Psych As A Natural Science Exam 3

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memory

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the ability to store and retrieve information over time

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encoding

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the proess of maintaining information in memory over time

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retrieval

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the process of bringing to mind information that has been previously encoded and stored

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elaborative encoding

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the process of actively relating new information to knowledge that is already in memory. the process of encoding effects the ability of recalling the memory. Semantic judgments, those that make you think about the meaning of something, makes memory recall much easier and effective. The least effective is visual judgement, encoding something by remembering how it looks like.

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visual imagery encoding

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the process of storing new information by converting it into pictures

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organizational encoding

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the act if categorizing information by noticing the relationships among a series of items

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memory storage

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the process of maintaining information in memory over time

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sensory memory store

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the place in which sensory information is kept for a few seconds or less

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iconic memory

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a fast-decaying store of visual information

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echoic memory

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a fast-decaying store of auditory information

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short-term memory store

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a place where nonsensory information is kept or more than a few seconds but less than a minutes

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rehearsal

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the process of keeping information in the short-term memory by mentally repeating it

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chunking

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combining small pieces of information into larger clusters or chunks that are more easily held in short-term memory

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working memory

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active maintenance of information in short-term storage. Includes subsystsems that store and manipulate visual images or verbal information. Like figuring out your moves for a chess game.

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long-term memory store

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a place in which information can be kept for hours, days, weeks, or years.

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anterograde amnesia

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caused by damage to the hippocampal region, the inability to transfer new information from the short-term store into the long-term store

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retrograde amnesia

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the inability to retrieve information that was acquired before a particular date, usually the date of an injury or operation.

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long-term potentiation (LTP)

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enhanced neural processing that results from the strengthening of synaptic connections. happens in the hippocampus and helps us keep long-term memories

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NMDA receptor

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a hippocampal receptor site that influences the flow of information from one neuron to another across the synapse by controlling the initiation of long-term potentiation. For these receptors to become activated, two things must happen at roughly the same time: (1) the pre-synaptic neuron releases the neurotransmitter glutamate, which attaches to the NMDA receptor site on the postsynaptic neuron. (2) excitation takes place in the postsynaptic neuron.

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retrieval cue

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external information that is associated with stored information and helps bring it to mind

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encoding specificity principle

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the idea that a retrieval cue can serve as an effective reminder when it helps re-create the specific way in which information was initially encoded

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state-dependent retrieval

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the tendency for information to be better recalled when the person is in the same state during encoding and retrieval

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transfer-appropriate processing

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the idea that memory is likely to transfer from one situation to another when we process information in a way that is appropriate to the retrieval cues that will be available later.

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explicit memory

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the act of consciously or intentionally retrieving past experiences

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implicit memory

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the influence of past experiences on later behavior and performance, even though people are not trying to recollect them and are not aware that they are remembering them.

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procedural memory

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the gradual acquisition of skills as a result of practice, or "knowing how," to do things.

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priming

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an enhanced ability to think of a stimulus such as a word or object, as a result of a recent exposure to the stimulus

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semantic memory

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a network of associated facts and concepts that make up our general knowledge of the word.

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episodic memory

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the collection of past personal experiences that occurred at a particular time and place.

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transience

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forgetting what occurs with the passage of time

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retroactive interference

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situations in which later learning impairs memory for information acquired earlier

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proactive interference

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situations in which earlier learning impairs memory for information acquired later

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absentmindedness

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a lapse in attention that results in memory failure

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blocking

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a failure to retrieve information that is available in memory even though you are trying to produce it

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tip-of-the-tongue experiences

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the temporary inability to retrieve information that is stored in memory, accompanied by the feelings that you are on the verge of recovering the information.

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memory misattribution

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assigning a recollection or an idea to the wrong source

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source memory

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recall of when, where, and how information was acquired

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false recognition

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a feeling of familiarity about something that hasn't been encountered before.

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suggestibility

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the tendency to incorporate misleading information from external sources into personal recolections

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bias

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the distorting influences of present knowledge, beliefs, and feelings on recollection of previous experiences

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persistence

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the intrusive recollection of events that we wish we could forget

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flashbulb memories

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detailed recollections of when and where we heard about shocking events

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the amygdala's influence on memory

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located next to the hippocampus, responds strongly to emotional events. Patients with amygdala damage are unable to remember emotional events any better than nonemotional ones

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language

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a system for communicating with others using signals that convey meaning and are combined according to rules of grammar

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phoneme

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the smallest unit of sound that is recognizable as speech rather than as random noise

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phonological rules

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a set of rules that indicate how phonemes can be combined to produce speech sounds

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morphemes

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the smallest meaningful units of language

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grammar

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a set of rules that specify how units of language can e combined to produce meaningful messages

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morphological rules

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a set of rules that indicate how morphemes can be combined to form words

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syntactical rules

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a set of rules that indicate how words can be combined to form phrases and setences

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deep structure

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the meaning of a sentence

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surface structure

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how a sentence is worded

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fast mapping

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the fact that children can map a word onto an underlying concept after only a single exposure

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telegraphic speech

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speech that is devoid of function morphemes and consists of mostly content words

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nativist theory

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the view that langage developments is best explained as an innate, biological capacity

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language acquisition device (LAD)

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a collection of processes that facilitate language learning

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genetic dysphasia

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a syndrome characterized by an inability to learn grammatical structure of language despite having otherwise normal intelligence

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broca's and wernicke's areas

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neuroscientists study people with brain damage in order to better understand how the brain normally opereates. When Broca's area is damaged, patients have a hard time producing sentences. When Wernicke's area is damaged, patients can produce sentences, but they tend to be meaningless.

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aphasia

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difficulty in producing or comprehending language

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linguistic relativity hypothesis

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the proposal that language shapes the nature of thought

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concept

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a mental representation that groups or categorizes shared features of related objects, or other stimuli

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category-specific deficit

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a neurological syndrome that is characterized by an inability to recognize objects that belong to a particular category while leaving the ability to recognize objects outside the category undisturbed.

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family resemblance theory

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members of a category have features that appear to be characteristic of category members but may not be possessed by every member

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prototype

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the "best" or "most typical member" of a category

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exemplar theory

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a theory of categorization that argues that we make category judgements by comparing a new instance with stored memories for other instances of the category

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rational choice theory

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the classical view that we make decisions by determining how likely something is to happen, judging the value of the outcome and then multiplying by two

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availability bias

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items that are more readily available in memory are judged as having occurred more frequently

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heuristic

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a fast and efficient strategy that may facilitate decision making but does not guarantee that a solution will be reached

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algorithm

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a well-defined sequence of procedures or rules that guarantees a solution to a problem

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conjunction fallacy

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when people think that two events are more likely to occur together than either individual event

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representativeness heuristic

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a mental shortcut that involves making a probability judgement by comparing an object or event to a prototype of the object or event

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framing effects

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when people give different answers to the same problem depending on how the problem is phrased (or framed).

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sunk-cost fallacy

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a framing effect in which people make decisions about a current situation based on what they have previously invested in the situation

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prospect theory

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proposes that people choose to take on risk when evaluating potential losses and avoid risks when evaluating potential gains

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frequency format hypothesis

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the proposal that our minds evolved to notice how frequently things occur, not how likely they are to occur.

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means-ends analysis

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a process of searching for the means or steps to reduce differences between the current situation and the desired goal

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analogical problem solving

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solving a problem by finding a similar problem with a known situation and applying that solution to the current problem.

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functional fixedness

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the tendency to perceive the functions of objects as fixed

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reasoning

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a mental activity that consists of organizing information or beliefs into a series of steps to reach conclusions.

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practical reasoning

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figuring out what to do, or reasoning directed toward action

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theoretical reasoning

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reasoning directed toward arriving at a belief

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belief bias

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people's judgements about whether to accept conclusions depend more on how believable the conclusions are than on whether the arguments are logically valid.

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syllogistic reasoning

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determining whether a conclusion follows from two statements that are assumed to be true.

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semantic judgments are stored in

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lower left frontal lobe

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organizational judgments are stored in

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upper left frontal lobe

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visual judgements are stored in

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the occipital lobe