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.

New worksheetPractise online with hints

For teachers: free to print, copy and use in class. Every new worksheet has new values and its own answer key. A link to ExamProblems on your course page is appreciated.

Name: ____________________   Date: ____________

1.Easy

What is "chunking"?

  1. ARepeating information aloud to remember it
  2. BGrouping information into meaningful units to remember more
  3. CForgetting information in large blocks
  4. DSplitting attention between two tasks
2.Easy

Linking new information to things you already know, so it becomes meaningful, is called:

  1. AElaborative rehearsal
  2. BRote repetition
  3. CDecay
  4. DMaintenance rehearsal
3.Easy

A vivid, detailed memory of where you were when you heard shocking news is called a:

  1. AFlashbulb memory
  2. BIconic memory
  3. CProcedural memory
  4. DScreen memory
4.Medium

The serial position effect predicts that items in a list are recalled best when they are:

  1. AOnly at the beginning of the list
  2. BIn the middle of the list
  3. CAt the beginning and end of the list
  4. DRandomly placed, whatever the length of the list
5.Medium

People verify "A robin is a bird" faster than "A penguin is a bird". This finding supports:

  1. APrototype theory and graded category membership
  2. BThe multi-store model of memory
  3. CFeature integration theory
  4. DThe classical view that all members are equally good examples
6.Medium

Rubin's vase, which can be seen as a vase or as two faces, illustrates:

  1. ASize constancy
  2. BThe law of closure
  3. CRetinal disparity
  4. DFigure–ground organisation
7.Hard

In Sperling's experiments, participants saw a 3 × 4 grid of letters briefly. When a tone signalled which row to report immediately afterwards, they could report most letters of that row. What did this show?

  1. AHearing a warning tone improves visual perception of nearby letters in general
  2. BIconic memory holds only about four letters, however they are tested
  3. CMost of the display is briefly held but fades before it can all be reported
  4. DBriefly seen letters are transferred into long-term memory at once
8.Hard

Change blindness experiments show that people often:

  1. ANotice every small change in their visual field
  2. BSee changes only in colour, not in shape
  3. CAre better at spotting changes in faces than in objects in all cases
  4. DFail to notice large changes in a scene when the change happens during a brief interruption

Answer key

  1. 1. B · Grouping information into meaningful units to remember more
  2. 2. A · Elaborative rehearsal
  3. 3. A · Flashbulb memory
  4. 4. C · At the beginning and end of the list
  5. 5. A · Prototype theory and graded category membership
  6. 6. D · Figure–ground organisation
  7. 7. C · Most of the display is briefly held but fades before it can all be reported
  8. 8. D · Fail to notice large changes in a scene when the change happens during a brief interruption

Full step-by-step solutions: practise this topic on examproblems.com.