thinking, language and intelligence

All the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

A mental grouping of similar objects, evens, ideas, people, etc.

A best example of a particular category. Matching new items to a prototype provides a quick and easy method for sorting items into categories (as when comparing feathered creatures to a prototype bird, such as a robin).

refers to the thinking we do in order to answer a complex question or to figure out how to resolve an unfavorable situation.

A problem-solving strategy that involves attempting a bunch of different random solutions and slowly eliminating those that do not work until you happen upon a solution that does work.

A methodical step-by-step procedure for solving a problem, (used by computers). Will always get the right answer, but might be extremely time consuming.

an intuitive problem solving approach that uses rules of thumb or mental shortcuts to find a "good enough" solution where finding an optimal or exact solution is impractical or impossible. Can sometimes lead to errors, but much faster than algorithmic strategies.

a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem (Eureka!)

An effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought as contrasted with explicit conscious reasoning.

Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness) , we presume such events are common (e.g. assuming you won more often than you did in Vegas because winning is more memorable than losing).

the way an issue is posed; how an issue is phrased can significantly affect decisions and judgments (much rather buy condoms that work 95% of the time vs. fail 5% of the time).

Evidence that other species can form concepts, solve problems, and pass down cultural practices.

Our spoken, written, or signed words the ways we combine them to communicate meaning.

ability to comprehend speech

the ability to produce language (make speech sounds)

Beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language. By 10 months the babbling sounds more like the language spoken in their household.

The stage in speech development, from about 12 months old, during which a child speaks mostly in single words.

Beginning about 18-24 months, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly in two-word verb/noun only sentences.

AKA the two-word stage of language development.

Beginning at about 2 years of age, children begin speaking in full sentences and understanding complex sentences.

Babbles many speech sounds that don't necessarily sound like precursors to the language spoken in the infants household

Babbles resembles household language (da-da)

Communicates with one-word sentences. Lose the ability to distinguish between similar sounds in languages that aren't regularly spoken around the child.

Two-word (telegraphic) speech (get ball)

Rapid development into complete sentences.

a specific time in development when certain skills or abilities are most easily learned

the time during which language develops readily (before the age of 7) language acquisition is much more difficult and ultimately less successful (accent detectable)

an impairment in the ability to produce or understand language, usually caused by damage to the brain

Controls language expression- and area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.
Speaking words requires Broca's area and the motor cortex.

condition resulting from damage to Broca's area, causing the affected person to be unable to speak fluently, to mispronounce words, and to speak haltingly

important for language reception and production- a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe (where your mental dictionary is accessed)

condition resulting from damage to Wernicke's area, causing the affected person to be unable to understand or produce meaningful language

Receptive language for individual human words seems to exist for a few species; dogs can follow hundreds of commands.
Productive language: many animals have "words": sounds, gestures, dances (bees) to communicate information, including different "words" for different objects, states, and places.
Chimp word production lacks syntax, but they can understand how changes to human syntax effects meaning (put the coke in the water means something different than put the water in the coke).

The mental potential to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations.

A method for assessing an individual's mental aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, using numerical scores.

performed a factor analysis of different skills and found that people who did well in one area also did well in another. Spearman speculated that these people had a high "g" (general intelligence).

correlations among many variables are analyzed to identify closely related clusters of variables

a general intelligence factor that, according to Spearman and others, underlies all specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test

idea that people vary in their ability levels across different domains of intellectual skill

devised theory of multiple intelligences: logical-mathematic, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, intrapersonal, linguistic, musical, interpersonal, naturalistic

A condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has a exceptional specific skill such as in computation or drawing (e.g. Kim Peek or Rainman).

1. Naturalist Intelligence (Could you survive if dropped into the Amazon rain forest?), 2. Musical Intelligence (Can you compose songs or play instruments?),
3. Logical-Mathematical Intelligence (How's your algebra or deductive reasoning skills?),4. Interpersonal Intelligence (How comptetent are you in social situations),5. Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence (How athletic are you?), 6. Linguistic Intelligence (How strong is your vocabulary and essay writing skills?),7. Intra-personal Intelligence (How well do you understand your own behavior?),8. Spatial Intelligence (How well can you draw?)

analytical, creative, and practical intelligence

According to Sternberg, the ability measured by most IQ tests; includes the ability to analyze problems and find correct answers; solving a well-defined problem with a single answer (School Smarts)

According to Sternberg, expertise and talent that help to complete the tasks and manage the complex challenges of everyday life; sometimes called "street smarts."

According to Sternberg, the form of intelligence that helps people see new relationships among concepts; generating new ideas to help adapt to novel situations

ability to understand and navigate social situations; social competency

the ability to perceive, express, understand, and regulate emotions; involves processing and managing the emotional component of those social situations, including one's own emotions.

Created first intelligence test for Parisian school children to determine which students need extra support.

Age as measured in years from date of birth

the chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance (a child's _______ would be 6 if they performed like an average 6 year old regardless of their chronological age)

the widely used American revision (by Terman at Stanford University) of Binet's original intelligence test.

Defines originally as the ratio of mental age(ma) to chronological age(ca) multiplied by 100(thus IQ=ma/ca x 100). on contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100.

A test designed to predict a person's future performance; measures the capacity to learn (e.g. ACT, SAT).

A test designed to assess what a person has learned (e.g. final exam).

the most widely used intelligence test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests.

widely used test designed to measure the intelligence of children 6 years and older

Standardized, reliable, and valid.

defining the meaning of scores based on a comparison with the performance of others who have taken the test before.

The bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes. Most scores fall near the average, and fewer and fewer scores lie near the extremes.

The extent to which a test yields consistent results, as assessed by the consistency of scores on two halves of the test , on alternative forms of the test or on retesting

A measure of reliability in which a test is split into two parts and an individual's scores on both halves are compared.

a method for determining the reliability of a test by comparing a test taker's scores on the same test taken on separate occasions

the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

the test correlates well with the actual trait being measured

the extent to which the test accurately predicts future performance

A condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence test scores of 70 or below and difficulty adapting to the demands of life.

the apprehension experienced by members of a group that their behavior might confirm a cultural stereotype leads to them actually performing worse and confirming the stereotype.