 Thinking and Language Chapter 9

 Thinking and Language Thinking Cognition refers to all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating The Thinker, Rodin

 Thinking and Language Thinking Problem Solving

Some problems we solve by trail-and-error, and others by using algorithms— methodical, step by step procedures that guarantee a solution. SPLOYOCHYG

However, algorithms are time-consuming, and thus we often use heuristics—sample thinking strategies that allow us to solve problems efficiently. Heuristics are usually speedier but more error prone. Credit: B 2 M Productions/Digital Vision/Getty Images

Obstacles to Problem Solving Confirmation bias–our tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore contradictory evidence.

Obstacles to Problem Solving The Matchstick Problem: How would you arrange six matches to form four equilateral triangles? Fixation – our inability to see a problem from a new perspective, employing a different mental set.

Obstacles to Problem Solving The Matchstick Problem: How would you arrange six matches to form four equilateral triangles? Fixation – our inability to see a problem from a new perspective, employing a different mental set.

Obstacles to Problem Solving Fixation – our inability to see a problem from a new perspective, employing a different mental set.

Obstacles to Problem Solving The Candle-Mounting Problem: Using these materials, how would you mount the candle on a bulletin board? Functional Fixedness – our tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions.

Obstacles to Problem Solving Functional Fixedness – our tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions.

 Thinking and Language Thinking Making Decisions and Forming Judgments

Using and Misusing Heuristics Amos TverskyDaniel Kahneman Courtesy of Greymayer Award, U. of Louisville

Using and Misusing Heuristics If you meet a slim, short, man who wears glasses and likes poetry, what do you think his profession would be? An Ivy league professor of Classics or a truck driver? The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes.

Using and Misusing Heuristics How many Ivy league schools are there? 10 How many Classics professors are at each school? 4 Of those 40, what proportion are short and slim? Half Of those 20, what proportion read poetry? Half or 10 The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes.

Using and Misusing Heuristics How many truck drivers are there? 400,000 Of those 400,000, what proportion are short and slim? 1 in 5 Of those 80k, what proportion read poetry? 1 in 1,000 or 80 The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes.

Using and Misusing Heuristics The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes.

Using and Misusing Heuristics Hypothetically… How many members of (minority) Ethnic Group X are there in the U.S. population? 1.5 million Of those 1.5 million, what percentage have strong anti-American sentiment? 1/20, or 5% or 75,000 The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes.

Using and Misusing Heuristics Hypothetically… How many members of (majority) Ethnic Group Y are there in the U.S. population? 100,000,000 million Of those 100 million, what percentage have strong anti-American sentiment? 1/200, or.5% or 500,000 The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes.

Using and Misusing Heuristics Hypothetically… How many members of Ethnic Group Y are there in the U.S. population? 100,000,000 million Of those 100 million, what percentage have strong anti-American sentiment? 1/200, or.5% or 500,000 The Representativeness Heuristic – judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes. Randomly chosen person from (majority) Ethnic Group Y is 6.7 times more likely to have strong anti-American sentiment than person from (minority) Ethnic Group X!

Using and Misusing Heuristics The Availability Heuristic – estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; that is, how readily they come to mind. For example, although flying is much safer than driving, many people insist on driving. Credit: Anynobody

Using and Misusing Heuristics The Availability Heuristic – estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; that is, how readily they come to mind.

Using and Misusing Heuristics The Availability Heuristic – estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; that is, how readily they come to mind. Despite the rarity of dying from a terrorist attack, many Americans list it as the top priority for our government

Overconfidence The Soviets were overconfident in invading Afghanistan in the 1970s. The Americans were overconfident in invading Vietnam in the 1960s. Our use of intuitive heuristics (representative and availability) and our eagerness to confirm the beliefs we already hold (confirmation bias) combine to create overconfidence—a tendency to overestimate the accuracy of our knowledge and judgments. This can create problems, big and small.

Overconfidence Our use of intuitive heuristics (representative and availability) and our eagerness to confirm the beliefs we already hold (confirmation bias) combine to create overconfidence—a tendency to overestimate the accuracy of our knowledge and judgments. This can create problems, big and small.

The Belief Perseverance Phenomenon Participants read about supposedly new research findings—one supporting use of the death penalty as a deterrent, and the other refuting it. Participants were most impressed with the study that confirmed their own beliefs about the death penalty. Belief Perseverance – our tendency to cling to our initial concepts even after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited. Credit: CA Corrections

Effects of Framing The way a message is presented can have striking effects: In one study, 9 of 10 college students rated condoms as effective against HIV if they were described as having a “95 percent success rate”… Framing – the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments.

Effects of Framing But only 4 of 10 students rated condoms as effective against HIV if they were described as having a “5 percent” failure rate. The bottom-line: The message matters in shaping people’s decisions and judgments. Framing – the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments.