Cognitive psychology worksheet with answers

Free printable Cognitive psychology worksheet: 8 problems from easy to exam level, with an answer key. Print it or save it as a PDF.

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Name: ____________________   Date: ____________

1.Easy

Selective attention is best illustrated by:

  1. ASolving an arithmetic problem
  2. BRecognising a face you have seen before
  3. CRemembering a phone number for a few seconds
  4. DFollowing one conversation at a noisy party
2.Easy

Knowing that you understand a topic well enough to stop studying is an example of:

  1. AHabituation
  2. BMetacognition
  3. CProactive interference
  4. DPriming
3.Easy

Who first measured the "forgetting curve" using nonsense syllables?

  1. AHermann Ebbinghaus
  2. BFrederic Bartlett
  3. CEndel Tulving
  4. DUlric Neisser
4.Medium

Encoding specificity means that recall is best when:

  1. AThe material is learned in a noisy room
  2. BInformation is learned in one long session
  3. CThe context at retrieval matches the context at learning
  4. DLearning happens just before sleep only
5.Medium

In Shepard and Metzler's mental rotation task, the time to decide whether two 3D shapes are the same:

  1. AIncreases with the angle between the two shapes
  2. BDecreases as the angle between them gets larger
  3. CIs the same whatever the angle of rotation is
  4. DDepends mainly on how complex the shapes are
6.Medium

Which statement best describes top-down processing in perception?

  1. AOnly the lower parts of the visual field are processed
  2. BPerception happens without any involvement of memory
  3. CPerception is built only from the raw features of the incoming stimulus
  4. DExpectations and knowledge shape how we interpret sensory input
7.Hard

Participants practise retrieving some items from a studied category (e.g. "fruit – orange"). Later, unpractised items from the same category (e.g. "fruit – banana") are recalled worse than items from unpractised categories. This is:

  1. ARetroactive interference from a new list
  2. BRetrieval-induced forgetting
  3. CThe testing effect
  4. DDecay over time
8.Hard

A patient with a long history of heavy alcohol use cannot form new memories and fills gaps with invented stories that he believes. This is typical of:

  1. AKorsakoff's syndrome
  2. BDissociative amnesia
  3. CWernicke's aphasia
  4. DRetrograde amnesia only

Answer key

  1. 1. D · Following one conversation at a noisy party
  2. 2. B · Metacognition
  3. 3. A · Hermann Ebbinghaus
  4. 4. C · The context at retrieval matches the context at learning
  5. 5. A · Increases with the angle between the two shapes
  6. 6. D · Expectations and knowledge shape how we interpret sensory input
  7. 7. B · Retrieval-induced forgetting
  8. 8. A · Korsakoff's syndrome

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