Ap psych unit 2 Flashcards
What is Selective Attention?
focusing conscious awareness on a particular stimuli
-we can only consciously focus on one thing at a time
What is inattentional blindness?
failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere
What is change blindness?
failing to notice changes in an environment (form of inattentional blindness)
What is a perceptual set?
a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another (assumptions)
- expectations influence perception
What is figure-ground?
the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surrounding (ground)
-we always organize stimulus into a figure seen against a ground
what is grouping?
the perceptual tendency to organize stimulus into coherent groups
-can lead us astray bc we may look at a group instead of individuals
what is depth perception?
the ability to see objects in three–dimension even thought the images that strike the retina are two dimensional
- allows us to judge distance
convergence
cues to nearby objects distance enabled by the brain combing retinal images
retinal dispartity
perceiving depth by comparing retinal images from the two eyes the brain competes distance (the greater differences in the two eyes images the closer the object)
stroboscopic movement
an illusion of continuous movement (like motion pictures) experienced when viewing a rapid series of slightly varying images
phi phenomenon
an illusion go movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession
autokinetic effect
the illusion of movement of a still spot of light in a dark room
perceptual constancy
perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent color, brightness, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change
perceptual adaptation
the ability to adjust to changed sensory input including an artificially displaced/uneven visual field
cognition and meta cognition
cognition:all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
metacogntion: thinking about thinking
concepts
a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people
- simplifies out thinking
prototypes
a mental image or best example of something
schema
a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
-like a mental mold where we pour out experiences
assimilation
interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemes (understandings)
-adding on
accommodation
adapting out current schemas (understandings) to incorporate new info
- changing
divergent thinking
expanding the number of possible problem solutions using creative thinking that diverges in DIFFERENT directions
convergent thinking
narrowing the available problem solution to determine the single BEST solution
creativity
the ability to produce new and valuable ideas
executive functions
cognitive skills that work together, enabling us to generate, organize, plan, and implement goal-direct behavior
algorithm
methodical logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem
- its a step by step long process
heuristics
a simple thinking strategy (mental shortcut) that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently: it is faster than algorithms but is more error prone
insight
a sudden realization of a problems solution (aha moment)
fixation
in cognition, the inability to see a problem from a new perspective
mental set
tendency to approval a problem in a certain way, often one that has worked for us before
intuition
the effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, in contrast to explicit conscious thinking
representative heuristics
judging the likelihood in terms of how well they seem to match out particular prototypes
- leads us to ignore other important information
availability heuristics
judging the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory
- example: if instances come readily to mind we presume such instances as common even if they are not
belief perseverance
our tendency to cling to our beliefs in the face of contrary evidence
- aided by confirmation bias
framing
the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed SIGNIFICANTLY affects our judgments and decisions
memory
persistence of learning overtime through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of informations
recall
retrieving information that isn’t currently in your conscious awareness but was learned at an earlier time
- fill in the blank tests
recognition
identifying items perviously learned
- multiple choice tests
relearning
learning something quicker when you learn it a second or later time
encoding
getting information into our brains
storage
reading the information that was perviously encoded
retrieving
later getting the informations we encoded and stored back out of our brain
parallel processing
processing multiple aspects of a stimuli/problem simultaneously
sensory memory
first step in memory process which Immediate and very brief recording of a sensory information in memory system
short-term/working memory
briefly activated memory of a few items that is later stored or forgotten
long term memory
relatively permanent and limitless archive of the memory system (knowledge, skills, experiences)
central executive
a memory component that coordinates the activities of the PHONOLOGICAL LOOP or VISUOSPATIAL SKETCHPAD which coordinates our focus
phonological loop
memory component that briefly holds AUDITORY information
visuospatial sketchpad
a memory component that verify holds objects appearances and locations in space
long term potentiation
an increase in a nerve cells firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation ; a neural basis for learning and memory
neurogenesis
the formation of new neurons
explicit (declarative) memories
retention of FACTS AND EXPIRENCES that we consciously know and declare
implicit (undeclarative) memories
retention of learned skills of classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection
Automatic processing
where implicit memories are Unconsciously encoding incidental information like space, time, and frequency and of familiar or relearned information like sounds, smells, and word meaning
effortful processing
the conscious encoding of explicit memories that requires attention and focus
iconic memory
momentary sensory memory if VISUAL stimuli
echoic memory
momentary sensory memory of AUDITORY stimuli (marginally longer than iconic)
chunking
organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically
mnemonics
memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices
- SohCahToa
-Never Eat Soggy Waffles
Spacing effect
tendency for distributed study/practice to yield better long term retention
- distributed over time is better than cramming
testing effect
enhanced memory after retrieving rather than simply rereading information
shallow processing
encoding on basic level, based on structured apperance of words
deep processing
encoding semantically based on meaning of the words; when we attach meaning to something we remember it better
semantic memory
(1/2) explicit memory of facts and general knowledge
- connects concepts
episodic memory
explicit memory of personally experienced event
memory consolidation
neural storage of long term memory
- hippocampus moves to the brain cortex for storage
- this is aided by sleep
What areas in the brain store explicit memories?
hippocampus
-frontal lobes– when summoning past experiences the brain regions send input to the prefrontal cortex
What areas of the brain store implicit memory?
-cerebellum– forms and stores implicit memory created by CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
- like if someone suddenly knocks on a door and you jump
- basal ganglia– facilitates formation of our procedural memory
Flashbulb memory
clear memory of emotionally significant evens
priming
the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory
encoding specificity principle
idea that cues and context specific to a particular memory will be most effective in helping us recall it
- memory is affected by cues we associate with context
state dependent memory
what we learn in one state we can more easily recall it when in that same state again
mood congruent memory
tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with ones current good/bad mood
- when happy we remember good memories
serial position effect
our tendency to best recall either the last or first of items
recency affect
our tendency to best recall the last items in a list
primary effect
our tendency to best recall the first items in a list
interleaving
retrieval practice stratify that involves mixing different study topics
Antergrade Amnesia
inability to form NEW memories
retrograde amnesia
inability to remember past memories
proactive interference
old memories interfering with new memories
- when you get a new phone number and someone asks you what your number is you tell them the old number instead of the new one
retroactive interference
new memories interfering with old memories
- when you got a new phone case and after a while you forgot what the old one looked like
reconsolidation
process in which previously stored memories , when retrieved, are potentially altered before being stored again
- like a game of telephone
repression
psychoanalytic theory, basic defense mechanisms, that banshies from consciousness ancient arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories
- not lost forever
misinformation effect
occurs when a memory has been corrupted by misleading information
source amnesia
faulty memory for how, when, and where information was learned/imagined (most salty part of memory)
deja vu
cues from current situation may unconsciously trigger retrieval from past experiences
