UNIT 2 AP Pychology Terms

Perception

the process of interpreting the information we obtain through our five senses. Interpreting a stimulus

Sensation

the raw data or information we receive from our sensory receptors. Detecting stimulus.

Top Down processing

when you use your prior knowledge and experience to interpret the information. Helps us understand process things in a relatively efficient and quick manner.

Bottom Up Processing

when the stimuli or experience is complex and not familiar to the individual. We often build our perception from the ground up.

Schemas

a mental framework built from our past experiences, they are essentially a cognitive structure based on an individual's experiences.

Perceptual Set

mental shortcut your brain uses to quickly interpret what you're experiencing.

Selective Attention

when we focus on a particular stimulus, we often tune out other stimuli in our environment. Helps manage which sensory input is important, and filters out the irrelevant

Inattentional Blindness

When our attention is divided, we often experience inattentional blindness, which is the failure to notice stimuli in our visual field due to our attention being focused elsewhere.

Change Blindness

we fail to notice changes in the environment a type of Inattentional Blindness

Apparent Movement

when we perceive motion when nothing is actually moving, we interpret still images as they are moving.

Phi Phenomenon

occurs when light blink on and off in sequence, results in us perceiving objects as moving even though the objects are stationary.

Induced Movement

a stationary object appears to move because of the motion of surrounding objects.

Autokinetic effect

when a stationary point of light in a dark environment appears to move.

Gestalt Psychology

Help explain how we organize our perceptual world, focuses on how humans naturally group elements together to form meaningful patterns.

Figure Ground

describes how our visual system separates what we see into two categories, the figure main object) and the ground the background).

Continuation

explains why our eyes naturally follow continuous lines or paths.

Closure

how our brain subconsciously fills in missing information when viewing a familiar but incomplete object. Filling in a circle with missing parts.

Similarity

refer to how we perceive a group of similar objects or patterns as one cohesive unit. Explains why we see an Anomaly, when an object is different from the others, the anomaly becomes the focal point and stands out.

Proximity

when objects are placed close to each other they are perceived as a single group, while objects that are spaced further apart are seen as separate entities.

Symmetry

objects that are symmetrical are perceived as one.

Depth perception

the ability to perceive relative distance of an object in ones visual field.

Binocular Cues

both eyes work together, close objects our eyes converge together), when looking at distant objects straight line).

Retinal Disparity

slight difference in the visual information received by each of our two eyes due to their horizontal separation. 3d object

Monocular Cues

only require one eye and help us perceive depth on 2d or flat objects.

Relative Size

objects that appear closer to us will appear larger while objects that are farther away will appear smaller.

Interposition

when objects are blocked by another object they are most likely farther away, while objects that are not obstructed are closer.

Relative Height

objects that are higher appear to be farther away compared to objects that are lower

Shading and Contour

Parts of an image that are hazy and have less detail appear to be farther away while objects that are more clear and in focus are closer.

Linear Perspective

when parallel lines converge at a point in the distance, this helps us with positioning and depth.

Motion Parallax

objects closer to you appear to move faster compared to objects further away and appear to move slower.

Perceptual Constancy

the ability to perceive objects as having consistent shape, size, color, and lightness, even when their appearance changes due to varying conditions.

Size Constancy

the brain's tendency to perceive objects as the same size

Color Constancy

when we perceive the color of an object to remain consistent even if the lighting changes.

Shape Constancy

the tendency of the brain to perceive an object's shape as the same even when it moves.

Lightness Constancy

perceive the blackness, whiteness, and grayness of an objective as consistent even under different lighting conditions.

Concepts

mental categories that help us organize and understand the world. Group similar objects/ ideas into one classification.

Prototype

the most basic or typical example of a concept, serves as a mental image that illustrates the concept and acts as a cognitive reference point.

Schemas

complex mental frameworks that organize and interpret information about the world. Organizing information.

Modified schemas

occur because of assimilation, when we fit new information into existing schemas. Adds new information, without altering the schemas.

Accommodation

when we change our schemas to incorporate new information. Adds new information, by altering the schemas.

Executive functions

occur in the Prefrontal Cortex and the Frontal Lobe. Language, Judgement, Logic, and Reasoning.

Algorithm

a person tackles a problem step by step in a systematic way.

Heuristic

mental shortcuts based on past experiences

Representativeness Heuristics

involves making judgments based on how something resembles or represents a typical case/ stereotype. Overlook information based on personal bias.

Availability heuristic

involves making judgements based on how easily examples come to mind. Decisions are influenced by recent memories, instead of all the facts.

Mental Sets

cognitive framework that relies on past experience and successful strategies to solve new problems. Problem solving.

Priming

exposure to one stimulus influences how we respond to a later stimulus.

Repetition Priming

exposed to a specific stimulus that makes it easier to recognize the same or similar stimulus later.

