Chapter 8 Vocabulary Key Terms

Cognitive Psychology

Inference

A logical conclusion or assumption drawn from available information or evidence.

Semantic memory

General knowledge about the world, including concepts, facts, and language.

Episodic memory

Memory for personal events and experiences tied to a specific time and place.

Category

A group of related items or concepts that share common features.

Concept

A mental representation of a category used to group similar objects, events, or ideas.

Situated cognition approach

The idea that knowledge is constructed within and linked to the context in which it is learned.

Prototype

The best or most typical example of a category.

Prototype approach

Proposes that people categorize items by comparing them to a mental prototype.

Prototypicality

The degree to which an item is representative of its category.

Graded structure

Categories vary in how well members represent the category, from best (prototypes) to least typical.

Typicality effect

People judge typical items faster and more accurately than atypical ones.

Semantic priming effect

Processing of a word or concept is faster when preceded by a related word.

Family resemblance

Members of a category share some but not all features, leading to category similarity without strict definitions.

Superordinate‐level categories

Broad and general categories (e.g., "animal").

Basic‐level categories

Moderately specific categories preferred in everyday conversation (e.g., "dog").

Subordinate‐level categories

Very specific categories (e.g., "golden retriever").

Exemplar approach

People categorize items by comparing them to examples (exemplars) stored in memory.

Exemplar

A specific example of a category member stored in memory.

Network models

Cognitive models that represent concepts as interconnected nodes in a network.

Collins and Loftus network model

A semantic network theory where concepts are connected by links with varying strength.

Node

A point in a semantic network that represents a concept.

Spreading activation

When one node is activated, related nodes are also activated through connections.

ACT‐R

A cognitive theory that models memory and thought processes using modules and networks.

Declarative knowledge

Knowledge of facts and information that can be consciously recalled.

Propositional network

A set of interconnected concepts represented by abstract statements or propositions.

Proposition

The smallest unit of knowledge that can be judged as true or false.

Parallel distributed processing (PDP) approach

A model suggesting that information is processed simultaneously across a network.

Connectionism

A theory that models cognitive processes through interconnected networks similar to neural networks.

Neural networks

Computer models inspired by the brain’s structure that learn through strengthening connections.

Spontaneous generalization

Filling in missing information based on related knowledge stored in memory.

Default assignment

Making assumptions about an object or event based on typical information in a schema.

Connection weights

Strength of the link between nodes in a network, influencing activation.

Graceful degradation

The ability of a network to function despite damage or incomplete information.

Tip‐of‐the‐tongue phenomenon

A temporary inability to retrieve a word while feeling that it’s just out of reach.

Schema

Generalized knowledge or expectation derived from past experiences that helps organize information.

Heuristic

A mental shortcut or rule of thumb that helps with problem solving or decision making.

Script

A schema for a typical sequence of events in a familiar activity (e.g., going to a restaurant).

Life script

Culturally shared expectations about the sequence and timing of life events.

Boundary extension

Tendency to remember more of a scene than was actually viewed.

Abstraction

Storing the gist or meaning of information rather than the exact details.

Verbatim memory

Memory for exact details or word-for-word information.

False alarm

Remembering something that didn’t happen because it fits with a schema or expectation.

Constructive model of memory

Proposes that memory is actively built using both stored and new information.

Pragmatic view of memory

Suggests people use memory strategically depending on goals and context.

Memory integration

Combining information from different sources into a unified memory representation.