No notes or other forms of outside assistance will be allowed

20 points total (plus � point bonus answer)

Part I. Multiple Choice (10 questions, 1 point each)

Q1. "Straight from the horses mouth" was the endpoint of a debate between

    1. rationalists and empiricists
    2. behaviourists and Gestalt Psychologists
    3. cognitivists and nativists
    4. functionalists and structuralists

Q2. Which pair of people would endorse the view that it is possible to study "higher cognition" scientifically?

    1. Ebbinghaus and Triesman
    2. Wulfe and Wundt
    3. Wundt and Fechner
    4. Fechner and Ebbinghaus

Q3. George Sperling used a procedure called partial report. What topic was he investigating?

    1. Working Memory
    2. Iconic Memory
    3. The visuo-spatial scratchpad
    4. Auditory Processing

Q4. Which of the following best illustrates "top-down" (conceptually-driven) processing

    1. The Pandemonium Model of visual processing (Selfridge, 1959)
    2. Template-matching models of visual or auditory processing
    3. feature-based models of visual or auditory processing (e.g., Gibson, 1969)
    4. phoneme-replacement studies of auditory processing (e.g., Warren & Warren, 1970)

Q5. Which of the following components are in the correct order for auditory processing?

    1. Pinnae, Eardrum, hammer, basilar membrane
    2. Pinnae, Middle Ear, Cochlea, Stirup
    3. Outer Ear, anvil, optic chiasm, occipital lobe
    4. stirrup, Eardrum, basilar membrane, auditory nerve

Q6. Which of the following is not true?

    1. Behaviorism is antimentalistic
    2. The information processing approach views cognitive processing as information passed through a system.
    3. Gestalt psychologists hold that understanding the components will not automatically lead to understanding whole processes or systems
    4. Functionalists break down processes into their elementary units

Q7. Which of the following is not part of a strict division (according to the Text) between automatic and conscious processes

    1. Intentionally
    2. Openness to introspection
    3. Attentional requirements (e.g., capacity used)
    4. Speed to complete processing (<1 second?)
THIS INFORMATION NOT COVERED FALL04 (mid1)

Q8. Kosslyn reported a number of studies in which he had subjects change their location within a mental map. These studies are most associated with which one of the following theoretical perspectives?

    1. Dual-coding hypothesis
    2. Mental rotation hypothesis
    3. Propositional-conceptual hypothesis
    4. Functional equivalence hypothesis

Q9. The following are four accounts of how we perform pattern recognition. Which of these accounts is the most likely to run into "the problem of invariance"?

    1. Connectionist Models
    2. Recognition by Components
    3. Template-Matching
    4. Feature Matching

Q10. Visual information endures in visual sensory memory for 250 to 500 milliseconds after which it fades away (decays). How long does auditory sensory memory last for?

    1. 250 to 500 milliseconds
    2. 500 to 1000 milliseconds
    3. approximately 1.5 seconds
    4. 2 � 3 seconds
THIS INFORMATION NOT COVERED FALL 04 (mid1)

 

Part II. Short Answer (7 questions, 10 points total)

Q11. Temporarily halting (or slowing) a conversation while changing lanes in a car would seem to indicate a human information processing limitation. Some theorists would take such an observation to illustrate a capacity limitation on the resources available for parallel processing of multiple cognitive tasks. Theorists such as Welford would disagree with this �capacity� interpretation. What would Welford argue is actually going on? (2 points)

 

 

 

Q12. What is epiphenomenalism? [1 point - define]

 

 

Q13. What is one potential disadvantage of a high level of automaticity (1 point - describe)

 

 

Q14. Why should the dashboard lights (speedometer, radio, etc.) in your car be red? (2 points � description & terminology)

 

 

Q15. With the aid of a diagram, illustrate contralaterality in visual processing. (1 point)

 

 

Q16. What is Norman�s Pertinence Model? (1 point)

 

Q17. This graph shows the Johnston & Heinz result. What did they do and what are the theoretical implications of their results? note: X-axis is cost (ms); y-axis number of messages; top line "meaning difference only"; middle line "physically different only", bottom line "both meaning and physical differences". (2 points)

 

 

 BONUS:

Q18. Where does perception end and cognition begin? (.5 points)

 

 

EXTRA QUESTIONS (were not part of this exam, but could have been)

Q19. Draw a picture of the eye, label the important structures

Q20. Draw a picture of the outer, middle, and inner ear, label the important structures

Q21 not covered SPING 2001, mid1

Q21. What is the dual-coding hypothesis?

Q22 not covered SPING 2001, mid1

Q22. What do Kosslyn's (and Shepard's) mental imagery studies tell us?

Q23. What is a saccade? how does a saccade differ from a fixation?

Q24. What is the "masking" of a visual stimulus? why would you do that?

Q25. What is the span of apprehension?

Q26. Describe Selfridge's (1959) Pandemonium Model. What does it do? How is it supposed to work?

Last Modified: Feb 22, 2023