Psychology Definition of THOUGHT PROCESS: any of the mental procedures involved in cognitive activities which are past interpretation, like remembering, reasoning, problem solving, imagining, and Sign in
What is the definition of thought process?
any of the mental procedures involved in cognitive activities which are past interpretation, like remembering, reasoning, problem solving, imagining, and making decisions. THOUGHT PROCESS: "My thought process is often interrupted by outside stimuli."
What is process thought?
What Are Thought Processes? According to researchers, a thought process can be both conscious and unconscious. In fact, your mind can be processing more than one thought at the same time. For this reason, the exact definition of a thought process is simple: It is being engaged with the stuff of thought.
What is the thought process?
Thought processes are a type of cognitive activity that uses mental capacity to complete and understand certain functions of the human experience. These operations may allow you to solve problems, make decisions or create and evaluate new ideas. Why are thought processes important? Thought processes help us navigate throughout the world.
What is thought processes?
thought processes. Contexts. The mental characteristics or attitude of a person or group. One's thought processes. Plural for the act of thinking. Plural for the thought processes leading to accepted theories or solutions. Noun. . The mental characteristics or attitude of a person or group.
Why do we need thought processes?
What is conceptual thinking?
What is contemplation in psychology?
What is the method of using analogies to help understand concepts or develop meaning in certain situations?
What is divergent thinking?
What is emotional intelligence?
What is the ability to make a guess or assumption about a theory, even without all the necessary information?
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How do you explain thought processes?
A thought process is how you form and organize your thoughts. Thinking involves a range of skills that you have developed over time, including reasoning, problem solving, judging, and remembering. When thinking, your mind is coming alive with imaginations and memories and even daydreams.
What is thinking process in psychology?
Thought (also called thinking) is the mental process in which beings form psychological associations and models of the world. Thinking is manipulating information, as when we form concepts, engage in problem solving, reason and make decisions. Thought, the act of thinking, produces more thoughts.
What are the 4 thought processes?
There are four types of “thinking skills”: convergent or analytical thinking, divergent thinking, critical thinking and creative thinking. We use these skills to help us understand the world around us, think critically, solve problems, make logical choices and develop our own values and beliefs.
Why is thought process important?
Thinking is an important mental process. It helps us to define and organise experiences, plan, learn, reflect and create. But sometimes our thinking may for a variety of reasons become unhelpful and this has a negative impact on our well being.
What's another word for thought process?
Alternate Synonyms for "thought process": thinking; thought; cerebration; intellection; mentation; higher cognitive process.
What is thought with example?
The definition of thought is the act of thinking, or the outcome of mental activity. An example of thought is to be deeply concentrating on how to figure out a problem. An example of thought is an idea on how to solve a problem. A way of thinking (associated with a group, nation or region).
What are the components of thought process?
Expert-verified answer It involves attention, pattern recognition, memory, decision making, intuition, knowledge, and more. Images, muscular responses, concepts, and language or symbol are the basic units of thought. It takes many forms, including daydreaming, fantasizing, problem solving.
How do you develop thought processes?
7 Ways to Think More CriticallyAsk Basic Questions. “The world is complicated. ... Question Basic Assumptions. ... Be Aware of Your Mental Processes. ... Try Reversing Things. ... Evaluate the Existing Evidence. ... Remember to Think for Yourself. ... Understand That No One Thinks Critically 100% of the Time.
How many thought processes are there?
You have six very different and unique thought processes that influence your decisions, beliefs, attitudes, emotions, personality, behaviors, and ultimately, the results of your life.
How do you use thought process in a sentence?
Examples of 'thought process' in a sentence thought processIt makes sense when he talks about his thought process.This thought process follows something of a pattern.I dived deep into my thought process. ... I've not changed my thought process since the start. ... They obviously have a different thought process out here.More items...
What are the 3 types of thinking?
3 Modes Of Thinking: Lateral, Divergent & Convergent Thought.
What are the types of thinking?
