MHS AP Psychology- Unit 2-Cognition

Genetic influence on intelligence?

The extent to which intelligence test score variation within a group can be attributed to genetic variation ranges from 50 percent to 80 percent.

Cognition

Mental activities related to thinking and knowing.

Metacognition

Thinking about one's own thinking processes. (cognition about cognition)

Concept

Mental grouping of similar objects or ideas.

Prototype

Mental image or Best example of a category.Forms concepts,

Schema

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information (ex. person schema where you think about someones personality, appearance, behavior)

Assimilation

Interpreting experiences using existing schemas.

Accommodation

Adapting schemas to incorporate new information.

Creativity

Producing new and valuable ideas.

Convergent Thinking

Narrowing solutions to find the best one.

Ex - SAT

Divergent Thinking

Expanding possible solutions to problems.

Ex - Creativity tests

Venturesome Personality

Seeks new experiences, tolerates ambiguity and risk, perseveres in overcoming obstacles (linked to creativity)

Executive Functions

Cognitive skills that work together; Enable us to generate, organize, plan, and implement goal-driven behavior

Algorithms

Methodical rules guaranteeing problem solutions.

Heuristics

Mental shortcuts for efficient problem-solving; Speedier but also more error-prone than an algorithm.

Insight

Sudden realization of a problem's solution.

Confirmation Bias

A cognitive bias where we seek information that supports existing beliefs.

Fixation

Inability to see problems from new perspectives.

Mental Set

A type of fixation; Tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past.

Intuition

Effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning.

Representativeness Heuristic

Judging likelihood based on prototype similarity; May lead us to ignore other relevant information.

Availability Heuristic

Judging likelihood based on memory availability.

Overconfidence

Overestimating accuracy of beliefs and judgments; If instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common.

Belief Perseverance

Persistence of initial beliefs despite contrary evidence; sometimes aided by confirmation bias

Sunk-cost fallacy

A type of overconfidence; stick to original plan because time was invested

Framing

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

Memory

Persistence of learning over time through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information.

Recall

A memory retention measure; Retrieving information that was learned at an earlier time, outside of conscious awareness; a specific type of retrieval that involves accessing information without a prompt

Recognition

A memory retention measure; Identify items previously learned.

Relearning

A memory retention measure; Learning something quicker than the first time.

To remember, we must? (3 things)

Encode

Store

Retrieve

Memory Encoding

process of getting information into the memory system — for example, by extracting meaning.

Memory Storage

process of retaining encoded information over time.

Memory Retrieval

general process of getting information out of memory storage.

Our brain uses Parallel processing, what is it?

processing multiple aspects of a stimulus or problem simultaneously;

Info-processing model called connectionsims views memories as products of interconnected neural networks

What are the 3 stages of the multi-store model?

1. Sensory Memory

2. Short-term memory

3. Long-term memory

Sensory Memory

Immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system.

Short-term memory

briefly activated memory of a few items that are later stored or forgotten.

long-term memory

Relatively permanent and limitless archive of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Working Memory

Conscious, active processing of both incoming sensory information and information retrieved from long-term memory.

Central Executive

the component of working memory that allocates mental resources among currently competing demands; coordinates the activities of the phonological loop and visuospatial sketchpad.

Phonological Loop

A memory component that briefly holds auditory information.

Visuospatial Sketchpad

Memory component that briefly holds information about objects' appearance and location in space.

Neurogenesis

Formation of new neurons.

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

a process whereby communication across the synapse between neurons strengthens the connection, making further communication easier

Explicit (declarative) memories

Retention of facts/experiences we consciously know and 'declare', encoded through effortful processing (Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort)

What are implicit (nondeclarative) memories?

Memories that involve the retention of learned skills and classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection.

How do implicit memories skip conscious encoding?

They barge directly into storage through automatic processing. (Unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of familiar or well-learned information, such as sounds, smells, and word meanings.)

Iconic Memory

Momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli, lasting no more than a few tenths of a second.

Echoic Memory

Momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli, where sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds if distracted.

