Units 0-2
Perception
Definition: The way your brain organizes and understands what your senses pick up.
Example: You see squiggly lines on paper, but your brain turns them into words.
Bottom-Up Processing & Top-Down Processing
Bottom-up: Using raw sensory info to build understanding.
Top-down: Using past knowledge and expectations to interpret what you see.
Example: Bottom-up: Noticing colors and shapes of a dog. Top-down: Recognizing “Oh, that’s my neighbor’s dog.”
Schemas (Assimilation & Accommodation)
Schemas: Mental “folders” for what you know.
Assimilation: Fitting new info into an old folder.
Accommodation: Creating/changing a folder for new info.
Example: A kid sees a zebra → says “horse” (assimilation). Learns it’s a different animal → creates “zebra” folder (accommodation).
Perceptual Sets
Definition: A readiness to see things in a certain way based on expectations.
Example: If you’re told a picture shows a monster, you’ll likely see the monster instead of a tree.
Context, Experience, and Culture on Perception
Definition: What you’ve lived through changes how you see the world.
Example: Someone from the city might see skyscrapers as exciting, but someone from the country might find them overwhelming.
Gestalt Principles
Closure: Filling in gaps to see a whole picture.
Figure and Ground: Separating the main object from the background.
Proximity: Grouping things that are close together.
Similarity: Grouping things that look alike.
Example: Seeing a dotted outline as a full circle (closure).
Attention’s Impact (Internal & External)
Definition: What you focus on affects what you notice and miss.
Example: Thinking hard about a test (internal) might make you not hear your name called (external).
Cocktail Party Effect
Definition: Being able to focus on one voice in a noisy room.
Example: Hearing your name across a crowded cafeteria.
Inattentional Blindness
Definition: Missing something obvious when focused on something else.
Example: Not noticing a clown on a unicycle while texting.
Change Blindness
Definition: Not noticing when something changes in front of you.
Example: A magician switches cards and you don’t notice.
Binocular Cues
Retinal Disparity: Each eye sees slightly different images → brain compares them to judge distance.
Convergence: Eyes move inward as objects get closer.
Example: Crossing your eyes when a pencil is near your face.
Monocular Cues
Relative Clarity: Blurry = far.
Relative Size: Bigger = closer.
Texture Gradient: More detail = closer.
Linear Perspective: Parallel lines meet in the distance.
Interposition: One object blocks another → it’s closer.
Example: Railroad tracks looking like they meet at the horizon (linear perspective).
Perceptual Constancies (Shape & Size)
Definition: Seeing objects as the same even when they look different.
Example: A door looks like a rectangle whether it’s open or closed.
Relative Motion
Definition: Things closer move faster across your vision; far things move slower.
Example: Looking out a car window: fence zooms by, mountains crawl.2.2 – Thinking & Problem-Solving
Concepts
Definition: Mental categories we use to group similar things.
Example: “Fruit” is a concept that includes apples, bananas, and grapes.
Prototypes
Definition: The “best example” in a concept.
Example: When you think of “bird,” you picture a robin more than a penguin.
Schemas (Assimilation & Accommodation)
Definition: Mental frameworks for understanding.
Assimilation: Fit new info into what you already know.
Accommodation: Adjust your framework to include new info.
Example: A kid calls a cow “dog” (assimilation), then learns it’s a cow (accommodation).
Algorithms
Definition: Step-by-step methods that guarantee an answer.
Example: Trying every key on a key ring until one unlocks the door.
Heuristics
Definition: Mental shortcuts—faster but not always correct.
Example: Guessing the short grocery line by looking at the number of carts, not people.
Representative Heuristic
Definition: Judging based on how well something matches a prototype.
Example: Assuming a quiet kid with glasses must be a bookworm.
Availability Heuristic
Definition: Judging based on what comes to mind easily.
Example: After seeing shark attack news, you think sharks are more common than they are.
Mental Set
Definition: Sticking to old problem-solving strategies even if they don’t work.
Example: Always trying to solve a math problem the same way, even when a new method would be faster.
Priming
Definition: Being unconsciously prepared to think or act a certain way.
Example: Seeing the word “yellow” makes you quicker to recognize the word “banana.”
Framing
Definition: How something is presented affects decisions.
Example: Saying “95% fat-free” sounds better than “5% fat.”
Gambler’s Fallacy
Definition: Thinking past random events change future ones.
Example: Believing a coin is “due” to land heads after five tails in a row.
Sunk-Cost Fallacy
Definition: Continuing something just because you’ve already invested in it.
Example: Sitting through a boring movie because you already bought the ticket.
