Thinking & Language
Obstacles to problem solving
Confirmation bias
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Looking for and accepting evidence that
supports our preconceived ideas.
“Don’t bother me with the facts,I have
made up my mind.”
Makes it difficult to consider
contradictory information.
Fixation
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Inability to see a problem from a new
viewpoint.
Mental set
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We see what we expect
What worked in the past
Makes it difficult to see a problem
differently.
Functional fixedness
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Seeing things only one way
Makes it difficult to see different uses for
things.
Heuristics
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Mental shortcuts
Often helpful, but can cause problems.
Heuristics
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Representativeness
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This person is representative of (similar to) this
group.
Therefore, he has these characteristics
Availability
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An available (memorable) clear powerful memory
is more powerful than a statistical reality.
We over feel and under think
E.g. Deaths from 9/11 VS smoking
Heuristics
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Overconfidence
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Overestimating the accuracy of our
judgments and performance.
Stock purchases - E.g. E-trade, or Charles
Schwab online trades
Reality rarely reduces their overconfidence
in the next situation.
Heuristics
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Belief perseverance
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When given mixed evidence, two opposing parties
will actually increase their disagreement.
Each party will view the evidence in a way that
further supports their preexisting beliefs.
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Prejudice persists because once formed, opposing
evidence is rejected.
What you can do: Consider the opposite (or argue
the other‘s point of view.
E.g. Family therapy
Framing
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We judge things differently based on how the
information is presented.
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10% die VS. 90% survival rate of an operation
“Aid to the needy” vs.”Welfare”
“Cloning” vs. “Nuclear cell transfer”
“Opt in” vs. “Opt out”
Divorce = Sin vs. independence
You can change people’s perception of a
situation by reframing it.
Fear
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We fear:
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1. What evolution and our ancestral history
prepared us to fear.
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2. What we can not control
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E.g. flying vs. smoking.
4. What is most memorable
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E.g. Tandem jump VS static line
3. What is immediate VS. long term
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E.g. heights and spiders
E.g. 9/11 vs. traffic deaths
Bill gates quote
Result: Check your fears against the facts
Thought problems to avoid
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1. Hindsight bias
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“I knew it all along.”
2. Illusory correlation
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Thinking 2 things are related when they are
not.
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E.g. adoption and pregnancy
3. Memory Construction
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Misinformation can create false memories
Thought problems to avoid
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Overconfidence
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We tend to overestimate our own abilities
and underestimate others.
Belief perseverance & conformation
bias
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Beliefs remain even when discredited
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E.g. We believe only what supports our
preexisting beliefs
Prejudice?
Thought problems to avoid
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Self serving bias
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Inflated self assessments
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E.g. If I do well I take the credit
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If I do poorly, others are to blame
Fundamental attribution error
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Attributing behavior of others to their
disposition (personality) and ignoring the
environment.
E.g. The homeless person is just lazy
Thinking with images
(procedures) not words
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Thinking with words, “What do I need to
do today”.
Thinking with images
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Turning on the cold water
Riding a bicycle
Thinking with images
(procedures) not words
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Visualizing & thinking about an activity
stimulates the same brain centers as actually
performing the activity.
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Playing the piano
Gymnastics
Golf
Olympic athletes
Spend time visualizing your completing the
task, not just the destination.
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E.g. Gymnastic gold medal
Much information processing
occurs beyond consciousness
and language.