Unit 7 (cognition)

Question 1

working memory

Answer 1

a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory

Question 2

recognition

Answer 2

a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test (external cues)

Question 3

concept

Answer 3

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

Question 4

Heuristic

Answer 4

a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than algorithms. (short cut)

Question 5

availability heuristic

Answer 5

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness), we presume such events are common

Question 6

memory

Answer 6

the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information

Question 7

Encoding

Answer 7

the processing of information into the memory system—for example, by extracting meaning.

Question 8

storage

Answer 8

the process of retaining encoded information over time

Question 9

Retrieval

Answer 9

the process of getting information out of memory storage

Question 10

parallel processing

Answer 10

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving. (Ability to deal with multiple stimuli simultaneously)

Question 11

sensory memory

Answer 11

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system (raven)

Question 12

short-term memory

Answer 12

activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten

Question 13

long-term memory

Answer 13

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Question 14

explicit memory

Answer 14

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and “declare”

Question 15

effortful processing

Answer 15

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

Question 16

automatic processing

Answer 16

unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings

Question 17

implicit memory

Answer 17

retention independent of conscious recollection

Question 18

iconic memory

Answer 18

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second

Question 19

echoic memory

Answer 19

a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds

Question 20

Chunking

Answer 20

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically

Question 21

mnemonics

Answer 21

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

Question 22

spacing effect

Answer 22

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice

Question 23

testing effect

Answer 23

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information

(also known as retrieval practice effect of test-enhanced learning)

Question 24

shallow processing

Answer 24

1st level of encoding; based on the structure or appearance of stimulus

Question 25

deep processing

Answer 25

2nd level of encoding; based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention

Question 26

Hippocampus

Answer 26

A neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage.

Question 27

flashbulb memory

Answer 27

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

Question 28

long-term potentiation

Answer 28

an increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory.

Question 29

recall

Answer 29

A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test. (no external cues)

Question 30

relearning

Answer 30

a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time

Question 31

Priming

Answer 31

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response

Question 32

mood-congruent memory

Answer 32

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood

Question 33

serial position effect

Answer 33

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list

Question 34

antreograde amnesia

Answer 34

an inability to form new memories

Question 35

retrograde amnesia

Answer 35

an inability to retrieve information from one's past

Question 36

proactive interference

Answer 36

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information

Question 37

retroactive interference

Answer 37

the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information

Question 38

Repression

Answer 38

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories

Question 39

misinformation effect

Answer 39

incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event

Question 40

source amnesia

Answer 40

attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined

Question 41

deja vu

Answer 41

that eerie sense that "I've experienced this before." Cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.

Question 42

cognition

Answer 42

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

Question 43

Protype

Answer 43

a mental image or best example of a category

Question 44

creativity

Answer 44

the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas

Question 45

convergent thinking

Answer 45

narrows the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution

Question 46

divergent thinking

Answer 46

expands the number of possible problem solutions (creative thinking that diverges in different directions)

Question 47

Algorithm

Answer 47

A methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem.

Question 48

insight

Answer 48

a sudden realization of a problem's solution; contrasts with strategy-based solutions

Question 49

confirmation bias

Answer 49

a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence

Question 50

mental set

Answer 50

a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past

Question 51

intuition

Answer 51

an effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning

Question 52

representativeness heuristic

Answer 52

judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead us to ignore other relevant information (truck driver vs ivy league professor) (poetry)

Question 53

Overconfidence

Answer 53

the tendency to be more confident than correct—to overestimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments.

Question 54

belief perseverance

Answer 54

clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited

Question 55

state-dependent memory

Answer 55

The theory that information learned in a particular state of mind (e.g., depressed, happy, somber) is more easily recalled when in that same state of mind.

Question 56

Framing

Answer 56

the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments.

Question 57

language

Answer 57

our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning

Question 58

phoneme

Answer 58

the smallest distinctive sound unit C-U-P

Question 59

Morpheme

Answer 59

the smallest unit that carries meaning ex- 1[buter]2[fly]

Question 60

grammar

Answer 60

in a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others. In a given language, semantics is the set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds, and syntax is the set of rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences.

Question 61

babbling stage

Answer 61

beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language

Question 62

one-word stage

Answer 62

the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words

Question 63

two-word stage

Answer 63

beginning about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly two-word statements

Question 64

telegraphic speech

Answer 64

early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram—"go car"—using mostly nouns and verbs.

Question 65

aphasia

Answer 65

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding).

Question 66

Broca's area

Answer 66

Controls language expression (speaking) - an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.

Question 67

Wernicke's area

Answer 67

controls language reception - a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe

Question 68

linguistic determinism

Answer 68

Whorf's hypothesis that language determines the way we think

Question 69

hierarchy

Answer 69

A group organized by rank

Question 70

intrinstic motivation

Answer 70

A desire to perform a behavior for its own sake