Biological and Cognitive Factors - AP Psychology

The recency effect occurs because there is less time to forget the words at the end of a list, as opposed to words at the beginning or in the middle of a list.

The sensory store is the first step of perception. It gathers all of the sensory information that is coming in through the five senses. Attention towards particular stimuli brings them out of the sensory store and into working memory/short-term memory. The rest of the sensory infomation decays very rapidly.

Crystallized intelligence is a measure of achievement, which can be tested by an IQ test. It includes facts and knowledge.

Fluid intelligence is a measure of how quickly an individual is able to learn. This cannot be tested on an IQ test. Fluid intelligence is often used as an indicator of future performance or academic potential.

The formula for IQ is:

This allows for a score of 100 to be the average regardless of age. A 9-year-old who has a mental age of 9 has an IQ of 100. A 9-year-old who has the mental age of an 8-year-old has an IQ of 89. Thanks to this formula, it can be assumed that the average citizen has an IQ of 100, regardless of age.

The formula for IQ is:

This allows for a score of 100 to be the average regardless of age. A 9-year-old who has a mental age of 9 has an IQ of 100. A 9-year-old who has the mental age of an 8-year-old has an IQ of 89. Thanks to this formula, it can be assumed that the average citizen has an IQ of 100.

Respondent behaviors occur as automatic responsees to stimuli. For example, dogs salivate in response to food, so the salivation is a respondent behavior. Additionally, the knee-jerk reflex is a popular example of a respondent behavior in humans.

In accordance with Bandura's social-learning theory, children who witnessed the aggressive behavior also acted aggressively toward the doll. The experiment also included an element of having the children watch the adults being rewarded, punished, or not experience any consequence whatsoever.

Fluid intelligence concerns the ability to solve abstract problems and to use new information effectively, and tends to decrease as we age. Crystallized intelligence involves the use of information recalled from previous education and experience, and does not decrease with age (and may even get better as we get older). Statements I and III are both true.

Experiments always involve the active manipulation of variables. If we are only measuring differences between groups (e.g. gender) or variables (e.g. genetics or environmental factors), that would be considered a correlational study, not an experiment. The term "anecdotal evidence" implies a small set of personal observations, and does not meet the criteria for a scientific inquiry such as an experiment.

Individual learning ability is impacted by both the environment (e.g. nurture) and genetics (e.g. nature) in several ways. Genetic factors include (a) the structure and function of specific brain regions related to learning and memory, (b) variations in how sensitive one is to stimuli such as sound or colors and (c) a person’s inherent level of emotionality. All of these factors can play a role in learning because each can facilitate or inhibit the acquisition and/or retention of knowledge.

The definition of a behavioral approach is that all of the components can be observed, and no subjective inquiry is required. In this methodology, something happens to provoke learning (antecedent stimuli), an observable behavior occurs, and a consequence follows. An example of this process could be a toddler touching a hot stove, recoiling its hand, and never touching the stove again. The process of learning can be clearly explained through observation alone, without delving into how the information was processed in the toddler’s mind, or searching for the underlying biological basis for the learned behavior.

Learning-disabled children are not lower in general intellect. The definition of a learning disability is adequate performance in some areas (e.g. mathematics or language) along with poor performance in another area (e.g. reading). Deficits in cognitive mapping and visual-spatial information processing are more likely attributable to a developmental disability due to a genetic disorder such as Down’s syndrome. Learning-disabled children, as compared to children without learning disabilities, may struggle at any stage of information processing from attention disorders to information encoding or retrieval.

Research about learning differences between men and women is mixed, and there does not appear to be conclusive evidence of any inherent biological differences. Most studies seem to indicate that when differences are found, they can be explained by the level of familiarity the individuals have with the subject to be learned or by stereotypical expectations about gender. Although hormones may not affect overall intellect, hormone levels can impact performance at a given point in time and impact learning.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has a number of symptoms, including a failure to habituate to repeated neutral stimuli, chronically high levels of emotional arousal, and a fear of aversive conditioned stimuli. When the hippocampus is over-aroused, its ability to preserve conscious aspects of memory may be compromised. Each of these factors is associated with PTSD and each can have a significant impact on the function of memory.

There are various conceptual approaches to the study of learning. The functional approach relates to a study of the evolution of learning across species and how different species adapt. The behavioral approach concentrates on empirical observations of behavior. The cognitive approach arose from computer science and a desire to study information processing of the brain. The neuroscience approach may incorporate various perspectives (such as cognitive) but a hallmark is the utilization of imagery produced by brain scans—PET and fMRI.

If people are engaged in negative thoughts, worried, preoccupied about their performance, or being self-critical while attempting to learn, then they are very likely to experience impairment to working memory. This is because these types of thoughts impose limits on attention resources. None of the other answers are true because anxiety increases arousal.

The concept of meaningfulness in learning and memory refers to the use of existing knowledge as a means of increasing learning of unfamiliar material. For example, if you were asked to memorize a list of groceries, it might be difficult to remember every random item. But if you could group the items together either into one meaningful category, or in chunks, it would be much easier. For example, the list could be: Cinnamon, sugar, nutmeg, flour, salt, butter, and apples. If you thought instead about buying everything you need for apple pie, then there is a provided context (e.g. assigned meaningfulness) to the random string of data that will make it easier to remember.

Multiple studies have demonstrated that circadian rhythm is linked to arousal and impacts learning ability. Peak performance times can vary greatly amongst individuals; therefore, generalities about the effects of circadian rhythm on learning cannot be made.

Scientific studies of learning tend to rely on objective evidence of a quantifiable and relatively permanent change in behavior. In other words, the result of learning must be capable of being empirically observed and measured. Neuroscience is making huge strides in mapping changes to the brain that occur as a result of learning, but most learning is still not visible through brain imaging. The scientific method does not rely on subjective experiences.