AP Psychology Review: Perception, Cognition, Memory, and Intelligence

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering perception, heuristics, problem-solving obstacles, memory systems, and intelligence theories from Units 2.1 through 2.8.

Absolute Threshold

The minimum stimulus needed to detect a signal $50\%$ of the time.

Difference Threshold (JND)

The minimum change needed to detect a difference between two stimuli.

Weber's Law

The principle stating that to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant percentage, not a constant amount.

Bottom-Up Processing

Data-driven processing that builds perception from sensory details by using input from the senses first.

Top-Down Processing

Perceptual processing that uses prior experience, expectations, context, or schemas to interpret sensory input.

Figure-Ground

A Gestalt principle involving the distinguishing of an object (figure) from its background (ground).

Perceptual Set

A mental predisposition to perceive something one way rather than another due to context, expectations, or culture.

Algorithm

A step-by-step procedure that guarantees a solution, but is slow to execute.

Heuristic

A simple thinking shortcut or rule of thumb that is fast, but error-prone.

Availability Heuristic

Estimating the likelihood of an event based on how easily examples come to mind.

Representativeness Heuristic

Judging the likelihood of something based on how well it fits a prototype, stereotype, or typical image.

Confirmation Bias

Searching only for evidence that supports a predefined view.

Functional Fixedness

An obstacle to problem solving that involves thinking of objects only in terms of their usual function.

Mental Set

Approaching a problem in a way that worked in the past, even if it does not work in the current situation.

Belief Perseverance

Clinging to initial beliefs even after they have been disproven.

Explicit (Declarative) Memory

Conscious recall of memories (episodic for personal experiences and semantic for facts/concepts), handled by the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.

Implicit (Nondeclarative) Memory

Unconscious memory (procedural for skills/muscle memory and classical conditioning), handled by the cerebellum and basal ganglia.

Chunking

An encoding strategy that involves organizing items into familiar units.

Spacing Effect

The principle that spaced study yields better retention than massed practice (cramming).

Proactive Interference

A memory interference phenomenon where past memories block the retrieval of new ones.

Retroactive Interference

A memory interference phenomenon where recent memories block the retrieval of old ones.

Misinformation Effect

The alteration of eyewitness memories by misleading post-event information, as researched by Loftus.

Source Amnesia

Attributing an event or idea to the wrong source.

Spearman’s g factor

A general intelligence factor underlying all mental abilities.

Fluid Intelligence ($G_f$)

Fast reasoning and abstract problem-solving ability that peaks in young adulthood and declines with age.

Crystallized Intelligence ($G_c$)

Accumulated knowledge and vocabulary that increases or remains stable with age.

Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory

An intelligence model proposing three distinct types: Analytical, Creative, and Practical.

Gardner's Multiple Intelligences

A theory of intelligence proposing $8$ distinct modalities, such as linguistic, spatial, and kinesthetic.

Reliability

The consistency of test scores, determined by whether retaking an assessment yields the same result.

Validity

The accuracy of a test, evaluating whether it truly measures what it claims to measure.

Content Validity

A psychometric property evaluating whether a test covers the full scope of the material.

Predictive Validity

A psychometric property evaluating whether a test accurately predicts future performance.