Question

1. What is the Whorfian hypothesis, and what does research on color perception do to support or refute it?

2. What are the five phases of decision making? Apply each of these using a decision you have recently made.

Answer 1

• 1.According to the Sapir-Whorf, or Whorfian, hypothesis, our perception of reality is determined by our thought processes, which are influenced by the language we use.The Whorf hypothesis is the view that language shapes cognition; that is, concepts and ways of thinking depend on language. People who speak significantly different languages, then, view the world differently.An example of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is how sexist language influences the way in which our society views men and women. For instance, we use words like 'fireman,' 'policeman,' and 'male nurse.'
• The study of the relationship between language and colour perception is one of the most striking areas of this research, not least because human beings are all of the same species and thus see with the same eyes – differences in defining colour must be something else.A 1969 study by Brent Berlin and Paul Kay demonstrated the existence of universal semantic constraints in the field of colour terminology which were widely seen to discredit the existence of linguistic relativity in this domain, although this conclusion has been disputed by relativist researchers.
• 2.State The Problem or Stating Your Goal-Identify the problem. Until you have a clear understanding of the problem, goal, or decision to be made, it is meaningless to proceed. If the problem is stated incorrectly or unclearly then your decisions will be wrong. Be as specific as you can.For example,the decision to apply for a job in my particular field was my major goal after finishing college.
• Gather Information for Weighing Your Options-When making good decisions it is best to gather necessary information that is directly related to the problem. Doing this will help you to better understand what needs to be done in solving the problem, and will also help to generate ideas for a possible solution.For finding the job,I listed down what exactly my job should be like,what positions I need to apply for,which companies are providing that kind of vacancies,the location of the job etc.
• Consider the Consequences-This step can be just as important as step one because it will help you determine how your final decision will impact yourself, and/or others involved. This is an essential step because it allows you to review the pros and cons of the different options that you listed in the previous step. After selecting the various organizations,I wanted to apply to,I weighed down its pros and cons in terms of salary,location,job responsibilities etc. which helped me to narrow down my list of organizations by eliminating the ones which could have a detrimental effect on my career.
• Make the Decision-You have identified your problem or your goal. You've gathered all of the possible information, gotten information from the experts, and weighed the consequences. Now it's time to make the choice. You've gotten rid of all the alternatives that are silly or not practical or simply do not fit.Now,finally after eliminating all the unnecessary companies and job positions,the final decision was made to select between two companies that offered me the job after giving the interview in both of them.
• Evaluate Your Decision-After making the final decision of working in my preferred company with the right job position and salary I finally evaluated by starting my job and after two months analysing it whether the decision was right or not. And it was the best decision I made since the job gave a major boost to my career.