AP Psych Unit 5

effortful processing

Information processing that requires attention and conscious effort

automatic processing

Information-processing of much-repeated or well-learned activities that occurs without our being aware of it

deep processing

Involves elaborative rehearsal along with a meaningful analysis of the ideas and words being learned

shallow processing

Trying to memorize something without attaching meaning to it

selective attention

The ability to focus on some aspect of the environment and ignore others

divided attention

The ability to pay attention to two tasks at once

short term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the information is stored or forgotten

procedural memory

stores info about the way to do something; it's the memory for skilled actions like riding a bike or driving a car; things you just 'do' and usually have a hard time explaining how

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

sensory memory

the immediate, initial recording of sensory information in the memory system

prospective memory

remembering to do something in the future

explicit memory

Memories we consciously try to remember, recall, and report

semantic memory

knowledge about words, concepts, and language-based knowledge and facts; typically reported as facts;

episodic memory

information about events we have personally experienced; usually reported as a story; involves the what, where, and when of an event; recollection of visual imagery and a feeling of familiarity

Noam Chomsky

theorist who believed that humans have an inborn or "native" propensity to develop language - a language acquisition device

Hermann Ebbinghaus

the first person to study memory scientifically and systematically; used nonsense syllables and recorded how many times he had to study a list to remember it well; forgetting curve

Wolfgang Kohler

Gestalt psychologist that first demonstrated insight through his chimpanzee experiments. He noticed the solution process wasn't slow, but sudden and reflective.

Elizabeth Loftus

Her research on memory construction and the misinformation effect created doubts about the accuracy of eye-witness testimony

George A. Miller

Found that short term memory has the capacity of about 7 (+/- 2) items.

encoding

The input of information into the memory system

storage

The creation of a permanent record of information

retrieval

The act of getting information out of memory and back into conscious awareness

schema

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

information processing model

encoding, storage, retrieval

Parallel/dual processing

the principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks

multi-store model

An explanation of memory based on three separate memory stores, and how information is transferred between these stores.

priming

exposure to a stimulus affects the response to a later stimulus

semantic encoding

the encoding of words and their meanings

visual encoding

the encoding of images

acoustic encoding

the encoding of sounds

tactile encoding

the encoding of information related to touch senses

organizational encoding

the encoding of information in terms of a specific sequence; lists, groups, or the relationship between certain objects

elaborative encoding

linking new information to information you already know

mass practice

all at once/cramming for a test the night before

testing effect

helps us get an idea of what we know and what we don't, when given feedback, it helps with memory

rote rehearsal

repeating information over and over

chunking

organizing information into meaningful groups

Mnemonic devices

various techniques to improve memory, especially using unusual images

Implicit Memory

Long-term memories that are not part of our consciousness

emotional conditioning

Type of memory involved in classically conditioned emotional responses

recall

A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier; an essay or short answer question

relearning

learning something more quickly when you learn it a second or later time

recognition

a measure of memory in which the person identifies items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test

context dependent memory

The theory that information learned in a particular situation or place is better remembered when in that same situation or place.

state dependent memory

Long-term memory retrieval is best when a person's physiological state at the time of encoding and retrieval of the information is the same.

mood congruent memory

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood

serial position effect

tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list

primacy effect

tendency to remember words at the beginning of a list especially well

recency effect

tendency to remember words at the end of a list especially well

amnesia

loss of long-term memory that occurs because of disease, physical trauma, or psychological trauma

anterograde amnesia

an inability to form new memories

retrograde amnesia

loss of memory from the point of some injury or trauma backwards, or loss of memory for the past

reconstruction

bringing up old memories

eyewitness misidentification

The single greatest cause of wrongful convictions nationwide

misinformation effect paradigm

after exposure to incorrect information, a person may misremember the original event

false memory syndrome

remembering a past traumatic experience that is objectively false but is nevertheless accepted by the person as true

forgetting

the inability to retrieve memory from long-term storage

encoding failure

failure to process information into memory resulting in not being able to remember that information

Shachter's seven sins of memory

memory researcher's list of the most common ways that our memories fail us - 3 categories: forgetting, distortion, intrusion

transience

memory error in which unused memories fade with the passage of time

absentmindedness

lapses in memory that are caused by breaks in attention or our focus being somewhere else

blocking

a failure to retrieve information that is available in memory even though you are trying to produce it - tip of the tongue phenomenon

misattribution

source of the memory is confused

suggestibility

effects of misinformation from external sources that leads to the creation of false memories

bias

memories distorted by current belief system

persistence

the intrusive recollection of events that we wish we could forget

proactive interference

Old info hinders recall of new info

retroactive interference

New info hinders recall of old info

engram

The group of neurons that serve as the physical representation of memory

role of the amygdala

processing emotional memories

role of the hippocampus

involved with turning short-term memories into long-term memories

role of the cerebellum

involved with motor memory and classically conditioned learning

role of the prefrontal cortex

involved in encoding semantic memory

role of neurotransmitters

Memory consolidation occurs by neurons communicating with each other and making synaptic connections stronger (long term potentiation)

arousal theory

strong emotions trigger the formation of strong memories and weaker emotional experiences form weaker memories

flashbulb memory

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

spacing effect/distributed practice

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice

concept

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category

role schema

makes assumptions about how individuals in certain roles will behave

event schema

a set of routine or automatic behaviors

creativity

the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas

components of creativity

expertise, imaginative thinking skills, venturesome personality, intrinsic motivation, ability to see different perspectives, high intelligence

convergent thinking

narrowing the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution

divergent thinking

used when a question or problem can have several possible responses

trial and error

A problem-solving strategy that involves attempting different solutions and eliminating those that do not work.

algorithm

a step-by-step procedure for solving a problem

heuristic

a general problem-solving framework that provides a mental shortcut

insight

a sudden realization of a problem's solution (aha moment)

intuition

the ability to understand something immediately, without the need for conscious reasoning - what we know without knowing how we know it

confirmation bias

a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence

functional fixedness

a block to problem solving that comes from thinking about objects in terms of only their typical functions

mental set

a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past

representativeness heuristic

judging how closely something represents or matches certain prototypes we have

availability heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness), we presume such events are common

familiarity heuristic

familiar items are seen as superior to those that are unfamiliar

scarcity heuristic

something that's rare must be especially valuable

self-serving bias

the tendency for people to take personal credit for success but blame failure on external factors

belief perseverance

tendency to stick to our initial beliefs even when evidence contradicts them

cognitive dissonance

an unpleasant state that arises when a person recognizes the inconsistency of his or her actions, attitudes, or beliefs