AP Psych U2: Cognition

Perception

The process by which individuals interpret and organize sensory information to understand their environment.

Cognition

The mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge and understanding, including encoding, storage, and retrieval.

Encoding

Transforming sensory input into a form that can be stored, which is crucial for effective decision-making.

Storage

Maintaining information over time to ensure that it is accessible for future judgments.

Retrieval

Accessing stored information when needed, aiding in resolving problems and making decisions.

Sensory Memory

Brief storage of sensory information that helps in quick evaluations.

Short-term Memory

Limited capacity for holding and manipulating information for immediate problem-solving.

Long-term Memory

Permanent storage of knowledge that informs decisions and judgments based on previous learning.

Working Memory

A crucial tool that allows individuals to hold and manipulate information temporarily for problem-solving.

Confirmation Bias

A tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information that confirms existing preconceptions.

Heuristics

Mental shortcuts or rules of thumb used to make decisions that may lead to errors.

Schema

Mental frameworks for organizing information.

Functional Fixedness

The inability to see an object as having a function other than its usual one.

Bottom-up Processing

Analysis that begins with sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information.

Top-down Processing

Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, using experience and expectations.

Gestalt Psychology

A psychological approach emphasizing that we often perceive the whole rather than the sum of the parts.

Closure

The tendency to complete figures that are incomplete.

Proximity

The way relationships are formed between things close to one another.

Similarity

The tendency to perceive things that look similar as being part of the same group.

Binocular Depth Cues

Clues about distance based on the differing views of the two eyes.

Retinal Disparity

A binocular cue for perceiving depth by comparing images from the retinas in the two eyes.

Algorithms

Very specific, step-by-step procedures for solving certain types of problems.

Availability Heuristic

Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory.

Representativeness Heuristic

A mental shortcut for classifying something according to its similarity to a typical case.

Sunk-Cost Fallacy

Making decisions based on previous investments in the situation.

Divergent Thinking

The process of expanding the number of possible problem solutions.

Convergent Thinking

The process of narrowing the available solutions to determine the best one.

Method of Loci

A mnemonic technique that associates items with a sequence of familiar physical locations.

Chunking

Organizing items into familiar, manageable units.

Categories

Clusters of interrelated concepts.

Memory Consolidation

The gradual process of converting new long-term memories to stable memory codes.

Serial Position Effect

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

Intelligence

Mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and adapt to new situations.

g (general intelligence)

Hypothetical factor accounting for overall differences in intellect among people.

IQ

Intelligence Quotient; calculated as mental age divided by chronological age, multiplied by 100.

Mental Age

A measure of intelligence test performance related to the typical level of performance for a chronological age.

Chronological Age

Age measured in years from the date of birth.

Standardization

Defining meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested group.

Validity

The extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to.

Construct Validity

Evidence that a test measures a particular hypothetical construct.

Predictive Validity

The success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict.

Reliability

The extent to which a test yields consistent results.

Flynn Effect

The rise in average IQ scores over the decades in many nations.

Achievement Tests

Tests designed to assess what a person has learned.

Aptitude Tests

Tests designed to predict a person's future performance or capacity to learn.

Fixed Mindset

The belief that abilities are fixed and cannot change.

Growth Mindset

The belief that abilities are malleable and can be developed.