Executive Functions
Definition: Mental skills for planning, focusing, and controlling behavior.
Example: Using self-control to study instead of playing video games.
Creativity
Definition: Thinking of new and valuable ideas.
Example: Inventing a new app that solves a common problem.
Divergent vs. Convergent Thinking
Divergent: Many possible ideas/answers.
Convergent: One correct answer.
Example: Brainstorming all uses for a paperclip (divergent) vs. solving a math equation (convergent).
Functional Fixedness
Definition: Only seeing objects in their usual use.
Example: Not realizing you can use a shoe as a hammer.
Explicit Memory (Episodic & Semantic)
Definition: Memories you can consciously recall.
Episodic: Personal events.
Semantic: Facts and knowledge.
Example: Remembering your last birthday party (episodic) vs. knowing the capital of France (semantic).
Implicit Memory (Procedural)
Definition: Memories you don’t think about—skills or habits.
Example: Riding a bike or tying your shoes.
Prospective Memory
Definition: Remembering to do something in the future.
Example: Remembering to bring your homework tomorrow.
Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)
Definition: Strengthening of brain connections when you practice/learn.
Example: The more you study vocab words, the faster your brain recalls them.
Working Memory Model
Definition: Explains how we hold and use info in the short term.
Central Executive: The “boss” that directs attention.
Phonological Loop: Holds sounds/words.
Visuospatial Sketchpad: Holds images and locations.
Example: Doing mental math while imagining the numbers in your head.
Multi-Store Model of Memory
Definition: Memory has 3 stores: sensory, short-term, long-term.
Example: You hear a phone number (sensory), repeat it for a few seconds (short-term), and remember it for years if practiced (long-term).
Sensory Memory (Iconic & Echoic)
Definition: Very brief memory of senses.
Iconic: Visual (less than a second).
Echoic: Auditory (a few seconds).
Example: You can “see” a sparkler’s trail after it’s gone (iconic).
Short-Term Memory
Definition: Small amount of info held briefly (about 7 items for 20–30 seconds).
Example: Remembering a phone number just long enough to dial it.
Long-Term Memory
Definition: Stores unlimited info for a long time.
Example: Remembering how to read.
Automatic vs. Effortful Processing
Automatic: Things remembered without effort.
Effortful: Requires practice and attention.
Example: What you ate for breakfast (automatic) vs. memorizing a list for a test (effortful).
Encoding, Storage, & Retrieval
Encoding: Getting info into memory.
Storage: Keeping it over time.
Retrieval: Pulling it out later.
Example: Studying vocabulary (encoding), remembering it for weeks (storage), and answering it on a test (retrieval).
Levels of Processing Model (Structural, Phonemic, Semantic)
Definition: Deeper processing = better memory.
Structural: Looks.
Phonemic: Sounds.
Semantic: Meaning.
Example: You’ll remember the word “dog” better if you think about “a pet that barks” (semantic) rather than just how it’s spelled (structural).
Encoding
Definition: The process of putting info into your memory.
Example: Listening carefully in class so you can remember later.
Mnemonic Devices (Method of Loci)
Definition: Memory tricks that help you remember.
Example: Method of loci = imagine items placed around your house. If you want to remember a shopping list, picture milk in your fridge and bread on your couch.
Chunking
Definition: Grouping info into smaller chunks.
Example: Remembering 177618621941 as 1776–1862–1941 (important years).
Spacing Effect
Definition: Studying a little over time works better than cramming.
Example: Reviewing vocab words every night instead of the night before the test.
Massed Practice vs. Distributed Practice
Massed: Cramming all at once.
Distributed: Spreading practice out.
Example: Distributed practice helps you remember better for finals.
Serial Position Effect (Primacy & Recency)
Definition: You remember the first and last items best.
Primacy: First items.
Recency: Last items.
Example: In a grocery list, you recall “milk” and “cookies,” but forget the middle items.
📦 2.5 – Storing Memories
Memory Types (Sensory, Short-Term, Working, Long-Term)
Definition: Stages of memory storage.
Example: Seeing a phone number (sensory), repeating it (short-term/working), remembering it for years (long-term).
Rehearsal & Elaborative Rehearsal
Rehearsal: Repeating info.
Elaborative: Linking info to meaning.
Example: Rehearsal = repeating “dog, dog, dog.” Elaborative = “dogs bark, like my pet Max.”
Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM)
Definition: Extremely rare ability to remember nearly every life detail.
Example: Someone can tell you what they ate on a random day 20 years ago.
Amnesia (Retrograde, Anterograde, Infantile)
Retrograde: Can’t remember past.
Anterograde: Can’t form new memories.