12 types of thinkingAbstract thinking. When you think abstractly, you understand general ideas and then make meaningful connections between them. ... Analytical thinking. ... Application thinking. ... Associative thinking. ... Concrete thinking. ... Creative thinking. ... Critical thinking. ... Divergent thinking.More items...
What are the elements of thinking in psychology?
The elements of thought in psychology consists of symbols (representations), concepts (classifications), and prototypes (specific examples of both symbols and concepts).
What are the different tools of thinking process?
The "tools of thinking" are the devices and processes we use to achieve knowledge. This lecture introduces eight tools: experience, memory, association, pattern discernment and recognition, reason, invention, experimentation, and intuition.
39 Types Of Thought Process - Simplicable
Rational Thought A state of being reasonable. Often associated with logic. However, rational thought may use natural language, visual abstractions, heuristics and partial truths that go beyond the capabilities of formal logic.
Thought Process Descriptors Flashcards | Quizlet
Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Circumstantial, Flight of ideas, Loose associations and more.
Tangential, Circumstantial, Incoherent Thought - LotsOfEssays.com
An essay or paper on Tangential, Circumstantial, Incoherent Thought. Describe Tangential, Circumstantial and incoherent thought processes with an example to demonstrate your understanding of their distinctions. Tangential thought processes are when thoughts have some connections between the preced
What is another word for "thought process"?
Synonyms for thought process include thought, thinking, pondering, investigation, rumination, analysis, concentration, cogitation, consideration and examination. Find ...
Abnormal Thought Processes and Associated Disorders
Thought process Description Associated Dysfunction; Tangential: Logical and linear but not goal directed: Impaired attention and memory: Circumferential or circumstantial
What Is Thought?
Thought is a mental process that allows you to make sense of the world around you. It involves organizing and interpreting information, as well as using past experiences to plan for the future. Thought also enables you to communicate with others, express your feelings, and create art and music. In short, thought makes you human.
What Is Thought Suppression?
This is when you try to push thoughts out of your mind because you don’t want to deal with them. This often leads to more intrusive thoughts popping up in their place.
How Can You Improve Your Thought Patterns?
One way is through cognitive therapy. Another way is through meditation. These techniques have been proven successful in changing one’s thought patterns and helping them feel happier and more content with themselves.
What are thoughts like?
Thoughts can be idea-like, memory -like, picture-like, or song-like. They are usually short-lived, discrete events, unlike continuous events such as the constant murmurs of air-conditioners or rain. We all experience thoughts and have no problem identifying them and speaking about them to others.
What does it mean when someone says "I just had a thought"?
In everyday life, it is common to hear someone say, "I just had a thought" or "the thought just occurred to me." For instance, one may have a thought about an event that took place during the last Super Bowl. Thoughts can be idea-like, memory -like, picture-like, or song-like. They are usually short-lived, discrete events, unlike continuous events such as the constant murmurs of air-conditioners or rain. We all experience thoughts and have no problem identifying them and speaking about them to others.
What is the fancy term for thoughts?
The fancy term for thoughts in cognitive science and neuroscience is "mental representation, " which continues to be a tricky term because some thoughts (e.g., moods, the perception of tinnitus) do not seem to be very concerned with "representing.".
What happens to the unconscious before you experience a conscious thought?
It seems that, before one experiences a conscious thought, unconscious brain processes work behind the scenes to generate the thought. During this opaque process, unconscious representations and calculations seem to be involved.
Who was the first to demonstrate that thoughts are necessary to explain overt behavior?
Tolman was the first to demonstrate systematically that thoughts are necessary to explain overt behavior. After Tolman, the great cognitive psychologist Roger Shepard showed that people can actually manipulate these mental representations, as in the case of mental rotation—when one mentally rotates a mental image.
Who was the first to demonstrate that thoughts influence action?
