1. Chapter 9: Cognition

2. Cognition: Definition of Terms
Cognition: Mentally processing information (images, concepts, etc.); thinking
Internal Representation: Mental expression of a problem or situation
Concept: Generalized idea representing a class of related objects or events
Language: Words or symbols, and rules for combining them, that are used for thinking and communication

3. Figure 9. 1 Imagery in thinking
Figure 9.1 Imagery in thinking. (Top) Subjects were shown a drawing similar to (a) and drawings of how (a) would look in other positions, such as (b) and (c). Subjects could recognize (a) after it had been “rotated” from its original position. However, the more (a) was rotated in space, the longer it took to recognize it. This result suggests that people actually formed a three-dimensional image of (a) and rotated the image to see if it matched. (Shepard, 1975.) (Bottom) Try your ability to manipulate mental images: Picture each of these shapes as a piece of paper that can be folded to make a cube. After they have been folded, on which cubes do the arrow tips meet? (After Kosslyn, 1985.)
Figure 9.1

4. Figure 9.2 When you see a flower, its image is represented by activity in the primary visual area of the cortex, at the back of the brain. Information about the flower is also relayed to other brain areas. If you form a mental image of a flower, information follows a reverse path. The result, once again, is activation of the primary visual area.
Figure 9.2

5. Types of Mental Images
Stored Image: Mental image kept in long-term memory (LTM) and retrieved when appropriate
Created Image: Image that has been assembled or invented rather than remembered
Kinesthetic Image: Created from produced, remembered, or imagined muscular sensations

6. Concepts
Concept: Idea that represents a category of objects or events
Concept Formation: Process of classifying information into meaningful categories
Positive Instance: Object or event that belongs to the concept class
Negative Instance: Object or event that does not belong to the concept class

7. Concept Formation
Conceptual Rule: Guideline for deciding whether objects or events belong to a concept class
Conjunctive Concept: Class of objects that have two or more features (e.g., object is pink and soft)

8. Concept Formation (cont.)
Relational Concept: Based on how an object relates to something else or how its features relate to one another
Disjunctive Concept: Objects that have at least one of several possible features; either-or concept (strike in baseball)

9. More Concept Issues and Terms
Prototype: Ideal model used as an example of a good concept
Denotative Meaning: Exact definition of a word or concept
Connotative Meaning: Emotional or personal meaning of a concept
Semantic Differential: Measure of connotative meaning

10. Faulty Concepts
Social Stereotype: Inaccurate and oversimplified concepts of groups of people
All-or-Nothing Thinking: One-dimensional thought

11. Figure 9. 3 When does a cup become a bowl or a vase
Figure 9.3 When does a cup become a bowl or a vase? Deciding if an object belongs to a conceptual class is aided by relating it to a prototype, or ideal example. Subjects in one experiment chose number 5 as the “best” cup. (After Labov, 1973.)
Figure 9.3

12. Figure 9. 4Use of prototypes in concept identification
Figure 9.4Use of prototypes in concept identification. Even though its shape is unusual, item (a) can be related to a model (an ordinary set of pliers) and thus recognized. But what are items (b) and (c)? If you don’t recognize them, look ahead to ✦Figure 9.6. (After Bransford & McCarrell, 1977.)
Figure 9.4

13. Figure 9. 5 This is an example of Osgood’s semantic differential
Figure 9.5 This is an example of Osgood’s semantic differential. The connotative meaning of the word jazz can be established by rating it on the scales. Mark your own rating by placing dots or X’s in the spaces. Connect the marks with a line; then have a friend rate the word and compare your responses. It might be interesting to do the same for rock and roll, classical, and rap. You also might want to try the word psychology. (From Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 49, No. 3, May 1952.)
Figure 9.5

14. Figure 9.6 Context can substitute for a lack of appropriate prototypes in concept identification.

15. Language Structure
Encoding: Translating information into symbols that are easy to manipulate
Semantics: Study of meaning in language
Phonemes: Basic speech sounds
Morphemes: Speech sounds collected into meaningful units, like syllables or words

