Chapter 6: Basic Cognitive Functions

Question 1

Cognition

Answer 1

the way the mind works, particularly the processes of attention, memory, intelligence, problem-solving, and language use

Question 2

Processing speed

Answer 2

amount of time it takes for an individual to analyze incoming information from the sense, formulate a decision, and prepare a response

Question 3

Reaction time

Answer 3

time it takes to complete an action when exposed to a stimulus or target as opposed to distractors

Question 4

Simple reaction time tasks

Answer 4

participants are instructed make a response to a single stimulus

Question 5

Choice reaction time tasks

Answer 5

participants make one response to one stimulus and another response for a different stimulus

Question 6

General slowing hypothesis

Answer 6

increase in reaction time reflects a general decline of information processing speed within the nervous system of an aging person

Question 7

Age-complexity hypothesis

Answer 7

older adults perform progressively more poorly as central processes in the nervous system slow down and tasks become more complex

Question 8

Brinley plot

Answer 8

reactions times of older adults are plotted against reaction times of younger adults

Question 9

Attention

Answer 9

the ability to focus or concentrate on a portion of experience while ignoring its other features, to shift that focus as demanded, and to coordinate information from multiple sources

Question 10

2 methods used in visual search tasks for studies on attention and aging

Answer 10

simple visual search and conjunction visual

Question 11

Visual search tasks

Answer 11

requires an observer to locate a specific target among a set of distractors

Question 12

Simple visual search

Answer 12

the target differs from other stimuli by only one feature (e.g. color, shape, or size); relies on parallel processing in which old and young adults perform at similarly high levels

Question 13

Conjunction visual search

Answer 13

the target differs from the distractors by more than one feature; relies on serial processing in which both old and young adults perform less efficiently, especially the former

Question 14

Inhibitory control

Answer 14

the ability to turn off one response while performing another (e.g. Stroop test)

Question 15

Sustained attention

Answer 15

participants must respond when they see a particular target appear out of a continuous stream of stimuli

Question 16

Attentional resources theory

Answer 16

attention is a process reflecting the allocation of cognitive resources; older adults have fewer attentional resources

Question 17

Inhibitory deficit hypothesis

Answer 17

aging reduces the individual’s ability to inhibit or tune out irrelevant information

Question 18

Working memory

Answer 18

process of registering information into one’s consciousness, keeping it temporarily available and active

Question 19

N-back task

Answer 19

working memory test that requires you to repeat the nth item back in a list of items presented in serial order; can vary speed, number of items, modality, tasks

Question 20

Default network

Answer 20

circuit in the brain that is active when the brain is at rest while processing internal stimuli; needs to be deactivated when one is trying to remember information

Question 21

Long-term memory

Answer 21

repository of information that is held for a period of time ranging from several minutes to a lifetime

Question 22

Processes of long-term memory

Answer 22

encoding, storage, and retrieval

Question 23

Episodic memory

Answer 23

long-term memory for chronological, temporally dated, and personal or non-personal events; tested with recall or recognition

Question 24

Scaffolding theory

Answer 24

older adults are able to recruit alternate neural circuits as needed by task demands to compensate for losses suffered elsewhere in the brain

Question 25

Remote memory

Answer 25

recall of information from the distant past that becomes increasingly difficult to retrieve over time

Question 26

Autobiographical memory

Answer 26

recall of information from your own past; an exception to remote memory

Question 27

Reminiscence bump

Answer 27

having very clear memories from ages 10-30, especially happy ones, because they are central to identity

Question 28

Flashbulb memory

Answer 28

recall of important and distinctive events that stand out from other memories of past events

Question 29

Semantic memory

Answer 29

ability to recall word meanings and factual information or general knowledge no longer tied to the time it was learned; name-face recognition is preserved in older adults

Question 30

Procedural or muscle memory

Answer 30

recall of the actions involved in particular tasks; holds up well with age

Question 31

Implicit memory

Answer 31

long-term memory for information that people acquire without intending to do so; unaffected by aging

Question 32

Source memory

Answer 32

recall of where or how an individual acquires information; more difficult for older adults and more susceptible to false memories

Question 33

Prospective memory

Answer 33

recall of events to be performed in the future or remembering your intention to perform an action

Question 34

Retrieval-induced forgetting or tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon

Answer 34

when you are unable to remember information that you knew at one point in time

Question 35

Identity process model

Answer 35

undue concern about memory loss can turn into an “over-the-hill” attitude of identity accommodation that becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy

Question 36

Memory self-efficacy

Answer 36

the confidence you have in your memory

Question 37

Stereotype threat

Answer 37

people perform in ways that are consistent with negative stereotypes of the group they belong to

Question 38

Memory controllability

Answer 38

beliefs about the effects of the aging process on memory like the extent to which one believes that memory decline is inevitable with age

Question 39

Types of visual processing tasks

Answer 39

line length, shape classification, visual search, abstract matching

Question 40

Types of verbal processing tasks

Answer 40

single lexical decision, double lexical decision, synonym vs antonym, category judgement

Question 41

Explicit or declarative memory

Answer 41

intentional recollection of factual information or previous experiences

Question 42

Priming

Answer 42

ability to identify a stimulus more easily or a change in behavior due to previous exposure to similar stimuli