COGNITION/THINKING
MODULE 23
THINKING
 Thinking is a cognitive process in which the brain
uses information from the senses, emotions, and
memory to create and manipulate mental
representations, such as concepts, images, schemas,
and scripts.
 The ultimate result of the above building blocks can
be the higher processes that we call reasoning,
imagining, judging, deciding, problem-solving,
creativity---and—sometimes—genius.
COGNITION/THINKING
 A concept is a mental grouping of similar objects,
events, ideas, or people.
Prototype is a mental image or best example of a category-formed on
the basis of frequently experienced features. (natural concept for a
bird)
 Testing concepts can be hard since they are not observable. We must
infer their influence on people’s thinking indirectly by studying their
observable side effects.
 Concept of the color red –need to observe whether person
responds same way you do to stimuli that you both call ‘red’

TYPES OF CONCEPTS
 There are two types of concepts
 Natural concepts: imprecise mental classifications that
develop out of our everyday experiences.


Most of the concepts in our everyday life
Artificial concepts: concepts defined by a set of rules or
characteristics, such as dictionary definition or mathematical
equations.

Most of the concepts learned in school- example-definition of
triangle that you learned in school.
CONCEPT HIERACHIES
COGNITIVE MAPS
 As we saw before, cognitive maps are mental
representations of a given place or situation.

Just the mental image is not enough however. Along with the
visual cortex, the frontal lobe of the brain provides us with
information on the episode, the context and stimulus of a
situation.

Ex. What shape are a German Shepherd’s ears?

--probably consulted a visual image of a German shepherd stored
in your memory.
MAKING INFERENCES
 To help us figure out the episode, the context and
stimulus of a situation we do have tools:
Schema: General frameworks that provide expectations
about topics, events, objects, people and situations.
-Assimilation (integrating new info with what you already
know) v. Accommodation (if you find a discrepancy b/w
new input and existing schemas-you overcome it by changing
what you know.
 Script: Schemas about sequences of events and actions
expected to occur in particular settings.

 Ex. We have scripts for going to a restaurant, using the
library, listening to a lecture, going on a first date, and even
making love
PROBLEM SOLVING
 When we are faced with a problem, we have a few
options for figuring out a solution.

Algorithms: Problem solving procedures or formulas that
guarantee a correct outcome if correctly applied. Designed to
solve particular kinds of problems for which you have all the
necessary information

Heuristics: Simple, basic rules that serve as shortcuts to solve
complex mental tasks.

They do not guarantee a correct solution.
SOME USEFUL HEURISTIC STRATEGIES
 Working Backward
 Searching For Analogies
 Breaking a Big Problem into Smaller Problems
ALGORITHMS VS. HEURISTICS
Unscramble
SPLOYOCHYG
 Algorithm
 all 907,208 combinations
 Heuristic
 throw out all YY combinations
 other heuristics?
MATCHSTIC
K PROBLEM
How would
you arrange
six matches
to form four
equilateral
triangles?
THE THREE
JUGS
PROBLEM
Using jugs A, B, and C,
with the capacities
shown, how would you
measure out the
volumes indicated
THE CANDLE
MOUNTING
PROBLEM
Using these
materials,
how would
you mount
the candle
on a
bulletin
board?
PROBLEMS WITH HEURISTICS
 One problem with heuristic are mental sets.

When faced with problems, we have a tendency to approach it
in a familiar way.

Especially a way that has been successful in the past
but may or may not be helpful in solving a new
problem

Mental set: the tendency to respond to a new
problem in the manner used for previous problems.
PROBLEMS WITH HEURISTICS
 Another problem with relying on heuristics is called
functional fixedness, a sort of mental set issue.

Functional Fixedness: The inability to perceive a new use for
an object associated with a different purpose.
INSIGHT
Insight involves a
sudden novel
realization of a solution
to a problem. Humans
and animals have
insight.
INSIGHT
 Brain imaging and EEG
studies suggest that when
an insight strikes (the
“Aha” experience), it
activates the right
temporal cortex (JungBeeman & others, 2004).
The time between not
knowing the solution and
realizing it is about 0.3
seconds.
THE
MATCHSTICK
PROBLEM
SOLUTION TO THE
MATCHSTICK
PROBLEM
THE THREE
JUGS
PROBLEM
Solution:


a) All seven
problems can
be solved by
the equation
shown in (a): B
- A - 2C =
desired
volume.
b) But simpler
solutions exist
for problems 6
and 7, such as
A - C for
problem 6.
THE CANDLE MOUNTING PROBLEM
 Solving this
problem
requires
recognizing
that a box
need not
always
serve as a
container
JUDGING AND DECISION-MAKING
 Along with mental sets, bias can make heuristics a faulty
decision making tool.

Confirmation bias: makes us pay attention to events that confirm
our beliefs and ignore evidence that contradicts them.

Hindsight bias: Tendency to second guess a decision after the event
has happened.

Representative bias: Judging the likelihood of things in terms of how
well they seem to match particular prototype

Availability bias: Estimating the likelihood of events based on their
availability in memory

if instances come readily to mind we presume such events are common