AP PSYCH - Memory, Thinking, and Language (Unit 6)

Repression

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness to the unconscious

Phonemes

in language, the smallest distinctive sound unit

Morphemes

The smallest units of meaning in a language.

Phonemes VS Morphemes

basic SOUND units vs. basic units of MEANING

Semantics

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; also, the study of meaning

Syntax (a part of Semantics)

the rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language; essentially, it's grammar

Syntax VS. Semantics

one is the set of rules that govern the formation of phrases, whereas the other governs the meaning of words. (1# = rules, #2 = meaning)

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten

Procedural Memories

memories for the performance of actions or skills ("knowing how"); retrieved from implicit memory

declarative memory

the cognitive information retrieved from explicit memory; knowledge that can be declared, such as facts and events

Procedural vs. Declarative Memory

memories of motor skills (how to do an action e.g. tie your shoes), can not be explained in words and are implicit VS

memories that can be stated in words (facts and events) and are explicit

Recall

A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test.

Recognition

a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test

Relearning

a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time (ex. Flashcards)

Recall vs. Recognition

One refers to our ability to "recognize" an event or piece of information as being familiar, while the other designates the retrieval of related details from memory (fill-in-the-blank VS multiple choice)

Retrograde Amnesia

loss of memory from the point of some injury or trauma BACKWARDS, or loss of memory for the past

Anterograde Amnesia

the inability to transfer new information from the short-term store into the long-term store; can't make new memories

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

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

Proactive Interference

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information

Retroactive Inference

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

Proactive VS Retroactive Inference

previous learning hurts new learning VS. new learning hurts old stuff

Concepts

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

Prototypes

a mental image or best example of a category

Concepts vs. Prototypes

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people VS. a mental image or best example of a category, acting as quick and easy method for sorting items into categories

Functional Fixedness/Mental Set

the tendency to perceive an item only in terms of its most common use (opposite of divergent thinking)

Algorithm

A methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem.

Divergent Thinking

expands the number of possible problem solutions (creative thinking that diverges in different directions)

Convergent Thinking

narrows the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution

Divergent VS Convergent Thinking

solving problems with many possible solutions

VS solving problems with a single, correct answer

Availability Heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness), we presume such events are common

Representative Heuristic

a mental shortcut whereby people classify something according to how similar it is to a typical case

Availability Heuristic VS Representative Heuristic

the tendency to believe that something is more common or more likely to happen just because it is more readily obtainable in our memory VS. a tendency to make judgments based on the probability of something happening/someone being a certain way based on our typical idea of a particular event/person

Wolfgang Kohler

Gestalt psychologist that first demonstrated insight through his chimpanzee experiments. he noticed the solution process wasn't slow, but sudden and reflective (i.e. The Ah-Ha! Moment/Effect)

Noam Chomsky

Believed that language was innate/inborn and that we had a universal grammar and language acquisition devices

B.F. Skinner

Disagreed with Chomsky; thought that language was learned, not innate, and that there wasn't a universal grammar

Chomsky vs B.F. Skinner

The "Nature vs Nurture" debate of language

Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis (Whorf)

proposes that language actually determines the nature of thought and predicts that cultures have different ways of thinking about the world because they have different languages (ex. Whorf went to a WHORF and talked to the Hopi people, who didn't have a word for green because they lived in the arctic.)