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

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

  1. AFrederic Bartlett
  2. BEndel Tulving
  3. CHermann Ebbinghaus
  4. DUlric Neisser
2.Easy

Which type of memory stores facts such as "Paris is the capital of France"?

  1. AEpisodic memory
  2. BSensory memory
  3. CProcedural memory
  4. DSemantic memory
3.Easy

Functional MRI (fMRI) measures brain activity indirectly by detecting:

  1. AThe structure of white matter only
  2. BElectrical activity at the scalp
  3. CChanges in blood oxygenation
  4. DMagnetic pulses applied to the skull
4.Medium

According to the levels-of-processing approach, which task leads to the best recall of words?

  1. ADeciding whether each word is in capital letters
  2. BDeciding whether each word fits into a sentence
  3. CDeciding whether each word rhymes with "cat"
  4. DCounting the letters in each word
5.Medium

In Duncker's candle problem, participants must fix a candle to a wall using a box of tacks and matches. The solution is hard to find because people:

  1. ASpend too long trying to melt wax with the matches
  2. BDo not realise the candle has to be lit first
  3. CSee the box only as a container, not as a shelf
  4. DAssume the tacks are too short to hold the candle
6.Medium

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

  1. ADepends mainly on how complex the shapes are
  2. BIs the same whatever the angle of rotation is
  3. CIncreases with the angle between the two shapes
  4. DDecreases as the angle between them gets larger
7.Hard

When older adults recall autobiographical memories, they recall a disproportionately large number from roughly ages 10 to 30. This is called:

  1. AInfantile amnesia
  2. BFlashbulb memory
  3. CThe reminiscence bump
  4. DThe recency effect
8.Hard

H.M. practised mirror drawing over several days. His performance improved steadily, yet each day he said he had never done the task before. What does this show?

  1. AHis improvement came from rehearsal in short-term memory
  2. BMirror drawing depends mainly on the hippocampus
  3. CH.M. was only pretending not to remember the sessions
  4. DSkills can be learned without remembering the practice

Answer key

  1. 1. C · Hermann Ebbinghaus
  2. 2. D · Semantic memory
  3. 3. C · Changes in blood oxygenation
  4. 4. B · Deciding whether each word fits into a sentence
  5. 5. C · See the box only as a container, not as a shelf
  6. 6. C · Increases with the angle between the two shapes
  7. 7. C · The reminiscence bump
  8. 8. D · Skills can be learned without remembering the practice

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