Question 1

Faced with evidence that seems to contradict a hoped-for finding, people may object to the study's methodology. This is an example of the fallacy of positive instances.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of confirmation bias, where people favor information that confirms their preexisting beliefs or hypotheses, rather than the fallacy of positive instances, which involves remembering or noticing only instances that support one's beliefs and ignoring those that don't.

Question 2

Alfred Binet developed a series of tests measuring different mental abilities in order to identify schoolchildren who could benefit from special help.

Accepted Answer

This statement accurately describes Alfred Binet's work. He developed what became known as the Binet-Simon Scale, which tested mental abilities such as memory, attention, and language skills in order to identify children who needed additional support in school.

Question 3

The confirmation bias is the tendency to search for information or evidence that confirms a belief, while making little or no effort to search for information that might disprove the belief.

Accepted Answer

The statement accurately describes the confirmation bias.

Question 4

According to the linguistic relativity hypothesis, differences among languages cause differences in the thoughts of their speakers.

Accepted Answer

The linguistic relativity hypothesis, also known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, suggests that the structure and vocabulary of a particular language influence the way its speakers think and perceive the world around them. This theory is still debated among linguists and psychologists, but there is some evidence to suggest that language can shape cognition and behavior.

Question 5

Eleanor Rosch found that even though Dani-speaking people in New Guinea have words for only two colors in their language, they seemed to remember and perceive color in much the same way as English-speaking people from the United States.

Accepted Answer

This is true. Rosch's research found that despite differences in the number of color terms in different languages, people tend to categorize and perceive colors in similar ways across cultures.

Question 6

Nonhuman animals communicate with members of their own species, but there is no valid research to support the idea that nonhuman animals demonstrate comprehension of syntax or concepts.

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that some nonhuman animals, such as certain primates, birds, and dolphins, can understand basic syntax and concepts, demonstrating a level of comprehension beyond simple communication.

Question 7

The most widely accepted definition of intelligence is "the global capacity to think rationally, act purposefully, and deal effectively with the environment."

Accepted Answer

This statement is a widely accepted definition of intelligence and is supported by many researchers and psychologists. It emphasizes not only cognitive abilities, but also the ability to adapt to one's environment and act purposefully towards goals.

Question 8

One important property of language is displacement, meaning that speakers can generate an infinite number of new and different phrases and sentences.

Accepted Answer

Displacement in language refers to the ability to talk about things that are not present in the immediate physical environment (past, future, hypothetical situations, etc.), not the ability to generate an infinite number of phrases and sentences. The property that allows for the generation of an infinite number of new sentences is called "productivity" or "creativity."

Question 9

Parents with children in child care may be motivated to embrace research findings that emphasize the benefits of child care for young children and discount findings that emphasize the benefits of home-based care. This is an example of the belief-bias effect.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Parents with children in child care may...

Question 10

All of your cognitive abilities are involved in understanding and producing language.

Accepted Answer

Understanding and producing language requires a range of cognitive abilities, including memory, attention, perception, and problem-solving. Language involves not only the ability to recognize and produce individual sounds, but also to understand the rules of grammar and syntax, to use vocabulary appropriately and accurately, and to interpret meaning in context. All of these abilities rely on various neural processes and cognitive systems, which means that language is a complex and multifaceted cognitive domain.

Question 11

People tend to believe evidence that confirms what they want to believe is true, a phenomenon that is sometimes called the wishful thinking bias.

Accepted Answer

Wishful thinking bias is a well-known cognitive bias that involves selectively accepting information that supports one's pre-existing beliefs or desires. This can lead to faulty reasoning and confirmation of false beliefs.

Question 12

Although researchers once thought that primates were able to demonstrate primitive language skills, contemporary researchers have shown that the primates were simply producing learned responses to nonverbal cues.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Although researchers once thought that primates were...

Question 13

One day Lacey had an intuitive hunch that she would hear from an old grade-school friend and sure enough, her friend e-mailed her. Lacey is now convinced that she is psychic. This is an example of the fallacy of positive instances.

Accepted Answer

The fallacy of positive instances is when we draw a general conclusion based on limited or selective evidence. In this case, Lacey is drawing a general conclusion about her psychic abilities based on one instance of her intuition being correct, which is a limited and selective piece of evidence. Therefore, it is an example of the fallacy of positive instances.

Question 14

Comparative cognition is a field of psychology that focuses on aspects of animal behavior, including memory, problem solving, planning, and cooperation.

Accepted Answer

Comparative cognition is indeed a field of psychology that studies various cognitive processes in animals such as memory, problem solving, planning, and cooperation.

Question 15

Comparative cognition is a field of psychology that focuses on cross-cultural research on problem solving, language, and intelligence.

Accepted Answer

Comparative cognition is a field of psychology that studies the similarities and differences in cognitive processes across different species, not across human cultures.

Question 16

Only spoken language requires the use of symbols.

Accepted Answer

Both spoken and written language use symbols; spoken language uses phonetic symbols (sounds), while written language uses graphical symbols (letters and characters).

Question 17

Every language has a unique syntax, or set of rules for combining words.

Accepted Answer

Syntax refers to the set of rules in a language for arranging and combining words to create phrases and sentences. Every language has its own syntax that governs the grammatical structure of the language.

Question 18

While evaluating evidence that seems to confirm a hoped-for finding, people may overlook flaws in the research or argument. This is an example of the wishful thinking bias.

Accepted Answer

The wishful thinking bias refers to the tendency for people to believe or accept evidence that supports their desired outcome or belief, while disregarding or minimizing evidence that contradicts it. This can lead people to overlook flaws in the research or argument that supports their desired conclusion, and to accept evidence uncritically as long as it supports their preferred outcome.

Question 19

When people accept only evidence that conforms to their belief, while rejecting or ignoring any evidence that does not conform, they are demonstrating the belief-bias effect.

Accepted Answer

The statement correctly describes the belief-bias effect, which occurs when people selectively accept or reject evidence based on preexisting beliefs.

Question 20

Rather than focusing on whether nonhuman animals can develop human capabilities such as language, many comparative psychologists study the specific cognitive capabilities that different species have evolved to best adapt to their ecological niche.

Accepted Answer

The statement accurately reflects the approach of many comparative psychologists, who study the unique cognitive skills and adaptations of various animal species rather than attempting to anthropomorphize nonhuman animals by assessing their potential for human-like abilities such as language.

Quiz 7: Section 3: Thinking, Language, and Intelligence