PSYCHOLOGY: Chapters 11 & 13-2 - Thinking, Intelligence and Language
* Bold print denotes a term not in the text.
11-1: Thinking and Problem Solving
Language and thought: We organize thought by language.
Therefore, increasing your vocabulary will
allow you to process more information.
Sidney Sugarman quote: “Teach the young people how to think,
not what to think.”
- meaning: Give people the skills to make decisions for
themselves.
Thinking: changing and reorganizing the information stored in memory to create new information.
4 units of thought: image, symbol, concept, and rule.
Image: a visual, mental representation of a specific event or object.
- 2 points on images:
1.) The representation is not usually an exact copy; rather, it
contains only the highlights of the original.
2.) Imaging is an effective way to think about concepts.
- Shepard and Metzler, (1971): researchers
* experiment: presented participants with 1,600 pairs of
geometric images (see Figure 11.1). The
researchers then asked the participants to
determine if the objects in each pair were
identical or different.
* conclusion: The researchers discovered that the
participants completed the task by rotating an
image of one of the objects in their minds in
an effort to see both patterns from the same
perspective.
Symbol: an abstract unit of thought that represents an object or
quality.
- most common example: words
- how symbols differ from images: An image represents a
specific sight or sound, but a symbol may have a
number of meanings.
* 3 points:
1.) That symbols differ from the things they represent
enables us to think about things that are not
present.
2.) Allow us to consider the past and future.
3.) Allow us to imagine things and situations that never
will be or never were.
- 4 examples familiar symbols of ideas that have no concrete
existence: Numbers, letters, punctuation marks, and icons
Concept: a label for a class of objects or events that have at least one attribute in common.
- 4 examples: Animals, music, liquid, and beautiful people
- 3 points:
1.) Concepts enable us to chunk large amounts of
information.
2.) We do not have to treat every new piece of information
as unique, since we already know something about the
class of objects or experiences to which the new item
belongs.
3.) Concepts are stored in memory using complex
networks.
Prototype: a representative example of a concept
- Theory of Prototypes: we understand a word by knowing
features of it prototype and recognizing that it may only have
a subset of features of its prototype.
Example: A dog may not bark, may not have a tail or fur,
but it's still a dog.
Rule: a statement of relation between concepts.
- 2 examples: A person cannot be in two places at the same time.
Mass remains constant despite changes in
appearance.
4 points on the units of thought:
1.) Images, symbols, concepts, prototypes, and rules are the
building blocks of mental activity.
2.) They provide an economical and efficient way for people to
represent reality.
3.) They make it easier to manipulate and reorganize reality.
4.) We use them to devise new ways of acting.
3 kinds of thinking:
1.) directed thinking
2.) nondirected thinking
3.) metacognition
- directed thinking: is a systematic and logical attempt to reach
a specific goal.
* convergent thinking: a way of thinking that depends
heavily on symbols, concepts, and
rules.
* 4 points:
1.) This kind of thinking, also called convergent thinking.
2.) It depends on symbols, concepts, and rules.
3.) Directed thinking is deliberate and purposeful.
4.) It is through directed thinking that we solve
problems; formulate and follow rules; and set, work
toward, and achieve goals.
- nondirected thinking: a way of thinking that consists of a free
flow of thoughts with no particular plan
and depends more on images.
* divergent thinking: Another name for nondirected
thinking.
* 5 points:
1.) Depends more on images
2.) is usually rich with imagery and feelings such as
daydreams, fantasies, and reveries.
3.) People often engage in nondirected thought when
they are relaxing or escaping from boredom or
worry.
4.) This kind of thinking may provide unexpected
insights into one’s goals and beliefs.
5.) Scientists and artists say that some of their best
ideas emerge from drifting thoughts that occur
when they have set aside a problem for the moment.
- metacognition: the awareness of one’s own cognitive processes.
Thinking about thinking - Evaluating a strategy.
Bloom's Taxonomy Handout
Benjamin Bloom created this taxonomy for categorizing level of abstraction of questions that commonly occur in educational settings. The taxonomy provides a useful structure in which to categorize test questions, since professors will characteristically ask questions within particular levels, and if you can determine the levels of questions that will appear on your exams, you will be able to study using appropriate strategies.
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Competence |
Skills Demonstrated |
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Knowledge |
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Comprehension |
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Application |
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Analysis |
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Synthesis |
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Evaluation |
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** You can apply Bloom's Taxonomy to more than just test-taking. It relates directly to one's life.
