STUDY GUIDE #1 – SOCIOLOGY - MR. JENKINS
CHAPTERS 9-11 – 2015-2016
Chapter 9
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Describe Ivan Pavlov’s contributions to the field of psychology and, specifically, behaviorism.
Describe the rise of the school of behaviorism under John Watson’s leadership.
Describe the four steps necessary to instill classically conditioned behaviors, using classical
conditioning terminology. (Notes)
Describe how generalization, discrimination, extinction, and spontaneous recovery work regarding
learning.
Discuss John Garcia’s contributions to psychology.
Discuss Robert Rescorla’s contributions to behaviorism. (Notes)
Describe the Case of Baby Albert. How did this contribute to Watson’s downfall?
Name and describe the original idea that led to Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning?
What is meant by the phrase ‘learning by consequences? Explain.
Discuss how positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, omission training, and punishment
work regarding operant conditioning.
Describe the difference between primary and secondary reinforcers.
Describe the four possible schedules of reinforcement. Which is the most addictive and powerful?
Why is immediate reinforcement more powerful as a training tool than delayed reinforcement?
What are shaping and chaining?
Describe escape and avoidance learning.
Why is punishment not as effective as a training tool? What are its limitations and drawbacks?
(Notes and textbook)
Describe how the overjustification effect works.
Discuss Tolman’s idea of latent learning. What is a cognitive map and how does it work
according to Tolman?
Describe Wolfgang Kohler’s theory of insight learning, achieved through his work with chimps in
the early 1900s.
Describe Martin Seligman’s work with learned helplessness.
Describe Albert Bandura’s theory of observational learning. What four things must happen in
order for observational learning to actually affect someone’s behavior?
Bandura later changed his focus from strict behaviorism to a new model that combined
behaviorism with cognition (he called it Cognitive-Behaviorism). Describe the end result, his
theory of reciprocal determinism.
Describe how observational learning affects anti and pro social behaviors. How does the media
(TV, movies, magazines, internet, etc.) use observational learning to affect society?
Describe how token economies work.
Chapter 10
25. Present the information processing model. Explain the role of encoding, storage, and retrieval.
26. Describe auditory, visual, and semantic encoding. Be sure to discuss the differences with each in
terms of which is used most, which increases retention better, which is more effective in which
situations, etc.
27. Discuss how sensory memory works. What are the two types of sensory memory? Discuss
George Sperling’s sensory memory research.
28. Describe the duration and capacity of short-term memory. What is George Miller’s classic phrase
that defines the capacity of short-term memory?
29. How does chunking allow us to cram more information into short-term memory than we would
without using chunking?
30. Explain memory organization by chunking and conceptual hierarchies.
31. Discuss the serial position effect. Be sure to talk about the primacy and recency effects as subconcepts of the serial position effect.
32. Describe the duration and capacity of long-term memory.
33. Describe how flashbulb memories work.
34. How does long-term potentiation help to enhance long-term memory?
35. Describe the following bipolar LTM concepts:
a. implicit vs. explicit memory
b. declarative vs. procedural memory
c. semantic vs. episodic memory
d. prospective vs. retrospective memory
36. Describe the neurology of memory (hippocampus, cerebral cortex).
37. Discuss state-dependent and mood-congruent memory.
38. What is eidetic memory?
39. What is the difference between recall, recognition, and relearning? Define each.
40. Describe interference theory and how it proposes we forget material. Describe the two types of
interference regarding this theory.
41. Sigmund Freud discussed the idea of repressed memories, memories so painful that people
unconsciously bury the memories so they won’t think about them or be aware of them. Do you
think this happens in reality?
42. Discuss the role of rehearsal in memory (Pgs. 270, 284).
43. Describe how mnemonic devices work.
44. How does context affect our ability to retrieve information?
45. How can encoding failure cause us to forget or misremember events in the past?
46. Can time passing cause memories to decay? Explain decay theory, and how recent research has
cast some doubt on this theory.
47. Discuss Elizabeth Loftus’ work regarding reconstructive memory and misinformation effect.
Chapter 11
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Describe the various units of thought.
Describe the various different types of thinking.
Discuss how we classify objects by comparing them to mental prototypes.
How and why do we develop conceptual hierarchies?
Describe how insight, algorithms, and heuristics allow us to solve problems.
What are the two heuristics that are most likely to lead you to incorrect solutions? Describe why
they are dangerous to use.
Discuss how each of the following provide an obstacle to problem solving:
a. fixation
b. mental set
c. functional fixedness
d. confirmation bias
e. heuristics
f. overconfidence
g. framing
h. belief perseverance
Define language as an extension of cognition. What is metacognition?
What are phonemes and morphemes? What role(s) do phonemes and morphemes play in the
formation of words?
What is the role of grammar/syntax in language? What does semantics refer to?
Define the terms fast mapping, overregularization, overextension, and underextension.
Trace language development through all of childhood. Discuss all stages and milestones.
Describe the best way to create a child with fluent bilingual ability.
Compare the theories of Chomsky and Skinner on language acquisition and development.
Discuss the idea of a critical period for language acquisition and development.
Describe the four other theories on language acquisition (slides 8 and 9 on Ch. 11 PowerPoint).
64. Discuss the controversy surrounding animal language. Describe the early research teaching
monkeys’ sign language.
65. Discuss Whorf’s linguistic relativity hypothesis.