ap psych notes

perception

process of organizing & interpreting sensory information; enables us to make sense & meaning of environment; relies on top-down processing; starts with background knowledge to fill in gaps & anticipate what is next; taking in all the information from the environment before sorting through it (the sorting = perception); when we discussed sensation, we were looking at bottom-up processing

top-down processing

information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we draw on our experiences & expectations

bottom-up processing

analysis that begins with sense receptors & works up to the brain

perceptual set

a temporary readiness to perceive certain objects or events rather than others; we see what we believe/want/think we see; perception of the same stimuli can differ depending on the context in which we experience the sensation; ex: a painter & police officer look at a crowded street scene very differently

Gestalt psychology

field of psychology that emphasizes perceptual tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful whole; brain will subconsciously arrange & organize stimuli into a whole meaningful experience/system; brain likes structure & patterns, not randomness

Gestalt grouping principles

ways in which stimuli is organized into coherent groups to construct meaning; closure, figure-ground relationship, proximity, & similarity

closure

visual principle that people tend to fill in gaps in incomplete images to perceive a common object

figure-ground relationship

organization of visual field into objects (figures) that stand out from surrounding (ground); whatever you are paying attention to (visual, auditory, touch stimulus) becomes figure & everything else is background

proximity

principle that objects that are close together are perceived as more related than objects that are farther apart

similarity

principle that objects that share visual characteristics are perceived as more related than those that are dissimilar

selective attention

focusing of conscious awareness on particular stimulus; our conscious self-awareness processes only small part of all that we experience; you can only focus on certain amount of stimulus at once (dangers of multitasking); 'cocktail party effect'

inattentional blindness

failure to notice visible objects when attention is directed elsewhere

change blindness

failure to notice changes in the environment; form of inattentional blindness

binocular cues

depth cues that rely on BOTH eyes; retinal disparity & convergence

retinal disparity

the brain compares images from 2 eyes & computes the difference; the greater the disparity between images, the closer the object

convergence

extent to which eyes converge inward when looking at object; the greater the strain, the closer the object

monocular cues

depth cues available to each eye SEPARATELY; relative size, interposition (occlusion), linear perspective, texture gradient, & relative clarity

relative size

if 2 objects are relatively same size, object that appears larger is closer

interposition (occlusion)

when 2 objects overlap, the partially obscured object is farther away

linear perspective

parallel lines appear to meet as they travel into distance

texture gradient

when looking at object that extends into distance, texture becomes less apparent the farther away it is

relative clarity

objects that appear hazy are farther away than objects that appear sharp & detailed

perceptual constancy

ability to perceive objects as unchanging even as lighting & retinal images change (size/shape/color)

stroboscopic effect/illusion

illusion of continuous motion created by rapid sequence of static images or light flashes

autokinetic effect

illusion of seeing static spot of light moving in a dark environment

cognition

the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, & communicating; cognitive psychologists study & emphasize how we form concepts, solve problems, make decisions, & form judgments

schemas

mental concept or grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people; help organize the world in our minds, which prevents becoming overwhelmed

hierarchies

further dividing concepts into smaller groups

prototypes

mental image or best example of a schema; the further we move away from prototypes, boundaries of schemas become fuzzier

assimilation

interpreting new experiences in terms of existing schemas

accommodation

adapting current understandings & schemas to incorporate new info

algorithm

methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solution for particular problem; ex: recipes, formulas; always correct but time consuming

trial and error

trying number of different problem solving solutions & ruling out things that don't work; good if there are limited number of solutions; time-consuming, failure is probable, & not guaranteed to find a solution

heuristic

simple thinking strategy that allows us to make judgements & solve problems quickly; based largely on what has been successful in the past for solving that particular problem; ex: rule of thumb, educated guess, 'common sense'; quick & efficient but error-prone

mental set

tendency to approach problem in particular way; often way that has been successful in the past; predisposes how we think; ex: if you couldn't think in 3 dimensions

priming

often unconscious activation of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response

framing

the way an issue/problem is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions & judgments

gambler's (Monte Carlo) fallacy

failure to recognize independence of chance events; thinking you can predict an outcome based on past outcomes; ex: because you haven't won the last few times, you'll win this time

sunk-cost fallacy

tendency to follow through with something we've already invested heavily in, even when giving up is clearly better idea; ex: not leaving bad friendship because you've invested in it

representative heuristic

stereotypes; judging likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent or match particular prototypes; ex: jury convicting someone because they fit their prototype of a criminal

availability heuristic

estimating likelihood of events based on their availability of memory; if events come readily to mind, we think these are common; ex: terrorism attacks are uncommon but we see a lot about them on the news

creativity

the ability to produce or develop original work, theories, techniques, or thoughts

convergent thinking

thinking limited to available facts & working towards 1 correct solution; great for clear, concise problems

divergent thinking

thinking that attempts to generate multiple solutions to a problem; needed for real-world applications of problem-solving practices

functional fixedness

tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions

memory

persistence of learning over time

dual-track memory

differentiating memories based on encoding, storage, & retrieval; explicit vs implicit memory

explicit memory

retention of facts & experiences that you can consciously know & 'declare'; also known as declarative memory; episodic, semantic, & prospective memory

episodic memory

events in lifespan

flashbulb memory

type of episodic memory; clear, vivid memory of an emotionally significant event

semantic memory

general knowledge

prospective memory

remembering to do something in the future

implicit memory

retention of learned skills or procedures; also known as nondeclarative memory; includes procedural memory

procedural memory

muscle memory; remembering processes involved in completing a task; AFTER the task is well-learned and has become automatic; ex: hitting a tennis serve, playing a piano, tying your shoes, etc.

