Cognitive psychologists suggest that problem solving can be improved by becoming more systematic in the use of strategies. For example, slowing down. Careful consideration of the problem at hand may help you develop greater insight. Identifying your assumptions explicitly can also help you avoid problem-solving pitfalls. Actively evaluating whether your strategies were effective also improves your problem-solving skills.

Although abstract intelligence helps, success in life requires more than just a high IQ. Testing researchers suggest that IQ tests only capture a portion of human capability. IQ tests don’t capture how motivated people might be to apply their intelligence.

Never. However, it is a lot easier to learn a language when you are younger than older. In fact, language researchers suggest that exposure to language early in life is the most efficient approach. If you attempt to learn language later in life, you will have to rehearse and practice much more to reach the same levels of fluency.

You probably are hearing this term in many of your classes. In psychology, critical thinking relates to the concentrated thinking that helps us understand, explain, and predict behavior. Critical thinking in psychology involves being able to resist simple claims about the causes of behavior and to provide comprehensive explanations for complex behavior. If you study psychology well, your critical thinking skills should grow through your developing skepticism and rigor.

They can and do. Those who master a new language can describe the particular thrill they have when they recognize that their mastery allows them to think in the new tongue.