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Chapter 8: Thinking

Chapter 8: Thinking. Music : “Thinking of You ” Norah Jones “Think” Katherine McPhee. Thinking: Agenda. 1. The Cognitive Revolution 2. Reasoning: a) deductive b) inductive 3. Problem Solving: a) approaches b) barriers 4. Judgments & Decision Making Problems (a-f)

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Chapter 8: Thinking

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  1. Chapter 8: Thinking Music: “Thinking of You” Norah Jones “Think” Katherine McPhee

  2. Thinking: Agenda • 1. The Cognitive Revolution • 2. Reasoning: • a) deductive • b) inductive • 3. Problem Solving: • a) approaches • b) barriers • 4. Judgments & Decision Making • Problems (a-f) • 5. Common Cognitive Distortions • 6. Thinking Critically • Pointers • 7. Tutorial

  3. 1.The Cognitive Revolution • “I think therefore I am…” • How do we know what we know? • Authority • Reason: • Considered by Renaissance scholars to be the most reliable source of knowledge • Observation: • Basis for empirical knowledge • Cognitive Psychologists: • Study reasoning, judgments, decision making, and problem solving

  4. 2. Reasoning • a) Deductive: • Drawing a conclusion that follows logically from two or more statements or premises • Note: **If one of the premises is false, then conclusion must be false • Example: • Premise 1: All human beings have cognitions • Premise 2: All cognitions are intelligent • Conclusion: All human beings have intelligent cognitions…. • Valid but false conclusion

  5. 2. a) Deductive Reasoning (cont’d) • Invalid Conclusions: • Conclusions must follow logically from 2 or more premises to be valid • Example: • Premise 1: Some A’s are B’s • Premise 2: Some B’s are C’s • Conclusion: Some A’s are C’s? • OR • Premise 1: Some women are intelligent beings • Premise 2: Some intelligent beings are men • Conclusion: Some women are men? A’s B’s C’s

  6. 2. a) Deductive Reasoning (cont’d) • Belief Bias Effect: • We tend to judge as true those conclusions with which we agree, and as untrue those with which we disagree

  7. 2. a) Confirmation bias: p. 342

  8. 2. b) Inductive Reasoning • Problem solver goes from the particular to the general • Typical in process in science • Base a hypothesis on limited evidence, and test it against other evidence • Example: • Problems of inducing structure (p. 326): • Can you supply missing number? • 1 3 4 7 ___ • 5 9 13 __ 21 • Analogies: • Carpenter: House Author:_____ • Star: Constellation Room:______

  9. 3. Problem Solving • Thinking directed toward solving a specific problem. Approaches: • Clarify! What is initial state? What is goal state? • Means-end analysis: • specify subproblems and subgoals to move from initial state to goal • b) Barriers: p. 326-327 • Functional Fixedness • Mental Sets: Can help or hinder • E.g. O-T-T- __ -__ -__ • J- F- M- A- __ - __ - __ • Stress: leads to fixation • e.g. soldiers in war action

  10. 4. Judgments & Decision Making • Judgments: • Processes by which we form opinions, reach conclusions, make evaluations of people and events • Problems: • a) Overconfidence effect p. 342 • b) Availability Heuristic p. 337 • Basing a probability on the ease with which an example comes to mind • E.g. Which is the most frequent cause of death? • 1) Homicides vs diabetes • 2) Leukemia vs drowning • 3) Earthquakes vs asthma • c) Representativeness Heuristic: • Basing a probability on the similarity with a prototype

  11. 4. Heuristics cont’d • c) Representativeness Heuristic (con’d): • E.g. You hear about a person who is short, slim, and likes to read poetry. • Is this person more likely to be a Literature Professor, or a truck driver? • d) Conjunction Fallacy: (p. 338) • E.g. Bill is 34 years old, intelligent, unimaginative, compulsive, and somewhat boring. Which is more likely to be true? • Bill plays jazz as a hobby OR • Bill is an accountant who plays jazz as a hobby Accountants Jazz as hobby

  12. p.338

  13. 4. Judgments & Decision Making (cont’d) • e) Framing:(p. 342) • Decisions are heavily influenced by the way in which a question is asked • E.g. Will you undergo a particular surgery if: • a) 90% chance of recovery • b) 10% chance of death • f) Alternative Outcomes Effect • Perceived likelihood of a certain outcome is influenced by the distribution of alternative outcomes • Another example of “bounded rationality” • People deviate in predictable ways from optimal decision making

  14. 5. Common Cognitive Distortions • Arbitrary Inference: • Drawing unfavorable conclusions about oneself without evidence (e.g. mind-reading/ fortune-telling) • Magnification and minimization: • Dwelling on the negative and discounting the positive • Overgeneralization: • Viewing a negative event as a never-ending pattern of defeat • Reasoning from how you feel: • E.g. “I feel like an idiot… Therefore, I must be one.” • Personalization: • Taking blame for events that are unintended or beyond one’s control

  15. 6. Thinking Critically • Critical Thinking: • Ability to make objective judgments on the basis of well-supported reasons and evidence • Rather than basing your judgment on emotion or anecdotal evidence • To improve: • Remember common pitfalls • Define your terms concretely • Examine the evidence • Be aware of your biases • Avoid emotional reasoning • Avoid simplistic explanations • Tolerate uncertainty • Form convictions with care, and carry them lightly!

  16. 7. Tutorial & Wishing You Clear thinking!

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