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Transcript of © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Thinking Language Intelligence.
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Thinking• Language• Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Things You’ll Learn in Chapter 8Q1 Why might some medical treatments be judged
as more effective than they really are?
Q2Can studying in a coffee shop improve your creativity?
Q3Can babies begin to learn language even before they are born?
Q4 Do bigger brains indicate greater intelligence?
Q5 Does caregiving in the first years of life have a lasting impact on brain size and development?
• Cognition = the mental activities involved in acquiring, storing, retrieving, and using knowledge
• Thinking is both localized and distributed throughout the brain in networks of neurons
Cognition
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Imagine yourself at the beach. What do you see? Smell? Hear? Feel?
• Mental image = the mental representation of a previously stored sensory experience, including visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile, motor, or gustatory imagery
Cognitive Building Blocks
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Concept = the mental representation of a group or category
• Concepts developed through 3 building blocks1. Prototype = the example that embodies the
“best” or most typical feature of a concept
Cognitive Building Blocks
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Think of a bird…..
Cognitive Building Blocks
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
2. Artificial concept = a clearly defined concept based on a set of logical rules, also known as a formal concept
When something doesn’t fit the prototype, must review artificial concept
Did anyone think of a penguin?
3. Hierarchies = subcategories within broader concepts• We learn basic-level before higher- and lower-
order
Cognitive Building Blocks
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Solving problems means moving from the given state (problem) to a goal state (solution)
• Three steps:1. Preparation – define goal, outline limits2. Production – test possible options using• Algorithms: logical, step-by-step procedure that will
always eventually solve the problem• Heuristics: cognitive strategy or “rule of thumb” used as a
shortcut for problem solving; does not guarantee a solution but does narrow down alternatives
3. Evaluation – determine if solution solves problem
Solving Problems
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• In what section of the grocery store can you find sun-dried tomatoes?
• How could you find them?– Algorithm – walk each isle until you find them– Heuristic – guess which section they might be in
(Fresh produce? Canned vegetables?)
Solving Problems
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Other problem-solving techniques• Insight: remember Kohler’s chimps from
Chapter 6 who stacked boxes to reach bananas?
• Incubation period: mentally set the problem aside for a while until the solution comes without conscious thought.
Solving Problems
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Sometimes we struggle to solve problems because:
• Mental set = a problem-solving strategy that has worked in the past, which we continue to use rather than trying new strategies
• Functional fixedness = the inability to think of an object functioning only in its usual or customary way; adversely affects problem solving and creativity
Barriers to Problem Solving
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Confirmation Bias = the bias of preferring information that confirms preexisting positions or beliefs, while ignoring or discounting contradictory evidence
Barriers to Problem Solving
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Treatment outcomes in medical research studies were judged to be more positive when the evaluator knew what treatment each patient received (not blind to condition).
How might this affect a doctor’s
treatment decisions?
Q1 Why might some medical treatments be judged as more effective than they really are?
• Ever heard of the Sports Illustrated “cover jinx”?
• That’s confirmation bias!
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Improper use of heuristics• Availability heuristic = a cognitive strategy
(shortcut) that involves making judgments based on information that is readily available in memory
• Representativeness heuristic = a cognitive strategy (shortcut) that involves making judgments based on how well an object or event matches (represents) an existing prototype in our minds
Barriers to Problem Solving
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• In sum, potential biases limit good judgment and problem solving
• BUT availability and representativeness heuristics are shortcuts that are more likely to help us than hurt us by providing “inferences that are fast, frugal, and accurate” (Todd & Gigerenzer, 2000, p. 736)
Barriers to Problem Solving
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Creativity = the ability to produce original, appropriate, and valued outcomes in a novel way
• Has three characteristics:
Creativity
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Three groups of participants experienced varying levels of ambient noise (50 dB, 70 dB, and 85 dB) while performing a test of creativity.
• Who performed best? Those with moderate background noise (70 dB).
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Q2 Can studying in a coffee shop improve your creativity?
• Divergent thinking = an aspect of creativity characterized by an ability to produce unusual but appropriate alternatives from a single starting point
Creative Thinking
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LANGUAGE
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Language = a form of communication using sounds and symbols combined according to specific rules
• To produce language, we use .…– Phonemes – smallest basic unit of speech or sound,
which combine into ….– Morphemes – smallest meaningful unit of language,
which combine into ….– Grammar – the system of rules (syntax and semantics)
used to create language and communication
Language
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Language doesn’t determine thought– Whorf (1956) proposed the linguistic relativity
hypothesis, which suggested that the language you speak determines how you reason, think, and perceive the world (Inuits’ multiple words for snow)
• Language does influence thought– People who speak both Chinese and English say
the language they are using affects their sense of self, influencing which cultural norms they adopt.
Language and Thought
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language Development
• Newborns heard their native language or a different language (English and Swedish) while sucking on a pacifier hooked to a computer
• The babies who heard the foreign language sucked more frequently, suggesting babies are more interested in hearing new sounds … they had already become accustomed to their native language while in utero
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Q3Can babies begin to learn language even before they are born?
