Studied by 31 peoplememory
the persistence of learning over time through the encoding, 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 identifies items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test
relearning
a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material again
encoding
getting information into memory system-for example, by extracting meaning.
storage
retaining info in memory
retrieval
getting information out of memory storage.
parallel processing
processing many aspects of a problem simultaneously;the brains natural mode of information processing for many functions
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, such as digits of a phone number while calling, before the info is stored or forgotten
long-term memory
the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. includes knowledge, skills, and experiences
working memory
a newer understanding of short-term memory that adds conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual info, and of info 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 info, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned info, such as word meanings
implicit memory
retention of learned skills or classically conditioned associations independent of conscious recollection
iconic memory
a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second
echoic memory
a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds
chunking
organizing items into familiar, manageable units, often occurs automatically
mnemonics
memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices
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; tends to yield the best retention
semantic memory
explicit memory of facts and general knowledge; one of the conscious memory systems
episodic memory
explicit memory of personally experienced events; one of the conscious memory systems
hippocampus
a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit (conscious) memories
memory consolidation
the neural storage of a long-term memory
flashbulb memory
a clear, sustained memory of an emotionally significant moment or event
long-term potentiation
an increase in a cell's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation; a neural basis for learning and memory
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 best recall the last and first items in a list
anterograde amnesia
an inability to form new memories
retrograde amnesia
an inability to retrieve info from one's past
proactive interference
the forward-acting disruptive effect of older learning on the recall of new info
retroactive interference
the backward-acting disruptive effect of newer learning on the recall of old info
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 info has distorted one's memory of an event
source amnesia
faulty memory for how, when, or where info was learned or imagined
deja vu
the eerie sense that "I've experienced this before." cues from the current situation may unconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.
cognition
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
concept
a mental groupng of similar objects, events, ideas or people
prototype
a mental image or best example of a category. matching new items to a prototype provides a quick and easy method for sorting items into categories
creativity
the ability to produce new 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. contrasts with the usually speedier but also more error-prone use of heuristics
hueristic
a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgements and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than an algorithim
insight
a sudden realization of a problem's solution; contrasts with strategy based solutions
confirmation bias
a tendency to search for info that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence
fixation
in cognition, the inability to see a problem from a new perspective; an obstacle to problem solving
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 thoughts, 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 info
availability hueristic
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--to overestimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments
belief perserverance
clinging to one's initial concepts after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited
framing
the way an issue is posed; how an issue is worded can significantly affect decisions and judgments
language
our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning.
phoneme
in a language, the smallest distinctive sound unit
morpheme
in a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or a part of a word
grammer
in a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others. Semantics is the language’s set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds, and syntax is its set of rules for combing words into grammatically sensible sentences.
babbling stage
beginning around 4 months,the stage of speech development in which an 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 in 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 (speaking) or to Wernicke's (understanding)
Broca’s area
helps control language expression-an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere , 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
the strong form of Whorf's hypothesis--that language controls the way we think and interpret the world around us
linguistic influence
the weaker form of "linguistic relativity"--the idea that language affects thought
intelligence
the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations
general intelligence
according to Spearman and others, underlies all 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
savant syndrome
a condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing
Sternberg's triarchic theory of intelligence
Analytical, creative, and practical intelligence
grit
passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals
emotional intelligence
the ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions
Thurstone's primary mental abilities
our intelligence may be broken down into 7 distinct factors
Gardner's multiple intelligences
our abilities are best classified into 8 or 9 independent intelligences, which include a broad range of skills beyond traditional school smarts
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; aptitude is the capacity to learn
mental age
a measure of intelligence test performance devised by Binet; the level of performance typically associated with children of a certain chronological age
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
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)
most widely used intelligence tests; contains verbal and performance subtests
standardization
defining uniform testing procedures and meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested group
normal curve
the 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 alternative forms of the test, or on retesting
validity
the extent to which a test measures of 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
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 with age, especially during late adulthood
cross-sectional study
research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time
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