PSY220H1 Chapter 3: CH3 Textbook Notes

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10 Feb 2011
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Categorization: the process of recognizing and identifying something. The most basic process we use to understand and structure our world. We constantly identify objects around us so we can know how to behave. Social cognition: the study of how information about people is processed and stored. Generally thought to be two basic motives underlying human information processing. To understand the mind, we are less interested in its physical/biological elements than we are in its underlying theoretical elements. Schemas: mental representations of objects or categories of objects. Or concepts, they contain the principle features of the object or category and simple assumptions or theories about how it functions. Baldwin (1992) relational schemas: schemas for specific interpersonal interactions. Much of a child"s early learning involves forming schemas. Basic function of schemas is to categorize objects in ways that impose meaning and predictability. We must identify (categorize) anything before we can behave effectively toward it.