PSYCH UNIT 2 VOCAB FULL

Explicit memory

→ conscious memory of facts and events

Implicit memory

→ memory without conscious awareness (skills, habits)

Semantic memory

→ memory for facts and knowledge

Procedural memory

→ memory for skills and actions

Shallow encoding

→ encoding based on appearance or sound

Deep encoding

→ encoding based on meaning

Long-term potentiation

→ brain connections get stronger the more they are used

Recognition

→ identifying information you’ve seen before

Memory retention

→ ability to keep information

Distributed practice

→ studying with breaks

Testing effect

 → retrieval improves memory

Maintenance rehearsal

→ repeating information without meaning

Elaborative rehearsal

→ adding meaning to remember information

Proactive Interference

→ old information interferes with new info

Misinformation effect

→ false info changes memory

Constructive memory

→ memory that fills in gaps

Retrograde amnesia

→ loss of past memories

Anterograde amnesia

→ inability to form new memories

Inattentional blindness

→ missing obvious things due to focus elsewhere

Top-down processing

→ perception based on expectations and experience

Bottom-up processing

→ perception starting from sensory input

Perceptual set

 → readiness to perceive something

Retinal disparity

→ depth from different eye images

Convergence

→ eye muscles turning inward

Interposition

→ blocked objects seem farther away

Relative size

→ smaller images seem farther away

Relative clarity

→ blurry objects seem farther away

Linear perspective

→ lines that come together make things look farther away

Texture gradient

→ things look smoother when they are farther away

Gestalt psychology

→ studies how we look at the whole picture instead of just pieces.

Algorithms

→ step-by-step rules to solve problems

Heuristics

→ quick shortcuts to make decisions

Availability heuristic

→ guessing how likely something is based on what you remember easily

Representativeness heuristic

→ judging things by how much they seem like a typical example.

Functional fixedness

→ only seeing the usual use of an object

Mental set

→ using the same old strategies even if better ones exist

Convergent thinking

→ finding one correct answer.

Divergent thinking

→ thinking of many possible answers.

Flynn effect

→ IQ scores increasing over time

Achievement tests

→ measure learned knowledge

Aptitude tests

 → predict future performance

Validity

→ how well test measures what it should

Predictive validity

→ predicts future performance

Construct validity

→ how well test measures a specific concept

Schema

→ mental framework for understanding

Assimilation

→ fitting new info into existing schemas

Priming

→ brain gets ready to think of something without you realizing it

Context-dependent memory

→ recall better in same environment

State-dependent memory

→ recall better in same mental state

Framing

→ wording or how something is presented affects decisions.

Gambler’s fallacy

 → believing past random events change future outcomes.

Sunk-cost fallacy

 → continuing something because of past investment

Stereotype threat

→ fear of confirming a stereotype affects performance.