AP Psychology: Cognition - Unit 7

cognition

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

information processing model

encode-->store-->retrieve

memory

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

Confabulation

the unintended false recollection of episodic memories
-memories match our expectations

Encoding

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

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort
-studying, thinking

automatic processing

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

parallel processing

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously

methods of effortful processing

chunking, schemas, mnemonics, hierarchies

deep processing (semantic encoding)

encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention

shallow processing

encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words
-maintenance rehearsal
-single repetition

elaborative rehearsal

a method of transferring information from STM into LTM by making that information meaningful in some way

maintenance rehearsal

A system for remembering involving repeating information to oneself without attempting to find meaning in it

Chunking

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically
Ex: phone numbers
5103634558 becomes 510-363-4558

Schemas (Piaget)

mental frameworks that shape and are shaped by our experience

mnemonics

learning aids, strategies, and devices that improve recall through the use of retrieval cues
Ex: FTOP (frontal, temporal, occipital, parietal)

Hierarchies

Complex information broken down into broad concepts and further subdivided into categories and subcategories

spacing effect

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

distributed practice

spacing the study of material to be remembered by including breaks between study periods

massed practice

cramming the memorization of information or the learning of skills into one session

Overlearning

Continued rehearsal of material after one first appears to have mastered it.

storage

the process of retaining encoded information over time

Atkinson-Shiffrin Model

sensory memory, short-term memory, long-term memory

sensory memory

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

iconic memory

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

echoic memory

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

short term memory (STM)

the memory system in which information is held for brief periods of time while being used
-limited capacity (20 secs)
-can store 7 + or - 2 non-related items

working memory

(short term + long term)

long term memory (LTM)

all the information is placed to be kept more or less permanently
-unlimited capacity

explicit memory

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare"
- remembering a driving lesson and what happened during it
-hippocampus

implicit memory

retention independent of conscious recollection
- knowing how to drive as a result of the driving lessons
-Cerebellum, CC

episodic memory

memory of a specific event
-explicit

semantic memory

memory for information/facts/ideas and their meaning
- Explicit

flashbulb memory

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event.
-(implicit)
-amygdala
- PTSD, remembering where you were during 9/11

procedural memory

A type of long-term memory of how to perform different actions and skills.
-implicit
-riding a bike

context dependent memory

The theory that information learned in a particular situation or place is better remembered when in that same situation or place.

state dependent memory

Long-term memory retrieval is best when a person's physiological state at the time of encoding and retrieval of the information is the same.
- fight or flight

constructive memory

memory that utilizes knowledge and expectations to fill in the missing details in retrieved memory traces

serial position effect

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list
- primacy + recency

primacy effect

tendency to remember words at the BEGINNING of a list especially well

recency effect

tendency to remember words at the END of a list especially well

information processing theory

a perspective that compares human thinking processes, by analogy, to computer analysis of data
- shallow processing, deep processing, implicit memory

encoding specificity principle

we retrieve when we recreate a particular scene

mood congruent memory

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood
- if you're sad you recall other sad memories more easily and vice versa

eidetic memory

photographic memory

Framing

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

misinformation effect

incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event
- Elizabeth Loftus
- plays into the unreliability of eyewitness accounts in court

long-term potentiation (LTP)

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

hippocampus (memory)

formation of new memories

cerebellum (memory)

forms and stores implicit memories
((classical conditioning))
- procedural memories

prefrontal cortex (memory)

habit learning

amygdala (memory)

emotional memories are involved here
-flashbulb memories

Self-referencing

Thinking about new information and how it relates to you personally. Form of encoding

Tulving and Craik

levels of processing - self referencing- making connections for your memory to real life situations

forgetting curve

a graphic depiction of how recall steadily declines over time
- Ebbinghaus

anterograde amnesia

an inability to form new memories

retrograde amnesia

an inability to retrieve information from one's past
-can't recall episodic memories

proactive interference

old information interferes with the recall of new information

retroactive interference

new information interferes with the recall of old information

Repression

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

concept

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

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category

convergent thinking

narrows the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution

divergent thinking

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

incubation

taking time to let thinking sit and come back with new solutions

functional fixedness

the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions; an impediment to problem solving

Metacognition

thinking about thinking

mental set

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

algorithim

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

Heuristic

shortcut thinking strategy
-Kohnemen, Traversky

availability heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common
- ariplanes vs. roadway travel example

representative heuristic

how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes
- truck driver vs. Ivy League professor example

confirmation bias

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

self-serving bias

the tendency to perceive oneself favorably

belief perseverance

clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited
-people are slow to detach from beliefs

cognitive dissonance

an unpleasant state that arises when a person recognizes the inconsistency of his or her actions, attitudes, or beliefs

Psycholinguistics

The study of how language is acquired, perceived, understood, and produced.

B.F. Skinner

believed in nurture side of psycholinguistics

Noam Chomsky

language development // disagreed with Skinner about language acquisition // stated there is an infinite # of sentences in a language, humans have an inborn native ability to develop language
(NATURE)
- LAD

Morphemes

The smallest units of MEANING in a language.
-suffixes and prefixes

Whorf

hypothesized that language determines how reality is perceived
-linguistic determinism

Phonemes

in language, the smallest distinctive SOUND unit

overregularization

Applying a grammatical rule too widely and thereby creating incorrect forms.
-children learning to apply grammar

Genie case study

showed the damage that missing critical periods can do.

Semantics (grammar)

Meaning of words and sentences

syntax (grammar)

arrangement of words

Language Development Stages

babbling stage (4-12 months), one-word stage (12-24 months), two-word stage (24 months)

receptive language

ability to comprehend speech

productive language

ability to produce words

telegraphic speech

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

linguistic determinism

Whorf's hypothesis that language determines the way we think

Priming

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

Broca's aphasia

inability to produce speech

Wernicke's aphasia

inability to comprehend speech

Lack of encoding

often, we don't even encode the features necessary to remember an object/event