Is language development nature or nurture?• Language acquisition device (LAD) = according
to Noam Chomsky, an innate mechanism that enables a child to analyze language and extract the basic rules of grammar– Children everywhere progress through the same
stages of language development, regardless of language
• Nurturists argue that children learn language through rewards, punishment, and imitation
Language Development
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Apes lack the anatomical structure needed to vocalize like humans
• Gardner (1969): recognized chimp’s manual dexterity and ability to imitate gestures
• The chimp Washoe learned 132 ASL signs and could combine them into simple sentences
• The gorilla Koko knew 1000 words
Can Animals Talk?
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Nonhuman animal language is less complex, less creative and has fewer rules than human language.– Some argue that animals don’t understand
language but are operantly conditioned to respond
– Others claim that communication can occur but animal ideas are severely limited
Is it language?
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
INTELLIGENCE
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Intelligence = the global capacity to think rationally, act purposefully, profit from experience, and deal effectively with the environment
• Different cultures have different definitions of intelligence that go beyond “book smarts”
Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Nature of Intelligence
Single factor
• General intelligence (g) = Spearman’s term for overall general intellectual ability– g underlies all
intellectual ability, including reasoning and problem solving
– Laid the foundation for today’s standardized intelligence tests
Multiple factors
• Thurstone proposed seven primary mental abilities:– Verbal comprehension, word
fluency, numerical fluency, spatial visualization, associative memory, perceptual speed, and reasoning
• Guilford proposed 120 factors
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Cattell reanalyzed Thurstone’s data and proposed two subtypes of g:– Fluid intelligence (gf) = aspects of innate
intelligence, including reasoning abilities, memory, and speed of information processing; relatively independent of education and tends to decline as people age
– Crystalized intelligence (gc) = knowledge and skills gained through experience and education and the ability to access that knowledge; intelligence that tends to increase over the life span
The Nature of Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Gardner proposed theory of multiple intelligences: people have different profiles of intelligence because they are stronger in some areas than others and use their intelligences differently
• Sternberg’s triarchic theory of successful intelligence suggests three separate, learned aspects of intelligence: analytic, creative, and practical
• Goleman popularized emotional intelligence (EI): the ability to perceive, appraise, express, and regulate emotions accurately and appropriately
The Nature of Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Most IQ tests are designed to predict grades in school
• Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: ages 3 to 16. Includes copying geometric designs, identifying similarities, and repeating number sequences
• Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale: separate scores for verbal and performance
Measuring Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Intelligence Quotient (IQ) = an index of intelligence initially derived from standardized tests and by dividing mental age by chronological age and then multiplying by 100; now derived by comparing individual scores withthe scores of others of the same age.
Measuring Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Intelligence tests must meet three basic requirements:1. Standardization = a set of uniform procedures
for treating each participant in a test, interview, or experiment or for recording data
2. Reliability = the degree to which a test produces similar scores each time it is used; stability or consistency of the scores produced by an instrument
3. Validity = the degree to which a test measures what it is intended to measure
Measuring Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Intellectually disabled (previously called mentally retarded): applies to someone significantly below average in intellectual functioning and has significant deficits in adaptive functioning
• Fewer than 3% of people; of this group, 85% have mild intellectual disability; may score low on some areas and average or gifted on others
• Savant syndrome = a condition in which a person with generally limited mental abilities exhibits exceptional skill or brilliance in some limited field
• Disabilities might be caused by genetic condition (Down syndrome, fragile-X, PKU) or by the environment (prenatal exposure to drugs, deprivation early in life, brain damage from accidents)
Extremes in Intelligence
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• Gifted or high IQ are usually defined as the top 1 to 2% of IQ scores.
• Terman (1921) followed 1500 kids with IQ of 140+ through childhood and adulthood– Subjects became successful professionals at a
higher rate than others; tended to have extraordinary motivation and support at school and home
– Fared no better than the general population in rates of alcohol abuse, divorce, and suicide.
Extremes in Intelligence
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Recent neuroscience research shows:• People with high IQ also respond faster on perceptual
judgment tasks (Bowling & Mackenzie, 1996)• Intelligent brains work more efficiently than less
intelligent brains (Jung & Haier, 2007)
Nature, Nurture, and IQ
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Significant correlation between brain size and intelligence• Einstein’s brain was no larger than normal: some areas were
smaller, but math and spatial info areas were 15% larger
Q3Can babies begin to learn language even before they are born?
• Minnesota Study of Twins investigated identical twins raised in different homes
Nature, Nurture, and IQ
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Heredity equips people with innate intellectual capacity; the environment significantly influences whether a person will reach full potential
Nature, Nurture, and IQ
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Early malnutrition can stunt a child’s physical brain development, which affects responsiveness to environment and motivation to learning, ultimately lowering IQ
Q5 Does caregiving in the first years of life have a lasting impact on brain size and development?
Differences Between vs Within Groups
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• Historical group differences in average IQ scores between black and white people in US
• Differences between groups are environmental (different soil) not genetic (same seeds)
• Greatest differences appear within groups: some blacks score high, some score low; some whites score high, some score low
What else affects differences in IQ?• Environmental factors can override genetic potential• Traditional IQ tests may be culturally biased – they reflect white,
middle-class culture, which puts others at disadvantage if knowledge, values, language don’t match test
• Intelligence is not a fixed trait. Flynn effect: IQ scores around the world are increasing
• Dividing scores by race doesn’t take into account difficulty in defining race and racial membership
• Stereotype threat = awareness of negative stereotype that affects oneself and may lead to impairment in performance
Differences Between vs Within Groups
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.