Cognitive Growth Information Processing Exam Prep Ch.6 4e

Chapter 6

Cognitive Growth: Information Processing Approaches

Total

Assessment

Guide

Chapter 6

Cognitive Growth: Information Processing Approaches

MULTIPLE CHOICE

6-1. Which term describes the perspective that seeks to identify the way individuals take in, use, and store information?

a) information processing approach

b) social development model

c) automatization of responses

d) encoding-specificity principle

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-2. What do information processing approaches to understanding cognitive development highlight?

a) the processes underlying the acquisition and use of information

b) identifying clear breakpoints in developmental advances

c) age ranges for cognitive skills across the entire lifespan

d) qualitative changes in a person’s cognitive skills

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 2.1 Use scientific reasoning to interpret psychological phenomena.

6-3. Understanding quantitative changes in an infant’s abilities to organize and manipulate information is a cornerstone of which theoretical approach?

a) circular reasoning hypothesis

b) prime development model

c) encoding reactions model

d) information processing approach

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-4. Which of the following is considered a basic element of information processing?

a) behavior enactment

b) classical conditioning

c) storage of information

d) production of speech

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-5. How does the process of encoding take place?

a) information enters a person’s memory system in its raw form, typically through an
unconscious process outside of the person’s awareness

b) information collected from the world at large is recorded in a form that can be used by a
person’s memory system

c) information already stored in memory is recalled to mind, so that a person can act on that
information

d) “registers” or “receptors” in the memory system are identified, and individual memories
are assigned to each one

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-6. Larry was daydreaming the day his first grade teacher presented the math lesson that 5 + 5 = 10. Later, Larry was not able to recall this information, most likely because of which disruption?

a) He never understood it.

b) He never encoded it.

c) He never rehearsed it.

d) He never visualized it.

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-7. Which term refers to the process of focusing attention and selecting information over others so as not to be overwhelmed in the environment?

a) selective encoding

b) recursive automatization

c) ambient storage

d) delayed retrieval

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-8. A baby is in its crib while a swarm of relatives hovers, calling the baby’s name and making cooing sounds. There is a radio playing in the background and sounds emanate from the television in the living room. All the while, the baby’s mother is trying to get the baby’s attention to get ready for its feeding. In all this hubbub the baby is most likely to attend to the mother’s face and voice. What is the baby’s behavior an example of?

a) ambient storage

b) delayed retrieval

c) selective encoding

d) recursive automatization

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-9. Which term refers to the placement of material into memory?

a) storage

b) automatization

c) encoding

d) retrieval

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-10. Which term refers to the process by which material in memory is located, brought to awareness, and used?

a) encoding

b) retrieval

c) storage

d) automatization

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-11. Information processing approaches often involve a computer analogy for human reasoning and memory. In that analogy, which element represents software that accesses information?

a) storage

b) automatization

c) encoding

d) retrieval

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-12. Which term refers to the degree to which an activity requires attention?

a) automatization

b) encoding

c) information processing

d) retrieval

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-13. How would an information processing theorist describe a process that requires a large amount of attention?

a) automatic

b) stored

c) encoded

d) controlled

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-14. Which term refers to the process by which information is initially recorded, stored, and retrieved?

a) encoding

b) automatization

c) categorization

d) memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-15. How is the three-system approach to memory best conceptualized?

a) as abstract components of an overall information processing system

b) as a description of memory systems proposed by the ancient Greeks

c) as physical locations in the brain responsible for different memory tasks

d) as a series of internal “questions” that are posed and answered during information processing

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-16. Which part of the cognitive architecture refers to the initial, momentary storage of information that lasts only an instant?

a) short-term memory

b) sequential memory

c) sensory store

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-17. Where is information held in memory for 15 to 25 seconds?

a) short-term memory

b) sequential memory

c) sensory storage

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-18. Reggie looks at the telephone number of Chubby’s Char-Grilled Beefhouse for a few seconds, and then walks into the other room to call in her order. Reggie remembers the phone number in its correct sequence because of which aspect of cognitive architecture?

a) short-term memory

b) sequential processing

c) sensory memory

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-19. Which type of memory capacity tends to increase with age?

a) short-term memory

b) sequential memory

c) sensory storage

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-20. How does experience with material to be remembered affect the capacity of short-term memory?

a) Experience allows information to pass directly from sensory memory to long-term memory, thereby making short-term memory unnecessary.

b) Experience acts as a perceptual filter to “weed out” irrelevant information from short-term memory.

c) Experience speeds the transmission of information from long-term memory to short-term memory, and from there to behavior.

d) Experience provides the ability to chunk information, and efficiently chunked information
is more easily retained in short-term memory.