long-term potentiation

strengthening of synapses based on recent patterns of activity leads to long-lasting increase in signal transmission between neurons (biological look at memory storage); as experience strengthens the pathways between neurons, synapses transmit signals more efficiently; rehearsing memories strengthens neural pathways which strengthens the memory

multi-store model

R. Atkinson & R. Shiffrin's 3-stage model (1968); sensory memory, short term memory, & long term memory

sensory memory

immediate, very brief recording of sensory information (only 3-4 seconds until processed or discarded)

iconic memory

momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; brief photographic memory (milliseconds); ex: remembering word's spelling long enough to write it

echoic memory

momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; ex: remembering last few words your teacher said

short term memory (STM)

briefly activated memory of a few items that is later stored or forgotten; can handle 5-9 items at once (like bookshelf with limited capacity)

long term memory (LTM)

relatively permanent & limitless archive of memory system; includes knowledge, skills, & experiences

working memory model

A. Baddeley's model (2002); thought short-term memory was not best phrasing for active memory usage; instead, he called 'short-term memory' working memory

working memory

conscious, active processing of both incoming sensory info & info retrieved from long term memory; central executive, phonological loop, & visuospatial sketchpad

central executive

memory component that coordinates activities of phonological loop & visuospatial sketchpad; makes you focus your attention & process what you're doing

visuospatial sketchpad

memory component that briefly holds info about objects' appearance & location in space; ex: remembering where your car is parked

phonological loop

memory component that briefly holds auditory info; ex: a phone number as someone says it to you

levels of processing model

F. Craik & R. Lockhart's model; theorized that level/depth of processing of a stimuli has large effect on memorability; deeper analysis produces more elaborate, longer lasting, & stronger memory traces than shallow levels of analysis

structural processing

Shallow processing; merely become aware of incoming information; encoding only physical qualities (i.e. letters) of word.

phonemic processing

Intermediate processing; processing sound of a word; explains why we type homonyms as we write.

semantic processing

Deep processing; taking in meaning (i.e. semantic) of word & relate it to similar words with similar meanings.

encoding

Conversion of sensory input into form capable of being processed & entered into memory.

automatic processing

Effortless & unconscious processing; ex: recalling what you ate yesterday, knowing arrangement of furniture in room.

effortful processing

Requires attention and conscious effort; often relies on rehearsal; ex: studying for quiz, learning lock combination.

rehearsal

Conscious repetition.

mnemonic device

General term for any strategy/technique used to remember information; method of loci, chunking, hierarchies.

method of loci

Mnemonic device involving picturing objects within familiar space or mental image & using this to recall information.

chunking

Organizing information into familiar & manageable units; often occurs automatically.

hierarchies

Systems in which concepts are arranged from more general to more specific.

spacing effect

Memories are better retained through distributed practice than massed practice.

massed practice

Continuous practice of activity/skill without rest periods; ex: practicing free throws until you make 10 in a row.

distributed practice

Practice with breaks for feedback or mental rehearsal; ex: practicing a play as a team w/ pauses between attempts to discuss.

serial positioning effect

Tendency to remember first & last in series; primacy & recency effects.

primacy effect

Recalling first/facts items presented better.

recency effect

Recalling last facts/items presented better.

storage

Retention of encoded information.

maintenance rehearsal

Repeating items over & over to maintain them in short term memory; ex: repeating phone number until it has been encoded; does NOT effectively promote long-term retention because it involves little elaboration of info.

elaborative rehearsal

Forming memory by linking new info to previously learned info; helps commit info to long-term memory; contextualizes info for better storage and retrieval; ex: mnemonic devices, chunking, rhymes/puns, acronyms.

autobiographical memory

Memory about the self; experiences in your own life; consists of episodic & semantic memory; self-related factual knowledge.

infantile amnesia

Inability of adults to remember episodic experiences from first few years of life (0-3 generally) AND tendency to have sparse recollection of episodic experiences before age 10.

amnesia

Loss of memory; retrograde vs anterograde.

retrograde amnesia

Inability to remember pre-existing memories.

anterograde amnesia

Inability to make new memories (problem between STM & LTM).

retrieval

Process of getting memories out of storage; recall & recognition; cues from current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of earlier life experience (context & state dependent memory).

recall

Retrieving info not in conscious awareness; ex: fill-in-the-blank questions.

recognition

Identifying items previously learned; ex: multiple choice questions.

context-dependent memory

Memories are more easily recalled in same context (environment/place) as when they were encoded.

state-dependent memory

Memories are more easily recalled in the same mental state as when they were encoded (clear-headed, drunk/high, drowsy, hungry, etc.).

mood-congruent memory

Type of state-dependent memory; tendency to recall experiences consistent with one's current mood; emotions that accompany an event become retrieval cues.

testing effect

Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading info; spaced study and self-testing are far better than cramming and just rereading materials.

metacognition

Being aware of your own thinking; ex: reflecting on best study habits or using similar problems you've solved before.