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Related Concept Videos

Decision Making01:20

Decision Making

Decision-making is a fundamental cognitive process that involves evaluating alternatives and selecting among them. This process can range from simple choices, such as deciding what to wear, to complex decisions, like choosing a major in college or a career path. The complexity of the decision often dictates the approach we use, which can be broadly categorized into two types: automatic and controlled decision-making.
Automatic decision-making is fast, intuitive, and relies on gut feelings...
Decision Making: Traditional Method01:14

Decision Making: Traditional Method

The process of hypothesis testing based on the traditional method includes calculating the critical value, testing the value of the test statistic using the sample data, and interpreting these values.
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is decided based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to this claim is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses, out of which a null hypothesis would be a...
The Representativeness Heuristic02:13

The Representativeness Heuristic

The representative heuristic describes a biased way of thinking, in which you unintentionally stereotype someone or something. For example, you may assume that your professors spend their free time reading books and engaging in intellectual conversation, because the idea of them spending their time playing volleyball or visiting an amusement park does not fit in with your stereotypes of professors.
Reason and Intuition01:37

Reason and Intuition

The human brain processes information for decision-making using one of two routes: an intuitive system and a rational system (Epstein, 1994; popularized by Kahneman, 2011 as System 1 and System 2, respectively). The intuitive system is quick, impulsive, and operates with minimal effort, relying on emotions or habits to provide cues for what to do next, while the rational system is logical, analytical, deliberate, and methodical. Research in neuropsychology suggests that the brain can only use...
Concepts and Prototypes01:24

Concepts and Prototypes

The human nervous system handles vast amounts of information by translating sensory stimuli into neural impulses, which the brain processes, creating thoughts expressed through language or stored as memories. The brain also synthesizes information from emotions and memories, which significantly influence thoughts and behaviors. This intricate process creates a comprehensive mental picture.
The brain organizes this information using concepts, which are mental categories grouping linguistic data,...
Decision Making: P-value Method01:09

Decision Making: P-value Method

The process of hypothesis testing based on the P-value method includes calculating the P- value using the sample data and interpreting it.
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is proposed. The claim is based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to the claim  is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses:  a null hypothesis would be a neutral statement while the alternative hypothesis can have a...

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Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal
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Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

Conceptual representations in goal-directed decision making.

Nicholas Shea1, Kristine Krug, Philippe N Tobler

  • 1University of Oxford, Oxford, England. nicholas.shea@philosophy.ox.ac.uk

Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience
|November 27, 2008
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This review explores how conceptual representations, which involve semantic constituents and language-like processing, may underpin human goal-directed decision-making. Understanding concepts is key to characterizing this system.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Philosophy of Mind
  • Decision-Making Research

Background:

  • The distinction between habit-based and goal-directed decision-making is established in humans.
  • While habit systems are well-studied, the goal-directed system remains less characterized.
  • Existing research often isolates decision-making from conceptual representation studies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of conceptual representations in the human goal-directed decision-making system.
  • To bridge the gap between decision-making research and the study of concepts.
  • To propose conceptual representation as a framework for understanding goal-directed behavior.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature in neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy.
  • Analysis of the relationship between conceptual representations and decision-making mechanisms.
  • Theoretical integration of semantic constituents and syntactic processing in decision-making.

Main Results:

  • Conceptual representations, structured by semantic constituents, are proposed as a key component of goal-directed decision-making.
  • The use of concepts necessitates language-like syntactic processing abilities.
  • This framework offers a novel perspective on understanding the goal-directed system.

Conclusions:

  • Investigating the deployment of conceptual representations is a fruitful approach to studying human goal-directed decision-making.
  • Concepts play a crucial, yet under-explored, role in goal-directed behavior.
  • This perspective enhances our understanding of the cognitive architecture underlying complex decision-making.