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-21. How do contemporary theorists conceptualize short-term memory?

a) as a passive receptacle of facts

b) as working memory, a highly active information processing system

c) as an extension of sensory memory, with active learning involved

d) as synonymous with long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-22. When information in memory is rehearsed and stored on a relatively permanent basis, it is located in which part of the cognitive architecture?

a) short-term memory

b) sequential memory

c) sensory memory

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-23. Rasheed is memorizing his math multiplication tables by using flash cards. He does this frequently enough that eventually he does not need the visual stimulation of the cards to remember the information. Which aspect of memory is Rasheed taking advantage of?

a) short-term memory

b) sequential memory

c) sensory memory

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-24. Which memory module retains factual information that is gained over time?

a) short-term memory

b) procedural memory

c) declarative memory

d) sequential memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-25. Which memory module retains information relevant to enacting skills, habits, and other behaviors?

a) short-term memory

b) procedural memory

c) declarative memory

d) sequential memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-26. How do information processing approaches to understanding cognitive development compare to Piaget’s approach to understanding cognitive development?

a) Information processing approaches focus on quantitative developments, whereas Piaget’s approach focuses on qualitative developments.

b) Information processing approaches focus on effective object manipulation, whereas Piaget’s approach focuses on efficient object manipulation.

c) Information processing approaches focus on qualitative developments, whereas Piaget’s approach focuses on quantitative developments.

d) Information processing approaches focus on mental representations of processes, whereas Piaget’s approach focuses on abstract idealizations of processes.

Learning Objective: LO 6.3 Compare the information processing approaches to Piaget’s theory of cognitive development.

Topic: Comparing Information Processing Approaches to Alternative Theories of Cognitive Development

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 2.1 Use scientific reasoning to interpret psychological phenomena.

6-27. Information processing involving the ability to strategically choose among and sort out different stimuli in the environment is more generally known by what term?

a) attention

b) automatization

c) storage

d) retrieval

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Topic: Attention

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-28. What makes a stimulus attention-getting?

a) its meaningfulness

b) its familiarity

c) its physical characteristics

d) its conceptual possibilities

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Topic: Attention

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-29. What makes a stimulus attention-holding?

a) its meaningfulness

b) its familiarity

c) its physical characteristics

d) its abstract properties

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Topic: Attention

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-30. How would a developmentalist most likely conceptualize “planning?”

a) the ability to verbalize one’s wants and desires

b) the capacity to prioritize interactions over objects

c) successfully meeting daily challenges

d) the ability to allocate attention based on desired goals

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Topic: Attention

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-31. Infantile amnesia is defined as the lack of memory for experience that occurred prior to what age?

a) 6 months

b) 12 months

c) 2 years

d) 3 years

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Topic: Memory and Its Duration

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-32. Which term describes the lack of memory for experiences that occurred in infancy?

a) memory decay

b) infantile amnesia

c) storage absence

d) retrieval failure

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Topic: Memory and Its Duration

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-33. Which term describes a memory of particular events from one’s own life?

a) picture memory

b) visual memory

c) autobiographical memory

d) biographical memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Topic: Memory and Its Duration

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-34. If a 9-year-old employs conscious, intentional tactics to improve cognitive processing, what is being demonstrated?

a) reasoning

b) control strategies

c) rehearsal

d) working memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-35. Children’s memories are often organized in general representations of a sequence or series of events in the order in which they occur. What is this organizing tactic called?

a) autobiographical memory

b) biographical memory

c) scripts

d) intuition

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-36. Which term refers to an individual’s understanding of the processes that underlie memory?

a) recall

b) rehearsal

c) metamemory

d) working memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Easy

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-37. Which statement is correct regarding memory loss in middle-aged people?

a) All middle-aged people can expect to experience significant memory loss.

b) Middle-aged people may attribute absentmindedness stereotypically to aging, even though they have actually been absentminded most of their lives.

c) All middle-aged people will experience some memory loss starting in their 40s, with memory loss stabilizing around 70.

d) Middle-aged people have memory loss for specific facts.

