Thinking and Learning
Cognition: All mental activities associated with thinking
Metacognition: Cognition about cognition (thinking about thinking)
Ways of thinking
Concept: A grouping of things that have some underlying common similarity. It represents a category
of related things. Coming up with a concept is often based on our experiences, hence why little kids
have trouble coming up with them.
Prototype: The best example or ideal model of a particular concept. The more closely something
matches our prototype, the more easily we are to identify it as belonging to that concept.
Problem Solving: There are some things that can help us, or prevent us from solving a problem.
Examples of things that help us problem solve is trial and error (randomly trying things hoping to
solve the issue), insight (an a-ha moment), algorithm (step by step method that guarantees a solution),
and heuristic (using a shortcut).
Obstacles to problem solving include con rmation bias (tending to only see information that support
our preconceptions and ignoring information that contradicts it), xation (becoming hung up on wrong
solutions), functional xedness (failing to see that an object has multiple functions), and mental set
(predisposing us to think in a certain way/approaching a problem in ways that have worked before)
In uences of Judgements and decisions
When it comes to the hundreds of judgements and decisions we make a day we often rely on our
intuition, our fast, automatic feelings and thoughts. Snap judgements are also called Heuristics.
Representative Heuristic: Judging the likelihood of events in terms of how well they represent a
prototype.
Availability Heuristic: Assuming that events are more common then they are, they are more likely to
come to mind if they are vivid or memorable.
Overcon dence: People have a tendency to be more con dent about the decisions and judgments they
make then they should be. They tend to be more con dent than correct.
Belief perseverance: A belief persevering despite evidence or contradictory infromation saying
otherwise.
Framing: How we present an issue in uences how we make decisions and judgements about said issue.
Thinking Creatively:
Creativity is de ned as the ability to produce new and valuable ideas. Many scholars believe there are
5 components to creativity: expertise, imaginative thinking skills, a venturesome and determined
personality, intrinsic motivation, and a creative environment.
Convergent thinking: The ability to narrow the available problem solutions down to a single best
solution.
Divergent thinking: Expanding the number of possible problem solutions, creative thinking that
diverges in different directions.
Cognition: All mental activities associated with thinking
Metacognition: Cognition about cognition (thinking about thinking)
Ways of thinking
Concept: A grouping of things that have some underlying common similarity. It represents a category
of related things. Coming up with a concept is often based on our experiences, hence why little kids
have trouble coming up with them.
Prototype: The best example or ideal model of a particular concept. The more closely something
matches our prototype, the more easily we are to identify it as belonging to that concept.
Problem Solving: There are some things that can help us, or prevent us from solving a problem.
Examples of things that help us problem solve is trial and error (randomly trying things hoping to
solve the issue), insight (an a-ha moment), algorithm (step by step method that guarantees a solution),
and heuristic (using a shortcut).
Obstacles to problem solving include con rmation bias (tending to only see information that support
our preconceptions and ignoring information that contradicts it), xation (becoming hung up on wrong
solutions), functional xedness (failing to see that an object has multiple functions), and mental set
(predisposing us to think in a certain way/approaching a problem in ways that have worked before)
In uences of Judgements and decisions
When it comes to the hundreds of judgements and decisions we make a day we often rely on our
intuition, our fast, automatic feelings and thoughts. Snap judgements are also called Heuristics.
Representative Heuristic: Judging the likelihood of events in terms of how well they represent a
prototype.
Availability Heuristic: Assuming that events are more common then they are, they are more likely to
come to mind if they are vivid or memorable.
Overcon dence: People have a tendency to be more con dent about the decisions and judgments they
make then they should be. They tend to be more con dent than correct.
Belief perseverance: A belief persevering despite evidence or contradictory infromation saying
otherwise.
Framing: How we present an issue in uences how we make decisions and judgements about said issue.
Thinking Creatively:
Creativity is de ned as the ability to produce new and valuable ideas. Many scholars believe there are
5 components to creativity: expertise, imaginative thinking skills, a venturesome and determined
personality, intrinsic motivation, and a creative environment.
Convergent thinking: The ability to narrow the available problem solutions down to a single best
solution.
Divergent thinking: Expanding the number of possible problem solutions, creative thinking that
diverges in different directions.