16. Figure 9.8 The Stroop interference task.

17. Language Structure (cont.)
Grammar: Set of rules for making sounds into words or words into sentences
Syntax: Rules for word order in sentences
Transformation Rules: Rules that allow us to change a declarative sentence into other voices (passive, active) or forms

18. Language Structure (cont.)
Productivity: Ability of language to generate new thoughts or ideas
American Sign Language (ASL): Language used by deaf and hearing-impaired people

19. Figure 9. 9 Animals around the world make pretty much the same sounds
Figure 9.9 Animals around the world make pretty much the same sounds. Notice, however, how various languages use slightly different phonemes to express the sound a duck makes.
Figure 9.9

20. Figure 9.10 ASL has only 3,000 root signs, compared with roughly 600,000 words in English. However, variations in signs make ASL a highly expressive language. For example, the sign LOOK-AT can be varied in ways to make it mean look at me, look at her, look at each, stare at, gaze, watch, look for a long time, look at again and again, reminisce, sightsee, look forward to, predict, anticipate, browse, and many more variations.
Figure 9.10

21. Figure 9.11 Here is a sample of some of the word-symbols that Sarah the chimpanzee used to communicate with humans. (After Premack & Premack, 1972.)
Figure 9.11

22. Problem Solving
Mechanical Solution: Achieved by trial and error or by rote
Algorithm: Learned set of rules that always leads to a correct solution
General Solution: States the requirements for success but not in enough detail to guide further action

23. More on Problem Solving
Random Search Strategy: All possibilities are tried, more or less randomly
Heuristic: Strategy for identifying and evaluating problem solutions

24. Figure 9. 14 A schematic representation of Duncker’s tumor problem
Figure 9.14 A schematic representation of Duncker’s tumor problem. The dark spot represents a tumor surrounded by healthy tissue. How can the tumor be destroyed without injuring surrounding tissue? (After Duncker, 1945.)
Figure 9.14

25. Insight
When an answer appears suddenly in problem solving (“a-ha” learning)

26. Insight Involves:
Selective Encoding: Selecting information that is relevant to a problem while ignoring distractions
Selective Combination: Connecting seemingly unrelated bits of useful information
Selective Comparison: Comparing new problems with old information or with problems already solved

27. Fixations
Tendency to repeat wrong solutions and to “fixate” on them, or to become blind to alternatives
Functional Fixedness: Inability to see new uses (functions) for familiar objects or for things that were used in a particular way

28. Barriers to Problem Solving
Emotional Barriers: Inhibition and fear of making a fool of oneself or of making a mistake
Cultural Barriers: Belief that fantasy is a waste and feelings and humor have no place in problem solving
Learned Barriers: Taboos; staying with conventional uses
Perceptual Barriers: Habits leading to a failure to identify important elements of a problem

29. Figure 9.17 Four trees can be placed equidistant from one another by piling dirt into a mound. Three of the trees are planted equal distances apart around the base of the mound. The fourth tree is planted on the top of the mound. If you were fixated on arrangements that involve level ground, you may have been blind to this three-dimensional solution.
Figure 9.17

30. Figure 9.18 Materials for solving the candle problem were given to subjects in boxes (a) or separately (b). Functional fixedness caused by condition (a) interfered with solving the problem. The solution to the problem is shown in (c).
Figure 9.18

31. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Computer programs that perform human-like problem solving or intelligent responding (Deep Blue, the chess-playing supercomputer)
Computer Simulations: Programs that attempt to duplicate human behavior, especially thinking, problem solving, or decision making

32. Artificial Intelligence (cont.)
Expert Systems: Computer programs that respond as a human expert would
Responding like a chess Grand Master
Organized Knowledge: Systematic information
Acquired Strategies: Learned tactics

33. Defining Intelligence
Global capacity to act purposefully, think rationally, and deal effectively with the environment
Operational Definition: Procedures used to measure a concept

