WGU D570 Cognitive Psychology – Complete
100-Question Practice Exam with Answers &
Detailed Rationales | OA Study Guide
2026/2027
# SECTION 1 — FOUNDATIONS OF COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
### Question 1
What is the primary focus of cognitive psychology?
A. Observable behavior only
B. Unconscious conflicts only
C. Mental processes involved in acquiring, processing, storing, and using information
D. Personality traits only
**Correct Answer: C**
**Rationale:** Cognitive psychology examines internal mental processes such as perception,
attention, memory, language, reasoning, and decision-making.
---
,### Question 2
Which researcher is associated with one of the earliest experimental approaches to measuring
mental processes through reaction time?
A. Franciscus Donders
B. Sigmund Freud
C. B. F. Skinner
D. Abraham Maslow
**Correct Answer: A**
**Rationale:** Donders used reaction-time methods to estimate the time required for different
mental operations.
---
### Question 3
What does reaction time measure?
A. The amount of information permanently stored in memory
B. The time between presentation of a stimulus and a response
C. The number of concepts a person knows
D. The strength of a person's emotions
,**Correct Answer: B**
**Rationale:** Reaction time is the interval between the presentation of a stimulus and the
individual's response.
---
### Question 4
Which type of reaction time requires a person to respond differently depending on which
stimulus is presented?
A. Simple reaction time
B. Choice reaction time
C. Delayed reaction time
D. Sensory reaction time
**Correct Answer: B**
**Rationale:** Choice reaction time involves multiple stimuli and different responses
depending on the stimulus.
---
### Question 5
Who founded the first laboratory of experimental psychology?
, A. Wilhelm Wundt
B. Hermann Ebbinghaus
C. Ulric Neisser
D. Jean Piaget
**Correct Answer: A**
**Rationale:** Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig in 1879.
---
### Question 6
Which approach attempted to identify the basic elements of conscious experience?
A. Structuralism
B. Behaviorism
C. Functionalism
D. Evolutionary psychology
**Correct Answer: A**
**Rationale:** Structuralism attempted to analyze conscious experience into basic components
or sensations.
100-Question Practice Exam with Answers &
Detailed Rationales | OA Study Guide
2026/2027
# SECTION 1 — FOUNDATIONS OF COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
### Question 1
What is the primary focus of cognitive psychology?
A. Observable behavior only
B. Unconscious conflicts only
C. Mental processes involved in acquiring, processing, storing, and using information
D. Personality traits only
**Correct Answer: C**
**Rationale:** Cognitive psychology examines internal mental processes such as perception,
attention, memory, language, reasoning, and decision-making.
---
,### Question 2
Which researcher is associated with one of the earliest experimental approaches to measuring
mental processes through reaction time?
A. Franciscus Donders
B. Sigmund Freud
C. B. F. Skinner
D. Abraham Maslow
**Correct Answer: A**
**Rationale:** Donders used reaction-time methods to estimate the time required for different
mental operations.
---
### Question 3
What does reaction time measure?
A. The amount of information permanently stored in memory
B. The time between presentation of a stimulus and a response
C. The number of concepts a person knows
D. The strength of a person's emotions
,**Correct Answer: B**
**Rationale:** Reaction time is the interval between the presentation of a stimulus and the
individual's response.
---
### Question 4
Which type of reaction time requires a person to respond differently depending on which
stimulus is presented?
A. Simple reaction time
B. Choice reaction time
C. Delayed reaction time
D. Sensory reaction time
**Correct Answer: B**
**Rationale:** Choice reaction time involves multiple stimuli and different responses
depending on the stimulus.
---
### Question 5
Who founded the first laboratory of experimental psychology?
, A. Wilhelm Wundt
B. Hermann Ebbinghaus
C. Ulric Neisser
D. Jean Piaget
**Correct Answer: A**
**Rationale:** Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig in 1879.
---
### Question 6
Which approach attempted to identify the basic elements of conscious experience?
A. Structuralism
B. Behaviorism
C. Functionalism
D. Evolutionary psychology
**Correct Answer: A**
**Rationale:** Structuralism attempted to analyze conscious experience into basic components
or sensations.