Semantic Priming

occurs when the prime and the target are semantically related – meaning they are connected in meaning. Exposure to one word or concept makes it easier or faster to process a related word or concept.

Framing

how information is presented which can shape how we interpret and react to it, influences our decisions and judgements.

Creativity

individuals create new original ideas and solutions

Divergent thinking

when a person explores many possible solutions, expanding the range of options for solving a problem.

Convergent thinking

narrowing down the possibilities to identify the single best solution.

Expertise

the more knowledge you have about a subject, the more likely they are to apply it in new ways.

Imaginative thinking,

an individual must be able to view concepts in unique and creative ways

Venturesome Personality

seeking out new experience and embrace challenges that will help them grow

Intrinsic motivation

moust have an internal drive to pursue a goal for personal satisfaction rather than external rewards.

Functional fixedness

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

Gambler's Fallacy

event occurs more frequently than normal during a given period, it will happen less frequently in the future, vice versa.

Sunk Cost Fallacy

tendency to continue to pursue an action in which you have already invested money ime or resources into.

Memory

information that persists over time, acquired through various experiences and can be stored and retrieved later.

Explicit memory

involves information that we consciously recall; these memories require effort and thought.

Episodic Memory

type of explicit, long-term memory that involves the conscious recollection of personal experiences and specific events that occurred at a particular time and place.ughts

Semantic Memory

explicit, long-term memory that involves the conscious recollection of general knowledge, facts, concepts, and word meanings.

Implicit Memory

are a type of long-term memory that operates unconsciously and influences our behavior without our awareness of the prior experience

Procedural Memory

helps us recall how to perform tasks such as motor skills and routines

Prospect Memory

remembering to perform future actions like recalling to take medication at a specific time or attending a meeting next week.

Parallel processing

the brain's ability to handle multiple streams of information simultaneously, explicit, and the implicit

Long term Potentiation

strengthen the synaptic connections between neurons in the brain, allow for more retention of information and skill, important for memory

Metacognition

Awareness of your own cognitive processes

The working model

explain how our primary memory system, known as working memory processes and temporality holds information for cognitive tasks.

Visuospatial Sketchpad

handles visual and spatial information, allows us to visualize objects and their location.

Phonological loop

deals with verbal and auditory information

Phonological store

holds spoken words and sounds for a short period of time.

Articulatory rehearsal process

helps your repeat and rehearse verbale information to keep it active in your working memory.

Central Executive

control center of working memory, focus attention, prioritizing tasks, switching between different activities, and integrating information.

Episodic buffer

how long term memory integrates with working memory and how different types of information such as sounds and visuals combined. Acts as a temporary storage system combined from phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, and long term memory.

Multi-Store Model

explains how information is processed, stored, and retrieved, focuses on three key systems information must pass through to be remembered.

Stimulus visual memory stored for 1 second), and Echoic Memory

Stored in visual memory stored for 1 second

Echoic Memory

auditory sensory memory information is gathered with no conscious effort. Information moves into the working memory

short term memory

if it gets your attention only holds a limited amount of information for a short amount of time

Maintenance rehearsal,

where you repeatedly go over information to prevent forgetting

Elaborative rehearsal

connect new information to something you already know which makes it easier to remember.Information in working memory moves into long term memory, by encoding. Then when the information is needed it is retrieved from long term memory.

Structural Processing

basic level, the focus is on the physical appearance

Phonemic Processing

deeper level, focus on how information sounds

Semantic Processing

deepest level, focus is on the meaning of the information

Encoding

The process and strategies we use to take in information and store it in our long term memory.

Visual Encoding

encode information by the visual elements we observe

Acoustic encoding

different sound element help with the encoding process

Tactile encoding

we use the feeling of touch when encoding the information

Organizational Encoding

the process of grouping information into meaningful categories or sequences to improve memory

Elaborative encoding

when you pair new information with prior knowledge.

Semantic encoding

focus on the meaning or context of the information

Mnemonic Devices

Help people remember information more easily by organizing it in a way that's easier to recall. Use acronyms, visual images, associations, or rhymes.

The Method of Loci

help you remember information by associating it with a specific location in a familiar setting. Uses spatial memory and vivid imagery to enhance recall making it easier to remember detailed information

Chunking

involves grouping individual pieces of information into larger, more manageable units.

Organizing info into Categories/Hierarchies

helps the brain create connections between related concepts, making it easier to store and retrieve the information later on.

The Spacing Effect

to maximize encoding space out studying and practice distributed practice too see real learning.

The Testing Effect

the phenomenon when taking a test on previously learned material improves memory retention more than simply restudying the material.

The Serial Position Effect

when studying information we have a set order in which the information is presented to us this can cause us to only remember the last middle or first thing we learned. Primacy the first thing in the set is often the most encoded in long term memory. Recently the last thing in a set is the easiest to recall, because its still refreshed.In the middle, least encoded to long term memory and hardest to remember.