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-38. Which memory skill shows a decline in middle age?

a) working memory

b) sensory memory

c) short-term memory

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-39. Which statement offers the best explanation of why some middle-aged people have some long-term memory loss?

a) Middle-aged people have too much information stored; therefore, it is difficult to keep it all in long-term memory.

b) Middle-aged people have too much stress in their lives, which impedes their ability to use their long-term memory capacity.

c) Middle-aged people have less efficient retrieval skills for finding and retrieving information, even if the information was adequately stored in long-term memory.

d) Middle-aged people’s learning genes begin to deteriorate, which leads to long-term memory loss.

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-40. What easily enacted strategy can middle-aged people use to improve their memory functioning?

a) Change routines often to exercise one’s sensory processes.

b) Create elaborate rituals and routines that are unique to the individual.

c) Pay greater attention to material when it is first encountered.

d) Write everything down, no matter how inconsequential it may seem.

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-41. Statistically, which person’s memory is considered to be the most vulnerable to suggestion, and therefore perhaps the least reliable?

a) a senior citizen

b) a middle-aged adult

c) a school-aged child

d) a preschool-aged child

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Topic: Children’s Eyewitness Testimony: Memory on Trial

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-42. Which strategy should be used to question children to produce the most accurate recollections?

a) Ask vague questions.

b) Question them as soon as possible after an incident.

c) Ask questions inside of a courtroom in front of a judge.

d) Use anatomically correct dolls to aid in questioning.

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Topic: Children’s Eyewitness Testimony: Memory on Trial

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-43. How are confidence and accuracy related when it comes to eyewitness memory?

a) The more confident a person is about her or his recollections, usually the more accurate those recollections are.

b) There is no relationship between confidence and accuracy in eyewitness memory.

c) More accurate memories tend to be established by less-confident witnesses.

d) The relationship between feeling confident about one’s memories and the accuracy of those memories is meager, at best.

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Topic: Children’s Eyewitness Testimony: Memory on Trial

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-44. A reading educator is in favor of teaching reading by presenting the basic skills that underlie reading. Which instructional strategy is this teacher a proponent of?

a) whole-language approach

b) sound-symbol approach

c) code-based approach

d) phonetic-fluency approach

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-45. A reading educator is in favor of teaching reading by presenting it as a natural process, similar to the acquisition of oral language. Which instructional strategy is this teacher a proponent of?

a) whole-language approach

b) sound-symbol approach

c) code-based approach

d) phonetic-fluency approach

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-46. Angelo has progressed beyond picture books to early-reader stories appropriate for his young age. His mother encourages him to sound out each of the letters he comes across, making “buh-aw-luh” eventually recognizable as “ball.” Which approach to reading is Angelo’s mother promoting?

a) whole-language approach

b) sound-symbol approach

c) code-based approach

d) phonetic-fluency approach

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-47. Renaldo has progressed beyond picture books to early-reader stories appropriate for his young age. His mother encourages him to guess what each of the words mean, stumbling through “bark,” “sail,” “tall,” and “baby” before eventually recognizing the shape of the intended word “ball.” Which approach to reading is Renaldo’s mother promoting?

a) whole-language approach

b) sound-symbol approach

c) code-based approach

d) phonetic-fluency approach

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-48. Which approach to reading instruction is most effective, based on substantial research evidence?

a) whole-language approaches

b) sound-symbol approaches

c) phonetic-fluency approaches

d) code-based approaches

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-49. Which nonobvious area of the brain receives beneficial organization through the process of reading?

a) hypothalamus

b) visual cortex

c) basal ganglia

d) sleep centers

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-50. What type of thinking makes use of cognitive skills and strategies to increase the likelihood of solving problems, forming inferences, and making decisions appropriately and successfully?

a) encoding

b) metamemory

c) critical thinking

d) information processing

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Remember the Facts

APA Learning Objective: 1.1 Describe key concepts, principles, and overarching themes in psychology.

