Question 1

Which of the following best describes the Stroop effect?

Accepted Answer

The Stroop effect refers to the phenomenon wherein it takes longer to name the color of the font used to spell out a color name if the color of the font is incongruent with the actual color named. In other words, if the word "red" is written in green ink, it takes longer to say "green" than if the word was written in red ink.

Question 2

The Stroop Effect is the phenomenon that people usually find it easier to

Accepted Answer

The Stroop Effect is a cognitive phenomenon in which it is easier for people to read a word than to say the color of its ink. This is because reading is an automatic process that occurs quickly and unconsciously, while color naming requires more conscious effort and attention. This effect has been demonstrated in numerous experiments and is widely used in psychological research. Therefore, option C is the correct answer.

Question 3

A cognitive psychologist wants to learn about how a person thinks when solving a problem. What is the primary difficulty with simply asking people to describe their own thought process?

Accepted Answer

People may not be aware of how they solve particular problems because much of the process may be unconscious or automatic. As a result, they may struggle to accurately describe their thought process.

Question 4

People performing a Stroop task will generally

Accepted Answer

The Stroop task involves naming the color of a word while ignoring the actual written word. This produces interference, which can lead people to make errors stating the word instead of the color. This effect has been widely replicated and is a hallmark of the Stroop task.

B, C, and D are incorrect because they do not involve the Stroop task or its effects. B describes attentional blindness, C involves semantic categorization, and D involves phonology and morphology, which are not relevant to the Stroop task.

Question 5

People who look at real words find it difficult to say the color of ink of each word, instead of reading the words themselves. This result is known as the

Accepted Answer

The Stroop effect is the difficulty in naming the colors of the ink in which words are printed when the word names a different color. This is because the reading process interferes with the color-naming process, resulting in a slower response time and higher error rates. The word-superiority effect refers to the finding that people are faster and more accurate at recognizing letters or words than simple visual patterns or individual letters. The availability heuristic is a cognitive bias in which people make judgments or predictions based on how easily examples come to mind. The representativeness heuristic is a cognitive bias in which people judge the likelihood of an event based on how well it matches a prototype or typical example.

Question 6

This chapter mainly concerns itself with which one of the following questions?

Accepted Answer

The chapter primarily focuses on the question of how we can measure thinking. The author discusses various methods and tools used for this purpose, such as IQ tests and cognitive psychology experiments.

Question 7

You are at a basketball game, and 100 students in one section are wearing matching white t-shirts, while one student is wearing a bright red shirt. You are likely to immediately notice the person in red

Accepted Answer

The concept of preattentive processing suggests that certain features, such as color, can capture our attention automatically and immediately, without the need for conscious effort. Therefore, the bright red shirt in a sea of white shirts is likely to stand out and be noticed without the need for systematic comparison or conscious attention.

Question 8

Which task is more difficult for an experienced reader to perform than it is for someone just learning to read?

Accepted Answer

This task involves overriding automatic word recognition and instead using cognitive processing to identify the colors. Experienced readers are more likely to automatically recognize and read the words, making it more difficult to switch to identifying the colors.

Question 9

Which of the following would you be most likely to find by a "preattentive" process?

Accepted Answer

A single red object is the most distinguishable feature in a group of gray and white objects, making it stand out preattentively. The other options require more attention and cognitive processing to recognize the unique feature.

Question 10

A student in one experiment is showing the Stroop effect. Which change in the usual procedure would probably stop the student from showing this effect?

Accepted Answer

The Stroop effect occurs when there is a mismatch between the color of the ink and the word that it spells. Writing the words in a language the student does not know will eliminate the association between the words and their colors, thus stopping the Stroop effect. Holding the page closer, writing in all capital letters, and speaking rapidly would not have a significant impact on the Stroop effect.

Question 11

The Where's Waldo books present elaborate drawings, each of which contains the character Waldo embedded somewhere in the drawing. Finding Waldo requires

Accepted Answer

Finding Waldo requires an attentive process, as it requires sustained attention and a search strategy to locate him within the complex drawing. Preattentive and postattentive processes refer to automatic and subconscious processing of information, which are not necessary for finding Waldo. The Stroop effect refers to the interference between reading words and naming the ink color, which is unrelated to finding Waldo.

Question 12

What is the Stroop effect?

Accepted Answer

The Stroop effect is the difficulty in naming the colors in which words are written instead of reading the words themselves. This is because our brain processes the meaning of the word faster than the color of the ink it is written in, leading to interference and slower response times.

Question 13

Dr. Rhea D. Zeiner has been hired to improve the cockpit of an airplane. She observes that the main row of control gauges has needles pointing in several different directions for safety zones. She corrects this problem by designing gauges that all point in the same direction when things are operating properly. This is an example of the effective use of

Accepted Answer

The scenario presented in the question is an example of utilizing preattentive processes, which refers to the subconscious ability to quickly process visual information without conscious effort. By designing gauges that all point in the same direction, Dr. Zeiner is facilitating the preattentive process of grouping similar visual elements together, improving the safety and efficiency of the cockpit.

Question 14

You are looking for a well-camouflaged animal in an exhibit at the zoo. Finding it will require

Accepted Answer

Finding a well-camouflaged animal requires an attentive process where the person actively searches and pays attention to their surroundings to locate the animal.

Question 15

The study of how people think, acquire knowledge, imagine, plan, and solve problems is called __________ psychology.

Accepted Answer

Cognitive psychology specifically focuses on the mental processes involved in those activities mentioned in the question. Semantic psychology is more focused on the meaning of words and concepts, functional psychology is concerned with the adaptive purpose of behavior, and operational psychology relates to optimizing the performance of individuals and teams in various contexts.

Question 16

You look at a series of gauges. Most have their indicators pointing the same direction (to the right), but one is pointing a different direction. You notice the odd one immediately, regardless of how many other gauges are present. This pattern indicates that you found the discrepant indicator by

Accepted Answer

This pattern indicates preattentive processing because the odd one out is immediately noticed without the need for conscious attention, suggesting that it is processed unconsciously and automatically. The other gauges may require more conscious attention to distinguish between them.

Question 17

In general, our attention is drawn to

Accepted Answer

Our attention is naturally drawn to things that are unexpected or deviate from our normal routine or surroundings. This is known as the "novelty bias."

Question 18

According to the Stroop effect, you would be likely say, "__________" if you were asked to name the color of ink of the word yellow written in blue ink.

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to the Stroop effect, you would...

Question 19

Psychologists use the term __________ to refer to your tendency to respond to or to remember some stimuli more than others at any given time.

Accepted Answer

The term used to refer to our tendency to respond to or remember some stimuli more than others is attention. This can be affected by factors such as our current goals, emotions, and level of arousal.

Question 20

When an object differs drastically from those around it in size, shape, color, or movement, we find it by a __________, meaning that it stands out immediately.

Accepted Answer

Preattentive processes are unconscious processes that occur automatically and quickly when a stimulus is first encountered, allowing certain features to stand out and capture our attention. This helps us perceive and attend to relevant information in our environment.

Quiz 8: Cognition and Language