AP Psychology - Unit 7: Cognition

Encoding

The modification of information to fit the preferred format for the memory system

Storage

The retention of encoded material over time

Retrieval

The location and recovery of information from memory

Sensory memory

The preservation of brief sensory impressions of stimuli

* The first of three memory stages

Echoic memory

Involves the memory of auditory information

* A type of sensory memory that holds information for 1-2 seconds

Iconic memory

Involves the memory of visual stimuli

* A type of sensory memory that holds information for 1 second

Working memory

The preservation of recently perceived events or experiences for less than a minute without rehearsal

* The second of the first three memory stages

Long term memory

Stores material organized according to meaning

• The third of the three memory stages

• has the largest capacity and the longest duration

Chunking

The organization of information into a smaller number of meaningful chunks

* frees up space in working memory

Maintenance rehearsal

Where information is repeated or reviewed to keep it from fading while in working memory

Elaborative rehearsal

Where information is actively reviewed and related to information already in the long term memory

* a working memory process

Acoustic encoding

The conversion of information, especially semantic information, to sound patterns in working memory

Procederal memory

A division of long term memory that stores memories for how things are done

Declarative memory

A division of long term memory that stores explicit information, or fact memory

* Has two subdivisions: episodic and semantic memory

Episodic memory

Stored memory for personal events, or “episodes”

* A subdivision of declarative memory

Semantic memory

Stores general knowledge, including the meaning of words and concepts

* A subdivision of declarative memory

Anterograde amnesia

The inability to form memories for new information

Retrograde amnesia

The inability to remember information previously stored in the memory

Consolidation

The process by which short term memories are turned into long term memories over a period of time

Flashbulb memory

A clear and vivid long term memory of an especially meaningful and emotional event

Implicit memory

A memory that was not deliberately learned or of which one has no conscious awareness

Explicit memory

Memory that has been processed with attention and can be consciously recalled

Retrieval cues

Stimuli that are used to bring a memory to consciousness or into behavior

Priming

A technique used for cuing implicit memories by providing cues that stimulate a memory without awareness of the connection between the cue and the retrieved memory

* eg. showing a set of words and then an hour later, showing a similar set with some letters taken out

Mood congruent memory

A memory process that selectively retrieves memories that match one’s mood

TOT phenomenon

The inability to recall a word while knowing that it is in memory

Transcience

The impermanence of a long term memory

Ebbinghaus forgetting curve

A curve that hypothesizes the decline of memory retention in time

* there is a rapid initial loss of memory, followed by a declining rate of loss

Absent mindedness

Forgetting caused by lapses in attention

Blocking

Forgetting that occurs when an item in memory cannot be accessed or retrieved

* caused by *interference*

Proactive interference

When previously stored memory interferes with the learning and remembering of new information

Retroactive interference

When new information interferes with the retrieval of previously stored information

Serial position effect

A form of interference related to the sequence in which information is presented

* Generally, items in the middle are less remembered than items at the front or back

Misattribution

A memory fault that occurs when memories are retrieved but associated with the wrong time, place, or person

Suggestibility

The process of memory distortion as a result of deliberate or inadvertent suggestion

Misinformation effect

The distortion of memory by suggestion or misinformation

Expectancy Bias

A tendency to distort recalled events to make them fit one’s expectation

Self-consistency bias

The commonly held idea that we are more consistent in our attitudes, opinions, and beliefs than we actually are

Persistence

A memory problem in which unwanted memories cannot be put out of mind

Mnemonics

Techniques for improving memory, especially by making connections between new material and information already in long term memory

Methods of loci

A mnemonic technique that involves associating items on a list with a sequence of familiar physical locations

Language acquisition device

A biologically organized mental structure in the brain that facilitates the learning of language because (according to Chomsky) it is innately programmed with some of the fundamental rules of grammar

Overregularization

Applying a grammatical rule too widely and thereby creating incorrect terms

Computer metaphor

The idea that the brain is an information processing organ that operated, in some ways, like a computer

Concepts

Mental representations of categories of items or ideas based on experience

Natural concepts

Mental representations of objects and events drawn from our direct experience

Prototype

An ideal or most representative example of a conceptual category

Artificial concepts

Concepts defined by rules, such as word definitions and mathematical formulas

Concept hierarchies

Levels of concepts, from most general to most specific, in which a more general level includes more specific concepts

* e.g. the concept of “animal” includes “dog", “fish,” and “horse”

Schema

A knowledge cluster or general conceptual framework that provides expectations about topics, events, objects, people, and situations in one’s life

Script

A cluster of knowledge about sequences of events and actions expected to occur in particular settings

Algorithms

Problem solving procedures or formulas that guarantee a correct outcome if correctly applied

Heuristics

Cognitive strategies or “rules of thumb” used as shortcuts to solve complex mental tasks

* Do no guarantee a correct solution

Mental set

The tendency to respond to a new problem in the manner used for a previous problem

Functional fixedness

The inability to perceive a new use for an object associated with a different purpose

* a form of mental set

Hindsight bias

the tendency, after learning about an event, to “second guess” or believe that one could have predicted the event in advance

Anchoring bias

A faulty heuristic caused by anchoring an estimate on a completely unrelated quality

* e.g. presenting an equation such as 1 times 2 time 3 … backwards as 9 times 8 times 7… affecting our predictions

Representativeness bias

A faulty heuristic strategy based on the presumption that once people or events are categorized, they share all the features of other members in that category

Availability bias

A faulty heuristic strategy that estimates probabilities based on information that can be recalled (made available) from personal experience

Metacognition

The ability to monitor and adaptively control one's cognitive processing or thinking about thinking

Fundamental attribution error

The tendency people have to overemphasize personal characteristics and ignore situational factors in judging others' behavior

* e.g. The belief that people do bad things because they are bad people

Self serving bias

The tendency people have to seek out information and use it in ways that advance their self-interest.

Cognitive dissonance

The discomfort a person feels when their behavior does not align with their values or beliefs

Infantile amnesia

The inability of adults to recollect early episodic memories that occurs in childhood

Source amnesia

The inability to recall where, when, or how one has learned knowledge that has been acquired and retained

Cue dependent forgetting

The failure to recall information without memory cues

Belief perseverance

The inability of people to change their own belief even upon receiving new information or facts that contradict or refute that belief

* e.g. Flat earthers

Long-term potentiation

A process by which synaptic connections between neurons become stronger with frequent activation

Divergent thinking

A thought process or method used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions

Convergent thinking

When the solution to a problem can be deduced by applying established rules and logical reasoning

Illusory correlation

The phenomenon of perceiving a relationship between variables even when no such relationship exists

Recency

A cognitive bias in which those items, ideas, or arguments that came last are remembered more clearly than those that came first.

Primacy

An individual's tendency to better remember the first piece of information they encounter than the information they receive later on.

Inductive Reasoning

Reasoning from something specific to something general, which puts your thought into concepts and groups

Deductive Reasoning

Reasoning from something general to something specific