WGU D570 COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY OA AND PRE
ASSESSMENT EXAM 2025/2026 ACTUAL EXAM
COMPLETE EXAM QUESTIONS WITH DETAILED
VERIFIED ANSWERS (100% CORRECT ANSWERS)
/ALREADY GRADED A+ - 250 Questions and Answers Already
Graded A+ Premium Exam Tested And Verified
Subject Area Cognitive Psychology
Description This exam covers advanced topics in cognitive psychology including perception,
attention, memory, language, reasoning, decision-making, and cognitive
neuroscience. It tests the ability to apply theories and empirical findings to novel
scenarios, analyze experimental designs, and evaluate competing explanations.
Expected Grade A+
Total Questions 250
Duration 3 hours
Learning Outcomes 1. Critically evaluate major theories of attention, memory, and language
processing.
2. Apply cognitive principles to real-world tasks such as problem-solving and
decision-making.
3. Analyze experimental paradigms and interpret empirical data in cognitive
psychology.
4. Synthesize knowledge across domains to explain complex cognitive
phenomena.
Accreditation This exam meets the rigorous standards of top US R1 universities (e.g., Ivy
League) and is designed for courses with a strong empirical and theoretical
foundation.
Page 1
,1. A researcher uses a dichotic listening task with a shadowing requirement.
Participants fail to notice a change in the unattended message from English to
German. Which model of attention best explains this outcome?
A. Treisman's attenuation model
B. Broadbent's early filter model
C. Deutsch and Deutsch's late selection model
D. Lavie's perceptual load theory
Answer: B. Broadbent's early filter model
Broadbent's early filter model posits that unattended information is filtered out early
based on physical characteristics, so semantic changes (like language) would not be
noticed. Treisman's model allows for some processing of unattended stimuli if they are
attenuated, and late selection models assume all stimuli are fully analyzed before
selection. Perceptual load theory would predict that under high load (shadowing),
unattended information is not processed, but the specific failure to notice a language
change aligns best with early filter theory's assumption that meaning is not extracted
from unattended channels.
2. In a visual search task, participants search for a red circle among green circles
and red squares. Reaction times increase linearly with set size. What type of search
does this pattern indicate?
A. Feature search
B. Conjunction search
C. Pop-out search
D. Serial self-terminating search
Answer: B. Conjunction search
The target (red circle) shares features with distractors (color with red squares, shape
with green circles), making it a conjunction search. Feature searches typically show flat
reaction times regardless of set size (pop-out). The linear increase suggests serial
processing, but the key is that the search is conjunction-based, not feature-based. A
serial self-terminating search would also show linear slopes, but the question asks for
the type of search, not the processing mode.
Page 2
,3. A patient with damage to the hippocampal formation can recall events from
childhood but cannot form new episodic memories. Which of the following theories
best accounts for this pattern?
A. Standard consolidation theory
B. Multiple trace theory
C. Semanticization of remote memories
D. Encoding specificity principle
Answer: B. Multiple trace theory
Multiple trace theory posits that the hippocampus is always involved in retrieval of
episodic memories, even remote ones, but that remote memories have multiple traces
making them more resistant to damage. Standard consolidation theory would predict
that remote memories are independent of the hippocampus, which does not fit the
pattern of intact remote recall with impaired new learning. The semanticization
account explains loss of episodic detail over time but not the selective impairment.
4. In a lexical decision task, participants respond faster to the word 'nurse' when
preceded by 'doctor' than when preceded by 'bread'. This effect is most directly
explained by which concept?
A. Spreading activation within a semantic network
B. Episodic retrieval of prior associations
C. Context-dependent memory
D. Lexical ambiguity resolution
Answer: A. Spreading activation within a semantic network
The faster response to 'nurse' after 'doctor' reflects semantic priming, which is typically
explained by spreading activation along links in a semantic network. This activation
pre-activates related concepts, reducing processing time. Episodic retrieval would
involve specific prior episodes, not general semantic knowledge. Context-dependent
memory usually refers to environmental context, not semantic priming. Lexical
ambiguity resolution is irrelevant here.
Page 3
, 5. A participant is shown a list of words including 'bed', 'rest', 'awake', 'tired', and
later falsely recalls 'sleep'. This false memory is best explained by which theoretical
account?
A. Source monitoring error
B. Fuzzy trace theory
C. Activation-monitoring theory
D. Constructive memory framework
Answer: C. Activation-monitoring theory
Activation-monitoring theory specifically explains the DRM false memory effect: the
critical lure ('sleep') is activated automatically via spreading activation from studied
associates, and participants fail to monitor the source of this activation. Source
monitoring errors can contribute but are not the primary explanation. Fuzzy trace
theory distinguishes verbatim and gist traces, but the activation-monitoring account
directly addresses how false memories arise from associative activation. Constructive
memory is a broader concept.
6. A person with anomia has difficulty retrieving the names of objects but can
describe their function. This dissociation suggests a deficit in which component of
word production?
A. Phonological encoding
B. Lemma retrieval
C. Lexeme retrieval
D. Articulatory planning
Answer: C. Lexeme retrieval
Anomia typically reflects a problem at the lexeme level (the phonological form of a
word). The person knows the concept and can describe the function (semantic system
and lemma are intact), but cannot access the phonological word form. Lemma retrieval
involves syntactic features, not phonology. Phonological encoding and articulatory
planning are later stages that would produce phonological errors or distorted speech,
not pure word-finding difficulty.