Short Term Memory Capacity

About seven bits of information (+ or - 2) that disappears quickly without rehearsal.

Chunking

Organizing items into familiar, manageable units, often automatic.

Mnemonics

Memory aids, especially techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices.

Spacing Effect

Tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention rather than massed study or practice.

Testing Effect

Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading info, also referred to as retrieval practice effect.

Shallow Processing

encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words

Deep Processing

encoding semantically (way that is connected to the meaning of words, symbols), tends to yield best retention

Long-term memory capacity

Unlimited ability to store information over time.

What are the two types of explicit memory?

Semantic, Episodic

Semantic memory

Memory for facts and general knowledge; Help us group things based on shared characteristics

Episodic memory

Memory for personally experienced events.

How do schemas affect explicit memories

We more readily store explicit memories if they fit within existing schemas rather than if they don't match our understandings

How do frontal lobes process + store explicit memories

Hippocampus is like a "save button" that helps process memories; Cerebellum is key in forming and storing implicit memories created by classical conditioning; Basal Ganglia facilitate formation of procedural memories for skills, where it receives input from cortex, but doesn't send information back; Stress provokes the amygdala to initiate a memory trace

Memory Consolidation

Process of stabilizing memories after encoding; sleep supports

Flashbulb Memories

Vivid memories of emotionally significant events.

Retrieval cues

Hints that aid in accessing stored memories; Stress provokes the amygdala to initiate a memory trace; retrieve memories for both the past (retrospective memory) and future actions (prospective memory)

Priming

Unconscious activation of particular memory associations.

Encoding Specificity Principle

Idea that cues and contexts specific to a particular memory will be most effective in helping us recall it.

State-dependent Memory

Recall is easier in the same state as learning.

Mood Congruent Memory

Recall consistent with current emotional state.

Serial Position Effect

Tendency to recall best the last items in a list initially (recency effect), and the first items in a list after a delay (primacy effect).

Interleaving

Retrieval practice strategy that involves mixing the study of different topics.

Alzheimer's disease

Progressive loss of explicit memory function.

Encoding Failure

Inability to remember information not encoded.

Storage Decay

Forgetting occurs after initial encoding over time.

Gambler's Fallacy

the belief that the odds of a chance event increase if the event hasn't occurred recently

prospective memory

remembering to do something at some future time

Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM)

occurs when people can recall in considerable detail personal events from almost any day of their adolescent and adult life

method of loci (memory palace)

mnemonic that consists of associating items you want to remember with physical locations

tip of the tongue phenomenon

the temporary inability to remember something you know, accompanied by a feeling that it's just out of reach

Interleaving

a retrieval practice strategy that involves mixing the study of different topics.

serial position effect

our tendency to recall best the last (a recency effect) and first items (a primacy effect) in a list

mood-congruent memory

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood

anterograde amnesia

have trouble recalling new facts or events, but their memories of events before the condition began remain intact.

retrograde amnesia

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

proactive interference

when previously learned information makes it difficult to learn or recall new information.

retroactive interference

when new information makes it harder to recall previously learned information.

reconsolidation

a process in which previously stored memories, when retrieved, are potentially altered before being stored again

misinformation effect

a phenomenon where a person's memory of an event is distorted by misleading information that comes after the event

source amnesia

attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined

intelligence

mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations

general intelligence (g factor)

a general intelligence factor that, according to Spearman and others, underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test

factor analysis

a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person's total score. Spearman used to create "g" clusters of general intelligence

fluid intelligence

our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood

crystallized intelligence

our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age

Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Theory

the theory that our intelligence is based on g as well as specific abilities, bridged by fluid and crystallized intelligence

emotional intelligence

the ability to perceive, express, understand, and regulate emotions

achievement test

measures how much a person has learned in a given subject or area (Ex. Midterm exam)

aptitude test

a test designed to predict a person's future performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn (Ex. SAT/ACT)

mental age

a numerical scale unit derived by dividing an individual's results in an intelligence test by the average score for other people of the same age (no longer how IQ score is derived)