34. Figure 9. 19 The left chessboard shows a realistic game
Figure 9.19 The left chessboard shows a realistic game. The right chessboard is a random arrangement of pieces. Expert chess players can memorize the left board at a glance, yet they are no better than beginners at memorizing the random board (Saariluoma, 1994). Expert performance at most thinking tasks is based on acquired strategies and knowledge. If you would like to excel at a profession or a mental skill, plan on adding to your knowledge every day (Holyoak, 1990).
Figure 9.19

35. Testing Intelligence
Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Fifth Edition (SB5): Widely used individual intelligence test, derived directly from Alfred Binet’s first intelligence test; items are age-ranked

36. Intelligence Quotients
Chronological Age: Person’s age in years
Mental Age: Average intellectual performance

37. SB5: Cognitive Factors Measured
Fluid reasoning
Knowledge
Quantitative reasoning
Visual-spatial processing
Working memory

38. Figure 9.22 Distribution of Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test scores for 3,184 children. (After Terman & Merrill, 1960.)
Figure 9.22

39. More Terms
Intelligence Quotient (IQ): Intelligence index; original definition; mental age divided by chronological age, then multiplied by 100
Deviation IQ: Scores based on a person’s relative standing in his or her age group; how far above or below average a person’s score is, relative to other scores
Average IQ in the U.S.: 100

40. Wechsler Tests
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Test, 3rd Edition (WAIS-III): Adult intelligence test that rates verbal and performance intelligence and abilities
Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th Edition (WISC-IV): Downscaled version of the WAIS-III; for children from 6 years to 16 years, 11 months, 30 days

41. Types of Intelligence
Performance Intelligence: Nonverbal intelligence
Verbal Intelligence: Language or symbol-oriented intelligence

42. Figure 9.23 Approximate correlations between IQ scores for persons with varying degrees of genetic and environmental similarity. Notice that the correlations grow smaller as the degree of genetic similarity declines. Also note that a shared environment increases the correlation in all cases. (Estimates from Bouchard, 1983; Henderson, 1982.)
Figure 9.23

43. Group Tests
These tests can be given to a large group of people with little supervision; usually contain multiple-choice items
Normal (Bell-Shaped) Curve: Most scores fall close to the average, and very few are found at the extremes

44. IQ Research Results
A strong correlation (about .50) exists between IQ and school grades
IQ is NOT a good predictor of success in art, music, writing, dramatics, science and leadership
Men and women do NOT appear to differ in overall intelligence, Larry Summers’ assertions notwithstanding

45. Giftedness
Having a high IQ (usually above 130) or special talents or abilities (playing Mozart at age 5)

46. Figure 9.24 Comparison of an adopted child and a biological child reared in the same family. (After Kamin, 1981.)
Figure 9.24

47. Gardner’s Theory of Eight Multiple Intelligences
Language: Lawyers, writers, comedians
Logic and Math: Scientists, accountants, programmers
Visual and Spatial Thinking: Engineers, inventors, artists
Music: Composers, musicians, music critics
Where does Simon Cowell fit?

48. Gardner’s Theory of Eight Multiple Intelligences (cont.)
Bodily-Kinesthetic Skills: Dancers, athletes, surgeons
Intrapersonal Skills (Self-Knowledge): Poets, actors, ministers
Interpersonal Skills (Social Abilities): Psychologists, teachers, politicians
Naturalistic Skills (Ability to Understand Natural Environment): Biologists, organic farmers

49. Mental Retardation (or Developmentally Disabled): Some Definitions
Presence of a developmental disability and an IQ score below 70; a significant impairment of adaptive behavior also figures into the definition
Adaptive Behavior: Basic skills such as dressing, eating, working, hygiene; necessary for self-care

50. Familial Retardation
Mild retardation that occurs in homes that have inadequate nutrition, intellectual stimulation, medical care, and emotional support