6-51. Edweena is told that more Oldsmobiles are sold currently in the United States than Hondas, Fords, Toyotas, and Chevrolets combined. She not only accepts this statement but repeats it to her friends, family, and teachers. Given that Oldsmobiles haven’t been manufactured since 2004, what important skill has Edweena neglected to apply?

a) critical thinking

b) metamemory

c) metacognition

d) code-based processing

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-52. Wilson is told that all dogs descended from wolves. “Hmm,” he replied, “so that means that puppies should show a preference for staying in packs and for eating meat.” What important skill has Wilson successfully applied to the information he received?

a) code-based processing

b) metamemory

c) whole-concept processing

d) critical thinking

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-53. Danica is told that red wine is best served at body temperature, about 96 degrees Fahrenheit. “I don’t know much about wine,” she replied, “but that seems a little warm to me. I’m going to double-check that information with my cousin Luther, the sommelier.” What important skill is Danica demonstrating?

a) metacognition

b) critical thinking

c) whole-concept processing

d) metamemory

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-54. Which principle is an ingredient of critical thinking?

a) having an accepting disposition

b) challenging assumptions

c) being argumentative

d) seeking confirmatory examples of a claim

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-55. Which principle is an ingredient of critical thinking?

a) recognizing the context of information

b) acknowledging the prestige of an authority

c) accepting assumptions

d) being argumentative

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-56. Which principle is an ingredient of critical thinking?

a) being argumentative

b) accepting assumptions

c) seeking confirmatory examples of a claim

d) exploring alternative explanations

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-57. Which principle is an ingredient of critical thinking?

a) determining factual accuracy

b) having an accepting disposition

c) seeking confirmatory examples of a claim

d) acknowledging the prestige of an authority

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-58. Which statement best describes how humans engage in critical thinking?

a) Young children are better at critical thinking than are adolescents or adults.

b) Most people are generally poor critical thinkers, but critical thinking skills can be taught.

c) Most people show evidence of critical thinking skills on a regular basis.

d) Critical thinking is an “either/or” proposition; a person either can or cannot do it.

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Topic: Information Processing Contributions to the Classroom

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 2.1 Use scientific reasoning to interpret psychological phenomena.

6-59. What is an advantage of the information processing approach compared to the approaches of Piaget and Vygotsky?

a) The information processing approach relies on precise concepts that can be empirically tested, rather than the relatively vague concepts advanced by Piaget and Vygotsky.

b) Piaget and Vygotsky insisted on controlled laboratory experiments to confirm their theoretical concepts, whereas the information processing approach embraces many forms of evidence.

c) The information processing perspective takes a holistic view of cognition, rather than isolating specific aspects of cognitive processing, as Piaget or Vygotsky did.

d) Piaget and Vygotsky placed too little emphasis on social and interpersonal aspects of development, whereas the information processing approach places the social context in a central role.

Learning Objective: LO 6.9 Compare the strengths and weaknesses of the information processing approach and other approaches to cognitive development.

Topic: Reconsidering the Information Processing Perspective

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-60. With which slogan would an information processing theorist be most likely to agree?

a) “not possible until age 3”

b) “emotion rather than cognition”

c) “quantitative beats qualitative”

d) “thinking stops at age 15”

Learning Objective: LO 6.9 Compare the strengths and weaknesses of the information processing approach and other approaches to cognitive development.

Topic: Reconsidering the Information Processing Perspective

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Analyze It

APA Learning Objective: 2.1 Use scientific reasoning to interpret psychological phenomena.

ESSAY QUESTIONS

6-61. Describe how the information processing approach to cognitive development utilizes computer metaphors.

