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Algorithms
Strategies that guarantee a solution to a problem.
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approach coping
Directly confronting a problem with active attempts to solve it.
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artificial intelligence (AI)
The science of creating machines capable of performing activities that require intelligence when they are done by people.
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availability heuristic
A prediction about the probability of an event based on the ease of recalling or imagining similar events.
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avoidant coping
Coping with a problem by trying one's best to ignore it.
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classical model
Model stating that all instances of a concept share defining properties.
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Cognition
The way in which information is processed and manipulated in remembering, thinking, and knowing.
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cognitive appraisal
Individuals' interpretation of the events in their lives as harmful, threatening, or challenging and their determination of whether they have the resources to cope effectively with the events.
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Concepts
Mental categories that are used to group objects, events, and characteristics.
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confirmation bias
The tendency to search for and use information that supports, rather than refutes, our ideas.
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convergent thinking
Thinking that produces one correct answer; characteristic of the type of thinking required on traditional intelligence tests.
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Coping
Managing taxing circumstances, expending effort to solve life's problems, and seeking to master or reduce stress.
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Creativity
The ability to think about something in novel and unusual ways and come up with unconventional solutions to problems.
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culture-fair tests
Intelligence tests that are intended to be culturally unbiased.
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decision making
Evaluating alternatives and making choices among them.
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deductive reasoning
Reasoning from the general to the specific.
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divergent thinking
Thinking that produces many answers to the same question; characteristic of creativity.
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emotion-focused coping
Responding to the emotional aspects of stress rather than focusing on the problem causing the stress.
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Expertise
The quality of having a particular talent—that "something special"—for the things that one does in a particular domain.
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Fixation
Using a prior problem-solving strategy and failing to look at a problem from a fresh, new perspective.
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functional fixedness
A type of fixation in which individuals fail to solve a problem because they are fixated on a thing's usual functions.
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Gifted
Descriptive of individuals who have an IQ of 130 or higher and/or superior talent in a particular area.
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Heritability
The proportion of the IQ differences in a population that is attributed to genetic differences.
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Heuristics
Shortcut strategies or guidelines that suggest, but do not guarantee, a solution to a problem.
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hindsight bias
The tendency to report falsely, after the fact, that we accurately predicted an outcome.
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inductive reasoning
Reasoning from the specific to the general or from the bottom-up.
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infinite generativity
The ability to produce an infinite number of sentences using a relatively limited set rules.
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Intelligence
Problem-solving skills and the ability to adapt to and learn from life's everyday experiences.
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intelligence quotient (IQ)
An individual's mental age divided by chronological age multiplied by 100.
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Language
A form of communication, whether spoken, written, or signed, that is based on a system of symbols.
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mental age (MA)
An individual's level of mental development relative to that of others.
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mental retardation
A condition of limited mental ability in which the individual has a low IQ, usually below 70, has difficulty adapting to everyday life, and has an onset of these characteristics in the so-called developmental period.
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Mindfulness
Being alert and mentally present for one's everyday activities.
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Morphology
A language's rules for word formation.
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normal distribution
A symmetrical, bell-shaped curve with a majority of the scores falling in the middle of the possible range and few scores appearing toward the extremes of the range.
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open-mindedness
Being receptive to the possibility of other ways of looking at things.
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phonics approach
An approach to learning to read that emphasizes basic rules for translating written symbols into sounds.
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Phonology
A language's sound system.
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problem solving
An attempt to find an appropriate way of attaining a goal when the goal is not readily available.
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problem-focused coping
The cognitive strategy of squarely facing one's troubles and trying to solve them.
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prototype model
Model emphasizing that when people evaluate whether a given item reflects a certain concept, they compare the item with the most typical item(s) in that category and look for a "family resemblance."
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Reasoning
The mental activity of transforming information to reach conclusions.
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Reliability
The extent to which a test yields a consistent, reproducible measure of performance.
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Semantics
The meaning of words and sentences in a particular language.
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Standardization
Developing uniform procedures for administering and scoring a test, as well as creating norms for the test.
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Subgoaling
Setting intermediate goals or defining intermediate problems in order to be in a better position to reach the final goal or solution.
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syntax
A language's rules for the way words are combined to form acceptable phrases and sentences.
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thinking
Manipulating information mentally, as when we form concepts, solve problems, make decisions, and reflect in a creative or critical manner.
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triarchic theory of intelligence
Sternberg's theory that there are three main types of intelligence: analytical, creative, and practical.
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whole-language approach
- An approach to learning to read that stresses that reading instruction should parallel a child's natural language learning; so reading materials should be whole and meaningful.
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Androgens
The class of sex hormones that predominate in males; they are produced by the testes in males and by the adrenal glands in both males and females.
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anorexia nervosa
An eating disorder that involves the relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation.
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broaden-and-build model
A model emphasizing that the key to the adaptiveness of positive emotional states lies in their effects on our attention and our ability to build resources.
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bulimia nervosa
An eating disorder in which the individual consistently follows a binge-and-purge eating pattern.
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Cannon-Bard theory
Theory stating that emotion and physiological reactions occur simultaneously.
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Catharsis
The release of anger or aggressive energy by directly or vicariously engaging in anger or aggression; the catharsis hypothesis states that behaving angrily or watching others behave angrily reduces subsequent anger.
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display rules
Sociocultural standards that determine when, where, and how emotions should be expressed.
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Drive
An aroused state that occurs because of a physiological need.
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Emotion
Feeling, or affect, that can involve physiological arousal, conscious experience, and behavioral expression.
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Estrogens
The main class of female sex hormones, produced principally by the ovaries.
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extrinsic motivation
Motivation that involves external incentives such as rewards and punishments.
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facial feedback hypothesis
The idea that facial expressions can influence emotions as well as reflect them.
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hierarchy of needs
Maslow's view that individuals' main needs are satisfied in the following sequence: physiological, safety, love and belongingness, esteem, and self-actualization.
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Homeostasis
The body's tendency to maintain an equilibrium, or steady state.
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human sexual response pattern
Identified by Masters and Johnson, the four phases of physical reactions that occur in humans as a result of sexual stimulation. These phases are excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution.
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Instinct
An innate (unlearned), biological pattern of behavior that is assumed to be universal throughout a species.
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intrinsic motivation
Motivation that is based on internal factors such as organismic needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness), as well as curiosity, challenge, and effort.
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James-Lange theory
Theory stating that emotion results from physiological states triggered by stimuli in the environment.
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Motivation
The force that moves people to behave, think, and feel the way they do.
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Need
A deprivation that energizes the drive to eliminate or reduce the deprivation.
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Polygraph
A machine that monitors bodily changes thought to be influenced by emotional states; it is used by examiners to try to determine whether someone is lying.
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self-actualization
The highest and most elusive of Maslow's needs; the motivation to develop one's full potential as a human being.
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self-determination theory
A theory of motivation that proposes that three basic, organismic needs (competence, autonomy, and relatedness) characterize intrinsic motivation.
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self-regulation
The process by which an organism pursues important objectives, centrally involving getting feedback about how we are doing in our goal pursuits.
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set point
The weight maintained when no effort is made to gain or lose weight.
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sexual orientation
The direction of the person's erotic interests, whether heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual.
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two-factor theory of emotion
Schachter and Singer's theory that emotion is determined by two main factors: physiological arousal and cognitive labeling.
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Yerkes-Dodson law
Principle stating that performance is best under conditions of moderate arousal rather than low or high arousal.
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