Unit 5: Cognitive Psychology

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

measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier

measure of memory in which the person identifies previously learned items

process of getting information into the memory system

process of retaining encoded information over time

process of getting information out of memory storage

multi-score model of memory including sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory

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

activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the information is stored or forgotten

relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system

extended version of the atkinson-shiffrin model of memory including working memory

newer understanding of short-term memory that adds conscious, active processing of auditory and visual information as well as retrieved information

focuses our attention and pulls information from long-term memory to help make sense of new information

retention of facts and experiences that one can know and “declare”

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

unconscious encoding of incidental information (space, time, and frequency) and well learned information (like word meaning)

retention of learned skills or classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection

momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli

picture image memory lasting no more thana few tenths of a second

momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli

if your attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled for 3-4 seconds

we can store about _______ pieces of information in your short term memory, give or take 2

short-term memory lasts about ________ seconds

organizing items into familiar, manageable units (often occurs automatically)

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

tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better or longer term retention than through massed study (cramming)

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information

encoding on a basic level, based on the structure or appearance of words

encoding semantically (based on the meaning of words)

tends to yield the best retention

semantic and episodic memories

explicit memory of facts and general knowledge

explicit memory of personally experienced events

the left hippocampus and frontal lobe is involved in ________

the right hippocampus and frontal lobe is involved in ________

used for working memory processing

neural storage of long term memory (does not take place in the hippocampus)

the ________ is important for implicit memories and classical conditioning associations

clear, sustained memory of an emotionally significant event

increase in a cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation

neural basis for learning and memory

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

memories are affected by the cues we have associated with their context

what we learn in one state may be more easily recalled when we are in that state again (usually refers to a physical state such as sobriety)

tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current mood

tendency to recall the last (recency effect) and first (primacy effect) items in a list

remembering to complete a task in the future

inability to form new memories

inability to retrieve info from one’s past

much of what we experience does not get encoded

the course of forgetting is initially rapid, then levels of with time

tip of the tongue phenomenon

forward-acting disruptive effect of older learning on the recall of new information

backward-acting disruptive effect of newer learning on the recall of old information

sleep ________ (minimizes or maximizes) retroactive interference

occurs when misleading information has distorted one’s memory of an event

in surveys, biased wording ________ (can or can’t) influence results

faulty memory for how, when, and where information was learned or imagined

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

the smallest distinctive sound unit in a language

the smallest unit that carries meaning in a language (may be a word or part of a word)

system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others

set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds

set of rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences

language is an unlearned human trait, separate from other parts of human cognition

predisposition to learn grammar rules

children learn through operant conditioning when modeling language

the versions of a sentence seen or heard

the underlying meaning of the sentence

ability to understand what is being said to you

ability to produce words

stage of speech development beginning around 4 months in which an infant various sounds (at around 10 months it only resembles household sounds)

stage in speech development from about 1-2 years old during which a child speaks mostly in single wordst

stage in speech development beginning around 2 years old during which a child speaks mostly in 2 word statements

early (2+ years old) speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram, using few words that are mostly nouns and verbs

sensitive time window (from 2 years old to 7 years old/puberty) for mastering certain aspects of language

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to broca’s area or wernike’s area

helps control language expression

area of the (usually left) frontal lobe that directs the muscle movements involved in speech

area of the (usually left) temporal lobe that is involved in language comprehension and expression

linguist who contended that “language itself shapes [a person’s] basic ideas”

strong form of whorf’s hypothesis—that language controls the way we think and interpret the world around us

ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use new knowledge to adapt to new situations

according to Charles Spearman and others, underlies all mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test

statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test

used to identify different dimensions of performance that underly a person’s total score

naturalist, interpersonal, intrapersonal, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, musical, logical-mathematical, and linguistic

analytical intelligence (book smarts), creative intelligence, and practical intelligence (street smarts)

ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions

test designed to assess what a person has learned

test designed to predict a person’s future performance

(aptitude is the ability to learn)

binet and simon created ________ to help children by assessing which needed special classes

level of performance typically associated with children of a certain age

measure of intelligence test performance devised be binet

widely used american revision of binet’s original intelligence test (by termann at stanford univerity)

defined originally as mental age / chronological age * 100

now is just how we measure intelligence compared with others our age (with 100 being the average, and the SD being 15)

intelligence tests were misused to assess ________ (who scored lower due to a language barrier and cultural differences) and to support ________

the ________ and WISC (for children) are the most widely used intelligence tests

they contain verbal and performance subtests

intelligence tests must be ________, ________, and ________

defining uniform tests procedures and meaningful scores by comparison to a pretested group

68, 95, 99.7

intelligence test performance generally improves over time (requiring re-standardization)

extent to which a test yields consistent results, assessed by the consistency of scores of two halves of the test, alternate versions of the test or on retests

extent to which a test measures what it’s supposed to measure

extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest

success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict, assessed by correlating test scores and interest behavior

research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time