Unit 2: Cognition

Accommodation

The process of modifying existing schemas in response to new information or experiences.

achievement test

A test designed to assess what a person has learned in a particular area, e.g. the AP exam

Alfred Binet

A French psychologist known for developing the first intelligence test, which aimed to measure children's mental abilities and predict their academic success.

algorithm

A step-by-step procedure or formula for solving a problem

Alzheimer's Disease

A progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by memory loss, language deterioration, and impaired ability to mentally manipulate visual information.

anterograde amnesia

A type of memory impairment characterized by the inability to form new memories after a specific event or injury, while memories from before the event remain intact.

aptitude test

A test designed to assess a how a person will perform in the future, e.g. the SAT

assimilation

The process of incorporating new information or experiences into existing schemas

Autobiographical Memory

A person's memory for events and issues related to oneself.

automatic processing

The unconscious processing of information that requires minimal attention and effort, such as routine tasks or well-learned skills.

availability heuristic

A mental shortcut where people make judgments based on the ease with which examples come to mind, often leading to overestimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory.

central executive

In Baddeley's model

The part of your brain that controls your thinking and keeps things organized.

Charles Spearman

A British psychologist who studied intelligence and discovered the g factor, which affects how well people perform on thinking tasks.

chunking

Organizing information into smaller, more manageable units or chunks to improve memory and processing efficiency.

concept

A mental category or representation of objects, events, or ideas that share common features or characteristics.

construct validity

The extent to which a test or measure accurately assesses the theoretical construct or concept it is intended to measure.

Constructive Memory

When your brain builds a memory by mixing real facts with new information, which can sometimes lead to false or changed memories

Context-Dependent Memory

The improved recall of information when the context present at encoding and retrieval are the same.

convergent thinking

A type of thinking characterized by narrowing down possible solutions to find a single correct answer, often associated with traditional problem-solving tasks.

creativity

The ability to generate novel and valuable ideas, solutions, or products that are meaningful or useful in a particular context.

crystallized intelligence

Acquired knowledge and skills accumulated over a lifetime, often measured by vocabulary tests and general knowledge assessments.

deep processing

A type of encoding that involves elaborative rehearsal and meaningful analysis of information, leading to better long-term retention.

Distributed Practice

A practice schedule that involves intervals of rest between sessions of learning.

Divergent Thinking

A thought process used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions.

echoic memory

The sensory memory system responsible for the temporary storage and processing of auditory information, often referred to as "echoes" of sounds.

effortful processing

The intentional and conscious processing of information to encode, store, and retrieve it from memory, requiring cognitive effort and attention.

emotional intelligence

The ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions effectively in oneself and others.

Encoding

The process of turning sensory input into memory.

Encoding Failure

The failure to process information into memory.

episodic memory

A type of long-term memory for personal experiences, like events you’ve lived through, including where and when they happened.

executive functions

Higher-level cognitive processes involved in goal setting, planning, problem-solving, decision-making, and self-regulation.

explicit memory

Memory of facts and personal experiences that you can clearly recall and describe.

fixed mindset

The belief that intelligence, abilities, and talents are fixed traits that cannot be changed or developed.

fluid intelligence

The ability to think quickly, solve new problems, and adapt to new situations without using past knowledge.

Flynn effect

The trend of rising average IQ scores over generations,

• psychologist James Flynn.

Forgetting Curve

A graph showing the decline of memory retention over time.

framing

How something is said or shown can change the way people think about it or decide what to do.

Functional Fixedness

A cognitive bias that limits a person to using an object only in the way it is traditionally used.

Gambler's Fallacy

The mistaken belief that if something happens more frequently than normal during a given period, it will happen less frequently in the future, or vice versa.

general intelligence (g factor)

A mental ability that affects how well you do on different cognitive tasks like reasoning, problem-solving, and learning.

growth mindset

The belief that intelligence, abilities, and talents can be developed through effort, practice, and learning.

heuristic

A mental shortcut or rule of thumb that simplifies problem-solving and decision-making, often leading to efficient but not always accurate judgments.

hippocampus

A brain structure located in the limbic system, involved in memory consolidation, spatial navigation, and learning - like the "save" button for explicit memories.

iconic memory

A type of sensory memory that briefly stores visual information for a few seconds, helping brain process what they saw

implicit memory

Memory of skills, procedures, or associations that are expressed through performance or behavior without conscious awareness.

Infantile Amnesia

The inability to retrieve memories from much before age 3.

intelligence

A mental ability consisting of the capacity to learn from experience, solve problems, adapt to new situations, and use knowledge to achieve goals.

intelligence quotient

A number from a test that shows how a person’s intelligence compares to others their age.

intelligence test

A standardized assessment designed to measure a person's cognitive abilities, including reasoning, problem-solving, memory, and verbal comprehension.

long-term memory

The relatively permanent storage of information, including facts, experiences, and skills, with potentially unlimited capacity and duration.

long-term potentiation (LTP)

A process where synaptic connections between neurons get stronger, and this is believed to be how learning and memory happen in the brain.

