidance tendency usually increases in strength more rapidly than approach tendency
Emotions:
Positive or negative affective states consisting a pattern of cognitive physiological and behaviorual reactions to that have relevance to important goals/motives
External situations such as seeing an oncoming car swerve into your lane etc
Could be internal thoughts memories/images
Emotions are related to motivation
Motivation and emotion involve state of arousal, flight in the case of fear and attack in the fear of anger
Fear and anger - fighting and fleeing for survival increases energy energy energy
Emotions further our well-being in several ways: by rousing us to action, by helping us to communicate others and eliciting empathy
Cognitive appraisal
The process of making judgment about situations, personal capabilities, likely consequences and the personal meaning of consequence
It can cause physiological behaviours
Feel hyped up we
Or decreased in arousal causing depression
Emotions can include tendances behaviours
Expressive behaviors surprise, smiling, instrumental behaviours studying for an anxiety arousing test, fighting back self defence
Primary components of emotion are eliciting stimuli, cognitive appraisals, physiological arousal and expressive and instrumental behaviors
Individuals differences in personality and motivation affect the experience and expression of emotion as do cultural factors
Although innate factors can affect the eliciting properties of certain stimuli, learning can also play an important role in determining the arousal properties of stimuli
The cognitive component of emotional experience involves the evaluative and personal appraisal of the eliciting stimuli. The ability of thoughts to elicit emotional arousal has been demonstrated clinically and experimental research. Cross-cultural research indicates considerable agreement across cultures in the appraisal that evoke basic emotion but also some degree of variation
Positive left hemisphere, negative right
The validity of a lie detector has been questioned largely because of the difficulty of establishing which emotion is being expressed
The behavioural component of emotions includes expressive and instrumental behaviours. Different parts of the face are important in the expression of various emotions. The accuracy of people’s interpretations of these expressions increase when situational cues are also available. BAsed in part on similarities in facial expression of emotions across widely separate cultures, evolutionary theorists propose that certain fundamental emotional patterns are innate. They agree, that cultural learning can influence emotional expression in important ways
Research on the relation between arousal and performance suggests that there is an optimal level of arousal for the performance of any task. This optimal level varies with the complexity or difficulty of the task, complex tasks have lower optimal arousal levels
Several past and present theories posit casual relation among emotional components. James' large somatic/ theory maintains that we first become aroused and then judge what we are feeling. The cannon Bard theory proposes that arousal and cognition are simultaneously triggered by the thalamus. Cognitive appraisal theory states that it triggers emotional arousal. According to Schacther’s two factor theory arousal tells us how strongly we feel, while cognitions derived from situational cues help us label the specific emission
The facial feedback hypothesis derived from the James lange somatic theory states that feedback from the facial muscles associated with innate emotional display affects cognition and physiological processes. Recent evidence supplies support for the theory
Because of the two-way relations between the cognitive and physiological components of emotion it is possible to manipulate appraisals thereby influencing the level of arousal. Arousal changes can also affect appraisal of the eliciting stimuli
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