EXP 3604 Study Guide for Exam #1 well
answered to pass graded A+
What is cognitive psychology? - correct answer ✔✔focuses on how people think, remember,
store and use information. became big in the 1960's cognitive perspective goes with it and is the
focus of memory, intelligence, perception, thought processes, problem solving, language, and
learning
What is the mind? - correct answer ✔✔The mind refers to the sensations, memories, motives,
emotions, thoughts and other subjective phenomena particular to an individual or an animal
that are not readily observed. Subjective.
Early "cognitive" Psychologists and their approach to research - correct answer ✔✔Franciscus
Donders
Herman Ebbinhaus
Wilhelm Wundt
William James
Franciscus Donders - correct answer ✔✔Mental chronometry measured how long a cognitive
process takes using reaction time. Equation subtractive method: Choice RT - simple RT = time to
make a decision . Could infer but not measure.
(1) Performed the first Cog Psych experiment
Hermann Ebbinghaus - correct answer ✔✔First person to systematically study memory. Read
nonsense words to see how many repetitions were needed to learn them. Savings equation =
(initial repetitions - relearning repetitions) / initial repetitions.
,Wilhelm Wundt - correct answer ✔✔First Psych lab , German, "father of psychology",
Structuralism: experience of sensations; study of mental processes, analytic introspection, and
self-exam. 'science of immediate experience' was stated by him. This simply means that the
complex perceptions can be raised through basic sensory information
William James - correct answer ✔✔1842-1910; Field: functionalism; Contributions: studied how
humans use perception to function in their environment, published the first psych textbook
Decline of cognitive psychology - correct answer ✔✔contributing factors: problems with
introspection (varies from person to person)
Rise of behaviorism- eliminated mind as a topic of study (Watson- classical conditioning and
Skinner- operant conditioning)
Cognitive revolution: the re-emergence of cognitive psychology - correct answer
✔✔Contributing factors: explained behavior in terms of the mind. Found the study of mind
interdisciplinary. Chomsky argued that kids do not learn language through imitation and
reinforcement.
Characteristics of an Experiment - correct answer ✔✔1. control
2. randomization
3. independent variables
4. dependent variables
Dependent variables in cognitive psychology - correct answer ✔✔1. response time
2. accuracy
3. frequency
Behavioral vs. physiological approaches - correct answer ✔✔
, Memory consolidation example (Gais et al, 2006, 2007) - correct answer ✔✔the effect of sleep
on memory consolidation; independent variable: one group (sleep group) learned a list of words
shortly before going to sleep while the other group (awake group) learned many hours before
going to sleep; dependent variable: memory (forgetting) for the list of words measured two
days later.
(ppl who learned stuff before they slept could recall better the next day compared to ppl who
learned stuff hours before they slept)
Neurons - correct answer ✔✔Basic units of the nervous system in nervous tissue. Receives
nerve impulses from other cells via its cell body and multiple extensions called dendrites.
Transports impulses to other cells via extensions called axons, which are often bundled together
into nerves
How do neuron's communicate? - correct answer ✔✔Through synapse by a neurotransmitter
and response by postsynaptic neuron that may be excititory or inhibitory. Action potential.
Method of recording from a neuron - correct answer ✔✔double-entry bookkeeping
Frontal lobe - correct answer ✔✔A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for
movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement
Parietal lobe - correct answer ✔✔Located in the upper back half of the brain. Receives and
processes sensory information from the body and skin senses as well as other sensory areas in
the brain. Association areas are invovled with spatial reasoning and sensing the position of the
body in space.
Temporal Lobe - correct answer ✔✔An area on each hemisphere of the cerebral cortex near the
temples that is the primary receiving area for auditory information
Occipital Lobe - correct answer ✔✔An area at the back of each cerebral hemisphere that is the
primary receiving area for visual information.
answered to pass graded A+
What is cognitive psychology? - correct answer ✔✔focuses on how people think, remember,
store and use information. became big in the 1960's cognitive perspective goes with it and is the
focus of memory, intelligence, perception, thought processes, problem solving, language, and
learning
What is the mind? - correct answer ✔✔The mind refers to the sensations, memories, motives,
emotions, thoughts and other subjective phenomena particular to an individual or an animal
that are not readily observed. Subjective.
Early "cognitive" Psychologists and their approach to research - correct answer ✔✔Franciscus
Donders
Herman Ebbinhaus
Wilhelm Wundt
William James
Franciscus Donders - correct answer ✔✔Mental chronometry measured how long a cognitive
process takes using reaction time. Equation subtractive method: Choice RT - simple RT = time to
make a decision . Could infer but not measure.
(1) Performed the first Cog Psych experiment
Hermann Ebbinghaus - correct answer ✔✔First person to systematically study memory. Read
nonsense words to see how many repetitions were needed to learn them. Savings equation =
(initial repetitions - relearning repetitions) / initial repetitions.
,Wilhelm Wundt - correct answer ✔✔First Psych lab , German, "father of psychology",
Structuralism: experience of sensations; study of mental processes, analytic introspection, and
self-exam. 'science of immediate experience' was stated by him. This simply means that the
complex perceptions can be raised through basic sensory information
William James - correct answer ✔✔1842-1910; Field: functionalism; Contributions: studied how
humans use perception to function in their environment, published the first psych textbook
Decline of cognitive psychology - correct answer ✔✔contributing factors: problems with
introspection (varies from person to person)
Rise of behaviorism- eliminated mind as a topic of study (Watson- classical conditioning and
Skinner- operant conditioning)
Cognitive revolution: the re-emergence of cognitive psychology - correct answer
✔✔Contributing factors: explained behavior in terms of the mind. Found the study of mind
interdisciplinary. Chomsky argued that kids do not learn language through imitation and
reinforcement.
Characteristics of an Experiment - correct answer ✔✔1. control
2. randomization
3. independent variables
4. dependent variables
Dependent variables in cognitive psychology - correct answer ✔✔1. response time
2. accuracy
3. frequency
Behavioral vs. physiological approaches - correct answer ✔✔
, Memory consolidation example (Gais et al, 2006, 2007) - correct answer ✔✔the effect of sleep
on memory consolidation; independent variable: one group (sleep group) learned a list of words
shortly before going to sleep while the other group (awake group) learned many hours before
going to sleep; dependent variable: memory (forgetting) for the list of words measured two
days later.
(ppl who learned stuff before they slept could recall better the next day compared to ppl who
learned stuff hours before they slept)
Neurons - correct answer ✔✔Basic units of the nervous system in nervous tissue. Receives
nerve impulses from other cells via its cell body and multiple extensions called dendrites.
Transports impulses to other cells via extensions called axons, which are often bundled together
into nerves
How do neuron's communicate? - correct answer ✔✔Through synapse by a neurotransmitter
and response by postsynaptic neuron that may be excititory or inhibitory. Action potential.
Method of recording from a neuron - correct answer ✔✔double-entry bookkeeping
Frontal lobe - correct answer ✔✔A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for
movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement
Parietal lobe - correct answer ✔✔Located in the upper back half of the brain. Receives and
processes sensory information from the body and skin senses as well as other sensory areas in
the brain. Association areas are invovled with spatial reasoning and sensing the position of the
body in space.
Temporal Lobe - correct answer ✔✔An area on each hemisphere of the cerebral cortex near the
temples that is the primary receiving area for auditory information
Occipital Lobe - correct answer ✔✔An area at the back of each cerebral hemisphere that is the
primary receiving area for visual information.
