WGU D570 Foundations of Cognitive Psychology
2026–2027 | Western Governors University
Cognitive Psychology Study Guide, Objective
Assessment (OA) & Pre-Assessment Exam Prep |
Cognitive Processes, Cognitive Neuroscience,
Perception, Attention, Memory, Language, Problem-
Solving, Decision-Making, Reasoning, Intelligence,
Cognitive Development & Practice Questions
Question 1: Which of the following best defines the scope of cognitive
psychology as described in WGU's D570 course?
A. The study of observable behaviors and their environmental determinants
B. The study of mental processes including perception, memory, thinking, and language
C. The study of unconscious drives and early childhood experiences
D. The study of group dynamics and social influence
CORRECT ANSWER: B. The study of mental processes including perception,
memory, thinking, and language
Rationale:WGU's D570 course description states that Cognitive Psychology examines
human mental processes, including how humans sense, interpret, think about, and
respond to information, and how they integrate new information with prior experience .
This encompasses attention, pattern recognition, memory, problem-solving, decision-
making, categorization, concept formation, and language acquisition . Option A
describes behaviorism, Option C describes psychodynamic psychology, and Option D
describes social psychology.
Question 2: Dr. Chen is conducting a study where participants must press one
button when they see a red circle and a different button when they see a blue
square. She records the time from stimulus onset to button press. Which
historical method is she most directly applying?
A. Ebbinghaus's savings method
B. Skinner's operant conditioning paradigm
C. Donders's subtraction method
D. Watson's behaviorist observation
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Donders's subtraction method
Rationale:Donders's subtraction method (1868) used choice reaction time tasks to
isolate the duration of mental processes by comparing simple reaction time (respond to
any stimulus) with choice reaction time (respond differentially to stimuli) . Dr. Chen's
task requires stimulus discrimination and response selection, making it a choice reaction
time paradigm. Ebbinghaus measured memory retention, Skinner studied reinforcement
schedules, and Watson rejected mental processes entirely.
,Question 3: A researcher wants to establish whether the left inferior frontal
gyrus is causally necessary for phonological working memory. Which
technique should she use to make causal inferences?
A. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
B. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
C. Electroencephalography (EEG)
D. Positron emission tomography (PET)
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
Rationale:TMS creates temporary, reversible "virtual lesions" by disrupting neural
activity in targeted cortical regions, allowing causal inferences about necessity . If
phonological working memory declines during left IFG stimulation, that region is
causally necessary. fMRI, EEG, and PET are all correlational methods that cannot
establish causal necessity .
Question 4: Patient H.M. could learn new motor skills but could not form new
episodic memories after bilateral medial temporal lobe resection. Which
concept does this case most directly demonstrate?
A. The unity of all memory systems
B. Double dissociation between declarative and nondeclarative memory
C. That working memory and long-term memory are identical
D. That semantic and episodic memory are completely independent
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Double dissociation between declarative and
nondeclarative memory
Rationale:H.M.'s preserved procedural/implicit memory alongside devastated
episodic/semantic encoding demonstrates a dissociation within declarative memory .
Combined with other patients showing opposite patterns, this establishes a double
dissociation between declarative and nondeclarative systems. The case famously
demonstrated memory fractionation, not unity.
Question 5: In a dichotic listening task, participants shadow one message and
can report physical characteristics of the unattended message but not its
semantic content. According to Broadbent's filter model, what happens to
unattended information?
A. It is fully processed for meaning and then discarded
B. It is filtered out early based on physical characteristics
C. It is stored in long-term memory for later retrieval
D. It is processed semantically but rehearsed only if relevant
CORRECT ANSWER: B. It is filtered out early based on physical characteristics
Rationale:Broadbent's filter model proposes that unattended information is filtered out
early in processing based on physical characteristics before semantic analysis occurs .
This explains why participants can report whether the unattended voice was male or
,female but cannot report its content. Option A describes late-selection models (e.g.,
Treisman's attenuation model).
Question 6: A student repeats silently what their instructor has said before
writing it down. According to Baddeley's model, which component of working
memory is the student primarily using?
A. Visuospatial sketchpad
B. Episodic buffer
C. Phonological loop
D. Central executive
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Phonological loop
Rationale:The phonological loop is the working memory subsystem dedicated to
holding and rehearsing speech-based information, consisting of a phonological store
and an articulatory rehearsal process . Silent repetition (articulatory rehearsal) maintains
verbal information in the phonological store. The visuospatial sketchpad handles
visual/spatial data, the central executive allocates attention, and the episodic buffer
integrates across systems .
Question 7: A person is trying to recall the names of seven actors whose
pictures were briefly presented upside down. Which component of working
memory connects with long-term memory to bring the actors' names into
awareness?
A. Phonological loop
B. Visuospatial sketchpad
C. Episodic buffer
D. Central executive
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Episodic buffer
Rationale:According to Baddeley's model, the episodic buffer serves as a temporary
storage system that integrates information across the phonological loop and visuospatial
sketchpad and connects with long-term memory . When recalling actors' names from
upside-down pictures, the episodic buffer links the visual representations with stored
semantic knowledge of the actors' names .
Question 8: Which of the following best describes the "what" pathway (ventral
stream) in visual processing?
A. Locating objects in space
B. Object recognition and identification
C. Motion perception
D. Depth perception
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Object recognition and identification
, Rationale:The ventral stream ("what" pathway) projects to the temporal lobe and is
primarily responsible for object identification and recognition . The dorsal stream
("where/how" pathway) projects to the parietal lobe for spatial location and action
guidance . A patient with visual agnosia from temporal lobe damage cannot name
objects by sight but can name them by touch, demonstrating intact perception with
impaired recognition.
Question 9: A patient cannot name a pen by sight but can name it by touch.
Which condition does this most likely represent?
A. Damage to primary visual cortex
B. Visual agnosia from temporal lobe damage
C. Damage to the dorsal stream
D. Prosopagnosia
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Visual agnosia from temporal lobe damage
Rationale:Visual agnosia disrupts object recognition while basic visual perception and
other sensory modalities remain intact . The patient can perceive the pen visually (intact
perception) but cannot identify what it is (impaired recognition). Prosopagnosia
specifically affects face recognition, and dorsal stream damage would affect spatial
processing rather than object naming.
Question 10: The McGurk effect demonstrates that perception is:
A. Purely bottom-up
B. Purely top-down
C. Influenced by multimodal integration
D. Unaffected by context
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Influenced by multimodal integration
Rationale:The McGurk effect occurs when hearing "ba" but seeing "ga" mouthed causes
people to perceive "da" . This demonstrates that visual speech information influences
auditory perception, showing that perception involves multimodal integration rather
than being driven by a single sensory modality alone.
Question 11: According to Gibson's ecological approach, perception is direct
and based on:
A. Unconscious inferences
B. Affordances in the environment
C. Internal representations
D. Bayesian probabilities
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Affordances in the environment
Rationale:Gibson's ecological approach proposes that perception is direct and does not
require internal representations or inferences . Affordances are the action possibilities
offered by the environment (e.g., a chair affords sitting). This contrasts with
2026–2027 | Western Governors University
Cognitive Psychology Study Guide, Objective
Assessment (OA) & Pre-Assessment Exam Prep |
Cognitive Processes, Cognitive Neuroscience,
Perception, Attention, Memory, Language, Problem-
Solving, Decision-Making, Reasoning, Intelligence,
Cognitive Development & Practice Questions
Question 1: Which of the following best defines the scope of cognitive
psychology as described in WGU's D570 course?
A. The study of observable behaviors and their environmental determinants
B. The study of mental processes including perception, memory, thinking, and language
C. The study of unconscious drives and early childhood experiences
D. The study of group dynamics and social influence
CORRECT ANSWER: B. The study of mental processes including perception,
memory, thinking, and language
Rationale:WGU's D570 course description states that Cognitive Psychology examines
human mental processes, including how humans sense, interpret, think about, and
respond to information, and how they integrate new information with prior experience .
This encompasses attention, pattern recognition, memory, problem-solving, decision-
making, categorization, concept formation, and language acquisition . Option A
describes behaviorism, Option C describes psychodynamic psychology, and Option D
describes social psychology.
Question 2: Dr. Chen is conducting a study where participants must press one
button when they see a red circle and a different button when they see a blue
square. She records the time from stimulus onset to button press. Which
historical method is she most directly applying?
A. Ebbinghaus's savings method
B. Skinner's operant conditioning paradigm
C. Donders's subtraction method
D. Watson's behaviorist observation
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Donders's subtraction method
Rationale:Donders's subtraction method (1868) used choice reaction time tasks to
isolate the duration of mental processes by comparing simple reaction time (respond to
any stimulus) with choice reaction time (respond differentially to stimuli) . Dr. Chen's
task requires stimulus discrimination and response selection, making it a choice reaction
time paradigm. Ebbinghaus measured memory retention, Skinner studied reinforcement
schedules, and Watson rejected mental processes entirely.
,Question 3: A researcher wants to establish whether the left inferior frontal
gyrus is causally necessary for phonological working memory. Which
technique should she use to make causal inferences?
A. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
B. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
C. Electroencephalography (EEG)
D. Positron emission tomography (PET)
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
Rationale:TMS creates temporary, reversible "virtual lesions" by disrupting neural
activity in targeted cortical regions, allowing causal inferences about necessity . If
phonological working memory declines during left IFG stimulation, that region is
causally necessary. fMRI, EEG, and PET are all correlational methods that cannot
establish causal necessity .
Question 4: Patient H.M. could learn new motor skills but could not form new
episodic memories after bilateral medial temporal lobe resection. Which
concept does this case most directly demonstrate?
A. The unity of all memory systems
B. Double dissociation between declarative and nondeclarative memory
C. That working memory and long-term memory are identical
D. That semantic and episodic memory are completely independent
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Double dissociation between declarative and
nondeclarative memory
Rationale:H.M.'s preserved procedural/implicit memory alongside devastated
episodic/semantic encoding demonstrates a dissociation within declarative memory .
Combined with other patients showing opposite patterns, this establishes a double
dissociation between declarative and nondeclarative systems. The case famously
demonstrated memory fractionation, not unity.
Question 5: In a dichotic listening task, participants shadow one message and
can report physical characteristics of the unattended message but not its
semantic content. According to Broadbent's filter model, what happens to
unattended information?
A. It is fully processed for meaning and then discarded
B. It is filtered out early based on physical characteristics
C. It is stored in long-term memory for later retrieval
D. It is processed semantically but rehearsed only if relevant
CORRECT ANSWER: B. It is filtered out early based on physical characteristics
Rationale:Broadbent's filter model proposes that unattended information is filtered out
early in processing based on physical characteristics before semantic analysis occurs .
This explains why participants can report whether the unattended voice was male or
,female but cannot report its content. Option A describes late-selection models (e.g.,
Treisman's attenuation model).
Question 6: A student repeats silently what their instructor has said before
writing it down. According to Baddeley's model, which component of working
memory is the student primarily using?
A. Visuospatial sketchpad
B. Episodic buffer
C. Phonological loop
D. Central executive
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Phonological loop
Rationale:The phonological loop is the working memory subsystem dedicated to
holding and rehearsing speech-based information, consisting of a phonological store
and an articulatory rehearsal process . Silent repetition (articulatory rehearsal) maintains
verbal information in the phonological store. The visuospatial sketchpad handles
visual/spatial data, the central executive allocates attention, and the episodic buffer
integrates across systems .
Question 7: A person is trying to recall the names of seven actors whose
pictures were briefly presented upside down. Which component of working
memory connects with long-term memory to bring the actors' names into
awareness?
A. Phonological loop
B. Visuospatial sketchpad
C. Episodic buffer
D. Central executive
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Episodic buffer
Rationale:According to Baddeley's model, the episodic buffer serves as a temporary
storage system that integrates information across the phonological loop and visuospatial
sketchpad and connects with long-term memory . When recalling actors' names from
upside-down pictures, the episodic buffer links the visual representations with stored
semantic knowledge of the actors' names .
Question 8: Which of the following best describes the "what" pathway (ventral
stream) in visual processing?
A. Locating objects in space
B. Object recognition and identification
C. Motion perception
D. Depth perception
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Object recognition and identification
, Rationale:The ventral stream ("what" pathway) projects to the temporal lobe and is
primarily responsible for object identification and recognition . The dorsal stream
("where/how" pathway) projects to the parietal lobe for spatial location and action
guidance . A patient with visual agnosia from temporal lobe damage cannot name
objects by sight but can name them by touch, demonstrating intact perception with
impaired recognition.
Question 9: A patient cannot name a pen by sight but can name it by touch.
Which condition does this most likely represent?
A. Damage to primary visual cortex
B. Visual agnosia from temporal lobe damage
C. Damage to the dorsal stream
D. Prosopagnosia
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Visual agnosia from temporal lobe damage
Rationale:Visual agnosia disrupts object recognition while basic visual perception and
other sensory modalities remain intact . The patient can perceive the pen visually (intact
perception) but cannot identify what it is (impaired recognition). Prosopagnosia
specifically affects face recognition, and dorsal stream damage would affect spatial
processing rather than object naming.
Question 10: The McGurk effect demonstrates that perception is:
A. Purely bottom-up
B. Purely top-down
C. Influenced by multimodal integration
D. Unaffected by context
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Influenced by multimodal integration
Rationale:The McGurk effect occurs when hearing "ba" but seeing "ga" mouthed causes
people to perceive "da" . This demonstrates that visual speech information influences
auditory perception, showing that perception involves multimodal integration rather
than being driven by a single sensory modality alone.
Question 11: According to Gibson's ecological approach, perception is direct
and based on:
A. Unconscious inferences
B. Affordances in the environment
C. Internal representations
D. Bayesian probabilities
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Affordances in the environment
Rationale:Gibson's ecological approach proposes that perception is direct and does not
require internal representations or inferences . Affordances are the action possibilities
offered by the environment (e.g., a chair affords sitting). This contrasts with
