Final Exam

Chapter 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12

What are the three levels of analysis in cognitive psychology and are they individually

Computational- What needs to be computed and why ( what and why or calculation )

Algorithmic- what rules mechanisms and representations are used (rules or processing)

Implementational- the hardware systems enable the computation. (decision plan and agreement)

What did Claude Shannon's information theory focus on?

Studying information processing abstractly without content.

What is the difference between modal and amodal completion?

Modal involves "seeing" hidden parts; amodal involves understanding hidden parts without seeing them.

What does the fusiform face area (FFA) specialize in?

Holistic face processing.

How does mental imagery differ from perception?

Mental imagery involves internal visualization, while perception relies on sensory input.

What are the two types of mental imagery codes?

Depictive (visual-like) and propositional (abstract).

What are the two types of attentional selection?

Early selection (before meaning is processed) and late selection (after meaning is processed).

What is spatial neglect?

A condition where attention is impaired for one side of space, usually due to brain damage.

What is the Posner cueing task?

A task demonstrating spatial attention shifts using cues (Fig 4.3).

What is cognitive control?

The ability to manage competing tasks or goals.

How does the Stroop task measure cognitive control?

By testing how well you can inhibit automatic responses to mismatched color words.

What are the two main functions of working memory?

Storage and manipulation of information.

What is the difference between explicit and implicit memory?

Explicit is conscious recall (e.g., facts), while implicit involves unconscious skills or habits.

What are perceptual and conceptual priming?

Perceptual: Based on form or structure; conceptual: Based on meaning.

What is the difference between Type I and Type II processing?

Type I is fast and intuitive; Type II is slow and analytical.

When are people risk-seeking vs. risk-averse?

Risk-seeking in loss frames; risk-averse in gain frames.

Name three heuristics used in decision-making.

Availability, anchoring, representativeness.

What is Bayes' Rule?

A method for updating probabilities based on new evidence.

What is the typicality effect in categorization?

Faster categorization of typical items (e.g., robins vs. penguins in the bird category).

What is the difference between semantic networks and connectionist models?

Semantic networks use hierarchical links; connectionist models rely on distributed representations.

What is neuroplasticity?

The brain's ability to adapt and reorganize through training or experience.

What is object permanence?

The understanding that objects exist even when not visible (Fig 11.15).

What is the social brain hypothesis?

The idea that social complexity drives brain evolution (e.g., Dunbar's number).

What does the minimal group paradigm show?

People quickly form in-group/out-group distinctions, even with arbitrary groupings.

What is the pygmalion effect?

Expectations about others can lead to behaviors that fulfill those expectations.

What is the stereotype content model?

Categorization of groups based on warmth and competence.

What is the backfire effect in motivated reasoning?

When correcting misinformation strengthens the original belief.