Psychology 132
Final exam
Fall, 2004
Professor M. T. Turvey
READ CAREFULLY: DO SIX QUESTIONS, ONE FROM EACH SECTION. BE
SURE TO ANSWER ALL ASPECTS OF A QUESTION.
Section A
1. Several potentially distinct memory systems have been identified. Distinguish (a)
implicit from explicit, (b) episodic from semantic, (c) working memory from long-term
memory, and (d) procedural from declarative. Provide experimental and/or clinical data
to clarify the distinctions using graphs and diagrams where needed.
2. The understanding of laterality has been advanced by studies of people with severed
corpus callosum. What are the major facts of the behavior and perception of such people
that help define laterality? Primary experiments have taken advantage of the eyeshemispheres and hands-hemispheres connections. Provide diagrams of these connections
and an overview of the experiments.
Section B
1. A number of factors affecting the hunger motive can now be identified. Organize
these factors and the evidence for them around the topics of (a) hypothalamus, (b) liver,
(c) neurotransmitters, and (d) negative feedback.
2. The major distinction in sleep behavior is that of REM sleep and slow-wave sleep.
Provide a detailed analysis of this distinction and in so doing address the two types of
sleep in respect to the general issues of (i) the function of sleep and (ii) the function of
dreams.
Section C
1. Develop the concept of phrase through a discussion of surface and underlying phrase
structures. Provide appropriate examples and diagrams to show how the concept is key
to explaining how sentences are understood. Use your discussion of the concept of phrase
to address the characteristic symptoms of the two kinds of aphasia.
2. Detail the language acquisition process in (a) the first 12 months and (b) the second 12
months of life. Do so in respect to phonemes, morphemes, syllables, syntax, and
propositions.
Section D
1. Detail through diagrams the procedures of first- and second-order conditioning. Pavlov
assumed that conditioning was based on contiguity and could be achieved equally well
with any two stimuli. Critically evaluate these two assumptions through a careful
exposition of contemporary data suggesting contingency, surprisingness, and
belongingness.
2. What is the relation of the CR to the UR in Pavlovian learning? Use examples of
conditioning involving blood-sugar level and pain-threshold level to demonstrate the
significance of the CR-UR relation. The application of the CR-UR relation to
understanding addictive behavior shares concepts with the opponent-process theory of
motivation. Explain what is shared through an account of tolerance and withdrawal.
Section E
1. Using diagrams of the neuro-anatomy and graphs of the primary experimental findings,
describe the major features of (a) duplex theory, (b) trichromatic theory, and (c)
opponent-process theory. State the relation of each of these theories to the doctrine of
specific nerve energies or qualities. Why is (c) a better theory of color vision than (b)?
2. Identify and discuss the importance of grouping principles, apparent motion, and
subjective contours to the perceptual theory advocated by Gestalt psychologists. What
experimental phenomena seem to have most significance for (a) Helmholtz’s theory and
(b) Gibson’s theory? Explain why.
Section F
1. Identify the following:
(i) partial reinforcement effect
(ii) temporal summation
(iii) law of mass action
(iv) feature detector
(v) parasympathetic system
2. Identify the following
(i) lock-and-key model of neurotransmission
(ii) phonemic awareness
(iii) Weber fraction
(iv) lateral inhibition
(v) encoding-specificity hypothesis