AP Psychology Unit Organizer Cognition (8-10%)

OBJECTIVES:  compare and contrast various cognitive processes (effortful vs automatic, deep vs shallow, focused vs divided attention)  describe and differentiate psychological and physiological systems of memory (e.g., short-term memory, procedural memory, etc.)  outline the principles that underlie effective encoding, storage, and construction of memories  describe strategies for memory improvement  identify problem-solving strategies as well as factors that influence their effectiveness  list the characteristics of creative thought and creative thinkers

KEY TERMS/CONCEPTS:  memory  implicit memory  misinformation effect  encoding  procedural memory  distributed practice  storage  anterograde amnesia  proactive interference  retrieval  explicit memory  retroactive interference  information-processing  semantic memory  retrograde amnesia model  episodic memory  thinking/cognition  parallel distributed  sematic network model  schemas processing (PDP) model  retrieval cue  trial and error  levels-of-processing  context-dependent  algorithms model learning  heuristics  sensory memory  state-dependent learning  functional fixedness  iconic memory  recall  mental set  echoic memory  recognition  confirmation bias  short term memory  tip of the tongue  creativity (STM)  serial position effect  selective attention  automatic  working memory encoding  maintenance rehearsal  flashbulb  long-term memory (LTM) memory  elaborative rehearsal  hindsight bias

Major People  Hermann Ebbinghaus  Elizabeth Loftus  Wolfgang Köhler

Essential Understanding: 1. Cognition is the study of mental processes. 2. STM seems to be limited to 7+-2 items at any given time. 3. The differences between encoding, storage, and retrieval are important. 4. Models of LTM deal with how we organize information that we need to know. 5. Problem solving involves applying what we know in an organized way to issues that we face.

Comprehension Questions: 1. Describe the three-stage model of memory developed by Atkinson and Shiffrin. 2. What is sensory memory? How did Sperling asses the duration of iconic memory? 3. Why do researchers refer to short term memory as “working memory”? 4. Describe the limitations of short-term memory, and how they can be overcome? 5. Is maintenance or elaborative rehearsal effective when attempting to process information into long-term memory (LTM)? Why or why not? 6. Identify the difference between implicit LTM and explicit LTM. 7. What is the serial position effect? Why do primacy and recency effects occur? 8. Why does having multiple, self-generated retrieval cues enhance recall? 9. Do flashbulb memories always provide an accurate picture? Describe some evidence. 10. Describe Ebbinghaus’s “curve of forgetting” and factors that contributed to his rapid, substantial forgetting. 11. What major role does the hippocampus play in memory? 12. Describe the nature or retrograde, anterograde, and infantile amnesia. 13. How are mental images and concepts involved in the process of thinking? 14. What are concepts, and what is the role of prototypes in their formation? 15. What’s the difference between an algorithm and a heuristic? 16. What is meant by confirmation bias? Why does it tend to occur, and how can it interfere with problem- solving? 17. Define creativity, and distinguish it from other forms of problem solving.