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Cognition

The document discusses various aspects of cognition such as concepts, thinking, problem solving and decision making. It describes the different types of thinking including directed, autistic and linguistic thinking. It also explains key cognitive processes involved in reasoning, problem solving and decision making such as the use of concepts, prototypes, heuristics and biases that influence our judgments.

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10 views

Cognition

The document discusses various aspects of cognition such as concepts, thinking, problem solving and decision making. It describes the different types of thinking including directed, autistic and linguistic thinking. It also explains key cognitive processes involved in reasoning, problem solving and decision making such as the use of concepts, prototypes, heuristics and biases that influence our judgments.

Uploaded by

Soumya
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Cognition

DR. SASMITA MISHRA


Cognition

The mental activities associated with thought,


decision making, language and other higher mental
processes
Thinking

Forming concepts and reasoning to conclusions


Thinking also refers to set of cognitive processes that
mediate between stimuli and responses.

Basic elements of thought


 Concepts
 Propositions
 Images
Types of thinking

Autistic thinking: private thoughts using symbols


(dream)
Directed thinking: thinking involved in problem
solving
Thinking and language

Use of word symbols and use of grammar


Thinking is a kind of inner speech
Linguistic relativity theory
What is common in the following?
What is common in the following?
Concepts

Mental categories for objects, events, experiences, or


ideas that are similar to one another in one or more
respects.

They allow us to represent a greater deal of


information about objects, events, or ideas in a highly
efficient manner.

Concepts simplify the complex world of our experience


which is full of diversities and wide ranging variations
Concepts

Logical concepts: concepts that can be clearly


defined by a set of rules and properties
Natural concepts: Concepts that are not based on
a precise set of attributes or properties, don’t have
clear-cut boundaries, and are often defined by
prototypes.
Visual images: Mental Pictures or representations
of objects or events.
Functions of concepts

They help us divide the world into meaningful units


Allow us to predict information that is not readily
perceived.
Prototypes

The prototype is what usually comes to mind when


we think of the concept.
Grandmother
Bird
Fruits
Toys
Hierarchies of concepts
Propositions
Relation between concepts

Propositions: Sentences that relate one concept to


another and can stand as separate assertions.

Mental models: Knowledge structures that guide our


interactions with objects and events in the world
around us.
Reasoning

Cognitive activity in which we transform information


in order to reach specific conclusions.

Formal reasoning: in this type of reasoning all the


required information is supplied, the problem to be
solved is straightforward, there is typically only one
correct answer, and the reasoning we apply follows a
specific method.
Everyday reasoning: Involves the kind of thinking
we do in our daily lives: planning, making
commitments, evaluating arguments.
Reasoning: some basic sources of error

The role of mood states: difficult vs. easy task


The role of beliefs
The confirmation bias
Hindsight effect
Image and thinking

Imagine that you are standing on a certain street


corner in a section of a city you know well. How
would you walk or drive from this point to some
other part of the city?

Linguistic relativity hypothesis


Confirmation Bias
Confirmation Bias

Noticed
Evidence Present views
Encoded
consistent with maintained and
Processed
present view strengthened
remembered

Evidence not
Not noticed, encoded,
consistent with
processed or remembered
present views
Physical Reasoning

The way in which people perceive physical objects


and the cognitive processes that allow people to
make predictions about events involving these
objects
Problem Solving

 Efforts to develop
or choose among 1
various responses Problem Identified
in order to attain and understood

desired goals.
4 2
Solutions tried: Potential Solutions
generated
results evaluated

3
Solutions examined
and evaluated
Methods of solving problems

Trial and error: A method of solving problems in


which possible solutions are tried until one succeeds
Algorithm: A rule that guarantees a solution to a
specific type of problem.
Analogy: A strategy for solving problems based on
applying solutions that were previously successful
with other problems similar in underlying structure.
Facilitating effective problem solving

Metacognitive processing: An expanded level of


awareness that allows us, in a sense, to observe
ourselves in the problem solving process.
Factors interfering effective problem solving

Functional fixedness: The tendency to think of


using objects only as they have been used in the past.

Mental set: The impact of the past experience on


present problem solving; specifically, the tendency to
retain methods that were successful in the past even
if better alternatives now exist.
Convergent vs. Divergent thinking
Making Decisions

Decision making: The process of choosing among


various courses of action or alternatives.

Heuristics: Mental rules of thumb that permits us


to make decisions and judgments in a rapid and
efficient manner.
Heuristics

 Availability Heuristics: A cognitive rule of thumb in which the


importance or probability of various events is judged on the basis of
how readily they come to mind.
 Representativeness Heuristics: A mental rule of thumb
suggesting that the more closely an event or object resembles typical
examples of some concept or category, the more likely it is to belong
to that concept or category.
 Anchoring and Adjustment Heuristics: A cognitive rule of
thumb for making decisions in which existing information is
accepted as a reference point but then adjusted (usually
insufficiently) in light of various factors.
 Escalation of Commitment: The tendency to become
increasingly committed to bad decisions even as losses associated
with them increase.
Escalation of commitment

Decision is based on Psychological factors


External factors
rational consideration come into play:
begin to play a role
(e.g., expectation of Reluctance to admit past
Political forces
gain) error
Social pressure
Desire for self-justification

Conditions that make escalation of commitment less


likely:
Limited resources Escalation of
Overwhelming evidence of failure commitment
Diffusion of personal responsibility
Accountability and the possibility of adverse
consequences
Emotion and decision making

Counter factual thinking


Decision outcome and expectation

Emotion
depends
on the
way we
think
about the
outcomes
Emotion and Decision Making

Counterfactual thinking: Our reaction to


decision outcomes can be influenced by our
expectations-what we anticipate will happen-and by
the comparisons we make between the actual
outcome and other outcomes that could have
occurred, a tendency referred to as counterfactual
thinking.
Decision making

Loss aversion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OtW2KPgF8

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