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76 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Problem
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A situation that occurs when there is an obstacle between a present state and a goal state and it is not immediately obvious how to get around the obstacle
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Insight
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Sudden realization of a problem's solution
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Candle Problem
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A problem first described by Duncker in which a person is given a number of objects and is given the task of mounting a candle on a wall so it can burn without dripping wax on the floor.
Ps who were presented with empty boxes were twice as likely to solve the problem than Ps who were presented with boxes that were used as containers b/c didnt realize containers could be support. |
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Functional Fixedness
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An effect that occurs when the ideas a person has about an object's function inhibits the person's ability to use the object for a different function
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Two-string Problem
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A problem first described by Maier in which a person is given the task of attaching two strings together that are too far apart to be reached at the same time. This task was devised to illustrate the operation of functional fixedness
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Mental Set
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A person's tendency to respond in a certain manner, based on past experience.
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Water-Jug Problem
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A problem first described by Luchins that illustrates how mental set can influence the strategies that peope use to solve a problem
Mental set vs. No mental set no mental set had higher percentage of using shorter solution |
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Problem Space
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The mental space within which solution of a problem occurs. The idea of a problem space, which is associated with Newell and Simon, states that the problem space consists of the following four components: initial state, goal state, intermediate states, and operators. The problem space can be thought of as a maze of pathways between the intital and goal state.
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Initial state
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In problem solving, the conditions at the beginning of a problem
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Goal state
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In problem solving, the condition at the end of the problem
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Intermediate states
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In problem solving, the various conditions that exist along the pathways between the initial and goal states
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Operators
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In problem solving, permissible moves that can be made toward a problem's solution
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Means-end Analysis
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A problem-solving strategy in which the goal is to reduce the difference between the initial and goal state. This is achieved by working to achieve subgoals that move the process of solution closer to the goal.
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Subgoals
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In the means-end analysis approach to problem solving, subgoals are goals that create intermediate states that move the process of solution closer to the goal
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Tower of Hanoi problem
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A problem involving moving discs from one set of pegs to another set. It has been used to illustrate the process involved in means-end analysis.
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Hobbits-and-orcs problem
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A problem involving transporting hobbits and orcs across a river that has been used to illustrate how the means-end strategy must sometimes be violated in order to solve a problem.
"...but occasionally some backtracking is necessary" |
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ill-defined problems
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A problem in which it is difficult to specify a clear goal state or specific operators. Many real-life problems are ill-defined problems.
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Well-defined problems
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A problem in which the initial and final states and the legal operators are clearly specified.
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Mutilated-checkerboard problem
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A problem that has been used to study how the statement of a problem influences a person's ability to reach a solution
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Algorithm
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A procedure that is guaranteed to solve a problem
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Heuristic
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A "rule of thumb" that provides a best-guess solution to a problem
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Analogies
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Drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity between two different things
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Analogical Problem Solving
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The use of analogies as an aid to solving problems. Typically, a solution to one problem, the source problem, is presented that is analogous to the solution to another problem, the target problem
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Radiation Problem
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A problem posed by Duncker that is difficult to solve, but becomes easier when participants are exposed to an analogous source problem
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Source Problem
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A problem that is analogous to the target problem and which therefore provides information that can lead to a solution to the target problem
The General story |
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Target Problem
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A problem to be solved. In analogical problem solving, solution of this problem can become easier if the problem solver is exposed to an analogous source problem
The radiation story |
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Problem Schema
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In analogical problem solving, the basic concept that links the source problem and the target problem
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Schema Induction
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The process of activating the problem schema in analogical problem solving
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Experts
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Person who, by devoting a large amount of time to learning about a field and practicing application of that learning, has become acknowledged as being extremely skilled or knowledgeable about that field
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Divergent thinking
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Thinking that is open-ended and for which there are a large number of potential solutions. Can be contrasted with convergent thinking
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Convergent thinking
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Thinking that works toward finding a solution to a specific problem that usually has a correct answer. Can be contrasted with divergent thinking
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perseveration
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Difficulty in switching from one behavior to another, which can hinder a person's ability to solve problems that require flexible thinking. Perseveration is observed in cases which the prefrontal cortex has been damaged
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Reasoning
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Cognitive processes by which people start with information and come to conclusions that go beyond that information
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Deductive Reasoning
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Reasoning that involves syllogisms in which a conclusion logically follows from premises
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Inductive Reasoning
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Reasoning in which a conclusion follows from a consideration of evidence. This conclusion is stated as being probably true, rather than definitely true, as can be the case for the conclusions from deductive reasoning.
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Decisions
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Making choices between alternatives
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Syllogism
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A series of three statements, two premises followed by a conclusion. The conclusion can follow from the premises based on the rules of logic
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premises
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The first two statements in a syllogism
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conclusion
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The final statement in a syllogism, which follows from the two premises
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categorical syllogisms
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A syllogism in which the premises and conclusion describe the relationship between two categories by using statements that begin with "all, no, or some"
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normative approach
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The approach to studying syllogisms that indicates which forms of syllogisms are logically valid and which are not valid. This approach involves the rules of logic, but does not involve psychology
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descriptive approach
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The approach to studying syllogisms that involves psychology, because it is concerned with how well people can evaluate whether a syllogism is valid.
