Thinking and Intelligence AP Psych

Carlos is designing a mobile app that requires users to select specific settings in a particular sequence to access certain features. To ensure the app functions correctly, he meticulously tests every possible combination of settings, following a precise sequence of actions to identify any errors. This method is slow, but Carlos wants to be sure he doesn’t overlook any potential issues by taking shortcuts. While others suggest he might speed up by relying on intuition or experience, Carlos insists on using this approach to guarantee accuracy. Which cognitive strategy is Carlos using in this scenario?

• Insight

• Heuristic

• Algorithm

• Mental set

Emma is in a design class where her instructor gives an assignment to create as many unique uses as possible for a standard paperclip. While many students list simple uses, such as holding papers together or cleaning small spaces, Emma starts brainstorming unusual and creative ideas, such as using it to make tiny sculptures or even as a tool in an emergency survival kit. She challenges herself to go beyond conventional uses, aiming to think as creatively and freely as possible without limitations. Which cognitive process is Emma using in this scenario?

• Convergent thinking

• Divergent thinking

• Functional fixedness

• Mental set

Jonah realizes that while he primarily thinks of cars when he hears the word "vehicle," the category is broader than he originally thought. Which cognitive concept is best illustrated by Jonah’s initial thought process?

• Prototype

• Schema

• Algorithm

• Heuristic

Angela has been playing roulette at a casino for the past hour. She notices that the ball has landed on black five times in a row. Convinced that it must land on red soon, she decides to place a large bet on red, feeling that a switch in color is “due.” Despite knowing each spin is independent of the previous ones, she still believes that after so many spins of black, red is more likely. Angela's reasoning is based on which cognitive bias?

• Availability Heuristic

• Confirmation Bias

• Gambler's Fallacy

• Anchoring Bias

During the first week of a challenging AP Physics course, two students receive low scores on their initial quiz. Student A says, "I'm just not a physics person. Some people have the brain for it, and I don't." She stops raising her hand in class and avoids extra practice problems. Student B says, "This shows me I need to develop better problem-solving strategies and put in more effort." She starts attending study groups and asking for feedback on her work. The different approaches these students take based on their beliefs about intelligence illustrate the distinction between:

• Growth and fixed mindsets

• Internal and external locus of control

• Self-efficacy and learned helplessness

• Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation

1.  Lily has always categorized animals as either "pets" or "wild animals." When she visits an animal sanctuary, she encounters several species that don't fit her usual categories, such as foxes that are not tame but are friendly with humans. After observing and learning more about these animals, she realizes that her previous understanding of “pets” and “wild animals” doesn't fully encompass the complexity of animal behavior. To make sense of this, she adjusts her mental categories to include a new group she calls “domesticated wild animals” to reflect animals that interact with humans but aren’t fully tame. Which cognitive process is Lily using in this scenario?

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

• Conservation

• Object permanence