• Information processing approaches highlight the roles of encoding, storage, and retrieval of information. These activities are analogous to different aspects of a digital computer.
• Encoding can be thought of as a computer’s keyboard, allowing information to be entered into a processing system.
• Storage is like a computer’s hard drive, where information is retained.
• Retrieval is analogous to software that accesses information for further use.

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-62. Provide an example of an automatic process, and explain why automatization of cognitive tasks is beneficial.

• Automatization refers to the degree to which an activity requires attention.
• When a process can be performed successfully without conscious awareness, it is said to be automatic.
• For many adults, driving a car while conversing, listening to the radio, or navigating busy streets is an automatic process. Attention does not need to be consciously devoted to moving the steering wheel or applying the brakes; these actions occur outside of awareness.
• Automatization is an important developmental skill. The extent to which a child can acquire information or perform tasks without needing to apply devoted attention means that those processes can run smoothly and efficiently in the background.

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Topic: Encoding, Storage, and Retrieval: The Foundations of Information Processing

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-63. Describe the three types of memory. How is each related to development during middle age?

• The sensory store is the initial, momentary storage of information, recorded by the sensory system as a raw, meaningless stimulus.
• Short-term memory holds information for 15 to 25 seconds.
• If the information is rehearsed, it then moves into long-term memory, where it is stored on a relatively permanent basis.
• Neither sensory nor short-term memory show any weakening during middle age.
• Declines in long-term memory have been documented, but the reasons could be due to inefficient storage and retrieval; encoding is unaffected, but locating the information and getting it back out may be problematic.
• Overall, memory declines in middle adulthood are fairly minor.

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Topic: Cognitive Architecture: The Three-System Approach

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Understand the Concepts

APA Learning Objective: 1.2 Develop a working knowledge of psychology’s content domains.

6-64. Explain what mnemonics are and how they can be used to improve memory.

• Mnemonics are formal strategies for organizing material in ways that make it easier to remember. There are various strategies for making this happen.
• Organization: Using a date book, Post-It notes, and other external devices can aid recall.
• Attention: Making mental notes of information to be remembered can improve recall.
• Encoding specificity: Information is more likely to be recalled in environments that are similar to those in which it was initially learned
• Visualization: Making mental images of ideas can help in recalling them later.
• Rehearsal: Practicing or rehearsing information can substantially improve memory.

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Topic: Memory Development and Control

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

6-65. Explain techniques that are useful and not useful when questioning children in a legal setting.

• Memory is susceptible to disruption, and this is especially true for young children’s memories.
• When called upon to testify, as an eyewitness to a crime or as a victim, children can be particularly vulnerable to memory errors and distortions.
• Questioning a child as soon as possible after an event has occurred tends to lessen the possibility of memory disruption.
• Specific questions should be posed, rather than vague or general questions.
• Questioning a child outside of a courtroom or other institutional setting is preferable, to reduce the feelings of intimidation or fright that can result from being in a highly legalistic setting.
• Some techniques, such as the use of anatomically correct dolls during questioning, are not as useful as most proponents would assume.
• A questioner would do well to remember that, like most humans, children’s memories are easily influenced and subject to bias.

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Topic: Children’s Eyewitness Testimony: Memory on Trial

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Skill Level: Apply What You Know

APA Learning Objective: 1.3 Describe applications of psychology.

REVEL QUIZZES

The following questions appear at the end of each module and at the end of the chapter in Revel for Life Span Development, Fourth Edition.

Quiz: The Basics of Information Processing

EOM Q6.1.1

__________ approaches to cognitive development seek to identify the way that individuals take in, use, and store information.

a) Information gathering

b) Data collecting

c) Automatization processing

d) Information processing

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.1.2

The three basic aspects of information processing are encoding, storage, and __________.

a) recitation

b) retrieval

c) repetition

d) recall

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Difficulty: Easy

Skill: Remember

EOM Q6.1.3

The enduring structures of information processing that remain constant over the course of development are known as __________.

a) cognitive architecture

b) central processes

c) developmental permanence

d) intellectual design

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Difficulty: Easy

Skill: Remember

EOM Q6.1.4

According to the three-system model, the __________ is the initial process by which information is very briefly held before further processing.

