Psychology Week 8: Attention

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Questions and Answers

What is the primary function of storage in memory?

To maintain information over time (correct)

To enhance emotional connections to information

To eliminate irrelevant information

To improve the speed of information processing

Which statement best describes retrieval in memory?

Retrieval is the same as sensory memory.

Retrieval occurs without any external cues.

Retrieval involves accessing stored information. (correct)

Retrieval is the initial encoding of information.

What characterizes sensory memory?

It maintains information indefinitely.

It is primarily used for long-term storage.

It briefly holds perceptual information. (correct)

It only retains emotional memories.

How can retrieval cues aid in memory?

By facilitating the access of stored information Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT a function of memory?

Improving the accuracy of sensory input Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary function of the Central Executive in memory processing?

Coordinates information across components. Signup and view all the answers

What type of information does Long-Term Memory (LTM) primarily hold?

Past experiences and knowledge. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes declarative memory?

Facts (semantic) and events (episodic). Signup and view all the answers

Which component is responsible for managing the flow of information to and from Long-Term Memory?

Central Executive. Signup and view all the answers

What type of memory does semantic memory fall under?

Declarative memory. Signup and view all the answers

What concept explains how group norms can influence individual judgments in ambiguous situations?

Sherif's Norm Formation Signup and view all the answers

In which type of situation is Sherif's Norm Formation particularly applicable?

Ambiguous situations Signup and view all the answers

What was a key element in Sherif's light movement experiment that demonstrated the influence of group norms?

Judgments were influenced by group discussions. Signup and view all the answers

What outcome is observed when individuals are placed in ambiguous environments according to Sherif’s findings?

Conformity to group norms Signup and view all the answers

According to Sherif’s Norm Formation, what factor primarily drives individual judgments in uncertain circumstances?

Group consensus and norms Signup and view all the answers

What effect was sparked by the Kitty Genovese case in research?

Bystander effect Signup and view all the answers

What can help overcome the bystander effect?

Assigning responsibility directly Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following statements is true regarding witnessing others help?

It increases future helping behaviors. Signup and view all the answers

In the context of helping behaviors, what is a consequence of the bystander effect?

Inhibition of helping when others are present Signup and view all the answers

Which approach is least likely to encourage helping behaviors in a group setting?

Encouraging competition among bystanders Signup and view all the answers

What effect does proximity to the learner have on obedience levels?

Obedience decreases with increased proximity Signup and view all the answers

What was demonstrated by Hofling's Nurse Study?

Nurses obeyed unethical instructions in real-world situations Signup and view all the answers

In the context of obedience, what role does the authority of the experimenter play?

Lower authority can lead to decreased obedience Signup and view all the answers

What type of aggression involves spreading rumors and causing indirect harm?

Relational Aggression Signup and view all the answers

Which form of aggression is characterized by direct confrontations?

Hostile Aggression Signup and view all the answers

Which factor is associated with increased rates of disobedience?

Proximity to the learner Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT an example of relational aggression?

Sending threatening messages Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following statements is true regarding obedience in real-world settings?

Real-world obedience can still occur even with unethical instructions Signup and view all the answers

Which type of aggression can be defined as both intentional and physical harm?

Hostile Aggression Signup and view all the answers

Which statement best distinguishes relational aggression from hostile aggression?

Relational aggression aims to control social dynamics, while hostile aggression focuses on direct harm. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Week 8: Attention

Selective Processing: Attention allows focusing on relevant stimuli while ignoring distractions.
Cocktail Party Effect: Demonstrates selective attention, focusing on one conversation despite background noise.
Flashbulb Memories: Vivid memories of emotionally significant events, but not necessarily accurate. Attention plays a role in their creation.
Bottom-Up Processing: Stimulus-driven, automatic attention.
Top-Down Processing: Goal-directed attention, influenced by prior knowledge.
Measuring Attention: Includes orienting and cueing tasks, visual search (pop-out vs. conjunctive) to assess attention shifts and efficiency.
Inattentional Blindness: Difficulty noticing unexpected stimuli.
Change Blindness: Difficulty detecting changes in a visual scene.
Automaticity & The Stroop Effect: Automatic processing becomes effortless with practice (e.g., reading); Stroop tasks demonstrate interference when word meaning conflicts with color.
Spotlight Model: Attention highlighting stimuli within focusing areas.
Filter Models:
Early Selection: Filters based on physical characteristics before meaning.
Attenuation Model: Unattended stimuli are dampened but can still capture attention.
Late Selection: Filtering occurs after semantic processing.

Week 9: Memory

Definition: Memory is reconstructive, shaped by current goals and context, not a perfect record.
Stages of Memory: Encoding, storage, and retrieval. Attention is critical during encoding.
Types of Memory:
Sensory Memory: Brief holding of perceptual information (iconic and echoic).
Short-Term Memory (STM): Temporary storage (chunking helps).
Working Memory: STM with added components (phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, episodic buffer, central executive) for processing.
Long-Term Memory (LTM): Stores past experiences and knowledge (declarative/explicit and nondeclarative/implicit).
Principles of Memory:
Levels of Processing: Deeper processing (semantic) enhances retention over shallow processing.
Encoding Specificity: Retrieval is best when the context is similar to encoding.
Transfer Appropriate Processing: Encoding and retrieval processes align for better retrieval.
Forgetting:
Decay Theory: Memory fades over time, especially in STM.
Interference Theory: Proactive (old memories block new) and retroactive (new memories block old).
Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve: Shows rapid initial forgetting followed by a gradual decrease.
Memory Errors:
Misinformation Effect: Distorting past memories with new misleading information.
Source Confusion: Misattributing the origin of a memory.
False Fame Effect: Mistaking familiarity for fame.

Week 10: Forming Impressions

Social Perception: Impression formation driven by conscious and unconscious judgments.
Attribution Theories:
Covariation Theory (Kelley): Attributions are based on consensus, distinctiveness, and consistency of behavior.
Correspondent Inference Theory: Dispositional attributions based on choice, expectations, and intended consequences.
Attribution Errors:
Fundamental Attribution Error: Overestimating dispositional factors.
Actor-Observer Effect: Attributing one's own actions to situations but others' to dispositions.
Self-Serving Bias: Successes attributed to internal factors, failures to external ones.
Cultural Variations: Different cultures emphasize situational or dispositional factors differently.

Week 11: Influence of Others

Social Influence: People's behavior is influenced by the presence and actions of others.
Obedience: Milgram's experiment demonstrated high levels of obedience to authority, despite evident distress.
Conformity: Sherif's and Asch's experiments show how group norms can influence individual judgments.
Group Dynamics:
Social Facilitation: Improved performance in the presence of others (for well-practiced tasks).
Social Loafing: Reduced effort in groups.
Group Polarization: Group discussions amplify initial tendencies (risky or cautious).
Groupthink: Prioritizing cohesion and consensus over critical thinking.
Persuasion: Techniques like foot-in-the-door, low-ball, and door-in-the-face are effective persuasion strategies.
Helping and Harming Behavior:
Bystander Effect: Diffusion of responsibility reduces individual intervention.
Aggression: Types include relational (indirect) and hostile (direct) aggression.
Stanford Prison Experiment: Illustrates how easily people adopt roles and exhibit dehumanizing behaviors due to social influence and deindividuation.

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Description

Explore the fascinating topic of attention in psychology with this quiz. You'll dive into concepts like selective processing, the cocktail party effect, and the intricacies of bottom-up and top-down processing. Test your understanding of inattentional blindness and automaticity to see how they shape our perception.