Memory, Learning, Intelligence, and Problem Solving

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the concepts, mechanisms, and models of memory, learning, intelligence, and problem solving.

Engram

A pattern of neural activation corresponding to a memory, previously believed to be a single physical spot where a memory is stored.

Cues

Stimuli that guide and assist an individual's memorial search and retrieval process.

Cocktail Party Phenomenon

The attentional phenomenon where a person can detect and focus on their own name even in a noisy room because they are always listening for it.

Encoding

The memory process of taking external stimuli, interpreting events, and transforming them into cognitive codes for future retrieval.

Storage

The memory process of holding and maintaining coded information over time for later use.

Retrieval

The memory process of pulling stored information out of memory for present or future use.

Structural Processing

A shallow level of processing that focuses primarily on the visual and physical appearance of a stimulus.

Phonemic Processing

An intermediate level of processing localized in the temporal lobe that focuses on the sound of a word.

Semantic Processing

A deep, higher-level form of processing localized in the frontal lobe that focuses on the meaning of words or concepts.

Craik & Tulving (1972)

A study where participants evaluated a list of $60$ words structurally, phonetically, or semantically; semantic processing produced vastly superior memory retention compared to structural processing.

Effortful Processing

Conscious, intentional cognitive processing that requires work and mental resources to achieve deeper encoding.

Automatic Processing

Unconscious encoding that occurs without deliberate awareness as a natural byproduct of normal brain functioning.

Encoding Specificity Principle

The principle stating that cues present during the initial encoding of information serve as the most effective retrieval cues.

Elaboration

The process of adding supplemental information and details to a stimulus during encoding to create more codes and cues for retrieval.

Dual-Coding Theory

The theory that encoding information using multiple types of codes increases recall probability because an alternate code remains accessible if one fails.

Self-Referent Encoding

An encoding strategy that links new information to oneself, resulting in stronger memories and easier retrieval.

Sperling (1960)

An experiment demonstrating sensory memory capacity where participants briefly viewed rows of letters and successfully recalled any targeted row when cued by auditory pitch.

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The general capacity limit of human short-term memory, which allows most people to retain between $5$ and $9$ discrete pieces of information.

Procedural Memory

A type of implicit memory for motor skills and muscle memory that enables the execution of specific physical actions.

Declarative Memory

Explicit memory that an individual intentionally searches for and consciously recalls.

Pegwords

A mnemonic system in which concrete objects are paired with numbers to associate and remember target concepts (e.g., 'one is a bun, two is a shoe').

Method of Loci

A mnemonic technique where items to be remembered are mentally placed along a familiar path in a known physical location.

Chunking

A memory strategy that organizes large amounts of individual data points into smaller, manageable units or chunks.

Sensory Memory

The initial storage stage of memory that briefly holds incoming sensory input for approximately $2-4\text{ seconds}$.

Short-Term Memory

A memory storage bin with limited capacity that holds information for approximately $5-15\text{ seconds}$.

Long-Term Memory

A permanent memory storage system characterized by no hard duration limit and no apparent capacity ceiling.

Positive Transfer

A learning phenomenon in which the mastery of one skill facilitates and enhances the learning of another skill.

Negative Transfer

A learning phenomenon in which the mastery of one task hinders or interferes with the mastery of a new task.

Semantic Memory

Explicit memory for general factual knowledge without recollection of the specific context in which it was acquired.

Episodic Memory

Memory for personally experienced events that includes the specific temporal and spatial context of where and when the event occurred.

Prospective Memory

The cognitive task of remembering to perform an intended action at a future time.

Retrospective Memory

Memory for previously encountered events, experiences, and information from the past.

Autobiographical Memory

A personalized memory blend combining semantic knowledge about oneself with episodic recollections of personal experiences.

Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM)

An extraordinary condition where individuals can recall precise, detailed events from almost every single day of their lives.

Anterograde Amnesia

The inability to form and store new long-term memories following neurological trauma or damage.

Retrograde Amnesia

The inability to recall or retrieve memories that were created and stored prior to the onset of neurological trauma.

Maintenance Rehearsal

The cognitive process of repeatedly cycling information in short-term memory without modifying its form or meaning.

Elaborative Rehearsal

The active processing and restructuring of information to add meaning and complexity, enhancing long-term storage.

Visuospatial Sketchpad

The working memory component that manipulates and stores visual imagery and spatial information.

Phonological Loop

The component of working memory dedicated to processing verbal, auditory, and language-based information.

Central Executive

The working memory component that allocates cognitive attention, manages resources, and coordinates between subsystems.

Episodic Buffer

A working memory component responsible for integrating multi-modal information and preserving chronological order.

Consolidation

The neurological transfer and stabilization of information from short-term memory into long-term memory, supported by the hippocampus and REM sleep.

Reconsolidation

The return of a retrieved long-term memory to short-term working memory, leaving the trace vulnerable to modification before being stored again.

Primacy Effect

The tendency to exhibit enhanced recall for items presented at the beginning of a sequence due to greater attentional allocation and rehearsal.

