Unit 2: Cognition

This set of flashcards covers key concepts from Unit 2: Cognition, including perception, memory, thinking processes, and intelligence.

Cognition

The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge through thought, experience, and the senses.

Perception

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information.

Bottom-Up Processing

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

Top-Down Processing

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

Perceptual Set

A tendency to perceive certain aspects of sensory data while ignoring others.

Schemas

Mental filters or maps that organize information about the world.

Context Effects

The influence of surrounding environmental factors on the perception and memory of an event.

Selective Attention

The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus.

Cocktail Party Effect

The phenomenon of focusing auditory attention on a specific stimulus while filtering out other stimuli.

Gestalt

An organized whole; emphasizes integrating information into meaningful wholes.

Proximity

Objects close together are viewed as a unit.

Closure

The brain's ability to fill in gaps to create a whole.

Similarity

Items that share attributes are visually grouped together.

Figure and Ground

The tendency to perceive objects as either in the foreground or background.

Inattentional Blindness

Failing to see visible objects when attention is directed elsewhere.

Change Blindness

Failing to notice changes in the environment.

Binocular Cues

Depth cues that depend on the use of two eyes.

Retinal Disparity

A binocular cue for perceiving depth based on comparing images from both retinas.

Convergence

The inward movement of the eyes when focusing on close objects.

Monocular Cues

Depth cues available to either eye alone.

Relative Size

If two objects are similar in size, the one casting a smaller retinal image is perceived as farther away.

Interposition

Objects occluding (blocking) other objects are perceived as closer.

Relative Clarity

Distant objects appear hazier than closer objects.

Linear Perspective

Parallel lines appear to converge in the distance.

Texture Gradient

Indistinct texture signals increasing distance.

Perceptual Constancy

The ability to perceive objects as unchanging despite changes in distance, point of view, and illumination.

Apparent Motion

An optical illusion making a stationary object appear to move.

Concept

A mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people.

Prototype

A mental image or best example of a category.

Assimilation

The process of absorbing new information into existing schemas.

Accommodation

Adjusting old schemas or developing new ones to incorporate new information.

Algorithm

A methodical, logical rule or procedure guaranteed to solve a problem by exploring every possibility.

Heuristic

A simple thinking strategy, or rule of thumb, often used for quick judgments and problem-solving.

Representative Heuristic

Judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they represent particular prototypes.

Availability Heuristic

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

Mental Set

The tendency to approach problems in a particular way, often one that has worked in the past.

Priming

Exposure to one stimulus influences a response to a subsequent stimulus.

Framing

The way an issue is posed; framing can significantly affect decisions and judgments.

Functional Fixedness

The inability to perceive a new use for an object associated with a different purpose.

Gambler's Fallacy

The fallacy that impairs decision-making based on inaccurate reasoning.

Sunk Cost Fallacy

A cognitive bias that leads people to continue investing in something despite unfavorable outcomes.

Creativity

The ability to produce novel and valuable ideas.

Convergent Thinking

Narrowing available problem solutions to determine the single best solution.

Divergent Thinking

Expanding the number of possible problem solutions.

Implicit Memory

Retention independent of conscious recollection.

Procedural Memory

Memory for how to perform tasks.

Explicit Memory

Memory of facts and experiences that can be consciously declared.

Episodic Memory

Memories of personal experiences and specific events.

Semantic Memory

Impersonal memories not based on personal experience.

Prospective Memory

Remembering to perform actions in the future.

Long-term Potentiation

An increase in a cell's firing potential after rapid stimulation, believed to be a basis for learning and memory.

Working Memory

Active processing of incoming information and retrieved information.

Phonological Loop

Part of working memory for holding and manipulating auditory information.

Visuospatial Sketchpad

Ability to hold visual and spatial information temporarily.

Multi-store Model of Memory

Model stating that memories are processed through three distinct storage systems.

Sensory Memory

Processing everything we sense briefly before replacement.

Iconic Memory

Fleeting visual images lingering for a moment after perception.

Echoic Memory

Auditory signals that persist momentarily after sound.

Short-term Memory

Activated memory that holds a few items briefly.

Long-term Memory

Unlimited storage of information lasting for years or a lifetime.

Encoding

The process of getting information into memory.

Storage

Maintaining information in memory over time.

Retrieval

Getting information back from memory.

Automatic Processing

Unconscious encoding of incidental information and well-learned information.

Effortful Processing

Encoding that requires conscious effort and attention.

Shallow Processing

Simple memorization without meaningful attachment.

Deep Processing

Involves meaningful analysis during encoding.

Mnemonics

Memory aids using vivid imagery and organizational devices.

Chunking

Grouping bits of related information to enhance memory.

Method of Loci

Visualization of familiar environments to enhance recall.

Hierarchies

Ranking systems where concepts are arranged based on criteria.

Spacing Effect

Better long-term retention from distributed study than from massed practice.

Massed Practice

Learning sessions grouped into long intervals, aka cramming.

Serial Position Effect

Tendency to recall first and last items in a list better.

Maintenance Rehearsal

Repeating information to keep it in short-term memory.

Elaborative Rehearsal

Linking new information with existing memories.

Autobiographical Memory

Memory for personal experiences.

Retrograde Amnesia

Inability to recall previously stored memories.

Anterograde Amnesia

Inability to form new memories.

Infantile Amnesia

Inability to recall early episodic memories.

Alzheimer's Disease

Progressive degenerative disease affecting memory.

Recognition

Correct identification of previously learned material.

Recall

Direct retrieval of facts or information without cues.

State-dependent Memory

Better retrieval of information when in the same state as during encoding.

Mood-dependent Memory

Information retrieval influenced by a mood similar to that at acquisition.

Context-dependent Memory

Easier retrieval of memories when the context is the same.

Testing Effect

Enhanced memory after retrieval practice than just rereading information.

Metacognition

Awareness of one’s own thought processes.

Forgetting Curve

Hypothesis showing how retention of information decreases over time.

Encoding Failure

Ineffective attention leading to failure in memory.

Proactive Interference

Prior learning disrupting the recall of new information.

Retroactive Interference

New learning disrupting the recall of old information.

Tip of the Tongue

The phenomenon of failing to retrieve a word, feeling that retrieval is imminent.

Repression

Defense mechanism banishing anxiety-arousing thoughts from consciousness.

Misinformation Effect

Incorporating misleading information into one’s memory.

Source Amnesia

Attributing an event to the wrong source.

Constructive Memory

Using general knowledge to create detailed accounts of events.

Memory Consolidation

Process of transitioning short-term memories into long-term.

Imagination Inflation

Increased confidence in a non-existent event due to imagination.

Intelligence

Ability to learn from experience, adapt to new situations, and solve problems.