a) working memory

b) short-term memory

c) sensory store

d) photographic memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.1.5

The key difference between information processing and Piagetian approaches is that information processing approaches focus on __________.

a) a smaller and less distinct number of stages

b) lifelong rather than infant development

c) permanent rather than temporary changes

d) quantitative rather than qualitative changes

Learning Objective: LO 6.3 Compare the information processing approaches to Piaget’s theory of cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

Quiz: Attention and Memory

EOM Q6.2.1

Four-year-old Carla is engaged in playing with a toy truck, while her 10-year-old brother Vincent is wrapped up in a book. The truck and the book are said to be different __________ stimuli for each child.

a) attention-getting

b) information-processing

c) attention-holding

d) cognitive-control

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOM Q6.2.2

__________ is the ability to allocate attentional resources based on desired goals.

a) Planning

b) Attention

c) Control

d) Strategy

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.2.3

One plausible reason why infants appear to remember less than older children and adults is the lack of __________.

a) short-term memory

b) interesting experiences

c) long-term memory

d) an extensive vocabulary

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.2.4

The memory of events from one’s own life, known as __________ memory, is not very accurate until after age 3.

a) biological

b) autobiographical

c) introspective

d) personal

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.2.5

As they grow older, children begin to recall memories in terms of __________, which are general representations in memory of a sequence or series of events.

a) scripts

b) control strategies

c) metamemories

d) chunks

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Difficulty:

Skill: Understand

Quiz: Applying Information Processing Approaches

EOM Q6.3.1

If it is necessary to question children for legal purposes, which of the following strategies has been shown to increase the accuracy of their recollections?

a) Question children as soon as possible after the event.

b) Use a formal, official setting for conducting the questioning.

c) Allow children an hour or two to calm down before questioning.

d) Use general, open-ended questions to enable children to answer freely.

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.3.2

Compared with whole-language approaches to reading instruction, code-based approaches focus more on __________.

a) reading out loud to the teacher or the whole class

b) using context to figure out the meaning of a word or sentence

c) reading natural-language stories and other resources in class

d) sounding out letters and words to discover their meaning

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOM Q6.3.3

Which of the following is a critical thinking skill?

a) identifying and questioning assumptions in statements

b) using intuition to provide simple answers to complex questions

c) memorizing spellings of a list of words

d) following directions to a location

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOM Q6.3.4

According to the information processing perspective, older children first resolve preschoolers’ difficulty with the Piagetian conservation problem when their improved __________.

a) memory enables them to remember when they first encountered the problem of the two glasses

b) critical thinking ability allows them to dismiss false assumptions about tall and short glasses

c) mathematical skills help them to understand that the volume of the two glasses is the same

d) attention span permits them to attend simultaneously to the height and width of the glasses

Learning Objective: LO 6.9 Compare the strengths and weaknesses of the information processing approach and other approaches to cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOM Q6.3.5

Compared with other approaches, the information processing approach pays more attention to __________.

a) social and cultural factors in development

b) drawing a comprehensive picture of child development

c) the workings of memory, attention, and other mental activities

d) interior human processes, such as hopes and aspirations

Learning Objective: LO 6.9 Compare the strengths and weaknesses of the information processing approach and other approaches to cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

Chapter Quiz: Cognitive Growth: Information Processing Approaches

EOC Q6.1

__________ is the process by which information is recorded in a form usable to memory.

a) Assessment

b) Recall

c) Encoding

d) Application

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOC Q6.2

Without conscious thought, children develop the ability to link together stimuli that occur simultaneously, thereby developing an understanding of concepts. This process is an example of __________.

a) storage

b) automatization

c) processing

d) encoding

Learning Objective: LO 6.1 Describe how information is taken in, held, and used, according to information processing theorists.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOC Q6.3

According to the three-system model, it is in the __________ that thoughtful, deliberate information processing first takes place.

a) sensory store

b) short-term memory

c) memory span

d) long-term memory

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOC Q6.4

__________ are stimuli, such as words, images, smells, or sounds, that people use to search and locate information stored in long-term memory.

a) Retrieval cues

b) Mnemonics

c) Information chunks

d) Memory modules

Learning Objective: LO 6.2 Explain how the architecture of the human information processing system functions.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOC Q6.5

Which of the following summarizes the key principle of information processing theories of development?

a) Cognitive development in children is linked to distinct stages.

b) The quality of children’s thinking changes significantly and suddenly as they develop.

c) With age and practice, children’s thinking gradually becomes more sophisticated.

d) Developmental changes in children are more qualitative than quantitative.

