Class notes
PSYCH 101 Class Notes: Thinking and Memory
- Course
- PSYC 101
- Institution
- Boise State University
Lecture notes regarding the cognitive processes of thought and memory, including schemas, prototypes, biases, and more.
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
Content preview
PSYCH 101 Lecture NotesBoise State University
Thinking and Memory
We use thinking shortcuts to help us quickly process information and extrapolate meaning.
The concept/schema:
-
Cognitive economy: supply and demand; supply is ability to process information, and
demand is cognitive economy. There’s only so much cognitive power we have.
-
We divide the world into classes of things to decrease the amount of information we
need to learn, perceive, remember, and recognize. We save ourselves a lot of
processing time.
-
They permit us to make predictions about the world around us (hopefully accurate ones)
that help us function.
A prototype, or best example in a category/schema, is a quick reference:
-
What is a dog? - example
-
Goes along with the idea of a schema
-
Quick reference: allows us to compare to our prototype, quickly assess situations
-
Saves us time on our cognitive economy
Prototypes aren’t foolproof; sometimes we infer wrong information; exceptions and losses of
information about individual cases. Example: what is a bachelor? What is a criminal?
-
If someone tells you that they are liberal or conservative, you might assume something
about them based on the prototype you use; you might have a certain image in your
head
Social implications of prototype use: implicit racism, self perpetuating cycle
-
Black prototype of criminals
-
Cops pay more attention to black suspects
-
More blacks arrested, charged, and sentenced
-
More blacks in the criminal justice system
Ways to solve problems:
-
Algorithm: long and costly (takes more energy) but are typically guaranteed, you will find
the solution eventually. Trying every possible solution/combination. Adaptive.
-
Heuristics: short cuts, quick but not always sure. Guessing, what is likely to be the
correct answer? Not guaranteed. Mental set influences how we think and process information:
-
Framework of understanding
-
Influences how we think about and solve problems in a specific way
-
May make it hard for us to see other solutions
-
Similar to how perceptual sets predispose/influence what we perceive
Convergent vs. Divergent Thinking:
-
Convergent: looking for the one right answer. Tends to be influenced by mental sets.
-
Divergent: looking for any possible insight. More creative, innovative, and open-minded.
Acknowledging that there might be multiple possibilities. Trying to understand the
problem better. Seeking a good answer, not necessarily a right one. Associated with new
developments and technology.
Creativity – get outside of your mental set by thinking divergently:
-
Develop expertise: knowledge is a building block for creative solutions
-
Allow time for incubation: your unconscious mind is good at processing information
(don’t push through)
-
Allow your mind to roam: serenity seeds spontaneity
-
A new point of view: multicultural experiences foster flexibility in thinking (opens your
mind)
Availability heuristic:
-
Dramatic outcomes make us gasp, probabilities we hardly grasp
-
We tend to rely on the most cognitively available example of something going wrong, as
opposed to the actual probabilities associated with a risk
-
Cognitively more available if they’re recent, dramatic, or a combination of both
-
Overestimating the likelihood of things going wrong
Confirmation bias:
-
We tend to give more value to and remember more quickly evidence that supports our
own beliefs, and we tend to forget information that doesn’t support our beliefs
-
When people with opposing views of the death penalty were given two (fake) research
studies, one supporting their beliefs and the other opposing their beliefs, they felt that
the one supporting their beliefs was more valid and were very quick to pick apart the one
that opposed their beliefs. (Happened on either side of the argument)
Belief perseverance:
-
It takes more evidence to change a belief that it does to make that belief in the first place
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller JazIda. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $10.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
70055 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now