Cognitive Processes Chapter 8

Studying CognitionLanguage UseVisual CognitionProblem Solving and ReasoningJudgment and Decision MakingRecapping Main Points Chapter 8 Preview

Concept of Cognition Cognition Processes of knowing, including attending, remembering, and reasoning Content of processes (e.g. concepts and memories)

Concept of Cognition Cognitive Psychology Study of higher mental processes such as attention, language use, memory, perception, problem-solving, and thinking

Domain of Cognitive Psychology

Concept of Cognition Cognitive Science Interdisciplinary field of study of systems and processes that manipulate information

Domain of Cognitive Science

Studying Cognition F.C. Donders Reaction time experiments Discovering Process of Mind

Mental Processes and Mental Resources Carried out in order, one after other Serial Processes Carried out simultaneously Parallel Processes

Breaking down High- Level Cognitive Activities

Mental Processes Responsible for distributing limited processing resources over different tasks Attentional Processes

Mental Processes Require attention Controlled Processes Do not require attention Automatic Processes

Language Use Language Production What people say, sign, and write and processes they go through to produce message Speakers versus listeners

Language Use Audience Design Shaping message depending on audience H. Paul Grice Cooperative principle Speakers produce utterances appropriate to setting and meaning of ongoing conversation

Language Use Audience Design Herbert Clark Common Ground Community membership Linguistic co-presence Physical co-presence

Speech Execution and Speech Errors ProcessesRepresentations

Speech Execution and Speech Errors Spoonerism “You have tasted the whole worm!” “Tips of the slung”

Language Understanding

Brain Bases of Ambiguity Resolution

Products of Understanding Inferences Missing information filled in on basis of sample of evidence or on basis of prior beliefs and theories Number of potential inferences after utterance is unlimited

Language and Evolution

Critical Thinking in Your Life Why and how do people lie? How might people’s motives for lying affect the validity of research on lying? What does the study on page 219 of your text suggest about ethical constraints for studying lying in a laboratory setting?

Language, Thought, and Culture Does language affect thought? Linguistic Relativity Edward Sapir and Benjamin Whorf Structure of language impacts way in which individual thinks about world

Visual Cognition Ability to engage in efficient mental rotation depends partially on visual experiences Visual images answer certain questions about world Visual images can be based on verbal imagery

Rotated R Used to Assess Mental Imagery

Problem Solving and Reasoning Problem Solving Thinking directed toward solving specific problems Moves from initial state to a goal by mental operations

Problem Solving Problem Space Well-defined Problem Ill-defined Problem Elements that make up a problem

Problem Solving Algorithm Heuristic Step-by-step procedure Always provides right answer Cognitive strategies (“rules of thumb”) Shortcuts to solving complex inferential tasks

Problem Solving Think- aloud Protocols Verbalizing ongoing thoughts while working on task

Problem Solving Functional Fixedness Inability to perceive new use for object previously associated with some other purpose

Problem Solving Creativity Ability to generate ideas or products that are both novel and appropriate to the circumstances

Problem Solving Creativity Divergent thinking Convergent thinking Insight

Making Judgments about Creativity

Reasoning Process of thinking in which conclusions are drawn from a set of facts Directed toward given goal

Deductive Reasoning Drawing conclusions by logically following two or more statements Belief-bias Effect Prior knowledge, attitudes, or values distort reasoning

Inductive Reasoning Conclusion made about probability based on available evidence and past experience Analogical Problem Solving Mental Set

Judging and Deciding Decision Making Choosing between alternatives Judgment Forming opinions, reaching conclusions, and making critical evaluations

Heuristic and Judgment Availability Heuristic Judgment based on information readily available in memory Representative Heuristic Assigns object to category on basis of few characteristics Anchoring heuristic People show insufficient adjustment up or down from original starting value when judging probable value of outcome

Psychology of Decision Making Framing Decisions Consequences of Decision Making Decision Aversion

Recapping Chapter 8 Main Points Discovering the Processes of the Mind Mental Process and Mental Resources Studying Cognition Production Understanding Language Evolution Language Thought and Culture Language Use

Recapping Chapter 8 Main Points Using Visual Representation Combining Verbal and Visual Representations Visual Cognition Problem Solving Deductive Reasoning Inductive Reasoning Problem Solving and Reasoning

Recapping Chapter 8 Main Points Heuristics and Judgment Psychology of Decision Making Judgment and Decision Making