Page 4
ASSESSMENT EXAM 2025/2026 ACTUAL EXAM
COMPLETE EXAM QUESTIONS WITH DETAILED
VERIFIED ANSWERS (100% CORRECT ANSWERS)
/ALREADY GRADED A+ - 250 Questions and Answers Already
Graded A+ Premium Exam Tested And Verified
Subject Area Cognitive Psychology
Description This exam covers advanced topics in cognitive psychology including perception,
attention, memory, language, reasoning, decision-making, and cognitive
neuroscience. It tests the ability to apply theories and empirical findings to novel
scenarios, analyze experimental designs, and evaluate competing explanations.
Expected Grade A+
Total Questions 250
Duration 3 hours
Learning Outcomes 1. Critically evaluate major theories of attention, memory, and language
processing.
2. Apply cognitive principles to real-world tasks such as problem-solving and
decision-making.
3. Analyze experimental paradigms and interpret empirical data in cognitive
psychology.
4. Synthesize knowledge across domains to explain complex cognitive
phenomena.
Accreditation This exam meets the rigorous standards of top US R1 universities (e.g., Ivy
League) and is designed for courses with a strong empirical and theoretical
foundation.
Page 1
,1. A researcher uses a dichotic listening task with a shadowing requirement.
Participants fail to notice a change in the unattended message from English to
German. Which model of attention best explains this outcome?
A. Treisman's attenuation model
B. Broadbent's early filter model
C. Deutsch and Deutsch's late selection model
D. Lavie's perceptual load theory
Answer: B. Broadbent's early filter model
Broadbent's early filter model posits that unattended information is filtered out early
based on physical characteristics, so semantic changes (like language) would not be
noticed. Treisman's model allows for some processing of unattended stimuli if they are
attenuated, and late selection models assume all stimuli are fully analyzed before
selection. Perceptual load theory would predict that under high load (shadowing),
unattended information is not processed, but the specific failure to notice a language
change aligns best with early filter theory's assumption that meaning is not extracted
from unattended channels.
2. In a visual search task, participants search for a red circle among green circles
and red squares. Reaction times increase linearly with set size. What type of search
does this pattern indicate?
A. Feature search
B. Conjunction search
C. Pop-out search
D. Serial self-terminating search
Answer: B. Conjunction search
The target (red circle) shares features with distractors (color with red squares, shape
with green circles), making it a conjunction search. Feature searches typically show flat
reaction times regardless of set size (pop-out). The linear increase suggests serial
processing, but the key is that the search is conjunction-based, not feature-based. A
serial self-terminating search would also show linear slopes, but the question asks for
the type of search, not the processing mode.
Page 2
,3. A patient with damage to the hippocampal formation can recall events from
childhood but cannot form new episodic memories. Which of the following theories
best accounts for this pattern?
A. Standard consolidation theory
B. Multiple trace theory
C. Semanticization of remote memories
D. Encoding specificity principle
Answer: B. Multiple trace theory
Multiple trace theory posits that the hippocampus is always involved in retrieval of
episodic memories, even remote ones, but that remote memories have multiple traces
making them more resistant to damage. Standard consolidation theory would predict
that remote memories are independent of the hippocampus, which does not fit the
pattern of intact remote recall with impaired new learning. The semanticization
account explains loss of episodic detail over time but not the selective impairment.
4. In a lexical decision task, participants respond faster to the word 'nurse' when
preceded by 'doctor' than when preceded by 'bread'. This effect is most directly
explained by which concept?
A. Spreading activation within a semantic network
B. Episodic retrieval of prior associations
C. Context-dependent memory
D. Lexical ambiguity resolution
Answer: A. Spreading activation within a semantic network
The faster response to 'nurse' after 'doctor' reflects semantic priming, which is typically
explained by spreading activation along links in a semantic network. This activation
pre-activates related concepts, reducing processing time. Episodic retrieval would
involve specific prior episodes, not general semantic knowledge. Context-dependent
memory usually refers to environmental context, not semantic priming. Lexical
ambiguity resolution is irrelevant here.
Page 3
, 5. A participant is shown a list of words including 'bed', 'rest', 'awake', 'tired', and
later falsely recalls 'sleep'. This false memory is best explained by which theoretical
account?
A. Source monitoring error
B. Fuzzy trace theory
C. Activation-monitoring theory
D. Constructive memory framework
Answer: C. Activation-monitoring theory
Activation-monitoring theory specifically explains the DRM false memory effect: the
critical lure ('sleep') is activated automatically via spreading activation from studied
associates, and participants fail to monitor the source of this activation. Source
monitoring errors can contribute but are not the primary explanation. Fuzzy trace
theory distinguishes verbatim and gist traces, but the activation-monitoring account
directly addresses how false memories arise from associative activation. Constructive
memory is a broader concept.
6. A person with anomia has difficulty retrieving the names of objects but can
describe their function. This dissociation suggests a deficit in which component of
word production?
A. Phonological encoding
B. Lemma retrieval
C. Lexeme retrieval
D. Articulatory planning
Answer: C. Lexeme retrieval
Anomia typically reflects a problem at the lexeme level (the phonological form of a
word). The person knows the concept and can describe the function (semantic system
and lemma are intact), but cannot access the phonological word form. Lemma retrieval
involves syntactic features, not phonology. Phonological encoding and articulatory
planning are later stages that would produce phonological errors or distorted speech,
not pure word-finding difficulty.
Page 4