Learning Objective: LO 6.3 Compare the information processing approaches to Piaget’s theory of cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOC Q6.6

The increasing ability as children age to tune into certain stimuli while tuning out of others is the result of the increasing __________ that comes with age.

a) ability to plan

b) exercise of patience

c) use of the sensory store

d) control of attention

Learning Objective: LO 6.4 Explain why attention is important for children’s cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOC Q6.7

In general, researchers believe that, compared to memory processing in adults, memory processing in young children is __________.

a) more efficient for short-term, but less efficient for long-term, memory

b) generally similar

c) reliant on different components of memory

d) qualitatively different

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Difficulty: Easy

Skill: Remember

EOC Q6.8

Recent memory research among infants, children, and adults shows that __________.

a) the physical trace of a memory in the brain is relatively permanent across all ages

b) infants generally retrieve information from memory more quickly than the other groups

c) unlike the other groups, only adults’ memories are not subject to interference

d) infants generally retrieve information from memory more accurately than the other groups

Learning Objective: LO 6.5 Describe memory improvements during childhood and analyze how childhood memories change over time.

Difficulty: Easy

Skill: Remember

EOC Q6.9

Antony repeats information that he wants to recall over and over until he can recite it from memory. This is an example of __________.

a) the operating efficiency hypothesis

b) an increase in the size of working memory

c) a memory control strategy

d) the use of a memory script

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Difficulty: Difficult

Skill: Analyze

EOC Q6.10

Arletta used to believe that she could simply look at a group of vocabulary words once and remember them. Now she realized that she has to practice them. This is evidence that Arletta has developed __________ skills.

a) cognitive

b) metamemory

c) retrieval

d) classification

Learning Objective: LO 6.6 Analyze how memory changes as people age, and describe strategies for developing and improving memory.

Difficulty: Difficult

Skill: Analyze

EOC Q6.11

When questioned repeatedly, children are likely to describe with confidence events and situations that never happened. These descriptions are referred to as __________.

a) childhood exaggerations

b) infantile distortions

c) false memories

d) creative recollections

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOC Q6.12

When questioning children for legal purposes, the accuracy of their recollections can be improved by __________.

a) using a neutral setting, not a courtroom or police office, for questioning

b) avoiding direct questions in favor of asking for an open-ended description of events

c) reminding the children of the importance of truthfulness and precision

d) permitting parents or guardians to be present during the questioning

Learning Objective: LO 6.7 Describe applications of information processing approaches to the recall of events for legal purposes.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand

EOC Q6.13

Compared with code-based approaches to reading instruction, whole-language approaches focus more on __________.

a) making context-based guesses about word meanings

b) sounding out letters and words to discover meaning

c) using reading resources written specifically for beginners

d) familiarizing learners with the rules of spelling and pronunciation

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOC Q6.14

Which of the following is a critical thinking skill?

a) weighing alternative solutions to given problems

b) trusting one's instincts when tackling complex questions

c) making context-based guesses

d) using the dictionary to find a meaning of a word

Learning Objective: LO 6.8 Apply insights from information processing theory to classroom instruction.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Apply

EOC Q6.15

One clear advantage of the information processing approach over the approaches of Piaget and Vygotsky is its __________.

a) ability to account for intangible human processes such as emotions

b) focus on the whole being, as opposed to only isolated, limited parts

c) ability to take account of social and cultural factors in development

d) reliance on precise concepts that can be tested by research

Learning Objective: LO 6.9 Compare the strengths and weaknesses of the information processing approach and other approaches to cognitive development.

Difficulty: Moderate

Skill: Understand