Study Guide III (Fall 2006)

The study questions below constitute a subset of the information which is required for the final exam.  Four of these questions will appear as "short answer" questions on the exam (you can use up to one full page for each answer).  Many of the questions have multiple parts -- make sure you read and answer all parts of each question.   Be advised that advanced preparation will facilitate your performance on the exam.  Feel free to work with others on your answers (including the class message board).
  1. Describe the role schemata play in information processing. How do schemata bias information processing? What implications does the research on schemata have for the legal system?

  2. Descibe the primary symptoms of anterograde amnesia.  Present evidence that people with anterograde amnesia (like H.M. or Clive Wearing) retain some residual memory ability.  What important things does this tell us about the structure of human long-term memory?

  3. Briefly describe the components of Anderson's ACT architecture. How does Anderson's model differ from that of Atkinson & Shiffrin's standard theory of information processing?

  4. Compare and contrast the theories of automaticity and skill acquisition developed by John Anderson and Gordon Logan. What are the assumptions of each theory? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each theory?

  5. Describe the role hueristics play in decision making. What types of biases are introduced with hueristics?

  6. Describe four ways to improve your problem solving skills.  Provide an example of how might you use these strategies in everyday life?

  7. Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP) models constitute a new approach to issues of representation in cognitive psychology. Briefly describe the assumptions of PDP models. How would such models account for instance and prototype formation? How would such models account for semantic priming?

  8. What does it mean to be skeptical? What kinds of questions and answers are consistent with a skeptical approach? Discuss how the material in this course is relevant to a skeptical approach to parapsychology. Is a skeptical approach really all that important -- justify your answer.