Thinking and Problem Solving
Cognitive psychology is filed of psychology dedicated to examining how
people think by studying the interactions among human thinking, emotion,
creativity, language, and problem solving along with other cognitive
processes
A category is a set of objects that can be treated as equivalent in some way
o Mental representatives we form of categories are called concepts
Senses receive external stimuli that translate into nerve
impulses that are sent to brain where they are processed using
relevant pieces to create thoughts. When thoughts are formed,
the brain gathers info from emotions and memories and those
get organized into different "file cabinets" called concepts
Concepts are categories or groupings of linguistic information, images, ideas,
or memories; big idea formed by observing details and categorizing them into
cognitive structures
o Concepts allow you to extend what you already learned about a limited
number of objects to a potentially infinite set of entities
o A prototype is the best example or representation of a concept
o Concepts broken into natural and artificial
Natural concepts are created naturally through your experiences
and can be developed from either direct or indirect experiences
An artificial concept is defined by a specific set of
characteristics, ex. shapes
o A schema is a mental construct consisting of a cluster or collection of
related concepts
Allows brain to make immediate assumption of person or object
being observed
Several types of schemata
Role schema makes assumptions about how individuals in
certain roles will behave
Event schema or cognitive scrips is a set of behaviors that
can feel like a routine
Can be difficult to change since they are automatic
Problem solving strategy is a plan of action used to find a solution
o Trial and error strategy continues to try different solutions until you
solve your problem
o Algorithm is a step-by-step problem solving formula that provides you
with the step-by-step instructions to use to achieve a desired outcome
o A heuristic is a general problem solving framework; mental shortcuts
that are used to solve problems
Working backwards is a useful heuristic in which you begin
solving the problem by focusing on the end result
Another method can be accomplishing a large goal or task by
breaking it into a series of smaller steps
A mental set is where you persist in approaching a problem in a way that
worked in the past but is clearly not working now
o Functional fixedness is a type of mental set where you cannot perceive
an object being used for something other than what it was designed for
Experienced in both industrialized and non-industrialized
cultures
Cognitive psychology is filed of psychology dedicated to examining how
people think by studying the interactions among human thinking, emotion,
creativity, language, and problem solving along with other cognitive
processes
A category is a set of objects that can be treated as equivalent in some way
o Mental representatives we form of categories are called concepts
Senses receive external stimuli that translate into nerve
impulses that are sent to brain where they are processed using
relevant pieces to create thoughts. When thoughts are formed,
the brain gathers info from emotions and memories and those
get organized into different "file cabinets" called concepts
Concepts are categories or groupings of linguistic information, images, ideas,
or memories; big idea formed by observing details and categorizing them into
cognitive structures
o Concepts allow you to extend what you already learned about a limited
number of objects to a potentially infinite set of entities
o A prototype is the best example or representation of a concept
o Concepts broken into natural and artificial
Natural concepts are created naturally through your experiences
and can be developed from either direct or indirect experiences
An artificial concept is defined by a specific set of
characteristics, ex. shapes
o A schema is a mental construct consisting of a cluster or collection of
related concepts
Allows brain to make immediate assumption of person or object
being observed
Several types of schemata
Role schema makes assumptions about how individuals in
certain roles will behave
Event schema or cognitive scrips is a set of behaviors that
can feel like a routine
Can be difficult to change since they are automatic
Problem solving strategy is a plan of action used to find a solution
o Trial and error strategy continues to try different solutions until you
solve your problem
o Algorithm is a step-by-step problem solving formula that provides you
with the step-by-step instructions to use to achieve a desired outcome
o A heuristic is a general problem solving framework; mental shortcuts
that are used to solve problems
Working backwards is a useful heuristic in which you begin
solving the problem by focusing on the end result
Another method can be accomplishing a large goal or task by
breaking it into a series of smaller steps
A mental set is where you persist in approaching a problem in a way that
worked in the past but is clearly not working now
o Functional fixedness is a type of mental set where you cannot perceive
an object being used for something other than what it was designed for
Experienced in both industrialized and non-industrialized
cultures
