Exam 8: Thinking, Reasoning and Language

My exposure to the typical use of objects in my culture may render me less able to find novel solutions to problems. This is referred to as ________.

The case of Genie allows us to draw few conclusions about language development. Discuss the obstacles to such understanding relevant to this case.

________ means that there are an infinite number of unique sentences to be created by combining words in novel ways.

If you didn't already know sign language and you observed two deaf persons using signs, you would probably

According to the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, a person's language shapes

A person from one part of the United States might ask you for a glass of "soda", while a person from a different region might ask for a glass of "pop"; a third person might ask for a "coke", while a fourth would request a glass of "tonic". All of these individuals want the same thing, but the variation in how they request it demonstrates a

Susan would like her child to learn a second language. If she wants the child to be fluent in the second language, research suggests that she should begin instruction no later than age ________.

When a child applies a word in a much narrower sense than is needed-for example, thinking that the word "house" refers only to their own house-they are engaging in ________.

In studies of attempts to teach chimpanzees language, researchers have found that

Cognitive economy serves an adaptive function for humans, but does so at a price. Discuss the benefits and potential liabilities of cognitive economy.

The story of Helen Keller includes an anecdote wherein she states that she recalls having no awareness of her own thought processes prior to acquiring some language skills. The linguistic determinism model suggests that this supports the theory that all thinking is represented linguistically, but other explanations of Keller's remembrance (or lack thereof)posits that most people have poor (or even absent)memories from their early years. This demonstrates which principle of critical thinking?

John Gottman and his colleagues were able to predict divorce rates of couples with startling accuracy using techniques related to the concept of ________.

The linguistic relativity hypothesis suggests that

Dan recently watched a television programme about rabies, and those animals that are typically carriers of the disease. Last night, when he stepped outside to call his cat, he saw a stray dog wandering across his yard. The animal acted strangely and came straight towards him. Dan immediately decided it must have rabies. He made his decision based on ________.

The need for cognitive efficiency is very important, but sometimes it can lead people to poor decision-making. For example, when considering whether or not to buy the latest "miracle diet" programme, one should balance cognitive efficiency with

Learning to ride a bike is just like learning to hit a cricket ball. Which theory of language acquisition might support this statement?

Researchers must be wary of ________ bias, which causes them to ignore evidence that contradicts their views.

The rules that determine how sounds and words can be combined and used to communicate meaning within a language are collectively known as ________.

Research on the relation between cognition and language suggests that

According to the textbook, different languages contain different numbers of phonemes. The fewest number of phonemes found in any language mentioned by your authors is about ________.