Human Psychology &

Behavior
Thinking, Language and
Intelligence
Thinking and Reasoning
Thinking:

 Cognitive psychology encompasses the higher mental processes, including

the way people know and understand the world, process information, make
decisions and judgments, and describe their knowledge and understanding
to others.
 Psychologists define thinking as the manipulation of mental
representations of information. A representation may take the form of a
word, a visual image, a sound, or data in any other sensory modality stored
in memory. Thinking transforms a specific representation of information
into new and different forms, allowing us to answer questions, solve
problems, or reach goals.
Mental Images:
Representations in the mind that resemble the object or event being
represented. They are not just visual representations; our ability to “hear” a
tune in our heads also relies on a mental image. In fact, every sensory
modality may produce corresponding mental images. Research has found that
our mental images have many of the properties of the actual stimuli they
represent
Figure:
Try to mentally rotate one of each
pair of patterns to see if it is the same
as the other member of that pair. It’s
likely that the farther you have to
mentally rotate a pattern, the longer it
will take to decide if the patterns
match one another. Does this mean
that it will take you longer to
visualize a map
Concepts:

Categorizations of objects, events, or people that share common

properties. Concepts enable us to organize complex phenomena into
simpler, and therefore more easily usable, cognitive categories.
Concepts help us classify newly encountered objects on the basis of our
past experience. When cognitive psychologists first studied concepts,
they focused on those which were clearly defined by a unique set of
properties or features.
Prototypes:

Typical, highly representative examples of a concept that correspond to

our mental image or best example of the concept.
 Algorithms and Heuristic
An algorithm is a rule that, if applied appropriately, guarantees a solution to a
problem. We can use an algorithm even if we cannot understand why it works.
For example, you may know that you can find the length of the third side of a
right triangle by using the formula a2 +b2 =c2 , although you may not have the
foggiest notion of the mathematical principles behind the formula.

A heuristic is a cognitive shortcut that may lead to a solution. Heuristics

enhance the likelihood of success in coming to a solution, but, unlike
algorithms, they cannot ensure it.
 Solving Problems
Psychologists have found that problem
solving typically involves the three steps
illustrated in Figure. preparing to create
solutions, producing solutions, and
evaluating the solutions that have been
generated.
 Kinds of Problems
Typically, a problem falls into one of the three categories shown
in Figure. arrangement, inducing structure, and transformation.
Solving each type requires somewhat different kinds of
psychological skills and knowledge
Arrangement problems require the problem solver to rearrange or recombine
elements in a way that will satisfy a certain criterion. n. Usually, several different
arrangements can be made, but only one or a few of the arrangements will produce
a solution.

In problems of inducing structure, a person must identify the existing

relationships among the elements presented and then construct a new relationship
among them. In such a problem, the problem solver must determine not only the
relationships among the elements but also the structure and size of the elements
involved.
the third kind of problem—transformation problems—which consist of an initial
state, a goal state, and a method for changing the initial state into the goal state.
Arrangements Problems
Arrangements Problems

Solution to Arrangement
Problems:
1. FACET, DOUBT, THICK, NAIVE,
ANVIL

2.The screwdriver is tied to one of the

strings. This makes a pendulum that can be
swung to reach the other string.
Problem of Inducing Structure
Problem of Inducing Structure

Solution to Problems of Inducing

Structure:
1. 7

2.Racket - Buy
Transformation Problem
Transformation Problem
Solution to Transformation
Problems:
1. Fill jar A; empty into jar B once and into jar C
twice. What remains in jar A is 11 ounces
Language
LANGUAGE:

 The use of language—the communication of information through

symbols arranged according to systematic rules.
To understand how language develops and relates to thought, we first need to
review some of the formal elements of language.
Grammar: the system of rules that determine how our thoughts can be
expressed.
Grammar deals with three major components of language: phonology, syntax,
and semantics.
Phonology is the study of the smallest basic units of speech, called phonemes,
that affect meaning, and of the way we use those sounds to form words and
produce meaning.
Syntax refers to the rules that indicate how words and phrases can be combined
to form sentences.
Semantics: The third major component of language is semantics, the meanings
of words and sentences
HOW DOES LANGUAGE DEVELOP:

 Language production, which follows language comprehension, develops out

of babbling, which then leads to the production of actual words. After 1 year
of age, children use two-word combinations, increase their vocabulary, and
use telegraphic speech, which drops words not critical to the message. By age
5, acquisition of language rules is relatively complete.
 Learning theorists suggest that language is acquired through reinforcement
and conditioning. In contrast, the nativist approach suggests that an innate
language acquisition device guides the development of language. The
interactionist approach argues that language development is produced through
a combination of genetically determined predispositions and environmental
circumstances that help teach language.
 The linguistic-relativity hypothesis suggests that language shapes and may
determine the way people think about the world. Most evidence suggests that
although language does not determine thought, it does affect the way people
store information in memory and how well they can retrieve it.
 The degree to which language is a uniquely human skill remains an open
question. Some psychologists contend that even though certain primates
communicate at a high level, those animals do not use language; other
psychologists suggest that those primates truly understand and produce
language in much the same way as humans.
 People who speak more than one language may have a cognitive advantage
over those who speak only one.
Intelligence
Intelligence : The capacity to understand the world, think rationally, and use
resources effectively when faced with challenges.

g or g-factor: The single, general factor for mental ability assumed to

underlie intelligence in some early theories of intelligence.

Fluid intelligence: Intelligence that reflects information-processing

capabilities, reasoning, and memory.

Crystallized intelligence: The accumulation of information, skills, and

strategies that are learned through experience and can be applied in problem-
solving situations.
Theory of multiple intelligences: Gardner’s intelligence theory that
proposes that there are eight distinct spheres of intelligence.

Practical intelligence: According to Sternberg, intelligence related to overall

success in living.

Information-processing approaches: examine the processes underlying

intelligent behavior rather than focusing on the structure of intelligence

Emotional intelligence: The set of skills that underlie the accurate

assessment, evaluation, expression, and regulation of emotions.
What are the major approaches to measuring intelligence,
and what do intelligence tests measure?

Intelligence tests: Tests devised to quantify a person’s level of intelligence.

Mental age: The average age of individuals who achieve a particular level of
performance on a test.
Intelligence quotient (IQ): A score that takes into account an individual’s
mental and chronological ages.
IQ score= MA/CA x 100
Achievement test: A test designed to determine a person’s level of knowledge in
a given subject area.
Aptitude test: A test designed to predict a person’s ability in a particular area or
line of work.
Reliability: The property by which tests measure consistently what they are trying
to measure.
Validity: The property by which tests actually measure what they are supposed to
measure.