51. Organic Causes of Mental Retardation
Related to physical disorders
Birth Injuries: Lack of oxygen to the brain, for example
Fetal Damage: Prenatal damage from disease, infection, or drug use by the mother
Metabolic Disorders: Rate of energy use and production in the body are affected
Genetic Abnormalities: Abnormality in the genes, such as missing genes, extra genes, or defective genes

52. Creative Thinking
Inductive Thought: Going from specific facts or observations to general principles
Deductive Thought: Going from general principles to specific situations
Logical Thought: Going from given information to new conclusions based on explicit rules
Illogical Thought: Thought that is intuitive, associative, or personal

53. Figure 9. 25 Some tests of divergent thinking
Figure 9.25 Some tests of divergent thinking. Creative responses are more original and more complex. [(a) adapted from Wallach & Kogan, 1965; (b) adapted from Barron, 1958.]
Figure 9.25

54. How to “Rate” Creative Thoughts
Fluency: Total number of suggestions you can make
Flexibility: Number of times you shift from one class of possible uses to another
Originality: How novel or unusual your ideas are
Convergent Thinking: Many thoughts or variations converging on a single answer; conventional thinking
Divergent Thinking: Many possibilities developed from one starting point

55. Tests of Creativity (This is the “Twilight Zone”
Unusual Uses Test: Find as many uses for an object as possible (“Tell me all the things you can do with this pencil.”)
Consequences Test: List all the consequences that would follow if a basic change were made in the world (“What would happen if we were able to read everyone’s thoughts?”)
Anagrams Test: Make as many new words as possible from the letters in a given word

56. Stages of Creative Thought
Orientation: Defining the problem
Preparation: Gaining as much information as possible
Incubation: The problem, while not appearing to be actively worked on, is still “cooking” in the background
Illumination: The “a-ha” experience; rapid insight into the solution
Verification: Testing and critically evaluating the solution

57. Creative Personality
Smarter people have a slight tendency to be more creative
Creative people usually have a greater than average range of knowledge and interests
Creative people have openness to a wide variety of experiences
Creative people value independence and have a preference for complex things

58. Logic and Intuition
Intuition: Quick, impulsive thought that does not make use of clear reasoning
Representativeness Heuristic: Giving a choice greater weight if it seems to be representative of what is already known
Base Rate: Underlying probability of an event
Framing: The way a problem is stated or the way it is structured

59. How to Enhance Creativity
Break mental sets and challenge assumptions
Mental Set: Tendency to perceive a problem in a way that blinds us to possible solutions
Define problems broadly
Restate the problem in different ways
Allow time for incubation

60. How to Enhance Creativity (cont.)
Seek varied input
Look for analogies
Take sensible risks
Delay evaluation

61. Brainstorming
Keeping the production of ideas separate from the evaluation of them; producing ideas with no criticism
Cross-Stimulation Effect: When one participant’s ideas in a brainstorming session trigger ideas from others

62. Some Rules for Brainstorming
Criticism of ideas is barred
Modification or combination with other ideas is encouraged
Quantity of ideas is sought
Unusual, remote, or wild ideas are sought
Record ideas as they occur
Elaborate or improve on the most promising ideas

63. The Match Problem and Its Solution

64. Figure 9. 26 (a) Nine dots are arranged in a square
Figure 9.26 (a) Nine dots are arranged in a square. Can you connect them by drawing four continuous straight lines without lifting your pencil from the paper? (b) Six matches must be arranged to make four triangles. The triangles must be the same size, with each side equal to the length of one match. (The solutions to these problems appear in Fig. 9.27, on page 368.)
Figure 9.26

65. Figure 9. 27 Problem solutions
Figure 9.27 Problem solutions. (a) The dot problem can be solved by extending the lines beyond the square formed by the dots. Most people assume incorrectly that they may not do this. (b) The match problem can be solved by building a three-dimensional pyramid. Most people assume that the matches must be arranged on a flat surface. If you remembered the four-tree problem from earlier in the chapter, the match problem may have been easy to solve.
Figure 9.27