Psychology 101 Exam 2: Learning, Memory, Cognition, and Intelligence

Comprehensive practice question-and-answer flashcards covering classical and operant conditioning, memory stages and retrieval, cognitive heuristics and biases, language structure, and intelligence theories from Psychology 101 Exam 2.

Classical conditioning and operant conditioning are both classified as what broader form of learning?

Associative learning

In classical conditioning, what association is acquired by the subject during training?

An association between a neutral stimulus (NS) and an unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

In Ivan Pavlov’s foundational conditioning experiments with dogs, what role did the food serve?

The unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

Which American psychologist formulated the law of effect following experiments with cats escaping puzzle boxes?

Edward Thorndike

What is the central concept of operant conditioning?

Behavior is motivated and shaped by the consequences (reinforcements or punishments) that follow it.

When a parent tells a child, 'If you eat your vegetables you can have dessert!', what behavioral role does dessert play?

A reinforcer (designed to increase the target behavior of eating vegetables)

A baseball manager hides his cigarettes so young fans watching on television do not adopt the habit. What type of learning is he seeking to prevent?

Observational learning

Under social learning theory, a child imitating an aggressive character who was rewarded for violent acts demonstrates which learning process?

Vicarious reinforcement

What is the term for learning that occurs without immediate behavioral demonstration until an incentive is provided?

Latent learning

What system encompasses the processes used to encode, store, and retrieve information over time?

Memory

Elaborative encoding strategies aid memory retention primarily by increasing what quality of processing?

Depth of processing

What explains the high rate of recall for items presented at the beginning of a list (the primacy effect)?

They are remembered better because they receive more attention and opportunity for rehearsal, transferring them to long-term memory.

Which cognitive process is NOT considered a cause of memory failure or forgetting, in contrast to encoding failure, retroactive interference, and proactive interference?

Automatic processing

Procedural skills such as riding a bicycle that are executed without deliberate, conscious recall are categorized under which memory system?

Implicit memory

What term refers to the process of accessing stored information and bringing it back into conscious awareness?

Retrieval

What is the diagnostic distinction between retrograde amnesia and anterograde amnesia?

Retrograde amnesia is the loss of memory for events occurring prior to trauma, whereas anterograde amnesia is the inability to form new memories following trauma.

How does the technique of chunking enhance short-term memory capacity?

It organizes individual bits of information into meaningful groups, allowing short-term memory to hold $7 \pm 2$ organized chunks rather than isolated items.

In Elizabeth Loftus’s classic eyewitness study, how did phrasing the question with 'smashed into' rather than 'made contact with' alter speed estimates?

Participants exposed to the verb 'smashed into' estimated vehicle speeds to be significantly higher than those asked with 'made contact with'.

Which memory component retains encoded information over prolonged periods, ranging from years to an entire lifetime?

Long-term memory

Using the acronym 'HOMES' to recall Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior is an example of what memory technique?

A mnemonic device

In terms of testing formats, an essay exam is to a multiple-choice exam as recall is to what other retrieval process?

Recognition

Josephine's mother cooks tomato sauce by adding water 'until it looks right' rather than following a measured recipe. Which problem-solving approach is she using?

A heuristic

Carmela focuses strictly on Lian’s mistakes while disregarding her consistently high-quality work. Which cognitive bias is Carmela exhibiting?

Confirmation bias

Zale fears car crashes more than chronic diseases like diabetes because crash fatalities are frequently highlighted on the nightly news. What cognitive heuristic causes this error?

The availability heuristic

Among a banana, orange, tomato, and apple, which represents the weakest prototype for the concept of fruit?

Tomato

How many individual phonemes constitute the spoken word 'tree'?

Three (the phonemes /t/, /r/, and /i/)

Comparing the English phrase 'Can I please have a pen?' to the German word order 'Please can I your pen have?' illustrates differences in which linguistic rule set?

