AP Psychology Unit 2: cognition

Perception

the way sensory information is organized, interpreted and consciously experienced

Bottom-Up

purely data-driven and requires no previous knowledge or learning

Top-Down

heavily influenced by our expectations and prior knowledge; your brain applies what it knows to fill in the blanks and anticipate what's next

Perceptual Set

often tend to notice only certain aspects of an object or situation while ignoring other details. This can lead to Perceptual Bias

Schema

concept or mental representation that we use to organize our knowledge

Gestalt principles

the brain forms a perceptual whole that is more than the mere sum of its sensory parts

Closure

makes us see incomplete arrangements as wholes by supplying missing components.

Figure-Ground

Figure: The part of a pattern that commands attention...stands out.

Ground: The part of the pattern that does not command attention...background.

Proximity

We tend to group objects together when they are near each other

Similarity

We tend to group similar objects together in our perceptions

Continuity

Suggests that we are more likely to perceive continuous, smooth flowing lines rather than jagged, broken lines

Attention

the ability to actively process specific information in the environment while tuning out other details

Selective Attention

the ability to focus our attention on some stimuli while ignoring others

Cocktail Party Effect

The ability to tune into one voice from many conversations going on in a noisy environment

Inattentional Blindness

The failure to notice something because your attention is focused on something else. (you get in an accident because you were focused on your phone)

Change Blindness

failure to notice a visible change in the environment

Ebbinghaus Illusion

the tendency of our perceptual systems to adjust our experience of the world to the surrounding context

Ponzo Illusion

if two lines are the same length on my retina, but different distances from me, the more distance line must be longer

depth perception

ability to perceive objects in 3 dimensions and to judge distance (use monocular cues and Binocular cues)

monocular cues

Relative height Relative size

Interposition

Linear Perspective

Texture Gradient

Relative height

objects that are higher to be further away

relative size

if two objects are the same size but are different distances, the one closer will appear larger

Interposition

one object covers another, we perceive is as closer

Linear Perspective

Parallel lines appear to converge in the distance

Texture Gradient

closer objects have a more detailed texture, the texture of objects further away are less distinct

relative clarity

objects near you will appear sharp and in focus, objects further away will appear less detailed and fuzzy

Binocular Cues

Retinal Disparity

Convergence

Retinal Disparity

each eye sees a slightly different image because your eyes are about 6cm apart. You brain combines the 2 images to form our perception

Convergence

when you look at an object that is close to your face your eyes angle inward. The extra effort by your eye muscles is utilized by your brain to help judge distance

Perceptual constancies

our tendency to perceive objects as having standard shapes, sizes, and colors even when the angle we see them at, the distance, or the lighting changes

shape constancy

the tendency to interpret the shape of an object as being constant, even when its shape changes on the retina

Phi Phenomenon

illusion of movement that arises when stationary objects are placed side by side and illuminated rapidly, one after another

concept

mental grouping of similar things, events, and people that is used to remember and understand what things are, what they mean, and what categories or groups they belong to

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category (ideal example)

Accommodation

create new schemas

Assimilation

modify old schemas (aSSimilation - SS = same schema)

diseuquilibrium

unpleasant and therefore serves as motivation to either assimilate or accommodate the new information to make sense of it.

when is equilibrium reached

child has adequately altered their schemas to include the new information

Problem Solving Examples

Trail and error

algorithms

heuristic

insight

algorithm

step-by-step procedure that leads to the correct answer to a problem. By following the instructions correctly, you are guaranteed to arrive at the right solution.

downside of algorithm

time-consuming and may be impractical if action needs to be taken very quickly

heuristic

mental shortcut that allows someone to quickly make judgements and solve problems.

downside of heuristic

really of a rule-of-thumb and don't always guarantee a correct solution

Representativeness Heuristic

decisions are made according to prior expectations or stereotypes

Availability Heuristic

recalling the first or most vivid example that comes to mind

mental set

tendency to only see solutions that have worked in the past (thinking inside the box)

functional fixedness (example of a mental set)

when people are only able to see solutions that involve using objects in their normal or expected manner.

gambler's fallacy

type of bias where we let past event wrongly influence our decisions and predictions about future events.

sunk cost fallacy

type of bias that makes you feel you should continue pouring money, time, or effort into a situation since you've already "sunk" so much into it already

Divergent thinking

ability to generate multiple ideas, possibilities, or solutions to a given problem (thinking outside the box)

Memory

ability to retain knowledge (Encodes -> Stores -> Retrieves)

Multi-Store Model of Memory

The memory model that visualises memory as a system consisting of multiple memory stores through which a stream of data flows for processing.