Recency Effect

The tendency to display superior recall for items presented at the very end of a list because they remain in active short-term memory.

Cryptomnesia

A memory error in which a forgotten memory resurfaces in consciousness without being recognized as a recollection, making it seem like a new idea.

Proactive Interference

A memory distortion where older, previously acquired information interferes with the ability to recall newly learned information.

Retroactive Interference

A memory distortion where newly learned information impairs the retention and retrieval of previously stored information.

Higher Order Conditioning

A classical conditioning procedure where a previously established conditioned stimulus acts as an unconditioned stimulus to condition a novel neutral stimulus.

Latent Inhibition

A phenomenon where an organism's pre-exposure to a stimulus in a non-reinforced context delays subsequent conditioning to that stimulus.

Primary Reinforcer

A stimulus, such as food, that is naturally reinforcing because it satisfies an innate biological need.

Secondary Reinforcer

A stimulus, such as money, that derives its reinforcing power through learned association with primary reinforcers.

Renewal Effect

The reappearance of an extinguished conditioned response when an organism returns to the original conditioning environment.

Thorndike’s Law of Effect

The behavioral law stating that behaviors followed by positive consequences become more likely to reoccur, whereas those followed by negative consequences become less likely.

Positive Reinforcement

An operant procedure in which the addition of a rewarding stimulus increases the future frequency of a behavior.

Negative Reinforcement

An operant procedure in which the removal or reduction of an aversive stimulus increases the future frequency of a behavior.

Premack Principle

A principle (known colloquially as 'Grandma's Law') stating that an opportunity to engage in a high-frequency, preferred activity can reinforce a low-frequency, less desirable activity.

Shaping

An operant technique that conditions a complex target behavior by progressively reinforcing closer and closer approximations of that behavior.

Token Economy

A reinforcement system where tokens, such as gold stars, have context-specific exchange value and can be traded for privileges or primary rewards.

Habituation

A reduction in behavioral or physiological responsiveness that develops following repeated, harmless exposure to a stimulus over time.

Sensitization

An increase in an organism's behavioral responsiveness that occurs following repeated or intense exposures to a strong stimulus.

Instinctive Drift

The tendency of an animal's conditioned operant behavior to gradually degrade and revert toward its natural, biologically innate instincts.

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs in the absence of explicit reinforcement and remains hidden until incentive motivation is introduced.

Diffusion Chains

A mechanism of observational learning where an individual learns a behavior from a model and subsequently serves as the model for another learner.

Stanford-Binet

The first widely adopted standardized intelligence test in the United States, evaluating cognitive ability across verbal, spatial, and quantitative domains.

Intelligence Quotient (IQ)

A standardized measure of cognitive ability historically calculated as $\frac{\text{Mental Age}}{\text{Chronological Age}} \times 100$.

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)

The first intelligence test designed specifically for adults, comparing an individual's score against the average performance of their peer age group.

Crystallized Intelligence

An individual's accumulated knowledge, vocabulary, and factual information, which typically remains stable or increases with age.

Fluid Intelligence

The core capacity to think abstractly, reason logically, and solve novel problems, which tends to decrease in later adulthood.

Flynn Effect

The historical finding that average standardized intelligence test scores increased by approximately $3\text{ points}$ per decade across generations.

Cumulative Deprivation Hypothesis

The hypothesis proposing that environmental deprivation and poverty accumulate over time to depress measured intelligence test scores.

Reaction Range

The genetically determined upper and lower limits that bound an individual's potential cognitive development, with environment determining where within that range the individual falls.

Intellectual Disability

A neurodevelopmental condition characterized by an onset before adulthood, adaptive functioning deficits, and an IQ score below $70$.

Giftedness

An intellectual extreme defined by achieving an IQ score of $130$ or higher on an intelligence test alongside superior achievement in specific domains.

Convergent Problems

Problems characterized by a single known, correct solution that can be identified using logical deduction (e.g., $1+1=2$).

Divergent Problems

Problems with no predetermined single solution that demand creative, non-standard approaches (e.g., global warming).

Means-End Analysis

A problem-solving strategy where the solver identifies intermediate steps to systematically reduce the distance between the current state and the goal state.

Algorithm

A systematic, rule-based procedure that explores every possible pathway to guarantee a correct solution, though it is time- and resource-intensive.

Heuristic

A cognitive rule of thumb or mental shortcut that logically eliminates unlikely choices to find an efficient solution, though it does not guarantee accuracy.

Divergent Thinking

A mode of creative problem solving focused on brainstorming and generating many possible answers or approaches to an issue.

Convergent Thinking

A focused mode of thinking geared toward identifying and narrowing down to the single best answer or solution.

Preparation

The initial stage of creative problem solving centered on exploring, identifying, and formulating the problem to be solved.

Incubation

The second stage of problem solving where an individual sets the problem aside and allows unconscious cognitive processes to work on it.

Insight

The sudden realization or breakthrough of a potential answer or novel solution to a problem.

Elaboration-Verification

The final stage of problem solving where a proposed creative solution is systematically tested to determine if it functions effectively.