Massed Practice

A practice schedule in which studying continues for long periods, without interruption.

memory

The ability to retain and retrieve information over time, involving encoding, storage, and retrieval processes.

mental age

A measure of how your thinking skills compare to the average person of a certain age.

mental set

A tendency to approach problems in a particular way, often based on past experiences or familiar strategies, which may impede problem-solving.

metacognition

Awareness and understanding of one's own thought processes, including knowledge about when and how to use particular cognitive strategies.

Method of Loci

A mnemonic technique involving the visualization of familiar spatial environments to enhance the recall of information.

misinformation effect

The distortion of memory caused by exposure to misleading information after an event, leading to inaccuracies or false memories.

mnemonics

Memory tricks or tools that help you remember information better, like using acronyms, rhymes, or pictures

mood-congruent memory

The tendency to recall information or experiences that are consistent with one's current mood or emotional state.

Multistore Model of Memory

A model proposed by Atkinson and Shiffrin, describing memory as consisting of three stores: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory.

phonological loop

The part of working memory that helps you remember and repeat sounds or words for a short time

predictive validity

The extent to which a test or measure accurately predicts future performance or outcomes.

Primacy Effect

The tendency to remember the first items in a series better than the middle items.

priming

The activation of particular associations in memory, often unconsciously, which can influence subsequent behavior or cognition.

proactive interference

When old information makes it hard to remember new information.

Procedural Memory

A type of long-term memory involving how to perform different actions and skills. (i.e. muscle memory)

Prospective Memory

Remembering an intention to do something in the future

prototype

A mental image or representation of the typical features or essential characteristics of a category or concept.

psychometrics

The field of study concerned with the theory and techniques of psychological measurement, including the development and validation of psychological tests.

recall

The retrieval of previously learned information without the aid of external cues

Recency Effect

The tendency to remember the most recently presented information best.

recognition

The identification of previously encountered information from among alternatives, often tested by multiple-choice or matching tasks.

reconsolidation

The process by which previously consolidated memories may be modified or altered when retrieved and then stored again.

reliability

The consistency or stability of a measurement or test over time or across different administrations.

representativeness heuristic

A mental shortcut where judgments or decisions are based on how well an individual or event matches a particular prototype or stereotype.

repression

A defense mechanism involving the unconscious exclusion or suppression of anxiety-provoking thoughts, memories, or impulses from conscious awareness.

retrieval

The process of accessing and bringing into consciousness previously stored information from memory.

Retrieval Cues

Stimuli that help you retrieve a certain memory.

retroactive interference

The disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information.

retrograde amnesia

Memory loss for events that occurred before a specific event, injury, or trauma.

schema

A cognitive framework or mental structure that organizes and interprets information about the world, guiding perception, memory, and problem-solving.

semantic encoding

The process of encoding the meaning or significance of information into memory, leading to better retention and recall.

sensory memory

The brief and initial stage of memory processing where sensory information is briefly registered and preserved in its original sensory form.

serial position effect

The tendency to recall items from the beginning (primacy effect) and end (recency effect) of a list more accurately than items from the middle.

shallow processing

A type of encoding that involves surface-level processing of information based on its physical characteristics, leading to poor retention.

short-term memory

The temporary storage system responsible for holding and manipulating information for brief periods

source amnesia

Forgetting the source of a memory, such as where or how the information was acquired, while retaining the memory itself.

spacing effect

The phenomenon where information is better remembered when it is distributed over time with intervals between study sessions, compared to massed practice or cramming.

Split-Half Reliability

The internal consistency of a test, assessed by comparing the results of two halves of the test.

standardization

The process of establishing uniform procedures for administering and scoring a test to ensure its reliability and validity.

State-Dependent Memory

The improved recall of information when the individual is in the same physical state as they were when the memory was formed.

stereotype threat

The phenomenon where individuals feel at risk of conforming to negative stereotypes about their social group, leading to decreased performance on tasks requiring intellectual ability.

Stereotypes

Oversimplified and generalized beliefs about a particular group of people.

storage

The retention of encoded information over time in memory.

Sunk Cost Fallacy

The fallacy of making decisions based on past investments (time, money, resources) rather than on current and future benefits and costs.

Test-Retest Reliability

The consistency of a measure when the same test is administered to the same people at two different points in time.

testing effect

The finding that retrieval practice, or actively recalling information from memory, enhances long-term retention more effectively than simply re-studying the material.

Tip-of-the-Tongue Phenomenon

The experience of knowing that we know something but being unable to access the information at that moment.

validity

The extent to which a test or measure accurately assesses the construct or concept it is intended to measure.