Sensory Memory

use our sense to take in information from the environment

Working Memory Parts

Visual: iconic memory

Auditory: echoic memory

Tactile

Olfactory

Gustatory

Capacity of sensory memory

Capacity: very large

Duration: very short ( 0.25 sec for iconic memory, longer for echoic)

Short term memory

-very brief

If you do not actively process the information, it will be forgotten in seconds

- limited capacity

Working Memory

the processes we use to make sense of, modify, interpret and store information in short term memory

Phonological Loop

voice inside your head

Visual-Spatial Sketchpad

Mental pictures inside your head (how many windows are there in the front of your house?)

Central Executive

Manages the work of the other components by directing attention to particular tasks

long-term memory

Considered a permanent and limitless memory system

2 main parts of long term memory

Explicit and Implicit

Implicit Memory

Memories for procedures and processes - memories of things you just know how to do; hard to explain to another person

types of implicit memory

procedural, classical conditioning, and priming

Procedural Memory

knowledge of how to perform different actions and skills (doing it without thinking about it; riding a bike)

Priming

Exposure to one stimulus influences the response to another stimulus (after seeing the color yellow, you're asked to name a fruit and you say 'banana')

Explicit Memory

knowledge or experiences that can be consciously remembered. More easily describable to others.

types of explicit memory

Episodic and semantic

Episodic memory

firsthand, autobiographical experiences we have (first kiss; the rainstorm on your 10th birthday party)

semantic memory

knowledge of facts and concepts (knowing the capital of Finland; knowing the boiling point of water)

Prospective memory

involves intention. It is your intention to remember something in the future

Automatic Processing

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

Effortful Processing

active, conscious encoding and retrieval of information which requires focused attention.

Hippocampus

Involved in moving material into long-term memory in a process called memory consolidation

Consolidation

the act or process of turning short-term memories into more permanent, long-term memories

amygdala

regulating emotions and is best known for its role in the fear response

Cerebellum

role in balance and coordination, the cerebellum is involved in forming implicit memories (procedural memory, motor learning, classical conditioning)

flashbulb memory

seemingly exceptionally clear recollection of an important event

long-term potentiation

activity in the nerve circuits cause changes (increased production of neurotransmitter, increasing the number of receptors) that make those circuits more likely to respond again in the future

Long-term potentiation

if you use it, it will become stronger

Maintenance Rehearsal

process of repeating information mentally (or out loud) for the purpose of keeping it in short-term memory

Chunking

organizing information into groupings (chunks), thereby increasing the number of items that can be held in short-term memory

Elaborative Rehearsal

processing new information in ways that make it more relevant or meaningful

(ex:Making personal connections)

levels of processing

information that is thought of more deeply becomes more meaningful and thus better committed to memory

Shallow Processing

Structural - color, size, shape, or form

Phonemic- sound

Deep Processing

Semantic - processing using meaning

Autobiographical Memory self-reference effect

the memory for events and facts related to one's personal life story

Primacy Effect

better memory for items early in a list

Recency Effect

better memory for items near the end of a list

Context-dependent memory

increase in recall when the environment in which information is learned matches the environment in which it is recalled

State-dependent memory

increase in recall when the individual is in the same physiological or psychological state as during encoding

mood-congruent memory

a person is in a bad mood while learning, they will tend to have better recall if they are in a bad mood when tested than if they are in a good mood when tested

Recognition

involves identifying something as familiar when encountered again

Recall

process of retrieving information from memory without the presence of the original stimuli

Spacing Effect

learning is better when study time is spread out than when it occurs close together

Massed Practice

study all at once (cramming)

Distributed Practice

study is spread out over time

Testing Effect

learning and memory is best accomplished when the information is repeatedly tested during learning (as opposed to merely restudying the material)

Metacognition

the practice of being aware of one's own thinking. Sometimes referred to as 'thinking about thinking"

Mnemonic devices

memory tricks or tools that can help you learn and remember (encode and retrieve) information