Edward Chace Tolman —the great experimentalist and theoretician in psychology—was the first to demonstrate that thoughts (e.g., memories about the layout of a maze) influence action. Tolman demonstrated that the maze-solving behavior of the rat could not be due to just external cues but required information that resided only in the rat's mind, information he referred to as a "cognitive map."
What does "thought" mean?
Google the word “thought” and you will find this uninformative, circular definition: “an idea or opinion produced by thinking, or occurring suddenly in the mind.” The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “think” in a similarly unhelpful way: “to form or have in the mind.” But what actually is a thought?
Who proposed the concept of self awareness?
The neuroscientist Antonio Damasio proposed a model for how the self emerges in gradations, in organisms of increasing evolutionary complexity. According to this model, a simple organism develops a rudimentary form of "self-awareness" by forming a map of its body and its position in the physical space it occupies. Damasio calls the most basic representation of self the protoself—a nonconscious state that many species may have. It’s a very basic level of awareness comprised of neural patterns representing or mapping the body's physical structure. 11
How does thunder affect the brain?
The sound of the thunderclap is transformed from a specific pattern of sound waves in the air, to a corresponding pattern of vibrations transmitted through your eardrum and the small bones in your middle ear to your cochlea, to a corresponding pattern of electrochemical impulses along the auditory nerve, to corresponding signals in neurons in the auditory cortex and association cortex. It also activates fear circuitry, relay ed via the amygdala, and perhaps also visual circuitry that records what you saw at that moment. Signals are transmitted between neurons by chemical neurotransmitters. The entire widely distributed network activated throughout the cerebral cortex by this stimulus is the experience at that moment.
What is the pattern of connections?
The pattern of connections is a representation (a "map") corresponding to the pattern of information that you perceived. It is likely also interwoven with representations of other feelings or memories that you associate with that experience, adding layers of meaning to the experience. Information is physical.
How much energy does the brain use?
The brain requires an inordinate amount of energy to do its work, utilizing 20% of the body’s energy consumption at rest, despite accounting for only 2% of the body’s weight. The brain’s rate of caloric burning increases when engaged in cognitively demanding tasks. Energy and mass are interchangeable (E=mc 2 ).
What is a representation of something?
A thought is a representation of something. A representation is a likeness—a thing that depicts another thing by having characteristics that correspond to that other thing. For example, a picture, image, imprint, or mold of an object is a representation of that object. A map is another example of a representation.
Can a thought occur without its neural substrate?
So too, no thought can occur without its neural substrate.
What is mental status?
The mental status examination is the psychiatrist’s version of the physical examination. In 1918, Adolf Meyer developed an outline for a standardized method to evaluate a patient’s “mental status” for psychiatric practice.[1] It combines information gathered from passive observation during the interview with data acquired through direct questioning ...
Why is it important to compare mental status to previous ones?
In subsequent encounters, comparing the mental status examination to previous ones will help the clinician to determine if a patient’s symptoms are improving or worsening .[1] Additionally, aspects such as observation of motility may indicate whether a patient is experiencing side effects from medications.
How to assess attention/concentration?
Attention/concentration is assessable throughout the interview by observing how well a patient stays focused on the questions asked .[3] Alternatively, this can be directly tested in a multitude of ways. One way is to ask a patient to tap their hand every time they hear a certain letter in a string of random letters. If they have good math skills, then another method is to ask the patient to count back from 100 by 7. Additionally, a practitioner may ask a patient to spell a word forwards and backward or ask them to repeat a random string of numbers forward and backward. [2][6]Impairment in attention/concentration may be a symptom of anxiety, depression, poor sleep, or a neurocognitive disorder.[3] When describing the patient’s performance, a practitioner may document the performance as poor, limited, fair, or in the case of a previous comparison worsening versus improving. Additionally, a practitioner can specifically describe the task and the patient’s performance.
What are the categories of mental status examination?
For the purposes of this activity, the mental status examination can divide into the broad categories of appearance, behavior, motor activity, speech, mood, affect, thought process, thought content, perceptual disturbances, cognition, insight, and judgment.
