Cognition and Language

Chapter 7

Building Blocks of Thought

•Language–A flexible system of symbols that enables

us to communicate our ideas, thoughts, and feelings

–Nonhumans communicate primarily though signs

–Human language is semantic, or meaningful

– It is also characterized by displacement in that it is not limited to the here-and-now

Structure of Language • Phonemes

– Basic sounds (ph, t) • Morphemes

– smallest meaning unit (words, prefixes)• Surface structure

– Phrases of sentence• Deep structure

– Underlying meaning of a sentence• Grammar

– Rules of how sounds combine

Building Blocks of Thought

• Images–Nonverval mental representations of

sensory experiences•Concepts–Mental categories for classifying

people, objects, or experiences–Prototype•Mental model containing the most typical features of a concept

Language, Thought and Culture

Language and Cognition

•Linguistic determinism– Idea that patterns of thinking are

determined by the specific language one speaks

–Research only mildly supports the idea

Culture and Cognition

•All known cultures use categories to form concepts

•Culture has an effect on–What information is included in a

category–How categories are shaped by

experience

Nonhuman Thought and Language

•Animal cognition–Animals can form concepts–Apes have demonstrated

sophisticated problem-solving skills

–Chimpanzees and orangutans show signs of self-awareness

Nonhuman Thought and Language

•The question of language–Chimpanzees have been taught to

use American Sign Language–Chimpanzees have been observed

using telegraphic speech (two-word combinations)

–Some chimps have learned to use keyboard symbols to communicate even without formal training

Problem Solving Steps

•Problem representation– Interpreting or defining the

problem

•Deciding the category a problem belongs to

•Selecting a solution strategy•Evaluating progress toward goal

Possible Solution Strategies• Trial and error

– Works best with limited number of choices• Information retrieval

– Retrieve from memory information about how such a problem has been solved in the past

• Algorithms– Step-by-step methods that guarantees a

solution– Math problems are an example of the type

best solved using an algorithm• Heuristics

– Rules of thumb that may help simplify a problem, but do not guarantee a solution

Heuristic Methods• Hill climbing

– Move progressively closer to goal without moving backward

• Subgoals– Break large

problem into smaller, more manageable ones, each of which is easier to solve than the whole problem

• Means-end analysis– Aims to reduce the

discrepancy between the current situation and the desired goal at a number of intermediate points

• Working backward– Work backward from

the desired goal to the existing condition

Obstacles to Solving Problems

•Motivation–Desire to solve a problem

•Mental sets–Tendency to perceive and

approach problems in certain ways•Functional fixedness–Tendency to see only a limited

number of uses for an object

Creative Problem Solving

• Brainstorming– Produces many ideas– Very popular in business– Ideas are not judged when generated

• The creative process– People often become more creative

when exposed to creative peers

Becoming a More Skillful Problem Solver

• Eliminate poor choices• Visualize a solution• Develop expertise• Think flexibly

Decision Making

• Decision making is a special case of problem solving in which possible solutions or choices are already known

• Logical decision making– Compensatory model

•Rational decision-making model in which choices are systematically evaluated on various criteria

•Example: buying a car– Good when issues are well-defined

Decision-Making Heuristics• Heuristic processes are used when

decisions involve a high degree of ambiguity

• Representativeness heuristic– New information is compared to our model of

the typical member of a category (prototype)• Availability heuristic

– Decision is based on information that is most easily retrieved from memory, even if incomplete

• Confirmation bias– Tendency to notice evidence that supports our

beliefs and to ignore evidence that contradicts them

Framing

• How information is presented (or framed) can have an effect on the outcome of decision-making

• Research has demonstrated that framing can have very dramatic effects on decision-making

Decisions Under Pressure

• When decisions are required quickly, experience plays a key role

• With increased pressure in an emergency situation, decision making often deteriorates and can end in panic

Explaining Our Decisions

•Hindsight bias– Tendency to view the outcomes of

decisions as inevitable and predictable after we know the outcome

•Counterfactual thinking– Thinking about alternative realities and

things that never happened– Often takes the form of “If only…”

constructions dealing with causes and consequences