Syntax

What do fMRI findings reveal about second-language processing in individuals who acquired the language in childhood versus adulthood?

Childhood acquisition leads to brain processing patterns that differ from those of individuals who learned the second language as adults.

Which single, underlying intellectual factor did Charles Spearman propose accounts for general cognitive performance?

$g$ (general intelligence)

Doreen experiences reduced confidence and scores lower on an advanced math exam after checking a female demographic box. What psychological phenomenon explains this?

Stereotype threat

Classical conditioning primarily focuses on __________ behaviors, while operant conditioning primarily involves __________ behaviors.

Involuntary (reflexive); voluntary

What is the term for the sudden re-emergence of an extinguished conditioned response following a period of non-exposure?

Spontaneous recovery

The formulation of brand-new memories is referred to as __________, whereas accessing and modifying existing memories is called __________.

Construction; reconstruction

Which two variables were originally calculated against each other to derive an intelligence quotient (IQ)?

Mental age and chronological age ($\text{IQ} = \frac{\text{Mental Age}}{\text{Chronological Age}} \times 100$)

The capacity of a single word to express different meanings depending on its surrounding context relates to which facet of language?

Semantics

In an advertisement pairing upbeat music with a new beverage brand, what are the UCS, UCR, NS, CS, and CR?

• UCS: Upbeat music
• UCR: Positive emotional response (to music)
• NS: Beverage brand (prior to pairing)
• CS: Beverage brand (after conditioning)
• CR: Positive emotional response (to brand)

Olga's dog leaps with excitement whenever Olga approaches the leash hook. Identify the conditioning components (UCS, UCR, NS, CS, and CR).

• UCS: Going for a walk
• UCR: Excitement / jumping
• NS: Walking near the leash hook (prior to pairing)
• CS: Walking near the leash hook
• CR: Excitement / jumping

A customer earns a free beverage after every 12 stamps on their punch card. Which schedule of reinforcement does this follow?

Fixed Ratio (FR)

Telephone scammers persist in placing calls because an unpredictable number of dials eventually yields a payout. What schedule of reinforcement maintains this behavior?

Variable Ratio (VR)

A post-surgical medication pump allows a dose upon a button press, but locks out additional doses until 2 hours have passed. What schedule of reinforcement is this?

Fixed Interval (FI)

A fitness tracker vibrates and displays an animation each time a user logs exactly 10,000 steps. What schedule of reinforcement is this?

Fixed Ratio (FR)

Harvey is granted early release on parole due to good conduct in prison. Which operant contingency does this release illustrate?

Negative reinforcement (removing the aversive state of incarceration to reinforce and strengthen compliant behavior)

Mark receives an electrical shock while attempting to replace a lightbulb with the switch on, leading him to always flip the switch off first. What operant contingency was the shock?

Positive punishment (administering an aversive shock to decrease the unsafe bulb-changing behavior)

Jerome's mother waives his chore of doing the dishes whenever he finishes his homework before dinner. What operant conditioning consequence is applied here?

Negative reinforcement (removing an unpleasant chore to increase the likelihood of completing homework on time)

Mary's driver’s license is suspended after she is convicted of driving under the influence. What operant conditioning consequence does the suspension represent?

Negative punishment (removing a desirable driving privilege to reduce the incidence of drunk driving)

A family checks on a crying puppy at night, which wags its tail, causing the puppy's nighttime crying to increase over time. What operant consequence reinforces the puppy's vocalizations?

Positive reinforcement (adding social attention and affection, which increases the rate of crying behavior)

What is the procedure of shaping in operant conditioning?

The systematic reinforcement of successive approximations toward a specific desired target behavior until the complete behavior is achieved.

How do algorithms and heuristics differ as problem-solving strategies in terms of speed and accuracy?

An algorithm is an exhaustive, step-by-step procedure that guarantees a correct outcome but can be slow; a heuristic is an efficient mental shortcut that saves time but is vulnerable to cognitive biases and errors.