Problem-solving: to bridge the gap mentally between a present
situation and a desired goal. Depends on the use of
strategies, or specific methods for approaching
problems.
- examples: hunger and getting food
a column of figures and a total
a lack of money and bills to pay
cancer and a cure.
- strategies: specific methods for approaching problems.
* 4 examples:
1.) Break down a complex problem into a number of
smaller, more easily solved subgoals.
* Subgoals: intermediate steps toward a solution.
2.) Work backward from the goal you have set.
3.) Examine various ways of reaching a desired goal.
4.) Analyze the problem to see if it resembles a
situation we have experienced in the past. A
strategy that worked in the past is likely to work
again.
* if a problem is very unusual: the more difficult it is to
devise a strategy for dealing with it.
Algorithms: a step-by-step procedure for solving a problem.
- 2 examples: Mathematical and scientific formulas
- problem with: They are a time-consuming.
Heuristics: a rule-of-thumb problem-solving strategy.
- 3 types:
* Availability heuristics: the tendency to rely on information
that is more prominent or easily
recalled and overlook information
that is available but less
prominent.
+ example: In the news, we see people winning the
lottery all the time and overestimate our
chances at winning it also.
* Representativeness heuristics: the tendency to assume
that if an item is similar to members of
a particular category, it is probably a
member of that category, too.
+ example: I have flipped a coin 10 times and it has
landed on tails every time. The odds are it
will land on heads this time.
(The odds are 50–50, as they are for each
coin toss.)
* Anchoring heuristics: the tendency to make decisions
based on certain ideas, or
standards, that are important to us.
+ example: In my family, everyone gets up by 8:00 A.M.
every day, including weekends. I believe
that only lazy people sleep past 8:00 A.M.
(I formed a judgment about other people
based on a standard in my family.)
- 2 problems:
1.) Although heuristics are faster than algorithms, they
are not always as reliable.
2.) Although heuristics allow us to make quick decisions,
they can result in bad decisions because we make
the decisions using shortcuts and sometimes ignore
pertinent information.
Sternberg- Wagner Variation of Thinking Styles Handout
3.) Apathy: Failure to care, or try.
4.) Mental set: When a particular strategy becomes a habit.
5.) Rigidity: when a set interferes with problem solving
* 3 types:
6.) Functional fixedness:
7.) False assumptions
8.) Most people look for direct methods of solving
problems and do not see solutions that require
several intermediate steps
* 2 ways to overcome:
1.) Rigidity can be overcome if the person realizes that
his or her strategy is not working.
2.) The person looks for other ways to approach the
problem. (Analyzing situations from many
perspectives.)
* Familiar situations: The more familiar the situation, the
more difficult this will be.
* When rigidity is less likely: Rigidity is less likely to occur
with unusual problems.
* Major reason for rigidity: Many individuals are trained,
through formal education, to
think of only one way to do
things.
1.) All problem-solving requires some creativity.
2.) Psychologists do not know exactly why some people are
able to think more creatively than others.
- 3 main characteristics: Flexibility, recombination, and insight.
^ tests for: In one test, psychologists ask people how
many uses they can imagine for a single
object, such as a brick or a paper clip.
The more uses a person can devise, the
more flexible he or she is said to be.
^ major point: inflexible, rigid thinking leads to
unoriginal solutions or no solutions at all.
* recombination: rearranging the elements of a problem to
arrive at an original solution
^ 2 points:
1.) Recombination seems to be a vital part of
creativity.
2.) The creative person is able to take the
information that he or she and others have
compiled and put it together in a totally new
way.
^ Newton’s quote: “If I have seen further, it is by
standing on the shoulders of
giants.”
+ meaning: He didn't create anything new - he
just built upon what was already.
* insight: the apparent sudden realization of the solution to
a problem.
^ when it occurs: when problems have proved resistant
to all problem-solving efforts and
strategies.
^ where it occurs: When the person is absorbed in
some other activity, the answer
seems to appear out of nowhere.
^ as the “aha experience”: another name for insight.
- cycle of frustration:
problem
frustration temporary diversion = insight.
* Wolfgang Kohler, (1976): He had monkeys in a cage with three
boxes in the cage, and a bunch of bananas hanging just
outside their reach. Monkeys tried various ways to
reach the bananas on their own, but finally stacked the
boxes on top of each other and then could reach out to
grab the bananas. Perfect example of insight used in
problem solving.