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valid
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a situation that occurs in syllogisms when the conclusion follows logically from the premises.
The validity of a syllogism depends on its form, not its content |
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Euler circles
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A graphical procedure for determining whether or not a syllogism is valid
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Atmosphere Effect
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The idea that the words "All, some, and no" in the premises of a syllogism create an overall "mood" or "atmosphere" that can influence the evaluation of the validity of the conclusion. According to this idea, two All's suggest an All conclusion, one or two No's suggest a no conclusion, and one or two some's suggest a some conclusion.
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Belief Bias
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The idea that if a syllogism's conclusion is true or agrees with a person's beliefs, this increases the likelihood that the syllogism will be judged to be valid. Also, if the conclusion is viewed as false, this increases the likelihood that the syllogism will be judged as invalid
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Mental Model
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In reasoning, a mental model is a specific situation that is represented in a person's mind that can be used to help determine the validity of syllogisms in deductive reasoning
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Conditional syllogisms
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Syllogisms with two premises and a conclusion, like categorial syllogisms, but the first premise is an "If...then" statement
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Antecedent
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In a conditional syllogism, the term "p" in the conditional premise "if p then q"
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Consequent
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In a conditional syllogism, the term "q" in the conditional premise "if p then q"
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Modus Ponens
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Method of affirming. A conditional syllogism in which the first premise is "if p then q" the second premise is "p," and the conclusion is "q." This is a valid form of conditional syllogism
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Modus Tollens
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Method of denying. A conditional syllogism in which the first premise is "if p then q," the second is "not q", and the conclusion is "not p". This is a valid form of conditional syllogism.
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Denying the antecedent
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A conditional syllogism in which the first premise is "If p then q", the second premise is "not p", and the conclusion is "not q". This is an invalid form of conditional syllogism.
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Affirming the consequent
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A conditional syllogism in which the first premise is "if p then q", the second premise is "q", and the conclusion is "p". This is an invalid form of conditional syllogism
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Wason Four-card Problem
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A conditional-reasoning task involving four cards that was developed by Wason. Various versions of this problem have been used to determine the mechanisms that determine the outcomes of conditonal-reasoning tasks
If vowel then even number Pick: Vowel and Odd number b/c this falsifies |
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Falsification Principle
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The reasoning principle that to test a rule, it is necessary to look for situations that falsify the rule
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Pragmatic reasoning schema
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A way of thinking about cause and effect in the world that is learned as part of experiencing everyday life
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permission schema
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A pragmatic reasoning schema that states that if a person satisfies condition A, then they get to carry out action B. The permission schema has been used to explain the results of the Wason four-card problem
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Evolutionary perspective on cognition
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Based on the idea that many properties of our minds can be traced to the evolutionary principles of natural selection
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Social-exchange theory
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An important aspect of human behavior is the ability for two people to cooperate in a way that is beneficial to both people. According to the evolutionary perspective on cognition, application of this theory can lead to the conclusion that detecting cheating is an important part of the brain's cognitive makeup. This idea has been used to explain the results of the Wason four-card problem
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Availability Heuristic
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We base our judgments of the frequency of events on what events come to mind
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Illusory correlations
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A correlation between two events that appears to exist, when in reality there is no correlation or it is weaker than it is assumed to be
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Stereotypes
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An oversimplified generalization about a group or class of people that often focuses on negative characteristics
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Representativeness Heuristic
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The idea that the probability that an event A comes from class B can be determined by how well A resembles the properties of class B
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Base Rate
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The relative proportions of different classes in a population. Failure to consider base rates can often lead to errors of reasoning
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Conjunction Rule
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The probability of the conjunction of two events (such as feminist and bank teller) connot be higher than the probability of the single constituents (feminist alone or bank teller alone).
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Law of Large numbers
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The larger the number of individuals that are randomly drawn from a population, the more representative the resulting group will be of the entire population
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Confirmation Bias
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The tendency to selectively look for information that conforms to a hypothesis and to overlook information that argues against it
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Similarity-Coverage model
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A model designed to explain how people's conceptions of different categories influences the strength of inductive arguments. Two basic principles of the model are typicality (the argument with the most typical example of a category in the premise is the strongest argument) and diversity (the argument with the greatest coverage of a category is stronger)
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Typicality Principle
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THe inductive argument with the most typical example of a category in the premise is the strongest argument
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Diversity Principle
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THe inductive argument with the greatest coverage of a category is stronger. Greatest diversity/variety of whatever.
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Utility
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An approach to decision making that states that optimal decision-making occurs when the outcome fo the decision causes the maximum expected utility, wehre utility refers to outcomes that are desirable
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Mental simulations
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Models that people create about what will happen following different decisions
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Focusing Illusion
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When people focus their attention on just one aspect of a situation and ignore other aspects of a situation that may be important, this can lead to lack of accuracy in predicting emotional reactions to events
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Risk-aversion strategy
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A decision-making strategy that is governed by the idea of avoiding risk. Often used when a problem is stated in terms of gains
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risk-taking strategy
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A decision-making strategy that is governed by the idea of taking risks. Often used when a problem is stated in terms of losses
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