What is the concept of 'modularity of mind', as popularized by Jerry Fodor?

Correct answer: The mind has distinct, special-purpose systems to deal with specific kinds of information.

Explanation

This question tests the definition of a key concept in cognitive science, the modularity of mind, and its main proponent.

Other questions

Question 1

What is the definition of cognitive psychology as presented in the chapter?

Question 2

What is the correct sequence of the dialectical process through which ideas evolve over time?

Question 3

Which ancient Greek philosopher is identified as a rationalist, believing that the route to knowledge is through thinking and logical analysis?

Question 4

John Locke's term for the belief that humans are born without knowledge and that experience 'writes' knowledge on them is known as what?

Question 5

What was the primary goal of structuralism, considered the first major school of thought in psychology?

Question 6

Which psychologist is often viewed as the founder of structuralism and used introspection as a research method?

Question 7

Functionalism, as an alternative to structuralism, suggested that psychologists should focus on what aspect of thought?

Question 8

Associationism examines how elements of the mind can become associated with one another to result in learning. Which of the following is NOT listed as a principle of association?

Question 9

According to Edward Lee Thorndike's law of effect, what is the key to forming associations?

Question 10

What did behaviorists like John Watson believe psychologists should concentrate on?

Question 11

B. F. Skinner believed that virtually all forms of human behavior could be explained by what mechanism?

Question 12

What is the main principle of Gestalt psychology, summed up by the maxim 'the whole is more than the sum of its parts'?

Question 13

The movement called the 'cognitive revolution' in the early 1950s was a response to which dominant school of thought?

Question 14

What was Noam Chomsky's major criticism of B. F. Skinner's theory of language acquisition?

Question 15

What is the criterion for a computer program to pass the 'Turing test'?

Question 16

In his influential 1956 article, George Miller introduced the concept of channel capacity and noted that what number frequently appeared in the literature on perception and memory?

Question 17

What is the difference between an independent variable and a dependent variable in a controlled experiment?

Question 18

In research methodology, what does a correlation coefficient of 0 indicate?

Question 19

What is the primary advantage of research methods like case studies and naturalistic observation?

Question 20

According to the text, computer simulations are a research method in which researchers program computers to do what?

Question 21

What is meant by the term 'heuristics' in cognitive psychology?

Question 22

According to one of the fundamental ideas in cognitive psychology, what is the relationship between cognitive processes and noncognitive processes?

Question 23

In the debate between rationalism and empiricism, which philosopher is credited with synthesizing the two views, arguing that both must work together in the quest for truth?

Question 24

The research method of introspection, used by structuralists, was criticized for what reason?

Question 25

Pragmatists, such as William James and John Dewey, believe that knowledge is validated by what?

Question 26

Hermann Ebbinghaus studied memory by making up and memorizing lists of what?

Question 27

What term did behaviorists use for the mind, viewing it as something whose internal processes cannot be accurately described because they are not observable?

Question 28

Which researcher, considered a forefather of modern cognitive psychology, was a critic of radical behaviorism and believed that understanding behavior required accounting for its purpose and plan?

Question 29

Cognitivism is described as a synthesis of which two earlier forms of analysis?

Question 30

What is defined as 'a type of irrelevant variable that has been left uncontrolled in a study'?

Question 31

What does a positive correlation between two variables, such as vocabulary size and reading comprehension, indicate?

Question 32

The research method that involves obtaining an individual's own account of their cognitive processes is known as what?

Question 33

Cognitive science is described as a cross-disciplinary field that uses ideas and methods from several other fields. Which of the following is NOT listed as a contributing field?

Question 34

One of the fundamental ideas of cognitive psychology is that cognition is generally adaptive. What does this mean?

Question 35

Which of the seven major themes in cognitive psychology addresses the combination of theory with empirical methods to learn about cognitive phenomena?

Question 36

What does the term 'statistical significance' indicate in the context of experimental research?

Question 37

According to Sir Francis Bacon in 1620, which method of learning a piece of text is more effective?

Question 38

What concept did Karl Spencer Lashley, a former student of John Watson, challenge the behaviorist view with?

Question 39

According to the definition provided, what is 'artificial intelligence' (AI)?

Question 40

Who wrote the book 'Cognitive Psychology' in 1967, which was critical in bringing cognitivism to prominence?

Question 42

In the investigative cycle of research, what follows the testing of hypotheses through experimentation?

Question 43

What is the defining characteristic of a verbal protocol as a research method?

Question 44

What is the primary purpose of using neuroscientific research methods in cognitive psychology?

Question 45

What is the main distinction between basic research and applied research in cognitive psychology?

Question 46

An experiment tests problem-solving strategies at 6 a.m. for one group and 6 p.m. for another group. In this case, 'time of day' would be what kind of variable?

Question 47

What is the primary limitation of correlational studies that leads many cognitive psychologists to prefer experimental data?

Question 48

What year did Wilhelm Wundt found the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany, an event considered a major milestone in the study of the mind?

Question 49

The psychological phenomenon where you can focus on one conversation at a party while filtering out others, but still notice your name being mentioned nearby, is known as what?

Question 50

Which of the following research methods is most suited to drawing causal inferences?