AP Psych UNit 2 Part 2 Vocab

auto-kinetic effect

the illusory movement of a still spot of light in a dark room

assimilation

interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas

accommodation

process in which eye’s lens change shape to focus images of near and far objects, adapting schemas to incorporate new information

algorithm heuristic

methodological, logical rule or procedure that guarantees a particular problem. contrasts with the speedier, but error prone heuristics

availability heuristics

judging the likely hood of events based on their availability in memory

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information such as space, time and frequency and of familiar or well learned information, such as sound, smells and word meanings

binocular cue

depth cue; such as retinal disparity

belief perseverance

persistence of one’s initial conceptions even after it has been discredited

change blindness

failing to notice changes in environment 

convergence

a cue to nearby objects distance, enabled by brain

color constancy

perceiving familiar objects as having a consistent color, even when changing perspective

cognition

all mental abilities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering and communicating

concept

mental grouping of similar objects

creativity

ability to produce new and valuable ideas

convergent thinking

narrowing available problem solutions to determine which is best

confirmation bias

searching for information that only supports what we are saying 

central executive

phonological loop and visiospacial sketchpad

depth perception

ability to see in 3D

divergent thinking

expanding number of possible problem solutions

executive functions

cognative skills that work together to enable us to a goal directed behavior

encoding

getting information into memory system

explicit memory

retention of gaits that we know and can declare

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention/conscious effort

figure-ground

organization of visual field into objects

fixation

inability to see problem from new perspective

framing

the way an issue is posed

Gestalt

an organized whole

grouping

perceptual tendency to organize stimulus into groups

inattentional blindness

failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

insight

sudden realization of a problems solution

intuition

effortless, immediate, automatic delaying or thought

long term potentiation

increase in nerve cells firing potential

long term memory

permenant/limitless archive of memory system

monocular cue

depth cue

metacognition

keeping track of/evaluating our mental processes

mental set

tendency to approach problem a specific way

memory

persistence of learning overtime through encoding

nudge

framing choices that encourages better decisions

neurogenesis

formation of new neurons

perceptual set

mental predisposition to perceive one thing

phi phenomenon

illusion of movement created when light blinks

perceptual constancy

perceiving objects as unchanging

perceptual adaptation

ability to adjust to changed sensory imput

prototype

mental image/best example of a category

parallel processing

processing multiple aspects of a stimulus simultaneously

phonological loop

memory component briefly holds auditory information

retinal disparity

binocular eye for perceiving depth

representativeness heuristic

judging the likelihood of evens in terms of how well they seem to represent particular prototypes

recall

measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier 

recognition

person id’s item previously learned

relearning

assesses amount of time saved when learning material again

retrieval

process of getting information our of memory storage

overconfidence

tendency to be more confident than correct

selective attention

focusing conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

stroboscopic movement

illusion of continuous movement experienced when viewing a rapid seres of slightly varying still images 

schema

concept/framework that organizes/interperets information

storage

retaining encoded information over time

sensory memory

immediate, brief recording of sensory information in memory system

short-term memory

briefly activated memory of a few items

visual cliff

lab device testing depth perception

visiospacial sketchpad

memory component that briefly holds information about an object’s appearance or location

working memory

newer understanding of short term emery, active processing of incoming information and long term memories

jean Piaget

explains how kids actively construct knowledge and understanding through stages

Robert Sternberg

triarchic theory of intelligence

Wolfgang kohler

insight learning “aha!”

amos tversky

heuristics and cognitive biases

Daniel kahneman

work on judgement and decision making

hermann ebbinghaus

forgetting curve

Richard Atkinson

describes how information is processed, encoded and stored

Richard shifferin

aided Atkinson, Atkinson-shiffrin model

Eric kandel

biological basis of memory