Classical Categories vs

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Questions and Answers

What is the 'black box' referred to in the text?

The cognitive processes

The brain (correct)

The stimuli

The environment

How are theories or models of cognitive processes tested?

By modifying concepts

Empirically by doing research (correct)

By categorizing stimuli

By forming inferences

What do we compare stimuli to in order to categorize them?

Inferences

Conceptual representations (correct)

The environment

Cognitive processes

What is the basic assumption about our ability to categorize stimuli?

We have mental representations of concepts Signup and view all the answers

What is stored in our LTM according to the text?

Mental representations of concepts Signup and view all the answers

What dominated our understanding of conceptual representation until the 1970s?

The Classic View of Concept Formation Signup and view all the answers

Where do cognitive processes occur?

Within the brain Signup and view all the answers

How do we make inferences about cognitive processes?

By forming theories or models Signup and view all the answers

What leads to new experiments to test theories?

Modifying theories Signup and view all the answers

What is presumed to be involved in categorizing stimuli?

A number of interesting cognitive processes Signup and view all the answers

What do we have no direct access to, according to the text?

Cognitive processes Signup and view all the answers

What do we modify, leading to new experiments to test theories?

Our theory Signup and view all the answers

According to the classical view of categories, how are categories defined?

By necessary and sufficient features, with no in-between cases and all members being equal Signup and view all the answers

How is family resemblance defined?

As a weighted sum of featural overlap among category members Signup and view all the answers

What does the classical view consider concepts to be mentally represented as?

Definitions providing characteristics necessary and sufficient for category membership Signup and view all the answers

How do participants rate category membership according to the text?

On a continuum from 0 to 100% and changing their inclusion criteria over time Signup and view all the answers

What influences category membership decisions and categorization decision times?

Typicality Signup and view all the answers

According to the text, what is the concept of family resemblance correlated with?

Typicality Signup and view all the answers

How are category boundaries described in the concept of family resemblance?

Fuzzy Signup and view all the answers

What do the features generated by participants tend to apply to, according to the text?

A small subset of category members Signup and view all the answers

According to the text, how do category membership decisions and categorization decision times get influenced?

By typicality Signup and view all the answers

What is the alternative approach to the classical view of categories according to the text?

The concept of family resemblance Signup and view all the answers

How are categories defined according to the classical view?

By necessary and sufficient features, with no in-between cases and all members being equal Signup and view all the answers

What is the main claim of the classical view of categories according to the text?

Concepts are mentally represented as definitions providing characteristics necessary and sufficient for category membership Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Classical View of Categories and Family Resemblance

Classical view of categories is based on the premise that categories are defined by the presence or absence of specific properties.
Categories are defined by necessary and sufficient features, with no in-between cases and all members being equal.
The main claims of the classical view are that concepts are mentally represented as definitions, providing characteristics necessary and sufficient for category membership.
Membership of categories such as squares and even numbers is defined by specific properties, which are necessary and sufficient for classification.
Category membership isn't binary, as demonstrated by participants rating membership on a continuum from 0 to 100% and changing their inclusion criteria over time.
Some category members are considered more typical or representative than others, as shown by high inter-rater reliability in typicality ratings.
Category membership decisions and categorization decision times are influenced by typicality, with typical members being confirmed or generated more frequently.
Even classically definable categories show typicality effects, with certain members being more typical than others.
An alternative approach to the classical view is the concept of family resemblance, where categories are defined by overlapping distributions of features.
Family resemblance is a weighted sum of featural overlap among category members, with a strong correlation between typicality and family resemblance.
Category boundaries are fuzzy and category membership doesn't imply equality, with some members being more typical or 'better' category members than others.
The features generated by participants tend to apply to a small subset of category members, and none of the features are necessary and sufficient.

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Description

Test your knowledge of the classical view of categories and the concept of family resemblance with this quiz. Explore the defining characteristics of classical categories and their influence on membership decisions, as well as the alternative approach of family resemblance and its impact on typicality and category boundaries.