Infantile: Adults can’t remember baby years.
Example: After a crash, someone forgets their childhood (retrograde).
Alzheimer’s Disease
Definition: Brain disorder causing memory loss and confusion.
Example: A grandma slowly forgets names of family members.
🔎 2.6 – Retrieving Memories
Retrieval Process
Definition: Getting info out of memory storage.
Example: Thinking hard to remember your locker combo.
Recall vs. Recognition
Recall: Pulling info out without clues.
Recognition: Identifying with clues.
Example: Recall = writing an essay. Recognition = picking from multiple choice.
Context-Dependent Memory
Definition: Remembering better where you first learned it.
Example: Taking a test in the same classroom you studied in.
Mood-Congruent Memory
Definition: Remembering things that match your current mood.
Example: When sad, you remember other sad times.
State-Dependent Memory
Definition: Remembering better when in the same physical/mental state.
Example: Remembering something you learned while chewing gum, only when you chew gum again.
Testing Effect
Definition: Quizzing yourself helps memory more than just rereading.
Example: Flashcards are better than reading notes over and over.
Metacognition
Definition: Thinking about your own thinking.
Example: Realizing “I don’t really understand this chapter, I should study more.”
❌ 2.7 – Forgetting & Memory Problems
Forgetting Curve
Definition: We forget quickly at first, then slowly over time.
Example: You forget half of what you studied in a day if you don’t review.
Encoding Failure
Definition: Info never got stored properly.
Example: You see a penny every day but don’t know which way Lincoln faces.
Interference (Proactive & Retroactive)
Proactive: Old info blocks new.
Retroactive: New info blocks old.
Example: Proactive = keep typing your old password. Retroactive = forget old locker combo after learning new one.
Inadequate Retrieval (Tip of the Tongue)
Definition: You know you know it, but can’t get it out.
Example: “I know that actor’s name, it’s right on the tip of my tongue!”
Repression
Definition: Pushing painful memories out of awareness (Freud’s idea).
Example: Forgetting a childhood trauma.
Misinformation Effect
Definition: Memory gets changed by false info.
Example: Witnesses remember a car as “red” after hearing others say it was red, even if it was blue.
Source Amnesia
Definition: Forgetting where you learned something.
Example: Thinking you had a memory, but really you saw it in a movie.
Constructive Memory (Consolidation & Imagination Inflation)
Definition: Memories are built, not perfect—details can be added.
Example: Retelling a story over and over can make you add parts that never happened.
🧮 2.8 – Intelligence & Achievement
IQ, IQ Testing & Bias
Definition: A score to measure intelligence (but can be unfair due to cultural bias).
Example: A student’s IQ test may not reflect real ability if questions are culturally unfamiliar.
General Intelligence (g) vs. Multiple Intelligences
g: One overall intelligence.
Multiple: Different kinds (musical, bodily, etc.).
Example: Someone may struggle in math but excel in music.
IQ Original Formula
Definition: (Mental Age ÷ Chronological Age) × 100.
Example: A 10-year-old with the smarts of a 12-year-old has IQ = 120.
Psychometrics
Definition: The science of measuring mental abilities.
Example: Creating reliable IQ or personality tests.
Standardization vs. Factor Analysis
Standardization: Comparing test scores to a large group.
Factor Analysis: Finding clusters of related skills.
Example: SAT scores are standardized; factor analysis shows verbal/math are related but separate.
Validity
Definition: Test measures what it’s supposed to.
Example: A driving test should measure driving ability, not spelling.
Reliability (Test-Retest & Split-Half)
Definition: Test gives consistent results.
Test-Retest: Same score if taken again.
Split-Half: Two halves of test agree.
Example: If you take the SAT twice, scores should be similar.
Stereotype Threat vs. Lift
Threat: Fear of confirming a negative stereotype hurts performance.
Lift: Positive stereotypes boost performance.
Example: Women told “boys are better at math” may score lower (threat).
Flynn Effect
Definition: IQ scores have risen over generations.
Example: Average IQ today is higher than 100 years ago.
Socio-Cultural Bias, Poverty, Education
Definition: Environment and inequality affect test performance.
Example: Kids with fewer school resources may score lower, not because they’re less smart.
Achievement vs. Aptitude Tests
Achievement: What you’ve learned.
Aptitude: Potential to learn.
Example: AP Psych exam = achievement; SAT = aptitude.
Fixed vs. Growth Mindset
Fixed: Believing intelligence is set.
Growth: Believing intelligence can improve with effort.
Example: Fixed = “I’m just bad at math.” Growth = “I can get better if I practice.”