cognition vocab-psych

sensation

arousal of a sense organ by something in the environment

perception

interpretation of a sensation

selective attention

focusing consciousness awareness on a particular stimulus

cocktail party effect

ability to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

inattentional blindness

failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

change blindness

failing to notice changes in the environment

after images

when an image continues to appear in the eyes after exposure to the original image

perceptual set

a predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

top-down

use prior knowledge, expectations, and context to interpret sensory information

gestalt psychology

organize pieces of information into meaningful wholes

figure-ground

perceive an object(figure) as distinct from its surroundings(ground)

grouping

tendency to organize stimuli into groups

depth perception

the ability to see objects in 3D

binocular cues

use both eyes to perceive depth

convergence

combine 2 retinal images used for nearby objects

retinal disparity

compare retinal images from 2 eyes to compute distance

monocular cues

depth causes available to each eye separately

relative clarity

items further away are blurry, near are close

relative size

we assume 2 objects are similar in size

texture gradient

nearby objects have more detail

linear perspective

parallel lines appear to converge as they recede into the distance

interposition

one object partially blocks over view of another

stroboscopic movement

rapid series of slightly varying still images are seen as continuous movement

phi phenomenon

succession of light creates the impression of moving

perceptul constancy

perceiving objects as unchanging

color constancy

color remains consistent

shape consistency

shape remains the same

perceptual adaptation

ability to adjust to changed sensory inputs

cognition

the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communication information

metacognition

thinking about our thinking

concepts

mental groupings of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category

schemas

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

assimilate

interpreting new things using current schemas

accommodate

adjusting schemas to fit in with the world

creativity

to produce novel and valuable ideas

convergent thinking

finding a single correct answer

divergent thinking

ability to consider many different options

functional fixedness

when prior experiences inhibit our ability to find creative solutions

executive functioning

high level cognition abilities that allow us to solve problems and make decisions

algorithms

step by step procedures that guarantee a solution

heuristics

simpler thinking strategies

insight

sudden realization of a problem’s solution

confirmation bias

look for info that break up our beliefs

fixation

not able to see new perspectives

mental set

only approach a problem in one way because it worked in the past

intuition

fast,automatic,unreasoned feelings and thoughts

representativrness heuristics

judge likelihood of something happening by how well they match a protoype

gambler’s fallacy

judging the liklihood of an event happening

availability heuristics

judging the liklihood of an event based on how a similar event comes to mind

overconfidence

overestimate our knowledge and judgements

sunk-cost fallacy

sticking to original plan bc we alr started it

belief perserverance

cling to our beliefs despite evidence

framing

the way an issue or question is presented

constructive memory

our memories are not exact recordings memories are reconstructed every time 

they are recalled

recall

retrieving information not currently in your conscious

recognition

identifying items previously learned

relearning

learning information more quickly the second or third time

long term potention

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

explicit memories

facts and experiences we can  consciously know

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

automatic processing

happens without our awareness 

implicit memories

retention of learned skills

chunking

making manageable units to remember

mnemonics

using vivid imagery and organizational devices-acronyms, etc

method of loci

place details to memories in familiar places

hierarchies

a broad category divided and subdivided into narrower and narrower concepts

spacing effect

tendency for distributed study/practice to yield better long term retention than mass study/practice

mass practice

cramming/studying all at once

distributed practice

study,review,review

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving rather than recording

shallow processing

encoding info based on sound, structure, or appearance of the word

deep processing

based on actual meaning associated with the word

semantic memory

facts,general knowledge

episodic memory

experienced events

memory consolidation

process of taking info from hippocampus and storing in long term memory

implicit memory system

long term memory that is unconsciously retrieved

infantile amnesia

conscious memory starts at about age 4, no command of language

flashbulb memories

clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

retreival cues

things associated with info you need to remember

priming

exposure to one stimulus influences a person responds to a related stimulus

context-dependant memory

remembering is easier when in the place you learned it

state-dependant memory

remembering is easier when in the same mood

mood-congruent

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

serial position effect

tendency to recall the first and last item on a list

primacy effect

remembering first part of list

recency effect

remembering last part of list

autobiographical memory

memory of your life events

superior autobiographical memory

recall specfic details of events

anterograde amnesia

unable to form new memories

retrograde amnesia

unable to remember the past