AP Psychology Unit 5 Test

memory

the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information

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

encoding

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

storage

the process of retaining encoded information over time

retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory storage

parallel processing

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously

sensory memory

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly

long-term memory

the relatively permanent storage of information

working memory

a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory

explicit memory

retention of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare"

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental information

implicit memory

retention of learned skills or classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection

iconic memory

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli

echoic memory

a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli

chunking

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically

mnemonics

memory aids

spacing effect

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information

shallow processing

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

deep processing

encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words

semantic memory

explicit memory of facts and general knowledge

episodic memory

memory of personally experienced events

hippocampus

a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage

memory consolidation

the neural storage of a long-term memory

flashbulb memory

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

long-term potentiation (LTP)

an increase in a cell's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation

priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

encoding specificity principle

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

mood-congruent memory

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

serial position effect

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list

anterograde amnesia

an inability to form new memories

retrograde amnesia

an inability to retrieve information from one's past

proactive interference

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

retroactive interference

the backward-acting disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information

repression

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

reconsolidation

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

misinformation effect

occurs when misleading information has distorted one's memory of an event

source amnesia

faulty memory for how, when, or where information was learned or imagined

deja vu

that eerie sense that "I've experienced this before." Cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.

cognition

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

concept

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

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category

creativity

the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas

convergent thinking

narrowing the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution

divergent thinking

expanding the number of possible problem solutions; creative thinking that diverges in different directions

algorithm

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

heuristic

a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently

insight

a sudden realization of a problem's solution

confirmation bias

a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence

fixation

the inability to see a problem from a new perspective

mental set

a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past

intuition

an effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning

representativeness heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead us to ignore other relevant information

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

overconfidence

the tendency to be more confident than correct

belief perseverance

clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited

framing

the way an issue is posed

language

our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning

phoneme

smallest unit of sound

morpheme

smallest unit of meaning

grammar

a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others

babbling stage

beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language

one-word stage

the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words

two-word stage

beginning about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly two-word statements

telegraphic speech

early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram—"go car"—using mostly nouns and verbs.

aphasia

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding).

broca's area

controls language expression - an area, usually in the left frontal lobe, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.

wernicke's area

a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe

linguistic determinism

language determines the way we think

linguistic influence

the idea that language affects thought

intelligence test

a method for assessing an individual's mental aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, using numerical scores

achievement test

a test designed to assess what a person has learned

aptitude test

a test designed to predict a person's future performance

mental age

a measure of intelligence test performance devised by Binet; the chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance

stanford-binet

the widely used American revision of Binet's original intelligence test.

intelligence quotient (IQ)

defined originally as the ratio of mental age to chronological age multiplied by 100

standardization

defining uniform testing procedures and meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested group

normal curve

the symmetrical bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes

reliability

the extent to which a test yields consistent results, as assessed by the consistency of scores on two halves of the test, on alternate forms of the test, or on retesting

validity

the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

content validity

the extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest

predictive validity

the success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior.

cohort

a group of people sharing a common characteristic, such as from a given time period

crystallized intelligence

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

fluid intelligence

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

cross-sectional study

research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time

longitudinal study

research that follows and retests the same people over time

intellectual disability

a condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence score of 70 or below and difficulty in adapting to the demands of life; varies from mild to profound

down syndrome

a condition of intellectual disability and associated physical disorders caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21.

heritability

The proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes. The heritability of a trait may vary, depending on the range of populations and environments studied.

stereotype threat

a self-confirming concern that one will be evaluated based on a negative stereotype