PSY 301, Introductory Psychology, 1999, Exam 3

Test 3

1. The process of getting information out of memory storage is called:

A. priming.

B. encoding.

C. relearning.

D. retrieval.

E. rehearsal.

2. Chess masters can recall the exact positions of most pieces after a brief glance at the game board. This ability is best explained in terms of: [NOTE: This question turned out to be ambiguous. Everyone gets credit. The technical correct answer, however, is B.]

A. flashbulb memory.

B. chunking.

C. iconic memory.

D. the serial position effect.

E. the method of loci.

3. After her last drinking spree, Karen hid a half-empty liquor bottle. She couldn't remember where she hid it until she started drinking again. Karen's pattern of recall best illustrates:

A. the spacing effect.

B. proactive interference.

C. the serial position effect.

D. motivated forgetting.

E. state-dependent memory.

4. The disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information is called:

A. state-dependent memory.

B. retroactive interference.

C. the serial position effect.

D. the spacing effect.

E. proactive interference.

5. Research on the misinformation effect indicates that:

A. events from the distant past are especially vulnerable to memory distortion.

B. people can easily distinguish between their own true and false memories.

C. hypnotic suggestion is an effective technique for accurate memory retrieval.

D. it is very difficult to lead people to construct memories of events that never happened.

E. a leader, such as Clinton or Reagan, can forget bad information faster than good information.

6. With respect to the controversy regarding reports of repressed memories of sexual abuse, statements by major psychological and psychiatric associations suggest that:

A. the accumulated experiences of our lives are all preserved somewhere in our minds.

B. the more stressful an experience is, the more quickly it will be consciously forgotten.

C. repression is the most common mechanism underlying the failure to recall early childhood abuse.

D. professional therapists can reliably distinguish between their clients' true and false childhood memories.

E. adult memories of experiences happening before age 3 are unreliable.

7. Prototype is to category as ________ is to ________.

A. rose; "flower"

B. rock; "mountain"

C. man; "woman"

D. rope; "weapon"

E. mountain; "rope"

8. At some point during the babbling stage, infants begin to:

A. imitate adult grammar.

B. make speech sounds only if their hearing is unimpaired.

C. speak in simple words that may be barely recognizable.

D. lose their ability to discriminate sounds that they never hear.

E. develop strong sexual urges oriented to the parent of the opposite sex.

9. Research on the language capabilities of apes clearly demonstrates that they have the capacity to:

A. vocalize the most common vowel sounds.

B. acquire language vocabulary as rapidly as most children.