PSY100H1 Study Guide - Final Guide: Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, Lewis Terman, Availability Heuristic
Chapter 8: Thought and Language
Module 8.1 – The Organization of Knowledge
Module example:
oEdward suffered from prosopagnosia, which is difficulty recognizing faces
oHe also struggled to recognize some objects, distinguish different types of
animals and instruments, but could verbally describe their appearance
oHe could however recognize most other types of objects
The big question is not how much we know, but how we manage to keep track of it
all
Concepts and Categories
A concept is the mental representation of an object, event or idea
oMany different concepts for a certain item, such as chair being divided into
arm chair
oChair can also be labelled under “furniture”
Categories refer to the clusters of interrelated concepts
oWe are able to do this through categorization
Classical Categories: Definitions and Rules
Classical categorization: claims that objects or events are categorized according to a
certain set of rules or by a specific set of features
Graded membership: observation that some concepts appear to make better
category members than others
oPoses a problem when determining which objects fit what category
oEx// “a sparrow is a bird” vs. “a penguin is a bird”
Participants will approve the first statement faster than the penguin
Sparrow’s are seen to be more “birdlike” than penguins, but according
to the classical categorization system, both are equally good fits
So how do we explain the “best examples”?
Prototypes: Categorization by Comparison
Prototypes are mental representations of an average category member
oAllow for classification by resemblance
Prototypes vs. classical categorization
oPrototypes/resemblance categorizes by set of similarities in overall shape
and function
oClassical categorization set rules or definitions involved
Main advantage of prototypes help us distinguish why some category members are
better examples than others
Which is better?
oDepends on the situation
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oUse resemblance if there are few major distinctions
oUse classical is there are complications
oEx// seeing a bat fly by your eyes very quickly
At first glance, it may look like a bird
But after looking at the definition, it fits the classical description of a
mammal
Networks and Hierarchies
Semantic network: an
interconnected set of nodes (or
concepts) and the links that join
them to form a category
oRepresents our connected
ideas
oNodes are circles that
represent concepts
oLinks connect them together
Similar ideas will have more and
stronger connections
oExplains why it is easier to identify one member of a category after seeing
another word from the same category
oIt does this through priming, which is the process in which exposure to one
stimulus makes connected nodes in the network more likely to become
activated
Networks are also arranged in a hierarchy
oMost frequently used category is the basic-level category, located in the
middle row of the diagram
They are terms used most often in conversation
Easiest to pronounce
At the level which prototypes exist
At the level at which most thinking occurs
oEx// Saying “there is an animal/bird/robin in your yard”
“Bird” would most often be used
Superordinate categories like “animal” are vague, and used when we
are uncertain
Subordinate-level categories like “robin” suggest something special, or
show the speaker has expert-level knowledge on the category
oAnother test:
“A robin is a bird” vs. “A robin is an animal”
“A robin eats” vs. “A robin has wings”
We are most likely to say that a robin is a bird and has wings faster
than the other options
This is because they appear closer together on the semantic network
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Categorization and Experience
We categorize new stimuli into groups with similar physical and semantic features
In adulthood, we organize and categorize new stimuli by past experiences
oEx// seeing an animal with wings and beak would instantly cause us to
categorize it as a bird even if we’ve never seen the animal before
Sometimes our past experiences can lead us astray
oGeoffrey Norman found that recent exposure to an example from one
category can bias people
oStudents were taught to diagnose different skin conditions using written rules
and photographs
oSome photos were typical examples, others were special cases and resembled
other disorders
oParticipants were more likely to rely on previously viewed photos than the
rules
oLed to wrong diagnoses for test items that were textbook examples of the
disorder
oShows the power that our memory can have on have we take in and organize
new info
Culture and Categories
Our natural tendency to categorize things interacts with our cultural experiences
Not only this, but culture affects how objects in our world relate to one another
Cultural differences have led to linguistic relativity (or Whorfian hypothesis): the
theory that the language we use determines how we understand the world
Module 8.2 – Problem Solving, Judgement and Decision Making
Module example:
oKi-Suck Han was shoved onto the subway tracks and trying to get back up
oR. Umar Abbasi managed to get a picture of the terrifying scene
oHe received lots of backlash for not helping the man, but stated he was trying
to warn the subway driver with the flash of his camera
oWe all respond to situations differently, our reasoning and decision making
performed in a number of ways and influenced by different factors
Defining and Solving Problems
Problem solving means accomplishing a goal when the solution or the path to the
solution is not clear
To overcome obstacles that life poses for us we use a number of options
Problem-Solving Strategies and Techniques
Two strategies:
oAlgorithms: problem-solving strategies based on a series of rules
Objective, logical and slower
Follow a set of steps, usually in certain order
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PSY100H1 Full Course Notes
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Document Summary
The big question is not how much we know, but how we manage to keep track of it all. A concept is the mental representation of an object, event or idea: many different concepts for a certain item, such as chair being divided into arm chair, chair can also be labelled under furniture . Categories refer to the clusters of interrelated concepts: we are able to do this through categorization. Classical categorization: claims that objects or events are categorized according to a certain set of rules or by a specific set of features. Graded membership: observation that some concepts appear to make better category members than others: poses a problem when determining which objects fit what category, ex// a sparrow is a bird vs. a penguin is a bird . Participants will approve the first statement faster than the penguin.
