ASPPB Cognitive Psychology 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The 'encoding specificity principle' proposed by Tulving and Thomson states that:
- Encoding strength determines the maximum amount of information that can be retrieved
- Retrieval is most effective when conditions match those present during encoding (Correct answer)
- Specific sensory modalities produce stronger encoding than abstract processing
- Information encoded under stress is recalled with greater specificity
Correct answer: Retrieval is most effective when conditions match those present during encoding
Encoding specificity holds that retrieval cues are most effective when they overlap with the context and cues present at the time of encoding.
Question 2: Which of the following is an example of a 'schema' influencing memory reconstruction?
- Remembering a face better when it was emotionally expressive
- Recalling a restaurant visit as including items typical of restaurants but not actually present (Correct answer)
- Forgetting a phone number because of retroactive interference
- Recognizing a primed word faster in a lexical decision task
Correct answer: Recalling a restaurant visit as including items typical of restaurants but not actually present
Schemas are knowledge frameworks that lead people to fill in memory gaps with schema-consistent details, even if those details were not actually experienced.
Question 3: Connectionist (PDP) models of cognition differ from classical symbolic models primarily in that they:
- Represent knowledge in localized single nodes rather than distributed patterns
- Process information serially through distinct modular stages
- Store knowledge as distributed patterns of activation across network units (Correct answer)
- Require explicit rule systems to guide cognitive processing
Correct answer: Store knowledge as distributed patterns of activation across network units
Parallel distributed processing models represent knowledge as distributed activation patterns across interconnected units, rather than in discrete symbolic rules or localized nodes.
Question 4: A child who insists that the amount of liquid changes when poured from a tall narrow glass to a short wide glass has not yet developed:
- Object permanence
- Conservation (Correct answer)
- Theory of mind
- Symbolic representation
Correct answer: Conservation
Conservation, according to Piaget, is the understanding that quantity remains constant despite changes in appearance, typically acquired during the concrete operational stage.
Question 5: In cognitive load theory, 'germane cognitive load' refers to:
- The intrinsic complexity of the material being learned
- The mental effort devoted to forming and automating schemas (Correct answer)
- Extraneous demands imposed by poor instructional design
- The total available capacity of working memory
Correct answer: The mental effort devoted to forming and automating schemas
Germane cognitive load is the beneficial processing effort directed toward schema formation and automation, enhancing long-term learning.
Question 6: The 'tip-of-the-tongue' (TOT) phenomenon is best explained by:
- Complete failure of memory consolidation for the target word
- Partial activation of semantic and phonological information without full retrieval (Correct answer)
- Retroactive interference from recently learned similar words
- Motivated forgetting of emotionally charged lexical items
Correct answer: Partial activation of semantic and phonological information without full retrieval
TOT states reflect partial access to a memory—semantic and some phonological features are available, but full phonological retrieval is blocked.
Question 7: Which experimental paradigm demonstrated that people can process and respond to information without conscious awareness?
- The Brown-Peterson paradigm
- Subliminal priming studies using masked stimuli (Correct answer)
- The directed forgetting paradigm
- The DRM false memory paradigm
Correct answer: Subliminal priming studies using masked stimuli
Subliminal priming studies show that masked stimuli presented below the threshold of conscious detection can still influence subsequent responses, demonstrating unconscious processing.
ASPPB Cognitive Psychology 4
The 'encoding specificity principle' proposed by Tulving and Thomson states that: