1.What is cognition?
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.
2.Define “concept” and provide an example outside of the book.
Concept is a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people (331)
3.What is the best way to understand a prototype.
a mental image or best example of a category. Matching new items to a
prototype provides a quick and easy method for sorting items into categories (as when
comparing feathered creatures to a prototypical bird, such as a robin).
4.Discuss the problem-solving strategies with an example of each.
algorithm a methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular
problem. Contrasts with the usually speedier—but also more error-prone—use of
heuristics
.
Example: Mathematics, using rules of math to solve a problem
heuristic a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve
problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than an algorithm
.
insight a sudden realization of a problem’s solution; contrasts with strategy-based
solutions
5.Can you think of potential obstacles to problem solving?
confirmation bias a tendency to search for information that supports our
preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence.
fixation in thinking, the inability to see a problem from a new perspective; an obstacle to
problem solving.
mental set a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that
has been successful in the past.
6.How can one understand the availability and representative heuristics?
Representative heuristic- estimating the likelihood of events in terms of how well
they seem to represent or match, particular prototypes; may lead is to ignore
other relevant information
Availability heuristic- estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability
in memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are
common
7.How does overconfidence and belief perseverance influence our decision making?
overconfidence the tendency to be more confident than correct—to overestimate the
accuracy of our beliefs and judgments. When we are more confident, we ignore the
possibility of being wrong
belief perseverance clinging to one’s initial conceptions after the basis on which they
were formed has been discredited.
8.Introduce the class to the perils & power of intuition.
Intuition is an analysis “frozen into habit” (Simon, 2001). It is implicit (unconscious)
knowledge—what we’ve recorded in our brains but can’t fully explain
Intuition is usually adaptive, enabling quick reactions.
Intuition is huge. Unconscious, automatic influences are constantly affecting our
judgments
Level 2
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the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people
a mental image or best example of a category
a methodical, logical procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem
a thinking strategy to efficiently make judgments and solve problems; shortcut through algorithms
a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem; contrasts with strategy-based solutions
a tendency to search only for evidence that affirms one's preconceptions
a tendency to approach a problem in a particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past
the inability to see a problem from a new perspective; an impediment to problem solving
the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual usages
Representativeness Heuristic
judging the likelihood of things by how well they match particular prototypes
estimating the likelihood of events based on the ease of retrieving them from memory
the tendency to be more confident than correct
the way an issue is posed; can significantly affect decisions and judgments
the tendency for one's preexisting beliefs to distort logical reasoning, sometimes by making invalid conclusions seem valid
clinging to one's initial conception after its basis has been discredited