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
algorithm
A systematic, step-by-step series of rules or procedures that guarantees solving a particular problem. Examples: formulas, equations, flowcharts
heuristic
a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than algorithms
insight
sudden realization of a problem's solution; the "aha moment
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; an impediment to problem solving
mental set
A tendency to approach a problem in a particular way, especially a way that has been successful in the past but may or may not be helpful in solving a new problem
functional fixedness
the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions; an impediment to problem solving
representativeness heuristic
judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead one to ignore other relevant information
availability heuristic
estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common
anchoring heuristic
a mental tendency to base estimates on previously presented numbers, even if that information has nothing to do with the case at hand
overconfidence
the tendency to be more confident than correct--to overestimate the accuracy of one's beliefs and judgments
framing
the way an issue is posed; how an issue is presented can significantly affect decisions and judgments
belief perseverance
clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited
language
A system of communication through the use of speech, a collection of sounds understood by a group of people to have the same 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 (such as a prefix)
grammar
in a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others
semantics
the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language
syntax
the rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language
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 telegraph message--'go car'--using mostly nouns and verbs and omitting 'auxiliary' words
Noam Chomsky
theorist who believed that humans have an inborn or "native" propensity to develop language. (Native = Nature).
linguistic determinism
Whorf's hypothesis that language determines the way we think. (a.k.a. linguistic relativity or the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis)
Benjamin Lee Whorf
psychologist famous for describing linguistic determinism
convergent thinking
thinking that brings together information focussed on solving a problem (especially solving problems that have a single correct solution)
divergent thinking
a type of thinking that is associated with creativity - seeing lots of solutions to a problem
trial and error
approach to problem solving that involves randomly trying possible solutions and discarding those that fail to solve the problem
Dunning-Kruger Effect
a cognitive bias in which unskilled people make poor decisions and reach erroneous conclusions, but their incompetence denies them the metacognitive ability to appreciate their mistakes. Accounts for why low-skilled individuals are prone to greater overco
Daniel Kahneman & Amos Tversky
investigated the use of heuristics in decision-making; studied the availability, anchoring, and representativeness heuristics.
memory
persistence of learning over time; involves encoding, storage, and retrieval of information
encoding
the processing of information into the memory system (for example, by extracting meaning)
storage
Maintaining encoded information in memory over time.
retrieval
Process of getting information out of memory storage
parallel processing
The processing of several aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving.
sensory memory
A type of storage that holds sensory information for a few seconds or less.
short term memory
activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten
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
Information or knowledge that can be consciously recollected; also called declarative memory.
implicit memory
Retention independent of conscious recollection; also called nondeclarative memory. Includes procedural memories.
effortful processing
Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort
automatic processing
unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings
iconic memory
A momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or 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
Combining small pieces of information into larger clusters or chunks that are more easily held in short-term memory.
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 reading, information. Also sometimes referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning.
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
elaborative rehearsal
A memory technique that involves thinking about the meaning of the term to be remembered, as opposed to simply repeating the word to yourself over and over. This facilitates deep processing.
hippocampus
A neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage.
flashbulb memory
A clear and vivid long-term memory of an especially meaningful and emotional event.
long-term potentiation (LTP)
An increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory
recall
A measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test with no "word bank".
recognition
A measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test
relearning
A memory measure that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time
priming
Activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response
mood-congruent memory
the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood
state-dependent memory
Long-term memory retrieval is best when a person's physiological state at the time of encoding and retrieval of the information is the same (e.g., drug state, level of physiological arousal, etc.)
serial position effect
Our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list
anterograde amnesia
An inability to form new (explicit) memories.
retrograde amnesia
An inability to retrieve information from one's past.
proactive interference
Forgetting that occurs when previously stored material interferes with the ability to remember similar, more recently learned material.
retroactive interference
The disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information
repression
In psychoanalytic theory, a defense mechanism by which anxiety-provoking thoughts and feelings are forced into the unconscious, preventing their conscious recollection.
misinformation effect
Incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event
source amnesia
Attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, 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 (i.e., may be triggered by priming).
prospective memory
Remembering to do things in the future
Elizabeth Loftus
Her research on memory construction and the misinformation effect created doubts about the accuracy of eye-witness testimony
forgetting curve
the pattern of storage decay described by Ebbinghaus; retention of information drops off quickly, then stabilizes, as time passes after learning
George Miller
Found that short term memory has the capacity of about 7 (+/- 2) items.
Hermann Ebbinghaus
the first person to study memory scientifically and systematically; used nonsense syllables and recorded how many times he had to study a list to remember it well
imagery
mental pictures; can be used to aid effortful processing and often incorporated into mnemonics
loci
type of mnemonic that exploits the ease with which we recall layouts of familiar locations; remembering items on a list by visualizing them placed in familiar locations
long term memory (LTM)
Relatively permanent and limitless storage of memory.
metacognition
Thinking about thinking," or one's awareness of one's own thought processes or memory.
next-in-line effect
tendency to forget what was said by the person immediately before you during introductions or saying words
peg-word system
associating an idea with a visual peg word that rhymes with its position on the list; (ex. one is a bun, two is a shoe, three is a tree...I want to remember to buy carrots at the store, so I image a carrot-flavored bun.)
procedural memory
A type of implicit memory that involves motor skills and behavioral habits
visual encoding
The encoding of picture images
acoustic encoding
The encoding of sound, especially the sound of words
semantic encoding
The encoding of meaning, including the meaning of words
creativity
Ability to produce novel and valuable ideas; fostered by expertise, imaginative thinking skills, venturesome personality, intrinsic motivation, and creative environments
intuition
An effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning
aphasia
Disturbance in language comprehension or production, often as a result of a stroke.
Broca's area
Controls 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 specialised area in the left temporal lobe which is involved with comprehending the sounds of human speech
intrinsic motivation
A desire to perform a behavior for its own sake
semantic distinctiveness
An item on a list that's memorable because its not like the other items on the list
Atkinson-Shiffrin Model
A model for describing memory in which there are three distinguishable kinds of memory storage (sensory, short term, long term) through which info passes in a sequential way as it is processed.
overlearning
Continued rehearsal of material after one first appears to have mastered it. Improves memory.
episodic memory
A category of long-term memory that involves the recollection of specific events, situations and experiences.