CHARACTISTICS
OF CREATIVE PEOPLE
¨ Have the ability to make unusual associations or connections between seemingly unrelated or remote ideas.
¨ Have the ability to rearrange elements of thought to create new ideas or products.
¨ Can find a large number of solutions to problems.
¨ Display intellectual playfulness, fantasize, imagination and daydream.
¨ Are often concerned with adapting, improving, or modifying existing ides, thoughts, or products, or the ideas or products of others.
¨ Have a keen or unusual sense of humor and many times see humor others do not.
¨ Ask many questions at an early age - this trend may continue past early childhood and into adulthood.
¨ Frequently challenge teachers, textbook authors, and those in authority or “experts”.
¨ Sometimes come up with unexpected, futuristic, bizarre, even “silly” answers or solutions.
¨ When completing special or unusual projects or assignments, often show a rare capacity for originality, intense concentration, and persistence. (may be perceived as working hard to achieve personal goals.
¨ May become obsessed with completing varied projects, or exhibit unusual persistence in completing tasks.
¨ Are willing to take risks; are adventurous.
¨ Display a great deal of curiosity about many things.
¨ May devise collections based on unusual things or interests.
¨ Exhibit heightened emotional sensitivity - may not only be sensitive to beauty but visibly moved by aesthetic experiences.
¨ Are frequently perceived as nonconforming.
¨ Do not fear being labeled as “different”.
¨ Can accept disordered nature of chaotic environments.
¨ Frequently not interested in details.
¨ May criticize others constructively, but have difficulty in accepting other’s criticism.
¨ Independent in thought and action.
¨ Prefer the complex to the ordinary.
¨ Have a genuine concern for the welfare of others, although it may be hidden at times.
Devotes less time than the average amount of the time to social behavior
Blockages to Creativity Graphic Organizer
- Tradition
- Control
- Negativism
- Prejudice
- Fear of failure
- Impatience
- Uniformity
- Fear of ridicule
- Conceit
- Insecurity
- Jealously
- Group thinking (mob mentality)
- Laziness
- Apathy
- Lack of commitment
- Lack of support
- Intolerance
- Tenseness
- Fear of change
CASE STUDIES – Checkmate… pg 303
1997: the final match of a rematch took place in the contemplative
game of chess.
Gary Kasparov: a former scientist whom many considered to be the
best chess player to have ever lived. He beat a
computer the year before.
Deep Blue: a computer programmed to play chess
Psychologists’ beliefs: Psychologists believed that a computer
preprogrammed with information of any kind would prove no
match for the thought capacity and perceptions of the
human mind.
Hypothesis: That a nonfeeling and nonthinking machine could not
defeat the ability of the human mind to think abstractly. A
machine could also not match the human mind’s feelings of
determination and desire.
Capacities of Deep Blue: It can consider 300 million possible chess
moves per second. With each of these 300 million
possibilities, Deep Blue is programmed to assess the
situation these moves will put it in.
- as compared to a human brain: The human brain can evaluate
only a very small fraction of moves compared to what Deep
Blue can do.
Kasparov’s strategy: For his rematch with Deep Blue, Kasparov
planned to copy his strategy from the previous year.
Results: Deep Blue beat Kasparov. Experts explained that Kasparov’s
defeat was the result of comparing Deep Blue too much to
the version he had played against the year before.
Kasparov vs. World: A unique chess match via the Internet that began in June 1999 and continued for several months, Kasparov squared off against all the players in the world who wanted to participate. A panel of grand masters suggested the world team’s possible moves.
- # of players: 10,000 worldwide
- how moves were decided: Each player would cast their
votes on the world team’s moves. The move that
received the greatest number of votes was used.
- length of game: 4 months (longer than anyone had thought)
- result: Kasparov won the hard fought battle, retaining the
title of the world’s greatest human chess player.
13-2: Intelligence Testing (pgs. 348-357)
Five Types of Psychological Tests Handout
All psychological tests have one characteristic that makes them both fascinating and remarkably practical—they try to make it possible to find out a great deal about a person in a short time.
Tests can be useful in:
1.) Predicting how well a person might do in a particular career
2.) Assessing an individual’s desires, interests, and attitudes
3.) Revealing psychological problems.
Uses of tests:
1.) One virtue of standardized tests is that they can provide