Exam 8: A: Language and Thought

Brett is trying to decide which graduate schools he will apply to. He is making up a list of all the positive and negative aspects he feels are associated with 100 different schools, and he plans to send applications to the 10 schools that score the highest when he adds up all the positive points and subtracts all the negative points. What type of decision strategy is Brett using?

Elisa is entering survey data from adult males in a research study. One respondent has listed his height as 6 feet 5 inches, but the occupation is hard to decipher. Elisa thinks it might be basketball player or bank president. She decides to enter basketball player as the occupation. What did Elisa do in this case?

What happens when children and adults attempt to learn a second language?

Dr. Grath believes that both an innate predisposition and a supportive environment contribute to language development. Which language theory is Dr. Grath's views are most consistent with?

A sales representative from an investment company is trying to convince a young couple to invest in one of the company's mutual funds. Which of the following will most increase his likelihood of success, based on the framing effect?

Which decision-making strategy is being used if an alternative is eliminated whenever it fails to satisfy some minimum criterion on an attribute?

Eva just upgraded her software package. However, even though the updated version contains a number of more efficient methods for working with files, Eva continues to work with files the way she did before the upgrade. What is Eva showing evidence of in this case?

What type of rule does syntax refer to?

Which heuristic are you applying if you solve a current problem using the solution to a previous, similar problem?

Which theories of language acquisition focus on the development of neural circuits within the brain in response to language experience?

Which component of spoken language are phonemes the smallest units of?

There are different sounds across languages that all represent the same thing. Which quality of language does this reflect?

Which of the following is NOT one of the evolutionary advantages that language may have provided?

What is produced in "babbling"?

Researchers presented two groups of physicians with information regarding a surgical procedure. The first group of physicians were told that, on average, 15 out of 100 people die as a result of the surgery; the remaining group of physicians were told that on average 85 out of 100 people survive the surgery. Which of the following should you expect?

Last year, 5-year-old Alonda would say "No he coming" when explaining to her younger sister that their older brother would be staying home. Now Alonda will tell her sister "He's not coming." Which aspect of language does this example illustrate development in?

If Annette is learning two languages, what will be the impact of bilingualism on the development of her vocabulary?

In some early studies, researchers attempted to teach chimpanzees to speak. What conclusions led to these studies being discontinued?

Salvador hates to work through the problems on his calculus assignments step by step, and he often tries shortcuts that might save him some time. What does Salvador prefer to use?

Tylo belongs to a nomadic hunter-gatherer tribe in the South American jungle. Which of the following is Tylo likely to exhibit based on what is known about cultural differences in cognitive style?