Psych Chapter 7 Vocab – Flashcards
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Cognition
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The mental activity associated with obtaining, converting, and using knowledge
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Thinking
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Mental activity associated with coming to a decision, reaching the solution, forming a belief, or developing an attitude
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Concepts
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Mental representation of categories of objects, situations, and ideas that belong together based on their central features are characteristics
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Formal concepts
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The mental representations of categories that are created through rigid and logical rules
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Natural concepts
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The mental representation of categories resulting from experiences experiences in daily life
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Prototype
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The ideal or lost representative example of a natural concept
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Problem solving
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The variety of approaches that can be used to achieve a goal
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Trial and error
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Approach to a problem solving that involves finding a solution through a series of attempts and eliminating those that do not work
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Algorithm
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Approach to problem solving using a formula or set of rules that if followed ensures a solution
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Heuristics
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Problem solving approaches that incorporate a rule of thumb or broad application of a strategy
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Means- ends analysis
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Heuristic used to determine how to decrease the distance between a goal (the means) and the current status, leading to the solution of a problem
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Insight
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Understanding or solution that occurs in a sudden stroke of clarity (aha moment)
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Functional fixedness
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Barrier to problem solving that occurs when familiar objects can only be imagined to function in their normal way
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Decision making
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Cognitive process of choosing from alternatives that might be used to reach a goal
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Availability heuristic
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Decision making strategy that predicts the likelihood of something happening based on how easily a similar type of event from the past can be recalled
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Representativeness heuristic
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Decision making strategy used to evaluate the degree to which the primary characteristics of a person or situation are similar to our prototype of that type of person or situation
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Confirmation bias
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Tendency to look for evidence that upholds our beliefs and overlook evidence that runs counter to them
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Framing effect
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Occurs when the wording of questions or the context of a problem influences the outcome of a decision
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Language
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System for using symbols to think and communicate
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Phonemes
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The basic building blocks of spoken language
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Morphemes
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The fundamental units that bring meaning to language
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Syntax
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The collection of rules concerning where to place words or phrases
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Grammar
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The rules associated with word and sentence structure
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Semantics
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The rules used to bring meaning to words and sentences
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Pragmatics
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Social rules that help organize languagr
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Intelligence
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Innate ability to solve problems, adapt to the environment, and learn from experiences
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General intelligence (g factor)
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Singular underlying aptitude or intellectual competence that drives abilities in many areas, including verbal, spatial, and reasoning abilities
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Triarchic theory of intelligence
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Stern bergs theory suggesting that humans have varying degrees of analytical, creative, and practical abilities
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Aptitude
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Individuals potential for learning
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Achievement
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Acquired knowledge or what has been learned
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Mental age (MA)
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A score representing the mental abilities of an individual in relation to others of a similar chronological age
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Intelligence quotient
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A score from an intelligence assessment; originally based on mental age divided by chronological age, multiplied by 100
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Validity
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The degree to which an assessment measures what it intends to measure
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Reliability
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The ability of an assessment to provide consistent, reproductive results
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Standardization
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Occurs when test developers administer a test to a large sample and then publish the average scores for specified groups
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Normal curve
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Depicts the frequency of values of a variable along with a continuum
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Culture fair intelligence test
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Assessment designed to minimize cultural bias
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Gifted
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Highly intelligent
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Emotional intelligence
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The capacity to perceive, understand,regulate, and use emotions to adapt to social situations
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Heritability
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The degree to which genes are responsible for a particular characteristic observed within a population
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Creativity
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In problem solving, the ability to construct valuable results in innovative ways; the ability to generate original ideas
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Divergent thinking
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The ability to devise many solutions to a problem; a component of creativity
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Convergent thinking
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A conventional approach to problem solving that focuses on finding a single best solution to a problem by using previous experience and knowledge
