PSYCH 2H03 Chapter Notes - Chapter 32: Exemplar Theory, Prototype Theory
3 Mar 2020
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Exemplars: the idea that categorization relies on knowledge about specific category members rather than a prototype. Exemplars = specific remembered instances of things in a category. Difference from prototype theory: for prototype theory, the standard = the prototype, for exemplar theory, the standard is provided by whatever example of the category comes to mind. Exemplars provide info that"s lost from the prototype: specifically info about the variability within a category. Conceptual knowledge relies on both prototypes and exemplars. People draw on both when thinking about concepts. In both cases, you assess the resemblance between this conceptual knowledge and the object before you the difficulties with categorizing via resemblance. Typicality (the degree to which a particular object / situation / event is typical for its kind) plays a large role in people"s thinking: more-typical category members = privileged. Judgements of category membership depend on judgments of typicality. But: data shows no linkage between judgments of category membership and judgements of typicality.
