UGC NET Psycology Thinking, Intelligence and Creativity Syllabus

What is the Critical Period Hypothesis (Lenneberg) in language acquisition?

The proposal that there is a biologically determined window (roughly up to puberty) during which language is acquired naturally and fully; acquisition after it is effortful and incomplete.

Name the typical sequence of stages in early language acquisition.

Cooing, babbling, the one-word (holophrastic) stage, the two-word stage, telegraphic speech, and then increasingly complex grammatical speech.

In language processing, what are phonemes and morphemes?

Phonemes are the smallest distinctive units of sound that change meaning; morphemes are the smallest units that carry meaning (e.g., 'un-', 'cat', '-s').

Define syntax, semantics, and pragmatics in language.

Syntax: rules for arranging words into sentences. Semantics: the meaning of words and sentences. Pragmatics: how language is used in social context to convey intended meaning.

What is the linguistic relativity (Sapir–Whorf) hypothesis regarding language and cognition?

The claim that the structure and vocabulary of one's language shape or influence thought and perception; the strong form says language determines thought, the weak form says it merely influences it.

What is a 'well-defined' versus an 'ill-defined' problem?

Well-defined problems have a clear initial state, goal, and operators (e.g., math problems); ill-defined problems have vague goals, unclear paths, or no single correct solution (e.g., writing an essay).

What is an algorithm as a problem-solving strategy?

A step-by-step procedure that, if followed correctly, guarantees a solution; it is systematic and exhaustive but can be slow and computationally expensive.

What is a heuristic in problem solving?

A mental shortcut or rule of thumb that reduces effort and often yields a quick solution but does not guarantee correctness (e.g., means-ends analysis, working backward).

What is means-ends analysis?

A problem-solving heuristic that repeatedly identifies the difference between the current state and the goal, then selects operations (often via subgoals) that reduce that difference.

What is functional fixedness as an obstacle to problem solving?

The tendency to see objects only in their usual function, blocking novel uses needed to solve a problem (illustrated by Duncker's candle problem).

What is mental set (Einstellung) in problem solving?

The tendency to persist with a previously successful strategy or approach even when it is no longer the most efficient or correct way to solve a new problem (shown by Luchins' water-jar task).

How do confirmation bias and incubation affect problem solving?

Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek information confirming current hypotheses, hindering solutions; incubation is setting a problem aside, after which a solution often appears, aiding it.

Distinguish programmed (routine) from non-programmed decisions.

Programmed decisions are repetitive, structured, and handled by established rules/procedures; non-programmed decisions are novel, unstructured, and require judgment under uncertainty.

What is the rational (normative) model of decision making?

A model assuming decision makers identify all alternatives, evaluate consequences with full information, and choose the option that maximizes expected utility to reach an optimal choice.

What is Herbert Simon's bounded rationality and 'satisficing'?

Bounded rationality holds that cognitive limits and incomplete information prevent fully optimal choices, so people 'satisfice'—choosing the first option that meets a 'good enough' threshold rather than the optimum.

What is the availability heuristic in decision making?

Judging the probability or frequency of an event by how easily examples come to mind; vivid or recent events are overestimated.

What is the representativeness heuristic, and what error does it cause?

Judging probability by how much something resembles a prototype; it causes errors like ignoring base rates and the conjunction fallacy.

What is framing in Prospect Theory (Kahneman & Tversky)?

How a choice is described (as a gain vs. a loss) alters decisions; people are risk-averse for gains and risk-seeking for losses, reflecting loss aversion.

What is metacognition?

'Thinking about thinking'—the awareness, knowledge, and control of one's own cognitive processes; coined in connection with Flavell's work.

What are the three components of metacognitive knowledge (Flavell)?

Person knowledge (about oneself/others as learners), task knowledge (about the nature/demands of tasks), and strategy knowledge (about which strategies work and when).

What is metacognitive regulation, and what are its key processes?

The active control of one's cognition during learning, comprising planning (selecting strategies/allocating resources), monitoring (tracking comprehension/performance), and evaluating (judging outcomes).

What did Spearman's two-factor theory of intelligence propose?

All intellectual performance involves a general factor 'g' (general intelligence, common to all tasks) plus specific factors 's' (unique to each task); 'g' was derived via factor analysis.

What are Thurstone's Primary Mental Abilities?

Thurstone rejected a single 'g' and proposed seven independent primary abilities: verbal comprehension, word fluency, number, spatial visualization, associative memory, perceptual speed, and reasoning.

What was Arthur Jensen's main position on intelligence (Level I/Level II)?

Jensen distinguished Level I (associative learning/rote memory) from Level II (abstract reasoning/conceptual ability = 'g'), and controversially argued intelligence is largely heritable.

What is Cattell's distinction between fluid and crystallized intelligence?

Fluid intelligence (Gf) is the ability to reason and solve novel problems independent of acquired knowledge (declines with age); crystallized intelligence (Gc) is accumulated knowledge and skills (stable/increases with age).

List Gardner's multiple intelligences.

Linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic (with existential proposed as a possible ninth).

What are the three intelligences in Sternberg's Triarchic Theory?

Analytical (componential) intelligence, creative (experiential) intelligence, and practical (contextual) intelligence.

What are the components of Goleman's model of Emotional Intelligence?

Self-awareness, self-regulation (self-management), motivation, empathy (social awareness), and social skills (relationship management).

What is the PASS theory of intelligence by Das, Kar & Parrila?

Based on Luria's brain functions, intelligence consists of four cognitive processes: Planning, Attention/Arousal, and Simultaneous and Successive processing (PASS), measured by the CAS.

What did Guilford contribute to the study of creativity?

He distinguished convergent thinking (single correct answer) from divergent thinking (many varied answers) and placed divergent production at the core of creativity in his Structure-of-Intellect model; his tests assess fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration.

What is the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) and what does it measure?

E. Paul Torrance's verbal and figural tests of creativity measuring divergent thinking along four dimensions: fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration.

What did Getzels and Jackson find about creativity and intelligence?

In their study of high-IQ versus high-creativity students, the highly creative group achieved academically as well as the high-IQ group despite lower IQ, suggesting creativity is distinct from IQ (supporting the threshold hypothesis).

What did Wallach and Kogan conclude about creativity, and how did their method differ?

Using game-like, untimed, stress-free testing, they found creativity and intelligence are relatively independent dimensions, and identified four groups (e.g., high creativity–low intelligence) with distinct behavioral profiles.