Who developed the standardized method of assessing mental health?
In 1918, Adolf Meyer developed an outline for a standardized method to evaluate a patient’s “mental status” for psychiatric practice.[1] . It combines information gathered from passive observation during the interview with data acquired through direct questioning to determine the patient’s mental status at that moment.[1][2][3] ...
What are the qualities of speech in psychiatric interview?
The qualities to be noted are the amount of verbalization, fluency, rate, rhythm, volume, and tone. It is of key importance to note the amount a patient speaks. If the patient speaks less than normal, they may be experiencing depression or anxiety.
What is the meaning of thinking?
Thinking refers to our ability to make decisions, solve problems, reason, and remember. In a broader sense, thinking is the totality of experiences that happen inside one’s mind. Typically, we process our thoughts in a logical and coherent manner.
What Is Disorganized Thinking?
Typically, we process our thoughts in a logical and coherent manner. However, for those with schizophrenia, this process is disrupted, leading to disorganized thoughts and disordered speech. 2
What are the factors that cause disorganized thinking?
It may be related to a variety of factors, like genetics and family history, environment, and past trauma . There is evidence that people with disorganized thinking have structural differences in their brains, as they show unusual activation in regions involved in: 3. Language and speech processing. Auditory perception.
What does the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders include?
The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders includes criteria to help your doctor diagnose schizophrenia. 8 Your doctor will look for typical symptoms of the condition, like disordered speech, delusions, hallucinations, disorganized or catatonic behavior, and reduced emotional expression. They may also look for signs of disorganized thinking by examining the way you communicate and direct your attention. 1
Why do people with disordered thinking have distractibility?
This is often due to nearby stimuli that interfere with the thought process.
What is tangential thinking?
Tangential thinking occurs when someone moves from thought to thought but never seems to get to the main point. Instead, the thoughts are somewhat connected but in a superficial or tangential way. 5
What is circumstantial thinking?
Circumstantial thinking occurs when a person talks in circles, providing excessive and unnecessary detail before getting to the point. Here's an example from neuroscientist and neuropsychiatrist researcher Nancy Coover Andreasen: 6
Why do we need thought processes?
Thought processes help us navigate throughout the world. They help us understand interactions with other humans, and why people do what they do. Thought processes can also help us better understand ourselves and why we have certain feelings or preferences. Defining and practicing using these operations may help people better connect and communicate with one another by understanding the overreaching situations and constructs in which we all engage.
What is conceptual thinking?
Conceptual thinking is the ability to identify patterns from given information. For example, if a detective notices that there's an increase in 911 calls from a specific neighborhood every Tuesday between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. he may find this pattern suspicious and conduct a further investigation.
What is contemplation in psychology?
Contemplation is the act of thinking reflectively about one idea for an extended period. For example, if you're trying to decide whether to accept a job offer, you may sit and think about the potential benefits, logistics of switching careers or other factors related to offer acceptance for a few hours at a time.
What is the method of using analogies to help understand concepts or develop meaning in certain situations?
Analogical reasoning is the method of using analogies to help understand concepts or develop meaning in certain situations. For example:
What is divergent thinking?
Divergent thinking the process of finding a solution to a problem by inventing alternative methods of execution. Most people view it as the opposite of convergent thinking.
What is emotional intelligence?
Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize and understand your own emotions and those of others. Being able to identify when you are happy, sad or afraid is one example of emotional intelligence. Another may include knowing if your friend or coworker is frustrated or anxious based on their mannerisms, tone or facial expressions.
What is the ability to make a guess or assumption about a theory, even without all the necessary information?
Conjecture is the ability to make a guess or assumption about a theory, even without all the necessary information. Frequent viewers of mystery and crime movies and television shows may engage in conjecture when watching new releases. They may guess who the perpetrator is early in the viewing process before seeing all the evidence.
